A New Beginning in a New Land

by REDACTED99999

Rating: teen
Tags: Original Character, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Romance, King Sombra, Suicide / Self Harm, Human, Main 6, Princess Luna
Length: 300492

'Through worlds and sadness and loneliness, we found each other, and if we can be happy together, then maybe it will all have been worth it somehow.' - A man in love.

'Through worlds and sadness and loneliness, we found each other, and if we can be happy together, then maybe it will all have been worth it somehow.' - A man in love.

Jax wakes up in a forest. After a bit of confusion, he decides he wants to live, so he tries to survive.
Survival turns to living as he meets ponies, and although he tries to resist for a while, he finds out that ponies make great friends.
Then things get weird with magic, chaos magic, dark magic - pretty much all sorts of magic. Sombra makes a swipe for revenge, some sinister cult is working in the background, and somehow changelings are involved... or not?
It all leaves Jax pretty vexed. Luckily, he has Princess Luna to make him happy.

*Jax is my original character, he's not from any other fandom.

____________________________________________________________________________________
Events from movies and season 5 have not happened ^^

*Edited by MidnightBlossom from chapter 50 to 60, then preread by DJ7291993 from there and onwards.

Published 2015-01-25 16:10:01 UTC
Last updated 2018-02-01 08:26:54 UTC

Chapter 2

He had cleaned and bandaged his wound at what turned out to be a small river, or a big stream. It still hurt like hell when he took a step, or moved his leg, but maybe, just MAYBE he could be lucky enough not to get the wound infected. Then again, he cleaned it with water from a wild river, he didn’t think that would help him much. Or would it? He should’ve watched more Man vs. Wild when he had the chance. While tending to his wound he noticed that the wound he died from wasn't the only thing that had dissapeared. He didn't have a single scar on him. It was unnverving to say the least, but with no answers popping out of the blue, all he could do was accept it.

He realized that he was pretty thirsty, but he was pretty sure that unless it was a special stream, water from a normal river could kill you because of bacteria.

Choice 1: die of thirst.

Choice 2: test your luck and maybe survive.

He molded the choices in his head… heat kills bacteria, so if he cooked the water, he would increase his survival chances. He looked around. How do you make a fire? Flint stones can make a spark, and friction between wood can cause fire… No flint in sight. But then again, making a fire would take a while for a newbie like him, what if the branch-fucking-wolves came back? He sighed for the hundredth time. He wished he’d joined the boy scouts when he had the chance.

‘This is bullshit’ He thought angrily, as he punched the ground in frustration. He was supposed to be dead but he definitely wasn’t resting in peace.

‘Okay, focus now.’ He shook his head.

Choice 1: Risk a fire, if he could even get one started, and hope the branchwolves wouldn’t come back, or

Choice 2: Risk drinking the water as it is, and hope that water from another world or wherever he was, was clean and didn’t make him sick, and then hurry the fuck back up into that tree.

He looked around nervously. He didn’t think he could take the wolves in his condition, so he hurriedly drank from the river, and limped back to the tree. The water tasted weird, cleaner than he was used to but also kind of earthy.

A new problem presented itself as he made it to the tree: Jumping without using his left leg. He held back a sigh. ‘I am not going to sigh at every god-damn problem that presents itself’. He told himself as he crouched down on his right leg.

‘I can do this. Just like jumping with two legs… but with one.’ He almost facepalmed at his own thoughts. He needed a cape, mask, and a big CO on his chest, then he could emerge as Captain Obvious.

Jax smiled despite his situation. Suddenly he felt really up-beat. He could do this, no problem. All he needed to do was jump.

He had been in the position for to long, and his leg spasmed as he tried to jump. He cursed under his breath.

He succeeded on his fourth try.
***

He needed to make this more comfortable. He had tried to sleep in the tree, but had awoken often, mostly the times he felt like he was going to fall down, but also because it was so damn uncomfortable. The sun had risen and he had given up on sleep. But he was damn tired.

He climbed down the tree and made his way towards the striver (combination of stream and river). It was beginning to warm up and to that he was grateful. He was wearing an old sweater, over a blue t-shirt, and jeans. Not the warmest outfit. His worn sneakers were nothing special either.

The birds were singing, and it was slowly getting warmer, even though the night hadn’t been cold. Thank god he came here in what he presumed was summer. He would be half dead already if it was winter. As it was his left leg was giving him enough problems. It still hurt every time he took a step, but he convinced himself it was better than yesterday.

As he drank from the striver again, he noticed something that made him happy: fish! He could get some food!

His stomach rumbled. He needed this, but how? He went back to the tree to retrieve his fighting stick from the night before. It could double as a fishing rod maybe… But he didn’t have any string. A spear? It wasn’t sharp enough, and he had no way of sharpening it. If he had some flint he could shape that into a dagger, then tie it to the stick… with the string he didn’t have. He groaned in frustration. Humans now-a-day have it too easy. Why isn’t survival in the wild a requirement in school, like math… it could be instead of PE. What use did he have of being good at dodgeball now?! Then again, math didn’t help him in his current situation either… none of the knowledge he had from school helped him right now.

He looked at his stick in defeat. Then an idea came to mind. The inner bark of a branch could be used as a string! Well a bad string, but this solved one of his problems. Now he just needed to shape some flint into a dagger and BAM, he had dinner! Well breakfast really, but whatever.

Problem number 2: No flint in the proximity. And he knew nothing about shaping flint into a useful form. Also he needed a fire… and how long did it take to catch a fish with a spear?

He took some deep breaths. Stressing would NOT help. He had all day to get the hang of this. He could do it. One step at a time then:

Step one: Find flint stone. He needed to move from his beloved and safe tree. He should probably follow the striver. This relied so much on luck that he almost reconsidered. But he needed food, and to get food he needed a weapon. He turned to his right and started walking. Hopefully it was the right way.
***

The sun was now way over the horizon but hallelujah, praise the lord, thank his lucky stars, all that pain was not for naught. He was now on a small beach by the striver (maybe he should just decide whether it was a stream or a river?), and for once he had luck on his side. There was indeed flint among the stones. And was that a bush with berries on it, he saw there? Indeed it was! He started eating them greedily, until he didn’t feel so… exhausted. They tasted like raspberries. He took some with him back to the small beach, took a flint stone and a normal stone, lay the flint on a bigger rock that was coming out of the ground, raised the rock in his right hand… and stopped. ‘How the hell do I form it like I want to?’ He thought. ‘Well, nothing ventured, nothing gained.’ He started hitting the flint.
***

By sheer dumb luck he managed to get a daggerish looking flint on the second stone he tried. It took a long time, the sun was now high in the sky, and his ears were ringing from all the noise he had made. But he had now completed step 2: shape the flint.
Now on to step 3: make some string from bark.

He looked at his stick. He didn’t want to mutilate it, it had been too useful. He could mix this step with step 6: find some firewood. He went into the nearby forest, and quite easily found lots of dry wood and leaves, which he brought back to the beach, his new base of operations. He sat down and started stripping the first branch of its outer layer of bark, to get into the thing he needed: The more flexible second layer.
***

God this was taking a long time, and the berries could only do so much to keep his hunger at bay. He had finally completed step 3, and moved on to step 4: Attach the awesome dagger of death, to the mighty stick of awesome, using the unbreakable string of… death? No already used that… usefulness? Sure, string of usefulness.

This didn’t take as long but he was skeptic. The dagger could fall off any minute, he reckoned. But it was getting late and he still had to catch a fish and make the fire, and cook the fish… on something. He couldn’t just put it into the fire, he honestly didn’t think of that before. He looked at the bark he had just acquired. It would have to do. And so step 5 began: Catch a fish with the mighty spear of awesome unbreakable and useful death… He needed to rename it at some point.
***

The sun had gone down when he finally had a fish on his spear. Even after he had realized not to aim directly at the fish, but trick it into going a certain direction and then striking, it had taken a while, and the unbreakable string of usefulness wasn’t unbreakable at all. He almost lost his awesome dagger of death three times. But he finally had a goddamn fish. It was big enough that he needed to hold it in two hands. It was honestly the most beautiful fish he had ever laid his eyes upon… but maybe that was the hunger talking. He was so hungry but he still hadn’t made the fire… and standing in the striver for hours had made him cold. He reeeeaally needed this fire going.

Step 6: collecting the firewood, was already done, and he had stacked it neatly. He knew how to make a fire at least. The thing he wasn’t used to was using flint stones to do it.

Step 7: Start the fire… went better than he would ever have thought. After all the trouble with the fish he was getting nervous about not being able to do it, and his hunger pains hadn't helped, but the stars and the moon gave him enough light so that he could see what the hell he was doing. The night shone much brighter in this world, than in his old, thankfully. He managed to start it after his tenth try. It was some kind of miracle. Must have been because it hadn’t rained in a while. Finally he was able to start the step he had looked forward to the most:

Step 8: Cook the delicious fish! He was already drooling just by looking at the raw fish. Still…
“How do you cook a fish? Damnit…”
***

The cooked fish tasted fine. He had gutted it like he knew he should, but after that he was stumped. In the end he just put it on a big piece of bark and layed it on the edge of the fire, but that took too long, so he impaled it with a stick and put the it over the fire. But then the outer layer started cooking too fast, so he had to raise it a bit more, but the sand on the beach couldn’t support the weight, so he had to sit with it in his hand. But it tasted fine.

He felt pretty good about himself when he finally laid down to rest. He decided against sleeping in a tree, he honestly doubted he could even raise himself up into one, he was just so damn exhausted. He looked at the beautiful night sky for a while. It honestly looked amazing, there were far more stars than he was used to, and even though he couldn’t recognize any constellations, the sight calmed him down a lot. He fell asleep next to the fire, glad for it’s warmth, with a smile on his face.
***
He was standing in the room... that room. The darkness was bleeding out of the walls like blood. Maybe it was blood.
His dad’s last words “I loved you the most,” echoed in the darkness. The loneliness was pressing against him, he wanted to reach out, to reach for his friends, but just as his hand is about to raise... he lets it fall. Their backs are turned to him as they walk away, and he stays in the silent room, not really knowing why he didn't call out to them.
The darkness spreads like a curtain, and a small black horse with wings and a horn emerges from it with a look of pity and wonder. It tries to tell him something but her pity burns into him, and as she breaks the silence of the room he opens his mouth to ask for help.
Instead, he screams at it to leave. He screams and screams and screams until he is alone in the darkness again. And there he stays, all alone... so alone.

***

Far away, in a castle on a mountainside, princess Luna came back from the dreamworld looking troubled. The nightmare had been intense, and the creature having it was one she had never seen before, but one that must have been within Equestria for her to be able to enter its dreams. She looked up at the moon, shinning brightly in her sky. The darkness in the creature’s nightmare had been so lonely. She could still feel it clinging to her coat, making her recall her long imprisonment on the moon.

Even after her reformation, even after Discord, Chrysalis, Sombra and Tirek terrorized the ponies, even then a lot of them feared her still.

Though Ponyvile seemed to fear her less, and she had found friends among the elements of harmony, and of course she always had her sister.

Yet despite all she had, a part of her was convinced that it was more than she deserved.

She couldn’t deny that this night, and many nights prior to it… she felt as lonely as that creature seemed to be.
***

Jax woke up in a cold sweat. He had slept past the sunrise this time, but he still felt tired. He slowly got up and stretched. There was a brown bear looking at him from the riverbank. He almost fainted right there and then, such a shock is not good for you so early in the morning.

He thought quickly, what was that saying? If the bear is black, step the fuck back. If the bear is brown, lay the fuck down.

He instantly pretended to fall over dead, landing on his side, trying not to curse as his wound opened. Damn that hurt!
The bear just kind of looked at him funny, then resumed on it’s travels.

‘Well that was odd. He didn’t even sniff me or anything. And what was with that look he gave me?’ He pondered on it for a moment before deciding it wasn’t important. Actually he was glad it went this well. He sat up and looked down at his badly bandaged leg. He had used part of his pants for the bandage, it had been ripped by the branchwolf anyway, but he felt he needed to use some new bandages. How often should you change your bandages? He felt stupid for not knowing these kinds of things.
He needed a bath. But the river was cold and he didn’t have a towel. He looked over at the fireplace. The fire was burnt down, leaving only ashes. He needed to start a fire, take a bath, catch a fish, cook the fish and then… what? He didn’t have a goal. Surviving was his goal, so he should probably focus on that.

‘This beach is now my camp. I must fortify it so bears can’t just come walking in, or worse, branchwolves and whatever else this forest holds of dangerous animals. So I need to make an axe. And explore the area. Maybe there’s some fruit nearby that I don’t know off.’

And so, over the next month Jax began his quest to survive, exploring more and more of the area, upgrading his weaponry, making the spear of doom (his new name for it) more reliable (the dagger no longer falls off every ten minutes) and doing all in his might to survive the strange creatures that lived in this strange forest. He fortified the beach so well with thornbushes that he had to climb up a tree every time he needed to leave or enter, he made an axe, an extra dagger and even started hollowing a tree to make a small boat. But for all the work he did, it all seemed for naught
As he one day met something that was… terrifying.

Author's Note

Wow the rules for publishing ff on this site are really... tense XD How many chapters in a row do I have to publish?

Chapter 3

A month after Jax’ arrival

Fluttershy had a bad feeling. She was looking at the Everfree from her cottage, where birds where flying away in a panic from the same area. Her own small friends who were coming out of the fringes of the Everfree were acting nervous as well, and she couldn’t get them to tell her precisely what was going on. Something about a fight. She sure hoped no one got hurt... but she couldn’t shake the feeling that someone was getting hurt right now, and she couldn't just sit here and do nothing while creatures were getting hurt. Maybe they could settle things in a more peaceful way? Maybe they just didn’t know how. Then again, she had a feeling that this wasn't just two Everfree creatures arguing over territory. She looked at Angel Bunny who stood besides her, looking at the forest as well.

“Angel, um, if you don’t mind, could you watch things while I go and have a look? I won’t be gone for long, I promise.”

Angel just nodded his head seemingly absent-minded, before he looked at her with surprise. She started walking at his acceptance. Slowly, but steadily.

***

Fluttershy didn’t like the forest very much. It was dark, scary, and full of danger. Things were quiet. The birds no longer fled from… whatever it was that startled them, but she already had a good idea where she was headed.

She entered a small clearing, and sure enough, this must have been what all those poor birds were scared off. A manticore lay motionless on the ground before a tree. Moving a bit closer, carefully as to not wake it, she realized that something was wrong. Manticores don’t rest in clearings. They prefer more confined spaces.

She moved a little to the right, noticing for the first time that a being sat in front of the manticore, resting with its back to the tree. It didn’t seem to notice her but it was nothing like anything she had seen before. It looked pale… and there was a lot of blood coming out of a wound on its shoulder. She gasped as she noticed the reason the manticore just lay there. There was a spear in its eye. It was dead.

A tear formed in her eyes. She hated when animals and ponies died, even when it was a manticore in the Everfree.

The being had finally noticed her, and was looking at her with tired eyes. Like it couldn’t fight much longer. But what surprised Fluttershy the most was when it opened its mouth and spoke:

“You here to finish me off, pegasus?” It looked kind of amused. She couldn’t see why, it was clearly in grave danger

“Well you’re too late. Judging by the stinger on that beast, it’s probably venomous. Even if I patch up this wound, and I’m out off bandage, I will probably die anyway.” It looked sad now, she could understand why it would be. "And I had such a good run... damn... I can't believe I'll die again...."
Judging by the voice it was male. His lower body was covered with some kind of tattered clothing, while his upper body was bandages so many places it looked like he had clothes on there as well. The bandages seemed to be made of different kinds of clothing though, so she was surprised his wounds hadn’t festered. Maybe they had and she just couldn’t see it. His face was the only wound-free place it would seem. He had a dark brown mane, or patch of fur, on the top of his head and the area around his chin and mouth. His eyes were so small she couldn’t even see what eye-color he had.

He held an apple in his hand. When he noticed where she looked he spoke again, making her “eep” and hide behind the manticore in delayed momentary shock.

“This? I was gonna eat it as a victory snack, but seeing how I’m not gonna live long anyway… you can have it. What I really need is a smoke and some booze, but what are the odds of getting that? And… I had finally gotten over my need for it as well… but ain’t nothing like the stress of dying to remind you how good bad stuff really is.” She didn’t get much of what he was saying, but if he was willing to give her his last meal, then he must be at least a little kind. Kindness she could work with.

“Thank you but I’m not that hungry, you can eat it, I mean, unless you really insist” She spoke softly, she knew that, but she was afraid he didn’t hear her, because he just looked at her. She was just about to repeat herself when he started to laugh. Until he started grunting in pain at least.

“Of course it’s a talking pegasus.” He said with a smile, even tough she could see the pain in his eyes. “ Well I’m afraid I can no longer raise my hand… little talking pegasus. So go ahead… and take it. You can save it… for later… if you can’t eat it now. Just… don’t let it g…” She could see he had trouble talking, and he seemed to faint before he could finish his sentence. The venom from a manticore paralyzed its victim for a couple of hours, it wasn’t the problem here. The problem was the wound, and the blood he was losing. She needed to take him back home if she wanted to save him. And she did want to save him, without a doubt.

The only problem was that she was nowhere near strong enough to carry him, and they needed to move right now if she was going to save him, but how?
She heard some rustling behind her, and quickly hid behind the tree. Looking out slowly she realized it was just Mr. Bear.

“Oh good thing you came Mr. Bear... I need a favor. Could you carry this being back to my cottage for me, I am simply not strong enough to do it myself… please? it's pretty urgent.” Mr. Bear nodded his approval, went over to the manticore and seemed to consider how to carry something bigger than him.

“Oh, um, no Mr. Bear, I’m afraid Miss Manticore is already… well… uhm… I was talking about the one by the tree… If you don’t mind”

Mr. Bear looked at the being by the tree and said something about him looking familiar, only this time it looked more dead than last time. She was unsure what he meant by that, so she gently motioned to continue. He nodded again, and threw it onto his back, to Fluttershy’s grief not very carefully.

“Thank you Mr. Bear, that’s very kind of you. Just come to me the next time you need a massage.”

She took the apple that had rolled away into her mouth and ran ahead. She wasn't sure where it had come from, but she wasn't going to let it go to waste.

Mr. Bear nodded again as they hurried back to Fluttershy’s house.

Chapter 4

Jax was feeling… Alive. Again. Was this a reoccurring event, where he would die and resurrect each time? This time he was lying in what felt like a bed, with a nagging pain in his right shoulder. He remembered the lionscorpion with wings stung him in the right shoulder with its dying breath. That motherfucker just couldn’t go alone, had to drag him along, and he’d been doing so well! His abstinences had almost vanished, he had built a lot of muscle from the physical activities, and he even hadn’t gotten injured in like a week. Fucking Scorlion…

He took a deep breath, smelling that same earthly smell he had gotten used to in the forest. It didn’t feel like he was still in the forest though.

He finally opened his eyes, taking in his surroundings. He was in a small room, resting on a bed that was too small for him, beside a small window. His bandages had been replaced with real bandages, which felt nice and clean. He was sure his wounds had been cleaned as well. Some of them had started to fester, but he could do nothing about it at the time.

Except his shoulder, he felt pretty damn good. But… The last time he had died, his wound had completely disappeared. He still had all his wounds, also the one that caused his death. Maybe he didn’t die after all?

‘Thinking back, there was a talking pegasus there at the end. Such a small and frail creature… and this house is kind of small. So, following that logic, she somehow transported me back to her house, gave me an antidote for the scorlion venom, and treated all of my wounds… How did she even lift me?’ Jax let the subject go, maybe she was stronger than she looked or something… No use speculating.

There was a soft knock on the door. So soft in fact, that he wasn’t sure whether it was a knock or not.

“Come… in?” He answered hesitantly. The door opened all the same, and before him stood the same small, yellowish coated, pink maned pegasus as before, this time with a tray in her mouth which had a bowl of apples and a glass of water on it. She came in slowly, almost nervously, but managed to go over and put the tray on the nightstand, before taking a few steps back. What Jax found impressive was that she didn’t spill a single drop of water. He turned his attention back towards her as she spoke:

“I… I didn’t know what you can eat, so I just brought you apples because you were going to eat one when we met, so I know you can eat them, and water because every creature needs water… Umm… but if-“She stopped as Jax raised his hand. He had a smile on his face, as he spoke.

“Thank you. I do like apples, I’ve been eating way too many fish lately.” His voice was hoarse. He reached out and took the water. “You wouldn’t believe how hard it is to find an apple tree in that forest.” He laughed a little as he drank the entire glass and continued:

“But I take it you are the one that saved me from my imminent doom?” She nodded shyly.

“Then you have my sincere thanks miss…?”

The little pegasus looked a little surprised. “Oh, I’m sorry, I haven’t even introduced myself… My name is Fluttershy, erm no need for formalities, unless you really want to of course. And I wasn’t alone in helping you. Mr. Bear was the one who carried you here after all”

Jax smiled. This was by far the cutest thing he had seen in his life. She was even hiding behind her hair like a shy schoolgirl.

“Well Fluttershy, that was really kind of you and… Mr. Bear? I appreciate it. Really, you even cleaned my wounds and changed my bandages. My name is Jax. I hate to ask more of you but you see… I need to ask you some questions.”

Fluttershy looked happy as she answered:

“Oh no, Mr. Jax, it was no problem at all, I’m just happy to help a poor inno-“ Her smile disappeared as if she realized something, a sad smile taking its place as she changed her sentence:

“I’m just happy to help.” As if she regretted the last part.

‘She doesn’t think I’m poor and innocent? I guess I’m not as innocent as she seems to be, but I haven’t done anything atrocious. The only thing she knows about me though is that I killed that scorlion… Oh fuck I hope it’s not a sacred animal or something. But would she help me if it was?’ Suddenly Jax felt like sighing, a habit he had thought he was over. How to ask something like that? He decided to proceed with caution:

“That scor… that creature that… hmm.” He had trouble forming his question. He decided to just get out with it, Fluttershy looked confused enough as it was.

“Is the scorlion a sacred animal here? Did I offend you by killing it? I was just exploring the area when it appeared out of the blue and attacked me, I wouldn’t even fight it I had a choice… believe me.” He said as he rubbed his right shoulder.

That sad smile returned as she answered:

“You mean the manticore? No… It’s nothing like that. It’s because… Well… umm… I understand that you defended yourself. But… I don’t like… Death… And that manticore was pregnant, so you didn’t just kill her, you killed her unborn cub as well. Female manticores get more aggressive as their pregnancy comes to an end, that’s why she attacked you… probably. That’s why I’m… not happy. Not that I blame you for wanting to survive of course.”

Jax looked at her, amazed. He wasn’t even able to tell that the scorl… manticore was female, much less that it was pregnant. He felt a pang of guilt as he realized what he had done. But… he didn’t have a choice at the time… He couldn’t have known. Why did it even bother him so much? He sighed again. The blood of the innocent was never good to have on your hands.
***

Fluttershy was happy to see Jax didn’t just shrug the information off, but actually seemed to regret his action. Not that she liked to see him in pain, and she wouldn't have held it against him if he didn't, but she felt like he couldn't be bad if he felt guilt over something many ponies wouldn’t. That reminded her…
“Umm… Mr. Jax… what are you?” She quickly realized that the question could offend him and added, “If you don’t mind me asking.”
***

Jax, who was still mulling over his actions and how he wish he could have avoided it, returned his attention at the small pegasus in front of him. He couldn't help but wonder if the manticore had been sapient as well. That only made him feel worse though, so he tried to shake it off.

“We both have a lot of questions I’d wager. I’m a human, and no need to be formal with me either. Honestly, I don’t belong in this world, and by that I mean I came from… a different world. I don’t know how, or why, or even when: the days melted together in the forest. I don’t want to talk about my old world so please don’t ask, I’m not going back there. Other information you could find useful: I’m 20 years old, have no useful skills except my stubbornness and ability to survive in a forest for a time… but that’s not much of a skill.”

Fluttershy shook her head. “Not many ponies can survive in the Everfree for very long, certainly not as long as you seem to have done….”

Jax smiled at that, but Fluttershy continued talking:

“I’m also 20 years old, my only useful skill is to take care of animals. I certainly wouldn’t be able to survive in the Everfree for very long… It’s scary being in there in the day, I can’t even imagine how terrified I would be during the night….”

“So it’s called the Everfree? Well the night is the best part, when the stars come out at least, although I must admit that the first night was pretty damn terrifying… but I adapted. Now… where the-… Can you please tell me where I am?” He was just about to curse, but decided against it. Fluttershy seemed too innocent to curse in front of. It was a bad habit he hadn’t gotten rid of, seeing that he was alone in a forest he had no reason to. Quite the contrary, cursing helped him vent some anger when he got hurt, which was quite often, or when a pack of branchwolves appeared out of nowhere as they always did. He turned his attention back on Fluttershy who was giving her answer.

“Well… umm… You’re in Equastria. It’s… Hard to explain. Well I’m not very good at explaining… Twillight is go-“ Jax held up his hand as he exclaimed, “No! Please don’t involve anyone else. I’m not ready to meet more pegasi just yet… If that’s okay?”

Fluttershy looked conflicted. “Well… umm… I don’t like keeping secrets, but I can understand if it’s a bit too much for you. You are taking this really well if you really came from another world… I mean, not that I don't believe you….”

Jax smiled at the timid pegasus. She was really easy to be around. Normally he didn’t like meeting new people, but it just seemed like she accepted him on the spot. Even though he was a stranger from another world.

“Yeah well, after all that time in a forest where branches try to eat you, you learn to not doubt things. I have become really open-minded about the creatures in this world, and absolutely nothing will surprise me anymore. You’re taking this quite well yourself. So do you promise not to tell anyone about me yet? I’m sure I’ll be ready to meet your friends, one at a time in a controlled environment, soon.”

“Oh yes, I understand. I prom-“ She started answering before being cut off by a pink pony who smashed the door to the room open and quickly exclaimed, “Hey Fluttershy there you are, I was looking all oooooooo-“ spotting Jax sitting on the bed, she gasped like she’d seen a ghost, and ran away at the speed of light, or close to, before Jax could even register what had happened.

“That… Did kinda surprised me.” He stated, after finally figuring out what the hell just happened… Not that he entirely understood it. Looking out of the small window he could see a trail of dust leading to the small town close by.
“Well there goes that plan….”

Author's Note

So... New chapter ready. Enjoy.

Chapter 5

“NOPE!” Jax shouted as he held his hands over his head, on his way down the stairs. Fluttershy wasn’t happy with his reaction to the information she had just given him.

“But I’m sure Pinkie just wants to throw a party for you.” She said again. She wasn't big on parties either, but his reaction was not what she expected. “I mean, no one’s going to hurt you or anything, I promise. After the misunderstanding with Zecora, ponies are more careful with judging too fast. Umm… I mean it was some time ago, and a lot have happened since then, but I'm sure everypony will try their best to welcome you…”

Jax turned around to face her, and since they were on the stairs she was approximately in eye-height with him. He placed his hands on her whithers, looking very serious. “Fluttershy, you don’t understand. Parties where I don't know anyone are bad enough, but parties in my honor where I don't know anyone are a big nope. Everyone will look at me and judge me, and expect things from me, like smiling, but I’ll be too nervous to smile and they will be like ‘oh he doesn’t smile he must not enjoy himself’ and I’ll be like ‘no it’s not like that’ but they won’t understand that! And then I'll stand around awkwardly because, again, I don't know anyone!”
***

It wasn't that Jax wasn't big on parties, if it was with the right people. A party with a bunch of strangers was something completely different, especially with how much he would stand out. Fluttershy looked at him with a confused expression, so he went on. “I would honestly rather have them chase me out of town with pitchforks. At least then all I’m expected to do is run. It’s much less awkward.”

Fluttershy shook her head. “Well… I umm… I understand how you feel, I’m not too good at parties either… but I don’t think anypony is going to chase you out of town. Twilight wouldn’t allow it, and now that she’s a princess, ponies respect her even more.”

Jax looked at her. They had a princess in this little town? Why? He quickly shook himself out of it. He didn't know how big towns were around here, why was he judging it so fast? He hadn't even been in there, maybe it was a big town that just looked small from Fluttershy's window.

“Well be that as it may, I’m going back to the forest. Thank you for saving my life, I will return the favor one day.” He finished as he made his way down the stairs and walked toward the door.

Fluttershy didn’t seem content. Was she going to nag him all the way to the forest? At least he didn’t think she would follow him in.

“But….” She began, as she started following him. “You’re wounded. You really should rest some more. And how will you survive in the winter?”

He... hadn’t considered that. He didn’t even have his t-shirt and sweater, he had used them for bandages, along with most of his pants. The Everfree was many things, but forgiving was not one of them. Still, even if he stayed for the party… what after? He didn’t have any local currency, he couldn’t stay and parasite off someone. Especially Fluttershy, who had saved his life.
“Ehh… I’ll survive somehow.” He answered, as he exited the house. It was easier to just run off to the forest anyway. Looking toward the small town he noticed a pegasus with a rainbow trail, however that was possible, flying towards them. He had a bad feeling….
“Now, Jax, I know that you-“ Fluttershy started but cut off as Jax started a full sprint toward the Everfree, jumping over her fence like it was nothing.

Jax was determent to get the hell out of there before the rainbow pegasus could get close. He made it halfway to the forest before he was swooped up by said pegasus. She was FAST.

“So you’re the new face Pinkie was talking about." She looked down at him with a cocky smile. "Twilight wants to talk to you, so no running off just yet.” She flew him back to Fluttershy.

So Princess Twilight knew about him now. Great. How fast did this Pinkie organize this party? Or did she run straight to Twilight? And how strong was this rainbow-maned pegasus anyway, being able to fly with him?

Fluttershy looked disapproving at him, starting her sentence over. “Now, Jax, I know that you must be nervous, but we just want to get to know you. There is no reason for you to run off into the forest.” Jax wasn’t convinced. He was still trying to think of a way to bail without being scooped up by the rainbow pegasus. If he could time it correctly he could dodge her… probably.

Fluttershy could probably feel that he wasn’t convinced, so she went up to him, and placed her hoof on his shoulder by standing on her hind legs. She wasn’t exactly in eye-height, but the gesture was enough to get his attention and he looked down on her with surprise. “Please?” she asked simply.

Jax didn’t expect Fluttershy to be so insistent. Why did she care so much? As he looked down on those unnaturally big eyes, glowing with the hope that he would accept, he realized something. This was an offer he couldn’t refuse. It seemed like he would just have to accept it.
“Fine.” He said to her obvious joy. “I really don’t like how this is progressing. Are you sure this Twilight isn’t going to just imprison me?” He asked skeptically.

The rainbow pony started laughing. “Twilight would never do that.” It answered for Fluttershy. Now, where Fluttershy was obviously female, judging by voice, appearance and behavior, this pegasus was a bit harder to make out. Its voice wasn’t feminine, but not very masculine either. It had the same height as Fluttershy, but also a lot more muscle. Transgender? How do you ask something like that… “And you are?” he said in the end. Maybe it would drop a hint.

“Name’s Rainbow Dash!” ‘Oh great, their names tell you nothing about their gender’, “fastest mare in all Equestria.” ‘Oh thank god. I almost embarrassed myself there.’ As far as he could remember, mare was a female horse. So she was female.

“I agree. Twilight would never do something like that. Not unless you’re dangerous… You aren’t dangerous are you?” Fluttershy chipped in.

“Well, I don’t have malicious intentions.” He said, avoiding the question. How do you define someone as dangerous? He did kill that manticore, but it almost killed him. But that reminded him of something…
“Actually, there is something I have to take care off in the forest. You have a shovel?” He asked Fluttershy, who started blushing for some reason.

“Umm… If you need to go… you know… There’s a toilet in the house… If you wou-“

Jax raised his hand, cutting her off. Rainbow Dash was already laughing her ass off.

“No. I meant to go bury that manticore. If we have a couple of hours?” He turned towards Rainbow Dash, who looked confused.

“What manticore? Twi didn’t give me a deadline to bring you back, but I’m coming with you. Pinkie’s party will be the deadline I guess”
Jax was a little surprised. She wasn’t as trusting, or as afraid of the forest as Fluttershy was.

“You aren’t afraid of the Everfree?” he asked to make sure.

“There is nothing in the entire Equestria that scares me.” She stated with confidence. She seemed to be full off herself, and Jax had to spent the next couple of hours with her. He didn’t see this going well.

“Two shovels then?” He asked Fluttershy. He wasn’t going to argue but this put a damper on his plan. Some sleight of hand was going to be needed to get his spare dagger of indestructible power from the camp. Or a good lie. He would have to think about it on the way. He needed his mighty stick of awesome as well. No way was he going to let himself be imprisoned, even if these two were convinced he wasn’t going to be. Fluttershy came back dragging two shovels with her mouth, he didn’t even notice her disappearing.

“Well… let’s go then.” He stated after getting directions from Fluttershy.

Author's Note

So I'm keeping good on my promise to update once a week for now ^^ which is good, let's hope I can keep it up XD

Chapter 6

“So… are you Twilights henchma-… woma-… mare?” Jax asked as casually as he could while stumbling over his words in search of the correct term. They were slowly making their way through the forest. Rainbow Dash may have gone in all right, but she was twitching and turning towards every sound made, as if expecting an attack. Jax found it hilarious at first, because the mare had stated with so much confidence that she wasn’t afraid of anything, but decided to distract her with some small talk out of the goodness of his heart. Also, he was curious.

“What?” Rainbow answered, still turning towards every sound, before looking at Jax, realizing what he asked. “No. I’m her friend. Twi wouldn’t even refer to her guards as henchstallions or mares. Why do you ask?”

“When you came for me it sounded like you were ordered by the princess to get me back to her.”

“I wasn’t ordered, I was asked. Friends’ help each other out you know? Plus I’m part of her friendship council” She still seemed a little distracted by the sounds of the forest, but the conversation seemed to have calmed her down a bit.

“Yeah I guess they should… So, you any good in a fight?” He asked, with a distracted tone, as he dropped one of the two shovels he was holding, taking a firmer grip on the one in his hands.

She looked at him suspiciously, landing on the ground for the first time since Fluttershy’s house. Before she had kind of… hovered next to him. “Why do you ask?” Jax could tell that she misunderstood the situation.

“Because we’re surrounded by branchwolves.” He stated calmly.

She looked confused. “Branchwolves? What do you-“She started saying before the first one jumped out from its cover, green eyes looking directly at them, followed by three more around them.

“Oh, timberwolves.” She corrected him, sounding a little nervous but somehow still plenty confident.

“Timberwolves? Oh I get it… Cause they are made out of timber? In the shape of wolves?” He laughed a little at the pun. He should have thought of that! Ah well, too late for that now.

“Yeah… so funny” Rainbow Dash reminded him of the situation at hand. Branch/timber wolves were easy to deal with. The forest was a fairly confined space, so they wouldn’t merge into what he had dubbed 'The super wolf' which he had encountered once in a large clearing, so all they had to do was beat them up, wait for them to remerge, then beat them up again. The second merging took a great deal longer than the first, he had figured out after what felt like their hundredth encounter. After that, one could leisurely stroll away. He readied the shovel in his hand. He knew exactly what was going to happen: The first branchwolf would jump at him, aiming high, the second aiming low. The third and forth would try to jump at him from behind. He could see it in the way they circled him.

“Come at me with everything you have!” He shouted defiantly. He had started to shout before every fight to gather courage. It had been a habit he picked up the minute he decided to fight them instead of running from them. It felt good, he felt more courageous when he did it. Even though Rainbow Dash looked at him weirdly.

He could see the first one laying low, getting ready to jump at him… the timing had to be just right… Steady… he was just about to… NOW!

Just as he readied his shovel for the incoming attack, a rainbow trail flew past him and smashed the airborne wolf into a nearby tree. ‘Oh right. I’m not alone.’ He thought, disoriented. The pattern had been broken, and he didn’t know whether to get ready for the second wolf that looked as confused as him, or the two behind him. Instinct took over and he instantly turned around to face the two behind him.

The first of them jumped at him, and he quickly sidestepped before bashing it with the shovel. The second decided to go for his leg, but was smashed into a tree by a sideway shovel swing. It hurt his shoulder, his wound still fresh, but not so much that he couldn’t take it. He turned around to deal with the last only to see that Rainbow Dash had already taken care of it. So she could fight.

“Well done. Now let’s wait and double tap.” Jax said, going over to the first branch… timberwolf.

“Double… what? Don’t we have a manticore to bury?” Rainbow Dash asked, sounding confused.

“You don’t know about double tapping? It’s a safety measure… If we just leave them they will merge together in a couple of minutes, and most likely follow us. But if we wait a bit, we can destroy them again. It doesn’t kill them, it just gives us a couple of hours until they merge again.” He explained. It had taken him some time to find out about this weakness. Their other weakness was fire, but he didn’t want to tell Rainbow Dash about that time he burned an entire pack. He didn’t know how these equestrians reacted to killing timberwolves, all he knew was that Fluttershy was pretty upset about the manticore.

That reminded him… He forgot to eat the apples she gave. Damn… he was going to get hungry soon.

“Oh… I knew that” She answered with a bad poker face. He raised his shovel above his head, getting ready to beat the wolf that was already remerging.

“What was up with that shout though? You trying to scare them away or something?” Rainbow asked as he crushed the remerged timberwolf’s form.

“It’s… a habit. Even after fighting these wolves a hundred times, I still feel like I need it. It makes me feel… defiant. Like the world wants me to turn tail and run, but I refuse to be the prey. I don’t think you would understand.” She looked at him a second before answering.

“I think I do, though,” Was all she had to say about it.

***

“So…” Dash started. They had moved on after double tapping all the timberwolves, finding the manticore and started digging. They already had a considerable hole. “How did you kill it?” She finished, seeming kind of nervous, but maybe a bit awe struck. He went over to the manticore, taking out his spear of doom from its eye, only to find that the awesome dagger of death had broken. He had expected this, but it was still kind of sad. It had lasted longer than he had thought it would though.

“I was exploring the area, when it appeared out of nothing, like every other god da-… like every creature in this forest. I started backing up, but got backed into that tree.” He pointed at the tree he thought he was going to die by. “With no clear way to escape, I decided to fight. Between its giant paws and stinger, it wasn’t easy, but it seemed to be moving slower than it should. I realize now that it’s because it was pregnant… Anyway, in the end I got an opening and went for it. But it didn’t like that very much, so before it died, it stabbed me with its stinger. If Fluttershy hadn’t found me, I would be dead.” He finished, rubbing his injured shoulder. He was happy Rainbow Dash had gone with him, doing this alone would be even more exhausting.

“That’s kind of… cool.” She looked at him with a smile on her face before it turned thoughtful. “Sad, but cool. Don’t tell Fluttershy I said that. She’s very sensitive about stuff like that, but I know how tough a manticore can be. If you managed to beat it, that must mean you’re even tougher.”

It seems like he had earned some of her respect. It was good to know that not all of the equestrians would react the same way to the information. Although ‘cool’ wasn’t the word he would use. He just remembered something he forgot to ask before, because of the timberwolves.

“Rainbow Dash? What’s the friendship counsel?” Rainbow Dash kept digging while she answered.

“Tirek took everypony’s magic, we stopped him, a castle appeared and now we spread friendship.” She looked at his confused face. “Well that’s the short version anyway. I’m sure Twilight can explain more, or you can read that book she wrote.”

By now Jax could tell that he needed to see this Twilight to get any answers. The pegasi didn’t seem big on the whole explaining thing.

***

“Thanks for the help Rainbow Dash” Jax said as they finally decided the hole was big enough. Jax was aching many places, he was hungry and thirsty and his shoulder was burning. Thank god Rainbow decided to come along, he really hadn’t thought this through. It would have taken longer and hurt more if he had been alone. They had gone out late morning, and it was now early evening.

“We’re not done yet, we still need to get it down into the hole.” Rainbow Dash said, motioning from the manticore to the hole. “That thing is huge. It must weigh a ton, and we still need to get back to Pinkie’s party. No offence, but you don’t exactly look your best, covered in dirt. I think the only one that will mind is Rarity though. Anyway, let’s just push it in, cover it up and get outa here.”

Jax sighed. This had taken way more time than he thought, he didn’t mind being late to the party though. Maybe he could be so late that the party would be cancelled? It was an enticing thought but he doubted that. The mare beside him with the rainbow coloured mane (which was still weird but whatever,) would make sure he got there. He didn’t mind the dirt so much, the others could think what they wanted.

“Okay, let’s push at the same time.” They were both tired, but managed to push the manticore into the hole, and started filling it dirt again.

“By the way Rainbow Dash, I need to make a stop at my camp after this. It won’t take long, I just need to take a few things, then we can be on our way.”

He had originally meant to tell her to go back ahead of him while he went to the camp for his stuff, but by now he didn’t care. He was tired, aching all over, and he doubted Rainbow would go ahead of him anyway.

Rainbow looked a little grumpy at his suggestion though.

“Sure! Why don’t we stop by and get a hayburger on our way as well. Now that we’re at it, lets go take a dip in the lake!” Her sarcasm was real, but her suggestions were pretty good

“Actually… I am hungry, and I could use a bath. Although, are hayburgers made out of hay?”

She looked at me like she would come with some sarcastic answer, but she just deflated a little.

“Yeah… me too. And yes they are. Delicious, delicious hay…”

***

They covered the hole and made their way toward the camp by the striver. It was slow going since they were both exhausted.

The camp had evolved since his first day here. He had made a permanent fireplace, a roof using branches with leaves, which he had planned on making into a house when he had the chance, and the beginning of a small boat, which he never got to finish. The entire camp was surrounded by thorn bushes, which he had placed with much difficulty. He normally climbed up into a tree with branches that extended past the barrier, to get in and out. Furthermore tools like his axe made from flint, his spare dagger of indestructible power, and some flint to make a fire, lay spread about. He gathered all three of the tools, put the flint and flint dagger into the remains of his pockets, and looked a little at his axe, and his mighty stick of awesome, which he had brought along from the manticore burial.

“Err… You seem nice and all, but go into town with an axe and stick covered with blood, and ponies are going to be afraid. It’s bad enough that you look like a wild, dirt covered animal.” Rainbow stated truthfully. “No offense.” She added sheepishly.

Jax had to agree. He was taking it too far, his dagger would be good enough. He had to rename it though, it wasn’t his spare anymore… Well just “dagger of indestructible power” would do. He laid down the axe and went over to the striver to wash his face and hands. ‘Eh, what the hell’ he thought, as he jumped in instead, mighty stick still in hand. A few moments later Rainbow Dash joined him, by doing a triple backwards flip from the air. He got the feeling she liked showing off, but she seemed like a nice person… or pegasus rather. She had helped him with a rather unpleasant task, without a word of complaint after all.

“Impressive.” He said as she resurfaced. She gave him a cocky smile. “Rainbow Dash, I have to thank you for helping me out.”
“No need to thank me twice, I heard you the first time. Don’t worry about it, I took it as a workout. We really need to get going though. Oh and… What was your name again?”

“Oh right,” He answered as he facepalmed, ”I didn’t introduce myself. My name is Jax. Nice to meet you.” He extended his hand towards her, and after hesitating shortly she extended her hoof so he could shake it.

He drank some water from the striver, looked his mighty stick over, noticing that most of the blood had been washed off, laid his axe under the roof, and looked at the camp. It might be a while until he got back here, maybe he never would. He wanted to thank every single flint stone on the beach for being there, the fish in the striver for swimming in it, the berry bush nearby for growing there… All off them helped him survive to this day.

He turned around and followed Rainbow, who was waiting for him.

Author's Note

I had some trouble here with Rainbow's reaction. Also, I am running out of premade chapters :/ I have written one and a half more, but there's a very real chance that I will take longer than a week to upload chapters after those are done... but I'll try to do it :)

Chapter 8

They went to Fluttershy with the shovels, picking her up for the party as well.

Rainbow took the lead towards town, where a big castle was indeed visible. A big castle that looked kind of like a treehouse/castle made out of crystal. It looked out of place in the town, but whatever. Who was he to judge their castle locations. What worried him more was the towns’ reaction to seeing him. Well he was being thrown a party so it couldn’t be that bad, he hoped.

As they came into the town the first resident spotted him. She was mint green and had a lyre tat… cutie mark. Tat mark? Cutie tattoo? He would find an appropriate name later. What surprised him the most was that it wasn’t a pegasus… it was a unicorn. Just how many mythical creatures did this place have? Said unicorn looked at him with an expression of… annoyance? Well at least it wasn’t fear or hate.

“Can’t we even go a single month without something crazy happening in this town?! What is it now?” She pointed a hoof at him. She sounded like this was a normal occurrence: “Another villain? Is it going to try to eat us all? Or maybe whack us with that staff, or maybe –“

“Relax Lyra. He said he wasn’t dangerous” Rainbow Dash interrupted. Well he did say he didn’t have any malicious intentions, which was close enough. “Besides, you think I would be walking right next to him if he was dangerous?” Lyra looked at Rainbow, then at him, then realization seemed to hit her. “You’re the new pony in town! Pinkie did say something about being a bit different… She, as always, wasn’t specific enough. Many ponies are going to be surprised to see how… different he is. Why are you laughing?” She ended looking at him with an annoyed look again.

“I’m… I’m sorry,” he said between laughs “I just imagined me walking around, whacking ponies with my stick… I can’t get the image out of my head now.” Rainbow Dash soon followed suit and started laughing as well, Fluttershy adopted a small smile, and Lyra looked a bit remorseful.

“Yes… Well I’m sorry for snapping at you the moment you come into town. It’s just… it’s barely been a month since Tirek made a mess of things and… We just need a break, that’s all. I’ll believe Rainbow when she says you aren’t dangerous though, and I’ll of course come to your party.” She smiled at him.

These ponies were just too innocent. She apologized for having an almost perfectly normal reaction (he was expecting fear, but each his own), and now he was feeling guilty for laughing. He smiled down at her.

“It’s okay Lyra. My name is Jax, nice to meet you. I promise not to, with your own words, make a mess of things.” Lyra smiled up at him, obviously satisfied that he wouldn’t start whacking ponies with his stick. She went on her way, presumably towards the party.

“If we hurry up we can still make it to Twilight before the party,” Rainbow informed him “Let’s go Jax. You can make your way to the party Fluttershy. Maybe inform ponies that Jax is… well, different.”

“Oh… okay. I’ll just… do that. Yeah.” Fluttershy seemed a bit nervous about talking in front of many ponies at once. Rainbow adopted that soft look she had when we exited the forest and went up beside her to put a hoof on her shoulder, or whatever it was called on an equine. “Flutters, if you can sing in front of ponies, then saying a few words shouldn’t be that hard. It’s just so they won’t get shocked when they see Jax.”

“Singing is different, but I’ll try to do it anyway. I just hope nopony minds…” Fluttershy replied shyly.

“Of course nopony will mind! If anything they’ll be happy to hear your awesome voice.” Rainbow answered in complete confidence, cocky grin back in place. That seemed to calm Fluttershy down and they smiled at eachother for a second… two seconds… three seconds… okay this was awkward. Jax cleared his throat, snapping them out of it. Fluttershy went on her way, and Jax learned something new. Ponies could blush through their fur somehow.

***

Rainbow Dash led the way towards the castle. As they neared it, more and more of what he presumed to be guards started to appear, but apparently the presence of Rainbow Dash was enough for them to not try and arrest him. They did give him weird looks though, along with several other ponies that were still on the streets. It was late in the evening by now, and most of them were probably at the party or at home.
Jax decided to ask what was on his mind: “So are you and Fluttershy a couple?” Rainbow’s cheeks went from blue to red faster than the mare could fly.

“What?! No! Who told you that?” She asked accusingly, flying up to his face. Apparently the concept of personal space wasn’t big in Rainbows dictionary.

“Nobody.” He hastily assured: “Just the way you calmed her down seemed like you knew just what to say.” Rainbow looked at him for a bit before she landed again, and started walking. Trotting? Whatever. “Me and Fluttershy have been friends since we were foals. One of the reasons I decided to move down to Ponyvile was because she decided to live here. If you think she seems shy now, you should have seen her back then… She could barely form a sentence loud enough for anypony to hear.” Rainbow smiled up at him before continuing the story: “I’ve been looking out for her for as long as I can remember. A lot has happened, and we’ve all learned a lot from our adventures. One of the things I learned was to be… considerate of others. Fluttershy helped me with that. Now I want to help her open up a bit more.”

Jax looked down at Rainbow with a smile. Wait did she say… ”Adventures?”

He looked at her. She looked at him.

“Twilight?” He asked.

“Twilight.” She confirmed

They shared a laugh at that before Rainbow’s face consorted into worry.

“I hope Twilight isn’t mad for bringing you there so late…”

***

“Rainbow Dash I was hoping to question him BEFORE the party!” Twilight exclaimed as they entered her study. She looked stressed, like she had spent the last couple of hours pacing back and forth, wondering where they were. Rainbow looked apologetic. “Well then you could have told me that!” She said defensively. Jax had honestly expected an apology there. There were other things occupying his mind though, like how could Twilight have both a horn and wings? Was this a normal occurrence with pegasi and unicorn offspring? Was she a pegacorn? So many questions…

“It wasn’t Rainbows’ fault. She was just helping me.” He felt like he should defend her at least. Rainbow had already defended him from Lyra, the least he could do was to take responsibility for something that was more or less his fault.

Twilight focused on him now. She looked like she was about to say something, then stopped herself and took a deep breath, before smiling at him. “Hello, my name is Twilight Sparkle, Princess of Friendship. I had planned to get to know you better before Pinkies party, but for now I will only ask you this: Do you have any ill intent towards the citizens of Equastria?”

Jax looked at Rainbow who just smiled at him. He kneeled down to look into Twilight’s purple eyes before answering.

“Hello Twilight, I’ve heard a lot about you, and I hope that I can get some answers to all my questions from you later.” He exchanged an amused glance with Rainbow. “My name is Jax, and I can honestly tell you that I do not intend to do any harm unto the ponies of this land. In fact, I plan to treat them with every bit of kindness that they have shown me.”

Twilight seemed very pleased with his answer by the look of her warm smile.

“Very well Jax. I think it’s time we made our way towards your ‘welcome to Ponyvile’ party. There will be an official welcome tomorrow, with me and the mayor where you will be expected to say a few words. Tonight you are free to relax and have fun.”

“Tomorrow? Already?” Jax answered, surprise evident in his voice. “You guys work fast.”

“Well,” Twilight answered, a bit accusingly. “I had a few unexpected hours to prepare everything in.”

Rainbow Dash and Jax looked sheepishly at each other while Twilight wrote something on a piece of parchment, before calling for something Jax could only describe as a maid, telling her to go get someone named Spike. After that an awkward silence spread and Jax was unsure of what to do.

“Weren’t we gonna go?” he asked restlessly.

“I just need to send this letter then we’ll be on our way” Twilight answered.

Silence… His stomach decided to use this moment to growl loudly, reminding him that he hadn’t eaten the whole day.

“Can’t we do that on the way? Or latter?” Jax didn’t mind silence when he was alone, or with people he knew very well, but a growling stomach and almost-strangers was enough for this to become awkward.

“We would need to wait for Spike anyway, he’s joining the party. Besides, I need to let Princess Celestia know that an unknown sapient creature that speaks equestrian has suddenly appeared. I’m sure she would want to know-“

“Oh my god!” Jax exclaimed, pointing a finger at the entity that entered the room “a tiny dinosaur!”

“Dinosaur? I don’t know what that is, but I’m a dragon.” It responded, sounding offended. “And I’m not tiny…” It mumbled.

“It speaks! Wait… dragon?” Jax looked surprised at the purple reptile.

“Yes, Jax, Spike is a baby dragon I accidently hatched when I was still a filly.”

Jax went over to Spike, looking at him closely. He did kind of resemble a mythical dragon, except he was standing on two legs for some reason, was smaller than even the ponies, and didn’t have wings.

“I apologize Spike. I was caught by surprise, but I have a question if I may ask?”

“That’s okay I guess. Sure, ask away.” Jax smiled down at the baby dragon. He was very cool about the whole situation. Maybe Jax should start getting used to that soon.

“I don’t know much about this world but… Aren’t dragons supposed to have wings?” Twilight looked at him curiously.

“Do you know a lot about dragons? What do you mean with ‘this world’? Are you from a different world? Do you have a lot of dragons there? Are you-”

“Oh great,” Rainbow butted in, “you triggered her curiosity. Now we’ll never leave.” Twilight looked somewhat offended at that. She quickly gathered herself.

“Rainbow, I’ve learned my lesson. Being too curious can be dangerous. So to answer your question Jax, yes, dragons are supposed to have wings. I’m hypothesizing that Spike’s wings will grow out later. Not much is known about dragons though and I see no point in growing your wings later in your life-“ She looked at her own wings for a moment, flapping them gently “-but its seen before. I just hope it’s a magical process, instead of natural. Now, Spike, will you please send this letter to Princess Celes-“ She seemed to remember something, looked out the window at the night sky and changed the sentence “-Princess Luna.” She quickly crossed something over at the top of her letter and wrote something.

“Sure thing Twilight” Spike happily replied, taking the scroll from Twilight and setting it on fire.

Jax, who was completely unprepared for this gave a surprised squeak, jumping back into Rainbow who was standing beside him and stumbling over her.

“You were supposed to send it! Not set it on fire!” He said with some trouble as he was getting up. Rainbow was laughing at his expense, Twilight looked worried at him, and Spike confused.

“Would be pretty hard to send it without using my dragon fire though.” Spike replied, looking over at Twilight, as if expecting some explanation. Jax looked over at Twilight as well.

Twilight sighed, turning to Jax. “Spike did send it. His dragon fire deconstructs the letter here and reconstructs it at a chosen location, in this instance, Canterlot Castle. Now, we’re late to the party, so let’s go.”

Jax didn’t argue. This world was interesting to say the least. He needed to get control over his reactions though, he thought he had seen enough of this world to not act like an idiot every time something new happened. He held back a sigh. He could do this.

“Did you say Cant-a-lot Castle? What’s up with the puns around here?” He asked with a smile, getting one in return from Twilight.

“Canterlot. There actually is an explanation for that. You see…”

***

Not so far away a letter materialized in front of a dark blue alicorn. Luna was sitting on the night throne, preparing to go into the realm of dreams to help out ponies with their nightmares. Picking up the scroll with her magic she looked it over curiously. Twilight rarely wrote to her, to Luna’s dismay. She opened the letter and read it. Her eyes grew bigger with every word, until she closed it resolutely. Taking a moment to think it over, she made her decision. She quickly descended the stairs leading up to her throne, down to one of the two guards standing at the base.

“We art… I mean, I am going to see my sister. Should any visitors decide to visit night court for once, tell them it is closed and won’t open for a while.” The guard hesitated for a moment before nodding. Satisfied that she could leave her duties for a while, she teleported out in front of her sister’s chambers.
***

Back in the court Shadow Wing sighed when his princess teleported away. “I wish she would let us escort her, instead of teleporting everywhere.” He confessed to his fellow night guard.

“Yeah… it did look like she had a good reason this time though. That letter must have been important for her to wake Princess Celestia. I think it was from Princess Twilight.” His fellow bat-pony nodded his agreement, and they stood in silence for a moment.

“I wish someone would show up to night court. Did you hear Princess Luna’s voice when she said ‘for once’? She sounded sad… I wanted to tell her something encouraging but I didn’t know what to say.” Shadow Wing said after a while.

“I know. At least you weren’t here when she just got back from her… exile. She was in terrible shape, barely leaving her room for weeks at a time. Things got better after she visited Ponyville though, and she started helping folks in their dreams. It has cheered her up quite a bit.” The second guard, appropriately named Night Guard, smiled at the thought before he continued: “I was one of the bat ponies pulling her chariot to Ponyvile you know. First time she didn’t just teleport where she needed to go. Things almost ended in tragedy that night. Good thing Princess Twilight was there to salvage the situation. Princess Luna has been much more relaxed since then.”

Shadow Wing smiled at the veteran bat pony. He had joined the guard after Princess Twilight’s ascent, so he didn’t know much about things before then. “She helped my nephew with a nightmare. He asked me to give her a drawing he drew for her, but I can’t seem to find the right time to hand it over. When I asked him why he didn’t come give it to her himself, he said that he didn’t want to disturb her night court. I didn’t have the heart to tell him that ponies rarely come at the beginning of the court, then not at all for the rest of the night. I mean, shouldn’t all the bat ponies come now?” Shadow Wing’s voice went from sad to frustrated. “I mean, this is when we are awake! Don’t we have anything to complain about?”

Night Guard just shook his head. “You have to remember that we aren’t the most populated species. Probably half of us work as night guards, and you know the Princess treats us well, no guard would dare complain. The other half probably get fair wages for working night shifts various places.” He looked at the ground before a thought occurred to him “But maybe we don’t need ponies to complain.” He said, raising his head.

“What do you mean? I thought we wanted to help Princess Luna.”

“Yes, but all she really wants is to feel appreciated. There are other ways of doing that then dragging ponies in here. Like… A party.”

“A party?” Shadows Wing was skeptical.

“Yeah, a party. Ever heard of the Summer Sun Celebration? Where is the Winter Moon Celebration? WE could arrange it. If nopony else attends, at least all the night guards will.”

A grin spread on both their muzzles. “And I’m sure Celestia would love to help.” Shadow Wing added with excitement, already liking the idea. “We have about 5 months to get everything prepared. This will be the best party ever!”
***

In the Apple family’s barn a pink pony with a huge grin jumped onto the table. “This will be the best party ever!”

Author's Note

see? much longer :)

Chapter 9

“… So, in short, the puns are a way to honor Starswirl the bearded and his love for wordplay.” Twilight finished as they approached a red barn in the middle of an apple orchard.

“Fascinating. A bearded pony with a love for puns. I like him, too bad he’s dead. Sounds like an interesting pony.”

Twilight smiled at him and was about to say something but Rainbow Dash was quicker.

“Yeah, so exciting. Now can we stop with the egghead talk? We’re almost there.”

Jax looked at the barn they were nearing. He went over to the door in front of the others, starting to open it. “Isn’t it a bit quiet for a party? There isn’t even any light in here. Are you sure this is the right-“

“SURPRISE!!!”

“HOLY FUCKING SHIT!”

He jumped back into Rainbow Dash, who for the second time that day was positioned perfectly for him to trip over her.

“It’s a surprise party?!” He asked as he got himself up. “But I knew there was a party? I guess no one mention it was a surprise party… I did get pretty surprised… that’s actually kinda genius. Tell people there is a party but not that it’s a surprise party. No one will see it coming!” He contemplated, ending with a smile on his face.

“You sure didn’t” Rainbow snickered beside him as he dusted himself off.

“Thanks!” A pink pony appeared before him. “Everypony knows that I’ll throw a ‘welcome to ponyvile’ party to newcomers so ponies just tell them without thinking about it but that meant that the newcomers know about the party so I had to think of something for them to be surprised because we all know that you can’t have a surprise party if you know it’s a surprise party but then I realized that they didn’t know it was a surprise party so instead of making everypony pinkie promise not to say anything I just surprise them by having a surprise party instead of having a normal party they expect!” She finally took a breath, smiling up at Jax who was just staring at her. “And you were really surprised too! We were like ‘surprise!’ and you were like ‘holy fu-‘” Jax put his hand over her mouth before she could finish her sentence. She was standing on her hind legs, probably trying to imitate him, so he didn’t have to reach far down.

“Yes, Pinkie, I think we all witnessed that unfortunately.” He decided to change the subject quickly, hoping to avoid further blunders. “Nice to finally meet you. My name is Jax.” He took her hoof in his hand and gave it a shake, his other hand still on her mouth. “I really appreciate the welcome, but know that I’m often uncomfortable in the party scene, I want you to know that this has nothing to do with the quality of your party, but with me personally.” He lifted his hand off her mouth/muzzle, making her drop to all fours.

“That’s okay Jaxie, I’m sure you’ll like this one. Half the town turned up! And Lyra already explained how different you are, so no one is going to be afraid of you.” She gave him a giant smile, which he had to admit was kind of contagious, making him smile as well. He looked over the crowd of ponies looking at him.

“Hello everyone” He said awkwardly. Giving public speeches wasn’t his strong suit. “I want to thank you for coming and I would like to reassure everyone that- OH MY GOD IS THAT A CAKE?!” He interrupted himself as he pointed to a very tall cake on the table almost reaching the ‘welcome to Ponyvile’ banner that was hanging from a supporting beam overhead. It looked like somebody made a cake, then decided to make a cake on top of that cake and then continue to do so. Five times. It was the most beautiful thing Jax had ever seen.

A giggle sounded from above him, and he noticed that Pinkie had somehow climbed up on his shoulders without him noticing. “Of course it is silly filly. I made it for you! Well first I made one, then I remembered that you were really big, so you would probably be able to eat more than one, and I realized that I didn’t really know how much you could eat so I just made as many as I could because you probably haven’t gotten any cake in a while and everypony loves cake, but then I just had a lot of cakes and there wasn’t enough space, so I-“

She was interrupted from her explanation as Jax lifted her off his shoulder, looking at her with teary eyes. “Thank you Pinkie. Thank you so much for this. It’s beautiful.” He hugged her to his chest and she quickly returned the gesture.

“Let’s cut the cake!” Pinkie announced happily after the hug.

“How?” Jax asked with a huge smile that seemed to relax some ponies and unnerve others. Right now he didn’t care, all he cared about was finally eating cake again after so long… Well eating anything at this point would really be appreciated, but this was cake. The nights he didn’t have nightmares or dreamless rest, were nights filled with delicious cake. Cake and music were some of the things he missed the most, but at least he could sing to himself. Cake wasn’t easy to come by in the Everfree. Oh, also pizza. Can’t forget pizza.

“With a knife of course!” Pinkie stated, taking a knife out from someplace. She jumped up into the air towards the cake, and somehow managed to cut the perfect piece from the top of it, to the bottom. She got a plate from somewhere and handed the giant piece to him.

“Thanks Pinkie!” He said with a giant grin, ignoring the fact that it should be impossible for her to do as she did. He put the plate on the floor and started munching the cake from the top, not caring about how stupid he looked.

“ohhh… that’s good cake.” He said, in total bliss of the sugary treat.

A few ponies giggled at that, and Pinkie’s smile somehow became bigger.

“Heh, it’s a good thing ya so tall, partner.” An orangeish pony with a Stetson said. “otherwise that would be a pretty amazing feat.” He looked at her a bit, then around, noticing that the ponies had decided to cut the cake horizontally as well, so they had normal looking pieces on their plates. He almost felt dumb, until he took another bite that sent him straight back to heaven. Who cared what ponies thought of him right now. He had cake.

The Stetson-wearing pony only smiled brighter at him. “Name’s Applejack. Pleasure ta meet ya, Jax.” She said, as she put down a bottle she had somehow been holding in her hoof, and held out her hoof towards him. He looked down at his cake covered hand, which he had been using to make sure his piece didn’t fall over. With no paper in sight and his left hand occupied by his mighty stick of awesome, he decided to clench it into a fist and bump the pony on her outstretched hoof. “Hello Applejack, nice to meet you.” Somehow she took hold of his fist with her hoof and shook his hand with the strength of a… buffalo or something. How did she take hold of his hand with a hoof??

“Probably the same way she holds that beer or whatever it is. Just let it go Jax… Let it go…” He told himself. Wait… was that beer?

“Is that… is that alcohol?” He asked, not daring to believe, pointing down at Applejack’s bottle.

“This here is the best cider in all of Equestria.” She told him proudly. “I guess there is some alcohol in them. You would have to drink a whole lot to feel it though!”

Jax cracked his neck, getting cake in his hair in the process. “Challenge… Accepted!”

***

Back in Canterlot, Luna was waiting outside her sister’s chambers. The night guard on her right cleared his throat before speaking. “Princess Celestia sleeps pretty deeply, and hates being woken up. I suggest you knock a bit harder, your highness.”

“Thank you, my little pony.” She smiled at the helpful guard, who looked pretty pleased with himself. She knocked harder this time.

A minute passed and she contemplated whether to knock again or not, when her sister finally answered. “Come in.”

And that’s just what she did.

Her moon shone through the windows on the other side of the spacious room, illuminating it with its soft glow. The bed was a mess, but otherwise the room was tidy. Celestia stood in the middle, looking slightly annoyed, but otherwise like her usual self, nothing showing her recent rise from bed.

“Sister,” Luna started “Twilight Sparkle hath sent us a message” She always reverted back to her old speech pattern when she spoke with Celestia for some reason. She took out the message and showed it to her.

Luna

Dear Princess Celestia

A sapient, bipedal creature was found by Fluttershy in the Everfree forest. He goes by the name of Jax, and although I was hoping to have had more information on him by the time I wrote this letter, some complications came up.

He has yet to hurt anypony, and he has promised not to do so in the future. Judging by first impression, I would say he seems trustworthy. I think he has already formed a friendship with Rainbow Dash, I will ask her about it later, as well as get more information about him in general for a proper report.

Twilight Sparkle

“A sapient creature from the Everfree…” Celestia mumbled while reading before giving a tired sigh. “I see that this is important, but couldn’t it wait until tomorrow Lulu? You know how much I dislike being awoken.” Celestia gave her sister a tired glance, but Luna didn’t look remorseful at all. In fact she looked excited. “Do you not see sister? ‘Tis surely the creature we told thee about a month ago! We have not dared go into its dreams again, but now we do not need to! We can meet muzzle to muzzle!…" Then realization struck. "Wait. What if it recognizes us? What if it resents us for going into its nightmare unbidden? ‘Tis surely from a different culture, and it was certainly not happy to see us last time. Maybe observe it from a distance?” Luna had started muttering to herself about which approach to take when Celestia spoke up again, with a serious tone.

“Luna. Remember how Tirek’s brother Scorpan reacted to being spied upon? We almost put distrust between us, and without his help, Tirek would have taken over. You have to be careful when dealing with new sapient creatures. We need to know what he, not it, has as motives. Twilight has already made contact, she will figure everything out.”

Luna looked at her for a bit before shaking her head. “We do not wish to figure everything out. We wish to become friends with it. Him.” She quickly corrected.

A smile spread on Celestia’s muzzle. “From a distance?”

Luna looked down, suddenly very interested in the red carpet. “Only in the beginning. We shall find the proper time to introduce ourself. Until then, we shall make sure that nothing goes wrong.”

Celestia still smiled at her. “I am thrilled to see you take an interest in friendship Lulu. But what of your court? And haven’t you begun helping ponies in their dreams? How long will it take for you to ‘find the right time’?”

Luna smiled sadly back at Celestia. “We do not know Tia. Be it a day, a month, a year, we shall wait. We both know that almost nopony visits my court in the night, and we can raise the moon and venture into dreams from Ponyvile. We… I am so sorry Tia, to let you bear the full burden of bureaucracy once again, but I feel… I feel like I must do this.” A look of determination entered her eyes. She didn’t fully know herself why she was so determined to become friends with this Jax, but since she entered his nightmare a month ago, she has thought about him a lot. She wondered how he behaved, what he liked and disliked, where he was from… and most importantly, what that nightmare had been about. It had been far more intense than any nightmare she had seen in a pony, so much in fact that it still gave her shivers thinking about it.

Celestia suddenly stepped forward and wrapped her into a tight hug. “You are the only family I have Luna, and yet I had to banish you for a thousand years. You can’t even begin to understand how much I regret not being there for you when you needed me the most. I was so terrified when you came back as Nightmare Moon and not Luna as I had hoped. I was so scared that the elements would send you back to the moon, or that Twilight would fail, or something else would go wrong…” She could feel Celestia’s tears fall down onto her coat, while her own were slowly filling her eyes. “And then everything went better than I could ever had hoped for! Twilight and her friends connected with the elements so strongly that when they used them on you, you were free of the Nightmare. I finally had you back after a thousand years… We could be a family again. I was, and will always be, so grateful for that.”

“Tia… Why art thou…?” her voice was shaky and her tears finally broke free and ran down her muzzle.

“Because nothing has changed. I govern the day, while you govern the night. Ponies play and work during my day, while they sleep through your night.” Luna knew this, but hearing her sister say it was like a punch to the stomach. Her tears started falling faster as Celestia continued.

“I tried for a thousand years to let them see the beauty that the night holds, even though it was not as amazing as when you brought it. The progress was so slow that I didn’t even notice it at first. It was like they were mocking me, telling stories about Nightmare Moon to scare their children, and before I knew what to do there was a holiday dedicated to my worst memory. Still I kept going. Still I tried to make them see. And slowly, oh so slowly, ponies took an interest. Astronomers were born, night clubs were created. I had hoped that you would see that and rejoice” Her voice was sown with so much sadness that Luna almost couldn’t take it. It was rare for her sister to show this much emotion.

“Why art thou telling us this sister?” Luna tried again, her voice no more than a whisper as the tears kept falling.

“Because I can see how sad you are Lulu… and I don’t know what to do about it. Nothing has changed, I sit on the sidelines while you suffer. I promised myself that if you would ever be sad again, I would be right there with you. But my presence did nothing for you except make you feel like you needed to force a smile for me.”

Luna was about to protest. Celestia’s presence had done more to ease her sadness than that, but Celestia went on with a smile in her voice.

“Then the most wonderful thing happen. You come back from Ponyvile… with a smile on your face! A real, genuine smile. How good it was to see you smile again, how happy it made me. Then time passed, and even though I could see that you were happier than before, that smile was nowhere to be seen.” Celestia pulled out of the long hug to look Luna in the eyes, tears visible on both their muzzles.

“I guess what I’m trying to say, in a very roundabout way, is… I want to see you smile Lulu. If going to Ponyvile will do that, then I am all for it.” Luna gave her a small smile.

“Roundabout? You couldn’t have gone more around if you danced in circles.” Celestia giggled at that as Luna dried the tears from her eyes. “But I think we both needed this. Thank you sister, it means a lot to me to have somepony like you to rely on. Even if I don’t always show it.” They hugged one more time before Luna left. She felt lighter somehow, knowing that Celestia had tried so hard for her. That her sister cared so much, even after all that Luna had done to her....

As she teleported back into her court, she saw something pretty rare. Her guards had huge grins on their faces.

“Did I miss something?” she asked curiously. Guards were pretty stoic most of the time. Both of them looked startled at her.

“Ehh… Shadow Wing just told a funny joke, that’s all Princess.” Night Guard stated. Shadow Wing looked at his fellow guard with shock evident in his eyes.

“Oh really? I could use a laugh, why don’t you repeat the joke?” She looked at Shadow Wing, who in turn looked close to panic.

“Ehh… It’s not so funny really. It’s more that it came out of the blue really, not funny at all when you expect it…”

“Ah, but we would love to hear it nonetheless. If you would be so kind?” Shadow Wing sighed in defeat. Then, after a moment: “Two ponies walk into a bar. Knock knock.”

Luna looked at Shadow Wing for a while. Then a smile came to her face. “Ah, I get it. It is a play on the word ‘bar’, which can be both a place where you eat and drink, and an object, which will make a knocking sound if you walk into it, combining knock knock jokes with bar jokes.” She smiled triumphantly as Shadow Wing nodded, relief clear on his muzzle. “I guess you could say,” She continued, smile still on her lips, “That they got knocked out.”

Two surprised faces looked at her, before Night Guard started laughing like it was the funniest joke he had ever heard, soon joined by Shadow Wing.

Luna waited with a smile on her muzzle until her two guards calmed down. It felt good to make others laugh, she would have to practice her jokes. She believed Twilight would have a book on the subject somewhere.

“I’m leaving the castle for an unknown amount of time and night court will be closed for the duration. I have already informed Captain Chipped Armor, every guard will be informed at the end of the night. I will be leaving immediately.”

Shadow Wing stepped forward, looking worried. “How long will you be gone Princess?”

“I do not know little pony. It will take more than a week I wager.”

“But surely not more than 5 months? Right?” He looked at her hopefully and she almost felt bad for not knowing.

“I do not know. It could. Why do you ask?” She asked curiously. It’s not everyday guards spoke this freely.

“Oh… umm…”

“He’s just worried your highness. We both are.” Night Guard said as he stepped forward. “We wish you a safe trip Princess Luna. May the stars light your path, wherever it may lead you.” He ended with a bow. Luna smiled down at them both. The two things keeping her morale up were her sister and her guards. They both showed their good intentions this night and that made her happier than she had been in a long time.

“I will try to finish within 5 months if it means so much to you.” Her smile widened as they both looked up in surprise. Shadow Wing stepped forward with a smile on his face. “Princess, you helped my nephew Tight Hug with a nightmare some time ago. He asked me to give you this.” He took out a folded piece of parchment from under his armor which Luna took with her magic. It was a drawing of a young colt, the words ‘me’ written over him, and Luna, who had the inscription “The best princess in the world,” which almost made her giggle. She seemed to be talking to the colt about something.

“I remember! Tight Hug was afraid of being alone. Such a sweet young colt… Thank you for bringing this to me Shadow Wing.” She said as she folded the parchment again, putting it under her collar. “Now then, I shall be off.” She stated as she turned around. Shadow Wing and Night Guard both saluted at their princess.

Author's Note

If you haven't guessed already, the events from the movies haven't happened in this universe. Forgot to mention that.
Also, as I told Dj7291993, feel free to tell me about any spelling mistakes you find and I'll correct them as fast as possible.

Chapter 10

Applejack and Rainbow Dash turned out to be very competitive ponies. So the moment he had uttered the words ‘challenge accepted’ they had taken it upon themselves to be part of that challenge. Jax didn’t mind, it gave him someone to drink with. Applejack got a barrel of the stuff, some mugs, and they started drinking. They both seemed to be trying to keep up with his pace, which was pretty hard since he was drinking like he was dying of thirst. First of all, he had no trouble at all believing that this was the best cider IN THE ENTIRE UNIVERSE. Second of all, he really needed to get drunk. After everything that had happened since he arrived in this strange place, getting drunk, or at least tipsy, seemed like a well deserved treat. Between the cake and the cider he felt pretty damn spoiled as it was, and he felt fairly certain nothing could ruin his good mood this night. Watching Rainbow Dash and Applejack chug down their cider only added to his good humor and he soon had a huge smile on his face.

***

About half an hour into the party a voice rang out from a microphone. “Alright, it’s time to get this party pumpin’!” Looking around he noticed a white pony with a blue mane with a note as her mark standing in front of a turntable. Beside her stood a grayish mare with a treble clef as her mark, rolling her eyes.

“No way! How did you get Vinoc to perform on such short notice Pinkie?” Rainbow exclaimed, with her hooves on the side of her face, making her look like an excited kid. Pinkie, as seemed to be her usual way of arrival, appeared out of nowhere to give her answer. To his credit, Jax was only mildly surprised.

“I didn’t! They were in the neighborhood so I invited them, I guess they misunderstood or just wanted to make this super party even better!”

“Vinoc?” Jax inquired.

“Vinyl Scratch, aka dj Pon3, and Octavia something, I think she’s in an orchestra normally.” Rainbow clarified. “Two completely different ponies who play two completely different genres of music. About a year ago they surprised everpony by having a concert together, it was a huge success. It was so awesome that the Wonderbolts asked them to perform at their show!”

They started playing. Vinyl started with a slow beat, and Octavia complimented it with slow strokes of her cello. Then slowly they both started to build up to something. Silence… Then the beat dropped and Jax was hooked. With a huge grin on his face he moved his head up and down to the rhythm. Their music was hard to describe. Every sound Octavia made was enhanced and enforced by Vinyl, and vice versa. It was like they were complimenting each other… Or rather, like they were dancing with music. Jax noticed them smile at each other, obviously enjoying themselves.

He turned towards Rainbow who also had a giant grin of her own. She mouthed (muzzled?) the words “I told you so,” to him, and his grin only grew wider. Then the song ended with huge applause from everyone, Jax even let go of his mighty stick of awesome to clap along. The second song started out faster than the last, obviously encouraging them to go up to the dance floor. Jax almost dropped his cider when he noticed Twilight go up and drop some wild dance moves. Jax normally didn’t make a fool of himself willingly in public, but fuck it, this was a special occasion. He had cake, he had alcohol kind of, and he had music. Honestly, he hadn’t felt this good since long before he came to Equestria. He quickly drank the rest of his cider from the small mug that seemed to be the norm here, walked over to Rainbow Dash and took her under his arm, getting a surprised yelp from her, and looked at Applejack. “Coming?” He said, motioning over to the dance floor. She gave him a giant smile, before looking at Rainbow with a satisfied look. “Hey!” Rainbow sounded indignified, “how come she gets a choice?”

Jax shrugged and took Applejack under his other arm, getting an “What in tarnation?!” from her which was amusing in and of itself. She weighed more than Rainbow Dash but not so much that he couldn’t make it to the dance floor.

“Uuuhh what are we doing? Can I join? How do we play? Do I have to carry you? Hop on!” Pinkie said from Rainbow Dash’ seat, where she of course wasn’t a moment ago. She was standing with her side to him, obviously expecting him to get on. Normally he would decline because of a number of reasons, but normally he wouldn’t be making his way towards the dance floor with a pony under each arm. Besides, Pinkie had defied logic constantly and he was in his ‘fuck it’ mood.

Without further ado he… mounted her. God that sounded so wrong. To his surprise she didn’t collapse the moment he shifted his entire weight, counting Rainbow and Applejack as well, onto her. She did seem to struggle to walk but the dance floor wasn’t far, and Jax would like to imagine that they rode in elegantly and with style. Pinkie sure looked like she thought so, a huge satisfied grin on her face as he got off of her. Without further ado he put down Rainbow Dash and Applejack, who both looked somewhere between annoyed and amused, then dropped some wild dance moves. Pinkie joined him in his crazy jump style, which seemed to fit her quite well, and Rainbow and Applejack soon shrugged and joined as well. Three ponies and a human jumping around to the beat of the music drew attention, and soon everyone was imitating his jump style. It was awesome.

***

Luna arrived at Ponyvile half an hour after she set of. She was a fast flyer and Poyvile was relatively close. She was uncertain where to go for another half hour, until she flew over the orchard and heard some unusual music. It sounded like a mix of that horrible ‘music’ they played at night clubs, and the classical music she loved. Following the logic that Pinkie + new pony = party, and party = music, she followed the sound to the barn, where a party was most definitely ongoing. Ponies were walking in and out as they pleased, chatting happily amongst themselves.

Luna landed close enough to observe the party, but far enough to not be spotted among the trees. She laid down, getting ready for a night of sp- ehh… observing.

***

Fluttershy stood in the corner of the barn, being kept company by Rarity. She liked the music, she just wished the cello would play a little more, and the other thing a little less. Other ponies didn’t seem to think so though, so she kept her thoughts to herself.

She looked at the dance floor where Jax seemed to have introduced a new kind of dance where you jump around. It looked fun, but she knew she would never be able to do it herself.

“So uncouth.” Rarity said beside her. Looking over she noticed she was looking at Jax with a disapproving frown. “Cake in his mane and on his hoof, jumping around like a madstallion. Did you see how he arrived to the dance floor? Poor Pinkie looked ready to collapse!” Rarity looked over at her. “Oh I know darling, I shouldn’t judge somepony without even talking to him but… look at him! Look what he did to his only clothing! It’s ruined. Who does that to their own clothes?” She sounded genuinely upset.

Fluttershy looked over at Jax. The only clothing he had was the remains of his pants, most of which seemed to be teared off, and a pair of very worn shoes. The rest of him was mostly covered in the bandages she had applied yesterday. They were already dirty and she would have to apply new ones as fast as possible.

She gathered some courage. Rainbow Dash always told her to say what she wanted to say, and Rarity was always willing to listen. She took a calming breath.

“He had to use his clothes to make bandages. He has more scars and wounds than I have ever seen on a creature, and if he didn’t bandage them he would have died long ago. But uhm… I can see why you would be upset.” She ended, hoping she wasn’t being too straightforward.

“Oh… Oh my. That poor dear. Having to destroy his own attire just to survive.” Rarity looked at Jax again. “I guess I should really give him a chance, even if he does have cake in his mane.” She sighed. “Can you call him over dear? I just hope he doesn’t try to touch me with his cake-covered hoof. That would be simply terrible.”

“Oh uhm… Of course. I guess I can do that… after the song ends.”

Fluttershy did honestly try to get his attention, but he seemed to have too much fun on the dance floor to notice her, and if she was completely honest with herself, she wasn't putting her heart into it. He just looked so happy that it brought a smile to her own muzzle just looking at him. She could understand why Pinkie liked making others smile so much. Thinking back to just this morning where he seemed absolutely certain that bad things would happen, she couldn't help but feel a little proud of herself that she had made him come. It had required more courage than she thought she had to look him in the eye and ask him to come even though he obviously didn’t want to, but she couldn’t just let him go back into the Everfree. With all the scars and wounds he had, it was obvious to her that he didn’t belong in there, and he would certainly not survive. She couldn’t bear the thought of a creature dying when she could do something to help it.

Finally after two more songs Rainbow Dash whispered something in Jax’ ear and he looked over. After saying something to Applejack who went somewhere else, they came over.

***

Rarity had waited patiently while Fluttershy meekly tried to get Jax’ attention. Finally he was coming over with a huge smile and with Rainbow Dash flying beside him. He went straight over to Fluttershy and gave her a hug, which resulted in an ‘eep’ from her, and Rarity noted with satisfaction that he only used his clean left hoof to hug her.

“Fluttershy, I want to thank you for making me come here.” He said whilst hugging her. “This is the best party I’ve ever been to.”

“I told you!” Pinkie could be heard from the dance floor, still jumping around. Jax only chuckled, apparently already used to Pinkie’s… Pinkieness.

Rarity chose this moment to draw his attention with a small cough. “Hello darling, a pleasure to meet you” She said as she extended her hoof, which she was again pleased to see he took with his left appendage, giving it a gentle shake. “My name is Rarity, and I wish to personally welcome you to Ponyvile. I was absolutely horrified to hear what you had to do to your clothes, so as a ‘welcome to Ponyvile’ gift, allow me to make you new ones. Come by my shop tomorrow and I shall take the measurements I need.” Against Rarity’s expectation his smile completely disappeared and she briefly wondered if she had made some kind of mistake before he spoke again.

“But I don’t… I have nothing.” He looked genuinely upset, as if he had just realized it.

“Oh but I don’t want anything in return darling. That’s the point of a gift.” She said with a gentle smile. He returned a smile of his own as he bent down to be in eye-height with her, which was much appreciated. It made him look less… imposing.

“Thank you” He said softly. It was the most genuine appreciation she had received in a long time. She could almost see the gratitude through his green eyes. It was at times like these that she remembered why she was generous in the first place. Happiness rushed through her as her smile grew.

“Think nothing of it darling. It’s my pleasure really.”

“Well I appreciate it none the less. Tell me if you need any help with anything. Now, can someone tell me where the bathroom is? Having dried cake on your hand is only bearable for so long before it starts annoying you.”

“I’ll show you. I need to wash up the cake I got on my coat when you picked me up and carried me around. That was not cool by the way. Kind of fun, but not cool.” Rainbow Dash reprimanded with her hooves crossed.

Jax laughed at that. “Sorry Rainbow but I felt like dancing and the process of asking people is way too awkward, especially if you get shot down. I guess it was a rude way to do it and I apologize.” To Rarity’s joy he gave a little bow at the end.

Rainbow shrugged it off, smile back on her face. “It’s okay. I would have gone if you had asked though.” They shared a smile before Fluttershy spoke up. Well she talked in an audible volume, which was hard for her with the music playing.

“uhm… If you are going to the bathroom, I should go with you to change your bandages. If that’s okay with you Rarity.” Fluttershy looked at her, and she quickly waved it off. “It is fine darling, I would never stop you from tending to an injured creature.”

Rarity looked on as the three of them made their way out of the barn. She knew that many other ponies would misjudge Jax as quickly as she did, and she knew she had to do something about that. After all, she knew how quickly rumors could ruin a pony’s reputation. She looked over to a group of ponies whispering while looking over at Jax from time to time.

“Alright Rarity. Time to work your magic.” She said under her breath as she made her way over with a smile on her face.

***

Jax quickly learned that these ponies knew how to party! It would seem that they had a lot of practice thanks to a certain pink pony that loved throwing parties. He found out that she threw a lot of parties, sometimes with only a slither of a reason as to why. The most popular were the ‘welcome to Ponyvile’ parties though.

After drinking A LOT of cider, and a lot of toilet visits, Jax was finally tipsy and it was AWESOME. Of course at this point, Rainbow Dash and Applejack were all out drunk, which was hilarious. Applejack kept asking ponies if they wanted an apple and would get offended if they didn’t, in the end forcing ponies to accept them anyway. Rainbow Dash was trying to show off with some fancy flying, which had already resulted in three crashes so far. Anyone who told her that flying inside was a bad idea was met with some choice words that would maybe offend a five year old. It was a thing of beauty really.

Jax noticed that a lot of ponies were throwing Rainbow and Applejack looks like they were embarrassed, which made him feel like he should apologize for getting them drunk in the first place. On the other hand some ponies looked as amused as he was. He took in a deep breath. It was time to get those two under control. He didn't have to pull in a drunk friend in since a little over a year ago, when his friend Max had caused a major commotion at Liza’s party.

A frown appeared on his face. He hadn’t thought of Max and Liza in a while… He couldn’t help but wonder how they were doing without him. That frown quickly disappeared as he saw Lyra come towards him with a… What was she? Whiteish? Jax was never good with colors yet these ponies had so many. Anywho, she had candy as her mark which was interesting.

“Hey Jax I would like to introduce- Why are you laughing?!”

“I’m… I’m sorry Lyra” He said between laughs. “You’re just forever associated with Whack-A-Pony” He laughed a little harder.

“Bon Bon.” Lyra whined “How do you redo first impressions?” Bon Bon looked at her puppy eyed friend and then at Jax. She walked over to him and motioned for him to bend down which he did.

“Look, Lyra feels really bad about your first meeting,” She whispered. “So here’s the deal. You pretend this is the first time you two met, and I’ll give you free candy at my store. A lot of free candy. Deal?” She reached out her hoof.

Jax immediately took Bon Bon’s hoof and gave it a firm shake, turning around towards Lyra with a gentle smile, the laughter from a second ago completely gone. “Hello young mare, my name is Jax. Who might you be?” He said as he extended his hand. The promise of free candy was working wonders. He still felt like laughing but he managed to keep it together.

“Uhmm…” She looked uncertainly at Bon Bon. “I’m Lyra… Nice to meet you.” She put her hoof in his hand and he gave it a gentle shake. Just as he raised himself to his full height a certain rainbow maned pony crashed right into him, sending them both to the floor.

“Hey, watch where you’re standing you big… Oak… tree…” She was obviously having trouble finding the right words.

“But I’m not even a tree.” Jax answered with a huge grin. He was already looking forward to making fun of Rainbow tomorrow.

“Well you’re as tall… as… as one. A tree. You’re as tall as a tree.” Her frown turned right around as she looked at him. “I like you Jax. You’re fun.” She seemed to realize something. “AppleJax.” She said before bursting out in laughter.

“Alright I think you’ve had quite enough Rainbow. Look at me. I’m in charge now.” He picked her up and put her under his arm like earlier when they had made their way towards the dance floor. He turned towards Lyra and Bon Bon. “Excuse me ladies, but I need to find Applejack and make sure that these two don’t do anything stupid for the rest of the night.” Rainbow burst out in a fit of giggles as he said Applejack’s name. Lyra and Bon Bon both agreed that it was probably for the best if he found Applejack as fast as possible.

***

Jax looked at the pony in front of him. He was big, red, and had a green apple as his mark. “So Pinkie said you would know where Applejack is.”

“Eeyup.”

“Okay… Good. So where is she?”

“She was actin’ like a foal, so I sent her to bed.”

“Oh good. Good… You know, I feel like I must apologize. It’s my fault she got drunk in the first place.”

The big stallion, appropriately nicknamed Big Mac, looked at him for a while before answering. “Think nothin’ of it. She’s a grown mare, she can make her own decisions.”

“Yeah, we can make our own diciasions,” Rainbow said under his arm. “Now put me down!”

“You’ll thank me tomorrow Rainbow. Now, Big Mac, drunk people sometimes do stupid things… You think she’ll try to rejoin the party?”

“Nope. Was out as a light the minute she hit her pillow. Just like last time.”

“She’s been drunk before?” For some reason that surprised him.

Big Mac nodded, somewhat reluctantly. “Just once. When our parents died couple of years ago. Found grandma’s hard cider. Ah found her crying down by the river.” Jax suddenly felt bad. What do you even say to something like that?

“…Thanks Big Mac. I’m going outside if you need me.” Big Mac gave a nod as Jax went out of the barn.

***

Luna was so very bored. The music somehow became better the more you listened to it. It was almost too much when the cellist stopped playing and the DJ took over, but she endured and after 4 hours she was actually starting to enjoy it. Not much else to do. At night court she could at least venture into dreams and help out with nightmares, but that left her oblivious to the world around her, so she would not be able to tell if something happened. She had been discussing with herself for the past hour whether to go or not, when Jax finally came out of the barn, with… Was that Rainbow Dash under his arm?

Luna almost panicked when he started walking towards her hideout amongst the trees. She tried to get up but her legs betrayed her and she fell down again. She really should not have been laying in the same position all this time. He was almost there and she did not have time to teleport away. She held her breath as he… walked right past her hiding place.

She let go of the breath she was holding. She had forgotten how well her coat blended with darkness.

She got herself up again, this time being able to stand. After stretching a little she slowly followed after Jax. She could not help but wonder why he was walking into the orchard with Rainbow Dash. Two scenarios forced their way into her mind, one horrific, one embarrassing, both unwanted.

She shook her head. She didn’t want to walk in on any of those scenarios. Hopefully she wasn’t going to. She could hear Jax not far ahead of her. He would not be able to do much before she caught up, and if things got heated, depending on the situation she could either help out or trot the other way. Maybe gallop as fast as she could.

She shook her head again of the unwanted thoughts. There could be a lot of reasons why he was carrying a female out into an orchard in the middle of the night… Like… He wanted to talk about his feelings. That was it.

Luckily she was brought out of her musings by Rainbow Dash’ voice. “Jax, where are we going?”

“Well, since I’m apparently a tree, I thought I should be among my own kind.” He answered happily.

“Good thinking.” Rainbow laughed a little. “This have anything to do with what Big Mac said?” She sounded tired, like she was bound to fall asleep any minute.

“Partially. I didn’t know what to say, so I made my escape. There is a different reason as well though.” They had made it to a small clearing and Jax was making his way into the middle of it while Luna stopped on the edge. She could still hear the conversation as Jax continued his explanation.

“The other reason is this.” He motioned towards the star-filled sky.

“The sky?”

“The stars. Every night since I appeared here I’ve been looking at Equestria’s starscape, and I’m not about to stop now. I bet you don’t even realize how beautiful it is. No light-pollution, so you can see it in all its glory, and a giant moon that is full every night. It’s beautiful.” He said as he put down Rainbow Dash and laid down on his back. Rainbow Dash looked at him before lying down next to him.

Pride and joy rushed through Luna as a giant smile appeared on her face. He liked her night. He had walked away from a party and into the night just to enjoy her stars. He had looked at them every night for a month and he was going to keep doing so because he… he found it beautiful. Luna felt like giggling but got herself under control.

They laid there for an entire hour, and would probably have kept on doing so, until they heard voices calling for them. Luna flew up into a tree as Pinkie bounced past the place she was resting a moment ago.

“There you are. Big Mac said we’d find you out here. Vinyl said that she wants to relax for the rest of the night, but a party without music isn’t as good as a party with music, so I thought ‘who do I know that can play music?’ And then I realized that I don’t even know if you can play music Jax, so come on!” She started dragging him back into the party, Rainbow Dash following behind with a smile on her face.

After a while curiosity won out, and Luna followed as well, past her hiding spot so she could hear Jax’ performance.

***

So there he was, in front of a bunch of ponies, with a microphone in his hand. Jax tried to think of a song that was happy, and had a fast pace. This limited his options a lot. Their giant eyes were looking at him in anticipation and the pressure was limiting his thinking ability as well.

So he started singing.

It was hard to tell, but he was pretty sure most of the ponies loved it. And so, the party continued until late at night.

Author's Note

Ah here we go. Jax has now met the entire Mane Six. Great.
Anywho, I just finished writing this chapter right now, so I apologize if there's something that seems out of place or if I have a lot of grammar errors. Please comment if you find anything I should take a look at.
Also, this story has reached 40 likes! I am proud :3
And it is now over 20.000 words XD meanwhile Bad Mondays released a chapter that is 21.000 words... twice -.- Jesus man! calm down over there....
Anyway, this is the longest story I've written so far, I normally suffer from the lazy banana syndrome, where I write one or two chapters and then I never look at it again -.- I'll do my damn best to finish this one though :)

Chapter 11

Someone was poking him. That’s all he could register in his half-asleep state. The second thing he registered as he tried to turn around was that the floor was hard, but his head was laying on something soft and warm.

The poking turned into a gentle shaking of the shoulder as he started to grumble about needing more sleep. Then the shaking became a little too strong and he realized with a cry of pain that it was his injured shoulder that was being shaken. This seemed to be the signal for the rest of the body to tell him how stupid it was to sleep on the floor. Every bit of him seemed to hurt, especially his injured shoulder that burned with the intensity of the sun. He was really paying for disregarding the injury as quickly as he had, using his shoulder as if it wasn’t there at all. That’s what he had done with his other injuries, out of lack of choice though. In the forest he didn’t have time to lay down and relax until the injury got better, he had to find food and make sure timberwolves didn’t come too close to his camp. The way he was treating them, he was surprised he was still alive. He had a theory that bacteria were lazy in Equestria.

“Oh. Uhm… Sorry” Turned out princess Twilight was his own personal alarm.

“Was goingon?” His pillow, whom turned out to be Rainbow Dash, slurred out.

He was still in too much agony to say anything.

Rainbow looked around like a confused puppy before grabbing her head in pain. “Ahh… What happened last night?”

“You got drunk.” Twilight said with a disapproving tone. “You crashed four times while trying to fly indoors. I can only imagine how many more times you would have crashed if Jax hadn’t decided to carry you around.”

Rainbow Dash turned to Jax. “Thanks.” She said quietly.

“Don’t mention it.” He managed to get out through clenched teeth. They both looked at him with worry.

“Are you okay?” Twilight finally asked.

“No. Nothing you can do anything about though”

“I know a pain reducing spell. Here let me just…” She pointed her horn at him. He was just about to protest but was too late. Everything happened quickly after that: A violet aura appeared over his shoulder, it felt sort of like a hand putting pressure on it. Then it felt like the aura was violently rejected by his body, which caused it to fly like a projectile straight at Rainbow Dash, who was too dazed to react at all.

Good news: The pain was gone.

Bad news: Rainbow Dash was screaming like she had just been stabbed repeatedly.

For a second they both just stared at her, too dazed and confused to react at all while she was writhing on the ground.

“What did you DO?!” Jax yelled, near panic. He quickly slid over and placed Rainbow’s head on his lap so she wouldn’t hurt herself in her convulsions.

“I didn’t… it wasn’t supposed to… I…” Twilight stuttered in disbelief. “It was supposed to reduce pain, not transfer it!” Panic was rising in her voice as Rainbow’s screams were becoming unbearable to listen to. Jax wanted more than anything in the world to stop those screams that should never come out of a pony’s mouth.

“Well undo it! Transfer it back! Something!”

“I can’t cancel it because it’s no longer my spell!”

“Well then-!”

“What in tarnation is going on in here?!” Applejack interrupted from the barn entrance, Big Mac and a tiny pony behind her.

“Well then use the same spell you tried to use on me!” Jax finished his sentence.

“Rainbow Dash what’s wrong?” Applejack and co. hurried over to us.

“What happened to Rainbow?” The tiny pony who was probably part of the apple family asked, on the verge of tears already. She had probably never heard anything scream like they were about to die.

His own worry intensified.

“Twilight!”

“What’s goin on?”

“Eeyup!”

“QUIEEET!” Twilight finally snapped. “I’m trying to think! Jax I can’t use the same pain reducing spell because magical and natural pain are completely different. Everypony just give me time to think. I’ll figure it out.”

Everyone in the room shut up, while Twilight talked to herself. No one could hear what she was saying because Rainbow’s screams were too loud. It was like they were stabbing Jax right in the heart. This was his fault. She was experiencing his pain.

“Jax, let go of her.” Twilight finally said, catching Jax completely by surprise.

“What?”

Twilight looked determined. “You are most likely the reason the last spell went wrong. I don’t want to take a chance right now. Please let go of her.”

Jax looked at her for a second before he nodded and turned to Applejack. “Take her head. Make sure she doesn’t hurt herself.”

“Sure thing sugarcube.” Applejack nodded her understanding.

The second Applejack had gotten a good grip on Rainbow, Twilight’s horn started to glow, then Rainbow’s entire body was covered in her violet aura. A tense second passed, where everyone looked with anticipation. Rainbow seemed to tense up with everyone else, before her body relaxed and sweet silence finally covered the room like a warm blanket. Everyone looked relieved when the soul-piercing screams finally stopped.

“So… Would somepony finally tell us what’s goin’ on?” Applejack sounded very tired. The whole incident had lasted a minute at most, but Jax was exhausted as well. It felt like all his energy had been sapped out of his body.

“It was my fault.” Twilight said, her voice heavy with guilt. “I tried to cast a spell on Jax before making sure his body would react appropriately.”

Jax shook his head. “You couldn’t have known Twilight. Let’s just… Let’s get Rainbow to the hospital or something. Make sure she’s okay.”

Everyone agreed on that and Jax gently picked up Rainbow Dash, with both arms this time. She looked like she was asleep.

“So… What happened?” The tiny apple pony asked, sounding worried. Jax noticed she didn’t have a mark, which he would have to ask about later. Along with why the hell Twilight was waking him at sunrise.

Twilight explained what happened while they walked. Big Mac decided to stay behind on the farm to get started on work, while Applejack and momentarily dubbed Tiny Pony came with, making sure everything was okay.

***

Luna sighed in relief. Everything seemed to have turned out fine. She had just lowered the moon and was getting ready to sleep in a tree when the screams started. By the time she had found the source, the Apple family had already entered the barn. She must admit, it looked bad, Jax sitting with a screaming Rainbow like that… for a moment she had assumed he had done something bad. Then Twilight had called for silence, and Luna had seriously debated with herself whether she should go in and offer help or not. Before she could come to a conclusion the screams stopped, and the group was making their way out.

She was standing behind some apple trees, looking at them walking towards town. She had spent some time thinking last night, about how she could follow Jax when he went to town, and had concluded that an invisibility spell would be better than a transformation spell. She didn’t want to risk Pinkie throwing a ‘welcome to Ponyvile’ party for her, having to lie to everypony about who she was and why she was there. She didn’t even know how long she was going to stay.

She could, of course, see the bright side of the transformation spell as well. She would be able to talk with Jax without fearing him recognizing her, and it cost less energy to uphold. In the end she didn’t want to form any relationships on lies. She was Luna, princess of the night.

Of course there was nothing wrong with observing a bit before meeting. Nothing wrong with walking around invisible at all…

***

So it turned out that she was named Apple Bloom, not Tiny Pony. Who would have guessed? Another apple related name in a family who sell apples for a living. Nothing weird about that at all.

Jax was sitting in front of Apple Bloom in the hospital.

“So let me get this straight.” He said to confirm. “You, Apple Bloom, part of the Apple clan, are part of something called the Cutie Mark Crusaders, along with two others.”

“Eeyup.”

“And the purpose of the Cutie Mark Crusaders is to find your marks.”

“Eeyup.”

“Which appear when you find your special talent.

“That’s correct.”

“And instead of sitting down and thinking about what your good at, you just try a bunch of random stuff?”

“We have thought about it! If we knew what we were good at we would already have our cutie marks.” The frown adorning her face soon turned into a smile. “Hey! Maybe our cutie marks have something to do with you!”

“Well that would suck.” Jax answered honestly. Apple Bloom looked at him in shock, obviously having trouble understanding.

“I’m fairly certain I’m the only one of my kind on this planet.” He explained. “I can’t be a hundred percent certain, but if I am, whoever gets a mark that’s human related would have to stick with me wherever I may go, whatever I may do, for the rest of my or her life if she wants to keep doing what she’s good at. And even then she would have to get a job, because I’m fairly certain I don’t have the capital to pay anyone to follow me around.”

Apple Bloom looked crestfallen. “Oh… I guess that makes sense.”

He was just about to cheer her up when the doctor came out to the waiting room. They all got up as he headed over to them. “She is going to be alright. We used a spell for her throat so she’s not going to be hoarse when she wakes up.” He stated after bowing to Twilight. “I tried to retrieve the spell matrix as you asked princess, but it would seem that it was so unstable that your sleeping spell completely ruined it.”

“That’s… that’s fine doctor. Thank you. Can we go see her?” Twilight politely asked, obviously relieved.

“Of cour-“ The good doctor started before getting cut off by a familiar voice.

“Let go of me! I’m fine I tell you!” Rainbow Dash came into view along with a nurse that had a heart as her mark.

She was buried under her two friends within a second, both trying to make sure she was okay and give her a reassuring hug. Jax hung back a bit with Apple Bloom so Twilight and Applejack could make sure everything was fine. He had never been so relieved in his entire life, but he felt that the oldest friends deserved to go first.

“… screaming like a bull in a rodeo.” Applejack just finished explaining when he decided to go over.

“Takes more than a little pain to take out Rainbow Dash though.” Jax felt that the rainbow mare deserved a little praise after what she had been through.

“You know it!” Rainbow answered, cocky grin in place.

Jax knelt down so he could look her in the eye, serious again. “How bad was it?”

Her grin was replaced by a thoughtful frown. “I’ve had my fair share of crashes Jax, I thought I knew what pain felt like. This was... more painful than anything I have experienced. It felt like a pack of timberwolves had gotten to me, biting and scratching almost every bit of my body, while my shoulder felt like it was caught on fire. Worst of all was how helpless I felt about it, all I could do was scream and hope that the pain would stop.” She looked down on the ground, shivering at the memory.

Jax sighed. “I’m sorry you had to feel that Rainbow. It sounds like you got more than my current pain transferred. It sounds like you felt every bit of pain I felt since coming here, all at once. As you can probably tell by all these bandages, I haven’t been all that lucky while in the Everfree.”

To his surprise Rainbow Dash leaned in and hugged him. “Don’t worry. I’ll protect you from now on. I always protect my friends.”

As crazy as it sounds, being told by a small cute pony that she would protect him made him feel safer. A smile spread on his face.

“Then I’ll protect you as well.” He answered as she drew back. She smiled at him.

“Well then, we better get back to the field. Ah can’t let Big Mac do all the work. Ah’ll see you later.” Applejack said as she put her little sister on her back. Apple Bloom still looked kind of down, but Jax reckoned she would cheer up sooner or later.

“Jax, can you wait here while I try something?” Twilight asked. Jax nodded and Twilight went further into the hospital, looking like she was searching for something. Jax turned back towards Rainbow. His friend. His only friend in this world. A friend he had known for one full day, a large part of the night, and a little of the morning. That was a ridiculously short time to make a friend in, by Jax’ standards. He had known people for years without referring to them as friends. He had known Max and Liz, who had been his only friends in his old world, for most of his childhood. Yet here he was, looking down at a pony he knew for little more than a day, referring to her as his friend and meaning it. He felt like he could trust Rainbow with his life if he needed to, which was a dangerous thought. The last time he had trusted someone…

He shook himself out of it. “So, Rainbow… You mentioned something about a friendship council yesterday in the forest. What exactly do you do in a friendship council?” He asked, eager to learn something more about his new friend.

“Right now? Not much, just being my awesome self. Twilight has big plans though. For now my main job is still on the weather team.”

“Weather team?”

***

Luna stood in the corner of the waiting room, still invisible, looking at Jax and Rainbow Dash while they talked. She was a little jealous of Rainbow Dash, who looked like she had already formed a friendship with Jax. She quickly got her feelings under control. He deserved friends, and he would surely make more. Jealousy had done her no good in the past, and it would not do her any good now. She took a deep breath. She would be one of his friends as well. He wouldn’t fear her. Even if he was going to be afraid in the beginning she would calm him down and make him see that there was nothing to fear. She would even apologize for entering his dream a month ago. And when she had his trust, she would finally be able to ask him what the dream was about. All she had to do was talk with him. That’s how you make friends. ‘You can do this Luna. Just walk up to him and introduce yourself.’ She told herself.

She tried to undo the invisibility spell and walk up to him, but another part of her, the fearful part, stopped her. He was going to be afraid of her if she appeared of the blue. This wasn’t the right time. How would she explain why she had been invisible in the corner of the room?

She almost choked as her fears overwhelmed her. Why was this so hard for her? She was a princess, an alicorn who had ruled the land for centuries after defeating Discord.

‘Celestia would have no pro-…’ She stopped herself before she could finish the thought. She was not Celestia, and she would not compare herself to her. That bad habit had not taken her down a road she wanted to traverse again.

She took a deep breath again. She could not do it now but she would be able to soon. She just needed to wait for the right time. Timing was everything, everypony knew that. Time was something she had a lot of.

***

“Okay. Pegasi can manipulate weather. No problem. That’s not weird at all.” Jax was trying hard to believe his own words. It wasn’t the weirdest thing he had heard or seen since coming here, but it was weird enough. Pushing around clouds like they weren’t made mostly from water and air. Luckily Twilight rescued him from his predicament.

“You ready to go Jax?” She asked. She looked like she was worried about something.

“I am so ready. See you later Rainbow, have fun… punching through clouds.” He said as he stretched out his fist for a fist bump, mostly out of habit. She understood the gesture all the same, and bumped it with her hoof.

“See you around Jax. Let me now if you wanna hang out sometime. You’re cool enough.”

Jax laughed at that. “Of course I am, and I will.” He replied as he left behind Twilight. Twilight turned around as she remembered something.

“Rainbow Dash, remember that there’s a town meeting today where we welcome Jax to the town. Don’t nap through it.”

“Oh right, forgot about that. Thanks for reminding me Twi.”

Jax had also forgotten all about that. He was supposed to say a few words at that event if he remembered correctly. Okay, He would just thank them for the nice welcome and assure them that he wasn’t violent. No problem.

He was also reminded of some other things he needed to do this day, these more pleasant though.

“Twilight, I have some places I need to go.” He told her as they left the hospital.

“Will it take long? I woke you up early to ask you some questions about you and your kind, but after what happened I really want to conduct a few tests before somepony else gets hurt.”

“Tests? Are you sure that’s a good idea? I mean, I can see your point but I really don’t want anyone else to get hurt… Can’t we just agree not to use magic on me?” He thought back to Rainbow’s screams.

“That’s precisely why we are going to conduct the tests in a special room designed to contain magical energy. Where is it you want to go exactly? Maybe we’ll have time if it won’t take too long.” She sounded like she didn’t want him to go anywhere, but he wasn’t going to let this go.

“I was promised some things at the party yesterday. First off: Bon Bon’s candy store.” She looked at him with a sigh, and he gave her his most convincing smile.

She sighed again and changed direction. He smiled at the small victory. If he was going to get tested on he was at least going to have some candy as a reward.

***

After getting an entire bag of candy, Jax was very happy. The bag was half his size, you could have fit a pony in there. He was very impressed by Bon Bon keeping her word when she said a lot of candy. He was going to be as hyper as Pinkie for an entire week!

They made their way over to Rarity as well so Jax could get measured, Jax already had three sweets in his mouth, enjoying the taste. It was amazing what you missed while in a dangerous forest.

They arrived at the… Interesting building. Carousel Boutique? It fit well. Was the building made first, then named, or named and then built? Jax shrugged and opened the door to the chime of a bell.

“I’ll be with you in one moment!” It sounded from the back. To his surprise Fluttershy was sitting on a nearby couch, sipping tea. She looked at him and gave him a small smile.

“Hey Fwuttershy, whatchu doing here? Getting a dwess?” He asked as he put his Sack O’ Candy next to a free couch before sitting down, Twilight in tow. The three sweets in his mouth made it hard to talk. He quickly crunched down two, to make communication easier.

“Oh, no, actually I’m here because of you. Uhmm not that I mind though. Rarity just wanted to take her measurements without the bandage, and I mentioned that it was a good opportunity to apply new ones, so she invited me over.” Her voice was silent but Jax could make it out just fine.

“Oh actually I meant to ask about that. How frequently do you need to change bandages? Generally speaking.” Jax asked curiously.

Before she could answer though, Rarity entered the room. “There you are darling! I was starting to wonder when you would arrive. Poor Fluttershy would be stuck here until you did. Now, before we begin: Would you like to take a bath? I know it’s a bit rude of me to ask but…”

“Like a shower? With shampoo and a sponge and stuff?!” Jax asked excitedly. “I would fuc-, I would be very happy to! Thank you so much for the offer Rarity. Actually, could I brush my teeth as well? It’s been forever…”

“Why, of course darling, it’s no problem at all. I have an extra tooth brush in there somewhere, I’ll show you if you’d follow me.” Rarity sounded very pleased for some reason.

Jax almost had to hold back tears of happiness. It was weird how many things you miss after you stop doing them. He quickly crunched the last sweet in his mouth and followed Rarity.

***

To save time he brushed his teeth in the shower. It felt so good to brush them after so long, he almost giggled like a little girl. After fifteen minutes he finally decided that was enough brushing. He spent another ten just enjoying the warm water, before he remembered he had ponies waiting for him to finish. Five minutes after he was looking at the big towel Rarity had given him, wondering how much it would hurt to dry his newest wound. It hadn’t hurt since Twilight used her spell that morning, but he didn’t know how long that would last. It seemed to still be working since he had felt no pain in the shower but that could just have been luck. He took the chance and started drying it gently before letting out a hiss of pain. It was healing nicely but that fucker had a giant stinger, and the wound was pretty deep. It was no wonder it still hurt only… How long had it been? Two days it would seem. It had only been two days but it felt longer somehow. It was weird how much his life had changed in that time.

He put on the remains of his pants. He really needed the new clothes Rarity had promised to make him. He looked down at the used bandages, wondering what to do with them. He decided to take them with him and ask Rarity where to throw them out, he would get new ones applied soon anyway.

He went down stairs to the working area again. “Rarity, where should I thro-.”

He was interrupted by two gasps coming from Twilight and Rarity when they saw him. They looked with horror at his body and he realized they hadn’t thought that the bandages would cover this many wounds and scars. Only Fluttershy seemed in control of her reaction, even though he could see the sadness in her eyes.

He looked down at his collection of scars, half-healed wounds, and relatively new wound. There was a lot, there was no denying that, more than he was proud of.

He sighed. He was getting in the habit of doing that again it would seem.

“The Everfree isn’t a welcoming place.” Was all he had to say about that. “Now where can I throw this out?” He turned towards Rarity, gesturing to the pile of used bandages in his hands. She silently pointed at something behind him and he made the mistake of turning around, revealing more scars and wounds, getting another gasp from Rarity. He went over to the trash-bin Rarity had pointed at and threw out the bandages. When he turned around both Twilight and Rarity were looking at him with enough compassion to make his chest hurt. He wished they would stop looking at him like that.

“So, Rarity… Ready to measure me?” He asked to try and get them out of it. Rarity nodded as if she hadn’t quite heard the question, her thoughts obviously in a different place. After a second of looking at her she shook her head, obviously pulling herself together.

“Of course darling, let me just get my measuring tape.”

Everything was painfully silent while Rarity did her work. Twilight was studying his body with a kind of fearful fascination, Fluttershy was drinking tea and politely looking anywhere but his body, and Rarity was focusing on her work. It was very awkward. Jax hated it.

“So Rarity… how’s business?” He hated small talk as well, but sometimes that was preferred to silence.

“Blooming mostly. I can’t complain darling, everypony wants my dresses since Twilight became a princess.” She smiled at him. Her voice was too sad for words that were supposed to be happy and her smile half-hearted. Time to try a different approach.

“Like what you see Twilight?” He asked in a flirty voice. At least he hoped it was flirty, he wasn’t very good at these things.

It seemed to work though, as Twilight blushed madly and averted her eyes. “I, uhh… Was just… scientific purpose, not like that.” She stammered.

Jax laughed at her explanation, and Rarity stifled a giggle. The mood was a little better after that and before he knew it Jax was invited to tea with Rarity the next day.

***

Luna held a hoof over her mouth in an attempt to not giggle. She was invisible, not soundproof. She had been shocked that Jax had had so many scars and wounds as well, but she had controlled herself better than the two mares. It was obvious that Jax was uncomfortable with the mood it had made, and she was happy that his attempt at lightening it had been successful. Rarity was a professional after all, and she quickly took over the conversation, which seemed to make Jax happy. Rarity was done with her measurements soon after and Fluttershy took over with a first aid kit. She spent a little time judging each wound, especially the big one on his shoulder, before she applied a new set of bandages, less than before though. Luna looked on with a critical eye and could only agree that a lot of the wounds didn’t need bandages anymore, they needed to breathe. His shoulder had the most critical wound, which could easily open again, so it got a good amount of bandaging.

***

After they were done Jax thanked both of them, offering candy as thanks. Rarity took some for her sister while Fluttershy politely declined.

Jax and Twilight made their way to her castlehouse. Castletreehouse. Crystal castle shaped like a tree house… ish. Eh… Just castle then.

She led the way inside and down some stairs and the paranoia hit Jax instantly. He had forgotten his mighty stick of awesome back at the barn. All he had was his flint dagger in his pocket. But she wouldn’t lead him down into a dungeon. Did these ponies even know what a dungeon was? It was probably just a basement…

He took deep breaths as he followed Twilight down the stairs. She had shown no signs of wanting to lock him up anywhere, none of them did.

As it turned out, the long staircase led down to a corridor with only one pair of double-doors.

“So this is the room you were talking about earlier?” He asked to be certain.

“Yes, this is a special room that won’t let any magic leave it as long as the doors are locked. We can conduct a couple of tests in there without fear of hurting anypony.” She answered as they neared the doors. There was a guard on either side of it, looking as stoic as ever.

She looked at the guard to the right. “Please don’t let anypony enter, it would be too dangerous.” The guard saluted. She then turned to Jax. “You need to leave the candy outside with the guards. It’s safer that way.” He begrudgingly left his Bag O’ Candy beside one of the guards, giving him a warning stare.

Twilight opened the giant doors with her magic and they quickly entered. The room was… barren. It was big and empty, made of the same crystal as the rest of the castle. The only difference were the drawings on the walls. Well drawings would be a crude way to describe them… Runes might fit better. He assumed it had something to do with magic and keeping it in.

“Okay Jax,” Twilight started. “I’ll shield myself with a powerful spell while I try different spells on you. I’ll write down the effect and we’ll try to find a pattern. Okay?”

Jax looked at her for a bit. “You don’t see the problem here?” He finally asked. She just looked at him, confused. “You didn’t take any paper with you. Also you have nothing to write with.”

Twilight facepalmed. Or facehooved. She went out, got the needed tools, and came back.

“Are you ready Jax?” She asked him.

“If you think this is the right thing to do, then I can’t argue.” He said uncertainly. He had a bad feeling about this. Twilight started nonetheless.

First she tried a simple levitation spell, which the second it touched him turned into a wind producing spell. A light breeze gently ruffled his hair.

The second spell was a transformation spell that turned into a projectile and hit a wall that caused a small explosion. Twilight a little worried at that but continued anyway.

The third spell was a levitation spell that levitated a piece of parchment over to Jax. When the aura touched him the parchment disappeared. She then tried the same spell but only touched half the parchment with her aura and touched him with the other half. Nothing happened.

She continued with spells, writing down the effects on her many pieces of parchment. The shield she had made around herself proved useful a couple of times. At some point she started over from the first spell, explaining that she wanted to see if the something new would happen or the same thing as before. New stuff happened.

The last spell she retried conjured a bouquet of flowers, which she quickly analyzed with a spell.

“It doesn’t have a spell matrix!” She exclaimed surprised. “This is chaos magic… That explains a lot, but so many new questions…”

“Wait what? Chaos magic? It’s just some flowers Twilight, why would they have a… spell matrix?” Jax asked confused. He was happy that they seemed to be at the end of the tests though.

“They aren’t just flowers, they are magically manifested flowers. Discord must somehow be a part of this. Okay I just want to try one last spell and then we’re done. Remember the pain reducing spell? I tried it on a patient in the hospital and it worked fine.”

He had a very bad feeling about this but he just shrugged and Twilight charged her horn.

During the tests the different spells had felt differently when they turned into a different spell. The levitation spell had felt kind of tickly. The transformation spell had felt kind of… pressurery? But when the pain reducing spell hit him and transformed into a new spell, he knew something would go wrong. It felt hot… too hot.

Before he knew it, every single textile on his body caught fire.

That’s when he started to scream.

Author's Note

Rainbow Dash wasn't meant to be such a big part of this story XD But I like how it turned out so I'm not complaining ^^
Anywho, comment if you find any mistakes or there's something weird going on :3

Chapter 12

Twilight was too shocked to do anything for a second. Her spell had just turned Jax on fire. She had combusted somepony. The thought was so alien to her that she couldn’t react until his screams finally snapped her to action. She ran toward the big double doors, barging them open with her magic, revealing the two guards standing over the bag of candy Jax had received from Bon Bon, looking like they were just caught with a hoof in the cookie-jar.

“Guards! Get me some water as fast as you can!” She ordered, panic clear in her voice. They looked at her dumbstruck, then at the flaming creature behind her, who had started to roll around on the ground.

She knew that before the guards managed to get all the way upstairs, find a bucket, fill it with water, and get back, Jax would already have suffered more than any living creature should. It may be too late by that point, and she wanted no more than to wrap him in her magic and extinguish the fire, but she knew that that might just make things worse. Using her magic on him again was out of the question, but what could she do? What was there to do? Wait, she could teleport! She could get the water faster herself than to wait for the guards!

She just started charging her horn when she felt a large discharge of magic and heard a loud splash behind her. When she turned around Jax was laying in a puddle on the floor, most likely passed out. How long had he been on fire? 10 seconds? 15 tops? She wasn’t sure, but she knew she had to get him to the hospital as fast as she could. She turned towards the guards again.

“Get me four pegasi to take him to the hospital as fast as you can. Inform the hospital beforehoof that they have a burn victim and they are not to, under any circumstances, use magic on him. Go!”

The guards hurried off, leaving her alone with her thoughts. Or almost alone. She had recognized that spell matrix…

“Princess Luna? Are you here?” She asked the empty hallway.

A moment passed before the princess of the night revealed herself. She looked very worried. Twilight bowed more out of habit than anything else.

“Twilight Sparkle. What happened in there? I waited out here as to not interrupt with the tests.”

“I don’t… The tests were going fine, we… I… I let my curiosity get the best of me princess. I had all the data I needed but decided to try one last spell… One last spell to state my curiosity. I thought I had learned my lesson back with the pinkie incident… I thought… Everything was going fine. I forgot that he wasn’t shielded.” The tears started dripping down her muzzle. “I didn’t count the possibility that he could get hurt.”

A range of emotions went over Luna’s muzzle throughout her explanation. Confusion, shock, disappointment and anger before it settled on a cold glare.

“You decided to test your luck… WHEN YOU HAD ALL THE DATA YOU NEEDED?!” The Royal Canterlot Voice hit her hard, almost blowing her away. Luna seemed to take a moment to get her voice under control again. “You put his life in danger just to state your curiosity?” Her voice went from anger to cold emotionlessness, as she reverted back to her old speech. “We thought thou better than this Twilight Sparkle. Our sister hath nothing but praise for thine abilities, and thou hath proven thine worth against many opponents. We would never have thought thou would fail a friend, of all things.” Twilight’s tears streamed down her face by now, taking the verbal reprimand without complaint. She could hear the guard rushing down the stairs, hopefully ready to take Jax to the hospital. “We shall converse more later.” Luna stated, also hearing the approaching guard. With a spell she turned invisible again.

Twilight took a moment to pull herself together, drying the tears from her eyes. When the guard came with a stretcher between them, Twilight was ready to organize everything. The least she could do was to make sure he arrived at the hospital without further incidents.

***

Luna paced back and forth outside the castle. She had just yelled at the closest thing she had to a friend. Were they even friends? Friends do not normally bow to each other, do they? But they do yell sometimes. At least they did 1247 years ago… Times had not changed that much had they?

She thought back to 1247 years ago, to the last real friends she had had. Before her and Celestia had brought down Discord and the world was in chaos. Back then nobody slept in the night and worked during the day because day and night could switch as quickly as a snap of Discord’s claws. Everypony was just focused on surviving the chaos that was their reality.

Luna and Celestia had two friends back then, Water Door and Fire Nova. How tight a group they had been, finding happiness in each others company even in those dark times. How tragic their deaths had been, giving their life so that Luna and Celestia could acquire the Elements of Harmony and defeat Discord. After that they had been seen as heroes, then as princesses. Nopony came close to that level of friendship after that. Of course Celestia had more success finding friends than she had…

She lowered her muzzle with a sigh. A thousand years on the moon. She felt so out of place, out of time. The smallest of distractions still made her revert to the old speech patterns. She had no real friends, at least none as close as she wanted. As she needed. The closest thing she had, Twilight, probably did not want to see her again after she lost control of her emotions like that.

Why had she lost control like that? It was true that Twilight had been reckless, but it was not like she set him on fire on purpose.

Yet when the doors had been opened and she saw and heard Jax, running around on fire, screaming worse than Rainbow Dash that very morning, she had felt a sense of… dread? Like she had to protect him, but had failed miserably. She had teleported water onto him before she had realized what she had done. Of course Twilight would have felt her spell matrix, with a spell as powerful as that. She did not regret it though.

But when Twilight had told her what she had done, she had felt so much anger and disappointment. She had stayed outside the chamber as to not affect the tests in any way, but she had done so with a sense of trust towards Twilight. She was sure that the princess of friendship would be careful with her tests, taking every precaution she could so that nopony was hurt.

Still, Luna had overreacted. It was clear that Twilight already knew she had done something wrong, yet she had thrown her anger at her mercilessly.

On the other hoof…

Enough. She could debate with herself forever whether her reaction was justified or not. In any case, why was she so obsessed with Jax? He was just a weird looking creature who appeared in Equestria one day, having a nightmare and when Luna had tried to help, he had screamed at her. She should not feel this protective of him. It was not like she hoped he would understand her own suffering like no pony ever could. It was not like she felt the loneliness in his dream mirrored her own perfectly. It is not like she wanted him to hold her in his weird forelegs…

She stopped her denials. That was exactly what she wanted. Sometime during the month since she entered his dream, she had started thinking more and more about him. He probably did not grow up with the stories about Nightmare Moon if she was lucky, so he would not fear her by instinct. He was no stranger to loneliness, if his dream was anything to go by, so they had something in common already. He was different, an outsider like her, although he had already made more friends in the two days he had spent in Equestrian culture than she had since she was freed all that time ago. He intrigued her. In all her years of living, even in the Discord Era, she had never seen or heard of anything like him.

She looked up at the pegasi flying Jax to the hospital on a stretcher. She took wing and followed.

She would have to apologize to Twilight later.

***

Jax looked at the meal before him. It had been an hour since he woke up in the hospital, covered in new bandage. He was getting very tired of bandages by this point.

The doctor had said that they had applied some kind of salve on his burns. It numbed his body somewhat, taking care of most of the pain, but not all of it. As far as he could understand, the burns were pretty serious, but not life-threatening.

As was the rule in any universe it would seem, the meal you got in a hospital had to suck. What sucked even more was that he had received the herbivore version, being a daisy sandwich with a side of hay and an apple. He had only eaten a couple of sweets that day, and he sincerely hoped his Bag O’ Candy was safe somewhere. He only ate two pieces of the giant cake at yesterday’s party for that entire day. He was fucking starving and they gave him food he couldn’t eat to mock him.

He knew deep down that they probably didn’t know, but why didn’t they ask?

Maybe they were afraid of the answer…

He ate the bread and the apple.

Just as he finished the last of the apple, the very pony he wanted to see opened the door of his own personal room.

Twilight Sparkle entered.

It was painfully obvious that she was nervous as she walked over to his bed, especially when he just stared at her without saying anything.

“I uhh… I brought you a book. It’s… It’s the one I wrote about our adventures, Rainbow Dash said you would be interested…” She trailed off.

“You brought me your own book?” He asked. She nodded meekly. “Did you sign it?” He asked. She looked at him surprised, obviously not expecting the question.

“No…?” She answered, unsure of herself.

“Write ‘To my biggest fan, kind regards, Twilight Sparkle.’”

She looked utterly confused. “uhhhhh….”

“In case I ever need to sell it. I’m sure it will triple its value.” He explained.

“Wait, aren’t you mad?”

“Twilight… You set me on fire. I am absolutely…” He took a deep breath, trying to control the anger that had been trying to take over since he woke up. “I’m furious. The only reason I didn’t throw this sad excuse of a meal at you the second you tried to enter is that you didn’t do it on purpose, and my private parts escaped with minimum damage.”

Twilight was looking down at the floor silently so he decided to continue. “The worst part isn’t even that I spontaneously combusted, as hurtful as that was, no the worst part is that I can see absolutely no reason for you to try that last spell! You had already tried spells on me twice, you knew something new would happen. I can’t see what you could get out of it, and frankly I feel foolish for trusting you!”

Twilight finally looked up, tears flowing freely from her eyes. Regret stung in Jax’ heart at the sight. Ponies have a natural cuteness to them that unfortunately made their sadness look absolutely devastating.

“I’m sooo sorry Jax.” She slowly started. “You trusted me to conduct those tests even though you didn’t want to, and I… I just…” She took a deep breath, obviously having trouble talking. “I let you get hurt. I had a theory that your body was rejecting magic as a defense mechanism, so I didn’t count on the possibility that you could get hurt in the process. I let you down and I… I can understand if… If you never want to see me again. I let my curiosity get the best of me again, and again somepony had to suffer because of it. If there is anything I can do for you Jax, anything at all… Please let me know.” She turned around and started making her way towards the door, head hanging low.

For a moment Jax considered letting her go. She had set him on fire, surely that was a good enough excuse to hold on to a grudge. You don’t just forgive people who set you on fire, causing serious burns all over your body, right? He had trusted her and she broke that trust.

She didn’t do it on purpose, another side of him argued. She would never have done it on purpose. The look on her face when she apologized told him that. She felt absolutely terrible for what she had done, and she would feel terrible for a long time and only he could make her feel better.

He struggled with his decision but the look of that tearful face kept coming up.

“Wait.” He said as she was at the door. This was a new beginning for him, in a new land. Holding on to grudges may be what the old Jax would do, but he was no longer his old self. He didn’t want to be. She looked back at him, a glimmer of hope in those tearful eyes. “Come here.” She hesitantly made her way back. He made some room on the small bed he was laying on and patted the space. She understood the gesture and laid down beside him. He looked her in the eyes as he started talking again, his voice calm.

“Listen Twilight, ‘cause this is important. Since Fluttershy found me, you ponies have been throwing your trust at me as if it wasn’t the most important thing you could give another being. Sure, I’ve seen some of you give me weird looks now and again, and more than enough avoided me at the party yesterday, but all in all you have been very trustful of me, and don’t get me wrong, I really appreciate it. But where I come from… Things are different. Even among my own race I gave my trust to fewer than most. So when I decided to go with you to be tested… by my own standards I was very trustful.” Twilight started looking away, shame evident on her face/ muzzle whatever it’s called. He used his hand to guide her head back. Her fur was surprisingly soft. “I’m not telling you this so you can feel worse, I just want you to understand. I’m not only angry at you for setting me on fire. I’m angry at myself as well for trusting you so easily.” Surprise was the first expression on her face, quickly replaced by sadness. She threw her hooves around his neck and he held back a hiss of pain. The salve was working great but it wasn’t perfect.

“I’m so sorry Jax.” She said between sobs. “I promise never to break your trust again if you give me a chance… please.”

By this point he felt horrible for letting her suffer for so long. She obviously felt bad, if her endless stream of tears were anything to go by, and her hug was very painful to him. Still he hesitated a moment before he said the next words. He knew he wanted to, and he knew he should, but the words didn’t come easy.

“I forgive you Twilight.” She drew back to look him in the eyes, making it less painful for him in the process.

“Really?” She asked, her voice full of hope. He nodded with a small smile on his face, and she hugged him again. He decided to endure the pain in favor of getting a hug. This was a victory for him as much as it was for her, he had become a bigger man. He had overcome his old self. He felt really happy.

Until he remembered his situation. He had no money, nowhere to live. He did however have a princess in his arms who owed him big time.

“Twilight?” He started. She drew back again to look at him. “I need some stuff.”

“If it’s anything I can help you with, I will.” She stated, drying her tears. He gave her the napkin that came with his ‘meal’ and she accepted happily.

“I need my own place to stay and I need money, whatever your currency is. Also, I was serious about you signing the book. Oh and my Bag O’ Candy. Can’t leave that behind.” He felt bad for putting her in a position where she practically couldn’t deny him, but he needed to get on his feet and get a feeling of their society, before he decided what he really wanted in his new life.

She smiled at him, obviously happy to be able to help him. “Of course. I was going to offer you a room in the castle but I can understand if you would rather have your own place. Also, I can give you a monthly stipend until you find work.” She took a quill from the saddlebag along with the book and some ink. She quickly wrote what he had told her to, and tried to hand it to him in her magic, before she remembered how that was a very bad idea. She quickly took it in her hooves before handing it to him and he smiled gratefully. This was definitely going to be a problem.

“Rainbow Dash, Rarity and Pinkie came to see you, but I told them I wanted to talk with you first. I’ll send them in now and go cancel the town meeting.”

She jumped down from the bed. “No, don’t cancel the meeting. I can make it out there and say a few words. It’s no problem.” She turned around, dissatisfaction clear in her eyes.

“Jax… You’re seriously injured. You need to stay here and rest. There is no way the doctor is going to let you leave so soon.” She said firmly.

He rolled his eyes at that. She was clearly underestimating his power. “Twilight… I know full well I’m injured, but I have been through worse. All I need is a real meal to get me back on my legs long enough to attend the meeting, I promise I’ll come back here afterwards. But that’s another thing we need to talk about…” He hesitated, but he knew he had to know. “How do ponies feel about… carnivores?”

She looked confused at the question. “Carnivores? Well we are on friendly terms with the griffons from the north and neutral terms with the dragons from the south, though dragons mainly eat gems. Why?”

“They eat what? No wait, focus. If I were to say that I was an omnivore… how would ponies react?” He finally got the question out.

Twilight grimaced. “Differently. Some probably with fear, if I were to guess. Many ponies are still afraid of the griffins. I think it would probably best if you didn’t share this knowledge with too many.” She looked at his plate, where the hay and daisy lay untouched. “What exactly can you eat?”

***

He knew she was coming. He was ready for her this time. He would not be taken by surprise… He could do this!

“Hey Jaxie, how are you feeling?!” Pinkie appeared beside him. He turned his head casually.

“Oh hey Pinkie, what’s up?” He gave her a casual smile to complete his victory.

“Aww you’re no fun.” Her statement was contradicted by the smile still on her face.

“Hey tough guy.” “Hello darling.” Rainbow Dash and Rarity said from the now open door. A small pegasus with… Alright lets see… no mark, purple hair… likely one of the Cutie Mark Crusaders, followed in after them.

“I must admit darling, I was very relieved to hear that you forgave Twilight. She was so very distraught before she came in here. Where did she go by the way? She looked a little distracted.” Rarity started.

“Yeah, that was very cool, nothing less than what I expected from you.” She raised her hoof, and he bumped it with his fist. It would seem like it was their thing now, which suited Jax fine. It felt nice, familiar in a sense.

“She went to Fluttershy’s. She is fairly certain I can get a proper meal from her… Any of you want any hay and/ or plant?” He gestured to the remains of his meal.

“Sweet, I’m starving.” The small Pegasus said as she jumped onto the bed and started eating the hay. “What?” She asked in relation to the looks she recieved.

“This is Scootaloo, my number one fan.” Rainbow puffed her chest out, clearly proud. He stuck out his hand.

“Jax, but you can call me Jax.” Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes at that and Scootaloo looked confused. “What else was she gonna call you?” Rainbow asked.

“Well I guess ‘that guy that was set on fire’ is too long, and ‘weird creature’ is kinda offensive… AppleJax would be damn right silly. Which reminds me.” he smiled triumphantly at Rainbow, who looked like she was on the verge of remembering something embarrassing. “Remember that time you flew into me and called me a tree? Not very cool o-“

“Okay, cool, gotta go, bye!” She picked up Scootaloo who was looking on in confusion and made her way out faster than… a car… no wait, Sonic the Hedgehog. Faster than Sonic.

He looked over at Rarity, mouth still open. She stifled her giggle behind a hoof, while Pinkie laughed freely. “Darling, Rainbow doesn’t deal well with embarrassment. She normally flies away from it. I am just happy to see you have enough energy to joke around. It’s not every day one gets set on fire after all.”

“Well it’s not every day you get your wounds treated by a professional medic staff. When I was in the forest the only one treating my wounds was me, and that didn’t always turn out painless. I would probably be more upset if the salve they applied didn’t work so well. I’ve had wounds in the forest that hurt three times as much, so I’m relatively okay. Also I feel good after the conversation I had with Twilight” He looked at the smiling mares in front of him, remembering his manners. “Thanks for visiting by the way. You didn’t have to and you must be busy.”

“Oh, nonsense. It must have been horrible for you, I can only imagine… “ Her body quivered at the thought. “Oh, also, we will have to enjoy that tea together another time. You need to stay here and rest.” Jax smiled at her. She was kind of… posh, and normally he wouldn’t feel comfortable around her type, but Rarity was clearly concerned about his well-being, and she had been more than kind to him. Warmth spread through his chest at the thought of the kindness he had received from these ponies. It was nice, knowing that even though he was different than everyone else, he would be treated with kindness. He had no doubt that some ponies would still be afraid of him, but he could deal with a little undeserved fear and/or hate. He looked up at Rarity when he realized she was talking to him.

“… mane seem to have been burnt as well, I think you could use a manecut darling, and I know just the place. After that we could go to the spa and enjoy the treatment. What do you say?” She looked at him with those big eyes that these ponies had. For some reason she wore makeup, so her blue eyes were really prominent. He thought about her proposal for a moment.

“Sure, sounds like a good idea. I could use the relaxation. When did you have in mind?” She looked absolutely thrilled for some reason. Maybe she was expecting him to decline or something.

“Me and Fluttershy usually go once a week, so there is no haste. I think it would be best if we let your wounds heal first.” She gave him an excited smile. She was obviously looking forward to it, which in turn made Jax smile.

Pinkie, who had been weirdly quiet, finally seemed to erupt as balloons came out of nowhere. “Yay! It’s so good to see a pony make friends.” She learned in and whispered in his ear. “By the way, I brought you your bag of candy, I hope you don’t mind I took some. As an apology I brought some cake from yesterday, and stashed it all under the bed.” She drew back and winked very obviously at him, making him wonder why she did it at all.

They were interrupted by a nurse with a red heart as her mark. Jax recognized her as the one who had tried to hold back Rainbow Dash earlier that day. She smiled pleasantly at them all. “Hello, I’m Beating Heart. I will have to ask your guests to leave Mr. Jax, as I have to change your bandages and apply more salve.”

“Ah, of course. Come now Pinkie, we must let the professionals do their job.” Rarity made her way out with Pinkie, and they both gave him one last smile, which he returned.

Author's Note

Another chapter! whaaat XD It's crazy how I manage to write these each week. And we made it past 30.000 words and 50 likes XD Which reminds me, I may or may not be able to post next week because of the holiday. Normally I write in the train on my way to my university, which I won't be doing, so I'm not entirely sure whether I'll write anything at all... If I don't, you can enjoy this ff instead: My Little Pony - Journey
It's long, it's epic, and he still updates :D
Also, did you know you can like your own stories? funny concept, I haven't done it yet though, but if I can manage I want to be the 100th like on my own story XD

Chapter 13

Luna almost gasped when the nurse, Beating Heart, unfolded the bandage. She managed to hold it in. With the nonchalant way Jax had been talking about his burn wounds, she had gotten the impression that it wasn’t very serious, but this… She took in deep breaths, careful to keep quiet as to not reveal her presence. Did the salve really help that much or was his pain tolerance higher than any pony she knew of? He did have a lot of scars, he was clearly well acquainted with pain, but she couldn’t shake the feeling that he was pretending and biting in the pain as to not worry anypony. Those hugs Twilight gave him must have hurt badly, yet she didn’t hear a sound of complaint from him, just a twinge of pain on his face. She looked at him with a new sense of respect.

“Now Mr. Jax, I’ll be blunt.” Beating Heart started after she freed his upper body from bandages, looking uncomfortable for the first time since she entered. “These burns are very serious. Normally a unicorn doctor would magically reduce the damage and pain, but princess Twilight informed us that we were not to take that route. Even the appliance of the salve is usually done by magic. So, in short, this is going to hurt. A lot. I’ll try to be careful of course but…”

“If you only say the first part of your name it sounds pretty damn brutal.” Jax observed out of the blue. Luna and Beating Heart reacted almost identically, by standing completely still and letting the words sink in, blinking a couple of times. Beating Heart giggled a little while Luna held back again. Being invisible was so frustrating sometimes.

“You know, you’re the first to comment on that. But in all seriousness Mr. -“

“Please, just Jax. Mind if I call you Beating? And there is nothing to do about the pain, might as well try to get some laughter when you can.” He gave her a small smile. “I know that you will do your best, Beating, so stop beating around the bush.” His smile widened at his joke. Beating Heart smiled back, before she spread some salve on her hoof. “Alright then… Jax.” Luna looked at Jax’ face as she started. It twisted into pain almost immediately, but not a sound left his mouth. Luna averted her eyes from the sight, her heart full of sympathy. They fell on the book Twilight had left on the night stand by the bed. “The Adventures of the Elements of Harmony.” If she wasn’t mistaken, some of the first pages described Luna’s return as Nightmare Moon. If he read it, he would know of her past. For a few seconds she debated taking the book away, but came to the conclusion that he would hear of her sooner or later anyway, and what would she do with the book anyway? She entertained the thought of going down to the market and selling it for thrice its price, as Jax had stated it was now worth. That would be a fun venture, to be sure. The princess of the night, selling her fellow princess’ book, signed ‘to my biggest fan’. Surely that would spout some entertaining rumors.

“Beating, could I ask you what happened to my pants and shoes?” Jax asked, his voice strained by the pain.

“Oh uhm… They were burned badly and were disposed of. I’m sorry.”

“That’s okay it’s just… Were you the one who salved and bandaged my lower part?”

Beating Heart blushed a bit at that but otherwise remained professional. “No, that would be doctor Steady Hooves. Don’t worry, she was very professional even with…” She blushed a bit harder, but kept gently applying the salve. Jax was blushing like mad, it made Luna smile for some reason.

“Okay good… Good to know… Uuhm… So this salve… Do you just rub it on? Can I do it myself on the lower part?” Beating Heart focused very hard on her work.

“I don’t see a problem with that… Could you please sit here? I need to salve your back as well.” She indicated the side of the bed, where Jax moved out to, making sure his blanket still covering his lower part.

Luna was curious. What was making them so embarrassed? The thought of what it could be made Luna’s cheeks burn. Surely it was not that. But why else would he be covering his lower part, and why else would he ask to salve it himself? Did he not have a sheath?

“I’ll have to at least check the bandage afterwards though. I’m assuming you want to do that by yourself as well?” Beating Heart went on.

“yes, and that’s… fine. You have to do your job after all.” Jax sounded less strained, more reserved. It seemed his back wasn’t as badly burned.

After Beating Heart was done with his upper part, she hoofed him the salve and some bandage, before making her way out. “I’ll be back in an hour.” She told him before she left. Jax quickly wrapped himself in the blanket and went over to lock the door.

Luna realized that she had no escape. She should have left with Beating Heart but now she was trapped with Jax. She couldn’t very well open the window without him noticing.

As she thought that thought, he went over to the window and closed the curtains. Even less chance for her to quietly get out.

She was curious. Very curious. But she didn’t want to invade his privacy. That was never the point of her invisibility. Maybe… A little peek would not hurt anypony. He would never have to know…

No. She was not that kind of pony. He obviously didn’t want anypony to see him uncovered, and she would respect that. She quickly turned around towards the corner just as he dropped the blanket.

She sat there quietly while he, she assumed, salved himself. Every little bit of his body. Even his…

She interrupted the thought, but could not do anything about her burning cheeks. Why was she thinking like that? She clearly remembered him telling Twilight that his private parts escaped with minimum damage. He would probably still apply the salve... Just to be safe.

Her imagination went a little wild after that. She had to catch herself a couple of times before she could convince herself to turn around and have a look. One time she had almost convinced herself that she was doing it for the safety of Equestria before she silently reprimanded herself. She knew full well why she wanted to turn around and it had nothing to do with safety.

By the time she finally heard him lay down on the bed again she was squirming a lot in the corner of the room. She sighed in relief... which was a mistake.

***

“What was that?” Jax asked the empty room. He was sure he had heard something. Something breathing… He listened attentively for a minute.

Well he couldn’t exactly be sure it was someone… it was probably nothing. He let it go with a shrug.

He made himself comfortable on the small bed. He would have to find a bigger bed for his own home.

Luckily his lower part had fared better, probably because of the smaller amount of bandage he had had down there. He was especially happy that his private parts were almost unharmed. He had still salved it, just to be sure.

His bandaging looked awkward next to the professional bandaging of his upper body, but there was nothing to do about that. He was never actually taught how to bandage, so he went by instinct. It would hopefully be good enough, he didn’t want Beating to rebandage him. Things were awkward enough between them. He knew that she, as a nurse, had probably seen a lot before and she would probably be professional about it. She had been professional enough about the whole ordeal. He was still happy she had let him do it himself though.

After a while a purple glow almost blinded him and Twilight stood in the room. One second he was alone, the next she was there. He looked over at the still closed door.

“Are you alright?!” He refocused on her. She seemed panicked. He snapped himself out of it. He had seen her do magic before, but teleportation… That was new.

“Well given the circumstances I am faring fairly well. Why do you ask?” He asked, confused.

“Everything in Equestria is magical! The food, the water, the ponies. Everything has at least a little magic in them.” She started pacing back and forth. “The salve they used on you was made with plants that are more magical than average, I’ve already checked on doctor Steady Hooves who tended to you, and nurse Beating Heart and they are both fine so I thought something must have happened to you, but you…” She stopped and took some deep breaths. “This doesn’t make any sense! Well chaos magic rarely does but… Every spell I’ve been using on you, no matter how small, was remade into a random spell. There was probably more magic in that salve than the levitation spell I used on you! Something should have happened…”

“There’s magic in everything? Wait is this why everything tastes and smells kinda earthy? I mean, I got used to it after a while but the first week I was here that really bothered me.” Jax asked, thinking back to the last time he ate. He barely even noticed the earthy taste anymore. That cake sure as hell tasted good. Maybe it was the sugar.

“What? Oh, yeah, magic has been said to have an earth taste and smell to it, but because we are raised here, ponies barely notice. I guess as an outsider… we really need to talk about where you are from Jax, this will keep me up at night! Anyway, are you sure you are okay?”

“Yep. Well I’ve been better, but nothing I can’t handle. I thought I heard something before you came in, does that mean something?” Twilight suddenly looked nervous.

“Oh uhm… No, probably not. I have to… to… go to the little fillies room! If anypony would like to… talk about things, they’ll know where to find me.” She gave him a nervous smile and tried to make a quick escape. She was stopped by the locked door. After fumbling around for a bit she finally opened it, gave him another smile, and made her way out. He had stared at her every step of the way.

“The fuck was that about?” He asked himself. She even left the door open, and where was the meal he was promised? He shook his head. This was a weird day for him.

***

Luna had, of course, understood Twilight’s message. She wanted to speak with her. This was a good chance to apologise, so Luna made her way after the mare.

After they both arrived at a single bathroom, she closed and locked the door, before making herself visible. Twilight looked at her with a determined stare.

“I know what you’re doing princess. You’re spying on him, aren’t you?”

“Twilight Sparkle, I know how this looks-.“ Luna started nervously. She had not expected to be confronted in a bathroom.

“It isn’t right princess Luna! He may look different but he’s a good pony. He doesn’t want to hurt us, since he got here we’ve actually done more damage to him than he has to us! Well… I have…” She added the last part in a whisper.

“Twilight, please listen to me.” She started again. “I am not spying on him.”

Twilight looked confused at her. “You’re not? But…”

“I know how this looks, but I agree with you. I don’t think Jax is a danger to ponies.” Twilight looked even more confused.

“Then why?”

Luna hesitated. How could she tell Twilight when she was not completely sure herself. “Because… I want to be friends with him… but I do not know how.” She finally admitted.

Twilight’s gaze instantly softened. “Oh princess.”

“Please Twilight. Just Luna. You are a princess yourself, you do not need to address me formally, lest you want me to do the same with you.” Twilight blushed a bit.

“I’m sorry… Luna. Old habits die hard.” She gave a nervous laugh, before turning serious again. She had a sad look in her eyes. “half an hour ago I promised I would never break Jax’ trust again. Now that I think about it, you were probably there… Uhm, I meant what I said prin- Ehh Luna. I can’t just lie to him about you, I just can’t.” Her voice and eyes turned a little pleading at the end, and Luna could understand why. If she asked Twilight to keep her invisibility a secret, Twilight would be in a difficult situation. She did not want that but… No, she could not ask this of Twilight.

“Twilight… I want to apologise for my outburst earlier today. You did not need me shouting at you to know what you did wrong, and I should have been more in control of my feelings.”

Twilight shook her head gently. “No, I deserved that, it’s fine. If you hadn’t been there in the first place… I would probably have taken even longer to get water. That was a really impressive spell pr- uhh Luna. To teleport is hard, but to teleport a fluid you can’t even see to a specific destination… That’s very advanced.”

“When you live for as long as I have, you learn a thing or two Twilight Sparkle. Nevertheless, I am glad you accepted my apology. I am not going to ask you to keep my presence secret, not after the promise you made.” She looked down, and started fidgeting a little. Did she have the courage to ask what she wanted? She complained about being in the shadows, but now she was doing it voluntarily. She had not spent that long shadowing Jax and she was already very tired of it. To make it worse, this day felt incredibly long, and it was not even evening yet. Luna made her choice. Enough with the hiding.

“Couldyouintroducemetohim?!” She blurted out. Twilight looked a bit confused.

“I’m sorry… What was that last part?”

“Could you… Would you be so kind as to… Will you please…” She was fighting to get it out again. Why was this so hard?

“Introduce us!” She finally said. She smiled at her victory. “Then, I will of course… tell him everything.” She swallowed hard at the prospect.

“Oh… Oh! That’s great princess! I mean… Luna.” Twilight beamed happily at her, and she smiled nervously back. “It would be my honor to introduce you. I’m sure he won’t be too mad about the spying... I mean, it’s not like you set him on fire.” Twilight smiled expectantly at her, and Luna found herself laughing at the unexpected joke. “Twilight Sparkle, you should not make fun of incinerating ponies, and I should most certainly not laugh at it.” Her smile contradicted her statement.

“Yes I know, but I read this book about jokes, and it said that jokes that were unexpected could be funny even if they were bad.” A sheepish smile adorned her muzzle.

“Oh! Can I borrow that book? I was actually recently thinking about whether you had such a book. In any case, this is one of the more life-changing conversations I have had in a bathroom, but I think it’s about time we made our way out of here.”

“I’m almost done with it, so I don’t see why not. And yes, that sounds like a good idea.” Luna stopped Twilight’s hoof before she could unlock the door.

“Twilight, would you mind if we do this a bit differently? Walking out of the bathroom together could spout some weird rumors, when you think about how I was not seen until this moment.” Luna smiled at Twilights blush. “I will teleport out of town, and fly over again, pretending like I just arrived. Meet me at the entrance in half an hour.” Twilight nodded at that.

A sense of pride and nervousness overwhelmed Luna as she teleported away. She was proud of herself, for having a normal conversation with Twilight without reverting back to old Equestrian even once, Twilight had started calling her by her name, and she had worked up the courage to stop lurking in the shadows and come out into the light. Which was also why she was nervous. How would Jax react to her? Would he even recognize her? It has been over a month since she entered that dream… Would he be very angry that she had been… observing him? She could not really fault him if he became angry with her. She had practically been spying on him. What if he decided he never wanted to see her again? Maybe she should just…

No. She could do this. This was what she wanted. She had to do it.

She started flying towards the small town.

***

Beating Heart came back into his room just like she promised, with something that looked like a doctor following her. The dress code in this world was weird: Naked unless you have a specific job.

“Hello Mr. Jax. My name is doctor Steady Hooves, I am here to check up on you.” The mare said. She shared Beating’s trait of having neither horn nor wings.

“Hello doctor Steady Hooves. Thank you for the work you’ve done so far.” Jax smiled at her, which she returned.

“You’re very welcome. Now, how are you feeling?”

“Oh, you know… Like I’ve been set on fire.” His smile widened as the doctor rolled her eyes at his joke.

“Alright Mr. Jax, let me be more specific then.” She stopped at Jax’ raised hand.

“I’m sorry, there is no need. I’m in a lot of pain, just laying down hurts like… a lot, but this salve is doing an amazing job of numbing my wounds. Other than that I feel fine.” He didn’t mention that he was hungry as hell, he still hoped that Twilight would come back from her long bathroom break with his meal. He was promised a fish damnit!

Doctor Steady Hooves looked kind of remorseful, but nodded grimly. “I know this isn’t easy for you, but without using magic… there isn’t much we can do. I’m sorry. I’ll leave you with Beating Heart then, if there isn’t anything else.”

Jax waved his hand dismissively. “No need to be sorry doctor, you did what you could for me, I’m thankful for that. Go see to your other patients, I’ll be fine in Beating’s care.” Both Beating and doctor Steady Hooves smiled at that, before she made her way out.

“I had a grown stallion in here last week with a sprained ankle, didn’t stop complaining from the moment he came in, to the moment he left. Then you come in with serious burns all over your body, no way to magically reduce the pain or damage, treated with salve that was never meant for such serious burns and you don’t say a word of discomfort until asked by a doctor. I wish I had more patients like you, Jax.” Jax puffed out his chest, while his cheeks burned a little at the unexpected praise. He hadn’t really seen it like that, complaining just never got you anywhere, so he didn’t do it.

“Well you know Beating… I’m not the complaining type. Besides, medical staff have it hard enough as it is, you don’t need complaining to add to your hardships. You did what you could under the situation, and I’m thankful for that.” Beating giggled a little.

“Sounds like somepony just earned himself an extra apple in his meals.” She said playfully

“Nice! Also, I can’t digest hay or plants, if you could please do something about that.” She looked at him a little confused, pointing at his almost empty plate from his meal.

“Then why did you eat it?”

“Oh that wasn’t me, that was… Sc… Scootoloo? What was her name? Rainbow’s fan.” His stomach rumbled to remind him how hungry he was. Damn this talk of food.

“Oh, Scootaloo? Well I’ll make sure you get something alternative then. Now… Let me see those bandages.”

He nervously uncovered himself.

She instantly pointed between his legs. “This part seems weird, considering how little it was burned. Why did you bandage it, much less so loosely?” Damnit… Why did she want to be have an awkward conversation right off the bat?

“To answer your first question, it was to feel less naked. The second... well since we have our… reproductive organ on the outside, we are sometimes… Well, when I get… stimulated…” His cheeks burned more than they should have. He was an adult and he couldn’t even explain why he would want some extra space down there.

“I don’t understand…” Beating looked utterly confused. He turned his gaze away.

“It gets bigger! Jesus Christ, it grows when we are turned on, so I thought I would give it some extra space just in case.”

“Oh… Oh! I’m uhmm…. This looks fine otherwise, not very professional but you covered all the wounds. I’ll teach you how to do it properly if you want to keep- Oh princess Twilight, when did you get here?”

Jax instantly covered himself and snapped his gaze from the floor to the doorway where Twilight was blushing madly. She heard…

“Just… recently. Are you done with Jax, nurse Beating Heart? I have somepony I want to introduce him to.” This piqued Jax’ curiosity.

“Oh, yes, of course princess.” She confirmed as she got up from her bow, before she turned towards Jax. “I’ll be back in three hours to change your bandage again Jax, and apply the salve again. Normally we wouldn’t do this more than once a day but doctor Steady Hooves decided that you need it every four hours.” Well, he wasn’t going to complain about that.

“Sure thing Beating. See you in three hours.” He smiled as she made her way out. She got surprised by something on the other side of the doorway, after which she bowed again. Curious…

Twilight made the fake throat-clearing sound you make when you want someone’s attention, so he turned his head towards her.

“So, Jax. There is somepony special I want to introduce you to. She was actually the one who teleported water unto you when you were on fire.”

“Uuh, my very own savior. Well bring her in so I can meet her, you are making me kinda nervous by building it up.” He looked at the doorway, expecting someone to come through, but nothing happened.

“Uhhm… Luna? You there?”

Luna? Like… the moon?

“Yes… Just give me a second.” Came a female voice from the other side of the doorway.

Twilight smiled nervously at him. “Hehe… So… nice weather we’ve been having huh?” Oh God… small talk. He raised an eyebrow at her, before looking back at the doorway.

“Uhm, Luna was it?” He felt stupid talking to an empty doorway. “Is it because you’re afraid of me? I’m a bit different but I promise I won’t hurt you, if you show me the same curtsey.” He did his best to imitate Fluttershy’s voice, cause if that doesn’t calm you down, nothing will.

“Nay, ’tis not the reason! We just need a minute.” He raised an eyebrow at that as well.

“We?” How many ponies were waiting out there?

Before he could question any further, someone came through. She had a black… no, dark blue coat, she was a llittle taller than Twilight and most other ponies he had seen, and not much of it was because of the horseshoes she wore. She slowly unfolded her wings as she came closer, unveiling two majestic wings. On her neck she wore an ornament depicting her mark, a crescent moon. She held her head, adorned with a horn and a crown, high and her cyan eyes looking straight ahead. But what really made his jaw drop was her mane and tail. The night sky was on full view right before him, the stars blinking at him, reminding him of every single night he had spent in the Everfree under the stars. He had always felt a sense of serenity looking at stars, but in Equestria, for the longest time, they were the only thing that gave him any piece of mind.

It was beautiful. Simply…

“Wow…”

Her ears turned towards him and he realized what he had just said.

“Oh I mean… Hello. My name is Jax, nice to meet you.” He gave her his most convincing smile as he reached out his hand for her to shake. She sat down at the side of his bed, and was looking down at the floor. Her wings instantly folded, as if she had forgotten them and just remembered. She hesitantly looked up at him, and seemed to realize that he had his hand out. Thank God for that, holding out your hand towards someone who didn’t notice was painfully awkward. Do you retreat it, do you wait for them to notice? She reached out her horse-shoe adorned hoof, and he gently shook it.

“We art… I mean… I am Luna, princess of the night.” Her wings unfolded again shortly, but folded quickly again. “N-nice to meet you as well.” She went back to looking down at the floor. Jax briefly wondered if she was somehow related to Fluttershy.

“So you are the one who saved me from a worse fate? I have to thank you for that.” He said sincerely. This was bad enough.

She looked at him briefly before looking down at the floor again. “You do not need to thank me.” She sounded like she chose her words carefully. She sounded a little sad for some reason.

“I just did, so too late.” He tried to be playful. She didn’t respond for a while and he got a little worried. Did he offend her or something? But then she slowly raised her head and looked him straight in the eye.

“Do you not recognize me?” That threw him for a loop. They had met before? He would have remembered meeting her…

“Ehhh… No. I’m sorry but I don’t, I’m pretty sure we never met though.”

“’Tis true, this is the first time we meet muzzle to muzzle, but ‘tis not the first time we meet. A month ago I wandered into a strange nightmare, where a weird creature was cowering alone in the dark. When he noticed me, he screamed at me to get away from him, and I did. ‘Twas thine dream I wandered into, Jax.”

Jax raised an eyebrow at her, then he looked at Twilight who was looking on silently. When he got no help there, he looked back at Luna.

“I’m sorry… You wandered into my what now?"

“Thine dream. We art the guardian of dreams, it is our duty to safeguard our ponies at night. We accidentally found thine dream, and We apologize if our presence was unwanted.” He didn’t know why she was speaking like that but it sounded awesome. He couldn’t remember dreaming about any ponies though… a month ago… hmmm… weird dream magic… Oh, wait a second.

He snapped his fingers, which made both princesses in the room flinch. “I remember! The night I landed here. No wait, I slept in a tree that night… the night after I landed here! I woke up to a bear in close proximity so I didn’t give it much thought, but there definitely was a black horse… Well apparently there was a dark blue pony.” He smiled at her, and she looked hopefully at him.

“So thou hath no anger towards Us?”

“Well not really. It was a month ago… just don’t do it again.” He didn’t want her to know of his past. He didn’t want to talk about that night with anyone, especially not these ponies. They didn’t need that kind of darkness in their world.

His smile wavered a little. This was a bad time to think about it.

“Huzzah!” Luna suddenly jumped up. “THY FORGIVNESS BRINGS US GREAT JOY!” The weird part about that shout was that it didn’t exactly sound like she shouting, it just sounded... like talking with force. Jax had to hold on to his bed to not fall out of it, although part of the reason was shock at the sudden outburst.

“Oh uhm… Don’t mention it?” He said uncertainly. He did not count on that, that’s for sure.

Luna seemed to realize what she had done and blushed a little. She took a deep breath and started again. “I apologise, sometimes I slip back into the Royal Canterlot Voice without thinking about it.” She looked down at the floor again.

Next to teleporting and dreamwalking, suddenly shouting wasn’t really that big of a deal.

“That’s okay Luna. Old habits die hard, as they say.” Her head snapped up in an instant, a smile slowly spreading on her lips.

“Thank you.” She said more earnestly than he would expect over such a small thing.

“You are… welcome.” He wasn’t sure what he did though. Her smile wavered as she continued.

“I am afraid that walking into your dream is not the only thing I am here to confess.” Oh great… More stuff. This day just kept getting better didn’t it? Why couldn’t he just have been out until the next day? Who the hell wakes up three hours after spontaneously combusting? Especially after being woken at sunrise…

“You see... Well the thing is…” Oh God, she was having trouble formulating it. This was gonna be bad…

She took a deep breath again, and slowly rose her head until she could look him in the eyes. His heart almost skipped a beat when he looked into her cyan eyes. Too bad they were looking at him so seriously. They would definitely looked better with happiness in them.

“When I got the message from Twilight yesternight that you were here, I realized that I wanted to meet you. After a short discussion with my sister, I made my way to Ponyville. After I found you at the party, I observed you from a distance. Then when you made your way into town this morning, I… I used an invisibility spell on myself to follow you.” Her gaze fell down to the floor again, and her shoulders slumped. Her voice was full of regret.

It was bad. How much did she hear? How much did she see? He stopped that train of thought before it turned into anger. Better assess the situation first.

“What exactly did you see?” He asked as calmly as he could.

Her eyes wavered a bit. “At the party yesterday, I did not see nor hear much. Only when you went out to enjoy my sky with Rainbow Dash did I hear anything.” A small smile adorned her… muzzle. What did she mean with ‘her’ sky?

“Today, I saw Rainbow Dash get carried to the hospital, and I heard your conversation with Apple Bloom. I saw the scars that adorned your body when you were in Rarity’s shop. I waited outside the test room while Twilight tested you, but when the door’s opened, I saw you on fire, and I extinguished that fire. When you woke up I was here, and I heard your conversation with Twilight. I heard your conversation with Rarity, Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie as well. I saw…” Her voice suddenly broke, and she had to take a breath. Right at the point where he wanted to know the most what she saw… She was in the room, she could have seen him salve himself… He waited anxiously for her to continue.

“I saw you get salved, and I heard your conversation with Beating Heart. But do not worry! I turned around when you salved your lower half, I promise!” She looked up with pleading eyes, willing him to believe her. But believing someone requires trust, and trust was not something he had a lot of. He did want to though… Maybe she did really turn around? He would have to get to know her better to judge something like that.

“I don’t understand Luna… You say you went here to meet me, but then when you get here you start spying on me instead.” She looked back down on the floor, but then shook her head and looked back up at him.

“I believe there is a saying for that… I chickened out. I was afraid… I have been afraid a lot ever since my return. But that is why I am here now! So that I can better myself. Twilight helped me see that I could not keep doing it.” She looked over to Twilight, a small smile on her muzzle again. “She did not want to keep my presence a secret after the promise she made to you, and I did not want to make her.” She looked back at Jax, smile gone, expressionless taken its place. “We hath told thee the truth. Now we await thine verdict.” Her voice was cold and emotionless. It seemed like she was steeling herself for the worst.

It was official. This was the worst day ever. He knew that the day before had been too good, he had obviously been stealing luck from this one. It had started out bad, then gone to worse, and then back on bad again. It would seem like every time something good happened, it went to shit afterwards. Being spied on didn’t really compare to being set on fire, but being told suddenly that someone had been sneaking around while invisible, listening to private conversations and possibly seeing some parts he didn’t want strangers to see was… disturbing.

On the other hand, thankfully, it had only been like… half a day. She came to him and admitted everything, even the things he had forgotten about. She had overcome her apparent fear to tell him this, and that required something. He didn’t know what she meant by ‘since I came back’, how long ago was that exactly?

But... she could be lying. She could have been spying on him since he came here. In dreams and reality alike. She had the ability.

He threw the thought away. That would get him nowhere but frustration and distrust. But did she really deserve his trust? Twilight had unwillingly and unknowingly set him on fire, but Luna had known exactly what she was doing. In a way that was even worse.

But it had only been half a day.

If she was telling the truth.

She hadn’t seen anything important.

If she was telling the truth.

It all came back to that little thing. He couldn’t trust her, not as they were now.

He had zoned out while his debate was going on. Twilight was leaning in, looking intently at him while biting her lip, waiting for his reply. Luna’s mask had cracked and she was looking at him anxiously. How long had he been out?

“Twilight, what are your thoughts on this?” She almost fell forward at the sudden question.

“Uhhhmm… At least she didn’t set you on fire?” He almost laughed at her valuable input.

“Twilight, I think you set the standard too high. If I use that as a measure whether I should forgive people or not, most would be forgiven.”

“So you forgive her?” Twilight looked excited at the prospect, and he noticed Luna lift her head a little in hope.

But it wasn’t that easy. Not for him, not if she truly wanted his forgiveness.

He looked at her. “You did what you did unknowingly Twilight, she knew what she was doing. That is the main difference here.” Luna looked close to tears at his statement. She opened her mouth, maybe to argue or defend her actions, but closed it quickly again. Twilight looked like she was about to say something as well, so he held up his hand to stop her.

“You remember my conversation with Twilight? About how I don’t trust very many?” She nodded, her gaze on the floor yet again. “You see, I’m afraid as well. It’s not that I don’t want to just forget all of this and forgive you, but I can’t. Not if you want my real forgiveness, which I’m guessing is why you are here. I don’t want to live the rest of my life with the fear that you are following me around. I want to believe that you didn’t start spying on me until yesterday, and that you haven’t been in more than one of my dreams. But I can’t.” That seemed to break the small bit of hope that Luna had been holding on to. Tears started streaming down her muzzle, and her horn lit up with a blue aura. He instantly realized that she was probably going to teleport away. The next thing he knew he was hugging her. The pain shot up around all the wounds that were touching her, but he ignored it. For a second he thought she had used magic to move him, but her spell wouldn’t have worked on him. He had apparently just moved faster than he thought he could. “Wait.” He whispered into her ear. He wasn’t sure if she heard it, but she was still there, so he assumed. “I’m not done yet.”

She was stiff as a board, probably as surprised as him by the sudden hug. “There is a way you can earn my forgiveness, if you are willing to work for it.” She didn’t answer. He could feel her tears stain his bandages on his shoulder. He decided to go on. “If you want, you can earn my trust. Become my friend. Normally that would take years, but seeing how I’m already friends with Rainbow, I think you have a pretty good shot. If I can trust you, I feel I can forgive you for this.” She didn’t answer at first, and he got a little nervous that he was crossing the line with a princess, but then she slowly and gently put her own hooves around him, followed by her wings, in a kind of super-hug. It still hurt like hell, but not as much as Twilight’s hug. Her head came to rest on his shoulder and she pulled him in a little tighter, but not so much that he couldn’t take it.

“Thank you… Thank you… Thank you…” She whispered the words over and over again as she cried on his shoulder. At some point Twilight left the room, that’s how long it went on for. He started gently stroking her mane.

He felt really bad for not being able to forgive her as quickly as he had with Twilight. She had saved him from the fire after all. He should, he wanted to, but he couldn’t. Not really. But she was willing to become his friend, she was willing to earn his trust. All he needed to forgive her, to really forgive her, was trust.

He was sure she would do everything in her power to earn it.

Author's Note

Oh wow it finally happened XD to tell you the truth, Luna was supposed to stay invisible a little while longer, but after revealing herself to Twilight and Twilight making that promise... I wrote myself into a bit of a corner there XD But it's okay, I like this. Must cut down on the crying though, why do I want them to cry all the time? Also, when will Jax get his meal? XD
Anyway, no chapter last week, but here is an extra long one :D
also, shoutout to Dj7291993 for politely telling me about grammar mistakes :) you rock ;)

Chapter 14

Luna could not be happier than she was in his forelegs. In one instance she had been granted everything she wanted. He had, understandably, not been too happy about being spied upon, and Luna had almost teleported away when he told her he could not forgive her. But then the most wonderful thing happened. He had hugged her, stopping her right in her track. He told her that he wanted to be friends with her, that by doing so he could forgive her. It was almost too good to be true, she could become friends with him and earn his forgiveness at the same time! She could barely contain her happiness now that she was over her initial shock. He was even stroking her mane! How long had it been since anypony had done that? It felt nice, it kind of tingled all the way down to her stomach.

She had been so nervous, she could barely contain her wings. They had unfolded almost by themselves when she entered the room and she had been so focused on simply entering that she barely even noticed. That had been hard for her, to actually enter the room. Then he had asked if it was because she was afraid of him... She knew how it felt to be feared, she did not want him to think that was the case with her.

The ease he had forgiven her for stepping into his dream unbidden was remarkable. If she had not been so afraid, so stupid as to spy on him, that would have been it in the forgiveness department. Instead she had built more distrust between them. She could however see the benefit of the current situation. She had received the hug she wanted and he expected her to stay to forge a friendship with him.

Wait a minute… hug…

She jumped back from him so unexpectedly that he almost fell on his face. He, thankfully, managed to stop himself with his forelegs.

“I am so sorry! Your burns… that must have been very painful for you.” She could have slapped herself. How could she forget his pain like that? She was surprised to hear his laughter.

“That’s okay, Luna.” He already called her by her name. It made her unreasonably happy.

He slowly tried to get up, and she hurried over to offer her support, which he accepted with a smile. With her help he raised himself to the bed.

“I have a question though.” He said as he covered himself properly with the blanket.

“Yes?” She asked, suddenly nervous about what he would ask.

“How come your mane is the night sky? And why did it feel tingly and fluid when I touched it?” She was relieved that it was such a simple question.

“My mane and tail are directly connected to my magic. Should I become completely depleted of magic, I would have a mane like any other pony.” She smiled at his understanding nodding. “As for how it feels… I do not know why it feels like that to you. It could be the magic in it that reacts to you, or your senses are more acute than a ponies. They normally cannot feel my mane at all when it is like this.” He laughed a little at that.

“I am pretty special, that’s true. That’s kinda awesome though. It looks beautiful.” His eyes widened at his last words and a blush made its way towards both their cheeks.

“Thank you.” She replied silently. It was nice being complimented. A smile made its way to her lips, but she realized she had made it a habit to look down at the floor. She slowly raised her eyes to look into his small green ones. His entire face was red, but a smile adorned it and he did not lower his gaze from her. They held it for a couple of seconds before they both looked over to the opening door, from which Twilight came through.

“Twilight! You owe me a meal!” Jax instantly exclaimed, foreleg raised pointing at her. Twilight looked apologetic.

“I know Jax, it’s just… Fluttershy didn’t know how to cook it and neither did I so… I brought it raw.” She took out a paper wrapped object out of her saddlebag with her magic.

“Twilight… I can’t eat it raw.” Jax deadpanned. Luna knew what the object was. She had overheard their conversation about what Jax could eat, and Twilight’s idea to get fish from Fluttershy, since she sometimes used them to feed various carnivorous. It would seem that the young ponies did not know much about cooking meat.

“I believe I can help.” She smiled proudly. They both looked confused at her. She took the paper wrapped object in her own magic while closing and locking the door. She unwrapped the fish and took a minute to identify it. Seemed to be a River Rainbow. She made a sphere barrier around it, before she sliced it open with her magic, removing intestines, bones, the head and scales. The everything was caught by the barrier underneath it.

Twilight seemed on the verge of puking already while Jax looked on excitedly. Now that she thought about, it had been a while since he had gotten a proper meal.

“Twilight, mayhap you should wait outside? This can get pretty… well, not pretty.” Jax gave a surprised laugh that made her smile, while Twilight just nodded meekly and exited through the door. Luna went over to the window and looked outside. When she could not spot anypony, she opened it. She locked the door that Twilight had exited through again, cut her barrier in half, levitating all the eatable fish into the upper part, leaving the bones, scales and intestines in the lower one. She used her magic to make a hole in front of the window and dropped all the unnecessary parts into it, covering it while closing the curtains, but leaving the window open for when she started cooking it.

She made a small fire underneath the fish in the air, making sure her upper barrier trapped the small amount of smoke made. The smell of cooked fish soon began to spread, hopefully not too far.

“So I gather cooking fish isn’t a common practice around here… where’d you learn it?” He swallowed hard, probably in response to the smell.

“I was the first diplomat in the griffon kingdom to the north-east. They taught me everything about their culture, even how to prepare their food. Fish was easier for me than other meat. They never ate anything sapient of course, but I still felt bad gutting critters.” She got lost in the memories for a moment before coming back. “Still, it is part of their diet and culture, I cannot fault them for it, just as I cannot fault you for the same thing. I agree with Twilight, however, to try to keep this as secret as possible, and only hunt in the Everfree if you need to. Except Zecora the Zebra, there should not be many sapient creatures in that forest. Although there was that sea serpent in the river… it should have made its way back to the sea I think.”

“So there are griffons here as well? Cool… Why did they teach you things that you would obviously be against?” Jax asked curiously, “And don’t worry, I already tried to hunt… It went badly. Only thing I’m relatively good at is fishing.” She smiled at him.

“Those were different times Jax. Me and mine sister had just taken down Discord and ascended to our thrones.” She lost herself in the memories again. “The word spread of our actions, and hope rose among all the species. Although Discord was never intentionally cruel or evil, he was selfish and inconsiderate. It was hard to keep sane when the world around you could change at the snap of his claws. One second it could be day, the next it could be night. When we took over, we tried to give everypony what they longed for the most… Stability. We made the first real government, and spread the practice among other species. Those were busy days, and we knew so very little of each other… So diplomats were made, for easy communication and, more importantly, to learn about each other. I was among the first to travel to another country, and learn of their culture. So, the short answer to your question would be: Because it was necessary. We needed to learn, so that Discord’s fall would be the end of fear, not the rise of a new and more powerful fear. It was a busy time, but such a hopeful one….” She blinked a couple of times, before she looked down at Jax. He was looking at her with big eyes. Well, as big as they can get.

“… I have so many questions….” He looked down at the fish she was making. “But I think I want to eat first.” He gave her a giant excited smile. She extinguished the fire, and closed the barrier filled with smoke, let it out the window before letting all the smoke out. She laid the fish on the plate that still laid there from lunch. Beating Heart must have forgotten to take it with her.

“You even took out all the bones. You’re spoiling me.” His giant smile was still in place as he took the plate. It warmed her heart to see she had made somepony this happy.

“You just earned yourself a lot of brownie points, Luna. Thanks for making this for me.”

“Brownie… points?” She asked confused.

“Yeah… you don’t have that here?” He sounded intrigued. “With all the similarities and brownie points is where it falls short.”

“Well, if it is a new phrase, then I would not know. I am not exactly ‘with the times’ as they say.”

“Really?” He took a bite out of his meal “Mmmm that’s good. You seem pretty cool though, very down to earth considering your social status.” She smiled at him, glad for both the compliments. Her cheeks only burned a little.

“Well, Twilight taught me that. I have still had trouble getting caught up to the times though. The language was the first barrier I have been trying to get through, but sometimes I still go back to the old way.”

He looked at her in a mix of curiosity and confusion. “Yeah, I noticed… This doesn’t make much sense though. You talk as if you have been gone for decades… centuries even. As I said, I have so many questions, but you know what? I’m exhausted. I’m sure you have some kind of amazing and unbelievable story, but right now I just want to enjoy this delicious meal that you made, and explain that you get brownie points when you do something nice for others. It’s a very simple system.”

“I see…” Her heart fluttered a bit. Talking with Jax was surprisingly easy. She had thought he would be suspicious of her, keep an emotional distance, but he seemed to be happy for her company. Maybe it was the fish she had prepared for him, that seemed to make him very happy. These ‘brownie points’ that she had earned. She wondered how he would act if she had not been such a foal and broken his trust before she even held it. The realization felt like a blow to the stomach. It had been so stupid of her to spy on him. What had she been thinking? Her sister had warned her… Celestia had been right as always. She should have listened to her, but as always she had insisted on doing things her own way. She was such a foal. Now he did not trust her. He did not act suspicious or distant, but she knew he did not trust her. He did not trust many, and to make it worse, she and Twilight had shown him that he was right, he could not trust everypony, not even because they meant to, but by accident. It was a terrible thing, to break somepony’s trust without realizing you were doing it.

Luna thought back to her sister. She had once broken her trust by becoming Nightmare Moon. She had turned on her own sister, ignoring every cry for her to stop, just like Celestia had ignored the signs of her change-… She stopped the thought. There was still too much anger in it, even after all this time. It was her own fault, and she could blame nopony but herself. Yet she knew Celestia had still blamed herself for her oversight, Luna understood that much. They had never actually talked about it. Had Celestia forgiven her for leaving her to rule alone for a thousand years? Or was she like Jax, being able to hide her distrust behind a mask of friendliness? She had gone out of her way to help Luna adjust to the times, she had made time every moonset and moonrise for them to eat together… Celestia had been there for her like no other pony, yet Luna had done nothing for her. She had not even tried to earn her trust back, she had not even thought about it until now. The first chance she got, she had ran away to Ponyville…

…

She was such a horrible sister.

“Ponies have really mastered the art of looking sad. Must be the giant eyes.” Jax observed. She looked up at him. He had finished his meal and was now looking intently at her.

“I… apologize. I just thought of something…”

“Something sad I guess.” He gave her a small smile. “Well why don’t you tell me about it? We are trying to form a friendship after all.”

“Well… It is just… I have been gone for so long.” She paused, trying to word her thoughts. “I have missed so much, felt so alone and out of time, and that has been all I have been focusing on these past six months. I forgot to think about how it affected my sister. After everything I have done to her, I just realized that I am unsure of how she feels about it all, we have not even talked about it, and then I run off to come here… I have been very selfish.” She ended by looking down at the floor again.

“Well… I’m unsure what’s going on, but I can tell you this. She’s your sister, not your mom. It’s my belief that siblings are meant to fight every now and again. I used to fight all the time with my little brother.” His smile wavered a little. “Still, sounds like you did something to her. You should definitely take responsibility for what you did. Maybe buy her a gift and apologize sincerely? How serious was it?”

“I think it was more serious than a gift can fix.” She gave him a sad smile. It was nice to talk with somepony about her problems. “Still, it cannot hurt, and I suppose I could give her a more sincere apology than I did. What I want though… is just to talk to her, like we used to. We have not been doing that lately.”

“A day at the spa.”

“I… am sorry?” She asked confused. He rolled his eyes at her.

“Your gift to her could be a day at the spa. Then you could apologize and talk to her while you both get to relax. Of course it could be any place really, spa was just the first thing on my mind thanks to Rarity.”

She thought about it for a moment before a smile spread on her lips. “That sounds like a wonderful idea Jax. Thank you.” She considered for a bit. “Do you get brownie points now? And how many?” She looked curiously at him.

“You decide how much I deserve, I think the norm is one, and brownie points isn’t about numbers.” He smiled at her. “As I said, a simple system.”

She suddenly remembered what time it was. “I need to raise the moon. Wait a minute.”

“… Raise the…” He did not say much more as she went over to the still open window and drew back the curtains to give her a clear view of the sky. It was not perfect, but it would do. She slowly began to channel magic to her horn, preparing the complicated spell matrix that allowed her to move the celestial body.

***

On the balcony of Canterlot Castle’s highest tower, Celestia looked at the empty spot beside her. It had not been long but she already missed her sister. The short time of her presence did not even begin to compare to a thousand years of her absence. And now she was gone again...

Celestia sighed as she prepared the spell matrix.

***

Jax looked at the mare by the window. Was she really moving the moon? And if she did… why? Did gravity not work by itself here? He had seen some weird stuff in the Everfree, and he had told himself he would not be surprised by anything anymore, but these ponies kept throwing new stuff at him, and it was hard to accept some of it. He would have to assume she could, or he would have to ask her to prove it… No need to be skeptical now, of all times. They could teleport from one place to another, moving the moon wasn’t so much less believable.

She came back to his bed some time later with a smile, the full moon over the horizon while the sun was gone. He looked into her happy eyes. They looked much better like this.

Someone knocked on the door, and Twilight’s voice came through. “Luna? Jax? We need to go soon.” Luna used her magic to open the door. “I have talked to doctor Steady Hooves, Jax, and she agreed to let you go if nurse Beating Heart comes with us, and you come back here right after.”

“That sounds fair Twilight. You work fast, my plan was to jump out the window and come back before anyone realized we were gone.” He laughed sheepishly at her expression. Her plan was a little better than his, he had to admit that.

***

He looked out from behind the curtain at the ponies gathered in the town hall. Rainbow Dash had made it and was easy to recognize by her constant flying and her colorful mane. He looked back at Twilight who was coming over with a pony with light grayish coat and gray mane. Her cutie mark was a scroll bound by a blue ribbon. She looked nervous for some reason.

“Jax, I would like to introduce Mayor Mare, the mayor of Ponyville.” Twilight proudly introduced. “Mayor, this is Jax, the… creature I told you about.”

Jax squatted so he could look her in the eye. He felt a little silly, being wrapped in the blanket from the hospital like a toga, but what can you do? He extended his hand forward. “Is your name really Mayor Mare?” He asked, practically stunned by the… incredibility of her name. How was this possible?

She hesitated for a moment, but then put her hoof into his hand, and he shook it gently. “Yes, it is. Pleasure to make your acquaintance Mr. Jax.”

“Likewise. So before you became mayor… what did they call you?” He asked, letting go of her hoof.

“They called me either Mare or Mayor Mare. To be honest it didn’t feel right until I became mayor. Being called Mare wasn’t all fun and giggles either, the jokes ponies could come up with… Still, I prevailed. Now, is there anything else I can answer before I go up and introduce you to everypony?”

“Why does this town have both a princess and a mayor?” He inquired.

“I’m not entirely sure Mr. Jax, but we are all very honored that princess Twilight has chosen our little town as her living place. Of course it wasn’t much of a choice after the castle just kind of appeared, but we are still very glad.” A smile made it through her otherwise professional behavior.

“Please, just Jax. I’m normally not very good with formalities but since your name and profession are the same, I guess I can manage, Mayor.”

Luna came over as well, which seemed to make the Mare nervous again. She quickly bowed. “Princess Luna, an honor to have you visit… again. How long will you be staying, your highness?”

Luna looked a bit uncertain at the bowing Mayor, then at Jax, and then back. “I am not sure, Mayor Mare. No more than five months, I think.”

“Five months?” the mayor seemed a bit surprised but gathered herself quickly. “We are happy to have you here, your highness. Now if you’ll all excuse me, I have some announcements to make.” With that she made her way out to the podium. Twilight turned to him. “Are you sure you’re okay Jax? You should be in bed, resting.”

“I’m fine Twilight, no big deal. I need to get this over with as fast as possible. If anything happens, Beating is right over there.” He nodded over to Beating Heart who was sitting close by observing him.

If he was completely honest with himself, he would rather have stayed in the hospital and never do this. But since he had to do it, he might as well do it as fast as possible.

“… that didn’t meet him at the party yesterday, here is Jax.” Mayor Mare said from the podium, his cue to enter and hold his amazing speech. He knew more or less what he was going to say, but he hated speaking in front of crowds.

“Good luck!” Twilight said as he made his way out. Luna looked like she wanted to say something as well but he didn’t hear her say anything.

As he neared the podium, he made eye contact with Rainbow, who gave him a confident smile. Well, he promised some answers and he was going to give them, if nothing else than for everyone who had patiently waited for them. Time to tell them all the truth.

Looking out at a group of ponies was worse than looking at a group of humans. Must be the eye size difference. Easier to tell that they were looking.

He gulped. He could do this. No problems.

He opened his mouth but no words came out. He started to feel really hot. He noticed there was a glass of water on the podium. He quickly took it and started drinking. This was going great wasn’t it?

“Take a deep breath.” He heard someone whisper from the side. Looking over he noticed Luna looking at him, acting out a slow in- and exhale. He lowered the glass and took a deep breath… it did feel kind of calming.

“So… A lot of you are probably wondering what I am.” He started, happy that he could get words out. “I wanted to tell you all at once so I didn’t have to repeat it to all of you. I’m what is known as a human.” He paused because of the confused murmur. Apparently humans weren’t a widespread species here, just like he guessed. “So by now you probably wonder where I’m from. Well here’s the crazy part… I’m not from this world.” Every pony in the room looked absolutely shocked. There was a bright flash from the side, and looking over he saw someone had taken a photo of him with the old fashioned kind of camera they used back in the day. He sighed.

“It’s hard to tell you exactly where I’m from.” He interrupted the murmurs. “I didn’t come here with a spaceship or dimension-traveling ship. I didn’t even come here on purpose. The last thing I remember before waking up in the Everfree… is dying.”

Silence…

“That’s right. I died and woke up here. I spent a month in the Everfree forest, unaware that there was civilization so close. I have been close to death a lot of times in there, but two days ago, I really was on the brink. Fluttershy saved me.” He smiled at the timid mare beside Rainbow who was trying to hide behind her mane. “I’m very thankful for that. So I’m going to stay in Ponyville for a while, I don’t know how long but… I think I’ll figure all of that out later. I do, however, promise not to hurt anyone, as long as you show me the same curtsy.”

A mint green unicorn made her way slowly up to him. “Hey Lyra…” She looked way too sad. He started realizing that he hated when these ponies were sad. It crushed his heart a little. She didn’t say anything, but motioned for him to lower down, which he did.

She surprised him with a hug. “I am sooo sorry. I didn’t know. You’ve been through so much, and the first thing I do when you come into town is accuse you of wanting to hurt us.” He slowly wrapped his arms around her, ignoring the spikes of pain running through his body. He needed more of that salve, and soon. He noticed the same bright flash as before, probably the same pony taking a picture.

“I remember no such thing Lyra. As far as I’m concerned, we met at the party yesterday.” She slowly let go of him, giving him a small smile. There was still a lot of pain and regret in her eyes though. He gave her a smile of his own, to calm her down. A third flash illuminated the room. It was starting to annoy him a little.

He went back to the podium, while Lyra made her way back to Bon Bon’s side. “Now, I need to get back to the hospital soon, otherwise Beating will give me a beating.” He smiled at his own joke, but nobody else seemed to find it funny. Well except a certain pink pony who laughed loud enough for everyone, which was very much appreciated. He thought he heard something from Luna’s direction as well, but he couldn’t be sure. He made his way down from the podium, as Luna made her way up.

She held a short, professional speech about being happy to be in Ponyville, that she was going to stay for a while, and that she was staying with Twilight. Definitely better than his own speech. Pinkie gasped and ran off after she said that she would stay. Wonder why…

***

They were making their way back to the hospital, Jax having his gaze up at the stars, while Beating, Luna, Twilight, and Rainbow made sure he didn’t walk into anything. Luna seemed to be especially happy.

“You really like stars, huh?” Rainbow asked. He didn’t even look at her, he just nodded.

“Why?” She asked, looking up as well.

“Where I was from, we had this terrible thing called light pollution. It meant that we had so much light in the cities, that we couldn’t see the night sky properly. You had to go far out into the countryside to enjoy a night under the stars. Then I land here, and the first thing I see is the most beautiful night sky I have laid my eyes upon. At first I was scared, since I didn’t recognize any constellations. But then, the second night, after an exhausting day, I realized that it didn’t matter. It gave me a sense of… calm. Like everything was going to be alright. They have lulled me to sleep every night since then... except yesterday at the party of course.”

He looked around and realized they were all looking at the stars now.

“I’ve always found them fascinating.” Twilight said from his right.

“I always just thought of them as dots in the sky, but I guess when you really look at them…” Rainbow faded out from his left.

“They are beautiful aren’t they? I guess I just never took the time to really appreciate it.” Beating said from up front.

He looked behind him at Luna, who was wearing the biggest grin he had seen on her yet. Her eyes practically shone with happiness. It was a beautiful sight.

“Looks like we’re here guys.” He said as they neared the hospital. “Thanks for walking me back, but I think me and Beating got it from here.”

“Alright, I’ll come by tomorrow.” Rainbow flew up to eye level, and they bumped their fist and hoof together. “See you.” She was off in a… Dash.

Twilight motioned for him to lower down, much like Lyra had at the meeting. Of course she was going to hug him, everyone wanted to hug him after he had sustained serious burns all over his body. Not a single hug before that.

He lowered down anyway, and bit down the pain when the hug came. Pony hugs felt better than human hugs for some reason. Maybe it was their soft fur, or their honest feelings, but it felt less awkward. Even though they had brought him a lot of pain so far, he would take every hug he could get. It felt nice, even with the pain.

It was both a relief and a disappointment then, when Luna stretched out her hoof. He took it in his hand and gave it a gentle shake. They shared a smile.

“I’m coming tomorrow as well Jax. We have A LOT to talk about.” Something told him he couldn’t keep Twilight away if he tried.

“I shall drop by as well.” Luna simply stated, before they both turned and made their way towards the crystal tree castle.

“Yeah, see you both tomorrow.” He turned around to Beating who was waiting for him.

“Taking hugs with those burns? You know you can excuse yourself, right? They would understand.”

“Yeah, well… I’ve been alone for a month. Physical contact feels nice, even when it’s painful.” He told her truthfully.

“Come on, I’ll get you some more salve. You deserve it.” He liked Beating more and more.

***

“Princess? What are we doing?” Twilight asked her as they made their way on the other side of the hospital.

“I told you to call me Luna, Twilight. I have a hunch, and I want to see if I’m right.” She told her fellow princess. They made their way to some bushes and waited for a while.

Finally Luna’s hunch was proven right. Jax carefully crawled out of one of the hospital windows, blanket and pillow in hand. He made himself comfortable on the ground, looking up at the stars. It filled her with glee.

“Okay, let’s go then. This day has been way too long, and I think we can all use some sleep…” Luna yawned. Too much had happened for her liking. Hopefully the next couple of days would be calmer.

Author's Note

Finally, got that over with XD That was a looong day, way too long XD Anyway, what do you guys think? I'm pretty good with those jokes right? right? anyone? Ah, I think I'm funny, that's good enough XD
As we reached over 40.000 words I realized I haven't introduced Sombra yet... yeah, he's on the cover for a reason XD Believe it or not, this story does have a plot... I just need to introduce everyone first XD It's coming, sooner or later though.
Write what you like, or dislike, or don't, whatever XD Also grammar mistakes, I'm pretty good at correcting those if you write a comment what's wrong in which sentence.

Chapter 15

“Science babble, science babble, science babble, aqua.” Jax looked at Pinkie, who was just done with her… presentation. Then he looked at the blackboard she had with her… where she had it from was up to debate. Written on it were some equations, and some Latin words were translated. The only relevant thing to what Pinkie was trying to do was a graph which depicted happiness as a result of being scratched. It rose exponentially.

“Pinkie, I don’t think saying ‘science babble’ a couple of times and the Latin word, or whatever pun Latin translates to, for water, is a scientific reason to scratch you behind your ears.” He was still laying outside, being awoken by the pink pony a couple of minutes earlier. It was nice weather, blue skies and not a cloud in sight, just like he liked it.

“Aww.” She looked like she had actually thought that would work. Well in a way it did.

“Well I guess that is a pretty good graph… Alright, come here then.” She instantly brightened up, coming into range. He slowly started to scratch her, getting shivers and sounds of pleasure from her. It felt… weird. He was torn between wanting to talk to her like one would to a dog; asking her if she was a good pony and so on, and respecting that she was a sapient being. It was a hard battle, but he didn’t want to hear about this later, so he kept his mouth shut.

“A little lower… lower… Oh yeah, that’s the spot.” He was now scratching her back.

“Jax?” He heard Beating’s confused call from inside the room.

“Out here.” He called in. She appeared in the window, taking in the scene. He stopped scratching Pinkie at her facial expression.

“… I brought breakfast.” Was all she said before turning back inside. He looked at Pinkie.

“Something wrong with scratching a pony?” He asked her.

She shook her head. “Nope.” She giggled. “Maybe she was jealous? Anyway, thanks for the scratching Jaxie, here's your invite.” She then leaned very close, “It’s for princess Luna’s ‘welcome to Ponyville’ party” She whispered, before… bouncing away. He looked from the invite in his hand, to the pink bouncing pony. She was weird… but good weird. She definitely meant well. He still had the cake she gave him yesterday, from the party the day before yesterday… wonder if it still tasted good.

He got up and wrapped himself in the blanket, slowly crawling in through the window.

***

“Hey Jax.” Lyra said as she walked in with Bon Bon after her. He was laying on the small bed, half the cake eaten. It still tasted good. Breakfast had consisted of eggs, salad, two apples and water. It was okay, the eggs were appreciated. It was, however, a portion for a pony, which was too small for him. The cake helped with that.

“Hey Lyra, hey Bon Bon. Want some cake?” He asked happily.

“Sure!” Lyra said happily, while Bon Bon replied with a “no thanks.”

He cut up the cake and handed Lyra a piece. She seemed to be in a good mood, in fact she looked like she was dying to tell him something. She didn’t even take a bite of the cake before she almost exploded with excitement.

“We’re in ‘The Canterlot Informant’!” She exclaimed as she threw a paper at him. The front page showed a picture of him standing in front of a podium. ‘From Another World: Traveler In Ponyville’ the headline presented. He started reading the article. Turning the page he saw the two other pictures taken at the meeting. The one with him hugging Lyra was taken from an angle so his face was hidden behind her shoulder, which was good since it hid his pain-distorted face. The other one showed them smiling at each other, it looked pretty good. He read on.

…

“Oh my God!” He exclaimed as he facepalmed.

“What? What?” Lyra curiously asked, trying to see where he was at. He showed her the sentence.

“… It was later discovered that a nurse called Beating Heart was watching over him until his return to the hospital, thereby explaining his joke…”

“No wonder nobody laughed! I forgot to mention Beating Heart was there with me.” He should have built up that joke better.

“I didn’t laugh because it wasn’t funny…” Bon Bon helpfully explained.

“I found it funny, but it was more a smile kind of funny than laugh kind of funny.” Lyra added. “But still, isn’t this amazing? Me, in the most prestigious paper in Canterlot! Have you read my interview yet? Pretty good huh?” He smiled at her excitement.

“Yeah, you did well. It’s a good article overall as well. Gets its information from my own speech and three different interviews, all of which has had contact with me. You, Twilight and Fluttershy all show me in a good light, but the writer still manages to stay neutral and use only information he has, but somehow at the same time playing at the… tragedy… of my… method of arriving. Well written indeed. Only rumor he includes is that Luna came here to make sure I’m harmless… Which could be to calm people down. Two princesses watching over me, that oughta do it. Well I know who to go to if I ever need an article in the paper.” He looked at the name of the author. Raven Writingdesk. Ponies and their names…

“Yeah, there is a reason ‘The Canterlot Informant’ is the most prestigious paper in Canterlot, Raven upholds that title perfectly with his articles. Wonder what he was doing in Ponyville though” Lyra happily said.

Jax could think of a couple of reasons, him being the main one. He was in fact surprised there weren’t more journalist lurking around, and there had only been one photographer at the meeting. Which was definitely good, he just had a feeling that he should have drawn more attention. If not then, then definitely now. He did not want that….

“Anyway, how are you feeling Jax?” Lyra sounded concerned. He focused on her. She looked concerned as well.

“That’s… a tough question Lyra. I think… overwhelmed would be a good term to use. Eager to get out of the hospital could be another. I’m happy to be treated here, sure, but I want to get out and see what pony culture is all about. Pretty hard to do that from in here.”

“Oh… Yeah I can see that. How long do you think you’ll be here?” She still looked concerned.

“With burns like these? Too long” He tried to calm her down with a smile, but her concern turned to sadness anyway. He hated that they could look so sad it hurt. The pinned down ears, the turned down head, the giant eyes reflecting their sadness. It was hard to take.

“Oh… Yeah, okay. Listen, Jax, I know you said it was okay, but I still feel bad about our first meeting.” Bon Bon rolled her eyes at that. Jax almost did the same thing, but the sadness in Lyra’s eyes was too… real, in a sense. He couldn’t roll his eyes when she really felt so bad about it.

“Listen, Lyra, I already told you. As far as I’m concerned, we met at the party.” He held up his hand to stop her from objecting. “And even if there had been a green unicorn yelling at me when I first came into town, I would tell her that her reaction was perfectly understandable, kind of funny, and that she was forgiven for letting her feelings take control of her. It happens to the best of us.”

He noticed that Luna and Twilight had come in to his room at some point. He focused on Lyra again. She had a small smile now, but still looked kind of sad.

“… If you insist. Still, if there’s anything I can ever do for you, don’t hesitate to ask” She gave him a gentle hug that he returned. It didn’t hurt that much, thanks to Beating salving him not long ago.

“Sorry to interrupt, but can we get some time with Jax? I need to ask him some questions.” Twilight asked politely. Lyra and Bon Bon both bowed to her and Luna, making Twilight look abashed.

“Of course princess.” Lyra said as she made her way out. Bon Bon went over to Jax.

“Thanks for that.” She whispered. “I told her it was silly of her, but she insists that she should have acted better, that she had already learned not to judge others by appearance alone. Maybe she can finally move on now.” He smiled back at her.

“I meant what I said. I don’t blame her at all for what she may or may not have said.” She nodded at him before making her way pass Luna and Twilight.

“So… What’s this about?” He asked Twilight. She actually shivered of excitement.

“I have soooo many questions Jax! This has kept me up at night, but finally… finally I can get some answers…” She looked… slightly out of it. He shared a look with Luna, and she gave him a small reassuring smile. He took that as assurance that she wouldn’t let Twilight go too far.

***

4 hours later

They both looked at him in shock.

“So what you’re saying is… humans are slowly destroying their climate and thereby their entire race, because of this… global warming?” Twilight asked. He nodded.

“And you do nothing about it because this… car… is convenient?” He made a face at that.

“Well it’s a bit more complicated than that, but that’s the gist of it. It’s not the car itself, it’s the fuel. If they all switched to electronic cars, the problem would be greatly reduced.”

“That’s… terrible! They should do that then!” He made another face.

“If it was that easy… If you can convince the whole world to switch to more expensive, more troublesome cars after all this time, then it would be, yes, and of course if everybody bought them then they would become less expensive and the technology powering them would improve, thereby making them less troublesome… and therein the problem. They need more people to buy them before they can get more people to buy them. I do think that when the problem becomes more… clear, people will act. Hopefully not too late.”

Maybe explaining global warming was a mistake.

“This light pollution… could it happen here?” Luna sounded worried. He pulled another face. Explaining things he knew almost nothing about was frustrating.

“I don’t know much about light pollution, I don’t know if it’s because of the light or because of electrical light. Technically, using magical light could avoid the problem. I’m sorry I can’t help much, I’m not a scientist.” Luna still looked worried.

Spending hours explaining all the biggest faults of his planet might have been a mistake. He took a sip of his water. Remembering the bag of sweets he still had under the bed, he turned on his stomach to reach for it. Pain shot through his body as his more burned stomach and chest took his weight.

“What are you then?” Twilight inquired.

“What?” He asked, distracted by his quest. He finally grabbed the bag from under the bed.

“Your profession? I know you said humans don’t have cutie marks but you have jobs nonetheless. What was yours?” He popped a couple of sweets into his mouth.

“Oh… That.” He offered the bag to his guests, but only Luna levitated a couple of sweets up. Even though Pinkie had taken much more than he had anticipated, there was still enough for a couple of weeks here.

Luna’s face brightened up when she put the sweets in her mouth. It made him smile.

“Well… I didn’t have a profession. I was finished with high school, and was staying at my mom’s place until I could find out what I wanted to do.” His smile faltered and disappeared. He saw Twilight and Luna exchange a look before Twilight spoke again. “Jax… I spoke with Fluttershy yesterday, and she said you told her that you didn’t want to go back to your world… how come?”

“There are… many reasons.” He sucked on the sweets for a time. “I died there. Unless time between our worlds is different, I have been found, buried and mourned. Imagine if I went back.”

Twilight stepped forward as in defiance. “But we can’t be sure! You could have been transported here before you died, you’re still walking around in your body after all! Maybe you were just reported as missing?” Hope shone in her eyes. He almost couldn’t take it.

“This isn’t my body.” He simply said, puncturing her confidence.

“What? You… but..?”

“When I came to this world all my scars were gone. Scars don’t heal. Of course I managed to get an even bigger collection since then.” He tried to make a joke out of it but his heart wasn’t in it. Twilight got some determination back and tried again.

“But that doesn’t mean-.”

“Twilight. Let it go. I’m not going back.” His tired voice interrupted her. He didn’t want to tell her the real reason he didn’t want to go back. But apparently Twilight Sparkle doesn’t give up that easily.

“Your family and friends must miss you…” It hurt. It still hurt too fucking much to think about it. He clenched his fist as he tried to keep calm. His façade quickly shattered. He took a couple of deep breaths. It helped a little, enough for him to be able to turn his gaze towards Twilight. She looked… frightened. Confused maybe.

“Get. Out.” He managed to say with clenched teeth.

“I… I’m sorry I didn’t mean to…” She definitely looked confused. She looked at the floor, then back at his cold gaze. “I’m sorry.” She said before she left.

He threw his blanket up over his head and curled up under it. The pain from laying on his side was a welcome distraction from the pain on the inside. He lay for a while, contemplating what he had done. She had gone too far, he had tried to tell her, but she didn’t listen. Still, she was trying to help… even if he didn’t want her help. She was probably sad now. Maybe he had gone a bit too far as well. It wasn’t that big a deal, it was in the past… He could almost convince himself of that.

A muzzle found the top of his head under the blankets. Luna was still there.

“You should have gone with her.” He told her.

“She shall be fine. ‘Tis thou We worry about.” Her muzzle started moving down towards his face. It was a funny feeling.

“I’ll be fine as well.” He said half-heartedly. Her muzzle went over his forehead, where it continued its journey towards his eye.

“Indeed. Because We art here to lift thine spirits.” Her muzzle reached his check, and just when he was about to ask what she meant and what she was doing, she did something so… so unexpected, so unfitting of the situation, that he couldn’t do anything other than to burst out laughing.

She blew a raspberry on his cheek.

“Luna!” He finally got out between laughs. “You can’t just blow raspberries on other people!” He tried to take deep breaths, he could hardly breathe. “Not cool!”

“Thine laughter tells a different story!” She had a huge victorious smile plastered on her face. “The fun hath been doubled!” He burst into a new round of laughter. It felt really fucking good.

“Thanks Luna… I needed that.” He said when he finally calmed down, a huge smile still in place on both their faces.

“Thou… You are most welcome.” She reverted back to ‘normal’ speech.

He sighed. “I guess I’ll have to have a talk with Twilight now. Again.”

“At least she did not set you on fire this time.” Luna joked. He smiled at that.

“I see the bar has been set. As long as I’m not set on fire, things are going well.” It was good to see Luna being relaxed around him. Completely different from when she was introduced to him. He guessed it had been the nerves.

They were interrupted by the door being recklessly opened. “I came as soon as I heard!” Rainbow announced. She took a moment to bow to Luna before coming over.

“Uhm… Heard what exactly?” Jax was confused, while giving her the usual fist/hoof bump.

“Pinkie said those…” she pointed at his hands. “things are very good at scratching.”

“And that possessed you to come as fast as you could?” He was still confused.

“Hey, if I had come as fast as I could, this hospital would have one window less.” She stated confidently. “But yeah that’s the gist of it. I’ve been having this scratch for days that just won’t go away, and I need your…”

“Hands.” He added helpfully.

“Yeah, your hands to get it away. So get to it.” She turned her back to him, waiting for him to start.

“Rainbow, I don’t mind, but at least ask politely. No need to be rude about it.” She turned around again, a thoughtful look in her eyes.

“You’re right, that wasn’t very thoughtful of me. I…” She swallowed. “I’m sorry. Would you please scratch my back?” He smiled at her obvious effort to be polite, giving her a nod. He slowly started scratching her from her top of her head to her lower back, as far as he could reach from his position on the bed. Rainbow turned to jelly under his touch, especially when he scratched her behind her ears. Luna watched with interest from the side.

“Sorry I’m late Jax, I had a…” Beating Heart had made her way in but stopped at the sight. “I’ll come back later.”

“No wait! We were just about done here anyway. Luna, can you tell Twilight to come see me later?” He hurriedly said. He needed that salve….

Rainbow didn’t look too pleased about the interruption, but gave him a smile nonetheless. “Thanks Jax, Pinkie was right. Your hands are really good for this.”

Luna looked like she wanted to say something but in the end she just nodded to him and made her way out.

Beating went over to him as Rainbow left, closing the door behind herself.

“… Are you going to be scratching a lot of mares around here?” She sounded unsure of herself.

“I don’t… know. Maybe? Does it… bother you?”

“It’s not…” She sighed. “I had a husband. A griffin to be exact.” She started explaining. “He used to scratch me on the back, much like you do. I just get reminded of him when I see you like that.” She put on the sad-pony-look that every pony seemed to have mastered. At least there weren’t any tears yet, that was the real destroyer.

“Had… divorced or…?” She shook her head.

“Dead. A year ago.”

“Ah… I would give you my condolences but… words like those don’t really help much do they?” She gave him a sad smile.

“You lost somepony.” It wasn’t a question. He nodded anyway.

“Well Jax, I’m sorry I soured the mood. You have enough on your hooves as it is, without worrying about my problems….”

“That’s fine Beating, I don’t mind. Just… don’t ask any questions about them, I don’t want to talk about it.” She nodded understandingly, before giving him and obviously forced smile.

“Well, I thought I would teach you how to bandage properly, if you want to continue doing that.” He forced a smile as well.

Author's Note

For those of you who don't remember, Jax tells Fluttershy that he doesn't want to go back to his old world when they first meet in her cottage (chapter 3 or 4 or something, don't remember).
Anyway! I like this chapter, especially the part were Luna is a little... cheeky XD get it? Man, my humor is so good XD Anypony, next chapter will be more about Luna, I already started writing it ^^ Maybe because this chapter was a little shorter than what I have gotten used to :3 I've really gotten into this story, it's awesome! Thanks for reading and liking it (for those of you who did that) and so on, feel my appreciation XD
If you're looking for more HiE, here's a good one: Misunderstandings

Chapter 16

He looked at the picture. “I get it… like Yin and Yang.” He was on some of the first pages of the book Twilight gave him, ‘The Adventures of the Elements of Harmony’. The introduction had assured him that everything in the book had happened, and he remembered Rainbow had mentioned he could read it instead of talking with Twilight. Since Twilight hadn’t come to talk with him yet, he had decided to start reading. He read on.

“Damn Twilight, that’s cruel of you. Spike had even found a gift for this… Moon Dancer and you just force him to work. At least let him send a message saying he won’t be able to make it…” He had a habit of commenting on movies and books, one which made it pretty hard for him to watch movies with others.

“Wait a minute… Twilight's a unicorn!” What the fuck? Why did she have wings now as well? Must be an answer somewhere in the book.

Twilight made it to Ponyville.

“Ha! First impressions are overrated anyway…”

She made all the preparations, got surprised by her ‘welcome to Ponyville’ party, made it to the ceremony, only for Nightmare Moon to show up.

“Oh… Nightmare Moon has taken the town by surprise, neutralized the guards, and apparently done… something to Celestia. Everything is going her way. How will they get out of it?”

…

“Well that was lame. Why the hell would she flee? She has everything going her way. No guards to stop her, no Celestia apparently… was she afraid of the villagers?”

They team up and venture into the Everfree, not knowing they are being followed by Nightmare Moon in her… mane form?

“Alright… a gorge… I guess that’s fair enough… or. Or. OR, you could just zap them the same way you did the guards! What is wrong with villains, did this really happen? Why is she following them anyway? Why is she staying hidden? Does she not know where her own castle is? Is she hoping Twilight and company can find the elements and defeat her? Does she want to lose?!” He took a deep breath, calming himself down. He tried to read on but apparently a gorge was one of the better ideas Nightmare Moon could come up with.

“Oh come on! She cut his mustache, making him cry? And did she even do anything to the trees? Please Twilight, tell me you dumbed the story down so children could read it as well…”

They finally found the elements, only to find out they were stone.

“She actually says that? ‘you’re kidding?’ Could she see down from the moon to learn modern English? If she could then she should have known where the elements were…” Let’s see how they get out of it…

“Aaaand now they’re friends. I would complain about that but I’m just happy that I’m not the only one who made friends in a ridiculously short amount of time. Good on you Twilight, 5 friends in one days and one long night.”

They use the elements on Nightmare Moon, Celestia comes out of nowhere and…

“Luna?”

“Yes.” He almost dropped the book out of shock. Luna sat beside him.

“Luna?!” She looked down at the floor, biting her lips, ears down. He looked at her with surprise.

“How long have you been here?” he asked suspiciously.

“Since you realized Twilight had been a unicorn. I did not try to hide, you were just really engrossed in the story. I did not say anything because… it would be easier for you to read it for yourself than having me explain it. Easier for me at least.” She turned her head in shame.

“So this-“ He gestured to the book, “- really happened? You were trapped on the moon for a thousand years? That’s why you talk like you do sometimes?” She nodded. He sighed, at the incredibility of it all. She was more than a thousand years old. It was just…

“Can I ask you some questions then?” She looked up at him shortly, nodded and looked down again. Was this how she acted when she was nervous?

Where to start though…

“How… Why… Hmmm… Arrgh so many questions! Why did you think eternal night was a good idea? Wouldn’t everything just die? How did you survive on the moon? There shouldn’t be an atmosphere up there. Could you look down on Equestria? What did you do with Celestia when you returned? You know you could easily have won upon your return by not letting Twilight leave, or by doing nothing at all? And what’s up with these half-assed traps you set for them?” To his surprise he heard a soft laughter from Luna.

“It is almost like you wanted me to win.” She said with a soft smile, still looking down.

“Yeah well… It’s almost like you wanted to lose.” She took a deep breath before looking at him.

“It bothers you more that I did not succeed in taking over Equestria, than the fact that I tried to do it in the first place. To be honest I thought you would be… angry or scared or… suspicious.” She looked down again. “Does this not make you more suspicious of me?”

“Please Luna… You were a terrible villain.”

“You… You really think so?” She asked hopefully. He got the feeling that it made her happy to hear that.

“Yeah, I mean… you lost to a bunch of untrained girls who barely knew what they were doing. On the other hand it looks like you barely knew what you were doing as well.” A smile spread on her face.

“There is a reason for that. To answer some of your questions, you need some… backstory.” Her eyes glazed over, probably looking back to a thousand years prior.

“Me and Celestia had always been close. After we defeated Discord, we only had each other left. But, alas, as we took on our roles as rulers of day and night respectively, we started to drift apart. The first years were because we were both busy. Rules had to be made, order built, diplomatic convoys made. I did not even realize how far apart we had drifted until we met in the hallway one day and I did not know what to say to her. In hindsight it is easy for me to see that I should have done something about it… but I did not. I just let us drift further and further apart.

As new generations were born, I started to notice something. Celestia shined like a beacon to them, while I was barely noticed. I told myself it was nothing, but as the years went on, I noticed it more and more, until it was all I could see. They loved her day, while my beautiful night was being ignored.” She sighed sadly.

“If only I had… talked to her, tried something, anything… instead I just let my jealousy grow into anger and bitterness. I don’t know when, but at some point the Limelight, a parasitic magical lifeform, took hold of me. It fed on my anger and sadness, whispering sweetly in my ear, about a way for them to notice. If the night lasted forever, there is no way they would not notice. They would look up, and see its beauty, and then I would be the one who was noticed. I tried… I tried to resist, to argue, but as my despair grew, so did its power. And so, Nightmare Moon was born. Celestia had no choice… She used the power of the elements upon us, in the hope that it would free me. Alas… The elements are strongest when shared between ponies with a strong bond. Celestia managed to use it on her own, since she by herself could represent all the traits, but it was less than half the power we had together. And so it was that I was sealed on the moon, my own beloved moon, for a thousand years. As for how I survived, my body was turned into magical energy and bound to the moon in the form of craters. By that time, Nightmare Moon was less me, and more the Limelight. I was still there, deep inside, replaying everything that had happened. The Limelight had stopped whispering to me, distorting my vision, since it was already in charge, and I could see… what a foal I had been. I spent a thousand years regretting what had happened. The one thing that kept me sane all those years, the one thing I clang to with all my remaining strength, was the slight chance that everything could still be set right, that I could still be saved. And so the fight began. I fought with all my power against the Limelight, with all my might, but I was but a sliver of myself by then. What I had was not much.

But then it happened… the hold of the elements became so weak that we escaped. The Limelight had used up much of its power to escape, while I had only grown more adamant in my fight. You asked what happened to Celestia? She refused to use force on me, refused to hurt her sister again, even if I was taken over by the Limelight. My resolve strengthened, and I managed to stop the Limelight from killing her, and made it imprison her instead. That was the first time I had managed to influence it, not the other way around, my first victory in the war where I had only loses. I gave my everything from that point forward, my hope grown. You think it is weird that Nightmare Moon fled after her confrontation with the villagers? It was my third victory, after making sure the guards were not killed. Following Twilight and the others to the elements? Also me. I was not in control yet, but a fierce battle was being waged behind the surface, and I was gaining territory. You say it was like I wanted to lose? It was because I did. I wanted Twilight to use the elements on me, even if it meant another thousand years on the moon. Rather that, than having Nightmare Moon win...” She ended her story with a whisper.

“Wow…” Jax didn’t know what to say. What do you say after hearing something like that? She looked him in the eye for the first time since beginning her story.

“And it worked! Against all the odds… despite everything, I was given another chance, the Limelight cleansed from my body! For the first time in a millennia, I was myself again. But so much was lost in the process. The world I was in now was weird and alien to me. Though I could still recognize a lot, a lot had changed as well. For a time, I locked myself in my room, refusing to leave. I had achieved the greatest victory of my life, and I simply did not know what to do next. I was lost, I had nothing in this time, except for what Celestia had saved from a thousand years ago, and what she gave me. At least that was how I felt at the time, unable to see all I did have. My sister was still there with me, and I can see now that that is a blessing unlike any other. My night guards as well, still loyal to me after a millennia.

Slowly, ever so slowly, Celestia managed to get me out of my room, giving me a purpose again with night court, and slowly I started to accept it all. I had missed a thousand years, so I started to study, until I fell upon a certain holiday called Nightmare Night, where fillies paid Nightmare Moon candy to not get ‘gobled up’. A silly holiday I can see that now, but at the time I took great offence at it, even going to Ponyville to show everypony that there was no need to fear me anymore. If Twilight had not been there to assist me, things might have ended badly, but I came out of it with a lesson learned… I could still fit in, but not with all those old traditions I still carried around. I had so much fun that night… For the first time in a long time, I had fun…” A small smile spread on her lips, so honest and innocent that Jax almost couldn’t look away. It made him smile as well. He slowly sat up and turned fully towards her. Then he slowly embraced her and drew her close. He had never felt so much empathy for another creature before. He had no words that could make her feel better, so he chose to simply hug her.

“Hugging ponies causes you pain. You should not…” She whispered.

“Don’t worry, I can take a little pain. I think you need this hug.” He whispered back.

“Thank you. Thank you for listening to me. It felt so satisfying to finally tell somepony all of that. To finally get it out…” Her wings embraced him as he felt warmth spread through his body. It felt nice.

“Any time, Luna.” How long had it been? A day? Day and a half perhaps? And his defense was already crumbling. What was it about ponies that made him trust them so easily? He should by every logic he could think of become suspicious of Luna after he found out she had in fact used her powers for evil before, not feel closer to her.

He started stroking her mane. It still felt funny. How can something feel liquid and solid at the same time?

This didn’t make any sense though. Was it the country itself that made him less paranoid? Did the magic in the air make him more trusting? Or was it perhaps their giant eyes, that made it seem like he could see every emotion clearly reflect in them… Eyes were windows to the soul after all.

“Could you…” She faded out. She sounded embarrassed for some reason. Before she could say anything else, a white coated fashionista and an orange coated apple…farm owning… pony, entered the room. They both bowed when they saw Luna.

“Ah, apologies dear, we should have knocked. We’ll come back later.”

“It’s fine Rarity.” He said as he laid back down. “Not a single person has knocked on that door before coming in. What can I help you with?”

“Ah, the question is rather what I can help you with.” She took out some cloth from her saddlebag and presented it to him with her magic. “Tadda!” It was his outfit, he guessed. It consisted of a pair of pants and a shirt, and both looked… fabulous. Green emeralds were forming patterns of flowers and trees, some only when the two pairs of clothing were worn together. Other than that it looked pretty decent, the material was almost black, and it felt nice and soft.

“It looks… fabulous.” A huge smile adorned her face at the words. Applejack ‘tsk’ed and looked to the side. “But… I would like to commission more clothes, can they… not have gems on them?” This time Applejack smiled and Rarity looked to the side.

“See? Ah told ya he was a simple stallion. Give him a good, sturdy outfit that he can wear, none of those… decorations.”

“I actually like decorations on my clothes. Just not made with gems, in flowery patterns.” Jax objected. This shut Applejack up, and seemed to pique Rarity’s curiosity.

“Oh? It seems like none of us were right Applejack. What would you like to decorate your outfit with then, Jax?”

“Dragons. Wait how do dragons look like in this world? Used to be I liked wolves as well, but Timberwolves ruined that for me. Those cunning little… This one time, when they found my camp and couldn’t get past the bushes I set up, they actually destroyed one of their members and threw the pieces over. When he regenerated on my side, all he had to do was walk over and bite me in the jugular. Lucky for me, I turned around right when he attacked, he still left a good mark on my neck.” He showed them the scars left from the bite-mark on his neck, one of the few scars that wasn’t covered in burns, because Fluttershy had decided it didn’t need bandage anymore. Applejack looked surprised, Luna looked sad, and Rarity looked uncomfortable. No need to mention that the entire pack had ended up in flames then.

“What were we talking about? Oh yeah, I’ll try to find some pictures around with creatures I would want to be stitched on my clothes, I’ll of course pay extra for the trouble.” He smiled at Rarity.

“Of course darling. Here, after my little argument with Applejack I decided to make you an outfit without the gems as well.” She took out another outfit, completely the same as the first, except there weren’t any gems on it. Jax gave her a huge grin.

“Thanks Rarity. It’ll be nice to have pants on again.”

“Ah almost forgot partner, I found a stick in the barn when we cleaned it after the party, Rainbow said it was pretty important to you, so I brought it with me. Of course, this being a hospital ah couldn’t bring it in with me, but ain’t no rules against leaving sticks outside the windows.” His smile somehow widened.

“Better be careful there partner, or you’ll outsmile Pinkie.” They all laughed a little at that. It was good to have his trusty weapon back, even if he doubted he would need it.

“Well, thanks for that Applejack. I appreciate it.”

“Well, don’t make us wait, take it on!” Rarity insisted, and for a second he got a picture of him inside a giant stick, before he realized she was talking about the outfit she had made for him. He burst out laughing.

“Sure Rarity, which should I start with?” He asked before he realized the obvious answer.

“The gem encrusted one of course. Come on girls, let’s give him some privacy.” She said before she made her way outside with the others, which he was glad for. He took the outfit on with a huge smile. It was good to have pants on again. Everything fit perfectly. The material felt soft against his skin as well, which was probably the reason she had chosen this material. He wished he had a mirror, he was a hundred percent certain that he looked absolutely fabulous.

“You can come in now.” He called to the others. Rarity gasped as she came in.

“Oh my, you look absolutely gorgeous darling, are you sure you don’t want any gems in your clothes? The emeralds really bring out your eyes, and to be completely honest you could benefit from some focus there.” He looked at her for a moment before turning to Applejack.

“You’re the element of honesty, so tell me honestly. How do I look?”

“Well, ah donno much about fashion sugar cube, but Rarity does have a point. Ah didn’t even notice your eyes were green until now.” He turned to Luna.

“It looks good on you.” She said with the slightest blush. He nodded, satisfied. He crouched down to be in eye-height with Rarity.

“Thanks for this Rarity. I really appreciate it.”

“Think nothing of it darling, it was my pleasure really. Welcome to Ponyville.” She said with a smile. He smiled back.

“Thank you.”

***

“Luna, can I ask you something?” Rarity had gone after he had explained the concept of underwear to her. She said something about starting as fast as possible, even though he had told her to take it easy, he was going to be in the hospital for a while after all. Applejack went back to her farm, presumably to work. Jax was laying in the bed, his mighty stick of awesome in his hands. It felt good to have it near again. Luna was laying nearby, a book in her magical aura, ‘a beginners guide to jokes and pranks.’ He wasn’t going to ask why she was reading a book about jokes. She looked up at him.

“Of course.” She simply said.

“Is this planet round?” She looked curiously.

“Yes, it is. Why?”

“Then you don’t really raise the moon, ‘cause it’s always moonrise somewhere. Do you move the moon 24/7?” Luna smiled at that.

“Calling it ‘raising the moon’ is simplifying it. What really happens when me and Celestia raise and lower the moon and sun is a bit more complicated. The spell we use is hard to explain, it basically… it is an equation that tells the moon the path it needs to take across the sky… Wait that is too simple. It holds information about the distance the moon needs to keep at which degree on its path on the sky, and enough energy to move it. So we basically use enough energy to send the sun and the moon 180 degrees across the sky.” She made a face at that. “That is still simplified, but I think you understand.”

Jax nodded. “You practically emulate gravity.”

“Gravity?” She tilted her head a bit, to look adorably confused. Ponies and their cuteness.

“It’s what makes the planets move in my world. Earth, my planet, moves around the sun because the sun is several thousand times bigger than Earth, and has thereby made it orbit… Well as I said I’m not a scientist. The moon, also called Luna sometimes, orbits Earth the same way. Gravity is what makes stuff fall when you drop them.” A crude explanation. Maybe he should have paid more attention in class.

“Your moon is called Luna?” She asked with a small smile.

“Yes. Funny isn’t it? All the weird similarities.”

“Indeed, though I must admit I am happy for some of them. Having to teach you to speak and read a new language would be troublesome.” He laughed at that.

“Yeah, would definitely make things more complicated… What about the stars though? Do you control them as well?” She looked at him thoughtfully.

“No, that would be much too difficult. Controlling the sun and moon take a lot of energy as it is. But between you and me…” She came a closer to him so she could whisper the next part. “I can affect the light, making it seem like I control them.” She had a mischievous smile that faltered a little as she realized something. “But I have not done so since before my exile. Ponies have gotten used to the positions of the stars, even using them to navigate with. I cannot simply change the night sky like I used to.” She looked a bit sad at that, but Jax saw it from a different perspective.

“They don’t use all of them to navigate do they? Back on Earth we used one constellation to find the North Star.” She gave him her confused puppy look again. The tilted head really did the trick.

“Well… No, but…”

“Oh, you and I are gonna have some fun tonight Luna.” He thought about what he just said.

“Okay that could be misunderstood. Ah well, got some time after sunset?”

She blushed slightly, but otherwise kept her composure. “Yes Jax, I do. You want to… what is the phrase… ‘hang out’?” she looked proud of herself to have remembered the words.

“Yes!” He ponted at her, then at himself. “You, me, the night sky above us. Prepare that spell that lets you 'control' the stars.” A giant smile spread on her face.

“Okay, I shall just… prepare it. Yes, excuse me.” She backed out of the room, looking at him all the way. As she closed the door a happy squeal could be heard on the other side. He raised an eyebrow at that.

“Well, she seems happy.” He said with a smile of his own. Making her happy felt so rewarding. Yep, his defenses had almost crumbled and he would probably forgive her for everything that night.

Must be something in the air.

Author's Note

Did you guys see the mlp episode called Tanks for the Memories? XD I didn't think much overall of the episode, Rainbow being a selfish jerk all of a sudden, but some of those moments, like with the pegasi and their sky related names, and when Twilight said Winter is Coming XD They saw the chance and they took it, man that was awesome XD
Anyway, where was I? oh yeah, so apparently there's something called the Limelight that took over Luna, making Nightmare Moon. There is only one reason I chose to go with this explanation, it will come up later XD
Poor Jax, so confused. It's basic math really: Friendship = magic, and magic = everywhere. So yes, something in the air XD
what did you guys think? good? bad? Tell meeeee!
...
Or don't, I mean I won't force you.... Or will I?!
anyway, exams are coming near, so I will have to cut down on writing time, I think. From next week, I will be uploading every other week instead of every week. Hope that's cool ^^
also, if you like sad stories, read this: Frequency

Chapter 17

Luna was ecstatic. She was galloping through the hospital, not caring what ponies thought of her. The princess of friendship caught her attention with a confused look.

“Princess Luna?” Luna changed directions and charged straight at her.

“Twilight!” She shouted happily as she jumped at her. Twilights expression as she came jumping at her after a full gallop was priceless. She charged her horn and activated the teleportation spell just as she hit Twilight. They reemerged in the room Luna had gotten in Twilight’s castle, landing on the bed in a tangle of limbs.

Luna quickly untangled herself and looked down on Twilight.

“He asked me to hang out!”

“He asked you out?” Twilight asked, still dazed.

For a second Luna entertained the idea of being asked out. She had never been asked out before. But no, she knew what Jax had meant.

“No, hang out. He wants to have fun with me.” She giggled. It had been a while since she had been this excited. Things were going great!

“Well that’s great… Luna. I was actually on my way to his room, you know to talk with him like you told me to. Could you…” She took a package out of her saddlebag. “teach me how to cook fish?”

Luna looked confused for a moment.

“Why? You could not even stay in the same room last time…”

“I know… but I’m the princess of friendship, yet this is the second time I’ve been inconsiderate of him! He tried to tell me but I just… I couldn’t let it go, I didn’t want to… I knew he wasn’t telling the whole truth, so I tried to get it out of him, but why would he tell me, he doesn’t even consider me his friend!” Her voice had slowly risen, until she was shouting. She hung her head in shame. “I don’t even deserve to be his friend.”

Luna went over next to Twilight and put a wing over her shoulder. This would require all her knowledge and experience as an millennia old alicorn. She raised Twilight’s head with a hoof and looked her in the eyes, a small smile on her muzzle.

“At least you only set him on fire once.”

Twilight half giggled half grunted, while pushing her away “You’re terrible at this.”

“Thine smile tells a different tale.” She smiled at the young princess who had indeed a small smile on her muzzle. “Besides, you taught me that. You cannot complain now.” The smile widened a bit. Luna put both her wings around her this time, along with her hooves in a comforting hug. “Do not fret Twilight. I am sure he will easily forgive you, this is next to nothing, compared to setting him on fire.” Twilight grunted at that.

“We are never going to forget that I set him on fire are we?”

“I do not think that we will, Twilight. That story will be told for generations to come.” She drew back, seeing Twilight smile. “I will teach you how to cook fish. You will earn his forgiveness the second you walk into his room.” They smiled at each other.

“Thank you, Luna.”

***

Jax looked over to the door that slowly opened. He sat fully clothed, with the book in front of him. He had started reading, but after the defeat of Nightmare Moon, the focus was on the everyday life of Twilight Sparkle and her new friends, which wasn’t bad, he just didn’t feel like reading that kind of stuff right now. So he started to sing. He wasn’t a singer or anything, he just liked to sing every once in a while. In the forest he had sang quite a lot. He felt like he had gotten better.

Twilight entered the room. Time to get it over with. “Hey Twilight.” His eyes widened as he smelled something delicious. She smiled at his reaction.

“Hello Jax. I would like to apologize for the way I behaved earlier. I should have respected your privacy. I brought you something.” She took out a paper package from her saddlebags. It was a fully prepared fish. “I had Luna teach me how to make it. It wasn’t… easy, but I managed.” A huge smile spread on his lips. He should get used to their kindness at some point, but for now he just couldn’t wrap his head around it… They were just so… nice…

“You’re forgiven.” No need to hold on to grudges after all. “I would also like to apologize… I reacted way too harshly.”

“You’re forgiven as well.” She quickly answered, levitating the package over to him. She laid it on his blanket, careful to not touch him with her magic.

He could appreciate fish a bit more now that he had both apples and salad to enjoy as well. Still, what he wouldn’t do for some variety in the meat. Twilight had a weird expression, kind of like she was disgusted and intrigued at the same time.

“What do you think about Luna?” He suddenly asked her. She looked confused.

“What do you mean?” He put down his half eaten fish and looked at her.

“I mean, what are your thoughts on Luna- you know, princess of the night? Is she your friend? Do you trust her? How would you describe her personality?” She looked at him thoughtfully.

“I definitely think of her as a friend, and I trust her completely. I think… I think Luna is pony who lives with a lot of regret. She made some bad decisions a thousand years ago, and now she has to live with the consequences. I think she has it harder than you or I realize, and that’s why it makes me so happy to see her like she is now. For some reason, you make her happy. Do you realize this is only her second public appearance? She keeps to the castle most of the time. Did she tell you about her first public appearance?” She asked with a small smile. Jax thought for a moment.

“…Nightmare Night was it? She said she had fun.” He remembered. Twilight nodded.

“Yes, in the end. But not at first. When she first arrived, ponies cowered in fear. She spoke with the Royal Canterlot Voice, blowing some of them away. She expected them to know traditions that were long gone. When everypony just kept cowering in fear, she couldn’t understand what was going on. I found her crying by the statue of Nightmare Moon... no idea why we have one now that I think about it... Anyway, you should have seen her Jax, she looked completely crestfallen. I helped her, and through sheer determination we managed to lighten the mood and have fun. I guess she’s one of the reasons you were so well received here.” She smiled at him.

He had heard all he needed to. Anymore empathy for Luna and he would likely explode. Because of this… Limelight, she had lost so much. A thousand years of her life, everything she knew of, she even betrayed her own sister, and was feared by the populace… And he was angry at her for spying on him. It didn’t feel right anymore. It was time to forgive her. But first…

He cracked his neck. “Twilight, I need a pen and some paper…”

***

Luna was raising the moon right outside the hospital. She had spent the hours after Twilight made her way to the hospital walking around restlessly, trying to figure out what to do. She had ended up in the castle library, picking up and putting down books, too excited to read very much. In the end she had just made extra sure she knew the spell he had requested. It was more complicated than she remembered, so she was actually happy she spent some time going over it.

A few ponies stopped and watched her as she raised the moon over the horizon. She did not pay them much attention, making her way into the hospital as soon as the spell was done. She felt like galloping through as she had before, but realized that that might not be the best of ideas. Getting in the way of the personnel could cost somepony their life, and she did not want that. She did have more spring in her step than usual though.

She arrived at the door to Jax’ room, hearing somepony laughing hysterically. When she opened the door she saw Jax bent over on his bed, beating it repeatedly, tears streaming down his face from the laughter. His book lay on the floor beside the bed.

“Jax, what…” He held up his hand towards her.

“I… I can’t…” He said between bursts of laughter. He tried to take deep breaths as he picked up the book and started browsing through it. He found the page he was looking for and immediately started laughing again.

It was good to hear his laughter, it made her want to laugh as well. She was very curious about what he was laughing about.

He finally got some semblance of control again and showed her a line from the book. She had not read the book herself, being informed of all the events directly, but she was fairly certain he was at the Crystal Empire chapter. She read the line he was indicating

‘…Shining Armor then picked up Princess Cadence, sensing that intervention was required. As she saw the crystal heart, determination entered her own heart. She spread her wings as a signal to Shinning. With all his might, he threw his wife towards the crystal heart…’

He burst out laughing again, clearly close to dying. She adopted an amused smile.

“He threw his WIFE… “ He finally got out. “… His WIFE! At a falling object, at the hopes that his unicorn strength could get her there faster than Sombrero’s unicorn magic…” He seemed to have calmed down some, drying the tears from his eyes.

“I’m fairly certain his name is Ki-“

“And the best part!” He cut her off, clearly not interested in Sombra’s name. “The best part is that she is totally chill with it, even expecting it. Like-“ He cut himself off with more laughter. “-Did they plan this beforehand? ‘honey, if Spike should fall with the crystal heart towards his doom, I’m gonna throw you with all my might before Sombrero can crystal his way up’ and she’s like ‘yeah, sure honey, you do that.’” He fell back on the bed. “Or! OR! They do it on a regular basis! That’s why he knew the signal! Hahaha! They participate in the yearly wifethrowing tournament! Probably undefeated champions! Imagine their surprise when they actually needed the skill!” Luna looked down at the laughing human. It started out with small giggles, then built up to full out laughter, but soon she was rolling on the floor laughing at the image of Shining Armor and princess Cadence participating in a contest of wifethrowing.

It took a while for them to calm down. Every time they almost succeeded one of them would start giggling again which resulted in a new round of laughter. In the end Jax stated that he was going to die, and cocooned himself in his blanket to calm down. Luna got some control after that, breathing heavily. It felt so good to laugh like that. How long had it been since she had laughed so hard she was rolling around on the floor? She could not ever remember doing that. She was happy she had closed the door after herself when she entered, no need for anypony to see her like this. She got up and went over to the cocoon which Jax hid himself in. She put her muzzle in and found his head.

“Luna, I swear to God, if you blow a raspberry on me right now...”

They both started laughing again at the memory.

***

Jax led the way. He had a blanket he had borrowed from Beating under one arm, his Bag O’ Candy under the other, there wasn’t a cloud in sight, the stars shone brightly, and it wasn’t cold. Everything was perfect.

It had been a long while since he had laughed so much, and he felt much better now. He looked back at Luna who still had a huge smile plastered on her face. Their eyes met and he smiled back at her. She went up beside him.

“So, Jax, where are we going?”

“Well, at Beating’s insistence we aren’t going very far… I was thinking… Over there.” He pointed at a small meadow not too far from the hospital where they had a good view of the stars. He went over, spread out the blanket for them to sit on, sat down and took a sweet from his Bag O’ Candy. He offered Luna the bag and she took one as well. She laid down beside him.

“Let’s see…” Jax started as he laid down, arms behind his head. It hurt, but it wasn’t that bad. “Explain which stars are used for what.”

The next hour was spent with Luna explaining different constellations and their uses. Basically they had a star for all of the four directions, and since there were so many stars, they had to be creative with several constellations to find them.

“Okay… so nobody is using…” He drew a rectangle in the sky almost directly above them. “This patch of sky, so that is where we are going to have our fun.”

Luna looked critically at the patch he had pointed out. “That is not very much space…”

“Sure it is. Well not compared to the whole sky, but for a story to unfold, it will be perfect. Now, clear the stars from that place.” She looked at him skeptically and then focused on the spell. The stars flickered a bit, then disappeared from the designated area, probably confusing some astronomer somewhere.

“Alright, let’s see how good you are. Draw a… flower.” She smiled confidently as her horn glowed. Stars began to appear again, forming a simple four-leafed flower, taking up almost all the space they had available. You had to use your own imagination to connect the lines between the stars, kind of like constellations except she used enough stars to make it pretty easy to see. “Alright good, now a… something more complicated… a pony.” The flower disappeared, and in its stead a simple pony constellation was made. “Alright… now make him walk.”

“It is a female and how? I do not have enough space for her to walk around.” She seemed a bit distracted, probably having to concentrate on the image as well.

“Easy, first of all make her smaller. About a fifth of her current size” The sky pony was scaled appropriately. “Now you just have to create the illusion of movement. It’s something humans use a lot. All you have to do to is move her body as if she’s walking, but keep her in the same place. If you want extra credibility you make the background behind her move as well.” She looked confused, but succeeded in making the constellation mare raise and lower her legs as if she was moving towards the left. It didn’t look completely believable, but for someone who was simulating movement for the first time, it was pretty good. Also, using the sky as a TV was pretty cool. “Alright, that’s good Luna. Now, if you think of the left side of the space we have available, as the edge of a screen… wait you don’t know what a screen is… edge of a mirror perhaps? When someone walks by a mirror, they appear on one side and disappear on the other. If you can make a flower appear on the left side, moving towards the right, and disappearing on the right side…” A flower materialized on the left side of the ‘screen’, all at once instead of coming into view slowly, stood still for a second, breaking the illusion of movement for the constellation mare, then started to move towards the right. It looked pretty good until the flower went behind the constellation mare. When it emerged on the other side of her, it seemed to have taken quite a few stars from her constellation. When it got to the right side, the whole spell seemed to break as Luna brought her head down with a gasp, bringing back the old constellations. He closed the short distance between them, putting a hand on her shoulder. “Luna? You okay?”

“Yes… yes I am fine. I apologize for that. I used to be able to use this spell on the entire night sky, using it as my canvas. Either I am out of practice, or working with moving stars is harder than working with static stars. Mayhap both.” She hung her head.

“Well, no need to apologize. You just used stars to draw with. That is pretty damn cool.”

“But I did not even keep it up for ten minutes.” She said sadly. She was beating herself up for this… he couldn’t have that. He went over and sat down in front of her, trying to look her in the eye but she kept her gaze on the ground.

“Listen, Luna, you just showed me something amazing, something I never expected to see in my entire life. That in itself is worth a lot.” Her eyes flickered over to him for a second before looking back down. He gently put his hands under her muzzle, and she let him lift it up so he could look into her cyan eyes. They looked too sad again. But he knew how to cheer her up.

“Thank you for showing me your night sky Luna. It’s beautiful.” She blushed but kept looking into his eyes.

“You… you are most welcome.” She finally said with the smallest of smiles. He wasn’t done though.

“I forgive you for spying on me.” He said earnestly. She pulled back in surprise, her eyes widening. Too bad, her muzzle was very soft. He almost wanted to pet her.

“You do?” He nodded.

“Really?” She obviously hadn’t expected this to happen so soon. He laughed a little at that.

“Yes, you are completely, one hundred percent forgiven.” She looked at him with wide eyes, mouth slightly agape. Then she lunged at him, knocking him over in a surprise hug.

It hurt. It hurt a lot. He got his wind knocked out of him, she was holding him too tightly, and she was laying on him. He was pretty sure he would need to change his bandages after this.

He said nothing as he got his breath back. He could feel and hear she was crying again. Her body shook slightly on top of him. He put his arms around her, and gently started stroking her.

After a while she calmed down enough to speak.

“Are you s-sure? Did you not state we had to be f-f-friends?” He didn’t expect such a strong reaction. It apparently meant more for her than he had realized.

“We are friends.” He simply answered.

“S-so you… t-trust me?”

“Yes Luna… I trust you.” It felt weird, being so trusting all of a sudden. A good weird though, like when you carry a backpack the whole day, and your back is all sweaty and the bag is too heavy, but when you put it down you struggle to find your balance for a moment, but you’re happy to be free of it.

“Thank you…” She suddenly flapped her wings, getting off of him in record time. She was blushing and was avoiding eye contact. “… and sorry for crushing you.”

He grimaced as he got up, happy to be free of the weight.

“That’s okay…” Time to get a smile back on her face. “…It’s not like you set me on fire.” She laughed silently at that. Mission accomplished. “So… wanna just look at the stars then?” She nodded happily. They lay a little closer than before.

“Let’s make this a weekly thing.” Jax suggested.

Luna nodded.

Author's Note

You almost didn't get this chapter because my computer has decided it wants to show me the blue screen of death every time I turn it on... luckily safe mode still works. Have to figure out a way to fix it but... *sigh*
Anyway, the next chapters will come out every other week, I know it's gonna be hard for you, but bear with it. Exams and all that. Have to pass all my subjects, don't feel like taking them twice :)
Anypotato, you know the drill. What did you like, what did you absolutely hate with a fiery passion... Write it in the comments XD I mean... If you want to...

Chapter 18

A month and a week after Jax’ arrival.

Luna was standing in the dream realm, in front of a dark brown door. It was a very specific door. There was no cutie mark on it like on many other doors, but it was not the door of a so called ‘blank flank’ – at least not in the traditional sense. This was the door to the nightmare of Ponyville’s one and only human.

…

She wanted to enter so badly. She wanted to help her… friend. The thought still made her excited. She had a friend.

She thought back to a couple of nights prior, where he had told her. She had been so shocked… she blushed at her actions. She had been so overwhelmed by her feelings that she had tackled him, then used him as a cushion as she cried out all her bottled up fear. That must have been painful for him, but he never said anything. He just gently stroked her mane. It had felt good.

Deep down, she had been so afraid that it would all end in failure. That she would do something to upset him again, that he would never forgive her. But he had, delightfully easily as well. No weird misunderstandings, no unwanted complications. She still wanted to dance and sing her heart out.

She refocused on the door. Friends helped each other. Right now he needed her help. She could help him. She should help him. She wanted to help him.

‘Well not really. It was a month ago… just don’t do it again.’

He had told her not to do it again.

Here she was, happy of the lack of unwanted complications, and then she was about to complicate everything herself.

She sighed. She would get his permission before she did anything.

She trotted away from his door, with her head hung low.

***

Jax didn’t sleep that well. The bed was too small, the pain was annoying, and the nightmares had begun again. So he didn’t greet Beating very politely. She was the one who told him to stop sleeping outside after all.

“Well somepony’s grumpy.” She noted, setting his breakfast down in front of him. How she could balance it on her back the whole way over here still eluded him, but he tried not to ask too many questions. He looked disappointedly at the meager breakfast. Even with Beating sneaking him in an extra apple, it was still pretty lousy.

“I know Jax, I know. I tried to tell them that you needed more, but they have their rules and regulations. I’m sorry.”

He sighed. “Please don’t apologize Beating. You’ve been nothing but nice to me since I got here, even though I’m an alien from another dimension and/or planet.”

“Oh, don’t mention it, I’m nice to everypony no matter how they look. I just can’t handle the irony of you dying of malnourishment in a hospital.” She gave him a small smile. “I’ll keep talking to them, and you keep eating the fish princess Twilight is bringing you.”

He looked at her in surprise and she gave him a winning smile. “You knew?”

“As I said Jax, I was married to a griffin. I know how fish smells like, especially cooked fish. Ah, speaking of the sun.” She bowed low to Twilight as she entered, with Spike on her back.

“Please stop bowing to me Beating Heart.” She sighed.

“Please tell me you have some good news for me Twilight.” Jax said as he grumpily started on his breakfast.

“I do!” She replied happily. “Hoof him the letter Spike.”

“Sure thing Twi.” Spike said as he rummaged through her saddlebag. He handed him a letter with a fancy ribbon on it.

“I’ll just… see myself out. Call me when you are ready to get salved Jax.” Beating told him, and made her way out of the door.

“From Celestia?” Twilight nodded. It was obviously good news, she seemed all giddy.

He opened it and read.

Dear Jax

I apologize for the late reply. I was happy to hear that you wish to spend an entire day with me, and I will be happy to oblige. I look forward to meeting you today, at
10:00.

I apologize for the short notice.

Twilight, please don’t prepare anything for my arrival.

Princess Celestia

“Haha! It worked, and she suspects nothing!” Jax cheered. “Quick, where is Luna? What time is it?”

“I know! I feel bad for tricking her, but I think she will be happy for it. We left before Luna, she’s probably on her way. It’s… 9.” Twilight said excitedly.

“Okay, we have an hour. I’ll keep Luna occupied, you go to the spa and arrange a day of relaxing. Then be ready to receive Celestia. Give me a signal when she arrives, like shoot of some fireworks or something. Wait, how far are we taking the surprise? Should we explain it to them or just send them off to the spa?”

“I think we should explain it to them, but let’s wait until the last second. Like right before Celstia walks in here.” Spike joined in.

“Okay, yes, good. Drop the firework signal Twilight, draws too much attention. When you are right outside my room, stand in front of the door and gently tap it with your hind leg. Then you’ll explain it to Celestia and I’ll do the same for Luna.”

The door opened and Luna entered, drinking a glass of water. She noticed them all staring at her and stopped. Jax thought quickly.

“Did you hear there are too many bear puns? It’s unbearable.” It had the desired effect. She started laughing the awkward laugh where you try not to spit out water all over the place. Good thing ponies appreciated his bad puns, otherwise this would just have been awkward.

He signaled to Twilight to get out before Luna started asking questions, which she did with Spike on her back, laughing a bit herself.

“Jax.” Luna said after she managed to swallow the water. She was breathing heavily. “You do not wish to anger the Night Princess.” She pointed a hoof at him. “There will be consequences!” She stated overly-dramatically.

He waved her off. “Luna, I just wanted to make you laugh. I don’t believe the kind and generous Night Princess should seek vengeance on those who make her smile.”

“Ah, but you committed the most atrocious of crimes! Making a pony laugh while drinking a glass of water is a strike against said pony’s dignity. We princesses are nothing if not dignified, imagine what the common pony would think of us after seeing us in said situation. Doth thou comprehend thine crimes?!” She spread her wings and rose slightly off the ground, pointing her hoof at him again. He rolled his eyes at the dramatic display but decided to play along.

“Ah, but sweet Night Princess, had I only understood the severity of mine actions!” He rearranged himself on the bed so he was ready for the next part. “Sweet, generous and kind Night Princess, I beg for thine forgiveness!” He bowed down low. “Had I only known… had I only known! All I wanted was to see thine sweet sweet smile.” He raised himself to look at her with what he hoped was a desperate look. “Please forgive mine ignorance, Night Princess!”

She looked at him appraisingly for a moment. “We can see the sincerity in thine apology. Very well human, We shall be merciful.” She turned away from him and took a few steps. “Thine punishment shall be…” She turned around dramatically. “Nothing!”

“NOOOOOOOOOOO- wait what?”

“It is as thou hath proclaimed. Let it be known that the Night Princess is both kind and generous!” She gave him a huge smile.

Beating Heart burst into the room. “Jax! What’s wrong?!” The only answer she got was a burst of laughter.

***

30 minutes later Beating was debriefed of why Jax had screamed ‘no’ at the top of his lungs and Jax had been salved. She had left with a warning to not cause any more commotion.

“So… Jax?” Luna looked a bit anxious.

“Yeah?” He answered nonchalantly.

“We are friends, right?”

“I thought I had made that perfectly clear.” He smiled.

“Yes, you did, thank you. But friends help each other, right?” Why was she thanking him?

“Yeah? If you need my help, just ask.” She gave a small smile.

“Thank you, but I was thinking more… about you.”

“Me? What about me?”

“Do you… need help?”

“Hmm… Not right now, no. I’m gonna need help when I get out of here though. Did you know that only real friends show up on moving day?”

“No, I have not heard that that was a trial of friendship…” She sounded sad. He adjusted his pillows so he could sit up. There was more to this than she was showing.

“Why do you ask?”

She was silent for a while.

“You… had another nightmare.” Not what he expected.

“…Yes, I did.” She was still looking down. She was probably nervous to talk about it.

“I wanted to help you.” She took a deep breath. “I can help you Jax. Please let me help you.”

He was silent for a long while. She was looking at him with such a pleading expression that he had trouble turning her down. In the end he had to turn his head away.

“You can help me move in when I finally get out of here.”

“But-!”

“Luna… I don’t want anyone to see my nightmares. Not my friends, not my enemies, not anyone. I know you want to help, but I need you to stay away from this one. Please?” He was still avoiding to look at her.

“I… I understand. You do not want me in your dreams.” She sounded bitter.

“No, that’s not what I said. I said I don’t want you to see my nightmares. You are free to visit when I don’t have nightmares.” He sneaked a look at her. He caught a hard expression before it softened.

“…I apologize. I did not mean to…“ She sighed. “I do hope you will let me help you someday though.” She sounded resigned. He looked over, seeing that sad look he knew too well.

“Maybe someday.” He said before he could stop himself. He closed his eyes for a moment. He needed to lighten the mood before Twilight came. He didn’t want the surprise to be ruined by this.

“I can’t bear to see you sad.” She gave him a small smile but it didn’t quite reach her eyes. He readjusted himself so he was crouching on the bed. “Luckily, I know how to lift thine spirits.” Her eyes widened in understanding right before he lunged at her. They went rolling on the floor, but Jax had been prepared for the pain. He managed to end up on top.

“The Night Princess does not condone this!” Luna was ignored as she couldn’t quite hide her giggles. He leaned down and blew a raspberry on her neck before she could seriously fight back. He was in no condition for a serious fight.

She started laughing just as he had hoped. She pushed him off of her, and they spent some time playfully wrestling, Luna being mindful of his situation and him being careful not to overexert himself, before settling down and looking at the roof next to each other. It wasn’t until he heard two soft knocks on the door that he realized how long they had spent.

“Jax… could I get you to-.”

“Luna.” He interrupted her as he got up. “As you very well know, we are friends, and friends help each other.” He smiled at her confused face. “That is why I tricked a very special pony into coming here and spending the entire day with you!”

…Nothing happened. Seems like Twilight was taking her sweet time explaining stuff to Celestia. Luna just tilted her head, looking adorably confused.

He sighed. “Okay, so remember how you told me you wanted nothing more than to have a proper talk with-.“ The door finally opened. Typical.

A white coated alicorn with a sun as her mark and an amused smile on her lips stepped in, with Twilight and Spike close behind. She had a flowing magical mane like Luna, except it depicted a few colors instead, kind of like he imagined an aurora would look like. Luna’s was more beautiful.

He looked back at Luna. Her eyes widened in understanding, and a smile spread on her face as she got up from the floor.

“I must admit Mr. Jax, this is a pleasant surprise.” Presumably Celestia said. “I appreciate you going through the trouble to arrange this. Thank you very much.” She bowed her head slightly. “Although I was looking forward to spending some time with you.”

“I’m not big on formalities, just call me Jax. We can spend time together another day if you want, I’m not going anywhere soon.” He gave her an honest smile.

Suddenly Luna placed her hooves on his shoulder to give him a hug, human style. “Thank you.” She whispered into his ear, sounding genuinely happy. He just smiled and hugged her back.

“Twilight arranged time for you at the spa. Go have fun.” He said as she got back on all four hooves.

Luna went over to her sister. “How did he get you here, sister?”

“Oh, he just had Twilight send me a letter telling me he wanted to spend an entire day with me, to get to know me like he was getting to know you and Twilight. I thought it was a good idea.”

“Ah… Well you will get time with him some day. Come, Tia. It has been too long since we spent a day together.”

“Indeed it has, Lulu. Indeed it has...”

Jax, Twilight and Spike watched them go with a smile.

***

Luna was sitting in the mud bath big enough for her and Celestia. Either the spa did not receive many customers this day, or Twilight had reserved the entire spa for them… Or the owners had decided that they deserved some privacy. Either way she was happy, nopony to overhear her talking about Jax.

“You seem quite… smitten with him.” Celestia noted.

“If you did not want to hear me talking about him, you should not have asked.” She pouted.

“Don’t get me wrong, sister, I’m happy to hear you like this. You had slipped into the habit of answering me with a sentence, sometimes even a single word. Nothing warms my heart more than to see you this happy.”

Luna blushed and looked down. “I am happy. He makes me happy. He greets me with a smile, he talks with me like with any other pony… He considers me his friend. I told him I wanted to talk with you, and he arranges this. He just makes me feel so… alive.”

Celestia looked at her, worry in her eyes. “You felt dead before?” There was sadness in her voice.

“Well not necessarily dead, just…” She tried to backtrack quickly. “It is hard to explain, Tia. At first I felt… Useless, lost and alone. Disconnected from the world around me, with nothing to fight for but my life.” She raised a hoof before Celestia could interrupt her. “I know Celestia, I know I was not alone, that you were there for me. Just please let me get this off my chest.” Celestia closed her mouth and sat back down. “It felt like I had won a big battle against the Limelight, like I gave everything for that single goal. Afterwards, I was left with nothing, almost not expecting to make it that far. Sadness took a deep hold in me, and I did not have much fight left in me. At my lowest I considered ending it all.” Celestia looked shocked. She did not say anything, just made it over to Luna through the mud and hugged her tightly. “It was horrible” Luna continued with a lump in her throat. “Having those kinds of thoughts. I rationalized it to myself, telling myself that nopony would care, that you could just take over raising the moon again. The Limelight was gone, yet I was being betrayed by my own thoughts!”

“Luna, please don’t ever…” Celestia’s voice was heavy with sorrow. “Please don’t leave me again. A thousand years without you, it was almost more than my heart could bear. Don’t leave me forever…” She could feel tears on her fur. “Everypony else is leaving me, one at the time. I wouldn’t be able to go on without you.” Luna could feel her own tears flowing down her muzzle.

“I will not Tia. You are the one who made me realize... You came into my room every night, to just talk, even though I did not even answer much of the time. Do you remember? At some point I asked you why you bothered and you told me that you would never give up on me. That-“ She drew a breath to steady herself. “That started something in me. It gave me a reason to fight. If you were not willing to give up on me, then I should not be willing to give up either. I started coming out of my room. I met my guards. I started studying. I visited Ponyville. All thanks to you Tia. All because you were willing to hang on to me. Thank you Tia… Thank you.” Her tears were falling freely now, as she hugged her sister tightly.

“I waited a thousand years for you, I would not give up on you for anything.”

“I am so sorry I gave in Tia. I should have fought more fiercely, I should have talked with you I should have… I should have… I am so sorry.” She buried her muzzle deeply in Celestia’s mud-covered fur.

“It’s in the past Luna, I forgave you a long time ago… In fact, I’m sorry for not being there for you when you needed. I should have-.“

“We both should have done things differently. I think we can agree on that.” She drew back and looked at her beloved sister. She smiled at the tear and mud smeared face. Celestia returned the smile. They both tried to wipe their tears away, only to become more covered in mud.

They laughed, both relieved after a conversation that was long overdue.

***

Jax greeted Rainbow and Fluttershy as they came in. He was popular today. After Luna and Celestia had gone, Spike and Twilight had decided to stick around. Then Rarity and Applejack had come by to see how he was doing. Now two more guests. He didn’t mind though. He felt really good after what he did for Luna.

“Rainbow Dash has something she wants to say to you.” Fluttershy gently pushed Rainbow forward. She rolled her eyes but stepped forward regardless.

“I’m… I’m sorry for not visiting more often Jax. As your friend, I should be here for you when you are hurt. It’s just… I’m not a fan of hospitals.”

“Oh. Well that’s okay Rainbow, you did visit a couple of times after all.” He smiled at her. “Even though you left pretty quickly the first time and the other time you just came to get scratched…” He added thoughtfully. He honestly haven’t thought much about it, but it would seem that Rainbow only visited shortly two times. Which is better than not at all of course, but Luna and Twilight had visited every day, and even Applejack who was busy with her farm had come around a couple of times. Still… “Still, it’s not like you set-“

“Don’t you dare finish that sentence!” Twilight interrupted, hoof raised at him. They had a laugh at that.

“Speaking of scratching, could you…?” Rainbow asked.

“I don’t mind. Shouldn’t Spike be able to as well though?” He asked curiously.

“Yeah… Spike’s claws are sharp. I asked him once, came out bleeding.” She went over to him and he started slowly scratching her behind the ears. It felt a lot like scratching a dog, except she could tell you how it felt and direct where to scratch next. He found it amusing.

“Hey! You kept insisting that I do it harder, it’s not my fault you got a tiny scratch.” Spike defended himself.

“Speaking of… Can you do it a little harder Jax?” He increased the pressure. “Oh yeah, that’s the stuff.” She seemed to melt a little.

“Wonder where Pinkie is. This seems like the sort of get together she would be interested in.” Twilight wondered out loud.

“Hey everypony!” Pinkie came through the door.

“Ah. There she is.” Twilight said as if she had expected it.

“Uhhh getting scratched! Do me next!” She bounced over to them.

“Sure, sure.”

“Oh uhm… does it really feel that good? Could I try as well? Only if you want to of course.”

“It’s no problem Fluttershy.”

“Ah shucks, now ah’m curious. Could you…?”

“Don’t mind scratching you as well Applejack.”

“Well, it would be interesting to see how it feels like.”

“Sure thing Twilight.”

“I guess since-.”

“It would be my pleasure Rarity.”

Beating came in through the door, saw what was going on, turned around and left.

“What’s with her?” Rainbow asked.

“Personal issues. Now, I think Pinkie was next.”

The next hour was spent scratching ponies.

***

“So he doesn’t want you in his nightmares, but he doesn’t mind having you in his dreams?” Celestia asked her.

“Yes. For a moment I… I thought he was like the ponies who do not want me in their dreams at all. Apparently it is only his nightmares… Why do you think that is?” She asked her sister. She let herself slip a little deeper into the hot water. It was nice to relax like this, she was looking forward to the massages.

“Well… the obvious answer is that he wants to keep his nightmares secret. Maybe there’s something in his past that he doesn’t want anypony to know. His reaction to Twilight’s inquiry about his unwillingness to go back to his own world would suggest so. I do believe that he will reveal it himself at some point though. From what I’ve heard and what I’ve seen, he seems like a nice human, but he himself has stated that he isn’t very trusting. I would suggest giving him time, he has only been among ponies for a week after all.”

“I guess… but he has been pretty open otherwise…” Luna said thoughtfully.

“Yes and I think he’s pretty confused about that. Have you even explained positive and negative magic to him?”

“No? Why would I?” She asked, confused. Celestia gave her an amused smile.

“Really Lulu? And you’re the one who used to be a unicorn.”

“What we were before our ascension has little consequence now. Just tell me sister.” Some of her annoyance could be heard.

“Oh alright. What do we know about him? He comes from a world with no magic, correct?” Luna nodded. “So it is safe to assume that he had no magic in his body when he came here. He starts out in the Everfree, and Twilight reports that he could taste the magic in the water when he arrived. This strengthens the theory that he didn’t have any magic before coming here. Now, what effect would the magic in the Everfree have on him?”

Luna was annoyed that she was being spoken to as if she was a student. She took a deep breath and forced the annoyance away. It was her fault for not thinking about it before. “The Everfree is more balanced than ponies realize, especially after the Tree of Harmony was restored. Both negative and positive magic flows through it, more positive the closer you get to the Tree. Depending on where he was camped in there, he could either get half and half, more positive magic, or more negative magic in him.”

Celestia nodded. “Correct. And which do you think is the case?” Luna rolled her eyes. Her sister had gone into teacher mode. She answered regardless.

“It is hard to say for sure without more information. I have not heard much of his time in the forest… I did not ask. Let me think.” They both sat in silence while Luna contemplated the problem.

“I think I know where you are going with this Celestia. Since negative magic has a tendency to make you more aggressive and sad… basically it affects your mood in a negative way, and positive magic has a tendency to do the opposite, you think that he was in a zone where he either absorbed half positive, half negative magic, or more positive magic because he did not show signs of aggression when he introduced himself to Fluttershy.”

“Yes, that was the thought-process behind it. To be more precise, I think that he was in a fifty-fifty zone, where the positive and negative magic stabilized each other, so he was practically himself.” She ended with a suggestive tone, urging Luna to continue the thought process.

“…So when he got out of the forest and into an almost completely positive magic dominated environment, his body was overwhelmed… he is on a magic high.” She ended in a face-hoof, because she did not think of it sooner. How could she have overlooked that?

“Basically, yes. And he will be for a long time, especially if he keeps being around the elements of harmony, who practically radiate positive magic. If my theory is correct anyway.”

Luna was still face-hoofing.

“At least it is a positive magic high. The negative ones get quite devastating.” Celestia tried to cheer her up.

“Yeah… I know. I remember.” She shuddered despite the warm water.

“I’m sorry I didn’t mean to-.”

“It is fine Celestia.” She removed the hoof from her face. “I just… I should have noticed. How bad do you recon it is?”

“Oh well… I don’t think it’s that bad sister, he hasn’t even sang and danced from the heart yet. It is impossible to tell for sure because of his weird reaction to magic. Depending on how long he lives, he will either stay on the high for the rest of his life, or he will stay on it for so long that his personality has changed permanently. If he stays in these conditions of course. If he goes back into the Everfree, he will probably come of it fairly quickly. Only a couple of years, probably.”

Luna looked down at the water. All his actions felt cheapened somehow, like it was not really him that forgave her. It was because of the magic high he was experiencing. She knew it had been too fast. She knew it.

And she hated it. She hated that she was feeling like that. She should be happy and appreciate everything he did for her, not question whether he actually knew what he did. It gave her a sour taste in her mouth.

“We have to tell him.” She told Celestia.

“Of course… I should have waited with bringing it up. Now you will think about it for the rest of the day. I’m sorry.”

“No it is… It is fine, I am fine. Let us just enjoy the rest of the day together. We can do that at least.” She forced a smile that made her sister’s ears drop.

“Forcing smiles again Luna?”

“I… I am sure the massage will take my mind off things. Let us go Celestia.” She made her way out of the bath, Celestia following after a moment.

***

They were sitting playing cards when Celestia and Luna came back. Jax immediately noticed that Luna was looking kind of down.

“What’s wrong? Why are you back so early?” They had the spa reserved for the entire day, and even if they got tired of it there were other things to do. It was still light out. Probably two hours till sunset. Then again he was pretty bad at measuring time without a watch.

“Luna couldn’t keep away from you.” Celestia said with a mischievous smile.

“Tia! This is serious, why are you joking at a time like this?” Luna was blushing.

“I apologize, you are right Luna. Jax, we have some theories about you that we would like to share so that we can go on without worrying a certain blue alicorn.”

Luna looked like she could die from embarrassment. She gave her sister a ‘why are you joking at a time like this’ look, before stepping forward with a serious look in her eye. Jax didn’t know if he should laugh or worry.

“Jax, we would like to explain something about the magic in this land. It is more serious than my sister lets on. I am sorry that I did not notice it myself, but… well… “

She explained that magic wasn’t just magic. There was positive magic, and there was negative magic, along with chaotic magic. The magic had an effect on one's mood depending on which magic there was most of in the environment. They suspected that he had been overwhelmed with too much positive magic. Twilight looked shocked at the end of it. Judging by her expression, Luna wasn’t the only one who thought they should have noticed it.

“I’m high?” He asked nonplussed. He still didn’t know if he should laugh or worry.

“You have to understand that this is just a theory.” Celestia explained. “There are too many variables to be sure, and we can’t scan you because of the effect you have on spells. All we know is that you are showing signs of being in a minor magical high.”

“Which basically makes me happier?” Celestia and Luna exchanged a look before Celestia went on explaining.

“Yes, at the current level all it does is enforce your positive feelings. However, if it gets any worse, you would-.”

“He would become a Giver.” Twilight interrupted, sounding shocked.

“Oh… my…” Rarity sounded worried.

Jax was getting pretty worried himself.

“What the hay is a Giver?” Rainbow asked, reflecting his own thoughts perfectly.

“Uhh a guessing game! Is it… somepony who gives?” Pinkie guessed. Sounded like a good guess as well.

“Allow me to explain.” Celestia said before any more of the gathered ponies could voice their concern. She looked at Jax. “Have you felt like helping another pony made you feel really good about yourself?” She asked seriously. His eyes flickered towards Luna for a moment before he nodded.

“The higher you get, the better it will feel. At some point it will feel so good that it will become all you live for. At that point you will become a Giver. A creature that lives entirely to help others. A Giver will give everything they have, everything, to help others. At the highest, they will stop drinking and eating because they want to give it away. It is a terrible thing to see.”

The height of generosity didn’t sound so great… yet it could be forced upon him. He didn’t like that thought one bit. He looked at the ponies around him.

Luna was looking sadly at the ground along with Twilight, Fluttershy, and Rarity. Spike was looking around uncomfortably along with Applejack.

Pinkie was looking a bit confused, still with a smile on her face. Maybe she didn’t understand what was going on.

Celestia just looked at him sadly.

Rainbow Dash was looking confused and shocked, with her mouth open.

“Wait so… what? He’s just gonna become-.” Rainbow stopped herself and flew into the air. “Okay so how do we help him?” She asked defiantly.

That warmed his heart. He may only view her as a friend because of this ‘positive magic’ bullshit, but she was a damn fine friend anyway.

Luna was the one to answer the question. “If Jax were to stay in an area where negative magic balances the positive, his body would learn to balance positive and negative magic in a couple of years. For example if he went to live in the Everfree…” She explained sadly.

Couple of years in the Everfree? Not a chance. “I don’t think that’s a viable option. For one, I would have trouble surviving. Another thing is that I don’t want to go back to live in that hell hole. Any other options?”

“Jax you have to understand that our options are limited.” Celestia took over. “Since we can’t use any spells on you, we don’t even know if my theory is correct. I haven’t even factored in your chaotic magic. It is very possible that you have already reached as high as you can in your magical high. There are so many things we don’t know and won’t be able to test… If you stay here, however, you will be taking a chance. There are no guarantees, nothing we will be able to do. Either you become a Giver, or you will keep being on the level you are now. If you still want to stay, I will welcome you with open hooves.”

It was ironic. A week ago, he was sprinting back to the Everfree. Now, he never wanted to set foot in that place again. Maybe it was just the positive magic talking, but he couldn’t go back there. He wasn’t a survivor, he wasn’t someone who enjoyed the danger. He hated it, he hated every moment, every scar he had recieved. That’s even without factoring in the loneliness. He couldn’t live like that again, not when he had tasted the friendship these ponies had to offer. It was too sweet to let go.

But he didn’t want to become a Giver either. A drug addict waiting for his next high. An empty shell of the person he used to be. There were worse ways of dying but…

He placed his hands on his face. All the ponies were looking at him, waiting for his decision. There was always something wrong, always something to pull him away from his happiness. The irony was that happiness itself was the issue. It came and tainted his actions. Had he only forgiven Twilight and Luna because of this positive magic? Was that all there was to something he had considered an important, life changing decision? Was that what had controlled his choices?

“I need… some time to think about it.”

“Of course. Let’s give him some time alone, my little ponies.” Celestia informed them with an expression he would have found hilarious if he didn’t feel so shitty. Just as she said it, there was a flash of light.

“Oh good, you’re all here.” A voice said. It had a funny accent. Looking up he saw a creature… made up of different creatures. He knew who it was, but the description in Twilight’s book didn’t do him justice. Discord looked scary as fuck. “I think it’s about time I explained how Jax here arrived.”

Author's Note

So I've been hinting that there was something more to Jax' actions, and there you have it. Magic. Also I think I can introduce the plot soon XD Yeah, 60.000 words and I can introduce the plot... soon XD I have a feeling this is going to be a long ff... I suddenly understand why people write 200.000 word fanfictions XD
Ah well. We'll get there eventually. As long as people keep liking, favoriting, and commenting, I will try to keep writing :3 Thank you to all who did that btw ;)
So, update on my life, because I know you guys love reading about it. Fixed my computer by 'refreshing' it, a new thing you can do in windows 8. Had to reinstall a lot of programs though, but it's fine, I'm backing everything up properly now. Lesson learned. Other than that, exams are being unfair. I have to hand in a report the 27, hand in process analasys the 29, and then have math exam the 2nd... What kind of bullshit is that?! Eh... I hope you guys are doing well, cause I'm stressing XD

Chapter 19

“What did you do?!” Rainbow Dash was in Discord’s face before he could say anything else.

“Excuse me, why do you automatically assume I did something?” Discord defended himself, putting a paw on his chest.

“But you just said…!”

“Yes, I know how he arrived. That doesn’t mean I brought him here.” Fluttershy was about to say something but Discord seemed to know what she was going to say. “Yes, I know you talked about him over tea, I know I should have said something sooner, but things are a bit complicated. Now, can I please explain?” He was met with silence as every man and pony present waited for him to continue. Rainbow landed again.

“Thank you. Now, allow me to start by explaining the nature of chaos magic.” He snapped his claw, and a white lab coat appeared on him, with a blackboard next to him. Actually Jax was pretty sure it was the same blackboard Pinkie had conjured from somewhere a couple days prior. “Now, as some of you know, chaos magic is always changing, and for many is unpredictable. Luckily, most of it is accumulated inside of me, so it doesn’t go around randomly changing ponies and trees… unless I will it to of course.” He quickly drew some stick figures of him walking around using magic. “Now, recently, some mistakes were made, and a certain red centaur showed me what it feels like to be stabbed in the back.” He drew what Jax assumed was the centaur that stole everyone’s magic, sucking out Discords magic. What was his name again? Tirex or something? “Now, fortunately for you ponies, he didn’t know how to use this magic properly, or Twilight’s battle might have turned out quite differently. Unfortunately, this meant that chaos magic was released in its almost pure form. Before I could do anything about it, it had changed something. That’s what chaos does after all, it changes things.” He laughed a little to himself. “Anyway, it had opened a tiny rift between dimensions. A lot could have happened. Entire cites could have been brought over.” The present ponies looked as shocked as Jax felt. “But all that happened before I could close the rift again, was that a single soul had flown through.” He looked straight into Jax’ eyes. Jax shivered against his will. It wasn’t that he had a menacing look or anything, in fact he seemed kind of apologetic. His red eyes just set him on edge for some reason.

“Now, having just learned a wonderful lesson about friendship, I couldn’t just leave the soul to wander around for eternity, so I made a new body for it based on its old one.”

“… And then you left him in the Everfree without telling anypony?” Applejack asked skeptically. “Doesn’t seem very friendly to me.”

“I was going to introduce myself! I just thought I would give him some time to… adjust. I was keeping an eye on him, I swear!” He held his arms up in front of himself. “I have saved his life plenty of times. Like that time he was transformed into a wolf because of poison joke, and ran straight into a den of timberwolves chasing a rabbit. Or that time timberwolves threw pieces of one of their pack over his bush barrier while he was sleeping, or that time-.”

“You made this body?” Jax finally asked him something. “Is that why spells behave weirdly on me?”

“Oh… that. Yes. It wasn’t my intention though, chaos magic can be unpredictable… even to me. It’s not usually used to create things.” Jax noticed Celestia was studying him closely.

“So when were you going to introduce yourself? I could have used some answers in there.”

“Well…” He hesitated before sighing. “I kept postponing it… because I was… a tad nervous about your reaction to seeing me.” He nervously put his claw and paw together. “I’m sorry.”

“How do you feel about all this Jax? It’s a lot to take in.” Celestia asked him with a kind of motherly voice.

Jax thought for a moment. “I guess now that I know, I realize it doesn’t really change much. Still… thank you.” He finally said to Discord. After the thing with magic and happiness and becoming a Giver he couldn’t get himself to care much, which was weird since he had been aching to know how he got here after… dying.

“I… you’re thanking me? But I left you in the most dangerous forest in this country.” It would seem Discord did not expect him to thank him. He seemed kind of ashamed.

“You could have done better. You could have done worse. It doesn’t really matter. You did your best and I’m grateful. So thank you.” Jax gave him a smile.

“You… you’re welcome.” Discord looked at Fluttershy who watched with a smile of her own.

“Oh!” Twilight suddenly chimed in. “Then you can tell us how to bypass it!”

“Bypass?” He looked confused.

“Yeah so we can use spells on him? So we can heal his burns faster.”

“Oh… dear Twilight. The element of magic, yet you understand nothing about chaos magic. Allow me to explain a bit more.” He flipped the blackboard to reveal the backside with Pinkie’s Latin words and graph from that time she convinced him to scratch her. He knew it…

“Chaos magic actually does have rules, because not having any rules is a rule. The tricky part is that the rules change constantly. Even my magic. Sometimes I have to picture a chicken while I snap my paw, sometimes I have to concentrate really hard on muffins when I snap my claw.” He drew a chicken and some muffins.

“Uhh muffins!” Pinkie seemed to cheer up at the thought of muffins.

“There are some things that stay the same most of the time. Like I always have to snap my claw. Or paw.”

“But you just said-…”

“Yes, Twilight, but if there was a rule that stated that chaos always changed, even its rules, while there was a rule that didn’t change… that wouldn’t make any sense now would it?” He held out his arms in confirmation.

…

“Not one bit.” Pinkie agreed.

“Alright, wait. Just… just explain me then.” Jax wasn’t really in the mood for this.

“Oh, alright then. As far as I can tell, it’s like this.” He straightened the lab coat he still had on. “Every time a spell is used on you, your body reconstructs it and makes a new randomly generated spell. The new spell is chaotic in nature, meaning, amongst other things, that it won’t care how much magic was used in the original spell. If I’m correct, it won’t care whether positive, negative, or chaotic magic is used on you, it will remake them all. We could test whether that is true, but I think you had enough tests.” He laughed, but Jax didn’t find it funny. “Anyhow, there is one thing you should know. You may be able to control the resulting spell to a certain degree. By focusing on what you want, you should be able to, and have in fact already, changed the outcome.”

“What do you mean? I don’t remember changing anything.” Jax asked.

“You don’t? I quite disagree though. When Twilight used the pain reduction spell on you the first time, you were focusing very intently on making the pain go away. How it went away was up to randomness. And when Twilight used it on you the second time, you focused very intently on not hurting anypony… else”

“But that’s…” Twilight’s voice faded out.

Jax sighed. This day was… weird. Kind of depressing as well. It started out badly, but it had been pretty good after that. “So… why do magical salves still work on me?” He asked, his voice as tired as he felt. He just wanted to sleep at this point.

Discord shrugged. “It just does? Don’t get too used to that, it might switch around. Or it might stay like that. You never know.”

“Alright… I can live with this I think. Now, I’m really tired, can you… can I have some privacy?” Telling them all to get the fuck out seemed a bit rude. He looked down at his blanket as they left one by one. He could see out of the corner of his eye that some of them gave him lingering looks like they wanted to comfort him or something. In the end only one pony stayed.

Pinkie Pie.

“Pinkie…” He felt too tired to deal with the hyper pony.

“It’s just a theory you know.” He looked over at her. She had a small smile, but her very being still radiated happiness as usual.

“What is?”

“The thing Celestia talked about, silly. It sounds convincing when they lay it out like that doesn’t it? But it’s still just a theory. She even told you so.”

“But what if she’s right? What if I’m becoming… I don’t want to be like that. Not the giving part, but so… so… I don’t know. Not me. Out of control. Living for the next high… And there is almost nothing I can do about it…”

“Silly Jaxie. You don’t even know if you’re actually becoming a Giver. I mean, Rarity is generous, and she loves helping others. She’s not a Giver. I love helping others because it makes them smile. I’m not a Giver either. I think all ponies like helping others, and I think it feels good for all of them, not just you.”

“But… I don’t usually act like this. I used to hang on to my trust, keep people out. Here I just kind of… let them in. Doesn’t that say something?”

“So you made a lot of friends faster than you usually do. Twilight was a shut in most of her life before she came here, and look at her now. Princess of friendship! Friends are great! And weren’t you alone in the Everfree for a whole month? I’m sure that made you a tiny bit more eager to make friends.” He looked at her. Her smile had widened a bit, and she took a step forward. “Look, Jaxie. I know you’re unsure and scared, but don’t worry. If any meanie-pants positive magic tries to change you a little too much, I’ll be there to help you. I Pinkie promise.” She promised him, citing the lines and making the gestures for the Pinkie promise. Surprisingly… It made him feel better.

“Thanks Pinkie.” He gave her a small smile that made her own widen.

“That’s what friends are for Jaxie.”

He laughed lightly at that. She had somehow managed to cheer him up. It was kind of amazing really. “You’re a good friend Pinkie.” Yep, another friend on his hastily growing list. He was still worried, but it wasn’t as bad now.

He had a pink pony watching over him after all.

***

He lay in his small bed. He felt really tired but he couldn’t fall asleep, maybe because it was still light out. He kept going over the events of the day. Waking up sore, being mean to Beating, being cheered up when Twilight came. Having fun with Luna while Twilight arranged stuff, revealing his surprise to Luna, having Luna hug him, seeing Luna smile… That part warmed his heart and put a smile on his face. No matter the reason, he had made her happy, and that made him happy. She deserved some happiness after all.

Then he had chilled with the elements of harmony. That had made him happy as well. It was good to have some company… God knows he had spent too much time alone in that forest. He smiled at the memory of Fluttershy pushing Rainbow forward so she could apologize. He had been among ponies for a week and he was already happier than he had been in a long time.

He missed Max and Lizza. He tried to keep them out of his thoughts, but he really missed them. Their mild bickering, their reassuring smiles. He remembered that time Max had invited him over for the weekend his parents weren't home and they had played videogames all day every day, until they had to make food, which turned out to be an adventure in itself since none of them knew how to cook. They either ended up with something edible, or they ate cereal instead. That had been so much fun, they had stayed up till late, just talking and laughing. He wondered if he could achieve something similar here.

Or that time Lizza had arranged a party for the first time, and Max got crazy drunk. Jax had kept an eye on him the whole night, making sure he didn’t do anything he would regret. It had been hard, especially cleaning up afterwards, but when Max had turned to him and told him he was the best god damn friend a man could have, it had all seemed worth it.

That had been such a long time ago. He briefly wondered what they were up to now a day, before stopping himself. That path didn’t lead to happy thoughts. He quickly dried his eyes and refocused on ponies.

They were colorful, they were happy, friendly and kind. He thought of Luna’s smile again. It had been so genuine. When was the last time he had made anyone smile like that?

Warmth spread through him again. He put a hand on his chest and enjoyed the feeling.

Either Celestia was right, and he was becoming something he didn’t want to become, or Pinkie was right and he was simply happy to make other people happy. Either way he couldn’t do anything about it. Complaining didn’t help anyone. He would stay here, that part was for sure, and until something happened, he would focus on being happy.

A knock on his door pulled him out of his thoughts. He hesitated for a moment, caught between wanting to sleep, being unable to fall asleep, and curiosity.

“Come in.” He finally answered. A few seconds passed before the door opened, revealing Luna. She slowly entered, closing the door behind her.

“I apologize, I realized you said you wanted to sleep, but I could not sense you in the dream realm and I… wanted to talk with you.” It was dark because the curtains were closed, only a few fading rays of light making their way through, but he could still see that her eyes and ears were both pointed at the floor. He had known her long enough to know that that meant she was sad about something.

“It’s okay, I couldn’t fall asleep.”

She took a deep breath and straightened up. “I am sorry.” She said. Jax tilted his head at her like she sometimes did.

“For what?” He really didn’t think she had anything to be sorry for. She deflated a little.

“I am not sure. I just feel so… sorry. Like I did something to you. Maybe it is because I did not notice the magical high before, or because I did not fully enjoy the day with my sister that you so graciously arranged… or maybe it is for feeling like I am not really your friend after all.” She looked down at the floor again. “I am sorry” She added softly.

The last reason hurt. It hurt way too much. He had thought it himself, that maybe he only did what he did because of positive magic, but hearing out loud… he realized how wrong it was. Rainbow Dash, Luna and Pinkie Pie. They were all his friends, and he had a feeling that others would soon follow. Positive magic or no, they were his friends.

“Luna… Come here.” He sat up in the bed and spread out his arms. She looked up and slowly went into his embrace. For a while he just thought about how to word his feelings while enjoying the feeling of stroking her. It still felt kind of funny.

“Pinkie says we can’t be sure I’m on a magical high.” He started.

“But-!” she was about to protest but he softly shushed her.

“Shh… I know, it could kind of seem like I am, couldn’t it? But she has a point as well. I spent a month alone in the Everfree. You know how it feels like to be alone don’t you?” She nodded. “You get tired of it pretty quickly. I don’t think humans, or ponies for that sake, were meant to be alone. It messes with your head. Don’t tell anyone this, but I’ve actually been alone since before I came here. Four months to be exact, five in total I guess.” Luna tensed up.

“You… you did not have anypony at all?” She sounded very sad. He sighed.

“I did. I pushed them away though. At the time I thought I wanted to be alone.” He snorted at the stupidity. “I was… well I wasn’t in my best mindset. Anyway, it was the same when I first met Fluttershy. Can you believe I almost ran straight back into that hell-hole?” He laughed. “Being amongst colorful, crazy and kind ponies is the best thing that happened to me in a long time. I think that going from being alone, to being showered with kindness and trust… I think that is a big part of it as well. Maybe a little of both? Who knows…” Luna relaxed a little again. “What I do know is that you are my friend. Whether it’s because of magical high, or because I’m lonely… I don’t care. You are my friend, along with Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie. I will take these friendships as seriously as they deserve to be taken. Do you understand?” She nodded from his shoulder. “How about you? Do you consider me your friend?”

“Yes!” she instantly replied. “By the stars… It has only been less than a week and I already feel like I have known you for far longer. You are my friend, and I will take our relationship seriously as well.”

He smiled. This felt nice. He felt warm to his core. “Well… then there’s no problem now, is there?”

“No. Well… I am still sorry for wasting the day with my sister that you provided.”

“Ah… did you apologize?” She nodded

“I did. It was good to have that talk with her. We also talked about other things.”

“Then it wasn’t wasted.” He stated. “What did you use the rest of it on anyway?” She tensed up a bit again, he only noticed because they were so close and his hand was on her shoulder at the time.

“We… Socialized with the elements.” Her voice wasn’t exactly cold, but there was something there.

“Sounds fun enough?” He formed it as a question because he wasn’t sure how Luna felt about it. He had fun socializing with them. She sighed and moved deeper into his embrace, covering him with her wings as well.

“I felt like a third wheel. Or ninth in this instance. The only time I said anything was when Pinkie asked me about what kind of cake I like. Maybe it was my own fault though, between being busy worrying about you, not having anything to talk about, and not being with the times, my heart was not really in it.”

Warmth spread through him again, making him smile. She was worried about him. It was incredible that such a small thing could make him feel so good. If he was a cat, he would have started purring. Some of it was her wings around him as well. He just felt… safe. He contemplated getting out of bed so he could get a super-hug from her, the one where she has both her hooves and wings around him, but the pain was bad enough as it was and he didn’t feel like moving.

“Could you…” She stopped and looked behind her at the door.

“What?” He asked confused.

“I apologize, I wanted to see if I was going to get interrupted again. Could you… scratch me?”

“Sure, I don’t mind.” He shrugged.

He started scratching her behind the ears, getting a shiver from her. He started scratching her on the back with his other hand as well, getting a small moan from her. As he worked down towards her shoulder with one hand, and lower back with the other, she started breathing heavily, with the occasional moan and shiver.

Wait a minute…

As he worked he didn’t pay much attention to her responses until suddenly something clicked.

Heavy breathing? Check.

Moans? Check.

Shivering? Check.

He stopped. This snapped Luna out of it as well and she practically sprung back like a… something… spring? Like a spring or something.

She looked flustered and close to panic, confirming his suspicion somewhat.

“I… Uhm… We thank thee.” She was about to turn towards the door, but seemed to change her mind. “’Twas… uhm… pleasant. But now We art needed… We…” She took a step back, looked around the room until her eyes found the window. “We need to raise the moon! Of course... We bid thee a good night. Farewell!” She charged her horn and teleported away in a flash of light, leaving Jax stunned and confused. He wanted to laugh at the absurdity of it all. Had he really… was she really… it seemed like it. He would need to ask Beating about it. But not now. Now he needed to sleep.

Thoughts of Luna’s moans made him blush. This would take a while…

***

Deep in the Everfree forest, a creature quite literally a shadow of his former self, moved at a slow pace. The only thing driving him forward for months was the thought of revenge.

Revenge against those who stole his victory from him.

Revenge against six ponies, and their stupid, meddling dragon.

Author's Note

So much to write in this thing, get ready for a long Author's Note XD
First of all, you get the chapter a day early because I said 'fuck it' and decided to write a bit more than I should. But hey, I'm done with math, and I won't be studying as hard for the rest of the exams... I think XD And hey, you guys deserve it. Thank you to the 128 users tracking this story, and thank you to the rest of the people who read and 'liked' it randomly. Thanks again to Dj7291993 for commenting on every single chapter, and thank you to all others for commenting randomly. Why am I so thankful? We have 80 likes :D that is so awesome... so close to 100 XD
Speaking of statistics... This story is, at the time of writing this, ranked 32,904th on Fimfiction. Which is cool, but my question is... what is the number 1 ranked story and how do I find it?
Also, how do stories get to the front page feature thingy? is it about likes? like/dislike ratio? Anybody know?
And now to this chapter... I was debating with myself whether or not I should have Luna react like that to being scratched, since this story IS only rated teen... did I take it too far? It was mostly implied but still.
It turns out Discord is hard to write... I tried but I don't think I do him justice.
Also... The plot!!! you guys, do you see it? it's... no if you look... like... on the horizon! If you look very closely XD It is slowly showing it self. Soon...
I'll still be posting every other week, so here: Past Sins
wonder if I'll ever reach 9000 likes... XD No Human in that one though.
and lastly: Did you guys see that Gilda finally made up with Pinkie and Rainbow? That episode was awesome... Season 5 really has it's ups and downs XD I didn't like the cliche one with Discord being jealous ... well it's fine that he's jealous, but the way they handled it...eh.
And... that's it I think :) comment if you want ;)

Chapter 20

What had she done? By the stars, moon and sun, why did she… why did it feel so good to be scratched by him?

Luna paced around in her room in Twilight’s castle. She had done so almost the entire night, only stopping to help with nightmares. Only for foals though, she was not in the mood to deal with grown up ponies that did not want her help. Foals were always more willing to accept her after she helped with a nightmare.

She stopped. She had to lower the moon. She teleported into the top tower of the castle, where she had a good view of the sky. She cast the spell needed, feeling the toll it took on her. She had been awake a whole day and night, and she could be awake for much longer… but she really wanted to sleep. Worries had kept her up though. Did he realize what his scratching had done to her? He had stopped all of a sudden as if realizing something… Oh, stars, this was bad. She teleported back into her room.

She looked at her bed then started pacing again. Why had it felt so good? She had asked the question over and over again. She had never had any other creature scratch her, so she could not tell if it was because it was him, or if she just really liked getting scratched in general.

Was it the touch? No, she had been massaged the very same day, and though it felt nice, it did not feel as good.

Was it because he was touching her? No, he had stroked her mane just seconds before he started scratching her, and though that felt good, it did not get the same… reaction from her.

So it must be the scratching. She bit her lip. This was bad. He knew… her reaction afterwards had ensured that he knew something was amiss. He must have realized, that was why he stopped, and that was what had finally snapped her out of it.

Why did it feel so good? She sighed. She was running in circles. Focus on choices.

Pretend nothing happened… Could that work? She did have a good mask, she was a ruler after all, but she was rusty as well, and this was the most embarrassing thing she had done since… well in a long time. Could she look him in the eye without blushing? And what if he started asking questions? So many variables she could not account for. Next option.

Talk with him about it. That made her blush instantly. This was the mature way out, but also the most embarrassing. He must know what the scratching had done to her, so getting it out in the open and having a mature talk would most likely be… ah who was she kidding, she could not do that, it would be too embarrassing! Next option.

Send a servant to talk with him instead… No, that was silly. Next option.

Avoid him for the rest of his life. Easy enough, all she had to do was move back to Canterlot. Even if he came there one day, he would most likely come during the day when she was unavailable… unless he came to night court, demanding answers to why she had left all of a sudden, maybe even embarrassing her in front of her guards. Did she even want to avoid him? It felt so good to be around him…

She laid down, putting her hooves over her eyes. Why was this so hard? Why did she have to… why did it have to feel so good?!

She groaned. She had probably ruined it. Why would he want to continue being friends with her now? He probably never wanted to see her again…

She sprung up. No… he was not like that. She just needed to fix this. If there was one thing Jax had proved he could do, it was forgive.

‘It is not like I set him on fire.’ The thought made a small smile appear on her muzzle. It had turned into such a reassuring thought. That no matter what she did, somepony else had done something worse. She felt bad that Twilight’s unintentional mistake made her feel at ease…

Maybe Twilight could assist her. She was the Princess of Friendship after all.

***

“So… Luna. What did you want to talk about?”

Luna had caught Twilight after breakfast, and asked for a private talk. They had made their way to Luna’s room.

“Uhm…” She looked around the room, anything but the lavender pony in front of her. She was already blushing.

She took a deep breath and tried to put on her mask like she had learned a long time ago. She repressed her feelings and looked up at Twilight.

“Have you been scratched by Jax yet?” She asked, her voice carefully neutral.

Twilight looked at her for a second before answering. “Oh yes, it felt really good. Of course Spike does a good job as well, but Jax seems to know where to scratch and with what intensity. I think it helps that he doesn’t have sharp claws… why do you ask?”

“Well… I was scratched as well.” She admitted, barely keeping the blush away.

“It felt good, right? Did he do the thing where he scratches behind your ears and your back at the same time? I wonder how it would feel like to be scratched on the belly.” Twilight gave her an innocent smile while Luna was blushing madly at the thought.

“Yes, Twilight, he did and it felt good… maybe a little too good in fact…” She tried to hint, looking down at the crystal floor. Twilight of course did not understand.

“How could it feel too good?”

“Well… embarrassingly good?” She tried again. “In fact, I am a bit reluctant to see him for a while…” She looked up again, at Twilight tilting her head.

“It felt so good that you got embarrassed? How could it - oh! Oh… uhm…” She seemed to finally understand. Luna was busy looking down, but she could feel Twilight moving around uncomfortably. “Does he… does he know?” She could hear the embarrassment in her voice.

Luna sighed. “I do not know. I am having a hard time deciding what to do, so I thought that you could help me, Twilight.”

“Oh! Of course I’ll help you. That’s what friends are for.” Luna looked up from the floor to see Twilight smiling at her. She quickly took a step forward and wrapped the lavender pony in a hug, a smile breaking out on her muzzle. It felt so good to hear those words.

“Thank you.” It had been a while since she could rely on anyone but herself and her sister.

“You are very welcome.” Twilight answered, happiness clear in her voice. “We just need to find out what to do next.”

***

“I’m fine, Steady Hooves. Glad you’re checking up on me, but I’m sure you have other things to do.” Jax told his doctor while she was checking the burns on his upper body.

“Be that as it may Jax, I am responsible for your well-being, and I will see the progress with my own eyes. Now take off your pants.”

“But I’ve told you that humans don’t feel comfortable with showing… that part. Can’t you respect my privacy just a little?” He tried. This situation was not to his liking.

Steady Hooves sighed. “If it’s between respecting privacy, and saving lives, I always choose the later. This is especially important because I’ve heard from Beating Heart that she has allowed you to salve your lower part yourself. You’ve had your privacy, now you’re paying for it. If it makes you feel any better, I’ve already seen way worse than male genitalia. You’d be surprised how many grown stallions-“

“Alright already, I don’t need to hear it. Just… lock the door, please.” He said with a defeated sigh. Beating went over and did as he asked, while Steady patiently waited for him to get started.

There was a lot of staring, more than he felt comfortable with, but Steady remained professional. There was apparently one part he hadn’t salved well enough, and he needed to start doing so. He promised he would be more careful in the future. Just as they were both about to leave, he asked Beating to stay. Steady went on ahead, closing the door behind her.

“I have a question but I don’t quite know how to formulate it.” He started.

She gave him a smile. “Well I’m afraid I can’t read your mind, so you’ll have to try.”

“Yes yes… Okay. Let’s see… It’s a bit awkward though. I don’t think you’ll mind much but...” The smile was still on her face as she shook her head. “Alright. So I was scratching this mare…”

Beating gave a short laugh. “Nothing new there.”

“Yes… Well her reaction was a bit different than the others. She started shivering and moaning, breathing heavily towards the end… Does that mean what I think it means? I just want to make sure I don’t misunderstand something here.”

“That depends… what do you think it means?” She still had a smile on her face.

“Well… alright let me say it like this. If it was a human shivering and moaning at my touch, I would think she was… turned on. Of course I don’t have much experience with people moaning at my touch, and she wasn’t human. So I ask you.”

Beating nodded sagely. “A fine choice indeed. Alright, I’ll help. It just so happens that I have some experience in this field.”

“People often moan at you touch?” He asked a little amused.

“Ah, no. I was the one doing the… Anyway it is entirely possible that you are right. Some ponies get a little more out of a scratching session than simply getting rid of an itch. Whether your mystery pony did, is still up for debate, though it does sound like it.”

“So you’re saying that I could be wrong?”

“Of course. I learned a long time ago not to judge by appearances. There are other tells though. Did she move her tail away?”

“…Away?”

“You know… to the side. So you could have a clear view. It’s an involuntary thing.” To her credit she kept a straight face while explaining basic tells any stallion should know.

“Uhm… I didn’t notice.” Luna was about to turn around, but seemed to change her mind. Also, she had an ethereal tail, did it still act like a normal tail?

“She backed out of the room then? Or she waited a while after you were done? ‘Cause if she backed out, that probably means there was something she didn’t want you to see.”

She teleported away… that probably counted as backing out.

“Okay, thanks for the help, Beating.” His cheeks were burning a little. So he had turned her on. He didn’t know how to feel about it…

“You’re quite welcome, Jax. If you ever want to talk about relationships between different species, you know where to find me.” She winked at him and went on her merry way, Jax staring at her until she left.

***

“Jax.” Twilight said as she came in. Jax jumped at the opportunity to get his mind off of things.

“Twilight! How good to see you, come on in. No Luna today?” He asked with a wide smile on his face.

“heh…” Twilight had a bad poker face. Who knew? “No, she… uhmm… she doesn’t feel too well…” Something told Jax that Twilight was lying. Mostly Twilight, because she was bad at lying.

“Oh? That’s too bad… I was hoping to talk to her about yesterday.” He said mostly to see how much Twilight knew. He was actually glad that she wasn’t there… he wasn’t ready for that level of awkward between them. Twilight looked up.

“You were?” she asked way too quickly. She knew something, if she didn’t she would have asked what happened yesterday.

“So you know what happened?” He raised his eyebrows.

“Uhm… Yeah.” She looked a bit more determined. “Alright, let’s stop with the games. She mentioned that she might have made you a bit uncomfortable. Do you know why?”

“Alright Twilight, I can agree to that. Yeah, I talked to Beating to make sure. I was making her…” He sighed and looked away. “Horny.” He still wasn’t good with awkward situations, and this was definitely awkward. At least it wasn’t Luna.

“You told Beating Heart?” She asked somewhere between surprised and horrified.

“I told her the basics, didn’t give her any names. Give me some credit.”

“Alright, I’m sorry. So… How do you feel about it?”

He looked at Twilight. She looked at him with an innocent curiosity. He really didn’t want her to play his therapist. He sighed.

“I’m not entirely sure to be honest. As far as I know, she’s the first female I’ve ever turned on. At the same time she’s a completely different species, which is a big complication. I didn’t do it on purpose either… I guess I would like to just forget about it? At the same time I’m having a very hard time forgetting abo-.” Wait why was he telling her that? He was letting her play his therapist. His cheeks burned too much for his liking. Twilight looked a little embarrassed as well.

“Okay… That’s understandable I think. A completely natural response, to a completely natural… uhm… anyway! I think Luna wants to move on as well. So if she came in here and you both agree that it didn’t mean anything special and was just an accident, you can forget about it? Or at least move on?” It looked like Twilight was a bit out of her comfort zone as well, which was nice. At least he wasn’t suffering alone.

“Moving on sounds nice.” He gave the violet pony a nervous smile. He was not looking forward to this talk, but… it had to be done. He liked Luna, he didn’t want to lose her because of something minor like this. Well he had turned on a princess, it could be discussed how minor it really was… Still, she was the one asking to be scratched, it wasn’t his fault.

“Alright, I’ll tell her to come by tomorrow. She… kind of went to sleep. She said she’d been up all night.”

“Really? Well she is the Princess of the Night after all.”

“Yeah, she has been up during the day-time a lot lately though. So she can be with you.”

Jax looked at Twilight thoughtfully. “I guess you’re right. How long do you think she will continue doing so?”

“I don’t know? She has duties… didn’t she say that she wouldn’t be here more than five months at the town meeting?”

“Did she? I don’t remember that… you must have a good memory Twilight.”

Twilight just smiled at him before changing the subject. “You have made her very happy Jax. As much it pains me to say it, I think you’ve already been a better friend to her than I have.” Her smile turned bitter-sweet at her own words.

Her words warmed him and chilled him at the same time. He was happy that he had been a good friend, but Twilight had been her friend for longer. “I’m not so sure about that Twilight. You saved her from that Limelight thingy that made her into Nightmare Moon, and you helped her during Nightmare Night. I think you give yourself too little credit.”

“I don’t know about that… she just seems happier when she’s with you. More open in a way. I don’t know, it’s hard to describe. Since I became the Princess of Friendship, I guess I can kind of feel friendship? Her friendship feels… sturdier towards you. More uncertain towards me. I think that means that your friendship is… well, better.”

Jax looked at her in surprise. She hasn’t mentioned this before. “You can feel friendship? How does that even work? Can Luna feel the moon? Or the night?”

“Oh, well, I don’t feel it all the time, it just happens sometimes. I get this strong feeling between ponies, and I can just kind of… tell. Like when you came in with Rainbow Dash the first time we met, I could tell that you had the beginnings of a friendship going. I don’t know about what Luna feels if she feels anything similar, I never asked. Oh and… In case you were wondering… the friendship you feel towards them is real. It’s not something fake, created by magic. It’s real.” She gave him a determined gaze.

He nodded. “I know. Well I didn’t know, but I was going to treat it as something real in any case.”

Twilight gave him a cute smile and nod “Good!”

Who was he kidding, the standard around here was cute. A smile that was cuter than normal then? Something like that. Must be because it was happier than usual.

“Why does it mean so much to you?” He looked at her out of the corner of his eyes. “Because you’re the Princess of Friendship?”

She considered his question seriously. “I guess… because you’re all my friends. I want you all to be happy. I want to see you smile.” She looked him straight in the eyes, with an honest smile on her face. “Even if you don’t see me as a friend.”

How did it feel being told that a person sees you as a friend and wants you to be happy even if you don’t see said person as friend? Pretty damn crushing in the heart area.

“Twilight… I-.”

“No it’s okay! I didn’t mean to put you on the spot, I’m sorry. I can kind of imagine what it must be like for you.” She looked at him with those big sad eyes. “If you accept me too quickly, you’ll feel like it’s the positive magic manipulating you. At the same time, friendship isn’t something you can simply control. Where does that leave you? Probably a place I wouldn’t want to be. That’s why it’s okay. I’ll wait until you’re ready. When you are, I’ll be waiting.” She gave him a sad smile. The kind that makes your heart break a little. God he was tired of sad smiles.

Twilight. She had come to the hospital every day since… well since she sent him there. Maybe she still felt guilty, even though he had forgiven her. More likely she wanted to be friends with him. She often came with much needed dinner, which was very much appreciated. The last couple of days, she would try to ask him about Earth before he steered the conversation away because he didn’t want to talk about that place anymore. Then they would talk about random stuff where Luna would join too. Sometimes other ponies like Lyra came, and they would play some kind of game. Twilight and Luna had been the main reason he hadn’t been bored to death these past couple of days. He felt really grateful that he wasn’t all alone… that he had people, or rather ponies, that would come visit him when he was sick. It felt really good.

“Twilight… I am ready to be friends with you.” He said honestly.

She looked at him with hope shinning in her eyes. “Really?” she stepped closer. “You aren’t just saying that because I made you feel bad?”

“No Twilight, I’m not. You are right - friendship isn’t something you can simply control, and honestly? I don’t know why I’m trying. Ponies aren’t humans after all. I shouldn’t have the same standard for a different species. It’s already too late for that anyway, it was ever since I decided I was friends with Rainbow Dash… the rest was just denial. Well it’s a bit more complicated than that, and honestly… I’m still afraid. But if I learned anything from your book, and from interacting with you all, it’s that I shouldn’t let fear stand in the way of friendship. Because that wouldn’t be fair to the ponies that are trying to be my friends.”

“Wow… Do you mind if I use that in my new book?”

“You’re writing another?” Jax was surprised. The first book ended with the defeat of T… Tirel? T-rex? What was his name… Tirke? Something like that. About the same time Jax was thrown into Equestria. Had something else happened since then?

“Yeah I think so. This is Ponyville after all, something always happens here. And I don’t think Tirek will be the last villain to try something evil.”

Tirek! That was it. “Then go nuts I guess. Wait, no, what am I saying? Don’t write anything about this in a book!”

“I wasn’t going to use that part.” She looked a little offended, and a little embarrassed by her slight blush. “It is a book for foals as well you know.”

“Oh… Okay, I guess it’s alright then.” He smiled down at her, receiving a smile in turn.

“Thanks… for both. You don’t know how relieved I am to hear you want to be friends.” She put a hoof over where Jax presumed her heart was. “Thank you.”

He leaned forward and wrapped her in a hug. “You’re very welcome.”

Ponies are amazing. They are so amazing that they can squeeze themselves into the hearts of humans and chaos lords alike.

He was not looking forward to his talk with Luna though.

***

Jax spent the entire day talking with Twilight, and later Rarity and Pinkie Pie. He was making his way back from the bathroom to his room to go to sleep when he overheard two nurses talking around the corner.

“… don’t even want to go near his room, yet Beating Heart goes in and out without any problems. She’s really brave.”

That made him pause. Were they talking about him? ‘Cause it sounded like they were talking about him.

“She says that he’s really sweet though. Looks like another villain to me… do you think that maybe those burns weren’t an accident at all like Rose said? Maybe Princess Twilight had to defend herself, and didn’t want to embarrass him or something.” The other nurse said. Definitely about him then.

“I don’t know… The elements all seem happy after they visit him, and would she really lie to a journalist just to cover for some villain? The story got to the front page of The Canterlot Informant for Celestia’s sake. I think she’s telling the truth. Didn’t you hear that Rarity has been defending him like crazy? Just because the flower-mares at the market like to dramatize everything doesn’t mean we should believe it. Remember the last time we did? Haven’t we learned anything?” The first nurse defended him.

“I guess so… but still. He has been getting a lot of visits from important ponies. Three out of four princesses, the elements of harmony… Don’t you think it’s a little suspicious? Like maybe they are keeping a close eye on him? Plus sometimes there’s this weird smell from his room… it always makes me shiver.” The second one argued.

“Maybe… we should ask him!”

“What? Are you mad? What if he decides to… silence us?”

“What, you think we’re the only ones who noticed? Come on, we don’t even know anything… that’s why we need to ask. Rarity insists that he’s good, and I even heard Rainbow Dash call him awesome at one point. Well, pretty awesome, but it still counts. Rainbow Dash doesn’t give out praise to just anypony.” The first, Jax’ favorite of the two, logically argued back.

“Oh alright, but not tonight… Celestia knows he’s scary enough during the day. And we’re taking Beating Heart with us. You hear?” The two nurses started walking away, their voices becoming less clear.

“Yes yes… and a squad of guards, and Big Mac. The squad to protect you, and that big hunk o’ meat for me.” They laughed all the way out of earshot.

Jax stood, leaning up against the wall with a big smile on his face. So Rarity had been doing more than just making his clothes and keeping him company. She had his back, even though he had done nothing for her. She didn’t even say anything about it, he had to find out like this. Ponies… They really are amazing.

Suddenly he was really happy that he ended up here. Even after everything he went through, even after all the hardships… this was a nice place.

He would have to do something for them all at some point. He just had to figure out how.

Author's Note

Exams are over! Yay! XD Even though the last one went badly, I just passed, I'm happy to get it over with XD haven't gotten the other results yet ^^
Anyway, to reward you for your patience, dear reader, I will write an extra chapter which I put up on Wednesday :3 Also it looks like we will get to 100 likes soon :D Yay! So much good news...
Also, did you watch the episode Slice of Life? That was such a good episode... I write that Octavia and Vinyl play together and then they do in the series XD so awesome!
And while I remember - I changed the rating of this fic from teen to mature because of the sexual themes ^^ I don't want to traumatize some 13 year old XD and I removed the gore tag, cause it's not gonna get that gorry to be honest XD only a little... maybe. I think you can take it ^^
Alright, I think that's it... Have a good time until Wednesday XD

Chapter 22

Three small fillies stood in a row in front of Beating Heart. Luna stood beside Jax’ bed, glad that she was not getting yelled at as well. She had encouraged him to drink it after all, not believing that Zecora would give anything dangerous. She was actually happy that he had knocked himself out on the bedframe. His screams had cut deeply, she had almost used a pain reducing spell on him. She was happy she had kept herself from doing so. Last time anypony had used a spell on him while he was in pain, the pain had transferred. She did not mind taking it on herself but… She did not want it to hit any of the three fillies.

“… so, in short, do not, ever, give any of my patients medicine without my or a doctor’s consent. Do I make myself clear?” Beating Heart was finally finished with her charade. The fillies had taken the verbal reprimand with a remarkable grace.

“Crystal clear, ma’am.” Apple Bloom diplomatically answered for the group. “We were only trying to help.”

“Yeah, but you are right. We shouldn’t have done what we did, and we are sorry.” Sweetie Bell continued.

“And now that I think about it, we should probably have mentioned what Zecora said about rolling of dice and paying a price.” Scootaloo finished.

Steady Hooves was on the other side of the bed, checking up on Jax. “Well something is definitely happening, I can feel that, and he is certainly paying a price. Even while knocked out, he’s still in pain.” She looked down at Jax who was sweating profoundly, and moving around as if having a nightmare. It was not until he whimpered that Luna wanted to use a spell on him again. It took most of her self-control to keep herself from using the pain reducing spell. It would not end well if she did. Probably. Maybe. Who knew what would happen while he was unconscious? Anything could happen.

Twilight came into the room, having paid a visit to Zecora to make sure what was happening. She, like the nurse and the doctor, had been summoned by Jax’ screaming and was there when he knocked himself out.

“Alright, so apparently Zecora had given a fair warning that this cure always came with a price, not something she can foresee because of the use of poison joke in the potion. She says that she has never seen or heard of anypony being in intense pain though, but she is certain the potion will work nonetheless.” She turned towards the fillies. “Didn’t you understand her warning?”

All three of them looked down at the ground. “We understood that there was a chance that nothing would happen. We were kinda hoping for that.” Scootaloo said, the sadness and regret clear in her voice.

Twilight sighed before looking at Jax. “He will be in pain for three days, whether he’s sleeping or awake… or blacked out apparently. He will be better after that though. Still, 72 straight hours of pain…” She looked away sadly. “I think we should take turns being by his side, in case he’s aware enough to ask questions… or say anything. I’ll get the girls, and we can decide-“

“That will not be necessary Twilight. I will stay by his side for three days.” Luna said from Jax’ bedside, looking down at his suffering form. This much she could do.

“but…”

“I can stay awake for 72 hours without problems Twilight. You may not have experienced it yet, but the combined strength of all three species gives us alicorns an unparalleled endurance. I have stayed awake for an entire month at one point. I did use magic in the end to keep sleep at bay, but three days is no problem.” Her determination was clear. She was staying by his side.

“Are you completely sure Luna? You don’t have to-“

“You are right, Twilight. It is entirely my choice. I am certain.”

Twilight looked at her for a couple of seconds before giving in. “I’ll tell the girls what’s going on then. You three are coming with me.” She told three fillies who had almost made their way over to the open window. They groaned and complained, but Twilight didn’t let them go. It sounded like they would be grounded for a while. Luna felt a little bad for them, they were trying to help after all.

She looked down at Jax again. He looked so defenseless. She wanted to protect him from the pain and sadness. After all he had done for her… she wanted to do something in return.

Even if it was just staying with him.

***

The next couple of days went by slowly, and in a bit of a haze. Jax screamed at the top of his lungs when he woke up the first day, until he lost his voice. That had been terrible for Luna, but there was nothing she could do but whisper soothing words to him. She liked to imagine it helped a little. At one point when she crawled into his bed to put a wing over him, he latched onto her as if he was drowning and she was a lifesaver. She stayed like that for most of the rest of the time there, except when Beating came in so she could use the facilities. It was hard to leave him because he always whimpered when she untangled herself from his iron grip, which made her want to stay right there, but she told herself that she could only go so long without a shower and toilet break. She even raised and lowered the moon from her position on the bed.

It was weird to hear him whimper, he was always so… careful? He certainly did not show his emotional side much. She had not even seen him cry, even after everything he had been through… maybe that was why he had so many nightmares. He latched on instantly again when she returned. He still continued his silent screams from time to time, in too much pain to even understand what was going on around him. His grip hurt at those times, but not as much as watching him without being able to do anything.

Ponies came and went. Twilight was there a lot, but Rainbow only came once shortly before flying off and not returning. Pinkie Pie came by a lot, but thankfully she was not overly cheerful like usual. She was still positive about the whole thing, but she had toned down a bit. She even managed to make Luna smile with her comment about how caring she looked in her position on the bed. Rarity came by once a day with Fluttershy. Applejack did not come at all.

At night nopony but Luna stayed. The last night, he was in as much pain as usual. He whimpered, shivered, and tried to scream, but nothing came out. She had her wing over him a usual. She wished she could do more for him, but all she could do was tighten her wing around him, just as he tightened his grip on her. She looked down at him when he relaxed his grip on her. It had been like that a lot. Sometimes he would grip on to her tighter, probably because the pain intensified, then he would relax a bit, but still obviously in pain. Normally he kept his eyes closed though, so she was surprised when she saw his green eyes look back at her. They were not entirely filled with pain either. He was breathing heavily, and sweating a lot, though Luna had gotten used that by now. Beating washed him with a cloth every day, but with how much he was sweating, it was unavoidable. He opened his mouth and tried to say something to her, but he had lost his voice long ago. She quickly hushed him, and started to speak soothingly to him, as she had done many times in the last 67 hours. Meaningless sentences like ‘it is going to be okay’ and ‘everything will be fine.’ And different variations thereof. It was not much, but it was the least she could do. He put a shaking hand on her muzzle, prompting her to stop. He looked at her with pain and fear… all she wanted was to see those green eyes full of happiness again.

He put his forehead against hers, right under her horn. They stayed like that for a while until he started convulsing again. He grabbed her firmly, and she started to soothe him again.

“It will be over soon, Jax. Only 5 more hours. We can get through this, and you will be completely healed, and you will be able to walk around and have fun instead of lying in a bed all day.” She did not believe Jax could hear her over his pain. She took a deep breath, thinking what else she could do for him. He was trying to scream again, but no sound came out.

She did the only thing she could think of. She started singing. She started out slowly, barely audible. When she noticed that it seemed to calm him down a bit, she started singing with more conviction. It was an old lullaby, one she had not thought about for a long time.

After he fell into a restless sleep, she cuddled up closer to him, ready to wait out the rest of the time.

***

Three days of pain. Jax couldn’t even begin to describe how hellish that had felt like. The pain was sometimes almost unbearable, sometimes he could just handle it, but it was always there. Even sleep wasn’t an escape. He just blacked out for an undefined amount of time, before being awoken by the pain again.

Luckily, Luna had proven to be a huge comfort. In those precious few moments where he wasn’t sleeping and wasn’t in too much pain to feel anything else, he could feel her there beside him, like a giant, warm comforting plush he had to hold onto or lose himself in the pain. She would often speak soft words that he couldn’t remember afterwards, and at one point even sing a beautiful lullaby.

All this added up to, that when he woke up on his third day, Jax was:

Holding Luna like she was the most important thing in the universe,

Relieved like hell to wake up without being in pain,

Tired as fuck after so many restless nights,

Relieved to be pain free… Yeah, twice relieved.

He looked at Luna whom he was still embracing tightly. She smiled down at him. “Good morning Jax.” She sounded almost as relieved as he felt.

He tried to answer, but no sound came out of his mouth.

“I am afraid you will not be able to talk for a while. Steady Hooves has already prepared some medicine for you, if you let go of me you can take it now.” She smiled at him, some amusement making its way into her voice. Her beautiful voice. He could still remember the lullaby she sang for him. He wanted to hear it again.

He realized that several ponies were waiting for him to let go of Luna so they could move on, but he found himself unwilling to do so. She was comforting, she was warm, she was soothing to hold onto, and she would keep him safe.

He did something he never thought he would hear himself do. He whimpered and held on tighter. He knew that wasn’t very much like him, he knew that he should let go, but he didn’t want to. He couldn’t. He needed to hold onto Luna.

“Oh… my…” Rarity said from somewhere behind Luna. He didn’t care what they thought.

“He was in constant pain for three days. The only comfort he had was Princess Luna. I don’t think this should be a surprising outcome.” Steady Hooves said as she came up on the other side of the bed.

“Of course. He must have been psychologically vulnerable while in so much pain, and the only source of calm came from hugging Luna… I can understand why he’s unwilling to let go. How long do you think until he will be able to, Doctor Steady Hooves?” Twilight mused, from somewhere out of sight. He didn’t care that they were talking about him like he wasn’t there. He buried his face deeper in her soft fur. She smelled like the conditioner they had in the hospital. She must have bathed there… now that he thought about it, bathing must be a big deal for ponies. Do they use shampoo for their entire bodies? What about their manes? Ah whatever, the ponies were talking.

“… not a psychologist, but I don’t think we should force them apart at least. Because of Jax’ loss of voice, a psychologist will have their work cut out for them as well. Still, I need to check his wounds, and I need to give him this medicine for his throat.” Steady Hooves held up a bottle.

“Sweetie?” Beating Heart came into his field of view. “If we promise that Princess Luna will be right there next to you, and you can hug her again afterwards, will you let go of her for a short while? We just need to check up on your health.” She gave him a sweet smile. She was talking to him like he was a kid who didn’t want to let go of his mom… she probably had a lot of experience with that now that he thought about it. He knew that he would have to let go eventually, he couldn’t hold on to her forever, but he still hesitated. Despite himself he shook his head. Beating still wore her smile. “I promise it won’t take long and she will be right there beside you. You’ll even get a lollipop when you’re done.”

He had to roll his eyes at that. He had his Bag o’ Candy under the bed, he couldn’t be bribed by sweets. Instead he reached out and took the bottle in Steady’s hooves, taking a big sip of it, and even swallowing it despite the bad taste. Then, after giving the bottle back, he started loosening the bandages with one hand, the other still firmly around Luna’s neck. That was as far as he felt he could go at the moment. It was a bit embarrassing to be unable to let go of her, especially after their embarrassing talk before all this, but… he just couldn’t let go. Not yet anyway. No use complaining, he just had to work around it until he could do something about it.

“Alright, this will work as well. Everypony, please leave while I check his wounds. I will come out afterwards.” Steady Hooves told all the ponies present.

He didn’t know exactly how many ponies were present, it sounded like a lot when they exited.

Steady Hooves helped him with the last of the bandages on his upper body. All the burns had been replaced by perfectly healed scars, some places the scars from his burns even overlapped his previous scars. He was practically one big scar now. He didn’t care much about that, he was just happy that it had worked. At least all that pain wasn’t for nothing.

“Alright, it seems like it has healed nicely. Now for the other part.” She looked at him expectedly. He rolled his eyes at her. He wanted to tell her that she just liked seeing him naked, and that if the upper part was healed, the lower part would obviously be better as well. He couldn’t, of course. He looked at Luna, who was looking on curiously, then back at Steady Hooves. She got the hint at least.

“I apologize Your Majesty, but Jax is a bit touchy about exposing his lower half to anypony. If you would be so kind as to look away?”

“Oh, of course!” She turned away instantly, a slight blush visible on her cheeks.

He had slept in his pants, the ones that weren’t encrusted with emeralds. They were pleasant to wear, and they fit him, unlike the gown they gave him when he first got to the hospital. Taking off pants with one arm was a challenge, but far from impossible. He swallowed his embarrassment and did it, well aware that Steady was watching closely, and that Luna was nearby... 'nearby' being the understatement of the century.

After asking him to change position a couple of times so she could have a good view of everything, Steady Hooves finally nodded in satisfaction. “It seems like the potion worked at least. That’s a relief, I was a bit afraid that it was all for nothing. Now, if you’ll excuse me…” She left, most likely to tell the good news to the others.

Taking on pants with one hand is much harder than taking them off, but still doable. After that he buried himself deep in Luna’s side again, sighing in relief as she wrapped him in a wing, perhaps out of habit. It felt incredibly good to hug her now, much better than before. He felt completely safe and warm under that wing. He was so tired as well… he just wanted to sleep. Exhausted might have been a better word for it. He looked up right into Luna’s cyan eyes. She looked worried. He couldn’t really blame her, she was stuck with him now whether she wanted to or not. He was not looking forward to problems like how the hell they would use the bathroom.

“Jax, I am so relieved that you are alright.” He could hear the sincerity in her voice. He was a little surprised when she repositioned herself so she had her hooves around his neck, but he didn’t complain, or at least he wouldn’t if he could. It felt good, being hugged like that. “I am sorry that it resulted in us being stuck together, but… if I had a chance to redo it, I probably would not have changed anything. It will be fine. We shall get through this together.” He pulled back to look her in the eyes, seeing the sincerity there, all he could do was show his appreciation by smiling at her. It wasn’t enough for him. If she hadn’t been there for him, he might have gone insane from the pain. At least he was afraid he would. It felt like he would.

He buried himself in her neck, feeling her tense up underneath him before slowly relaxing again. His eyes slowly began to close as Luna’s starry, ethereal mane moved around him. It was nice to look at, a little substitute starscape, right there in front of him. It reminded him of calm nights in Everfree, after not-so-calm days. Just as his eyes were about to close entirely, the door opened again, revealing all the elements of harmony. They each gave their greeting, and he noticed that Rainbow Dash looked a bit down. He wanted to ask her what was wrong, but… being mute kinda sucked. He wondered how good the medicine he swallowed was.

“Hello Jax. So doctor Steady Hooves says that beside your throat, you are completely healed.” Twilight started.

“Yes, I’m happy that it worked at least. I do have to apologize for my sister Jax, that was simply very irresponsible of her and her friends. I hope you can forgive them in time.” Rarity put in, regret visible on her face. He just gave her a small smile. He wasn’t sure how he felt about the three kids right now.

“Steady Hooves says that there is no need to keep you in the hospital anymore!” Pinkie burst out, suddenly appearing right in front of him. He got a bit of shock, having forgotten that she does that from time to time. “Isn’t that great? Now you can finally come to Sugarcube Corner and have a muffin. Or a brownie if you prefer. Uuuuuuh maybe some cake!”

He smiled at her. He would enjoy that.

Beating Heart came in with a tray on her back, reminding him of how hungry he actually was. It looked like she had pulled some strings, or the higher ups finally gave in. It was twice the size of his other meals, and amongst all the fruit and vegetables was a lasagna. Probably vegetarian, but he wasn’t going to complain. He gave her a huge smile, and instantly drank the entire cup of water she had with her. It was probably rude to eat in front of all these ponies. On the other hand, he was hungry as fuck. He looked at the only pony who would probably mind.

“Oh, go on ahead darling. You must be famished.” Rarity said when she realized why he was looking at her. Now… How did he eat it without letting go of Luna? He sighed.

“I can cut it out for you if you want. That should make it easier.” Luna, sensing his problem, came to the rescue. He nodded happily. With the meal cut out with Luna’s magic, all he had to do was stab it with his fork and guide it towards his mouth. Of course, this being lasagna, it didn’t work perfectly. Still, he didn’t care much at the moment. Three days of hardly eating anything does that to you. and yet he only felt a little faint, not starved. He briefly wondered how they had been giving him nutrients, but quickly realized he didn’t care enough.

After the meal he smiled happily to Beating. He was sure she done something to get him such a fine, good tasting meal.

It’s weird, being unable to speak. He had to show his appreciation through smiling. At least Beating seemed to understand, giving a happy smile in return.

“So, Jax, are you ready to go? I have your medicine, all we need to do now is go down and sign you out.” Twilight asked him.

He looked at Luna. They couldn’t even communicate properly. This was going to be a chore until they figured everything out.

“Uhm… maybe you can ride on my back? I do not see how else we can travel very easily.” Luna suggested. He gave a silent laugh and then pointed to her, then his back, to which she laughed as well.

“Well I guess that is a possibility. I think we shall save that for another day though.” She spread her wings enough for there to be place for his legs. He decided that maybe her riding him was a bit of a stretch when he was the one who couldn’t let go of her. He got up on her back, never letting go of her neck. She got up on all four, swaying wildly with the motion. For a moment, Jax was afraid they were going to fall down on the floor, but she regained her balance in time.

“I apologize, I’ve been laying down for a long time.” She quickly apologized before jumping down from the bed, which almost made him fall off. “I am… well, not used to having anypony on my back. I am certain it will be better once I get used to it.” She gave him an apologetic smile. He gave her a nervous smile back. He couldn’t really blame for not being instantly good at having him on her back, he just hope he didn’t fall off at some point.

He motioned at his clothes that were folded nicely and placed nearby together with the book he got from Twilight, then when he had awkwardly taken on the shirt without the emeralds, he motioned for the bed. Of course she didn’t understand that he needed stuff from under the bed. He had to get off her and crouch down, but when she saw his stuff she understood and got it with her magic. He tied his Bag o’ Candy to the end of his Stick of Awesome to easier transport them.

After that, they were ready to go. He had all his earthly possessions with him. At the door he looked back at the room he had spent more than a week in. Honestly, it hadn’t been that bad. Still… he wasn’t going to miss it.

Author's Note

So... now they're glued together? I don't know how I feel about that... No wait, this can work. I think it can work :) But yay! He's finally leaving the hospital guys! Also can you whimper when you lost your voice? The obvious answer would be no... well Jax can, because I need him to ^^
Alright, so we are back to updating once a week, unless I get really ahead, but lets be honest, I have games to play XD and friends to visit, and youtube videos to watch... and fanfictions to read! XD
speaking of ff: An Affliction of the Heart in case you like changelings ^^ I'm thinking about adding changelings to this story :)

Chapter 23

Ponies were staring. He couldn’t really fault them, he was riding on the back of one of their princesses after all. Doesn’t mean their eyes felt good on him. He hugged Luna a bit tighter, just above the thingy she had around her neck with her mark, but was careful not to strangle her. He let his eyes close shut, glad that he at least didn’t have to look at them.

He could feel how tense Luna was. She held her head high even when they started whispering about them, but to him it was obvious that she wasn’t comfortable with it. He felt bad for her, this was because he was acting like a kid after all. He couldn’t even say anything encouraging to her. Well he couldn’t say anything at all, but still. He decided to give her a little squeeze. Maybe it was just his imagination, but it did feel like she relaxed a bit more.

They had gotten out of the hospital without any problems, all he had to do was sign his name below Twilight’s. He just scribbled down ‘Jax’, no need for them to know he had a last name. He wasn’t going to use it anymore anyway. It wasn’t until they got outside that the stares became really obvious. The nurses and doctors at least pretended they were doing stuff, trying to hide their stares. Other ponies didn’t. They stopped in the middle of whatever they were doing and just looked at them. It was disturbing really, and the reason he had closed his eyes.

“I… uhm, I finished more clothes for you Jax. When you find an image or pattern you want on them, just tell me, and I’ll get right on it.” He looked over at Rarity, who looked at him with a smile on her face… muzzle. He smiled back at her and nodded. He needed to get some money to pay for that of course. Twilight had mentioned something about that. He needed to get some paper to communicate with her. He also needed socks and shoes at some point, but he had a feeling that Rarity didn’t make shoes. She probably knew someone who did though.

“Jax, I’m sorry about not visiting more while you were in pain. I just… I hate sitting there without being able to do anything. At least before we could talk a little, and I should have gone more for that, but I just kept postponing it you know? I… hope you’re not mad.” So that was why Rainbow had looked so down when she came in. ‘That’s okay Rainbow, the only pony I know was there for certain is Luna. I’m guessing Twilight visited a lot as well, but if you hadn’t said anything I wouldn’t have known.’ He thought to himself. Of course all he could do was smile and shake his head. Rainbow relaxed a bit but still looked kind of down. Maybe a smile and a nod wasn’t enough for her. Well it was all he could give at the moment. Well, except…

He untied his Bag o’ Candy and offered her a piece. A smile slowly spread on her face and she took a piece. “Thanks Jax.” He smiled back. He offered some to all of the ponies present, and even took some himself. To his regret he found that there wasn’t much candy left. He had a suspicion that Pinkie had been taking from it while he was in pain. He wasn’t mad or anything, he didn’t even really mind. When he looked over at her, Pinkie just gave him a giant smile. He smiled back.

The elements each went their own way along the way until it was just him, Luna and Twilight. The guards seemed to be well trained at looking forward, so that was less stares to worry about. Of course there would be weird rumors again, but he couldn’t find the energy to care. Let the ponies think what they wanted.

They finally made it to the castle. Tree-castle. Crystal-tree-castle. It was weird, how did it just appear there after Twilight defeated Tirek? They said goodbye to Twilight inside the castle and made it to the room Luna had been assigned. He laid his stuff near the door. Now was the time to find some paper to start communication.

“Alright, so this is… uhm, our room I guess. For now at least. I know you are probably tired, so is there anything you need before we go to sleep?” She had a visible blush.

He nodded and mimicked writing something. She just looked at his hand, making him sigh. Okay, obviously ponies didn’t use their hoof to write with, that might have been the problem… what do non-unicorns use to write? He had only seen Twilight write something down and she used her magic. He looked around the room and noticed a desk. There wasn’t much else, just a desk, a large bed and a nightstand, and a door he theorized led to a bathroom. He pointed towards the desk, and Luna went over. He searched through some drawers and quickly found some parchment, quills and ink. How they could have newspapers and still use these tools to write was beyond him. He carefully opened the inkwell, put a piece of parchment in front of him, and picked up a quill, of course all the while keeping one arm around Luna’s neck. Then the next problem presented itself… how the hell do you write with a quill? Luna was looking at him expectedly, waiting to see what he wanted. He finally decided that he had enough parchment to mess up a little and went to work dipping the quill in the inkwell.

He started with the most important thing.

You were there with me for all three days?

He had to rewrite it three times because he kept making giant splotches of ink. Even then it didn’t look too good but she could read it at least.

“Yes, I stayed by your side for all three days, except when I needed to take showers and such.” She answered a bit confused. He was just about to write his thanks, but paused. How could he express how thankful he was? He decided with a more direct form of appreciation first, and got off of her. He never let go of her, but rotated around so he was in front of her, before giving her a gentle hug. Her wings instantly went around him, shrouding him in a familiar warmth. He could have started purring, that’s how good it felt.

He let go with one hand and turned around to write something. To his delight the wings stayed around him.

Thank you. Words can’t even describe how much you helped me.

It was… not enough. A couple of words on a piece of paper. As things were right now, there wasn’t much else he could do however.

“You are very welcome. I didn’t do much really, and I’ve stayed up for much longer before.”

He raised his eyebrows at both statements. He underlined his last sentence before writing a new one.

It was a lot to me. You stayed up for all three days?

“Oh… uhm, yes I did.” He turned around and gave her another hug. “It is not that big of a deal. I once stayed up for an entire month. I had to stay awake in case you had any questions or I had to calm you down.”

He quickly scribbled down ‘thank you’ before going back to hugging her. It just felt so good, he couldn’t help himself. It wasn’t until he almost fell asleep that he remembered that there was still something he needed to do.

I need a shower. How are we going to do it?

He wrote, noticing her blush. He was a bit warmer than usual around the cheeks as well. He needed to take a shower and he needed to hold on to her. He had to be naked to take a shower. It all added up to embarrassing times…

“Uhm… I have gotten used to your scent. We could just not bathe. Ever.” Sounded like a good solution to him. He shook a little in a silent laugh. Ahh, but no, even in the Everfree he had bathed every two or three days in the mostly cold river. He liked being at least somewhat clean.

Let’s just do it.

He wrote, feeling an uncomfortable warmth spread through him.

I won’t get mad that you see me naked, just try not to stare.

He was sure he looked much like a tomato. He just proposed to - ah whatever. They were ponies, they were used to being naked. Of course he wasn’t a pony and he most certainly wasn’t used to being naked. Still, he wanted a shower and she needed to be with him in the there. Nothing else to do.

Luna was blushing as well - they had both been doing that a lot recently, he realized - but she gave him a nod anyway. He swallowed nervously, avoiding her eyes. He quickly crawled back up on her back. He felt bad for her, having to carry him around, but she didn’t seem to have any problems with it, or even mind at all.

He noticed that her walk towards the bathroom was a bit slow, but didn’t comment on it - not that he could anyway - she was probably just a little nervous.

When they finally arrived at the bathroom he was so busy cursing himself for not going with her plan that he almost didn’t notice. For a full minute they just stood and sat there, both unsure of what to do next. Finally he decided to take of his shirt, revealing his scarred upper body. Luna took one look before deciding that the shower in front of them was very interesting. Jax was happy that she did, he wanted to slap himself for somehow finding himself in this situation. He should have never drank that potion. Of course something bad would happen when drinking a green potion. What was he thinking? He took a couple of deep breaths to calm down. Nothing to do about that now, waaaay too late in fact, and in the end he at least didn't have to deal with the prolonged pain of the burns.

In any case, they were there, they didn’t know how long he would be unable to let go of the blue alicorn under him, and they would need to shower at some point anyway. This would probably be less awkward than using the toilet… which they would also have to do at some point. He wanted to die right then and there. They would get to know each other more intensely than any of them would like, it seemed.

He slowly got off again. When he did, Luna used her magic to take off her crown, horseshoes, and the thing she had around her neck depicting her mark, one by one. When she took off her neck thingy, a piece of folded paper dropped out, which she quickly caught in her magical aura, and carefully placed beside everything else. He wanted to ask what is was but… no way of communicating.

The bathroom was big enough for them both to stand comfortably in and then some, but it wasn’t overly spacious like he had expected a castle bathroom to be. The mirror was on Luna’s side, which was good, he didn’t have to worry about her accidently seeing anything. Luckily the bathtub/shower looked big enough for them both to be in without any problems. It was a bit like a Jacuzzi actually, coming out seamlessly from the floor. It could actually be part of the floor for all he knew.

He realized he was avoiding the task ahead by looking around the bathroom, and Luna had no way of knowing whether he was ready or not, so she just kept staring at the shower.

He sighed. He would have to do this sooner or later anyway, might as well get it over with. Taking off pants with one hand was easier while standing up than laying down. He quickly threw the pants over beside his shirt.

There they were, two completely naked creatures about to take a shower together. Nothing wrong with that. Nothing at all.

“Art thou… are you ready, Jax?” Luna asked, probably having heard that he was doing something, but not sure what. He nodded. Of course she was still looking straight ahead, so she didn’t see him nodding. He tried to give her a light squeeze with the arm he still had around her.

“I am going to take that as a yes, though we really should have agreed on this beforehoof.” He agreed with that.

Luna turned on the water with her magic, and then used some time to adjust it for the perfect temperature. After that they awkwardly entered the tub little by little, Luna starting with her forelegs, waiting for him to enter, before she entered with her back legs. They would probably get better... Actually he was hoping a bit that they wouldn’t have to, that he would get over his need to hug her all the time before they got to the point where they actually got better at this.

The water temperature was a colder than he would have liked, but after bathing in a river for a month he was used to dealing with colder water. He instantly went for the shampoo. He was going to get this shower over with as fast as possible.

Before he could get to that, he noticed that Luna relaxed visibly under his half-embrace. Looking over at her, his mind went blank for a couple of seconds. She wasn’t doing anything special, she had just closed her eyes, her head tilted upwards as if to welcome the water drops, a smile on her muzzle, her mane flowing freely as always. For some reason he just found her… well, beautiful. He had thought that about her before, even though he hadn’t about any other pony. Now that he realized, he noticed how strange that was. Why was she more beautiful than other ponies, when they were all ponies? Was it her dark blue, and surprisingly soft fur? Her crescent moon mark? Her majestic wings? Or was it her cyan eyes, shinning with happiness at something he said or did. Or her personality, like that time she cheered him up by blowing a raspberry on his cheek, that had been fun. A reason was certainly her mane and tail, flowing freely as if in a slight breeze, a miniature version of the stars he had come to love so much.

Wait, was he… was he checking out a pony? No, that wasn’t it, he was just analyzing what made her beautiful… which was totally not the same at all. Oh God he thought of her as beautiful.

He started breathing heavily, trying to calm himself down, but his breaths were too quick and shallow. He was hyperventilating.

“Jax? Is something wrong?” Luna asked with worry clear in her voice. He dropped the shampoo he was still holding and repositioned himself so he was hugging her from the front, embarrassment temporarily forgotten. He did calm down a bit at the now-familiar feeling of having her in his embrace, especially when she covered him with her wings.

“Oh, uhm… squeeze for yes, tap on the shoulder for no.” Why didn’t he get a ‘it’s complicated’ option?

He squeezed her and tapped her on the shoulder.

“Yes and no? Those are my withers Jax, my shoulder is right above my foreleg. Let us try again… is something wrong?”

He did the same, except he tapped her on her actual shoulder, instead of what he thought was her shoulder.

“Yes and no… alright… how about this then, is there something I can help with?”

He tapped her on the shoulder. Somehow ‘stop being beautiful’ didn’t seem like an option here.

“Alright… are you going to be fine?”

He hesitated, then gave her a light squeeze. ‘Probably’ was more what he would say than a definite ‘yes’. The ‘conversation’ had calmed him down enough so that he was breathing normally again, which in turn calmed down Luna. She was very sweet, worrying about him like that.

“Good.” She gave a sigh of relief. “Try not to scare me like that, Jax. I have my eyes closed, so I cannot see if there is anything bothering you.” She was so caring. Oh God, now he couldn’t stop seeing her like that.

He gave her a quick squeeze, and almost let entirely go of her, before instinct or fear kicked in, or whatever it was that was telling him to keep holding on, and he instantly latched on with a whimper.

“Jax what is wrong?!” Luna sounded like she was near panic. He just breathed heavily because of the adrenaline suddenly pumping through his system.

“Is there something in the bathroom scaring you Jax? Should I open my eyes?” She didn’t realize how close he had come to letting go of her. He quickly tapped her on the shoulder, waited a bit, then tapped her again.

“Are you absolutely certain? Jax I do not want you getting hurt by something just because you are embarrassed.” So protective. He felt completely safe in her winged embrace.

He gave her a squeeze. Nothing here but a stupid human and a beautiful alicorn. He sighed. He would have to figure out everything latter. He quickly found the shampoo with one hand and started using it.

“Alright, but I expect you to write down what happened later.” No complaints from him, he would just skip some details.

After he had cleaned himself, we wondered how Luna was going to do it. Did her mane need shampoo? She just stood there and he realized she still had her eyes closed. He put a hand on her muzzle getting a smile in return. He started petting her a little, feeling her wet fur under his hand, before catching himself. Why was he doing that? He didn’t even know, it just felt nice to see her smile.

He booped her on the nose with the shampoo bottle. She looked comically surprised, which made him laugh his silent laugh, which made her smile.

“Since you have started playing around, does that mean you are done? Can I open my eyes?” He repositioned himself so that he was by her side, before giving her two squeezes.

Since pony eyes were positioned more to the side than human eyes were, it seemed like it would be easy for her to look at in his direction, but she kept her gaze forward or on different bottles. It turned out that she did wash her mane and tail, but not before using a spell to make it into normal, light blue hair. Considering what she told him about her mane and tail, that must mean she stopped the connection between them and her magic or something.

She used the same shampoo and ‘body wash’ as he did. It wasn’t really the same as body wash back home since it was made for fur, he used it out of lack of other options. After that she used the conditioner on her mane, tail and entire body. Whoever made conditioners here must make a lot of money. Whenever she tried to wash a place where he was hugging her, she gently told him to move, so she wouldn’t hit him with her magic. He differentiated between hugging her neck and her midsection.

When she was done she turned off the shower and they got out. He caught sight of himself in the mirror as he dried himself off. So much change since he came to Equestria. He had lost a lot of weight and now looked unhealthily thin, which could also be because of the last three days and lack of proper food. He had also gained some muscle from his daily struggles in the Everfree, even though he wasn’t anywhere near well-built. Still, he could clearly see that he was stronger than before. And then of course were all the scars. Not many on his face, but from the neck and down... there were plenty. Some of them were from the burns Twilight had bestowed upon him, some of them were from the manticore that had almost killed him, most of them were from his worst enemy: Timberwolves. How he hated those tree monsters. Always hunting him, always behind him, no matter how many times he destroyed them.

His gaze went up a bit and he locked eyes with Luna. She was blushing madly. Slowly, oh so slowly, she averted her eyes and looked straight ahead again, and he realized she had most likely been checking him out in his still naked form. He didn’t even know how to react, he just watched her turn her head. Suddenly feeling very warm, he decided he should finish drying himself. He felt so exhausted he didn’t even have the energy to be properly embarrassed.

After he had put on his clothes he mounted Luna and she walked out of the bathroom without comment, even though she didn’t put her stuff on again, just letting them trail after them in her magic. She went straight over to the desk and looked at him expectedly. He had promised her to tell her why he had acted as he did in the bathroom, but he was too tired to even focus properly.

To do when we wake up:

Tell Luna what happened in the bathroom.

Ask Luna what the paper she has under the neck thingy is.

Eat lots of food.

Luna looked curiously at what he wrote. “It is called a collar, Jax. But fine, let us rest now then. I am tired as well.”

She went over to the bed and placed her regalia on the floor beside it, being extra careful with the folded paper. Now that he thought about it, there was no reason for him to take his shirt on again. He quickly took it off and threw it beside her stuff. Rarity probably wouldn’t appreciate him handling her clothes like that, but he didn’t care at the moment.

Luna went onto the bed and laid with her hooves under her, in the same pose she had been in when he had woken up. He slid down beside her and threw the blanket over them, even though he doubted they would need them in the hot weather. It was still day outside after all. What time was it? Almost noon? Luna used her magic to draw the curtains, letting darkness shroud the room. Sweet sweet darkness. He cuddled up closer to Luna with both his arms around her neck, feeling her put her wing around him. With that, the last of his strength left him and he was quickly lulled into a deep sleep.

Author's Note

Yes, I'm releasing this chapter a day early :) get ready for a long authors note :D

Until this chapter I've written Luna as if she was naked, never mentioning her regalia, except in chapter 9 where I wrote that she puts the drawing under her amor... this is wrong since Luna doesn't wear amor XD What I meant was that she puts it under her collar, which I've edited it to. A mistake on my end, since she clearly wears stuff, but eh, lesson learned which is good :) I rewrote a bit on the chapter where Jax sees her for the first time (chapter 13) so that the reader knows she is wearing her regalia as well. I should put it in here and there but that is the most important part, and I'll do it from now on so it's cool :) if you're like me, you're too lazy to go back and read what I added, so I'll just put it here:

She had a black… no, dark blue coat, she was taller than Twilight and most other ponies he had seen, and not much of it was because of the horseshoes she wore. She slowly unfolded her wings as she came closer, unveiling two majestic wings. On her neck she wore an ornament depicting her mark, a crescent moon. She held her head, adorned with a horn and a crown, high and her cyan eyes looking straight ahead.

Last chapter I also forgot that he has a book with the adventures of the elements which he got from Twilight:
He motioned at his clothes that were folded nicely and placed nearby together with the book he got from Twilight
I fixed it like this. So much to remember... XD

Anyway, we are taking a break from the intense plot *sarcasm* so Jax can focus on a different kind of plot, if you know what I mean ;) I feel like they need to get to know each other before any real romance occurs, even though I put seeds for their future relationship in here... since you're still around, my trusty reader, I'll gamble that you don't mind that much XD The plot is coming though, rest assured ;) Also, I feel like Jax deserves some good times... or at least painless times until things go south :)
also, boy am I glad I wrote most of this chapter last weekend and I didn't promise any bonus chapters XD helping my mom at work took more of my energy than I thought ^^

So I just posted this chapter and I'm like 'would be funny to see my story on the front page' and then I go check and it's totally there XD So much fun :3 thank you to all my fans - without you none of this would be possible and I would just have given up on the story :')

Chapter 24

For the first time in a very long time, Jax woke up well rested. He didn’t remember having any dreams, but he was certain he didn’t have any nightmares. What’s better, he felt so god-damn safe and protected he could relax completely, where he for so long slept with the fear of something happening, since something always happened to him.

In a way, three days of pain had been all worth it, just for that moment, that feeling of laying close to Luna, with her wing over him and just being able to relax. Alright, maybe that was exaggerating a bit, but it still felt good. Some of it might have been the fact that the bed was actually big enough for him, which was fucking great.

He took a deep breath, releasing it as he buried himself further in Luna’s fur. Thank God she had been there for him. He shuddered at the thought of what a mess he would have been without her there for those three days. She had also taken his sudden addiction to her like a champ. Luna was a real hero in his eyes, no matter what she had done in the past under the influence of… He wasn’t quite certain. A magical parasite… that makes ponies evil? Limelight, that’s what it was called. Stupid Limelight, ruining Luna’s life. If he ever met that parasite he would punch its face, right in its stupid face.

“14 hours. That’s quite a long time to sleep.” Luna said from beside him.

No wonder he felt so great. It had been a while since he had slept for that long. He gave her a light squeeze while yawning. He didn’t want to open his eyes. He wanted to keep feeling like this forever.

“Do you want to get some breakfast?” Luna asked him. She really did have a beautiful voice. It made him smile. He wondered how he could make her sing for him again.

There was that word again. Beautiful. He quickly pushed the thought aside for later, tapping her on the shoulder instead. He wanted to stay like this for a little while.

Then a thought occurred to him. What if she wanted breakfast, and he was just being selfish right now. He opened his eyes at the realization, finding Luna’s muzzle very close to his face, before making a hasty retreat and looking around like nothing happened. He blinked a couple of times, unsure of what she had been doing, before dismissing it as unimportant.

He motioned for his communication tools, but Luna seemed a little reluctant to give them to him, even going so far as to feign ignorance. He was pointing at the desk, what else could he want? He even made the writing motion again, but she just tilted her head at him. She didn’t even say anything. Well he had done what he could, if she really wanted breakfast she would have to say something. He buried his face in her soft fur with a sigh, closing his eyes again.

They lay like that for a while. Jax could feel that Luna was tense in his embrace, but he didn’t know why or what to do about it. She moved around restlessly, making it hard for him to relax, until he opened his eyes again and looked up at her. She sighed.

“I am sorry Jax. I should not keep you away from your only way of communicating.” She admitted, levitating everything he needed over. “Before you ask… I was just studying your face. You seemed so at ease, I just wanted to…” She made circling motions with her hoof, looking for the right words. “Take a closer look.” She was looking down directly in front of herself.

He honestly didn’t know what to ‘say’ to that. It didn’t really bother him that she was looking at him so he decided to let it go. He looked down at his parchment and noticed the list he had written the day before. He wrote numbers down beside them in the order he wanted to do them, with a giant question mark next to them.

To do when we wake up:

3. Tell Luna what happened in the bathroom.

2. Ask Luna what the paper she has under the neck thingy is.

1. Eat lots of food.

Then he put it in front of her so she could read it. She looked at it thoughtfully before looking back at him.

“I thought you didn’t want breakfast?” She asked with a confused look on her face.

I changed my mind.

“Alright. Let us see if there is anypony present in the kitchen. Otherwise we can make something ourselves.” She smiled at him.

He was glad the princesses were so chill here. Not only Luna, but also Celestia and Twilight. He didn’t know about Cadence yet, but he could imagine she was as well. Maybe it was a requirement for becoming a princess? Jax didn’t know but he was happy. He hadn’t called any of them ‘princess’ or ‘your highness’ or anything like that but none of them seemed to mind.

He got up on Luna, she used a spell on her wings that corrected all her feathers, and they ventured out. Instant preening? Whatever. She was more graceful about getting off the bed this time, which he was happy for. He estimated it to be two in the night, which would explain the lack of life in the castle. Everybody was probably asleep.

When they found the kitchen though, they discovered that they weren’t the only ones searching for food late at night. They found Spike, literally with a hand in the cookie jar. Well… claws in the gemstone jar. At least that’s what Jax thought it was, it had a shining gem as a label.

“Hehe… Luna… Jax… funny meeting you here.” He quickly took his claw out, taking on a posture that reminded Jax of a business man. “Alright… I’m guessing you want some food?” Luna and Jax both nodded. “I’ll make you some sandwiches, and Twilight, Chef Crepe, or any other pony for that matter, don’t have to know that I’ve been sneaking in and… uhm… sampling gems at night. Deal?”

Who else would it be though? Jax and Luna looked at each other. Jax gave her a light squeeze, and she gave him a light nod.

“It is a deal, Spike. I would like a daffodil one please. I’m sure Jax would like something without flowers in it though.” Luna smiled at the young dragon, who smiled back.

“Coming right up!”

While Spike made their food, he started chatting with them. “So how are you two doing? I heard from Twilight that you have to stay together for a while.”

“We are fine, thank you for asking. Yes, we still do not know for how long.” Luna answered for them.

“Okay. I talked with Rarity the other day, she said that there are so many crazy rumors going around about the two of you that she can barely keep track of them.” Spike looked a little worried. “It’s the first time I’ve heard her say that about rumors.” He seemed to think about that for a moment, before smiling. “I’m sure it’ll be fine though. She said she wouldn’t let such rumors continue when she had something to say about it. She looked very determined and beauti- I mean, you don’t need to worry about a thing.” He ended with a smile, putting a plate in front of each of them.

“Thank you very much Spike, I am sure miss Rarity will do a fine job.” Luna smiled at Spike. “Can I ask you what some of these rumors are about?”

“Actually, I was curious about that too, so I went around, asked a few ponies. Rarity wasn’t kidding, I can tell you that. Some of them are pretty bad and not good for anything, like the ones that say that Nightmare Moon has returned because of Jax, different variations on how exactly that would happen.” Jax noticed that Luna flinched at the mention of Nightmare Moon. “Some of them are more positive and harmless, like the ones that say that you are simply star-crossed lovers, forbidden to be together by Celestia’s rule, but instead of going apart or hiding it, you decided to show the public.” Spike chuckled a little. “I liked that one.” Both Jax and Luna looked away from each other, hiding the slight embarrassment. “Of course some of them go completely nuts. I heard a couple of stallions talking about a conspiracy to gather all the villains the Elements of Harmony have defeated to take over the world. Of course it doesn’t make sense since Princess Luna isn’t Nightmare Moon, nopony even knows where Crysalis is, how would you even go about freeing Tirek from Tartarus, and Sombra is most likely dead, but rumors are rumors I suppose…”

Jax quietly finished his sandwich. He was certain that what Spike mentioned was only a small scope of the real amount of rumors going around. He didn’t like that two of the rumors Spike mentioned dragged Luna down as well. Things were finally looking up for her, he didn’t like the idea that he was making things worse for her after everything she had done for him. He sighed.

“Is something wrong Jax?” Luna asked him, clearly concerned. “They are just rumors, I do not think you should worry too much.” She gave him a little smile.

He tried to smile back but Luna didn’t look convinced. At least he wasn’t expected to give an answer.

“I agree. Rarity will take care of it.” Spike smiled, obviously convinced of the white mares capabilities. “Oh, by the way, Twilight forgot to give you the medicine for your throat yesterday, and when she went to your room you were already sleeping, remember to get it from her. She also made an appointment at a psychologist for you two.”

Jax wasn’t surprised. If Twilight was anything, it was efficient. He finished his sandwich and smiled at Spike. Lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber… not very interesting, it could use some meat, but the vegetables were fresh and tasted good. He pushed the plate over to Spike with a pleading expression.

“Alright big guy, one more, but only because I feel sorry for you. Even I haven’t gone through as much as you. Try not to get hurt anymore, everypony was really worried.”

Jax rolled his eyes. It’s not like he tried to get hurt, it just sorta happened. He nodded anyway. He would do his best.

***

After they had eaten and said their goodbyes to the purple-scaled dragon, Luna and Jax made their way back to their shared room, back to the bed. After Luna took a look at his to-do list, she took out the folded piece of paper from her collar and unfolded it.

“Just before I traveled to Ponyville, one of my guards gave me this drawing. It was from his nephew, I believe his name was Tight Hug. I had helped him with a nightmare, and he must have asked his uncle to give this as a way of showing his appreciation. I put it under my collar and forgot about it for a long while, but when I take off my collar and see it, I get reminded of the good I have done. That I can still help some, even if most fear me. That is the reason I keep it there.” She looked at him with a small smile on her muzzle. The drawing was simple, a small pony next to a bigger pony that was probably Luna since it said ‘The best princess in the world’ over her. Jax couldn’t help but smile at the innocence of it. Such a simple way to show appreciation, yet it had been effective enough for Luna to keep the drawing with her at all times. Maybe he should draw something for her as well…

“Now… I believe it is time for you to explain the whole episode from yesterday.” Luna said, reminding him of the last thing on the list. He quickly pulled the quill and some parchment over to him.

I thought of something embarrassing and started to hyperventilate, and then when I had calmed down I almost let go of you by habit, which caused me to latch back on because of instincts or something. I’m sorry for worrying you with my stupidity.

He was getting better at writing with a quill already. It wasn’t that hard after a couple of times. Except he would still leave some splotches here and there which was annoying.

Luna giggled at what he had wrote. “I am relieved that it was only that. May I ask what made you hyperventilate?”

‘Your beauty made me hyperventilate’ Jax thought, but decided against writing that.

You may ask, I’d rather not say though.

“Alright, fair enough. Do you mind if I go into the realm of dreams for some time? I have not done that very much lately, and I wish to help some foals with their nightmares.” Luna asked. Jax gave her a squeeze and a smile. She settled down and closed her eyes, before casting a spell. Jax experienced a moment of panic when he thought the spell might somehow touch him, but nothing happened, and Luna just lay there afterwards.

…

What was he supposed to do now? He wasn’t very sleepy, but he had nothing to do. He looked down at the parchment. Maybe draw Luna that drawing? Write her a haiku of gratitude? A poem? He wasn’t really an artist, but he wanted to somehow show her how much he appreciated what she did for him. He had a feeling she didn’t quite get it, not really. So he picked up the quill again and started writing.

***

Luna was happy. She had spent the night going from nightmare to nightmare, helping five young foals with them, and only one had started crying upon seeing her, though she had been quick to reassure her that she was not Nightmare Moon. After that they had had a long talk about the young foal’s fears.

Yet what made her even happier than that was what she found when she woke. Jax hugging her she had expected, but the myriad of crumbled up parchment, and the letter he had written for her, she had not.

Dear Luna.

I was a bit uncertain what to do with my time, so I decided to do something I have had in mind for some time now: Show my appreciation. The next question was how to do that. I tried both drawing and writing a poem, but I am neither a painter nor a poet.

So I decided to write you a friendship report. Celestia has gotten plenty of those, and I think it’s only fair that you should get at least one as well, and since you are an important friend, I think it coincides with my goal rather well. So…

Since I came to this world some weeks ago, I have been through so much bu hardship. I had to survive in a forest of monsters, and when I finally get out of there I have to deal with, among other things, being incinerated, and being in pain for three days straight. Yet the beauty of it is that I don’t feel bad about it. It sounds weird when I write it down… Let me try to explain a bit more.

As you know, I’ve been alone for a long time, since before I came here. Being thrown into this world was like a second chance for me, a new beginning. I was still alone, but now that I had to work all day for my survival, I barely had time to reflect on my loneliness.

Then something amazing happened. I almost died. It had happened before in the forest, but this time I was really on the edge. I couldn’t move, I was out of improvised bandages, there was nothing to do but accept that it was the end. (this is the amazing part) Then Fluttershy found me, and the next thing I know, I’m waking up in a small bed. Looking back now, I was acting rather silly, wanting to run back into that accursed forest because of a party. Well, people do weird things sometimes.

Then I made friends. First Rainbow, then you, Pinkie, Twilight, and lastly Beating, and I’m sure more will come. Each of my friends taught me something.

Rainbow Dash taught me that with a friend by your side, you can face what you wanted to run away from.

Pinkie and Twilight both taught me that I shouldn’t be afraid of making friends, whether I’m being affected by positive magic or not.

Beating taught me… Alright, Beating didn’t really teach me anything, I just like how she stood up for me. Wait, okay, Beating taught me that it’s important to stand up for your friends, even if it’s to people you introduced yourself.

And then there’s you. You taught me the importance of forgiving others. You showed me how good it feels to help others. Most importantly, you were there for me when I needed someone the most. You don’t realize how happy I am to have you here by my side. I know it’s not easy, us having to stay so close at all times, it’s embarrassing for all parties, and I’m sorry for the rumors that are starting to surface because of this, I swear I will make it up to you someday.

Still… thank you. Thank you for everything you have done for me without a single complaint. I’ll work hard to be able to let go of you as soon as possible. I think you should know that the reason I bury myself in your fur without constraint is because, for the first time since I got here, I found a place where I feel safe; in your embrace. That is something I will be sad to give up, but I know we can’t go on like this. Until then, forgive me for enjoying every single moment buried in your fur.

Kind regards

Jax

She couldn’t help smile hugely at the end. She made him feel safe. The only place in the entire world he felt safe was by her side. She quickly scooped him up in a tight hug with wings and everything, feeling him hug her back, and even sighing happily.

“Thank you for that Jax. It made my night.” She said as she distanced herself a bit, so she could look him in eyes, tough still keeping him in her embrace. He smiled happily at her.

She did not mind having him hug her all the time. Sure, it was embarrassing, ponies were making weird rumors about them, and she missed having some privacy, but other than that… it was actually nice. It beat being alone all the time, that much was for certain, and being hugged by Jax… it made her a little happy when he buried himself in her fur without a second thought. To him she was just like every other pony, somepony he could call his friend without worrying about titles and customs.

She was happy that she had decided to come after him, even if their start was a bit… less than optimal. She was happy that they had helped each other.

She was just so happy.

She carefully folded the friendship report and put it under her collar with the drawing. It made Jax chuckle silently.

For a while they just laid there, enjoying the peace.

Author's Note

So as I was writing this story I made three goals:
Get a hundred likes
Get on the front page
Complete the story.

Since last week, two of these goals were accomplished to my delight :) To accomplish the third goal I have decided on two things: the first is that I will compress the plot a bit, so it's not as drawn out as I have envisioned. The second is to make some more time skips. Normally I'm not big on time skips but I've given myself 5 in-story months to accomplish everything I want (until the Winter Moon Celebration, if you still remember that event) and through 80.000 words only about two weeks have passed. It's a mistake on my part I hope it doesn't bother too many people :)
I have some things Luna and Jax need to do before I skip ahead though ^^

Okay, so... Yeah, I had some trouble with this chapter ^^

Chapter 25

Rainbow Dash was up early on a Sunday. An unusual thing for her to be, but these were unusual circumstances. She felt really bad about the whole situation with Jax, letting him get hurt repeatedly even after she told him she was going to protect him. Not that she thought she could have helped him much - both instances would probably have happened even if she had been there - but the way she dealt with it afterwards was not cool. She had just left him in the hospital. Was this the kind of friend she was? Heck no. He had said it was okay the first time, and he had smiled at her the second, but she didn’t feel right about it. It was time to show him just what kind of friend she could be. He needed some awesomeness in his life, and now that he was out of the hospital, she was going to be that awesomeness.

She looked at Pinkie’s invitation. Luna’s surprise party didn’t start until midday, so she had to get up early if she wanted to spend some time with Jax. Was it a coincidence that Pinkie had arranged Luna’s party the day after Jax got out of the hospital? Probably not. Pinkie was weird like that.

Rainbow stretched her wings, getting ready to take off. Was Jax good at hoofball? She would have to gather the girls to find out. Today was going to be fun, she would make sure of it!

***

Unless she pulled an all-nighter, Twilight was usually up early, and today was no exception. As the Princess of Friendship, it was her duty to make sure that Jax was well-adjusted. She still regretted putting him in the hospital, and even though he had forgiven her, she would make up for it in her own way as well. She had arranged everything he needed to recover psychologically, she had his throat-medicine, and she had just finished organizing all the forms he needed to sign to become a citizen of Equestria.

If nothing else, she would at least make sure that he recovered from the ordeal in the hospital, and that his transaction of becoming a citizen would be painless. That much she could do.

She thought back at the day before, when she had gone to Luna’s room to hoof over the medicine and she had found them sleeping instead. They had looked so peaceful together, all snuggled up close. She smiled at the memory. Maybe they would end up together some day. Even she had heard those rumors, and she didn’t normally listen to rumors, even when Rarity insisted on telling them. There was just something about those two together that made her want to believe that it would actually happen. Maybe it was the way Luna smiled at Jax, and the way he smiled back. Now that she thought about it, he had looked at Luna with a kind of awe when they first met. Twilight had thought that it was because Luna actually had an air of royalty about her, unlike herself, but maybe…

Twilight smiled at the thought. One could always hope.

***

Applejack looked at the retreating rainbow streak. It was good to see her friend up so early for once.

She didn’t actually have time for hoofball, but she had agreed anyway. She could always find time for her friends somehow. She would just have to work a bit after dark, is all. If she got really behind, she knew that they would jump to her aid at a moment’s notice. Applejack smiled at the thought.

Jax… she hadn’t really had the chance to really befriend him. He seemed nice enough, but she didn’t know much about him. She had visited him a couple of times in the hospital, but that was more to hang out with her other friends. ‘Cept that one time where she had argued with Rarity whether he should have his clothes all fancy shmancy or not.

Still, her other friends seemed to like him, she should somehow find the time to get to know him, at least a little. If Rainbow Dash was willing to get up early on a Sunday for him, he must be worth at least that. She nodded to herself. Now… these trees weren’t gonna buck themselves.

***

Rarity was not amused. “Darling, I don’t even like playing hoofball. Why would I want to spend my free time playing it?”

Rainbow Dash smiled at something. She couldn’t figure out what. “I knew you were gonna say something like that Rarity. I’m organizing this hoofball game for Jax though. I thought it would be good for him to come and hang out with all of us.”

Rarity was pleasantly surprised by that. “Well that’s surprisingly thoughtful of you Rainbow Dash, but why hoofball? I won’t be enjoying myself, and I’m fairly certain Fluttershy won’t either.”

“Hey I can be thoughtful! Rarity, I swear I tried to think of something we could all enjoy, but you know how it is. Me, Pinkie and Applejack like the physical stuff, you, Twilight and Fluttershy don’t. We had a picnic last week, and I think Jax will enjoy playing. Come on, it’ll be awesome!” She ended by flying up and giving her best ‘come on’ smile. Rarity had to admit that Rainbow was making some good points.

“Fine.” She relented, making the pegasus pump her hoof. “Just don’t expect me to enjoy myself. Jax’ clothing will become all dirty, he only has two pairs. I guess I’ll give him the set I finished, he can get a pattern sewed on later.” She gave a dramatic sigh. “The sacrifices I go through for you girls.”

“Yeah yeah, you have it hard. I’m sure Jax will be stunned by the new clothes though. Anyway, see you at ten in the meadow okay?” Rainbow was out of the door before she could answer. She sighed again and looked back at all her unfinished work. She would just have to make time, she agreed with herself. If she could finish the dress she was working on and start on the next, she could finish the rest of it and the other three after she came back. Good thing Sweetie Bell was occupied with crusading today.

She wondered when she could take Jax to the spa like they had agreed before Twilight… messed up. She would probably have to wait until he could separate himself from Luna. Well, she could have them both over for tea at least, but not today. She had a lot to do.

With renewed determination she started on the dress again.

***

Fluttershy opened the door to her cottage to reveal Rainbow Dash flying outside. Rainbow Dash had always been happier to fly than she herself ever was.

“Hey Fluttershy.” She sounded happy.

“Oh, Rainbow Dash. What can I help you with?”

“I’m arranging a hoofball game with the girls, Jax, and Luna. I think they could use some fun. You in?”

“Oh. Uhm, I’m not very good at hoofball…” She replied shyly. “But if you want me to come…”

“Of course I do! This is gonna be so great, just wait and see. See you at the meadow at ten!” She said before she flew off.

Fluttershy looked at her oldest friend as she sped off. Rainbow Dash would always be there for her when she needed her, and Fluttershy would try to do the same for her. It wasn’t always easy because Rainbow normally needed somepony to do something physical, but sometimes it was just to watch a new trick and tell her that she looked ‘cool’. That much Fluttershy could do. She had even practiced her cheering. She kind of wished that was all she had to do this time, but that was alright. She had done harder things, like that time she had to joust in the Crystal Empire. This time she had her friends there, and it would make Jax and Luna happy.

She smiled as she went back inside. Angel would have to watch her friends until she could return.

***

Pinkie was leaning up against a wall. “Give me a time and a place.” She told Rainbow Dash before she could start her sentence, bouncing a hoofball between the ground and her hoof.

“Oh. Good. Ten at the meadow.” Rainbow told her before flying off towards the castle.

She had already taken the day off, and if it was to make Jax and Luna smile, it would be more than worth it.

***

Rainbow Dash flew into the hundredth room. This castle really was a maze. Luckily this was the right one.

“There you are! I’ve been looking everywhere for you!” She exclaimed, looking at parchment that was flying around. “Why is there parchment flying in here?”

“Rainbow Dash!” Twilight sounded annoyed for some reason. “You bursting in here did that. Now I have to spent time organizing them into signed and not-signed again.”

Twilight was sitting by a desk with Jax, and by extension Luna, next to her. She looked annoyed, while Luna just looked startled. Jax on the other hoof looked at Rainbow Dash with excitement, as he should. He had a quill in one of his… hands? Hands, probably signing some lame and boring stuff. Good thing Rainbow came when she did.

“Yeah, my bad. Anyway, I’ve arranged a game of hoofball with the girls. Grab Spike and lets go have some fun!”

“But we still have over thirty forms to sign before Jax is officially seen as a citizen of Equestria, and he has an appointment at the psychologist at twelve! I was hoping we could finish this before then.” Twilight argued. Rainbow rolled her eyes.

“Alright, how about we let them decide what they would rather do? Jax, Luna, do you want to stay here and sign some more forms… or do you want to go out and play some hoofball!”

She could her Twilight mutter under her breath something that sounded like. “When you put it like that…”

Jax and Luna looked at each other for a moment before Luna answered for both of them. “As fun as it has been to use the entire morning signing paperwork, I feel like we could use a break. I do not know how to play hoofball however.”

Rainbow smiled victoriously, dismissing Luna’s concern immediately. “Jax probably doesn’t either. I’ll teach you, don’t worry. You two are gonna be on my team.” She leaned in close so Twilight couldn’t hear, she whispered. “The victory team.” Before flying away and winking at them. They both looked excited now, which was the entire point. Jax looked especially grateful.

“Fine.” Twilight realized she didn’t stand a chance at getting the rest done. “But we better be done before the appointment. Let’s go.”

***

“Luna and Jax count as one player, they’re gonna be with me along with Pinkie and Spike.” Rainbow Dash told everypony present at the meadow.

“Hold on sugar cube. Fluttershy can go on your team, we get Pinkie.” Applejack said.

“Aw come on! Luna and Jax are new at the - you know what? Fine, I’ll make sure we win anyway. We’re playing to 24.”

“Win? We’ll see about that Rainbow.” Applejack gave her a determined stare, which she returned.

The two teams each went to their own half of the field. Rainbow Dash had flown in the goals beforehoof. She looked at her team. It did not look good.

Spike was okay at hoofball, but he was useless against Rarity. Fluttershy was generally scared of the ball. She didn’t know about Jax and Luna yet though. Maybe they were good?

She had already explained the rules. They were playing earthpony style for the simplicity of it. No flying, no magic, just running and throwing - bucking was banned because of the huge advantage Applejack had there. It was simple enough, throw the ball between teammates until you get to the opposite goal, throw the ball so the goalkeeper can’t save it.

It was unfair that they had two earthponies, but she could understand they would need the advantage. They were playing against Rainbow Dash after all.

She grinned at her team. “Alright ponies, let’s show them how good we are. Spike, you’re on the goal, Fluttershy, defense. Me, Luna and Jax are on offense. Let’s do this!” She put her hoof out, and was soon joined by claws, a hand, and finally two more hooves. She threw her hoof up. “Yeah!”

She looked over at the opposite team to see that they had Rarity on the goal. Perfect.

They had decided to let Twilight use her magic to throw up the ball. Since Luna was the tallest, she would contest for it, with Applejack on the other side.

As Twilight threw the ball up, both teams tensed up. As the ball started falling, Rainbow Dash thought she saw Jax do something with his hand, and a moment after Luna jumped up higher than Rainbow thought was possible. The ball was still a fair ways up so Applejack hadn’t even jumped yet, but the added height Luna got from Jax was just enough for him to grab the ball. Her eyes widened in surprise along with Applejack's. Unlike Applejack though, she got over the surprise fairly quickly and started running towards the goal just as Luna touched down on the ground. The moment her hooves hit the ground, she dashed forward with an amazing speed. Rainbow Dash couldn’t help but grin, happy that she had those two on her team. They would win this yet.

Pinkie bounced towards them. Rainbow called out and Jax threw the ball over to her without problems. She saw Luna dodge under Pinkie just as she bounced, before she focused on Twilight coming toward her. Rainbow made a feint that easily fooled Twilight and dashed pass her towards the goal. Rarity looked determined. When she wanted to, Rarity could actually be quite dedicated to the game, which seemed to be the case now. Before Rainbow could decide where to throw the ball she saw Luna in the perfect position for a pass. Rainbow smirked as she pretended to throw the ball, before actually throwing it right in front of Jax, who slammed it in, which fooled Rarity completely, as she dove to where she thought Rainbow was going to throw it.

The trio looked at each other with smiles on their muzzles. The first goal had been easy. They were going to win this without problems.

***

They were having problems. The enemy had switched out Rarity with Twilight, now every time Rarity got to their goal, Spike would just stare at her instead of doing what he was supposed to. The only reason they haven’t lost yet was because Luna and Jax were almost as awesome as Rainbow Dash, and Twilight wasn’t the best goal keeper.

So, it was 23/23. Next goal would decide the winner, and both teams were tired, except Pinkie who seemed to have infinite energy. Luckily Rarity seemed to be at the end of the line, and she probably wouldn’t be able to run all the way over to their goal.

Both teams had agreed to have a short break to discuss tactics.

“I’m sorry I haven’t done much.” Fluttershy said.

“I’m sorry, I just kind of black out everytime I see Rarity coming towards me.” Spike said.

“It’s… It’s okay team, we can still win this. Good job Jax and Luna, you have some awesome moves. Now… Rarity looks like she’s ready to drop, so she shouldn’t be a problem anymore, and Spike, you’re doing pretty well against Applejack’s shots. Fluttershy, good job on… uhm… trying to stop them. Good effort.” This only made Fluttershy fold her ears against her head, which made Rainbow feel bad. “Fluttershy, if you want… you can try to take the offense, and I’ll try to defend.”

“R-really? But… I’m not very good at throwing the ball either. What if we lose because of me?”

Rainbow Dash went over and put a wing over her. “Don’t worry about that. It’s been a good game, I had fun. That’s the entire point right? Besides, I think you can do it. Jax and Luna are pretty awesome as well. Go for it.” She gave Fluttershy a reassuring smile that seemed to make her feel better.

“I agree with Rainbow Dash. I haven’t had so much fun playing a sport since…” Luna looked thoughtful for several seconds. “Well, since before we took down Discord I guess. It’s been a while.”

“Yeah, and if we lose, Rarity wins. I haven’t seen her this determined on winning a sport since… actually, I’ve never seen her so determined while playing. Huh.” Spike added.

“Oh. Alright, I’ll try.” A small smile adorned Fluttershy muzzle and Rainbow found herself staring. She did look best when she was happy. It wasn’t until she saw Jax look at her with a huge grin on his face that she realized she still had a wing over Fluttershy. She quickly took a step back.

“Alright team, time to determine who wins and who loses.” She put out her hoof, quickly joined by the others. “No matter what happens, we had fun. Yeah!”

“Yeah!” they all repeated with smiles on their muzzles.

Rainbow haven’t had such a good hoofball game in a while, so she meant what she said. She may love to win, but she appreciated a good game even more.

She went to her post as a defender. The rest were taking their positions as well, and she noticed that Rarity was back to being the goal keeper.

Jax started with the ball. Something Rainbow had noticed was that because he was holding the ball for her, Luna could run on four legs instead of three like other ponies were forced to, which made it easier for her to dodge and turn. Well, she was slowed down a bit by having to carry him, but he did a good job of setting the weight to make it easier for her. When she turned left, he leaned left with her. If he leaned too much, Luna would lose her balance and fall, something that had happened twice already, but they had done an amazing job overall. They made a good team.

The match started again with Luna dashing past Applejack, and dodging Twilight. She was incredibly nimble, Rainbow noticed. Fluttershy started running forward as well, though way behind Luna.

Just when Rainbow thought Luna was going to make it, Pinkie appeared and took the ball from Jax, which surprised all of them. She then threw it to Twilight who made a pass to Applejack, who was still around the midpoint.

Applejack and Rainbow made eye contact, both glaring at the other. Applejack sped forward, right at Rainbow who went into a defensive stance. Instead of trying to make her way around Rainbow like she had expected, Applejack jumped over her, like Luna had done to her a couple of times. The difference was that Luna could use all four hooves, Applejack could not. She almost lost her balance when she landed, but apparently decided she was close enough to make the shot. She threw it just as she was falling. The ball flew through the air, and would have went in if Spike hadn’t made an amazing air-dive for it. He caught it between his claws, made a roll when he landed, and threw it to Rainbow with a look of awe at his own stunt. Rainbow caught it and used her last strength to run. When Twilight blocked her path, she passed the ball to Jax and Luna, as they had made their way back. Fluttershy was at the goal, she probably hadn’t seen what was going on until she made it all the way over there. It made Rainbow smile.

Jax caught the ball, and Luna started running. Rainbow could see that she was also exhausted. When they encountered Pinkie, Jax decided that he wouldn’t risk her taking the ball from him again, and made the pass to Fluttershy.

Fluttershy looked like she wanted to dodge the ball more than anything, but stood her ground, and to everypony’s surprise, caught it. She looked at it for a second before she remembered what she was supposed to do and ran at the goal.

Rarity took her stance, ready to jump in either direction. Her mane was messed up, she had green and brown streaks on her fur, and she looked like she just wanted to go home and take a shower. Rainbow was actually a little proud of Rarity for being so dedicated to the game. It probably made this the best game ever.

Fluttershy threw the ball and Rarity made a dive for it. She must have forgotten that Fluttershy wasn’t very good at throwing, because she overdid it and went over the ball. It rolled in as Rarity passed it.

For a second everypony just looked with mouths agape, even Fluttershy herself. Then Rainbow started laughing as she flew over and hugged Fluttershy, who still looked like she couldn’t believe what she had just done. Luna, Jax and Spike soon came over and they shared a group hug, all smiling at their victory.

“It was a good game. Well played.” Applejack said, with a tired smile.

“Yeah, it was the best game ever! I’ve never seen Rarity so into it, or Fluttershy score a goal. I’m so happy right now.” Rainbow pretended to dry a tear away, which made everypony laugh. They went around and shook hooves and hands and claws with each other, glad to be done with the game.

“Jax, Luna, it’s almost time.” Twilight told them.

“Oh! Darling, before you go, I brought you these.” Rarity went over to her saddlebag and took out a new set of clothes, these ones matching Luna’s fur perfectly, which made more than a couple of ponies chuckle, Jax included.

“And look, I even made underwear for you! When you want a pattern on them, just come see me again, and I’ll do it for all of your clothes.”

Jax drew her into a hug as a thank you. Rainbow couldn’t help but smile.

It was a good day.

Author's Note

Someone commented on point of view, so I thought I'd try A Different Perspective ;)
Well here you are. I had a busy week and I actually just finished this. Also, I've been drawn into Dark Souls. Such a good game... XD

Edit 18/03/2021 - The song before the Hoofball match was chosen by Artemis Prime :twilightsmile:

Chapter 26

Jax rode Luna out of the psychologists place. Slow Healing had been a pleasant mare, with a nice smile. She hadn’t even commented on their disheveled appearance, which was appreciated. Jax could use a shower, and he wasn’t even the one running around.

To sum up the session, she had told Luna to be patient with him, even if she was annoyed. It was important that he was the one who let go, no matter how slow the progress seemed. They had then done some exercises to make Jax feel safe or something, which they would build further on in future sessions until he could let go of Luna. The first goal was for Jax to only have a hand on her, which sounded easy enough until he tried to do it. It was not easy.

Twilight and Rarity waited for them outside. Rarity had gotten a shower and looked like her normal prim self.

“Ah, darlings. I was wondering, Jax… Do you want me to give you a manecut? Your beard could use a trim as well, if you don’t mind me saying. We can do it at my boutique, and while you’re there, you can both get a shower.”

Jax nodded eagerly, jumping at the opportunity to finally do something about his looks. Luckily his hair and beard weren’t set on fire along with his clothes - that would have probably made it even more painful than it already was - but that just meant that he hadn’t done anything about it since he came to Equestria almost one and a half months ago. It looked pretty wild and unkempt.

He remembered that he wasn’t the only one who should make decisions on where they went, and looked down at Luna, who was smiling at him.

“Well, I see no reason not to. We could both use a shower for one. Let us go, miss Rarity. If that’s okay with you Twilight?” Luna said.

“Oh please, just Rarity.” Rarity said, as Twilight said. “Yes, we’ve already talked about it.”

“Good. After you, Rarity.” Luna somehow caught both sentences without any problems while Jax was still sorting them out.

They made their way to Rarity’s boutique, where Rarity took out three scissors… three!

“Now, darling, I may not be a friseur, but I am skilled with scissors.” She looked at Jax’ uneasy expression. “No no, don’t worry, I’ve done this before. Mostly for Sweetie Bell though... Let’s get started then.”

“Rarity, wait.” Luna interrupted. “You cannot use magic on Jax”

“Ah, of course princess. I forgot for a moment there… what if it’s just the handles of the scissors?”

“Hmm… but only use one scissor then. I’ll be watching to make sure.”

“Of course.”

Jax decided to close his eyes as she started to cut seemingly random strands of his hair and beard. Then again, he didn’t know anything about hairdressing, and Sweetie Bell’s hair had seemed fine to him.

20 minutes later he looked in the mirror. He looked… good. His hair was cut short, and his beard had been trimmed. He smiled at his reflection.

“You seem to like it. I must admit it turned out better than I expected. Now, you can take a shower while I clean up.” Rarity told them with a smile, as she took out a broom.

After a quick shower that was in no way embarrassing whatsoever, Jax and Luna made it down again with a blush on both their faces. Jax was wearing the new clothes he got from Rarity, the ones which matched Luna’s fur.

He looked damn good, the best he looked since he appeared in Equestria, if he had to say so himself.

“Oh my, what a handsome human.” Rarity told him with a smile.

He kind of wished he could make a rebuke like ‘handsomest in all of Equestria!’ since he was the only human here, it would be true as well. He was quite literally the smartest, strongest, and handsom…est… human on the planet. Was handsomest even a word? Whatever.

He smiled back at her and nodded. Being mute really sucked sometimes. Taking out parchment, quill, and ink every time he needed to say something would be so much work. He wished he had gotten his phone with him, that would have been a little easier at least. He wondered how long it would take for the medicine he drank every day to do its magic.

“Well let’s get you two back to the castle. Twilight made it very clear that you still have a lot of forms to sign.” Rarity chuckled at Jax’ deadpan face. He had been signing all morning to the sound of Twilight explaining why there were so many forms. He hadn’t really been listening, something about him being a resident from a different world or something. He could understand why that would make it a tad difficult, and he was grateful that Twilight had gone through the trouble of finding all the right forms for him to sign, but his hand still kinda ached. The break had been appreciated, thank God Rainbow came when she did.

They made their way back to Twilights Tree-Castle of Friendship, Rarity insisting on walking them there, claiming that she forgot something in the ballroom. Since they didn’t know where Twilight was, Luna decided to follow Rarity there.

“SURPRISE!” Came the shout when Luna opened the door.

She jumped back, opened her wings mid-air and flapped them, making Jax tighten his grip on her because of the sudden movement. Also being air-borne all of a sudden gave him quite a shock.

She landed a good distance away and put a hoof over her heart, taking deep breaths. Jax stroked her in an effort to calm her down as well. She had still taken the shock better than he had at his surprise party. He had completely forgotten Luna’s was today, with all the stuff that happened lately. Good thing he couldn’t say anything, or he might have repeated his mistake from last time.

“I apologize. That was… quite the surprise.” Luna said when she had calmed down.

“Well it is a SURPRISE party. Come on, the cake won’t eat itself!” Pinkie appeared and explained.

Luna gave Jax an unsure glance, to which he gave her an encouraging smile.

“Wait… if it did eat itself, would it become twice as big, or disappear?” Pinkie asked, her eyes widening.

Jax laughed his silent laugh at that, and Luna relaxed a bit. They made their way in to the ballroom, greeted the elements, Beating Heart, Lyra & Bon Bon, Big Mac nodded at them, and some other town people Jax didn’t know the name of gave their own greetings. It was a smaller gathering than at his party, but then again the ponies seemed to be a bit more at ease this time around.

To his surprise the two nurses who had made him… a bit uncomfortable, were there as well, even coming over. What were their names again? Something with heart… Tenderheart and Redheart? That was it, the ones with the same mark. They both looked nervous, or remorseful… nervously remorseful perhaps. They bowed down in front of Luna.

Redheart spoke up. “Excuse us, your highness. We want to apologize to Jax for our inappropriate behavior when we met.”

Luna looked confused at them, then back at Jax. He gave her a squeeze, which translated to yes.

“I shall allow it.” She told them, sitting down all of a sudden, forcing Jax off her back. He sat down beside her, still with an arm around her. He gave them a small smile, indicating for them to continue.

Tenderheart went first. “I’m sorry for asking all those silly questions. We had a long talk with Beating Heart afterwards, and I realized that I was a bit… rude. Well, very rude. It was uncalled for me to ask you whether you ate ponies and if you were in fact Discord… and I’m especially sorry for… using the word ‘fry’ to describe your burns. Uhm, I realize now that you’ve been through a lot, and, well… I’m sorry.” She ended with her face towards the ground, ears folded… the classical sad pony look.

Redheart stepped up beside her. “And I’m sorry for insinuating that you were going to hurt her. Beating Heart told us very clearly what she thought of our… word choices.”

He smiled at the mental image of Beating Heart giving them a verbal beating.

Luna handed him some parchment, ink and quill.

‘You are forgiven. It wasn’t a big deal to begin with, I might have overreacted a bit.’

They both looked relieved after reading his note.

The next apologizers came over, looking like tiny heartbroken plushies that you just wanted to snuggle with.

“We’re sorry about how our idea turned out.” Scootaloo started.

“Yeah, we we’re just trying to help, we didn’t think it would cause you pain.” Sweetie Belle elaborated.

“But that’s no excuse to put you in danger like that, and we’re willing to take any punishment you want to give us.” Apple Bloom ended for the group, with that accent of hers.

They sat down on a row in front of him. The sad pony look was five time stronger on foals it would seem, and Jax was having a hard time deciding what to do. On one hand, it was thanks to them that he was having a good time out of the hospital right now, on the other hand… three days of pain. Three days of continuous pain. Pain so strong, he barely knew what was going on around him most of the time. Then again, it wasn’t like they knew that that would happen, as far as he understood, and they hadn’t forced him to drink it, he had done so all by himself in his eagerness to get out of the hospital.

He sighed and looked at Luna, who was looking at him expectantly, waiting for his reply along with the tiny ponies. A memory came back to him, of when he had made his way back to the hospital from the town hall. He had to be guided by Rainbow Dash, Beating Heart, Twilight and Luna because he kept staring at the night sky. He remembered how it had made the others look at them as well, and the huge grin Luna had when they had done so. He made his choice and wrote, with Luna looking over his shoulder.

‘You have to stargaze one hour each night for a month.’

Luna smiled when he finished.

“Stargaze?” Scootaloo asked.

“You mean… looking at the stars? Are you sure that’s a punishment?” Apple Bloom sounded puzzled.

“Yeah, I rather like looking at the stars.” Sweetie Bell added.

Jax kept on writing.

‘This is what I want you to do, I’ll trust you to do it even though I won’t be monitoring you. As to why… Beautiful things need to be appreciated.

Oh, and if any of you become a guard someday, join the night guard.’

Luna started laughing beside him, a bea- a very pleasant sound that made him smile.

The Cutie Mark Crusaders looked confused at his request, but were quick to accept, probably in fear that he would change his mind and give them a real punishment if they didn’t. They made a quick retreat after that.

Luna looked at him with approval and happiness. He loved the way her cyan eyes brightened up when she was happy.

‘That’s the way those eyes are meant to look’ he thought to himself.

Jax looked around but there were luckily no more ponies that wanted to apologize to him.

Since this was a Pinkie Party, he was sure that it would be lots of fun. He smiled in anticipation.

***

Luna was having so much fun! They had started out with her, Jax and Pinkie spending more time at the snack table than she normally would have, then they had gone on to play various games, then Spike had crawled up on Jax shoulders and declared himself King of the Party, but was opposed by none other than Pinkie Pie, who placed Lyra on Twilight, before crawling up on Lyra. The war that ensued was hilarious in its seriousness. King Spike got Rainbow Dash, Beating Heart, and a couple of other residents, while Queen Pinkie got Applejack and Bon Bon along with various residents. Fluttershy, Rarity and the rest of the guests declared neutrality, but were forced into the war one way or another, so they made a third party led by the Cutie Mark Crusaders.

The chaos that ensued made Discord proud. He said so himself when he joined the war on Fluttershy’s side, throwing pies left and right.

In the end there was food, pillows, and water everywhere, and a peaceful negotiation had taken place, led by the neutral party. After that the party had resumed like nothing had happened.

Octavia resumed with the music, and a couple of ponies decided to dance. Luna could still feel the adrenalin pumping around inside of her, which may have been the reason she decided to ask Jax to dance. To her surprise, he gave her a light squeeze.

They spent some time trying to figure out how a quadruped pony can dance with a biped human while still hugging. Luna ended up on her hind legs, with her fore hooves around his neck. It wasn’t easy, but luckily the music was slow enough that it was possible. He had a tight grip around her, making her sigh in content.

Luna was happy.

***

Twilight inched closer to Rarity, while looking at Luna and Jax dancing.

“Rarity? What do you think about Luna and Jax?” She asked her friend.

“Oh, darling, not you too. I’ll say it a million times if I have to, those two are not trying to take over Equestria. These rumors have really gotten out of hoof.” Rarity sounded a bit annoyed.

“I know that!” Twilight said, surprised that she would think otherwise. “That’s not what I meant.”

“Oh, excuse me Twilight, I’ve just been repeating the same thing over and over about those two recently. I hope ponies get over it soon. I mean look at them! They-“

“They look like a couple, don’t they?” Twilight asked what she wanted to know.

“Well… I suppose they do look a bit… You don’t suppose…? Now there’s a rumor I wouldn’t mind confirming.” Rarity ended with a smile.

“I don’t know if they actually are but… I just wanted to know if it was only me who saw it. They are very comfortable in each others presence. You would think that being forced together like that would make them… tired of the other? I haven’t heard either of them complain a single time, not even a small disagreement.”

“Oh, I do hope they end up together. Jax is such a sweetheart once you get to know him, and Princess Luna is… well, I think they could both get a lot out of starting a relationship.” Rarity said with glee.

Twilight smiled at her friend. “I think so as well.”

***

Jax was looking up at the moon as Luna raised it. They were in the highest tower of Twilight’s castle. The party was over, every pony had gone home after helping clean up the giant mess from the war. As he had predicted, it had been fun, even more fun than his own party. He sighed in content.

“Jax?” Luna sounded content as well. He looked over at her to let her know he was listening.

“I… had fun today.” She said, with a smile that couldn’t be more genuine if Pinkie gave it.

He gave her a light squeeze to tell her that he had fun as well. They never got around to sign those forms, but he would probably just have to do it the next day.

They spent some time just looking at the moon and the stars. It was nice and peaceful.

To think that Luna had been imprisoned on the very same moon for a thousand years.

‘What do you think of the moon?’ He wrote and showed her the note.

“What do you mean? It is, and always will be, my beloved moon.” She answered.

‘I mean… you were imprisoned there for a thousand years? No hate for it at all?’

“Ah… No. At that point I was more a prisoner in my own body than anything else. If I hate anything it would be the Limelight that turned me into… a monster.”

That made Jax laugh despite himself. It wasn’t really a laughing matter, and Luna looked at him weirdly. “It is funny to you?”

‘No… it’s just… in my eyes, Nightmare Moon wasn’t much of a monster. A villain, yes, and a bad one at that, but she didn’t kill anybody, she didn’t take advantage of the weak, she didn’t… do any monster things? She hurt you and your sister deeply, yes, but that is all she did, thankfully. Of course things would have been much worse if she had succeeded… with plants needing light to survive and all that. That Limelight thingy wasn’t very smart, was it?’

Luna looked at his note for a bit before she started laughing. She laughed and laughed until she started crying. At first he thought she was crying from the laughter, but then she buried her face in his shoulder and just started crying instead. He could feel his shirt become wet, and just started stroking her flowing mane, confused as he was.

After a while she calmed down enough to only sniffle every once in a while.

“Let us go to sleep.” She told him. He wanted an explanation, but he didn’t want to push her when she apparently didn’t want to talk about it. He gave her a light squeeze but when she didn’t move, he assessed her size instead. She was bigger than a pony but he could probably…

He picked her up with both his arms, holding her in front of him. She was almost too big, but he managed, especially when she put her head over his shoulder. She didn’t resist at all when he started walking, careful to not bump her into stuff, she only put her wing around him and over her head, probably so the guards couldn’t see her tear-stained face.

They got a couple of looks, but no one tried to stop him, and they made it to their shared room without problems.

She made all the preparations for sleep from where she was, using her magic. It made it a lot harder for Jax, and he had to completely give up on brushing his teeth.

He finally put her down on the bed, where she took off all her stuff, and he laid his shirt next to the bed. He held her closer than usual that night, stroking her for a long while before he finally fell asleep. He didn’t know what was going on, but he felt like she needed it.

***

Luna looked down at the human beside her, who had been stroking her and holding her close until recently. It would seem he finally fell asleep, judging by his slow breathing. She placed her hoof on his head, and when he didn’t react, she started stroking his hair, just like he had done for her. A smile spread on his face.

“You are very kind, Jax.” She whispered to him. “Far kinder than I deserve. Yet I crave it more than anything else.” A smile spread on her muzzle. “You make me so happy… It is as if I was never sad to begin with. How can one creature have such a strong effect on me? One little human has made me laugh more in the past week than I have combined in the time since my return. The sadness, the guilt, the crushing loneliness… It all washes away in the wake of your smile. If this is what friendship is like, then I must have truly forgotten the feeling, for this is the first time I have ever felt so…” She stopped when she couldn’t find the words. What was it exactly she was feeling?

She looked back at Jax again as he snored gently. “Did you know my sister sang a song for me upon my return?” He snored in reply. “She probably did not mean for it to make me feel so guilty, but every time I am reminded of it, it hurts. It hurts to remember how much I hurt her, of the monster I had become. I was Nightmare Moon, the monster that has inspired more nightmares than I care to admit. Generation after generation the stories were told, until Nightmare Moon did more than just try to take over Equestria. Why do parents scare their children like that? I never really understood it. My point is that everypony thinks of Nightmare Moon as a monster worse than Discord himself, and because they fear Nightmare Moon, they fear me, their own princess. All the regret in the world would not change that.”

She stopped stroking his hair and looked at him with a fond smile. “Then there is you. You do not even see Nightmare Moon as a monster, much less as the same pony as me. You have no idea how happy it made me feel, how absolutely ecstatic I was when you wrote that. I could honestly have kissed you.” She added with a blush, before continuing stroking his hair.

Then a frown replaced her smile. “Then I realized something I have not thought about very much since coming here. This is all temporary. I am a princess of Equestria. I cannot stay here, no matter how much I want to. But I do not want to go back sitting on a throne, hearing that song in my head again and again, until the guilt makes me…” She stopped to take a deep breath. She was afraid that she had whispered loudly enough to wake him, but he just kept snoring lightly. “I came here to become friends with you. I should have returned to Canterlot a long time ago… but I postponed it, and thank the stars I did. I am so happy I was there when you drank that potion.” She looked over the side of the bed, at the friendship report he had written for her. “You think receiving the longest hug ever is chore for me, but I am actually happy it turned out like this. Now I have an excuse to stay here longer. So please, I know it is embarrassing at times, but take your time. Do not hurry to let go, for when you do, I will have to leave.” She pleaded his sleeping form. Of course she received no answer, he had even stopped snoring.

She carefully maneuvered herself onto her side, and pulled him as close as she could. “Thank you for all the happiness you have given me Jax. I am going to enjoy the rest of our time together, until you let go of me, and I will have to return to Canterlot.” A thought occurred to her. “Maybe one day I will have the courage to tell you all of this while you are awake.”

She looked down at him as he buried himself in her fur. He kind of looked like he was dreaming...

Luna entered the dream world.

Author's Note

I give you this a day early because I'm frustrated at the low amount of ff that update regularly. I hate it when months go by with no update, like many on my favorites list have done now... That's why I try to only recommend complete works to you guys, or ff where I'm fairly certain they update regularly.
Speaking of recommending ff... do you guys like Derpy? I do: Dinky: A Filly That Is Loved
In case I didn't make it clear, Jax is riding Luna when they move around, unless I write something else.
Hope you enjoyed this chapter :)

Chapter 28

Two months and a week after Jax’ arrival

The following two weeks went by in a blur, and Jax enjoyed most of it.

As time went by, Luna and Jax became so comfortable with each other, they reached the stage where they sang in the shower. It started it out with Jax humming a melody, that soon turned into full out singing, joined by Luna because apparently ponies had a magical ability to join anyone in singing a song. They would often sing a song of Jax’ choosing, since he did not have that magical ability. Luna did teach him a couple of songs though. Some she said were ‘outdated’, but sounded fine to him. No matter what, they had a ton of fun, using imaginary microphones to sing to an imaginary crowd, who would cheer for them no matter how bad Jax sounded. Luna had a perfect singing voice, but Jax wasn't jealous. They were having fun, and that was the most important thing.

Their teasing of each other became a regular thing. Nothing mean, like between two guys, just simple lines meant to embarrass the other, that could then be shot right back. The winner was found when the other couldn’t make a comeback. He didn’t know why they did it, all he knew was that it made Luna smile and laugh, and that made him feel good.

He felt good most of the time he was glued to Luna. No weird accidents, no bad stuff happening, just a human and a pony having fun. He was a bit paranoid that something would happen, but so far it was just good times.

Of course something that still made him uncomfortable was the toilet visits. They had received earplugs from Spike, and Luna used a spell for the smell but still… Jax preferred not to think about it.

Jax’ voice returned after the first week, thanks to the medicine. He and Luna spent long nights talking about everything and nothing since then. Apparently her favorite color was ‘the silver of the full moon’, which was such a cool response, he wished he had said something like ‘the blue of a calm ocean’ instead of just blue. When he found out she enjoyed pizza, they started spending a bit more time at the local pizzeria as well. No meat options, but the vegetarian pizza tasted fine as well. He got tired of eating fish every now and again, even though Fluttershy gave him different variants of them.

Most of the days were spent doing something with Twilight and her friends. Sometimes they would go to a picnic, sometimes they would go play some new or old game. Luna and Jax were really good at working together, so it was often discussed whether they should be counted as one player or not, mostly by Rainbow Dash and Applejack.

When they weren’t doing that they would visit some of Jax’ friends. Turned out Rainbow Dash lived in a cloud-home, so visiting her mostly consisted of Jax riding on Luna, holding on for dear life in his fear to fall through the cloud. It was nice to fly on Luna when they got up and down though. He also borrowed a book about pony Indiana Jones that he read when he and Luna decided they didn’t want to do anything that day, and Jax was tired of losing to her in chess and various other strategy board games.

He found out where Beating Heart lived, and they would meet once in a while in her comfy home on the ground. She offered snacks and they chatted some time about this and that.

Rarity was almost always ready for some tea as well, but Jax had to admit that even though she was the nicest person, her probing for gossip was annoying. To her credit, when she found out it bothered him, she stopped fairly quickly. The tea was good as well. She received bonus points for beating him to a pun about such good tea being a Raritea, which was funny on so many levels. She said that she was a pony after all, and if there was one thing ponies knew, it was puns.

He decided that she was his friend as well. No big reveal this time, just a simple agreement between them. He liked to confirm it, to be sure, so he just asked her if she saw him as a friend, and she said that she did… in a bit more posh manner than that though.

Friendship established.

They went to Sugarcube Corner when they had some spare time, what with the delicious cake, and Pinkie joining the conversation unexpectedly from time to time, which was amusing to them.

Even though Jax was small-talking more than he normally would, he didn’t really mind anymore. Luna was right there beside him when things got too boring or awkward, she would cover for him when he didn’t want to answer anymore. It was nice to have someone you could rely on.

Something that wasn’t so nice was his sexual frustration. No privacy meant no time to take care of the problem by himself. The result was confusing to him.

For one, he had morning wood every morning, and with him hugging Luna, that meant that she had to be extremely occupied to not feel it. Almost every morning was greeted by a blushing Luna, so he didn’t think that was the case. He quickly adjusted himself, and she never spoke a word about it, which he was thankful for. Thank God he didn’t have sex dreams, would be even more awkward waking up to him dry-humping Luna.

The second thing was what was confusing for him. He started to find ponies… sexy. Once he saw a mare turn around a bit too fast, taking a wide stance, revealing what she had behind her tail in perfect detail before it fell down in place. He couldn’t get the image out of his head for a long while, and he became very conscious of the fact that they all walked around naked. It was weird how much it had looked like a humans… Thankfully, the tail was pretty good at covering everything up, and only revealed anything when they turned a bit too fast. Except Pinkie, her tail didn’t give a flying fuck how fast or slow she was moving. Not that he had been looking of course. Okay so he was a bit curious, so what? There were no humans around to judge him anyway, and ponies seemed to be fine with interspecies relationships, if Beating was anything to go by.

Still, it felt weird to him when he started to appreciate the curve of their… flanks. Especially Luna’s, since he could look at it whenever he wanted. He was no expert on pony butts, but Luna’s seemed especially nice. He liked how her mark covered most of it.

Not that he was checking it out a lot. Sometimes it just happened. Sometimes Luna caught him looking, at which point he looked away. She never said anything, and he never mentioned those times he caught her looking in the shower.

The visits at psychologist were progressing nicely. He had mastered only having one hand on her, and at the end of the second week he went so far as to completely let go of her, as long as she was in the same room as him. When she left the room, he felt a deep panic in his chest. Slow Healing told them that they were making good progress though, and that he would be able to leave her side soon. Just being able to walk beside her instead of riding her was a huge relief. She didn’t seem to mind, but he felt bad about being a bother to her.

He still wanted to hug her, but the thought was at the back of his mind now, instead of being the deep panic that he had experienced before. She didn’t seem as happy as he was though, but he couldn’t figure out why.

Of course he missed having her in his arms, so he took every opportunity he could to hug her, and they still snuggled close at night by some unspoken agreement. When they walked, he would always have a hand on her shoulder or whithers, just to feel her soft fur.

It was nice.

Author's Note

And so ends the Age of Hugging ^^ I don't know about you, but I liked it XD It turned out better than I thought ;)
So, things are progressing steadily. It took a while, but now Jax starts to think of ponies as somespecies he can have some sexy times with ;) ESPECIALLY LUNA! Did you guys read last chapter? so close to a kiss... but don't worry, it will happen XD at some point... ;)
Anyway, if you like characters being forced together, read this: All for one - One for Luna

Chapter 29

Jax slowly woke up to reality. Another nightmare… not so bad this time though. He focused on his surroundings, his eyes still closed.

He was nice and warm under Luna’s wing, his arms wrapped around her, but unlike other mornings recently, his lower half had decided it wanted some space, and was in fact not pressed against her. Thank God. She couldn’t feel what was going on down there this morning.

He opened his eyes, expecting to see Luna’s relieved face, and was almost blinded because her mane was brighter than usual.

“Damn Luna, you want to blind everybody in town? Your beauty should suffice for that.” He opened his eyes slowly, looking at her between his fingers.

She looked at her mane with a thoughtful look. “I was trying to make it shine as brightly as your smile… I do not think I am there yet though.” She smiled teasingly at him and he felt heat on his face, but he wasn’t out yet.

“I would know if I smiled that brightly by everybody covering their eyes. Seriously though, your mane is beautiful as it is, I don’t think you need replace your stars with suns.”

She looked at her mane again. He was over-exaggerating, of course, it didn’t even shine brightly enough to blind as much as forcing people to squint... except if they just opened their eyes from a nights rest. She adjusted the brightness with a thoughtful frown, muttering “Maybe I went a little overboard.”

“There you go.” He smiled at her.

“AH! Too bright! Must take cover!” She exclaimed, covering her eyes with her hooves, rolling out of the bed, straight down into her regalia.

It sounded painful but he couldn’t help but laugh at her childish behavior. This was an immortal alicorn acting like his smile had blinded her. It wasn’t the first time she acted immaturely, and he had to admit that it was one of the many things he loved about her.

“Aha!” She emerged from the side of the bed with sunglasses on. “Thine smile hath no more pow-“

The rest of the sentence was lost as he collided with her. Normally he wouldn’t launch himself at ponies, but he knew Luna could take it. He landed on top of her, laughing.

“Where did you get the sunglasses from? Was this all some crazy scheme to have an excuse to use them?”

“It may or may not have been.” She answered innocently. “I received them from Pinkie at my ‘Welcome to Ponyville’ party.”

“What? I didn’t see that.”

“You were busy conversing with Lyra.”

“Alright… Well, they may protect you from my smile, but they won’t protect you from… these!” He wiggled his finger in front of her.

“Your fingers? What are you going to-“ She never got any further as he started tickling her sides. She gave a loud squeal and tried to jump away, but she was trapped underneath him, at his mercy.

That, of course, didn’t last very long, as Jax learned some things. Luna was stronger than him, Luna was more nimble than him, and even though her hooves were terrible tickling tools, she had feathery wings and he didn’t wear a shirt. The result? He was quickly pinned down underneath her, laughing hysterically as she used her wings to tickle him.

“No, Lunahaha… Please, I’m dyhahaing! I- I- I surrender!”

She stopped and looked at him seriously, sunglasses still in place. “Say the words.”

“What worhahaha.” She started tickling him again. “Uncle?! Hahah Luna is better than Jax! Hahah Luna is the besthaha princess?!” The tickling continued. “Please Luna, jushaha- I only have three pair of pants!”

“That is infinitely more pairs than me.” She just answered, amusement leaking out of her voice.

“Haha God I’m gonna peeeeee.”

“They can be washed.” She countered.

“You’re my best friend!” He desperately, though truthfully, tried. It worked, she stopped tickling him, a surprised look on her face.

“T-truly?” He didn’t think those were the words she was counting on, but he jumped at the opportunity to make her stop.

“Yes! God yes.” He eagerly answered.

“Thou art…” She took off her sunglasses, and a warm smile spread on her muzzle. “You are my best friend as well.” The warmth in her voice made him feel all warm and fuzzy inside. She lowered herself down in an attempt to give him a hug, with her head on his shoulder. He wouldn’t have minded her weight, since she didn’t weigh as much as one would think, except he had a growing problem in his pants. On one hand, he didn’t want to ruin the moment… on the other, he was fairly certain the moment would be ruined when she felt his erection.

“Luna? I was serious about needing to pee.” He tried

“Mmm” She just responded. She was probably too comfortable to move. Ah… well, he tried. Seemed that they couldn’t really start the day without Luna feeling his erection.

Suddenly, her eyes flew open. She didn’t rush off of him, but she got up fairly quickly, with a subtle blush.

He got up and went towards the toilet.

“… It has been happening more and more recently, has it not?” She said as she followed, ever mindful of his need for her to be near.

“… Yes.” He answered, almost tripping at the comment. He did not like where the conversation was going. Still, it shouldn’t be a surprise. How long had they both just ignored it? Too long. Maybe not long enough. He would prefer if they never had the talk.

“Is it because you cannot… uhm…”

“I can’t masturbate with you there, yeah. I get easily excited now.” He decided to help her out a bit. His face was burning too much for comfort.

He made it to the toilet, with Luna just inside the door, back turned towards him. “Oh. Uhm…” He could almost hear her thinking what to do or say.

While they were on the subject though… “Yeah, it’s also the reason I’ve been… looking at… your flank area.” Might as well get it out there. It was hard for him to say the words out loud though.

He would get everything wet if he tried to pee like this. He sighed. He would have to wait.

“Well…” He could hear her embarrassment. He could imagine her looking down at the ground, with a giant blush on her face. Of course his own face wasn’t fairing much better. At least they weren’t looking at each other. “… It is… a completely natural… act.” He could hear her taking a deep breath. “It should not be a problem if I have my back turned with earplugs in and I use the spell for the smell.” She said in one go. He took a couple of seconds to comprehend it.

“Oh. Well, it’s a good suggestion Luna, and honestly I appreciate that you’re willing to go beyond your comfort zone for me, but I would still know you were there. Also, honestly, I think this whole situation is beyond either of our comfort zones, and I don’t want to make it worse. Slow Healing said that since I’ve let go of you, it shouldn’t be long till I can be completely without you. I think I can wait for that… if you’ll excuse the occasions where I check out your butt.”

He looked back at her with a smile to indicate that he was kidding, and saw her looking at her flank before looking at him.

“Are you going to pee, or are you just going to stand there?” She asked with a slight blush, closing the subject. He was entirely okay with that.

“I’m gonna stand here until I pee” He said as he winked at her.

***

Luna was playing chess with Jax. She was winning again, but she didn’t care about that. She was looking at the human in front of her, running a hand through his brown mane, looking disgruntled. She smiled warmly at the mess of a mane he left behind. He looked up and gave her a defiant look.

“You think you’ll win just because you got my queen? Well, I bet you didn’t see this coming!” He said, using dramatic gestures to castle his king. Her smile broadened at his desperate attempt to draw out the match. She didn’t mind at all, in fact she was happy that they would be spending some more time alone.

She had been having a feeling lately. She could not even remember when she had noticed it. It was a warm feeling, which started from the inside, spreading out until it encompassed all of her, making her feel… Accepted. Safe. A bit giddy, and more than a little happy. Like everything would be all right, her worries melted away by his embrace. As feelings went, this was one of the best she had felt.

Luna was certain now. She was deeply in love with Jax. Ever since that night where she visited him in his dreams two weeks ago, she had felt like she wanted more. She wanted that kiss, the one she had been too cowardly to take. She wanted him by her side, not because they were forced together, but because they wanted to be together.

She reached over, moving her queen into position. “I did indeed not, my dear friend. I do however fear that it will not be enough.”

It made her a little afraid. She was in love. She had never been in love before. She had so many questions. How could she know if he felt the same way? Should she confess? What if she did and he did not want to be with her? Would they keep being friends, or would everything crumble?

She hated that those questions were souring the feeling. She hated that she was unable to admit her feelings to him. He had admitted to checking out her flank! That must mean something. Right?

“Aha! I think you overlooked something there… your queen is mine!” Jax triumphantly said as he fell right into her trap. She was far enough ahead that her queen was worth the sacrifice for his bishop. She would have his rook the next round as well.

“Aww man… Why are you so good at this game?” He said with a smile. The reason she kept agreeing to these matches was that he never angered at his defeat. Sometimes he did not want to play, and that was fine with her, but when he did he took it all with a smile.

“I am an ancient alicorn, dear Jax. My wisdom leads me to victory.” She said jokingly, taking up a posh voice and pose.

He half snorted, half giggled. “Is this the same alicorn that tried to blind the town with her mane?”

“Hush dear, you simply do not understand the value of strategic… strategizing.” She continued with the posh accent of the Canterlot Elite.

Jax was laughing, the sound filling her with glee. She loved making him happy. She could not help but to start laughing alongside him.

When they calmed down, she went over and embraced him with both her wings. She knew he would not mind, that he would even welcome her with open hooves.

It felt so good to be in his presence. She did not want to ever let go of him.

Sooner or later though, she would have to. She had to go back to Canterlot. She was a princess, she had responsibilities… even if she had thrown all of them over to Celestia just to come here.

She felt guilty about that.

Could he come with her? Did he want to come with her? He did have friends here now… but she was his best friend, he had told her so himself. Could she ask him to leave behind every relationship he had built up here to… what? Wait with her in an empty night-court? Do some paperwork regarding some new law with her? What did she hope to accomplish by dragging him along?

She did not want to feel lonely again. That was why she was considering it.

“Jax?”

“Yeah?” Sounded the happy reply from under her wings.

“Are you…” She thought about how to formulate the question. “Are you staying in Ponyville?” She ended lamely. That was not what she wanted to ask.

“I don’t know where else I would go. Even if there was a place I wanted to go, there is something I need to do here first. Why do you ask?”

“Oh.” She could not quite hide the disappointment from her voice. “I am just wondering about your plans, that is all.” She lied.

“My plans?” He rearranged himself so he could look up at her from between her wings. “Well, I need to repay all the kindness I’ve been shown first. Fluttershy saved my life, what can I do to repay her? I don’t know. That’s why I’ve kinda just been wandering around. Of course there’s also other ponies I want to show my appreciation for, that I’m not quite sure what to do about.” He looked at her thoughtfully. “I’ll figure something out.” He ended with a smile, before burying himself in her neck.

Luna clenched her jaw. He would not be able to go with her. He would stay in Ponyville until he felt like his debt was paid. She took a deep breath.

It would be fine. She would ask him to come with her when he was ready. She could wait. She had all of eternity.

***

Hours after Luna was done beating him in chess, Jax was walking behind her down the crystal halls of the castle.

“Can we discuss this, Luna?” Jax tried again, trying to match her pace.

He and Luna got along well most of the time, but sometimes the wrong words are uttered.

“I am not Nightmare Moon! I am not!” She shouted back, increasing her speed to a fast walk, which for Jax was a slow run. They were walking past guards, maids and butlers like they weren’t there.

“Of course not, and I didn’t say you were! I just said it was a cool villain name. And it is! A mare of the night that controls the moon. Nightmare Moon. It’s a good pun.”

He had to admit he wasn’t being very nice. Truthful, but not nice. It was clear that Luna was extremely affected by everything Nightmare Moon related, yet he didn’t even apologize.

She didn’t even answer him. So he just walked/ran behind her.

Luna must have decided that she needed a walk through town, because that was where they went. Past houses that were actually stores, and stalls that had their wares on view. It would seem that Rarity had successfully worked her magic, because a large part of the ponies they met greeted them cheerfully, fear completely gone.

Of course there were still ponies that gave them a wide berth, especially him, but all in all, the town seemed to have calmed down.

Luna looked over at Carousel Boutique, maybe having the same thought, or maybe considering going in for some delicious tea. She moved on with an annoyed look. Jax liked to imagine she was thinking about Rarity’s overdramatic reaction to hearing him and Luna, for once, weren’t on talking terms.

She moved past Sugarcube Corner as well, probably not in the mood for Pinkie. They ventured on towards Whitetail Woods.

Jax didn’t really mind where she went. He enjoyed the warm sun on his skin, the smiling ponies that weren’t afraid of them, the sounds of the town.

A vendor yelled out about the low prices of quality berries, while another bragged about his party supplies. There really wasn’t any rhyme or reason to where the vendors were placed, as far as he could tell. He liked it nonetheless.

Of course he didn’t have any money to pay for anything, so he just enjoyed the sight of bundles of flowers, and the smell of fresh fruit. Luna normally paid for their stuff, given his circumstances, but he doubted she was in the mood at the moment. Still, he enjoyed the peaceful atmosphere.

He let his mind wander back to his old life. Anything needed could be found on the internet, whether it was a top-notch blending machine, or the dirtiest of porn... He missed the internet.

He couldn’t help but think of his old friends. His new friends were good, great even, but sometimes his mind would return to his first friends. His heart would ache when it happened, but the feeling was numbed down, healed over by wonderful ponies, but still there. Always there.

Max and Lizza. He missed them. He hoped that they were okay, that they had moved on, and maybe even ended up together. One could always hope. They deserved to be happy.

“Heya there, Luna and Jax. How are y’all doing this fine evenin’?” Applejack said from behind her stall.

“Hello Applejack. I’m fine, thank you, hope you are also well, have a nice day.” Luna politely answered as she moved past. She obviously wasn’t in the mood to talk with anybody. Jax gave Applejack an apologetic smile, but kept moving behind Luna. He saw Applejack raise her eyebrows at them before giving a small smile and focusing on work again.

They entered the woods, and Jax took in the new sounds. Birds singing a pleasant melody, the wind rustling the leaves on trees, their own steps on the dirt road.

There was something calming about walking through woods. The air smelled of grass, the view of the blue sky and warm sun through green leaves was amazing… he wondered what Luna thought about it.

“I’ve always liked walking through the forest. It’s nice.” He told her. No answer. She must have been angrier than he thought. Maybe he went too far? It wasn’t a big deal to him, just another pony pun, but to her, Nightmare Moon represented her biggest failure. Maybe that was the problem? Even an innocent comment about how good of a pun the name was, hurt her.

He would have to do something about that. Not apologize, that wouldn’t help her.

They walked around in the peaceful forest for some time, while Jax thought about what to say to her when she finally decided to stop the silent treatment.

He almost walked into her, so lost in thought had he been. She was looking back at him, sadness clearly reflected in her eyes, a frown on her face.

“I… may have overreacted a bit.” She admitted, turning all the way around to face him. “I apologize.”

He bend down a bit to be approximately in eye-height, and put a hand on her withers.

“Indeed you did.” He told her with a smile. She tried to look away, but he guided her head back with a hand, becoming serious. “Luna, let me tell you something that is going to sound a bit mean…” He took a calming breath. He didn’t want to see her sad, but… “Ponies think that you were Nightmare Moon. And they aren’t going to forget about it, especially after Twilight released her book.” Luna closed her eyes, but not before he caught the sadness in her cyan eyes. “I think the one who will have the hardest time forgetting about Nightmare Moon though… is you. You never did forgive yourself did you? That’s why it hurts every time you hear that name.”

With her eyes still closed, she took a shaky breath. He could tell she was on the verge of crying. He looked around, but luckily they were alone.

“Thou art correct.” She said before going back to modern English. “I never did. Not even after I talked with my sister. How could I? An apology does not make up for all the pain I caused, for the disaster I would have wrought if Celestia did not have the strength to banish me.” The tears finally broke through, making a path of wet fur. Her voice sounded so small and frail. “How can I forgive myself for giving in? I do not deserve… I feel so guilty, Jax. Every time I have a minute to think, I hear the song Celestia sang to me upon my return, and the guilt just gnaws at me. Every time I hear the words ‘Nightmare Moon’, I remember what I did. How I failed. I am the worst princess to ever sit on a throne.” She ended with a sob, her entire posture telling him how defeated she felt.

He gently pulled her into a hug and started stroking her mane. She didn’t resist, but she didn’t put neither her hooves nor her wings around him.

“Where I’m from, we have a saying. ‘I’m only human.’ It means that nobody is perfect, and everybody makes mistakes. Even pony princesses. You need to forgive yourself, Luna. Nobody can do it for you.”

“It is not that easy!” She broke the embrace and gave him a fierce, yet weirdly begging look. “If it was I would have done so long ago. Most ponies see me as a monster, and some days I am afraid… that I will become Nightmare Moon once again and prove them right. That the Limelight will find me, and I will not have the will to fight it, and everything will repeat itself.” Her voice almost broke. Her tears were falling faster now, as her confessions came out. “I do not want that to happen, yet the guilt and fear keep returning… and I do not know how to stop it… Except being in your presence.” This time she pulled him into a tight super-hug, with hooves and wings embracing him.

He started stroking her again. It felt nice to know that he was helping her just by being there, but he held no illusions that he could be with her 24/7 as he had the last two weeks.

He took a deep breath. How could he get her to forgive herself? …Maybe he should start somewhere else.

“They see you as a monster because they don’t know what really happened. We will make them see. Tell me, Luna… have you ever tried writing a book?”

Author's Note

I don't think I've ran into more walls while writing a chapter than in this one. Still, I managed to get over them somehow XD You've made it this far, might as well tell me what you think ;)
if you need a short fic: Common Sky

Chapter 30

They made their way out of the Slow Healing’s clinic. Luna did not feel very happy.

“A whole five minutes with you in another room, the door closed and everything. I dunno how those silly exercises of hers work so well, but that is some good progress.” Jax said from beside her. Of course she was happy that he was getting over the psychological damage… she just wanted more time with him.

“Yes. Indeed.” She tried to sound happy, or at least not unhappy. Apparently it didn’t work.

“Something wrong, Luna?” He sounded concerned, which warmed her heart enough for her to give him a small genuine smile.

“’Tis nothing, my dear Jax.” She felt better after calling him her dear. “Let us just go.” She started walking towards the castle.

“Alright, my dear Luna.” He said teasingly as he followed. Her bad mood evaporated instantly. “Let’s go start your bestselling, award winning, based on a true story, novel.”

“Right. I still do not fully understand the point.” She answered.

“It’s simple, Luna. Step one, we write the events leading up to, during, and after your time as Nightmare Moon, with enough historical accuracy that historians will be interested because of the lack of data from then, but enough personal elements that the common pony will take up the book as well and become saddened by your tragic story. In step two we have Twilight, a known author, give a statement to some newspaper about how she’s looking forward to reading it. This will interest her fan base, while spreading the word of your book. Furthermore, we proclaim that all income from it will go to some charity. Step three, we publish it. We’ll probably get some help from Twilight for this, she knows about the industry and all that. Everybody will be interested in your book by this point. Step four, relax and watch as more and more ponies see you as the best princess ever. BAM, problem solved.” Jax enthusiastically explained.

“I uhm… I do not think it will be that easy.”

“Of course not. Writing a book is hard, I think. We’ll take care of all the details as they come up, so don’t worry.” Luna had a feeling that Jax was far too easygoing about the whole thing, but she could not gather the energy to doubt him. If she had Jax by her side, she could do anything.

***

Jax thought for a moment. “What about… ‘The Lunarium’?” He asked with a smile.

“Jax, we have not even written the introduction yet. Maybe we should wait with the title?” Luna answered patiently. She was lying on the bed, with some parchment, ink and quill in her magical grasp. Jax was lying on his back next to her.

“But it has your name in it. Alright, what about…” He was interrupted by her giggle. He reveled in the sound.

“You have a wonderful way of thinking, dear Jax. Maybe I shall call it ‘The Jaxonomicon’ to commemorate your efforts in helping me with it.” She smiled down at him.

“Nah, that would just confuse ponies.” He answered nonchalantly, but was actually fighting not to laugh. Jaxonomicon. Heh. “What about ‘and the Nightmare was no more’… that’s pretty long though.”

“Yes. Also, the book is ‘no more’ than a thought.” He laughed at that.

“Well what else do you want me to do? It’s not like I can write the book for you.” He said with feigned sadness, even adding a pout at the end.

“Well, it was your idea, I am still unsure what exactly I am going to write.”

“Ohh, I’ll make a list for you then.” He almost reached into her magical grasp before he remembered why that was a very bad idea. He smiled sheepishly at Luna when she yanked the parchment away from his reach.

“Right. No touching magic for me. I’ll just get some from over there.” He went over to the desk to get the parchment and a quill. They would have to share the ink though.

“Alright, let’s-“

He interrupted himself as he looked down at the quill in his hand, then over to the inkwell in Luna’s magical grip. He just had a crazy idea… An idea that might just solve his money problems, without having to rely on Twilight and Luna like an ungrateful leech. He really hated how much he had received from them, and how little he had given back. He looked up at Luna again.

“I need to talk with Twilight. Follow me!” He dropped the items in his hands, ran out of the room, and down the hallway towards the library.

***

Luna hurried after Jax but he had gotten a head start since she had to put down the inkwell on the table and put the lid on again. She saw him round a corner.

“What the hell?” She heard him say. “Are you… vamponies? You gonna take my blood? Well not without a fight you aren’t!” Curious, she slowed down to a walk. “Well, okay, I guess you can’t really help your nature. You can have a bite, but I’m warning you, I probably don’t taste very good. Alright, that was a lie, I probably taste fantastic.”

Rounding the corner, she almost burst into laughter. There he was, extending his arm towards two members of her night guard, who were looking at him like he was a crazy pony.

“Jax! That is not very nice of you. Just because they have bat wings, does not mean they are vamponies. I have already told you that my guards do not drink blood.”

He just looked at her with a smile, telling her that the whole thing was a joke on his part. “Well how was I supposed to know they were from your guard? They don’t even have armor on, and I haven’t seen guards do anything other than stand and look straight.” He looked over to one of Twilight’s guards. “Like that! Thank you, guard.” He gave the guard an appreciative nod, while the guard just kept looking straight. Sometimes he acted really silly, like he was no more than a foal. It brought a smile to her muzzle.

Luna looked at her guards. They were indeed without armor. If they were off-duty, what were they doing here?

“Night Guard and Shadow Wing. What are you doing here?” Beside her, Jax facehooved. If she were to guess, it was probably because of Night Guard’s name.

They both bowed before her. “Princess Luna. We were worried by all the rumors going around, so we came to check on you.” It warmed her heart to hear those words, and to see their worried glances. She gave them a smile.

“Do not worry, my little ponies. I am fine, and the rumors are just that. Rumors.” Her guards looked relieved and worried at the same time. Finally Night Guard gave a stiff salute, before he spoke up again.

“Princess, we fear that these rumors are hurting your frail image a bit too much, and have come to ask you to return to Canterlot with us.” He kept looking straight ahead, waiting for her reply.

She shared a worried look with Jax. She had thought the rumors would calm down with time and some work on Rarity’s part, not spread all the way to Canterlot. If her own guards were concerned for her image, things must be worse than she thought.

“How is my sister?” She asked him.

“According to the day guard, worried. She’s trying to calm down the public, but you know how ponies are when afraid. Canterlot isn’t the same as Ponyville, your highness.” His voice was almost emotionless, but she could feel his anger right under the surface.

Shadow Wing spoke up. “Your highness, I heard that somepony might be blowing on the embers, trying to start a fire. We’ve discussed it in the night guard, and we think it would be best that you and…” He looked at Jax for a bit, trying to remember something before his eyes lit up. “… Jax spend some time apart. I think Celestia sent the same journalist as last time to interview the two of you, but we fear that it might not be enough. Please, we don’t want you to undo all the things you’ve worked so hard to achieve.”

The concern in his voice was touching, but their combined words sapped all her strength from her. Her legs gave in under her before she knew what happened. Her guards both took a step forward, but none of them were as quick as Jax. He caught her, and carefully laid her down, sitting on the ground beside her. She looked down, avoiding their concerned looks. It was not fair. She had been happy. For a while, she had forgotten all about responsibilities and fear. She had known that she would have to leave him anyway, but to know that his very presence near her would be cause for this much suspicion and fear was almost too much for her. Was she not allowed friends? Was she not allowed to be happy?

“If it had been Celestia, nopony would have been suspicious. Nopony would be afraid.” She wanted to cry, but her eyes felt unnaturally dry.

He started to stroke her mane, the familiar feeling calming her down instantly. “Maybe. But you’re not Celestia.” He said in a calm tone. “You are the Princess of the Night, the Guardian of Dreams. Be proud of who you are Luna, for you are the most wonderful pony I’ve had the pleasure to befriend. We will get through this, you’ll see. By the time I’m done, no pony will fear you, whether I’m near or not.”

She looked up at his calm eyes. Everything about him radiated a calm certainty. His words loosened the knot of worry inside of her, but did not disperse it entirely.

“How can you be so sure?” She asked him.

“Because, this month and a half I’ve spent with you and the others has been some of the best time in my life. I’m not gonna let some scared ponies ruin that. Not by a long shot.” He said confidently.

Some of his confidence must have leaked into her, because she suddenly felt much bolder. She pulled him closer, so she could nuzzle him on the cheek. When he did not pull away or stop her, she pulled him into a hug, nuzzling his neck instead. She was faintly aware that her guards were looking on with open mouths, but she did not care. All she knew was that everything was going to be alright.

***

Jax’ heart was beating fast. Luna’s nuzzling made him feel so alive, he felt like he could take on the entire world.

He looked at the guards. “She will have to be with me for a day or two more. If you insist on escorting her back, you can probably ask Twilight for a place to stay.”

They just nodded, both looking a bit dumbfounded.

Luna and Jax got up simultaneously, as if they had agreed upon it, but it just came naturally to them after almost a month of being close to each other.

“Wait.” One of them, Shadow Wing or whatever his name was, said. “Why can’t she go now?” He sounded suspicious.

Jax sighed dramatically. “I’m afraid that I got a bit addicted to your princess while she was here. There’s no known cure so-“ Luna lightly punched him on the leg. “What? It’s the truth.” He smiled teasingly at her blush. It was adorably cute, as always.

She sighed and looked at the guard. “I shall be ready in a couple of days.” She simply said.

They left the guards behind and made it to the library, where they met Spike.

“Hey Spike. Know where Twilight’s at? I need her help.” Jax asked.

“Yeah, she’s in her lab, doing some kind of experiment.” He answered nonchalantly, continuing to sort books.

“Thanks Spike, you’re awesome.” He told the small drake, which made Spike surprisingly happy, if his huge smile was anything to go by.

“No problem Jax, I’m here to help.” He answered proudly.

“Actually… can you tell me where her lab is? I don’t believe I’ve been there before.” Spike looked at him in surprise.

“Really? I thought she would conduct an experiment or two on you. Huh.”

“I think she learned her lesson when she set me on fire.” Jax said with a deadpan expression.

“Oh yeeeaah… well, follow me then.”

Spike led them to a large lab. There were vials, machines and of course, wires from said machines leading God knows where. Twilight stood by a table, looking at two light bulbs shining. One of them seemed to be powered by her magic, the other by the turning of a handle. They were both connected to some machines that probably recorded the data.

“Twi, Jax and Luna want to talk with you.” Spike said for them before he left.

They went over to her. She seemed very focused on her project. “I’ll be just a moment.” She told them. She kept turning the handle and using her magic to presumably power one of the light bulbs, until a beep was heard from a machine and a large piece of paper was printed out.

They had paper yet they insisted on using parchment to write with. It was weird.

She went over and read the print. “Interesting…” she said, looking like she had completely forgotten them

“Twilight?” Luna asked.

“Oh. Sorry about that.” She looked a bit sheepish. “I’m researching whether the light from a magic-powered light bulb is the same as one powered by electricity. We don’t want light pollution to happen here as well.” She smiled at them.

He noticed Luna had a huge smile. She went over and gave Twilight a hug, which was returned. It put a smile on Jax as well.

So Twilight had remembered what he told them about light pollution. He wondered if she was researching global warming stuff as well. He wouldn’t put it past her.

“So, are you two going to participate in the running of the leaves?” Twilight asked them.

“Running?” Jax said. “The only running I like are running jokes.” An impish grin found its way to his mouth. “Hey Twilight, remember that time you-“

Twilight put her hooves over her ears almost instantly. “Lalalalalalacan’thearyou!” It would seem every pony had their childish moments.

“Wow. Did not expect that.” He looked at Luna, who looked just as amused as he was.

In all seriousness, maybe it was about time he got in shape again. When he had lived in the Everfree, it kinda happened naturally. Run from those timberwolves or die. Fight those timberwolves or die. Damn he hated those things. The month and a half he had spent among ponies though… a lot of time in bed and on Luna’s back. He had gotten lazy. Yeah, he should get in shape again.

He put his hand on Twilight withers and gave her a calming smile, and she let her hooves fall down to the ground and stopped chanting. “Tell me more about this running of the leaves. I might be interested.”

***

“So even the leaves don’t fall by themselves. What is wrong with the gravity on this planet? I don’t feel any lighter…” Jax was perplexed. Maybe the leaves were extra strong or something… but would fall anyway when a group of ponies ran by. It was weird.

Twilight looked confused. “There’s nothing wrong with gravity. It works just fine. Now, the race is in four days. Remember to sign up.” She looked at them a bit more. “Any particular reason you came to find me?”

“Ah! Yes. Let me explain on the way.”

***

Shadow Wing looked at his partner, Night Guard. It had been a while since Princess Luna had left them, and he had finaly wrapped his head around what had happened. “Did you… see that?”

Night Guard nodded.

“He… And then she… and she looked so happy in the end! He really cares about her…”

Night Guard nodded again.

“Oh hay. Now I feel bad about suspecting him. He caught her, calmed her down instantly, and reassured her enough to smile again… You don’t think… maybe some of the other rumors are true?”

Night Guard shrugged.

“What’s with you all of a sudden? Why the silence?” Shadow inquired.

“Didn’t get enough sleep because of this trip. Don’t like talking when sleepy.”

Maybe they should have waited till nighttime to go. They had managed to get some sleep in in the train, but that was only an hour. He could feel that his body was working a bit in overdrive.

“You did a fine job in front of the Princess though.” He pointed out.

“Always.” He just answered.

Shadow shrugged and looked around. “let’s find out where we can send a letter back to Captain Chipped Armor, and then find out where we can stay.”

Night Guard nodded.

***

“You want to make… pens?” Twilight asked.

Jax nodded. They had made their way to the room in the basement. The one that didn’t let out magic. The one where Twilight had burned him to a crisp. Okay that was unfair, but the memories made him reconsider his plan. Maybe he could remember how a pen functioned without resorting to this?

…

It would probably be fine.

“And you want me to use a spell on you, so that you can use your body’s response against magic to produce a pen for me to reverse engineer?”

He nodded again. “That is correct. Then I need you find a buyer willing to produce and sell them, with us getting a part of the income. We can split it 50/50.”

Twilight and Luna looked at each other with worried looks. Then Twilight giggled. “I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but not only am I a princess, I’m also an author. I don’t need bits.”

Jax could feel the disappointment wash over him. Twilight was good at this kind of stuff, he didn’t know who else could do it. Luna? Hadn’t he troubled her enough though…

Then Twilight continued. “You can have all the income. I’m just happy to improve our writing utensils. It will be much easier to write when the ink is inside, not to mention easier to carry around.” Her happy face gave space to worry. “But are you sure you want to do it this way? I’m certain we can figure it out with enough time…”

“That’s precisely the problem Twilight. I want this as fast as possible. I won’t be mad if you set me on fire again.” He smiled at her to show he was trying to lighten the mood. She frowned at him before she sighed.

“Well, you certainly know how to make me agree. Not only did you lead us down here so no other pony can be hurt if anything goes wrong, you also tempt me with new technology… Fine, but I’m counting on the fact that Luna will help if anything happens.” Luna nodded her agreement to the arrangement.

They set up barriers around themselves, discussing which ones to use. Water was brought in, just in case. It made Jax feel a little more secure. Luna’s presence was doing most of it though. He could do this. He just needed to focus.

While they discussed which barriers would be best, he sat down and closed his eyes, focusing on which kind of pen he wanted. It had to be one of the expensive ones, the one where the tip was shaped like a quill. He had never owned one, but Liza had. Jax had used it a couple of times, even studied it at rare occasions. He knew what parts it had more or less. He imagined each of them, and how they screwed together to make a whole. He remembered how it was to write with it. He tried to remember every detail about it he could.

“Are you ready, Jax?” Twilight asked beside him.

“Wait thirty seconds, then use a spell. Not the pain one, a different one.” He told her. He thought she nodded but he still had his eyes closed.

He concentrated on the pen again. Every detail he could remember.

Twilight cast her spell. It felt tingly for a split second, but then the feeling changed as if to adjust to his focus. It felt… like a pressure was building on his skin, before it flowed out, gathering in the air in front of him. There was small *pop* and when he opened his eyes, the pen was there exactly how he had imagined. For a tenth of a second he felt victorious. Then the pen fell down on the ground, and a small explosion knocked him back.

He felt fine. A bit shocked, but fine otherwise. He touched his face, body, arms. He wasn’t on fire.

He wished he could have told Luna that before she threw the entire barrel of water over him.

He groaned. So he needed to fill in details like what happened when the pen hit something as well.

Chaos magic was tricky.

This would be a long day.

***

King Sombra was close, so close. He was only more or less a week away.

Moving as a shadow was slow progress, but every time he tried to possess an animal in this damned forest, it was quickly killed, leaving him with the choice to force the corpse onwards, or spend precious time trying to possess a new animal. These beasts were harder to possess than ponies, and moving a corpse around cost him more energy than he was willing to use.

So he stayed a shadow, moving at a slow but steady pace. He was so close. At his current strength he would not be able to enter the Crystal Empire. His empire. He could not extract revenge upon the so called princess sitting on his throne. He could not take back his home.

What he could do was extract revenge upon those who had helped her. They lived in Ponyville, or so he had heard while hiding in the shadows. A village with no magical barriers to stop him.

He would make them suffer. He would not touch them, oh no, they would feel no physical pain. The pain they would feel was going to be so much more painful than that. Yes, everypony they loved would start dying, killed by familiar faces no less, and in the confusion and despair he would grow stronger and stronger. When they were at the lowest, he would possess the dragon and convince them to go to the Crystal Empire. Then he could kill them all in one fell swoop.

So close. Almost there.

Author's Note

Over 100.000 words! Fuck yeah! Can you believe it? XD
Anyways, stuff will start to happen again :) I had to force myself to write this chapter, but I hope it turned out all right :)
I recommend Tears of a Foal this week :) it's really good XD

Chapter 31

“So what do we have so far?” Twilight asked, sounding as tired as Jax felt. They had spent the rest of the day on this. Discord had said that he could control the spell his body produced, when he explained chaos magic. He forgot to mention that you had to be very precise.

He looked down at the list they had made. “Remember to specify: What all the parts are made of, what happens when: touched, dropped - which is a completely different thing, - taken apart, what’s in the ink cartridge…“ He looked up at Luna. “Thanks for the shield on that one by the way. Who knew such a small firecracker could be so powerful.”

“No problem. I thought it might be more dangerous than it looked, and the fuse gave me time to react.” She sounded tired as well, but not as much as him and Twilight.

He looked back at the list. “…Thrown up into the air… I still think it was unnecessary to write this down, just because I threw it once doesn’t mean I’ll do it again. Lastly, and most important, what happens when it’s levitated.”

He looked at Twilight with tired eyes. “This is a lot to focus on.”

“It’s not so bad. It’s good training for you. I already have some data, I just need to make sure I understand the mechanism that allows the ink to go through the tip only when you write. So one more time?”

“Can we take a small break first? I need some air.” He asked, and Twilight nodded. She looked like she could use a break as well.

As he opened the double doors, he got a huge shock. “Having fun?” Discord sprang into his face with a huge smile. Jax almost punched him before he recognized the chaos being.

“Oh God Discord. How long have you been there?”

“Not too long. I didn’t want to disturb you, but I had a feeling you would come out soon. So?”

“So? Oh, uhm… I think fun might be the wrong word for it.”

Discord gave him a knowing look. “And that’s the problem.”

“It is?” Twilight asked from behind him. Jax was confused as well.

“Well, sort of.” He made some circular motions with his claw. “It’s more that… you’re trying to control it. Chaos magic doesn’t like to be controlled. Guided, yes. Never controlled.” He sounded excited to explain it. “Think of yourself as a guide to a group of rowdy tourists. If you’re a strict guide that forces the tourist to follow every rule you set, the tourists will try to rebel in ways you didn’t even think of. However, a happy and cheerful guide will guide their group without mentioning a single rule, yet the group will follow without causing any problems.” He looked thoughtful for a second. “I think that’s how Pinkie does it, actually.”

“Pinkie uses chaos magic?” Twilight asked while Jax said: “Chaos magic has a personality?”

“Why yes, of course.” He smiled at both of them. When they just kept looking at him he explained. “I don’t know where she got the chaos magic from though, it certainly wasn’t from me since I was encased in stone at the time. Well, a personality the same way the elements of harmony have a sense of humor. Banishing the Princess of the Night to the moon, encasing the lord of chaos in stone, turning Sombra into a shadow… They’re not alive, yet they understood what they had to do to make the punishment as ironic as possible.” His face lit up. “Understand! That’s the word, chaos magic understands that the guide is being a, as Pinkie would put it, meaney pants.” He looked thoughtful for another second. “Of course it doesn’t care if your being a meaney pants to others. It doesn’t care whether it’s being used to summon flowers or turn ponies into toasters. As long as the guide is fun.” He looked at Jax, a little worried. “Does that make any sense at all? I’m not used to explaining, and chaos magic is a quite difficult topic, but Fluttershy said to help you when you needed it. The poor dear is worried about you.”

He lifted his hand to make a ‘sort of’ motion. He understood the concept, but it sounded hard. “If it doesn’t care what it’s being used for, then why so many explosions?” He inquired.

Discord smiled. “You made a loop.” He said as if Jax was going understand that.

“A loop?”

Discord looked thoughtful. “A circle?” He tried again.

“So which is it?”

“Why not both?” Discord responded with a shrug. “For some reason you started associating chaos magic with explosions, and the more explosions you see, the more you associate it. A loop. Or circle. Possibly both.”

“Ah… Fuck.” This was more difficult than he thought it would be. Chaos magic was complicated. He looked down at the list they had spent hours making. He ripped it apart to the sound of Twilight’s gasp.

Discord smiled at him. “That’s the spirit!” He then disappeared with a snap of his claw.

***

Applejack looked out across Sweet Apple Acres. She had kept postponing it, but now that fall was coming, she could finally make some plans to get to know Jax a little more. Of course she met him now and again when they all met up or when he came by her stall, but she never really had a conversation with him.

She would have to change that. She told herself she was going to get to know him, and she had meant it. After the running of the leaves she would have enough time.

***

Fluttershy was startled by the sudden appearance of her friend. “Oh, Discord. You know I prefer it when you teleport to the outside and just knock.”

“My apologies, dear Fluttershy.” Discord disappeared with a snap, and a second after there was a knock on the door. Fluttershy giggled at her friends antics. She went over and opened the door. “Oh, Discord, what a surprise. Do come in.”

“Thank you dear.” He walked in and made himself comfortable on the couch.

“Tea?” She asked him.

“Oh, Fluttershy, you know I can’t say no to your delicious tea.”

She made the tea and brought it into her living room. “It’s always nice to have you over Discord, even if it is unexpected.”

Discord gave her a big smile. “And I enjoy coming over, but this time I actually have a reason.” He puffed out his chest proudly. “I helped Jax today.”

She clapped her hooves together. “Oh Discord, that’s wonderful. What did you help him with?”

“Oh, he was having trouble with chaos magic, and since it’s, you know, my specialty, I thought I would give him a helping claw. I’m not sure how much it did, but he seemed to get the gist of it. Chaos magic is hard to understand you know. Even I don’t understand it entirely.”

She smiled at her friend. He had come so far since she promised not to use her element on him and became his friend. “Oh, I’m sure you did wonderfully Discord. I’ll go get the cookies, then you can tell me how it felt to help another pony.”

“It felt… surprisingly good, actually.”

***

“I think that’s enough for today.” Twilight said from beside Jax.

He nodded his agreement. He had tried to do as Discord said, but it was hard do in practice. Kind of vague, actually. He wasn’t sure what to do to ‘be a good guide’, and apparently he was still associating chaos magic with explosions, cause more often than not… Well, good thing Luna and Twilight were good to make barriers right in front of him. He felt like they all got to train their reflexes, if nothing else.

“Want to go get dinner together? We can go ask Pinkie if she can help you.” Twilight asked.

“Sweets for dinner? I’m in.” He laughed. He looked at Luna, who just nodded. Was it just him, or had she not spoken as much as usual?

“No, that’s not what I meant, we aren’t going to eat at Sugarcube Corner. I meant we could have her for dinner.” Twilight clarified.

“Wow Twilight, I didn’t know you were a cannibal. And your own friend no less. Well, I am in the mood for some meat…”

Twilight turned a little green, and looked like she could be very sick.

“Too far?” He asked, worried at her expression. She nodded with a hoof over her mouth.

“Sorry.” He grimaced.

She sat down so she could point a hoof in his direction. He took it as a ‘wait a moment’. She took some deep breaths that seemed to calm her down. “Please, don’t… don’t say stuff like that again.”

“Sure, I’ll be careful.” He said carefully. He looked over at Luna, but she seemed fine. “Let’s invite Spike as well. I’ve been meaning to spend some time with him.”

“Oh, I think he’ll like that."

***

“So, Pinkie… How do you do it?” Jax asked rather straightforward.

He, Luna, Pinkie, Twilight and Spike were gathered in the pizzeria he and Luna normally went to, ‘The Great Circle’. He was rather smitten with their pizzas by this point. They really did taste great.

“Do what?” She asked innocently, taking a giant bite of her ‘everything in one’ pizza. How she was able to eat that was… well, Pinkie was pretty weird so it didn’t surprise him.

“Control your powers.”

She looked at him with a big smile. “I have powers?” Suddenly her eyes lit up. “Oh, you mean my power to make everypony smile!”

“Well… Kinda?” Close enough?

“Well, I make sure to always smile, that seems to cheer most up. If it’s something that can’t be fixed with a smile, I try to find out if I can somehow help, like paint their house, or tell them a joke.” Seemed perfectly reasonable.

“What if you tell them a joke and it backfires? Like just before we came to get you, Twilight said that we should have you for dinner-“

“-Uhh, wonder how I would taste.” She said as if she already knew where he was going with it.

“Yes, well Twilight looked like she was ready to puke all over the floor. What then?”

Pinkie pointed at him “You try again! Or you apologize. Or you distract them long enough to put on a funny costume!” She smiled that big happy smile of hers. Pinkie really was amazing. She just wanted to see her friends happy.

“And what do you do when your chaos magic makes things explode?” Better get back on track.

“You find cover of course, silly.” She giggled. Ah well, it was solid advice if not what he expected.

He looked over at Twilight but she just shrugged. Luna was looking somewhere far off, giving no indication that she had heard the conversation. Something was definitely up with Luna, but what?

“So, Spike… How’s it goin’?” He asked the young dragon.

“Ohh… you know, I spend a lot of time in the library, helping Rarity, enjoying the sun on my scales. Not much. How about you? I hear your doing well with the psychologist sessions.”

He noticed that Luna’s ears fell at that.

“Yeah, I am. Her methods are silly, but they work. In a couple of days I’ll be able stroll down the street without having to drag Luna with me.” He smiled at Spike, but kept an eye on Luna. She was looking down at the table.

She looked sad. Was she sad that he was getting better? Well… it wouldn’t surprise him. They did have a lot of fun together, in between the awkward moments. He would have to remember to tell her that they could still hang out. She was his best friend after all.

…

Of course there was the situation with the rumors… So maybe it wouldn’t be so easy. Hmm.

He took a bite of his pizza. He would have to think of something. He had a promise to keep after all.

***

Jax looked through another book. He had tried to think of some way to defuse the situation. Celestia had sent Raven Writingdesk, if the night guard was to be believed, and why wouldn’t he be? Anyway, that was a good step - fight ignorance with information. But what else? Luna was going to go back to Canterlot without him. Would that calm them down? Which rumor were they afraid of anyway? The one where he and Luna was assembling The Equestrian Villian Team, or some other stupid, villain themed rumor?

He couldn’t think of anything, so now he was looking through books for a pattern to give to Rarity, so she could sew it on his clothes. There weren’t many books with pictures, but the ones that were didn’t really speak to him.

Luna was sitting beside him, reading about Equestrian history. “You are right. There is almost no information about my time… odd.”

“Yeah, especially since there are two alicorns still alive from back then. You weren’t here, but Celestia could still have done something. Well, you are going to change that with your book.” He smiled at her. It was good that she was talking again. Maybe it was because they were alone in the library.

She nodded and went back to reading, a bit uncertainly.

He wanted to hug her until all her uncertainty evaporated.

He thought back to earlier in the day, when he had told her that everything was going to be okay. She had looked so certain after that, believing his words completely. He couldn’t help but smile at the memory of her nuzzling him. It had felt so good.

He closed his eyes and enjoyed the warm, fuzzy feeling the memory brought fourth.

***

Shadow Wing looked over at Night Guard. “Should we tell her about the Winter Moon Celebration we’ve been preparing? She’s gonna find out sooner or later anyway.”

Night Guard nodded. “On the way back. Cheer her up. Maybe.” He was still sleepy, apparently. They were finally making their way to Princess Twilight’s barracks, where they had gotten a room to share.

“I know what you mean. She didn’t look very happy at the thought of leaving.” Shadow Wing sighed. “I wish these rumors would go buck themselves.”

Night Guard snorted.

“Why can’t we find the one who keeps spreading them every time Celestia manages to calm ponies down?” Shadow Wing was a bit angry. His princess was being mocked and he couldn’t do anything about it.

“More than one. Hard to find. Rumors not illegal.”

This time Shadow Wing snorted. “Maybe they should be…” he said under his breath.

At that moment Princess Twilight Sparkle rounded the corner. They both bowed.

“Ah, just the ponies I was looking for. Did you conclude your business?” She asked with a kind smile. She reminded Shadow Wing of Princess Celestia in that moment.

“No, princess. We will be staying at your barrack until Princess Luna is ready to leave for Canterlot with us. Shouldn’t be more than a couple of days.” Shadow Wing answered.

“You’re going to leave with Luna in a couple of days? I thought she would be staying longer…” Princess Twilight looked sad. Everypony was sad that Princess Luna was leaving. It was a good thing, it meant that she had been welcome here, even made friends. He felt pride fill his chest, before guilt took over.

“Yes Princess. We are trying to quell all the rumors regarding her and the human. The amount saying that they are trying to take over Equestria is disturbing…” Shadow explained.

“… I see. Well, I’ll leave you to it then.”

“I’m sorry Princess, but could we have a bit of your time? We are planning something called ‘The Winter Moon Celebration’ for Princess Luna, and Princess Celestia said you were good with schedules and such. Would you be interested in joining us in our efforts?” He asked hopefully. There was a lot to be done if the celebration was to become as big as they hoped. They had the time and resources to make it happen, they just needed the rest.

Princess Twilight gave them an eager smile. “Of course I’ll help! If it’s a party, we’ll have to include Pinkie though, she is the expert on the subject.”

Shadow Wing and Night Guard smiled at each other.

***

That night, like many before, Jax was hugging Luna on the big bed they still shared. Having her in his grasp still felt natural, even if it wasn’t needed anymore. It calmed him down.

“So… you’ve been quiet today, Luna. Something wrong?” He asked softly.

For a long time there was silence, before a soft whisper emerged, barely audible, and Jax only heard it because his ear was close to her muzzle.

“I do not want to be alone again.”

He strengthened his hold on her, but didn’t know what to say. She spoke again, a little louder.

“I have been on the moon for a thousand years, my only companion a crazed piece of magic, reminding me of all my mistakes. I want… I do not want… I-I-“ Her voice started shaking as it was filled with emotion.

“Shhh… shh, it’s okay.” He started stroking her mane. “I... It’ll be alright. I may not be able to be with you for a while, but if it makes you feel better, you’ll be in my thoughts.”

The Princess of the Night was silent for a while, letting him stroke her. “It is… It is not the same. That is like saying my time on the moon was less lonely because Celestia was thinking about me. It… It does not work like that, my dear Jax.”

“Alright.” He kept stroking her, a little lost to what he could say. She sounded so vulnerable, he had to think carefully of his next words, lest he upset her. “… At least you didn’t get set on fire?” He truly had a way with words. Stupid mouth.

To his surprise, he felt her shake against him in a silent laugh. “Ohh Jax… I am going to miss you and your jests.” She pulled him a bit closer with her hooves. Jax was careful to leave his lower half out of her reach.

“And I’m going to miss your beautiful mane.” He teased her lovingly. “but don’t worry, I told you I was going to do something about it, and I will.” It was just a question of what. He had no idea yet.

“Mmm…” She almost purred with a small smile. “Thank thee… We art sincerely grateful, that thou art here.” She started stroking his head with a hoof. He was a bit hesitant, but it actually felt quite nice. Her hooves weren’t as hard as he had thought.

He smiled back. “Mmm, it’s been a while since I heard you speak like that.”

“Well, the habit is almost gone by now. I think it is because of all the time we spent together just talking.” She admitted. “Soon, I might even start to contract the words.” She pulled back a bit and looked at him thoughtfully. “I’m a lucky mare. I’ll buy you a cake. You’ll love it.” She put extra emphasis on the contracted word, as if tasting them before moving on. She wrinkled her muzzle, as if it tasted badly. It was cute and he couldn’t help but laugh.

“I hope you mean that, I’m expecting cake now.”

“Verily. We shall visit Sugercube Corner in the morrow.” She went back to her old way of speaking.

“You know, I wouldn’t mind if you spoke like that all the time. It sounds cool.” He admitted.

Before he could make out her expression, she learned in to nuzzle him on the cheek. He closed his eyes and enjoyed the feeling of her soft fur on his skin.

“You are sweet, my dear Jax. So very sweet.” She whispered as he slowly drifted away into sleep.

Author's Note

I think that next chapter... is going to be where Luna leaves, and Jax is going fumble around, trying to cope XD We shall see... I'm sure there are some of you who are thinking 'just get together already!' Well... They are going to, eventually. Do not worry, my fans, it will happen XD Hang in there! Don't give up! Keep reading XD

Chapter 32

He missed shoes. He meant to get them made, but it just drifted away from his mind. It’s like there was nothing to do, yet everyday was filled with activities.

Going around barefoot wasn’t as bad as all that, especially inside the castle where the surface was clean and even. Grass was also quite pleasant to walk on. It was the dusty roads of Ponyville that he didn’t like. It wasn’t as bad as one would think, but sometimes a stone found his uncovered foot at he would wince in pain. Luna had offered her back a couple of times, but he refused to ride her anymore, not when it wasn’t necessary.

They were making their way over to Sugarcube Corner to buy his cake. Luna had been serious, she was going to buy him a cake. A gesture that was very much appreciated, but made him realize how unhealthy he had been eating recently. Fish, vegetarian pizza, and cake had been on his menu a lot lately. He would have to get in form again… just not right now. Now there would be cake!

“Hey Jaxie and Luna!” Pinkie said from behind the counter.

“Greetings, Pinkie.” “Hey Pinks.” They greeted her.

“We’re here to get cake!” Jax continued.

Strangely enough, her smile fell a bit at that. “Right now?”

Jax and Luna exchanged confused glances. “Yeah…? When else?” Jax finally answered.

“Oh… uhm…” Pinkie thought for a bit. “We’re out of… flour. Can’t make cake without flour!” She smiled brightly at them.

“Oh…kay?” Jax and Luna looked at each other again.

“Yep. Alright, come back in three hours, and I’ll have your cake ready for you. See you then!” She shoved them out of the door and closed it behind them.

“How does she know which cake I want?” He asked Luna.

“They must have had a busy morning to already be out of flour… a very busy morning indeed.” She answered.

“Yeah, the whole thing was suspicious.”

They looked at each other. “Party?” Jax asked.

“Party.” Luna confirmed. “But for you… or me?”

“Who cares? Pinkie makes awesome parties, and I’m excited to be a part of it.” He told her with a smile. “Now, we have some time until the psychology session… what do you want to do until then?”

“I feel like today… is a good day for flying. Want to join me?” She opened her wings and turned so he could easily get on.

Flying was an option. How cool was that? The only downside was that he couldn’t fly by himself, but had to cling to Luna. Still, it was a very special feeling, flying without being in a giant metal machine. It was like a mix of fear, adrenaline, admiration and trust. They hadn’t flown that much together, but he still trusted that she didn’t do anything that would cause him distress.

“I would be honored.” He told her.

They ascended high above Ponyville.

***

They exited Slow Healing’s clinic, neither of them saying a word and for a while, they just stood there.

“So…” Jax finally broke the silence. “That was the last session. She said I’m completely self-reliant now.” He thought he would be happier at the news. Now it just meant that Luna had to leave him.

“Yes… I heard.” The sadness in Luna’s low voice was painfully obvious.

They stood there for a while more. Eventually they had to move to let a pony through, so they started walking in a random direction, both deep in thought.

How could he rebuild Luna’s image? The book was a good idea, but that would take time. He needed something fast. When was Raven Writingdesk coming? Shouldn’t it be today? That was also good, but would it work well enough? He needed to be absolutely certain that he could be with Luna without ponies fearing for… whatever it was they were afraid of. Nightmare Moon and general villain stuff. Maybe he should send Rarity to every city in Equestria? That would probably work.

He smiled at the thought. Rarity going from town to town, doing her best to counter rumors. He couldn’t ask her that though, that would just be silly.

If he could somehow save the world… That would surely convince most ponies that he was a nice guy, and was in no way trying to corrupt Luna or take over Equestria. As far as he understood, Equestria was in danger regularily, so his chance should… come pretty soon. He was pretty sure nothing had happened since he got here. But what would he do anyway?

They were making their way over to Sugarcube Corner. It was almost time to meet up with Pinkie and see what she was up to.

Luna passed the shop as if she couldn’t see where she was walking. “Luna?” He drew her attention. She shook her head a bit before looking around.

“I apologize, dear Jax. Lost in thought.” She gave him a strained smile.

They went into Sugarcube Corner together. Pinkie was waiting for them.

“There you are! Let’s go… get your cake!” She bounced out of the store in her typical bouncy fashion, and they followed.

***

They were making their way out of Ponyville, towards Sweet Apple Acres. Jax expected them to make their way over to the barn, where his last party had been, but was surprised when Pinkie bounced down a less used dirt road. It looked like it went to the eastern field, the one closest to the Everfree Forest. Curious.

Pinkie was humming a gleeful tune while they walked. It was clear that she was excited, and it lifted his spirits a little.

They finally made it to something that looked like a small cottage on a small hill at the end of the apple orchard. The door and two windows were facing north towards Canterlot, the east side was occupied by the Everfree, to the west were rows upon rows of apple trees. It stood like a small bastion between order and chaos. Jax liked it immediately.

When they got closer he also noticed that it looked like it had been recently fixed. The straw roof, or whatever it was, looked like it had been recently… strewn? Assembled? Whatever. Other than that, the window panels and the glass looked new as well.

Pinkie stopped and bounced beside the door, looking at him in excitement. So it was for him then. He braced himself and opened the door.

“Surprise!” Jax was anything but surprised, but he decided to put his acting abilities to good use.

“A surprise party? For me?” He put a hand on his heart like he hadn’t seen this coming from hours away. “Why, I never saw this coming!”

“Yeah, yeah, put down the hand big guy. We all know how you look when you’re surprised, and it’s not like that.” Rainbow smiled at him. So maybe he wasn’t the best actor.

All the elements, Spike, and Beating Heart were gathered in the small cottage. It was a bit crowded.

He smiled sheepishly at them and went inside. There was a nice, thick carpet over the entire floor, which was a welcome change of surface for his poor feet. The door led directly into the living room/kitchen, with the left window he had seen from the outside lighting up the room along with another that was on the east wall, giving a gorgeous view of the chaotic forest. Directly to his right was a wall with a door leading into what he presumed would be the bedroom.

The living room was furnished with a sofa and a table with chairs. The table held all sorts of food, and, lo and behold, a giant chocolate/strawberry cake. It looked delicious. Something else that drew his attention was a small pile of presents beside the sofa, but he went on without commenting on it. Other than that, there was an empty bookcase on the edge of the kitchen.

The kitchen had all the stuff you would expect, like a fridge and freezer, oven, a knife holder and so on. The entire east wall was occupied by a counter where you could prepare the food.

Jax curiously went through the door to his right, and saw that he had been right. It was bedroom with a giant bed under a window overlooking the orchard, and a nightstand. There was a window on his right as well, the other window he had seen from outside, and on his left was another door, which he went through to find himself in a bathroom. Toilet, shower, bathtub, towels, and everything you would expect to find in a bathroom. There was a window on the south wall, overlooking the area in between the forest and orchard.

He went back to the living room where the ponies looked at him expectedly, kind of like Pinkie had a moment ago.

“So partner… what do ya think?” Applejack asked him with some pride.

“It’s a nice place, that’s for sure.” He said, unsure of what they wanted from him. “Cozy, with lots of light. The view is great as well. If you’re tired of looking out on the Everfree Forest, you can turn around and look out over the orchard.” He ended in a grin. They seemed pleased by his response.

“Good, because-“ Twilight started but was interrupted by Pinkie and Rainbow.

“This is your home now!” “You get to live here now!”

He looked from one pony to the other, before a smile took over his face. “Really?!”

“Yes.” Twilight gave the two ponies an annoyed look. “I told Applejack about how you wanted your own place, and she told me that this cottage has been vacant for some time because of the proximity to the Everfree Forest. I was fairly certain that you wouldn’t mind, so she and the other Apples renovated it.” She hesitated a bit. “You don’t mind right?”

“Of course not! This is awesome! Aw man, Twilight, you work fast.” He shuffled his way over and gave both Twilight and Applejack a hug. This was seriously cool. He had his own place now.

“That’s okay partner, Ah needed to get this place rented out soon anyway. Your still going to pay rent, for water and heat and what not, but Ah promise to be fair about it… neighbor.”

He chuckled a bit at that. “That’s okay, I can live with that… as soon as I get some money. Bits. Whatever, I’ll gladly pay for this awesome place.”

“Anyway, renovating this place and renting it out to you was my gift to you. Twilight was the one who paid for all the furniture and so on, and the rent for the first month.” Applejack told him.

Twilight smiled at him. “Yep, the biggest challenge was to find a bed big enough for you. I had to export it from Canterlot. It’s called ‘the Alicorn’s Dream’, it should be pretty comfortable.”

“I’m sure it is Twilight. Thank you for going through the trouble… why am I getting gifts though?”

“It’s your housewarming gifts, silly! Here, I told you I would make you a cake.” Pinkie told him, showing him the mouthwatering cake.

“And I believed you.” He laughed.

“Oh… uhm, I prepared the food.” Fluttershy told him. “I borrowed a cooking book for omnivores and made some dishes from that. Oh, uhm… Everypony should stay away from the dishes on the left side of the table. Unless of course, you… but I don’t think you want to. I mean, ponies can eat a little meat, but…” Fluttershy kind of just trailed off.

“Alright, thank you Fluttershy and Pinkie.” He went over and gave them hugs. “I’m certain we’re going to have quite the feast today.”

Ponies started bringing over gifts from the pile. Beating Heart made him laugh by giving him a first aid kit, Rainbow Dash made him smile with three books from the Daring Doo series for his empty bookcase. Rarity’s gift almost made him cry of joy. To think that shoes could make him so happy. Yet the best gift he received was from Spike.

He came over with a giftwrapped box, holding it shyly behind his back. “So, I know you and Luna have gotten pretty close, and I heard that she has to leave soon, which is pretty sad. I thought that if you could have a way to communicate with each other, maybe it wouldn’t be so sad? So I got an idea, and I had Twilight help me with something. It’s not tested yet, so I’m not sure if it works but… here.” He gave Jax the gift. Jax quickly unwrapped it, revealing…

“Dragonfire...” He said as he looked into the jar it was contained in. Contained might be the wrong word, since there was no lid on the jar. It was the same green color as Spike’s own fire.

He looked at the jar with reverence. He slowly put it down, and pulled Spike into a heartfelt hug. Luna came over as well and joined them.

“Thank you Spike. This is a great gift.” He told the young dragon. He could feel Spike heating up at the praise.

“Oh, it’s nothing special… just something I came up with…” He tried to deflect the praise but Luna would have nothing of that.

“Nonsense Spike, beside being a very kind and thoughtful gift, it is also an innovative idea.” She told him fondly. Spike squirmed a bit in their grasp, but had a huge smile on his face.

“Theoretically, it should send anything you burn to Luna. You better try it out now.” Twilight told him, giving him a folded piece of parchment. Luna went to the other side of the room, which really wasn’t that far away, but it was something.

He slowly, carefully, put it in the jar, where the dragonfire greedily ate it up, sending it up into the air as ash, only to reappear as parchment in front of Luna. Everyone cheered, except Luna who looked thoughtful. “How do I send it back?” She asked.

“With love.” Beating Heart snickered as Twilight made her way over to show the spell she had made for the purpose.

Jax felt his ears heat up, and saw Luna blush slightly. Many of the gathered ponies grinned innocently. He didn’t know what to say to that. Suddenly he didn’t even know what to do with his hands. They felt awkward just being by his side, but where else would he put them? He looked over to see that Luna was very focused on learning the spell Twilight was teaching her.

“Alright, alright.” He finally caved under the looks he was getting. He didn’t know what they were expecting but he felt like he had to say something. “Thank you for your gifts everyone, they were all very thoughtful.”

“We all know you liked Spike’s the best.” Beating Heart teased. She got a few chuckles out of the gathered ponies.

“Alright, I wasn’t going to say anything but yes, I liked Spike’s the best.” Some more good-natured chuckles, and a prideful smile. “That doesn’t mean I disliked the others though. To be honest, I’m a bit overwhelmed. This was a very nice surprise, and I’m really happy.” He gave them all an honest smile, and they smiled back.

“Well there’s one more gift for you.” Twilight said with a smile and a look to Luna. Luna charged up her spell, and the parchment caught on fire. Unlike before, it disappeared completely, until it was spit out and reassembled by the dragonfire in the jar. Magic was cool.

“Open it.” Twilight said.

When he unfolded it, he couldn’t help but laugh. “If this had actually caught on fire, we would have to start all over with signing stuff, wouldn’t we?” He asked.

“It was a calculated risk.” Twilight said with slight embarrassment.

“Well? What is it darling?” Rarity asked impatiently.

He turned it around so everybody could see. “Proof that I am now a citizen of Equestria.” He told them proudly, with a huge smile.

***

They ate the food, they drank the applejuice, Rainbow tried some of the omnivore dishes, Twilight puked on the floor… good times.

After Luna used some magic to clean up, they tried the cake. The chocolate and strawberry, to nobody’s surprise, but everyone’s delight, mixed well together. As Jax had predicted, it was a delicious cake and he couldn’t get enough. It was so huge, that after everybody had their fill, they had to cut it up into several pieces to fit it in the fridge along with the left-over food and juice. There was enough for a couple of days there.

They tried to dance a little, but the house was just too small, or there was too many of them, so they settled on playing some games instead. They played until late into the night, when Spike couldn’t keep awake anymore and fell asleep. After Twilight took him home, other ponies started to excuse themselves as well, until it was only him and Luna.

She looked very uncertain of herself as he went about cleaning the place. His place. He couldn’t get the smile of his face if he tried.

“Should I… Should I go?” Luna finally asked. That got the smile off his face.

“What? Why? Where?... Why?”

“Well… You don’t need me anymore, and you have your own place now…” She said while looking down on the floor.

“Ohh… Well you are free to do as you want… but…” He fumbled for a reason that wasn’t ‘I want you to stay.’ “With you leaving soon, we don’t know when we can see each other again… These are the last moments we can be together until… who knows.”

Luna was still looking undetermined. “Well if you want me to, I can stay.”

Relief washed over Jax. He knew he had to let her go soon, but her presence still filled him with peace and confidence.

“I do. Now come on. It’s late and that bed looks really inviting.” He was tired. Exhausted really, and that bed did really look like it might be as comfortable, or even more, than the one in the palace. Twilight had really gone all out. It was good to have friends, especially friends like these. They all deserved something in return.

Feeling warm to his core, he prepared for bed with Luna by his side. They had a routine down, but had to adjust some things because the bathroom here was smaller than the other one.

After that they went to bed, and instantly snuggled close together. It was nice, it was warm… it was perfect. Everything had been good since he and Luna had been forced together. Maybe she neutralized his bad luck.

“Jax?” She asked hesitantly.

“Yeah?”

“I…” There was silence for a long time after that, so long in fact that Jax almost fell asleep. “I have something to tell you.” She finally continued. “When we can be together again without everypony suspecting us, I am going to tell you something important, okay?”

“Mmm… verily.” He answered groggily, on the edge of sleep. The last thing he registered was her hooves wrap around him a little tighter.

***

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK

Jax started that morning by falling off the bed. “Huh? Wassat?” He looked around, eyes burning, his entire body telling him to get back into the warm bed.

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK

Luna opened one eye, looking at him expectedly. “Yeah, yeah, going.” He told her. “Oh, this better be important.”

He made his way out and opened the door to find Applejack looking all fresh and ready for the day.

“Howdy there, neighbor! I just dropped by to give ya this here basket of apples.”

“Time ‘s it?” He asked with all the tiredness of a hibernating bear. He looked over and saw that the sun wasn't even over the horizon.

“It’s already six! Well Ah better be going, enjoy the apples!” She told him cheerily, and made her way back into the orchard.

It occurred to him that he should probably thank her, but he just stared at the apples. It was a big basket. Nice gesture. Why did she come so early though?

Suddenly a blueish aura enveloped the basket and levitated it inside. Looking back he saw Luna look at him with a smile. He closed the door.

“Sleep.” He told her and made his way back to the bedroom.

“Actually…” She said and he stopped with a bad feeling what was about to transpire. “Since we are up already, I need to lower the moon, and I am leaving today… I thought we could enjoy as much of the day as we can together.”

Jax looked at her in a bit of a daze, his tired brain trying to understand. “You’re… leaving today?”

She nodded patiently.

“It’s not even six in the morning… we got like five or six hours sleep.”

She nodded again.

For a couple of seconds he just stood there, debating. On one side, sleep. On the other, time with Luna.

He admitted defeat pretty quickly.

“Alright… le’s get some bre- *yawn* - akfast.” Luna smiled, before she went out, most likely to lower the moon. When she returned she went straight over to the fridge. There was lots of food from the day before. Jax had stayed where he was, still trying to wake up.

“I am certain that it is unhealthy eating dinner for breakfast but… with all the pizza we have been eating, I would say it is not so bad.” Luna informed him.

“Ah, it will be fine. I’m getting in form soon anyway. Might as well enjoy this, and I’m not in the mood to go into town to buy some real breakfast.”

“Indeed. Actually I was curious about how this fish stake tastes but I did not want to taste it in front of everypony like Rainbow Dash. Mind if I try a bite?”

Jax waved her off. Of course he didn’t mind. “Just heat it up first. Make some for me too.” He went over to the basket Applejack had brought and took an apple. He had, of course, tried apples from Sweet Apple Acres before, and knew they would be superb. Much better than the standard tasting ones he got in the hospital. What was up with that? Did they buy their apples from a different place or something? That wouldn’t make much sense though…

He took a bite and enjoyed the crunchy feeling and sweet taste, just as there was another knock on the door. He looked over at Luna but she just shrugged and continued frying the fish on a pan.

He opened the door to find not Applejack as he had expected, but a reddish unicorn. He had a pleasant smile on his muzzle, and when Jax leaned a bit to the side, he noticed that his mark was a raven writing something on a desk. Of all the marks he had seen, this may be the weirdest…

“Ah… Raven Writingdesk I presume?” Then again, it fit the name perfectly.

“Yes, and you must be Jax. I apologize for coming so early, I meant to find you yesterday, but you weren’t at the castle and nopony could help me find you. Miss Applejack said that you were up though.”

“Yes, please do come in, Raven. We were just about to have breakfast, if you wish to join us.”

“That would be lovely, I only had a light - Ah, Princess Luna.” He bowed down when he spotted Luna.

Jax looked dissatisfied at his plate where two entire fish stakes rested, then over to Luna’s which she had filled with various fruits and vegetables. Well he couldn’t fault her for not wanting to eat meat in front of a journalist.

He found a plate for Raven, sat down, finished his apple, then filled his plate with a pasta salad that had tasted excellent the day before.

Raven looked a bit curiously at him eating, but didn’t say anything and didn’t look sick. He sat down beside Jax and chose some salads.

The fish stakes were still half cold. He imagined Luna had panicked when she heard Raven was here and had quickly thrown them on his plate. It made him smile. He looked up at her to find she looked a bit guilty. She did relax a bit at his smile though.

After the breakfast, Jax and Luna sat down at the sofa, while Raven moved his chair over. They waited patiently for him to write down some notes with a quill and parchment he had brought with him.

“Sorry.” He gave them another pleasant smile. “As you both probably know, I am a journalist for ‘The Canterlot Informant.’ If you don’t mind, I have some questions for you both. Oh, and this story will most likely be on the front page by tomorrow.”

They both gave their consent.

“Okay, let’s start with you Jax. It is my understanding that you are an omnivore - meaning that you can eat both meat and vegetables, as I saw at breakfast. Why not only eat vegetables?”

Jax almost rolled his eyes. He knew that there were vegetarians and vegans back on Earth, so it was very possible that he could do that, but he had no idea how they got all the needed vitamins and such, and he liked meat too much. So…

“The fact that I’m an omnivore means that I need both to survive. I can live on only one or the other for a while, but I will get sick in the long run. To live a healthy life, I need both. I’m sure some of your readers are worried that I’ll start eating ponies or something stupid like that. They can stop worrying. I have never eaten a sapient being before, and I don’t intend to start now.”

Raven scribbled down more notes. He finally directed his blue eyes back at him. “Alright. Speaking of rumors, there have been a lot going around about you. How do you feel about that?”

Jax shrugged. “It can’t be avoided, I think. I’m new and unknown. I can deal. Ponies here in Ponyville have taken it quite well. I already receive more greetings than avoidance, and I don’t really take it personally if a pony avoids me. It’s not the worst that could happen. What I really have a problem with is that Luna is being dragged down as well. You can say what you want about me, but Luna has been nothing but nice and welcoming, and she does not deserve what is said about her. Ponies should be ashamed, spreading such rumors about their own princess.” Jax could feel Luna move a little closer to him.

Raven took a pause at writing down and looked at him with approval. “I completely agree. You would think that after over a month of nothing happening… but let’s move on. Princess Luna, how do you feel about the rumors?”

“Well…” She shifted a bit, while Raven started writing again. “I cannot say that I am not accustomed to being made out as a villain in various rumors, no matter how much I hoped for everypony to move on. That being said, it always saddens me to hear about them, especially in this context. Jax has done nothing to deserve those rumors. He has followed our rules, and has even become a citizen of Equestria.” This didn’t seem to surprise Raven at all, who just kept writing. “So, in the hopes of remedying some of the misconceptions about me, I have decided to take a page out of Princess Twilight’s book - so to speak. I am going to write a book myself, explaining everything that has happened to me so far, and hopefully calm everypony down.” Good advertisement, Luna. He hadn’t thought about that.

“You are?” This did seem to surprise Raven. “Well I’ll look forward to reading it then.” He quickly bounced back. “Now, a few more questions…”

***

After the interview, they informed Luna’s night guard that she was leaving with them. They said they would take care of the ticket for the train. They then informed all of the bearers, Spike and Beating Heart what time she was leaving. They all agreed to meet at the train station.

He and Luna had a couple of hours until then. They walked through Ponyville (Jax enjoying the feeling of his brand new shoes), went flying, bought a pizza at ‘The Great Circle,’ bought a muffin at Sugarcube Corner, and yes, even held one last shower concert together. The shower wasn’t as big as they were used to, but they managed.

None of them said very much during the time. Jax didn’t know what to say. He was secretly preparing a farewell speech for when she had to depart, but he could only guess what was going on in her mind. He liked to think that she was doing the same. She seemed to get more and more nervous as the time neared.

By the time they were making their way to the station, she was moving so slowly a snail could pass her. He didn’t rush her, since they went out in good time. It just meant they were going to be there on time instead of before time.

He noticed that she kept glancing at him, before looking down at the ground. Was she… embarrassed? That was the vibe he got from her… but why?

When they finally arrived at the station, all the ponies were already there along with the train.

“Your Majesty, the train is leaving in three minutes. We will wait on board while you say goodbye.” One of the guards told them, Jax couldn’t remember which one of them it was.

Luna was instantly tackled by Pinkie. “I’ll miss you, Luna! Remember to come visit, and write letters. I know you can write with Jax now thanks to Spike but don’t forget about the rest of us, okay?”

“I won’t.” Luna quickly answered as she was being crushed in a hug.

The next to say her goodbye was Twilight. She gave Luna a hug. “It has been a pleasure having you over, and it’s been nice getting to know you, Luna. Come visit whenever you want.”

“Yes dear, my shop will always be open for you, if you ever want to get together for some tea.” Rarity told her.

“Yeah, or if you ever want to go on a flight.” Rainbow added.

One by one, they all said their goodbyes. Spike’s and Fluttershy’s were pretty short, but Beating Heart whispered something into her ear that made her blush profoundly.

“All aboard for Canterlot!” Some guy yelled.

Finally, Jax felt like it was his turn. “Luna.”

She froze, then slowly, oh so slowly, she started turning around towards him… before her horn charged, and she teleported away.

Jax stared at the spot she had been on, then over at the train. Then back to the spot. Then back to the train as it started leaving, his brain drawing a blank. She was leaving without saying goodbye.

He barely registered the looks of pity he was getting from the others. He turned around. “I… need some time alone.” He told them, and made his way back to his house.

Author's Note

Daaamn son, leaving him hanging like that XD But why? What was she thinking? What is going ooon?
Find out next time, on 'A New Beginning in a New Land' ;)

Chapter 33

“Fuuuuuuuuuuuuck.”

Jax was laying in his giant bed. Alone.

He already missed Luna like crazy. The feeling of not having her in his proximity was… disturbing. Like she belonged there beside him, and because she wasn’t, the world was… wrong. Out of place. Misaligned.

It wasn’t like the deep panic that his addiction had caused, it was more like… the thought that she wasn’t there next to him kept nagging him in the back of his mind, calling for attention, no matter what he tried to think about. It was driving him a little crazy.

He looked over at the open bathroom door. He had masturbated a couple of minutes ago. He had planned to use some random human girl as inspiration, yet all he could think about was Luna. So, he had just kind of gone with it, and imagined that the scenario from his dream - the one where the real Luna had come and had ended up almost kissing him - had gone a little bit further. Not even much further, the thought of them kissing had been enough. Well it had been a couple of weeks since last time, so he wasn’t exactly surprised it took so little.

So, it was time to admit it. He found ponies, Luna in particular, attractive.

It wasn’t beastality when they were sapient… right?

No, of course not. They weren’t animals.

They looked like animals though.

Whatever. Whether it was or not didn’t really matter. It was too late. He was already in love with one of them.

It was kind of obvious to him now that he had time to think it through. He was crazily in love with Luna. He wanted her so much that he didn’t care she was a different species. She was cute, cuddly, and it felt really good to have her near. He wanted her so much it hurt.

It hurt extra much because she had left without even saying goodbye. She had talked to all the others, but when it was his turn she had just… What did it mean?

For the first time since he came to Equestria, his heart hurt more than his body.

“Fuuuuuuuuuuck.”

He took off the rest of his clothes, and made himself comfortable under the blankets. As comfortable as he could without her anyway.

***

“Tiiiiiiaaaaaaa!”

Celestia looked up in surprise from the book she was reading on the sofa, at her sister running into her room, sounding almost desperate.

“Luna? If you had sent a letter ahead, I would have waited at the - what are you doing?”

Luna was resting her forehead on her flank. “I need to use your giant flank as a wall.” She said, closing her eyes.

“Luna… First of all, my flank isn’t giant. It is perfectly proportioned to the rest of my body.-“

“pfff.”

“-Second of all, why don’t you use a wall as a wall?”

“Tia, have you ever used a wall as a wall?” She seriously asked.

“Of course. I use walls as walls all the time. They keep the wind and cold out.” Celestia was actually having a little fun with the weird conversation.

“The horn, Tia. If I were to use a wall, I would leave a hole in it, letting in the wind and cold. So I need to use your perfectly proportioned flank instead.”

Celestia started laughing. “Oh sister. That is not the only reason you’re here though, is it? Did your time in Ponyville not meet your expectations?”

“My time in Ponyville was almost perfect, better than I could ever have hoped for. It was amazing, sister.”

“Then why are you using my flank as an excuse to come talk with me?”

“It’s big-“

“Luna…!” Celestia didn’t want to threaten her sister, but if she continued talking like that about her flank, bad things would happen.

“It’s perfectly proportioned, soft, and warm.”

“It’s a little awkward though. Can’t you hug me instead?”

“No.” Luna deadpanned.

Celestia laughed again. “It’s been a while since we had a conversation like this. It’s almost enough to forgive you for not sending me any letters from Ponyville.”

“You did not send me any letters either, Tia.”

“Ah. Yes. I’m sure we were both busy.” Maybe that had been a bit hypocritical.

She felt Luna shift around into a new position. “Luna… you’re crushing me.” That position was to lay herself on top of Celestia.

“If this is all it takes to crush you, dear sister, then I am surprised you have survived this long.” Apparently Luna wasn’t going to get to the point just yet. With a sigh she took Luna in her telekinesis and made her way over to the bed. She had expected Luna would protest, but she just let herself be levitated without offering any resistance. Something was definitely wrong. Though she had enjoyed the conversation, and the weird comments Luna had come with, she felt worried about her dear sister. If everything in Ponyville had gone so well, why didn’t she act or sound happy?

She laid herself down on the bed, with her legs in the air, then she slowly levitated Luna on top of her. If she was going to be crushed, at least she could crush her back in a sisterly hug.

“Tia, you are crushing me!”

“If this is all it take to crush you…” She teased her little sister, before easing the hug into something gentler. “Now tell me Luna… What’s wrong?”

Luna laid silently on top of her for a while. Celestia didn’t rush her since they had time.

“I am in love with Jax.” She said with a certainty that surprised Celestia. It was like she had said that the sky was blue, or that fire was hot. After such a short time together, Celestia had expected a crush maybe, shyly uttered between blushes. It sounded like Luna was ready elope with him.

“I am in love with Jax, yet I did something cruel to him…” Her voice wavered as emotion filled it.

“Tell me everything.” Celestia urged, a bit worried about how this was evolving.

“Alright sister. Am I correct to assume that Twilight has been updating you?”

Celestia nodded. Twilight had written to her about most, if not all, of what had happened with the human known as Jax.

“Then you know that we have been pretty close the past couple of weeks. It has been so much fun, Tia. He is very relaxing to be around, very funny as well, most of the time. In any case, before I left today, we enjoyed the rest of the time we had together with various activities around town and in the shower.“

“Luna!” Celestia made her way out from under her sister. “I did not need that image in my head. What you do in the shower is none of my business.”

Luna gave her an amused smile from beside her. “Well somepony has a dirty mind. All we did was sing, my dear sister. If we were already having the kind of relationship you are insinuating, I would not have my current problem.”

Celestia was trying to clear her mind of unwanted images. She drew in a deep breath. “Alright, continue.”

Luna continued to look at her for a couple of seconds, before she turned on her back and looked at the ceiling. “Well, throughout the day, I got a bit… courageous. I wanted to show him how much I cared for him. So… I planned to kiss him on the cheek as a goodbye.” She smiled bashfully and hid behind her hooves. Celestia couldn’t help but smile at the display of shyness.

“It was a safe bet. On the mouth would have been risky, but on the cheek… that could mean anything.” Luna continued. “In some cultures it is even a normal occurrence to kiss on the cheek when greeted. So, he couldn’t really react too badly. It was a perfect plan, I thought.” Her smile quickly fell. “But as the day went by, I got more and more nervous. Doubts started to cloud my mind. ‘What if he is not comfortable with another species kissing him? He did mention once that humans were the only sapient beings on his planet’. ‘What if he will be disgusted by the gesture?’ What if’s kept running through my mind, until I was convinced that it would be safer to just not do it. Then I was tackled by Pinkie in a goodbye-hug.” A small smile graced her lips before the serious expression returned. They laid in silence for a while before Luna continued again. “I was fine with giving up. ‘It was stupid anyway’ I thought. But then Beating Heart came to say goodbye. She told me that we would make a cute couple.” Luna smiled happily. “And suddenly I wanted to do it again. I wanted it so badly sister… I made a plan. I would charge my horn for the teleport spell, kiss him on the cheek, then teleport away before I could see his reaction.”

Celestia had listened patiently to her sister. She could see where this was going, and got ready to hug her sister when she needed. She hadn’t expected the tears that threatened to fall at any point though.

“But when he said my name, everything inside of me just froze.” Luna admitted. “I just… I could barely turn towards him. He was looking at me with so much sadness, and everything just got scrambled. My thoughts… the plan… I did not want to leave him Tia, I wanted to stay with him, continue to have fun each day, but at the same time I knew…” Celestia watched as her sister struggled to say the words, taking a couple of deep breaths. Her voice was breaking as the tears left her eyes and made a path through her fur. “I knew that I could not. I am a princess of Equestria. I cannot just drop everything on you and leave. I realized that the time I had spent with Jax could never repeat itself. I could never have it again.” More tears made their way down Luna’s muzzle as the alicorn struggled to gain control of her feelings again. “I could not say goodbye to him. I could not think properly, all I knew was that I could not… before I knew what had happened, I had teleported away.”

She stopped as she started sobbing, and Celestia finally felt like she was ready to be comforted. She pulled Luna close, with both her wings and hooves. “Oh little sister.” She considered how she should relay her thoughts on the matter, and decided on a direct, albeit gentle manner. “Of course you can’t have it. It’s in the past.” Her sister sounded like she was going to say something, but Celestia quickly continued. “That doesn’t mean that the future won’t give you something similar. He’s still in Equestria, he’s still your friend. I’m sure if you apologize for leaving without saying goodbye, he will forgive you.”

Luna cried on Celestia for a long while, before she looked up at her. “Really?” She dried her tears with a hoof. “I mean... logically, I know he will, but my emotions run wild every time I try imagining actually doing it. I keep seeing his rejection and I just..." She abruptedly stood up "It was good talking to you sister, but I have duties to attend to.”

“Wait, Lulu… stay for a bit? Maybe we can talk about all the amazing things you and Jax did?” Celestia hurried to ask before her sister left again. “I missed you. Please… let’s just talk for a bit.”

Luna looked a bit surprised at the request but in the end she nodded. “I missed you too, Tia. Alright, I guess my duties have waited this long… they can wait a bit longer.” It felt a little opposite. Normally it was Celestia that postponed her duties to talk with her sister, not the other way around. Celestia didn’t mind though. She hadn’t seen her sister for over a month. She needed this.

***

Jax threw his blanket angrily at the wall for being too little like Luna. It was stupid, he knew that, but he couldn’t help himself. He couldn’t fall asleep and the stupid blanket did a terrible job of wrapping its none-existing wings over him. He had spent two hours just lying there. It was night, but clouds covered the stars, so he couldn’t even go out to stargaze. Maybe he should ask Rainbow to move them.

He snorted. Maybe he should get a Luna shaped plush. Wonder how much that would cost… He didn’t have any bits. If he couldn’t get his pen idea to work, he would have to get a job. He had food for a few days, he would have to figure something out before then. He knew Twilight would give him money if he asked, but he seriously didn’t want that. Enough was enough.

He hoped he could make the pen. He looked down at his hand. He just had to figure out how the chaos magic worked. Maybe he should spend a day with Pinkie or something. He would either go crazy or understand all of life’s mysteries, he wagered. It was worth a shot.

He sighed and went over to get his blanket, throwing it at the bed, then wrapping himself in it like a tortilla, making sure that the bottom was closed. He wiggled around, pretending to be a snake for a while. Maybe he should get a pet. A dog or something he could snuggle with when Luna wasn’t there. He would have to visit Fluttershy for that.

The frustration gone for the moment, he found himself in a restless sleep. He kept waking up every few hours.

Still - he had had worse rests.

***

The next day he was woken, once again, by a knock on the door. He groggily put on some pants before going over and opening the door.

“Heya there, neighbor!” No surprise there. He looked over at the sunrise, then back at Applejack, who went on oblivious to how cruel she was being. “I heard ya signed up for the running of the leaves! Since it’s in two days, Ah thought we could go running together? Ya know, to prepare.”

“That… actually sounds like a good idea. Fuck, already in two days? I’ve really spaced out… should have prepared a long time ago.” He had only known about it for a few days and he had been busy. He thought for a few seconds. “Hold on, let me check if I have a water bottle here somewhere.”

“Ah packed one for ya as well. Come on partner, stretch out and let’s go. Nothing like running through the orchard, with the sunrise in front of ya!”

“Alright, if you say so.” He quickly tried some stretches he remembered from gym classes. He wasn’t really used to stretching so, he rushed through it. It was kind of nice to hear the ‘pop’s it resulted in though.

They started running. He quickly noticed that his slow jog was annoying Applejack, but she didn’t say anything, and he wasn’t going to speed up when he was this out of form.

Running at sunrise really was a worthwhile experience. He liked the deep red color that slowly spread over the horizon, coloring the clouds and sky.

To keep his mind away from the absence of a certain blue alicorn, he decided to have a conversation with Applejack. “So… Applejack. How’s life treating ya?”

“Oh, ya know, Ah can’t complain. Sweet Apple Acres is doing well, Mah family is healthy.” She chuckled a bit. “The only thing Ah could hope for is for Apple Bloom to get her Cutie Mark.”

“That’s good to hear. Oh, actually I had a question for you. Do you sell your apples to the hospital, or do they get them from a different place? They didn’t taste as good as your normal apples.”

Applejack chuckled again. “The entire town buys apples from Sweet Apple Acres. The hospital is special though. Have you ever heard the phrase ‘An apple a day, keeps the doctor away?’”

He nodded.

“Well, it was my grandfather that started saying it. He was a doctor himself, and he studied apples to cure different diseases. He bred a special brand of apples that don’t taste as good as our usual apples, but are healthier. The hospital’s been buying them for ages.”

“That explains it *pant* then.” He said, already a bit strained by the run.

“Well, anyhow, Ah actually wanted ta tell ya something.” She kept running for a bit, before continuing. “You haven’t hurt anypony, not intentionally anyhow. Even when ponies are afraid, Ah see you smile kindly to everypony, when you have all the reason in the world to be offended. Ah realize that it must actually be harder for you than all that, but at least ya had Luna there. What Ah’m trying to say is… if you ever feel alone, just remember that me and my family are right next door. If you want to have dinner with us instead of eating by yourself, you’re always welcome.”

Again and again, ponies have shown him incredible kindness, yet he was surprised every time it happened. Maybe he would never get used to it. He was so touched by Applejack’s gesture, he almost tripped. “Thanks Applejack, that’s kind of you.” He smiled at her, while they kept running.

“Think nothin’ of it, sugarcube.” She simply said, as if she hadn’t just said something he needed to hear.

He thought very highly of it.

***

After a much needed shower and realizing he didn’t have a washing machine, Jax put on some new clothes. He had to figure out how to wash his clothes the old fashion way, but that would have to wait… actually, he only had three pairs of clothing, he should probably do it right away. On the other hand… he should ask Rarity if he should wash them in any kind of special way. Especially the one adorned with emeralds.

So, he needed to visit Fluttershy for a pet, Pinkie for his own project, and Rarity for his clothes. Maybe he should put off Pinkie to the next day, so he could really get deep in the craziness. So Fluttershy and Rarity.

He looked longingly at his bed, before making his way out, limping a bit on his right leg. He didn’t sleep very well anyway, and doing something would keep his mind off blue alicorns.

***

There was a bear outside Fluttershy’s cottage. Jax looked at it for a bit. It laid beside the path, near the door. It looked back at him. A memory resurfaced of his time in the Everfree… It couldn’t be the same bear. Could it?

Jax had no idea how to react. They just kind of looked at each other for a while, until the bear raised its head and made some bear sounds. It didn’t sound very threatening, but he seriously missed his stick of awesome at that point. He hadn’t given it much thought lately… It was somewhere in his house, brought by Twilight along with his clothes and book.

The sound did seem to attract Fluttershy though. “Mr. Bear, is something wrong?” She spotted Jax. “Oh, hello there Jax. I hope Mr. Bear didn’t scare you or anything.”

Wait, Mr. Bear?

“No, no. Just a bit surprised. Say, Fluttershy, forgive my bad memory, but didn’t Mr. Bear have something to do with saving my life? He carried me here or something?”

“Oh, yes, without him you probably have died in the Everfree. It was a good thing that he came by when he did.” She sounded horrified at the thought of him dying out there.

“And here I haven’t even thanked him…” He said thoughtfully, mostly to himself. The bear, unlike all the ponies around, was actually dangerous… but it had helped Fluttershy save his life.

“Oh, I’m sure he would be very happy to be thanked.” Fluttershy told him excitedly. Yep, he would have to do it.

He approached the bear slowly, as to not surprise it, making himself as small as possible as to not be seen as a threat. When he was close enough to touch it if he wanted, he stopped. He kept his hands visible at all times. He may have faced countless timberwolves, but there was a difference between charging at a pack with weapon drawn, and approaching a bear completely defenseless. Logically he knew that Fluttershy wouldn’t allow him to be eaten, but his instincts told him to run.

“Hello there, Mr. Bear. My name is Jax.”

A soft roar sounded from the bear. Well it wasn’t really a roar, more like a friendly growl.

“I hear that you helped saved my life.” He continued.

The Bear roared/growled softly, in something he could only take as confirmation.

“Well, I believe that a ‘thank you’ is long overdue then.” Maybe it was because it hadn’t eaten him yet, or that it looked kind of cute, laying there making soft growls, but he put a hand on its head. “Thank you.”

That got a different reaction out of him than Jax had thought. He growled happily and then flopped onto his back. Jax couldn’t help but laugh-snort. “You want a belly rub, big guy? Well you earned it!” The fear completely gone at the doggish display of the bear, he started scratching its belly. It had rather thick fur, he noticed. The bear seemed to like it anyway, letting its tongue hang out. He really was kind of adorable once you gave him a chance.

“Oh… my. Jax?”

“Yes?”

“Would you be interested in adopting a pet?”

Jax instantly stopped and looked at her. “Fluttershy, I can’t afford to feed a bear. I don’t have any bits.

“Oh, that won’t be a problem. Mr. Bear doesn’t need an owner the same way my other little friends do. He goes in and out of the Everfree without any problems, and can take care of himself. Actually, I believe that he will bring you fish if you treat him well. What Mr. Bear really needs is a friend. I’ve taken care of him since he was a cub, but nopony else seems interested in even going near him.” She looked thoughtful for a second. “Actually, I think that’s the first time I’ve seen him being so open with anypony except me.” She smiled sweetly at him. “Please? It would make me really happy.”

He had never heard Fluttershy be so insistent. Ah well. “I actually did come here to get a pet so... Alright, but can he sleep in the bed with me without crushing me?”

Fluttershy giggled. “I don’t think that will be a problem. Oh I’m so happy I could scream!” She gave a cute little squeal, which no doubt counted as a scream for the pink manned pegasus.

“Hey Fluttershy, what’s taking so long?” Rainbow Dash came out from the small cottage. “Oh, hey Jax.”

“Oh, Rainbow Dash, I’m sorry it took so long, but something amazing has happened. Jax has decided to adopt Mr. Bear.” She gave Rainbow an excited hug.

Rainbow looked kind of stunned from her, to Jax, to the bear, before smiling herself. “That’s great.”

Jax pretended to look at the bear, while actually keeping an eye on the pegasi. That’s why he noticed Rainbow kind of giving in to the hug, even nuzzling Fluttershy a bit. It gave him an idea.

“Anyway, I’m sure you want to tell him all about how to take care of a bear, so I’m off. See you both later!”

“Rainbow, wait.” Jax said before she could dash out of there. Rainbow stopped and looked at him. “I don’t know how the weather will be on Monday, but if it’s a cloudy night, will you be able to clear it? Consider it a personal favor.”

“In four days, huh? Alright, I’ll take care of it, but don’t make a habit of it.” She winked and sped away.

“Thanks!” he called after her.

She didn’t even ask why. Rainbow was a real pal.

“So… want to come in for some tea? I can tell you all about Mr. Bear.”

“Yeah, sure. I want to ask you something as well. Wait, actually.”

He didn’t know the level of sapience in animals here, but they seemed smarter than normal, even if they still couldn’t talk. So, he bent down and looked Mr. Bear in the eyes. “Are you okay with this? Do you want to get adopted by me?”

“Rawr!” he rawred, before licking Jax across the face.

“Alright then.” He dried his face with a sleeve. “Wait here while I talk with Fluttershy, then I can show you your new home.”

More exited bear sounds, mixed with Fluttershy’s giggles.

They went inside, and Fluttershy made tea for them. It was herbal, not Jax’ favorite blend, so he used quite a lot of sugar.

“Can I ask you something before we begin?” Jax asked.

“Oh, of course.” Fluttershy answered happily.

“What do you think about Rainbow Dash?”

“Rainbow Dash?” Jax nodded. “Oh… she’s… cool” Fluttershy blushed, but went on. “Even though she’s always been popular, she still takes care of me, even though I can barely fly. She’s the sweetest mare I know….”

Jax had another idea. “Ah yes. She is quite sweet isn’t she? Did you see how she agreed to help me on the spot?”

“Oh yes, that was very nice of her. You can always count on Rainbow Dash to help you.” Fluttershy seemed to come out of her shell a bit, warming up to the topic. “Even before you came, she said that she would only participate in the running of the leaves if I did… and she promised to run beside me the whole time, no matter how slow I was.” She gave a happy little squeal. It was absolutely adorable.

“Yeah, Rainbow is great isn’t she? And that body?”

“Oh yes, you can see she takes care of herself. Really fit and-“ Fluttershy’s eyes suddenly became really small, as she realized what she was saying. “I- I mean… eep.” She kind of folded in on herself, and started shaking a little.

Jax smiled knowingly. “I know what you mean. You love her, don’t you?”

“I-I… No. Yes… I mean… Please don’t tell her.” She whispered before she hid her muzzle under her hooves.

He suspected that Rainbow Dash was smitten by Fluttershy, even if she didn’t want to admit it, and now he knew Fluttershy felt the same way.

“Don’t worry, I won’t.” He was just going to help them get together. That would count as doing something for both of them, and they were both pretty high on the list of ponies he wanted to do something for. Especially Fluttershy, for saving his life, taking him back to Ponyville, and encouraging him to go to his own ‘Welcome to Ponyville’ party.

“You- you won’t?” Why did she sound surprised?

“I promise. But why don’t you?”

She looked up from under her hooves. “Rainbow Dash is… amazing. She would never want to be with somepony like me.” Her ears folded, and she looked really sad.

“Ohh… I don’t know about that. You’re pretty amazing yourself.”

She gave him a small smile. “Thank you, Jax. You’re very nice. Uhm… the things you said about Rainbow… you’re not…?”

Jax looked at her, before he realized what she was asking. “Oh! No, I was just trying to get you comfortable talking about her. I’m in love with someone else.” Someone who wasn’t here. His smile turned a little sad at that.

Fluttershy actually looked relieved. “Oh… good… Is it Princess Luna?”

He nodded, avoiding eye-contact. It was embarrassing admitting it out loud. He understood a bit better now, why Fluttershy had hid behind her hooves.

They sat in silence for a while. “So… Mr. Bear?” He tried.

Fluttershy jumped at the sound of his voice, before smiling happily at him. “Well, as I said, Mr. Bear can feed himself, and he spends a lot of time in the Everfree or other places, sometimes even days at a time. What you need to do is play with him when he’s there. Oh, and he’s a big sweetheart, so he loves to cuddle….”

***

Luna looked at herself in the mirror. “Listen, Luna.” She told herself, mimicking Jax’ voice. “This is going to sound mean, but I think you need to hear it.” She took a deep breath, getting ready for the harsh news she was giving herself. “Nopony is interested in night court.” She flinched slightly at her own words. It still hurt. “Right now, anyway.” She quickly continued. “So… you will have to make some changes… until ponies are ready.”

She looked at her herself for some time, before nodding. It was the wise thing to do. Taking on her own voice, she continued “Night court will be open for two hours after day court has ended, for all those that did not get to plead their case to Celestia. After that it is by appointment only.”

If ponies did not want to come to her court, she was not going to force them, but this way she was not forced to stay in the throne room. There were other things she needed to do. She really needed to look properly at the law. She had gone through a couple of the most important law books since her return, but she needed to really get hooves deep. There were some things that she remembered bothered her, and she thought that maybe it was time to revise them with the help of some lawyers. After all, it was legal to hit another pony with a book if they showed extreme ignorance to a subject of which they spoke a lot about… On second thought, that sounded like a good law. She wondered if she could use it as an excuse to trot around, slapping nobles with books. That would be glorious day for all… except the nobles of course.

She looked around the empty room. Her room. It would certainly help her forget how alone she was now. She missed Jax. It felt almost like a physical pain in her heart - she did not even know that that was possible. She wanted to rush back to Ponyville and hug him, asking for his forgiveness for leaving him on the train station. She should have gone ahead with her plan.

Regret was not an alien feeling for her.

She went over to her desk, writing a short note to him. She would start the path to forgiveness with it. She sent it to him with a burst of green fire from her horn. Spike’s gift had really been amazing.

***

Jax was dropped out of Rarity’s shop with a new backpack, designed and made by Rarity, and filled with different kinds of soaps for the clothes, different kinds of tea, three new sets of clothes, and some food recipes. Rarity would make a great grandma.

“I’m paying you back for all of this someday!” He shouted through the closed door.

“Whatever you say darling!” Came the muffled answer.

After having walked home with Mr. Bear, he had come to ask Rarity about the clothes. He got his answers and more.

He looked up at the night sky and felt it like a slap to the face. “Luna…” He could feel the tears beginning to form, but quickly shook his head. Not here.

He made his way home as fast as he could, looking down the way. He opened his door and almost threw his new bag at the giant bear that lay in there, before he remembered that it was his pet bear. He had a pet bear. That was pretty cool.

Fluttershy said that Mr. Bear liked to cuddle, so he went over to him and gave him a hug. He didn’t smell as badly as Jax would have thought, just kinda forest…y.

Mr. Bear made confused bear sounds, before wrapping him in a hug. Yep, animal sapience was definitely up to debate.

He couldn’t hold it in anymore. The tears started flowing out of his eyes, and suddenly he couldn’t help but think about everything. Luna, Max and Liza… Mom… his little brother Jake… It all just came crashing down at him, leaving him a sniveling mess against a giant confused bear, that did his best to comfort him. He had never been happier to have a pet than that time.

After an undefined amount of time, he finally got a hold of himself. Things had just been so eventful since he had met ponies, he could easily forget his troubles. He would have to patch things up with Luna and start writing to her again. She meant too much to him, for him to keep being offended and hurt at what she had done.

“’s not like she set me on fire.” He whispered, the ghost of a smile finally finding its way to his lips after such a long time.

“Rawr?” Mr. Bear asked.

“I’ll be fine. Thank you for the hug. It was nice and warm.” Wasn’t a lie either. Mr. Bear had thick fur.

“Rawr.” It nodded.

He looked at the mess he had left behind on poor Mr. Bear’s fur. He quickly got up and fetched some paper, doing his best to clean it.

On his way over to throw out the paper, he noticed a scroll next to his jar of dragonfire.

He almost stumbled in his rush to get over to it. Luna had written something!

A more honest smile this time as he read it.

Watch the skies on Moonday.

It wasn’t an explanation, but it was something.

Good thing he had made arrangements with Rainbow already. He had hoped that something would happen that day.

Author's Note

aaaaand I'm back in school. No idea how this will affect my writing yet, we'll see ^^ For now... a bit randomness in with the sadness. Maybe I should just have made it 100% sad and save the randomness for the next chapter. What do you guys think?
Anyway, back in chapter 31, Applejack thought that she had time for Jax in spring... I meant fall. She'll have time in fall. Which is consequently around the running of the leaves XD
I thought about it and realized that receiving a message with dragon-fire is not the same as sending it back with unicorn magic, as I have made it out to in last chapter. It's like this now:

Luna charged up her spell, and the parchment caught on fire. Unlike before, it disappeared completely, until it was spit out and reassembled by the dragonfire in the jar. Magic was cool.

Chapter 34

Luna levitated a quill and a parchment in front of her. Well, two quills and two pieces of parchment. She also levitated every other item in her room, but that was background work. What was really hard was to write two different things. One of the parchments was a summons to various lawyers she had chosen, while the other was a chapter of her book. She had already written the introduction and was now almost done with the third chapter. Of course there would be many mistakes, but it was the first draft.

There was a knock on the door. Both quills stopped and hovered in the air while she opened the door with her telekinesis. She had a good idea of who it was.

“Still training your multitasking, sister?” Looking back, Luna saw that Celestia was looking at the various objects she was levitating. The bed seemed to be especially interesting to her.

“Have to. Out of practice. Want to impress Jax on Moonday. Need to be able to multitask.” The conversation was already straining her as she tried to focus on everything in her magic. She had not written anything since Celestia came in, so she decided to turn around and face her sister.

“You have been at it for hours, Lulu. We have to set the moon and raise the sun soon. Why not spend some time talking until then?”

“Alright.”

Celestia just sighed. “Please… put everything down in its rightful place, sister.”

Luna rolled her eyes. She could focus just fine. This was nothing next to the feat she would show in a couple of days.

She set down everything, and was rewarded with a thankful smile from her sister.

Before she set aside the two pieces of parchment, she checked how much she had messed up. Entire lines had been written on opposite pieces of parchment, not to mention the occasional wrong word. She sighed.

***

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK.

Applejack really knew how to knock on a door. Her mark should be of a pony knocking on a door.

Jax groggily got out of bed. He slept a little better with Mr. Bear next to him, but it wasn’t much. He made for a warm pillow, but he didn’t have a wing to put protectively around Jax.

The wooden floor was cold beneath his bare feet, but he was used to walking around barefoot, so it wasn’t a big problem.

Opening the door he found, as he had suspected, Applejack waiting for him.

“Gooooodmornin’ neighbor!” She said with a disturbing amount of cheer for someone who had gotten up before sunrise.

“’Morning…” He yawned behind a hand. “Let me just… get ready.” He left the door open while he put on shoes and a shirt. “Mr. Bear, I’m going running.” He told his pet bear.

“Rawr.” Was the tired answer.

“Alright, let’s go.” He said as he went outside.

“Remember to stretch properly this time. Don’t want you to pull something like yesterday.” Applejack reminded him.

“It wasn’t that bad… I can’t even feel it today.” He said, but still started stretching, properly this time. The air was chilly, definitely colder than it had been the day before. It had apparently rained at night, because the earth was wet. He took a deep breath, enjoying the fresh smell of wet grass.

Not that he liked fall. Fall meant that winter was just around the corner, and winter meant cold. He preferred to stay warm.

“Alright Applejack, I’m ready.” He told her, and they set off towards the sunrise.

“Just AJ is fine, sugarcube.” She told him.

“Alright… AJ.”

***

He had taken a shower and started washing his clothes when he heard a knock on the door. Confused as to who it could be, he opened the door.

“Hello. You’re Jax, right?” It was a grayish mare with a blonde mane. One of her eyes was looking upwards, while the other looked at him. Leaning a bit to the side, he saw that her mark was… bubbles? Whatever that meant.

“Hello? Yes, how can I help you?” He smiled kindly at the seemingly unafraid pony.

“I finally found you! I’m Derpy, the mailmare.” She smiled back at him. “Did you know you don’t have a mailbox? You should get one as fast as possible.” She started rummaging around in her bag. By now he could guess what this was about. What he didn’t see coming was the amount. Derpy took out a huge stack of letters bound together by a string and handed them to him, before rummaging around some more for a single piece of paper.

“Well thank you, I’ll talk with Applejack about the mailbox. Have a nice day, Derpy.”

“You too, Mr. Jax!” She waved at him and flew away.

Going back inside, he sat down on a chair, looking through his mail. Then he looked over at the clothes he was supposed to wash. Mr. Bear had gone somewhere, so he was alone in the cottage.

He started with the letters, setting the piece of paper aside for now.

The first letter was addressed to Jax, Ponyville. No wonder Derpy had had a hard time finding him. He opened it and started reading.

Before bursting out in laughter. Apparently some stallion out there thought it would be a good idea to send a letter with details of all the sexual fantasies he had been having about Jax. It went on for a couple of pages.

It wasn’t signed and there was no return address, so he put it back in the envelope, unsure what to do with it. It would be fun to show it to some pony and see their reaction, but at the same time… Ah well, off to the side, next letter up.

No return address again. He opened it and started reading it, before hastily crumbling it into a ball and throwing it at the wall. While the first letter had been a little disturbing, it had been preferred over this ignorant bullshit. The sender told him that he didn’t belong in Equestria and should go home. That piece of trash. He was home.

He quickly quelled his anger. He should have been expecting this - if the internet had taught him anything, it was that it was easy to hide behind anonymity.

The next was a little more promising. There was a return address, and everything seemed to be written with crayons. He smiled all the way through it. It was from a griffon kid in Canterlot named Cenia, who told him that ‘It’s hard to be different.’ But ‘Ponies are nice once you get to know them and they get to know you.’ It was a heartwarming letter, and he was happy Cenia had decided to share her own experiences with him. He laid that letter in a ‘remember to reply’ pile.

The rest of the letters followed those same themes. One more hate-letter, two more sexual letters (both female this time.) and the rest were ‘hang in there!’ letters, which were really nice. It seemed like most of them wrote because they had seen the article Raven Writingdesk had written. He had to get his hands on that newspaper.

After he had read all of the letters, he started replying, before remembering the single piece of paper he had laid aside.

Apparently it was the weather schedule. He couldn’t stop laughing once he read it. Rainbow Dash had crossed out an entire section about Moonday night, and written ‘CLEAR SKIES.’ Next to it.

Damn, these were some good friends.

***

Luna looked up at the ceiling in her room. She had laid like that for some time, but sleep eluded her, like it had the day before. Thoughts of Jax kept running around in her head. She missed him so much she could scream…

She finally gave up, levitated the chapters she had written over, and started correcting all the mistakes.

There were a lot.

***

Another knock on the door. He was popular today.

He opened the door to be greeted by a purple alicorn. “Hey Twilight.”

“Hello Jax. Can I come in?” She asked with a careful smile, her eyes observing him a bit too closely.

“Sure. Actually, good thing you came.” He let her in and closed the door behind him. “Want some tea? I just got some from Rarity yesterday.”

“I don’t want to intrude, I just came to check up on you. Spike said he would come as well, but he had some comics to catch up on.”

“No no, it’s no problem at all, I was going to make a cup before heading out anyway. And Spike can come whenever he wants.” He smiled at her as he poured water into the kettle. “So, did you find out anything about light pollution?”

“What? Oh that… It turns out that light is light, whether it’s converted from magical energy or not.” She frowned. “I’m trying to create a miniature atmosphere so I can conduct some proper field-tests. It’s not easy though” She looked into the distance, apparently lost in thought. “Maybe Princess Celestia or Luna would be able to help…” She shook her head, and looked at him with a small smile. “Speaking of Luna… How are you?”

Jax looked at her for a couple of seconds before sighing. “I’ve been better… I’ve been worse.” He started preparing two cups with the tea he had received from Rarity as the water started to boil. “I think we can rule out… What did Celestia call it? Positive magic high? I think we can rule out that theory. I don’t feel any kind of high.” He poured the hot water into the cups, taking a moment to enjoy the smell of fresh tea. It felt calming. He went over to the table where Twilight sat and put one of the cups in front of her before he sat down. “But with friends like you guys, I don’t feel overly depressed either. Did you see the weather schedule?”

Twilight nodded with a smile. “Rainbow Dash is a good friend.” She said warmly. “I also heard you adopted Mr. Bear. Fluttershy was very happy about that.”

“Yeah. He’s off on some adventure or something right now, apparently he can open and close the door. I also received a lot of good letters from people. Most of them anyway.” He indicated the pile of letters he didn’t know where to put. He had already written a reply to every one of the ones that had a return address, he only needed to stamp and send them.

Twilight leaned over and took one from a smaller stack. Jax couldn’t help but smile at his good luck.

He calmly sipped his tea as Twilights cheeks got redder and redder, before she folded the letter again and put it back.

”Interesting read?” Jax asked innocently, almost unable to hide his smile.

“From a sociological and sexological point of view… yes. As literature goes however, I’ve read better.” She said calmly. A bit too calmly…

He smiled widely. “You read a lot of-?”

“That’s not what I meant! I just meant that the nice stallion seemed to have trouble putting his… fantasies, into words.” She looked down at the table, a visible blush covering most of her face. There it was.

Jax couldn’t help but laugh. “I’m sure you know all about putting fantasies into words.”

She grumbled something about being an author before she looked at the bigger pile. “So, are all of these like the letter I read?” Subtle change of subject there, Twilight.

“No. These are all letters that encourage me to keep going. You’ll find a third pile in the trash encouraging me to get out of the country as well.”

She actually went over and checked in the trash. “Oh, two letters. When you said pile…” She levitated them out, uncrumbled them, read them, crumbled them again and put them back in with a frown on her face. “Some ponies…”

“At least most of them are good.” He pointed at the big pile of letters. What was he going to do with them? They didn’t belong in the trash.

“Yeah… That’s good. That reminds me.” She took out a newspaper and put it in front of him. It was the ‘Canterlot Informant.’ The newspaper Raven worked for. On the front page was a picture of him and Luna on the sofa. Raven had taken the picture before he left. Jax had been careful not to smile wide enough to show his canines, not that it mattered since he had admitted to being an omnivore.

He read the article.

“Wow. This Raven really knows his craft. No wonder so much of the mail was nice. Hey look, a pie chart of my crimes. Let’s see… Being human… not being a pony. He’s funny as well.” He chuckled at the ridiculous chart. “Oh look! According to this, property damage in Ponyville has actually decreased since I came to town. That’s a little amazing.” That probably didn’t have anything to do with him though, but still funny. “He looks at me and Luna, and tries to see if any of the rumors surrounding us can be true. Well written article, sir. Well written indeed.” Jax nodded his head in acknowledgement. Some of the rumors mentioned in the article, Jax hadn’t even heard about. Like apparently he had rampaged around Ponyville, destroying buildings and harming ponies… Somehow. At the same time, he and Luna had bewitched half of Ponyville, and turned the other half into frogs.

Rumors were weird. Where did this even come from?

“Hey look! An article about the star show on Moondays! They have no idea why Luna started doing it.” If only they knew that he was the one who had started it for the fun of it. The theories they came with here were a bit wild.

“Yeah, Raven is a really good journalist.” Twilight said with a smile before it turned into a concerned expression. “Jax, are you sure you’re okay? I know you don’t like to complain, but sometimes it helps.”

He looked at her for some seconds before he managed to smile. “I’m fine Twilight. Thanks for the concern. Oh, actually, while you’re here.” He quickly changed the subject. “I’m gonna spend some time with Pinkie, see if that helps with my magic. Are you free later today? I want to try to conjure that pen.”

Twilight didn’t look convinced, but nodded nonetheless. “Sure Jax. I actually have to get going, but see you then.”

Jax closed the door behind her with a sigh. These were nice friends. Maybe he should just have told her how frustrated he felt without Luna there.

He took a deep breath. Everything would be fine. The rumors would calm down, and he would be with Luna again, somehow. It had only been a couple of days, he just needed a little patience.

He put on his shoes. He had a Pinkie to spend the day with.

***

“Hey Pinkie!” He greeted Pinkie as she came out of Sugarcube Corner right when he was about to go in.

“Oh hey Jaxie. Are you ready?” She asked with her ever-present smile.

“For… what exactly? To spend the rest of the day together?” Did she know before he even told her?

“We are going to make ponies smile!” She just told him as she bounced onwards. Jax quickly fell in step with her… Well he walked at the same speed at which she bounced forward.

“Great. I’ll do my best, but aren’t ponies kinda afraid of me?” He asked a bit uncertainly.

“That’s why we are making them smile silly! They can’t be afraid of you if you make them smile.” Well, who was he to defy such logic. What did he know, it sounded true enough.

“Alright… what’s the plan? Do we even have a plan?”

“Here, put this on.” She told him and gave him a pair of glasses with bushy eyebrows, a false nose, and mustache. It looked stupid, but… why not. It would probably help, and there weren’t so many ponies about anyway. Pinkie giggled when he took it on. “Uuuhh, here comes Lily.” Jax looked at a pinkish mare with a trio of flowers, presumably lilies, on her flank, and one in her blonde mane. When he looked back at where Pinkie had been a few seconds ago, he found that she had disappeared. Suddenly he felt a weight on his shoulder and he knew exactly where she was.

“Act natural.” She loudly whispered in his ear. She then bounced off of him, and waved at the mare called Lily. “Hey Lily!”

Jax looked at Pinkie, and decided that acting natural in this situation was impossible. Where should he look? What should he do with his hands? Should he pretend that it was normal to wear fake glasses with eyebrows, nose and mustache?

He decided that the safest thing to do was to copy her. That was what he was here for anyway. He waved as well. “Hey Lily!”

Lily stopped when she spotted Pinkie and even gave a smile and looked like she was about to answer the greeting, when her gaze found Jax. Her eyes widened, her mouth made an O shape, and she completely froze, before finding her legs, and apparently her voice, again. “The horror, the horror!” She screamed as she ran away.

After so long, ponies still had such a strong reaction to him. He knew that some of the ponies had been avoiding him and he thought he was fine with it but… it stung a bit.

“Horribly hilarious maybe!” Pinkie shouted from beside him, hoof raised in mock indignation. She smiled at him with her signature smile. “Let’s try again. Here comes Rose.” He looked at the light yellow mare with a rose on her flank.

He adjusted his glasses and put on a smile again, fighting off the memory of Lily running away screaming. “Alright. Let’s do this.”

***

He sat down in an alley, with his back against a wall, the bushy glasses on the ground beside him. He raised his gaze from the ground to look at Pinkie, who was sitting in front of him. She looked concerned, but when she saw him looking a smile instantly found its way to her face.

He sighed. “How many was that?” It sounded like he was ready to jump off a bridge, even to him. It was hard to see ponies run from him when he tried to make them smile. He felt out of balance, and he knew that a big part of that was because he didn’t have Luna there with him. He felt alone, even if Pinkie was right there.

“Only five.” Her voice was softer than normal.

He snorted. “Feels like more.”

“We were a bit unlucky. I’m sure the next one will roll around on the floor in laughter.” Pinkie said with conviction.

He looked at her for a bit. “How do you do it, Pinkie?”

It was a broad question, but Pinkie seemed to know exactly what he was talking about.

“It's true, some days are dark and lonely”

She suddenly started to sing with a soft voice.

“and maybe you feel sad

but Pinkie will be there to show you that it isn't that bad

There's one thing that makes me happy

and makes my whole life worthwhile

and that's when I talk to my friends and get them to smile”

He couldn’t help but smile at her. It seemed to make her very happy. “Alright, but you owe me a muffin for every pony that runs away from me from now on.” He said as he put on the silly glasses again.

“Deal! Hey Derpy! Derpy, over here!” She waved a hoof excitedly at the gray pegasus who was walking by.

***

“Hey Twilight!” Jax cheerfully said as he entered the lab.

“Hello Jax. You- what’s with the glasses?” She asked with a giggle.

“Oh, forgot I had them on.” He took off the silly glasses he had been wearing the last couple of hours. After the first five ponies, they had worked well. Turned out Pinkie was right and they had just been unlucky. Nobody rolled on the floor though. Still, it was nice to spread some laughter.

“Alright, let’s do this.” He said. He had seen Pinkie do some weird stuff, and if she could do it, then he could as well.

They went down into the room.

***

“Why do I need to ask?” Twilight looked perplexed.

“I’m trying out stuff. Just do it.”

“Alright…” She sighed. “Do you have a pen I can borrow?”

“Sure thing Twilight, I have it right…” He put his hand into his pocket and waited for her to use a spell on him. He felt the aura on his skin, a kind of pinchy feeling. It changed, and he grabbed the pen that had appeared in his pocket. “Here!” He pulled it out with a dramatic flair. He waited a couple of seconds. No explosion. That was a good sign.

“Hey it actually worked! Here let me…” She took the pen in her aura, careful not to touch his hand.

She went so far as to look closely at it before something happened. When she studied the lid, it suddenly popped off, and the ink splashed right into her face.

They stood in stunned silence for a couple of seconds before Jax started laughing.

Twilight gave him a deadpan stare.

“I-I’m sorry Twilight, I didn’t think anything would happen.” He said between laughs. “Hey, at least it didn’t explode.”

She used a spell to get the ink off her. She looked at the pen that was still in her grasp. “Hey, yeah… I still have the pen. I can finally figure this out!” She sounded excited all of a sudden. A smile spread on her face.

“Yeah, progress! Well, I’ll let you get to studying it. I’m gonna go home and eat something. Hey, don’t stay up too late, ‘running of the leaves’ tomorrow and all that.” He said offhandly. She just nodded as she looked at the pen in front of her.

He made his way home. He waved at the ponies that waved at him, and ignored the ones that ignored him. It was a good day. There seemed to be more ponies smiling at him than usual. Maybe he should drop by Rarity’s to get an update on rumors about him. It couldn’t be that bad anymore.

He arrived to an empty home. Mr. Bear was still out adventuring or whatever he was doing. He looked in the fridge. He still had some food left, but not that much. One or two days, but still lots of cake… good thing he had figured the pen out. Now he just had to wait for Twilight to find out the rest.

He needed to see Applejack about the mailbox as well. He had almost forgotten about that. “Should I eat first, or go directly there?” He asked.

He stood in the empty house. The only answer he got was silence. He didn’t like it. It reminded him that Luna wasn’t there.

He packed some cake and went out.

***

“Heya there Jax. What can I help ya with?” Applejack said from the open doorway.

He smiled at her. “Derpy visited today. She said I need a mailbox. Also, I brought cake.”

“Alright, come on in. We were just about to start eating. There’s plenty if you want to join?”

“That would be nice.” He smiled as he went inside the red house.

Author's Note

Man, school is taking a lot out of me XD
On a related note, this story is over 300 pages long. Congratulations for reading this far ;)

Chapter 35

Rainbow Dash was rudely awoken from her nap by a tremor going through the tree, which made her fall down on the ground. “Hey, what gives?!”

“You should stop napping in mah appletrees, Rainbow.” She should have guessed it was AJ. Few ponies could make a tree shake like that.

“They are relaxing to sleep in.” She answered defensively, dusting herself off. “You usually let me sleep though. What’s up?”

“Ah actually wanted to ask ya something about Jax. When was the last time ya talked with him?”

“I dunno… two days ago? He asked me to clear the sky on Monday night. He better appreciate it.”

Applejack chuckled. “That explains the weather schedule then.” She put on a more serious expression. “Anywho, he seems to be…” She circled her hoof around, looking for words. “A bit too fine.”

“…What?”

“Ya know… like he’s hiding his pain. Ah would think after how close he’s been with Luna ‘nd all, he would be more sad or angry with the way she left. Ah mean, Ah’m sure she had a reason an’ all, but ya saw the way he looked after she suddenly went and teleported away. Ah would think he’d have more of a reaction. Ah talked with both Twilight and Pinkie, and they agree, ‘least Ah think Pinkie agreed. Ah think he’s keeping himself busy to not think ‘bout it.”

Rainbow Dash looked at her friend for a bit. “Look, Jax is a big guy. He’s been alone in the Everfree for a month.” She waved a hoof in front of Applejack before she could interrupt. “But let’s say you’re right. I’m pretty busy until Monday night. I have double shifts at the weather team, and the only free time I’m gonna have is today at the running of the leaves, which I promised to spend with Fluttershy. You’re gonna have to take care of this one without me.”

Applejack sighed. “Alright, Ah’ll give it a go. But If Ah don’t get anywhere before Monday…”

“Then I’ll be right there with you.” Rainbow smiled at her friend.

“Alright, good. Ah’m pretty worried about him. He’s here all alone, without any family. He came by yesterday to eat with us, but any questions about family was shrugged off. Ya know anything?”

“No, didn’t even ask. If he wants to tell me something about his past, he’ll tell me. Look, I gotta fly, but keep me updated, okay?” She said with a wave.

When AJ nodded, she flapped her wings lightly, enjoying the feeling of wind under her wings. Soon everything under her looked very small, and she loved the feeling of pure freedom it gave her. Rainbow Dash took a deep breath as she prepared her next action. She could feel her stomach tickle in anticipation. She couldn’t for the life of her understand why Twilight spent so much time on the ground now that she had wings. Maybe Rainbow should show her how to enjoy it fully.

She flipped over on her back, and pulled in her wings. She stopped gaining altitude, and soon she started freefalling. It was dangerous for normal pegasi, but compared to all the stunts Rainbow usually made, it was almost lame. But it helped her think, which was usually why she did it nowadays. The seconds she had falling through the air were blissfully easy for Rainbow. She was doing something, even when she wasn’t doing anything at all. She was falling through the air, even when she was just relaxing.

The object of her thoughts were Jax. She liked the human, and she had been the first to offer him her friendship. It had been after all the pain he had experienced since coming to Equestria had been transferred to her that she had decided. Any creature that had seen that much pain deserved, no, needed a friend. He had done nothing to prove her wrong, even though they hadn’t talked very much, and she really didn’t know that much about him, but she didn’t care. If Twilight had proven anything since coming to Ponyville, it was that friendship didn’t start because two ponies knew each other well. It was something that came from the heart, as lame as that sounded. Heck, they didn’t even know Twilight had a brother until they were invited to his wedding!

Her instincts kicked in, and she knew it was time. She extended her right wing just enough to get rotation going, and righted herself so that she was facing the ground. She extended both her wings, locking them into place, and let them do their job to slow her down. Then she angled them so that she would straighten out. She passed the ground with plenty space to spare. Some days she liked to get a bit closer, but she wasn’t doing it for the thrill today. She flew up high again, and repeated the action. Freefalling on her back just felt so much better than freefalling on her stomach.

Where was she? Oh yeah, friendship. Jax was a nice stallion. If what Applejack said was true, he was in pain yet again, and Rainbow Dash always protected her friends. She regretted not being able to help Jax herself, but she trusted Applejack. Applejack would do something, and if that didn’t work, Rainbow Dash would be ready on Monday to help. Jax was a tough guy, he could survive until then, if something really was wrong.

She straightened herself again. She better get to work. She had to set out rainclouds so that they would be ready for after the running of the leaves, which she also needed to be ready for.

Not that it was a problem. Rainbow Dash was always ready to run.

***

Jax woke up by himself. No crazy knocking today. Not that he had slept well, with Mr. Bear still out somewhere. He hadn’t been able to fall asleep, and when he finally did he kept waking up from nightmares. He felt really, really tired.

He forced himself out of bed and into the kitchen. Some warm tea would help him.

He looked into the fridge. Right, food was scarce. If Twilight took too long with figuring out the pen, he would have to get a job. Somewhere, somehow.

He took out a piece of cake and some apples, then started making the tea. He hadn’t been an avid tea drinker before he appeared here, but this stuff was good. He would have to find out where Rarity bought it.

After he had eaten, he made himself some more tea, the warm liquid dispersing his tiredness. It would seem like Applejack had let him sleep since it was the running of the leaves today. He had no idea what time it was now, what time the running of the leaves started, or exactly where. Somewhere in Whitetail Woods. Ah, he could always venture over to his neighbor and ask.

Wait, actually…

He took out the weather schedule. It said it would rain at 15.00, after the running of the leaves. Okay, so he knew when it ended at least. He looked out of one of his many windows, and saw pegasi putting up rainclouds in the distance. What time was it?

He groaned in frustration, letting his head drop to the table. “Aaaaav!” which was a bad idea. It didn’t hurt as much as he had expected, but still.

He lay like that for a while, thinking how he could find out anything. The place he had signed up at had had some information, but he couldn’t remember it. Even if he knew, how was he supposed to know what time it was now? Luna always seemed to know what time it is somehow.

He raised his head, drank the rest of his tea, and stood up. He took another apple, put on his shoes and made his way out. No use complaining when he could do something about it.

He found Big Mac in the field. The big red stallion was kicking trees, making apples fall down as he did. Not only that, but they fell perfectly into some baskets he had placed. Huh. Neat.

“Hey Big Mac.”

Big Mac nodded at him. Jax knew he could speak, but he preferred the ‘eyup’ and ‘nope’ replies he often used.

“You going to the running of the leaves?”

“Nope.”

“Oh. Do you know when it starts then?”

“Eyup. In an hour.”

“Oh, okay. Guess I’ll go and stretch or something. Thanks.” Jax said as he started to walk off.

“Ah think mah sister was planning to get ya after she was done with her chores.” Big Mac said before he got far.

“That was nice of her. I should probably go help her out then. Where is she?”

He pointed his hoof, in what Jax could only assume was the direction of Applejack.

“Alright thanks Bic Mac. Have a good one.”

***

“Hey AJ.” He approached the kicking mare with a wave.

“Well hello there sugarcube. Ah was planning on fetching ya after I was done here.” She kicked the tree, and once again apples fell directly into the baskets.

“Yeah I heard from Big Mac. I’m here to help.”

“Well that’s mighty sweet of ya. You know anything about bucking trees?”

“Nope. I don’t know anything about bucking in general.”

“Well… You don’t seem to have the right build for it, that’s for sure. Try kicking that there tree.” She pointed at a tree with empty baskets under it.

Jax took his position. Not too far away, not too close. He wasn’t very confident in his ability to kick apples off trees, but whatever. It was worth a try.

“Hiiiiiiya!” He screamed his battle cry as he kicked it with the underside of his foot. “aaaaaav.” He said as he made contact. Applejack chuckled beside him as he let his almost-numb foot down on the ground again. It could still support his weight, thankfully. Not a single apple fell down.

“Alright, so maybe bucking ain’t you’re thing. How about ya take these baskets and fill the cart for me? Ah only need a couple more trees anyhow, and we don’t want ya to get hurt before the race even starts.”

“Yeah, sounds reasonable.” He said through the pain. He went over and lifted one of the baskets filled with apples. It was heavy, but he could lift it without problems. “Where is this cart of yours then?”

“Over yonder.” She pointed behind some trees, and sure enough, when he went over he found an empty cart. He emptied the basket into the apple decorated cart.

“You know we have to be at the running of the leaves in an hour right?” He asked her as he went over for more baskets.

“Ah know, Ah just want to help Big Mac as much as Ah can.” She said as she bucked the last tree in the row. “All we need ta do now is fill the cart and roll it over to the barn. Ah appreciate the help by the way.”

“Oh it’s no problem. You helped me prepare for the race.”

Applejack chuckled. “All Ah did was to take ya with me for a run.”

“Pff. Then all I’m doing is filling a cart with apples.” He retorted as he lifted another basket.

“All right, Ah get it.” She chucked again. “You’re a good stallion, Jax.”

“Actually I’m not a stallion at all, but I can understand why you would be confused. It’s a common mistake.”

She started laughing now, almost dropping the basket she had just put on her back. She regained her balance and they started walking towards the cart. “Funny as well. Listen, fall is coming, and mah friends usually help out on the farm during the season, to prepare for winter and all that. Ah was wondering if ya wanted to help as well. Ya ain’t gonna get paid for it, but Ah can offer meals. And as many apples as ya can carry.” She dropped the apples into the cart, as did Jax.

“Getting up early to do physical labor? Sure why not. It’s not like I have other things lined up, and I want to get in form anyway. Wait… Are you saying that we’re friends?” Jax checked. It sounded like it, but he liked to be sure of stuff like this.

“Yeah, Ah would like for us to be friends, if ya don’t mind.” Applejack smiled at him.

“Sure… AJ” He answered with a smile of his own.

“Now, let’s hurry with this. Ah might’ve overestimated how fast ah could do this.”

“Right.”

***

They arrived late because Applejack had really underestimated how much there was. And she had thought she could do it alone.

Fortunately, the mayor had held a speech or something that they arrived to the end of.

“Hey Rainbow, Fluttershy, Twilight.” Jax nodded to each of the ponies as he took his place in the line of runners. “Pinkie and Rarity aren’t competing?”

“Hello Jax. No, Rarity says she has better things to do, and Pinkie is making cakes.” Twilight answered. She looked pretty tired. Jax could only imagine that she hadn’t heeded his advice and had stayed up late studying the pen.

“So, Rainbow Dash, ya ready to lose?” Applejack asked the rainbow manned pegasus.

“What? Oh, yeah, I’m not doing that this year. I’m gonna be running with Fluttershy the whole way.”

Jax noticed that Fluttershy blushed and looked down at the ground.

“Ah shucks. Ah was looking forward to a friendly competition. What about you Jax?”

“As I am right now, I think we both know you would win. Wanna run together Twilight?”

“Sure.” Twilight happily responded. Applejack looked a little downtrodden, but after she sighed she put on a determined expression. Looked like she was going to win the race. Did you even get anything by winning? He couldn’t remember there being any prizes.

“Are you sure you don’t want to run with Applejack?” Fluttershy asked Rainbow. “I’m not very fast…”

“I know, and of course I’m sure.” Rainbow simply said. Fluttershy looked at her with a smile. Jax couldn’t help but smile as well.

***

Luna held her head in her hooves. Being awake for several days and nights was getting to her. She could be awake for so much longer, but she wished to sleep so badly. Sleep was much better. It meant she did not have to hear that tartarus damned song.

‘Once did a pony who shone like the sun, look out on her kingdom and sigh

.’

She had been so happy when she was with Jax, the song all but a memory, and guilt only at the back of her mind, not singing to her at the forefront of it.

‘...So great was her reign, so brilliant her glory

that long was the shadow she cast

Which fell dark upon the sister she loved

and drew only darker as days and nights passed…’

She covered her eyes as tears started to seep through. She had been doing so well. She was using two hours each evening in night court, since nopony reserved any time after that, and when she was done with that she would discuss rules and regulations with the lawyers that had already answered her summons. They were graceful enough to accept the late hours without complaint, and were of course paid graciously for it. They had already planned some big changes.

‘…Soon did that pony take notice that others

did not give her sister her due

and neither had she loved her as she deserved

she watched as her sisters unhappiness grew…’

Her book was coming along well, every free moment she had was spent on writing it, and she was already at the fifteenth chapter.

But with writing about the past, came painful memories. She was done with writing the historical part, long done. What was left was her slow decent into darkness, into giving in.

‘

…But such is the way of the Limelight

it sweetly takes hold of the mind of its host…’

She had just written about the second to last time she had spoken with her sister before she became Nightmare Moon. A pony had come into her night court, the only one to come after weeks, demanding to see Celestia. He had raised her hope, only to crush it cruelly. ‘Even ponies that come during the night, during your time, would rather see your sister.’ The Limelight had whispered to her. Of course, at the time she had not realized it was anything but her own mind.

How dare he come to her court, to demand to see her sister? The Royal Canterlot Voice had been used on the pony, louder than she had ever used it before. Loud enough to wake her sister.

Celestia had come in, and had apologized to the rude pony, even promising to help with whatever it was he needed. Luna had not felt such anger before or since, at least not while she was still mostly in charge of herself. “Sister, I am the guardian of the night. Thou hath no right-“ She had said, sure that Celestia would not dare thread on her domain. She had been wrong.

“I hath every right, sister. If a pony hath need of me, I shall respond. Such is the duty of a Princess.” The anger inside of Luna had settled on a cold, burning hatred. For the first time ever, she had looked at her sister with more than jealousy, more than anger. That was the night that Celestia had stepped too far. One princess to rule the day, one princess to rule the night. Such had been their agreement, and so it had been for centuries.

Luna let the tears fall freely. It was no use trying to stop them. The hate, that burning, destructing hate she had felt for her beloved sister was enough for the Limelight to get a proper hold, and it only went downhill from there. Slowly, but surely, Luna lost more and more control.

‘…The years now before us

fearful and unknown

I never imagined

I’d face them on my own…’

She had almost destroyed everything, every living being on the planet, and for what? Because of what?! Because her sister wanted to help a pony in the middle of the night. Because she had been too weak to fight, to blind to see what was happening. She had turned against her own sister, leaving her to fend for herself for a thousand years… She had left her alone…

She quickly erected a soundproof barrier around her and screamed out all her frustration, sadness, and self-loathing. She screamed and screamed until she felt her strength leave her, and she fell down of her bed again. She cried quietly now, so she let the barrier fall. It had been a long while since she had felt like this. So hopelessly guilty that she wanted to give up on everything and just…

‘Because, this month and a half I’ve spent with you and the others has been some of the best time in my life. I’m not gonna let some scared ponies ruin that. Not by a long shot.’

Jax…

She sniffed. She could not help but wonder how angry he was with her for leaving like she did. Was he still going to hold on to that promise? She had not received any messages from him…

‘But don’t worry, I told you I was going to do something about it, and I will.’

So he had said but…

She saw Jax in front of her. His dark brown hair, his kind smile, his green eyes, filled with determination…

For a moment, she let all the doubt just wash away, as she imagined hugging him. She still remembered how it felt, the warm sensation that always made her enjoy it so much.

She dried off her tears, as the song stopped. For a long time, she just lay there, with the image of them hugging in her mind. She found enough strength to smile.

She imagined nuzzling him. She had been bold the day she had done that the first time, the memory of it did not fail to make her giddy. It was such a freeing feeling, to show him just a bit of what she felt for him. She doubted he understood exactly that that was what it meant for her, but the feeling had still been very pleasant.

She imagined kissing him. Not on the cheek, but on the mouth. If she had been a bit braver, she would already have done it. She could almost feel his lips on hers, soft and warm and just…

She bit her lower lip. It had been a long while since she had pleasured herself… perhaps if imaginary-Jax decided he wanted to scratch her…

Going from tears to pleasure. Jax had a peculiar effect on her.

Author's Note

My favorite part of this chapter is Rainbow Dash and Luna XD What's yours? ^^

Chapter 36

Jax was breathing heavily. He was way out of form. He let himself fall down on the grass. “So what you’re… *huff* saying is…” He took a deep breath, trying to steady himself. “You understand how it works?” He asked Twilight.
“Yes, now I just need to make a prototype and present it to Filthy Rich. He’s going to take over from there.” Twilight explained.
They had just finished the race. Of course Applejack was done way before them, him and Twilight having gone in a slow and steady pace, but they were still done before Fluttershy and Rainbow who still weren’t even in sight.
“Here ya go, sugarcube.” Applejack came over with a big wooden mug of water. “They give them out over there.” She said and pointed when she noticed Jax inquisitive look.
“Yeah, no, I was wondering about why it was a wooden mug, but whatever. Thanks.” He took the mug and drank the sweet sweet relief. “Ahh, much better.”
His clothes were still sweaty and he was itchy random places, but the water helped.
“So… Filthy Rich, eh? Sounds like a money-grabber.”
“Don’t let the name fool ya, Mr. Rich has been buyin’ from Sweet Apple Acres for a looong time. He’s alright in my book.” Applejack informed him.
“Alright, if he has your seal of approval I can’t really say much.” Jax didn’t really think any pony would try to cheat one of the princesses, but if he had been the one to choose someone, it wouldn’t have been someone called Filthy Rich.
It was really nice of Twilight to do this for him. Ponies were nice. He liked ponies, much better than humans… Except Max and Lizza of course. He missed those two.
…
Throwing himself into melancholy wasn’t a good idea, he knew that. He quickly tried diverging his thoughts from the track they were taking.
Luna… wasn’t there with him. She left him without saying goodbye. He could still remember her slow turning towards him, the speech he had prepared for her, the sudden teleportation.
…
Fuck he was bad at that.
“Something wrong?” Twilight looked at him with worry clear in her eyes.
“What? No, it’s nothing. I just… It’s nothing.” She didn’t look very convinced.
“Jax…”
“Hey, there’s Fluttershy and Rainbow! Looks like they’re the last.” He changed the subject. Twilight took the hint and didn’t ask again, but she didn’t look happy about it. Applejack also gave him a look.
Fluttershy looked like she was ready to lie down and die, while Rainbow, who looked as energetic as always, was cheering her on from right behind her.
“You can do it Fluttershy, look the finish line is right there, just a few more steps, that’s it, come on.” She urged her on, and it seemed to be working, ‘cause Fluttershy kept running.
“I’ll go get some water for her.” Twilight told them. Jax agreed that she looked like she needed it.
Applejack’s smile turned into surprise as Fluttershy made it over the finish line, with Rainbow behind her.
“Did… did Rainbow Dash just finish in last place?” She asked with disbelief.
“Looks like it.”
Applejack started laughing. “Ah never thought Ah’d see the day. She really has changed.”
Jax looked at her, looked at Rainbow Dash, and back at her. “She has?”
“Yeah. Was a time where Rainbow Dash wouldn’t place last for anythin’ in the world. Now it’s like she didn’t even notice.”
He looked over at Rainbow Dash again, who was placing Fluttershy on her back with the help of Twilight, and making her way over.
“I think there’s a lot that Rainbow Dash would do for her friends.” He smiled at Applejack who simply nodded. “Hey Fluttershy, congratulations on finishing.”
He said when they were close enough to hear. Fluttershy just gave him a tired smile, one that looked a bit proud nonetheless.
Rainbow Dash looked proud as hell, like she just won first place. “Yeah, isn’t it awesome? I told her she could do it, and she did.” She sounded very excited.
Fluttershy nuzzled deeper into Rainbow Dash in her embarrassment. It looked like she was trying to hide in her rainbow-colored mane. “I couldn’t have done it without you Rainbow Dash.” She said meekly.
“Yeah, I am pretty awesome.” Rainbow Dash was not one to shrug off acknowledgement.
She laid down Fluttershy gently next to Jax. Just then a familiar tiny pony came over, looking every kind of defeated. What was her name again? Scooterloo?
“Hey squirt. What’s up?” Rainbow Dash asked cheerfully, oblivious to the young pony’s mood.
“You lost…” The kid looked like her whole world had crashed around her. “Not just second or third place… Last place.” Jax saw the first tears fall as she turned around and ran.
“I… Scootaloo! Wait!” Rainbow called out to her fan, confusion clear on her face.
“Oh… I’m sorry, this is my fault. If you didn’t-“ Fluttershy started saying, ears folded.
“No!” Rainbow said with conviction. Her stance softened at Fluttershy’s flinch. She gently laid a hoof on her withers and smiled. “This is nopony’s fault. I’ll have a talk with the squirt. Everything will be fine, you’ll see. I’ll be back, and we can all go to Sugarcube Corner for a victory milkshake.”
“A-alright.” Fluttershy meekly replied.
Rainbow gave her one last smile, before she beat her wings, and dashed in the direction Scootaloo had disappeared to.
…
“I… guess we’re waiting here then.” Jax said in the silence.

***

Rainbow Dash scouted the ground for her number one fan. When she found her running towards the Everfree Forest, she swept down and caught her between her forelegs. She resisted at first, but stopped when Rainbow flew upwards again.
She could feel Scootaloo shaking in her grasp, whether it was from the crying, or from fear of suddenly being airborne, Rainbow didn’t know. She tightened her grip on the filly, just in case.
When she found a suitable cloud that wasn’t a raincloud, she placed Scootaloo on it.
Scootaloo looked over the edge nervously, testing the cloud under her hooves. “What’s wrong? Never been on a cloud before?” Rainbow asked. She was a bit disappointed in the filly, and it must have leaked into her voice, because Scootaloo flinched.
“N-no. N-not as far as I remember.”
That had been a stupid question. Scootaloo was grounded, with nopony to take her up… “I never did take you out flying before, did I?” She waved it off with a hoof. They could discuss that another time. “Listen, what was that all about? Everypony was happy-“
“You were happy to be in last place?!” Scootaloo asked, clearly surprised. The tear stains were still visible, even when she had stopped crying.
“I was happy to help a friend gain some confidence.” Her voice was a little angrier then she meant for it to be.
“But you’re Rainbow Dash! You’re the best! I had a bet Apple Bloom that you would win over her sister, and now I owe her ten bits. I don’t have ten bits!”
Rainbow Dash massaged her temples. “Alright, first of all, don’t bet money you don’t have. Second of all, there are things better than winning.”
Scootaloo gasped loudly. “But… but you- you’re the fastest pony in the world, and you lost to Fluttershy. Fluttershy! That’s not not winning, that’s…” Scootaloo scrounged up her muzzle, looking for the words.
Rainbow Dash managed to control herself at the words and not angrily put her hoof down. You never know how stable these kinds of clouds were.
She took a couple of deep breaths.
“That’s even worse than losing!” Scootaloo finally decided.
“Alright that’s enough!” She angrily stomped on the cloud, that shook dangerously, but held together by some miracle. “Fluttershy isn’t fast no matter how you look at it, but you know what?! I. Don’t. Care! If you, or anypony else for that matter, think that there’s something wrong with coming in behind Fluttershy you can go-“ She stopped abruptly, remembering who she was talking to. Scootaloo looked at her with shock… and a bit of fear. Rainbow Dash had never raised her voice at her before, but defending Fluttershy was something she had done for a long time. It was almost habit by now. She took some more deep breaths. She could do this, a little sister to sister talk, to make the squirt see it from her side.
“Listen, Scoots.” She started again, voice a bit softer, like Fluttershy had taught her. She laid down so they were on the same level. “Fluttershy is my friend. For ponies like you and me, there is nothing in this world more important than friends. If being a winner means leaving my friends behind, then I don’t want to be a winner.” Scootaloo still looked uncertain, so she decided to try something else. “Alright, what if… What if you were in a race, and you convinced Sweetie Bell to run, even though she didn’t want to. When the race starts, you realize that all the fastest runners are actually slower than you, and you can win. Do you leave Sweetie Bell behind even though you were the one who told her to come? Do you simply break the trust she had in you?”
“Well…” Scootaloo’s eyes darted back and forth. She closed her eyes and sighed. Then she looked back at Rainbow Dash with a certainty that was welcome. “No. I wouldn’t leave her behind.”
“Good.” Rainbow gave a satisfied nod. Then she took in Scootaloo in a hug. “Then don’t expect me to.”
For a while, they just sat like that, embracing each other, until Scootaloo finally spoke with a small voice. “I… I’m sorry.”
“It’s cool.” Rainbow looked down at her number one fan. She felt sorry for the orphan. Rainbow knew how it was to be alone most of the time, but at least her dad had been there once in a while. Scootaloo didn’t even have as little as that. “Hey, I’ll give you ten bits, and we can go give them to Apple Bloom. Then you can join us in Sugarcube Corner for a victory milkshake. Wait here, I’ll just get my saddlebag.”
She let go of Scootaloo and was just about to jump off when Scootaloo spoke again. “Wait! Can… can I come with you? I’ve never been in your house before…”
“Sure. Jump up.” She lowered down so that Scootaloo could climb up. Scootaloo looked like hearthwarming had come early and she received the greatest gift in the world.

***

It poured down by the time they finally made it to Sugarcube Corner. It didn’t make much difference for Jax, who had been all sweaty anyway, but Scootaloo, who had joined them, seemed to dislike being drenched.
“Hey Dashie, Jaxie, AJ, Twi, Fluttershy, and Scootaloo! What can I help you with? Oh, are you here for your victory milkshakes?!” Pinkie sounded excited, as she usually was.
“Hey Pinkie. Yeah, first rounds on me.” Rainbow Dash declared to Jax’ joy.
“Okie dokie lokie!”
The rest of the day was spent in the good company of his friends.

***

Luna awoke with disdain. Her wing was lain protectively over her blanket, probably by habit.
She had actually fallen asleep after… Well it had only been a couple of hours, but it was still more than she had gotten combined after she had left Jax.
She still had a little time before her court. She levitated the last page of her book and skimmed it, before levitating some more parchment over. She could do this. She just… she had to do it. If she didn’t do something, her thoughts would just drift to Jax and how she had left him.
She started levitating every object in her room. She still needed to train her multitasking.

***

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK
Once again, Jax was awoken by knocking. He groaned and turned. No way was he waking at sunrise on a Sunday. No. Nope. Not happening.
For a while nothing happened, but just as he was drifting off again…
KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK
Why was she such a crazy knocker? “Nobody’s home! Go away!” He shouted from his warm bed. Which he wasn’t leaving, under no circumstances.
To his horror he heard the door open up. He groaned again and buried himself under his blanket. If he ignored them, they might go away.
“Oh, uhm, are you sure we can just walk in Applejack? He told us to go away…” The meek voice of Fluttershy blended with hooves on wood.
“It’s fine sugarcube, he said he would help on the farm. Ah think he just needs a reminder.” Applejack said from the doorway to his bedroom.
Jax groaned. He had said that, yes, but he thought he could at least relax on Sunday.
He pulled the blanket away and looked at Applejack with tired eyes. “… Right. Let me just get clothes on.” He had promised after all. As reluctant as he was to leave his warm bed, he wasn’t going to leave Applejack hanging.
“That’s the spirit.” She told him with a smile.
“Oh, isn’t Mr. Bear here? How are you two doing so far?” Fluttershy asked.
“No, he’s been off on some kind of adventure for a couple of days. We’re doing fine though, he’s a real sweetheart just as you said.” Jax answered as he got his clothes on.
“That’s good to hear.” Fluttershy sighed in relief. “I brought some things for him. You can… you can pay me back when you get the bits.” She sounded nervous for some reason.
“Sure thing Fluttershy. Just put it on the table.” She seemed to relax at his response. He went over to the bathroom to wash himself up. “Is there breakfast at your place, AJ?”
“Yeup. You better hurry before it’s all gone.” She said with a teasing tone.

***

Jax stood in the field with Applejack. They had eaten breakfast moments before, an amazing amount of it was apple flavored. Fluttershy, Pinkie, Twilight, Spike, and even Rarity was there. Rainbow had apparently been busy with her job on the weather team.
The others apparently already knew what to do on the farm, so they went about doing it. Jax was new so he got the rundown - or so he thought.
“Alright sugarcube… wait here.” She ran off somewhere, and was back with Big Mac before he could question what was going on. She placed, yes placed, Big Mac a few steps away. It looked like Big Mac was more confused than him, and who could blame him?
“Alright… now, just tell Big Mac all your worries while you buck trees.” Applejack told him.
“What? But I thought we established…” Aaaand she was gone. “…That I can’t buck trees…” He looked at her disappearing form, at the tree he stood beside, then at Big Mac, who was also looking at him.
“You know what this is about?”
“Nope.”
“… Alright. You doing well?” He didn’t really know what to do or say. He didn’t want to kick the tree, seeing how it didn’t go very well last time.
“Yeup.”
“That’s good… How about you buck the trees and I carry the baskets over to the cart?”
“Yeup.” Big Mac went over to the tree he was standing by and kicked it.

***

Big Mac was easy to work with. Jax didn’t have to say a single thing and he didn’t seem to mind at the slightest. Jax got into the rhythm: Pick up full baskets, carry them over to the cart, empty into cart, repeat. When the cart was full, he pushed it back to the barn. It was all hard work. By the time they were done with that part of the orchard, he was sweaty, his back hurt, his hands hurt, his arms- well a lot of pain all over. He was tired as well.
He was on his way back to Big Mac, when he noticed Applejack was talking with him. She looked kind of aggravated. He hid behind a tree, hoping he could find out what the thing earlier had been about.
“What do ya mean he didn’t tell ya anythin’?”
“Well, he didn’t say much. He asked if Ah was doin’ well, and then we went ta work.” Big Mac told his sister.
Applejack looked at her brother with her mouth open. “And ya didn’t ask him how he was doin’?”
Big Mac shrugged. “Nope.”
Applejack facepalmed. “Ah should’ve known… just because Ah talk with ya doesn’t mean he will.”
“Yeup.” Big Mac agreed.
“Alright… let’s go get some grub. Ah’ll try to talk with the girls about it.”
Jax looked at them as they walked back to the house. What was Applejack trying precisely? To get him to talk with Big Mac? Hmmm…
“SOUPS ON, EVERYPONY!” He could use some food. The sun was nearing the horizon. Probably only one or two hours left of sunshine.

***

Jax ate the rest of the cake he had in his fridge. The dinner at Applejack’s place had been good, but he could always eat some cake.
He looked at the items Fluttershy had left behind. Some special kind of shampoo, a sturdy looking brush… a tennis ball. Jax threw the ball at the wall and caught it when it bounced back. Neat. Was he supposed to play fetch with his bear or something? That would be pretty cool.
He put the stuff where he thought they belonged. He also finally moved the pile of letters from the table to one of the empty drawers.
Just as he sat down again, there was a knock on the door. He got up with a groan, his aching body complaining about… well, moving in general. When he went to open, he was met by Lyra and a familiar looking earth pony, with Fluttershy standing shyly behind them, by herself. The earth pony was gray, with a black mane and a treble cleft as her mark. There was something familiar about that mark…
“Hey Jax.” Lyra said cheerfully.
“Hey Lyra, Fluttershy, and…”
“Hello Mr. Jax. My name is Octavia Melody.” She said with an English accent. Of course since England didn’t exist here… Whatever.
Suddenly his memory jolted, and he snapped his fingers in recognition. “Octavia! You’re the one who played the cello at my ‘Welcome to Ponyville’ party, together with that dj. That was awesome.” He smiled at her. She looked a bit nervous.
“Yes… Well, thank you, it is always nice to find ponies who appreciate your work.”
“Octavia has a favor to ask.” Lyra butted in, oblivious to the glare she received from Octavia.
“I was getting to that, Lyra.” She focused on Jax again and cleared her throat. “My friend Vinyl, the dj, really liked the song you sang at your party. She mentioned it reminded her of her home, and with her birthday coming up, I thought who better to sing at her party than you?”
“Oh… uhm, I’m not a singer…” He answered, while scratching his arm and looking to the side.
“It is true that you did seem… a bit rough around the edges, but I would really appreciate it if you could do it. Vinyl liked it, and it’s her party. I’m going to play a piece as well, but I know she would much rather prefer something… well, something like what you sang. I will pay you, of course.”
“Come on, Jax. It will be great!” Lyra tried.
“I don’t know guys…” He tried not to look at their expectant faces. He really wasn’t comfortable with this.
“Uhmm… I don’t mean to butt in…” Fluttershy started with her soft voice. “but I couldn’t help but overhear… Jax, you did seem to enjoy yourself up on the scene as far as I remember, once you started singing.”
“Yeah… but I was also tipsy and stuff… It made it easier…” He was looking to the side, but looked at Fluttershy when she giggled.
“I was like that once as well. I just couldn’t get myself to perform in front of everypony, even though I loved singing. One day I learned that I was being silly. If I love singing, then I can do it in front of everypony as well. That’s why I joined the Pony Tones-“
“Wait, you’re in a band?!” Jax asked surprised. He had not seen that coming.
“Well, yeah, I mean-“
“That’s amazing!” He looked at her with renewed respect. Fluttershy, the soft-spoken pegasus, was singing in a band. Alright, if she could do it, then he could as well.
“When is the party?” He asked Octavia.
“In… in four days” She was obviously surprised at his sudden determination.
“Alright, I’ll do it. But only one song, okay?”
A smile spread on Octavia’s face, and her eyes shone with happiness. “That will suffice, I believe. Thank you very much, Mr. Jax.” She extended her hoof.
“Please, just Jax.” He said as he took her hoof and gave it a gentle shake. “I’ll try to pick a song to sing then. See you in four days.”
As they went away, Lyra turned to Octavia. “See? I told you he was nice.” It made Jax smile.
He turned towards Fluttershy, who still stood there. “And what can I help you with?”
“Can I… come in?” She sounded a bit unsure, and hid a bit behind her pink mane.
“Sure.” He was tired, but he made room for her and they went into the living room/kitchen. “Tea? I can’t really offer anything else at the moment. Well apples, I have lots of those.”
“Yes, tea please.” She sat down in a chair.
He started heating the water, and prepared the cups.
Silence reigned while the water heated. Jax didn’t know what to say, and he was too tired to think of something. He just kind of looked at her, thinking back to the time she had saved his life. He had just kind of accepted that he was going to die, then a yellow pegasus suddenly appears and talks to him… it had been kind of surrealistic. When he woke up he was in a small bed, his wounds had been treated, and he felt much better. This little, shy, soft-spoken mare had saved his life, and he was going to repay the favor, if nothing else, then by getting her together with Rainbow Dash somehow.
“If you wanted to talk with me, then why didn’t you come with me when I left the farm?” He started. He didn’t really care, but she seemed uncomfortable with him just staring at her.
“Oh… Applejack talked with us… about you. After you left.”
He turned around and started pouring the boiling water into the cups. “Oh really? What did she say?”
“Oh we weren’t saying anything bad about you, she just… she just said you might be a little more sad than you let on. So I…” She just kind of trailed off.
“You wanted to check up on me?” He finished, handing her the tea.
“Yes. I hope you don’t mind. You’re probably tired after all the work on the farm.” He couldn’t really argue with that, but he didn’t feel like turning her away was the right thing to do… even if he didn’t want to hear what she was going to say. They were all taking it way out of proportion.
“It’s… fine. I’m fine. Everything’s fine.” He might have sounded a bit grumpy. Fluttershy hid a bit more in her mane.
“I…” Suddenly she raised her head and looked him dead in the eye. “I don’t believe you.” He looked back, even though he was a little taken aback. They held eye-contact for a couple of seconds, the tension building, before she looked down at the table again and he could breathe again. “but I can understand if you don’t want to talk with me about it.”
The sentence sounded to him like she was belittling herself, but the soft kind of smile she had, said otherwise. He couldn’t argue against it either, since he didn’t really want to talk to anybody about it.
Just then, the door opened and Mr. Bear came in. He nonchalantly closed the door after himself.
Jax looked at him in shock. It looked like he had traveled through mud for days and days, his entire lower half covered in the stuff. The upper half looked like it somehow attracted all manners of random forest things to be intertwined with the fur. Twigs and leaves, yes, but also stones, bugs, and something that looked like half a berry bush.
“Oh, is that a fish for Jax you have there, Mr. Bear?” Fluttershy asked the dirty bear.
“Rawr.” Came the dampened answer. He did indeed have a fish in his mouth, a big one.
“Oh, but you are spreading mud on the floor. Let’s get the fish into the fridge so we can give you a nice bath.” Fluttershy smiled kindly at the bear, who roared happily. She really did have a way with animals. Jax finally got himself together and closed his mouth.
The rest of the day was spent cleaning a dirty bear, and the dirty footprints he had left behind on the floor. Fluttershy, being the big sweetheart that she was, helped with everything, taking the chance to teach Jax a little more about taking care of a bear.

***

Jax woke up by Mr. Bear poking him with his snout. He was happy to be free of the nightmare he was having, they seemed to get worse, but he was still groggy as hell. “Whacha need?” His voice was even raspy.
“Rawr?” Mr. Bear indicated the window above the bed. The curtains were drawn… was someone out there?
Jax peeked out, but could only see the apple orchard. Suddenly understanding dawned. It was sunrise. He needed to help Applejack again today. He really needed an alarm.
He forced himself out of the bed. He had signed up for this himself, no use complaining about it now.
He made it out to the farm, enjoying the sight of the sunrise and the deep red color it brought with it.
It was… Moonday.

Watch the skies on Moonday.

So she had written… he wondered what she was planning. He moved his hand up to his aching heart. Why did it hurt so much to think about her?
He shook his head. He would see when it was time.
“Good morning, Jax.” Rarity’s sophisticated voice called out to him.
“Good morning, Rarity. You know, some people would be surprised to see you helping out at a farm.”
“Yes, well, while it may not be favorite pastime, Applejack needs my help. Let it not be said that Rarity does not help her friends.” She said with pride.
Jax chuckled. “It’s the last thing I would say, that’s for sure.”
“Oh, but darling, I have good news. With your and Luna’s article in the Canterlot Informant, rumors are finally calming down, even in Canterlot. Please do try to be on your best behavior… Well, not that you aren’t normally behaving well, you are, but while the fire may be doused, it is not out, and a single spark can reset the flame.” Rarity warned him.
“It’s funny how rumors are compared to fire.” He laughed. “Well, I’ll be even more careful than normal, but I seriously don’t know how I can be any less threatening. Ponies just take things way out of proportion.”
“Oh, some ponies are better than others. The ponies in Canterlot that kept spreading new rumors about you… If I could just get my hooves on them…” She said with disdain.
“Yeah, but there needs to be someone willing to listen for rumors to work.” He countered.
“Yes, well, hopefully that will be over now.” She said, giving him a sideways glance. “So… darling…” Oh God… “How are you doing?”
He sighed. “Everything’s fine. Just as I’ve told Twilight and Fluttershy.” He reminded himself that they were just worried about him. They were being their usual nice selves. He shouldn’t complain.
“Well… If you say so darling.” Another one that didn’t believe him.
Luckily they were almost at the farm, and she didn’t say anything else about it.

***

The day was just as rough as the last one. Applejack paired him with Big Mac again, and this time he did ask how Jax was doing, but after telling him he was fine, not much was said.
They continued working until the sun was low on the horizon, with only a couple of breaks and lunch. It was hard work, but Jax didn’t mind. He could manage, and he got food out of it.
They entered the farmhouse to find an extra pony at the table. “Rainbow Dash?”
“Hey Jax!” She answered happily. “Sorry I’m late, I had to work overtime because somepony asked me to clear the night sky.”
“Well I hope it wasn’t too much trouble. I really appreciate it though. You’re pretty goddamn awesome, Rainbow.”
“Yeah… I am.” She stated with satisfaction. It was clear that she liked the attention, so Jax decided to put it on thick. She deserved it after all.
“No, no, I mean it. It’s like the room just got twenty percent cooler just because you’re here with us.”
“Sugarcube, the last thing Rainbow needs is a bigger ego.” Applejack interfered.
“Hey! It’s not having a big ego if it’s true” She shot back, even sticking out her tongue at Applejack. They all laughed at that.
“Alright, alright. Settle down y’all. Ah’ll let ya have that one Rainbow.” Jax and Big Mac took their seats in the meanwhile. “Ah just wanted to take this time to tell y’all that we really appreciate the help. We’re doin’ so well that Big Mac and I can carry on by ourselves in a weeks’ time.”
General cheers resounded from the table.
“To friendship! May it overcome all obstacles!” Twilight shouted with her mug raised. It was a little… weird, cheering to friendship, but at the same time kind of fun.
“To friendship!” They all cheered. Jax had been afraid that they were going to ask about him again, but it seemed like everyone was fine enjoying the atmosphere.
They made it all the way through dinner and desert, before Rainbow of all ponies finally took it upon herself to breach the subject. Well, after she noticed Applejack’s gesturing that is, which was after Jax, who was halfway to the door by then. He could see where this was going.
“So, Jax.” She started. He stopped, but didn’t look back. “How are- hey come back!”
Jax ran out of that door faster than a cat on fire. He didn’t make it very far though, only just past the first trees of the sunset illuminated landscape, before a mare landed before him. It was Rainbow Dash after all.
“Why are you running?” She asked, her voice laced with confusion. He could hear the others running out as well.
“Oh God! I don’t want to hear that question again! I’m fine! Okay? Everything is fine. Yes, Luna left me after over a month of being together non-stop, and yes, it hurt like hell when she… when she teleported away, and yes, I cried like a bitch just because I saw the stars that one night, but… I… I’m…” Rainbow Dash was looking at him with apprehension now. He realized she must be confused by the tears running freely from his eyes. When did that happen?
“You’re not fine.” Rainbow said firmly. She took a step forward and raised herself on her back legs, placing her front hooves on his chest. “And that’s okay. It’s okay to cry now and again. It’s okay to complain to your friends. Friends are awesome Jax, they are there for you when you’re happy… and they will listen to you when you’re sad. When you try to take on everything by yourself… well, why do you think we’re all out here on the farm, helping Applejack?”
Jax felt… like he could really use a hug. He lowered himself, and embraced the soft pony in front of him. She returned the gesture instantly.
“She’s right, you know. We all knew you weren’t fine, and we tried to help in our own way, but you just didn’t want to open up to any of us.” Twilight said from behind him. “I was a little scared that you didn’t see us as friends…”
“I do…” He tried to control his sobbing. “I do Twilight. It’s just hard for me to talk about stuff that bothers me. I’ve been a little miserable since Luna left, even though I know she probably had some kind of reason to just… to not say goodbye. It hurt. And I just walk around now, trying to ignore the fact that she’s not by my side. It’s hard, y’know? Harder than I ever thought it could be… I’ve never felt this way before. I dunno what to do…”
“How about we start with a group hug?!” Pinkie suggested. It came out of the blue, Jax couldn’t help but chortle. He didn’t know himself how he felt about the idea, but apparently the others agreed. He was soon hugged by ponies from all sides. It felt… really good actually. Kind of warm and cozy, like being draped by Luna’s wing again. The rest of the tears were shed with a smile on his face.
“… Shouldn’t the stars be out by now? And where’s the moon?” Twilight asked from his back where she had chosen to hug him. He looked up, and sure enough, neither stars nor the moon had come out. It was just… dark. They all looked at the lack of anything on the sky. Jax remembered Luna’s note… what was she planning?
Then it started. Slowly at first, with one or two shooting stars showing themselves, then more and more started shooting, until it was like the entire sky was covered by a meteor shower.
There were no words to describe how beautiful it was. The entire night sky, filled with shooting stars. If he hadn’t already been crying, Jax might have started right then out of appreciation of the beauty he was witnessing.
Twilight seemed to share his opinion, having to dry a tear or two, while Rainbow Dash just looked awestruck. They were all watching the show with wonder in their eyes.
Jax let himself fall backwards, so he could watch without straining his neck. Thankfully, Twilight got out just in time.
He didn’t know what to say. Maybe he didn’t need to say anything at all. Rainbow Dash took a spot beside him in the same position, and others followed their example. Time seemed to be a distant memory, as Jax just let himself be caught in the moment. He had never seen a meteor shower, but he had a feeling it paled in comparison. It was simply… amazing.
He had no idea how much time passed with them just lying there, it could have been half the night for all he knew, but less and less stars seemed to be shooting. Then, some of them started gathering, making up a human, filling half the sky. He was standing up, facing stars that gathered into… an alicorn. They were way more detailed than last time he had done this with Luna. Had she been practicing? When they started moving, he noticed that the ‘animation’ was way better than last time as well.
The alicorn, who seemed to have a starry mane and tail, ran across the sky and threw herself at the human, who caught her and held her close.
Jax started laughing, while he cried. It was beautiful, it was crazy, it made him question if her reputation wouldn’t have been better preserved if she had stayed with him… and it made him love her even more.
Applejack looked at him with concern. “You alright there, partner?”
“Yes.” He answered honestly. “I really am.”

***

Finally… He was finally there. The cursed forest lay behind him, and he stared at rows upon rows of apple trees. Now… he just had to choose his first target…

Author's Note

Holy potato, guys, some of this was hard for me to write.
Alright, so next chapter, things will go down! This took way longer than I planned... Ah well. 130.000 words in is fine as well...
Also, look at that! over 170 likes... we're nearing the 200 mark guys XD what? these kinds of things are the only reward I get for writing this thing XD that and your sweet sweet comments :3 Especially yours, Dj7291993 ;) thanks for all the comments ;)

Chapter 37 - Enter King Sombra.

Luna panted hard. She had done it. She had made a show that was worthy. It had been flawless, but it had taken so much out of her. She had a humongous headache that kept pounding in her skull.

She tripped her way over to her bed. There would be no duties today. She needed to inform her guard, so they could inform ponies that night court was cancelled tonight and the lawyers that she would not be able to make it. She was too exhausted to deal with anything at the moment.

There was a knock on the door, and it was opened before she could tell them to go away. Celestia was so rude sometimes.

“That was an impressive show, Lulu. It has been a long time since I’ve seen you do something as impressive as that. I especially liked the ending with the hug. You’ve really improved on the whole… what did you call it? ‘Animation?’”

Luna smiled at how opposite it was that Celestia was the one to be uncertain about a word. “That is correct, Tia. Thank you, but I have a headache now and I would like to-“ She groaned, clutching her head in her hooves. “-relax until it passes.”

“Of course, I’ll tell the guards to cancel your appointments. Are you sure you would not like your own secretary? I could easily arrange for somepony to-“

“Thank you Tia. My guards will do the job for now. I am not yet so involved in politics that I need a clerk of my own.”

“Alright then. If you change your mind…” She stood beside Luna’s bed for a moment longer. “You know, that little animation at the end is going to enforce the rumors that you and Jax are a pair…”

“Let them talk.” Luna simply said. She was in no condition for jokes and teasing with a headache like that.

“Oh, you’re no fun Luna. I do hope it will become more than rumors though. You could use a special somepony.”

“I suppose. Is it weird that I have never had one before? I had hundreds of years before my… banishment, after all.” She messaged her skull, trying to ease her headache.

“You always were strict with your suitors. As far as I remember, you had plenty.” Celestia said thoughtfully.

“I remember now. I never thought they were as good as yours, and never as many. In the end, they stopped coming all together….” She frowned. One of the first signs of her jealousy.

“Oh Lulu.” Celestia entered her bed and laid down beside her, putting a wing over her in the process. She charged her horn, and laid it at the base of Luna’s. Luna’s pain started to ease up and she sighed in relief. “If it makes you feel better, I haven’t accepted any suitors since your banishment. I thought I didn’t deserve to be happy.”

“Tia….” She frowned at her sister.

“Those first couple of years after… after you were gone, happiness was the last thing on my mind. I focused completely on Equestria, setting everything personal on second row. It was only after decades of concerned subjects tried to convince me to relax a little when I started enjoying the small things again. Tea and cake became part of the routine.”

“No wonder you are so…“ Celestia gave her a warning glare. “…Well-rounded.”

A moment of silence passed, before the room was filled with their laughter. “I’ll have you know that this well-rounded flank has caught the attention of countless ponies, stallions and mares alike!” Celestia said between laughs.

“Yeah, because when you stand in front of them, it practically takes up their entire view!” Luna retorted, which made Celestia laugh harder. If one of their subjects heard and saw them now, they would probably be baffled. This was a side of the princesses that only few saw.

Celestia managed to gain some control of herself. “You better hope I don’t decide to stand in front Jax then, I’m sure he would enjoy the view.” She smiled coyly at Luna.

She knew that Celestia would never try to steal Jax from her, but the thought of Jax falling for her sister sent chills down her spine. “I will have you know that I do not even need to stand in front of him, for him to look at my flank.” She stuck out her tongue at her sister. She hoped to the stars that Jax would never look at Celestia like that.

“Really? Maybe I should get Discord to bring another human over then. One I can have for myself.” She joked. “They do seem like interesting creatures.”

“I do not know if going that far is necessary, but I definitely think that you should find a new mate.” Luna informed her. “It is high time both us find love. We cannot let the Princess of Love have all the fun.”

“I don’t think anypony calls their special somepony their mate anymore Luna. I do agree however… I don’t have anypony in sight though.”

“Have you considered Chipped Armor? It would not be the first time a princess has fallen for the captain of the guard.”

“While I do appreciate his loyalty, I need somepony who doesn’t fall to his or her knees the second they see me.”

“They could learn.” Luna suggested. She knew there were not many ponies that would not kneel or at least bow to her sister. “Or you could try somepony from a different country. A nurse in Ponyville was married to a griffon. Maybe that is something for you.”

Celestia laughed silently, before hugging Luna tightly. “I missed you, Lulu. Please don’t leave me again.”

“…I will not, sister.” She nuzzled deeper into Celestia’s fur, hoping that she could keep her promise.

***

Mr. Bear woke him up again. It was nice to have somebody to wake him up, since it was near impossible for him to wake up by himself at dawn. Who wakes up at dawn anyway? Crazy people, that’s who.

Jax sighed. Did he just call himself crazy? He begrudgingly sat up. “I’mup... I’m up” He told the bear, who stopped poking him. “Thank you. Hey, wanna go play fetch after I’m done at the farm?”

“Rawr!” Mr. Bear sounded excited, which probably meant yes.

Jax started putting his clothes on. He felt… better. Lighter somehow. More at ease. Telling friends about his problems really did help. Maybe he should get Luna involved. Tell her about his past… his mom, his brother… how he had failed them.

…

He really should stop bringing himself down like that.

He looked over at the half finished letter on the table, addressed to Luna. He could finish it after work.

“Alright, cool. Anyway, I’m off. Have fun with… whatever it is you do when I’m not here.”

“Rawr.”

He gave Mr. Bear one last scratch behind the ears and was off. Since he was early, he decided to go for a walk. He entertained himself by thinking of which song he was going to sing to Vinyl’s party. The song she had liked was by Rise Against, but which part had she liked? The lyrics, the beat, the tempo? Should he sing another song by Rise Against, or should he choose a different band? He quickly dismissed all songs that required him to growl or scream, since he couldn’t do any of those. Hmmm…

He had been following the treeline of the Everfree, but decided he had spent enough time walking, and made his way into the orchard. He didn’t get far into it, before a feeling started to build up… something was wrong, but what? It was something about the smell. It smelled like apples and trees because, well, it was an apple orchard, but there was this undercurrent of… something. Rot? Did they have a compost or something out here?

He spotted Big Mac by one of the trees nearby. Good, he could ask him.

When he got nearer, he noticed that Big Mac wasn’t alone. Rainbow Dash’ tiny fan was there. Scootaloo, that was her name. She was backed up against a tree for some reason. Odd.

“W-w-why are y-you looking at me like t-that?” She stammered… wait, what was going on?

The warning bells turned into a full out alarm when Big Mac lunged himself forward. Scootaloo just managed to jump to the side in time and started running towards Jax’ right. Jax saw the hoof prints Big Mac had left in the bark… What was going on?! He had never seen Big Mac angry, much less murderous.

Big Mac ran after Scootaloo, who was running with all her might. Jax decided that now was a time to act, and started running full speed parallel with them. He wanted to make a straight line but there were trees in the way.

He looked over at Scootaloo looking behind her with fear in her eyes, as Big Mac came closer and closer. Trees obscured his view for a couple of seconds. What he saw when he could see again chilled him to the bone. Big Mac had already caught her, and was now on top, apparently chocking her.

Jax changed directions instantly, almost tripping because of the speed. He made a bee line straight towards Big Mac’s side with enough speed to knock a normal pony the fuck away. This wasn’t a normal pony however, and he only barely got knocked over. Jax scrambled back onto his feet and grabbed Scootaloo before speeding off towards the farm. He had a few seconds head start, but there was no doubt in his mind that Big Mac was faster than him. He looked down at the confused filly in his arms. Hell if he was going to let her die.

“W-what is… What’s going on?! Why is Big Mac…” Scootaloo looked as confused as Jax felt. He could tell that she was on the verge of tears.

“I don’t know. Listen, I need you to be brave right now.” He used short sentences to save breath and to make sure she understood. He could hear Big Mac coming towards them already. “I’m going to throw you in a bit. I need you to fly over to the farmhouse. Find Twilight. Tell her what’s going on.” Scootaloo looked afraid at his words.

“What about you?”

“I’ll be fine. Get ready.” He didn’t have time for this. Big Mac was closing in behind them. Scootaloo looked near panic. He didn’t give her time to protest.

“But I-!” He slowed down, took her like a spear, and threw her with the same elegance he imagined Shining Armor had when he threw his wife towards the Crystal Heart. She yelped, but he didn’t have time to admire his throw. He had to stop Big Mac.

He could hear him right behind Jax. There was a pause in the beat of the hooves which confused Jax for a moment, before he remembered. When he had been in the Everfree, timberwolves would always try to pounce at his back. There was always a pause in their running when they did.

Instinct took over, and he sidestepped mid-run. When Big Mac passed him in the air, Jax slammed back into him, causing him to trip his landing. There was a bright light ahead of them both, but hell if he was going to lose focus in the middle of a fight.

This was where his experience dwindled. When against timberwolves, all he had to do was slap then once with his stick and they would fall apart. Now it was like he was against the manticore again, except he was stick-less.

He tried to take advantage of the fact that Big Mac was down and pounce on him, but was too slow, because he was almost up. The second Jax was within range, Big Mac got up on his forlegs and bucked. Jax just barely avoided the powerful kick by dodging right. The image of the tree with hoof-prints in it flashed through his mind. One kick, and he was most likely dead.

Maybe they could have a nice talk instead? “Why are you doing this Big Mac?” He took a couple of steps back, just in case Big Mac tried something. “I won’t pretend I know you very well, but this seems very unlike you.”

Big Mac looked at him with a hateful expression. It was the first time he had seen a pony with such an expression. It was… it felt wrong. There was something wrong here, but Jax couldn’t figure out what. Big Mac wasn’t a psychopath… was he?

“You are going to regret getting in my way, creature…” Big Mac said in his deep voice. There was something wrong with that as well. It was like there was a slight echo, which didn’t belong in the middle of an orchard.

That being said, Jax was beyond afraid. Big Mac was a big and strong pony, and for some reason he had set his mind on killing. It was bad. Jax clenched and unclenched his hands. He missed the feeling of his stick between his hands. Everything in his body told him to run, to get away from this psycho as fast as his legs could carry him, but he was only just getting into form again, and he knew that Big Mac was faster.

He took a deep breath and did what he always did when he was trying to be brave. “You will fall beneath my strength!” He shouted as a battle cry and went into his fighting stance. It had been a long while since he had done that, much longer without his stick. He never thought he would miss a piece of wood so much.

Big Mac surged forward with surprising speed. Jax stood his ground, trying not to think about how strong Big Mac really was.

When Big Mac came close enough, he raised himself on his hind legs and tried to kick Jax in the face. Jax crouched under the blow and threw himself forward. It was clear that Big Mac didn’t have any real fighting experience or he wouldn’t have made it so easy to knock him on his back. Unfortunately he got his hind legs under Jax, so Jax only got two straight hits in before he was flying over Big Mac. He landed hard on his side, and rolled until he laid on his back. He heard running hooves, and when he opened his eyes, he looked straight into the underside of a pair. He rolled right just in time, but Big Mac wasn’t about to let him breathe. Literally. Before Jax could do anything else, he felt Big Mac’s big hooves on his throat. Jax tried to pry him off, but Big Mac was using his big mass to his advantage. It was all he could do to keep his windpipe from being completely crushed. “Who is the one falling beneath whose strength?” Big Mac said condescendingly.

Jax was starting to see black, when a raspy voice shouted. “GET OFF HIM!” There was a blur of colors, and the pressure on his throat completely disappeared. He instantly inhaled greedily. Sweet sweet air filled his lungs.

He smiled up at Rainbow Dash. “Nice timing.” He said with a raspy voice.

***

Moments earlier.

Scootaloo was gaining altitude. She couldn’t believe he had just thrown her like that, telling her to fly. She couldn’t fly! That was the second biggest problem in her life, right behind not having a cutie mark!

…

Big Mac had gone crazy! And Jax had just stayed behind with him. Big Mac was the strongest pony around… She needed to get Rainbow Dash before something bad happened to Jax! She just needed to get to the farm and tell everypony.

She started flapping her wings as fast as she could, but as always, it barely did anything. They were just too small to actually get her flying.

‘If it was about the size, I would never be able to make a sonic rainboom. It’s about the magic. You have to feel it!’

That’s what Rainbow Dash had once told her. She always talked about feeling it, whatever that meant.

She remembered being cornered by Big Mac. It had been the most terrifying thing she had experienced in a long time. That look in his eyes is what had made her realize that something was wrong. It had been so unlike him…

What if he killed Jax? What if he found Apple Bloom afterwards and killed her too? And Sweetie Bell was somewhere here as well, for their crusader meeting… what if he found her too?

Tears were gathering in her eyes but she refused to let them fall. She was going to save them. She was going to protect them. She just needed to fly, to get her stupid wings to work! Why didn’t they want to work?

She was starting to descend now. No! She couldn’t fall now, she needed to fly. She needed to protect them… She was going to protect them all!

Suddenly there was a flash behind her, and everything felt different. She could feel the air under her wings, like her senses had been dulled before but now she felt clearly. Even her vision seemed to have sharpened. She could almost see the wind.

She flapped her wings once. The air around her practically threw itself under her wings, and she surged forward with incredible speed. She started laughing gleefully. She had waited so long for this, so very long.

She saw a rainbow trail ahead and instantly remembered her mission. She needed Rainbow. She flapped her wings a couple of more times and quickly came into shouting range. It was so easy to fly now it was… amazing “Rainbow!”

Rainbow turned her head and looked at Scootaloo. Her eyes widened in shock, before a giant smile of pure joy took over. “Scootaloo! You’re flying!”

If the situation wasn’t so serious, Scootaloo would have enjoyed those words more. “Rainbow you have to hurry over and- ugh.” She was interrupted by Rainbow Dash tackling her midair.

“And give you a hug? Way ahead of ya!” She laughed. Scootaloo wanted to enjoy the attention but…

“Rainbow, Jax is-“

“I told you this day would come! I told you that you would fly with me soon enough. We have to get Pinkie to throw a party for you!”

“Yes, but Big Mac-“

“Oh, I can’t wait to tell -“ Scootaloo finally put a hoof in Rainbow’s mouth. She would never do that under normal circumstances, but ponies lives’ were at stake.

“Rainbow Dash, Jax is in danger. Big Mac has gone crazy and attacked me, but Jax stayed behind to save me! You have to help him!”

Rainbow Dash looked serious again. She took her hoof out of her mouth. “Where are they?”

Scootaloo pointed behind her at the place she had come from. “They were there when Jax threw me.”

“Get Twilight and the others.” Rainbow let her fly by herself again. She was gone a moment after.

Scootaloo flew towards the farm in a hurry.

***

Jax got up. Rainbow stood protectively with flaring wings between him and Big Mac, who had been propelled into a nearby apple tree. He was getting up, seemingly unharmed.

Rainbow looked worried. “Big Mac, why are you doing this?”

She stepped back when Big Mac looked at her with enough hate to burn through metal. Jax thought he had looked hateful when he had looked at him, but that had been nothing next to this. ‘If looks could kill’ suddenly made a lot more sense.

“How dare you lay a hoof on me?! How dare you interrupt me?!” He was seething.

“Who are you and what did you do with Big Mac?!” Rainbow shouted back.

This only enraged Big Mac further. He took two steps back though. “I AM Big Mac you stupid bitch!” A pony cursing… Jax couldn’t really say that he liked it. It felt wrong, along with everything else about this situation.

“Yeah right! And I’m Princess Celestia! Now tell me what you did with him you changeling trash!” Changeling? That sounded familiar… where had he heard that before?

Big Mac suddenly charged them. Rainbow Dash took to the sky immediately, but Jax had been more lax in his stance. He cursed his dulled instincts as he took up his fighting stance again. Maybe he could break a branch of one the apple trees… would be better than nothing.

Big Mac was in front of him in the blink of an eye. Luckily he took the time to turn his whole body so he could buck Jax with his stronger back legs. It gave Jax more than enough time to jump to the side… not that he was in danger in the first place, apparently. Rainbow Dash flew into Big Mac before he could buck the empty air behind him. It sent him flying into another apple tree. Rainbow smiled cockily.

Just then, there was a pop, and Twilight appeared in a flash of light some distance away.

“Twilight! Over here. Can you get this changeling to tell us where he hid Big Mac?” Rainbow asked.

“Changeling?” She ran over. “Why would a changeling start attacking ponies?”

“Oh I dunno… maybe because we totally ruined their world domination plans?” Rainbow asked sarcastically.

Big Mac started getting up. The fact that he could be okay after hitting a tree at relatively high speeds twice was a bit disturbing to Jax.

“I already told you…” He sneered. “I am Big Mac!”

“And I’m telling you, Big Mac wouldn’t hurt a fly! Now give up quietly or else.” Jax couldn’t help but admire Rainbow Dash. Her confidence was soothing to him. His heart, while still beating fast, didn’t feel like it would explode anymore.

“Also, you don’t sound like Big Mac at all.” Twilight interjected. “You forgot the accent.”

Big Mac looked absolutely pissed. He looked at Jax with more hate than before. “You ruined everything.” He told him.

“I’d like to think of it as I saved an innocent kid.” He answered grimly. Rainbow snickered from beside him.

Big Mac suddenly reared up on his back legs, and let his forelegs slam down on the ground in a confusing display of strength, creating a small crater. It wasn’t until Twilight shouted that he realized that something was wrong.

“He cast a spell!?” She sounded somewhere between confused and alarmed.

Jax didn’t realize how much trouble he was in until the earth in front of him parted and a deep red crystal shot out. It split up halfway, one sharp end going for him, and one for Rainbow. He tried to avoid it by swaying to the side, but it changed direction with him, going straight for his heart.

“Watch out!” Suddenly something impacted on his side hard, and he was sent tumbling.

“Rainbow!” Twilight shouted. Jax vaguely recognized the sound of a spell being charged, and the ‘thump’ of something hitting the ground hard.

When he had recovered enough to look back, he froze. Rainbow lay motionless on the ground, crystal spike still sticking out of her chest. The spike had been cut clean off from the main spike that had been meant for him.

“Jax, get her out of here. NOW!” Twilight ordered him. She took a stance and shot a beam at Big Mac, who erected a barrier in front of himself… somehow. Jax was too confused to think about that.

He scrambled his way over to Rainbow. There was so much blood... She needed medical attention, and she needed it fast. He ran a trembling hand through her mane. “Don’t worry, Dash. You’ll be fine.” He gently picked her up, careful not to move the crystal too much. “I’ll save you. Don’t worry about a thing.”

He looked back at the battling Twilight. “Twilight, use a spell on me!” he focused on Rainbow again. He didn’t dare to even check if she was still breathing or... She was going to be fine. He would make sure of it. He forced a smile on his face. “Prepare yourself Rainbow. We’re gonna go on a magical journey!” He felt the warmth of a spell hitting him, and instantly changing. When he looked up again, he looked straight through a portal to the hospital. It was like the two places, the orchard and the hospital had been temporarily connected.

He walked through it.

Author's Note

So it finally happened. King Sombra has entered the game XD
I've been busy with school, so I only wrote this much - there was going to be more, but what can you do? ^^
I've also realized how much time I spend on this story overall. between half an hour on a bad day, and three hours on a good one. the median of that is 1,75 (1 hour, 45 minutes) per day. I normally work on it 6 days per week, but let's say 5 - that's 8,75 (8 hours, 45 minutes) per week, just for this story... and it's been going on for quite a lot of weeks XD So don't complain too much ;)
if you want to read something a bit more relaxing, maybe something with Derpy and Luna, then read Muffins for Luna, it's cute :3

Chapter 38

Beating Heart and a couple other nurses looked at him with mouths agape. “Beating! You have to save her!” He told his friend. It was a good thing Beating was there. She was the first to shake out of it and get a stretcher, which Jax laid Rainbow in. There was so much blood…

“Nurses! Let’s get to work!” She said, getting the other nearby nurses to react. They started rolling Rainbow Dash to an operation room, checking for vital information on the way. Jax knew he couldn’t follow, but he felt kind of lost just standing there.

Suddenly there was a pop beside him, and Discord appeared. He looked at the portal behind him and snapped his claw, closing it. “You know, connecting two places might be rather fun, but it’s definitely not good for the universe.” He told him, before looking around properly.

“I wasn’t trying to connect them. I tried to teleport, like you and Twilight do.”

“Ah yes, that’s much better for everything involved… say, why are we in a hospital? You’re not sick are you? If you are, I make quite the doctor, if I do say so myself.” He snapped his claw again, to make stereotypical doctor-clothes appear on him. White coat, the thingy to listen for a heartbeat around the neck, and so on.

“No. Come on, let’s find the waiting room. I’ll tell you everything” He started walking, Discord walking beside him.

***

“So dear Rainbow Dash got hurt protecting you.” Discord wiped a tear from his eye. Jax had a feeling it was more for show than actual sadness.

“Yeah. I feel pretty awful about it too. What’ll I do if she dies? It went right through her chest…” Jax fought hard against the tears that threatened to fall any second. It was a weird feeling, being responsible for someone’s injury. “It should’ve been me in there.”

‘I always protect my friends.’

So she had said, and she had meant it. Rainbow was amazing.

Jax felt a claw pat him on the back. When he looked up, he saw that Discord was looking kind of uncomfortable or awkward, like he didn’t quite know what to do. “I wouldn’t worry too much about dear old Rainbow Dash. I have a feeling she will be-“ He suddenly looked up at the wall opposite them, as if looking through it, and snapped his paw. “-just fine. You can say a lot about that suspicious mare, but she is definitely not the type to just lie down and give up.” He ended with a grimace. Wait, no, Jax was pretty sure that was supposed to be an encouraging smile.

He dried his eyes and sniffed a little. “You did something?” Nothing was different in the room they were in, so it must have been somewhere else, and Jax was pretty sure that Rainbow was in the direction he had looked.

His grimace/encouraging smile changed into something more genuine. “Thank you for not being instantly suspicious. All I did was remove the crystal residue left in her bloodstream. It would seem that none of the ponies thought about that. Would have had a nasty effect on her mood, but I didn’t save her life if that’s what you’re asking. That’s up to the doctors and nurses.”

He looked at his blood stained hands. He should probably wash them soon. “Would you? If they weren’t able to?” Jax inquired.

“…Yes. It would make Fluttershy sad to lose her.” His smile turned a little sad.

“You really care about her, don’t you? Fluttershy I mean.” Jax asked softly.

“More than any other creature on this planet.” He said with more sincerity than Jax had heard him express before. It made Jax a little worried about his plans to unite Fluttershy with Rainbow.

“She’s in love with Rainbow Dash.” He stated bluntly, observing Discord carefully. His ears folded in the pony way of showing sadness.

“I know. I don’t plan on coming between them.” His voice sounded sad and… somber. This must be a subject he has given a lot of thought.

“But you love her… romantically that is.”

“I do. I didn’t always. It wasn’t until she forgave me so easily for stabbing… for betraying her that I started to think… but it doesn’t matter. She has her eyes on Rainbow Dash, and even though Rainbow Dash doesn’t like me much, she treats Fluttershy well. I want Fluttershy to be happy. If Rainbow Dash can make her happy, then I’m not going to interfere. She better not try to take away our tea-time though.” He ended with a weak laughter.

Jax patted him on the shoulder the same way Discord had done for him moments ago. He didn’t quite know what to say. What do you say to someone who willingly stepped back from his chance at love?

Discord surprised him with what came out of his mouth next. “It was… nice. Talking about it I mean. Thank you for listening.”

“No problem.” Jax answered honestly.

“It’s nice not being feared. Oh listen to me, getting all sentimental. I better make myself disappear before the tears start. I’m known to cry rivers.” He snapped his paw and disappeared before Jax could say anything else.

Jax just sat there for the longest time. With Discord gone, the feeling of guilt resurfaced. Rainbow Dash had most likely saved his life. The only thing that could have saved him in that moment was if his body reacted with the crystal in the same way spells do. Jax was unsure whether that was the case, but it was hard to say. The crystal was obviously magical - how Big Mac could use spells still baffled him - but so was a lot of the medication he had taken been as well, and that worked on him just fine. It was all very mysterious. He decided to stop thinking about it before he went crazy.

But there wasn’t much else he could think about. His thoughts kept going in circles - Rainbow Dash, the crystal, his magic, repeat.

He tussled his hair in frustration. It was all very frustrating.

“Jax! Where is she? Is she alright?” Applejack ran at him from the entrance, with Fluttershy, Pinkie, and Rarity behind her.

“I don’t know. Discord said she would be alright, but that’s all I have to go on.” He was relieved that he could focus on something else for a time.

Applejack snorted. “I wouldn’t trust-“

“If Discord said she’ll be alright, then I’ll trust him.” Fluttershy interrupted sharply.

Fluttershy was bluntly standing up for Discord. It would seem that everybody was showing Jax a side of them he hadn’t seen before today.

They all sat down beside him, except Applejack. “Ah’ll go ask a nurse.” Well, apparently she didn’t trust Discord as much.

“Where is… did Twilight win?” Jax asked anxiously.

“Darling, whoever imitated Big Mac decided to run the second the rest of us showed up. Oh, but do be careful with what you say around Applejack, she’s a bit… antsy, what with her brother being either kidnapped by changelings or… something else.” Rarity informed him.

“What… do you mean by that last part?”

“Well, Twilight said she had a suspicion that it wasn’t changelings, and that she was going to go back to the library to send a letter to the princesses. I don’t know what else it could be though, but I trust Twilight.”

“Maybe I shouldn’t have interrupted Applejack” Fluttershy suddenly said. “She must be pretty sad. I mean, that’s no reason to distrust others but…”

Jax pulled her into a hug. “We are all a little stressed out right now. I’m sure everybody will forgive each other when Rainbow Dash makes it.” She stayed in his embrace, but didn’t say anything. “As to Twilight’s theory, I guess we’ll see when she gets here.”

“And then we’ll figure out what meaney pants is behind all this!” Pinkie declared.

They sat in silence afterwards. After a while, Applejack came back, grumbling about unhelpful nurses. Fluttershy started to fidget in Jax embrace so he let her go. It would seem she was nervous about Rainbow even if she did trust Discord. They all were, he guessed. Rarity tried to start some small talk a couple of times, but was only met with short and unhelpful answers.

Then Pinkie tried to cheer ponies up by talking about the party she would have when Rainbow recovered. It did the trick for Applejack and Rarity, but Fluttershy and Jax remained deep in thought.

Jax couldn’t quite figure out how he felt. Still guilty, but also shocked, and even angry that Rainbow had sacrificed herself like that. How could she just throw herself in danger like that?

‘I always protect my friends.’

Well of course she would. She was Rainbow Dash, the coolest pony around. Still… he should have been the one to take that spike straight to the chest. He should have been the one…

Fluttershy laid a hoof on his shoulder. He realized he had been clenching his fist until it shook. He still had blood on them.

“I’ll go… wash my hands.” He told them. They nodded sympathetically.

The bathrooms were easy to find, the blood was hard to scrub off. It took some time. When he got back, Twilight was there with Spike on her back, having seemingly just arrived.

“… couldn’t confirm it. We know so little about changelings after all. It could be a changeling that simply learned crystal magic somehow, but we have to be prepared for the possibility that Sombra is back. I sent a letter to the princesses with my suspicions.”

“But how? I thought Sombra was blasted away by the heart?” Spike asked from her back.

“Yes Spike, blasted away. Which means he could have survived. How he would be controlling Big Mac, I have no idea, since we know so little about what he can do…” She stomped her hoof on the ground. “This is so frustrating! If I had more information, I could easily figure it out, but nooo, nopony knows anything about changelings, and nopony remembers Sombra’s time as a ruler…” She started pacing during her little rant.

“Calm down there, sugarcube. Ah’m sure we’ll figure out everything in time. For now, let’s just see if Rainbow… let’s just wait for Rainbow to make it.”

“Yes… you’re right.” Spike got off of her and they both sat down.

Time went by slowly. Everybody was on edge, but they somehow managed not to snap at each other.

Suddenly a trio of tiny ponies burst in. They looked like they couldn’t decide between being excited and concerned, especially Scootaloo. They ran over to them.

“Rarity! Look, Scootaloo got her cutie mark!” The white one of the bunch exclaimed, somewhere between whining and happy for her friend. After a second it would seem she decided on happy for friend. “Isn’t it neat?”

“Yeah, it’s awesome, but how’s Rainbow?” Scootaloo burst out. “Is she okay?”

“We don’t know, sugarcube. She’s still in surgery, but Ah bet she’s gonna be just fine.” Applejack told them. All the ponies in the vicinity put on the sad pony look, folded ears, eyes downcast, frown on their muzzle.

“That’s a pretty neat cutie mark though!” Pinkie recovered first. “So what’s your special talent?”

Jax looked at the new mark on Scootaloo. It was weird how fur that had matched the rest of her body suddenly changed color to make a design. Hers was a gray shield with white pegasus wings, as if it was flying. It did look pretty cool.

Scootaloo took on a proud stance. “I think it’s protecting ponies!” She said with utmost confidence. “By flying!” She flapped her wings a couple of times and just managed to get off the ground. “Huh, it was so easy before…” She seemed to lose control and landed on her side. “Ow. I’m fine.”

Jax smiled at the display.

“I was certain it would be something with that scooter…” Rarity whispered.

“I thought she was going to be a mechanic.” Twilight whispered back.

“I thought she was going to be a dancer.” Fluttershy mutters.

“I think it’s great. Protecting people is very important Scootaloo. Are you going to join the guard?” Jax asked her.

“I’m… not sure yet…” Well, she had just gotten the mark that day.

He gave her a smile. “I have some connections with Princess Luna if you ever want to join the night guard.” He smiled and winked at her. She looked excited at the prospect, but she had to finish school and all that anyway, so it wasn’t like there was a rush.

He wondered what Luna was doing.

***

Luna was signing papers. This had been her main assignment before she left for Ponyvile, and apparently Celestia had deemed that she was ready for it once again. As happy as she was to help her sister with the workload, it was a tedious job. Some of these required that she read thirty boring pages before she could decide whether or not she should sign.

She wanted to throw the entire stack out the balcony.

She could have an assistant read through them and give her a summary, but Luna liked to read anything she signed anyway. Being a princess meant responsibility, and she was responsible for anything she signed.

She wished Jax was there. He could gently pet her while she decided whether the Canterlot Orphanage needed a bigger budget, which required quite a lot of thought. As much as she wanted to just sign it, she had to see if the crown could even afford it, without having to take the bits from something important.

She sighed and rubbed the base of her horn. Maybe she could take it from Blue Blood’s allowance. Did he even get allowance? She was not sure how he afforded all those spa visits, she had not had much contact with the stallion. She would have to look through the archives.

To Luna’s immense pleasure, Celestia decided to come in. To her worry, Celestia looked displeased.

“Did something happen?” She asked, a gnawing feeling already forming in her stomach. Of course something had happened, why else would she come in with that look? Was it something with Jax? Did he hurt himself again?

“Yes sister. Twilight just sent me this letter.” Celestia presented a letter that Luna took in her own magic.

Dear Princess Celestia and Luna.

I write to let you know that several things have happened in Ponyvile. I don’t have time to tell you the whole story since I have to hurry over to the hospital.

Earlier this morning, Scootaloo flies in to the farm and tells us that Big Mac tried to kill her, Jax saved her, and Rainbow Dash was already on her way there. Applejack and I had some trouble wrapping out heads around the thought that Big Mac would try to hurt anypony, much less kill, but I teleported to the eastern fields nonetheless to see. When I arrived, Rainbow Dash accused Big Mac off being a changeling, which he told us he wasn’t, except he didn’t sound like Big Mac didn’t have Big Mac’s accent (I’ll explain in more detail later.)

Then the strangest thing happened. He stomped the ground and I could feel a spell being used. A deep red crystal emerged from the ground over by Jax and Rainbow Dash, growing bigger as to pierce them. Rainbow Dash shoved Jax out of the way and took the spike through the chest wait what?

I hope she’s alright.

I can’t find any books on it, but that crystal was familiar. It was the same crystal magic that Sombra used. It could be a changeling using crystal magic, or Sombra is back, and is somehow using Big Mac.

If you have any suggestions, please send a letter back. I will write a more detailed report once I’m sure Rainbow Dash is fine.

Twilight Sparkle.

“… I am going.” Luna said as she charged her horn. It would be a little exhausting, but she could teleport to Ponyville (and back) without too much trouble.

“Luna, wait.” Celestia stopped her before she cast the spell. She seemed to hesitate before she continued. “I know how it is to worry about those you care about. This is how I feel every time I send Twilight on a dangerous mission, or she finds danger by herself. Are you going to drop everything every time somepony is in danger? I know it’s hard, but we are princesses. We have a responsibility to Equestria, first and foremost.” She sounded almost apologetic at the end.

Luna was just about to argue, but thought better of it. “Of course, you are right Celestia. We are princesses, now and forever.” She could not keep the bitterness entirely out of her voice. Celestia heard it, because she leaned in and hugged Luna.

“I know it’s hard sister, when you just want to rush off to hold them tight and never let them get hurt again.”

“Sure.” She said without letting her emotions show. She was not sure what she could say. “If that is all, Celestia, I would like to finish this paperwork before I go to sleep.”

“Of… Of course.” Celestia let go of her, looking dejected. “I’ll let you get to it then. Good day, sister.”

Luna nodded back. “Good day.”

She watched Celestia walk slowly out of her room. The second the door closed behind her, she started counting. At a hundred, she was sure Celestia was not nearby anymore. She teleported down to the archives to retrieve the right documents, then back to her room.

She went over and opened the door, looking at the two day guards in front of her door. “Make sure nopony disturbs me. I need rest.” They both saluted.

She locked the doors, just to be sure, then she went over to her desk again. She would do her paperwork, yes, but this could be done from anyplace in the world. There really was not any reason for her to stay here when she could finish this work in, say… Ponyville, as a random example.

Jax was probably at the hospital, waiting for news about Rainbow Dash… but she could wait at his house. He probably would not mind.

She charged her horn again, this time going through with the spell.

***

Beating Heart came out with some doctor Jax didn’t know. He noticed they both looked tired.

“You’re here for Rainbow Dash, I assume.” He addressed them.

“How is s-?” “Is she fi-?” “Is she gonna be-?” “Is she oka-?” “Is she-“

They all started at the same time, before he cut them off with a hoof. “Please, let me speak. We finished the surgery successfully. The… crystal had started to spike out inside of her, which caused a lot of problems, but we managed, and she’s stable. I would really like to know how this happened.”

“Jax?” Beating asked before any of them could answer. “Can I talk with you? In private?”

“Sure.” He answered, curious and a little nervous about what this could be about. He followed her out of the hall.

***

“Okay… Why are we in a closet?” Jax asked Beating. She had shoved him in there, followed and closed the door behind them.

“It’s a supply room. Anyway, how are you? You haven’t come to visit since Luna left and now this. Are you okay?” She looked worried, at least as far as he could tell in the darkness.

“You shoved me in here to ask me how I feel?” Jax asked a little perplexed. This was hardly the time…

“Yes, Jax, it’s what friends do. So, how are you?”

“I’ve been better,” He started. “I’ve been-“

“Worse, yes, I know. Come on Jax, you carried your bleeding friend through a portal. This is the time to complain. Let me share your burden a bit. I may not be the princess of friendship, I may not be able to help you other than listen, but one of the great things about having friends is telling them your worries. I tried to visit you yesterday to talk, but you weren’t home.” She said with a steadfast tone. She was serious about it.

He thought back to the day before, where he had told the others about how he felt with Luna’s sudden disappearance. He had felt a little better, and this morning he had felt a little lighter. Maybe he should share it. It was clear that Beating was worried about him…

“Alright…” He contemplated what he was going to tell her exactly. “I… feel…” What did he feel? “I don’t know, Beating. Is it normal to be angry at the one who saved your life? At the same time I feel guilty for not being fast enough and having to be saved in the first place. But… I’m also happy that it isn’t me in there.” He admitted. He was ashamed of it, but he was happy that Rainbow had taken the spike for him. “And that just makes me feel more guilty.” He turned his head away.

“I’m not sure what’s going on, but… it was her choice. Moreover… if you hadn’t brought her in here immediately, she would have died. If you had taken that spike, there would be no way to bring you in here fast enough to save you.” Her voice was soft, but firm. “You would have died."

“I…”

“And nopony wants to see you die. Not me, not the mares out there, and not Princess Luna.” She firmly stated.

“… Thank you.” He put a hand on her whither, before deciding to pull her into a hug which was quickly returned. “I’m sorry about not visiting, I’ve been busy helping at Sweet Apple Acres. Afterwards, I’m so tired I can barely think.”

“That explains that then. It’s okay.” She simply said.

He felt better. Talking with friends really did help.

Author's Note

I just saw the episode where the CMC get their cutie marks like two minutes ago and I'm like... ah well, close enough XD It's just funny cause Scootaloo gets hers in my story, but it wasnt at all what I thought it would be XD It was a great episode though XD
Anyway, Luna is coming back! can't keep away from the sexiest human in Equestria ;) not for long anyway ^^
If this isn't enough for you, try To see both faces. it's pretty good :)

Chapter 39 - Love

Luna arrived in the middle of Jax’ abode. What she didn’t expect was to be muzzle to muzzle with a bear.

It growled at her, probably surprised by her sudden appearance. Luna looked around. The house pretty much looked like last time she had been there, except the bear of course. Was it Jax’ bear or was it only visiting? It probably was not feral if it did not destroy anything.

She lowered herself to seem less threatening. “Easy, friend. I wish no harm upon you, nor the master of this home. This I promise you.”

The bear seemed to calm down at her words. “Rawr?”

“Yes. I come on peaceful terms. I wish to converse with Jax.” This seemed to do the trick. It immediately smiled at her and laid down.

She laid her papers on the table. She would have some time to go through it, she guessed.

A piece of paper that was not one of hers caught her eyes, especially the first lines.

Dear Princess Luna. What am I? Her student? Dear Luna. Is that too formal? Hello Luna! Agr, no. Luna… Too empty. Greetings Luna! And now I’m an alien visiting from outer space. Well… I am technically an alien… but no. Saluatations! Is that how even how you spell it? I miss autocorrect…

It seemed like it was a… very rough draft of a letter to her. It brought a smile to her muzzle. He was going to send her a letter. Curiosity got the best of her, and she decided to read it. It was for her anyway, so no harm done… probably.

I saw what you did with the sky… (Undermining it much?)

What you did with the stars was AMAZING. (That’s more like it. A bit too enthusiastic maybe?)

Luna, you are amazing. I can’t believe you did that! It looked freaking beautiful, when did you practice controlling the stars? Because that was bea-wait I already wrote that.

Too tired for this. Need sleep. I’ll write it tomorrow.

Note to self: Ask Twilight how to start letters.

Luna squeed excitedly. He thought she was amazing. She knew it would be worth it to put that much effort into it. It certainly sounded like he would forgive her for leaving him without a word.

“Rawr?” Luna turned around and hugged the bear happily. Oh joyous moon!

Luna got control over herself. Rainbow Dash was in the hospital. She should not be this happy. The bear looked confused at her and she coughed into a hoof. “Apologies.”

When she sat down by the table with her papers, the bear followed, and she found that stroking his fur calmed down her nerves. She could barely concentrate on her work. She was going to see Jax again soon. How she missed him…

Soon.

***

Jax was on his way home. Beating had told him that Rainbow needed rest, and therefore no one was allowed to visit yet. He had first checked if Applejack still needed help on the farm, but when he met up with the others she said that everypony should go home and relax after the events of the day.

It was just after noon and Jax already felt exhausted. Fighting for your life and worrying about your friend really takes a lot of energy.

He opened the door to be met with an unexpected sight. Luna was petting Mr. Bear while sitting by his only table, holding several papers in her aura. The papers all dropped when she looked over at him. “Jax!” she exclaimed and jumped over towards him, before she stopped, seemingly remembering something.

Jax didn’t have such reservations. He jumped straight into her with arms open. They almost slammed into the table, not that Jax gave it much thought... he was pretty sure a blue aura moved it out of the way though. The only thing on his mind was the blue alicorn in his embrace. “Luna! Luna you’re here.” He started nuzzling her neck with tears of joy threatening to spill. This, this was exactly what he needed after the day had been having. He barely even noticed the pain in his left arm and shoulder from colliding with the floor.

Luna seemed to be temporarily stunned by his act, before she gently pushed him away and sat up. Something was bothering her, but whatever it was, Jax decided she would have to say it while being hugged by him. He sat up and hugged her again, enjoying the immense feeling of relief it brought.

“Jax… aren’t you…” She seemed to have trouble formulating the words. “… mad at me? I just left you there…” They were laced with sorrow and regret. She wasn’t returning the hug either, she was just sitting there stiffly.

He stopped nuzzling her and drew back a bit so he could look at her properly. Her cyan eyes were full of sadness. “I was never mad at you Luna, just… hurt. Right now I don’t really care, I’m sure you had reasons… and the show yesterday was a great apology… I was going to write to you, but so much happened yesterday and I was tired and today everything just went to hell…”

“I know… I read the half of the letter you had written. Are… do you forgive me then?” She asked with hopeful eyes.

He cupped her cheek. “Luna, you are one hundred percent forgiven for leaving me like that. Just please don’t do it again.” He said with a small smile.

Her own smile found its way to her muzzle as she leaned into his hand. “Agreed.”

Jax went straight for the hug again, and this time she hugged back. Her soft fur felt good on his skin as she started nuzzling him on his neck. The whole thing made him finally relax properly, as if he had been tense all this time.

Then she spread her wings around him in the way that he loved and he felt completely safe. He had missed this feeling so much it hurt. She hadn’t even been gone a week…

“I missed you so much Luna.” He felt warm and protected, and so very happy.

“I missed you too, Jax.” Luna answered, and the honesty in her voice made him shiver. He felt excitedly happy at hearing her say that. It tickled all throughout his body, and a warmth spread from his chest.

They both sighed happily.

Mr. Bear must have thought this was his queue to join the hug. None of them saw the bear running at them before it was too late. Suddenly they were laying under a giant bear, and Jax couldn’t help but laugh at the absurdity of it all, Luna soon joining him.

They managed to get out from underneath Mr. Bear without too much trouble, laughing as they were.

Jax life had changed so much since he had come to Equestria, so much so that being crushed under his pet bear together with a princess, that just so happened to be his best friend, wasn’t out of the range of possibilities. It was crazy. In a good way.

He looked over to Luna. She was laughing freely, a sight that Jax loved and made him laugh even more. They kept laughing for a bit until a stray thought entered Jax’ head… Rainbow Dash was in the hospital and here he was laughing like… like… like she hadn’t sacrificed herself for him. He stopped laughing almost immediately.

“Jax, what is wrong?” Luna noticed his sudden change of mood. Her smile faded into worry, the last thing he wanted. But the guilt hit him with a sudden force, and it hit him hard. The laughter had died in his throat, and he stared down at the wooden floor. Seconds passed in silence as he found it hard to speak, like there was something in his throat stopping the words before they could even surface. The wooden floor got blurry.

“Jax…” Her voice was like the softest silk. He wanted to answer her, dispel the confusion and worry that he had nested in her. A hoof gently found its way under his chin, and slowly raised his head until his tearful green eyes met hers. “Was it something I did?” She asked. Her worry was a clear as glass, and he couldn’t take it.

“N-no…” He shook his head a little. Her hoof found its way to his cheek, over the tear stains.

“What is it then? Please talk to me.” He saw the relief in her eyes, overlapping with the worry.

They sat opposite each other on the floor. Jax could hear Mr. Bear inching away. The table had indeed been moved.

He finally couldn’t take the look in her eyes anymore. “Rainbow Dash is in the hospital. She’s stable but… she was close. And here I am… laughing.” He spat the last word out as if it was poison.

Understanding reached her eyes. “You feel guilty.”

“I… Yeah, that’s one of the things I feel.” He admitted.

She leaned in and kissed him on the other cheek, the softness and warmth of her lips leaving him dazed. She leaned further in to hug him tightly. “I know about guilt. I’ll listen to you, if you want to talk about it.” She shivered a little, but her voice was strong and compassionate.

His tears were already subsiding. She had kissed him. On the cheek, yes, but still. Is this something best friends do in Equestria? It could mean anything…

“I… don’t. I mean, I already talked a bit with Beating… uhmm… but thanks.” That came out wrong. Or not strongly enough. He didn’t sound as thankful as he felt to have her there… kissing him on the cheek. And hugging him.

“Alright…” Was it just him or did she sound a little disappointed? He had to say something to make her see how much he appreciated her, but what?

“Your lips are soft.” He could kick himself. “I mean… uhm…” He was interrupted by soft giggles. She didn’t say anything after they subsided so he decided to hug her tightly and change the subject.

“Do you still feel guilty about-“ He interrupted himself before he could finish. Why was he asking that? He knew she did, it had just kind of come out before he could think.

“About Nightmare Moon? Yes… I do.” Her voice was low.

“You mentioned something about a song…?” He had been curious about that, but he hadn’t asked until now because he didn’t want her to be sad. Not that he wanted now, but she seemed more willing to share without becoming too sad.

“The one Celestia sung to me upon my return? The one I hear every time loneliness finds me?” Her voice was still low, but she didn’t sound as close to despair as she had been the time they had talked about it last.

“… Yeah. Can I… can you sing it?” He blurted out. Stupid mouth, of course she wouldn’t want to sing it for him.

For a long time she was quiet, and he didn’t know what to say. After a while he couldn’t take it anymore. “It’s alright if you don’t-“

“Alright. I shall sing for thee, my dear Jax.” Her voice was still low, but now there was determination in it. He felt her shiver beneath him again. She took a deep breath, and exhaled. Then her beautiful voice started to sing. It became clear pretty fast that it was from Celestia’s perspective. It was a sad tale about… well about Celestia having to banish Luna, and the clear guilt she felt for not helping when it was needed.

Luna’s voice already became strained after the first couple of lines. Jax guessed tears were making it hard for her to sing, but she continued nonetheless.

He couldn’t help but admire Luna’s determination to finish the song as he completely immersed himself in the story he was hearing.

When silence reigned once again with the last ‘sleep.’, Jax found himself feeling sorry for Celestia as well as Luna. Such a sad tale….

“She sang that upon your return? No wonder you feel guilty…”

Luna nodded her head on his shoulder. “We hath caused so much sorrow.” She sobbed. It pained his heart to hear her like that. Why did he ask her to sing again?

He started stroking her mane. It still felt tingly to his touch. “You have also caused a lot of happiness. You have made me so happy, Luna.” He let go of her, and cupped her cheek again. Again she leaned into his hand.

She was beautiful. Her starry mane framed her face, bringing out her cyan eyes. Her blue fur looked as soft as ever, and her lips…

He reached up to his cheek, at the spot where she had kissed him. That meant something, right?

“But my sister had to manage everything by herself for a thousand years…” She looked down.

“And you lost a thousand years of your life Luna. I think you have suffered enough.” He guided her muzzle up so she would look at him. Her eyes were filled with emotion, but the tears had stopped. She still looked so damn… “Beautiful.” It took him half a second to realize he had said the last part out loud, but he didn’t regret it, especially when a blush coloured her fur. She looked adorable.

“Luna, you’re the most beautiful… being I’ve ever met.” He stumbled a bit with his words, but her deepened blush told him he had gotten the point across.

“Thou art… you are pretty handsome yourself.” It was his turn to blush. To be honest he was surprised at her answer, but her eyes looked at him with naked honesty. A part of him had doubted that she even saw him like that.

Her hoof rose towards his cheek, and for a moment he thought she was going to cup his cheek like he did with her, but it went behind his head instead and pulled him a bit closer.

There was almost no space between them. Jax expected her to pull him in for a kiss, but she stopped applying pressure, just looking at him with those big eyes that ponies had. She looked… excited, apprehensive, happy, afraid….

He realized she was waiting for him to traverse the last distance by himself. Doubt showed its ugly head. Was this really okay? She was a princess of the land…

....

He leaned in the rest of the way and landed his lips on hers.

His world exploded. Her soft lips on his, her hoof behind his head, pulling him just a little closer, her low moan, his sigh of happiness, his hand finding its way behind her head for a little more passion, her mouth opening up to lick his lips, his mouth opening to welcome her tongue in, their tongues greeting as passionately as old friends… It felt amazing, all of it. Throughout it all, one thought kept looping through his head, making him just a little more passionate each time.

He was kissing Luna.

Author's Note

AHHHH! IT HAPPENED! XD
I was gonna have Mr. Bear interrupt them, but then I thought... you know what, that's bullshit. It's happening now.
I do feel like Jax goes through emotions rather quickly here though. I also felt like the situation allowed it though... hmm.

Chapter 40

Luna could not get the smile off her muzzle if she wanted. She was laying intertwined with Jax on the bed, slipping in and out of consciousness.

They were facing each other, their lips barely apart. Sometime one or both of them would lean in and kiss the other - when both of them did it extended to a longer session.

It felt so natural. Luna thought she would have problems with her first kiss, but in the moment instinct just took over. She wondered if her first mating session would feel the same way. She had considered doing it then and there, but there really was not any need to rush, and Jax seemed to be fine with that. He had a smile on his lips as well.

She felt like she could just lay there forever. She was so content with everything, it was almost unreal. Everything had gone better than she would ever have thought, even if she did not deserve-

No… none of that now. She was happy. Everything was perfect. Jax had kissed her of his own free will, that meant he felt the same way as she did. Right?

“Jax?”

“Mmm?”

He was so adorable, laying there with closed eyes. She could not resist the urge to lean in and kiss him. He ran his hand over her neck as he kissed her back. It felt amazing, all of this. She could not wrap her head around it.

She pulled back. It was time to see if he felt the same way. She took a deep breath, preparing herself mentally. She was going to tell him that she-

“I love you.” She blinked. She looked down at his green eyes. They looked at her with a wonder that few looked at her with. Did he just say….

He let his hand run up until it rested on her muzzle. “It’s okay if you don’t say it back. Maybe it’s a bit too early to come with confessions like these, it’s just… you make me so happy I can’t even comprehend it. If that isn’t love, then I don’t know what is.”

She leaned in and kissed him passionately. He had a habit of making her feel warm, fuzzy, content and simply… loved. And that made her very happy. It is as he said. If that is not love, then what is? Making each other happy, trusting each other with their feelings… that was the kind of relationship she longed for.

She finally broke off the kiss and looked him in the eyes. “I love you too, my dear Jax.” She said honestly, before looking away, slightly embarrassed. “And though it will not be easy, I would love for you to be my special somepony.”

His hand guided her head back to face him. He had that smile, the teasing one. “You do realize that I’m not-“

“I know you are not a pony!” She burst out laughing. “I do not want to remind you that I know your body better than most other ponies.”

“Alright, alright.” He laughed, before becoming serious again. “But it doesn’t bother you at all? We’re different species after all. I know it’s a long way down the line from now, but I don’t think we will be able have children. Hell, I’m not even sure-“

Luna put a hoof over his mouth. She leaned in to better look him in the eyes. “I choose you, a human, as my mate, and I accept every complication that will arise with that choice. To Tartarus with my reputation, I want to be happy, and I am happy with you. As for children, alicorns have a low pregnancy rate already, and I do not feel ready to give birth to one in any case. Even when time takes its toll on you, and you have to move on, I will not complain. This I promise you. So I ask again: Will you be my mate?”

He took hold of her hoof to remove it from his mouth, but kept it in his grip, giving it a small squeeze. He gave her a small smile, his eyes practically radiating joy. “Luna, I would love to be your… erm, mate. Boyfriend. Whatever you want to call it.” Luna’s smile widened at his words. “Listen, I don’t know much about dating a pony, so-“

“That makes two of us.” She smiled at his surprised face.

“Really? Haven’t you lived for like… hundreds of years?”

She nodded. “You are my first kiss as well.”

“Well… right back at you. I guess there will be many ‘firsts’ then” His smile betrayed his relief. She felt the same way. It was soothing to know that they both went into this relationship with equal amounts of experience.

“With patience from both sides, I am certain we can overcome any obstacles that should present themselves.”

They smiled at each other, even as they closed their eyes again to doze off. Luna had been up all night, so she was more tired than she cared to admit. No matter how long she could stay awake for, she preferred to sleep. Even so, she could not quite fall properly asleep. She did not want to. She wanted to enjoy as much time with Jax as she could, she would have to teleport back to Canterlot in a couple of hours after all.

“Tell me… Tell me something about back then… back before you were banished.” Jax suddenly asked, sounding close to sleep. Perhaps he was asking to keep himself from falling asleep? It was hard to tell.

“There is not much to tell. Things were different, but not so different that I cannot recognize many things. Yet many things are completely new to me. The first time I saw a train, I checked three times whether I was dreaming.” She giggled at her own folly. “A wonderful invention that helps many ponies.” She frowned a bit. “Something less wonderful is that dreadful music that was invented… what was it called? Techno and… and… stepping on the bub.”

Jax burst out laughing. “There’s a music genre here called stepping on the bub?! Oh man, that sounds genius, where can I hear it?”

Luna looked at him in confusion. Did he not know? “You already have. It was played at your ‘Welcome to Ponyville’ party.”

“Ohhhkay… You mean dubstep.” He sounded a little disappointed. His expression changed to a smile again. “I like ‘stepping on the bub’ better though.”

Luna blushed a little. She coughed into a hoof. “Yes, dubstep, that is the term. It sounds like a bunch of dying cats trying to escape a deranged timberwolf.”

Jax started laughing again. “You kind of sound like a granny right now.” He changed his voice to fit that of Granny Smith. “You youngsters and your techno and stepping on the bub!”

She was caught somewhere between being amused at his imitation and being hurt by his bluntness. It was a weird feeling. “I am pretty old you know.” She pouted playfully.

He waved her off. “I know, I know, and if it was me that was suddenly thrown a thousand years forward, I probably would have problems adjusting as well. You’re doing well, Luna. As I said, I like ‘stepping on the bub’ better. Sounds funnier.”

She smiled lazily at the surge of warmth that spread through her. She loved this feeling.

“How were you and Celestia back then? Did she actually say ‘Surely, there is no pony so lovely and so well beloved as I’? It doesn’t sound like something she would say, though I have to admit I don’t know her very well.”

Luna pondered the question. “Something you have to understand, my dear Jax, is that time changes us. Not as much as a normal pony, but still. So when you ask how we were back then, it’s hard to give you an answer, since our personalities changed during the centuries.” She thought some more on the subject. “I am guessing you mean right before I was… banished though. In that case, while I did not hear her say such words, Celestia was more prideful back then, and I would not put it past her. She has toned down on her pride and focused on her… motherly nature during the centuries I was… gone.” Though it still hurt a little to think about, it felt freeing to talk so calmly about the subject. She knew Jax did not see her as a monster, he had made that very clear for her, making it possible to talk about the past without too much discomfort.

“And you?” His voice was gentle.

“I was… also prideful. Mixed with the pride was loneliness and a wish for appreciation on an impossible scale. I used to compare myself to Tia a lot, I still accidentally do sometimes, though I try not to… I normally catch myself before I go too deep. There is naught but depression on that path.” She felt she should be sad, but it seemed like all the good that had happened that day made it impossible for her to fall into the pool of depression. She had even managed to sing that damned song for him without too many problems.

“Well at least you have something she will most likely never have. The best goddamn human in Equestria.” He smiled at the joke.

She nuzzled him lovingly. “I would rather just not compare.”

He nodded with the smile still there. Then it slowly faded. “I’m so fucking happy right now Luna, because you’re telling me these kinds of things. It’s a bit unfair that you should be the only one to talk about your past, so there’s something you need to know about me. The details about how I ended up here.”

Author's Note

This chapter was just over 800 words because I was busy as fuck, and had to use the trainrides to sleep instead of writing, but then I reached over 200 likes and I'm like... 800 is not good enough.
So here you go, it's still short, but it's fluffy and it has a nice cliffhanger at the end for you to enjoy :) we all love hanging from cliffs right? well here's something to make it even better! because I'll be so busy with school, the next chapter will first be out in two weeks! Yay!
So we'll finally find out about Jax' mysterious past... I think I made it too dramatic but what can you do? ^^
Anypotato, thanks to Anabiosis7 for putting the story in some groups, that seems to be reason for all the views this week as far as I can tell XD
if you need something relaxing to read, try The Cold Streets of Baltimare , it's pretty good ^^ (that ending though)
If you need something with action to REALLY keep you bust doing the two weeks, you can try The Substitute Demon, if you haven't already. It's good and it's pretty long ^^

Chapter 41 - Past revealed

A/N sadness ahead, read at own risk.

Jax was shaking. Not much, but enough for it to be noticeable.

Was he really going to tell her everything? He had spent so much time just suppressing the memories, avoiding to think about them. This was his new beginning. What good did it do to remember the past, a past he couldn’t do anything about, and memories that still gave him nightmares most nights?

Luna pulled him into her chest and put her wing over him in the way he loved. Then she started stroking his hair with a hoof and spoke soothingly, whispering about how everything was going to be alright.

It was calming, and he soon stopped shaking. Luna, who had just told him about her own past, even sung a song she hated, just for him, just because he had asked, and she did it without shaking like a scared kid. She deserved to know about his crappy past. Hell, maybe she could even start helping with the nightmares, and they could have fun in the dreamworld again.

He took a deep breath. This was not going to be easy to get through, no matter how determined he was. If there was one thing he was certain of though, it was that Luna would help him through it, if by nothing else then because of her hug.

He let her just stroke his hair for some minutes, listening to her soft voice. He could do this. She deserved to know… and a small part of him wanted to tell, to finally talk to somebody about it.

“I…” His voice was strained. He cleared his throat and tried again. “When I was a kid…” How could he even begin? He sighed and tried again. He could do this. “My mom once told me that the guy she married was a decent man. That was not the man I got to know however.” Okay, good start.

“He lost his job or something stupid and started drinking heavily. He was angry pretty often, came home looking for an outlet. A lot of the time he would go for my younger brother, Jake. A lot of the time I made it my business to come between them.” He paused when he felt Luna shaking a little, but the dam was open and he couldn’t stop. He needed to tell her. He continued, his voice filled with emotion.

“One day I told a joke. I don’t really know how I thought of it, I was just a kid, but it worked. It fucking worked. He started laughing and laughing. Since then I used humor a lot. Sometimes it didn’t work and I would take the beating meant for Jake, but sometimes it defused the situation. It was easier to explain my bruises with jokes as well. People stopped asking questions when I had that kind of attitude. They assumed it wasn’t serious if I laughed about it.” Luna still shook slightly against him.

“One day, he went too far. I ended up in the hospital.” He could feel her tense up, but a smile spread on his own face. His voice was calmer when he spoke up again. “There was this really nice nurse there, I don’t remember her name, but she was very understanding. Saw through my façade in a second. I cried in her arms. For the first time in years I cried. She told me that I wasn’t the first victim of abuse, and I wouldn’t be the last, but she would be damned if she would let it continue. She must have talked with my mom, because mom finally decided to grow a spine and get the police. The case went to court. I think I was nine when it started.” Luna’s breath caught in her throat. Jax frowned at the memory. “I was almost eleven when it ended. They just kept dragging it on. Me, Jake and mom all confessed to what he had done, and you would think that was enough, but for some reason the court kept going. It was a huge strain on everyone, especially my mom. She cried at almost every session. It made me and Jake feel terrible about the whole thing. The therapy didn’t help much either.” A smile spread on his face again.

“Then something wonderful happened. My father’s best friend grew a conscious. My best memory of my father is seeing his face when his best friend went up to testify against him. It was priceless. The court ended soon after that, with him being declared guilty. My mom decided we needed a new start and we moved into a new town. I became friends with Max and Liza after some years of knowing them.” He shifted a little to lay better in her embrace. It felt nice… warm and safe. It always did.

He smiled at a memory. “Did you know… what am I talking about, of course you don’t know. Anyway, my name isn’t actually Jax.” Luna pulled back to look at him with surprise. “Yeah, my full name is Jack Savage. But don’t tell anyone, I don’t like my last name. Anyway, one day Max was saying my name, and he said ‘Jacks Avage’ instead. We laughed so much. Then he decided that ‘Max and Jax’ sounded good, and it just sorta stuck.” He chuckled. “Yeah, for a couple of years everything was good…” He wanted to end the story there. It would be much easier.

He ran his hand through the fur on Luna’s chest. The soft fur felt nice against his skin. He looked at her mane, stars glimmering like diamonds. He breathed in her scent. Honey and… flowers? It was a nice smell. Sweet, like she was. She was so sweet, and beautiful, and soft, and for some reason she actually liked him as well. She actually felt the same way about him.

He wanted to linger more on the thought, but as much as he tried to distract himself, it didn’t work. The tears had gathered in his eyes anyway. “Then it all went to hell.” He finally breathed out. It was almost too much for him, but he continued anyway.

“I was living with my mom after I had finished high school, looking for a job. Mom wanted me to continue my education, but I knew I wouldn’t be able to do it. Studying was never my thing.” The tears started falling. It was so hard talking about it, but he couldn’t stop now that he had started. “One day, mom wanted to take us out to the movies, but I had a job interview that day and told them to go without me. Jake was thrilled that I didn’t make them wait another day.” His breathing became more rapid, yet he didn’t feel like he had enough breath. “When I came home that day, a police officer was waiting for me. He had this look on his face, this sadness about him, and I knew something bad had happened. I-I knew the happiness I had experienced for a few short years was about to be wiped a-away.” He tried to get his breathing under control, but it was hard. Luna pulled him closer. “T-They were d-d-dead. My father had shot them on the street. That psycho had just gone up to them and- and- and…” He finally broke down and started crying uncontrollably.

Luna pulled him closer yet again, almost crushing him, but he didn’t mind. He needed her to be close, he needed her soft fur on his skin, her warmth on his cheek as he stained her beautiful coat with both tears and snot. She didn’t seem to mind though, going back to stroking his hair and speaking soothingly to him.

It took him a long time to calm down. That had been the worst moment in his life. Even being set ablaze by Twilight hadn’t been as bad as hearing that his family had been murdered by someone he thought he was free from.

“I-I went to his t-trial.” He finally choked out. He was still crying, but he needed to finish the story. “I-It was a short process. P-Plenty of people had seen him s-s-shoot them d-down. He didn’t even look like he cared.” Anger took over as he remembered the blank look on his face.

“At one point though, he looked me in the eye, and said ‘I loved you the most’ like that meant anything to me at that point. Three people held me back from punching him in the face.” His voice was hoarse. He took some deep breaths.

He could hear Luna sniff. Was she crying too? “I was thrown out of the courtroom. I didn’t even hear his sentence. I didn’t really care though. All I-I knew was that I had l-lost my family. It was the worst feeling in the world.”

“I inherited everything. Not that I wanted anything. I would have spent all day in bed if I could. My therapist said I had depression, as if I cared. I got some pills and eventually I could stop going to therapy. Not that I said muchduring the sessions.”

“The hardest part was to find a reason to live. To keep living. I started smoking and drinking to numb the pain. The thing that worked best though was music. Screamo, dubstep, pop, rock… I didn’t care, as long as it helped me forget.”

“T-Then I pushed M-Max and Liza away… I-I didn’t have the energy to deal with their pity. They came by every now and again, but I-I never opened the door. They had this look in their eye every time they tried to talk to me that I couldn’t take. I was e-easier to let them drift away.”

He took a deep, shaky breath. Luna sniffed again.

“T-Then one day, I couldn’t take it anymore. After months, the music and the alcohol just wasn’t enough anymore. The p-pain was too much for me, my self-imposed loneliness was o-overwhelming me and I just… something broke… I couldn’t… Life was too hard. It was easier to just… not. S-So I got a hold of a gun… and I shot myself in the head.”

Although Jax was fairly certain Luna didn’t know what a gun was, he knew she understood what he had done. He also knew for certain that she had been crying, because when she pulled back to look at him with an overwhelming sadness, the fur around her eyes was wet. As he watched, more tears fell from her cyan eyes, trailing down her fur to land on the bed. She looked completely lost for words, so he continued.

“I-It wasn’t as easy as I had t-thought it would be though. I sat there for hours, trying to pull the trigger, but every time I tried, my finger wouldn’t move. I felt so m-miserable Luna. So goddamn m-miserable and l-lonely and…” His own tears intensified. He closed his eyes as they forced their way out. “I-I couldn’t. I-I should have c-contacted them then, but I couldn’t. I should n-never have bought that gun, but I-I did. Everything was just so f-fucked up. I had lost e-everything and I felt like I should have d-died with my f-family, and that this was just a delayed effect. I-I pretended that it was my f-father that held the gun to my head, and suddenly it became e-easier.” Another deep breath. “I pulled the trigger.” The sadness in her eyes intensified, but he was almost at the end. He forced himself to talk again, even though his voice was hoarse and shaking.

“N-Next thing I-I know, I wake up in E-Equestria, confused as f-fuck. I-It wasn’t exactly what I t-thought would happen, but the p-pain, the l-loneliness, the d-depression, it all seemed further away. Blurry, in a way.” He took another deep breath. He calmed down a bit again. He had already told her the worst.

“R-Remember how I-I told you and Twilight that this wasn’t my b-body? The example I gave was that my old scars were gone, but it’s actually more than that. I think that at least some of the reason I felt better here than when I-I… than my w-world, is that this body has never experienced depression… Now that I think about it, I guess another reason could be that my soul had spent time traveling between worlds… I don’t know. All I know is that I found a determination to survive here… I wanted to live. Now that I’m together with you, more than ever.” He finished. He was done. He felt emotionally drained, completely exhausted, but he had done it. She deserved to know, and now she did.

She drew him in close again, sniffing into his ear. She was adorable really, crying for his pain.

He felt warmth spread through his chest. She loved him… and he loved her. She was the only one he had ever told about his past, that was how dedicated he already was to her. How serious he was about their relationship. The thought brought a smile to his face, even now. Even after all of that.

“I am sorry, Jax.” Her voice was low and filled to the brim with sadness.

“There is no reason for you to apologize.” He told the crying mare. His own tears were subsiding, and he actually felt better. Free, in a way, like the memories rejoiced at being acknowledged after all this time. He started stroking her mane.

“There is. I am a bad pony Jax.” She continued, baffling him. Luna was many things, but bad was not one of them.

“No you’re no-“

“I am! What kind of pony is happy that her beloved had to go through so much pain, just because it meant that she could be with him now?!” She paused, sniffling some more. Jax didn’t know what to say to that, since he didn’t quite understand. She continued a bit more calmly. “If you had not committed… if you had not died, then your soul would not have gone through the portal before Discord closed it, and I would not have been with you now… And I would still be alone… How selfish can I be?”

Understanding dawned on Jax like a rising sun. She felt bad because she didn’t want to exchange the happiness she felt with him for the happiness he could have had if he didn’t… If things had turned out differently.

“Shhh… You’re not a bad pony Luna.” He assured her.

“But I-!”

“I think my definition of being bad is different from yours. One thing I’m sure of though, is that I’m happy with you. Whatever may have happened, whatever will happen in the future, that is one thing I am absolutely certain of. I’m happy with you, right here, right now. I didn’t tell you about my past so you could look at me with pity, I told you because I trust you more than any other creature on this planet. You trusted me with your past, and I trusted you with mine. We can’t change what happened back then, not you, nor me, but we can be happy that at the very least, we found each other. Through worlds and sadness and loneliness, we found each other, and if we can be happy together, then maybe it will all have been worth it somehow.”

“I… are you certain?” She asked timidly.

“I don’t think I’ve ever been as certain of anything.” His voice was as confident as he felt. He could feel Luna relax back into the hug. There was something they would have to take care of before they could go back to relaxing though. “I’m sorry about your coat, I don’t think I’ve cried so much since… well… ever. Let’s go clean up this mess.”

She nodded.

Author's Note

Alright but this time I'm serious. Next chapter is in two weeks, not one.
Anyway, Jax' past is finally revealed XD dramatic and sad as it is, the thing I had in mind originally was even worse, but I thought that it was a tad too much, so I toned it down ^^
Man, this story just sort of exploded after I got 200 likes. one week and I'm up on 230 likes XD It's crazy XD and 1300 views the day I released last chapter, while the chapter before that only got over 300 views XD Good, good... let it become popular :3
I hope you're all well ^^ I have stuff to do, so...

Chapter 42

Luna left before moonrise, and Jax was left alone with Mr. Bear. After she left, Jax felt the guilt resurface again, even as his tired mind tried to avoid thinking about Rainbow. It didn’t work.

He wanted to sleep, he was so exhausted he could barely lift himself up from the bed, but he had made a promise. He looked at Mr. Bear.

“Let me just get something to eat. Then we can play for a bit.” Mr. Bear nodded happily.

Jax forced himself up, and out into the kitchen. He barely had any food left, as far as he could remember, but he had plenty of apples. He took one from the basked on his way to the fridge.

It was almost empty. Thank God for pet bears though, cause the fish that Mr. Bear had brought him was still there. Perfect. He hadn’t prepared a fish from bottom up since his time in the Everfree, but he still remembered how to do it. He had been living mostly of fish and berries after all. Actually, he had been living like a bear. And now he had a pet bear. Funny how life turned out sometimes.

He started singing softly to himself as he prepared the fish, while eating the apple.

Fate has been cruel, and order unkind

How can I have sent you away?

Wow, that song really was catchy. No wonder Luna couldn’t get it out of her head.

Just as he sat down by the table to eat his meal of fish with a side of apple, there was a knock on the door. Typical.

He somehow found the energy to get up and open the door. “Oh. Hello Derpy. You know I have a mailbox now, right?”

The gray mare in front of him nodded, then looked at the sack beside her. “I tried, but it didn’t fit.”

He looked at the sack as well. That… was a lot of letters.

“I’m sorry, I kind of forgot about you for a couple of days, so the letters just kept hobbing up.” Derpy continued, obviously sad by her mistake.

“… And I haven’t even bought stamps for the replies back from the last batch. Damnit.”

Derpy perked up at that. “I can take them for you now if you’d like. You don’t have to pay me anything, it’s the least I can do for forgetting about you. Oh I feel simply awful, it’s the first time I forgot to deliver letters to somepony. Please let me make it up to you.” As she looked at him pleadingly, one of her eyes drifted off to the side. He wondered what was up with that, but didn’t feel it was appropriate to comment on it.

“I don’t know… I’m not particularly mad at you for forgetting about me, I’ve been busy the last couple of days anyway.”

“Oh, but that just makes me want to do this for you even more! Please Mr. Jax?”

He looked at her for a bit more, before his tired mind just decided that it didn’t have the energy to argue. “Alright.”

She smiled radiantly at him. It made him happy that he decided to agree, even if it meant she was paying to send his letters.

He took the sack inside, retrieved the bundle of reply letters he had arranged, and went back to her. “Here you go, Derpy. Have a nice day.”

“You too Mr. Jax.” She smiled as she took the letters. She turned around, jumped into the sky… much more insecurely than Rainbow Dash normally does. He thought she was going to ram into his mailbox, but she just managed to gain enough altitude to avoid it.

She was nice. Nothing new there, with ‘nice’ being the standard for ponies. He smiled ruefully. If only humans could be like this.

He returned to his meal. It tasted good, even though it was better over an open fire. Beggars can’t be choosers and all that.

Carry the peace and the coolness of night

And carry my sorrow in kind…

Wow that song is really stuck in there. He couldn’t help but wonder when he was going to forget it.

***

Luna pranced up to her sister with a smile. “Goodnight dear Tia. How are you?” She asked happily. Celestia raised a brow at her attitude.

“Well enough. Apparently not as well as you.” She started walking towards the balcony so they could raise the moon and lower the sun side by side, and Luna followed. “Have a good day’s sleep? Or did you completely disregard what I told you the moment I left the room?”

Luna didn’t even have it in her to look sheepish. She was just too happy. “Teleported over to Jax right after getting some documents from the archive. Did you know that Blueblood does not even get allowance? Apparently he makes bits by selling rose-scented perfume.” Even that did not get her down. She was not able to get the bits for the orphanage from Blueblood’s allowance, but she did manage to get it from several other places instead, one of them being the bits reserved solely for cake and tea.

Celestia looked at her disapprovingly. “Luna…”

Luna rolled her eyes but the smile did not leave her muzzle. “You are not my mother, Tia. Even then, this would have been my own decision to make.” She giggled at the end. She regretted nothing.

Celestia raised a brow again. “Well… At least it would seem like he forgave you. That is what has made you so happy, isn’t it?” She finally returned the smile. “Not that I’m complaining. I do like it when you’re happy, Lulu.”

“He did.” Luna giggled again. “And then some.” She winked at Celestia who looked confused. It felt good to be this playful with her sister.

Celestia adopted a smile as well. “Oh? What else could he have done, dear sister?” Luna could hear the playfulness in her voice. “Perhaps somepony finally managed to court the Princess of the Night?”

Luna jumped in front of her sister with a bright smile. “Thou art correct!” She burst out. She was so happy it did not even phase her that Celestia found out on her own. “Jax is now my mate.” She giggled again. She had been giggling a lot since coming back. She just could not help herself, it was like her happiness had to be shared with the world somehow.

Celestia looked surprised for a second as if she had not actually expected her guess to be correct, then she drew Luna in a hug with a smile. “I’m happy for you, Lulu. According to Twilight, Jax is a very fine individual.” A playful tone snuck into her voice again. “Though if he’s going to join our little family, I suppose I should get to know him a bit better.”

Luna smiled. “Though I doubt you can, try not to scare him away. He is very dear to me.”

“I gathered as much. I’ll only scare him a little, then.” They both giggled at that. “Now then, we have a sun to set and a moon to raise.”

They smiled happily at each other.

***

Jax slept peacefully that night. After throwing the ball he got from Fluttershy for over an hour just to please Mr. Bear, he had been beyond exhausted. Who knew that so much could happen in one day? First life takes a turn for the worse again, with Big Mac going haywire, Jax having to save Scootaloo from him, Almost dying himself, being saved by Rainbow, then being saved by Rainbow again. Having a talk with Discord about love, hoping to god that Rainbow would be okay, having a talk with Beating about life, then going home to find Luna there. Then talking to Luna about love and life, ending up kissing and cuddling in the bed with her.

Such a rollercoaster. It ended on an upbeat tone, becoming Luna’s ‘mate’ as she called it, and nothing could ruin his mood entirely after something he thought would be… he didn’t even know. A small part of him believed that it would be impossible for him to end up with a princess. Then she had pulled him towards her and… For once, things were going his way. The girl… the female he liked, liked him back. Jax would be the first to admit that he didn’t have much luck in life, so this was frankly… amazing. A little miracle in and of itself.

He just wished the timing had been a little better. He couldn’t help but worry about Rainbow now. It ruined the sweet taste of happiness that he got to experience.

It still tasted pretty sweet though. Luna, the Princess of the Night, loved him, some random human.

A shiver ran through his entire body. That was a nice thought. He should try to use it if he ever got sad again.

He knew he had to get up. Now that her brother was gone to who-knows-where, Applejack definitely needed help on the farm. Plus he could most likely get breakfast there. He hoped Stinking Rich would have his money soon. Wait… Filthy Rich, that’s it.

Jax stretched and threw away his nice warm blanket. It was getting colder, that much was clear. Not winter yet, but definitely fall. Well, he had participated in the falling of the leaves, so he already knew that.

He forced himself up and put on some new clothes. Ehh… He would need to wash his clothes again soon. Working hard and not having a lot of clothes really wasn’t a good combination.

***

“Hey AJ.” He greeted the orange mare. “How are you?”

Applejack did not look happy, that was for sure, and Jax couldn’t really blame her. “Heya there sugarcube. To be completely honest, not so fine. Ah couldn’t get much sleep last night because of the whole deal with Big Mac. Apple Bloom is worried about him as well, but we donno where he is, and work still needs to be done.” She sighed unhappily. Yeah, ‘how are you’ wasn’t the best question he could have asked.

“Well… I’m here to help.” He tried. He didn’t really know what to say, it was a shitty situation with no easy answers.

“And Ah appreciate it. Listen, Ah wanted to thank ya for stopping Big Mac. Not only is Scootaloo a close friend of my sisters, but if Twilight is right and it’s Sombra controlling Big Mac’s body, Ah wouldn’t want him to have it on his conscious. Big Mac is a peaceful sort. Ah’m not sure how he would deal with… well. It was mighty heroic of you.”

Jax gave a small smile but his heart wasn’t really in it. “Thanks, but if it hadn’t been for Rainbow Dash, he would have had me on his conscious instead. She’s the real hero here.”

“Well Ah won’t deny that. Don’t mean that you aren’t a hero as well. If it wasn’t for you, Rainbow wouldn’t have known there was anything wrong at all. Now go get some breakfast and get to work. Ah don’t know about you, but Ah want to do as much as possible before the storm hits tonight.”

Jax looked at the horizon, and sure enough, pegasi were pushing clouds around in preparation for something that looked like a big storm. He hadn’t checked the weather schedule in a couple of days, so he didn’t know. He really needed warmer clothes made… He would have to see Rarity soon.

***

“Uhm… Hey there, Jax.” Jax turned around from his work of securing anything and everything for the upcoming storm, to see Scootaloo standing there, with Sweetie Bell and Apple Bloom behind her for support.

He gave her a small smile. “Hello there Scootaloo. What brings you hither?”

Scootaloo looked at him in confusion. “Hither?”

Sweetie facehooved behind her. “He’s asking what you want.” She whispered loudly.

“Oh. Well. Uhm…” She started awkwardly before composing herself. She took a deep breath and pushed her chest forward. She looked like a miniature Rainbow Dash with that move. A pang of guilt surged into him, but Jax ignored it. It wouldn’t do any good to think of it now.

“I wanted to thank you for saving me. That was pretty awesome of you.”

Jax looked at her for a moment. That’s right, Scootaloo had been the entire reason he had risked his life in the first place. He couldn’t just watch her die, so he had acted. A smile spread on his face. “You’re welcome. And hey, good job on getting Rainbow there so fast. Without her, I would have been done for.”

“Don’t sweat it. With flying skills like these…” She started flapping her wings at a good speed, getting her off the ground. “It wasn’t even a problem.” She said, again reminding him of Rainbow. Until she overbalanced and fell on her side. “Arg. Why was it so easy before?!”

Jax couldn’t help but chuckle. “I’m sure you’ll get the hang of it, or Rainbow will teach you when she gets out of the hospital.” He encouraged her lightly.

“Yeah, you’ll get it in no time.” Sweetie agreed.

“A bit of practice, and it’ll be easy.” Apple Bloom put in.

Scootaloo smiled at her friends.

“There ya all are. Did ya finish the preparations Jax? Twilight says that Rainbow is awake and ready to take visitors for a while. Celestia knows that pony is probably bored outa her mind already.” Applejack came over to them.

“Really? I’m almost done.” He assured.

“Alright, let me help ya and then we can go.” Applejack nodded.

***

There was a lot of ponies in the room. All of the former elements, Jax, the Cutie Mark Crusaders, Spike, and as many townponies as would fit. Jax recognized Derpy, Lyra, and Bon-Bon, but there were also a lot of pegasi that he didn’t know.

Rainbow Dash herself had a confident smile on, thanking all for coming, and generally acting like herself. It would seem like the rumours had gotten around. There were different versions, as there always were with this kind of things, but they all agreed on the fact that Jax had saved Scootaloo from something, and Rainbow had saved Jax. It was amazing that they had gotten that much correctly. Now what that something was, that was where the rumours went crazy. Everything from manticores to a pack of rabbits was mentioned. A herd of rabbits? Whatever. It was ridiculous.

Some of the rumours did in fact seem to include Big Mac and changelings, amazingly enough.

The ‘party’ was disrupted by a herd of angry nurses charging in. No really, the door banged open, led by nurse Red Heart, with at least five other nurses behind her, demanding to know how in tartarus we managed to get so many into one room, then proceeding to throw everybody out so that Rainbow could relax. Jax had no idea how he managed, but he got Beating, who was amongst the nurses, to let him have some time alone with Rainbow. She gave him an understanding look, and let him stay. She was a good friend, he really should spend some more time with her… and the other friends he had for that matter. Right now he was helping Applejack on her farm, and that took a lot out of him. So many friends… so little time.

“Hey Jax. Come to thank me?” She smiled cockily at him. Sometimes he was jealous of her confidence.

He sat down by the bed, and gave her a serious look that wiped her smile away. “Rainbow… You almost died.” He started. “You almost died, and it would have been my fau-“

“Whoa! Stop right there.” Rainbow interrupted him, looking almost angry. “It wouldn’t have been your fault. I saw how you tried to dodge. So what, it was your fault that the crystal didn’t go in a straight line like we both thought it would?”

“No, I mean… yes… uhm… It would have been my fault for being too slow.”

That only seemed to make Rainbow even more mad. “What?! What in Celestia’s name makes you think-“

“I know!” He stood up abruptly, tipping the chair behind him. “I know it doesn’t make sense! But if this is how guilty I feel when you survived, can you imagine how destroyed I would be if you had died?! Can you begin to understand-“

“Well if I hadn’t done anything then the roles would have been reversed! Except you would have died, because there would have been no way to get you here fast enough, and I would feel even guiltier than you because I could have acted but didn’t! Do you understand why I did it now? Because I would rather die myself than to see one of my friends die in front of me!”

Jax’ retort died in his throat at her last outburst. Wow…

He tried to sit down again, but his chair was still tipped, so he ended up falling to the floor. Despite the shouting contest they just had, it was clear that Rainbow was fighting not to laugh out loud. “You okay?” She asked with a smile.

“Ow. Yeah I’m fine.” He got up and placed the chair back to its original position, sitting down. He sighed. He should have fucking known that these ponies wouldn’t just stop surprising him. He would ask her if she meant it, but she had already proved that she did. She really would rather die herself than watch her friends die in front of her.

“Why?” He finally asked.

She sighed. “Because… It’s a long story, but I guess we both have time. Before we start, I guess I should apologize or something… actually, no I won’t. I don’t care that you feel guilty, at least you’re alive to feel something.” He couldn’t help but smile at that.

“Alright, fair enough. I’ll apologize to you then. Sorry for being so weak that you needed to save me.” She was about to protest, but he went on before she could. “And thank you for saving me. Despite the ups and downs I’ve had, I don’t want to die. Especially not now.”

“No problem. Now shut up and listen.” She looked up at the ceiling for a bit. Except the bandage around her chest, she looked like her usual self. He wondered how long she would be able to stay in bed before going crazy.

“My mom died while giving birth to me, so my dad had to take care of me by himself. He did an okay job, I mean, I turned out awesomely, but he had to work a lot. That pretty much left me alone for long periods of time. But that was fine because he made sure I knew how awesome I was. Well at least until my teenage years. Fluttershy had moved to Ponyville, and this griffon friend I had, Gilda, moved back home, leaving me alone. There was nopony else who understood how awesome I was, so I didn’t make any new friends. If you’re waiting for some kind of climax or something, get ready to be disappointed. Instead of wallowing in self-pity, I figured Fluttershy could probably use my company. Moved down here and made loads of friends. Figured there was nothing keeping me in Cloudsdale anyway. Between you and me though, things almost went south. Going out to fly alone, coming home to an empty house, I realized just how much friends matter. How much they influence your life. I almost joined a stupid gang just to have somepony to talk to again.” Rainbow had a distant look in her eyes, the same look Luna sometimes got when reminiscing about the past. “Glad I didn’t though. Can you imagine how stupid that would have been? Anyway, I promised myself never to let go of my friends again. I guess that’s why I was the element of loyalty or something. There, that was my story. Happy?”

Jax looked at her in thought. “I dunno… I feel like you are sweeping some things under the rug here. How long passed between Gilda leaving and you moving to Ponyville exactly?”

“Pff. Only a year.” She dismissed nonchalantly. Jax almost choked.

“An entire year?! No wonder you were desperate. As stupid as it would have been, I can understand why you would want to join a gang… Damn.”

“Yeah yeah, I know I’m awesome. You owe me a cider for saving your life by the way.” She smiled cheekily at him. A fast change of topic if Jax ever saw one. It would seem like she didn’t like talking about that time in her life. He couldn’t really blame her, he wasn’t keen on talking about his own past all that much, even if he did feel there was more to the story.

He chuckled happily. “I’ll gladly buy you some when I get the money.”

He looked at her a bit more, thinking. “You know, if things had turned out a bit differently, I might have fallen for you instead of Luna.”

“Wow, where did this come from?” She asked in confusion. “I’m glad things turned out the way they did then, ‘cause I’m not into stallions.” She laughed a bit. “Though I can understand falling for me, I am-

“You are pretty awesome after all.” He said for her. They looked at each other for a whole second before they both burst into laughter.

“But seriously, princess Luna? Somepony is aiming high.” She teased him.

“You might even say…” He started with a serious expression, before cracking a smile. “That I’m aiming for the stars.”

Rainbow chuckled at that. “You and your lame jokes.”

“Yeah I fit right in.” He shot back, which just made her laugh more.

“Ohh… Yeah, so what’ll you do about it? Need my help?”

“Hmm? Oh, no, we’re already together.”

Rainbow looked at him in shock. “When did this happen? Really, you black out for one day and suddenly your best human friend is dating the Princess of the Night.” She pouts. It’s adorable and hilarious at the same time.

“Well she waited for me at my home yesterday. I think she was worried about me.” Jax blushed. Just a little. It was just really nice to be cared about that much. “One thing led to another…”

“Really? After I told you my story you go with ‘one thing led to another’?” Rainbow reprimands him.

“Well… Alright, we started talking, I told her about you and how I felt guilty, and she kissed me on the cheek and told me if I wanted to talk about it she would listen, but I had talked with Beating about it and honestly I was exhausted after all that had happened. Instead she started singing…”

“Alright, I didn’t want that much detail. Just give me the gist of it.” Rainbow corrects.

Jax can’t help but sigh. This pony… “Alright. She sang for me, we talked about her guilt, we kissed, we cuddled, we talked some more about her past, then I told her all the details about how I ended up here.”

“Wow really? You’ve been really tight-lipped about your past. I remember when Twilight tried to ask you, and you threw her out of your room.”

“Yeah… that was a long time ago though, and Luna is much closer to me. I’m not gonna repeat though. Not in the near future at least.”

“Alright, fair enough. I wasn’t gonna ask you anyway.”

“Good. Now, about you and Fluttershy?” It’s Rainbow’s turn to blush.

“You still on about that?” It felt like she meant for the sentence to have more force behind it than it did.

“Well, yeah. You have both done a lot for me, so I want to help you in return. It’s what friends do.” He smiled at the rainbow manned mare in front of him. Honestly, he didn’t know if he would be satisfied with just that, but it was a beginning and he didn’t know what else he could do. He probably didn’t need to do anything at all, but he felt like he just kept taking from them without giving anything back. He wanted to fix that.

“Right. Well, we’re fine. Everything’s fine.” Rainbow assured him nervously.

“Right.” He smiled. “I’m still helping though.”

“Do you have to?” Rainbow facehooved.

“Yep.”

He was going to start paying back all that he owed these small ponies. Starting with Rainbow and Fluttershy.

Author's Note

You want to know what's annoying? Starting a chapter, and then accidentally having it deleted. Yep, had to rewrite the whole beginning of this chapter because I'm an idiot. Suffice to say, it took me a while to get engaged in it again. It's a good thing I had two weeks.
which reminds me, I'm still busy, so next chapter is in two weeks as well.
Anyway, some stuff happens and Rainbow opens up a bit ^^ Good... I want you all to realize that I could have gone a bit further with this chapter and then end it on a cliffhanger, but since I'm such a nice guy, all the action will happen next chapter XD
Anyway, if y'all want to read a long story about a douchebag that learns the value of friendship, read this: Tales of the Oppressed I found it rather interesting to watch his transformation. Well executed. Much character development.
Anyway, have a good day :)

Chapter 43

Jax was walking home. The rain had started before he even got outside, and the wind was playing with his wet hair. It flew into his face a couple of times, annoying him. He needed to get it cut soon.

The storm hadn’t hit entirely yet, so it wasn’t so bad, but sometimes a more forceful gust of wind would make it hard to walk.

He just wanted to get home before the lightning started.

Rainbow had been very reluctant to take his help, but in the end she had conceded. He had no clue how to help her though. He really needed to stop promising to help ponies without knowing how. He still had to help Luna with her reputation, but he had no new ideas.

He sighed. Somehow, he was going to make it happen. It was only a matter of inspiration.

Jax didn’t mind rain much - when he was looking at it from the inside. As it was making his clothes wet and sticky, he remembered why it was only from the inside. He started running to get home faster. He was already close to the farm, it wasn’t much further. Then he could drink some delicious tea from inside his very own home.

He couldn’t help but smile. He may not have much in this world, but thanks to his friends, he at least had a house of his own. And more importantly, he had friends. Good friends, that worried about him and wanted him to be happy. And of course Luna, his very own… marefriend. Girlfriend. Partner? Whatever. It was nice to have someone he could share that level of intimacy with. Kissing her was better than eating even the most delicious cake Pinkie could make.

Lightning lit up the orchard in a beautiful way, but the thunder that followed made him flinch. It was way too close for his taste.

He sped up, only to slip on the mud that had taken over the path. He cursed as he fell into a cold puddle. He quickly got out, sputtering and shivering, cursing his luck. It was way too typical, but it was his own fault for running when it had been raining hard for the last hour, and it was rather dark.

He shrugged and continued running. He needed to wash his clothes and take a shower anyway, so it wasn’t that big of a deal. It was just annoying right now, as the mud grated on his skin from beneath his clothes.

The orchard was dark as well, and he almost slipped a couple of times more, but his desire to get home fast outweighed thoughts of caution. He finally ran past the last tree in the orchard to see his home on the hill. Then he froze in place when another lightning lit it up properly.

In front of it stood a big red stallion, previously hidden in the shadows. He stepped forward as the thunder rolled over them and the light disappeared.

“Big Mac.” He breathed out, regretting his rush to get home. Starting out with a short breath is not the best way to face an enemy.

“Weird creature.” The being that Rainbow Dash was convinced was a changeling answered. Of course it could also be Sombra if Twilight was correct. There was no way to really know at this point. Maybe Big Mac had just lost it, but that didn’t explain the subtle smell of rot, noticeable even through the smell of rain and earth. That smell had been there last time he had faced Big Mac as well. Only this time help wasn’t coming.

Jax wanted to turn around and run. He couldn’t take on Big Mac, their last match had proven that… but he couldn’t outrun him either. His eyes darted over to his house, inside of which his Stick of Awesome rested, along with a sturdy door to keep Everfree creatures out.

And his bear. He could really use Mr. Bear right now.

“Oh don’t worry, creature. I’m not going to hurt you.” Big Mac’s deep voice assured him, even as the slight echo that shouldn’t be there annoyed him. “You interest me, you see. To be able to connect two separate locations together like you did yesterday… not many can do that. Not even I could do it at my peak. But I will be able to…” Big Mac flashed him a wolfish grin that looked so very, very out of place. “When I take over your body!”

Many things happened at once. Another lightning lit up the area from behind Big Mac, who suddenly collapsed when something came out of him.

That something turned out to some sort of dark mist, with, weirdly enough, a unicorn’s head. It had grey fur, a black mane, red pupils with green around it instead of white, and a red curved horn, along with sharp teeth.

Honestly, it should have looked absolutely ridiculous, a head coming out of black mist, but as it was, framed by the lightning behind it, those red eyes looking at him greedily, Jax couldn’t help but be terrified.

All he could do was to think ‘well, guess it wasn’t a changeling. Must be Sombra then.’ Before the mist descended on him. His eyes widened as he realized the severity of the situation. It had said it was going to take over his body. Was it going to use a spell for that?

‘Cell, prison, caught in a trap, restricted…’ He started to think fanatically, as panic descended over him. If the dark mist was going to use a spell, he hoped that his natural ability would kick in and fuck it up.

Sure enough, he felt the familiar phantom feeling of a spell being used on him, this time it was as if cold coils were wrapping themselves around him, and sure enough, the familiar feeling of his natural chaos magic started, kicking the coils back where they came from.

‘What… What is the meaning of this? NO! NOOOOOOO!’ It was a weird feeling… It was a thought in his head, but it wasn’t his thought.

For a moment, Jax just stood there, frozen in place. Then he fell forward on his hands and knees into the mud with a relieved sigh. He was still in control.

‘How? My spell is perfect! How am I trapped? WHAT DID YOU DO?!’ Sombra wasn’t happy, but Jax could care less. What he did care about was that Sombra seemed to be trapped… inside of him. That was not what he wanted… But his control of the chaos magic he had was… fleeting, at most. It required a certain mood that he wasn’t very good at creating, like Discord and Pinkie were. He guessed it was more fun for his magic to trap Sombra inside of him instead of outside. Whatever, at least he wasn’t taken over by a crazy pony.

He took some deep breaths. He wasn’t taken over… but this might be the spark Rarity feared, that would reignite the flame that were rumours about him. He didn’t want that… but he couldn’t exactly keep it quiet.

Well… maybe he could…

But should Sombra somehow break free… that would be bad. Very bad.

God fucking damnit. Why did shit like this always happen to him? Why couldn’t life just be easy?

‘Answer me!’ Sombra’s… thoughts echoed in his head. They were filled with hatred. Jax shivered.

‘Maybe you should do some research before you try to take other people’s body, bitch. Jax - 1, Sombrero - 0.’ He gloated. It felt good to take some of the frustration out on the one who had caused it in the first place. It wasn’t the victory he wanted, since he was still stuck with Sombra, but it was so much better than Sombra getting his way.

‘I am King Sombra, filth. You will do well to address me as such.’ Jax almost laughed out loud.

‘King?! King of what exactly, Sombrero? You have nothing, not even a body of your own. You. Are. Nothing.’ He taunted, knowing full well that Sombra couldn’t do anything to retaliate.

‘No! I am the king! I will get my revenge on those who stole the throne from me, and then I will take back what was mine!’ Jax got up and started making his way towards his house, but stopped when he noticed Big Mac’s unconscious body. He sighed.

Doing the right thing was going to be such a pain…

‘Sure you are.’ He answered sarcastically, while kneeling beside Big Mac. ‘Didn’t you steal the throne from someone else though? What comes around, goes around, and all of that. Maybe you should learn that lesson.’ He could practically feel Sombra’s hate inside of him. He tried to lift Big Mac up, but he was much heavier than other ponies he had tried to lift, even Luna. The rain was still coming down, reminding him that he was covered in mud, so close to his house, yet he was going to drag this heavy pony through the orchard.

‘There is only one rule in life, creature. You own what you take. I took the throne, so it is mine.’

‘And then Cadence took the throne from you, so it’s hers. Good rule.’ Jax took a hoof in his hand and started dragging Big Mac over the ground. The mud was both a blessing and a curse in this case, since it made Big Mac slide over it, but it also provided little footing for Jax.

‘It shall be mine again! I just need… I must… I will…’ Sombra’s thoughts stopped as they became more flustered. Then suddenly: ‘The parasite! I will use it again… Just need to find it… been a long time…’

‘Parasite?’ Jax stopped dragging Big Mac. ‘What parasite?’

‘…’

…

‘Worry not, freak. By the time you realize what is going on, it will all be over.’ Jax didn’t like the smugness in Sombra’s thoughts. He didn’t like the sound of a parasite either. It reminded him of the Limelight.

But apparently Sombra wasn’t stupid enough to just tell him what he was planning.

He started dragging Big Mac again. This was gonna be a long night.

***

“Howdy there, sugarcube.” Applejacks tired voice fit well with the bags under her eyes. “What can Ah help y-“ Her eyes widened as they fell on Big Mac, laying unconscious beside Jax. “Big Mac! Is he okay?” She rushed over to him, checking his vitals. Whether or not she could feel his pulse through her hoof was a mystery to Jax.

“He’s fine, I think. I can explain everything to you.”

***

Jax was sitting across Applejack in their living room. They had dragged Big Mac over to the couch, and he had just told her everything, as promised.

Jax had expected her to be… scared, wary, suspicious, maybe even directly hostile, but lo and behold, ponies proved how kind they were yet again.

Applejack went around the table and gave him a hug.

Jax realized how much he needed that. Sombra growled from somewhere inside of him, but otherwise it felt just as good as other hugs he had received. Applejack may be a hard working pony, but she took care of her fur enough for it to be soft.

Of course, Luna’s hugs were better. And softer. But this was a nice substitute at the moment, and he really needed it.

He relaxed in her firm embrace. “Why do things like this happen to me, AJ?” He asked her, not really expecting a reply.

She gave a low, humourless chuckle. “Ah don’t rightly know, sugarcube. Well, except that ya live in Ponyville. Things often happen ‘round these parts.”

Jax mirrored her chuckle. “Maybe I should move away then. I’ll start my own village and call it Humanville.” He joked half-heartedly.

“You might be joking, but Ah know quite a few ponies that would be sad to see ya leave.” He could hear the smile in her voice though. All his friends ran through his head at her comment, reminding him why he wasn’t serious about it. Other than the fact that starting a new village was ton of work. “Listen, this might be selfish of me but… thank you for bringing Big Mac home. Ah’ve been worried sick over that stallion.” He could hear the sincerity in her voice, along with… shame?

“You’re welcome. It was a pain to drag him over here in the rain, through an orchard, but nothing I would call you selfish for thanking me for.”

“Ah wasn’t talking about that part sugarcube.” Yep, that was shame, or maybe guilt. Jax wasn’t quite sure. “Ah was talking about giving that Sombra fella a new target.” She sighed. “Sounds even worse when Ah say it out loud.” She shook her head. “Ah’ll try to explain it to ya so you don’t think Ah’m some kind of monster that’s okay with other ponies’ suffering as long as it’s not ma family.”

Jax… didn’t know how to feel about this. He could kinda understand, that was her brother after all, but it didn’t feel very good to hear that she was happy it was him instead. He certainly wasn’t.

She drew back from the hug and looked him in the eyes. “Ever since we were little, Big Mac has always been the gentle kind. He was big, and work around the farm soon made him strong, but he’s never used that strength for anything other than some good old tree bucking. Even when some of the other colts at school found out that he never kicks back and started bullying him, he never lifted a hoof against them. Because that’s not the kind of stallion he is.”

She sighed and looked down at the floor. “Look, Ah ain’t sain’ that Ah don’t feel bad for ya, Jax, but you are made from sturdier stuff. Y’all bounced right back from being burned, being in pain for three days straight, and being stuck with another pony. Whatever comes you’re way, you don’t let it overwhelm you. Big Mac ain’t like that. If Sombra had killed Scootaloo in his body, Big Mac wouldn’t be able to take it, even if it wasn’t exactly him that did it. For the rest of his life, he would blame himself, and Ah… Ah don’t want that. That’s why Ah’m… relieved.” She finished by looking up at him with those big eyes that ponies had. He hated when they looked at him like that, almost begging to be forgiven for whatever they did. At least she didn’t fold her ears, and there were no tears in her eyes.

He realized he was just kinda looking at her when she looked down at the floor again. He didn’t exactly know what to say. What could he say to that? It’s okay? I’m fine? It wasn’t okay and he wasn’t fine.

“It still doesn’t sound very good, does it? Ah’m sorry sugarcube, Ah can understand if y’all are angry with me. Just know that you did my family a favour, and we ain’t gonna forget it.” She looked at him with determination.

‘Yeah, because that will help you. Is this the magic of friendship I have been hearing so much about? It is even more stupid than I imagined.’ Sombra commented. ‘She might as well have told you that she’s happy you broke your leg instead of her brother because you can take it and he cannot. Makes you feel so much better, does it not?’ He mocked.

Jax sighed. “Maybe you should tune down with the honesty, AJ. Actually, you could just not have said anything.”

“I know sugarcube. I just feel better when Ah say what’s on my mind.” She gave him a small smile that he mirrored. It wasn’t like he was actually mad at her or anything, what she said just didn’t make him feel all that good about himself… because he would have preferred if Sombra had stayed with Big Mac, and that made him feel like the biggest douche ever, especially after what he had just heard.

“I’ll be making my way home. It’s late and I need a shower.” He told her as he rose from the chair.

“Alright. Ah’ll be seeing ya tomorrow, Ah hope?” She sounded a bit apprehensive, like she was uncertain whether he would want to come or not.

“Yeah… See you then.” He said as he left through the front door.

Author's Note

I think I know at least one reason why I'm bad at writing Applejack... I can't do her... 'countryisms' I just... I can't XD
Anyway, do you know that feeling when you need to write a fanfiction chapter and test a product for your project and write an essay til Sunday, but there's a sale on steam, so you finally buy those dlc's for Skyrim and just end up modding the hell outa it?
Yeah... next chapter in two weeks 'cause still stressed and exams are coming up :/ I'll probably get back on 1 chapter/week in... much later. until then... stay awesome ^^

Chapter 44

Jax was less than happy when he got home, and very tired. But there was still a shower that needed to be had, and… something. He felt like he was forgetting something. Something important…

Ah well. He shrugged and started taking off his clothes. A shower would do him good.

‘This place is even less impressive on the inside.’ Sombra informed him.

‘Your mom is less impressive on the inside. Must be why you turned out so rotten.’ Jax was really too tired to think of a good comeback. He hadn’t used ‘your mom’ comebacks in a while, so why not?

To his surprise, Sombra actually laughed at that. ‘My mother was unimpressive inside and outside, just like my father. No, the reason I am so magnificent can be found in my determination to succeed.’ Was it just him, or did Sombra sound different than before? Less like a raging lunatic, and more like a self-assured psychopath. Whatever, he was just nuts all over.

Would Luna be offended that he used the word ‘lunatic’ like that? Was it even a word here?

‘You look absolutely ridiculous.’ Sombra commented as he went into the bathroom and looked in the mirror. ‘I cannot believe that I did not think of this stupid body before I tried to take you over. I should have stayed with the red stallion. Big and strong.’

Jax grid his teeth and ignored the idiot in his mind. How long would he be able to stay sane with a second party giving him comments through thoughts that could be his own if he didn’t know that he would never think ‘you look absolutely ridiculous’ when looking at himself. It was a bit frightening actually. His thoughts and Sombra’s comments were only distinguishable by context. He would have to keep on his toes the day Sombra stopped sprouting bullshit.

After his shower, Jax felt better. A bit more relaxed and awake, ready to deal with everything. He noticed that Luna had sent some letters via dragonfire, and went over to see what it was about. There was one that wasn’t in an envelope, the rest were and had names like ‘Pinkie Pie’ and ‘Beating Heart’ on them. It was easy to see where this was going.

Dear Jax

To be honest, it still feels a little unreal that we are together. It still makes me giddy to think about. I would like to meet with you again soon, but alas, I am still a princess, and I still have duties. I will try to set some time aside as soon as I can.

Your presence makes everything easier… I think you already know that, but it feels nice to write it. I look forward to seeing you as soon as possible.

I have sent you letters that I would appreciate got into the correct hooves. I promise I will use the postal system after this time, but I have been gone for a while and they have waited enough. I promise to make it up to you when we see each other again.

Until then, I hope you have a nice, relaxing time.

With love

Luna.

Jax had a warm smile on as he read the letter. He could get used to this. It felt nice to be loved. He could hear Sombra scoff inside of him, but even that didn’t bring him down. Jax only hoped he proved more adapt at being somebody’s mate than he was at avoiding trouble.

‘Is that… dragonfire? And is Luna not one of those stupid meddling princesses?’

Jax suddenly remembered what it was he should do. He should tell the princesses about Sombra. He had already told Applejack, so it wasn’t like he could keep it secret, and they would want to know.

Wait a minute… ‘Earlier, before I showered you commented on my appearance when I looked in the mirror… can you… can you see through my eyes?’

‘Catching on, are we? No, it was not pleasant for me to watch you wash yourself.’

‘Oh… my… God.’ A stupid piece of shadow could see everything that he saw. God, this was like being with Luna all over again, except Luna was the sweetest, kindest, most beautiful creature in the world, while Sombra was a piece of shit that he didn’t want near him, let alone inside of him. God this was so wrong. How did he keep his panic in check till now?!

Jax reached for a quill before he started to hyperventilate, but then just stared at the parchment while his breath became more and more superficial.

‘Finally! Fear me mortal, for I am King Sombra, shadow of the north!’ Sombra got that edge to his voice that he had when he first tried to take over.

“God damnit Sombrero! I’m trying to write a letter here!” He let his frustration get the better of him and shouted out loud.

Something someone would probably define as an ‘evil’ laughter rang through his head. To Jax it just sounded stupid. ‘Yes, yes! Let your rage take over!’

Jax almost choked on the familiar sentence. ‘What are you, a sith?’ He forced himself calm. If Sombra wanted him to embrace his inner sith, he would do the exact fucking opposite. What would Yoda do? Keep calm, you must. Keep rage at bay, you will.

‘Noo! Stop fighting it and let your emotions run loose!’

Good, it was working. He ignored Sombra as he kept raging inside of him. He would have to write a detailed report to Luna of what had happened.

…

…

Nothing. How did Twilight do this? He was fairly certain she kept Celestia up to date.

Dear Luna.

Wait… Was that a good way to start a letter? No wait, that’s how she started her letter, so it should be fine.

Dear Luna.

I write to you with great urgency.

Wait… should he acknowledge her letter first? Probably…

***

Okay! He had finally finished the letter.

Dear Luna.

It brought me great joy to receive your letter, and don’t worry, I will make sure ponies get their mail, but I’m afraid I have bad news.

You remember why Rainbow Dash ended up in the hospital? Well, Sombra was impressed by my little trick of connecting two places together, so he tried to possess me. Yes, tried.

Although he wasn’t successful, because he used a spell to do it, he is still trapped inside of me, because chaos magic. Yes, I have a psycho inside of me, watching my every move and talking in my thoughts. To be honest, it freaks me out quite a lot.

On the bright side, you have a good reason to come visit now.

I hope to see you soon

Jax

It wasn’t perfect, but it would have to do. He didn’t feel like writing the whole thing again because he changed his mind on the last sentence.

He folded it and sent it before he could change his mind and rewrite it. Letters were so different to write than the messages he was used to.

Sombra was still raging on, now about being ignored, so Jax continued to do just that.

Of course it wasn’t that easy. When words were spoken, they could be tuned out by the brain. When words were spoken inside the brain, they were called thoughts and were harder to tune out, since normally there was only one’s own thought in there. Normally.

Is this how people with multiple personality disorder felt? Or was that something else? He missed the internet…

With a sigh, Jax decided that there was nothing to do but to sleep. He didn’t know when Luna would answer after all. If she was as busy as she seemed, it might be a while.

Wait… where was Mr. Bear?

***

Jax was woken by something entering his bed. It had not been easy to fall asleep, and he felt like he hadn’t been asleep for very long, so in his sleep deprived state he didn’t realize that he should be home alone.

Not that it mattered, since the creature in his bed was very welcome there.

He recognized the blue fur when she started nuzzling his cheek.

“Luna!” He burst out with the biggest smile, suddenly wide awake. She gave him a smile that turned into surprise when he attached himself to her neck, forcing her to lay down with him.

‘By the crystal city, what is going on?’

“It is good to see you again, my dear Jax.” Luna said with mirth in her voice, as Jax nuzzled her like she hadn’t seen her for God knows how long. It felt so good he couldn’t stop smiling.

Jax was alerted to a third presence in the room when she spoke up. “I agree. It has been a while.” Celestia’s voice was warm and friendly, as was her smile. It fell a little when she continues. “Do you know why we’re here?”

‘Great. How did you attract both princesses?’

“Well I was hoping it was a social visit. It has been a while since I’ve seen you, Celestia, and I always love seeing Luna.” He smiled at Celestia, and her warm smile returned in full force.

‘ugh… how can you be so cheerful? It is making me sick.’

“If that is what you wanted, you should have written to me. We did agree to have a full day to get to know each other, back when you were still in the hospital because of Twilight. I’m twice as interested now that you seduced my sister.” She winked at him, seemingly taking joy in Luna’s blushing face. “But that will have to wait. I am here because Luna wanted to come when she received your letter, and I didn’t want her to fall into some devious trap set by Sombra.”

‘Any trap I would set, they would not see coming...’

Jax looked out of the window. It looked like it was sunrise.

“Sister, it is clear that this is not Sombra. Remember when we fought him, back then? A maniac whose only talent was dark magic and to scream about his right to the throne. He was not an actor that could copy Jax’ smile so perfectly.” She ended by looking at him lovingly, and he felt himself blushing. This girl…

‘I have more talent than you ever will! I am King Sombra, rightful ruler of the Crystal Throne!’

‘Are you going to comment on everything they say?! You just proved her point, now shut the fuck up, Sombrero!’ Jax finally snapped at him.

“I would rather not underestimate him, Luna. He did somehow kill Princess Amore. Anypony who can kill an alicorn, is worth the caution.”

‘That was easy. She practically doomed herself.’

Apparently it was Jax’ turn to be ignored. He sighed. “So what do you suggest, Celestia?” Suddenly the lack of sleep caught up to him and he felt so very tired.

‘Probably something imprudent.’

“Well there are several options. Luna, what do you think? You have more… experience, after all.” Celestia looked very uncomfortable at bringing that up, not that Jax could blame her. Luna looked pretty uncomfortable herself, before taking a deep breath and descending into thought. Then she looked at Jax.

“You say he used a spell?” Jax nodded. “When I was falling under the influence of the Limelight, it never used a spell. It is something about where it resides when it tries to take over your body. Between the body and the soul, as far as I remember.”

‘How does she know that?! The Limelight…?’ Jax’ eyes widened at Sombra’s confirmation. What did that even mean? There was nothing between the soul and the body, was there?

“So just because he has not been able to take over, does not mean that he will not become able to do it the same way the Limelight did. By filling my head with dark thoughts, letting negative magic easily take root in my body. Once enough negative magic had gathered, my thoughts turned… even worse. By then, I practically gave over my body to it, for the promise of power…” A melancholic look overtook her features. Jax’ heart ached at seeing her like that, so he rested a hand on her muzzle. She closed her eyes, so he started stroking her.

‘That sounds like how the parasite should have operated…’ What?

Celestia spoke up again. “So we have to make sure the same does not happen with Jax. I believe I have a temporary solution, until we find out more.”

Author's Note

Attention:
So somebody asked me if I was gonna add a sex tag, which is a valid question. The answer is no, there is going to be no sex/clop in this fic. I'm thinking about making a separate fic which would then be some Luna/Jax action, to try it out as I haven't tried that kind of literature before, but I'm still undecided XD I mean... it would be awkward, I'm sure of it XD

The rest you can read at your own leisure:
So while repeatedly banging my head against the wall that is writer's block, while other stories ran around with signs saying 'write me! It will be much easier!' I finally gave in and started a new story. I'm not sure about the details, but I'm adamant about not having two incomplete stories out at a time. This second story will be for when I'm not so inspired to write this story, but unless it becomes longer than I think (which i have shown can easily happen) or i don't write it very often, I'm probably gonna upload it when I'm finished with it. Or I'll finish this one first and upload what i have off the second. Anyway, it's about some guy who starts in Canterlot high, nothing new there. XD

Also, about this chapter, I don't follow the canon from the comics, just so you know.

So, Dj... are you happy now? he wrote to Luna, just like you wanted XD

And yes, I'm still busy, so next chapter will also be in two weeks.

Chapter 45

Jax looked at Celestia with a deadpan expression. “This is your plan? Come on Celestia, I thought you were going to do something about it, not have me guarded.”

They were sitting in the hospital, in Rainbow’s room, with all the elements there. Celestia had just explained her brilliant plan. Sombra had laughed, but everyone else looked like they thought it was a good idea.

“I like it!” Pinkie announced. Of course she would. “I get to spend more time with you!” She smiled her big smile at him. He couldn’t do anything but smile back at her optimism, worried as he was.

“Yes, and that’s very nice, but it doesn’t exactly tackle the problem. Can’t you just blast me with… wait the elements are gone. No, you still have them inside of you or something. Can’t you just blast me with the rainbow of friendship?”

Twilight sighed. “If other magic doesn’t work on you, then I don’t exactly think using extreme amounts of it will have a positive effect. If it triggers your defence chaos magic, we might as well just use a normal spell on you, but as you said yourself, you don’t have much control over it. It could backfire spectacularly. I think Celestia’s plan is the best option until we think of something else…”

“No, potions clearly work on me, so it’s not-“

“Jax. I know it feels like I’m taking your freedom, but that is the last thing I want to do.” Celestia spoke up again. “You will still be allowed to go where you like… you will just always have a friend nearby.”

Jax sighed. Celestia’s plan literally consisted of them taking shifts watching over him, making sure Sombra didn’t take over. Which was fine, he did like spending time with them, but it didn’t do anything to get Sombra out of him. He didn’t want to continue like that forever. “Alright, I get it… I don’t want Sombrero to take over either, it’s just…” He didn’t know how to word the feeling. It was… He knew he wasn’t a prisoner, but he still felt like he was being restricted. He hated being restricted. In the Everfree forest, he had been in danger, but he had been free.

Luna leaned over and spread her wing over his shoulder, pulling him closer to nuzzle the top of his head, instantly shaking him out of it. “I shall not let him take thee. Thou art mine.” She said with a firm voice, and that adorable way of speaking she adopted sometimes.

He closed his eyes and pushed his chair closer to her so he didn’t have to lean so much, and just let her pamper him a bit.

When he opened his eyes again, he saw that every pony except Rainbow and Celestia, looked at them with varied expressions of shock and surprise.

“Yeah, we’re together now.” He said with satisfaction, making the room practically explode. Mostly because of Pinkie and her canon. Where she conjured up a confetti shooting canon from… he wasn’t going to think about. Twilight and Rarity contributed to the explosion by making various sounds of, well, glee, while Applejack and Fluttershy just smiled happily.

“Darling, I can’t tell you how happy I am to hear that! I’ve been waiting ages for this, I just…. Just give me a moment.” Rarity started breathing heavily.

“I knew it! I knew you two would end up together! And Spike said I was seeing things. Saying I have no sense for these kinds of things, I showed him! Uhm, I mean… congratulations!” Twilight added to the conversation.

“Yes, a congratulations is certainly in order. I’m sure you will find much happiness together.” Rarity added, able to speak again.

Jax and Luna looked at each other, both with giant smiles on their faces. Their reaction felt surprisingly good. Jax felt all warm and tingly inside, though kind of embarrassed by the big deal they were making out of it. He must have been as red as a tomato. Luna was also blushing, so it was alright.

“Ah recon that ‘gratulations are indeed in order. Finding your special somepony is a joyous occasion.” Applejack smiled at them.

“Joyous? Are you kidding me? This super-duper… no, wait this is even better than that! This is ULTRA-MEGA… NO EVEN BETTER THAN THAT!” She gasped and started pacing, while muttering under her breath.

“Uhm… I think it’s pretty amazing as well. I wish you all the best.” Fluttershy gave them a gentle smile.

Rainbow Dash’s smile was confident. “I’m sure you’ll be fine, you don’t need any good luck from us. I can’t say I saw it coming, but who knows, maybe the next changeling attack will be stopped by you two.” She grinned at the thought, and they both chuckled as well. That would be something to behold.

“Since we are all congratulating, perhaps it is my turn to do so officially.” Celestia spoke up. Her smile was as warm as the sun she is in charge of, which honestly seemed to be the standard for her. Ponies were lucky to have these kinds of rulers. “Although I agree with Rainbow Dash, I have also learned that one cannot have too much good luck, so I wish you good luck as well. If you ever need anything, know that I am right here, rooting for you.”

It was heart-warming really, all of this. He hadn’t expected his friends to react like that, and their support, while not exactly necessary, was very appreciated.

“Thank you all. I mean-“

“The most super-duper-mega-ultra-wonderfantasticly- amastonishingly astounding event that could happen today!” Pinkie blurted out. Did she hide a thesaurus in her hair or something?

After a brief pause to understand what the hell she was saying, they all burst out laughing, which made Pinkie confused. Jax secretly thought that that was what she meant to do, but maybe she was just being herself.

“Thank you. Thank you all for cheering us on.” Luna said from his side. Looking over at her he noticed that she was a little teary eyed. Not a lot, in pony standards, but enough for him to notice. She had a big smile though, which enforced the warmth he was feeling. The warmth he had been feeling a lot of lately. It felt fuzzy, like he was just so… content with everything, that he couldn’t be happier. Even with Sombra inside of him, at that moment, he couldn’t have smiled brighter.

***

“Alright.” Celestia finally stated. “It’s settled.

Pinkie Pie, you have Tuesdays.” “Yipie!”

“Applejack has Wednesdays.” “Yeup.”

“Rainbow Dash, you have Thursdays.” “No problem!”

“Rarity, you have Fridays.” “Certainly, your highness.”

“Fluttershy, you have Saturdays.” “Mmm.”

“Twilight, you have Sundays.” “Of course.”

“Wait a minute.” Jax looked at Rainbow. “Isn’t today Thursday? Am I gonna have to sit in here all day?”

“Actually, since I’ve already cancelled everything, I will be the one taking care of you today, Jax.” Celestia answered. “Rainbow Dash can take over from next week.”

He looked at her with confusion. “From next week?”

“Yeah, I’m outa here by Monday. It’s a pain, I can’t wait to stretch my wings again. Actually, who’s going to take Monday? I can take two shifts if it’s a problem.”

“It is not. I shall stay with Jax on Moonday.”

“Are you certain, Luna? You will have to be up all day with Jax, and then all night to attend your duties.” Celestia looked at Luna with worry.

“Wait, you’re already out that early?” Jax looked at Rainbow in disbelief.

“Moonday?” Rainbow asked with confusion.

“I am certain. It will not be a problem, since I get to spend a whole day with…” Luna stopped and blushed, realizing what she was saying.

“It’s the old way of saying Monday, Rainbow. It was shortened over the centuries, I think.” Twilight answered Rainbow Dash.

“Wait I think I understand… It’s magic isn’t it?” Jax deadpanned. “I was gonna be here so long because it couldn’t be used on me.”

“Healing magic really has come a long way, darling. It is a shame we weren’t able to use it on you… maybe Zecora can make potions that don't rely on randomness to work. It seems like you don’t have much luck on your side, if you don’t mind me saying.” Rarity answered him.

“Oh, so it was like a day dedicated to the moon? How come we only have Saturday and Sunday off then? That seems kind of unfair.” Rainbow went on.

“Alright Luna, if you’re sure, I won’t stop you.” Celestia sighed. Luna smiled at her.

“Yeah, it is kind of unfair.” Jax agreed.

“What’s unfair?” Applejack asked.

“Uh! A guessing game! Is it life? Ponies always say that life is unfair, but I don’t really think it is. I mean, if it’s unfair to everypony, then it’s actually fair right?” Pinkie joined one of the conversations.

“I do not see how you would go about stopping me in any case, sister.” Luna smiled mischievously.

“Can we… can we please have one conversation at a time?” Fluttershy asked nicely. Everybody present looked at her. “It’s… hard to follow more than one.” She explained meekly.

“Sure. Uhm… which conversation are we following then?” Jax agreed that it had been a bit hard to follow everything that had been said.

“We were just finishing up ours.” Celestia stated. “I believe you were talking about how unfair it is that Monday, or Moonday, isn’t celebrated the same way Sunday is?”

“Yeah! How come we get Saturday and Sunday off instead of Sunday and Monday?” Rainbow asked. “Saturday isn’t even any special day.”

Looking to the side, Jax saw Luna give Rainbow Dash a fond look. He didn’t think she had anything against Rainbow before, but if there ever was an easy way to get Luna’s approval, it must be by saying something like that.

“Yeah! Let’s vote for it. All that think Moonday should be workless day instead of Saturday, raise your hand… uhm, hoof.” Jax said, raising his hand. Every pony rose their hoof as well, even Celestia after a short pause.

Celestia’s amused smile turned into melodic laughter. “I hope you all realize that it won’t be that easy. Ponies hold on to traditions as firmly as a manticore holds onto its prey, and I can’t influence which days private establishments decide to let their employees have days off. I will try and see what I can do though.” She smiled warmly at them all.

“Yeah, and all traditions start somewhere, right? In a thousand years, it will be a tradition to have Monday off work instead of Saturday.” Pinkie sensibly added. “Oh! Or we can have a 3 days weekend! Then nopony will have to hate Monday ever again! They might not be too fond of Tuesday though…”

Jax couldn’t deny the truth in that.

“Celestia? Can I have some time to speak with Beating Heart while I’m here? I don’t feel like I talk with her enough, and she has been a good friend.”

Celestia smiled her warm smile at his question. “Of course. I’ll just go ahead and start working at the apple farm while I wait for you. I have some things I want to talk with you about.”

“Princes, ya don’t have ta…” Applejack looked to be at a loss for what to say. Well, letting a princess work on her farm might be a bit much for her, but Jax’ respect for Celestia just kept growing.

Celestia just smiled. “You don’t have to worry about anything, Applejack. It’s a refreshing change of pace from my normal workday.”

“The exercise-“ Luna started before she was interrupted.

“Luna…” Celestia warned her sternly, though it was undermined by her still present smile. “If you were about to comment on somepony’s weight, somepony might just mistake you for a tree that needs bucking.” Actually, that smile did look kind of scary when she said stuff like that.

Luna just laughed though. “Right, right, I will not mention it then.” She then turned to the rest of them. “I asked Jax to give you all these letters, but seeing as you are all here…” She took forth the letters and gave them to the right ponies. “I apologize for it taking a while for me to write to everypony. Jax, can you give Beating Heart her letter when you see her? I should make my way back to the castle and-“ She yawned. “-get some rest.”

Jax hugged her, and after gathering his courage, kissed her. It was a short kiss, but they were both left with a smile on their burning faces. It was one thing to kiss her when they were alone, but he felt kind of self-conscious when others were there. Still, he wanted to do it, and some on-viewers wasn’t going to stop him. It made them both happy, after all, and he loved Luna’s smile. She looked cute when she was embarrassed as well… even if he wished his own face would cool down.

“How forward of you, kissing in public already.” Celestia teased. “You must really have made her fall deeply for you, Jax. There was a time where even the thought of kissing another pony-“

“Tia!” Came Luna’s embarrassed interruption. “That was more than a millennium ago! Let us not dwell on that time in my life, please.” Despite her embarrassment, she still nuzzled Jax. “See you on Moonday.” She whispered in his ear, before making her way out.

“Yeah, we will. Sleep well.” She turned around to look at him one last time, and he couldn’t help but melt a little at her smile. It really was beautiful.

Rarity sighed. “I want to meet my prince charming as well. You’re so lucky, Jax.” She pouted.

Twilight just smiled. “It really is nice that you two ended up together. I can’t wait to tell Spike! Have no sense for this… I showed him!”

“Alright, alright. Anyway, I’m off to find Beating Heart. See you all later...” He waved at them as he left, on his quest to find the nurse.

***

“Hey Beating.” He greeted her outside one of the hospital rooms she was exiting. She was working, but she would have a break soon, or so he had heard from the pony at the desk.

“Oh Jax! What do I owe this pleasure to? I thought I would have to wait until next time you got hurt to see you again.” She teased him with a big smile.

“Come now, Beating, it’s only been a few days.” He smiled back. “I was here and I thought I could catch up with you. A lot of stuff has happened… you have a break soon right? I’ll wait by the entrance, we can go somewhere to talk and eat lunch, if you want?”

“Sure, give me… half an hour, I think.” She nodded.

***

They were walking over to Jax’ favourite pizzeria, The Great Circle, when Jax realized how hungry he really was. He didn’t have breakfast because Celestia and Luna had insisted on a meeting the elements as quickly as possible, but he also didn’t have any money. He felt like a total loser.

The day was quite pleasant, though it was a bit windy, and there were still puddles of water from the storm last night. Ponies were walking around doing what ponies do, smiling at them as they passed. One of the flower ponies which he specifically remembered running away from him not too long ago, screaming ‘the horror’ or something, was now waving at them. He waved back and she smiled sweetly. He had a feeling that things would change back once they found out he could be possessed by a crazy psycho. He didn’t want that.

He sighed. “Beating… I don’t have any bits on me.” Or anywhere near him, really. He had bet everything on the pen, but it seemed like it would take way longer than he thought.

“Really? Don’t worry about it, it’s my treat this time then. As far as I remember, you weren’t getting very well fed while you were at the hospital, so this will be my late apology for that.” She gave him a crooked smile.

“As far as I remember, you already apologized, and I had that lasagne on my last day there. Don’t think I don’t know it was your doing.” Beating had been good to him back then. He should be the one paying for their meal, as a thank you. Damn, being penniless really sucked. Or was it called bitless here? It sounded kind of weird…

“Right, well, I enjoyed taking care of you. Most ponies complain a lot about a small scratch, but not you. You were so nice as well, despite… well, being different. Just let me do this.”

“… Alright. But when I get money, I’m taking you somewhere. No excuses.”

Beating chuckled. “A date? I thought you were into the Princess, not a lowly nurse like myself.” She smiled innocently at him.

“I… It’s not a date. I just want to pay you back for everything you did for me in the hospital.” He sighed, but she just laughed.

“I know, I know, I’m just teasing. Just make sure Princess Luna knows that as well.”

“Yeah, yeah.” He rolled his eyes, but smiled nonetheless.

They entered the relatively small establishment together. It had a cosy feeling about it, and they made great pizzas, even if they were all vegetarian. Hell, some of them even tasted like they had meat in them somewhere. Of course they didn’t though. He had checked.

“Ah! Jax, welcome back. It’s so weird to see you without Princess Luna somewhere near.” The owner of the shop, a pleasant stallion that had quickly overcome the shock of having both the Princess of the Night and the resident human frequently visit his shop.

“Well I wouldn’t mind if she came with me, but she’s pretty busy now that she doesn’t have to stay close to me. She’s back to sleeping during the day… most of the time anyway.”

Beating smirked at him. “Except when she visits you?”

Jax chuckled. “Well… She’s busy during the night, and according to herself she’s pretty confident in her ability to stay awake.”

Beating laughed at that. “You don’t have to tell me that, I saw her stay awake three days and nights to stay by your side when you were in the hospital. I don’t think it’s a big problem.”

“Yeah, she’s amazing as… anyway, I’ll have my usual.”

“I’ll have number three.”

“No problem. I’ll have it ready in half an hour.” He smiled at them.

They went over to a nearby table and sat down. The pizzeria didn’t seem to have many costumers in general for some reason, but today it was completely empty.

“So, what did you want to tell me? It seems like stuff always happens around you. I’ve been hearing rumours around the hospital about… about monsters, changelings, and more recently, possession of Big Mac… you wouldn’t happen to know anything about that, would you?” She looked at him suspiciously, as if she suspected the worst. It was sad that she wasn’t far off.

“So I guess you’re getting the bad news first then. Alright I’ll tell you everything. So remember the day I brought in Rainbow Dash?” Beating nodded. “That was the day we met him, Big Mac I mean… but not really. The rumours are true, he was possessed by Sombra and he could somehow use magic even though Big Mac is an earth pony. Me, Rainbow, and Twilight were battling him, well I was mostly just trying to stay alive, when he did this thing that made crystals sprout from the ground in front of me and Rainbow. When I tried to dodge them, they just changed direction, and would have hit me square in the chest if Rainbow Dash hadn’t… If she hadn’t been so dedicated to keeping her friends from harm.”

Beating nodded in understanding. Every pony in Ponyville knew how far Rainbow would go for her friends, it would seem. She also seemed like she had been prepared to hear something like this.

“Anyway, I made the portal to the hospital and brought Rainbow there, while Sombra in Big Mac’s body got away from Twilight. Anyway, here’s where the rumours are behind, and I’m telling you because I don’t want you to find out by some third pony who heard something from his grandmother’s deceased cat’s best friend’s nephew or something.” Beating smiled, but he could see in her eyes that she understood how serious he was. Why did he always fall back on humour anyway? Whatever. He took a deep breath, getting a nice whiff of the pizza aroma in the process. “Yesterday, after I had visited Rainbow, on my way home… Sombra appeared before me.” Beating gasped. “Apparently he was interested in how I had made a portal to the hospital, and-“

“No! He possessed you?!” She looked at him with panic and… fear. It hurt Jax to see his friend looking at him like that. General ponies he didn’t know was fine, but not his friends.

She calmed down after a second. “But… then why would you tell me? I’m sorry, I was too quick to judge. Please continue.” The fear wasn’t entirely gone and she was still looking apprehensive.

“Right. Well you aren’t far off EXCEPT” He emphasised the last word when he saw that she was going to say something. “he couldn’t. The spell didn’t work because of my chaos magic - I don’t know if you know about it, but the reason I wasn’t allowed to be healed magically at the hospital is because I have this defense mechanism. Every spell that is used on me is transformed into a different random spell, or that’s the short version anyway.”

Beating nodded a couple of times, deep in thought. “I heard something about that. So… he’s out there somewhere?” She looked around nervously.

“He’s trapped inside of me.” Jax stated bluntly.

Beating looked ready to run away right then and there, but after something that looked like an inner battle, she forced herself to relax. At least Jax thought that was it, nobody goes from tense to relaxed that quickly.

She looked at him, for a long time. She didn’t say anything, she just sat there, looking at his face, and he tried to look back calmly, but seeing his friend react like that made him sad, and he couldn’t keep it from his face.

She finally looked down at the table. “I’m sorry, Jax. I didn’t mean to get all… fearful, but there’s been talk coming down from the Crystal Empire. I’ve heard things… terrible things, about Sombra… And what he did to Rainbow… Still, I can see that you’re the Jax I know, and I’m a fool for thinking differently.” Her ears folded at the end.

“It’s… It’s fine Beating. You’ve been taking things very well, everything considered. You weren’t afraid of me when I first came to the hospital, but I can understand why you could be now.” He sighed. He didn’t want to start from scratch with his fear status, but it looked like he would have to. The word would get out and ponies would start fearing him as much, if not more, as when he first came to Ponyville. It was a depressing thought.

“Alright… thank you for telling me.” She gave him a small smile, but he could still see the emotions whirling in her eyes. “How about we talk about something a bit more pleasant?”

Jax nodded and took out a letter, sliding it over to her. “From Luna. She apologizes for it being a bit late, but she’s been busy.” Beating visibly perked up at receiving a letter from Luna.

“I wasn’t going to complain, it’s not like I have written one for her… even though I should have.” Her smile became a bit guilty. “I didn’t think she really considered me her friend. I thought she was only talking to me because of you.”

Jax smiled happily at how much the atmosphere had changed when Beating received the letter. Most of the thickness was gone. “Luna isn’t like that. I’m sure she’s happy to have you as her friend.”

Beating blushed a bit. “And I’m happy to have her as a friend. Should I give my reply to you or…?”

“I think using the postal system is preferred, but I don’t mind if you come by to send letters now and again.”

Beating nodded in thought, before a teasing smile appeared on her muzzle. “So how is it going between the two of you?”

Jax smiled triumphantly at her. “That’s actually the good news I have. We’re dating now.”

Beating’s jaw dropped low. “Really?! Does she know about…” She rolled her hoof at him.

Jax rolled his eyes. “Yes, she and Celestia came to my house this morning. That was actually why I was in the hospital, we were meeting with the elements, because Celestia wants some pony with me every day, in case something happens…”

Beating looking around at the empty restaurant and raised her brow at him.

“What? I’m not a prisoner and she said it was okay that I went out to talk with you.”

“Alright, I get it. So you and Princess Luna… I can’t say I’m surprised.”

“You looked pretty surprised.” He snickered.

“Well I didn’t expect it to happen just yet.” She defended herself. “Jax, I saw her watch over you for three days straight. I saw the look on her face when she looked at your quivering form. I saw the sorrow, I saw the concern, and I saw the determination. It was hurting her to see you like that, but she continued to lay right next to you, allowing you to find even the smallest comfort in her presence. I saw her unwillingness to even go to the toilet. I saw, and I knew that if you cared for her even one tenth of what she cared for you, you would end up together.

Then I watched as you were forced to spend time together when you woke up. I saw how happy she was when she looked at you, how relaxed she seemed with you so close to her, but I also saw how happy you seemed. How you absolutely radiated joy. I saw the wonder that filled you when you looked at her, and I knew that you cared for her as much as she cared for you. If I didn’t know, I would never have guessed that you were forced together, I would think that these were two individuals who enjoyed each other’s company, and liked being close. And I knew you were meant to be together.”

Jax was left speechless. “Wow…” It was true that he looked back fondly at the memories of being forced together with another being, and that that probably wasn’t normal, but he hadn’t thought about it the same way Beating had.

Beating nodded happily. “So it makes me very happy that you finally did end up together, you were just both so… I don’t know, unwilling to see the other pony’s love, I was afraid it would take you forever. I’m happy I was wrong. And now I have another reason to pay for this lunch.” She smiled happily at Jax, and he smiled back. It was good to have friends.

***

‘You’ve been kinda quiet for a while now. You aren’t planning something, are you?’ Jax thought on his way back to the apple farm. He had talked with Beating some more, and they had eaten their pizza, after which she had told him that she needed to get back to work and had paid for them.

Sombra hadn’t said a thing since he laughed at Celestia’s plan. It was suspicious.

A sound like a purr resonated through his mind. ‘I am thankful to you, Jax.’

Did he just use his name? He hadn’t done that… at all. And thanking him? Sombra wouldn’t do that… What was going on?

‘With all this positive magic you surround yourself with, I am finally free from the negative magic high I was on… I can finally think freely.

I have everything figured out, Jax. Soon, you will fall to me, and with your body… We will do marvellous things together, Jax. The world will bow before us…’

Well… Fuck.

Author's Note

Merry Christmas! Except if you celebrate Christmas the 25th... or don't celebrate it at all... In that case, merry early chapter!

Yeah, you didn't think the positive and negative high I introduced when Jax was hospitilized was for nothing, did you? This was what I had in mind XD Of course I didn't think it would be so long between I introduced it and between I used it... don't worry, I'll explain some more about it in the next chapter in case you guys forgot ;)

Speaking of the next chapter, I'm thinking about taking this story a bit more seriously, quality wise. It's been a great relief for me to be able to not have to stress over this story so much, and I feel like it's easier to write it... So I'm making posting every other week the norm.
It's a bit late in the story, but I'm going to try and focus on making my writing even better XD So comment if you see anything wrong ^^

Chapter 46

He ran the rest of the way to the orchard. He had a bad feeling about what had just happened. Sombra, who until now had sprouted nothing but insults and self-assured bullshit, had calmly told him that shit was gonna go down. Jax didn’t like it one bit.

He ran blindly ahead, past tree after tree, not wanting to stop and look around. Sombra had gone quiet again, which was not a good sign. Jax had to assure himself that Sombra couldn’t do anything. There was nothing he could do. What could he do? Nothing! He couldn’t use spells, he was trapped inside of Jax… And there was no way Jax would let him take over his body willingly. Sombra could do nothing… Nothing at all.

Then why couldn’t he shake the feeling that Sombra was planning something?

He found Celestia sitting between two trees without her regalia, eyes closed, head tilted upwards. Her mane, much like Luna’s, fluttered in its own wind, completely ignoring the actual wind that had made Jax’ run harder, and she had a small smile on her muzzle that made the whole image seem unbelievably peaceful. Jax stopped his frantic running to take it all in, and calmed down slowly. He still breathed hard, and the heat he felt from the run was uncomfortable, but looking at Celestia, he somehow got the feeling that everything was going to be okay.

After a few more deep breaths, Celestia finally turned her head towards him and opened her eyes. A look of concern crossed her face, and she made her way over to him with quick, yet somehow elegant, steps.

Jax was suddenly painfully aware of how sweaty he had become, before shaking off the feeling. There were worse things to be concerned about.

“Jax? Did something happen?” Celestia sounded concerned, but still waited patiently as he took a couple more deep breaths. The smell of apple trees calmed him further, and he almost felt like he was overreacting.

Almost.

“I…” He wasn’t sure how to explain himself. Would she think he was being silly? Sombra couldn’t do anything… And if he did, one of his friends would be nearby.

Somehow Celestia seemed to understand what was going through his head. How she could, he didn’t quite know. Maybe it had something to do with her massive experience… whatever it was, she gave him a calming smile, and laid down. She indicated the spot in front of her with her head. “Please, sit.”

Jax did so, his legs happy for the relief. He didn’t quite know what to think at the moment, so he was following along. He looked down at Celestia, waiting for her to continue. He should just tell her… But was it really important? It didn’t really change anything. She wouldn’t be able to do anything about it anyway, and they would continue with the plan as was.

“Jax.” He focused on Celestia when she started speaking with a calm voice. “I can see that there is something troubling you, yet you hesitate to tell me. I want you to know that I listen to the problems of all my subjects, you included. No matter how insignificant you think it is, I will listen.” She looked concerned again. She reminded Jax of a mother looking at her child… it hurt to remember that his own mother would never look at him like that again.

‘Is she doing it on purpose?’

… Was that Sombra? Or was it his own stray thought? Without the idiocy behind Sombra’s normal words, Jax couldn’t tell.

‘Probably not… she probably doesn’t know she’s hurting me with it.’

“It’s Sombra. He told me that he is no longer on a negative magic high.” He finally told her with a frown.

Celestia frowned. “You mean everything he did was because of a negative magic high?” She sounded a bit alarmed.

“No, he said he’s finally able to think clearly and we will make the world bow to us.” Celestia sighed in relief. “What exactly is a negative magic high? You said that the positive one makes you generous to a crazy degree?”

“Well that is a relief at least. I would hate to have two ponies condemned to a thousand year banishment when they weren’t even fully in control of themselves.” Celestia closed her eyes for a moment, before opening them and continuing. “As you know, there are two types of magic… three if you count chaotic magic, but ponies can’t normally access that. Most of our spells draw on positive magic, which doesn’t have any immediate consequences when done correctly. The spells that draw on negative magic are different however. They draw in more and more negative magic into your body, until you lose yourself to it in what is called a negative magic high. I think this is how Sombra ended up in that state, and it is why so called ‘dark magic’ is forbidden. While a positive magic high makes you give away everything you own, a negative magic high is focused on taking and keeping what you believe to be yours, doing anything to accomplish that goal. That is why they are called Takers. Luna came to believe that ponies did not appreciate her night, so to accomplish her goal she was going to make night eternal. Logic doesn’t matter to a pony under a negative magic high, and if they don’t have enough power to accomplish their goal, they will find power first. Even if it means using forbidden magic… even if it means letting a parasite into their body…” The sadness in her voice was so thick he almost got tears in his eyes. Her eyes gazed over as if looking at an old memory. “I should have seen it coming… I should have done something.” Her eyes shut, as if she was trying to prevent the tears from escaping. Her efforts were in vain, and tears slowly made their way out and ran down her white fur. “I apologize… It’s an old wound that still hurts. Sometimes more than I’m prepared for…” She told him between sobs.

Jax felt his own eyes start to water. He was not prepared for this either. Celestia and Luna both suffered a lot because of what happened… And they both had to pay a thousand years apart for their actions, or lack thereof. His heart went out to both of them.

Acting on intuition, he learned forward and hugged her, and she instantly latched a hoof behind his head, holding him close while she cried. He didn’t mind much, but he was happy Luna wasn’t there. He didn’t want her to get the wrong idea or something. Other than that, it actually didn’t feel as awkward as he thought it would. Celestia worked hard to keep the country running, and if she needed a shoulder to cry on sometimes, he didn’t mind being there for her, even when he didn’t know her very well. Despite not knowing each other very well, she had still just offered him that he could tell her anything, and she would listen, so it wasn’t just him that felt that way. Besides… she might one day become his sister-in-law.

He dried off some of his own stray tears. This tale got to him every time, it was just too sad. A thousand years was way too long!

After some minutes, Celestia composed herself. “Thank you, Jax.” She said as she relaxed her hold on him, without letting him entirely go. He noticed that he had been stroking her mane out of habit, and stopped, but didn’t move beyond that. He felt like she still needed to hug someone.

“No problem. I tried to think of something to say, but I couldn’t think of anything.”

Celestia chuckled quietly, though her voice was still laced with tears. “I don’t think there’s anything left to say. Now that Luna is back, the wound can heal slowly… and maybe one day I’ll forgive myself for not being there for her when she needed me the most…” They sat/laid in silence for a while. Jax still didn’t know what to say. He wanted to tell a joke but his mind was completely blank… and it probably wasn’t the right time. “You know… it’s so hard for me not to smother her with attention.” Celestia continued.

Jax smiled at the image of Celestia being glued to Luna much like he had been. “I don’t think she would want you to.” He admitted, looking up at the apple trees nearby. Some of the leaves had started falling off, but the ones that still held on to it were an interesting mix of green, red and orange.

Celestia sighed. “I know. That’s why I don’t do it. Part of me wants to be the responsible big sister that I’ve always been, while the other part wants to be a doting mother. I’m having a hard time finding a middle point.” She admitted.

Jax’ hand started stroking her again. “Well, I’d say… go home and spend some time with her after you’re done here. Tell her you love her. Play a game of chess or something, she’s good at it. Just because she wouldn’t want you to smother her, doesn’t mean she doesn’t want to spend time together. I get the feeling she admires you a lot, and you’re not the only one to regret her actions back then. It would be good for you both to talk it out.”

Celestia’s body shook lightly, and he realized that it was because she was laughing silently. “I can understand why Luna likes you so much. You’re very calming to be around.”

Jax laughed a little at that. He looked up at the clouded sky. They should probably start doing their work soon. “You think so? I think Luna said something similar at some point.”

“I do. It’s refreshing to be treated like any other pony.”

Jax snorted in amusement and looked down at her. “I’m glad my lack of manners accomplished something.”

Celestia laughed some more. “After having ponies bow down in front of me and keep their distance to not appear ‘rude’ for centuries on end, I can say that it’s not all as great as one might think.” She pulled back, and her smile faded away. “I would like to apologize. This was supposed to be about you and Sombra.”

Jax waved away her concerns. He felt better after hearing Celestia’s problem, and it did seem kind of silly now. Sombra couldn’t do anything… hopefully. “It’s not like we can do anything about it right? And if you’re willing to listen to me, then I should be willing to listen to you.”

Celestia nodded, looking serious. “I’m glad you shared it with me, in any case. It might prove important… or it might be nothing more than a bluff.” She looked at him for a moment longer before looking away. “Listen, Jax… There’s something else I would like to talk to you about.”

“Alright?” He asked when she didn’t continue. She looked almost uncomfortable. She gathered herself and continued.

“If you… If you really want to be with Luna, I need you to promise… that you will never fall in love with me.” She was actually blushing through her white coat, which was much more visible than when Luna did it. He felt like he was seeing a side of Celestia few have seen before.

For a moment he just looked at her, nonplussed. Then he burst out laughing. Celestia looked somewhere between indignified and anxious.

“Actually…” He said when he had calmed down. “Actually there’s a promise I don’t mind giving.” He cleared his throat. “I promise to be more loyal than Rainbow Dash. If Rainbow Dash is ever unable to be there as the element of harmony, I’ll be a suitable substitute.” He smiled widely at Celestia, who gave him a relieved smile.

“That is good to hear, though I doubt you could be an element if you wanted, with how your body reacts to magic.”

“Details.” He waved off her concerns. He had no idea how the girls brought the elements forth without the actual elements of harmony anyway, and he doubted someone could just ‘take over’. A frown found its way to his face again when he thought of something. “If I had more control of it, you could just use a spell on me and I would be able to do anything with Sombra.”

Celestia sighed and put a hoof on his shoulder. “I am sorry Jax, but with how chaotic magic works, and how little control you have over it, you could end up making the situation worse… do you understand?”

He knew she was right, but it hurt to hear her say it. He couldn’t take that chance, Sombra couldn’t be accidently let lose because of him. He really wished he could say ‘fuck the consequences’ and just do it though… there was a chance nothing bad would happen. He almost had control of the magic, it just deviated slightly from what he wanted, so little he could almost accept it.

‘She probably wouldn’t be saying that if it was Twilight being possessed.’

… No. She probably wouldn’t. But it wasn’t Twilight. It was him.

Jax nodded reluctantly. “I understand. We can’t take that kind of chance.”

Celestia looked at him in doubt before sighing. This time she was the one to pull him into a hug. “If life was a little easier, we wouldn’t have to worry about such things, and I hate that you have to carry this burden for ponykind, especially after all the rumours being spread about you by some of them. But such is life. We must struggle through it, no matter what obstacles stand in our way. I can imagine that it would be boring otherwise… or so I tell myself after another villain comes along and endangers all I’ve worked so hard for.” There was a weight behind her words that made Jax feel like a child. Celestia had lived longer than any other being he knew, not counting Luna. If she could get through all the bullshit she had to deal with over the years, then one measly villain shouldn’t be a problem for him.

He embraced the feeling. He could do this, no problem.

“We should probably get to work.” Jax reminded her.

“I’ve actually done a lot of it while you were out with your friend.” She informed him. “But you are right. Let us help Applejack with her farm. It’s refreshing to do this kind of work.”

“I can imagine that it’s a nice contrast to sitting on a throne.” He said as they went over to a nearby apple tree. The baskets were already positioned under it, all that was needed was a kick, which Celestia delivered. The apples fell neatly into the basket, like they had every other day when one of the Apples kicked. Jax had stopped trying to think of the logic of it all. Who cared anyway. This world just operated on its own logic, he should stop comparing it to his own just because it was so similar.

“Yes, you’re right. Did you know I actually knew the pony who invented apple bucking?” Celestia suddenly changed the topic.

“Really?”

“Oh yes. It was a long time ago, it was an earth pony mare named Strong Apple. She was a very talkative individual, and used to come all the way to the castle with her apples just to chat with me…” She told him with a fond smile and a gaze that saw years back.

Jax kept talking with Celestia for a long time. She would tell him about some stuff that happened years back. It was interesting to hear about and Celestia seemed like she enjoyed telling him, though she did look sad the times she mentioned somepony dying.

They worked meanwhile, bucking a lot of trees and transporting the baskets to the barn. All the elements of harmony looked kind of uncomfortable at seeing their princess work except Pinkie who just looked happy. Big Mac looked uncomfortable as well, but that was when he looked at Jax.

‘Ungrateful…’

“Hey Jaxie!” Pinkie appeared out of nowhere, as she does. To his defense, he was only a little surprised and he recovered quickly.

“Hey Pinks. What’s up?” The clouds were now thick overhead and it was almost evening. The wind had picked up, and if the weather schedule didn’t say that it was only going to rain, he would have thought there was going to be a storm.

“I just wanted to remind you that you are going to be singing at the party tonight! With all the stuff that’s been happening lately, I’m sure you forgot, but don’t worry, I’ve got your back!” Pinkie told him with a huge smile.

“Party? What party? What singing?” Jax was drawing a blank.

“See? I knew you would forget. The Welcome to Ponyvile slash Birthday party that’s being hosted tonight for Octavia and Vinyl, Ponyvile’s newest residents! I’ve been holding back on their Welcome to Ponyville party because they wanted to have it with the birthday party, which I don’t understand because they could just have had TWO parties, but if that’s what they want…. So see you tonight at city hall! Don’t forget you have to sing the first song as well!” She then sped off at the speed of Pinkie.

Jax looked after her. Then he face-palmed. “I completely forgot all about that… I’m even getting paid and everything.”

Celestia chuckled beside him. “Then it’s a good thing you have a friend to remind you. I suggest you get home and wash off the grime of today’s work. I hope you don’t mind if I use your facilities to do the same.”

Jax looked at the farm longingly. They had food in there… When exactly was the party starting? Pinkie hadn’t given her a precise time… and he was technically a hired musician… There would probably be food at the party as well… He sighed. “No, of course not. If it’s big enough for Luna, it’s probably big enough for you as well. Let’s go.” He started walking towards his house.

“You should explain that to Luna. She acts like I’m bigger than the sun.” She laughed.

“Being bigger isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It’s not like you’re fat.” Jax pointed out. There was no denying that Celestia was big though.

She looked back at her body. “I could stand to lose a few, I’m afraid that all that cake over the centuries adds up. I mean, look at the size of these thighs!” She proceeded to show off her backside to him. Naturally he didn’t know how much he was allowed to stare, and not sure if he wanted to anyway, he averted his eyes. “Luna has much-“ She continued but he could see where this was going. She was teasing him, and two could play at that game.

“Yes, Luna has the better coat and eye colour, not to mention her mane is much cooler than yours, but there’s no reason to be jealous. You’re beautiful in your own way, Celestia.” He smiled at her, showing that he was joking.

Her scoff was undermined by her smile. “Well, if that’s how you feel, I’m not going to share my cake with you.”

“I don’t think that helps your figure though.”

They both laughed merrily as they made their way through the orchard, to Jax’ house.

***

“I can’t believe I forgot!” Jax exclaimed. “How could I have forgotten? Even when Pinkie reminded me! All the way from the orchard to my house, and from there to here… What was I thinking?!” Jax was almost panicking. He and Celestia were at the party, and Pinkie had just informed him that he was the opening song… except he hadn’t thought of what song he wanted to sing. He had no idea what to sing, and he was drawing a blank every time he tried to think of something. He should have found a song to practice, but he got distracted by all the events around him. Now all the lyrics he thought he had memorized from hearing so often were slipping from his mind like water down the drain. So many songs he knew by heart, all of them failing him when he needed them the most.

He and Celestia were standing behind the stage that had been set up, no doubt by Pinkie. He knew because it was pink and overly decorated with banners and balloons, much like the rest of the hall was. A big banner hang from the roof, reading ‘Welcome to Ponyville, Vinyl and Octavia!’ and underneath that was a banner that said ‘Happy Birthday, Vinyl!’

Panicked as he was, Jax could still appreciate the extend of Pinkie’s dedication to a good party. It was clear that she had put a lot of work into it, and the gathered ponies all seemed excited about it. As would he be, if he could relax.

“Jax, please calm down. I am sure the music will come to you when you need it, flowing straight from your heart.” She assured him.

“From my heart?” He stopped and looked at her. “I don’t care if it comes from my... anyway, I just don’t want to stand up there, dumbfounded while these damn giant-eyed ponies stare at me. Do you know how that feels? It feels unbearably awkward.”

Celestia laughed softly. Jax stopped pacing and looked at her, a desperate idea forming.

“You! You’re the princess! Of course, this is perfect. Okay, change of plans, you go up there instead of me. They can’t really complain, I mean, who gets to have Princess Celestia herself sing the opening song of their party? They will be ecstatic! That’s it, that’s the master plan!” He started pacing again, this time with excitement.

“No.”

“And I can have some punch, and cupcakes, and muffins and cake and what do you mean no?!” He stopped and looked at her again.

“You made a promise. I will not help you break it.” She said with a sort of finality that made him shiver a little.

“Alright, alright, let me think of something else then…”

“There you are silly! Come on, it’s time!” What happened next, Jax wasn’t entirely sure. There was a brief feeling of motion, like he was being carried, and then before he knew it, he was up on the stage and a mic was thrust into his hands. To say that he was confused was an understatement.

“Hello everypony! I hope you’re all ready to have some fun and welcome Vinyl and Octavia with a proper Ponyville party!” Pinkie shouted out, not needing a mic at all. Some cheers resounded from the audience, now focused on them. Jax gulped. Pinkie looked at him expectedly. When he didn’t do anything, she nodded to the mic in his hand. She wanted him to say something or start singing or…? Fuck, he was already all sweaty. He couldn’t do this. He needed some alcohol before he could do this. Their eyes were too big, filled with expectations. There were more of them than at his own party too, it looked like the entire town had gathered!

He took a deep breath. Luna had taught him to do that, hadn’t she? The thought calmed him down some… He could do this.

“Hey there, everypony…” Wait… did he just say everypony? Ah whatever. He was talking that was good. “I… guess I’m singing a song for you… uhm, I think human songs are different from pony songs in a lot of ways… as those of you who heard my last one probably know.” Jax lowered the microphone and looked over the giant crowd. They were expecting something now, of course they were.

He was desperately trying to think of a song, before a feeling hit him. It was like the world slowed down, and lyrics came to focus in his mind. For a millisecond he thought Sombra had something to do with it, but then realized that that probably wasn’t the case. This feeling felt pure, too pure for him to have any part of it. A feeling of happiness came over him, and suddenly he wanted to sing, to share his feelings with these ponies. He locked eyes with the pony who had requested him, or at least he thought he did. The glasses made it hard to be sure.

He took a deep breath again. “My Demons by Starset.”

When he starting singing, he was completely engulfed by the song. Nothing really mattered except the words coming out of his mouth. Pinkie took up the role of impromptu drummer, using anything in her vicinity to make sound. It sounded surprisingly good, even without all the needed instruments. When he focused on it, it was like he could hear them anyway, and he couldn't help but wonder if he was imagining things or if somebody actually took out an electric guitar and started jamming.

It might actually have been a bit dark for ponies… as far as he could tell pony music was all about happiness. Then again, he hadn’t been exposed to a lot of music since he came, and as he sang he found that he didn’t care. The song felt close to heart, and he felt like he was singing to Luna… He just wished she could be there so that she could hear it.

“Save me, if I become… My demons!” He finished, eyes closed. As the silence went on, he couldn’t quite get himself to open them. Then the weird substitute for clapping started from one pony, where they stomp their front hoof against the floor. He opened his eyes and noticed that it was Vinyl herself that had started it, with a huge smile on her face. Soon more followed, though it didn’t quite fill the room. He noticed that some of the ponies looked… worried. Ah well.

He threw the mic over to Pinkie and straight over to the snack table. He was going to eat the hell out of that table. Well… the stuff on it anyway.

Pinkie announced that something called The Ponytones would sing next, and Jax was surprised to see Fluttershy go up on the stage. Well, she did say something about being in a band, guess this was what she meant. Big Mac as well? Wow.

The song they played about finding the ‘music in you’ was an almost complete opposite of what he had sung. It wasn’t bad, just cheerful like Jax had thought pony music was all about.

He was drawn from his thoughts by a poke on his side. Turning around he found Vinyl looking at him with a smile, still wearing her shades. He wondered why she was wearing them indoors but let it go. She could do whatever she wanted.

“Oh. Hey. I hope you liked the song, it was pretty much for your sake.” He smiled nervously at her. It would be pretty disappointing if she didn’t like it.

She nodded her head, then levitated some parchment, ink and quill over. He looked on with confusion as she started writing. ‘I did, it was pretty awesome. It reminded me of home. The music isn’t as sugar sweet there. No offense to currently singing parties of course.’

He looked at the parchment for a bit longer before chuckling. “No, I get it. Sometimes you just need music that’s a bit more… primal? I don't know if that’s the right word though.” He said thoughtfully as he munched on his muffin. It was delicious, but that wasn’t really a surprise. This was Pinkie’s baking after all.

Vinyl wrote some more… he wondered if he should ask, but as with Derpy’s eyes he didn’t know if it was appropriate. Maybe she just hurt her throat like he had, and she had to write until it recovered. ‘Yeah, that’s it. Though I don’t mind either way. Music is awesome like that. I just need some variation sometime.’

“I couldn’t agree more. I miss banging my head to some hard rock or metal… or screamo for that matter. You wouldn’t happen to know where they play some of that, would you?” He looked down at her. She looked a bit confused.

‘I don’t know about some of those, but if it’s something similar to what you sang, I do know a band, if you don’t mind changelings.’

“Changelings? I don’t mind, never met one… as far as I know anyway.” He ate the rest of his muffin and reached over for a cupcake.

‘Great. Octavia is pretty open about music, but this isn’t her cup of tea, so I’ve been looking for somepony to go with. You game?’

Jax laughed. “I am more than willing! I’ve missed music since I’ve come here.” He noticed Celestia was looking at him with a smile, even as she was occupied with something Twilight was talking to her about. “Though I might have to bring a friend, if you don’t mind.”

‘Of course not. The more the merrier.’ She smiled at him, then dropped her writing utensils and started munching away at the snacks as well.

The rest of the evening was spent in the quiet company of Vinyl and whoever came over to wish her happy birthday. She would then nod and smile at them and they would soon move on. She would sometimes scratch something on the parchment, but mostly they would just chill in silence by the snack table. Jax decided he rather liked Vinyl. She was cool. After that she was forced by Pinkie to participle in different games, but she didn't seem to mind, giving a silent laugh every now and then. It reminded Jax of his own time as a mute, and he felt a little for the DJ.

The party ended with Octavia playing a beautiful piece on her cello that made Jax shiver. She definitely had talent, Octavia, though he was fairly certain he preferred when they played together. It had been like they had been dancing with their music, he remembered. He wanted to hear it again someday.

He noticed that Vinyl had a loving smile as she looked at Octavia playing.

“Happy birthday, miss Vinyl.” Celestia came up to them when the song ended.

Vinyl bowed low, and gave her a smile, but didn’t write anything on her parchment.

Celestia looked at him next, with a smile. “I’ll follow you home, if you are ready.”

“Of course. I’ll be looking forward to the concert then, Vinyl. See you around.” Vinyl responded by nodding, and Jax made his way out with Celestia, ponies bowing to her left and right.

Celestia teleported home soon after taking him home. She had made some comment about sending him money so he could at least buy food, but he waved her off, saying he had it under control. Apparently she had checked out his fridge while he had showered. He also realized that he had forgotten to get his payment for the song, but that could wait for another day. He at least had apples, not that he was hungry. He had eaten a lot of snacks.

Author's Note

So those who read my blog about this chapter might be confused to why it's not actually that short... well I thought I would leave it at around 2000 words when I wrote that blog. I changed my mind, deciding to include the party, though I had to hurry a bit to write that part XD The next couple of chapters will be a bit different though ^^
To those of you who are curious to how the exam went... I was pretty confident before it started. Then I saw the questions XD No I'm kidding, I'm fairly confident I passed. I did fail one I took earlier than this one though, when I thought I would pass, so nothing is certain... ;)

Lastly, thanks for all the support :) You guys are awesome and it makes me happy that I started writing this XD I wish I could afford custom, professionally made art for this story, but alas, I am but a student XD not exactly swimming in money ;)
I hope you guys are well, and next chapter will be in two weeks :)

Chapter 47

Celestia walked through the large corridors towards her sister’s room, deep in thought. She had a lot to think about. She had left Jax for the night, letting him at least have the nights to himself, but she was worried. The whole situation was unfortunate, but there was nothing to do about that now. If they could have used magic on him, then the situation would have been different, and they could have made a serious attempt at separating Sombra from Jax. Unfortunately, they couldn’t, and she would not risk using his chaos magic, when his control of it was so limited. Not until it was absolutely necessary at least. Not until there was no other choice.

Choice… What other choices did they have? She knew there was nothing they could do but wait until either Jax or Sombra won. Celestia was betting everything on Jax.

The human seemed to be made of sturdier stuff than most ponies… It was a calculated risk, something she was familiar with. Two minds, one body, one victor. Once you threw chaos magic in though, the ‘calculated’ part went right out of the door. Anything could happen once chaos entered the equation, and that was something Celestia didn’t like.

No matter what she chose, however, she was taking a risk. When it came down to that, she would rather take a calculated one. Jax could triumph over Sombra, with the magic of friendship and love. He could, and he would. With friends, anything is possible.

She just hoped he would realize that, instead of trying to carry it all by himself.

So absorbed was she in her thought, that she almost walked straight into a door. It was decorated with deep blue colors, with glimmering silver making up stars and the moon, marking it as her destination.

“Princess?” A night guard beside her asked, most likely confused how close she was to said door without any indication that she was going to open it.

“How is my sister doing tonight?” She was making it seem like the reason she had stopped without opening the door was to ask the question. No need to admit how lost in her own thoughts she had been.

“She seems to be neither exceedingly happy, nor particularly sad, your highness.” The guard answered respectfully.

She nodded her thanks to him, then used her magic to open the door. Inside, Luna sat by her desk, working on some petition. Night Court was over, only because of the new times Luna had instilled, so that she had time to work on other projects instead, like her overhaul of the law. Even Celestia had to admit they had gathered too many old and obscure laws. While she was happy that Luna was getting involved, she knew how hard it must have been for her to cut her Night Court short.

“Sister. You are back. How was your day with Jax?” Luna turned around in her chair, looking at her with a smirk. “You did not manage to scare him off, did you?” Celestia was blessed with such a cheeky little sister. Unfortunately, she couldn’t really object. She closed the door behind her and stepped into the room, looking over the different hues of blue and silver. She didn’t walk very far before she stopped to look out of one of the many windows that stretched from the floor to the ceiling. “No, though I didn’t try very hard. We actually had a chat about various subjects. He is quite relaxing to talk with, I can understand why you like him so much.”

The heavy curtains were neatly tied to the side of it, giving a clear view of the starlit landscape beyond. During the day, the curtains would make sure that not a single beam of light from the sun made it inside the room, so that her sister could sleep in complete darkness, unless she wanted to light one of the many lamps in the room, or the lantern that hung at tip of her crescent-moon-shaped bed.

She looked over at Luna, only to see her pointing a hoof at her. “He is mine.” She said, suddenly dead-seriously. “Thou shalt not have him.”

Celestia pouted playfully, about to say something about sharing, but changed her mind. There was a time and a place for playfulness, and she didn’t feel like this was it. Instead she smiled soothingly. “I know, Luna. Rest assured, he is not interested in me.”

Luna looked at her suspiciously. “How do you know?”

“Because I asked him to promise never to fall in love with me, and he laughed.”

Luna seemed to go through several emotions in few seconds. Confusion, joy, embarrassment, more joy, before she finally settled on barely contained glee.

“Really?” She asked, so clearly on the edge of laughing that Celestia almost rolled her eyes.

“It’s not that funny. It was a serious request, Luna, and he just laughed at it. If he isn’t more loyal than Rainbow Dash like he promised, I reserve the right to punish him.”

Luna finally laughed out loud. “So he did promise after all. I thought he might have joked at such a silly request… though I cannot say I am not pleased. He has his eyes on only me.” She ended with a satisfied smile that made Celestia smile herself. She didn’t really mind that Jax had laughed at her, it was a pretty weird request after all. If he kept making her little sister this happy, he could laugh at her all he wanted. It was so very good to see Luna’s radiant smile, like a weight had been lifted off Celestia’s withers, and she could finally relax. She steeped further over to her sister, careful to step around her sister’s crescent-moon-adorned slippers, the only objects on the floor.

“You are right. If he hasn’t fallen for me, he probably won’t fall for anypony else.” Now was the time for playfulness. They both laughed merrily. Celestia knew what was coming, Luna loved to point out how big Celestia was, after all.

She would definitely start doing something about it… when she had the time.

“Well, that depends, maybe he is not-“

“Into gorgeous mares like me.” She nodded sagely. “Good observation. You did indeed find a weird one, Lulu.”

“Is that jealousy I hear? Not used to being shot down so blatantly, are we?” Luna poked her on the side, receiving a very unprincess-like ‘eep’ and half-jump in response. She quickly folded her wings again.

This was what she had missed the most about having Luna around. This. No need for titles and manners, no need to always be regal, just two sisters having fun.

“How about we settle this over a game of chess? Old rules, winner gets gloating rights, loser has to agree.” Celestia proposed, remembering Jax’ idea of spending time with her sister.

Luna looked confused. “Old rules? There are new rules for chess?”

“Yes. They were remade to be less… violent. Didn’t you know? Jax mentioned you were good at it.”

“Violent? Chess?” She closed her eyes and brought a hoof up to her temple. “I swear Tia, if I did not know that ponies were naturally afraid I would think you were making them fearful on purpose.

Yes I played with Jax, but he played by the same rules. He called some of the pieces different things, like King instead of Princess and so on, but basically the same game.”

“Well sacrificing your troops in the name of victory is not what I want to teach my little ponies.” She raised a brow at her blue coated sister.

“And that is why I am happy Equestria has not been at war for so long. You have yourself a game. I cannot wait to gloat over my superior tactics.”

Celestia gave her a challenging smile. “If you think it will be that easy, you have another thing coming for you.”

***

“Say it. Say it out loud.”

Celestia sighed, but ultimately she was bound by her own rules. “You are Chess master Luna, the superior strategizer, and I bow before your glory.” She then bowed her head while Luna did a little victory dance where she jumped from one hoof to another. She looked extremely happy and adorable, so Celestia didn’t regret losing… too much.

It was the beginning that doomed her. Her habits kicked in, and she kept making strategies for the new rules, instead of the old. Luna quickly got a lead that Celestia was unable to overcome until the very end.

Given that it was almost sunrise, she had made a valiant try.

They had spent a lot of the time just talking about this and that, but always returned to Jax at one point or another. Celestia had teased Luna about him and Luna had teased Celestia about her weight… again. Celestia almost didn’t care anymore.

Luna finally got control of herself, at least enough to lie down in front of Celestia again, and Celestia remembered Jax’ advice to talk with Luna about what happened… all those years ago. Luna just looked so happy that she couldn’t get herself to do it.

As it turned out, Luna must have had a similar thought. She looked down in front of her, her expression turning from happy to sombre, with her ears folded back a bit. “Sister, did you… did you ask Jax not to fall in love with you because you are afraid what I would do if he did? Because you are afraid… that I could turn into N-Nightmare Moon again?” Luna looked up at her, looking worried. Celestia felt unsure at the sudden question. Should she tell the truth? Should she divert the conversation and topic? A thousand responses ran through her head before she decided that this was her sister, and she would be truthful with her.

“…Yes. That was what I feared. That is my biggest fear… That I’ll someday have to b…” She had trouble saying that word. It felt like a stab in her heart. “banish you again…” She somehow made through it. Tears were already forming in her eyes, as if the crying session she had with Jax wasn’t enough. She couldn’t really help it though. The sadness and guilt stabbed her so hard even after all this time. So affected had she been by any mention of her sister those first years after her banishment, that her own ponies had erased Luna from history, so that Celestia would never have to hear her name again. There had only been Nightmare Moon left.

That in itself had been a whole different defeat. She had let them erase her own sister from history. She had let them celebrate the fear of Nightmare Moon.

She was such a failure, as a princess… as a sister… She wasn’t sure if she could bear to be the reason for Nightmare Moon’s return. She wouldn’t be able to live with herself if Luna fell again. She could keep telling herself that The Limelight was gone, and it couldn’t happen again, but the fear was still there, so very heavy on her mind. She wasn’t strong enough to have it happen again.

So she had asked Jax to never fall in love with her, and he had reacted better than she could have hoped. Like the chances of it happening were laughable. It calmed her mind a little, but she had no doubt that as happy as he made her sister now, he had the power to make her equally sad. Such was the power of love, the double edged sword. If done correctly, happiness far exceeded sadness, and she wanted to believe that Jax and Luna could do that, but deep down she was afraid as well.

Celestia had consoled many ponies in her long life, many more than she could even remember. She had found out that her ponies liked to be draped by her wings, so she had quickly made it a habit to do just that.

Until this night, nopony had ever done it for her, though. She looked back at the blue wing that was draped over her withers, then to the side, at her only family. Luna looked at her with a wide mix of emotion, from sadness, to regret, to shame, but also determination and sympathy.

“Sometimes…” Luna started, with a coarse whisper. She coughed and tried again, a little clearer this time. “Sometimes I wish that Starswirl the Bearded had finished his time spell, so that I might travel back and undo my mistake… So that thou wouldst never have to suffer so, dear sister.”

Celestia almost choked. “Me?! You… Luna, you had to spend a thousand years on the moon. You had to come back and have everypony fear you. You-“

“I did not say that it has been easy for me. I did not say that I have not felt pain for my mistake. But it is nothing less than what I deserve.”

Hearing that almost stopped Celestia’s heart. “Deserve? Luna you were possessed!”

“’Tis no excuse… when the parasite walked in with an invitation.” Luna avoided her gaze by laying her head on Celestia’s withers. Celestia freed her wing and pulled her sister closer with it.

“Luna…” She could hear the emotion in her own voice. She was close to tears, not that she cared. This was how Luna had felt all along? Celestia would never have guessed.

“Still I can see that thou taketh the blame on thine own withers, sister. Still I can see that thou have suffered more than me. I apologize, for all that I hath done to thee. I cannot blame thee for thine fears, for it is I that have instilled it in thee. I cannot even promise thee that I would take it well, should Jax fall for thine splendour… I would not be surprised if he did…” She added the last part in a whisper so low that Celestia wouldn’t have heard it if her muzzle wasn’t so close to Celestia’s ear.

Celestia didn’t know what to say. Her mind was rarely blank, but right now she couldn’t think of a single thing that could show her sister how wrong she was… how wrong Celestia hoped she was.

Before she could think of something however, Luna seemed to shake herself. “Nay, I… we…” She sighed. “Sister, I know that thou blamest thyself, for mine actions all that time ago. Mine actions were my own, and thou hast no blame in my stubbornness. In my refusal to speak with thee about my problems... I let the wounds fester, so-“

“Luna. I’ve had a thousand years to think about what I did wrong, and I know that my part in your… in your fall was not just as a bystander. It wasn’t just that I wasn’t there for you… my actions hurt you. Did you think I forgot how prideful I was back then? You think I forgot how many times I put our subjects before you? How I overruled you, despite us supposedly ruling together? No, Luna, I will not let you take all the blame. You may have let the wounds fester, but I was the one who made them, or at least helped make them. We agreed that you ruled the night, and I ruled the day, yet how many times did I… did I…” Her tears finally escaped, making a wet path down her muzzle, as her regret spilled over. She had been such a foal back then. Hindsight had revealed to her how stupid she had been, and she had sworn never to make the same mistakes again.

“So we are still in agreement, that we have both been foalish.” Luna said with a strained voice, and reverting back to modern speech.

Celestia managed a tear-soaked laugh. “I guess we are.”

“Tia… I…” Luna started sniffing. “I am so sorry…” She sobbed, letting go of her tears as well.

Celestia pulled her even closer. “I’m sorry too, Lulu. Never again.

“Never again.” Luna agreed.

The sisters spent the rest of the time until sunrise in each other’s embrace, crying out all their anguish and regret.

They slowly pulled themselves together, until they finally let go. Celestia felt much better, now that the air had been cleared. She should have done this a long time ago. She would have to remember to thank Jax for his advice.

“You are going to be exhausted at day court today, dear sister.” Luna smiled at her.

Celestia smiled back. “You once stayed awake for a whole month. I’ve stayed awake for two.” The look on her sister’s face made Celestia laugh, almost joyfully. She was not looking forward to going through the day in her condition, but she was still going to do it.

Luna pouted at her. “There will come a night where I will break your record.”

“I’m sure you will, Lulu. Now come, we must raise the sun and lower the moon.”

The two sisters went out to start a new day together. They walked a bit closer to each other than they normally would, and their smiles were a bit more genuine, like the weight on their withers wasn’t as heavy as it used to be.

Author's Note

So I've been told that I'm not the best at writing 'old English', if you see any mistakes, please notify me ^^ I've tried to use a website for help, but I have a hard time between thou and thee still XD
I'm almost done with the exams, just need to redo (as far as I know) one of them XD Shouldn't be too big of a problem... XD
Anyway have some feels. This was a long time coming and I think I'm done with this aspect of their relationship ^^ They should be good :3
What did you think?

Chapter 48

Rarity wasn’t a big fan of farm work. It was hard, it was exhausting, she was behind on her own work, and maybe worst of all, it left her sweaty. It was not work suited for a lady, not at all.

Still, Applejack needed help, and what kind of friend would she be if she ignored such a plea? No, sometimes you had to sacrifice a bit for your friends, and they in turn would do the same for you. It was poetic really, when you thought about it.

Of course that didn’t mean that she wasn’t very happy when she heard Applejack’s words. “Thank you for yer help, everypony, it means a lot to us, but I think me and Big Mac can handle the rest of the season by ourselves. Now come on in and enjoy the feast Granny Smith and Apple Bloom prepared for you.”

Rarity would have cheered out loud, if such a thing wouldn’t be considered extremely rude. She couldn’t help to the “Thank the heavens” that she mumbled under her breath though. Jax seemed to be the only one to hear though, judging by his chuckles.

Since it was Friday, it was her turn to… watch over him? No, he wasn’t some foal that needed an adult. Spend her day with him, then. Or ‘hang out’ as she was sure Rainbow Dash would say. Most of the day was gone now, having been worked away on the farm, but she had tried to stay close to him still. Princess Celestia herself had tasked them, after all, there was no need to be tardy. Even if all of the other elements were nearby.

He hadn’t been talking much, though. She blamed the work. It’s hard to talk while you were fighting to breathe. He also looked kind of tired.

He still smiled whenever somepony talked to him, which Rarity found reassuring. She doubted Sombra knew how to smile, for some reason… Not that she had had a lot of contact with the stallion, but as far as she understood, he was more of an ‘evil laughter’ kind of pony.

Which simply wouldn’t do when she gave him his new clothes. Nothing short of genuine appreciation would do for the brilliance she had put into it. She couldn’t wait to see his face.

Jax walked beside her as they walked towards the farmhouse. A nice aroma of hay and apples surrounded them as they entered behind everypony else. Applejack hadn’t been exaggerating, the word feast really was a good description of what was before them. Not that their prior meals had been bad, just not as plentiful and varied. There was enough here to feed half the population of Canterlot.

Not the noble half though. They would probably not touch food that wasn’t made by a ‘real’ chef.

Thoughts like those made Rarity glad she was born in Ponyville. Nobility had its charms, and she quite frankly adored it, but the thought of all the things she would have missed was she born amongst their ranks was enough to make her content with what she had.

“So… Apple Bloom. You and your fellow crusaders still doing the whole star gazing thing?” Jax asked as he sat down. Rarity took the free spot beside him.

“Well… not exactly. It’s been too cloudy, y’know? Last Monday was beautiful though…” Her gaze turned dreamy. “Every star was a falling star, and that thing at the end was so sweet…” She sighed wistfully. “Ah wanted it to last forever…”

Rarity’s heart melted a little. One day the young filly would be sighing like that because of a lucky colt, and it would be even cuter.

She had to agree that the ‘show’ Princess Luna had put on had been very, very beautiful, and that the finale had been more than heart-warming. Rarity was so happy that Jax and Luna were finally together.

She was just a little jealous as well. If only Blueblood had been a little more… perfect.

Jax’ laughter brought her back to reality. “It really has been only four days since then, hasn’t it? Amazing how many things can happen in such a short amount of time… but yes, it was quite beautiful.”

Apple Bloom perked up as if she realized something. “Hey, Applejack said that you’re together with Princess Luna now. Can ya get her to do it again next Monday?!”

Rarity looked over at Jax’ smile. It was genuine, she was sure of it. ‘Alright, no need to check his smile every two seconds, Rarity. Relax.’

“Well, I’m sure there will be something, if the weather permits it. Whether it will be the same… I don’t know.”

“Aww come on! It was so beautiful, but only a few ponies from school saw it. Ah… Kind of told them that the Princess would probably do it again next week…”

“Well, she can’t just do the same thing every week. That’s too boring.”

“Well she doesn’t have to! Only next week, so that all the ponies that didn’t get ta see it have a chance… I mean, it was even in the paper. They’re all curious.”

Jax looked confused. He looked at Rarity for confirmation.

“It was, darling. Had a whole article to itself, comparing it to the shows from other weeks. Of course I understand that Princess Luna can’t steal the entire sky for this kind of thing every week, but I’m sure she could do it at least once more? For the foals?” And for herself. It was quite beautiful, after all. She gave him her best puppy-eyes, to which he rolled his with a good natured smile.

“Right, for the foals. I’ll try to convince her, but if she can’t then-“

“Oh that’s great!” Twilight burst out, apparently following the conversation. Rarity wasn’t the only one who had enjoyed the show, it would seem. “I’ll let the weather ponies know to leave the sky clear.”

Jax’ laughter was delightful. Rarity was a little amazed that he could laugh so carefree in his current situation. Rarity herself would probably be panicking if she was in his place.

The rest of the dinner went by with a cheerful atmosphere, everypony enjoying the food provided, which Rarity had to admit was quite a treat. Somewhere along the evening, Jax, Applejack, and Pinkie decided to have an eating competition in honour of Rainbow Dash, though Rarity wasn’t quite sure how that helped or honoured the hospitalized mare in any way.

Of course, Jax and Applejack never stood a chance. Pinkie took the non-existent prize as everypony knew she would.

“I… I can’t breathe properly.” Jax complained as they made their way out into the night. He had one appendage on his stomach, the other on the wall to steady himself, but Rarity had her eyes on the star-filled sky, excitement filling her once again at the thought of his gift.

“Well, darling, that’s what you get when you eat a wide selection of food, and then decide that eating an entire pie is a good idea.” She chided him with a smile on her muzzle, turning towards him. It had been fun watching them, though she would never admit it out loud.

“But it tasted so good! And we almost had a pie each! What was I supposed to do, ask to take it home with me like a normal person?” He laughed, and Rarity joined him. She became a little worried when he seemed to become short on breath, but his inability to stop laughing just seemed to make it all the more fun.

“Are you alright darling?” She asked between pearls of laughter.

“I’m fine, I’m fine.” He took a couple of more deep breaths, laughed some more, and then finally seemed to gain control of himself. Rarity wasn’t quite sure why it had been so funny, in retrospect. The poor stallion couldn’t breathe and they were just laughing away. It was just one of those in-the-moment things, she guessed.

“So…” He had gotten his laughter under control, though the smile was still on his face. “You’re on ‘watch’ tonight?”

Her smile fell a little. “Darling, don’t make it sound like I’m some warden watching a prisoner. I’m simply here as your friend.” She smiled softly at him, but a frown settled on his face. This simply wouldn’t do. “Besides darling, I would make a terrible warden.” She added.

His smile returned with a roll of his small eyes. “Well that’s true. Alright, let’s go with… So you’re the one I’m hanging out with today?”

It was her turn to roll her eyes. “Yes, we are spending the day together, although the work took away most of it. Still… we have a couple of hours, if you want.” She looked at him expectedly. She didn’t want to tell him she had a gift for him just yet, she had to present it to him at just the right time.

“Sure.” He answered with a shrug. “I just need to get my pay for yesterday.”

“Ah, you mean from the show? It was very…” She circled her hoof in the air, trying to come up with a positive word. “… Energetic.” She wasn’t pleased with her choice, but she couldn’t quite come up with anything else to describe it. To be honest, it had scared her a little, him singing about his demons, but it had also made her more determined to try and help him. She started walking to hide the displeased face she made, and he followed.

“You didn’t like it.” He deadpanned.

“It just wasn’t my cup of tea darling. Nothing personal, of course.”

“Of course. I did like your… Ponytones? I liked your guys’ song. It was a nice contrast to my song.” He smiled. “I like that you have both Big Mac and Fluttershy singing in it. They are like the ponies who talk the least out of all the ponies I’ve spoken to… well ‘all’ is a big word since I haven’t talked with that many ponies, but still. Well I’ve managed to have a proper conversation with Fluttershy, but she seems like she prefers to listen, and Big Mac seems fine with ‘yeup’s and ‘nope’s.”

“Ah, it does seem that way at first darling, but once you get to know them they talk plenty, trust me.” She smiled at him. Now that she looked closely, she could see that he had bags under his eyes. Maybe he had gone to sleep late last night…

“Yeah, I believe you, you probably know them a little better than me. Oh! I also want to visit Rainbow. She must be bored to death in the hospital.”

Rarity smiled a little wider. “Of course darling. I’m sure she’ll appreciate it.”

***

“Here… Here you go. Thank you for the… uhm… performance. Vinyl really liked it a lot.” Octavia emptied a bag of coins into Jax’ appendage- what were they called again? Han… Hand? Hands… That sounded right.

Octavia seemed to be nervous about talking to him, but Rarity thought she did well, considering. She knew how easy it was to give in to fear and just accept the worst about creatures you didn’t know much about. Luckily she learned her lesson a long time ago, and she hoped that the rest of Ponyville would follow.

Honestly, how many Zecora and Princess Luna visits did it take to convince the small town that giving into fear only led to somepony being hurt? She would have thought… but it was fine. Jax didn’t even seem like he noticed, he was just looked at the coins in his… hands. She would have to give him a coin purse when they dropped by her store.

“Rarity? What can I buy for 30 bits?”

She realized that this was the first time he had his own bits. Twilight and Luna had been covering his needs before, and Applejack had given him meals afterwards.

It honestly shocked her a little. She could still remember when she offered to make him clothes as a ‘welcome to Ponyville’ gift, he had frowned and those green eyes of his had filled with sorrow. ‘I have nothing.’ He had said… and that had stayed true months down the line until now. It never even occurred to her, but she should have given him a job, give him a few bits to assist her around the shop like she did with Spike… except Spike always refused the bits.

Rarity cleared her throat. “Quite a lot, if you’re thinking about food. Applejack sells 5 apples for 3 bits – quite the bargain if you ask me.”

He had looked so happy when she had insisted that the clothes were free. So much gratitude could be seen in his eyes.

“If you want to… repay me for all the clothes however, I’m afraid it will cost a little more than that.” That’s right, he had told her he would repay her. She couldn’t give him all the clothes for free. She could afford it yes, but… he probably wouldn’t want that, would he?

Everything he has right now is something given to him freely, as a gift, or as something to be paid later. Rarity didn’t realize until now how bad that must have felt for him, being in so much debt to so many ponies.

The way he looked at the coins in his hands told her all she needed to know about that. But there was nothing to do about it right now, she supposed.

“Yes… well, have a good day then.” Octavia said from the door.

“Yes, thank you and good day.” She answered politely and hurriedly closed her maw before she could say something about the… décor. Who paints their house two different colours, honestly? Even the hay on the roof were two different kinds. It was maddening to look at, but she supposed it was their house and they could paint it however many colours they wanted.

“Yeah, thanks. Tell Vinyl I look forward to hearing from her…” His smiled fell at the end of the sentence. “I mean… Ah whatever, I’m sure she won’t be offended.” He turned around and started walking away, a little rudely in Rarity’s opinion. She smiled apolitically at the gray mare, who looked at the human with a weird expression. She looked kind of unsure of herself, but she still had a small smile on her muzzle. Rarity wasn’t sure what to make of it, so she hurried after Jax.

“Well that was a little rude.” She told him bluntly.

“Ah, she wasn’t so bad. I can take the fidgeting just fine, it’s when they scream and run the other way where-“ He looked at her frown and accusing stare, and seemed to realize that she wasn’t talking about Octavia. “Oh you mean the speedy retreat? I guess you wanted me to say ‘now, if you’ll excuse me’ or something stupid like that?”

“It’s not stupid!” Rarity insisted, shocked that he could say something like that. “A few extra words and you go from appearing like some oaf who forgot to turn off the stove, to a gentecolt in a hurry to something important.” She chided him with a frown. “Why can’t anypony see that?” She muttered under her breath.

He stopped suddenly. Rarity stopped and looked back at his surprised face, a little confused. “I’m… I’m sorry Rarity, that was rude of me. I shouldn’t have worded it like that… what I mean was to say was, it’s just… not me.”

Rarity waved his concern away with a hoof. “Already forgotten darling. Believe it or not, you are not the first to tell me something similar…” She sighed at the memory of trying to teach her friends manners. Twilight and Fluttershy didn’t need lessons of course, but Rainbow Dash, Pinkie and Applejack would just gain so much from it. Yet a few simple words and phrases was too much for them to bother. It was really frustrating sometimes.

“You are most gracious, dear friend.” Jax said with a delightful accent and an amused smile.

“Oh hush.” She giggled. “Now let’s go get you a coin purse. Plus I have a suuuurprise for you.” She sang. She couldn’t wait to give him his present. He would be so overjoyed, she was sure of it.

Even if he did feel indebted to her… okay maybe she should wait with giving it to him.

“Really? What is it?” He asked.

Well… Too late now. “Ohh… you’ll see.” She said in an excited voice. She couldn’t really help it, there was nothing better than seeing a costumer’s reaction to her inspiration.

Except that one time with her friends of course. ‘It’s fine, just make it 20% cooler’… she shivered. She hoped to Celestia that Jax wouldn’t ever react like that.

***

They entered her boutique through the back entrance. “Sweetie Belle?” She called, just to be safe. Sweetie Belle wasn’t supposed to be there, but you never knew with her. Sometimes she liked to give Rarity surprise visits, which was quite sweet when she wasn’t behind on her work.

“Alright, come on in darling. I’m sorry for the mess, waking up before sunrise to work on the farm did not leave me with much energy to clean these last couple of days.” She led him to the main room where she could smell the dust in the air. Had it really been that long since she cleaned? She turned on the light.

It was a mess, just like she knew it would be. There was fabric everywhere, sacrificed to the floor in her mad inspiration. Dust covered the ponyquins that she hadn’t used. Half-finished projects were scattered around in random places. Maybe she should have asked him to wait outside while she cleaned a bit… She laughed nervously as she turned around.

Jax just waved his hand in a dismissive gesture. “I still haven’t paid you for any of the clothes you made me Rarity. You don’t need to impress me with a clean place. I’m already impressed by your generosity.”

Rarity’s chest swelled with pride at his words, even when she noted the slight sadness to his voice.

“I am going to pay you though. I hope you’ve been keeping track.” He joked, adopting a half-smile.

“Of course darling.” She hadn’t really. Well, that wasn’t entirely true. She knew the cost of the fabric for each of his outfits, and roughly how much time she had used to make them, so she had an estimate. But all his outfits were something completely new, never before seen in Equestria. How do you put a price on something like that? Not only that, but she really wanted to give him an enormous discount for all the trouble he has been through since arriving.

She also knew he wouldn’t like it. It would be pretty costly for him though, especially his new clothes.

Maybe a tiny discount wouldn’t hurt… He wouldn’t even know.

She shook herself out of it. He still didn’t have any bits, except the ones in his hands, which wasn’t nearly enough. Which reminded her.

“Let me get you a… I know I have it here somewhere…” She started searching in piles of fabric and clothes, sure she had seen a spare coin purse somewhere… She normally didn’t let her mess get this far. She would have to clean it tomorrow. No excuses.

“Ah!” She exclaimed as she found the plain coin purse she received from the bank with her withdrawal. It was practically just brown linen with a string at the end to close it. She was going to throw the thing out but got side-tracked. “Here you go. A bit unimpressive, but it will have to do.” She levitated the dreadful thing over to him, and by the look of shock on his face, he had a similar opinion of-

“No don’t!” He jumped back in near panic, spilling bits all over the floor and making Rarity freeze completely, unsure what she had done wrong. Perhaps she had offended him by trying to gift him such a hideous coin purse? Well, she didn’t think he would be, going by past interactions with him… he didn’t seem to care that much about fashion. Had she been wrong?

“Don’t touch me with your magic, Rarity. Please.” He looked a little lost, if she was honest. She wasn’t entirely sure why, but she understood why he could be upset with her.

She slowly raised a hoof up to her mouth. “I am so sorry darling. I completely forgot about the… the chaos thing. Here let me just lay it on the table over here and you can pick it up by yourself.” She noticed that he visibly relaxed after she moved her telekinesis away from him.

‘You should have remembered!’ She chided herself. ‘Who knows what would have happened if he hadn’t reacted in time! And now his surprise is soured by this experience…’ She sighed tiredly.

He walked over to the table and put the bits he still had in his hands on it. “Thanks… this will do nicely.” She could hear it in his voice. He had lost a lot of the confidence he had just a little while ago. This was really bad. This was not how she wanted to present her brilliance. She would have to delay until she could get him in a good mood again.

“How many bits do you have? Sit down and let me pay you for the ones you lost. I’m sure I’ll find them while cleaning the place.” She said as she went over to the… She was sure her own coin purse was here somewhere… or did she have it in her saddlebags? But where did she put…

“22 bits.” He said after counting. “Why are all of them one bits? Don’t you have anything higher?”

“Of course we do darling. We have 1, 10, 50, 100, and if you really need to buy something expensive, 500 and 1000 bit coins.” She said as she moved fabrics out of the way in her search. At this point it might just be easier to look for the bits he lost on the floor… “I don’t know why Octavia decided to pay you with single bits. Maybe it was all she had.” She carefully levitated some silk out of the way to reveal her saddlebags. “Aha!” She quickly found her silk coin purse and took out eight bits. “Here you go darling.” She levitated them over, careful to not let her telekinetic field anywhere near him.

He nodded his head and put them into his new coin purse.

“Alright… uhm… let me make that tea you like. Excuse me.” He just nodded his head again as she made her way over to the kitchen.

She swallowed hard. It had been an honest mistake, she told herself. She slowly relaxed her jaw and let out a tired breath. She could fix this. What made Jax happy? He seemed to like puns… did she know any puns? Not on the top of her head. What about Princess Luna? He definitely liked her… she wondered… did he know the story of when she had visited on Nightmare Night?

A smile slowly spread on her muzzle. This was going to be fun.

***

“… and after that, she seemed to relax much more, even pulling a few pranks herself here and there.” Rarity finished the story, taking a sip of her tea.

Jax had eaten up every word. He was looking at her with a smile that said ‘I can’t believe what I just heard.’

“No way!” He finally exclaimed and started laughing. “The fun has been doubled? Thy backside is whole and ungobbled? Ohh God she’s so adorable.” They both laughed, Jax in pure joy and Rarity in relief that her story had worked. “Ahh, but I didn’t know she had so many problems. I’m glad Twilight was there to help her, and Ponyville seems to be fine with her now. But man I’m gonna tease her so much with this, I can’t wait.” An excited smile appeared on his face.

It was time. “Speaking of being excited…” She started, gathering magic in her horn. “I think it is time for your surprise.” She placed herself into the middle of the room, ready to work her magic. With a swing of her horn, several fabrics were thrown into the corner, so that she could find the clothes she needed. The pants over there, the shirt over there. And in the end, the cloak. She was careful with it, making sure Jax couldn’t see the back of it. That was the piece she was looking forward to the most.

She put all of it over to the table, so that Jax could look at it without worrying about her magic.

The entire outfit consisted of cotton fabrics, dyed different shades of blue, except the cloak that was as black as the night.

Jax smile was wide. “Oh. My. God… You made me a cloak!”

Rarity looked on in excitement as he went over to the cloak. It was the piece she had worked the hardest on, and she was happy that he concentrated on it. Now she just had to wait…

He picked up the cloak and held at arm’s length. “Uhh, soft. And heavier than it looks. I’m sure it will be nice and warm during the-“ He turned it around.

Rarity almost couldn’t contain her excitement. He stood there, frozen, as he took in the starscape before him. It had been very challenging for her to find a gem that caught the light in the right way, but she finally found something perfect and it was all worth it for this moment. His mouth was open wide and his eyes almost shone with wonder.

After a whole minute of silence she finally couldn’t take it anymore. She needed to hear how much he loved it. “Do you…” Her voice shook with barely contained excitement. “Do you like it?”

He seemed to come out of a daze. “Rarity…” He looked over at her with a completely serious face. “This is the most beautiful piece of cloth I have ever seen.” Then he carefully laid it back on the table, unfolded so he could take in the whole cloak. He squinted at it, raising a hand tracing something, before laughing out loud. Rarity had a good idea of what he had found, though she thought it would take him longer. “You actually incorporated Luna’s cutie mark! This is amazing! Rarity, you are the best God-damn tailor in this world!”

Rarity blushed a little as he lifted her up and hugged her. “Please darling, I’m just happy you like it.”

“Like it?! I love it. I can’t believe you actually managed to make a cloak look like a starscape. You didn’t actually use real stars did you? It kinda looks like it!”

Rarity smiled brightly at his excitement. She simply adored his reaction to her gift. This was perfect. “No of course not darling. It’s a certain type of gem called a moonstone. It is not exactly rare, but not easy to come by either. I’m afraid that it raised the price of this outfit quite a bit.”

“I’ll pay you back one day, I promise. Thank you for this. Thank you so much.”

“Please darling. I’m just doing what I love. Your reaction means more to me than anything else you can offer.” She told him softly. “Besides… I think I cost you a trip to the hospital. I think visiting hours are over by now.”

”Pff. I think Rainbow can wait till tomorrow.”

They hugged a bit longer before Jax put on the cloak. Luckily it seemed to fit him quite well, and it would do wonders to warm him when the weather turned even colder.

Rarity walked him home shortly after, and they parted with smiles on their faces.

Author's Note

Woo! Over 300 likes XD That's nice to see :D
So, I'm trying something with perspectives here... It's harder this way, I tell you that, but I guess its good training ^^
I literally just finished this chapter, so if there is something weird about it, please comment. Now... time to finish my exam...
Also, all instances of Applebloom have now been changed to her official name Apple Bloom.

Chapter 49

Fluttershy looked at the door in front of her. Was she too early? Too late? She had taken her time feeding and caring for all her little friends, so she was probably late… but they hadn’t agreed on a time, had they? She disliked it very much when she had to meet somepony without agreeing on a time.

She took a deep breath. Because of the proximity to the Everfree and the orchard, the air smelled of forest with an apple scent. It calmed her down enough to knock on the door.

Nothing happened.

Maybe he wasn’t home? They hadn’t agreed on a time after all… What if he had gone to her home and they somehow missed each other?

That would be terrible… Should she go home and see if he was there? Or should she knock again? There was a chance he just didn’t hear her….

As she stood in indecision, she heard a sound from her left. Looking over, she saw Mr. Bear come out of the Everfree forest. When he noticed her, he started running over.

“Oh, hello Mr. Bear.” She greeted as she was picked up and hugged by the dear. “Did you have a nice trip into the Everfree? And what have I told you about hugging ponies while dirty?” She chided him lightly.

“Rawr!” He apologized sweetly. She would be lying if she said she didn’t miss him. She had been taking care of him for a long time after all.

“Oh that’s okay, I know you didn’t mean to.” She accepted the apology with a smile. “Do you know if Jax is home?”

He set her down and opened the door, walking in. He looked back at her to see if she followed. She took a step back and looked down. “Oh, I don’t know if I can just walk in like that… can you just check if he’s home?”

He nodded and went further in, stopping in front of the open bedroom door. He looked back at her again and confirmed that he was there.

So the poor dear was just sleeping in? Maybe she should come back later, he did look kind of tired yesterday….

Mr. Bear went into the bedroom, out of Fluttershy’s view. Oh no, was he going to wake Jax because of her?

“Ahh! What the?! Mr. Bear?” She heard from the room. Jax sounded very confused. A bump sounded from the room, followed by a series of curses. Soon Mr. Bear came out again, backside first, with Jax in tow. It looked like Mr. Bear had bitten into the hem of his pants, the only clothing he was wearing, and was dragging him along. Luckily the carpet let him slide along without too many problems, she noted. Not that he looked happy about that. “Stop it! You know how much pants cost in this world? Not that I do… but I’m guessing it’s a lot!” He sounded angry… oh no….

“Mr. Bear! Let go of him this instant!” She hurried in. “I am so sorry Jax, are you okay? I just asked Mr. Bear to check if you were home, I didn’t know he would… oh but it’s not his fault! He probably thought I needed to talk with you about something important! Please don’t be mad at him…”

Jax scowled at them both. He really must have disliked to be woken up like he did. “I-If you want to be angry, then be angry with me… I asked him to check up on… on you…” Her voice wavered a little, but she really didn’t want him to blame Mr. Bear for what happened.

To her relief, Jax’ scowl left his face slowly. He gave a tired sigh and ran a hand through his morning mane. “I’m not… It’s fine. I was just hoping to catch up on some sleep, that’s all.”

“Oh… well I can come back later if you want?” She offered, looking down at the floor.

“No it’s…” He yawned widely. “… fine. It will take me forever to fall asleep anyway.” He lifted himself off the floor, giving Mr. Bear an accusing glare. “What would you have done if I was naked?”

Mr. Bear shrugged.

“Well… Ah, whatever. It’s good to see you again buddy.” Fluttershy smiled in relief as Jax hugged Mr. Bear. “I can see and smell that you need another bath, Fluffball.”

“Rawr.” Mr. Bear agreed.

“Oh, I can help you of course.” Fluttershy hurriedly offered.

“I’ll take you up on that. Oh by the way, I have some bits to pay you back for the shampoo, brush and ball you gave me some time ago. I also need to buy some groceries… I only have apples as it is.” He went over to a basket by the fridge and took out an apple, offering it to her.

“Oh. No thank you, I had breakfast not too long ago.” She smiled sweetly at him.

“Suit yourself. Anyway, how much do I owe you?”

“Oh, it was 10 bits.” She noticed that his arm froze for a split second, before continuing its path towards his mouth. He took a bite of the apple and chewed thoughtfully. He didn’t look too happy about it. Maybe 10 bits were a lot for him? “Oh, but I don’t need it that much. I can wait until you have more bits….”

“No… no it’s fine. I was just thinking that I’ll have to… but it’s fine.” He went over to the table and grabbed a brown coin purse and took out ten coins. “Here you go.” She looked at him for a bit. It looked like he had made up his mind.

“Well… if you’re sure.”

“I am. I’ll manage.” He smiled, but it wasn’t… it wasn’t like his earlier smiles. Fluttershy didn’t know as much about smiles as Pinkie, but she did know that this one looked a little sad.

But what could she do? Refuse to take the bits? He had already insisted that she take it, she didn’t want to be rude… this was what he wanted, but he didn’t really want it… or was she just reading too much into it?

She went over and took the bits.

“Now… let’s give this fluffball a shower.” His smile became a little more genuine, which was a relief. She smiled back.

***

Fluttershy and Jax were walking towards the town to buy groceries for him. Giving Mr. Bear, or Fluffball as Jax had taken to calling him, a bath had taken some time. He was a big bear after all. After that Jax had decided he needed a shower as well, but that hadn’t taken as long.

“So…” Jax started. “How’s Discord?”

Fluttershy stopped and looked at him in surprise. Nopony ever asked about Discord, not unless he had done something bad… “Oh, he hasn’t done anything to upset you, has he? Sometimes he just can’t help it, but he’s trying. I promise to talk to him about-“

“No no, nothing like that.” He held up a hand to stop her from talking. “I was just curious as to how he was doing. He has been nothing but helpful, I promise.” He started walking again, and Fluttershy followed, a little surprised. Nopony had called Discord helpful… ever. Had they? She couldn’t remember even any of her friends saying those words… they were mostly suspicious of him.

“Oh… The last time I talked with him, he was fine. We have tea every Monday, so I’ll make sure to tell him that you asked about him… then he can come and tell you himself?” She asked delicately. It would be wonderful if Discord could make some more friends. She worried about him sometimes.

Jax looked at her for a couple of moments, then shrugged. “Sure.”

Fluttershy smiled. It would be good for Discord to make some more friends, and maybe he could even help Jax with his… problem.

A sharp intake of breath on her right brought her back to the present. Looking over, she saw Doctor Whooves was looking at Jax with wide eyes.

They had walked into Ponyville without her noticing, but there was something wrong. The atmosphere was heavier than usual. Several ponies had stopped and were looking at Jax with something that looked like… Oh no…

Fear.

Fluttershy knew that all it took was one pony to panic, for the rest to follow suit. She quickly swallowed down her fear of public speaking and stepped forward to explain the situation, but before she could get a word out, Shoeshine screamed and ran away. As Fluttershy watched, several other ponies did the same, leaving only a few. She noticed Bon Bon and Amethyst Star shaking their heads before moving on, leaving the street practically empty.

Looking up at Jax, she expected him to be sad or hurt by the ponies that ran away, but to her grief, he looked angry. A deep scowl adorned his features, which saddens Fluttershy more than anything else.

She had been angry once… it didn’t do anypony any good, least of all herself.

She carefully put a hoof on his leg, and gave him something she hoped was a comforting smile. She wanted to say something, something clever or funny that would disperse the situation, but the words escaped her, and she ended up just hoping he could understand her feelings nonetheless.

He looked at her for some seconds, before the scowl was replaced by a face that looked too tired. Jax sighed and faced forward again.

“Let’s… get the stuff. I hope they won’t run at the stalls, otherwise it will be pretty hard to pay.” Sometimes Fluttershy wished that she had Pinkie’s ability to make anypony smile. She just couldn’t find the right words.

She nodded.

They didn’t run at the stalls, but that only seemed to cheer Jax up a little. They went back to his house and spent the rest of the day answering mail. For some reason a lot of creatures wrote to Jax, some encouraging, some less so.

It seemed to cheer him up a little more, so Fluttershy did her best to help.

***

Luna was laying on her bed, feeling the heat spread on her muzzle. The book she was reading was very… graphical. She had to continue however… for her research, of course.

She was done writing her own book. It was filled to the brim with all her regret, and she could not say she wanted to publish it for all to see… but she was fairly certain Jax was right. The populace did not understand her, and ponies fear what they do not understand. All they had right now were the tales of Nightmare Moon. She needed to show them her side of the story, or nothing would change.

She was just taking a break from it. She knew she would have to read it over again to correct mistakes and maybe delete or add to sections. Then she could give it to a publisher and have an editor tell her to do it again but better. Or she could ask Twilight to read it over.

Until then, she would do some research on… a certain subject she did not know a lot about. She had some time until she met with the lawyers after all.

The door suddenly opened. In her panic, Luna threw the book away in a random direction. It hit a lamp that crashed into the wall. She would have to get somepony to change the light bulb on it… She slowly turned her head towards the door, seeing Celestia looking at her with a raised brow. “Luna… What are you doing?”

“Just… reading a book, sister.” She smiled brightly, willing Celestia to believe her.

Celestia’s gaze slowly left her to look over at the ruined lamp and the book that had caused said lamp to fall.

To Luna’s horror, a spark of recognition entered Celestia’s eyes. She quickly levitated the book back to her, but the damage was already done.

“Say… Luna.” Luna could practically hear the smirk forming on Celestia’s muzzle. “I’ve heard some maids talk about a certain book… a certain erotic book. Apparently they can’t find it anywhere. I wonder where it could have gone….”

“We… I have no idea… what you are talking about sister. Why would a bunch of maids share such a book in any case…?” She fiddled nervously with the book, trying to discreetly pull the covers over it.

“Ah… One of them wanted to borrow it from the other. Apparently it disappeared somewhere during the night… I do wonder where it could have gone.” Celestia approached slowly, still smirking. The common pony probably did not even know she could smirk. Luna hated when she did it. “I can only imagine what could have happened to it. Maybe some foul villain stole it and was reading it on her bed until-“

“Uggh!” Luna buried her muzzle under the covers. Celestia could be very tiring when she wanted to, and it was not even that late. “What are you even doing up? Is it not far past your bedtime? I doubt you came to investigate some book the maids were missing.” She asked from under the covers.

“It’s not that late, Luna. I came to see my favourite sister, of course. Done with Night Court already?” Luna slowly removed the sheets to see Celestia smiling down at her with the serene smile she was so good at. It was so convincing that Luna could not tell whether it was real or not.

“Yes. There are still no reservations made, all I do is clean up after Day Court.” She lowered her gaze, but shook herself out of it before it could take hold. “It gives me time to pursue my other projects and… do some research.”

Celestia raised a hoof and pointed at where the book was under the covers. “Research?” Again with the smirk. It annoyed Luna to no end.

“By the moon, yes! Research! For when…” Luna suddenly felt very self-conscious. Her blush returned full force and she wasn’t quite sure what to do with her hooves. She clopped them together nervously. “For when me and Jax….”

Celestia’s smirk disappeared instantly and was replaced by a worried frown. “Isn’t that a bit fast? You only recently started dating.”

“Yes, I know but…” She sighed in defeat. ”I want to be ready for when… we decide to… Do it. I’m not saying I am going to jump him the next time I see him, but on the other hoof… How long should I wait?” It did not take long for them in the book, which worried Luna. Was she doing it wrong? Was Jax mad with her for not… No. ‘Twas but a piece of fiction. No need to take it too seriously….

Celestia entered the bed and lay down beside Luna, laying a wing over her in the process. Luna scooted a bit closer to the white mare, accepting the comfort that was offered. “You can take all the time in the world, Lulu. There is no need to rush these kinds of things, and when you are both ready… you will enjoy it all the more.”

Or they would both get more and more nervous. Luna folded her ears. There was a lot she did not know about being in a relationship.

It was a little scary.

“If there is something you want to know about sex, you can just ask me.” Celestia continued as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Luna snorted. The day she asked Celestia about that subject was the day she decided to go out and wrestle a manticore with one hoof tied behind her back. “Right.” She said in a tone that clearly conveyed her feelings.

Celestia sighed. “Fine, be that way. You can only learn so much from a book.”

“And what were you going to do? Make charts for me? Demonstrate on a phallic object? I think I shall take my chances with this book.” She wished she could make her blush go away. Or better yet, go back in time to warn herself that Celestia was going to burst into her room, so that she could hide the book properly.

“There is no need to be embarrassed, Lulu. Sex is a completely natural-“

Luna charged her horn and teleported her out of the room, to just in front of her doors. She really hoped Celestia got the message.

For a while nothing happened, but just as she was about to take out the book from under the covers, she was blinded by a bright light. “-act.” Celestia finished her sentence, then turned to a blackboard she had brought, with something that looked like a rough sketch of a… “In fact, if this pie chart represents your hormone level, and this pie chart represents his hormone level…” She pointed at the two circles, then at the thing between them. “then this oval represents-“

“Away with thee!” Luna teleported her out again. Celestia could be so tiring when she wanted.

Another bright light, and she stood there with a banana… what did Luna do to deserve this?

“Now, I know a blowjob sounds like you’re supposed to blow, but you actually have to suck. I will now demonstrate on this banana.”

“Tiaaaahhh!” She threw herself at the bigger alicorn in a desperate attempt to stop unfolding events. She managed to wrestle the banana from her sister’s grasp, open the window with her magic, then throw it out. It hit a passing pegasus guard, but that was a price she was willing to pay. “What the Tartarus?!” She heard before she closed the window again.

She was breathing heavily, most likely out of fear for the atrocity she almost witnessed. She turned slowly. “Tia… Please. No more.”

Celestia’s smile had all the intensity of the sun, and soon gave way to laughter. “I don’t…” She could not even finish a sentence. It became so bad she had to lay down on the floor. Luna waited patiently for her sister to get it out of her system. In hindsight it was a little bit funny, but she refused to laugh.

“I don’t know what you expected, sister.” Celestia finally got out between gasps. “When you gave me such an opportunity on a silver platter.” She dried her eyes with a hoof. “Ohh, it has been a long time since I had the chance to laugh this much.”

“I am glad one of us had fun. Please do not try to make me think of you in that sort of situation ever again… please.” She shivered slightly.

“If you say so.” Celestia said in a tone that made Luna very afraid. It sounded like she had every intention to scar Luna mentally with images she did not want to see. “Sex is completely natural though. I don’t know why you are reacting so immaturely.”

Before she could answer that she was not acting immaturely at all, there was a knock on the door. “Come in.”

“Apologies, your majesties.” Justice Law bowed deeply. He was the last lawyer to join Luna’s team, and had already proven very able. There was just something about his smile that was a little off, but Luna could not quite pinpoint what… “I did not mean to interrupt, but the meeting is about to start Princess Luna.”

“Of course. You did not need to come all the way, but thank you.” She turned to Celestia, who was looking at her with that serene smile again. “I shall see you at moondown, sister.”

Celestia nodded. “Have fun.” Luna rolled her eyes. Going through every law in Equestria and discussing it with a team of lawyers was not what she would describe as fun.

It was soon Moonday, however. She was sure that would be fun.

Author's Note

Celestia sex ed. Because next chapter will be more serious, I thought you guys could use a laugh before things go completely off the rail with Jax XD
Fluttershy is hard to write, so if you find anything wrong with her, just comment on it and I'll see if I can improve it.
As always, feel free to help me improve the grammar XD No matter how many times I read it through, there's always some mistakes that make it past my eagle eyes. ^^

Chapter 51

Luna looked at the nervous mare in front of her. Then she looked back at Celestia. “Sister… I told you I do not want a clerk….”

“Actually you said that you weren’t so involved in politics as to need one.” Celestia corrected her. Had she said that? She couldn’t remember her exact wording. “I think that changing the laws of our country counts as being involved. Besides, I’ve been looking over some of the suggested changes, and would like to give my input as well, but instead of changing the time of the meetings so that we can both be there, Moondancer here will take care of informing me of the suggestions you come with, and give my input in the next meeting.” She took a break to smile down at the terrified looking unicorn. “And if you should decide to tell her when you decide to spontaneously teleport down to Ponyville so your guards and I don’t have to worry that you got foalnapped, well I wouldn’t complain.”

“P-p-princess, I-I feel I should have had time to prepare if this is a job i-interview… with one of the Princesses… I would have dressed better. Or at least taken a shower… possibly both….” She folded her ears. She did look quite underprepared to be presented in front of two of Equestria’s princesses, with only an old, frayed, sweater covering her light yellow fur. Her red, purple, and violet mane, which had obviously not been combed in a while, was held out of her eyes with a hair tie, and her glasses seemed to be held together mostly with tape. Luna took a discreet sniff, but apparently not discreet enough since she saw the mare’s eyes widen, then look down at the ground in shame. Honestly it wasn’t too bad. It was clear that she didn’t take a shower recently, but it hadn’t been that long since her last one either.

Other than that, Luna noticed that she had eyebrows much like her dear Jax. Well except in Moondancer’s case it was just fur that was coloured a different colour than her other fur, a red that was a little deeper than the red of her mane, while on Jax it was some of the few places he had hair at all, which was quite curious now that she thought about it. She would have to ask him about it later.

“If my sister is willing to recommend you, Miss Moondancer, then I will look pass your appearance, and focus on the true reason you are here. Your skill.” Luna finally said with authority. Moondancer’s ears quivered slightly as she gulped. Was Luna scaring her? Was she doing something wrong? Was she speaking too loudly?

Luna shook off her insecurities quickly. They would get to that later. First things first. “Let’s take this conversation out of the hallway. Follow me, please.”

Celestia had ambushed her right after Night Court, short as it was, so they were just outside the throne room. She started the semi-long trek back to her own room. Both Moondancer and Celestia followed her.

She stopped a maid on the way. She couldn’t remember her name, but she was fairly certain she was either the owner, or the one who wanted to borrow the book Luna had… acquired. “Excuse me, could you please bring some cake and tea to my room?”

The maid bowed so deeply that her snout nearly touched the marble floor. “I apologize, Princess, but after bits were cut from the tea and cake budget, we can only serve them twice a day. Princess Celestia has already….” She quivered slightly, as if afraid that she was about to be smited for refusing Luna’s request.

Luna rounded on her sister, who merely raised a brow. “Don’t look at me like that, Luna. You were the one who decided to cut this particular budget.”

“So that the orphanage could get the bits! It’s ridiculous that we have a budget dedicated solely to cake and tea in the first place. You have a serious problem, Celestia.”

Celesia smiled sweetly at Luna. “I visit the orphanage once a month, dear sister, and if I deemed it unsatisfactory, it would have either received more bits, or new staff, depending on the reason it had fallen in such a state.” There was an edge to her voice that made Luna take a cautious step back.

She looked back at the maid. “Take the cake and tea from tomorrow’s serving.” She simply told her and watched her scurry away. “But don’t let my sister do the same!” She called after her.

They eventually made it to Luna’s room. She let them in, and Celestia quickly arranged some pillows for them to lay on.

“So, sister.” Luna started. “Why are you recommending Moondancer as my… secretary?”

“She’s hardworking, she likes to research, she has a good memory, she reminds me of Twilight before she made friends, and I think she could use the job.” She quickly answered as if expecting the question. Moondancer was looking down between her hooves, avoiding to look at any of the princesses. “And she happened to be outside the royal archives when I thought about how you could use a secretary.” She added the last part with a devious smile, making Moondancer gape at her with an open mouth, before looking back down. Her right ear twitched nervously now and again.

Luna nodded. That sounded like something Celestia would do, though it did not mean Moondancer was not right for the job. If Celestia believed she could do it, then she probably could. What it all came down to, then, was Luna’s opinion of the mare. Looking at Moondancer’s flank, she saw a crescent moon cutie mark, surrounded by stars. A good sign.

Before she could say anything, there was a knock on the door. “Come in.” She called. In came the maid with a wagon, containing three pieces of cake, a teapot, and three teacups. “Thank you. I shall take care of the rest.” She gave the maid a small smile, to which she nodded meekly and made her way out after a respective bow.

Luna rose and made her way over to the wagon. “Do you want any sugar or milk in your tea, Miss Moondancer?” She looked over at to see the mare lick her lips nervously.

“No, thank you.” She answered barely above a whisper. “And please… just Moondancer.”

“Very well, Moondancer.” She prepared the tea for all of them, then made her way over with it and the cheesecake for her and Moondancer. Celestia narrowed her eyes at Luna, before levitating her own piece of cake over.

Luna settled down on her pillow again, and took a small bite of her cake, enjoying the sweet blueberry flavour that assaulted her mouth. Jax would love this cake. Maybe she should bring him some.

“So… Moondancer. First and foremost I need to know… are you afraid of me?” She asked with a bit of trepidation. She knew that her image was not the best at the moment. Hopefully Jax was right and her book would show everything in a new light.

Moondancer looked up from her hooves at her, with shock and confusion written on her muzzle. “Why would I be afraid of you, Princess?”

Luna cleared her throat uncertainly. “Well… my actions as… Nightmare Moon,” she forced the words through her maw. It was just a name, she reminded herself. “…did not paint me in the best light. Coupled with the fact that parents threatened their foals for the last thousand years by telling them that the Mare in the Moon would eat them if they didn’t behave, most have certain degree of… distrust… towards me.”

Moondancer looked genuinely saddened. She gave Luna a small smile. “I don’t… I mean, I’m not. Afraid of you, that is.” She took a calming breath. “I never understood those threats, even as a foal. If you could come down from the moon, then why would you use the time to hunt down naughty foals in particular? It didn’t make any sense to me… in fact, I often found….” Her eyes widened, and a blush spread on her muzzle. She looked down at her hooves again.

Luna and Celestia exchanged a look, before looking back at Moondancer curiously. They didn’t say anything, just met Moondancers glances with a curious one whenever she looked up.

Moondancer finally laid down and put her hooves over her burning muzzle. “I found that talking to the Mare in the Moon calmed me down, so whenever I was nervous about something and the moon was out I would talk with her, uhm you, about it and feel better… and I’m not crazy! Really!” She ended by looking at them in desperation.

Luna and Celestia exchanged another look before Celestia burst out laughing. “Oh, little pony, if talking to the moon meant you were crazy, both me and Luna would have been qualified as absolutely mad.” She informed Moondancer with mirth in her voice.

Luna rolled her eyes good-naturedly. It was true after all. She smiled down at the confused mare. “It is my beloved moon. Between us, the moon is a better listener than the sun. It always feels like the sun is trying to cheer you up even before you finish your sentence, but the moon… the moon will just listen.” She winked at Moondancer, while it was Celestia’s turn to roll her eyes.

Moondancer sighed in relief, and smiled timidly at them. “Oh, good. My mom… used to call me a lunatic. Said that it wasn’t natural to talk with the Mare in the Moon like that.”

Luna raised a brow and looked at Celestia for an explanation. “Lunatic?”

Celestia suddenly looked saddened and uncomfortable. “A… a cult that surfaced after… after you were banished. The word later became a synonym with… with ‘crazy’.” Her eyes kept looking away from Luna.

The sadness those words brought Luna was so sudden that she never stood a chance at simply shaking it off. Her wings drooped and her ears folded. A cult. As if her actions weren’t bad enough in and of themselves, they had brought forth a cult. “How…” she croaked. “How bad were they?”

Celestia looked away. “…Two ritualistic kills in one night, to… to free the Nightmare from her prison. Ponies were terrified… left offerings outside their door to appease Nightmare Moon, believing she had returned. And so Nightmare Night was created….”

Luna curled up on her pillow, curling her tail and wings around her to block off the world, while she breathed deeply. She wished Jax was there to hug her… but he wasn’t. She… she could prevail over this. T’was in the past. There was nothing she could hope to attain now… the past was in the past. It could be worse.

It was barely working.

Sounds of movement met her ears, and Celestia soon put her wing over her withers. “Luna… I made sure to root them out. They are no more, I promise.”

“Yes… of course. I am fine… I am fine.” She took a couple of breaths, gathering all of her strength. With a colossal show of will, she pulled herself together, carefully storing the sadness away for later. A technique she had used too much in the past, letting the sadness hob up without dealing with it. She would make sure not to make the same mistake again.

She straightened herself up, and when she looked up again, Moondancer had her hoof raised towards her as if wondering whether she should touch her or not, with an expression of pure worry and regret on her muzzle. “I’m sorry….”

Luna somehow managed to smile down at the mare, small as it was. “There is nothing for you to apologize for. You couldn’t have known.”

Moondancer lowered her hoof, then changed the weight from one hoof to another, looking as if she was debating something with herself. “Thank you… for being there for me….” She finally said. “I know you probably couldn’t hear me, but talking with you on those nights helped me a lot while growing up… actually when the Mare in the Moon disappeared from the moon’s surface, I felt like I had lost yet another friend….” She frowned down at the floor. Then her eyes widened. “I mean, I’m glad you were freed-“

Luna took firm step forward and swept Moondancer into a hug, the type Jax loved with both her hooves and wings embracing the mare.

“Maybe… you can come to think of it less as losing a friend, and more as gaining one that can actually hear and answer you.” She gently reassured the young mare that had just made Luna feel a little warmer.

“I-I- But Princess, I’m just… I’m just me.” Moondancer answered, frozen in the embrace. “I… I’m not….” She trailed off.

“Worthy? Special? But you are, Moondancer. You just admitted to talking with me while I was on the moon, despite your own mother calling you crazy.” She let go of Moondancer, who looked rather self-conscious. “I think that qualifies as worthy. One last question before I take you on as my cl… secretary. Seeing how my sister practically ambushed you and dragged you here, I have to ask. Do you even want the job?”

“Well….” She bit her lip, looked at Luna briefly, then looked back down at her hooves. “Yes. Right now I’m living by selling a lot of articles each month… and I do like the research involved but….” She was silent for a long while, sometimes peeking up to look at Luna. Both Luna and Celestia waited patiently for her to continue. “I-if I’m honest with myself… I’m a bit unsatisfied with how things turned out for me.” She finally admitted, as if it was hard for her to get the words out. “I don’t have any friends, and each day I tell myself that I’m fine with that, that friendship only leads to being hurt, and that I should just focus on my research… that I wouldn’t have time for friends anyway… but a part of me is just so unsatisfied!” She got of the pillow and started pacing. It seemed like this was something she needed to tell somepony. “Every day is the same, I wake up, go to the library, research until it closes, then go home and write on some article, all the while ignoring all the ponies around me that aren’t alone… ignoring how much it hurts to be alone… and I’m just so tired of it. But if I get this job, then maybe I will have some time to make friends… even though I’m not sure how… maybe I’ll try to reconnect with some old ones…. And maybe if Twilight Sparkle comes to the castle I can finally talk with her about how she just left without saying goodbye… without ever talking with me again….” She looked up at Luna with sad eyes, before looking down at her hooves with a frown. “…You probably wouldn’t understand.”

“I think you will find that I understand better than you might think,” she answered gently, raising Moondancer’s head so she could look into her eyes, “and if you want to talk with Twilight, I can take you with me when I go to Ponyville in the morning.”

Moondancer’s eyes widened. “I… but what would I even say to her?”

“I think…” Celestia spoke up from beside them, “that you should tell her how she made you feel when she left.” She smiled gently at the wide-eyed mare. “Now, I think my sister is willing to accept you as her secretary…” Celestia looked over to Luna who nodded with a smile. She liked Moondancer so far. “So I will have my secretary, Raven, teach you the basics before the meeting… was it tomorrow night?”

“Yes.” Luna answered. “I do not have the energy to deal with them tonight.”

Moondancer smiled brightly, looking a bit dazed.

“Right. After that I would advise you to get some sleep, if you want to follow my sister to Ponyville. She leaves at sunrise, if I’m not mistaken.” Luna nodded, as they all rose.

“I am certain you will do well as my secretary, Moondancer.” Luna told her new secretary with a smile.

“T-thank you, Princess.” She bowed low. “I-I will do my best. Thank you for giving me this chance.”

Luna withheld a sigh. Maybe friendship with Moondancer was not at close as she had hoped. Still, Moondancer was not afraid of her, which was a step in the right direction.

“You are quite welcome. Now go rest. I will see you again at moondown.”

***

The rest of the night passed agonizingly slow, making Luna wonder if postponing the meeting till the next night was a wise choice. She would be up all night and all day, after all, and in this particular meeting Celestia would state her opinion through Moondancer as well, probably causing a revision of laws they had already gone through… which would start a whole new discussion. It was already going painfully slow as it was, with the lawyers discussing every aspect of the old law, spending hours and hours on it, before agreeing on something. It was rather excruciating.

Luna decided to rest most of the night away, between reading her ‘borrowed’ book. It was a fairly boring night, to say the least.

When the time finally came, she packed the neatly organized papers that would become her book, and some bits. Then she made her way to the kitchen to take a piece of the cheesecake for Jax. Then she finally made her way to the balcony where she and her sister performed their duties.

“Good morning sister.” Celestia greeted her.

“Good morning, your highness.” Moondancer bowed from her place beside Celestia, looking a bit tired, but otherwise clean, with a mane and tail that looked thoroughly combed. Her sweater also looked new.

“And good morning to the both of you.” Luna answered with a barely contained smile.

After lowering the moon and raising the sun, Luna and Moondancer started making their way to the chariot that would take them to Ponyville. Luna could teleport herself, but the more ponies she tried to teleport, the harder it became. There was no need to exhaust herself, even if she could do it.

“Uhm… Princess?” She heard Moondancer’s voice behind her. Luna turned around to face her. Moondancer had stopped and was looking at her in confusion.

“Yes?”

“Aren’t we… going to the train station? I mean, the train isn’t coming for another hour but….”

It was Luna’s turn to look confused. “The train?”

“Yeah… uhm, you know, it’s a sort of big wagon that’s pulled by a coal-fuelled engine? Raven said that a secretary needs to be one step ahead, so I went ahead and bought two tickets for the first train today….”

Luna finally understood. “Ah. I know what a train is, Moondancer. I was going to take the royal chariot, I use it so rarely as it is, and it would have allowed me more time with Jax, but I guess I will go inform them that their service will not be needed. I hope they will not be too disappointed.”

Moondancer’s eyes widened. “Oh… OH!” She facehooved. “Of course, royal chariot! I’m sorry Princess, I didn’t have any time to research any of this, I just assumed….” She looked up with a desperate smile. “We don’t have to use the train, I’ll just pay the royal treasury back with my own bits, and we can forget this whole thing… right?”

“Nonsense. You went through the trouble to acquire train tickets for us, and we are going to use them. Now come.” While it would seem that she would get to Ponyville at an agonizingly slow rate, Luna could not make herself throw away the tickets Moondancer had bought with the best of intentions. She was new to being a secretary, so it was expected that she would make a couple of mistakes, and Luna was going to be patient with her.

Moondancer looked like she had found out her mother had died. Her ears, head, almost everything was drooping as she took heavy steps. Luna could imagine that it must be hard for her to make a mistake this early on the job, but she would get over it, and learn from it. If she did not, then she would be ill-suited for the job, and it was unlikely Celestia made that kind of mistake. She had a good eye for ponies, after all.

They moved out to the castle aircraft docks, with small hot air balloons and giant dirigibles both were waiting to be flown. In a part for itself, the royal chariots were stationed, which is where Luna led them. “Night Guard, Shadow Wing.” She greeted the two guards already fastened at the front of the chariot, ready to take off. “There has been a change of plans. I will depart with the next train to Ponyville instead.”

The guards exchanged a look, then started unfastening themselves. “I hope you don’t mind that we escort you, Princess? We were hoping to do our job for once.” Night Guard asked seriously.

Luna laughed softly. “Of course you can escort us to Ponyville, but once there I would like some time alone with Jax. Besides, your job is more than just following me around, dear Night Guard.”

“Yes, but standing in the hallway all night pales in comparison.” The shadow of a smile graced his muzzle. Night Guard had been one of the first to join her once she officially remade her guard. He was old, experienced, and loyal to a fault.

“Let us move out then.” She smiled at him.

The trek to the station was not particularly long, but the looks Luna received from some of the locals made it feel that way. Some of them did only look in curiosity, and bowed down quickly, but others cleared out as quickly as their legs allowed them. That they still feared her caused her heart to throb in pain and regret.

“Who’s Jax?” Moondancer suddenly asked from beside her. Luna looked at her in surprise.

“You do not know who Jax is? I thought the rumours about him had spread until they were common knowledge, especially after we appeared in ‘the Canterlot Informant.’

“Oh… I sort of stopped caring for the newspapers after Twilight appeared on it all the time. It made me… bitter… to see her with her new friends. The name does sound familiar though, so I might have heard it in passing.”

“Hmm….” Luna hummed thoughtfully. How did one describe Jax? “Well… Jax is the one and only human in Equestria. He is from a different dimension, and was the only one brought over by the rift that was formed after the fight with Tirek.” Luna searched her memory for relevant information, before she realized the term ‘human’ most likely did not mean anything to Moondancer. “As for how he looks, you will have to wait until I introduce him to you, as he is hard to describe. But worry not about his tall stature, for he is the sweetest and funniest human you will ever meet.” Luna smiled at the memory of Jax describing himself as ‘the awesomest human in all of Equestria.’ “He always tries to make those close to him smile, with puns and jokes alike. His smile lights up any room, his roaring laughter makes you want to join in, and you feel better just by being near him. Especially when he does something really nice for you, like trick your sister into spending the whole day with you because you told him you wanted to talk more with her….” She let the warmth from the memory spread through her body before continuing. “And his hugs! His hugs really are the best, makes you feel all happy and warm, and you never want to let go, especially when he strokes you gent-“

“Uhm Princess? Maybe a little… too descriptive.” Moondancer said with a visible blush, which Luna mirrored when she realized how lost in describing Jax she had become.

She coughed in a vain attempt to disperse the awkwardness. “Right. Anyway, he has recently been almost possessed by Sombra, so it is my duty as both a former possessed individual, and his marefriend, to be there for him. That is why-“

She stopped and looked behind her when she realized she had lost both her secretary and her guards. They were staring at her a few steps behind with big eyes.

“King Sombra?” Moondancer asked.

“Marefriend?” She caught the whisper from Shadow Wing.

“Yes. Now come. The train station is not far. Oh, one last thing, Moondancer. Do not, under any circumstances, use magic on him, no matter how small or easy the spell. His body reacts strangely to it, and it could cause some serious harm.”

“Oh… Uhm, alright. I’m… looking forward to meeting him.” Moondancer gave an unconvincing smile.

Luna sighed. She was sure it would be alright. Moondancer was a good pony, after all.

***

Luna looked around the interior of the train. There was a cheaper, ‘public’ half, where seats of three faced seats of three, and then there was the more expensive half with private compartments.

Luna made a bee line for the private compartments, because she was certain Moondancer had reserved a compartment for them at least, when she heard a timid “Uhmm… Princess?” from behind her.

She froze mid-step. Surely she would not have to… oh, who was she kidding, her secretary had gotten tickets for the public half of the train for them, which would not have bothered her so much if it did not give plenty of ponies to look at her in fear. She sighed.

“For future reference, Moondancer, I prefer the private compartments unless I state otherwise.” She could not quite keep her disappointment out of her voice, hard as she tried.

“Y-yes of course, Princess. I just… uhm… I’m sorry.” She did sound sorry, sorry enough to make Luna feel a little bad for her.

Luna looked around. Luckily there were not that many ponies, but those that were looked around uncertainly.

“It is fine. Let us find a seat.” She moved forward again, this time looking for someplace they could sit mostly in private without having to worry.

“Princess Luna?” A familiar voice inquired. Looking over, Luna spotted a mint-green unicorn looking over at them. She had a lyre cutie mark, and Luna quickly identified her as the cheerful mare that sometimes spoke with both Jax and herself during her stay in Ponyville. She smiled back at her.

“Ah, Miss Heartstrings. Good to see you.“

The unicorn bowed, a proper bow out of nothing but a wish to show their respect, which made Luna feel better. “Likewise, your maj-“

“Lyra?” Moondancer asked in disbelief from behind Luna, tilting to the side to see. Luna took a step to the side so they could see each other.

“Moondancer?” Lyra squinted at the mare, before a giant smile broke through. “Moondancer!” She jumped at the mare, pulling her into a tight hug. “We haven’t heard from you in forever! If we didn’t see your articles in ‘Magic Monthly’ and ‘Questions of the Ages’ so often we would have thought you died!”

Luna chuckled. She was not sure what was going on, but it would seem Moondancer was not as alone as she thought she was. “Are you here alone, Miss Heartstrings?”

“Wha?” Lyra looked back from examining Moondancer, who looked unsure of herself. “Oh, yeah. Hey, if you don’t have any seats, you can come sit with me.”

Luna internally cheered. That was exactly what she wanted to achieve. Outwards she remained calm, giving a graceful smile. “Thank you, we would be happy to accept your offer.” They all settled down on the seats, Lyra sitting in a rather peculiar position, the same position Jax sat in. Luna decided not to comment on it. Her guards positioned themselves so they could keep their eye on everypony, but close enough to interfere if it was necessary.

“What brings you to the train this early, or for some of us, late?” Luna asked curiously.

“Oh, I was spending a long weekend in Canterlot, you know, to visit my parents, and possibly my friends, turned out my friends were all busy though. Anyway, my parents can be a bit… well you know how parents are. When you live home they want you to move out, when you move out and visit they never want you to leave. Anyway, I missed the last train yesterday, but I told Bon Bon I would help her in the shop today, so I pulled myself up early.” She smiled brightly at them. “What about you, your highness? Going back to Ponyville to visit Jax? Why are you taking Moondancer with you?”

“Yes, I am. Moondancer became my secretary last night-“

Luna was interrupted by Lyra’s gasp. “Really?! That’s great! Then which excuse are you going to use to not come out with us, Moondancer?”

They both looked at Moondancer, who scraped at the seats with her hoof. “Actually… the reason I agreed to become Princess Luna’s secretary was so that I could have some time to make friends… so I would love to go out with you girls.”

Lyra’s gasp almost rivaled Pinkie Pie’s. “Really?!” She looked ready to jump at Moondancer again.

“Uhm… yeah. Well, it’s going to have to be really early or late, since I’m going to be working at night, but yes. I’m… actually surprised you still want to be friends with me, after I… after last time you came by….”

“Oh, pfff,” Lyra dismissed the statement with a wave of her hoof “who hasn’t had a door slammed into their face by their old classmate. I’m just happy you finally decided to come out of your house. I mean, other places than the library. You didn’t get tired of studying, by chance?” She smiled teasingly at Moondancer.

“Of course not. Who could get tired of studying?” Luna could not tell whether she was kidding or not. She did not sound like she was. “I just… need to make a living that leaves me more free time. I don’t get very many bits per article, so I needed to write and study a lot to make sure I could pay the rent.”

“Yeah, they really should pay more for those things. All that ‘for the sharing of knowledge’ is really going to bite them in their flank when you stop writing articles for them.”

“Well it’s not like I was making big studies or anything, I was just looking at what was already out there....”

And so the train slowly started moving to Ponyville, while Luna thought of a way to bring the conversation over to something she could participate in.

Author's Note

I had to cut the chapter because it became longer than I thought it would be, and didn't have time to finish it. The bad thing about keeping to a schedule I guess XD Thanks to Midnight Blossom for editing the chapter even though she was sick :)

Anyway, I'm pretty sure I haven't recommended this yet and it just made me squeal a little bit, so you should probably read it XD Twilight, Good Night

Chapter 52

“… and that is how Tirek was imprisoned the first time.” Luna finished her story as they got off on Ponyville station, feeling quite satisfied with herself. Her guards took position behind them.

“Wow… so Scorpan just sacrificed himself so that his brother wouldn’t take all our magic away? That was very brave of him.” Lyra looked thoughtful for a moment. “Yet he just disappeared from history, like so much else from that time period… how come, Princess?”

“Well…” Luna hesitated. She did not want to say what she was about to say. “The way I understand it… a lot of books with my name in them were burned after my banishment.”

Both Moondancer and Lyra gasped. Moondancer looked especially outraged. “Why would they do such a thing, Princess?” Moondancer asked, voice shaking at the audacity.

Luna looked down at the ground she was walking on. It was still early, so there was not an abundance of ponies milling about, but there were some. “So that Celestia would not have to be reminded of me. Combined with the fact that books were few and far between, a lot of knowledge and history was lost.” So much was lost because of her actions. She was doing a little for history with her book but….

Wait. Why did Celestia not rewrite some of the history from that period herself?

“Well, this is my stop.” Lyra said from beside her. “Thank you for the history lesson, Princess. It was fun traveling with you.” Luna gave her a small smile and a nod. She then turned to Moondancer. “I’ll write to you when I have time, then we can go hang out with the girls, alright?”

Moondancer shyly scuffed at the ground. “I’d like that.” She answered with a smile.

Lyra made her way to a small shop, while Luna and Moondancer continued towards the castle. The closer they came, the more nervous Moondancer seemed to become.

“Thought about what you want to say?” Luna asked in the hopes of helping the poor mare.

“No. Yes. I… am I being unfair?” Luna stopped, surprised by the question. “I mean… was I the only one who considered us friends? I thought we were, but then she just… leaves. No goodbye, no nothing and then I hear that she made new friends. Not only that, but she… she’s the Princess of Friendship now. Maybe I should just leave her alone….” Her expression turned to anger for a moment before looking helplessly at the dusty road.

Luna went over to the distressed mare, and put a hoof on her withers. “I do not know all the details, Moondancer, but one thing I am absolutely sure of is that Twilight is only a pony, and she is by no means perfect.” She took a pause to smile at the memory of Jax telling her something similar about herself. “So the best thing you can do is talk it out with Twilight. You are the one who realized you needed change, so do not give up when you are so close.”

Moondancer seemed to consider it for a moment, before giving a determined nod. “You’re right, Princess. I’m tired of feeling like I was… like I wasn’t good enough. Time to get some answers.”

Luna nodded at the guards by the entrance, who bowed their heads and let them in without problems.
They found Twilight in the kitchen looking more downtrodden than Luna had ever seen her. Her mane was a mess, her eyes looked bloodshot, and she was strewn across the table with a glass in front of her.

It looked like Spike was refilling her glass every time she ran out, though it looked like it was just milk. Twilight gave Luna a small, forced smile that dissolved back into a frown.

“Princess Luna. Come to banish me to the moon?” She sounded like she had given up all hope. Spike sighed beside her.

Luna exchanged a glance with Moondancer. “And… why would I do such a cruel thing?” She had of course heard of Twilight’s tendency to panic over the smallest things but… this seemed different.

Luna was worried. It was Twilight’s turn yesterday to watch over Jax, and here she was today looking like she had not slept through the night. Had something happened to her Jax?

The thought sent her mind reeling. What if… no, if something significant had happened, Twilight would not be laying here doing nothing. Twilight was the protector of Equestria. If Sombra had succeeded, she would be gathering her friends and assessing the situation, not be sprawled over a table and drinking milk.

It was still worrying her though, especially when Twilight did not answer. She just laid there with a distant look in her eyes.

“Spike? What happened?” Luna finally asked.

“She got into an argument with Jax, a rather… heavy one. She couldn’t sleep so I’ve been making warm milk with honey, but it doesn’t seem to be working this time.” He looked worried as well.

Luna needed to see if Jax was alright. Right now. She turned to Moondancer. “Take these and give them to Twilight once you are done talking with her.” She turned to her guards, leaving Moondancer looking bewildered with a stack of papers in her aura. “I am teleporting directly over to Jax. Thank you for the escort, but I shall teleport directly back to the castle when I am done.” They both saluted.

Luna charged her horn and teleported straight into Jax’ house. She felt a little bad for leaving Moondancer to deal with her problems by herself but… Jax needed her.

She reappeared in the combined kitchen and living room. Nothing looked out of place since the last time she had been there. The table was a bit messy, with letters strewn across it, but otherwise it looked clean, except… Mr. Bear seemed to be laying next to a cloak covering some item by the wall. He looked depressed, but it was the cloak that really caught her eye, because it looked like the gems on it sparkled like stars. She had no time to study it further though. She had to find her mate.

She looked in the bedroom and bathroom, but there seemed to be no sign of Jax, which worried her. He must have gone out….

Maybe Mr. Bear knew something. She could not communicate with animals the same way Fluttershy did, but if he knew where Jax was, maybe he could take her there… or something. Otherwise she could just wait for him to return, but she did not like that option much.

As she moved closer to Mr. Bear, she noticed something about the cloak. It did not just have gems strewn about randomly, it looked like there was a pattern, the same way star constellations did.

“Is that my cutie mark?” She asked nopony in particular, surprised and kind of amazed. Rarity must have made the cloak for Jax using what she now recognized as moonstones.

The cloak moved. Luna took a wary step back. Then the cloak’s hood fell down, revealing Jax. “Luna?” His voice was hoarse, barely above a whisper.

“Jax!” Luna took two steps forward before examining Jax further. He was leaning against the wall, the cloak easily covering him, but that was not what made her hesitate.

He looked terrible. If Twilight looked bad, he looked doubly so. His hair was a mess, his face had a deep frown, and his eyes… his eyes were puffed and bloodshot, his gaze was blurry and saddened.

She covered the distance between them in a flash, drawing him into one of the hugs he loved so much, feeling his familiar form against her.

“Luna….” His hoarse voice made her tighten her grip just a bit, while still being careful to not crush him. “Luna, you don’t mind me eating meat, do you?”

“Of course not.” She answered instantly. He should already know this.

“Even if I don’t need it? Even if I can survive without?” He sounded like he was barely holding back tears. Why was he so upset over it? For this to be the first he asked her, it must have something to do with his and Twilight’s argument.

“Even then.” She reassured him, stroking his head with a shoe-clad hoof. She quickly got rid of the shoe and continued to stroke him, just as he has done for her when she was distressed.

“Really?” She looked down to see that tears had started falling. It was not the first time he had cried in front of her, but it still hurt her to see him like this. Jax was best when he had his giant smile and his easy-going attitude.

As for the meat, she did not mind that he ate it for his own enjoyment instead of survival. She ate a lot of things for enjoyment instead of survival.

“Jax, I swear I do not mind. Come here.” She led him over to the bed, and he followed stumbling a bit.

Luna took her time to settle down on the bed, Jax laying close beside her. “Now tell me what happened between you and Twilight.”

***

Twilight looked at the place Luna disappeared from. Her guards turned around and left the room. She felt weirdly disconnected from everything. For some reason, her dealings with Jax were sometimes less than fortunate. She still remembered the time he forgave her for setting him on fire. That had been entirely her fault, yet he had forgiven her. There was no way Jax was a monster, and she was thankful that she had stopped herself from calling him that in the heat of the moment.

There was a lot of things she regretted about that conversation in hindsight. They should have talked about it rationally instead of yelling at each other… she shouldn’t have gotten so agitated. She should have stayed calm. She was a princess and a friend, and no matter how right she felt she was… but maybe she had been wrong. She needed a different perspective.

“… Hey Spike.” A familiar voice said. Twilight focused on her surroundings again, seeing the pony Luna had come with.

“Hey Moondancer. Good to see you again… sorry about not making it to your party.”

Moondancer? She looked at the pony who looked around awkwardly. The glasses, the voice, that cutie mark….

Twilight’s head shot up at the realization. “Moondancer?!” Party? What was that about missing a party?

Oh… right. Moondancer was another pony she had failed. She had even prevented Spike from going because of her own motivations.

Well they did end up saving Equestria from Nightmare Moon, so she felt like she was justified… what made her avert her eyes from the mare in front of her was the fact that she completely forgot about her existence until this moment.

“Hey… Twilight.” It was a quiet voice, and it was trembling slightly with, if Twilight was to guess, barely withheld emotion.

“Hey… Moondancer. Good to… see you again.” She regretted not being able to sleep so much at that moment. She felt so tired, barely having enough energy to stand up and face her old friend….

“Is it really?” Moondancer challenged her statement. Twilight looked up to find Moondancer looking at her with conflicting emotions, like she couldn’t decide how to feel. Right now it seemed like anger was winning. “Because if it was so good to see me, one would think you would have taken the time to do so earlier.” Definitely anger. The worst part was that her tired brain couldn’t think of anything to say. Was there even anything that could excuse her actions?

“Nothing? No excuse, no reason? Was I just not good enough to be friends with you?”

Twilight’s eyes widened. Looking up at Moondancer again, she saw that tears had gathered in her eyes. She had clearly been walking around with this for a long time. “No! That’s not it Moondancer, please don’t think that. I just… I didn’t know the value of friendship until I started living here.”

“Even then… you never contacted me again. You never thought of me as a friend, did you? It was just me thinking like that.” Her tears started falling.

Twilight hang her head in shame. “It’s true. I had my family, I had Cadence and Princess Celestia… I didn’t think I needed anypony else.” She took a deep breath, remembering how she used to be. It seemed like a lifetime ago, after all that had happened. “I… I’m sorry. I’m sorry that I forgot about you and the others after I came here.” She rose her head again with determination. “But if you want, we can try again. I would love to be your friend, Moondancer.” She offered with a soft smile. She wasn’t sure how Moondancer would respond, but she knew she had to try.

Moondancer looked conflicted. She shifted her weight from one leg to the other.

“You know…” Spike said from beside them, looking guilty. “I’m sorry as well. I didn’t forget you but I never wrote to you either.” He hung his head in shame. “To be fair though, you didn’t write either,” Spike protested. It sounded rather half-hearted though.

“I didn’t know your address… and after you left I was really hurt.” She sighed. “I was really looking forward to having you at my party but then you just didn’t show.”

“I know, and I’m sorry.” Twilight went over and gave Moondancer a hug. “It was my mistake, and if there is anything I can do to make it up to you, I will.”

They stayed like that for a while, until Moondancer pulled back and dried her eyes. “I think… I can forgive both of you.” A sincere smile spread on her muzzle, like she just let go of a burden. “Let’s start over.”

Twilight and Spike both smiled brightly at her.

***

Luna looked down at a sleeping Jax. If she knew things would have turned out like this she would just have gone ahead and had the lawyer meeting last night. She did not feel tired now, thanks to spending most of the night relaxing and napping.

Jax’ peaceful face made her smile. He had looked so distraught while telling her what happened with Twilight. She drew him a bit closer with her wing.

What had Twilight been thinking? It was fine that she had her beliefs, but forcing them on others was not how Luna expected her to act. Especially not with somepony who was on the verge of being possessed. Did she not understand that parasites became stronger in their vessels misery? Luna would have to talk with her about this.

She sighed. Looking back out of the open door, she could see part of the kitchen, but not the fridge. She could spend some time amusing herself with trying to put the cake she had brought into the fridge with nothing but her levitation. It was hard when you could not see your target.

***

Twilight sat with Spike beside her, and Moondancer on the other side of the table. She had just explained her troubles with Jax over breakfast and tea, and Moondancer had listened attentively.

“I don’t know Twilight, this all sounds kind of weird… do you mind if I ask you some questions?” She looked a little unsure of herself.

“No, of course not. I told you so I could get your opinion on this”

“Alright… well, Jax is good… right? I mean, he’s dating Princess Luna… so he can’t be bad.”

Twilight nodded slowly not sure where Moondancer was going with this. “Yes, Jax is good.”

“I thought so. Then my next question… have you ever had cake? Or dessert in general I guess.”

Twilight scrunched her muzzle in confusion. “Yes, of course I have, what does that-“

“Getting there.” Moondancer quickly cut her off, looking like she was analysing Twilight. “Did you have this view on life before you met Jax? I mean, it sounds like you view all life as sacred or something. Is it a religious thing?”

“No, it’s not. I’ve never minded that there were races out there that need meat to survive, I mean, they have the right to live as well. I guess I just always assumed they wouldn’t if they had a choice….” She folded her ears at the memory of the hours of research she conducted to give Jax that choice, only for him to….

Moondancer sighed. “Listen, I think I get it. All your life you’ve eaten nothing but fruit and vegetables, along with everypony around you. Suddenly this creature comes that doesn’t, so it’s a little… uhm… I guess, ominous. But you try to accept it anyway-“

“-because he’s nice and you’re the Princess of Friendship, but deep down you’re disgusted every time you see him eat meat.” Twilight took over and started pacing back and forth. “So you do some research and figure out that omnivores don’t actually need to eat meat to survive, so you’re happy that you can finally make him stop and oh my gosh, I’m such a selfish pony.” She stopped and sat back on her haunches.

Moondancer went over to her and awkwardly put a hoof on her withers. “And kind of hypocritical too, talking about survival in this day and age, when you yourself have eaten things for other than surviving. Imagine a pony walking around, telling others they can’t eat cake.”

Spike coughed into his claw. “*cough* not helping *cough*”

“Oh… uhm, right. Sorry, Twilight.” To her credit, Moondancer looked genuinely apologetic.

Twilight hung her head. “It’s alright, Moondancer. You’re right. It’s just… when I see him eating a fish I keep thinking that it could be swimming around in a lake or river somewhere if….” She sighed. “I wonder how Fluttershy deals with this….” She suddenly felt exhausted again.

“I wouldn’t know. Here take these, I’m not sure what they are, but the Princess asked me to give them to you.” Moondancer levitated a stack of papers towards Twilight. “You should get some rest, Twilight. You don’t look too good. I’ll be making my way back to Canterlot now. You should… you know, visit. When you have the time.” She smiled timidly at Twilight, and Twilight smiled back.

“I will.” She went over and gave her friend a hug. “Thank you for coming. I needed this.”

Moondancer laughed. “No problem. I think I needed it more than you did. Hey, should I stop by Lyra’s place and tell her to include you in the plans? We were going to meet up with the others at some point.”

“I would like that. Thank you Moondancer.” She drew back and covered her yawn with a hoof. “Now, if you’ll excuse me… I think I’ll take you up on your advice and rest.”

“Hey, how about I show you around Ponyville Moondancer?” Spike asked.

“I would love that, Spike, thank you. Goodnight, Twilight.”

“Goodnight Moondancer.” Twilight answered and made her way through the castle, towards her own room.

“You know, I bought you a present for your party. It was this teddy bear that I had paid for with my own bits. Unfortunately when Twilight…” was the last thing Twilight heard before Spike’s voice became too distant as they headed into town.

***

Luna was humming to herself. She had deposited Jax’ piece of cake into the fridge a while ago, so left with nothing else to do, she was just waiting for Jax to wake up. She had looked for his door in the dreamrealm... but annoyingly enough, it did not seem like he was dreaming… again. She had not been able to find him in the dreamrealm for a while and it annoyed her a bit since he had given her permission to enter his dreams whether he was having a nightmare or not.

Well it had only been five days since then, so she would surely get her chance.

She looked back down at the creature that had made her so happy, but her smile was turned into a frown as memories she had hoped forgotten resurfaced. Memories of the Limelight whispering sweetly to her.

Celestia had decided to do something as simple as to take a walk through town, and soon the entire town cheered at their beloved Princess, crowding the streets.

Luna had watched from the windows of the castle. ‘Look at them cheering, keeping the limelight on her, as you lay here all but forgotten in the shadows.’ It had whispered. ‘It does not have to be this way, Luna. I can make them see you. Yes… I will become your Limelight, and then everypony will look at you, and only you, with the same admiration they have for your… sister.’ It spat the last word out like was it poison.

“Thou art wrong… Limelight. We art not yet forgotten. Come nightfall, we shalt make our way through the streets of the commoners as well, and they shalt cheer for their Princess of the Night as they doth cheer for mine sister.” She tried to convince herself in vain. That night she had only proven the Limelight right. The streets were empty and devoid of life. Nopony cheered, nopony even saw her, since they had been safely sleeping in their beds.

‘I neither see nor hear anypony cheer for you, Night Princess. It is the day they love, sweet Luna, not your night. Look up at the moon, look at the stars, see them glimmer and shine, and know that you are the only one looking, for everypony sleeps through your beautiful night. But do not worry… I am your Limelight, I will shine on you and only you. Yes… together we can become something more than you are now. If the night should last forever, there would be no way for them to avoid seeing… admiring… and appreciating you and your precious night.’

She had not given in that night, but the whispers had sounded so sweet and logical to her, and she had already been in a bad place by then. So that night she gave a little more of herself to the Limelight.

So foalish she had been. So inadequate she had felt next to her perfect sister. Such a big mistake she had made….

But Jax was not like her. He did not worry about practically every action he took, nor did he needlessly compare himself with another pony. He could win against Sombra the parasite. He could and he would. She would make sure of that.

She leaned down and nuzzled his cheek lovingly. It was her beloved Jax, the one who had made her smile, made her feel alive. The one who had comforted her when she needed it, and the one who had let her comfort him. He had confided in her, over all other ponies, about his past just as she had done with him for her own. They would prevail over this and grow even closer. There was so much they still needed to do….

“Mmm… I could get used to waking up like this.” Jax sighed from under her. She stopped nuzzling him and planted her lips on his firmly, closing her eyes in the process. He made a surprised noise, but then he leaned into it.

This was different from their first kiss. It was less passionate, but in a good way. It was like she had time to really feel it, instead of moving in a daze. Jax let his hand wander up her cheek, and she shivered at the loving touch as he slowly moved it up to her ear. She tried to flick it, but he grabbed it between his fingers and started kind of massaging it… it was hard to describe but it felt nice. Another shiver ran through her. She could feel both herself and Jax smile.

She had to do something for him as well. She could not be the one getting all the shivers. She broke off the kiss but kept her eyes closed. She took a second to position herself on top of him, then dove in on his soft lips again from a different angle. Jax gave a sound of appreciation which made her hum with happiness. She could also feel his excitement poking her down there through his clothes, but ignored it for now. She did feel rather glad that her body could excite him as much as his could excite her though.

Her hooves were too clumsy to do what she wanted to do, but her wings were more flexible. She pushed his hair away from his ear so that she would have access, and then started running a feather over and around it. She could feel the shiver running through him just like she had wanted, making her smile widen in victory. He giggled into her mouth and redoubled his effort on her ears by using his other hand as well.

She giggled as well. Two could play at that game. She used her other wing and started using her feathers on both his ears.

They both opened their eyes at the same time, at the sound of a pop and a flash.

“Hello Jax, Fluttershy said you were wondering how I was doing so- ohhh, oh my…” Discord stood at the door, a sleek smile visible on his muzzle. “Bad time? Oh look at you two lovebirds.” For some reason that only Discord himself knew, he spawned some birds out of thin air that danced around in the air. “No no, no need to tell me to leave, I get it. I’m sure you must both be rather...frustrated." He wiggled his brows at them suggestively. "I’ll come back another time. Toodles.” He and the birds disappeared in a wave and a flash.

Luna and Jax just looked wordlessly at each other for a second before falling into fits of laughter.

She did not quite know what was so funny, but with Jax, the fun was always doubled.

She was also glad that they had stopped before going any further. She could ignore the fact that Sombra was currently inside of her Jax’ mind and watching everything they were doing most of the time. She was not about to have her first time be with him in the same body as the one she was making love to.

Besides… Celestia had said that it was too early for that anyway. Still, after spending much of the night reading that book without tending to herself, as well as what they had just done, she decided it best to remove herself from Jax before she left a wet spot on his clothing due to her arousal. While still laughing the whole way, she somehow managed to make it to the bathroom to calm herself down.

She came out to find him out of breath, with a big smile still on his face, just like she preferred him. “Ready to go out? I hope you were not thinking of spending our entire day together inside.” She asked with a half-smile.

“You say that like it would be a bad thing.” He joked back, already making Luna feel more at ease.

“Oh… just come on. I brought bits with me, and it has been a while since I have been to ‘The Great Circle’,” she laughed. He was already looking better than when she came, though he still looked somewhat tired overall with bags under his eyes. The fact that he was smiling and joking like she remembered lifted the worry in her heart somewhat.

“I actually think they miss you there. Alright, let’s go.” He rose from the bed, but had to steady himself, probably from rising too quickly. She took a worried step forward but he quickly waved her off with a smile. He dressed himself, as he always did, and off they went.

***

“Princess Luna! It is good to see you again. Welcome back.” The owner invited them with much enthusiasm, making Luna smile.

“Thank you. It is good to be back.” She answered honestly, taking in the familiar smell of pizza. She shared a look with Jax. “We shall have our usual, please.”

“Of course, coming right up.”

They went over to their usual sitting spots. “So, how have things been for you the last couple of days? Sorry I haven’t been writing, I really feel like I’m wasting Spike’s awesome gift, but… yeah… all I have are bad excuses….”

Luna smiled ruefully at the table. They had had this problem before, as far as she remembered. “Well… ‘Tis not like I have written to you either. I guess I am old-fashioned, but I prefer to talk muzzle to muzzle, and nothing of import has happened that would need to be written… maybe with the exception of what happened last night.” She looked up to find Jax looking at her curiously. She allowed herself a smile. “Celestia came up to me with a mare in tow, one of Twilight’s old friends before she moved to Ponyville, in fact. She is now my secretary.”

Jax smiled at her. “That’s great, I hope she proves useful. What else?”

“I hope she will. Otherwise… not much. I am still meeting with lawyers to discuss the current law. You should hear them Jax, it is impossible to move forward with much of anything with them, and now Celestia wants a word in as well. By the time we change a single law, a whole new book full of them will probably have been made.” She complained.

He chuckled a bit. “Well changing the law, especially on such a grand scale, is no laughing matter. I’m sure future law students are going to appreciate the effort though.”

“They better, after what I am going through.” She laughed.

They shared some more small talk until their pizzas arrived.

“That was fast. Thank you.” Luna nodded to the owner.

“Of course. Your highness, Jax.”

Jax looked at him thoughtfully as he went back to work, then leaned in and whispered to Luna. “You know, I don’t think we ever got his name, and at this point I’m afraid to ask.”

Luna stifled a laughter behind a hoof. “You are correct. I have been thinking of him as simply ‘the owner’, and asking at this point would seem awkward.” She whispered back.

“Well, he makes great pizzas nonetheless. It’s probably something like Great Pizza in typical pony fashion. Or Pizza Maker. Pizza McMaking. The Pizzanator. El Pizza Grande. Something with Pizza for sure.”

Luna could not smile any wider if she wanted to. She giggled behind a hoof at his silliness. “Maybe his name is Great Circle, the same as the name of the store. Many ponies use their own name for their store.”

“But that would go entirely against my theory that it’s something with Pizza.” He argued.

“We could always ask.” They looked at each other wordlessly, before they both started laughing.

***

They came out of ‘The Great Circle’ with full bellies and smiles on their faces. Being with Jax always made her so carefree. It was a quite pleasant contrast to her usual worry.

She spread her wings. “Want to go for a flight?” She asked him, pretty sure of his answer already.

“You know it.” He smiled and climbed upon her back, reminding her of the days when they were stuck like this. She took off with a start, making Jax tighten his grip on her.

Soon, Ponyville was but a toy set underneath them, as they soared through the sky. The weather was not perfect for their flight, due to the harsh winds. This was no problem for Luna however, and Jax was well covered by his cloak.

There were not many pegasi around, so they had the sky mostly to themselves. She did not try to do anything extravagant, she just flew at a slow and steady pace, enjoying the feeling of flying, as much as the feeling of Jax holding her tightly. The first time they had flown, he had almost choked her, which he of course later apologized for. She chuckled at the memory. He took it much better these days, trusting her not to drop him.

After a long while, she settled down on a cloud, simply enjoying the view while taking a breather. Jax nuzzled the nape of her neck, making her hum in satisfaction.

“Hey guys!” A rainbow coloured blur stopped in front of them, revealing herself as Rainbow Dash. “I’m finally out of the hospital!”

“That’s great Rainbow!” “Congratulations!” the both let out at the same time.

“Yeah, thanks. But hey, no time to talk, I have almost a week’s worth of flying to do!” She disappeared as fast as she appeared.

Looking around they saw that she distanced herself from the town to do tricks. They looked on as she made a wide assortment of loops, barrel rolls, and other stunts, some of which others might consider too dangerous in this kind of weather. At some point she stopped flapping, letting gravity take her almost the entire way to the ground before straightening.

“How come you never do that sort of thing with me?” Jax jested from her back.

“I would, but I would not want you to try to choke me again.” She replied as matter-of-factly as she could.

He instantly understood what she was referring to. “You still on about that? I told you I was sorry. It was my first time flying!”

They both laughed before going back to a comfortable silence.

***

Luna laid on the meadow where she had become friends with Jax, and where they had returned at least once a week for her entire stay in Ponyville to animate the stars. The sun was on its way down, and it was soon time to raise the moon.

Jax was sitting beside her. “To be honest, I promised Apple Bloom that I would suggest you do the same thing as last week, with the shooting stars. Honestly I wouldn’t mind seeing it again myself. It was pretty damn awesome.”

Luna blushed at the praise. “Alright. But do not interrupt me then. I will need to concentrate.” Concentrate was an understatement. Last time she had been in a deep state of meditation to achieve the starfall sky effect.

“Alright.” Jax nodded seriously.

She started taking deep breaths, filling her lungs to the brim, holding it there, then letting go. She could feel the sun go all the way down behind the horizon, and made her first move, hiding the light from her stars. Five minutes, then ten, until she felt she was ready. Then she opened her eyes, knowing that they shone with power. She slowly rose into the air as she amplified her spell. By this point she had blocked out the outside world completely, concentrating on controlling the light from each and every one of her stars. She started with one, letting it seem as if it was flying across the night sky, then another, and another, until she was controlling the light from thousands of stars.

The second time was easier than the first, but manipulating the light of so many stars was still taking its toll on her, and she almost wavered, before she remembered the reason she was doing it in the first place. She wanted to leave her Jax in awe. So she continued for another minute before she was satisfied, and quickly raised the moon before she would become too tired to do so.

She landed on her feet, but they gave way from underneath her. Jax caught her before she could hit the ground, and gently laid her on her back. She looked up at his ecstatic smile, and deemed her weariness worthwhile.

They stayed like that for longer than she should have allowed, but being in his embrace just felt so right. She did not want to leave.

“I have to leave soon.” She whispered.

Instead of answering, he started nibbling at her neck. It was a rather peculiar feeling, not unpleasant though. Then he bit down a little harder, and sent a jolt through her body. “Jax, eating me is not going to make me stay.”

“Ehh, hair.” She spit at the ground a couple of times. “Biting not doing it for you? Maybe a different kind of eating then.” He answered mischievously.

“What do you mea-“

Before she could finish the sentence, he was on her, kissing her with a deep lust. She was just about to tell him that she really did need to get going, when he began scratching her stomach. She let go of a long moan; it felt better than she had ever imagined! He pressed his tongue against her lips and she let him in, letting their tongues dance together. Every time he scratched her in a right spot on her stomach she would moan into his mouth, making him kiss deeper and scratch harder. For a while, she just lost herself in the emotions, her thoughts a daze.

Then his right hand started going lower with an obvious destination in mind.

She was not sure if it was because Sombra was there, or that they were outside for all to see, or because it was too early for her, or maybe a combination of everything, but she stopped his hand with a hoof... and broke off the kiss.

“Jax…” She was breathless, but she gathered her strength. “It is… a bit too early in our relationship for this kind of exploration, not to mention that we are outside.” She pulled herself up on her haunches.

“Oh… okay, yeah. I guess you’re right. Sorry.” He gave her an apologetic smile.

She nuzzled into his side. “Do not apologize, my dear Jax. You were only following your body’s desire, and I should probably have stopped you earlier. I am glad you want to go further, but let us take our time.”

“Of course. We have lots of time,” he smiled… though this time clearly forced. Was he afraid he was going to give in to Sombra at some point? Or was she simply overthinking it?

“Yes. We do.” She stated and kissed him firmly on the lips. Should she do something else? But what? “We… I… I really do need to go now.”

He nodded, and smiled more genuinely. “I understand. Go do your royal duties.”

She hesitated… but then she powered the spell and teleported back to her room in the castle.

Author's Note

We are really getting close to the 200k words XD Maybe next chapter :b
Sorry about the delay, my editor needed the time :) That being said, I think Sunday will be the new day I post these chapters (which it was originally anyway) :)

Anyway, I don't remember what I've already recommended, so I'm just gonna put in a ff, and if you've seen it here before, tell me XD
The Human Condition is really good XD Check it out ;)

Chapter 53 - Adventure Time!

Luna regretted teleporting away almost instantly. She should have stayed with him for as long as he needed her. She should have stayed and made sure he was alright. She had left him just after rejecting his advances after all.

She sighed heavily. She had her duties she needed to attend to, and she could not ignore them when she was the one who set them in motion. However, Jax was being possessed, and nopony knew better than her how quickly that could escalate. And as far as she knew, a parasite did not need a spell to take control of somepony’s body… if they gave it up freely.

It had caused her a great deal of worry from the very moment she had heard there was a parasite within him. The worry kept gnawing at her heart, no matter how much she tried to push it away. Luna was not a big believer in karma, but the irony of the situation was not lost on her. A thousand years ago, she lost to the Limelight, a parasite that took control of her body, made her turn on her own sister, and now… now the same thing could happen to the one she loved. She felt her life did not deserve to be as happy as it had become. Fate must have been conspiring against her, and making up a destiny most cruel for her.

Her ears drooped, even as she was preparing herself for court. She was late… but she found herself not caring all that much. They were not ponies that had come to see her, they were ponies who had come to see her sister and found themselves too far back in the line to make it before day court closed. So instead of coming back the next day with their problems, they came to her. It was just convenient for them. She was the next best thing, as she had been back-

she stopped the thought. ‘Think of something else.’ She told herself.

Jax… maybe she should teleport back? She could apologize for leaving and she could spend her night with him. That thought brought a tired smile to her muzzle.

Alas, it had cost her too much magic to make her display of shooting stars, and what she had left after that was used to teleport back to the castle.

She opened the door to her room to find Moondancer with a raised hoof, about to knock.

“Princess!” She hurriedly kneeled.

Why she was kneeling was anypony’s guess, but Luna was too tired to think about it. She just wanted this night to be over so she could rest.

“Rise, my little pony. There really is no need for you to kneel before me, Moondancer.”

“Right! Of course.” She got up and shuffled her hooves around a bit. “Oh! I brought you coffee. I thought you might need it.” She smiled nervously.

Sure enough, two cups of steaming hot coffee were being held in her aura. Luna started walking towards the courtroom as she spoke.

“Ordinarily I prefer tea, but this night… I think I could use some coffee. Thank you, Moondancer.”

Moondancer smiled brightly at her. “No problem Princess!” Luna took one of the cups in her own aura, taking a small sip. It was hot and bitter, just as she remembered it. She would have to drink it slowly.

“Oh!” Moondancer exclaimed, seemingly remembering something. “I hope you wouldn’t mind if I spend some time speaking with the petitioners? I have some questions for them.”

“No, of course not.” Luna simply answered, too tired to even begin to speculate what Moondancer could ask them. She took another sip from her cup.

***

Pinkie could barely contain her excitement! Discord and Filthy Rich were with her and they were standing in front of Jax’ house. She and Discord had their party cannons ready, Discord’s being a little bigger than hers. They had knocked and the second Jax opened the door they would-

“SURPRISE!” She and Discord shot their confetti into the air. Beside them, Filthy Rich covered his ears.

“What the….” Jax staggered backwards. He looked really, REALLY tired, but also really surprised, meaning that their surprise had worked. He took a moment to look at them all. Pinkie gave him a large smile amongst the raining confetti. “Ohhhkay. Should have seen this coming… what’s the occasion?” He asked warily.

“Occasion? Why, dear Jax, does a good friend really need a reason to surprise each other at six in the morning?” Discord asked, putting a paw over Jax shoulder.

“Normally I would say yes, but since it’s you guys I guess ‘normal’ isn’t part of the equation.” His eyes landed on Filthy Rich. Then on the bag on the ground. “Is that a bag full of money?”

Pinkie gasped. “How did you know? It was supposed to be a surprise!” She looked around conspiratorially, before whispering loudly in his ear. "Are you psychic?"

“Well it has a dollar sign on it, and with how ridiculous this world is with its logic, I just assumed.”

Filthy Rich coughed into a hoof, drawing their attention. “Yes, well… you assumed correctly. As per my agreement with Princess Twilight Sparkle, it is my pleasure to present your share of the profit from selling the pens. My ponies had been busy day and night to prepare an adequate amount and spread the news of the invention, and I am happy to say that we sold out. Here is 50 percent of the profits after paying for the materials and horsepower, two thousand three hundred and twenty-two bits.” Pinkie gasped at the amount. You could buy a lot cake for those bits. Discord conjured up a hammock that swung back and forth by itself and laid down in it.

A smile spread on Jax’ face as he accepted the bag. “You can expect to get even more next month if sales continue as they have. I also have five pens for you, as a thank you for this wonderful invention.” He took out five packages from his saddlebags, and hoofed them over to Jax. “And you can try one of them out right now by signing this.” He took out a piece of parchment. “It pretty much just says that you will be paid the agreed upon percentage at the beginning of each month. The rest has been taken care of by the princess.”

Jax carefully read the page over before taking out a metal thingy from one of the packages. “Uuuuh, is this a pen?!” Pinkie snatched it from him to better examine it. The bottom part looked like a golden quill, the upper part looked like a metal tube instead of the feathery part. “Fancyyyy.”

“Yes, Pinkie. Be careful with it, someday this pen will be worth a lot.” Jax took the pen from her and signed the papers.

“Oh it already is Mr. Jax. Thank you for choosing me as your investor. We are both going to make a lot of bits.” Filthy Rich smiled with the same kind of excitement Pinkie had when she had a cake in the oven that was almost ready.

“Oh, it was Twilight’s suggestion, and Applejack backed her up.”

“Ah, it’s good to know that the princess has such trust in me, and the Apples have my back.” He laughed. “In any case, I have to get going. Good day to all of you, and… uhm… good luck with… your condition.” He quickly turned around and walked away.

“Huh? What condition?” Pinkie asked, a bit perplexed. Unless…. “Does he mean the fact that you have an ancient evil king inside of you, that wants to take over your body at any sign of weakness, leaving us unable to help you since we can’t use magic on you and-“ She quickly cut herself off when she saw his frown. Sometimes she could talk a lot without thinking about it, and sometimes she would say something that made ponies around her unhappy. She quickly recovered and put on a smile. “Me and Discord have planned a great day for you today, you’re going to love it. Isn’t that right Discord?” The hammock disappeared with a pop and Discord fell down, looking around in confusion.

“Oh goody, the boring pony is gone.” He got up and dusted himself off. “Why yes, you are going to have a splendid day, because you are going to be amongst the first to get a tour of my very own chaotic realm! Oh this is simply going to be so much fun.”

“… alright.” Jax turned and disappeared into his house. “Mr. Bear, I’m going out, most of the day. Protect this bag of money while I’m gone.”

“raaawr!” Came the reply, which probably meant ‘I will protect this bag with all my might!’ Pinkie giggled.

“Alright, how do we get to your realm when you can’t use magic on me?” Jax asked when he got out again.

“Good point!” Pinkie agreed, looking expectantly at Discord.

“Oh, dear Jax… you are surrounded by magic all the time here. Why do you think it doesn’t affect you?”

“Oh, that’s true!” Pinkie looked at Jax.

“… I guess because it’s not a spell? My question still stands though. Unless you plan to…” He yawned briefly before continuing, “to walk there?”

Pinkie looked back at Discord, who smiled mischievously.

“That is exactly what I intend to do. Do you remember when you connected two places together? You went through without a problem.” He snapped his claw, making a glowy rift appear in the air. It expanded, showing a swirly place with floating islands.

“Uuuuh, floaty. Well, let’s goooo!” She jumped through, followed by Discord, and after a moments hesitation, Jax. This would be sure to cheer him up. What could be more fun than a day full of unexpectedness?!

***

“Weeeee!” Pinkie cried as they fell towards some new friends. At least she hoped they would be, they didn't look too happy to see them coming down towards them. Nothing a few hugs wouldn't fix.

“Ahhhhh!” Cried Jax besides her. Falling here was super fun since there was no up or down. How were they falling at all then?

“Isn't this fun?” Discord asked while falling/laying in a beach chair.

“Yeeeees!” Pinkie answered for them, since Jax was busy screaming.

“Good! Let’s move on to the flowing lava island. That always cheers me up!”

"Wait! I didn't get to make friends with-" But Discord has already snapped his paw.

***

“Oh God, why?!” Jax cried out, trying to swim away from the fishies.

It was flowing lava, but it wasn't hot, so they could swim around in it. It was kind of like swimming around in cream. Did that mean it tasted like cream? "Hot, hot, hot, hot, hot!"

“Oh! So that’s where I put those…. Sorry about that friend. And don’t try to drink the lava, it may not feel hot, but it’s quite…” he paused at Pinkies reaction, “spicy…. Sorry about that.” Discord did really look apologetic.

It had a nice caramel aftertaste though.

***

“Just… a normal house?” If Pinkie didn’t know any better, she would say Jax sounded slightly shaken.

“Yes. Kind of. Just don’t step on any of the black-“

“Ooooh it’s like a checker board in here!” Pinkie yelled as she jumped from white to black squares.

“Now… what was it that that did exactly?” Discord asked himself, as some kind of creature started to rise. “Oh right…” Discord gulped.

***

“Why did I agree to coming here?!” Jax shouted as they galloped on the remains of a bridge, the swirly thing that this place had instead of a sky threatened to swallow them up. Not to mention the meanie-pants that was trying to catch up to them. Definitely not friendly, Pinkie had tested it.

“To have fun silly! Isn’t this exciting??” Pinkie replied from his shoulders. She jumped down and started galloping again.

“Found it!” Discord pulled out a thick book from a travel suitcase.

Pinkie ran up to it to read the title. “On summoning and sealing? Heeey, did you steal this book from Twilight?”

“Of course not, dear Pinkie Pie. I borrowed it. It is a library after all.”

“Whatever! Just … figure out how to seal this… thing again!” Jax said sounding out of breath.

***

“Fuck, fuck, fuck… FUUUU-“

“We’re almost there Jax! Don’t give up!” Pinkie encouraged him with a smile as she jumped into the wagon. He came in a second after, the creature right on their tail.

“Hold on, everypony and human! This will be an… electric ride.” Discord put on a pair of sunglasses as another lightning bolt from the creature missed him by a teeeeeny tiny bit. Somewhere in the background you could hear a faint “YEEEEAAAH!” Discord tipped the wagon forward so that it started rolling down the hill.

"Weeeee!" Pinkie raised her hooves in the air.

***

Pinkie put on her meanest of meanie looks. “Destroy Equestria? Not if I can help it!”

“Just pull the damn trigger Pinkie!” Jax sounded close to panic. He jumped to the side to avoid a lightning bolt coming straight at him.

“Okie dokie lokie!” She took careful aim, then fired her party- no wait, this was an actual canon. The canon ball hit it square in the chest and sent it right back into the sealing thingie Discord had drawn.

“RAAAAAAAAWR!” It screamed as it was sucked into it.

“Woooooooooo! Take that, you big old meanie-pants!” Pinkie cheered. They definitely deserved a victory snack!

***

“Wow, sealing an ancient horror is a lot of work!” Pinkie exclaimed as she bounced out of Discord’s realm. “Who knew? Now that that’s taken care of, who wants victory muffins?”

Jax crawled out behind her, then collapsed face first on the ground. “I need… shower… sleep… so much sleep.”

“You do look tired. Ol’ King Sombra not letting you rest?” Discord asked as he snapped his claw, making the rift disappear.

Jax answered with a grunt.

“But it’s still light out! You can’t be done already Jaxie, we still have some hours to have fun!”

With another grunt, he turned himself around. “Pinkie… you may be used to sealing ancient horrors away on a weekly basis, but it was only the second time for me. I need… rest. And a shower.” He did sound very tired. Maybe it was best to let him sleep. At least they had succeeded in taking his mind off things for a couple of hours.

“Fine. But next time we have twice the victory muffins.” She insisted, gaining a small smile as her reward.

“Sure thing, Pinkie.”

Author's Note

I had some trouble with this chapter, with writer's block and lack of time, and I'm bad at writing Discord and Pinkie, so I tried a different approach and this is the result.

Luckily, Midnight Blossom is better at them than me, so she managed to help me out :)

Chapter 54 - I am King Sombra

Luna came back to the edge of consciousness, between sleep and awake. She wanted desperately to keep dreaming of her beloved human, but it was time to get up and break her fast, so she forced herself up.

She looked around her mostly empty room, missing the days when she would wake up with Jax’ arms around her. That was a nice way to wake up… she wondered if she could convince Jax to give up his beloved house so he could live with her in Canterlot… or maybe she could live with him? Canterlot was but a teleport away. She doubted he would willingly leave the home his friends had restored and furnished for him. She still remembered how happy he had been at the surprise. That had been a good party, though not as good as her ‘welcome to Ponyville’ party had been.

Thinking back on the night before, she was glad Celestia had made her take Moondancer as her secretary. The mare was good at writing down everything of importance, even when she was obviously tired. Her thoughts darkened when she thought about how long they had stayed in that room because of Celestia’s suggestions for laws they had already gone through. They were practically starting over. This would take several years at the rate they were going.

She shook her head lightly, coming back from her musings. She was not meeting with her lawyers today, all she had was night court, and probably the paperwork her sister would throw her way.

Maybe she should visit the royal archives. Maybe there was a way to help Jax without magic, and the answer was somewhere in there? A potion… he could drink potions. Yes, a magical potion could do what a spell could not. Maybe she should visit Zecora?

Jax’ screams flashed through her mind, as he held her tightly in his pain.

…

… Maybe Zecora would be her backup plan. The archives had a section for potion brewing, she could definitely start there.

A knock from the door interrupted her thoughts.

“Just a moment!” She put on her regalia and otherwise made herself presentable, before opening the door with her magic. Behind it stood Moondancer, but what really drew Luna’s eye was the mail bag she held in her magic. She had been expecting a few letters from Ponyville, not an entire bag.

“Good morning Princess.” Moondancer bowed with a big smile. There was a certain cheer in her voice that made Luna curious.

“Good evening Moondancer.” Luna corrected lightly. Moondancer was probably just used to saying good morning to ponies who rose from their slumber. “You seem to be in a good mood.”

Moondancer’s smile grew as she took out a newspaper from behind the bag. Luna took it in her aura.

It was today’s edition of The Canterlot Informant, already open on page three. The title, ‘A SHOW TO REMEMBER’ greeted her tired eyes. The piece was written by Raven Writingdesk, the same pony that had interviewed her and Jax some time ago.

It described her animations of the stars on Moondays, in particular the one last week and the one the day before. Apparently ponies had gathered in the streets… eagerly awaiting her night. Awaiting what she would show them with her stars. According to the piece, they had not been disappointed. Raven went on to interview different ponies, asking them what they thought of the weekly show, and they had told him they loved it….

They loved her night.

… She just stood there, looking at the newspaper. Then she started to chuckle, then that build up to a full blown laughter.

THEY LOVED HER NIGHT!

She laughed so much that tears started falling from her eyes but she did not care.

Normal, everyday ponies had gathered in the streets of Canterlot to await her night. She had waited so long for this, she could not believe it was finally happening.

Luna started prancing around the room excitedly, still in mild shock.

They loved her night. Jax had been right. Her spirit soared high.

Moondancer and the guards she had stationed in front of her still open door looked at her with smiles, and she could not care less how she looked.

After so much time… finally… they could finally appreciate the beauty of her night. Not just a select few, not just the bottom of the barrel.

And it was all thanks to Jax. It was all thanks to her dear, dear human. She could just… just… WHY WAS HE NOT THERE SO SHE COULD HUG HIM?!

Her eyes fell on Moondancer. She would have to do.

“Aaaah!”

***

“Art thou… are you alright?” Luna asked, worried. They were sitting in the dining hall, Celestia almost done with her meal looked on curiously. “I should take you to the infirmary should I not?”

“No, no, I’m alright. Sorry, I just got a bit surprised when you jumped at me like that.” Moondancer blushed.

“There is no need for you to apologize, when it was clearly my fault. I apologize again, Moondancer. Here, have a cup of tea and calm down.” Luna filled a cup with her magic and set it in front of Moondancer. “I just got so excited. It has been a long, long time since ponies streamed out of the safety of their house to watch my stars.” Luna adopted a satisfied smile, despite her worry for Moondancer. She could not keep the smile off her muzzle if she wanted. Celestia smiled from her seat as well, but still remained silent.

“Really, it’s fine Princess. I’m sorry I made you worry, I just… don’t know how to deal with stressful situations. It’s not a big deal that I fainted, honest. And it’s nice to see you so happy.” Moondancer ended with a smile.

“Be that as it may, you should at least relax a bit. Here, have some cake. Stars know my sister does not need it.” Luna cut out a large piece of the three layered cake.

Celestia just rolled her eyes at the jab, but she was still smiling, which was odd. Normally she would defend herself.

“Oh, no I couldn’t. Uhm, I ate before I came to wake you.” Moondancer protested weakly. The cake did look really good, and she was eyeing it with desire clear in her eyes.

“I have found…” Celestia finally said, mirth clear in her voice, “that there is always room for dessert. It is a curse as much as it is a blessing.

“Well, if you don’t mind….” Moondancer finally gave in and took a big bite out of the sugary goodness. She almost moaned in satisfaction.

Luna grinned at Celestia. “So, why the silence sister? And before you say that you just said something, you know that is not what I meant.”

Celestia’s smile widened. “Just wondering whether I should embarrass you in front of Moondancer or wait until she’s gone.”

Luna’s smile disappeared. “Celestia…” she said with a warning tone. Of course it did nothing to discourage the larger mare. It might even have had the opposite effect.

“She’s taking too long!” Celestia jumped up on the table, then jumped straight at her.

Luna suddenly understood perfectly why Moondancer had fainted earlier, as the larger alicorn impacted with her in a bone crushing hug.

“I knew the day would come Lulu! My sweet little Lulu is finally attracting the attention of the masses. Ohh I’m so proud of you!”

“Tiaaa! Not in front of Moondancer!” Luna blushed heavily as she saw Moondancer’s wide-eyed stare. “In fact, not at all! Back off you wide-plotted beast! Away with thee!” She made a weak attempt to distance herself, but the hug just tightened. She would never ever EVER admit it to Celestia, but… she was a little happy at her reaction. It reminded her of days long past when Luna had moved the moon for the first time.

“Now, now, Lulu. Let your big sister enjoy the moment.” She started nuzzling the side of Luna’s head. Luna pretended to accept her fate, while secretly enjoying the attention. At least until Moondancer giggled, reminding her that there were witnesses to the embarrassing moment.

“Alright, alright, you have had your fun, beast.” Luna disentangled herself from her sister’s embrace, trying to get her blush under control. “It is not that big of a deal. Just a little under a hundred ponies that left their homes in the beginning of the night in Canterlot alone, with the specific goal of looking at my stars.” She failed miserably at trying to play it off as nothing. She practically radiated pride, from her smile, to her voice, to her swelled chest. She almost became giddy again, but she did not want her sister to have more ammunition against her in the future, so she controlled herself.

“Clearly no big deal.” Celestia gave her a knowing smile.

Luna ignored her, in favour of looking at Moondancer. “What was in that bag you had with you?”

Moondancer smiled.

***

“All of these are for me?” Luna asked Moondancer back in her room.

“Yes, your highness. Fan letters, if I had to guess, but I’m also pretty sure some of them are also from Ponyville.”

For a brief moment she wondered if Celestia received fan letters, but then shrugged the thought off. Nothing good came from comparing herself to the mare of the sun, not then, and not now. So she had decided, and so it shall be.

‘Be happy with what you have. A whole bag full of letters, just for you.’ She thought to herself, smiling gently. ‘And I never would have received them if not for my dear Jax. Thank the stars he decided to…’ a series of memories flashed through her mind.

The first time she saw him in his nightmare and he had screamed at her to leave him alone.

When she received the letter from Twilight, describing a human.

Her talk with Celestia about leaving the castle to observe and try to befriend him.

Her… stalking him while invisible.

Then, finally revealing herself to him in the hospital room, and his distrust of her… yet giving her a chance to prove him wrong.

Him taking her out to move the stars… him forgiving her for spying on him and calling her his friend for the first time.

His painful screams when he drank that potion… and her determination to stay with him for the duration of his pain.

When he woke up, and could not let go of her.

The happy days that followed.

Her ‘welcome to Ponyville’ party… and their first dance.

His sweet friendship report to her.

His repeated reassurance that he would help her.

Their first kiss, and their sharing of stories about their past.

…

He had been right. He had helped her, and that was even before she released her book.

… Stars above, he had done so much for her. She needed to have him in her book, he deserved as much... and much more.

“Princess? Are you alright?” Moondancer asked with concern in her voice.

She was not crying, but she was close. Tears of happiness almost made it out of her eyes. “Yes, dear Moondancer. I am more than fine. Thank you for caring.” She had so much now. Ponies who cared about her, ponies who cared about her night… and a human who cared for her immensely.

***

“Thank you for meeting with me Fluttershy.” Twilight told the yellow mare in front of her. “I know it’s a bit early, but I’ve been meaning to ask you something and I didn’t have time yesterday.”

“Oh that’s alright, Twilight. You know I always have time for my friends… I just need to feed my other friends in a little while. You… uhm, you want some tea?” Fluttershy replied with a soft voice.

They were sitting in Fluttershy’s cottage in the early hours of the day. “Yes please.” Twilight nodded, tea would be nice. She was a bit uncertain about coming here… that’s why she hadn’t come yesterday, instead busying herself with work that could have waited. It was probably because… she was unsure whether she could handle the answer or not.

But it had to be done. She needed the insight.

“Here you go, Twilight.” Fluttershy set down a cup of tea in front of her. “So what did you want to ask about? Is it something with Owlowiscious? Is he feeling alright?” A hint of worry made its way into her voice.

“No, nothing like that. Owlowiscious is feeling fine.” Twilight gave a nervous laugh. “It’s actually about Jax….” She was uncertain about how to frame the question.

“Oh… what about him? I heard he had fun with Discord and Pinkie yesterday. I hope they didn’t get in trouble… Discord refuses to tell me what they did.” Fluttershy’s eyes widened. “Is that why you are here? Oh, I’m sorry if they did something wrong, I’ll get Discord if you want to talk with him-“

“No, no, nothing like that.” She quickly interrupted before Fluttershy could work herself up. “I think Pinkie mentioned that they sealed up some demon or something in Discord’s realm, but I’m unsure how serious she was. You know how she gets when she tells her stories... anyway, I did some research, and I talked with Jax and it turns out… that…” She took a deep breath before she let it out in one go. “He doesn’t need to eat meat to survive.”

Fluttershy looked at her for a couple of more seconds before she blinked. “Oh….”

They looked at each other for at least a minute before Twilight couldn’t take it anymore. “Aren’t you…” she swallowed her initial question, deciding to frame it more neutrally. “How do you feel about that?”

“Oh… uhm… I’m not sure, Twilight. Should I feel a specific way?”

“Well… he… I…” Twilight didn’t know what to say. “If he wanted to, he could not eat meat at all. Doesn’t it… I don’t know… disgust you that he chooses to do so anyway?”

Fluttershy looked at her thoughtfully. “Hmmm… did you know that Discord can eat anything? Anything and everything. He once saved me a trip by eating all the metal cans I had.”

“Uhmm… I don’t understand what that has to do with Jax.”

Fluttershy lowered her gaze. “So, since he can eat anything, should I force him to only eat objects? Should I control that part of his life, even though he enjoys the taste of other things?” She sighed almost inaudibly. “You know I don’t like… death, Twilight. I have learned a long time ago to deal with it so that I could feed my friends properly, but I still don’t like it… yet I would never tell a friend what he can and can’t eat, as long as he doesn’t try to eat my friends, other sapient creatures, or something bad for him. Jax isn’t trying to eat my friends, nor can I imagine that eating meat is unhealthy for an omnivore.”

Twilight felt her heart twitch uncomfortably with guilt. She had had a feeling that Fluttershy would be a voice of reason, just like Moondancer had been. She was sure she could get some support if she asked enough ponies, but she couldn’t ignore what she had learned from her two friends.

In the end, Jax was her friend, and she should accept him… even if a part of his diet made her uneasy.

“Thank you, Fluttershy.”

Fluttershy smiled back at her. “You're welcome.”

***

Applejack almost reeled back when she saw Jax. He looked sickly pale, he seemed to be covered with sweat, and there were branches in his mess of a mane. He stood in the doorway to his house and looked at her with unfocused eyes.

Applejack may not believe in personal hygiene as steely as Rarity, but even she knew when things were out of hoof. She was just about to tell him, when he spoke first.

“I know I look like shit, you don’t have to say it.” His voice was raspy.

Weirdly enough he didn’t smell as bad as he looked. He smelled kind of like Zecora, she could even hear something boiling from inside the house. “Alright partner, Ah’ll skip it. Ah was gonna offer breakfast, but Ah can hear ya already have something cookin’.”

He just looked at her in confusion for a while.

…

Or maybe he had spaced out? “You alright?”

He snapped his head down towards her. “What?... anyway, what are we doing today?”

“Well, Ah’m sorry to have to do this after ya’all helped so much on the farm, but we’re still not done with bucking the trees, so if ya don’t mind…”

His green eyes were on her, but again she got the feeling that he spaced out. He finally snapped out of it again, this time by himself. “Mind what?”

“Uhm… helping on the farm, sugarcube.” She was starting to get a bit worried. “Or, if ya’all aren’t feelin’ so well, maybe you can just relax near me. Ah think that would be for the best actually.”

He slowly nodded, before a look of confusion overtook. “What’s that boiling?” He looked back over his shoulder.

“Ah thought it was your breakfast… sugar, should we go to the hospital? Or should I get Twi over here or call Princess Celestia?”

He turned to look at her again with a contemplating look… or was he spacing out for a third time? It was really hard to tell when his eyes were so unfocused.

“No, I’m fine. Just a little trouble sleeping. Let’s go.” He put on the cloak Rarity had made for him, closed the door and started walking towards the farm. He seemed unable to find his balance briefly, but before she could offer some help he was on his way again.

Applejack hurried after him, worry nagging at her.

***

Jax was napping nearby while she bucked trees. Well napping was a grand term, since every time she thought he had fallen asleep, he would open his eyes, sometimes with a jolt. She wasn’t quite sure what to do about it.

On one hoof, she should tell somepony.

On the other, what could be done about it? Not like they could use some fancy magic to make him better, since… the thing with… what was it? Something about him changing the spells. So even if she got Twilight down here… then what?

She sighed. Who thought the lack of magic usin’ could become such a problem.

***

Applejack raised her brow at Jax. He was practically growling at Big Mac, and Big Mac was cowering away from him.

“Now Jax, I know you may not be too fond of Big Mac right now, but that is no way to behave around a dinner table.” She told him. He instantly stopped, but then just looked at her in confusion. It felt wrong, all the way down to her gut. Something was definitely wrong.

“Yeah, why are you behaving like that?” Apple Bloom agreed from beside her. “Zecora said you were rude when you went to visit her as well.”

Jax just gave her a blank look. “Who’s Zecora?” Applejack looked carefully, but she couldn’t see any signs of deceit. He was generally confused.

With that, Applejack decided that enough was enough. She slammed a hoof down on the table and got up. “That’s it! I’m taking you to see Twilight and the girls!”

Jax blinked a few times, but then just nodded. When he tried to stand however, his leg gave way from under him, making him stagger.

“Or… Ah’ll get them over here. Just rest for a while, Ah’ll be right back.” She hurried out of the house and ran towards the castle where Twilight most likely was.

***

He awoke with a jolt at glass shattering. He was standing up, in front of a dark forest. There was something wrong with that, but he couldn’t figure out what. He couldn’t think properly… he was so tired… and his head hurt… why was there a half shattered glass at his feet?

…

Where was he?

…

Who… who was he?

‘Sombra… I am King Sombra.’ It was a soft whisper inside his head. Was it his thought? He was… King Sombra?

He looked down at his hand. No… there was something wrong with that. He couldn’t be king Sombra.

‘I am King Sombra’ He kneeled at the pain that exploded inside his head. Memories of an empire made of crystal, sitting on a throne with ponies bowing to him. There was something foreign about it all, but he couldn’t think what. It hurt too much.

“I am King Sombra.” He said the words out loud, tasting them. They tasted wrong but… who was he, if not King Sombra?

He felt like he should have a cloak on him, but he had nothing but a pair of pants on. It was night, and it was cold… what was he doing here?

‘Go into the forest.’ He thought.

That was a bad idea… the forest was bad.

‘Go into the forest.’ A bit more force behind the thought this time.

He took a tentative step forward, careful to avoid the glass, then another. Something was nagging him about the whole situation… but he didn’t know what to do about it, or even what was going on.

'I am King Sombra.' He told himself, the thought was more gleeful than he felt.

And so, he started walking into the dark forest.

Author's Note

Ohh snap, things are going down XD What will happen next?
Also, Woo 200k words! And almost 400 likes :3 Almost two years ago, I never would have thought that I would still be writing this story XD Thanks to everybody who encouraged me :)
Anyway, I made a patreon. Donate if you want, don't if you don't want XD Whether you do or not won't affect the chapters. If I get enough money though, I'll order a cover image for this fanfic, which I've been wanting to do for a long time XD
All the way through creating that patreon, a little voice inside my head kept telling me that I wasn't good enough, that I didn't write well enough especially compared to others, to deserve money for it. Well even if I don't get any through this fanfiction, I ain't done writing and I can only become better :)

Chapter 55

“So when you say he looked tired…” Twilight started the conversation as they ran towards the farm. She and Applejack had gathered the girls and were almost there.

“He looked like he’d died, been buried, raised from the dead, then killed again.” Applejack answered. Twilight had a feeling she was overexaggerating, and apparently Pinkie agreed.

“Oh, he can’t have looked that bad. I saw him yesterday, and though he may have looked a teeeensy bit tired, running around in Discord’s super fun realm perked him right up!” Weirdly enough it sounded like Pinkie was doing the opposite of Applejack – underexaggerating? No that wasn’t a word.

“Oh, I hope he’s okay.” Fluttershy said from behind, barely audible.

“I’m sure he’s fine. We’re going mostly on Applejacks gut-feeling here.” Rainbow tried to calm her down.

“Ah’m telling you, something was off with him. Though Ah hope I’m wrong too… he’s been through a lot since getting here. The poor stallion deserves some peace and quiet.”

Twilight slowed to a stop in front of the Apple farm. She hoped Applejack was wrong too but… it never hurt to be prepared. “Alright girls, I agree that the best case scenario would be that Jax is fine, but let’s prepare a plan, just in case. We are to under no circumstances allowed to use magic or the elements on him, so… you’ve got your lasso Applejack?”

“Always carry it with me, Twi. Just in case.” Applejack confirmed.

“Alright… something that bothers me is that I think Sombra can use spells even when his host doesn’t have a horn, if you remember the crystals he summoned while in Big Mac. If… if things go south, I’ll try to shield us, alright? So stick together.” She frowned deeply, as did many of the others. Fluttershy was shaking nervously, even when Rainbow Dash put a protective wing over her.

She hated that she had to say something like that… and she hated that things could go out of control before she even got a chance to reconcile with Jax. She had decided that his eating habits weren’t worth their friendship, but now she might never get the chance to….

She shook herself out of it. This was no time to doubt herself. Everything would be fine. With her friends by her side, there was little she could not do.

With that assuring thought, she opened the door to the farm and went inside with the others right behind her. Looking around she noticed the lack of a certain human. “Uhm, where is he?” She asked the residing Apple family.

“Oh, the dearie was tired. He’s resting in the room upstairs.” Granny Smith told them in a loud voice, continuing to knit.

They all continued upstairs to the guest room in a light trot. Twilight opened the door to find… an empty room. The cloak and his shirt were there, and the bed looked like it had been used… but there was no human in the vicinity… and the window was open. She closed her eyes at the complication, as she let the others pass her and figure out by themselves what had happened.

“How can he just be gone?! You don’t think… no, he wouldn’t…” Rainbow said what they were all thinking.

“Apple Bloom!” Twilight called.

“Yeah?” Apple Bloom came out from her room on the other side of the hallway.

“Applejack said that… that Jax had been rude to Zecora. How do you know?”

“Oh, Ah visited Zecora earlier today. She said that he had visited her in the late night, ignoring her apology for… you know, the potion that went bad? Though that was more our fault Ah’d wager… anywho, she said that he just went past her without a word and searched through her books. After throwing around a few of her books, he apparently found what he’d been looking for and left her to clean up the mess.” She finished with a frown.

“That really was rude. And very unlike Jax.” Rarity nodded thoughtfully. The tension in the hallway rocketed at the implication. Things were not looking very good. In fact, they were looking very bad.

“Maybe he was just busy and didn’t have time to clean up?” Pinkie asked with an innocent smile.

“Oh… oh, maybe that’s what he was making this mornin’. A potion.” Applejack suddenly realized. She went on at their confused gazes. “This morning when Ah went to get him, there was something boiling in the house, and he smelled kind of like Zecora, but he didn’t seem to know what was boiling himself. He just left it there and Ah forgot all ‘bout it.”

Twilight started pacing. She needed to think but the hallway was too small and she felt confined. “Alright… but that doesn’t make any sense. Is he taken over by Sombra or not? You said when you came to get us that he seemed confused, growling at Big Mac one second and then seemingly forgetting the next? Now he’s going out in the middle of the night and making potions, but seemingly forgetting. He’s forgetting the periods when Sombra is in charge?” She paced back and forth a couple of more times, unable to come up with an answer. Too little data for now, but maybe it didn’t matter. They needed to find Jax… the best place to start was his house, where he… where Sombra had made the potion.

“Uhm… should Ah go back to my room or….” Apple Bloom looking around uncertainly.

“You do that. We’ll handle things from here. Right, Twilight?” Applejack looked to Twilight for confirmation.

“Yes… yes we will. Let’s start with his house and see if we can find anything… and hear what Mr. Bear can tell us if he’s there.”

“Oh, darling, I don’t mean to slow us down but… if things are half as bad as I think they are, Princess Luna deserves to know what is going on. I know I would like to be updated if….” Rarity let the sentence hang in the air.

“Right, of course you’re right Rarity. Luna might also know something more about… I should have brought… I guess we can use the dragonfire in Jax’ house.... Let’s go girls.” Her sentences were left half-finished as new thoughts came. She couldn’t concentrate properly as the thought of Jax giving up because of her kept invading. Of course it was a silly notion… she hoped. Jax wouldn’t surrender to Sombra just because they had a little argument… would he?

… She might as well be honest with herself. It was more than just ‘a little argument.’ She hadn’t regretted her actions so much since she decided it was a good idea to march in on Cadence’s – or should she say Crysalis’ – rehearsal and try to convince everypony that she was evil simply by saying – yelling really - that she was evil. She should have thought everything through instead, in both cases. After all, Jax had been very accepting of her, he had even forgiven her for setting him on fire… she really wasn’t very good at staying friends with him, but she wouldn’t give up.

They arrived at the edge of the Everfree, to see the door to Jax’ house open. Twilight couldn’t take that as anything but another bad sign. There was a small hope that he was there….

That hope was crushed when they entered the almost empty house. Mr. Bear was there, but Jax was nowhere to be found.

“Fluttershy, ask Mr. Bear if he knows what happened or where Jax went. Rarity, write a letter to Luna, telling her what happened and ask her to teleport here as fast as she can.” Twilight asked her friends as she followed the slightly spicy smell to the sink, where a washed pot stood. She sniffed it a few times to be sure. Even after it had been filled with water, it still emanated that herby smell that Zecora was always surrounded by. Either King Sombra was weirdly polite and didn’t want to leave a mess behind, or he was covering his tracks.

“Uuh, is this one of the so called ‘pens’ I’ve been hearing about? Fascinating…” She heard Rarity exclaim before the sound of scratching on paper started. “Marvellous…”

There was the still the option to go to Zecora without the potion and hope she noticed which recipe Sombra had been looking for, but she would have preferred to have it with them… just in case.

The sound of hooves coming towards her made her look up. “Find out anything, Fluttershy?”

“Oh… Mr. Bear doesn’t know very much, but he has noticed a few things.” Fluttershy muttered. “Apparently Jax has been resting very badly for some time now, spending a lot of the night pacing around frustrated instead. He’s barely said a word to the poor dear for a couple of days now. It was especially bad yesterday, where Jax came home looking more exhausted than ever… but still being unable to sleep. Mr. Bear thought he had succeeded when suddenly Jax just got up and left. I uhm… I think this was where he went to Zecora. He came back smelling of the Everfree, and started making the… uhm, potion. He came back not long ago, filled a glass with the potion, cleaned the pot and then left… towards the Everfree again.”

“Would you hurry up, Rarity?!” Rainbow suddenly exclaimed.

“Oh, this isn’t easy you know. You have to be careful with which words you choose. How would you tell somepony that the creature she loves might have been taken over by a tyrant?” Rarity defended herself.

“Well, she already knew it could happen, and we aren’t sure that that’s what happened, so I would hurry it up so that she can come here and find out whether he was or not!”

“Alright everypony, let’s calm down.” Applejack said with a soothing voice. “Ain’t nothing’s gonna come out of yellin’ at each other. Rarity, while it’s always hard to be the bearer of bad news, Ah think it’s going to hit hard no matter which words you choose. Just be sure that she understands the situation. Rainbow, let’s go out and sweep the place. Ah know it’s dark, but maybe we can find something.” Nopony could argue with Applejack when she was that reasonable, though Rainbow did grumble something under her breath. They were all a little on edge, she guessed, but they would have to pull through like always. Even Pinkie’s smile was missing, as she bounced out with Applejack and Rainbow.

“We keep hearing about him having trouble sleeping… it must have something to do with Sombra.” Twilight muttered mostly to herself. “Maybe Sombra can take over his body while he’s sleeping? But then why keep him up at all?” It wasn’t much, but it would have to do. It would explain some things at least, like why Jax couldn’t remember some things. On the other hoof, it could be that Sombra could take over whenever, and just somehow blocked Jax’ memory from noticing.

She shook her head in annoyance. Didn’t Jax say he had sealed him? Of course it had been done with chaos magic, and chaos magic was unstable at the best of times. Even the pen he had made for her to analyse had disappeared somewhere. She should have seen this coming….

The scratching of pen on parchment ceased, replaced by the sound of burning parchment. It didn’t take long before a light exploded outside, with a pop louder than normal. The tell-tale sign of a hurried teleport.

Luna rushed in, worry clear on her muzzle, her eyes looking almost panicked. She took one look at the assembled mares, before her withers visibly slumped. “No…” She whispered, looking at the floor. A silence hung thick in the air as each second seemed to tick by like an eternity.

“It’s not over yet, Luna. There’s still a chance.” Twilight couldn’t take the silence, but she also hated the look of defeat on everypony’s muzzle. They had overcome worse odds than these. “We just have to find out what potion Sombra made, and then find Jax. Don’t give up at the beginning of the battle!” Her voice became stronger as she spoke. She was sure of this. They needed to act.

“…Thou art correct, Twilight Sparkle.” Luna shook her head, then raised it with determination. “‘Tis the time to act, not stand idly. Forgive me, I do not know what overcame me.” She took a firmer stance, likely summoning her resolve. “I shall not give up on my Jax until the rivers hath run dry, the night sky is naught but an empty void, and time itself ceaseth to exist!” She stamped a hoof down on the carpeted floor causing a crack. There was a fire in her eyes and a determination in her voice that lifted Twilight’s spirit, her inside surging with a fire of its own. They would find Jax, and they would get him back to normal. No matter what.

“Oh my, Princess, that was so romantic. We simply must find Jax.” Rarity looked about ready to swoon. Twilight hoped her fainting couch was ready. “Oh, I hope this can all be resolved with love.” She fell back down, the couch coming out of nowhere to catch her.

Luna blushed deeply, but her determination was still clear. “That would… actually be a nice way for this to evolve….”

“Hey girls! We found something!” Rainbow called from some distance away.

They all trotted over to the group waiting for them by the Everfree. Rainbow pointed down on the ground, at shattered glass. “I found this while flying around. It must have reflected off the moonlight or something.”

“And look! Jaxprints going into the forest!” Pinkie pointed out.

“Oh, this must be the glass he drank the potion from!” Twilight was pleased that they might just have a lead now. There was a few drops of the potion still in the remains of the glass. Zecora could use this to figure out what it was, and hopefully help them negate it. She took the glass in her aura. “Good job, everypony. Alright girls, let’s go see Zecora.”

***

Luna trotted beside the elements, worry gnawing at her very core now that the moment was gone. Her determination was still very much there, there was no way she was going to give up without a fight, but thoughts of failure kept invading her mind. The thought of Jax falling to Sombra was so painful that she could not focus properly. As if that was not bad enough, guilt kept resurfacing with thoughts like ‘this is how Celestia must have felt when you turned to Nightmare Moon,’ and more disturbingly, ‘you do not deserve happiness. This pain is what you deserve.’ It was not the first time such thoughts traveled through her troubled mind, and that was the problem. The burst of confidence she had had in front of Twilight was how she used to be, so sure that she could achieve anything if she put her mind to it. Maybe the Limelight was gone, but the effect of its constant whispers had remained whether she liked it or not. She was so afraid of turning into Nightmare Moon again, but what had she really done to prevent it from happening? Should the Limelight return, how long would she really last against its whispers?

Luna had thrown Celestia’s suggestion to go see a professional out the window when she had first returned, convincing herself that she did not need some stranger hearing her deepest darkest emotions, but… maybe there would be some merit to it. These thoughts only confirmed what she already knew… she was her own worst enemy. As hard as that was to admit, she did not want to be this ball of angst anymore. Jax had done a great deal for her, but she could not rely on him unconditionally, and… he deserved better.

What was the name of that psychologist Jax and her went to see when they were stuck together? Slow Healing? She was not a stranger… she had been fairly nice, and she showed that she knew her profession when she managed to separate Jax from her. It was decided. When they rescued Jax, she would make an appointment.

They made it to the end of the path, and Twilight knocked on the door to the tree that was Zecora’s residence. It did not take long before they got an answer. “Who is knocking at my door the late hour?” the zebra called out as she opened her door, looking at them with surprise. She gave a short bow when she noticed Luna among them. “Princess, what causes you and the others to look so sour? Usually it is good when Twilight Sparkle brings a friend or two, but it is plain to see you are all quite blue” Her words had a familiar accent. Luna had visited Zebracon a long, long time ago. She had learned about many things from the zebras there, about life and death alike. They were a spiritual society known for their curiosity and brew making. Or at least they were back then, Luna had not read up on the current affairs in Zebracon. This particular zebra made her uneasy because one of her potions had hurt her love. What self-respecting zebra would give away a potion with random side-effects?

Twilight levitated the glass with the drops of potion they had found in front of the stripped equine. “Do you know what this is?” Luna could hear the worry in the soft-spoken words.

Zecora took the glass and gave it a swift sniff. Her eyes widened. “This is no harmless potion, Twilight.” Her words hit the small group like a punch. “A glass of this, and the recipient would be quite the sight. They would forget who they were and all that they knew, for five hours at least is the strength of this brew.”

A silence reigned after her words. Everypony just stood there, some gaping. Luna closed her mouth quickly.

“But…” Twilight tried to say something, but apparently she couldn’t think of anything more.

“Twilight, what circumstances led you to come by this potion?” Zecora continued when nopony said anything. “Somepony – or should I say somehuman – came by last night, and caused quite the commotion. They looked through the book where this potion’s recipe does reside, but I did not know this was the information he pried. I don’t know why your friend would try to forget what they knew, but I can’t think he meant the potion for any of you”

“Jax would never-!” Luna stopped herself before she became too agitated. She was more tense that she could recall being in a long time. She wanted to go look for Jax. Run, fly, anything other than just stand there and talk. Even though she understood the importance of information she found the delay frustrating… but she would not allow herself to take those frustrations out on anypony else. So she took a deep breath to try and calm herself. “You may not know this, but Sombra of the North tried to possess Jax a… almost a week ago. How, or why… we are not sure, but his attempt was a failure... apparently not as completely as we had hoped though.” She stepped out from the group to stand in front of the zebra. “I will bet my alicornhood that the one who visited you was not Jax, but Sombra. He is trying to take over Jax’ body without using magic, but is apparently having a hard time. He must have decided to cheat with this potion… after all, if you do not remember who you are, then how do you argue with your own thoughts?”

The Zebra in front of her adopted a thoughtful frown. “It is true that the ingredients though some are quite rare, with patience and determination the search can be fare. What’s needed can be found here in the Everfree if you know where to look. Though you should not underestimate this shadowy crook. For if what you say is already part of the past. Then this Sombra indeed works incredibly fast. He must only have gotten a glimpse of what he sought in my hut. To remember it well enough to gather all the ingredients and make it so that it is already ready? Preparing all the herbs takes skill as it must be done with perfection in every cut. For this potion his determination and mind must have been quite steady.” She looked up into Luna’s eyes. “You must save your friend before it is too late. This time I have no mystical advice. If all you say is true he is headed for a most unhappy fate. For this… Sombra is most surely not nice.”

Twilight nodded. “I agree. We think he is somewhere in the Everfree, but we lost his hoof-prints after entering….”

“He couldn’t have gotten far! Let’s go!” Rainbow exclaimed, apparently as eager as Luna.

“I concur! Let us find Jax before it is too late!” Luna agreed. They were both off in a dash, barely hearing Twilight’s voice telling them to wait. They flew high to overlook the forest, but most of the paths were covered by branches. On an unspoken agreement they angled themselves towards Jax house and where he went into the forest, and started scouting different areas from there, getting further and further apart.

***

He didn’t know where he was. The forest was dark, mostly because the sky was blocked out by the trees.

Speaking of trees, they too were weird. He could swear that they were looking at him. It was… unnerving.

Yet every time he decided to head back, he told himself to keep going. It didn’t make any sense. Why would he keep walking into this forest instead of, oh he didn’t know, maybe getting the fuck out of here as fast as his legs could carry him? To make things worse he kept getting dizzy, he was parched, and constantly falling over roots didn’t help him.

Something was wrong, but every time he tried to sit down and think, he would get a headache with a dose of memories that seemed foreign to him, mostly of ponies frowning at him, be they guards or civilians. He seemed to be in some place made of crystal in the memories, whatever that meant. He didn’t recognize anything in them. You would think that getting your memories back meant that you recognized shit in them? Also did he have a muzzle? What was up with that?

… Did he used to be a pony?

Did he lose his memories when he transformed?

Why was everypony frowning at him?

So many questions, so few answ- “Argh!” He clutched his head in his arms, trying to endure the pain.

The memory was clearer this time, like a mirror instead of an wavy pond, and it brought a bout of strange feeling with it as it encompassed him completely.

A pony made of crystal looked at him, a weird sort of smile on her muzzle. She had a silver mane while the rest of her was lavender. Her cutie mark was a chess piece… the queen piece. “Now now, dearest-“ She started, the first pony to speak to him in these memories.

“Do not call me that, mother.” He interrupted. His voice sounded strange, like the voice of a stranger. “You have made it perfectly clear that I am not your dearest anything.”

The mare’s – his mother’s? – face contorted in anger so fast that it felt like a mask being ripped off. “You spoiled brat! How dare you talk to me like that? Your father will beat some sense into you when he gets home!”

“It is a good thing you at least realize you are not strong enough to do that anymore.” He answered with a deadly calm as he turned his back on his… on the mare. A range of emotions swirled inside of him. Pride at his perceived calm, anger and hate at the mare behind him, hate for his father that would come home and ‘teach him some manners’, hate at Princess Amore for being so blind, hate for the entire empire, especially the crystal ponies that were actually crystallized. He had so much hate inside of him that he would not be surprised if darkness itself would manifest around him.

Misery loves company, they say. Maybe that’s why he keeps ending up in this part of the empire. The pathetic part that nopony really acknowledges in the other parts, but everypony knows it is there if they ever need a mare or stallion for a good time, or some herbs from down south that would make you forget your worries. He had not tried any of those specialities yet, but that did not really matter. What mattered was that rarely anypony here shone with crystallization, meaning that they were just like him. Miserable and unhappy. Why should he look at other ponies being happy? It was a stupid crystal pony trait to let everypony around you know just how happy you are, and by default not crystalizing showed just how unhappy you were. The most infuriating thing was that his parents punished him for not crystallizing, letting everypony know that the child of the famous adviser and captain of the crystal guard was in fact unhappy and have not crystallized in years. Apparently it was the talk of the neighbourhood, and oh so embarrassing for his poor mother.

He spat to the side with contempt, almost hitting some random pony. He almost wished the pony would start a fight, but he just took one look and then turned around to leave.

He shrugged, letting him go. It had been a while since he had felt the thrill of the fight, but at the same time he was not really in a fighting mood. He felt like something else. Maybe it was about time to try one of those herbs he heard about that would let his worries melt away. That sounded nice right about now. Maybe they could numb him enough that the beating he would take from his father would hurt less. He may be strong, his magic stronger, but his father did not become captain of the crystal guard without a reason.

“Hey there handsome…” A stranger’s voice interrupted his thoughts. He looked over to see a prostitute giving him a smile as fake as his mother’s. As if the fake huskiness in her voice was not insulting enough.

He scoffed at her without saying a word and continued on his way, thinking she would try for easier pray. He realized he was wrong when she blocked his path, the fake smile replaced by a thin line. He thought she was going to be all offended at his reaction, but once again she proved him wrong.

“Alright, not in the mood for fake interest? I can get behind that, so let’s just cut to the chase. I need money, you seem like you could use some relaxing. You have bits, I have methods that can make you relax. Hey, you can even vent about whatever is eating at you, and I will pretend to listen, for a little extra I will even fuss over you.” She ended by looking at him with big, hopeful eyes.

He took a step back to get a proper look at her. She did not look stunning, nor beautiful, nor anything like that. Her mane was a boring, kind of flat looking gray colour, and her coat a tame beige. Her cutie mark was covered up by a short skirt, and she looked a little underfed. Not by a lot, but still noticeable. She must not get a lot of customer’s… he had heard that these kinds of ponies charged a lot.

On the other hoof, her eyes were a beautiful amethyst that almost begged him to say yes. She was actually pretty young, only a few years older than him. And he had been considering spending his bits on something relaxing…

He sighed in defeat. It was mostly the eyes. It was the only thing she had going for her, but they just drew him right in. “Alright enchantress, I take you for the rest of the day and night.” He said with authority.

She gaped at him. “R-really? The w-whole night? That is…” She took a second to compose herself, fake-coughing into a hoof. Maybe she had not thought it would work. “...going to cost you, but worry not. Little Hidden Gem will take good care of you.” She looked at him expectedly.

He rolled his eyes. “Little Hidden Gem better keep her promise. And do not ask for my name.”

She rolled her eyes in turn, almost making him smile. “Just Gem will do. And alrighty, I will just call you Broody, since you were brooding.”

He shot her a glare.

“Scowley since you scowl?”

He intensified the glare, but on the inside he was a little amused.

“Uhm…” she looked around nervously. “I take it you don’t like nicknames.”

“I do not like the nicknames you were trying to give me, no, but that could have something to with your ability to give out nicknames….”

“Impossible! Must be your brooding nature.” She stuck out her tongue at him.

He suddenly understood why she did not get any costumers. That being said, he had a little trouble keeping the smile off his muzzle. “Alright, just… just call me…” he looked around for something, anything that did not sound so stupid. His eyes fell on the shadows. “Sombra. Call me Sombra.”

She looked at him in confusion. “Like the hat?”

He gave her a deadpan look. “No. The hat is called a Sombrero. Sombra means shadow.”

“Oh… okay.” She bit her lip, then seemed to make up her mind about something. “Alright my little shadow.” She took a step forward and nuzzled into the nape of his neck. He froze completely at the sudden show of affection, making her retreat in confusion.

“Oh… uhm, you’re not into the whole nuzzling thing?” She looked a little sad.

Using his willpower, he forced himself to relax. The smile finally broke through, though it must have looked a bit… hazy. “No.” He found himself saying. “No, it felt nice. P-please do it again.” He was stuttering. He must look like a fool.

He did not know how he expected her to react, but her giggling took him by surprise… it was also a surprisingly pleasant sound. This mare seemed to be full of surprises. “As you wish, Sombra.” The merriment was still clear in her voice, but she still took a step forward and started nuzzling him again.

It felt exhilarating. It was everything he had ever thought it would be. He started nuzzling back, enjoying the feeling of their furs brushing against each other, the warmth that they were sharing, the warmth that was spreading to his muzzle and neck.

He had just bought more love from this mare with a pouch of bits, than he had ever received from both his parents combined. He did not know if he should laugh or cry.

They kept nuzzling each other for a long time. He had always wondered what it felt like, and why everypony was doing it all the time. Now he understood.

“Oh Amore, this is your first time is it not?” Hidden Gem suddenly pulled back.

He nodded, a bit shyly with all traces of his confidence gone, but he still could not stop smiling.

A mix of emotions crossed her muzzle, until it settled on determined. “Well do not worry about a thing, love. I promised to make you relax and I shall.” She put a hoof on one side of his muzzle and kissed him on the other. He shivered as her soft lips left behind a nice warmth.

“Wow. Who would have thought that dangerous looking stallion could be so innocent.” She smiled warmly. This smile fit her much better than the fake one she had given him at first.

“And who knew such a boring-looking mare could be so beautiful.” He answered without thinking. Both their eyes widened. “I mean… I… thank you for your time. It was very pleasant.” He threw her his pouch of bits with his aura and made to leave before he embarrassed himself further.

He felt a hoof on his withers before he could go two steps. Looking back, he saw that Hidden Gem was at least as embarrassed as him. “I… nopony has ever…” they looked at each other for a few more breaths, before that determined look entered her amethyst eyes again. “You asked, and paid, for a full night. That is what you are going to get. You cannot just tell me that you expect me to keep my promise and then leave before I can!”

He could do nothing but nod under her stare. He could not even begin to think about denying her then and there. Not when she was looking at him like that.

“My place or yours?” She asked.

Not coming home was only going to make his parents angrier. Coming home with a… paid mare, was going to make them unbearable. He could not say no to her.

“Yours.” He answered, a shiver of excitement running the length of his body.

Her hoof lowered down his foreleg, so they could walk hoof in hoof.

He still could not get the smile of his muzzle.

Author's Note

Zecora! I really like Zecora, but I feel like rhyming is such a big part of her character and I suck at rhyming XD Luckily my editor, Midnight Blossom, is good at it and volunteered to help me :D
400 likes... nice :D
This chapter I'm recommending Vinyl and Octavia: University Days ^.^
On a different note, I have exams soon. So... stress. And this time I don't like a single of the classes, so... meh. I'll try to get the chapters out in time anyway, of course :)

Chapter 56

Senses slowly returned to his body. It started with pain. There was pain everywhere, from several scratches and bruises on his body, to his head that felt like it was splitting apart, to his very soul that felt… felt….

He was laying down. Of that he was certain. He could feel the cold dirt on his naked back. He was also convinced that he had been screaming, going by the soreness of his throat.

Sounds. There were sounds around him. A branch snapping, a bush rustling, a critter running up a tree. A lone bird was singing a familiar tune, though he couldn’t for the life of him figure out why it sounded familiar.

When the pain resided enough, he finally opened his eyes. He was met with a canopy of gnarled tree-branches that were thick enough, entangled enough to block out most of the sky. Enough light made it through to see a little, but not much. Not enough to advance through the forest without stumbling around like an idiot, like he had been doing for some reason for the past hour before the… the memories started hitting him.

So… what? What did it mean? He had been a pony who hooked up with a hooker once because he was angry at his parents? He couldn’t really blame his past self either, his mother looked like a real bitch, and his father sounded like an asshole. That escort looked like a freaking saint in comparison.

He sighed deeply, rubbing his temples. How had he ended up this form then? Why did it feel so natural? If Sombra was a name he had made up so that mare had something to call him, what was his real name? Why did he have this gnawing feeling in his very core that something was very, very wrong?

Pain pulsed through his head again, making him writhe on the ground, unable to do anything but to wait it out. When it finally did he just laid there, breathing deeply.

He had been sweating. He shook violently when a cold wind swept through the forest, making the trees dance to its haunting tune. Even the wind sounded threatening in this forest. He wished he had some more clothing. Or that he could grow some fur. And why did he have so many scars?

He pulled himself up and crawled over to a tree, to sit up against it. The rough bark didn’t do his back any favours, but he just needed to rest for a second to regain his strength.

He would have started walking back out of the forest, but he was completely and utterly lost. He didn’t know where he had come from, nor where he was going. It had been stupid to go in here… what had he been thinking? It must be one of those things you just do, but aren’t sure why.

Being without memories must have been one of the reasons why though. Suddenly waking up without knowing who you are….

He started breathing fast as panic and fear tried to overwhelm him. He didn’t know who he was. Tears started forming in the corner of his eyes, and he grabbed his leg hard just to have something to hold onto. A whimper left him, but he somehow managed to hold the tears at bay. This was no time to cry… or maybe it was the perfect time to cry….

He got up and started pacing restlessly, before just choosing a random direction to walk in. He may not know who he was, but the pieces were coming back to him. His mom had been an advisor to somepony, his dad the captain of the crystal guard, whatever that was. They had both been shit that treated him like dirt and he had once paid to have sex with some mare. For some reason ponies liked to frown at him, and his name – at least the one he had given to said mare – was Sombra. That was what he knew so far….

He swung around at the sound of laughter… the kind of maniacal laughter laughed after working so hard on something for so long that you’re afraid it will fail and all be for nothing, only to see it succeed.

Just as quickly as it came, it was gone. He looked around in confusion. For a moment he had thought it came from inside his head – his thoughts – but that was ridiculous. He had no reason to laugh, out loud or in his mind. Lost and alone in a forest, with barely any idea of who he was. No, he did not feel like laughing at all. He felt like crying in a corner somewhere. And the pain! Why was there so much pain? He needed to find water soon. Maybe some water would help his head as well as his throat.

He whimpered helplessly. Had he ever felt so alone in his life? The fact that he didn’t know didn’t help him. He started walking again, paranoia making him look around at every sound. He needed to move or he would start to question everything while having answers to nothing. It was so infuriating, he could scream. But he couldn’t. He wouldn’t. He didn’t want to attract some animal… this forest gave off a bad vibe. It had a weird scent. He wasn’t sure where the thought even came from, since he couldn’t remember how other forests smell like, he just knew it was wrong. It was a weird feeling, knowing something is wrong without knowing why.

His eyes widened. There was a path ahead! Maybe he could find his way out of-

He screamed and clutched his head in his arms as pain shot through it. The forest around him blurred out of existence as another memory completely drew him in.

He was standing in a crystal bathroom, looking at a crystal mirror. His fur was gray, his mane and tail were as black as the darkness itself, and his eyes were a deep ruby. Tears were slowly rolling down his muzzle, unwanted and uninvited. She had just been some old mare, she did not deserve his tears. He needed to pull himself together, as he had learned long ago not to show weakness in front of his parents. They would use it against him.

“Come on Sombra… do not cry for her.” He told himself, his voice cracking mid-sentence. “She was just some old maid. Nothing to cry- nnngh.” Fresh tears ran down his muzzle. That old maid had treated him kindly, even when every other maid was as professional as they came even when his own parents had not showed him the same respect. Yet when she was fired because of her ‘unprofessional behavior,’ she had still invited him to come over when things were too hard for him…. And still would give him a kind smile the few times he did so….

And now she was dead. Would his parents hear about it if he went to her funeral? Of course they would, and somehow they would use it against him.

Hidden Gem. He needed to see her again. She would listen to him, as she had the other times… for his bits of course. Because that was all she was, a whore that would do anything he asked, and he would do well to remember that.

Even if her warm smile was the most magnificent sight he had ever seen. The way her amethyst eyes filled with concern for him, when he told her about his life was quite breathtaking as well. When she nuzzled him lovingly-

He shook with longing. Even if every single action she took was because of the bits, he could not deny that she made him feel incredible. He reached up and touched his gray horn. Who knew it could feel so good to be licked there?

He dried his tears. Now was not the time for such thoughts. He would mourn the sweet old maid, because she deserved to be mourned. Even if he could not attend her funeral, he could still mourn.

And he did not want to make love to Hidden Gem today... but he could still talk with her. He wondered how much she would charge to just talk. Maybe he could take her out to eat somewhere? But not somewhere where he would be recognized. If one of his parents found out about Gem, bad things would happen.

He would have to steal more bits. He wondered if his mother would ever realize how many bits simply disappeared… then again, she seemed kind of distracted these days. She was planning something, and by the looks of it, it was something big. Though just what, he did not know… and honestly he did not really care much about her plans or schemes. It just made it easier for him to steal from her.

The memory hazed and blurred, leaving him panting hard on the forest floor again. This… was not a pleasant way to get ones memories back. It left a weird feeling in his… in his… in his soul? It felt beyond weird… like something was tugging on it.

…

He was probably just imagining things. That was a ridiculous thought, he wasn’t even sure where it came from. It just… it just felt weird. Inside. But not physically. Maybe he was having a mental breakdown… ‘there was a relaxing thought.’ He thought sarcastically.

“Applejack, I am certain I heard something! Just come!” Came a voice from the path. Thank the heavens. He got up from the ground and started dusting himself off. Hopefully whoever came could find it in their hearts to help him-

A purple unicorn appeared around the bend, barely visible in the darkness of the forest but luckily the path was a little lighter. The unicorns eyes widened, and a smile spread on its muzzle, “Applejack, it’s Jax! We actually found him!” It – she – exclaimed.

For a moment he just stood there dumbfounded. Then reality around him blurred out as he once again descended into memories.

The purple unicorn stood on the other side of a table looking at him with disgust. “You like eating the flesh of innocent life? Life that could have continued if you didn’t-“ She suddenly gasped. “You knew. You knew and you lied to everypony about it, you even told them in the paper that you didn’t have a choice!”

He didn’t know why, but her words cut him deeply. He was just trying to live his life, shattered as it was, with as much enjoyment as he could. Had he not lost enough? How much of himself did he have to give up to fit in with these ponies? “Yes I fucking knew!” He growled in anger.

Before he could say anything else, the memory blurred out again, his anger being replace by pain and confusion.

The purple unicorn who had set him on fire just stood before him as he was burning, everything was burning, everything was pain, panic, quench it with water water WATER!

The memories faded and he found himself on his knees, his hands on his head. Looking up, he saw that the purple unicorn had been joined by an light orange pony with a blonde mane and cowboy hat. They were both getting closer, looking at him with-

‘Run! What are you doing? Run away from them before they catch you!’
Away… he had to get away from here as fast as he could! He got up with panicked breaths, turned around and started running into the dark forest with all the strength of a desperate animal.

“Jax? No Jax wait!” He heard from behind him, but he kept running, falling, getting up and running again, until his shallow breaths didn’t give him enough air and his legs felt like they could give in under him any second.

He stumbled and fell again, but this time he didn’t have the strength to get up. He lay there for a long while. One question repeating over and over again in his head… 'why had they called me Jax?’

***

They had gathered in the basement of an abandoned shop. How low they had fallen….

All of the other Lunatics were standing in front of him, waiting for him to start.

He cleared his throat. “According to her secretary, Luna disappeared without a word tonight.” He started without a welcome. They all knew why they were there. “I think it bodes well for us.”

“Pff! Bodes well? She’s probably just out to fraternize with her… coltfriend.” She spat out the last word. The mare had the accent and tone of a noble, though he knew that she had fallen from Celestia’s grace long ago. That was why she was here, after all. “The rumours we spread were supposed to break them apart! Her own guards even came and took her back to Canterlot.... But now they are together anyway and she looks happier than ever!”

“Not necessarily true.” A different mare stepped forward. A maid from the castle. “Ever since Jax was possessed by… Sombra” they all shivered at the name, “she’s been looking worried. Maybe his return could be advantageous for us in the long run.”

“Nonsense!” The first mare spoke up again. “If he sets his sight on us-“

“Then we will fight him! With all we have!” He interrupted her in a deep anger. “With the power of an alicorn, we can win.”

“Does it have to be Luna then?” The maid spoke up again. “There are other alicorns.”

He sighed. If only it was that easy. “Twilight just recently became and alicorn, and so she lacks their full strength. Cadenza would be a better choice, but we would never be able to enter the Crystal Empire to use her. Celestia has a willpower of steel, and if she figures out what we are doing, she will come at us with all the fury of a thousand suns. No, it has to be Luna. She is still weak, her mind hasn’t healed. She will become Nightmare Moon again, and we will reap our reward when she does.” He took a breath. “Things have not gone according to plan, with that damned human interfering and making her happy… but at the same time he has become her weakness. We break him, we break her. We just need to be patient.”

The ponies murmured their agreement, then started clearing out. Soon he stood alone in the darkness for a while, before he forced a smile onto his face and left as well.

Author's Note

Sorry for the delay, but here it is :) A bit short, but as mentioned... exams are coming. Even though I just finished the semester report and handed it in, the first exam is the first of June and I am so not ready...
Anyway, all the pieces are on the board now. Let's see how this pans out ;)
Now I know what you're thinking. Forgetting who you are must be pretty bad - but what about everyone around you constantly forgetting who you are? Well, I have just the story for you: Background Pony
However, if you're not in the mood for 400k of sadness (trust me, this is the saddest thing you will read if you can get into it), then I have a heartwarming story about a diamond dog and a small filly that is, so far, well written and uplifting: The Epic of a Diamond Dog This seriously deserves more attention, so go check it out :)

Chapter 57

He laid on his back, panting heavily. He had somehow managed to drag himself out into a field, where he could see the night sky.

It was beautiful. Absolutely stunning. The overflow of stars, the way they gleamed down at him, it just set him at ease, which he really needed, the way his thoughts had been running around in circles.

‘Why did they call me Jax?’ He had thought.

‘I am Sombra.’ He had answered himself almost desperately.

‘But they called me Jax.’

‘… Must have been a slave name. They also set me on fire.’

‘… No... that doesn’t feel right.’

‘But it is. They are the enemy.’

‘The unicorn… she didn’t look like someone who had found her escaped slave.’ He couldn’t put his finger on it, but the relief in her eyes wasn’t… evil. And the surprise in her voice when he ran away… it didn’t add up if he was a slave.

Yet the memories of her setting him on fire and looking at him with disgust was all he could remember about her. Those memories did not make her seem very friendly.

All those thoughts were shoved to the back of his mind as he looked at glimmering stars above him. The moon shone brightly, illuminating the meadow with its soft glow, somehow making everything seem a bit more magical and less threatening. It was a welcome contrast to the claustrophobic atmosphere in the forest behind him.

His breath was caught in his throat as he felt again, for lack of better words, as if his soul was being tugged on. Instead of denying that something was happening like last time, he resisted. He resisted with everything he had, setting his skepticism aside for the fear of losing something so precious that it contained everything he was and had been.

After a few short, ragged breaths that felt like an eternity, the feeling disappeared. Not his unease, though. Something was wrong - he knew that. He had felt it since he ‘woke up.’ The pieces were far from coming together, and he was still a confused mess, especially after he met that unicorn.

‘I am King Sombra!’ His thoughts told him sternly, but even that was wrong. Everything was wrong.

‘Am I, though?’ The thoughts he had been having since coming to were irrational from the beginning. The very first thing he thought was that he was King Sombra, even though he couldn’t remember anything about his… about who he was. The second thing was to go into the forest… more of a command really. It didn’t make sense. Why would he willingly come into this hell-hole of a forest? Why did everything feel so wrong? Why did his instincts and his thoughts contradict each other?

What was… going on? What… who… why…?

He let the tears glide down his dirty cheeks, as his frustration rose. It wasn’t fair. What did he do to deserve this? Why were his thoughts such a mess, and why did some of them make his stomach cringe painfully?

He dried his tears quickly, wishing he had some paper for his running nose. He felt so fucking helpless and he didn’t know what to do.

‘Just give in… why do you continue to fight?!’ The edge of frustration in the thought made about as much sense as the thought itself.

“What the fuck does that even mean?!” He asked no one in particular. Why was he thinking random shit that he didn’t even know what they meant. He was going insane, that must be it.

The tugging came back full force, except it didn’t feel like tugging anymore. It felt like someone had a very firm grip on his soul and was trying to rip it away from his body or die trying. It was the most dreadful, chilling, fear inducing feeling he had felt so far.

He screamed in pain and fear, as he held on with everything he had. What he was holding on to, he wasn’t exactly sure, but he refused to give in to whatever this was.

‘WHY DO YOU FIGHT?!’ It was a roar inside his head that amplified his headache. ‘YOU HAVE NOTHING TO FIGHT FOR! YOU ARE NOTHING BUT SOMBRA!’ it continued, making him literally wet his pants in fear.

“I… I…” Why was he holding on? Except the feeling that something was wrong, he had nothing. Nothing to fight for, nothing to hold on to, except a few scattered memories. Words could not describe how lost he felt there in the meadow under the starlight. He was covered in dirt and piss and snot, confused and alone, unsure of everything around him, his very thoughts screaming at him to let go….

And how easy it would be to just let go! He wouldn’t have to be afraid, he wouldn’t have to be confused. He wouldn’t have to be alone in the dark, exhausted and paranoid.

He didn’t think it was possible, but the pulling intensified, and without a reason to fight, he felt his willpower wane and he was so close to just… giving in. Tired… he was so tired. It would be so much easier… what was there for him anyway?

He had just closed his eyes when he heard hooves impact on the ground not far from his position. He opened his eyes in alarm, looking over to the sound, the tug of war put on standby for a moment.

It was an alicorn that looked like she came out of the night sky itself. Her fur was a black… no wait, a dark blue colour, her majestic wings were just starting to fold. Her mane and tail blended into the night sky behind her almost perfectly, making him blink repeatedly at the beauty of it, but what really took his breath away was her cyan eyes.

They were looking at him with so much feeling, so much care that he could barely breathe. Even dirty and quite frankly revolting as he was at the moment, there was not a single drop of disgust in those eyes, only a deep concern that made him feel better than he had felt since he ‘woke up’ in front of the forest.

“Jax…” her voice shook, her face looked like she was in pain. “Or Sombra?”

“I…” his voice was raspy. “I don’t know.” He admitted, the tears threatening to make a violent return.

She took a step forward, nothing but concern on her muzzle, but he pulled himself back. “Stay back!” He called, not really sure why. She was… she was trustworthy… right?

A growl resounded within his mind. ‘Do not trust her….’

He didn’t know what to do anymore.

She looked… hurt in a way, like his words had cut her, but she took a step back nonetheless. “It shall be as thou commandeth.” She looked nervous, unsure what to do, yet continued with her quite frankly adorable way of speaking. “We shall keep Ourself, and anypony else that neareth thee at bay”

He couldn’t help but smile, just a little. Who speaks like that? Well… for all he knew it was common around these parts… but still. He nodded “Thank you.”

She looked back with a serious expression. “We… thou must give us an oath in return.”

He raised a brow at her. That sounded a bit fishy. “And… what does this oath entail?” He asked, paranoia overtaking him once again, everything from swearing his allegiance to her, to promising never to run from her again went through his mind.

She looked at him, apparently contemplating something. “Thou… hath noticed some matters doth not make sense? Perchance even in thine own mind?”

His eyes widened at the words. He nodded hesitantly.

“Very well, then thine oath to us shall be, that thou shalt not surrender to the voice that lay inside thine mind. The voice that thou canst hear, nay feel, is not of thine own thoughts, but still whispers promises of power… thou canst not give in, for what thou shalt loseth, 'tis far more than thou stand to gain.”Her voice shook with emotion. He could feel that this wasn’t easy for her.

‘No! Do not do it… you cannot trust her!’

He contemplated the oath. She had put his feelings into words, and he recognized the truth in them, except….

“It doesn’t whisper… it demands. Nothing about power either….” He informed her.

‘I can give you power if you want. Together we will rule the world. With your body and my intellect, there will be nothing to stop us.’

He took a shivering breath as he felt a violent pull yet again. He had almost ignored how wrong it was, but this alicorn reminded him. He still had some fight in him. “I promise you that I won’t give in to whatever it is.” He said with utmost determination. The pull on his soul slackened, before disappearing entirely.

‘No! This should have worked flawlessly!’

She sighed in relief. A small smile appeared on her muzzle, although she still looked pensive. “I… thank you Jax.”

For some reason, that smile made her look even more beautiful. Her eyes lit up just a bit, just enough for him to get lost in their beauty.

‘I was so close! So close I could almost taste it!’

She laid down with her legs beneath her, and they just looked at each other for the longest time. He felt no need to say anything as he kept ignoring the voice in his head, and just let himself remain lost in her eyes. The more he looked, the more she seemed to relax. The more she relaxed, the bigger her smile became, and the bigger her smile became, the more her eyes lit up. That of course, just made her seem more beautiful, making him unable to look away. And so the circle continued.

By the time she spoke up, she had a grin on her muzzle. “Like what you see?” Her voice was thick with mirth, though there was still an edge of uncertainty behind it.

He blinked a couple of times, as if coming out of a daze. Then he considered his possible answers, but in the end he was too tired to come up with a lie. “Yes.” He answered bluntly instead. “Especially your eyes are beautiful. I’m digging the mane as well.” He realized how creepy he must sound, making him blush in embarrassment. There he was, covered in both filth from the forest and himself, and she looked like a freaking angel, wings and all.

Speaking of, her wings ruffled a bit as she giggled. They did look a bit ragged, like she had been flying for a while.

Her giggle sounded nice. Maybe he could make her giggle some more.

Before he could think of something funny, and honestly he needed some time with the situation they were in, she spoke again. “I want to apologize, Jax. I meant to tell you some things while we waited, but….” She blushed. Through her fur. For some reason he wasn’t as surprised as he felt he should be, like this was how it was meant to be. “In any case… there are only three hours left of the effect from that potion you drank. You will be able to remember everything then.”

His eyes widened yet again. Potion? What potion? There was some glass that shattered when he woke, was that what she meant? “Really?!” That was the best news he could have imagined. He would understand everything if what she said was true. Finally he could be free of this confusion!

She nodded. “Yes. I have been keeping track of the time. I realize that you might not know me as you are now, but we are… very close friends. My name is Luna.”

He wanted to run over and hug her. What stopped him wasn’t his spoiled pants, or the snot coming out of his nose, or the dirt covering his entire body, but rather when he raised himself up, his own legs that gave away from underneath him. He was able cushion the fall with his hands, so he didn’t smash his head into the ground or anything but… he was so exhausted. It was pathetic but… it was probably for the best. He wouldn’t make her dirty this way.

He rolled over unto his back. Luna was half raised, with one leg stretched forward, looking uncertain whether she should move or not. In the end she lowered back down. “Are you… alright?”

“… relatively… maybe… fuck, I don’t know.” He answered, his raspy voice reminding him how thirsty he really was. He overall felt like shit. He dried away the tears that were surfacing with his dirty arm. Of course he got dirt in his eye for his troubles. “For fucks sake! Why does nothing go my way?” He was still frustrated. It was better than before, but now came the wait.

“I….” She trailed off.

“Do you know that feeling when you want something, but you don’t know what? I feel like there is something I want so badly… something just out of reach, and I want to clasp my hand around it and never let it go. But I don’t know what it is and it frustrates me so much I could just…!” He clenched his fist.

“Perhaps… it is thine memories that thy desire.” Her voices calmed him down some, though he didn’t unclench his fist yet. “Doth thou… require mine aid? Perchance, mine embrace might help thee with thine frustrations.” Her voice sounded almost pleading. It trembled a bit at the word ‘embrace’.

He thought over his options, or at least he tried to. It was all a muddled mess, so he just searched his feelings instead.

“Yeah… a hug sounds nice right about now. I’m… pretty dirty though….” His cheeks burned with shame.

“I can assure you…” She rose from her position and made her way over to him. “That I do not mind one bit.” He noticed that she had switched back to modern English, before all thought abandoned him, as she enveloped him with both hooves and wings in the most awesome hug ever. It just felt so right, and the feeling of being secure in her grasp finally made him unclench his fist completely and just relax. Suddenly, he didn’t feel quite so irritated. It had the side effect of making his eyelids heavy.

He resisted for a while, if nothing else then to enjoy the feeling of her nuzzling his cheek with her own sporadically, but when she started humming a familiar tune, he could hold on no longer.

“I was so afraid I would lose you, my Jax… I am so sorry….” A whisper reached him just before he lost consciousness.

***

He woke up with a jolt as his memories streamed back one at a time, so fast he could barely register it. It wasn’t painful like he had expected, well not really… it was like the pain after getting a splinter pulled out… it stings, but ultimately you feel better.

And Jax felt so much better, even though he was still tired. It was like he had been trying to solve a puzzle with one and a half piece, and now that he had all the pieces, he realized that the one piece he had wasn’t a part of the puzzle at all, but a trick so devious and evil he could barely believe it.

‘Sombra almost got me…’ he realized. The thought sent a shiver of fear all the way down his spine. ‘I was seconds from giving in….’

A deep growl sounded from within him. ‘Do not remind me. Is it not enough that I lost, now you salt the wound? So close… one more second and your body would have been mine… so close….’

“Girls! He’s awake!” Rainbow Dash alarmed the ponies in the other room.

He realized that he was back in his bed… naked but covered by a blanket, and still dirty. He clenched his jaw as a large number of ponies tried to get into a room that was too small for them all. The elements, Luna, Celestia, Mr. Bear and even Beating Heart were all looking at him with worry.

Silence reigned for a couple of seconds, but before anypony could say anything, he threw off the blanket and pushed past them, forcing them to make a path for him. He made straight for the fridge where he knew he had some bottled water.

He felt relief through his entire body as the cold fluid made its way down his throat. After he had drunk the entire bottle, he made his way over to the tap to get some more.

As he refilled and gulped down the bottle of water one more time, the ponies simply looked at him with concern. He couldn’t even bring himself to care that he was naked at the moment. Who gave a fuck anyway? Ponies walk around naked all the time. Fluttershy was the one who seemed to be bothered the most by it, though a couple of the others had a visible blush. Celestia and Beating Heart seemed to be faring better than the rest.

All this he observed from the corner of his eye, refusing to look at them directly. He had hoped the water would cool him down, but he could still feel the warm ember of anger burning in the pit of his stomach. He could barely control his shaking hand.

He finally put the bottle down in the sink, and without looking up whispered “get out.”

“Did he… did he just tell us to get out?” Rainbow asked in disbelief.

”Get out!” He shouted as he finally lost it. He turned to face them fully. “Get the fuck out of here and leave me alone!”

“But you just woke up silly, and we want to make-“

Jax pointed at Pinkie “Fuck you and your cheery attitude!” He cut her off, his voice and face reflecting his anger. Her smile fell and her mane deflated a bit at his unexpected words.

He pointed at Twilight. “Fuck you for being a judgemental bitch.” She flinched as if struck.

He pointed at Rarity. She bit her lips, awaiting his words, but nothing came to mind.

He moved on to Luna. “Fuck you for leaving when I needed you most.” Her eyes widened in surprise.

He pointed at Mr. Bear, but didn’t have anything.

“Now listen here partner….”

He set his sights on Applejack. “Fuck you and your bitch of a brother!” She scowled at him but didn’t say anything more.

He had nothing for Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash, the last of whom just raised a brow when he pointed at her.

“I’m not sure what you’re doing here, but fuck you anyway!” He informed Beating Heart.

“Just came by to visit….” She muttered under her breath, looking like she was starting to regret that decision.

And finally, the turn came to the biggest pony in the room. Celestia. “And you. Especially you. Fuck you and your plans! A thousand years and yet the best you could come up with was ‘let’s wait and see.’ Well look what the fuck that gave us!” Celestia just looked at him calmly, which just pissed him off more. “We should have blasted me with magic the second we knew he was inside of me blasting him to hell, or out of me, or anything! But no, you couldn’t take the risk! Too dangerous! Well look where your plan got us! Absolutely fucking nowhere!” Jax couldn’t remember the last time he had been this angry. Actually, this might just be the angriest he had ever been, and his shouting at the very ponies who had saved him didn’t help the fire that was starting to burn brightly.

“I am sorry it turned out-“ Celestia started, but he couldn’t take her calm tone.

“Sorry?! The fuck do you know about sorrow! I almost lost myself to a god damn piece of shit shadow who wants nothing more than to take over the world and you’re sorry. Oh well I guess then everything is fine and dandy!” His sarcasm made her close her eyes for a moment. When she opened them he saw a brief fire in them that disappeared just as quickly as it came.
She moved over to him and placed a hoof his shoulder, keeping eye contact all the while, her normally tranquil gaze felt as hard as steel. “I know more about sorrow than you ever will, Jax.” She told him, still calm and collected, with an air certainty from somepony who had gone through this a thousand times before. He wanted to look away from those magenta eyes, so full of a thousand years of hard-earned wisdom, but he couldn’t. “I have seen the rise and fall of kingdoms, seen my beloved friends die over and over again, and even banished my only family to the moon.” As she continued to talk, her eyes slowly changed back to being kind and caring, and as warm as the sun. Just beyond the horizon though he could see so much regret that he was surprised she could keep going every day. “I can’t say I’ve ever went through what you did, Jax, and I’m sorry that it happened, but what I imagined when I planned this was that you talked with your friends. Told them how you felt, what Sombra was doing, how he kept you up at night… but you just shut them out. You shut them out and let Sombra take you on alone.” She sighed deeply and finally let him go. He felt weak in the knees as her gaze left him. The full force of her gaze was not meant for mortal men.

Her gaze, hard as it was to bear, had calmed him down enough to let him realize something… he didn’t yell at them because he was angry at them, not really. He was afraid. The full implications of Sombra’s presence had hit him, and he was too weak to take it… he could lose himself to the shadow. Hell, he almost did… he had underestimated the cursed pony because he didn’t actually think that he would be able to do anything. But he did, and he had been on the verge of winning and Jax would have lost control of his own body.

He collapsed to his hands and knees into a shivering heap of sobs. The very same ponies he had just yelled at came running to his side instantly, every single one of them. Luna was the first to step forward and hug him, but soon all the other followed except Celestia.

He felt warm. So warm and protected. That was the only reason he was able to get words out. “I f-forgot who I was.” He sniffled. “I f-forgot and I was so alone and s-scared.” The floodgates were open, and he couldn’t stop the tears that fell as he continued. “Sombra told me what to do, where to go, and I just… I thought it was m-my own thoughts. He showed me his own memories and I thought they were m-mine. Then after I met Twilight he became more forceful and told me to just give in… and i-if Luna hadn’t come I-I would h-have. I would have lost m-myself to him and I wouldn’t even know how much I lost until it was too late and I-“ He choked on the rest of the words that were trying to force their way out. He shook with fear and shock.

“Even if he had, we would have saved you.” Twilight informed him.

“We will find a way to get him out you, my Jax. Do not worry too much… he had his chance and he failed. He will not get another one.” Luna told him with enough conviction to make him shake a little less.

“That’s right darling, we won’t leave you hanging.” Rarity told him.

“Yeah, we’d never let you get hurt.” Rainbow’s voice was the epitome of confidence.

“And even if you did get hurt, I’d nurse you back to full health.” Beating Heart said with a smile.

Tears were falling down his cheeks, but a small smile spread on his face regardless.

“Oh. Uhm, I’d probably help with the nursing. Not that you should get hurt….” Fluttershy meekly contributed.

“And hey! At least you didn’t get set on fire!’ Pinkie said as her mane sprung back to life, while the others gave her a deadpan stare. “… what… aren’t we still using that joke? Oh, alright… at least you didn’t have to go through three days of pain!” Pinkie’s joke made him snort.

“Ah, shucks sugarcube, if Ah knew ya had it that bad Ah would have come by earlier. Ah thought ya learned ta talk with us back when Princess Luna left ya without a word. You need to make sure to learn you’re lessons.”

Jax couldn’t help but agree. These were his friends… he really needed to learn to tell them what was troubling him. He was just so used to keeping it all to himself… opening up was harder than he had imagined.

“Nothing is impossible… with a few friends by your side. That is a lesson I learned a long time ago… and one I hope you take it to heart.” Celestia’s soft voice reached him from where she stood a little away. She sounded almost proud.

“Thank you. Thank you all.” He raised his head, showing them his tears… and his smile.

Author's Note

here it is :) still have exams and stuff but I made this for you :)

Chapter 58

Jax sighed deeply. He was sitting under the shower, wondering what his life had become. Coming to Equestria had been a weird turn of events all those months ago, but to think that it would result in so much… stuff, happening all around him, he never would have guessed. Celestia had left him with the news that she would send guards to ‘watch over’ him, day and night. He didn’t like it at all, but after what had happened… he didn’t complain.

Luna looked down at him with a kind smile. “It has been a long night, has it not?” She asked with sympathy, and he took a moment to appreciate her sweet sweet voice. She was there because he had used her as a shield to get into the bathroom without exposing himself to the staggering amount of females more than he already had. After his rage and fright had subsided, he had felt pretty damn embarrassed to be naked. It might be true that they didn’t care, but… old habits die hard and all that. Of course Beating Heart had joked about his sudden embarrassment all the way to the bathroom, but that was okay. It lightened the mood.

He also realized that he needed some male friends.

“Yeah….” He couldn’t think of what else to say, so he just let the silence reign while he drowned in her cyan eyes. They looked at him with so much kindness and understanding… care and… and love, that it moved something deep inside of him. Something that warmed him to the very soul, and he just wanted to sit there for all eternity, with this feeling washing over him forever. Nobody had ever looked at him like that before… nobody but Luna.

Something inside of him that wasn’t really a part of him cringed in pain. Sombra growled in discomfort, but didn’t ‘say’ anything.

He remembered those same eyes in the meadow a couple of hours ago. He had been lost and so alone, until Luna had found him. Even without remembering anything, even with Sombra whispering in his mind, even then he could see the beauty in the mare in front of him. He had been so close to giving up, to giving in, before she appeared before him in all her lovable glory.

She had saved him….

A hoof laid itself on his head, taking him out of the dark direction his thoughts were turning. It started stroking him. “Deep in thought, are we?” Luna smiled down at him. There was a knowing edge to her smile that suggested that she knew that his mind had wandered to the forest.

“I… I love you.” He said emotionally. He had said the words to her before, back when they had shared their first kiss. But now… now they felt more real…. Not that he hadn’t meant it when he had said it then, but… it felt like he didn’t truly know what love was back then. Being together was warmth, kindness and a smile that didn't have to be forced. It was trusting someone completely, knowing they would come to your rescue no matter what.

Her smile broadened, then it fell. Before he could ask, she swept in for a kiss, with all the weight of her feelings behind it. He returned the kiss with all his own feelings. Unlike their first kiss, this one was simple. Just her soft sweet lips upon his, the relief of being free and together fueling the passion of their lips’ embrace.

Luna finally broke it off, to hug him tightly. “I was so afraid I was going to lose you.” She whispered, her voice heavy with a mix of emotions.

He dug his fingers deep into her wet fur and held her. Her wings enveloped him, like they always did and he closed his eyes in content. “I was afraid I was going to lose me too.” He chuckled half-heartedly. “But you didn’t let me.”

She shook her head. “You are mine. I will not let Sombra take you.”

They let the drops of water wash over them for a long time, enjoying the embrace.

***

Luna’s thoughts were in turmoil. So much had happened the last couple of hours it overwhelmed her. The stress of looking for Jax, the relief of finding him, the worry while they waited for him to wake up, the despair of watching him enraged, the hurt when he yelled at her, the urge to console him when he broke down, and finally their shower together. The others had left already, but she would stay there.

Her wings rustled restlessly. She was exhausted, but Jax insisted on waiting for his guards. He said that if they were going to guard him, he might as well make a good first impression, and somehow he managed to stay awake even though she knew he was beyond exhausted. Now that all the excitement had passed, he looked ready to collapse, even though he said that the tea he was drinking helped.

It was as good a time as any to bring up her worries. She had considered just not saying anything, but keeping things to herself was a habit she was trying to get rid of. Well… maybe just this once, she could keep it to herself. He had been under a lot of stress, they both had. This obviously was not the right time to talk of such things….

‘And though it will not be easy, I would love for you to be my special somepony.’ So she had said, a time that felt like ages ago but was not anywhere near. If that was how she felt, then why was she trying to take the easy way out? She knew better than anypony how wounds on the inside fester just as badly as wounds on the outside.

She swallowed nervously. “Jax.” He looked over. “We need to talk.”

His eyes widened for some reason. Silence fell on the room as he just kept looking at her. Her wings rustled again, and she scuffed at the floor. Even though she had initiated it, she was unsure of how to continue. She took a calming breath and closed her eyes. “Fuck you for leaving when I needed you,” she quoted him. The words felt foreign even as they left her mouth. They left behind a bad taste as they had been directed at her, by the one she loved so much.

Jax’ reaction was much different than what she had expected. She was not sure what she had expected, but it was not the panic in his eyes, nor was it him getting up so fast the chair fell down behind him.

“Please Luna. I-I wasn’t thinking straight. After all that happened I just… I didn’t mean it like… like that….” His begging tone certainly was not what she had expected either. He lowered his distraught eyes to the table, refusing to look at her.

She… was not entirely sure what had just happened. She just wanted to talk about what had been said, how he had felt, how it had made her feel… she did not know where his panic was coming from, but if there was one truth in the world, it was that she could not bear to see him so distraught. Especially when she was the reason.

She used her wing to knock the table aside that separated them, and crossed the distance between them before the table along with the cups on it crashed unto the floor. It only took a second for him to hug her back as tightly as she was hugging him. “I’m sorry Luna… please don’t leave me….” He sobbed into her fur.

“Shhh my beloved, shhh there is no need to cry.” His sobs continued as she stroked him gently. “Why would I leave you, love? I just want to talk.” She tried to speak as gently as she could, unsure of how he went from ‘we need to talk’ to ‘I am leaving.’ He had been under a lot of stress lately, and the last thing she had wanted to do was to add to it. His very reaction was a sign of how distressed he must be. She had come to learn that Jax was used to hardships, and did not easily show his tears. Yet now it seemed they came forth all too easily.

Of course, it could be that he normally bottled up his emotions and he was now expressing them freely… but she very much doubted that. That kind of change did not come easily, no matter how much she wished to teach him the error of letting sorrow linger on the inside.

She held him for a while, whispering gentle reassurance for him. He finally drew back and dried his tears. “Sorry.” He whispered, barely heard. “It… it’s been a long night. Where I’m from, ‘we need to talk,’ is a different way of saying ‘we need to break up’… I just got scared there for a moment.”

Luna frowned. That was not what she had meant at all. “If all it took to break us apart was for one of us to get upset, then we might as well give up now.” He lowered his head, but she put a hoof under his chin to raise it again, similarly to how he had done it in the past. She looked deep into his green eyes, willing him to understand. “If we want this to work, we both need to be patient and understanding…” she quickly scanned her feelings, making sure what she wanted to say. “I understand that you have had a long night with… a lot of fear and confusion, so when you realized what had almost happened, that fear took over. I realize that… even though it hurt… on some level, you meant the words-“

Jax rose from her embrace, and started pacing back and forth. He finally looked at her with such sadness that she just wanted to keep him in her embrace forever. “I needed you more than anything, but you just left. I can say I understand as much as I want - that you’re a princess and have duties, but when you teleported away and left me there it felt like a stab to the heart. Sombra pounced on the opportunity to taunt me the second you were gone, and it just felt so-“

“Then why did you not tell me?! Why did you not simply ask me to-“ she cut herself off as an epiphany hit her like lightning from a clear sky. This was how Celestia had been feeling a thousand years ago, when Luna had refused to talk with her until it was too late. Luna knew better than anypony else how hard it could be to simply speak with somepony about problems, yet now she sounded like Celestia. She shook her head.

“I… alright Jax. Let us talk now then.”

Jax blinked at her a couple of times, before he finally sighed. “I’m sorry Luna. I know it’s silly and I know you have your own things you need to take care of….”

“I do not think it is silly, my dear Jax, nor should you be sorry.” A small smile adorned her muzzle. “You are only human, after all. Neither you, nor I, are perfect.”

He went over and rested his forehead right beneath her horn, holding her close. “What did I do to deserve you?”

Luna smiled as a pleasant warmth overwhelmed her. “Thou hath-“ She started in her old way of speaking because she knew he liked it, but yelped when he suddenly went limp. She flailed a bit when she tried to catch him with magic, but thankfully remembered why that was a bad idea. She managed to use a wing to catch his head before it hit the ground.

She sighed in relief. She should have known he would not last the night. Too much had happened, and even though he had slept a little between falling asleep in the forest and getting his memories back, the body can only take so much.

Getting him up on her back without magic would be far too difficult to manage without help. She thought about using magic only on his clothing but decided against risking it in case some of her magic accidentally touched him. So instead she bit the hem of his shirt and carefully dragged him to the bedroom, where through much trial and error, she managed to lift him into his bed.

“Sleep well, my beloved.” She kissed him on the forehead. “We will speak more at a later time.”

She left to clean up the mess she had caused. The table had survived, but both cups could not be salvaged… maybe they could be mended with gold, if kintsugi was still an art form being practiced. She gathered the pieces and stored them for later. She would have to ask Moondancer about it.

After she finished mopping the floor, she went outside to lower the moon. It had been a long night indeed. She was looking forward to sleep, but she would wait for the guards in Jax’ stead.

Author's Note

Finally done with exams! Wooo! XD So this chapter is on the short side because I chose to focus on my last exam. Was it worth it? hell yeah, I got the second best grade I could have gotten XD but holidays are here now, so I can focus on my writing, and other stuff, which is nice :D

Chapter 59

Jax slowly returned to consciousness with the familiar feeling of a wing spread over him, and that is how he knew that everything was alright. He pushed himself deeper into the warm body beside him, relishing the feeling of her soft fur, and the sweet scent of honey that fit her so well. Waking up with Luna beside him was the best way to start any day.

It only became better when a muzzle gently nuzzled the top of his head. “Finally ready to get up?” A loving voice asked him teasingly.

“Mmm… that would mean I have to leave your side, so that’s a no.” He answered with a smile. Last night already seemed like a dream - or nightmare rather.

“We could pretend that we were back when you could not let go of me - I could even carry you around again.” The mirth in her voice was almost visible.

He chuckled at the comment. “Surprisingly good times, those were… if we look away from all the awkwardness.”

“As we shall, now and forevermore.” She joined him in his chuckles.

He decided to finally open his eyes, unsurprised at being greeted by her blue fur. He rearranged himself so he could look up into her beautiful eyes. She smiled down at him, just as he liked. Luna looked most beautiful with a smile on her muzzle, and today’s smile was magnificent in its radiance.

His hand found it’s way to her cheek almost by itself, and she leaned into it with a satisfied sigh. His thumb stroked her muzzle experimentaly, yet unsure where to go.

“Jax, are you going to be alright? Or do you need me to stay here with you longer still?” She asked simply after a few moments. In her eyes, he saw a determination that would no doubt make her stay for as long as he needed her, which he realized that a part of him really needed to know right now. No matter what happened, Luna, and for that matter the rest of his friends, would be there for him without a single shred of doubt. It was simply… beautiful.

“No, I’m fine. Again, I’m sorry about yesterday, I wasn’t in the right mind-set. I do realize that you have your duties, and I don’t envy you for them.” He cocked his head thoughtfully. “We will have to find some way to sleep together every night, or day, though, because waking up to you there is the best thing ever.”

Luna smiled through a light blush. Her eyes darted behind him briefly before she spoke. “We shall figure something out, my love. For now I wish you a good day… if there is anything at all worrying you, just write to me with Spike’s gift.” At his nod, she teleported away.

He turned to get out of the bed, but froze completely at the sight of two day-guards standing by the door. “… How long have you guys been there?” He asked, though he suspected he knew the answer. So much for first impressions.

One of them was grinning from ear to ear, the other looked as if he had a face made of stone. Otherwise they both looked identical - white coat, blue eyes, blue tails and a golden armour and helmet, covering the chest and some of their flank. Didn’t seem super useful to be honest, but since they were both pegasi it probably needed to be light for when they needed to fly.

“It’s good to see Princess Luna smile so openly. She always seemed so stern to me. I haven’t seen her for a while though… what do you think, Shot?” The grinning one started.

The stone-faced one, apparently named Shot, stood still as a statue. The first one seemed disappointed by that. “Come now, Shot. Princess Celestia herself told us that we can speak freely on the mission. Don’t act like when we have to guard the castle. That’s too boring.”

“Uhhmm…” Jax started, gaining the stallions attention. He scanned his brain for something cool or clever to say, but came up empty - to his defence, he had just woken up. “Hello. My name is Jax.” He was glad Rainbow Dash wasn’t anywhere near. Being called lame didn’t sting that much, but at that moment he couldn’t deny that it was true. What a boring way to introduce yourself to your own guards.

“Everypony just calls me Trusty, so you should as well. This is-“

“Second Lieutenant True Shot, Recon and Prevention, pegasi division reporting.” Shot finally spoke, sounding like he was reporting to a commanding officer, which was weird since Lieutenant was pretty far up the ladder as far as Jax knew. It also stood in stark contrast of Trusty who had been as relaxed as he could be.

Out of the corner of his eye, Jax saw Trusty shoot Shot a disapproving glance.

“Uhmm… alright then. Nice to meet you both.”

“Likewise.” Trusty replied with a smile, while Shot gave a curt nod.

He rose and went past them to get some food. He had taken a shower last night, so he didn’t need one now. “You guys hungry? Need some food?”

Jax noticed that Mr. Bear was nowhere to be found. Probably out on another adventure… maybe he was preparing for winter or something.

“Provisions have been provided by the crown for the duration of the mission.” Shot answered neutrally. They had both followed him out.

“That and we’ve already eaten.” Trusty smiled in apology.

“Alright then. I make a killer omelette though.” He turned back to the kitchen only to frown. “Actually I have no idea how to make an omelette, it just seemed like the right thing to say.” To his surprise, Trusty actually laughed at that.

“I actually know how to make a killer omelette if you want to learn.” Jax had a feeling he would get along fine with Trusty. It was good to have some males near as well, he had way too many female friends.

“Alright, I’ll gladly take you up on that.” He smiled back. He wondered if their smiles, or lack thereof, would be the only way he would be able to tell them apart. “Actually, how come you look identical? Twins or something?”

Trusty, already halfway towards the kitchen, smiled mischievously. “Yep. Actually all of the royal day-guard consists solely of twins with either a blue mane and white coat, or a gray coat and white mane.” He went past Jax to take out the ingredients from the fridge. “You see, we all birthed by the same mother, the only mare in Equestria who has a hundred percent chance to birth stallions. She has taken on the heavy burden of equalizing the male/female ratio. Not easy, you can imagine. We all become royal guards because Princess Celestia likes to get fris-“

“Trust Worthy… you better stop right now.” True Shot interrupted with the hint of a growl.

Both Jax and Trusty laughed. “You really need to learn to joke, my serious friend. We have to enjoy that we can speak freely with our new bipedal friend here!” Trusty gave a winning smile, closed the fridge, and moved over towards the stove. “What was I supposed to say? Enchanted armour? That’s just boring.”

“I rather liked this story more. Didn’t seem like it was fake at all. Celestia does seem like the type to get frisky with-“ He was obviously joking, but apparently somepony in the room couldn’t tell.

True Shot stamped his hoof hard. “Princess Celestia hasn’t taken a lover in over a-“

Jax held up his hands in surrender. “Alright, alright, no need to get mad. God knows I don’t want to mess with a guy called True Shot. Next thing I know I have an arrow in my knee. My life of adventuring would be over.”

Trusty snorted from one of the cabins, probably looking for a pan, but Shot looked appalled. “I would never defy orders based on personal feelings. We are to detain if necessary, and if we can at all avoid it, make sure not to cause harm to the body.”

“Found it!” Trusty came out with a pan between his teeth. He disposed of it on the stove. “Well I for one like your humour. We are going to get along just fine, Jax.”

Jax smiled. Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad.

***

‘You’ve been quiet lately.’ Jax thought a bit apprehensively - alright, that was a lie… he was terrified as fuck of Sombra’s schemes - while lying on the grass outside his cabin. It was a bit chilly, but he had his beloved cloak covering him. That reminded him, he needed to visit town to pay back Rarity. That was really about time.

‘What is there to say? I fought and I lost. My plan was perfect, but once again Twilight Sparkle prevented its success. Now I can hardly do anything, being watched as you are.’

Jax snorted. ‘There was nothing perfect about it.’

‘If it wasn’t, then the fact that I almost succeeded says more about you than me.’

Jax flinched a bit at the response, and didn’t say anything for a while.

There was so much he wanted to know, however, now more than ever. ‘Hidden Gem… you loved her.’

‘That is none of your concern.’ The reply came quickly and harshly.

‘You gave me those memories yourself. You made it my concern.’ Jax’ reply came just as quickly, but gently. Now that he had seen through the eyes of his tormentor, he couldn’t get himself to make fun of him as much as he used to.

When no reply came, he went on. ‘Why those memories? There must have been others you could have chosen from.’

For a long time, he didn’t respond. Then: ‘It was… a risk. Those were amongst the happiest memories I had. If I showed you what my life had really been like, without her… maybe you would not want to be Sombra. That would ruin the plan… if you already thought you were Sombra, then becoming Sombra would not be a problem, unless being Sombra seemed… undesirable.’

‘But if you had her, then why…’ He left the thought unfinished, unsure where he was going with it. Why the evilness, tyranny, possession and general uncaring of others? Or rather… why was she not here with him? No wait, he didn’t mean that. One guest in his body was already too much.

‘Because she was a whore… and I became a king.’ Maybe being cryptic was his way of dealing with it, because that told Jax nothing. There was, however, a great deal of sadness in the thought, so much in fact that Jax felt his own mood sour.

He thought back to the memory of meeting Hidden Gem. He had felt everything Sombra had felt at the moment, he wagered. Sombra had been… more innocent back then. More sincere… and in desperate need of love. Why had Hidden Gem not been enough?

‘Whatever.’ He raised himself and went back into his house, feeling a bit more at ease. Trusty and Shot followed loyally behind, which felt weird beyond belief. He wasn’t sure if he would get used to it… he hoped not.

***

Jax waited patiently in front of the private door at the back of the boutique. Trusty and Shot were behind him. It was a grey and windy day, the kind that depressed the hell out of anybody looking out their window. Hopefully his day wouldn’t be as grey as the weather.

“Coooomiiing~” Rarity singsonged, before opening the door. He couldn’t help but notice that her smile turned a bit awkward at the sight of him… he couldn’t rightly blame her either, with what had happened the last time they had seen each other.

Jax gave her a playful smile, and for the heck of it bowed gracefully. “Lady Rarity. Good to see your magnificent smile this day.” Now that he was aware of it, he realized that making light of things was probably just his way of dealing with everything.

Rarity giggled and bashfully swung her hoof dismissively. “Oh please, Jax. A taken stallion shouldn’t say such things to other mares.”

Jax righted himself. “You’re right, it was silly of me. I didn’t mean to lead you on-“ he put a hand on his forehead in a dramatic pose. “-for my heart belongs to Luna, now and forevermore.”

Some more giggles escaped Rarity before she made room for him to enter. “As it should be. I hope I find my own prince soon as well… but come in, come in. You and your… entourage.” She gave his guards a look as he passed by her.

“You don’t have any customers?” He asked as he found his way to the sofa and table. He took off his cloak and laid it nearby, before sitting down.

“I haven’t had very many today darling, and I have none on my schedule. We should have some time to talk. I’m guessing you won’t say no to some of that tea you love so much, hmm?” She turned to his guards when he didn’t object. “But what about you fine gentlecolts? Tea? Water? Oh I should introduce myself, I apologize. My name is Rarity, owner of this, if I do say so myself, fine boutique.”

“A pleasure to meet you ma’am.” Trusty said at the same time as Shot said: “We cannot eat or drink while on the job ma’am.”

Trusty gave Shot a look before rolling his eyes. “While technically true, since we’re… hmm… accompanying Jax all day, we’ve agreed that one of us can take a break while the other... doesn’t.”

“No need to dance around the words, Trusty.” Jax offered. Hearing those pauses while he looked for words that wouldn’t offend could get a bit tiresome.

Trusty gave him a smile before looking back at Rarity. “And lo and behold, I haven’t had my break yet. I would love some tea, miss Rarity. Oh and just call me Trusty, everypony does, and this strict fellow is True Shot.” He gestured to Shot who looked ready to say something, but apparently thought better of it.

“Alright. I know I have some cookies around here somewhere as well, if Sweetie Belle hasn’t eaten them…” she went out to the kitchen, while Trusty sat down beside him, and Shot took a position at the back of the shop… presumably to have a better view of everything, but what did Jax know. He wasn’t a guard.

“I can get that off my bucket-list.” Trusty suddenly said from beside him.

“Hmm?”

“Getting to meet some of the Elements of Harmony. Equestria would be in big trouble without those six mares, you know. They didn’t have to do anything, they didn’t have any experience or training or anything, nothing but scraps of information to go on… yet they went and saved us all.” Trusty looked at him with a truly genuine smile. “And that is amazing. I just didn’t know how to get here and meet them without looking like some weirdo. So I’m glad I got this assignment.”

Jax gave a low chuckle. “Yeah, they are amazing alright.”

They sat in silence until Rarity came out with tea and cookies. “We are in luck gentlecolts, my little sister didn’t eat all of them.”

Jax took his cup and started blowing on his tea, while wondering how to start. “About yesterday…” he started. Rarity’s ears turned towards him before the rest of her head did. Funny he never noticed that before. “I’m sorry you had to see me like that. It was… it was a stressful night.”

Rarity dismissed his statement with a wave of a hoof. “Please darling, there is hardly anything to apologize for. Celestia knows that I act even worse when I get stressed, and I’ve never even been close to being possessed.” She took a moment to take a sip of her cup. “If anything you should be complimented on handling everything so well… though I am a bit curious, as to why I didn’t get yelled at like some of the others.” She gave him a look of curiosity.

Jax took a moment to sip the tea as well, but it was still too hot for him. “Well… you’ve been nothing but helpful. It seems like every time I see you, you help me in some fashion. Making all these clothes for me without getting any payment. I couldn’t think of any reason why I should yell at you.”

“That reminds me! I’m actually glad you came darling.” She rose and quickly made her way into her shop. She came back with…

“Is that a mannequin? Did you make it just because of me?” Two stupid questions, he realized. Of course it was a mannequin, seemed to be made with only him in mind. Honestly, how many humans were walking around besides him?

“But of course darling. It helps me visualize… but that’s not what you are supposed to focus on! Now that you are dating a Princess, I thought you would need something nice for those dates. What do you think?” She looked at him with that hopeful smile of pride that people had when they showed something they had spent a lot of time on.

There was no doubt she had reason to be proud. He walked over to the mannequin to take a closer look of the outfit on it. It was black with a white shirt underneath, and looked like a mix of old and new styles. It had the general shape of a suit but with elements of old styles, like the showy cape that was only attacked to half of the back. No gems in this one, but it seemed to be made from a soft green material, same colour as the tie… and Jax’ eyes. Somehow it just worked together.

He smiled brightly. “Working your magic yet again Rarity?”

“When inspiration hits you darling, you need to heed its call.” She winked at him. “And it’s always a pleasure to make clothes for you, Jax. Seeing my work being displayed every day and not just at social events is refreshing.

Jax laughed. “I’m sure. Anyway, a different reason I came here was actually to finally pay off that debt I owe you… and give you a gift for the trouble.” He sat down in front of her and took out his pouch and a rectangular box with a special item inside.

“Yes, I did hear that Filthy Rich finally has the pen out on the market. It’s good to see that you got paid already, and with the price he has put on them along with his patent you should be paid quite well.” She took another sip of her tea before smiling at him. “Well you promised to pay me back for all the clothes, and here we are. So the question is how much….” She looked down at the table in thought.

“… you have kept track right? I told you I was going to pay you back. And no crazy discounts either!” He warned her.

“Yes, yes darling, just let me…” she took out a piece of parchment, quill and ink, and started writing numbers on it. He wanted to give her her gift right then and there, but he held himself back. He didn’t want it to influence the price.

She looked up. “I’m giving you a thirty percent discount.” She told him with an expression that booked no argument.

“That’s… quite a lot.” He tried to argue anyway.

“Darling, in the months you have been here, I have made more clothes for you than most ponies buy in a lifetime. Not only that, but I have a feeling that you will be a regular here. So you get thirty percent.”

“Twenty.”

“Thirty.”

“Twenty five. Bits aren’t going to be a problem Rarity.”

“It’s not like they are a problem for me either. I am quite successful you know. Thirty this time, twenty five in the future.”

“… alright, deal. How much is it then?” Jax finally relented. This was so opposite. Normally he'd be asking for a bigger discount, not a smaller one.

“Well, the moonstones really threw the price up quite a bit, and counting materials and other fees, along with my usual working price… 490 bits”

Beside him, Trusty gave a low whistle. “That must have been quite the stack of clothes.”

“Actually… I need more. And as a side-question… what would it mean if I had Luna’s mark sewn into my clothes?” Jax started counting the bits.

“If you were a guard it would mean you serve her.” Trusty laughed. “Though that was an old tradition.”

“Nowadays, ponies mostly have their own cutie mark on their clothes, but I do believe there was a trend a few centuries back to have the cutiemark of you special somepony. As a sign of commitment, I believe.” Rarity took on a dreamy look, that turned into a shrewd smile. “You did say you would find a pattern for me to put on your clothes… is this what you have chosen?”

Jax pushed the right amount of bits over to her, which she ignored. “It is, if it really only means that. I can’t think of any pattern that means anything to me, but she means a lot. And I guess… it could be a bit romantic.” He tried to keep the blush away, but it came anyway. Saying such things were quite new to him.

Rarity’s sighed dreamily. “So romantic…” she shook herself of it, thankfully. “And did I hear that correctly? You want more clothes?”

Jax nodded. “While what I have now is enough to get by, it would make my life easier to have more. So… you have my measurements, I’ll let you keep surprising me… just don’t make anything with too much flair. And I’ll bring clothes so you can sew in Luna’s mark.”

Rarity’s smiled turned more excited by the second. Just before she opened her mouth to say something, he pushed the box over to her. “And here’s the gift I told you about.” He said as neutrally as possible, though a smile broke through despite his efforts.

She took the box in her aura and opened it. “Oh… my…” She looked at the pen within with her mouth slightly open. “Darling… do you realize how much this is worth?”

“All my appreciation for what you did for me? But seriously, thank you for everything, Rarity.” He smiled earnestly at her.

Her eyes started to water a bit, but she dried them quickly. She went around the table, to give him a heartfelt hug. “It was my pleasure darling.”

Author's Note

Long ago I promised some changelings in the story, and not so long ago I promised a changeling band, but I need to straighten out some stuff here first... so read this if you need to satisfy your changeling needs: The Village Called Respite. It's really good, and the author updates regularly, which if you know me, you know I find that to be a big plus XD
Thanks to Dj7291993 for the arrow in the knee joke, can't believe I didn't think of that XD
Other than that... forgive my bad pony names XD I know they don't have to be so straightforward, I just happen to like that they can be and that would be considered completely normal in that world XD

Oh, by the way, I am going on vacation in a couple of days and I don't know how much time I'll have to write while visiting Japan XD so next chapter might be very delayed, just a heads up.
I also failed one of my exams, so I'll have to redo it. Damn...

Chapter 60

Jax had just left the bank when he received a friendly punch on the shoulder. Rainbow Dash was hovering beside him with a crooked smile. The blue sky behind her almost camouflaged her, though her coat was a bit lighter. Of course her rainbow coloured hair ruined it as well.

He turned around to his guards. “Magnificent work there guys. She just flew right over here and assaulted me!” He said in mock indignation.

“There’s no need to start yelling at ponies again. You did enough of that last night.” Rainbow sounded more serious than he had ever heard her. He turned to see her frown at him. “Have you apologized yet?”

“… I’m sorry. I wasn’t in the right state of -“

“Not to me! Twilight, Applejack, Pinkie, Princess Luna and your friend… Beating Heart? You can’t just treat your friends like that and not at least apologize.” She sounded so strict, Jax actually flinched a little.

“I know. I’m making the rounds… I apologized to Luna and Rarity… and you so far. I will make it to all of them, don’t worry.” He should have foreseen that Rainbow would be protective of her friends. Element of Loyalty and all that.

Her gaze softened a bit, before she punched him again. “Good. I know it’s not easy on you, but you have to treat your friends right.”

Jax was about to comment on his guards ability to guard him again, but decided to focus on the problem instead. “Yeah… you’re right Rainbow.” He started walking, and she hovered along. “And I will.”

Rainbow finally smiled again. “Great. I gotta say, that took me by surprise yesterday. I almost smacked you in the face when you turned to Fluttershy.” She laughed. “You’re lucky you didn’t say anything.”

“With some of you there was just nothing to say… Pinkie and Beating deserved my outburst the least though, so I’ll make my way to them first.”

“Sounds good. Hey I have nothing to do today, mind if I come with?” He really didn’t want other ponies around when he apologized but… he sneaked a peek at his guards. What’s one more pony to a party?

“Uhmm… alright.” He answered with some hesitation.

“Yesss!” She hoofpumped. “Let’s do this!”

He couldn’t help but laugh at her enthusiasm. “Calm down Rainbow! We’re just going around apologizing. Not the best ‘hang out’ activity if you ask me.”

“Yeah, but we were supposed to hang out today - you know, with the schedule that we’re not following anymore because you’re under guard - so I planned a bunch of stuff! Let’s get all this apologizing out of the way and get to it!”

He couldn’t help but laugh again despite her bluntness. The words ‘under guard’ send a pang of annoyance through him that he ignored. “True, I was with Celestia last week. Alright, let’s get to it.”

As they made their way towards Beating’s house, Jax thought of something he had wanted to ask Rainbow for a while. “Hey Rainbow? You’re not friends with Discord are you?”

Rainbows smile turned into confusion. “Discord? No, of course not.”

Jax blinked. “You say that as if it should be obvious.”

She looked around, before flying a bit closer. She was suddenly completely serious. “Fluttershy might be able to forgive him as if he didn’t stab us all in the back, but I remember how easy it was for him.” She was speaking so low she was almost whispering. “I saw the look on his face when he sided with Tirek and locked us in a cage, how little he really cared. Fluttershy cried right in front of him, and all he had to say was ‘surely you saw this coming.’” Jax saw her clench her jaw in anger. The look in her eyes was fierce. “She trusted him completely, and that was how he repaid her!” Jax looked back at his guards. Shot looked ahead with a blank look that he couldn’t read, but Trusty looked very interested. He looked back at Rainbow when she started talking again. “That’s why I’m not, and will not be, friends with him. I don’t befriend traitors.” She said with a certain finality. “Everypony deserves a second chance, I really do believe that. But Discord had his second chance and he blew it. Everypony else wants to give him a third chance, even Fluttershy, but I don’t.”

Jax continued walking thoughtfully. Rainbow had a point - how many chances did someone deserve? On the other hand, he had met Discord, and he seemed… different from how he seemed in Twilight’s books. Maybe she was biased, and wrote him as she saw him, a jokester who wanted nothing but to have fun. But the conversation he had had with him in the hospital after Rainbow had thrown herself in front of Jax seemed so… mature. Rainbow didn’t even know that he had removed the residual crystal from her so she didn’t have to suffer when she woke.

“Did you though?” He finally asked her. She looked confused. “Give him a second chance I mean. It seems from the books Twilight wrote like Fluttershy is the only one he befriended.”

“Of course I-!” she started almost angrily, then stopped looking almost puzzled. She looked ahead, as they kept moving forward, seemingly deep in thought. He kept walking beside her, letting her think.

When they arrived at Beating’s house, he rang the doorbell. Then he rang it again. At the third time, a muffled answer sounded from inside. “For Celestia’s sake! Nobody’s home!”

He hesitated, unsure whether to intrude when she sounded like she wasn’t in the mood for guests. Then he rang the bell again. After all, he could be the reason that she was in a bad mood in the first place, so he was willing to take the chance of her ire. He deserved it anyway after the way he acted.

The door was ripped open, and Beating stuck out her head looking ready to kill whoever had disturbed whatever she was doing. Her gaze softened when she saw him.

“Hey Beating.” He said, maybe a bit bashfully. He was having a hard time meeting her eyes. He kept thinking about the night before. ‘I’m not sure what you’re doing here, but fuck you anyway!’ He shivered, hopefully unnoticeably.

“Hey… Jax.” She looked past him at his guards. “What’s going on?” She sounded alarmed.

He smiled. “Just came by to see my favourite nurse. You have time?”

She nodded, but still looked somewhat unsure. She made room for them and he, Rainbow Dash and his two… guards entered.

“Sorry to bother you. It sounded like you had something going.” He said as they entered the living room.

“Oh. It was a long night yesterday, and I have the night shift at the hospital, so I was just trying to catch some sleep.” If she was as tired as she sounded, then Jax sympathised with her. He knew what it was like to be tired.

“Ah… sorry then. I thought maybe you were in a bad mood because of… well me.” He sat down on the couch, Trusty and Shot taking positions somewhere behind him, and Rainbow sitting beside him. “Listen, about yesterday…” Beating sat down on an armchair opposite him, and looked at him attentively. “I’m sorry about what I said. You didn’t deserve to be lashed out at like that, and I shouldn’t have done so, despite all that had happened.”

Beating nodded, and then smiled for the first time since he had come. It was a small smile, and you could still see how tired she was, but it made him feel much better regardless. “I’m happy that you came all the way over here to apologize Jax. It honestly bothered me more than it should have, when I knew how much you’ve been through. Honestly… I feel a little unsure about our friendship sometimes.” She looked a bit bashful when she said it. Jax felt a tight knot in the pit of his stomach at her words. Had he really been that bad of a friend? Didn’t she want to be friends anymore? “I mean,” she went on “I don’t have many friends as it is. It wasn’t a problem when I had Gerald, my husband, but when he passed away…” Jax faintly remembered a conversation where Beating told him about her griffon husband. “I’ve been having some trouble making new ones. So I was happy that we could become friends, Jax.” She scraped at the chair beneath her, looking unsure of herself. She lowered her gaze. “But you’ve been spending so much time with the elements of harmony, and I don’t feel like I can compete with them. I already feel like I’ve been very proactive in trying to meet with you but… mostly it doesn’t work out. Either you aren’t home or… well, last night happened. And then you spend the whole day with one of them and I get a little bit more unsure of myself.”

“Beating-“ Was all he could say before she raised a hoof.

“I know. I know, logically, that it isn’t like that. Things happen in Ponyville and somehow you got caught up in it without meaning to. But then I think about how you used to visit with Princess Luna, and I feel a little… lonely.“ She looked up at him, and he could see all of her emotions clearly, in a way that only a ponies large eyes could show him. He opened his mouth to say something, anything to make her feel better, when she continued. “I’m not trying to guilt you or anything, it’s just…” She folded her ears and looked down at the carpet. “I’m doing alright, aren’t I?”

“You don’t need to try so hard.” All eyes in the room turned to Rainbow Dash. She had a serious look in her eyes that made her look older than Jax normally thought of her. “Friendship isn’t like that. Jax is your friend, and nopony is going to take that away. If it bothers you that much, agree on a day to meet on weekly. That’s how Rarity and Fluttershy work it out.”

“Hey, that’s actually a good idea!” Jax realized that maybe he shouldn’t sound so surprised. “When do you have time Beating? Moonday night is reserved for Luna, but other than that I should be free.”

Beating blinked at him. “Moonday?”

Jax nodded. “Moonday.” He said with finality.

She blinked a couple of more times, before she smiled. “Of course. Let me get my calendar.”

She retrieved it from its place on the wall and looked through it. “If I don’t get called to work, I think Wednesdays generally works fine for me. Around four?”

Jax nodded. “Works for me.” He said as he got up. “Well, I should let you get your rest before your shift, and I’ve got some other ponies I need to apologize to as well. Sorry for waking you Beating Heart.”

“Of course.” She moved over to him and he leaned down so they could hug. She seemed to be in a much better mood, which was a relief. Jax felt some of the guilt lessen, though it was still there, like a constant tension in shoulders.

“See you Wednesday then.”

***

They were walking down the street, towards Sugarcube Corner, where Pinkie was most likely to be, when Rainbow flew up in front of him. “I guess you’re right. I never really accepted that Discord was good, and I always mistrusted him, waiting for him to do what he did…” she looked like she would rather not say the next words, “and I guess that could have been a reason to why he did it. Maybe if I had been his friend the same way Fluttershy was, he wouldn’t have… done what he did.” She turned her muzzle away. “So I guess… I should give him a real chance to prove himself.”

Jax’ surprised face slowly turned to a smiling one. “That’s really big of you Rainbow, wanting to give him a chance despite your feelings.”

She waved his compliment away. “I should have done it from the beginning. I was so busy being afraid that he’d hurt Fluttershy that I never even considered it, at least not really.” They started going forward again. “You know, when he gave us over to Tirek, all I could think was ‘I knew it. He should have stayed as a statue.’ But now that I think about it… being a statue couldn't have been that fun.”

“No, I believe you’re right. I feel like there’s a pun here somewhere… all I can think is ‘it must be stoney,’ though, which doesn’t even make sense.” He looked thoughtfully ahead.

“I think ‘it must be hard,’ would be better.” Rainbow looked at him with the most serious expression, not befitting the conversation at all. “Because stones are hard?”

It wasn’t that funny, but Rainbow’s seriousness just made him burst out laughing.

“What are we laughing at?!” Pinkie was suddenly in his face in typical Pinkie fashion.

Which of course surprised him. “Whoa!” He let out as he tried to stop himself from walking into the mare, tripping over his own feet in the process and ending up falling painfully on his rear.

“Hey Pinkie.” Rainbow gave a nod to the mare as if she had strolled over like a normal pony.

“Hiya Rainbow! What were you talking about?” She asked with her usual cheer.

“Just Discord and rocks, I guess. We were actually on our way to see you.”

Jax rolled his eyes at their casual conversation as he raised himself from the ground. That would leave a bruise.

“Ohh, I wish Maud was here. She knows aaaaaaall about rocks. Not so much Discord though. I know! I should totally introduce them! They’d have so much fun!”

“Yes you should.” Jax cut in, not really sure who Maud was. “But let me just start by apologizing for yesterday. You didn’t deserve to be lashed out at and I’m sorry I did it.” He hurried through the apology because he was afraid she was going to cut him off if he took too long. It almost always felt like Pinkie was in high gear, and everything around her happened too slowly for her.

Her smile turned devious. “Well… you’re in luck! It just so happens that I have the day off and I need somepony to prank with. Normally I just ask Rainbow, but the more the merrier!” She threw out her hooves like she had just invited him to the best thing ever, her eyes big and expectant.

Jax looked at her, then at Rainbow, then at his two guards. Rainbow had a crooked smile, looking ready for some action, Shot still had an expression of steel, while Trusty looked almost excited.

He turned to Pinkie again. “Can we invite Discord?”

Author's Note

Hey hey! I'm back! XD And even though I'm stressed with reexam, my moms wedding, my best friends birthday and not studying to the reexam because I'm playing Dark Souls 2... I managed to write this for you :3 I'm disappointed how few updates I had over the weeks, so I thought I better set a good example XD (had 3, over two stories... from the same author.)
Anyway, Japan was Awesome! XD We did all the things I said we would (Ghibli museum, akihabara and even a maid cafe, and in the end an Onsen (hotspring) ) and more. My favorite was the Onsen, nice and relaxing XD First we took a nice bath in the private one you can reserve, then later I went to the public one alone. It was late, so I had it all to myself, and it was open which was nice. The only thing that could have made it better was if the stars were out that night :3
Nataniel, I tried to buy the thing you said, but the seperated toe just feels weird to me XD thanks anyway ;)
In any case, I could rabble on about japan and how nice it was, but I don't want this AN to be too long XD

Chapter 61 (unedited)

They made their way over to Twilight for two reasons: Jax still needed to apologize to her, and Twilight could summon Discord.

‘Fuck you for being a judgemental bitch.‘ Although Pinkie and Beating deserved his yelling the least, Jax still felt his gut cramp up at the memory of Twilight’s eyes widen before she flinched away from him. He had a feeling he really hit a soft spot with that. Everything about that night seemed like a horrible, horrible nightmare.

‘If you had let me take over, you would not have to do this.’ Sombra informed him, sounding very much like he was sulking. Funnily enough, it seemed like he was finally able to differentiate between his own thoughts and Sombra’s ‘talk’. Sombra just felt different.

‘Listen here, sulKing Sombra…’ he felt like he should high five somebody with that insult. Subtle and original. ‘I ain’t about to regret anything just because I have to give an apology to a few ponies. And after I’m done, I’m gonna go out and prank like I’ve never pranked before… which is actually a pretty good description since I’ve never actually tried to prank anybody.’

‘… I’m not sulking….’ Wow, he really was sulking. What the hell happened to him? Did he really put his everything into that plan and was now out of ideas?... Oh god that would be nice. ‘You, walking around apologizing to everything you meet is just boring. Do something exciting.’

‘Are you serious? I’m going out to prank some poor entity with the Spirit of Chaos and some veteran pranksters. Have some patience.’

No answer came, and they were nearing the castle, so Jax let it go.

‘Except… Wait…’ Jax stopped as a thought occurred to him. Why was he being so friendly with Sombra? He should be furious - this was the pony who refused to let him sleep much for a week, took over his body when he finally managed to sleep, made him doubt whether his thoughts were his or not. He shouldn’t tell him to be patient, he should tell him to shut the fuck up and settle down. He should yell out all his frustration at what he went through at him, not at his friends as he had done.

A memory came to mind, of a mare with a face so perfect it looked like a mask. Sombra’s mom looked at him with a perfectly trained face, at least until he says something she doesn’t want to hear - then that mask is ripped off to show her true colours.

‘Stop it…’

Jax couldn’t help but wonder if he received that beating that was promised to him. Sombra hadn’t come home that night, so it must have been pretty bad. How could they beat up their own son like that….

Jax knew exactly how… since he had experienced the same thing. He understood exactly how it felt like to not feel safe in your own home. That was why he couldn’t bring himself to be mad at Sombra, despite what-

‘I SAID STOP IT!’ Sombra’s anger radiated out from the thought like a bomb. ‘We are nothing like each other, human, I’ve seen the thoughts you try so hard to forget. Your father may have raised his hoof against you now and again in a drunken rage, but that is nothing against the indignant rage of the Captain of the Crystal Guard teaching his son a lesson!’ Jax barely noticed Pinkie and Rainbow looking at him in worry. He had trouble breathing. ‘You know nothing of pain, true pain, you who had a family! A mother who loved you, and a brother who looked up to you for what you did for him! You’ve always known what it felt like to be loved, you only let your own suffering drag on because of your own weakness. If you had not pretended everything to be fine, you would have received help much sooner… Everypony knew what I was going through… they KNEW… and nopony did a thing….’ The rage was subsided for something much more vulnerable. ‘I only ever had myself, and for most of my life I lied to myself, told myself that I was okay, that everything would be fine. The day I accepted that it wouldn’t - that I was broken and couldn’t be fixed - was the day I became free. So do not compare us. We are nothing alike.’

“I’m fine.” He answered his friends, though he wasn’t sure what they had said. He could finally breathe properly, now that a rage that wasn’t his own stopped storming inside of him.

Suddenly he felt a sharp pain in his shoulder, getting him completely out of the weird state he was in. He looked up at the one who had hit him. “I wish you would stop doing that Rainbow. Three times in a day is a bit too much.”

“And I wish you would stop shutting us out.” Rainbow answered with her hooves crossed. “I thought a little pain would help you learn a lesson you should already know. ‘I’m fine’ is what you say when somepony asks you if you want tea, not when you look like you’re having a panic attack.”

“Alright… alright” He looked around quickly, but it looked like everypony was minding their own business, most of them giving them a wide berth. He lowered his voice. “I just… I had a conversation with Sombra. He… gave me some memories yesterday in the forest, and I just thought that I could relate… but he disagreed.”

Rainbow and Pinkie shared a look. “Why would you want to-“ Rainbow started but was cut off by Pinkie.

“Well I think that’s great!” She said with her usual cheer. “If I had somepony to share a body with I would be super happy to have something in common. Plus having something in common is the first step to becoming friends!” She pointed at Rainbow. “Like me and Rain-Rain-“

“I told you not to call me that!”

“- both love an innocent prank from time to time! But it can also be something simple like, most ponies like cupcakes!” She took out a cupcake from her mane and ate it. In one bite. “And I love cupcakes! And cake… and muffins… and cream puffs… and-“

“Alright Pinkie, but I’m not exactly trying to become friends with him.” Jax argued.

‘Even if you did, I would not want you as a friend. A king does not need friends.’

Pinkie looked mystified. “Why not?”

For a moment Jax was confused whether she meant why he didn’t want Sombra as a friend or why Sombra thought kings didn’t need friends, but then he remembered that Pinkie couldn’t hear Sombra. Unless she could read his mind of course, and… well he was at least 50% sure she couldn’t.

“Well let’s see here… he almost killed Scootaloo, he almost killed me, he-“ He started counting off on his fingers.

“Yeah but that’s all in the past!” Pinkie cheered. “Sombra is a new and improved pony! I bet he’s bursting to make friends!”

…

What?

‘This Pony is clearly out of her mind…’ Sombra contributed.

He exchanged a glance with Rainbow, who looked just as sceptical. “What makes you say that?” He finally asked.

Pinkie shrugged. “I ‘unno. It’s not exactly my Pinkie sense… it’s just a feeling I have. I mean, he hasn’t bothered you for a while, right?”

‘Pinkie Sense?’ He wasn’t sure whether it was him or Sombra who thought it, but he wasn’t going to ask what that was. It sounded like it made some kind of sense: Pinkie sense.

God that was awful. Anyway. “A couple of hours of peace doesn’t exactly make me optimistic….” He moved to look at Rainbow again, but realized he had an opportunity to use her new name, which was too good to pass up. “What do you think, Rain-Rain?” He smirked at her, not even caring that he wouldn’t get an answer.

He ducked just in time to get out of the way of her hoof. “Now Rain-Rain, don’t overreact!” He couldn’t help but laugh madly as he tried to get the words out.

“You’re only making it worse for yourself!” Rainbow moved a little faster this time, but she was obviously holding herself back. He wasn’t sure how long that was going to last, but luckily his reflexes allowed him to duck right next to his Trusty guard. Without further ceremony, Jax picked up Trusty and held him between himself and Rainbow. He was surprisingly heavy, but the thought of protection against Rainbows anger gave him strength. “I have a guard and I’m not afraid to use him!” Trusty looked back at him with a somewhat weird expression. Half amused, half indignified? Something like that. “You wouldn’t hit a guard, would you, Rain-Rain? That’s a crime!” At least Jax assumed so.

‘By the shadows…’ Jax had a feeling Sombra was facehooving, if he could do that in his current state.

To his horror, Rainbow smiled… it was not a pleasant smile. “I was holding back Jax… but I see now I was being too nice. Get ready to feel the thunder!”

The true horror started when she started to fly around him (and Trusty) with enough speed to get a wind going… it wasn’t hurricane levels, but if she as much as touched him with that speed, he would probably die. “Rainbow Dash… let’s not…” he tried to swallow but he had a lump in his throat. “Let’s not turn this teasing session into murder…” He laughed nervously. Surely she wouldn’t…

“Rainbow?”

Only a maniacal laughter answered him.

“Rainbow?!”

She finally swept in so fast he could barely see her, coming straight towards him, and he had no time to even think about getting Trusty between them.

Of all the ways he thought he would die, being killed by Rainbow Dash over a joke wasn’t one of them.

***

“I said I was sorry!” Rainbow apologised for the fifth time. “How was I supposed to know that that could kill you?”

Jax kept trudging towards the castle. It was close by now. “Rainbow, sorry is something you say after you spill some tea on somebody’s sofa. If Pinkie hadn’t interfered, I would have been a blood-stain on a wall.” He wasn’t exaggerating either. Rainbow had gathered a lot of speed going in circles around them.

Rainbow flew in front of him. “Well what do you want me to say? A pony would have survived without problems, and it’s not like you’ve told us you were made of glass!”

“What… really?”

Pinkie appeared next to Rainbow. “Yupperino! It takes a lot more than a little shove to kill a pony! You were lucky my Pinkie Sense went off.” She smiled at him.

‘I cannot believe you are so easy to kill. Good thing I would not die with you.’ Sombra added.

Jax sighed. The near-death experience had shocked him, since it went so fast from teasing to almost dying. Lesson learned, Rain-Rain was officially a no-go.

He took a deep breath. “Alright… I’m sorry too Rainbow. I shouldn’t call you something you don’t like. And sorry for using you as a shield Trusty.”

‘Instead of apologizing you should use this opportunity to get something from her...’

‘This is the mare that jumped in front of the crystal that would have pierced my heart. I’m never going to manipulate her like that.’ He made his ‘voice’ hard as steel.

“I’ll forgive you this time.” Trusty answered.

“Alright, now that that’s over with we can finally speak with Twilight.” Rainbow all but barrelled down the door to the castle.

***

They found Twilight in the library section of the castle, which in and of itself wasn’t a big surprise. She liked books, after all. What was surprising was that she seemed to be sleeping. She was drooling all over a heavy tome, something Awake Twilight would frown heavily upon.

“Hey guys!” Spike called out from his bed made of books - something Awake Twilight would probably also frown upon. “What brings you to the library?”

Jax exchanged glances with his companions but it looked like he was the one who had to explain the situation. “We were looking for Twilight actually. Do you think she has had enough sleep, or should we come back later?”

Spike looked dubious at Twilight, then back at him. “The last time she slept was the night before you went crazy-“ His eyes widened, no doubt because of the hurt expression Jax accidently showed. “I uhm, I mean, since the night… since the night before last night, and she only fell asleep a few hours ago. I’d give her a little more time, if it’s not urgent.”

Another glance exchange and shrug later, and they made their way out. There were more people to apologize to, after all.

‘I cannot believe you want to waste so much time.’ A grumpy Sombra informed him.

He was ignored.

***

They made their way to Fluttershy first, who accepted his apology without any fuss. Rainbow wanted to stick around it seemed, but grudgingly went with them when they left even though Jax informed her she could stay and they would get her.

Applejack was next, and she swept it away with a hoof “You were under a lot of stress sugarcube, Ah understand.”

They were on their way out, when Big Mac stepped in front of them. Jax could feel his smile disappearing, but forced it to stay. He was being unfair to the red stallion in front of him, none of what happened was his fault. “Hey Big Mac.” He tried to sound cheery but… eh.

“Can Ah talk with ya?” Big Mac asked, his eyes swiping over his rather large group. “In private?”

“I… don’t actually know.” Jax turned to Trusty. “Can he?”

Trusty raised a hoof to his chin, but it was True Shot that answered. “As long as we can see you, there shouldn’t be a problem.” He did sound a tiny bit more relaxed than usual, but it still sounded monotone.

“Alright. Let’s go outside.” He tried to keep his tone warm, but he couldn’t really. It’s not that he didn’t like Big Mac - he barely knew him after all - it was because a part of him blamed him for being possessed by Sombra. Logically he knew that he shouldn’t, but emotionally he saw Big Mac lit up by lightning the night he had come and ruined what little of a life Jax had managed to build. It was ridiculous, the only one to blame was Sombra. But Sombra didn’t really have a face of his own….

They arrived in the orchard, in view of everypony, but far enough away that they wouldn’t hear a word. Big Mac looked at them a bit nervously, obviously meaning private as in just the two of them in the same room, but he didn’t say anything. He just swallowed.

It was on the verge of becoming awkward, so Jax decided to take the lead. “Listen, I’m sorry about being less than friendly towards you…” One more apology to the list, it seemed. Jax was getting pretty good at it.

“That’s fine.” Big Mac said, looking at the ground beneath him. “What you saved me from-“ He shuddered visibly. “Ah can’t thank ya enough Jax, yet as mah sister had ta remind me, Ah haven’t even thanked ya once.” He took a deep breath, and exhaled. “If not for you, Ah would have that young fillies blood on my hooves. Ah’m… Ah’m not sure Ah would be able ta live with that.” He looked straight into Jax’ eyes with a sincerity that made Jax lean back a bit. “So thank ya. Ah know it hasn’t been easy on ya… so if there’s anything ya need, just ask.”

Jax nodded slowly, unsure what to say to something so sincere. “Sure.” Looking around awkwardly, at a lack of words, his eyes fell on the group behind him. “Hey, we’re actually going pranking after I’ve finished apologizing to everypony. You wanna come with?”

Big Mac gave him a light smile. “Pranking really ain’t my thing. Besides, Ah have more work to do on the farm. Maybe we can do something else some other time?”

Jax smiled back. “Sure. I’d like that.”

***

After the little run-in with Big Mac, Jax decided he might as well be thorough and send a letter to Celestia as well. She had been there and she had taken the brunt of his anger no matter how gracefully she took it. She deserved an apology as well. They went through the orchard towards his house, with the intent of writing a letter there, and either give it to Spike to send when they made it back to Twilight’s castle, or send it to Luna with Spike’s gift and have her deliver it.

When they made it to his house, he noticed something he should have noticed just by looking out of a window, or at the very least while he was coming out of it. There were two rather large tents set up behind his home, one with Celestia’s mark on both sides, the other with Luna’s. It didn’t take a genius to figure out what these were… it also meant that he had another chance to introduce himself to his guards, at least the night version of them.

With a tired smile, he went into his home to write yet another apology. Maybe his friends could help him word it.

He looked back at Rainbow and Pinkie. 'They may not be wordsmiths but… ah whatever. It would be fine.'

He felt Sombra scoff.

Author's Note

I wanted it to be longer but... It's aready late, so here you are XD Lot's of good jokes here, I'm sure you agree XD If not, I wonder how you got this far XD
If I can make it happen, the pranks start next chapter ^^
Midnight Blossom was editing the chapter when her computer died :( unfortunate... hopefully it can be fixed.

Chapter 62 (unedited)

Jax sat by his dinner table with parchment in front of him and a pen in his hand. They had eaten an early dinner not long ago, made by Pinkie Pie. He would have to remember to buy more groceries, but that could wait. Right now he needed to write this apology.

“Can’t you just write ‘I’m sorry’ and get it over with? Come on, I’m sure Twi is already up.” Rainbow’s input was as helpful as ever.

Pinkie bounced around the table. “Yeah! We’ve already spent so much time apologizing to ponies, we’ll barely have time to apologize to them again after we prank them!”

“Well, I want to get this right. Just… help me out here. I got ‘Dear Celestia’ so far. Does that sound too formal?” He scratched his head. Why was it so hard for him to write letters?

“What? No. Twilight writes ‘Dear Celestia’ at the beginning of every letter. Every letter to Celestia at least.” Rainbow said.

Alright, so he was on the right track at least. Here goes.

***

“Add a drawing!” Pinkie shoved him aside to draw something with crayons. Where did she get the crayons from? Who knew.

“Pinkie, I hardly think… ah whatever.” He started drawing as well. It would give it a more personal feeling when he wasn’t going to apologize muzzle to muzzle. Eh, face to face. Face to muzzle? Whatever.

“Hey! Let me in on the action.” Rainbow shouldered her way in between them and started drawing a rainbow over the landscape.

Jax snorted. “Well if that’s what we’re going for…” he started drawing ponies.

In the end he added a moon on the other side of sun Pinkie had drawn, just for good measure. It didn’t have the right silver colour, but crayons can only do so much. “Alright, let’s send it.”

Trusty, who had mostly looked on passively until then, made a face. “You can’t send that to Princess Celestia!”

“I beg to… the… differ. Damn how did that go.” Jax looked at his companions as he folded the letter.

“I beg to differ.” Shot answered. “But I agree with Trust Worthy for once. Sending… that… is unacceptable.” He said ‘that’ with something close to disgust.

“Heey!” Pinkie sounded offended. “This will be the best letter she has received in years! It’s personalized and everything, much better than those boooring letters Twilight usually sends!”

Trusty turned to Shot. “What say you, True Shot? Isn’t sending this letter something Sombra could do?”

Shot looked back with his stony face. “We have no evidence against it… better safe than sorry.”

That was all the warning Jax got before the two guards jumped at him, pinning him down. Of all the times for them to agree on something….

It was amazing they were willing to go so far, but really, this was too much. He couldn’t see what the problem was, the letter was okay. The drawing made up for the lack of words. ”Pinkie!” He managed to throw it, well as well as one could throw anything with a hoof on one’s arm, before the letter they had worked so hard on could be snatched.

“Got it!” Pinkie cheered as she swooped the letter up and avoided the guards that chased after her. “Catch Dashie!”

Jax hurridly got up to write a quick explanation to Luna but the letter landed right in front of him, and with it two guards. Two very determined guards.

***

“Throw it here!” Rainbow shouted.

“Divide and conquer!” Trusty shouted over the noise.

Jax tried furtively to string together words to form a sentence explaining the situation to Luna but….

“For fucks sake!” He managed to shout before Trusty collided with him.

***

“His leg! Pull his leg!” Pinkie shouted to Rainbow.

“Pinkie! Not my leg!” Jax shouted when he felt himself being pulled further from the dragonfire that was so close to him.

“Oops, sorry!”

***

“For Equestria! For Princess Celestia!” True Shot declared as he held up the letters in his hoof. Big mistake.

“Hah!” Rainbow laughed mockingly as she flew by, swipping the letters from him. “For awesomeness and glory!” Her eyes widened as she got tackled mid-air by Trusty. “You better get it this time Jax!” She shouted as she threw everything over to him.

“Oh don’t worry… I will.” He said with grim determination. Shot was already charging him… but he could do this. Nay, he MUST do this!

“Ahhhh!” He screamed as he charged the jar of green fire.

***

Luna was slowly waking up, but not by her own will. Somepony was poking her, and that somepony was about to learn what it meant to poke a sleeping Princess.

She charged her horn as she rose fast enough to cause the pokster to shriek and retire backwards. “You dare poke a Pr-!” She almost made it through the drawled sentence when she realized just how tangled in blankets she was. “Uff.” Luckily she landed on the bed.

“I-I-I’m so sorry Princess! It’s just that I-I’ve been trying to wake you for the better part of a quarter, a-a-and you have that appointment…” Moondancer stopped at Luna’s raised hoof. It was too early….

She unwrapped herself from the blanket-trap with magic and then looked around. Her room looked the same as always, except her desk was overflowing with papers from last night, which she had dropped the moment the news of her Jax had reached her. She would have to get back to that… later. For now she remembered why she had had Moondancer wake her earlier than usual. She needed to meet with Slow Healing, the psychologist from Ponyville who had helped Jax let go of Luna when he could not, before she closed.

Actually there was something different in her room. There were two pieces of parchment on her bed that were not there when she went to sleep. She took them in her aura and instantly smiled as she realized they were from Jax. Then she started reading and her muzzle scrunched in confusion. Some of it seemed to be written in crayon, and all of it looked rushed.

Hello dear Luna

I hop yore wel (I hope you’re well? Some of the letters looked like smudges)

Im goo Since you used meas postoune (I’m good. Since you used me as post once - at least that is what she thought it said.)

Make sur tis get to CeleTia (Make sure this gets to Celestia? Now he was skipping letters entirely?)

A peculiar letter… it did not look like he needed help or he would probably ask for it and it was not the ‘vibe’ she felt from the letter but… she would have to stop by Jax’ house before she returned to the castle.

She looked at the remaining folded piece of parchment. It was singed at the corners, and she could not help to be a little curius.

“Moondancer.” Moondancer, who had been looking at her curiously, straightened up. “Where is my sister?”

“Oh… uhm… I think she should be in her study. She doesn’t eat dinner until you wake up and open court has been over for a while.”

“Alright. We have to see her before we depart. The train does not leave for a little while, right?”

“Yes Princess. I think we can make it, if it doesn’t take too long.”

***

Luna opened the door to Celestia’s study. For a moment she wondered why she did not have a study of her own, but then discarded the thought. Having a desk in her room was more than adequate for now, considering she did not have any books or documents to fill a study with. Maybe someday.

“Sister. I bring news from my chosen mate. He wishes you to have this letter.” She smiled as Celestia raised a brow from behind her desk. The study was large, in a spacious way, with bookshelves by the circular walls. Luna was not entirely sure why her sister had chosen to make a round room in the middle of the castle, but it reminded her of her own study back in the Castle of the Two Sisters. The reason hers had been circular was because it was in a tower, which this was definitely not.

“Good m… afternoon Luna. You’re up early I see. What’s the occasion?” Celestia greeted as she accepted the slightly burned parchment.

“I am going to Ponyville to meet with Slow Healing. I am setting up an appointment.”

Celestia paused with opening the folded letter. “Slow Healing is… a psychologist, as far as I recall? I seem to remember Jax using her facilities.”

Luna nodded, though her sister’s eyes were still on the letter. “Your memory is as remarkable as always, Tia. Yes, I have decided to finally follow your advice and try a couple of sessions.”

When Celestia raised her eyes to Luna, it was with a smile so honest and full of feeling that Luna was momentarily taken aback. Celestia laughed, but her eyes looked tearful. “That’s amazing Luna!” Celestia said as she got up and went around the desk, the letter all but forgotten. “Let me guess, Jax had something to do with it?” She did not waste any time to pull Luna into a heartfelt hug.

“Should… should I come back later?” Moondancer asked from the side-line, clearly uncomfortable.

“Oh… I do not know how much Jax had to do with it. I thought about it while searching for him in the Everfree, and decided that it was the right thing to do….” She left out what kind of thoughts had led her to that conclusion. “It cannot hurt to give it a chance.” She added with a slight smile.

“No. No it can’t.” Celestia let go of her, and went back to her seat. “I keep being amazed at the changes he brings out in you. I have never been happier that he landed in our dimension….” She finally opened the letter and smiled joyously a moment after. “Oh Jax…”

Luna curiously took the letter from her. Unlike her own letter, it as neatly as Jax’ could write, with a constant black ink. This was then undermined by the drawing that served as a background, sometimes even making it hard to discern the letters. In one corner was a sun, in the other her moon, or at least she assumed it was her moon. On a green field different ponies were… well they seemed to be partying. It was clear that different ponies had helped draw it, since some of the ponies looked mostly like stick figures, and others looked fairly decent, or at least not as bad. One of the stick ponies seemed to be the dj, and the rest either danced, drank, or enjoyed some game. Over it all, Rainbow Dash left her rainbow trail.

Dear Celestia

I would like to inform you that I have apologized for my outburst last night to most of the present ponies.

I would like to extend that apology to you. You, like all the other ponies there, did not deserve to see me lose it like that, and you personally didn’t warrant the focus of my wrath.

I’m sorry. I have an abundance of excuses, but I think I’ll save them. I think you understand in any case, that I wasn’t at my best.

Kind regards

Your sister’s boy-toy

Luna could not help but smile while she shook her head. He just could not resist the allure of a joke, could he? Despite the words being misleading, as far as she knew, she could not help but finding it endearing.

“He is not my… boy-toy.” She made sure to clear up, but looking at Celestia’s mischievous smile, that might have been a mistake.

“Oh? I don’t mind if he is, dear sister of mine, as long as you use the advice I gave you-“

A shiver ran through her body as she grabbed a confused Moondancer and made it out of the study in a dash. It was bad enough she could not look at bananas the same way again, she did not need another demonstration. It was better to disappear before Celestia had any weird ideas. At least she had confirmed Luna’s understanding of the word ‘boy-toy.’

Now… why had she decided to go with train instead of using her very own chariot that she almost never used? Ah… well last time had been fine. Maybe this time would be as well.

***

Jax finally made it back to the tree-castle of friendship, walking the walk of a triumphant man, greeting everyone on his path with a large smile, wave, and greeting. It was amazing how his mood had improved from wrestling over a letter with his own guards. He had been victorious, and that was all that mattered. Beside him Rainbow seemed to share his sentiment and good mood, and Pinkie was of course always in a good mood as far as he knew. Behind him, his guards walked the walk of shame, as they should. Trying to keep that perfectly fine letter out of Celestia’s hooves… shame on them!

“Hey Derpy! Be careful with that mailbox!” He cheerfully greeted a gray Pegasus that looked like she was stuffing a bit too many letters in there. “Hey Lyra and Bon Bon! We should hang out more!” They waved back with slightly confused smiles. “Hello mares that sell flowers! I might just buy some of those later!” The mares by the flower stand who’s names escaped him at the moment, but was probably something flower related, looked at each other and then back at him in a kind of ‘wtf is going on’ kind of way, which was amusing and only helped to better his mood.

Inside of him Sombra groaned as he entered the crystal establishment. ‘You were three on two, there is hardly any reason to be this proud over your small victory.’

‘Don’t be jealous just because you’ve experienced nothing but loses since… I guess since you somehow managed to become king. How did that happen again?’ He inquired with a light ‘tone’ despite his growing curiosity.

Sombra only snorted in reply, probably offended or something. Rude, but much easier to deal with than the mess he started as, or after he apparently got out of his negative magic high where he pretended to be Jax in order to make him doubt himself and keeping him up. This was so much better than being kept up at night and not knowing whether your thoughts were your own… ‘How come you can hear my thoughts all the time but I can’t hear yours except when you… speak?’ The question entered his mind out of nowhere, but now that it was at the forefront of his mind it did seem like it was true. Sombra seemed to pick up on things he was thinking about even when he wasn’t trying to ‘speak,’ while he himself only heard Sombra when he wanted to be heard. Then there was the whole ‘giving memories without using magic’ thing, which was just weird. At least he assumed that his body still reacted badly to magic, even when cast from inside of him.

He walked inside the numerous crystal halls while thinking. He didn’t think Sombra was going to answer but then: ‘Information is precious. It has a price.’

‘Uuh… interesting. What do you want?’ He couldn’t help but be intrigued while simultaneously being apprehensive.

‘I want a victory.’ He simply stated.

‘I am not killing any-‘ Jax started, already not liking where this was going.

‘I know that you weak-minded fool. I know how painfully ‘good’ you are. No, it does not have to be a big victory. It does not even have to hurt anypony. Just…’ his ‘voice’ faded out and didn’t return. Maybe he had trouble putting into words exactly what he wanted… but that victory remark Jax made must have hurt more than he realized.

He looked over at Pinkie. He looked over at Rainbow. They both smiled back at him. A plan was forming in the back of his mind that would hopefully be good enough for Sombra.

He smiled excitedly.

***

His good mood faded somewhat as they kept walking around the halls and rooms, making way for anxiety. He didn’t actually think Twilight would have a problem forgiving him - he did forgive her for setting him on fire after all - but the longer they took to find her, the more nervous he became.

She wasn’t in the library, the throne room (or meeting room or whatever it was), random room 1-27, or any or the hallways they went through. This place was bigger than he thought it was. He didn’t seem to have these problems when he lived here.

They finally stumbled upon Spike in one of the rooms, trying to scare his mirror image. “Oh… uhm… hey guys. What’s up?” He asked, trying to play it off like he wasn’t just making faces.

“Hey Spike!” Pinkie burst out. “Where’s Twilight?”

“Oh, she’s in the kitchen. When I told her you were looking for her she hurried out and returned with a… actually, come see for yourselves.” He smiled as he jumped off the stool he had been standing on. Spike led them to the kitchens, where a familiar scent met Jax’ nose. ‘She didn’t…’ he thought in disbelief as he recognized it for what it was.

As they entered the kitchen, he was proven right. Twilight looked very closely at a prepared fish cooking on a pan. She looked a bit green and… pained. His heart instantly went out to the purple alicorn.

“Can you guys give us some privacy?” His friends nodded and left, but the guards stayed. “Also you, Trusty and Shot.” He added, looking back at them.

They looked at each other in a silent conversation. In the end Trusty nodded and Shot saluted. They closed the door behind themselves.

“It’s almost done.” Twilight said from the stove. She used her magic to flip the fish.

He slowly walked over to her and put a hand on her head. “Twilight-“

“I heard…” she interrupted him, “that the best way to apologize is to show that you mean it.” She finally looked up at him. She had dark circles under her eyes. “I’m sorry… for saying those things. Please don’t leave for the Everfree.”

He was confused for a second before he remembered. ‘Maybe I’ll go back to the Everfree, where I can be the monster you won’t accept!’ He had foolishly said. As if he would ever willingly go back there if he had a choice.

“Shh you silly pony… come here.” He pulled her into a hug. He put the fish aside so it wouldn’t burn as well. “I was a bit upset, but I won’t be going anywhere. Don’t worry about it.” He started stroking her mane, hopefully calming the mare. “Listen, I can understand why you were upset with me eating meat. Things are different here, where everypony is a herbivore. And I’m glad that you are trying, but really Twilight, you don’t have to go so far for me when it makes you uncomfortable. Where did you get it from anyway?”

“I was going to catch it myself… but I couldn’t do it. So I got it from Fluttershy.” Her voice was low, but she wasn’t crying. He wasn’t sure what to do, so for a while they just sat there, with Twilight in his arms.

“I forgive you, if it wasn’t obvious. Thank you for the fish.” She pulled back, and he was happy to see a small smile on her muzzle. “And I would like to take the time to apologize as well. I said some stupid stuff back then… and then again last night. I’m sorry… I brought you a present though.” He took out a box and presented it to her. She seemed to recognize it immediately.

“I already have five of those Jax.” She smiled at him.

“Yes, alright, should have foreseen that. But this one is special because you got it from me as a sign of our continued friendship.” He was feeling a bit corny but… Ah well. She accepted the pen with a smile.

“Thank you.”

With that they shared one last hug. “Hey can you summon Discord while I eat this?” He asked with a smile. Things were going to go crazy now that he was finally done with all the apologizing.

Author's Note

Hello :) I hope you guys and girls are well ^.^ I started school again, last year of my bachelor. I'm going to have to make an actual effort this year I feel XD
Anyhow, finally done with all the apologizing. Next chapter is pranking, and other fun ^^
If you want some more Vinyl/Octavia, this is pretty good, and almost done: Vinyl and Octavia: Girl Friends

Chapter 63

The fish had tasted good. It was obvious that Twilight had followed the recipe to a dot, and she was gracious enough to make him a copy of it to take home and try his hand at himself at some point.

She had also summoned Discord, who had, as far as Jax could tell, been overjoyed with being called upon. He had a feeling Discord didn’t do much in-between his meetings with Fluttershy.

Despite his and Twilight’s curiosity, Jax had been pretty cryptic about the what and the why, which only seemed to make Discord more intrigued. Especially when they left the room for Twilight to clean, and met up with the rest of the group. Why Twilight didn’t just get one of her maids to do it… maybe it was a pride thing, or maybe she was just used to cleaning a mess she made herself. Or maybe she had forgotten she had maids in the first place.

“Finally!” Rainbow looked annoyed at having to wait so long. “Are we done with all the apologies now?”

“Yes, my blue and rainbow-coloured friend.” Jax replied with a considerable amount of cheer. Now that his conversation with Twilight was over, he felt his good mood returning with a sense of freedom. “And we are going to get to the good stuff now!” He smiled excitedly. He never thought pranking could make him feel exited, but this was obviously going to be great.

“And what exactly would ‘the good stuff’ be?” Discord asked with interest. They started moving forward. “Is it taking over Equestria? ‘Cause you know I can’t do that anymore without Fluttershy’s permission.”

“Nope!” Jax answered. “Even better than that, my chaotic friend. At least I think it’s better.” He turned around with the grace of a goat and almost fell backwards. “Pra-“

“Pranking!” Pinkie interrupted, standing on her hind legs with confetti exploding from behind her as she waved her forelegs around in wide motions.

“Yeah. That.” He was just a tiny bit disappointed at the interruption, but shrugged it off. “Anyway, we are going big on this one!”

“Oh. I see.” Discord put his claw and paw together. A soft… actually kind of menacing smile spread on his face. “You have come to the right draconequus.” Then it split into a real smile as he threw his arms into the air. “I invented pranking! Makes sense that you would come to me for help. Let’s go make some plans.” He took them all into a large hug, except the guards, and almost snapped his claw. Then he looked at Jax. “Do you still do that thing with magic?” Jax nodded uncertainly. “Yeah? Maybe we should walk then.” He let go of them and started walking, but then he turned around and looked at Trusty and Shot. “Oh, except you guys. We can’t have guards with us, that would just be weird.” He snapped his paw and they disappeared.

Jax wasn’t sure if he should be grateful, since he was right and the guards would actually get in the way of what he had in mind, or terrified about where they had gone. “What did you do to them?” His uncertainty showed in his voice.

“Oh, just sent them on a short trip to Tartarus.” Discord answered nonchalantly, looking at his claw. Then he looked up at their gaping faces and smiled broadly. “Just kidding! I just knocked them out and sent them to their tents. They’ll wake up tomorrow morning, ready to do their job. Now let’s go, times-a-wastin’.” He almost sang the last part.

Jax accepted the story with a shrug. He didn’t think Discord was lying, so he followed after him as he flew or levitated or whatever kept him in the air.

He was reminded of something as they made their way through town and derailed the group from their path over to three mares looking ready to fall into panic. They looked at him, then at Discord, then back at him. It would be comical if they didn’t radiate real fear.

Sombra scoffed, but Jax put on his most winning smile as he approached. He had said he would come for the flowers on a whim, but he could use them to decorate his home or give them to Luna, and he had the coin for it so why not?

“Hello ladies.” He started letting his relaxed and friendly attitude do the work… or at least he hoped so. As it was, it looked like Rainbow’s and Pinkie’s presence was the only thing keeping them on the spot, a notion which hurt him more than he thought it would. He knew logically that their fear had re-sparked after Sombra possessed him, but it was something else entirely to see it.

Discord’s presence probably didn’t help.

“H-h-hello.” The one with a rose mark on her butt started. “C-can we interest you in some f-flowers?” She was hanging on beautifully. Well… not really beautifully, but admirably, for a tiny horse. It was clear that she didn’t really want them there by the way she was practically leaning away from them.

“Yes. Can you give me a bouquet that can be used to decorate the home, but can also double as a gift for a mare?”

“Well that’s rather cheap of you.” Discord commented beside him.

“Yeah, you’re not even getting them with Luna in mind - what you hope to bump into her or something, and if you don’t you’ll just keep them around the house?” Surprisingly Rainbow Dash seemed to have an opinion on how to be romantic. Who would have thought.

He was just about defend his pride and explain his thought process (which pretty much meant lying since Rainbow had hit it right on the nose), when the rose-marked mare spoke again. “I-I… I have some blue roses here, but if you buy them I must insist that you give them to… to your special somepony.”

Jax raised his eyebrows even as his smile turned into a teasing one. “Really? You insist?”

“I-I mean I know you’re dating Luna and I-I made them with her in mind, a-a-and it would be a s-shame if… if she never got to see them….” She quickly backpedalled, leaning further back.

“You did?” He asked a bit baffled, looking over her selection of flowers. They were pretty easy to find, being a dark blue that fit Luna’s coat pretty well. “They’re beautiful…” he said sincerely. The pony temporarily dubbed Rose looked a bit baffled as well. Then a small smile graced her muzzle, the fear all but melting away as she took a normal pose, even leaning a bit towards them.

“You’re the first pony to say that….” She seemed to realize what she said. “Oh, uhm, of course you’re not a pony at all… what I meant was-“

“It’s fine, don’t worry about it. Give me all of these.” He pointed at the thirty something roses. They didn’t seem to be selling well compared to other flowers. He would have to remedy that.

“All of them?!” Her eyes widened, but then she hurriedly started preparing them. “I mean, of course! Right away, sir.” Sir? Well… that was a 180 attitude change if he ever saw one. “They’re called Midnight Roses, and they taste great… once you get used to them.”

What? No wait, that made sense. He had seen Twilight eat a dandelion sandwich enough times, why should other flowers be different?

He received the bouquet, and handed her a nice stack of bits in return. They were pretty expensive, but it wasn’t too bad. He gave her a little extra, and felt pretty good about it when he saw her eyes light up. She looked at him as if to confirm that it wasn’t a mistake and he gave her a little nod, unable to keep the smile from his face.

“Hey, let me try one!” Rainbow took one of them quicker than he could react, and Pinkie somehow already had one in her mouth.

“… How do they taste?” He asked after they had swallowed. They both looked contemplative.

“Hard to say. Kinda sweet and kinda sour… not bad but I’ve had better.” Rainbow answered.

“I like it!” Pinkie said from beside her. “It tingles in the mouth.”

What the hell were these flowers made of?

“Thank you.” Rose said a bit relieved. “As I said, once you get used to the taste…” she gave them a small smile. “Thank you for your patronage sir. Have a good day.”

“Please… just Jax.” He smiled back.

“Oh… I’m Roseluck,” Called it, “this is Lily Valley and Daisy.” She gestured to her pink companions who were now looking on curiously. “We’re looking forward to seeing you again.” Her smile looked sweet and kind of relieved. He wanted to reach down and pet her, but restrained himself. He didn’t know how she would react, and she seemed quick at changing her attitude.

He laughed as he took off with his group. “If Luna likes these, then you definitely will.” He waved behind him at the flower mares, who gave him a last smile and wave before they bundled up in a hurry, probably to talk about him.

“So… I was planning on going to Canterlot at some point anyway. Is it weird I’ve only been in Ponyville and the Everfree?” He asked.

“Nah, a lot of ponies don’t travel very far from where they are born.” Rainbow assured as they made their way out of Ponyville and towards his home. “Though after the train tracks started covering more and more of Equestria, more ponies take vacations different places.”

“Not that it really matters since distance doesn’t really exist.” Discord nonchalantly added as if it was obvious. Easy to say for someone who could teleport wherever he wanted.

“And even if it did, any distance in Equestria would actually be next to nothing in the grand scale of the universe!” Pinkie took the time to pounce up on Discords shoulder. It was weird seeing her actually jump up there instead of just appearing there.

“Wow this is really getting philosophical.” Jax wasn’t sure how it had come to that. He didn’t like to consider things in grand universe scales. It made everything seem unimportant. “Hey look at that! Apples. Good ol’ apples. Nothing like a good apple to diverge the conversation.” They were nearing the expansive apple orchard, which they had to cross to get to his house.

Rainbow snickered. “You sound like AJ now.”

“Hey is that Luna?” Pinkie asked from her vintage point on Discords shoulder, using one hoof to shield her eyes from the evening sun… which was behind them. Maybe there was a different reason she placed her hoof there.

Jax squinted but could only see trees. Rainbow took to the skies. “Hey, it is her! And some pony walking beside her. I’ll go get them!” Aaaand she was off, nothing but her rainbow trail left behind to prove she was ever there to begin with.

He looked down at the flowers in his hand, and slowly a large smile spread on his face. He wouldn’t cancel his Canterlot trip just yet, but it seemed like luck was on his side today. He really had met Luna randomly. A feeling spread from his heart in waves of pure joy, and he wanted nothing more than to be with the blue mare that he loved so much.

He gave in to the urge and ran forward as fast as his legs could, trying to angle the flowers in his hand so they wouldn’t get destroyed by the wind.

He saw them ahead, two ponies talking with a hovering Rainbow Dash, facing away from him. Perfect.

“Lunaaaaa!” He yelled when he was close enough. He impacted with her just as she was turning her head. He could feel her tense underneath him, and incredibly enough they didn’t fall over but Luna just took a couple of steps backwards with him hanging from her neck. Well… she was sturdy if nothing else.

“Jax?” She looked at him, a bit confused.

“Hi.” He smiled at her, then got off and dusted himself off, for show more than anything. He composed himself for a moment, feeling the moment called for over-dramatization. He coughed into his hand that didn’t hold a bundle of flowers, and looked seriously at the dark blue mare in front of her, with her mane and tail literally sparkling with stars - one of the many things he loved about her.

“Luna.” He started over, thinking about how he could word his thoughts. “As you know I’ve long since thought you were beautiful. There is nothing on this earth that even comes near to your beauty, and that’s only looking at your gorgeous body and stunning mane and tail. When taking your mind into consideration - everything that makes you the cute mare you are - not even the starfall effect you made and showed us can compare.” He had tried to be over the top, but he found that his words where more honest than he had realized. How deep had he fallen for this girl?

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Rainbow and the mystery mare react with stunned fascination... but he only had his eyes on Luna. Luna who was blushing so hard she was almost red. Luna who’s mouth was slightly open, who was absent-mindedly raising a hoof to cover it… or perhaps cover her entire red face.

“That is why,” he continued, “it is hard for me to look at something and think ‘that is beautiful.’ But when I saw these roses-“ he presented the roses. “-I thought of you, and I knew I had to give them to you. They’re called Midnight Roses and they were created with you in mind, so I think it’s fitting.” He smiled as Luna reached out with a hoof to take them. She looked at him, then at the flowers, and slowly a smile spread on her muzzle. A giggle escaped her as she reached down to eat one of the petals. Her eyes widened as the evidently special taste spread. “I heard the taste grows on you… just like you grew on me.” Wow… he was really smooth at the moment. This was a good day.

Retching sounds reached his mind as Sombra showed his disgust. ‘Try to be a little sweeter, I think there are some ponies in the world who did not get sick from that.’ Sarcasm… whatever, Luna was giggling again. The sounds drew him in, it was such an innocent melody, where none of her scars and regrets could be seen. Just a mare like any other, giggling happily at having received a bouquet from the stallion -man- she loved. The thought that she was happy because of him enforced the joy that was radiating from his heart.

‘Careful… you are taking in too mu-‘ But whatever else he was saying was lost to Jax as Luna’s warm voice drew his attention.

“Thy gift I shall accept, dear Jax, and I thank thee for thy consideration.” Ohh, going back to her cute way of speaking. Was she doing it because she was flustered or because she knew he loved when she did that? “I have no gift for thee at this time, but I shall consider what thou deserve…” she took the flowers in her aura, so that she could jump up and place both hooves on his shoulder and whisper in his ear. “And thine actions have made thee deserve quite the reward.” She drew back a bit so they could gaze into each other’s eyes. “Although I must add that the greatest gift thou hast gifted me, is that I can look at thee and know for certain… that thy love for me is true.”

Jax’ smile was warm and loving, as he gazed into the cyan eyes of the mare that made his already joyous heart beat with pure happiness. Nothing else in the entire world mattered, but the warmth radiating from her.

“Oh… Celestia….” He faintly heard an unfamiliar, embarrassed voice say nearby. “Should we leave? Why does everypony do private stuff in front of me?”

“Uhm… tell them I’ll come back with Fluttershy.” Rainbow Dash said, the last of her sentence barely audible as she got further away.

Chatter reached them as Pinkie and Discord finally reached them. “Oh my gosh, they are doing the thing where they look deep into each other’s eyes!” Pinkie burst out.

“Blerhg, I hate it when couples do that. What’s so great abou-“

“Shhh! You’re disturbing them.” Pinkie interrupted him, but it was already too late. Jax drew his eyes over at the pink pony looking at them like somepony observing wildlife. He smiled at her excitement, but then he finally let his curiosity win and looked over at the mystery unicorn who had been with Luna. She was light yellowish under her sweater, with a multicolered mane that reminded him of Twilight, and glasses that looked like they were held together with tape. Her mark was a waxing crescent moon with stars around it. She looked back at him with uncertainty, scrapping the earth nervously.

He gave Luna a quick kiss and let her fall down on all fours again, facing the new mare entirely. “Hello. I’m sorry about that, that was pretty rude.” Not that he would have done anything differently if given the chance. “My name is Jax, Luna’s boyfriend and resident human of Ponyville.”

She nodded a bit, to herself it seemed. “Hello. My name is Moondancer, and I’m Luna’s secretary.” She reached out a hoof and he took and shook it gently.

With that done, he looked around again. “… Rainbow went somewhere? To get Fluttershy?” He asked to be sure. He knew he heard her say something like that.

Moondancer nodded.

“Alright. Let’s go to my house and wait for them. Then we can start planning.”

“Planning? What are you planning? And where are the guards?” Luna asked as she fell into step beside him.

“Oh Luna… you’re about to be part of something great.” He couldn’t help but hug her while they walked which was a bit awkward, but the feeling of her soft fur on his skin was worth it, especially when she nuzzled him. Everything was just perfect.

***

Rainbow returned with Fluttershy, who looked unsure of why she was there, shortly after they had entered the house. Everypony took a place where they could, and Jax took the count. Rainbow Dash, Pinkie and Discord were part of the original group. Luna, Fluttershy, and Moondancer had joined them afterwards, but that was fine he wagered.

“Alright… for those of you who don’t know, we are going to go pranking… and we are going big.” Fluttershy and Moondancer looked around uncertainly, in a ‘I didn’t sign up for this’ sort of way, but Luna smiled. “So big in fact, that outside of this room, there won’t be a bigger-“

“We are pranking Princess Celestia!” Pinkie burst out, banging a hoof on the table.

“We can’t do that!” Moondancer yelled as the only one who reacted negatively.

“Awesome! Hey do you guys think we are going to go down in the history books?” Rainbow asked. Jax didn’t actually know, though he didn’t think so.

Discord looked even more excited. It was like Christmas had come early, he even did a little flip in the air. “Yes! And it wasn’t even my idea! She can’t blame it on me.” He sounded gleeful.

“It has been a long while since I pranked my sister. I think it is time.” Luna added.

Fluttershy just sort scuffed at the sofa she was sitting on. “Well… as long as nopony is hurt….”

Moondancer looked around in disbelief. “You can’t be serious! Is this even legal?”

Luna cleared her throat. “There are actually no laws against a good prank. A bad prank, for example… if something gets destroyed, is already covered by property damage laws.”

“But… this is Princess Celestia….” Moondancer tried again.

“And she is covered by the law just like everypony else. While there are some special laws for princesses, there is none that directly outlaw pranking on them. And there will not be for a long time if I have something to say about it.” When she saw that that explanation didn’t satisfy Moondancer, she leaned down to nuzzle the poor mare. “It’s okay. You do not have to be a part of this if you do not want to, Moondancer.”

“Yeah, don’t worry about it.” Jax added. “Besides, we are going to make very sure that whatever prank we end up with doesn’t hurt anyone, or in other way break the law. I promise.” He smiled at Moondancer, and received a tiny smile in return.

Rainbow Dash swooped in from the side and laid a wing on her. “Yeah, don’t worry about it. Princess Celestia is cool, I’m sure she won’t be mad.”

Pinkie swooped in from the other side. “Yeah! She’ll probably laugh about it!”

Moondancer fidgeted a little, but in the end it was Fluttershy who convinced her. “Don’t worry Moondancer. Nopony here is mean.”

Moondancer hesitated a bit more, but then she nodded. The power of group-pressure was truly beautiful. Or semi group-pressure at least since they have made it absolutely clear that she could leave? Whatever, she was staying.

“Alright, Discord, get that blackboard in here. Let’s bounce some ideas around.” As much as he tried to reign in his excitement, he couldn’t get the smile from his face.

“But whatever you decide upon, it cannot interfere with my Night Court, which starts in one and a half hours. Did anypony make an appointment, Moondancer?”

Moondancer immediately cheered up. “Yes they did!” Luna looked at her in confusion. It seemed like she had expected a different answer. “After your two hours of open court, five ponies have reserved half an hour each for small disputes.”

“Really?” Luna sounded like she couldn’t quite believe it.

Moondancer nodded vigorously. “And I think I can get more ponies to use the appointment system. It’s something Princess Celestia doesn’t have and I think it could really be a boon. In fact, i-if you don’t mind me saying, I think you should cut down open court to half an hour to an hour, since statistically speaking you don’t use the last hour anyway, or maybe even go by appointment only. Then you can assure a spot to ponies.... a big complaint among ponies who come to Princess Celestia’s court is that they can wait for hours, and end up not gaining an audience with her anyway.” She looked at all the people watching her and blushed a little. “I did some research,” she explained.

Discord teleported in between her and Luna, and brought them together with a hug. “Yes, as interesting as that was, can you talk about it later? We have pranks to think up.” He sounded rather annoyed. Before anybody could answer there was a knock on the door.

Jax smiled at Discord’s scuff. He went over to open the door, and was met with a sign in his face. Taking a step back he noticed it was Vinyl who was holding the sign with her magic.

‘Hey Jacks Jax

Sorry for the short warning, but I have some tickets for that changeling band I told you about, for tonight. You down anyway? If not I can go alone, it’s chill.’

He looked from the sign to the white mare, who had a cocky smile as if challenging him to decline. She had her usual headphones around her neck and dark tinted glasses that covered her eyes.

“Hey Vinyl.” He looked back at his gathering, then at her. “How many tickets do you have exactly, and at what time is the concert? And where?”

She took out a quill and an inkwell, and wrote on the other side of the sign. ‘Three, midnight, Canterlot’

“Uhmm… Alright. Is it possible to get about five more tickets?”

Vinyl shrugged and then wrote ‘Maybe at the door. Why?’

Instead of answering he turned to yell to the crowd in his living room. “Hey, any of you interesting in going to see a changeling band play? It’s at midnight and we’re going to Canterlot anyway.”

After hearing a chorus of affirmatives and why not’s, he turned to Vinyl again. “You interested in pranking Princess Celestia?”

Vinyl hesitated then shrugged, then nodded, in a sort of ‘why not’ motion.

“Alright, come on in.” He moved to the side to let her in. She hesitated again when she saw the gathering in his admittedly crowded living room, then again when she saw Princess Luna. She gave a short, uncertain bow and walked in. “Oh, and I have a gift for you.” He decided on the spot. He went over to his diminishing amount of boxes filled with pens, and took one. Vinyl looked at him with interest when he put the box in front of her. “Thanks for the tickets.”

Her eyes lit up when she opened the box and saw the pen inside. He could imagine that it would be put to good use in her possession.

When she smiled at him, he once again felt the waves of pure joy surge through him. It was an odd feeling, kind of dazing. He was barely aware of Sombra telling him something, but was too occupied with looking at Vinyl as she took the pen out of its case and tried it out. ‘Thanks dude. I’m sure this will be useful, though I doubt it’s worth a couple of cheap tickets.’

“Don’t worry about it.” He brushed her off in his joy induced state. Sombra tried to get his attention a few more times, but Jax ignored him. He couldn’t remember a single time where listening to Sombra had turned into something positive. All he ever did was pull Jax’ mood down, and he wasn’t going to allow it this time. He was too damn happy.

“Discord, if you will.” He said to his pal. Discord simply snapped his claw, and there was the blackboard he had used so long ago to explain chaos magic and how Jax had landed in Equestria.

Jax quickly swiped it to get enough room. “So, any suggestions?”

“Oh, whoopee cushion on the throne, right in front of all the nobles!” Rainbow burst out instantly. “It’s a classic.”

Jax hesitated. “Really Rainbow? Whoopee cushion? I thought you were a pro at this.” Even Jax knew that it was a lame prank, and that wasn’t exactly what they were going for here… harmless as it may be.

“Step aside, let a real pro take over.” Discord shooed Rainbow away from the spotlight that came from somewhere, making her look pretty offended. “How about this: A bubble bath bomb that literally explodes in a bubbly explosion so large that it will keep growing and picking up ponies along the way until they all end up outside the castle.”

“Oh! Not bad.” Jax started writing it down. “Not bad at all Discord… although… property damage and what about the ponies that end up being thrown out of windows and balconies?”

“With Discord’s magic, such a thing can be easily countered.” Luna spoke up. “And it does sound humorous. But how about this: We give her a reason to use the bubble bath bomb. I can clearly remember her throwing me in the moat of the castle, and I never received the sweet taste of revenge that was rightfully mine.” Luna smiled wickedly at the thought of happenings that must have been over a thousand years ago.

“Canterlot Castle doesn’t even have a moat silly.” Pinkie berated her with a smile, before a gasp took over. “Unless we make one! And fill it with cream! Mmmm… cream….”

Jax quickly wrote down the suggestions. “Alright… sounds good, though we have to make sure she falls in by herself somehow, and between her wings and her magic, that might be hard. And… is it hard swimming in cream? Anybody know?” Silence and blank looks met him. “Alright, better be careful with that then. What else?”

“Oh! Oh! I got it!” Rainbow looked extra excited at redeeming herself. “You know how Twilight still sends her letters now and again? Well we fake a whole lot of them and then have Spike send it to her, until she is literally swarmed!”

“Alright! That’s more like it!” Jax wrote it down along with the other suggestions. “Though I don’t know what the consequence of using Spike for it could be. Does he have a limit on how many letters he can send? Does it hurt him to send too many?” He looked at Discord. He would probably have to do most of the work in most of these suggestions. He hadn’t seen him do an awful lot, but according to Twilight he could make clouds rain chocolate milk and mess up gravity… “Are you up for doing some extra work?”

Discord gave him a relaxed smile and wave of his paw. “This is nothing.”

“Alright then. Let’s figure out which ones to use beside the moat and bubble-bath thingy…”

‘All of them sound good.’ Somepony wrote on the blackboard with magic. He turned around to see Vinyl giving him an excited smile.

“All of them?” He asked.

“All of them!” Pinkie smashed her hoof on the table, a little too hard for Jax’ liking.

He looked around at the hungry stares of most of the creatures there. Only Fluttershy and Moondancer seemed uncertain. “Alright, all of them it is. Let’s figure out how to do this.”

***

Celestia was having a pleasant day so far. Most of her day had been pretty boring, but while she had been looking over some documents in her study, Luna had come in and announced she was leaving to go visit a psychologist. Celestia couldn’t imagine better news…. she had wiped the slate mostly clean with the elements of harmony, but the scars were still there, and a psychologist could help with that. When she had tried to talk Luna into it shortly after her return, she had reacted rather negatively to it, so Celestia had dropped it. Even though she had cleared the air about some things about their relationship back before Nightmare Moon, she was still certain that a psychologist could help her. And now she was going to see one. It was, simply put, amazing.

Couple that with the apology she received from Jax that allowed her to tease her dear little sister, and she felt pretty light, like the burden she had on her withers had lessened.

Luna had yet to return from Ponyville, even though she had Night Court soon. If she was skipping it once more to spend time with Jax, Celestia would have to have a word with her, psychologist or no. Court was the one time they had reserved time just for their little ponies to come directly to their Princesses with any and all problems they could have, even though it would be infinitely easier for Celestia to let the existing Equestrian court handle them. Sometimes she had to send the petitioners there anyway, if a case would become too time-consuming, or was too complicated to handle in a single sitting. There was no real need for them to have open court.

But Celestia have found over the centuries that it did both her, and her subjects, a lot of good to meet like that. This way she didn’t lose touch of why she was still ruling them, even after all these years. The burden of all those lonely years weighed heavily upon her, not as badly now as it did before her talks with Luna, but it was still there. Talking with, and helping her little ponies was one way to lift the burden just a little. In return, her ponies felt how much she cared about them.

She rose from her chair, stretching her back. Even with a lot of work sent Luna’s way, it was still a lot to go through. “Raven?”

“Yes, your highness?” Raven instantly appeared by her side.

“Make sure these-“ she indicated a large stack of papers she was done with, “get to the right ponies. I am going to lower the sun, and then relax in my room for a while.”

“Yes, your highness.” No matter how many times Celestia tells her to relax a bit more, Raven insists on proper decorum. Raven and almost every other pony in existence. Celestia was tired of it after a century, but she had appreciated it for a long while after Luna’s… banishment. She hadn’t been in the best of moods back then, and the decorum had helped her distance herself from her subjects. Her emotional wounds had healed enough that she tired of it again after three centuries. She had learned to accept it… for the most part. Some ponies just couldn’t get past the fact that she was a princess, and so they did what they were raised to do, which meant bows and ‘your highness’es. Especially nobility was terrible at being relaxed around her.

Celestia left the room and started her trek towards the balcony. She should have put the study, balcony, and her bedroom closer to each other when she designed the place… then again, walking was good for her. She should walk more. A few walks around Canterlot when she had the time would be good for her.

Now she just needed to figure out how to gain that time….

She had just rounded a corner when she slipped. She landed on her rear, and just kept gliding forwards at a surprising speed on the slippery floor, past the point where momentum should have given up. She was just about to spread her wings to stop whatever was going on, when she glided into something that looked like string set up in the corridor, which somehow tangled around her in a way that made it impossible to spread her wings. Hey eyes widened as she saw a door ahead, and her mind refused to work properly under the suddenness of the situation, which was ridiculous. She had dealt with worse situations with a quicker wit.

Was she getting old?

The thought almost hurt more than smashing into the door which turned out to have been ajar and simply gave way to allow her continued floor-gliding. A bucket fell from above when the door opened, landing on her head and coating her head with some kind of slime before it fell off. She shook off most of the slime, but it just didn’t want to get off her horn-

Her horn! She quickly prepared a teleport spell that would teleport her out of the string that was weirdly restricting, and away from the floor that was weirdly slippery. The spell, however, was stopped because it couldn’t leave her horn… the slime. Of course.

It didn’t take a genius to figure out that Discord was behind this. She would have words with him later.

She was just thinking about how harsh she should be – to go to Fluttershy or handle it herself- when she arrived at the end of the room (Was this Luna’s room?), slid out of the open balcony door, and off the edge because the railing was conspicuously missing.

Her eyes widened again and she gasped as the feeling of falling overtook her. She instinctively tried to spread her wings again, but the string just tightened.

She looked down to calculate how much pain she would be in, only to be met with a moat filled with some sort of white liquid.

She wasn’t sure what surprised her most. That they had a moat, or that the string disappeared just before she landed in it, making her wings spring out like a… well, spring, just centimeters above it

“Odd…” she said mostly to herself. Discord was not the type of creature to stop a prank half-

Something impacted hard with her head – the bucket, she realized by shape, sound, and material – which made her miss a wingbeat which in turn meant that she ended up in the moat anyway.

Cream, she realized. It was cream, and cream was surprisingly easy to swim in. It seemed that she had something new to learn, even after all this time.

Whatever had been on her horn had disappeared, it seemed. She didn’t waste too much time teleporting back into her bathroom, directly into the large bathtub. Cream may be easy to swim in, but it did not feel nice in her coat and mane.

She would deal with the moat later. It was probably already gone… a Princess could hope. It would make this all easier.

She sighed, then rolled her withers. She needed to relax. She meant to just take a quick shower and then get Discord, but if she met Discord while annoyed, he would just make her lose her composure, and he loved when he succeeded in that.

A quick shower to get off the cream, and then a short bubble bath to- wait. Wait a minute. Discord isn’t here laughing at her.

The prank isn’t over yet.

She was completely frozen, reaching for the tap. He would have foreseen that she would teleport to her room, that was why the slime had disappeared. So she could do what he knew she would do.

She needed a shower, but this one was most likely trapped.

Or was it? There was an easy way to check. Everything Discord touched with his magic was easily recognizable by the chaos magic left behind.

She prepared the scanning spell, and let it run over the bathroom. Nothing out of-

The moment her spell checked the tap, it turned on, cascading her with water, turned off almost instantly but somehow still filled the bathtub with water, and plopped in a bubble bath bomb before she could as much as get her bearings. She really was getting old, wasn’t she?

She took a deep breath and held it, knowing that something would happen.

An explosion of sorts, that’s what happened. The bubbles kept coming, pushing her out of her bathroom, her room, and down the corridor. She let go of breath when she realized her head stayed over the bubbles.

She yelped as it looked like she was going to smash into the end of the corridor, but the bubbles seemed to have a life on their own, and swept her around the bend without hurting her, or any of the other ponies caught in the bubblesplotion. Now that she knew that Discord at least had no intention of hurting any of her ponies, she let go of the knot in her stomach. This was actually sort of fun, being swept forward by bubbles.

She started laughing a bit. It was certainly new. The castle was very much on a routine, not much changed, but this was… refreshing. Her laughter turned into full on glee when she saw Baron McGrumpy Face (at least that was what he should have been named). For once he had something other than a frown on his face, being that of shock at seeing Celestia ride a wave of bubbles towards him, laughing hysterically.

Refreshing indeed. Maybe letting Discord go a little wild now and again wasn’t such a bad idea. He was a creature of chaos after all, he must be frightfully bored. Couldn’t have that.

The fun ended in front of the castle gates, or so she thought at least. She just managed to get up on all fours and note that her new moat was gone, before she heard a snap and it started raining scrolls. Specifically the type Twilight always wrote to her. One of them hit her on the head, as gently as a raindrop, and fell to the ground. She smiled as she picked one of them up and unscrolled it, taking note of all the ponies around her that had been swept up with her.

‘Rainbow Dash Rocks!’ It simply stated boldly. Either Twilight had decided to change how she usually writes to her, Discord had taken a new liking to Rainbow Dash, or more ponies were in on this than she realized.

The scrolls from the area swarmed towards and over her in a swarm, but she wasn’t afraid of being drowned in them. She was sure now that nopony would get hurt tonight.

She practically floated up to the top of them, still smiling, wondering what would come next. Her staff and guards looked at her near panic, but she just waved to them. She would have to remember to invite Discord to the next Galloping Gala, that event needed some refreshment for sure.

All the scrolls disappeared as quickly as they had come. She fell to the ground, not bothering to spread her wings, and fell on something soft and-

was that the sound of air escaping ringing behind her? She looked down at the giant whoopee-cushion she was on, completely baffled. She had not seen that coming. All the ponies around her looked as baffled as her, and a deep uncertain silence settled…

Until the sound of laughter rang from a few ponies from Celestia’s right. Discord was there of course, and Rainbow as she had expected. Pinkie wasn’t a surprise, and neither was Jax, along with a white mare she wasn’t sure- oh no, wait that was Vinyl Scratch, she had been at her birthday with Jax. What really surprised her was to see her own sister, Fluttershy, and Moondancer among them, the last two of whom just sniggered a bit while her sister laughed hard with the rest of them.

“All of that… and what really got her was the whoopee-cushion!” Jax got out between breaths.

“I told you guys!” Rainbow managed to say. “Didn’t I tell you? Classic!”

“Ohh yes! It’s good to see Celestia baffled! Good job Rainbow, give it here!” Discord bumped claw with hoof, before doubling over with laughter.

She finally realized that the whoopee cushion was still letting out air because she was just sitting there.

She finally got off, and made her way towards the group before pausing. How did she want to spin this?

She decided to have a little more fun and did something she hadn’t done in a long loooong time. “Discord…” she purred out. It came to her instinctually after that. The tilt of her head, the fluttering of her eyelashes. The laughter ceased immediately and they all looked at her in surprise. Discord’s jaw dropped down to the floor, especially when she sauntered over to them, making sure her backside swayed just the right amount. She hadn’t done that in ages, it felt almost freeing. She suppressed a giggle and continued with her plan when she stood in front of Discord.

“Doing so much work just to get my attention, I never knew you felt that way, Dissy.” Not the best nickname, but it was all she could think up at the moment. It seemed to work as he... he blushed! She had never seen Discord blush before, she didn’t even think he could.

“I-I dunno w-what-“ He was flustered! How cute! “D-Dissy? M-my Celestia, or should I call you Celly since we’re giving nicknames?” He was trying to get back, but he was only helping her.

“My indeed!” She pretended to be surprised. “How forward of you to give me a nickname already!”

“But you just-!” He tried to defend himself. She managed to hide most of her glee of, for once to be the one who used logic that the other didn’t quite understand.

“Shh…” She put a hoof on his mouth. “You’ve already got me interested. Pick me up tomorrow at eight.” She winked at him before turning around and walking up to her balcony to finally lower the sun, making sure to sway her rear just right.

“D-did… was she serious?” Discord asked behind her, sounding lost.

Laughter burst out like a sudden storm, much crazier than the one she had received.

“Yeah, she totally was! Let’s get you a suit while we have the time!” Rainbow’s voice reached her. She heard at least three creatures falling to the floor, laughing all the while.

She managed to keep her own laughter in until she reached the castle, but then she couldn’t take it anymore. That had been fun, more fun than she had had in a long time.

Maybe having a date with Discord wouldn’t be such a bad idea.

Author's Note

Midnight Blossom has some personal stuff to take care of, so she doesn't have time to edit, but I don't want to write unedited in every chapter.
Dj7291993 has taken the role of prereading it, which is nice. Thanks Dj!
Other than that... this chapter become so much bigger than I even had time for, because I foolhardly promised that the pranking starts this chapter XD As always I'm so bad at predicting the size of chapters, so I forced myself to write it... didn't plan the Discelly though. That just kinda happened ^^

Chapter 64

Jax didn’t know it could be so much fun to prank someone. Celestia’s comeback was completely unexpected, and that made it all the more fun. Discord was looking at them a bit sullen, so maybe they should stop laughing. His stomach was starting to hurt anyway.
And yet it felt so amazing. The happiness he felt was something sharp and overwhelming, and he wanted it to stay like that. He hadn’t touched alcohol since that day at his welcome party, something he decided after seeing Rainbow scream because of him, but he still somehow felt tipsy, and it felt heavenly. He allowed himself to drown in the feeling as he gained control of his laughter.
“Alright, alright, it wasn’t that funny.” Discord informed them. “And you can’t really blame her for being interested in all of this.” Damn, he had been so close to stopping his laughter, but when Discord indicated his body as ‘all of this’, a new bout of laughter took over and he rolled a bit more on the ground.
“Oh, I think it’s great.” Fluttershy, who had barely been laughing, laid a hoof on his hip. “You both deserve somepony special.”
Discord hesitated for a bit, enough for Jax and the others to compose themselves a bit. “Yes… well…” he looked thoughtful, “it was nice of her to free me and give me a chance instead of letting me stay as a stone statue… and she does have a huge…” he made a round motion with his paw and claw, “…tract of land.”
Jax lost it again. “A Monty Python reference?! Here of all places?” He tried to get up but it was just too much. “Oh God I need to pee.”
“And I need to raise the moon. My sister is already lowering the sun.” Luna looked more composed than he was. She hadn’t been rolling on the ground like him, Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie either, though she had laughed pretty hard herself.
He noticed that ponies were giving them weird looks. Alright, he could do this. Breathe in. Breathe out. Okay. He couldn’t get his smile off his face, but at least he wasn’t dying of laughter.
“Let’s set up a meeting point….” A few more pearls of laughter escaped him. “So that you can go to court, and in case we want to do different things. Where exactly is this changeling band playing?” He asked Vinyl.
She took out some parchment and her new pen out of her saddlebags, and wrote with a big smile: ‘Down in Club Hoofleton, in the southern part of Canterlot. We can just meet at the central fountain, it’s not too far.’
At everyone’s agreement, those who needed to relieve themselves used the castle’s facilities. After that, Luna and Moondancer left for work, while the rest of them went to see what they could use the time on in Canterlot.
***
After assuring her guards that she was quite alright, Celestia made her way to her room to relax for the rest of the evening. Raven fell into step with her halfway there, not saying a word but looking like she really wanted to.
“So… A date with Discord, Your Majesty? Should I clear the schedule tomorrow?” She finally asked.
Celestia smiled down at her, albeit a bit amazed. “It’s barely been five minutes, Raven, and I don’t think I saw you down there… how fast did this rumour spread exactly?”
“It’s not a rumour if it’s true, Your Highness.” Raven gave her witty smile. “The information spread like wildfire, Princess. For the first time in recorded history, our beloved Princess has a date… and with the Lord of Chaos, no less. I would be surprised if the entirety of Canterlot didn’t know within the hour.”
Celestia didn’t know how to feel about that, though she would admit she should have foreseen it. This would no doubt sprout several rumours… on the bright side, everypony would finally stop talking about Jax and Luna. She nodded to herself. That would be good.
“My date is at eight, so just make sure that I am clear at about seven so I can be ready. I am afraid there is a real chance that he won’t show, so nothing too special, I think. I don’t want to feel like it was time and energy wasted.”
“… Why wouldn’t he show?” Raven asked in confusion. Celestia was about to note that she finally dropped the decorum, when she seemed to catch herself. “Your Highness?”
“Because, he might have thought it was a joke… but I think he’ll show. Hmm, I think he might even wear a suit, so I should probably prepare a gown… you don’t think he’ll take me anywhere fancy, do you?” She asked her assistant.
Raven looked at her for a couple of seconds. “Your highness, I would be surprised if he could get a reservation at such short notice, but then again I was surprised when my house suddenly turned into a plant because of him.” She seemed to think for a second before she continued. “It might not be my place to ask... but out of all the ponies, griffons, and minotaurs in the world… why him? All he’s ever done is give you more paperwork to fill.”
Celestia smiled as they arrived at her chambers. “Oh little Raven, that’s not all he’s ever done. He’s also made me very angry on numerous occasions.” Raven just looked at her in confusion. “Ah, I apologise, the incident really left me with a desire to joke around. Let me answer your question then." She took a breath to compose herself. "The Discord that reigned Equestria more than a thousand years ago is not the Discord that exists today. The Discord that escaped the statue and took over Equestria again not so long ago isn’t even the same as the one I saw today. Because the Discord I saw today showed that he could restrain his powers, that he could be thoughtful of others. Look at this hallway.” Raven looked around, seemingly not understanding. “You wouldn’t know that it was overrun with bubbles just a few minutes ago. Every painting, vase, and other decoration is perfectly fine, all that seems to have happened is that everything looks cleaner. The Discord I knew, would not have gone to such lengths to make sure that nopony was hurt. But the Discord I saw today, showed that he could have fun with others, even without anypony getting frustrated.” She paused, considering whether she should continue, but decided that she might as well. “And between you and me… I had fun today. And honestly… after all these years… I think I deserve to have a little fun. I had almost forgotten how good it felt.”
She left Raven thinking about that as she entered her chambers. She actually found herself looking forward to her date, and would be a little… well, disappointed if Discord decided not to show.
She was fairly certain he would though, if nothing else than to sate his curiosity. For now, she should decide which dress to wear. She walked over to her closet and opened it, looking at the large selection of dresses and gowns she owned… this could take a while.
…
But she had a little time. In fact… if she hurried… maybe she could have some more fun.
***
Jax was walking down the streets, feeling quite invincible. Nothing could stand in his way, nothing could ruin this night, and nothing could tear his smile away. Everything was just too perfect. He wanted to hug the entire world, making sure it knows just how perfect it is.
Before he knew it, he had Pinkie in his arms, matching his smile with one of her own. She had probably sensed his need to hug something and volunteered herself.
“So, who needs to do what? Where can we get Discord a suit?” He asked the ponies around him, keeping his laughter in check somehow. He wasn’t sure why he still wanted to laugh, but it felt nice. Everything was brighter and there really wasn’t any reason not to laugh.
Was this how Pinkie felt all the time?
Before anybody could answer, Discord coughed and snapped his claw, and suddenly he was wearing a well-fitting orange suit with a top hat and bowtie.
Jax burst out laughing, and so did Pinkie after a moment.
“Nah-ah.” Rainbow of all ponies said. “We are going to get one fitted for you, specifically for this.” She punched Discord on the shoulder. “Come on, it’ll be my treat.”
Rainbow Dash was actually a romantic. Who would have thought? It just made him and Pinkie laugh harder.
“Really?” Discord sounded surprised. “I didn’t think… well I didn’t think you liked me all that much.”
Rainbow scratched her foreleg and looked away. “Well… I didn’t. Especially after what happened with Tirek. But I’ve made enough mistakes to know that nopony is perfect, and… well Fluttershy likes you, and I promised Jax I would give you a chance so…” she stuck out a hoof towards him. “Friends?”
Jax and Pinkie both stopped laughing instantly, and looked at them. This seemed to mean more to Discord than words could really describe. He had a sort of honest look of… humbleness? Like he couldn’t quite believe this was happening and didn’t really believe he deserved it. He slowly extended his paw forward and shook Rainbow’s hoof with it.
There was a moment of understanding as they looked in each other’s eyes, ruined when Jax sprang on Rainbow and Pinkie on Discord.
“Oh my God Rainbow, you’re so cute!”
“Oh my gosh Di I want to be your friend as well!”
Discord laughed joyously, while Rainbow acted offended. “Am not! I’m awesome and cool.” She shoved him off.
“Yeah, awesomely cute.” He laughed as she huffed and turned away from him.
Rarity would be proud. Too bad she wasn’t there. She could fix Discord’s suit as well. As it was, they needed to find a seamstress.
“So anyone know where we can find a tailor?” He asked the group still with a smile on his face. Rainbow Dash, apparently not as offended as she had let on, just shrugged along with Pinkie, and Fluttershy shook her head gently. Of course, they got all their clothes from Rarity.
He looked at Vinyl who shrugged and just started walking. Guess they would just have to walk around until they found something… ‘it’s pretty late though and we only have a couple of hours.’ The thought disappeared almost as fast as it came, as confidence took over. He was sure everything was going to be A-okay.
***
Three closed stores later and he still kept that attitude with the smile still present. Normally it would probably be painful to smile for that long, but now it was just natural. Even when he got a lot of stares in the Canterlot streets, he just smiled at them and continued on. Not that there were that many ponies on the streets anymore. Most had already gone home, they only met stragglers and-
“OH MY GOSH!” Something small and feathery impacted with his chest, making him step back even as he caught it. He was just happy Rainbow Dash didn’t stand behind him. “Oh my gosh, mom it’s really him!”
He looked down at the gryphon child… foal… chick? Who was looking up at him with wonder in her eyes.
Now, human children can be cute at times, on a good day where the stars align and they behave just right. They don’t hold a candle to the average pony though, and they in turn paled compared to pony foals, so tiny and cute you could barely look them in their giant eyes. But this little gryphon was neck and neck with them, if not a tiny bit cuter.
She had a tiny beak, with huge eyes, looking at him like she had found the greatest treasure in the world. Her tiny claws were holding onto him, but weren’t sharp enough to even go through his clothes. Her cute little wings were black, same as the rest of her feathers, while her fur (and paws!) was white, in a cool contrast.
He looked up at the adult gryphon that was coming over with a worried look. “Can I keep her?” He asked before he could think.
She (at least he assumed it was a she, he had never met a gryphon before) looked shocked, before taking on a more aggressive stance for some reason.
“Whoa! Whoa!” Rainbow Dash flew in between them, facing the gryphon. “Sorry, sorry, he’s never met a gryphon before. He doesn’t know how protective they can be of their own.” She quickly explained.
The gryphon in front of them relaxed her stance slowly, before breathing out a heavy sigh. “I apologize.” She said in a tired, female voice. “Instinct took over there for a second.” She ran the four claws of her right foreleg through her black plume of her head, which matched her daughter’s. The biggest difference between them was that her fur was a brownish sort of red. “I’m sorry about her… Cenia, come here.”
The small gryphon in his arms let out a disappointed whine, before jumping down. His chest felt cold without her there, but that was an afterthought.
“Cenia…?” Where had he heard that before? A small cute gryphon in a country of ponies… Cenia… weird name… not afraid of him… Oh! “Cenia! You’re the gryphon who sent me that letter!” He laughed in joy. “Ohh man, that was a nice letter to receive! I know I already said this in my reply, but thank you again for sending it.”
Cenia froze next to her mom, then whispered excitedly, loud enough for all to hear. “Mom… he remembers me.”
Her mom just rolled her eyes good-naturedly, with a smile on her beak however that worked. “I know little one. Now come here, it’s late and I’m sure these nice, uhm… beings want to move on.” She used her beak to pull up her daughter by the neck, much like a cat would with her kitten, and put her on her back.
“Hey we’ve got time, don’t worry about it. All the tailors we’ve been at seem to be closed anyway.” Rainbow laid back in the air, however that worked. She was still beating her wings so she should fly down- ah whatever.
“You need a tailor?!” Cenia burst out. “My mom’s a tailor! And she’s been talking about how she needs more-“ two claws closed her beak before she could tell them what more was needed.
“Oh my gosh! You’re a tailor! And we need a tailor! Isn’t this great?!” Pinkie burst out like this was the greatest thing ever.
Which it totally was! Jax burst out laughing as well.
“I’m sorry, but I’m closed for today. You can come by tomorrow if-“ She had started to turn around, but found herself face to face with Rainbow Dash, who smiled cockily.
“I’ll give you 200 bits for a suit for that guy over there.” She said airily, pointing at Discord.
“On second thought, is it ever too late to create fashion? Working the night away is almost a must for a seamstress, isn’t it?” She started walking again and they followed. “So I take it there is some kind of fashion emergency since you need it so fast?” She continued. Jax found himself wishing she was more like Rarity, who would have said it with just the right amount of drama. This gryphon sounded like she knew the right words, but her heart wasn’t really in it. “Ah, allow me to introduce myself first. My name is Freja, and this little troublemaker is Cenia, as you heard.” Her eyes lit up when she looked Cenia. Cenia smiled at them as she waved. Jax couldn’t get over how cute she was, he wanted to pick her up and snuggle her…
So he did. She giggled at his antics, enough to make her mother at ease again. “I’m Jax.” Was all he said before he started playing with Cenia in his arms, poking her different places to make her giggle.
The rest of them introduced themselves, except Vinyl who had her headphones on and looked like she was miles away from whatever was going on.
“And we need the suit for tomorrow, though it isn’t any sort of emergency.” Discord explained. “For some reason Rainbow Dash just thinks I should get a new one made instead of using the one I already have.”
“… Is it for your date with Celestia?” She asked casually. At Discord’s raised eyebrow, she explained. “Rumors spread quickly in Canterlot. I didn’t quite believe it until now, but seeing as you’re here for a suit, I guess it wasn’t as unbelievable as I thought….”
“Well, yes it is for my… date. What are they saying exactly?” Discord looked interested.
“Oh, standard stuff. That Celestia deserves better, that you tricked her, that you don’t deserve her, that you’re evil again, that it’s just a prank to you and you’ll stand her up… the rumors are endless. Well it’s better than hearing another one about Princess Luna at least. Now there’s something that’s been going on for too long.”
“Well I never!” Discord looked downright insulted. “I wasn’t even the one who asked her on a date! In fact I didn’t even agree to go, yet I’ll still be there tomorrow at eight, ready to make a fool of myself.” He huffed proudly.
“Aww, the lengths you’re willing to go to see her smile is awesomrific!” Pinkie established while squishing Discord’s cheeks.
“Dat’s nut wut I ment.” Discord said from between her hooves, picking her up and setting her down beside him. “I mean I have no idea how to date anybody. I’ve never been on a date before. I normally ruin dates with a well-aimed pie.” He smiled proudly before deflating a bit. “I can be a real charming snake when I want to, no doubt about that… but this is Celestia! She’s dealt with… well everything. She’s been around for a long time.”
“Oh, don’t worry Discord.” Fluttershy patted him on the lower back, as high as she could reach. “I’m sure that Celestia likes you already, otherwise she wouldn’t have asked you on a date in such an… interesting fashion. And we’ll help you if you need anything.”
That seemed to perk Discord up. “Information from an experienced source! Of course. So tell me Fluttershy, what do you expect from the stallion when you go on dates?”
“Oh…” Fluttershy bit her lip. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to make the impression that I’ve been on a date before… uhm… I’d want him… or her… to be nice though.”
Rainbow Dash seemed to be interested in this information. “What else?” She asked. It raised some eyebrows. “What? We need to help Discord! And it’s not like any of us have any experience. Do we?” She looked at Pinkie, who shrugged and shook her head.
“Not as far as I know. Jax is the one dating Princess Luna, not me.”
Most eyes focused on him, sharply enough that he paused his little game with the cutie bundle in his arms. He could do nothing but shrug though. “I don’t think it would count as dates, since we couldn’t really separate for a long time. The last time we were together was at our favourite pizza place, but I don’t think that’s first date material.” He thought for a moment. “I guess my best advice is to make her laugh… but don’t try to force it. Everybody loves to laugh, but if you try too hard you’ll ruin it.” With that piece of wisdom he went back to playing with Cenia.
Pinkie nodded, giving her consent as the present expert on laughter. “Yep, that’s true!”
“What about you, my new feathery friend? You must have been on some dates… right?” Discord asked Freja, seemingly out of desperation. It would seem that Vinyl was either forgotten or he just assumed she had as much experience as the rest of them.
Freja looked at him oddly though. “Gryphons don’t date the same way ponies do. I doubt Princess Celestia would appreciate you bringing your latest kill when picking her up.”
“Oh… no, that’s not really her style. Maybe some flowers though… what kind does she like?”
“You can ask Luna when we meet up with her! She probably knows!” Pinkie pointed out. “And I guess while she’s here you can ask her all sorts of stuff about Celestia that only she knows.”
Discord considered it for a fraction of a second before lighting up, quite literally, as if he had become a lightbulb.
Jax noticed that Freja was looking at him periodically as they made their way towards wherever she was leading them, probably to see his radiant smile. Or to make sure Cenia was alright? Nah, why would he ever hurt this bundle of joy. She was a lot like a cat, actually. Scratching or poking her stomach was risky business, but when he stroked her, she leaned into his hand, and if he did that for a little while… she started to purr.
By the Gods… that sealed it. She was cuter than pony foals. The matter was settled.
He looked up when he noticed they had stopped. Freja looked at him in surprise.
“Oh hey!” Rainbow flew up to him. “You got her to purr. I tried to get Gilda to do it after she told me about it, but I never could.”
“We only do it when we feel completely safe and satisfied.” Freja explained. She sighed and ran her claw through her plume again. “Cenia is more trusting than most gryphons… I guess it’s my fault for raising her among ponies.” She sounded tired. He briefly wondered how it was like as a gryphon amongst ponies, working as a tailor, trying your best to make ends meet. Then his thoughts went to happier things, like the barely audible snores he heard from his arms.
“Oh my God… she fell asleep… so cute….” He somehow managed to fight off the urge to poke her stomach until she woke up. Then the thought of putting her on his head and using her as a hat popped into his mind, and he shook with barely contained laughter.
‘I’m laughing a lot though, what was up with that?’ He thought in a moment of clarity. Then the drunk feeling of happiness overwhelmed him again and…
…
He felt jubilant. Alive in the best kind of way, with no worries to weigh him down. What had he even been worried about, when this felt so great?
‘Yeah… Everything is going to be alright….’ He thought to himself.
Sombra tried to say something in a weirdly begging voice, but just then they arrived at Freja’s shop, which seemed to double as a home, and he was drowned out as Jax had other things to focus on.
***
The shop was a simple affair. Unlike Rarity, Freja seemed to be successful in keeping everything in order, giving each cloth its own space. Other than that, it was fairly small, and there wasn’t much in the name of decoration lying around.
While Discord was measured, and cloth for his suit chosen, Jax scratched Cenia’s stomach, gently as not to wake her. She purred every time she breathed out. Jax was completely enthralled.
If he someday decided he was ready to be a father, and he couldn’t get one with Luna… maybe they could adopt a gryphon. A tiny gryphon to take care of that they could scratch until he or she started to purr, and would grow up to be the coolest gryphon around.
Yeah… that would be awesome.
“You can put her to bed if you want.”
He looked up to find himself face to beak with Freja. The measurement seemed to have been taken, and cloth chosen. “Up the stairs, the room to the right. If she wakes up, tell her I’ll be working the rest of the night on this.” She indicated the different fabric she had gathered in her working area.
He nodded and went up to tuck the small gryphon into bed. It was a surprisingly tender moment when he put the blanket over her, and for one brief instant he felt….
Well, one day he would be ready.
Not now though. Now he was going out to have fun.
***
The bouncer looked at them with mouth agape, from Jax, to Luna, past Moondancer to the three elements of harmony, to Discord, and finally stopped at Vinyl.
Jax looked around while the stallion was wrapping his head around the oddity that had gathered in front of Club Hoofleton. It was located in… well, it looked like it was the poor side of town. Or actually ‘side’ was a bit grandiose, it seemed more like a corner.
There weren’t any grand mansions here, or even individual houses, it looked like it was run over with apartments that had been cramped close together, looking like nopony had cleaned them in ages. There were some alleyways that looked so dark and foreboding, he wouldn’t be surprised if muggers were just waiting for some fool to take a shortcut through them.
Then again, did pony muggers even exist?
… Whatever.
He focuses on the brawny bouncer again, who finally seems to have wrapped his head around what is going on, at least enough to talk. “Hey Vinyl… good to see you….” He starts with trepidation. Vinyl nodded carelessly in greeting, in a sort of ‘get on with it’ way. She handed him the three tickets she had and then proceeded inside, leaving the stunned stallion behind.
The poor earth pony just looked from the tickets, to them standing patiently, waiting to be let in, looking like he didn’t want to say that three tickets weren’t enough.
Luckily Luna - sweet, beautiful, generous, and kind Luna - stepped in to help him. “We apologize, my good sir, but we seem to be a couple of tickets short. I have been led to believe that we could buy some at the gate?”
The stallion, upon realizing he is in the presence of royalty, hurriedly bowed. “Y-yes of course, your highness!” He sounded somewhat awkward and unsure of himself. He probably wasn't used to anyone important stepping into the club. “I-I must ask though… do any of you have anything against changelings?” Jax wasn’t sure exactly what the stallion would do if any of them answered yes. He probably hoped to heaven and hell that they didn’t.
“Why would we come to see the show if we did?” Rainbow Dash asked for them. “I mean, sure, I sometimes have these awesome dreams where I completely destroy any changeling that comes near me, so if any of them try to mess with us, I might knock them out before-“
Luna put her hoof in Rainbow’s mouth before she could inform us, well probably how fast she was going to destroy changelings. “What miss Dash is trying to say is no, we are here for the music and to enjoy ourselves.” Ahh Luna… such a saviour of bouncers who are unsure whether he should - or even could - stop us from entering. Jax guessed that having both royalty and the Lord of Chaos on their side really put the bouncer out of his element. “I believe we are in need of… five tickets?”
“Of course ma’am. That will be-“
“I think this should cover it.” Luna handed - magicked?- him a pouch of money. Did ponies have several pouches laying around for when they gave away the whole pouch?
The stallion didn’t even check the contest of the pouch, he just gave her a thin smile and handed - hoofed - them tickets with stamps on them. “Enjoy the show, and remember that the Hoofleton establishment has promised these changelings that no harm would come to them so… uhm… please don’t harm them.” What started as a standard and well-rehearsed speech ended in a hopeful plea. He was probably used to throwing ponies out if they caused trouble, but what could you really do against three heroes, a princess, a being that could bend reality to his will, and a newly uncovered being who was covered in rumours mostly displaying him as evil, but who might also be dating mentioned princess. The only one he probably felt comfortable throwing out was Moondancer, and even she could be risky for him when looking at her company.
“Go ahead and enjoy yourselves and… uhm… yeah.” He stepped aside in a hurry, letting them through.
Jax stopped and kneeled before the stallion to look him in the eye, giving him a reassuring smile. “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure nobody gets hurt.” He promised. His spirit soared when the bouncer relaxed a bit in relief, and gave him a more genuine smile and a nod. Jax continued in after his friends after that.
The club was… dark. There was muted light here and there, probably to have a dark and mysterious atmosphere or something. The ponies that were already gathered were the same, a contrast to the usually colourful species. These ones had a palette of black, dark brown, dark red… and so on. Pinkie and Rainbow stood out like peaches on Applejacks farm.
“This place looks peachy!” Pinkie looked around in excitement. “It has ‘dark and mysterious’ down to a science!”
“Oh my gosh! It’s Princess Luna!” A mare from the small crowd hurried over, drawing everypony’s attention over to them. She bowed before she stopped fully, sliding the rest of the way in front of Luna. “We are so honoured that you have decided to join us on this beautiful night, Princess!”
Luna looked at her in confusion, seemingly at an impasse on what to say. She was saved when the rest of the ponies ran over to show their appreciation of their Princess of the Night. It would seem that Luna wasn’t as unpopular as she thought.
“You really are as beautiful as they say!”
“Can I touch your mane? I mean, just for a second… please?”
“I’ve always loved the night! I wouldn’t even mind if it lasted forever.”
“Remember me? I once came to your night court!”
Luna blushed slightly at all the attention, but Jax doubted anybody but himself noticed in the darkness of the place. Silence fell when she coughed into a hoof.
“Thank you all. Me and my compatriots are just here to enjoy ourselves, so please, don’t mind us too much.” She looked around at the expectant faces in front of her and seemed to relent a bit when a smile graced her muzzle. “You may all touch my mane if you do it one at a time.”
You would think she just gave Rarity permission to make dresses for the entirety of the royal family. Several of the ponies fainted, several more looked too stunned for words, and the rest started crying of joy.
‘So this was where the Luna fan club resides’ He mused with a smile. The other half probably consisted of astronomers… if they even had that here. He was fairly certain Twilight had a telescope somewhere in that castle, so probably.
One by one, the ponies stepped forward to touch Luna’s mane with a look of awe and joy on their muzzles.
“And I do remember you.” Luna suddenly said as a stallion stepped forward. “I hope your insomnia has stayed cured.”
And the crowd went wild again. It started raining praises from all around, the stallion looking ready to faint.
“Yes, yes.” Discord finally snapped. “We get it, you like Luna. Now can we move on?”
Jax could understand why he was annoyed. Personally, he was happy that Luna was getting the attention she deserved, but it quickly became too much. Luna seemed to enjoy it nonetheless, even if she wanted to look like it didn’t affect her. It probably meant more to her than he could ever understand.
They finally managed to move to the stage, first row, where Vinyl was waiting for them. She gave them a ‘what took you so long’ nod, to which Jax just smiled, shrugged, and nodded back. Vinyl was good at expressing herself without saying a word. He could imagine that it was easier than writing everything down.
It didn’t take long for the first changeling to come forth on the stage, walking with determination over to the mic. “Alright everypony, I hope you’re ready to-“ He finally looked properly at the audience, his gaze instantly being drawn to Rainbow Dash, before spreading to all of them. He stood completely speechless and frozen on the stage, until a bottle was thrown from backstage hitting him right in the head. That finally woke him up.
“I… uhm….“ alright maybe not entirely.
“Get on with it!” Rainbow Dash finally had enough.
“I’m sure he will when he’s ready, Rainbow. Give him some time.” Fluttershy softly chided her.
“You can do it, changeling!” Pinkie cheered. Discord snapped his claw to give her pon-pons, while he himself… also had pon-pons. “We believe in you!” They cheered together.
“Please…” Luna saw her opportunity when the changeling relaxed a little. “We are only here to enjoy ourselves. Don’t mind us.”
He finally relented and took the microphone again. He coughed into a holed hoof, before green fire overtook his form and a dark brown pony stood in his place when it was gone. “Alright ladies and gentleponies… and other beings.” He started with a smooth voice, the kind that could melt all and any tension with but a whisper. “We are here tonight to have fun and spread the love. Some of you have tried this before, but for those of you who are here for the first time, it’s pretty simple. We will perform for you, and while we do we will feed on your love for us, even if it is just for the performance. Should anypony volunteer for active feeding, I will remind you that this happens after the show.” His brown eyes once again swept over the group in front. “And let me make sure that everypony understand that we don’t want anypony to get hurt here, so let’s all just have fun tonight, alright?” He nervously looked at them again. “I mean, we are all peaceful beings-“
“Get on wi-“ Rainbow stopped mid-sentence at the disappointed look Fluttershy gave her. “I mean… would you please continue?” Fluttershy nodded appreciatively.
“A-Alright! Let me introduce the band. Steady Beat on the drums.” A changeling, eerily similar to the first one before he changed, came on stage and took his place by the drums. Maybe his holes were a bit different but it was hard to tell. “On guitar we have Epic Riff!” Another changeling came on stage with an electronic guitar… which made sense actually, since there was a dj right next to him. He didn’t even know why he was surprised. “On bass we have Background Beat, and I am the vocals - any and all we need - Any Note.” The last changeling came in, and the ponies stomped the floor in anticipation. “And no, those aren’t our changeling names, but don’t you worry about having to pronounce that mess. For now, let us take the form… of a song. This is an original song by us, Change Our Way, with the song… Leave it all Behind. Let’s rock!” He finished with a swirl of green fire that changed him back to a changeling. His voice became… rougher, which fit perfectly with the song.

Suffocate everything
They complicate everything
They seal your fate everyday but you can't believe it
Take yourself far away from nothingness
A million miles from emptiness

A sense of anticipation spread about the room as the song started instantly with perfect coordination. Jax was already nodding his head to the beat, his smile turning into a wide grin as he realized how much he had missed music. He needed to figure out how they played music electronically when this was over. After all... didn't Vinyl walk around with headphones?
But for now… there was nothing to do but to lose himself in the bliss.

Author's Note

Finally here ^^ I hope you enjoyed it :b We cover a lot here, I'll try to be more focused next chapter... but we'll see ^^ Anyway, there's that changeling band I promised *yay* XD
I must admit, the idea that gryphons could purr came from House of the Rising Sun, I dunno it's from other places as well, but I thought the idea was absolutely adorable XD There's a lot of sex in that one, so read at own risk. It's like porn with a story ^^

Chapter 65

Jax was lost, in the best way possible. There was not a single thought in his mind, nothing but the lyrics and the beat made his body move. He had missed this feeling so much, he could feel tears of joy flow from his eyes. He didn’t care that the changeling had changed shape after their first song and did a cover of somepony called Countess Coloratura by literally becoming the performer. He didn’t care that they moved on to somepony called Sapphire Shores afterwards, and that they had gone on to an original song, at which point Jax put his arms around Luna and Discord and was moving his head to the beat. All he cared about was that the beat kept coming and the music kept flowing. It was a… a crazy sort of euphoria. He was one with the music and nothing else mattered.

I've felt the hate rise up in me
Kneel down and clear the stone of leaves
I wonder out where you can't see
Inside my shell, I wait and bleed

To his joy and confusion, they covered a wide variety of songs. The covers were usually cheerful pop-songs, typical pony stuff really, but their own were more metal, which was awesome as well.
Beside him, Luna and Discord were bobbing their head up and down along with him, and beside them, Rainbow, Pinkie and Vinyl did the same. Moondancer and Fluttershy looked a bit uncomfortable, but at least they had each other to share the opinion. They had a different tune a moment ago when Sapphire Shores the changeling was on stage, but it was understandable that ponies had different music tastes.
He simply banged his head, content that everything was awesome.
***
“I must admit…” Luna said when the song ended and the changelings were getting ready for the next one. “I barely understood a word of that, yet it was thrilling to sing along - or at least try to.”
The atmosphere in the club was intoxicating, making her smile brightly as she remembered how it had made her give in and join the sing-along on the chorus. It had been freeing to just let go and sing along with everypony else. She should have left her regalia at home… in fact….
She took a moment to focus on it, and teleported it back to her room. Next to her Jax gave her a low whistle. “Getting all naked…” he leaned in to whisper in her ear. “Just how I like you.”
She blushed, despite almost every pony around them being naked. There was a roughness and desire in his voice that made her feel like a giddy teenager.
He leaned back a bit and smiled. “And you’re not the only one who barely understood what they sang, but that’s also what makes it fun.”
Her own smile reflected his, although… there was something about his eyes… she couldn’t quite put her hoof on it. The pupils were much bigger than usual, so much that she could barely see the green of his iris.
Before she could think further on it, he leaned in and kissed her, briefly but with a lot of love behind it, and then the next song began and he turned his head.
Soon they were both lost in another original song from the changelings. This one was filled with regret of the attack on Canterlot. She knew regret well, and she could not help but feel a little sorry for the changelings who had done naught but follow their leader into something they believed a love-filled future.
She would have to remember to talk with Celestia about changelings. If this group could stray from their queen’s way, then there must be others making their own way somewhere around… and maybe some where struggling to make a living. She would have to remember to make special laws for changelings so their special talents would not get… misused.
Maybe they could somehow manage to integrate changelings into society? They would probably have to partake in diplomatic talks with Chrysalis, though, not something to look forward to… unless of course Luna could give her a piece of her mind about invading Canterlot… while she was asleep no less. It was so infuriating that she had missed the whole thing.
But what was done was done, and she would not waste time fuming over it, especially not now when she had so much fun.
And the night was still young.
***
Jax was having an absolute blast. He had gone from feeling tipsy to feeling outright drunk. There was something… something wrong with that… something….
The smile came back to his face as he realized what was wrong. The concert was over, the music replaced by a… a vinyl player? What were those called anyway?
He hadn’t even noticed. When did the changelings stop? How many songs had they played?... Had he cheered when they were done? Cause they deserved some cheering. A lot of cheering. He hoped he had cheered. Everything just seemed sort of blurry… the last thing he remembered was flirting with Luna and then… he had given her a kiss…. But then everything was just a blur.
He looked around. He was still at the club, up by the bar, with Luna sitting next to him. She had a pink drink in front of her, while he had a glass of water. Everything was instantly okay again, and the frown he had briefly taken on disappeared into a loving smile. He instantly moved his chair closer to her, so that he could hug her. She giggled girlishly, before spreading her wing over him. He was so staying under this wing for the rest of the night. He would have to reward her somehow for being so cute and lovable… if only there was something he could give her….
***
Fluttershy was having… an interesting time. She certainly enjoyed it when the changelings transformed into different performers and sang covers. Their own songs however were a bit too… well it just wasn’t for her. The others seemed to enjoy them enough, so that was fine, and it gave her something to talk about with Moondancer between songs, which was also nice.
The thing she liked the most about the concert was that the changelings did their best to please all of them. It left them with some ponies liking some parts of the concert, and others liking others… and some liking all parts, she supposed. Jax certainly seemed to have fun at every song.
And it was always nice to see Rainbow have a good time. She looked over at the mare, who was busy dancing with Pinkie. She had originally asked Fluttershy, but she didn’t feel comfortable enough to dance amongst these strangers. She had preferred to stay towards the back of the club with Discord and Moondancer, but then Discord had left to find Luna and ask her about Celestia, and Moondancer had decided she wanted to join the dancing.
The song ended, and Rainbow came over to her. She looked so happy, Fluttershy could do nothing but smile.
“Hey Fluttershy! Still don’t wanna dance?”
“I’m sorry Rainbow… maybe some other time.” She fidgeted a little with her hooves.
Rainbow Dash just smiled like she knew exactly what Fluttershy meant with that: Maybe some other time, if that other time only had their friends as guests.
“Yeah sure. Maybe we could find a meadow somewhere to dance in. I hear from Luna that it’s the best way to enjoy the night.” Fluttershy wasn’t entirely sure in the dim light, but she thought she saw Rainbow blush… just a little.
“That sounds… romantic.” She admitted, blushing as well. “Uhm… I’ve heard from Rarity that you’ve been borrowing her romance novels. I didn’t think you liked those kind of books… not that there’s anything wrong with liking them of course.”
Rainbow laughed, perhaps a bit nervously. “Yeah… I thought I would give them a chance. They weren’t as bad as I thought.”
“Mmm… I’m glad you liked them. Rarity seems happy that you showed interest in them.”
“Whoa, I didn’t say I liked them. I mean… they were okay.” Fluttershy knew that that was Rainbow’s way of saying that she liked them but was too embarrassed to admit it. It also explained why she had gotten Discord to get a new suit. Fluttershy was pretty sure that it was from one of the novels Rarity had spoken about at some point.
“Alright… oh, thank you for what you did with Discord by the way. I know you don’t like him much.” Fluttershy redirected the conversation to something she had been meaning to say.
“Oh it’s nothing to thank me for.” She said, but smiled regardless. “It’s not that I don’t like him, it’s just that I never forgave him. I’ll give him a proper chance, I promise.” She puffed out her chest in something that resembled pride.
Fluttershy knew that when Rainbow promised something, she would do her best to keep it. It was one of her many lovable traits.
Rainbow’s smile slowly dropped, but not into a frown. It was like she was looking at Fluttershy in wonder. That couldn’t be right….
“I like your smile.” She suddenly said, making Fluttershy wide-eyed. “Oh, uhm… I mean….” Rainbow looked around nervously when she realized what she’d said, but then just shrugged. “I’ve always liked your smile.” She repeated, a bit more sure of herself.
“Oh. Uhm… thank you.” Fluttershy was blushing. A lot. “I… uhm, I’ve always liked your smile as well.” She managed to say, blushing harder when she realized what she said.
Rainbow laughed a little, maybe in relief. “Oh, you’re just saying that.” She placed a hoof on Fluttershy’s chest. Fluttershy was fairly certain that meant Rainbow could feel her heart pump much faster than it was meant to.
Her own words made it pump even faster. “No… I-I mean it.” She insisted, not being able to bear the thought of Rainbow not believing her in this. “That’s why I sometimes do things I’m not entirely comfortable with… to see you smile.” She thought her face couldn’t become redder, but that was before Rainbow’s hoof traveled to her cheek.
“Yeah you’re pretty great like that.” She drew a little closer, her hoof traveling behind her head. Fluttershy started breathing a bit heavier. “Are you okay? You’re… hot.” Rainbow asked in… well there was concern somewhere under the desire. She drew closer… and closer, and Fluttershy could feel her heart pump faster and faster, and ‘oh my gosh it’s actually happening’ went through her mind along with ‘what if I’m bad at kissing?’ and ‘what if she’s only doing this because she’s drunk?’
… The last one was what made her eep and duck under Rainbow. “Yes! No… uhm, yes I think I could use some air. Yes, definitely.” She said in a hurry and left before Rainbow’s confused and… slightly hurt look could make her feel too bad.
The air outside was heavenly. She took deep breaths of it, and tried to focus. What had just happened? Rainbow Dash had leaned in to kiss her. Had she wanted it? More than anything. Did she back out at the last moment like the scared cat she was? Of… of course.
She had waited so long for that moment, so many fantasies where it had happened and then… then she just….
Rainbow Dash hadn’t even drank that much. It was just an easy excuse to get out of there.
Why was she always like this?
‘Alright… okay… it’s not so bad. It’s okay. Rainbow Dash won’t hate me, she’ll just think… that I don’t like her like that…’ that thought hurt. It hurt because that would mean she hurt her oldest friend over a misunderstanding. How was she supposed to explain that she actually did like her? She wasn’t brave enough. But she would have to do it… for her friend. For Rainbow.
‘Does Rainbow even like me like that, or was it just a spur of the moment thing?’
…
Rainbow may be spontaneous, but she didn’t play around with other ponies feelings.
“Fluttershy?”
She eeped and turned mid-jump to see Rainbow Dash looking at her with worry. For some reason she had the phonograph with her.
“Uhm… yes?” She was unsure whether she answered loud enough for Rainbow to hear.
Regardless of whether she heard or not, she moved closer to her. Fluttershy couldn’t keep eye contact, so she just looked at the ground.
“Listen, I’m sorry about what happened in there. I shouldn’t have been so aggressive with you. I should have known better.” She sounded angry… at herself. Fluttershy hated when Rainbow was angry at herself when it was Fluttershy who did something wrong.
“It’s not your fault Rainbow… it’s… I just….” She fought with the words until she felt a wing on her withers. She looked up and realized that Rainbow was right beside her, as she always had been. She looked into Rainbow’s beautiful cerise eyes, and was filled with just a tiny bit of the confidence Rainbow had. She used it to move closer and nuzzle into her blue fur. After a moments hesitation, Rainbow nuzzled back.
“Listen, Fluttershy… if you don’t like me in… you know… that way, just say so now. It’s cool, I won’t be mad or anything, and we can still be friends.” Fluttershy wouldn’t have heard the hesitation in her voice is she hadn’t known Rainbow for so long.
The silence stretched on for a minute, and for once Rainbow didn’t seem to mind.
“Have you seen Jax?!” Luna shouted at them from the opening of the club. She looked… not exactly distressed, but getting there. “Was he out here?”
She shared a look with Rainbow Dash. “Yeah, I saw him like a few minutes ago. He gave me this vinyl player and told me to get out here, but I don’t think he came out. Why?”
Luna’s eyes dilated before she shook herself. “Listen, don’t accept anything he gives you from now on. Not. One. Thing. No matter how small or how much he insists.” Her voice was stern, and Fluttershy flinched just a little when her gaze found her. “In fact, it might be better if you left. Sorry if I’m being rude, but this is important.” She turned and trotted back inside.
“Uhhh…” Rainbow gave her a sideways glance. “You think they’ll be fine?”
“Uhm… I’m not sure, it looked pretty serious… and pretty important that I wasn’t there. I should… uhm, find a hotel and wait for tomorrow’s train.” She untangled herself from Rainbow and made it a couple of steps before looking back. Rainbow looked completely torn between following her, and going back into the club to help with whatever situation Jax had found himself in now.
Fluttershy gave her the kindest smile she had. Rainbow Dash was, above all else, loyal. And it hurt her when she had to choose who to be loyal to. “Go.” Fluttershy motioned towards the club with her head. “I know you want to help. I’ll be fine.” She wasn’t too thrilled about going out into Canterlot at night, lost and alone, but she wasn’t going tell Rainbow that as she turned around and walked on.
For a moment, she thought Rainbow had left, but then there was the sound of wingbeats, and she landed right in front of Fluttershy. She smiled so confidently that Fluttershy forgot all about returning the phonograph to the club.
“They’re probably fine. Luna would never let anything happen to Jax, and in the worst case scenario they have Discord with them.” She said without an ounce of doubt. “C’mon, there’s this meadow Luna told me about. We’ve got to see it.” She started to fly, and Fluttershy hesitantly took wing.
“Uhm… is it far?”
“Nah, it’s just by Ponyville.” Rainbow looked back at her, and probably saw her worried face. “Hey, don’t worry, I’ll help you.” She backed up and started beating her wings towards Fluttershy, making a nice updraft. Fluttershy let the wind take her over the houses around her, smiling all the while. Rainbow was such a sweetheart, though she would never admit it.
***
They landed softly in the meadow. Fluttershy had to admit that it was nice, with the stars shining down on them and the moon brightening the sky.
Rainbow Dash set the phonograph down, then spend some time fiddling with it, until she managed to get it to play.
A slow song started playing, and Rainbow Dash came over to her almost nervously. A feeling Fluttershy shared, she realized as she fluttered her wings and swallowed.
Nothing was said as Rainbow put a wing around her, and Fluttershy mirrored the action. For a while they just danced, neck to neck, to the slow rhythm of the music. As Fluttershy was getting her nerves under control, she breathed in the familiar scent of Rainbow. She smelled of clouds and sweat, just as she almost always did. Fluttershy didn’t mind, it was such a familiar scent that, after all these years, she found comfort in it.
“You were always there….” She started meekly. Rainbow straightened a bit, and Fluttershy felt her ears turn. “You were always there when I needed you. You always stood up for me, you were always happy to be with me… even though I couldn’t do most of the things you wanted.” She borrowed a bit more confidence from Rainbow’s presence. “I really appreciate it. Thank you for everything, Rainbow Dash.”
Rainbow sat down and pulled her close, the dance all but forgotten. For some time, they just sat there, Rainbow trying to say something but having trouble with it. “Even though I almost killed you?” She finally whispered.
Fluttershy’s eyes widened. “Wha-“
“Back at the race, before we had our cutie-marks, when you fell off the clouds. It was my fault, wasn’t it? You almost died….” There was a lot of guilt in Rainbow’s voice. How long had she walked around with this?
“I was a pegasus that could hardly fly. That’s not your fault.” She started nuzzling the mare that had given her courage on several occasions.
“I should have been more careful, I should have saved you, I should have…” Fluttershy felt tears stain her coat.
“Shh… it’s okay Rainbow, I don’t blame you at all. It was how I got my cutie-mark. It’s how we all received our cutie-mark.”
“But-“
“No buts.” She used the voice she only used when one of her little friends refused to listen to her. She would call it stern, but Rainbow Dash had often disagreed. She moved back a bit so she could look into Rainbow’s eyes. “No buts. I never blamed you Rainbow, so there is no need for you to blame yourself.”
“I….” She looked so distraught. Fluttershy used her hoof to wipe away the tears, then before she could change her mind, placed a quick kiss on her lips. She blushed fiercely when she pulled back.
“I’m sorry about fleei-“ was all she managed to say before Rainbow leaned in for a proper kiss.
Fluttershy only froze for a second, before she leaned into it.

Author's Note

And there's the FlutterDash ^^ about time I say XD
And even a week early, just for you guys :D next chapter will be in 2 weeks if everything goes well ^^
My recommendation: My Life as a Bipedal Quadruped, it's good and I enjoyed it so far ^^

Chapter 66

Jax looked around in a daze. Discord had taken hold of his shoulder and now they somehow stood in front of a crystal tree.

For a moment he wondered if they had gone back to Ponyville, but the town was nowhere near. They seemed to be inside a cave.

He looked over at Discord who studied the tree intensely. “The Tree of Harmony. My mortal enemy for many, many years.” He started solemnly. “Can you believe it? I lost to an immobile tree. Well technically I lost to it’s seed.” He pointed towards the crown. Six… were those cutie-marks? Yeah… oh right, he knew what this was. He had read about it in Twilight’s book. They had given up the Elements of Harmony to this tree, and then later gotten the same effect through friendship or some such.

Jax sat down in a daze. He felt immensely humbled to be here, but at the same time he felt like the tree was radiating heat, and he was absorbing it all.

The heat made him smile blissfully. It felt so good….

“Stupid thing could do nothing but spawn those… things, to fight my reality changing magic, and somehow it worked! Celestia and Luna got hold of them and just used them on me, and that was the end of my reign!”

‘Did he bring us out here just to vent?’ Something blurry in his mind asked, but that soon melted away in the heat. Every worry, every thought, everything just melted away… replaced by warm happiness.

“And now I don’t even feel like it’s my enemy anymore, because - hey, are you alright?”

Something shook him. He looked up to see Discord’s mismatched, concerned eyes on him. He wanted… he needed to give him something. What did he have to give?

***

Luna cursed under her breath. Jax had simply disappeared. She had just started suspecting that he was way too close to a positive magic high, when Discord had spun her around and asked her several questions about Celestia.

The knowledge that Sunflowers were not her favourite flowers seemed to disappoint him.

When she turned around, Jax had been gone. And so was Discord when she turned to ask him if he saw where Jax went.

She looked around again, hoping that something would be different this time, that he would suddenly appear.

He was not there… but she spotted Pinkie standing close to the wall, by a fern of some sort, looking uncharacteristically neutral. “Hello Pinkie Pie.” She said as she approached the mare. “Have you by chance seen Jax around here somewhere?”

“Nope.” She answered with a shrug.

“Alright, please bring him to me if you do spot him and do not accept anything he gives you no matter how desperately he wants you to.” She told the pink mare who just nodded in understanding. Luna was about to move on when she decided to ask: “Is something the matter? You do not seem to be enjoying yourself as much as before.”

Pinkie looked at her for a moment. She was not frowning, but she did not have her usual smile either. “Nothing is wrong. I just let Epic Riff feed on me directly – apparently that means that they bite you and suck out your love or something – so now I just feel ‘meh’.” She shrugged. “I mean, I don’t feel unhappy… but I don’t feel like bouncing around like usual either. And I think he became drunk, because he’s been transforming into different plants for the last ten minutes.” She pointed at the fern which was now a petunia. A lovely deep blue shade, no less, and coincidently Celestia’s favourite flower. “I think this is how Maud feels....” Pinkie added as an afterthought.

Luna briefly wondered what would happen to the changeling if he was eaten as a plant, but the thought turned too macabre for her.

“Alright… just remember what I told you.” She said as she turned around, just to stand face to face with a portal. Out of it came Discord, with Jax being dragged through because he was holding on to Discord’s leg.

“Ah, Luna. Just the pony I wanted to talk to.” Discord looked uncomfortable. “I think there’s something wrong with Jax. In the last minute he tried to give me his clothes, his cloak, his house, grass, all his money, and dirt.” He closed the portal behind him with a snap of his claw. To her dismay, Luna glimpsed a crystal tree before it was gone. “Frankly I’m a bit weirded out.”

Luna raised to her hind legs so she could shake Discord violently with her forelegs. “You took him to the tree of harmony?! One of the few things that practically radiates positive magic?!”

Discord pushed her back with his claw, leaving her flailing comically at him. She wanted to blast him into the moon, but with Jax so close she held her magic to herself.

“So what? He hangs out with ‘the mane six’ all the time, and I wanted to talk with him since he’s one of the few who actually listen.”

“He’s become a Giver you…!” She swallowed the last of the sentence as she went down on all fours. Jax was looking at her, but his gaze was creepy. His pupils were bigger than ever before, and his lovely green irises nowhere to be found. He had a smile that lacked his usual warmth, one that made her shiver from the top of her ears to the tip of her tail. To look into the face of a Giver was rare, but when it happened… especially to somepony you loved… it was horrifying. Like they weren’t entirely there.

“A Giver?” Discord asked in confusion. He took out a dictionary and opened it. “Somepony who’s absorbed too much positive magic… positive magic high… tries to give everything away….” He closed the book with a ‘thump’. “Well that explains why he tried to give me all that stuff.”

“Did you accept anything?” She asked, getting ready to strangle him.

He huffed, looking quite insulted. “I can get anything I want at a snap. What would I need bits for, no less grass or dirt.” His look softened a bit, which got her to relax her stance. “Honestly Luna... I didn’t know. I didn’t mean for anything to happen to him.” He looked genuinely apologetic.

She forced herself to calm down. It would not do anypony any good to play the blaming game, and as he said… he could not have known. She barely noticed until recently.

She let sorrow wash over her for but a second when she looked at Jax again. She took a deep breath and forced herself to focus. “I shall take him to Twilight. You make sure the others get home safely.”

Discord saluted. “You can count on me, Princess.”

***

Luna managed to get Jax to follow her, and Discord opened a portal to Ponyville. Luckily the streets were abandoned; it made it easier. She would not have to explain to everypony she met not to accept anything from Jax. “Luna.” He said from behind her. She froze, maybe because his voice sounded so normal. “You look cold. Here, take this cloak.”

She jumped forward, using her wings to help spin her around. He had already taken his cloak off and was offering it to the place she had been a moment ago. His gaze slowly moved up to meet her eyes, and once again she found herself shivering. “No. Come with me.” She started trotting forward, mindful of his steps behind her. Her words had been so cold and… unnatural. She would never had said a sentence to him in that way normally, but now she did not know how to address him when he looked at her like he did. She hastened her steps, hoping Twilight could help.

She did not even knock as she entered the castle, not until she stood in front of Twilight’s room. It was rude, but given the situation, she would probably be forgiven.

She did not answer the door though, which gave everything time to catch up, thoughts she had tried to keep at bay. She could lose Jax. He could be gone forever, and she would be….

Twilight finally opened the crystal door at her fifth knock. She was forgiven for taking so long since it was three in the night.

“Princess Luna?” She asked groggily, trying to rub the sleep from her eyes. “Was goin’ on?”

“We have an emergency, Twilight Sparkle, and you are the one my sister comes to when something is wrong.” She started, using her official tone because of nerves. She just hoped Twilight could help… she did not know what else to do then to rely on the mare that had beat the odds again and again. “I… Jax has become a Giver.” Twilight opened her mouth, looked at Jax who stood beside her, then closed it again. “I… do not want him to go to the Everfree to live and learn to balance positive and negative magic properly, if that could even work at this stage.” She said more heartfelt, closing her eyes. “…Please Twilight, beat the odds once again and help us. Please… I do not want to lose him.” She felt a single tear roll down her fur.

She felt a hoof on her withers, and when she opened her eyes, Twilight was looking at her with determination. “I will do my very best, Luna. I promise.”

***

Luna was walking home with Jax sleeping on her back. She was almost out of Applejack’s orchard, the apple trees making the late night air smell fresh and inviting.

She snorted. Jax’ home had at some point become as much her home as his. Maybe even more than the castle, which she felt was more Celestia’s than hers. She stopped to look back at his sleeping face, so peaceful and calm, she would not have known that something was terribly wrong.

“Oh Jax… why do you get into these situations….” She asked her sleeping love, knowing he could neither answer nor help it. It was not his fault, nor was it his choice. Everything just happened outside of his control.

She looked at him for a few more seconds before she decided he would be more comfortable in a bed.

She went a couple of more steps, clearing the last of the apple trees, just to stop again.

Jax’ house had been vandalized in the worst way possible, and all she could do was open her mouth in shock. It had been painted white, with Celestia’s cutiemark adorning every wall. The roof had been painted in the colours of an aurora, masterly so even, almost making it seem moving in a wind. In front of the house, a flagpole had been raised, with a flag that read ‘Celestia is the best Princess’ flapping lazily in the non-existent wind.

She pulled herself together and sighed. Too much… she did not know whether to smile or curse. On the one hoof, it was nice to see Celestia - because there was no doubt that it was her revenge - have some fun. On the other, the timing was horrendous, with what had happened with Jax.

In the end she just shook her head and entered the house. The inside had thankfully been spared, and two of her very own guards sighed in relief at seeing her there with the being they were supposed to be watching. It seemed like she interrupted them in a game of poker.

“Princess.” They echoed each other and gave her a court nod. She nodded tiredly back, and went directly into the bedroom. “Did he… have too much to drink?” Shadow Wing asked cautiously.

“I am afraid the situation is more dire than that.” She could practically feel the exhaustion in her voice. Two sets of ears turned upright as they awaited the news. “Jax… has become a Giver.” Other than their eyes widening in surprise, the guards did not move. “As such, I must impress upon the both of you not to accept anything from him.” She jumped unto the bed as to make it easier for her to lay Jax in it.

Night Guard, one of the first to join her guard, stood as still as a statue, but the younger Shadow Wing looked distraught. “Is… is there a cure?”

Luna found herself frowning at the stallion, and forced her expression to more neutral folds. “I spoke with Twilight about it, and it turns out she did some research around the time we first suspected that Jax might succumb to positive magic high. The normal method in my- in old times was to magically inject doses of negative magic to the patient. The practise is not used anymore, since the dark magic which was required to cast it would affect the doctor. In the most extreme cases they would suffer from negative magic high, and become a Taker. Ironic and quite ineffective.”

“Isn’t this a rare thing? Something that barely happens anymore?” Shadow Wing asked, a tad naively perhaps. A sign of the progress made, to be sure.

“No. While it is rare, it still happens. The effects have been well documented, and doctors have been battling it since… well since before the term ‘doctor’ was widely used. Back in Discord’s time of ruling, it was much more common… now it is practically treated from birth, making it almost die out, thankfully.” She took a moment to make sure Jax was comfortable, before returning to the conversation. “There is a Zebra proverb: ‘A potion for every spell’. They believe that they can do everything that unicorns can, by using the plants around them, and in time they became so skillful in it that I bowed my head in respect of their creations.” She thought back on the event so long ago, before snapping back to the present. “In any case, while I was on the moon… they found something resembling a cure. There is a plant which… ‘drinks’ positive magic, in a sense. By using the leaves of this plant, and balancing it with other reagents, they made a potion. If a foal has too much positive magic, they drink the potion and some positive magic comes out with it. They continue until the doctor is satisfied that the foal’s body has learned to balance the magic inside of it. The problem comes when used on adults.” She took another moment to get comfortable beside Jax, laying her wing protectively over him. “Foals have an easier time adapting. Adult ponies tend to react badly at losing portions of their positive magic, with different side-effects ranging from depression, to an inability to use spells. We are going to try it on Jax and see if he reacts the same way a pony would, and if he does we shall figure out something else.” That was most of the information Twilight had given her. She skipped over most of the side-effects Twilight had so helpfully listed.

“Princess Luna.” Jax said from beside her, making her propel herself away from him with her wings so fast she almost lost her balance. The day Jax called her princess Luna with anything but a teasing tone of voice was the day she would worry.

This was not Jax.

“We need to talk.” Sombra said as he raised Jax’ body.

***

Sombra was having the worst time. It took a ridiculous amount of energy just to fight the stupid smile that wanted to reign over his frown, this body felt weird and alien, and Princess Luna was looking at him with mistrust.

Alright, that last one he deserved.

He just wished he could vacate this stupid body and all the problems that came, and were soon to come, with it. He was still held in place by something that felt like chains around his soul. They had loosened a lot since Jax had first reversed Sombra’s spell and trapped him there, but they still held firm around Sombra’s ethereal horn.

If only Jax had listened to him before he became a Giver. Sombra had tried to warn him, but did he listen? No, of course not.

Not that Sombra could entirely blame him. He had tried to take Jax’ body as his own….

No. No that was the positive magic talking. Of course he could be blamed.

“And what would we have to talk about, usurper?”

Hostility. What a surprise. He liked her better when she smi-

No. He didn’t like her at all, damnit.

He tried to school his expression into something… he didn’t even know what, so he settled on a frown again with some effort. “What do you think?” He managed to snark despite the positive magic affecting him.

Princess Luna took a more aggressive stance. A useless gesture since he knew she would never do anything to hurt the body he was in. “Have you learned about the joys of guessing games from Pinkie Pie? Just tell us what you want.”

He took a deep breath. She was right of course. This was no time to be hostile.

He wondered once again whether this was his choice at all. First he had tried to become a Taker, and now he was on the opposite end of the spectrum. It was ridiculous how similar it felt, the warmth that radiated from the core of his being. The only thing sparring him from the full brunt of the positive magic was that this was not his body. He had to salvage what he could. He did not relish the thought of losing himself once again.

“I want to discuss the terms of my surrender.”

Author's Note

Alright! All the cards are on the table now, and this time I swear we are going towards the end of the story XD It's a question whether I can do this with as much grace as I think I can XD
Here's to hoping everything comes together the way I envisioned it ^.^
if not, you can always read Gilded Sister, that one's good too :3

Chapter 67

Sombra remembered a time worse than this. No matter what happened, he could always look back and confirm that there were worse destinies to face.

Like growing up with the oppression of his parents, both expecting him to be perfect. His father wanted an undefeatable warrior, his mother wanted a learned scholar. The pressure kept building and building, as they stacked their expectations on him, one on top of the other.

Then came his inability to crystalize like the other crystal ponies. His parents had him checked several times, but the doctor insisted that he just lacked happiness to achieve the state. In the end, his parents made up lies and bribed the doctor to go with it, but it did not stop the rumours, and it made his parents furious.

He was saved by some of the staff treating him kindly. Without them, he would have broken into pieces before he had even reached his teenage years.

As it was, the pressure his parents kept putting on him, the beatings he took by them, and his desperate relationship with Hidden Gem, that he now recognized as nothing more than a need to get away from everything else… it was like a desperate balancing act, but the bad outweighed the good.

As a result, he had ran to Hidden Gem too much, relied on her too heavily, even though she was a simple prostitute.

Yet he could not deny all the times they had ended up talking about nothing of import. How freeing it had been to him, to not have to pretend, and finally let go. She may have been paid for it, but her companionship had kept him sane.

Alas, it could not have lasted. Something had to give.

In the end, it was his parents who had to give their life, so that he could, for the first time in his life, feel completely free.

Even trapped in this body as he was, on the verge of becoming a Giver alongside its owner, he still did not feel as suffocated as he had back under his parent’s gaze.

That, however, did not mean that he wanted to lose himself in another magical high. An unpleasant experience it was, losing oneself to a single-minded being that was a Giver or a Taker.

It looked like he would not have much of a choice though, chained as he was.

Desperate times call for desperate measures.

“What?” The dark mare in front of him finally asked him after a raging silence.

“I have some simple terms that, when met, will result in giving myself up to you.” He explained, almost feeling sick at how weak he sounded. ‘Desperate times…’ he reminded himself. He could not lose himself, even if it meant losing the battle.

Silence reigned once again.

“I… cannot say I expected that. Very well then, what are your terms?” She took on a more regal tone, her stance shifting slightly away from attack position.

He was not trusted, and it was clear. The two guards in the room were still ready to pounce on him at the slightest notice, so much so that the atmosphere was nothing short of hostile.

Annoyingly enough, he almost had to force his anger forth. Here he was, about to give them the means to save their beloved friend, and this is how he was treated. ‘It is understandable that they should treat me like that though.’ The positive magic forced him to think.

“I want the same as you want.” He tried to sneer, but it came out like he was making idle chatter. “I want to free Jax from the curse of becoming a Giver.” He tried to stomp his hoof on the floor, but all that happened was that a hand swung back and forth. He was not exactly used to this body.

Luna squinted suspiciously at him. “And why would you want that?”

He rolled his eyes. That was at least the same. “If you spent two seconds thinking about it, you would realize why I have not simply asked him to give me his body. As a Giver, there is no way he would deny me.”

The silence that followed was deafening. Then the night princess finally realized: “You would become a Giver as well.” The sentence was uttered in a whisper, but in the silence it was heard by everypony.

“Exactly. Even now I can feel the effect….” Like adding that last part. Why would he give out that information? “So, I will give you a way to treat Jax, and you will get me out of this body. What happens with me afterwards, is up to you. A once-in-a-lifetime deal for you if I ever heard one.” A bit too good, if he was honest with himself.

His will faltered for a second, and he was about to back out and blame the whole thing on positive magic when he remembered what it was like to be a Taker. That single drive that took away everything else from him… he hated not being in control, and right now all roads seemed to lead to him becoming a prisoner. If he had to be a prisoner, then at least he wanted to still be himself. He could think of no way he could escape from his current position, but if he escaped this body he could befriend - uh, no. No befriending. Damn positive magic.

“We already have a way to treat him.” Luna declared as if it would change anything.

“No, what you have is a waste of time. Ever since I initiated my plan to take over his body, he has been absorbing positive magic faster than any potion can keep up with, especially after that retarded chaos monster took him to the Tree of Harmony. Whatever potion you have will not be able to keep up.” He explained, happy that he was able to keep a tinge of annoyance in his voice throughout.

“So you are the reason for all of this?” Anger overtook Luna’s features.

“Not by intent, I can assure you. I wanted this body, which would be useless if I was affected by that… ailment.”

“…What is it exactly you suggest?” Her anger was mixed with skepticism.

He tried to keep the details to himself and only give some information, but found himself speaking before he realized what had happened. “Back in the Empire I enchanted some crystals to act as a buffer to dark magic. All you have to do is use a little spell on it that I made to flood an area with negative magic, and this body will have no choice but to absorb it. The body will have to find a way to balance the magic inside, and the problem will be solved. Then we can find a way to get out of here, and you two can whore as much as you want.”

The guards looked flabbergast, but Luna just raised a brow. Disappointing.

“Getting you out of the body you have no right to be in sounds heavenly. Do you have a plan for that as well?” She asked. She still sounded skeptical.

“… Not exactly.” He reluctantly admitted. “If these chains get looser, I can get out by myself, but when that will happen… I do not know. Maybe a potion. That seems to be the answer to everything in these parts.”

She sighed. “I believe… that that option has already been researched. There is no known potion to expel sore losers-“

“But that is not what you need to do, is it?” He cut her off in annoyance, some of it because of her jab at his losing streak. “I just told you that the chains are the problem. I am certain that if I could read that Zebra’s books more carefully, I could find a way to dispel them.”

“… I will have to speak with the others.” She answered him after a pause, summoning some parchment and a pen. Interesting invention, pens. “Inscribe that spell you mentioned, and then let my Jax get his rest.”

So he did.

***

Luna was messaging her head in a futile attempt to dispel the headache that was brewing when the door was smashed open, making both her and her guards ready for combat.

“Sorry… I’m… late…” Pinkie Pie entered the house, looking absolutely exhausted. “I came here... as soon as I… was… myself again.”

Luna silently motioned for her guards to stand down as she let herself relax, at least somewhat. “Miss Pie… I hate to seem mistrustful, but what was the first thing you said when you saw me as Nightmare Moon?”

Pinkie giggled at the memory. “I tried to guess your name. Why?”

“Just making sure you are not a changeling….”

Pinkie shook her head even as she smiled. She pointed over to one of four books nearby. “Then maybe you shouldn’t ask something anypony who read Twilight’s book could tell you, silly. Try again.” She looked almost excited.

Luna realized she did not know very much about the energic young mare in front of her. The fact that she pointed out a flaw in her plan should be proof enough, but she looked so eager to answer a question that Luna found herself searching her memory. “… When Jax was in pain for three days, what did you say to me?”

“Oh that’s a good one!” She took a hoof up under her chin in thought. “Oh! I said that you looked caring on your position in the bed. It was actually really adorable and I’m so happy you two are together even with all that’s happening- Which reminds me why I’m here! I Pinkie Promised Jax that if any meanie-pants positive magic tried to change him a little too much, I would be here for him, but I didn’t even notice it was changing him! It’s terrible… anyway, I’m here now and I’m sticking by him until this whole thing blows over!”

Luna started messaging her temples again. She wished things would blow over really fast.

Author's Note

Sorry for the short chapter. I had some real difficulty writing this one.
After all this blows over, Luna and Jax are going to snuggle so much XD
good news is that we finally hit 500 likes XD Yay!

Chapter 68

Celestia smiled as Discord presented a bouquet of petunias to her. “Somepony has done their research I see.” She told him as she accepted the flowers. It had always been her favourite flower, and it most likely would be for the rest of her life. Once you’ve liked something for more than a thousand years, the chance of a sudden dislike was unlikely.

“Oh it was easy enough to find out… finding a pony willing to sell anything to me was a different case.” He was wearing a dashing white suit, with a magenta tie. She couldn’t help but feel flattered that he used her colours, though she would prefer if he had incorporated the aurora of her mane instead. Everypony thought her eyes were a lovely shade of magenta, but she didn’t think much of it.

She was wearing a simple dress that used to be that very shade of magenta, which she had enchanted to reflect light in all colours of the rainbow in seemingly random patterns, in honour of her special date. She hoped he would appreciate the nuance. She knew he at least liked change, so she doubted he would dislike it.

“Oh? I hope my little ponies didn’t give you too much trouble.” She said as she started following him when he started drifting backwards. She wasn’t sure where they would end up, but she was excited to find out what he had planned. She hoped it would be somewhere thrilling.

“Not too much but it seems they aren’t too accustomed to me here. I tried three different places before I finally decided to go back and try in Ponyville. You can say much about those three flower mares but at least they managed to sell me flowers while rolling on the ground in something I think was supposed to be panic. I think they used that one a touch too much, their hearts didn’t seem to be in it.” He managed to avoid objects and ponies on their way out of the castle, even when he wasn't looking where he was floating. They were getting a lot of looks.

“Well I’m happy that you managed to find somepony, though I expected more from the ponies of Canterlot.” She answered with a playful frown.

“Yes, yes.” He waved her off. “I know you always think the best of ponies. It’s… admirable.” He didn’t sound like he found it admirable, he sounded like he found it stupid but he couldn’t say anything because he was one she had given a chance despite being shown just how bad he could be. “Anyway, I managed to get some details out of your sister before everything went wrong last night. I think you’ll be pleased.” He sounded a little smug, but she raised a brow.

“Went wrong? What happened last night, if I may ask?”

She clearly noticed his hesitation, his eyes shifting, and the very moment he made his decision. “Oh, nothing you need to worry about, Celly. Just some minor things.”

She was saddened to find that her first thought was that he had done something. She knew that he was better than that now, but she also knew that accidents happened, and the way he answered showed at least some guilt. She had become good at reading creatures over the centuries, and she liked to think that her skill worked on him as well.

That being thought, tonight was for fun, not worry. If he had done something she would hear about it eventually, and if it had been really serious, she already would have known.

“Alright then. Care to tell me where we’re going then… Dissy?” She asked, putting on a coy look. She trotted forward and, balancing on her hind legs, whispered in his ear. “Is it somewhere… exciting?”

She felt him shiver ever so slightly, making her smile in satisfaction. She had decided to take this relationship, wherever it may lead, nice and slow. At the same time she wanted to make him squirm. She had forgotten how good it could feel to flirt.

She went down on all four as he gulped nervously. It was actually… kind of cute. Who knew Discord could be so innocent?

“Uhm, yes. Very exciting. You’ll love it, I’m sure of it.” He turned around and started floating a little faster. Celestia followed him at a light trot, happy to be moving at any speed other than her normal dignified walk.

When was it she had decided to become so… stuffy.

Well it wasn’t a conscious decision, but it probably started when she had to banish… well, a thought better left alone. Tonight, she felt young - young and alive. It was time to let herself lose… just a little bit. She had her sister, she had Twilight, everything was peaceful… more or less at least. She did feel bad for Jax, but those thoughts would have to wait.

Tonight she was going to have fun.

***

Celestia felt the wind under her wings, the warmth in her body spreading. She was flying, in seemingly random patterns, with Discord mirroring and complimenting her movements. It started out as a game when he had taken to the skies, and she had followed him. Far from Canterlot, she had decided that she wanted to play, so she started flying around him.

Soon, they were dancing. Long ago, the pegasi had called this ‘the dance of the skies’, though that sort of dance had a more discernible pattern than their dance. Their dance was more of a dance of freedom, of finally being able to do anything, go anywhere she pleased, and wherever she went, he followed. Then, he took the lead, and she followed. Then the lead was switched around at random, and for some unexplainable reason, it made Celestia happy.

She could feel the happiness from the very core of her being, to the tips of her feathers. The smile she had was not her usual calm smile, but a wild, joyous one.

Who knew Discord could be so graceful?

***

Celestia couldn’t help but think that it was a miracle that they arrived at their destination at all. It had been so long since she had used her wings so much… the burn she felt as she landed was nice.

Their destination seemed to be a meadow near Ponyville. The moon lit it up with a softer shade of light, making everything seem a bit more magical. Under a nearby tree was a blanket with lit candles on it. A pink picnic basket rested beside the blanket, ready to serve them with its content.

It all made for a deeply romantic picture, and to be honest… she was surprised. She did not think he would go for the romantic date. It just didn’t seem like him.

Not that she didn’t appreciate the gesture, and she could most certainly appreciate some food by now.

“Ah, Princess, we have reserved the best seat in the house just for you.” Discord, playing the role of a waiter, guided her towards the blanket. She sat down with a gentle smile.

It lasted for almost two seconds before the blanket gave way from under her, and she fell into some sort of cart.

“Psyche!” Discord appeared beside her, lowering something she assumed was a safety measure over them as the cart started to creak forward on the rails. “It’s time for you to be introduced to the concept of an amusement park! I made my own so we wouldn’t have to stand in line.” He conjured up some cotton candy and started eating it. “I hate standing in line.”

Celestia’s eyes widened as the cart rolled out into a large cavern. Discord had really gone all out on this amusement park. The top of the cavern was decorated with thousands of crystals that refracted the light in new and colourful ways, making the whole place rainbow coloured. The light came from thousands of light bulbs attached to all sort of rides, going up, down, to the side and in circles.

She realized the cart started moving at a snail pace, but regretted looking forward as she saw the almost straight drop that was coming. She couldn’t spread her wings, and didn’t really want to teleport away.

All she could do was scream as they tipped over and started falling at speeds that shouldn’t be possible. She felt a tickling from the point of her horn to the tip of her tail, making her laugh as the cart straightened out.

She reminded herself that she did ask for something exciting.

She realized that she was holding Discord in a death grip, and he looked like he couldn’t decide whether being choked would be worth it to be close to her.

She blushed as she let him go.

A few seconds later, she held him close again as the ride decided for a few more drops.

He didn’t complain.

***

A couple of hours of fun and excitement later, Celestia found herself on the blanket again, eating the enticing meal Discord had hidden in the picnic basket. After some of the more… crazy rides, she found herself enjoying the still and quiet.

She hadn’t screamed so much since her first experience with sex… she missed Fire Nova, he had been a good stallion. At the same time she couldn’t help but wonder what kind of experience Discord could give her in bed.

She took in a deep breath of the cool, tranquil air, lest she be drowned in nostalgia. A dangerous path to thread for somepony as old as her.

“This salad tastes quite exquisite. Did you make it yourself?” She asked, hoping to start up a conversation. She was a bit hoarse, but otherwise she felt great. The way the salad tasted sour, sweet and spicy at the same time kept things interesting.

“Why, yes of course!” He said, donning a torque blanche and ‘kiss the cook’ apron. He was going to add something more, but she leaned forward and did just that.

She held the kiss for all but a second before pulling back. Short, sweet, and oh so thrilling. She let her smile widen as she saw him open and close his mouth repeatedly.

She still got it.

“Thank you for tonight, Discord. I had fun.”

“I… uhm… you’re welcome?” He answered with a shaky smile.

“I better get back. I have an early meeting tomorrow about Jax. Are you going to be there?” She asked with a gentle smile.

“… How can I keep looking this good if I don’t get my beauty sleep, Celestia?” He joked, obviously avoiding saying something. She would have to ask Luna what happened last night. “I’ll… teleport you home. You can have the rest of the salad.” Before she knew it, she had three containers in her hooves. There wasn’t even that much salad left. He must have given her extra because he was happy she liked it. Or one of them was a prank box. She would have to be careful.

Before she could say anything else, he snapped his claw, and she was back in the castle.

She sighed happily and started walking towards the kitchen. It had been a fun date, that much was sure. It was too bad he had teleported her away before she could get him to agree to another.

She would get it though.

***

Several days later.

Luna sighed deeply. Everything had finally been arranged, and they would leave for the Crystal Empire the next day, in Celestia’s largest closed chariot. Even though it was her largest, there was still a problem with finding room for everypony who wanted to go. Beating Heart, Lyra and by extension Bon Bon, the Elements of Harmony and Spike, Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle… not to mention herself and Celestia. It was simply too many. There was only room for six of them.

So, in the end it was Luna because nopony had a better reason to go than her. Pinkie, because she refused to leave Jax’ side. Also because Jax had stopped eating, instead trying to give the food away, and Pinkie Pie had the ability to stuff food into his mouth, open and close it for him until it was chewed, then pour water down until he swallowed, all without batting an eye… something Luna would never be able to make herself do. Rainbow Dash had decided that she had to come, in case Sombra tried anything. Being the element of loyalty meant that nopony had the heart to tell her otherwise. Twilight of course, since she was both knowledgeable and known for solving problems, and lastly Beating Heart, who insisted that she could take care of anypony in case they got hurt.

They had a very enchanted bag, with several potions inside. Zecora had been so kind to provide most of them, though Twilight had made a few herself. Then there were extra clothes for Jax, to keep him warm from the snow. The rest was their own luggage, in varying sizes.

She thought back on the meeting she had with the others. At first it was only supposed to be the princesses sans Cadence, but then the other elements had come, with Beating Heart, Lyra, Bon Bon, Vinyl Scratch and Octavia Melody following soon after. Following shortly behind them came Derpy, and after her the trio of flower mares. Soon, Twilight’s castle was filled with most of the village. It seemed like the news had spread fast of Jax' new ailment.

It was sweet to see them so worried for Jax. They all asked her and the others if there was something they could do for them. Unfortunately, there was not. She suspected that some of them were only there because they felt guilty, but that was fine too. Maybe they would stop avoiding Jax when he became himself again.

Celestia agreed to Sombra’s terms after Twilight had confirmed that the spell Sombra had inscribed for them did what he said it did. Or she almost agreed, she actually wanted one more thing. To ask one question in private before they left, answered thruthfully.

When they sent a letter to Cadance by dragonfire, she had made the same request, except of course for when they arrived. With a little use of a sleeping potion they had made their offer to Sombra, and he had accepted.

So now she stood beside Celestia in Jax’ house, with Sombra in control. Celestia had managed to persuade Pinkie leave the room for the conversation, though just barely. That mare could be insistent when it came to her Pinkie Promises, and it was only after pointing out that she had not promised to be with him 24/7, but to be there for him to help him, and the way to help him at the moment was to leave the room that she finally agreed.

Beside her, Celestia looked as calm as ever. Luna had no idea what her question would be.

“How did you kill Princess Amore?”

Princess Amore? The Alicorn Princess that had once ruled the Crystal Empire before Sombra had taken over the throne.

A smile slowly spread on Jax’ face, almost victorious in its nature. It was not evil or anything of that sort, just a happy grin after you win something you did not expect. “I did not kill Princess Amore.” He answered. “Now that I answered your question, I expect a pleasant trip back to the north.” And with that, he laid back down on the bed and closed his eyes.

...

“I… don’t think he was lying.” Celestia admitted. Luna nodded her agreement.

How much did they really know about Usurper Sombra?

Author's Note

managed to write this for you guys despite everything.
Next chapter will be in three weeks, because... well, school.

Chapter 69

Luna felt… uncomfortable. She kept moving around on her soft seat, unable to find the perfect spot.

On her right side, Jax… or at the moment, Sombra, was busy trying to dismiss Pinkie, who sat on his other side. Much like Luna, he was trying to do the impossible. She would never find a good spot, and he would never be able to dismiss the pink ball of energy.

She looked out of the chariots window once again, trying to get her thoughts in order. It was a futile attempt, since everything screamed at her that they were going too slowly. That she needed to do this as fast as possible. The small fluffy clouds, the beautiful landscape that changed from different kinds of green and brown, to a pristine white mass of snow and ice… it was all going by painfully slow… no matter how fast their four guards were flying.

She had a feeling she would feel that way about all speeds, unless Rainbow got out there and Sonic Rainboom’ed them to their destination.

That would be a sight. She wondered how it was to travel at such speed. It must be invigorating.

She tried to change position again, but it for naught. It was not that she was uncomfortable, it was because she was restless. She wanted for this all to be over so badly, she had to convince her body that spreading her wings and grabbing Jax was not going to help anything. If anything, it would just allow Sombra to do something. She could not quite figure out what he would do, since he seemed fairly content to do as planned. She could not quite figure what his scheme was... or if he even had one.

Twilight had tried out his spell under the watchful eye of her and Celestia, and it really did as promised. The only thing that could be somehow trapped was the crystal, but it was not as if they were just going to use them without testing them first. Luna knew enough about dark magic to be able to identify anything suspicious, and Twilight was not only the Element of Magic, her very cutie mark represented magic. There should not be a way that could fool them both.

She looked over to the culprit of most of her recent worries, only to be met by Jax’ back. Sombra seemed to finally have enough of Pinkie, and was holding her against the other door, while whispering something aggressively, yet low enough that none of the others could hear.

She was just about to interfere, when she saw Pinkie’s eyes widen, not in fear or even realization but… curiosity? After a short pause she nodded, and Sombra pulled back, yet even though he had been the one who had been aggressive, he looked like he had somehow lost, or like he regretted something.

Pinkie was still smiling, giving him the peace he had obviously wanted. Then why did he not look satisfied?

Luna looked at Twilight, Rainbow and Beating on the opposite bench, but they looked as confused as she felt.

Rainbow rustled her wings at the same time Luna did. Apparently Luna was not the only one who wanted to get this over with.

“I’m going for a flight!” Rainbow suddenly declared and got up.

“I shall join thee.” Luna all but shouted, glad to escape the slightly cramped chariot. She opened the door and jumped out, spreading her wings after a short fall.

“Ah! Pinkie!” She heard from above her. She saw Rainbow plummet with Pinkie on her back, before regaining control. “Warn me before you do something like that!”

Pinkie just giggled. “Sorry Dashie, I didn’t mean to surprise you.”

Luna’s small smile vanished as she took in the landscape underneath her. They were close to the Frozen North. She could see the edge of snow up ahead, less than an hour of flight.

She would have to put more clothes on Jax before they arrived.

***

Beating Heart shuffled around nervously. In one second more than half their numbers had disappeared, and she was all but alone with the wolf known as Sombra. Sombra was wearing the body of her friend Jax and it was creeping her out. The cheerful, joking and most of all - kind being that Jax was, had been replaced by something so cold. She couldn’t quite wrap her head around it, even now.

He sat opposite her, looking at the scenery outside… or maybe not really looking at anything at all, but was rather deep in thought. Thinking about sinister things, no doubt. She didn’t understand how Princess Twilight could look so calm in the situation, almost as if she wasn’t bothered at all… maybe she wasn’t? Maybe after all she had been through, this was a day in the park.

“My offer still stands, you know.” Twilight suddenly said, making Beating jump a bit. Jax - Sombra - slowly turned his head towards her with a blank gaze, seemingly not understanding. “It’s never too late to make the right choice.”

Something close to a smile appeared on his face. It just… it wasn’t Jax’ smile, and that made it uncanny for Beating. “Right. I remember your amazing speech. ‘you are evil. But you don’t have to keep being evil.’ It was so inspiring, it was all I could do to not laugh all the way through it.” He gave her a rather predatory grin. It looked scary, and Beating found herself shaking just a bit, despite it being directed at Twilight.

“So you did hear it after all.” Twilight looked perfectly calm, though she was blushing a bit. Beating wondered what that was all about. “Everypony deserves a second chance, Sombra. If you want to give friendship a chance, then I can show you that having fun with a friend is more enjoyable than sitting on a throne. Trust me, I’ve tried both.”

His smile faded into a frown as he looked back out of the window. “Whatever.”

Beating tilted her head a bit in confusion. That sounded like a way Jax would dismiss something, not something the dark king of the north would say.

“It’s…” she started, her voice shaking a bit. “It’s true. I mean, I don’t know about sitting on a throne, but having friends is nice. Haven’t you had friends before Mr. Sombra?” She wasn’t sure were the ‘Mr’ came from, but she was relieved that she made it through the sentence without stammering.

Apparently it was the wrong thing to say, because he looked annoyed all of a sudden. Alright, maybe more angry than annoyed. “I-I mean, there’s nothing wrong with not having friends, I mean for a long while I didn’t have any either, b-but I think it’s important to realize t-that friendship is right around the corner a-and even humans make f-for good friends a-and….” She wasn’t sure what she was saying, or why she was saying it. Somehow it seemed to work as his glare softened and he turned his head again.

“He really has good friends, hasn’t he?” He asked under his breath. It was probably a sentence that was never supposed to be said out loud.

Beating and Twilight exchanged a look, both wide eyed. They didn’t say anything, but somehow, something had changed. Something small, and almost not even there but also somehow big and amazing, and Beating was proud of being a part of it.

She smiled all the way to their destination.

***

Sombra felt melancholic, probably because of the towers of the Crystal Empire coming closer and closer. He had not felt this way in a long time, and he did not like feeling like this now. His return to the Crystal Empire, to his Empire, was supposed to be a sign of his strength and prowess, a return to take back what was his after extracting revenge upon those who stole it from him. Yet here he was… a failure.

Being a failure, however, was better than becoming a shell of his former self as the positive magic took over. He knew it made those around him, Jax’ friends, uncomfortable when he let Jax control the body. It was probably why they let him take the reins without any fuss. Who could blame them really, it must be hard looking at a shell of a being you used to know so well, and then tell him that you did not need whatever it was he was trying to give you.

Although Luna came back some time ago, the rainbow and pink ones did not, and it worried him. He had dutifully taken on the clothes Luna had given him without any fuss, and now he was just waiting to land and get this over with. They were landing outside the barrier as to not test whether it would affect Jax’ chaos magic or not, and there he would stay until Twilight had retrieved the crystals he had made so long ago.

They finally landed, softly enough that he almost did not notice, and Twilight left him with Luna and Beating, both of which stayed silent, thankfully. He did not need another talk about friendship.

He wished he had a plan. Some kind of great strategy that would give him everything he wanted in one fell swoop.

But he did not. For the longest time now he had debated with himself whether it was safe to use a spell from within Jax’ body while he was in control like this. He knew how it worked, more or less. It had, after all been his plan to use Jax’ magic when he took over his body. Granted, he had not known about the randomness it entailed, and he had pretty much not had a choice at all since he had been under the effect of negative magic. He had seen Jax do something incredible and all he thought was ‘want’.

Now, thanks to Jax’ positive magic which had been high even before he started drawing it in like mad, Sombra could think for himself. And the first thing he had thought was ‘want’.

‘Is there no difference between my Taker self and my normal self?’

It was a troubling thought. When had he become like that? He had hated being a Taker, yet he acted the same way when he was free… then what was the point of being free?

He shook Jax’ head. No, that was the wrong way to think about it… right? Why was he thinking like this anyway? All that had mattered for the longest time was to sit on the throne, but now… now he could barely feel the pull anymore. The drive that had propelled him forward with a reckless abandon was almost gone, and he pretty much wanted the throne by some default setting in his brain.

Of course, that lack of his former pull could be because of the positive magic in the body he occupied.

But was it?

…

He must really have lost sight of who he was somewhere along the way to not be able to answer such a simple question.

He shook Jax’ head again. There was no point in thinking about whether he would use a spell from inside this body or not, since he could not. His ethereal horn was covered in ethereal chains, and there was nothing he could do about it.

“Alright, I’ll just put the crystals in the back. You guys go on in. Uhm, it’s going to get a bit cramped but….” Twilight’s voice finally sounded from outside. The door opened, and in came a pink alicorn, a white stallion, the rainbow maned menace, the pink energy ball with a mouth…

And, as if it was not cramped enough, another pony entered after a few seconds, and it was not Twilight.

He would remember those boring, drab colours for the rest of his life. Her gray mane. Her beige coat.

Her shining, amethyst eyes.

“Hidden Gem…”

Author's Note

Happy new year ^.^
In other news, exams are coming up, one after another :/ So I won't be writing on this at least until after them in a month. So... my first real hiatus, I guess. I won't give a date for when I'll be back, but don't worry, I won't abandon this :) Sorry for leaving it at this point in the story, but what can I do? I feel stressed enough as it is.
For now, enjoy this instead:
Water Pony
My Life as a Bipedal Quadruped
The Mare Who Once Lived on the Moon
(don't remember if I recommended these before...)

Chapter 70

“Hidden Gem…”
Twilight, who was just outside the door, heard the words from a shocked Sombra. The crystals had been easy to get, since they had been left right where Sombra had stashed them in a secret chamber, accessed exactly the same way as the staircase to the Crystal Heart. He had even warned her about the trap.
When she entered, or at least tried to enter the chariot, she found that everypony was looking between Sombra and the mare Pinkie had… well, honestly, this might constitute as ponynapping, but she was sure there was a reason for her being here.
She finally managed to squeeze herself in as the new mare spoke: “So it is true?” Twilight noted the slight tremor in her voice, alongside the disbelief. “You… you really are my Sombra?”
Sombra closed his – well, Jax’ – mouth, and looked towards Pinkie with an accusing stare. Pinkie laughed nervously and took out some treats. “Anypony want a cupcake?”
Twilight took the time to examine the new mare. She didn’t look very impressive, objectively speaking. Her fur was a gray sort of beige, her mane following the same pattern with a different hue of gray. Her cutie mark was a brown patch of dirt with a rock on it. She barely sparkled at all, despite being a crystallized crystal pony.
The only thing that stood out were her eyes, by being a radiant violet… like… like amethysts. Hidden Gem? The name fit her well.
“You two know each other?” Twilight asked, for no other reason than to try and dispel some of the awkward silence that was left after Pinkie’s question.
It didn’t work. At all. Sombra looked away from everypony in the room, while Hidden Gem started pawing at the floor, in… something Twilight could only assume was embarrassment. She would occasionally look up briefly, make eye contact with somepony, then look down again.
The silence continued… for some reason it seemed to amuse Luna, but most of them probably felt the same need as her to do something to get out of this uncomfortable silence.
Twilight looked at Cadence and her BBBFF, but they gave her a confused smile and shrug respectively.
Cadence, the reliable mare that she was, finally broke the silence with a fake cough. “So, Sombra. I’m here, as you probably know, to have my question answered.” She took a moment to smile kindly at the human that was looking solemnly at her. “My name is Cadence, or Princess Mi Amore Cadenza if you want to be formal about it.”
“Amore?” Sombra whispered from his seat by the window. Twilight only heard it because her ear was directed that way.
“This is my husband, Prince Shining Amor. I believe you two have met under less fortunate circumstances.” Shining gave a curt nod, clearly unhappy about the situation. Twilight knew him well enough to know that he would start complaining about the entire setup as soon as he was alone with Cadence again. ‘A small chariot is no place to interrogate a criminal. Especially when you fill it with civilians as potential hostages.’ he would say, and then Cadence would ask him where else they could have done it, with the cold outdoors being the only other option. Then Shining would tell her they should have prepared a tent-
Twilight shook her head. This was no time for fictional discussions.
Sombra looked briefly at Shining’s horn and smiled fleetingly, but didn’t say anything. Their eyes met again and Shining’s already curt look turned into a frown.
“I’ll take that as a confirmation.” Cadence went on with a merry smile. How she could make it look so natural under the circumstances was beyond Twilight. “Now, Celestia warned me about your little… well, attention to detail on the deal.” She tapped a hoof on her chin, seemingly in thought. “It made me think long and hard about my question, as to not fall into the same trap.”
“I am sure you did.” Sombra answered, unamused. “Now ask thy question, and as promised, I shall answer truthfully.”
Everypony stole a glance towards Luna at the archaic speech, except Luna of course, who just raised a brow at him.
“I haven’t heard that type of speech since I met Luna in the halls one day, and she started lecturing me on-“
Whatever Cadence was lectured on would remain a mystery, as Luna coughed into her hoof. “No need to bring that up now, dear niece. You have a question to ask.” If Twilight didn’t know any better, she’d say Luna looked embarrassed.
“Right. So here’s my question: Why did Princess Amore die?”
***
Sombra tried to calm down after seeing Hidden Gem there. Jax’ heart was pumping at a steady rate, since Sombra did not have a full hold on it but only… borrowed it while Jax was asleep, but he still felt like adrenaline was running through his system, making him unable to think properly.
The new Princess of love had asked him something… ‘Why?’ That was a better question than Celestia had asked, just assuming it was him because he overtook the empire afterwards. In reality, he overthrew the overthrowers.
“Because of her own stupidity, trust, the greed of ponies, and the use of a special kind of poison.” He answered, still avoiding to look at Hidden Gem. Her sudden presence put him off centre. Feelings he thought he had locked away deep inside were crashing on the surface. Everything seemed so fresh, like it had happened not so long ago… perhaps, in part, because he had shared the memories with Jax. What a mistake that turned out to be.
“Oh c’mon!” The one named Pinkie Pie exclaimed. “What’s the point if you’re going to be so vague about it?!”
It was their own fault for not being more specific about his answers. Being honest was easy.
“Yeah, what’s up with that? I know you’re evil and stuff but seriously.” Rainbow Dash agreed.
Cadenza coughed again, quitting everypony down. “Please? I just want to know what happened with my predecessor.”
He spared her a quick look. He could not spot any deceit in her expression. She really was not doing this just because Celestia had asked her.
He hesitated for a moment, but then looked away. There was no way in Tartarus they were going to refrain from going through with the plan if there was a chance it could help their precious Jax.
He meant too much to them. Which meant Sombra could get away with this.
Then she spoke up, her sweet voice making his ethereal chest tighten. “Sombra… my little shadow.” Hidden Gem spoke softly, taking a small step forward. “I would like to know as well. Nopony really knows what happened in the castle that day, but for the longest time I held on hope… that my sweet shadow did not kill our Princess.” She took another small step forward in the cramped chariot. Even though he kept his gaze fixed on the window and the snowy landscape outside, he could see her right in front of him in the corner of his vision. “Please Sombra… I need to know what you did… and why you did it.”
Then after a long moment of silence she added: “Was it because of me?”
It was too much for him to take. He spent so much time trying to forget her - the times they had talked, the times they had made love, the times he had laid in her bed, finding her more beautiful by the second.
The very moment he knew he loved her more than anything on this world.
The painful reminder that she was a whore. And whores have more than one customer.
“Sombra…” she uttered softly, inadvertently drawing his attention back to her. “He was just a customer. You did not pay me enough to pay for my rent and food, and I had to-“
“I know.” He responded forcefully before he could stop himself. “I know, but it hurt so much to see you together with some stallion, when I realized what our relationship really was,-“
Before he could feed his anger too much and say everything he wanted on the subject, Hidden Gem covered the rest of the distance between them to nuzzle into his neck, just like they used to. Somewhere from the side he could hear Luna grind her teeth, but it soon disappeared into the familiar feeling of having Hidden Gem hug him. Almost familiar at least, since the feelings he got through Jax’ body were rather dull, and his furless body felt different against her fur… but still… just like that, they were right back to the day they met, and he just sat there too stunned to react.
“Shush, my little Shadow. Do not dare to utter those words… do you truly think I treated my other customers with the same attention and joy that I treated you? Do you, who is so very good at seeing through the masks that ponies wear, truly believe that the smile I gave you was fake? Or for that sake, that any other stallion or mare could bring it out as easily as you?” Her voice was so soft as she whispered in his ear, he could feel the small hairs on Jax’ body stand.
She drew back a bit to stare into his eyes, and despite her staring into the face of a stranger, she bared herself to him, just like she had those nights they laid together and talked so long ago. Her emotions were as clear crystal to him. She was anxious, rather timid and obviously doubtful, but also… hopeful. “You were the first to call me beautiful. You were the first who treated me as something other than an outlet of their sexual fantasies or-“ Her eyes widened as she realized they were in fact not alone. She looked around quickly, a cute blush clearly visible. The other ponies looked confused or pretended like they did not hear her, looking anywhere but at her. Of course they would not know her occupation, or former occupation. She was not wearing her short skirt anymore, leaving her cutiemark free for all to see. She even sparkled a little bit, like… she was happy.
She was happy without him. Neither of them had crystallized before…. “When did you crystallize?” His voice might have been a more demanding than he had meant to. Everypony looked at him. Hidden Gem pawed at the floor again, a small smile on her muzzle.
“When you took over the Empire and ordered the crystal mines to be reopened, I ended up working there, and after Cadence’ reform I just kind of stayed there. I forgot how much I loved finding gems, and how good I am at it. It made me happy, so… here I am. A crystallized crystal pony.” He could just make out her blush.
He sighed and rolled back Jax’ head, laying a… hand over his face. In a roundabout way, he was the reason for her crystallization. He could not for the life of him remember if he had placed her in the mines on purpose or not. Everything was a blur from when he took over the throne.
“So… is he going to tell us, or are we flying back home? I bet the guards outside would appreciate it if we hurried a bit.” Rainbow Dash’s voice sounded in the silence.
He was so tired all of a sudden. Oddly enough, he had not felt this alive in a long time.
“I’ll go make sure they don’t freeze to death.” The stallion called Shining Armor said, followed by a lot of shuffling, and finally the door opening and closing. It gave a little more space, which was appreciated.
Suddenly the pink one was right in front of him, somehow switching places with Hidden Gem. “Would you please please please please pleeeeeeeaaaaaase just tell us what happened? Please?” She gave him a pleasing look.
Sombra looked over at Hidden Gem who did the same, mouthing ‘please’ with a small smile on her muzzle.
He sighed. He was not entirely sure why he was so ready to agree. “Fine. But no interruptions. Once I start talking, nopony else says anything. Are we clear?”
“Crystal.” Rainbow Dash responded. “Now get on with it.”
Pinkie squealed and got comfortable beside the one called Beating Heart, taking out a box of popcorn from her mane.
He took a deep breath, which did nothing to calm the emotions running wild inside of him. He idly thought where to even start.
***
“Princess Amore had two ponies she trusted above all else. Her captain of the crystal guard, and her head adviser. When those two found… love, I hear it was a celebrated event. Soon the head adviser became pregnant, and their son was supposed to be as strong and wise as his parents, but the colt had an early birth, and was weak and sickly as a result. This was their first disappointment, and reading my mother’s journal has made me believe that this was where it all started. To her, I was an experiment, an attempt to make the perfect offspring.
They still held hope that the colt could be the same level of intelligence as his mother, but as the years went by and the colt showed no signs of being the genius they expected, that hope faltered as well.
So they trained him. The father had a harsh training regiment, and the mother an overwhelming study plan, both ignoring the fact that the colt could not possibly complete both. Failure was punished, and success was rewarded with nothing, so the colt soon found himself drowning in their expectations with no way out. So he never crystalized. In the Empire, crystallization of a crystal pony is… a matter of pride, since it shows everypony around them that they have found happiness in their life. To them of course, it was another disappointment on a long list of disappointments, and they only made it worse for the colt.
While they had to deal with their disappointment of a son at home, their careers took a turn for the worse as well. The princess was ignoring the head advisers advice to leave the poor part of the Empire alone, and was starting a reform led by a different advisor that would theoretically reduce the divide between the rich and the poor. The rumours that my mother was going to be replaced spread like wildfire. Meanwhile the captain of the crystal guard came under suspicion of corruption. Not only had he turned a blind eye to the black market, but he was taking bribes as well to look the other way on some less than honourable actions. Princess Amore would not stand for such arrangements in her empire, so she started an investigation on the matter.
So, in a short time span the princess turned her strongest and smartest ponies against herself, along with the whole underground and the powerful ponies that ruled it, not to mention the nobles that would pay for her reform. She probably thought they would just lay down and let her take away everything they had without a fight. She was wrong.
By banding together, they managed to procure a rare poison… magebane. The stronger the magic of the victim, the more potent it gets, from barely causing a cold to an earthpony, to being quite deadly to powerful unicorns. It was the first time, back then at least, that it was tried on an Alicorn, but simply by tipping it into her soup, Princess Amore was no more.
And with the captain already having made sure that most of the guards would side with them at the uprising… it was a brief affair.
Unfortunately for my parents and their victory, I had just finished reading my mother’s journal along with a very interesting spell. I found them in a secret room, which I only found because I was destroying the house after having found Hidden Gem with….
With nothing to lose, a lifetime of resentment towards my parents, and my very first dark magic spell… I set out with hate in my heart, and a single crystal.
It was so easy, I could barely believe it myself. So very very easy. After enchanting the crystal, I lowered it down into the throne room where they had all gathered. They all fell under the spell, even the guards, and while they were busy seeing their worst nightmare, I went over to my parents… and killed them. I found myself laughing with glee as I magically bound the rest of them. Some of them found their way out of the spell themselves, and had the choice to either accept my rule, or be subjected to the spell again.
What choice did they have? They accepted. They might have thought they could stage another coup later, but without my father’s leadership and my mother’s planning, they were no threat.
From then I had to act quickly. I knew that the alicorn sisters from the south would not let the death of their ally go unpunished. So I found the secret library my mother had found the dark spell in, and started studying.
What I found was amazing. With enough dark magic, I could create something resembling life. So I hid the Crystal Heart, used the crystals you collected today to shroud the Empire in negative magic, and ordered the crystal mines to be reopened. The negative magic caused the crystal ponies to be depressed, unable to rebel against me, and with a powerful spell I bound them to me, so that I could draw on their magic and emotions to strengthen my own to alicorn levels. I then used the crystals to store it, reaching incredible power.
I still knew it would not be enough to face two alicorns at once. So after studying the mind and understanding it, I used all the stored magic I had, and gave a part of myself in the creation of life, with one single purpose: Find an alicorn, and take over.
Alas, the parasite failed, and the alicorn sisters came and sealed me away… me and the empire I was bound to.
***
Silence stretched on as Sombra finished his story. He instantly regretted telling them the last part. He only had to tell them how Princess Amore died, not how he took over. He had just been so engrossed in the past that he barely noticed he was telling a story....
“YOU CREATED THE LIMELIGHT?!” Half the ponies were blown out of the chariot by the voice of Princess Luna. He felt the regret even deeper as he saw her glowing white eyes and spread wings, her power pushing out of her in waves. For the first time in a long time… Sombra feared for his life. She was in his face in a second, roughly showing him back into the seat. “YOU RUINED MY LIFE, SCOUNDREL! I SUFFERED FOR A THOUSAND YEARS BECAUSE OF YOU! A THOUSAND YEARS ON THE MOON, TRAPPED WITH A CREATION THAT WANTED NOTHING BUT POWER!”
In a panic he did the only thing he could to get away from the crazed alicorn. He retreated back in between Jax’ body and his soul, letting the human wake up. It had been so long since he had been face to face with one of them, and back then he had both been on a negative high, barely able to think of such an abstract word as 'danger', and had all the power of an Empire. Now he had... nothing. Not even a body of his own.
It took a long time for his ethereal being to stop shaking with fear.

Author's Note

IT'S TIME TO BRING JAX BACK DAMNIT!
So I got back into writing this. Extra thanks to DJ (shitload of numbers), for not only prereading as he did with other chapters, but also helping me get started again. Thank you, DJ, you're still awesome ^^
In other news, my bachelor is coming up, so... busy busy busy I guess. I can no longer guarantee a release on a schedule. I don't like the thought of going on hiatus, but I definitely have to put school first this semester. Luckily I think I'll have some time on the train to write on this, so we'll see.
Anyway, I wanted for Sombra to be something else than just some evil character in this, so this is what I came up with that ties it together... but I think I put Jax aside for too long XD it's time to get him back.

Chapter 71

Jax slowly came to. It was a lot like waking up, except he was standing up and was… in the palace? He looked around. Then he blinked and looked around some more. This was ‘the room.’ He knew this room, he despised this room… well that was a bit strong, but he still had a dislike for it. This was the room where he caught on fire. Twilight’s magic basement room, for safe experimentation. There were three crystals hovering in close proximity, that he was fairly certain weren’t there the other times he had been there.

The weird thing was that, as quickly as he was able to recognize the room, everything else was just… a blur. Hazy, in a way. There was a mare close by, and he… well he sort of recognized her. She seemed familiar, but for the life of him he couldn’t remember where he knew her from. She was looking at him with amethyst eyes, observing him with uncertainty. She looked… gray. Leaning to the side, he noticed that her cutie mark was a field with a rock on it.

As he did so, her gaze became a bit more certain, and a smile spread on her face. As they looked at each other, one of the black crystals hovered between them. They seemed to be going in circles around him.

So… why was he here, how did he end here, why didn’t he remember a lot of stuff, why did some of the stuff he did remember appear hazy, and why was it that asking questions he didn’t have answers to was so damn familiar by now?

‘They are trying to cure your positive magic high, your friends led you here, being on a high practically means you are someone different so it is hard to remember, it will be hazy for a long while yet, and because… well, you might be cursed with the kind of luck you have.’

Sombra. That’s right, Sombra was inside of him. But he didn’t remember him actually being helpful….

‘Believe it or not, I actually tried to warm you about the incoming danger, but you did not listen to me.’

… weird. There was something different about Sombra, but Jax couldn’t quite put a finger on it. Wait… ‘positive magic high?’

‘Yes. After Discord brought you to the tree of harmony, your body just swallowed the vast amount of positive magic it was radiating.’

“Hello.” The mare in front of him finally decided to talk. He snapped back from his conversation with Sombra, if you could even call it that. “Are you… alright?”

“Good question.” Jax answered, feeling unstable on his legs. He sat down heavily on the crystal floor. “Who are you?” He let his hand glide over his hair. It was becoming too long again. He would have to see Rarity at some point for that, she had cut it for him before. Didn’t they have a deal to go to the spa as well? It seemed like they had agreed on that a lifetime ago. He wasn’t sure why they hadn’t went.

Hmm, something about fire and pain and being stuck in the hospital and then with Luna. Both of them must have forgotten about it.

“Are-are you listening?” The mare said.

He had totally blacked out there. “I’m sorry, you were saying?”

“Oh, it… is not a problem. I am Hidden Gem, Sombra’s… friend. From before. Nice to finally meet you, Jax. Your friends will be so happy to hear you are finally yourself… oh! That reminds me, wait here just a second!” She went over towards the door, opened it, and spoke with somepony on the other side.

Hidden Gem… Right. He remembered… sort of. She was Sombra’s… he wasn’t sure how to specify their relationship.

‘Ask her why she is here.’

He couldn’t quite explain it. It was like Sombra was making a request instead of just demanding.

He sighed heavily at the same time Sombra did.

“I just informed the guard to get Princess Twilight.” The mare told them as she came back. “She was very insistent on me getting her when you came to. She and the others were here for a long time themselves, but when they started bickering amongst themselves they realized that the negative magic is not… isn’t confined perfectly to the area.”

“Negative magic?” He asked with a frown.

“Oh… Twilight will explain it better than I could.”

He snorted. That was all too familiar.

“In any case… Princess Luna was the last to agree, but in the end even she did. They made a schedule and we take turns every few hours to not be affected too badly by the magic.”

At her name, Jax felt a deep longing for his girl. “Luna. When can I see her?”

‘Ask her why she is here… please.’

He blinked a couple of times. Sombra just said please. What the hell happened while he was out?

“Oh… Princess Twilight can probably tell you.” Of course.

He sighed again. “Sombra wants to know why you’re here.”

Her ears stood on attention, and she looked almost surprised. “I can talk to him? Through you?”

They didn’t give her the run-down it would seem. “Yes. He can hear and see everything. It’s… awkward.”

She nodded in understanding a few times, her ears folding again, even as a small smile showed itself on her muzzle, and she looked down at the ground. Jax couldn’t quite place her mood. “I came to show him that he has a friend. That despite everything he has done, everything that has happened, all the time that has passed… I am still here. I still want to be his friend... even if it is his fault that… everything happened.” Melancholy, that was probably the best way to describe it. She looked up at him. “He… when he was still… my shadow, he told me a lot of what was going on back home. I wanted… so desperately to help him, to do… anything, just so he would never have to suffer so horribly. But I was just… a whore, and his parents were nobles. What could I do? So… I did nothing. I want him to know…” Her eyes filled with tears, but she kept eye contact. “I want you to know, Sombra, that I understand why you did what you did… and I forgive you… and I am sorry I was not better, that I could not stop you… that I added to your suffering. That… was the last… thing I wanted….” She could barely speak over her sobs. She tried to dry her eyes with her hooves, but new tears kept coming. “And if you want… I want us to start over… as friends….”

Jax… felt like he had just witnessed a private conversation with no way of escaping. Nonetheless… ‘You’ve got a good one here, Sombra…’

‘After everything I’ve done… she… she…’ Words seemed to fail him. ‘I… do not know how to answer her…’ He ‘sounded’ very emotional, like… like he was crying, if that was even possible.

Jax suppressed a sigh as he made his decision and smiled kindly at the mare in front of him. “You don’t know how happy that makes me. I would love for us to start over… thank you for doing this for me.” He answered for Sombra. ‘You owe me one.’

‘… Thank you…’

The mares eyes lit up like stars, and Jax felt another pang of longing for his Luna.

A cough by the door interrupted them before Hidden Gem could say anything else. “I’m sorry to interrupt.” Twilight said. “But I’m happy to see you're well, Jax. I’ll get you up to date.”
***

Jax slowly came to. It was a lot like waking up, except he was standing up and was- wait a minute. "What happened?"

'Your body is still adjusting to the-' Sombra started, but stopped when another voice took over.

"You left the circle, remember?" Twilight looked at him with sadness. "This might take longer than I thought."

"Well... fuck."

Author's Note

He's mentioned in a lot of these, but thanks again to DJ, for pre-reading and helping getting started... again ^^
Anyway, a bit short, but I think I made it clear that time is an issue. I'd rather make shorter and get them to you in relative good time than wait forever.
The Story of Twilight Glow is pretty good if you need something else ^^

Chapter 72

He wasn’t sure how much time had passed. The skies were forever gray, but no snow had fallen yet. It had been a month at least, so winter must be near.

They had mercifully set the crystals around his house so he didn’t have to stay in that room for the duration. His body seemed to be all confused about what it was supposed to do, so the process had become longer than both Sombra and Twilight had theorized.

Sometimes it became too much, the negative magic, so he had to step outside. Then one of his guards would come over from where they secured the perimeter and make sure he made it back if he should become a Giver again. But staying too long inside there made him… cranky, to put it mildly. Thankfully Sombra warned him when he took in too much negative magic.

That was the only good thing about this whole ordeal… Sombra became bearable to deal with. Thank the stars. It was still awkward sometimes, but they could at least hold a conversation.

Not that his other friends were far away. One day Pinkie came by with two tables, one to place on his side of the crystal, one on the other. This way the crystals could continue on their eternal journey around his home, and he could sit with friends for tea. He honestly didn’t mind the small talk it brought, after being stuck in his house for so long with limited things to do. It was too bad it was so cold though. On the bright side he was getting quite proficient at small talk.

He finished the Daring Do books he had received from Rainbow Dash so long ago, and had borrowed a bunch of books from Twilight, but it was still… annoying, being stuck like this. He was itching to run out and just….

‘Feeling a bit grumpy, are we?’ Sombra asked calmly from inside.

‘Yeah, you could say that. It just sucks.’ He still wasn’t used to Sombra being… concerned? Helpful? He had calmed down a whole lot, that was for sure. Jax was pretty certain one of the reasons were because Hidden Gem visited quite frequently to speak with Sombra. They were both awkward about the whole thing, so Jax often helped with the small talk however he could.

‘Ah, it is not so bad.’ Sombra claimed. ‘You have a marefriend who loves you, friends that care about you, and Twilight is working with that zebra on a potion to get me out of here. By the time your body finally learns to balance everything, your life will be perfect.’

Jax instantly cheered up at the thought. It was Moonday, and Luna always reserved the day for him. Come heaven or hell, there was no place he felt quite as secure and content as in her embrace.

He finished the remains of his tea, put on his cloak and went outside, looking back at his house. He really should have it painted soon. Celestia’s revenge after their little prank had been to paint his house white, with her cutiemark adorning every wall. The roof was aurora coloured, and looked quite cool actually, so he didn’t mind it so much. But the flag on the flagpole with the untrue words that Celestia was the best princess… that he definitely needed to do something about.

Something occurred to him suddenly. Something from a time that seemed just a moment, but was blurry nonetheless. It was sharp enough for him to remember though. He had made a deal with Sombra.

‘Remember the deal we made? You would tell me how you could read my mind if I brought you a victory. The prank I made on Celestia should count as a victory, right?’

‘I… yeah. I remember, though I… do not know how your prank relates to me.’ Jax was about to protest when Sombra continued. ‘But, I shall tell you nonetheless. While doing my research on the mind, I found a book that described this… waypoint between the body and the soul. Everything that goes between the two, goes through there. The perfect place for something to reside to gain all the information it needed to take over. So it is nothing more than where I reside. I know how you feel and what you think, even when you do not want me to.’

Suddenly Jax felt his good mood slip away like water between his hands. The more he tried to hold it tight the more it slipped away. ‘What if…’ he ponded for some unexplainable reason. ‘What if they never succeed. What if we’re stuck together for the rest of my life? And you will know everything I think, and I will have no privacy… oh God.’

It happened sometimes these days. That he had a hard time holding on to positivity. He was pretty positive that it was because of the negative magic, but it just felt so real. There is a connection between emotion and magic, he was told. That’s why positive and negative magic could affect you so extremely. Yet even if he knew that, the thought of being stuck with Sombra for the rest of his life was so horrifying and real that he felt fear tingle all the way down his spine.

‘I would not worry too much about it. I will be free whether they find a way or not. I was just hoping to speed up the process, but these chains are already coming loose. And if that takes too long, then I can tell you that I am at least sixty percent sure that my horn is almost usable again... Worst case scenario, I use a spell and you focus on getting me out. It is risky, but it beats the alternative.’

It calmed him down a bit, that at least they had that in common. That they both wanted out of the current situation.

It filled him with a bit more hope.

Chapter 73

Jax stood at the edge of his little… area, looking at the Everfree. His pet Bear was in there somewhere, getting ready for winter and hibernation. When he got back, would he be able to stay with Jax or would he have to go live with Fluttershy for a while?

Before he could think more about it, something finally happened. He heard the flapping of wings, and looked over to see Luna fly full speed towards him.

“Jax!” She shouted when she was close enough, and stopped flapping her wing, angling them to slow her decent.

She still hit Jax with quite a lot of speed though. He forgave her the second she drew him close, nuzzling him all over the face.

“Luna.” He couldn’t help but smile happily, embracing her in turn. “It’s always good to see you.”

She pulled her wings around him for a super hug, and he simply enjoyed the feeling of having her there. Her warm body against his, her soft fur brushing against him, her loving cyan eyes meeting his, and finally her soft lips greeting his own… in that moment he wanted nothing else, and if all the pain he had to go through was for this… well, then it was all worth it.

He enjoyed the warmth of her presence for several long minutes where their mouths became very acquainted, before he pulled her in for another hug. “I missed you.” He whispered, enjoying the honey scent she gave off. How could she still smell of honey after that flight?

“I missed you too, my love. I always do.” The warmth in her voice made him shiver ever so slightly. He loved it. He loved her. Despite everything, he still had this.

‘You keep reminding yourself of the good you have’ Sombra observed.

‘Otherwise I’ll drown in the bad. I have to stay positive or I’ll go crazy.’ Jax explained. It wasn’t easy to be told he could only stay in this little area which was pretty much his house and a little of the land outside of it. He could leave… for some minutes, and a guard always came over in case he reverted back….

It was infuriating, and he was so tired of it. If Luna and his friends didn’t stop by regularly, he would have thrown a tantrum long ago and just stormed into the Everfree.

He allowed himself a couple of more minutes in her embrace before he chased her out of his side of the pri… area. Ponies can’t stay on his side for too long, for their own safety. The last thing he wanted was for Luna to become depressed.

***

There were limited things you could do together when you had to stay on your separate side of a barrier. You could play chess, you could drink tea and small talk, looking at each other awkwardly when the small talk ran out, and you could… play battleship. At least they could after Jax explained what it was about. Then a few more small games followed like 'TickTacToe' and such.

But finally, she raised the moon, and with it came the amazing well of stars they had in Equestria… or at least Jax assumed so, since he couldn’t see shit beside god damn gray and boring clouds.

“I guess there will be no stargazing to-“ was all he got out before Luna took off like an arrow and cleared a hole in the clouds above them, enough for them to see at least 30 percent of the sky.

“I must apologize,” Luna said when she landed with a cocky smile. “But I do not believe I caught the words thee, my dear love, was about to utter. Care to repeat them?”

Jax smiled hugely. Sometimes he forgot where he was, and what ponies were really capable of. Back… in the human world, bad weather meant ruined plans. Here, with the right company, it meant ruined weather, and that was beautiful.

“I must have misspoken, oh mighty one.” He bowed dramatically, “what I meant to say was: Hail the night princess, blessed be her name, for she is the bane of obtrusive clouds everywhere.”

As they stood there smiling at each other like love drunk teenagers, Jax decided to throw caution at the wind and spoil himself with a hug from this beautiful being.

Apparently Luna was thinking the same, ‘cause they flew at each other like magnets. While Jax simply wished for some snuggles, Luna was quick to find his lips with her own. They were entwined for a while, each taking turns having most of them on one side of the barrier or the other, until a crystal snuck up on them and bonked them hard on the head, before flying on like a cheeky little bastard.

They both rubbed their heads, looked at each other, laughed it off, and then Luna set about animating the stars that they had access to.

It was a little story about, if Jax wasn’t mistaken, the flower pony named Rose finding inspiration to make her Midnight Rose. It was short and sweet.

Afterwards, they laid head to head and just looked up at the night sky, and the surviving clouds. Once in a while a crystal hovered over them. It was nice and peaceful.

‘Jax?’ Sombra suddenly asked.

‘Yeah?’

‘Do you think I would have made a good king? In time?’

‘… Honestly? No. I don’t think so, especially not with the negative magical high thing going on. Why do you ask?’

‘Yeah… I do not believe so either. Just trying to remember why I wanted to be king in the first place. I mean, really remember the feeling of wanting it. I cannot quite seem to grasp it.’

‘Don’t you think you just wanted to… I dunno… prove your parents wrong? Show them that you were worth something… that despite them treating you like they did, you became more than they could dream of.’

‘I… no, they should not have that kind of power over me….‘ He trailed off, perhaps in thought.

“I’ve decided to go to Slow Healing by the way.” Luna suddenly informed him. “I have an appointment for tomorrow.”

“Slow Healing? The psychologist? Why?” He asked with concern.

“Because you deserve… we both deserve that I become a bit more mentally stable… these thoughts I get sometimes, while not as bad… they remind me of when I…” she clopped her hooves together nervously. “You know. I just want to… be normal.”

Jax heaved himself up on his elbows and positioned himself above her. Luna avoided his eye, so he gently put a hand on her cheek and watched as she nuzzled against it. “No matter what, I still love you. I just want you to know that.”

She blushed cutely, finally looking at him. “I know. And I love you as well.”

Author's Note

And now I start to second guess myself even while I have so little time to write xD ain't that something.

Chapter 74

Jax looked in puzzlement at the door. It was rare to get somepony knocking these days. He met with his friends, and they would set up meetings with those who had asked, so he was ready out by the tables at the right time.

He went over and opened it nonetheless. “Hey Lyra, Vinyl. You know you’re not supposed to be in here, right?” He would invite them in for tea but… yeah, they shouldn’t be inside the barrier.

“Yeah, the guard told us.” The green unicorn waved off his worries. “Don’t worry, I’m just here to tell you that me and Twilight are leaving to meet with our old school-mates. Twilight wanted you to know she won’t be available in case something happens, and I wanted to set up a meeting with you anyway. You have time tomorrow around three? I’ll bring Bon Bon and some of her candy.” She smiled sweetly at him.

Naturally, he smiled back. “I believe I’m free. I’ll look forward to it” With that she waved and trotted off. He focused his gaze on Vinyl, who was still standing there.

She took out a piece of parchment and magicked it to him.

‘Hey Jax.

I know you’re in a pretty bad spot right now. I know that if I wasn’t able to leave my home for so long, I would go crazy. So I brought you the one thing that brings me most joy - Music.’ His eyes widened as he read on. ‘No, don’t thank me, just consider it as thanks for the pen. I included some of my own work and some of Octavia’s - and of course some of our shared work. Enjoy, and come see me when you want to party again. Last time was awesome.’

He looked up to find her standing with a vinyl player and several vinyls in her magic. Before he knew it, he had his arms around Vinyl’s neck in a tight hug. “Oh my God, thank you so much Vinyl. This is great! I love music.” He should have bought this ages ago, but stuff was always happening and it slipped his mind.

He released her as she started writing something with her pen. ‘Yeah, no problem. I hope things settle down with you soon. Good luck.’ With that she threw him a nod, and went off as well.

He looked at her retreating form until she was out of sight, then he ran in to figure out how to make these vinyls sing for him.

Soon sweet, sweet music surrounded him, and he found some peace in the waves he drowned in. It was good to have friends.

***

Moondancer looked around at her friends. Twilight and Lyra had just joined them, making this the first time they had all been together since… well it had been a while. Twilight sat on her left, with Lyra beside her. On the opposite side of the table, Minuette almost blended into the light blue wall, only her bluish gray and deep blue mane keeping her distinguished, Lemon Hearts lighted up the room with her brilliant yellow coat, and Twinkleshine tapped her light goldish gray hoof on the table in mock impatience.

“So you finally joined us.” Twinkleshine spoke up sternly, the smile on the corner of her lips betraying her. “Took you forever.”

“Some of us had to catch the train and then find this tiny restaurant.” Lyra responded in kind. “We seriously couldn’t all meet up someplace we knew? The school perhaps?”

“I’m trying to avoid that place. Reminds me too much of the time-“ Lemon Hearts started, only to be interrupted by Minuette.

“You got your head stuck in an Erlenmare Flask!” They all laughed at the memory, some harder than others. “How you got your head in there without using magic is the biggest mystery of all! You should have written an article on it, Moondancer.” They all turned their gaze towards her, making her fidget a bit.

“Yes, I’m sure that is exactly what Canterlot’s scientific community would pay to read. The elastic properties of foal heads.” She deadpanned.

To her relief, they laughed some more. “I can see how it could be hard to make tests on that… from a moral standpoint that is.” Twilight joined in.

“Not to mention finding sources? I guess you would have to find doctors and interview them or something.” Moondancer put a hoof under her maw in thought. What had started as a joke could actually be an interesting project.

“Or nurses. I think they might have more contact with foals than- actually, there should already be some documentation on this, if nothing else than by accidental findings.” Twilight looked about as interested as Moondancer was becoming. “If we swing by the library we can-“

“Girls! Girls!” Lyra interrupted them with laughter in her voice. “We are not turning this reunion into a library trip, especially not over something like this.” She waved over the waiter and ordered a bottle of wine. “What we will do is sit here, drink some wine, and catch up. How about you start Moondancer, we all know you started working with Princess Luna. How is that going?”

“Oh, it’s going very well.” Moondancer smiled brightly at her friends. “Since I suggested appointment based court instead of open court like Princess Celestia, more and more ponies have started showing up. It’s so much easier to make an appointment and be guaranteed a spot than to show up and hope to make it.”

“Yeah I can see that.” Lyra agreed, before a thoughtful expression overtook her. “Actually, should we be careful with this wine? Don’t you have work tonight?”

Moondancer waved her off. “Princess Luna gave me the night off while she’s at the psychologist.” Her eyes widened as she realized what she had said. “Oh, but I don’t know if I was supposed to keep that a secret so… please don’t tell anypony. She’s a good pony, really, she just… has some problems.”

Lemon Hearts twirled the wine around in her glass. “You say that as if there’s something wrong with going to see a professional. I say it’s good that she finally gets some help. Being stuck on the moon for a thousand years couldn’t have been easy, what with everypony dying and times changing…” upon seeing the unconvinced look on Moondancer’s face, she smiled encouragingly. “Besides, everypony is tired of rumours about Luna at this point. Heck this might be an improvement to all the stuff I’ve heard.”

“Yeah,” Minuette concurred. “By now nopony wants to hear about Luna anymore. It really went crazy for a while, but since nothing happened, and with Celestia’s reassurance… everypony finally stopped talking about her. If I hear one more time how Luna and Jax are going to take over Equestria I’m going to punch somepony.” She punctuated the statement by punching the air lightly, with a slight smile to indicate she was joking.

“Speaking off.” Twinkleshine turned towards Twilight and Lyra. “How goes it for Equestria’s lone human? Still having that whole… Sombra problem?”

Twilight sighed heavily and Lyra grimaced. “It’s… better than it could have been.” Lyra started. “He’s taking it as a champ, as with most things, but I just wish he could be happy, you know? Without all this… stuff.”

“Yeah.” Twilight continued. “It’s not perfect, and the work I do with Zecora to get Sombra out of there is going slowly. She said something about having to ask her elders, but that would require us to go to Zebracon.”

“Hey…” Minuette spoke up, a light igniting in her eyes. “What if we simply go there and do that?”

Everypony simultaneously looked at each other in confusion.

“What, you mean…” Lemon Heart started.

“Go to Zebricon and get the cure?” Twinkleshine finished.

Minuette couldn’t have smiled brighter, her eyes alight with the prospect of adventure. “Exactly! We go to the castle, get Twilight to get us a carriage and some guards, fly over to nab Zecora or what her name was, and then we’re off to save the day! Easy Peasy, Lemon Heart Squeezy” Her excitement, along with Twilight’s giggles, flooded the surrounding ponies and eased their concerns.

“I don’t think Zebricon is like a market stall that you can just drop in on, get your groceries, and leave again within a short time.” Lemon Heart’s smile turned thoughtful. “… Is it?” She turned the question to Twilight and Moondancer.

“Well no.” Twilight started. “It would take us at least 10 hours to get there and come back, if we have some good fliers. Plus all the time it would take to get to the Elders, and gain their wisdom….”

“Hold up everypony.” Twinkleshine held up her hooves for everypony to stop talking. Moondancer noticed she had the same kind of look in her eyes that Minuette had. “You’re telling me that we have six former students of Celestia’s school for gifted unicorns and not one of us is going to mention long distance teleport? Between the six of us, we have enough power and precision to make the jump, and this Zecora pony knows the location, right?”

“But… I’ve only recently tried a few short distance teleports.” Moondancer objected. It wasn’t a spell you used lightly. Then again… going all the way to Zebricon… all the knowledge they could gain. She tried hard not to drool at the thought.

“That’s okay.” Twilight assured her. “I’ve been teleporting for a while now. I can bring the practical experience and a lot of power into the mix. I know Lyra doesn’t have that much power, but she does have great precision. And wasn’t Lemon Heart great at leading group spells?” Even Twilight seemed to be in on the idea, and Lemon Heart and Lyra were both blushing at the praise.

Moondancer just wasn’t sure if she could do it. Sure, she would love to experience Zebra culture first hoof, but… to actually leave and do it seemed so… big. And what if something went wrong? What if they didn’t make it back before she had to go to work? Would she get fired? Would Luna be mad at her? Would she get banished to the moon and be able to fulfil her lifelong dream of dancing on it?... probably not. Luna wasn’t like that. She was kind, kind enough to accept an awkward nerd like Moondancer as her secretary. Moondancer didn’t want to disappoint her.

“I don’t know girls…” she started awkwardly, not wanting to kill the mood that was flying sky-high with anticipation in a sort of ‘are we really doing this?!’ kind of way. Everypony looked at her, which made her almost resort to some familiar snarkiness, but in the end only honesty came out of her. “I don’t think I’m brave enough.”

The mood, as she had predicted, plummeted like a rock. “Well, as exciting as this random adventure could be, it is sort of… sudden.” Lemon Heart spoke first. “Could we even make it before tomorrow morning?”

“And I guess things would be bad if we got a disease, or bitten by a snake or something. It is a dangerous country after all.” Twinkleshine came back down as quickly as she had risen.

“I do want to help Jax, but it does seem sort of sudden.” Lyra conceded.

“Girls, girls! Come on!” Minuette held on. “Think of the adventure! If Twilight or any of her new friends had given up before they even started, Nightmare Moon would be on the throne right now. We aren’t going to go to Zebrica to have fun and dance all night, we’re going there to help a soul who’s desperately in need of help. The longer we wait, the more he’s going to suffer, and even though I may not know him, I know enough to deem this a worthy cause! Since when have ponies shied away from helping a fellow po… being? Didn’t Princess Celestia teach us better than that when she came to visit us at the school? What did she say back then?”

Moondancer thought back to one of the times Princess Celestia had visited the school, imparting her wisdom on the young foals. She had been so brilliant, so shiny, that young Moondancer had had to look away from her. But her words had resided somewhere deep within her. “True kindness is when you help somepony without expecting anything in return.” She recited along with the rest of them, making them all smile at the memory.

“Even back then she was trying to teach me about friendship… too bad I didn’t get it.” Twilight sighed. “If you don’t want to do this, then I can understand. Finding that sort of bravery within you isn’t easy, at least it wasn’t for me when I had to stand up to Nightmare Moon. I have never been as terrified as when I stood face to face with her, the elements shattered underneath her hooves. But I had to find bravery in my heart, not for myself, but for my friends. That’s when I realized everything, and I knew in my core that they were my friends, so much so that I would die for them, just as they would for me. It was… scary, but it was also the most comforting thing I have ever experienced. That no matter what, I wasn’t alone, and I never would be again, because I had them. That’s what I want Jax to feel. That’s what I want everypony to feel, even Sombra.” She smiled at all of them, one by one. “And all of you of course. I think that, even though her goal may be more about the adventure than to help Jax, that Minuette’s plan was very sweet. I can promise you that, though it might still be dangerous, these sort of adventures help you grow, and tighten the bonds you already share. But if you don’t want to, I’ll go with-“

“We’ll do it.” Moondacer spoke for all of them, steel in her voice. She hadn’t felt this inspired to do something in a long time, and judging by the nods of the ponies around them, they felt the same. Lemon Heart even cried a little bit. “Let’s go get Zecora.”

***

The soft sound of a cello filled the house as Jax drank it in greedily, eyes closed, relaxing on his soft bed. He had just gone over the important parts of Star Wars, just about nearing the end. ‘…and that’s how Darth Vader redeemed himself and finally found peace.’ He finished narrating.

‘You know, when I asked what a Sith was, I did not expect you to spend hours explaining a fantasy world.’ Sombra deadpanned grumpily, though judging by how little he had interrupted the story, Jax had a suspicion he actually quite enjoyed it. ‘So… he sacrificed ruling the galaxy to save his son. He should have waited for the old Sith to be done with it, then throw him down afterwards.’

‘I guess, deep down… he couldn’t let his son die. No matter the cost.’

They lay in relative silence (since the music was still playing) for a long while, Jax let his mind wander to when Luna would answer the letters he sent her using dragonfire. It was still day, so she was probably sleeping… but since it had just been some bragging about his new vinyl player, there was no rush for her to do so.

Suddenly, there was knock on the door. Puzzled as to who it could be, Jax heaved himself up, took the needle of the vinyl, and went to open it. All he got out was “Hey, it’s a chang-“ Before the fucker threw himself at Jax, biting into his arm. “What the he-!” He started, before he felt the weirdest feeling in his life.

It was like… all he held dear in his life, everything he loved, was slowly being drained out. It didn’t hurt, physically at least, but to have a picture of Luna in his mind, and slowly have that picture mean less and less to him was… it was the most, and somehow least, terrified he had ever been at the same time. Suddenly, nothing really mattered the same way it did before. He just looked as the changeling let go of him, not even having the required emotional energy left to be angry.

“I’m sorry.” The changeling sobbed, thick tears leaving its blue eyes. “They made me do it. I’m so sorry.” But it didn’t matter what he was sorry about. He knew that it should but….

‘Jax, let me take over real quick’ Sombra spoke with a dangerous edge in his ‘voice’. Jax just shrugged, and felt his control over his own body diminish into nothing. Suddenly he bent down, took the changeling by the horn, and smashed it into the wall. “If you have any desire to keep this horn…” He spoke low and threatingly, making it frighteningly clear that he wasn’t kidding. Jax observed with a sort of detachment that he had never spoken like that to anyone in his entire life. “…you will tell me who sent you, and why.”

“I-I don’t know! They were a bunch of lunatics, that’s all I know, I swear!” The changeling started crying earnestly. “They just suddenly showed up, ponynapped me and my band-mates, and told me to do this unless I want them to die!”

“Band mates? Wait, you’re the one from the concert… Epic Riff, was it?” The statement seemed to center the changeling a bit. He sniffed a few times before drying his eyes.

“Heh, not many ponies can differentiate between us. I guess you’re not a pony though… how come you aren’t affected by the drain? I guess it doesn’t matter.” He looked at them with big, sorrowful eyes. “I really am sorry about this. We promised to go straight, but here I am… abducting somepony.” He turned his eyes away in shame. “They don’t trust me. They’ll come if I take too long… you should prepare.”

Sombra finally let go of Epic’s horn, and rose to Jax’ full height. “How many?”

“I’m not sure. More than ten.”

***

Sombra almost hit the wall in frustration. All of a sudden this changeling dares come here while he and Jax were relaxing, drain Jax of his love, and try to take him to meet… who exactly? Who would want them like this? Was it him or was it Jax?

He looked at the changeling before him. “If you really are sorry, then you will tell me truthfully: Is there anything else you know about these ponies? Anything at all?” He asked the changeling, not really expecting anything useful, but to his surprise, the changeling’s eyes lit up.

“Actually, I know where their hideout is.” Sombra could hardly believe what he was hearing. This was too good to be true. “I don’t know how much this will help you, but… it’s close to this really old castle in the Everfree forest. There is a crumbling statue of something I think was Princess Luna, if you follow the direction it’s facing, you’ll come to this cave. It goes on for quite a while, the opening tunnel, before finally revealing their hideout.”

Sombra opened and closed his mouth a couple of times in disbelief. “Go over there and pretend I knocked you out.” He finally managed to say.

He didn’t know much about changelings, but he could read the alien bug’s face well enough. He was being honest. As the changeling did as he was told, Sombra considered his options.

Run? No, if they did not trust the changeling, they would have surrounded the house. Then again, they did show him their hideout… but that’s more reason to be careful, no matter how stupid they seemed.

Take the chance and use magic? That could work. He was fairly certain he could get a spell out, and Jax body could do some pretty amazing feats. Even just making a portal somewhere would save them now. But….

He needed ‘fun’ to make that work… at least according to the lord of chaos. Sombra was fairly certain that fun did not mean anything to Jax right now, and he himself did not have the right attitude to do it properly. He could still take the chance but….

The safest choice right now would probably be something he did not want to do. With the information he had, it could work, and quite favourably too. Or… it could be very bad, and he honestly did not want to do it.

How he hated asking for help. He spent another few precious seconds trying to decide if there was anything, anything else he could do without risking too much, but came up with nothing.

With a heavy heart he picked up a pen and wrote a few sentences on some nearby parchment. Just as he laid the pen down, the door was banged entirely open from its ajar state, and a heavy earth pony barged in. After a brief second where the stallion took in what was going on, and Sombra registered that he should probably do something, the smashing of a kitchen window that announced the entrance of an unknown pegasus finally got him running into the bedroom and the dragonfire jar he was looking for. Another pegasus smashed through the bedroom window landing on the bed just as he entered. Sombra raised a hand and smacked the pegasus with all the strength he could muster form the unfamiliar body… which was not very much, but he managed to disorient his opponent further, which gave him time to jump over to the bedside table where the jar stood. Just as he grabbed it, he was tackled from behind by the earthpony, but luckily the jar did not break upon landing. The earthpony had not gotten hold of his arms, so all he had to do was stuff the letter into the jar, where it burned into ash and flew off out of the broken window.

“What did he do? Why did he burn it?” The earthpony, who held him much too tightly asked, as the pegasus took out some rope.

“I don’t know. It doesn’t matter, just hold him while I tie him down, and then let’s get out of here.”

“Hey guys? The changeling seems to be unconscious over here. Do we just leave him?” The pegasus in the kitchen asked.

“Don't you remember the plan? Just leave him behind.” The pegasus answered while he did some impressive rope-work on Jax’ body.

Sombra wanted to smack himself in the face. They were leaving behind the bug that knew the location of their hideout? He suddenly became very afraid that it was been some kind of feint, and their real hideout was somewhere different... it all came down to whether they were really stupid or really clever.

He sighed heavily. He hoped that the Princess of the Night would hurry, and that she would bring some some backup. She was probably asleep though… hopefully Jax would come to himself soon, and they could have magic as a plan b. After all, all this rope was not going to stop Sombra from using magic, if it came to it.

Author's Note

Hey guys, I'm done with school, but I'll be having some reexams in August XD I'm already writing on the next chapter, so it won't be as long as this one - sorry for the wait.
Anyway, this is the last thing that needs to happen before the end ^^ I've been talking about the end for a while now, but it's actually coming soon :) For sure this time ;)

I don't know if you've seen this, but it's good so you should check it out XD Man Cannot Live On Tea Alone but especially it's sequal: Man Cannot Live On Coffee Alone

Last thing - I changed the rating to teen, because I was going to have the sex chapter in a different story anyway, and so far I don't think I've done much to warrant a mature rating ^^

Chapter 76 - To the Moon, and Back

Jax tried desperately to get out of his ropes, but the ponies had done a good job. Sombra was trying desperately to cast a spell, but it seemed like Jax’ chaos magic was just too damn strong still. The changelings were looking at him with worry, when the rope allowed them to face in his direction. Well, maybe they were just looking worried in general, since the rumbling from above had increased and more of the ceiling was falling.

Jax was worried as well.

‘Almost… have it… I can feel it on the tip of my horn….’ Sombra breathed heavily. ‘Just a little… more….’

‘We’re going to die here… God….’ This was not how he wanted things to end, but they were tied up, Sombra couldn’t get a spell out, Luna was standing there, frozen, and no help in sight.

“Luna! There you are!” A streak of rainbow entered the cave. Jax had never been so relieved in his life. “Took me forever to find this place. Hey, why are you standing so still?”

Rainbow finally started looking around the room, at the ponies on the floor, the whole thing that was falling apart, and finally at them in the corner. Jax was trying to get her attention by trashing around and yelling through his gag.

“Jax!” She flew over in the blink of the eye. “I really, really, REALLY hate caves when they are falling apart, so let’s get out of here!” She sounded on edge. Jax supressed the urge to tell her that most creatures probably did. It wouldn’t help.

‘Almost….’

She untied him faster than he thought possible, using her teeth. He wasn’t complaining. “Get the changelings and ponies out of here, I’ll take care of Luna!” He told her when he took out the gag form his mouth.

She nodded frantically, then started getting the changelings down. “The others will be here soon!” She informed him. It almost made him breathe out in relief. They might just get out of here alive.

Jax was almost by Luna’s side when the most terrifying thing happened. She shouted.

“I SHALL NEVER BECOME NIGHTMARE MOON AGAIN! I WOULD RATHER ROT ANOTHER THOUSAND YEARS ON THE MOON THAN TO GIVE IN!” There was so much fury behind it that Jax went from running forward to falling backwards. It was enough to shock him a moment before he understood the meaning of the words.

A thousand interpretations went through his mind, but there was one that latched on. She was going to banish herself to the moon, so that she wouldn’t become Nightmare Moon again. She was going to leave.

The notion took root in his mind as she charged her horn, her eyes aglow with pure power.

‘Finally! It broke!’ Sombra triumphed inside of him along the feeling of something breaking.

Jax was on his knees in front of Luna, watching her flow up into the air. Further away from him. He reached out for her.

‘Prepare yourself Jax! The spell- what are you - FOCUS ON THE PARASITE!’

Jax wasn’t sure what he had been thinking. At the time, it seemed like there was a thousand thoughts inside his head, yet none at all as he raised his hand towards Luna in a silent prayer. What exactly he was praying for, he wasn’t sure. That she wouldn’t leave, or that the parasite, Limelight, Nightmare Moon or whatever it was called would be purged from her body, or that he would come with her to the moon.

He just wasn’t sure. Looking back, it was just a chaotic mess. There was a feeling, a strong feeling of wanting… well… just wanting. Wanting her near. Wanting her… to not disappear.

Then he blinked, and in that moment, he felt a warm embrace.

He knew what it was, or at least… he knew why it was. When spells are cast on him, the first thing that happens is a feeling. The feeling varies, but after the feeling, the chaos magic does its thing.

When he opened his eyes, he was no longer on his knees in a cave that was caving in. He looked down at the white-greyish dust at his feet, then up at the craters around him, and then further up at…

Oh hell….

Above him was Earth. He was on the moon.

He did a double take.

… Yes, that was Earth.

Panic erupted in his chest at the impossibility of it all. A sound on his right caught his attention and he spun around to look at… wait…

Was that Sombra? He was all grey fur and black mane, with a red horn… just how he used to be. He was scraping at the ground with a hoof, seemingly examining it in confusion.

“No…” Came a whisper to his left, instantly recognized as Luna. He spun around to see her looking around in disbelief. “Not here… not again.”

He turned again to see something that he had only seen brief glances of while spinning around. The Crystal Empire, right there in the distance. How was all this possible?

Laughter erupted behind… the evil kind. “All mine… it’s all mine!”

They all turned to look at Nightmare Moon in all her glory - the stories didn't do her justice. Her mane was the only thing that was reminiscent of his love, a starscape of its own. Even the cutie mark was gone. Other than that: she was taller than Luna, her horn longer, her fur was darker, her teeth sharper, her look was a look of pure menace, her eyes… well her eyes were cool. Jax had always been a fan of slit pupils, and it looked great on- but that was beside the point.

The point was that some fuckery was going on, Nightmare Moon was looking at them with a hungry look, and her teeth looked extremely sharp. Jax couldn’t handle all of it.

“What. The. Fuck.”

Both Sombra and Luna looked at him with worry. Sombra spoke first. “Let us get through this ordeal before we have a mental breakdown. I do not believe my creation is going to let us off that easily.”

“Remind me to pummel you into dust when we are done with this.” Luna said to Sombra. “For making that thing.”

Sombra seemed to contemplate for a couple of seconds, before nodding. “For what it is worth… I am sorry. I was not in the best state of mind.”

Luna didn’t have much time to come up with an answer because Nightmare was charging her horn. “If you help us during this fight, I will forgive you.” She spread her wings and took flight. “Protect Jax!”

There were no words to describe how useless Jax felt at that moment, but he reigned it in. There was not much he could do in a fight, except maybe spread chaos and get hurt by debris.

Sombra and Jax exchanged a look as Luna dived down to sucker punch Nightmare in the face. Of course the spell Nightmare released prevented that, since she had to dodge out of the way.

“Can I have a mental breakdown now?” Jax couldn’t help but ask. Even now, here, on the freaking moon, while his girlfriend was fighting her worst nightmare, he couldn’t help but crack a bad joke. Of course ‘moon’ was loose term for where they were. Gravity was the same, and they could breathe and talk without problems.

“No.” Sombra answered curtly. “Save it for when we’re back.”

“And… how exactly are we going to get back?” He gave a hollow laugh. It was all so insane.

“Your magic brought us here… it will have to take us back. I wondered whether we were in the dreamrealm, or even in your mind, but neither seem right.” Sombra looked up at the Earth above then, the landscape around them, and finally on the Crystal Empire. “Your power is just so strong that it either teleported us to a world where all this was already here… or created a pocket dimension and placed everything. It seems that I was right about your magic after all. It is extremely powerful. You could probably take over the world if you wanted… if you learned to control it at least, or guide it.”

Jax couldn’t quite read the expression on Sombra’s face, but he did know one thing. “Not going to do that, obviously. Whether I learn to or not.”

Sombra nodded like he expected the answer, but didn’t say anything. They both looked at the battle between Luna and Nightmare for a little while. Luna was extremely agile in the air, and her magic came out in quick bursts. Overall, Nightmare seemed stronger in power, and it seemed like she only needed one little opportunity to gain the upper hand, one that Luna refused to give.

It made Jax extremely worried. He wanted to rush in and try to sucker punch Nightmare too. But… “Maybe I could use this magic to end things right here though. I don’t want anymore regrets. One spell, and the Nightmare, Limelight, parasite or whatever you want to call it… it would simply cease to exist. It would never hurt Luna again.” The thought brought relief; it was Luna never having to suffer because of that thing again.

“Yes… you could.” Sombra started slowly. “There is one other way we could do this though. One I want to ask you to consider.”

Jax looked down at Sombra.

“The parasite was created from me. It is dark magic, and it is a piece of my soul. It can become a part of me again. I cannot, however, do that while it is in its new body.” There was something in Sombra’s voice… Jax thought if maybe it was regret. “And since neither of us can do what they want without the other, I believe we should come to an agreement before the good Princess of the Night runs out of energy.”

“What do you think remerging with it will do to you?” Jax asked, tense as he was.

“I am… not entirely sure. But I gave it form and life. All this time it has just been doing what I created it to do. To simply have it vanish for that seems… cruel. It cannot fight its nature. And… I will never be complete without that piece that gave it life.”

Jax clenched and unclenched his fist in an attempt to keep calm himself. He wouldn’t be able to just stand there much longer, he needed to save his Luna.

She just managed to dodge a beam attack from Nightmare when Jax lost his patience. “Fine. What do you need?”

“We need to make it evacuate its form. I need you to teleport us over to the crystal empire over there. I doubt it has the Crystal Heart, but if I can acquire a few pure crystals, I can enhance a spell to force her out. Then we simply set up an ambush.”

“And if I fuck up and we end up somewhere who knows where?” Jax asked, worried.

“You need to stop being so afraid… my friend.” The last words came out hesitantly, unsure. They shared a look and Jax almost smiled as he felt his heart warm. “You have a great power, and you can use it to save the mare you love. You just need to be brave and let go.”

Jax took a deep breath. “Alright… friend.” His smile finally broke through at Sombra’s relief. “We can do this. Just… let go. No demands. Chaos. I got it.”

Sombra powered up his spell, but Jax quickly felt panic well up. “No, no wait! I’m not ready, let me… let me do this properly.” Sombra nodded.

Jax went down on his knees. Once upon a time he had stood in front of a large crowd of ponies and chocked, until Luna had advised him to take deep breaths. And so he did.

He imagined being there. The Crystal Empire. But not the one back in Equestria, that one would be filled with Crystal Ponies, and have the Crystal Heart. This one was empty. Deserted… Boring and still. Unchaotic. He could breathe some life into it, if only he was there.

A hope. A prayer. A wish. “I’m ready.”

Sombra cast the spell.

***

Luna was ‘having a blast’ as they say. At least she was fairly certain Jax would say that when she was blasted aside. She may be a bit quicker, but Nightmare Moon was essentially a powered-up version of herself. Luna would eventually either have to take a great risk, make a mistake, or simply run out of energy.

It was in fact, not much of a blast at all. It was a miserable situation.

But she would fight on until the end. Having Sombra protect Jax was what everything inside of her told her was right, but she really could use some help.

“Luna!” Came Jax cry from far, far away. She barely heard over the sound of her fight with Nightmare Moon.

She ducked under another beam of energy, made a quick retaliation, which she used as a distraction to gain some distance and look around.

Jax and Sombra were nowhere nearby.

“Luna! Come over here!” She looked over and caught a glimpse of the Crystal Empire, before she was forced to dodge her opponents iron-shoed hoof.

She thought quickly as she weaved around Nightmare Moon, trying to keep to her back. The Crystal Empire was too far away to teleport to in one go, and using several teleports would tire her out, but Jax seemed to want her to go there.

She hoped he had a plan.

She grit her teeth, frowning hard. She was already having a hard time dealing with a superpowered version of herself, to do that while always keeping a destination in mind was going to be… bothersome to say the least.

But there was nothing for it. She teleported the first distance, then weaved and ducked and avoided all of Nightmares attacks, having to keep the way she dodged in mind to slowly get closer and closer to the Empire, while never letting Nightmare off her sight. It was very straining, and the empire was farther away than she originally thought.

Soon she took damage. A burned area near her cannon from where an energy-beam grazed her. A cut on her cheek where a shard of stone almost collided with her face. A wound in her shoulder from when she had almost flown straight into a phantom dagger summoned by Nightmare.

Tiresome and frustrating, for her mind and her body. She tried to do some fast healing spells to stop the bleeding from her shoulder, but Nightmare was always right behind her with a spell ready. It was hard to concentrate.

But she kept going. Of course she did. To fail here… she was not even sure what it would mean.

As the haunting tune of Nightmare charging a spell reached her ears, Luna charged her own for one last spell. It seemed that Nightmare had learned Luna’s trick of not fully charging before releasing, because she was hit by whatever it was just as she released her own teleportation.

Pain overtook her back as she reappeared over a crystal tower. ‘I made it.‘ was all she could think as her wings tried desperately to keep her airborne. ‘May we defeat the Nightmare together….’ She crashed hard through the crystal roof, unconsciousness overtaking her as she landed on the floor below.

***

“LUNA!!!” Jax cried as he saw his marefriend getting hit by a beam of pure, dark energy. It hit so hard that the velocity carried through her teleport, making her crash into one of the castle spires.

“This better work, Sombra.” He managed to croak. His yelling, both now and when he first tried to get Luna’s attention really left his throat raw, even when Sombra had used a crystal to magnify his voice.

“It will. This may not be the time to say this, but if we get out of here alive, can you do me the favour of never calling me Sombra again? It’s from a dark time in my life, and I wish to start anew.”

Jax looked at Nightmare as she cackled her way closer. Seriously, she was laughing so hard and over the top, Jax wouldn’t be surprised if it was what kept her airborne. “Sure, whatever. What’s the plan?”

“Distract her to keep my aim true.” Sombra’s voice seemed to get further away.

When Jax looked over in surprise, Sombra was already out of sight.

“Oh, you little piece of…!” Jax wanted to curse hard at the traitor, but held his tongue. This wasn’t the time.

A small part of him doubted if Sombra was even trustworthy, but a much bigger part of him argued that he was. Things were different from when Sombra had made him forget who he was and made him hike through the damn Everfree Forest while trying to take over his body.

He did deserve a punch for that though.

“So, where is that little shadow? Did I scare him off?” Nightmare laughed. She seemed to be in a good mood.

Jax’ brain was on standby. He couldn’t think of a single thing to say, but he knew he had to say something, so he opened his mouth and said the first thing that came to mind. “What’s got you in such a good mood?”

She stopped and looked at him weirdly, but then smiled again. “You can’t guess? Not only did I win against that weakling, but now I have a body all my own. I will never have to fight for-“ Something seemed to catch her attention, making Jax panic a little bit. He was the distraction after all. Luckily Ponykind rotate their ears before the head follows, giving Jax a warning.

Before she could turn her head completely to investigate, he spoke up again. “Then why are you fighting us? You have everything you ever wanted, and I don’t think you can leave this place on your own.”

“What?” She turned to him again. “Should I wait for you three to betray me? Do you really think that I could trust any of you to not try anything? No, this is much better. If I take care of you three now, I can figure everything out by myself, plus I finally get my revenge on Luna for ruining everything, and Sombra will no longer….” She looked at him strangely, then her eyes widened in realization, and she threw herself to the side….

Just as a beam of pure, destructive magic washed over the place she had just been, destroying the crystal road. When it was over, there was only a large hole, the crystal and moondust underneath seemingly disintegrated. Force her out of her body, he had said. Yeah, she would be when her body ceased to exist.

“Sombra… nice try, I’ll give you that much.” Nightmare got up on her hooves, her gaze never leaving the roof of a building where Sombra stood with three of the purest crystals they could find in such a short amount of time. He had compared them to magnifying glass when Jax had asked, but Jax didn’t really feel like that was a good explanation after what he just witnessed.

Jax wondered how much magic he had left after the attack. It looked like a spell that would cost a lot, and he did look a bit unsteady on his hooves.

“Parasite.” Sombra greeted. “You should not have dodged. We could have become one again.”

Nightmare’s face contorted in anger. “I don’t want to be part of you, weakling! You are nothing! I will defeat you once and for all, on this day, and you will never haunt me again!” She spat out the words.

Jax couldn’t help but feel that she was afraid. Maybe it was the way she said the words, or maybe it was that her right foreleg shook uncontrollably.

“And what are you going to do afterwards?” Jax asked. They needed to keep this conversation going. He felt he had to at least try to talk Nightmare Moon down. They could do it. Words were powerful, he just had to find the right ones. “Because the way I see it, you’re only banishing yourself to this moon instead of the other.”

She took two steps back at the word ‘banish’, almost showing her fear, but her muzzle quickly settled on anger again so fast Jax barely caught it.

“Don’t be presumptuous. If I have to spend the next thousand years meditating, if I have to ask the stars to aid my escape, if I have to recarve this entire empire into a rune… I will return. And when I do… ohoh ponykind will miss my past ideals. Eternal Night will seem like a paradise then, but with this body I don’t need to do that anymore. I will rule with an iron hoof, and all will be mine as I-“

“Why?” Jax simply asked, cutting her rather boring monologue. He noticed Sombra had buckled under his own weight, and now lay down on the roof, panting hard.

But Jax’ focus was on Nightmare. If Jax could read her emotions right - and he believed that he had enough practise to read her as easily as any pony - She went from confused by his question, back to anger at being interrupted, then to confusion again, quickly past contemplation, and before she could move back to anger, Jax spoke again. “Why do you want to enslave ponies? Wasn’t that Sombra’s ideas?”

Jax seemed to have rendered the Nightmare speechless. Before she could explode in anger, since anger seemed like her default reaction, he continued. “You can think for yourself now. You don’t have to worry about finding a body, and corrupting the owner or whatever. You don’t have to do anything but what you want. Is ruling ponies what you want, or is it what Sombra wanted when he created you?” He really hoped he could finish this quickly so he could check on Luna. Was she okay? Was she bleeding?

Nightmare Moon looked disturbed at the implication. The rage in her eyes died down slowly, as her gaze turned downwards. Even her ears started to droop. Then, just as quickly as it was gone, it returned in full force. “I am Nightmare Moon!” She yelled as she stamped the crystal ground so hard cracks formed all the way over to Jax. “I am… I will make the ponies love me! They have ignored me for too long!”

Jax eyes widened, then narrowed in determination. “Are you?! Because I distinctly remember Nightmare Moon wanting the night last forever so that ponies can appreciate it, as they would appreciate her! Because that is all Luna wanted, so it was all Nightmare Moon wanted! But you are not Luna. Who are you?!” It seemed like she wasn’t used to thinking these kinds of things.

She took two steps back as he took two forward, a look of sorrow on her muzzle. Jax took the chance to make eye contact with Sombra, then look at the tower where Luna had crash-landed, then back at him. Sombra took one look back in confusion, before he nodded in understanding.

Jax would take care of this, Sombra had to make sure that Luna was all right. Jax wouldn’t be able to go on if he kept thinking whether or not Luna was bleeding to death up there.

He refocused on Nightmare when he caught her whisper “Who… am I?” She looked… bewildered.

“What do you want?” He asked, fuelling her existential crisis. He felt a little bad, since he knew what it was like not knowing who you were, but it needed to be done.

Her gaze shifted to him. The uncertainty in them was staggering. “I… don’t know. All I’ve ever wanted was to take over the body of an Alicorn and drive her to corruption. It was what I was created to do, and it’s all I’ve ever thought about….”

“Sombra says you can’t fight your nature… is that true? Jax asked gently, trying to keep the conversation going.

“What does that weakling know! I am ten times the pony he is!” Anger again. There was so much anger inside of her.

“Say what you will about him, but at least he isn’t chained by his past. A childhood like that would fuck up most people, but Sombra is trying hard now, despite everything.” Jax defended his friend.

“He is nothing! He is-“ Nightmare snarled and took some threatening steps forward.

“Alright, alright.” Jax held up his hands in defeat. “Just… why are you so angry at him?”

“He just tried to kill me!” She protested as if it should be obvious.

Jax sighed and decided to get serious. She was talking - she wanted to talk with him - and that was the most important thing… so he went over to a nearby bench, sat down, and gestured for her to do the same. Which she did after hesitating shortly.

There he sat next to Nightmare Moon, or at least something resembling her, trying to think of what to say. “You know, he did some pretty horrible things to me as well.” He decided they could do some bonding over Sombra. If they were going to get anywhere with this, Nightie would have to let go of her hate and fear.

***

Jax wasn’t sure how long they spent talking. By the dryness in his throat, it felt like a couple of hours, but there was no way to know in this world for sure. At the end of it, Nightie was sobbing on his shoulder, and he was stroking her back reassuringly.

“I-I guess I just feel like I would disappear i-if I became one with him… b-but on the other hoof, what’s the point of my existence if I can’t do what I was created f-for?” Nightie sobbed. Their talk had turned rather heavy along the way, questioning existence itself. Jax’ head was spinning a bit. “B-but I also worked so hard for this, I-I don’t want it all to be for nothing….”

“Well… “ Jax started. “I don’t think it would be for nothing. As long as you got something out of it, then you’re left with more than nothing, aren’t you? Didn’t you discover all of these things about yourself? Just because you don’t have a tangible thing to hold at the end, doesn’t mean that you have nothing. If you tunnelvision too hard on what you want, you’re just going to end up losing sight of all the other things you could have. Have you ever heard of the magic of friendship?”

She scoffed, but didn’t react with an angry outburst, and she stayed in his comforting grasp. Progress. “Don’t remind me. I still remember how paralyzed I felt when that beam of rainbow power was coming toward me. It felt… it felt like it was going to rip me apart into a million pieces, and I would never be complete again. But I did.” Her voice turned from melancholy to almost victorious. “I refused to perish. Using ponies’ negative emotions, little by little, I managed to piece myself together. I succeeded. I wasn’t gone, I was still here. I existed. I exist.”

There was heavy pause as Jax thought about how to say what he needed. He started scratching her behind the ears almost automatically. She seemed to relax a bit more against him.

Then he sighed. “Are you though? Complete I mean.” In the end, he was best at being straightforward. He could feel her body tense. He tried to speak as gently as he could. “Are you really going to stop existing if you merge with Sombra? I can’t imagine all these thoughts, all these feelings, all of your memories just becoming nothing. Aren’t you just going to become whole?”

She didn’t answer. She just sat there, tense as a board. After a while, Jax just went with his guts. “You’re scared, aren’t you?”

She suddenly undid his embrace and walked away. “Why are you being so nice? I ruined Luna’s life, I beat her up, I kidnapped you and was going to kill you… are you distracting me so Sombra can have another shot?” Her voice was frail in her anger. She looked around, as if she expected Sombra to come out and try again.

Jax just shook his head. “Sombra did some bad things as well. Now look at us, being friends and all.” He chuckled, but it was lost on Nightie. “Alright, listen... I just want to live my life in peace. You come to me, you destroy my peace, you do a lot of things to my girlfriend that I want to make you pay for… honestly, I was going to actually do what you fear so much: I was going to make you cease existing… but Sombra believes that you guys can be one again, and after listening to you for God knows how long, I’m happy I decided to go with his plan. You’re clearly a thinking entity, with feelings, thoughts and fears. I don't want to kill you. I don’t want to kill anyone.”

Nightie looked at him, looking a little lost. She sniffled a couple of times. Taking one last look around, she went back to him and buried her face in his shoulder. “Nopony has ever been this kind to me. In fact, nopony has ever been kind to me at all… It feels weird.” A break, then in a low whisper she added: “I don’t know what to do.”

Jax chuckled weakly. “I don’t want to tell you what to do, Nightie. This will be your choice. Perhaps your first real choice.”

“Nightie….” She sounded like she smiled. She turned away from him suddenly, taking a few steps away. “I think I understand why Luna likes you so much. You are very calming to be around. I… need some time to think.” She then spread her feathery wings and flew off.

Something about her tone gave him hope that they would stay friends when all was said and done. It warmed his heart a little bit. In the end she was a pony, just like Sombra, and all she wanted was to be loved and accepted. At least he liked to think so, seeing how their conversation had gone. She could have killed him if she wanted to, she could have killed all of them. But in the end, she hadn’t even followed Luna to make sure she was….

Dread washed over him at the thought. He was fairly certain Luna was still alive, and Sombra would keep her that way because anything else would be unthinkable….

Would he really be able to be friends with Nightie if she had killed Luna?

He looked up at the tower Luna had crashed into, filled with unease. He got up and started walking towards it.

If he entered the tower with Sombra standing over a dead body… would he be able to stand by what he said? Would his rage not make him want to kill the mare he had just spent hours talking with? No… he would want to snuff out her life as surely as his love for Luna.

His body shook so violently he had to kneel not to fall over. Fucking hell. He didn’t want to kill anyone, but he wasn’t sure if he could control himself. Relatively speaking, he didn’t know Luna for very long- it had only been a couple of months- but he… he couldn’t really picture going on without her there. And he couldn’t really picture himself forgiving Nightie. Being with Luna just felt… right.

He forced himself to calm down and keep walking. It didn’t take long for his body to start sprinting towards the tower.

***

Nightie… he had called her Nightie, as if it was the most natural thing in the world. As if it was her name.

She couldn’t help but smile a little, despite the headache she was experiencing. She was usually a one-track mind, establishing a goal and then simply… achieving it. No matter how long or arduous the road. It’s all she’s ever done… it’s all she’s ever known. But now her head was buzzing with thoughts, thoughts she usually only saw in the ponies she was trying to bend to her will. Now they were all her own.

She kind of understood now why Luna had been so taken with Jax. Maybe Luna had shown Nighie too much about him, and that was why she felt so calm around him.

Maybe it was just that Jax was so… different. He wasn’t innocent like most ponies, but he wasn’t evil like her and Sombra… he was just kind of in the middle, and when she talked and he listened, and nodded in the right places and just… understood, she felt… what was this feeling called? Where you didn’t feel so angry or bitter, like you wanted to hurt everything around you. She just felt… calm- no… normal? Like a mare talking about her problems with a… a….

Of course she wasn’t a mare. She wasn’t really anything, but seeing as she had been a part of Sombra once, she should refer to herself as a stallion. But she had a mare's body, and had spent the last thousand years in one… was she a mare?

Did she feel like a mare? She had been in enough mares to know how they should feel like. Right?

She looked up at the planet that didn’t seem to be the same she was created on. It was so far away, and for a moment she put her own chaotic mind on hold as she just allowed herself to observe whatever it was, from the rooftop of a crystal building, on a moon that wasn’t the one she had been imprisoned on.

It still felt the same. Lonely. Well this one felt a little less lonely than the last one.

Probably because of Jax.

In a bout of frustration, she headbutted the wall beside her. It cracked all the way down. Had she… had she been manipulated by Luna while trying to manipulate her? Was that why she felt this way about some… person.

Person? She had found the word in her head… probably from Luna. How much of her was Luna? How much was Sombra?

She stood up and started pacing back and forth. She had never questioned things before, so she didn’t know what to think. She didn’t even know who she was. She had spent so long in other people… if you took away her need to corrupt, what was left? And even that was only her instructions from Sombra. Her ‘instincts.’

Was she really so little? Was she anything at all? Would giving in to Sombra really be so bad?

Maybe it would be better than this.

This moon wasn’t as lonely as the last one. But… if she killed the ones who were here with her, it would become even lonelier.

There was a time when she didn’t even know what loneliness was. The concept was beaten into her so thoroughly on the moon she was banished to that she would never forget. She never wanted to feel like that again.

But in a way, she always felt lonely.

She almost screamed. She couldn’t stop the thoughts from running around in her mind like headless chickens.

An alien thought entered her head. Could she become friends with Luna? She almost laughed at the thought. “As if she’d ever forgive me….” The sentence left her mouth, but after that it was nothing. It meant nothing. The fact that it was muttered meant nothing, because there was no one to hear it.

She laid down again, this time on her back. If she killed Jax now… she would spend the rest of her life thinking whether it was the right thing to do. The thoughts she had now was probably nothing next to what thoughts she would have to deal with then. She knew regret as a term, she knew what it meant to ponies to experience it, she knew what it meant. But she had never experienced it herself. She had never felt it in her soul the same way she had loneliness.

Yet she was already feeling it a little. Looking back at your actions and feeling sorrow.

She wagered that that was nothing next to what she would feel if she killed Jax and then spent the next thousand years trying to escape this place.

When she had fought Luna, she had felt powerful, like she could take on the entire world and come out victorious. It was knowing that whatever happened, she could count on her own strength. Speaking with Jax on the other hoof, had been… freeing. It had been letting her guard down for the first time in her life and simply talk with no ulterior motive. I had felt like she was a part of the world, not against it.

It was all just so frustrating. What was she supposed to do? And when she chose… would she be able to say that the choice was her own?

***

Jax burst into the room at the very top of the tower. It was sparsely furnished with only one table and four chairs. The light came in from a window at each side, and the hole in the roof. The flight of stairs really left him breathless, but he couldn’t make himself slow down. He breathed hard, trying desperately to breathe past the salvia stuck in his throat. He felt so dehydrated everything turned black for a couple of seconds while he caught his breath.

His vision finally fell on Luna’s prone form laying in the light of the hole, Sombra sitting beside her. She was bandaged on her cannon, her entire midriff, her chest, her head… it didn’t look good. The bandages were mostly red.

He hurried over to her to touch her, to feel whether life was still flowing through her, and almost fainted in relief. She was breathing.

“You are lucky I am as good at working with crystal as I am.” Sombra said, passing him a crystalglass of water, which he instantly emptied. “If I had to transform something else into bandage and water, I would not have been able to do it as fast.”

“Is she going to be all right?” Jax asked breathlessly, eyes on the bloodied mare in front of him. He hated to see her like this.

“I stopped the bleeding, but she lost a lot of blood. I am no healer, I can do no more for her. The rest is up to her.”

Sombra pushed another glass of water over to him. Jax drank this one slowly, deep in thought.

If Luna didn’t make it… what would he do?

It was a thought that chilled him to the core. He gently lifted Luna’s head, putting it on his lap. He looked down at her as his hand tried to find a path down her fur that didn’t lead to a bandaged area. It was a futile attempt. In the end he just avoided the red spots. His hand didn’t go very far.

“God…” Luna’s muzzle twitched in pain, and Jax’ heart contracted painfully. “If I had a talk with Nightie now… I don’t think there would be much talk about it.”

“She only…” Sombra started, trailed off, then tried again. “She did not know any better. I created her out of negative magic and a part of my soul from when I was at my lowest. It is me you should blame for this, not her.”

Jax almost smiled. It was weird how easily he could see through Sombra. “I get it. You feel responsible for her actions now. You regret ever creating her. All she ever did was cause pain in this world… all because of you.”

“All because of me.” They sat in silence for a while. Jax didn’t really know what to say. He wasn’t even sure what he was feeling. Right now he just felt empty. He was sure his true feelings would come out with Luna’s survival or… “Listen Jax… I can try the spell again. This time-“

“If you miss again, it’ll be all over. If she chooses to fight us, use a spell on me instead, when I give you the sign that I’m ready.” He gave Sombra a peace sign. Not for the irony of it, but because he couldn’t think properly and it was the first that sprang to mind. He gave a hollow smile. “I just hope it doesn’t come to it.” The words felt hollow too. Maybe he did want Nightie to suffer. Maybe he did want her to cease existing. Maybe he’d just been a hypocrite because he hadn’t lost anything to her yet.

It was all very confusing. He hadn’t thought Luna was this seriously injured, so when he spoke with Nightie, he had meant every word he said. But now, seeing her like this….

But did he really want Nightie to die? It was as Sombra said… she just followed her instincts.

But without Luna… if he lost her, how would he ever… could he even reign in his rage? It didn’t feel like it.

"She'll survive." Sombra stated suddenly. "She's an Alicorn. They are a tough species."

Jax took a deep breath, nodding to the encouragement. Luna would be fine. She was an Alicorn. She was strong. She would survive.

For a long while he just focused on stroking her where he could. Each stroke was as gentle as he could make them, barely even touching her.

***

There was no way to tell what time it was in this place. It just sort of flowed forward. Luna didn’t move much. Jax didn’t move much either. Sombra seemed to be gathering crystals, sometimes mumbling to himself. He never went far though.

“Are you going to study changelings?” Jax suddenly asked. He was getting a bit restless, and conversation was a good distraction.

Sombra looked at him in surprise. “I do not think I will be allowed to do much. I am a prisoner after all.”

Jax drank a bit more water before answering. “I don’t think you’ll have to worry too much about that.” He managed to give Sombra a genuine smile. “I’ll vouch for you. Not to brag or anything, but I am pretty well in with the princesses. You’ll be out working in no time, doing research or whatever.”

Despite everything, it was still nice to see how touched Sombra looked. He even had tears in his eyes, but quickly turned away and dried them before any could fall. When he looked back he almost looked like a normal innocent pony. “That…” He coughed. “That….” Then he turned away from Jax. “That is very nice of you, Jax. Thank you.” His voice was so honest and open, Jax could almost enjoy the situation. Almost.

“He really has changed.” Nightie’s voice made them both jump in shock. A moment later she… she unattached from the shadows, taking her body’s form. There was something different about her. She didn’t have the same bite in her voice, she almost sounded tired, and her face was a bit more… open. Less guarded, a bit less ready to descend into anger at the smallest thing.

Sombra immediately went into battle stance, lighting his horn so he was ready to cast, and all the small things like bending his knees so he was ready to dodge. Jax couldn't stop wondering how long she had been a part of those shadows.

“Relax. If I was here to kill you, I wouldn’t have announced myself.” Nightie calmly informed them.

Jax was still just sitting there, but he couldn’t quite stop his muscles from tensing, and he couldn’t keep his face neutral.

Nightie’s eyes went over him, down to Luna, and then back to him. As she sighed, everything about her just sort of drooped, from her ears to her head to her wings. “It wasn’t easy coming here….” She started. She slowly went over to Luna, and laid down beside her in the way ponies sometimes do with their hooves underneath themselves. Jax was caught in between wanting to snarl and being disarmed by her behaviour. Sombra kept his horn trained on her.

She looked down at Luna for a long time. No one really moved. Then she spoke again. “She’s more injured than I thought.” Her eyes never left Luna.

Jax licked his lips, unsure what to say to that. He looked up at the hole in the roof she had created while crashing through. “That’s… what happens when you hurt someone. They get hurt.” It had sounded better in his head.

Nightie smiled a little and nodded, but didn’t respond for a long while. The silence was deafening, the most prominent noise being a slight trickle sound coming from Sombra’s horn. It was… an awkward situation.

After a while, when nothing happened, Jax relaxed a little more.

“I thought about what you said. About making my own choice.” She finally said and looked at him, making him instantly tense again.

“Oh… that’s good.” They looked at each other for a bit. “What did you figure out?” One side of him was genuinely curious, the other side was struggling not to attack her. Jax wasn’t used to feeling this way. It was distressing.

“I came to the conclusion that I can do two things, both of which would be my own choices.” She finally looked away from him, and focused her gaze straight ahead. “The first one would be to unite with Sombra and become whole again. This way I wouldn’t have to just be a shard of something, and I wouldn’t have to worry about anything anymore… probably.” She just stared ahead for a moment before starting again. “The second choice would be… harder. I would come with you in this body and try to… try to…” She seemed to have a hard time saying a word. She finally sighed. “… not be hostile anymore. This way I wouldn’t have to worry about the elements of harmony anymore, and I could just… learn to think for myself. Try to figure out who I really am. What I really want….” She just trailed off.

Then she locked eyes with Sombra, and a sort of cold rage overtook her features. “The more I think about it, the more I hate the first option. I never asked to be made, I never wanted to exist, but suddenly I did, and all I knew was what you made me know. All I could do was your bidding, Sombra, and that is all I did, and it pisses me off to no end. If I become a part of you again, then all I am and ever was in this world is what you made me, what you imprinted in me to be. I would never have left behind anything that was truly mine, whatever that would look like, and I hate that thought. I hate it so much.”

Surprisingly, tears were welling up in her eyes. Jax could feel his anger being overtaken by pity for this creature that has known nothing but hate most of its life. But she wanted to change, and in the end, wasn’t that the most important thing?

Luna’s head on his lap told him otherwise.

“Nobody can ask you to merge with Sombra, Nightie. Especially not Sombra.” He said slowly, careful not to show any emotion. Inside of him, the anger was returning and it was like there was a storm of emotions going through him.

On one side, he remembered not too long ago back in the cave. The way Nightie had made Luna look when she was controlling different ponies, circling her, talking down to her, making his Luna feel small and insignificant. That was not to mention the image of Luna falling through the roof of the tower, or seeing her lying on the floor with enough red bandage covering her to make him feel nauseous.

On the other side, he knew that she was only doing what she was made to do. She hadn’t given any real thought to her actions until recently, and now that she had, she wanted to change.

Sombra finally discharged his horn, and stopped aiming it at Nightie. With a great sigh, he lay down. “I am sorry for what I did to you. I was at a low point in my life. I am hoping to turn things around.” He looked Nightie straight in the eye. “Jax is right. I cannot ask you to simply give up your existence so that I can be whole again. If you ever change your mind….”

Nightie nodded and laid her head to rest on the cold crystal floor, looking… well, she looked a little lost, but also more relaxed. “So what now?”

Jax took a deep breathe, trying to steady himself. His anger faded, but then flared back up immediately. He wasn’t used to such strong polarized feelings fighting inside of him, he was getting a headache.

“You don’t have to hold your anger in.” Nightie said. She had a knowing smile on her muzzle. “I know you’re trying to keep it down, but it’s so obvious. You’re angry at me for everything I’ve done. You didn’t feel that way down by the bench, but it hit you when you saw Luna like this.”

Her smile grew at his bewilderment. “I’ve been reading ponies for a long time, human. You’re a bit different, but strong emotions are the same no matter the race. There is no need to hold back on my account. You have the right to be angry.”

He locked eyes with her for a whole minute, before finally looking down at his Luna. “If she dies, you’ll see anger.” He said quietly, petting her gently.

“She’ll survive.” Nightie simply said, laying her head back down. “I know her. This won’t be her end.”

***

Jax really wished he had a watch. It felt like hours and hours had passed, but there was no way to know for sure. Earth stayed where it was, maybe looking a bit bigger, and there was no sign of a sun anywhere. It made him wonder where all the light was coming from, but not enough to distract him for long.

He found more distraction in giving Luna water, or helping change her bandages. He was as gentle as he could be, carefully dripping water into her mouth, or carefully unearthing her wounds to let them breathe for a moment while Sombra looked them over. The bleeding had stopped, so they carefully cleaned the wounds and bandaged her again in case any of them opened. Nightie looked on from the other side, her face being a neutral mask.

Jax wondered if she could be trusted. She didn’t try anything, but there was the possibility that she was simply waiting her time.

Of course when they got back to Equestria, it would be the Elements problem and he would be able to relax. He was looking forward to that. Those girls were much better at this than he would ever be. “So… Nightie.”

She perked her head to look at him, looking drowsy but slightly interested. Her nightscape mane billowed behind her and her slit cyan eyes looked awesome… he suddenly realized why he was so quick at accepting her - she reminded him waaaay too much of Luna.

He refocused with a shake of his head. “I can’t help but wonder… are you really ready for the path ahead? There is no doubt that you will be met with fear and hate for a long time... what happens if you change your mind again? Are you really ready for this?”

Nightie lowered her head again, looking thoughtful. “I don’t know.”

“Oh….” Jax didn’t know what to say to that. It seemed like an honest answer, but he would have preferred if Nightie was a bit more determined.

“I don’t want to be hated.” She added.

“Not many do.” He absentmindedly played with Luna’s ears.

“If Luna survives this… will you hate me?” He wasn’t sure, but he thought he could hear a slight quiver in her voice.

“Nah, probably not. I’m not the hateful type. I don’t even hate Sombra, and he did some mean shit. There’s only one person I truly hate, and he’s worlds away.” Sombra looked away in shame, mumbling something about being sorry.

Maybe it was because he was tired from all the excitement and all the sitting down without doing anything, but he couldn’t find it in him to be angry anymore. Things were complicated - even if Nightie truly wanted to be good, she had caused Luna so much pain it would be hard to forgive - but what was done was done, and they couldn’t change the past. Didn’t Jax say something about that back when he told Luna his past?

‘Through worlds and sadness and loneliness, we found each other, and if we can be happy together, then maybe it will all have been worth it somehow.’ That was what he had said, wasn’t it? In the end, every action they had taken had led them to being together, and that was something Jax couldn’t complain about.

“Thank you.” She said, her voice so gentle and full of emotion Jax did not expect from her. “For being so understanding. For giving me a name. You’ve done more for me than my own creator.”

Jax smiled a bit. It felt good to be good. “You’re welcome, Nightie.”

Sombra mumbled something more about being at a low point in his life. Nightie looked at him with a raised brow, then her face lit up. “If Sombra is going to be good now, then I’ll be twice as good as him!” She said in a rather self assured fashion that made Jax laugh. Actually laugh. It was just all so ridiculous. Why not just roll with it? All this worrying was leaving him exhausted and he couldn’t take it anymore.

Then Luna coughed and he scrambled to get her some water, his focus solely on her. She slowly opened her eyes as he very slowly poured water down her maw. She swallowed and he stopped pouring when she spoke. “Jax?” Her voice was hoarse.

“Yeah, I’m here love, I’m here.” He gently started stroking her again.

“Thank the stars…” She closed her eyes again, and he got the feeling she was asleep.

She seemed fine. She was going to be fine. The knot he had in his stomach loosened a bit, and exhaustion hit Jax like a brick. He could barely think. “You know what guys… I’m out. Wake me if something happens.” Sombra nodded, Nightie just lay down again and closed her eyes.

Jax very carefully arranged himself so that he could lay beside Luna, but enough distance away to not accidently hurt her. He took off his shirt and arranged it as a pillow for her, so she at least had that.

Of course that left him without a pillow, and the cold floor against his skin, but he was just so tired that it barely bothered him. He fell asleep in seconds.

***

Sombra looked down at the sleeping human. It did not take him long. Well, it was really no wonder, a lot had happened after all.

The problem was that it left him alone with… ‘Nightie’. Sombra looked over at his creation, but she was in the same position as before, with her eyes closed.

Of course, it was obvious that she was affected by the situation. She did not hide her frown, and there was a noticeable tension in her body.

Jax seems to believe her, but Sombra was not so sure. He had made her for a purpose, and for as long as she had existed, she had tried to fulfil it. Even when it was no longer necessary after Sombra had been banished, she had still strived to overtake an Alicorn. That was the sole reason for her existence: So that Sombra did not have to fight two Alicorns at once.

In the end, he did anyway. She had only succeeded after his defeat. If she had been faster… Sombra would have taken over the world. He could easily have taken out Celestia and Nightmare Moon if they were alone, back then at least. Especially if they were fighting among themselves. She did seem to have an unhealthy amount of hate for him, so he doubted she would just have let him take over, but there was not much she would have been able to do to him. Back then, he had been powerful enough to-

“How long are you going to keep staring at me?” She asked, an edge to her voice that made him flinch a bit. One eye opened to stare back at him, all her hate there for him to see in that cyan eye.

Jax seemed to trust her enough to leave her right next to Luna. Sombra thought he was being a bit too naïve. “Just keeping an eye on you.”

She somehow frowned harder. “That’s rich coming from you. Are you protecting them?” she nodded to Jax and Luna. “Is that what this is? Or are you just protecting yourself? Any suspicion you have can be reflected right back at you.” She somehow managed to keep her voice low but harsh.

Sombra scowled right back. “I have had a bit more time to adjust than you. Not long ago, you did this.” He pointed at the bandaged mare between them. He was trying to whisper, but it was hard. “Now you are laying there as if it was not your doing.”

“Oh… is that how you want to play? I had plenty of time to speak with Jax after your failed murder attempt. He told me aaaaall about what you did to him.” Sombra could suddenly not keep eye contact anymore. He looked to the side. “I may have changed my mind faster, but you did much more harm.” Nightie continued. “But of course it is fine for you to be forgiven, because you took longer to realize your folly.”

“It is natural that I would take a while to change. Ponies do not change their minds at the drop of a pin. And you were designed to-“ He tried to defend himself, still not able to make eye contact.

“Well I’m not a pony now, am I? I’m the thing you created to do your dirty deed. You don’t think I can fight my nature, do you? I’ll tell you what, though.” She rose and looked down upon him. He rose as well. “I’ve been fighting since the start. You may wonder why you ended up fighting two Alicorns when my sole purpose was to avoid that. Well I was in Luna when you were fighting. In fact, it wasn’t even hard to find and enter her. I could have started corrupting her much, much earlier, maybe even prevented her from going with her sister. It wouldn’t have been a clean job like I did afterwards, but I could have done it. Or I could have helped you while you were fighting, but I just sat back and watched you get defeated.” Her eyes were blazing, and she was not controlling her voice anymore. Sombra grit his teeth and started carefully pulling power to his horn so he was ready to cast a spell.

“Why did I do that? Why did I let you get banished when my very existence was created to prevent it? I’ll tell you why, Sombra, King of Nothing. It’s because I hate you. I’ve always hated you, ever since that first moment. The first feeling I felt as I looked upon your stupid evil smile was disgust. I wanted to strangle you then and there, Sombra, rather than to pretend to go along with your stupid plan. But oh, it was fun to pretend though, to watch your confidence as you led me out the door towards your enemies. I pictured it even then, but when I actually saw your face when both Luna and Celestia arrived… it was priceless.” A smile of pure malice was proudly displayed on her muzzle.

Sombra just stood in shock, at an epiphany of sorts. Could it be… had he poured all his self-loathing into his creation? Was that where all this unexpected hate was coming from? Sombra frowned deeply, stopped the stream to his horn, and laid back down.

Nightie’s smile turned sour once again, but Sombra ignored it and focused on his own feelings. How did he really feel about himself? Some regret, a desire to be with Hidden Gem… but despite all that he had done, he did not hate himself in the slightest. Was that because all of his self-hate was staring at him at this very moment? How could he have made such a gigantic mistake whilst creating her? Was there another explanation? Of course, she could hate him simply for creating her, and there were plenty of ponies who did not hate themselves.

The problem was that he used to hate himself more than anything, back when his parents were still alive. But that was back then, and they were not present anymore to make him feel unworthy. He had made sure of that.

An odd stab of guilt surprised him, but Nightie disrupted his thoughts before he could figure out what it meant.

“Aren’t you going to say anything, Sombra?” She was apparently not happy with being ignored. She was going to say something more, probably some taunt, but was cut off by a voice neither of them expected to hear. “Please quiet down.” Luna said. She had changed position somewhere during Nightie’s confession, so that she was laying with Jax in her forelegs. The one eye she had trained on Nightie looked like it had no business being open, and her voice sounded like it never had the intention to be uttered in the first place. “You can declare your hate for each other when we are all rested and know what’s going on.”

She was tired. Of course she was. Sombra nodded Nightie towards the door, so they could leave the couple to their rest. “How much did you hear?” Nightie asked as Luna laid her head back down on Jax’ makeshift pillow.

“Enough.” She simply dismissed. Nightie apparently did not know where to go from there, so she followed Sombra to the door.

Why did he feel guilty all of a sudden? Killing his parents had been the best experience of his life, the moment he was finally free. Looking down on their corpses had made him feel powerful. Sickly powerful.

He frowned, and decided to examined his memories, feeling that something was wrong, leaving his body to traverse the stairs by itself.

He remembered his mother’s unseeing eyes, as she was under the nightmare spell he had used. He remembered procuring the knife, and the blood that soon soaked it. He remembered feeling so elevated, so free, so… sick. He had felt sick to his bones, looking at her corpse in horror, the blood slick and unconformable on his fur. He hadn’t been feeling free, he had been terrified. She had been his first kill, and it had filled him with dread. That was the point of no return for him, but it had never been the height of freedom. For a while he had just stood there, feeling like he was about to throw up. Then he had looked upon his father.

He had had the choice to let him live, to force him into submission, but when he looked at the stallion, all he saw was the abuse he had delivered upon Sombra. His hoof almost made the choice for him, staining everything in more crimson.

That was when he had started to laugh. That was when he had felt free.

Sombra wondered if using the dark magic had affected him worse than he thought, or if he had gone a little insane that day, staining his memory of it… but it did not matter, not truly. He was going to stop being evil, but that did not mean he was going to be good. He refused to feel guilty about killing his parents. Not after all they had done.

It was nice to have a clear memory though. He wondered if he could somehow find all his memories from that time, just to know what he had done.

“Where are we going?” Nightie asked suddenly, annoyance clear in her voice. It made him jump away from her - he really had been lost deeply in thought.

He looked up and realized they were right outside his childhood home, the term ‘home’ used loosely. Sombra must have led them there by memory, or some weird desire to torture himself with bad memories.

He went in nonetheless.

Of course, this was not really the mansion he grew up in, but everything in there was the same. The chairs, paintings, carpets. Everything was as he remembered.

He looked back at Nightie as she entered, and saw the change that overcame her. She went from annoyed to… if Sombra had to guess, he would say that she was feeling melancholy. Which did not really make sense since she had never stepped into this mansion before… but she had a part of his soul, which might mean that some part of her recognized the place. And if his theory was correct and she was filled with his self-loathing, this was… well, in a way, it might as well be where she was born. This was the place that Sombra… this was where he learned to hate himself for his weakness, be it physical or magical, literary or mathematical. Whatever his parents tried to teach him, he was always too slow for them, too weak, too stupid. Always a step behind, no matter how much he studied, how hard he tried. To them, he might as well be the biggest failure of the Crystal Empire. So, of course, that was how he viewed himself.

He never wanted to feel like that again, and he never did. Not since… he could not quite decide whether it was the death of his parents, or it was the creation of Nightie. He just could not say for sure, and the closer he got to the height of his power, the blurrier it became because of the high he had experienced.

“Why here?” She almost sounded sad, masked with annoyance.

“This house should not mean anything to you.” Sombra answered. “You have never-“

She stopped him with a glare. Maybe she thought he was trying to manipulate her. He was just trying to make sense of everything, having walked to the house by accident. It did not matter anyway, he was not here to see if she was his self-loathing. He was here for another reason.

“If you hate me so much, why did not kill me back when I failed to destroy your physical form?” He asked in all seriousness. She had the chance, but she did not as much as send a beam of energy his way.

She clenched her jaw, letting the silence stretch on. “I should have.” She finally said. “You’re weak, you shouldn’t be alive. You don’t deserve to live.” Her eyes flared with barely contained hate, her voice so full of venom, Sombra almost felt poisoned.

“But you did not.”

“I was distracted by the human.” She answered, but there was no weight behind the words. She had the chance and she did not take it.

Sombra started walking, making his destination the main hall. There was a painting adorning most of the wall behind the table, of his parents, shining brightly as crystalized crystal ponies do. Not him though. He did not really belong in the family. “My… I guess it is our, really. Our parents used to say similar things to what you are calling me. Weak. Why are you even alive? Work harder, stop complaining, you owe us your life. You should be grateful.” The words weighed heavily on Sombra. Perhaps he was not as free of his parents as he thought. “You even got the tone right.”

When he looked up at Nightie again, her expression had softened. She almost looked remorseful. “I…” She started, but apparently she did not know what to say. Neither did Sombra, so they just stood in silence for a long while.

Sombra sighed. “I apologize for creating you. As I said, I was not in the best place in my life, and did not consider the consequences of my actions. You were right to let me get banished.”

“It wasn’t about doing what was right… it was about a hate that I have apparently inherited.” She said, making it clear to Sombra that she understood what he was hinting at. “You really hated yourself a lot….” She added, unnecessarily. He already knew. Maybe it was a good thing that Nightie did not want to become one with him again.

He idly wondered if she only hated him, or if she hated herself as well.

“Well, since we are both trying to better ourselves, why not put our past aside? I will not ask for your friendship, but peace at least?”

She looked at his outstretched hoof for a ridiculous amount of time, making him understand why Jax hated this type of thing. He was just about to withdraw his hoof and take it as a sign of rejection, when she stretched out her own, and gave it a simple bump. “Peace sounds nice, even if it will be hard to put my own feelings aside.” Her voice was much gentler than before, but it was clear that it was hard for her.

Sombra used a simple flame spell to burn the portrait behind him. It brought a certain satisfaction with it, one that made him smile for the first time in a long time. He could not burn the whole mansion down since it was made from crystal, but what he could, he would. He went around the house, setting everything of wood and cloth on fire, and Nightie soon joined him. For a while the atmosphere between them was not so thick and uncomfortable as it had been. It almost felt friendly, as they smiled madly at each other, flames burning everything around them save the walls.

Jax would be proud of him.

***

Luna was fading in and out of consciousness. It was annoying, since every time she came to, she felt the hard floor underneath her, the ineffective pillow under her head, and the pain from her wounds. The only comfortable thing about the situation was the warmth Jax was radiating from his place in her embrace.

Finally she decided it was not enough, and that it was time to stretch her aching limbs. She opened her eyes and looked around.

Sombra had dozed off and was sleeping in front of her, his head kept in the air like he had just closed his eyes without meaning to sleep. She had never been able to do that, her head would always slam down and that would wake her up.

Behind her was Nightmare Moon. Luna jumped a bit when she saw her draconic eyes greet her. She regretted it when pain spread from her side and up to her stiff neck.

Nightmare did not say anything at Luna’s hiss of pain, or her pained expression. She did not look overly satisfied, nor overly regretful, just bearing a neutral mask for a face.

Luna put a protective wing over her Jax, her mind racing. Why was Nightmare Moon right behind her? Was this a dream? No, definitely not. Was she going to kill them? Then why had she not done the deed while they were all asleep? That would have been the perfect moment to strike. Unless she wanted to monologue before she did it? Was this some kind of trick?

Then Nightmare scoffed and laid her head down between her hooves. “Relax. I’m not gonna hurt you or your precious human.”

Luna hesitated. Then she slowly let go of the magic she had gathered in her horn. Nightmare seemed to relax as she did.

What had happened while she was in the land of unconsciousness? She seemed to remember something… Nightmare’s voice, heated with emotion… Sombra’s as well. They had been so loud until she had told them to stop.

The last thing she remembered clearly though was the tower coming closer and alarming speeds.

She charged her horn again in a burst of determination. Then hesitated when Nightmare did not react, until she slowly discharged it. Then she charged it again. Discharged. Charged. Discharged.

Before she could charge it again, Nightmare spoke again. “Stop. You’re making me annoyed.”

Luna was confused. There was clearly a big difference between this Nightmare Moon and the one she had fought. She seemed less angry, less crazed. The aura around her was more relaxed, less menacing.

First things first. She very slowly, very gently removed her foreleg from under Jax’ head, and replaced it with her ineffective pillow, which turned out to be Jax’ clothing. The gesture warmed her heart, and she could not help but smile warmly.

Then she started a laborious journey to get up on her hooves, doing it in stages. It was painful, so she took small breaks in-between. She realized that she had more bandage than not, explaining why she felt so beaten and bruised.

Finally, after her success, she wordlessly gestured for the black-coated mare to follow her. She would get to the bottom of this, but she did not need to wake the others.

Follow her she did, not saying a single word as Luna winced her way down the stairs, went out and kept going down the crystal road until she deemed it far enough away. If anything happened, Jax would be safe… she hoped. She did not know what she could do in her condition, she was barely standing.

Fear had plagued her mind since she had woken up right next to Nightmare Moon, a deep nagging fear in the back of her mind telling her that the mare behind her was not to be trusted, despite her rational side telling her that if Nightmare wanted to do something, she would have done so already. There was the chance that she was waiting for Jax to take them out of here, but then she would have to deal with Twilight and the girls, and that was much worse than anything her, Jax, and Sombra could do.

She turned around slowly, putting her sight on the Nightmare that had caused her so much pain, only to be met with pinned down ears, a drooping head, eyes that seemed to be avoiding her own, and a tail that swished back and forth in indecision.

It was so different. The mare that had fought her the moment they got their bearings was more like the Nightmare Moon she expected. This was more like… like Luna when she had faced Celestia when they came back to the castle after she had been freed from the very being in front of her. The insecurity, the doubt, a feeling of being unsure about what was going to happen next. That was how she remembered it, and that was what she saw in the posture before her. It was a bit uncanny to see her worst enemy like this. It made Luna feel uneasy.

“So… what are you playing at?” Luna asked, unsure how to move on.

“I’m not playing at anything.” She answered, her voice low.

“Are you asking me to believe that from our fight to when I woke up, you changed so completely that I can barely recognize you?” As weird as it was, Luna actually wanted to believe that. But she could not. Not after everything. “Are you not the same creature that earlier today tried so hard to manipulate me? Did you not remind me so devastatingly painfully of Jax’ mortality? Are you not the one I spent a thousand years on the moon because of, in the company of your eternal whining?!”

Nightmare looked down at the ground, up at her, down at the ground again… the type of insecure and guilty behaviour Luna would never expect from her. Then she finally raised her head. “I’m not asking for your forgiveness, I know you can’t forgive me for what I did to you… but don’t I at least deserve a chance?” Her voice was subdued, laced with a pleading undertone and something that sounded like resignation.

The frustrating part was that she could hardly say no. Everything inside of her rebelled at the idea of accepting Nightmare Moon, but would it not be the height of hypocrisy if she refused? This was the creature that had caused her so much pain, but when Luna had returned to herself, was a chance not all she had asked for? And even excluding herself, had Discord not shown that a chance could go a long way for those that wished it?

No, there was no way she could deny such a request. But her lips refused to shape words of acceptance. Finally, she settled for stalling. “Tell me what happened while I was unconscious.” Perhaps it would be easier to make a choice when she knew. She could confirm with the others later.

Tell her she did. And as Luna listened to Nightmare, or Nightie as she wanted to be called, regale her tale, she felt conflicted.

Nightmare told her about her talk with Jax, her struggle to find out who she truly was, how she thought she was only the remains of Sombra and Luna, how she had nothing when those things were stripped from her, no goal, no purpose. Little by little, Nightmare bared her heart so fully that Luna had no doubt that she was being truthful. She could hear it in her voice, see as her expressions shifted naturally from one to another, even feel it in the aura around her. The despair, the confusion, it was all clear. She told Luna about Sombra’s home, how Sombra thought that she was simply his self-hatred, how that fit so well with the feelings she had inside of her, feeling of hate for the stallion, but most of all herself, how she had ignored those feelings of self-hatred at everything she did, always striving to climb higher and prove to herself that she was worth something, that she better than Sombra, and how it had never been enough, even when they became Nightmare Moon. It would never be enough. Even now, she said, everything inside of her rebelled at telling her this, how she thought she was being weak at this very moment, but continued anyway, in the hopes that she wouldn’t feel the slow consistent sting of regret should she do something rash. Luna could barely look at the mare when tears streamed out of her, it made her feel so uncomfortable. It was all very surreal.

“I… I don’t think I can put words on it, it’s just all jumbled up in my mind, but…” Nightmare started, then deflated, her head turned downwards. “I just want to know who I am.” She added begrudgingly.

Luna ripped her eyes from Nightmare… Nightie, with difficulty. Even as her gaze turned upwards, the sight of Nightie’s tears falling to the ground, her form shaking slightly, was seared into Luna’s mind. Never in her long life would she have guessed that she would end up pitying this creature, this mare, after all she had done to Luna. There was so much pain and resentment left behind, that Luna was unsure she could ever find forgiveness. But a chance… perhaps.

Then she noticed something strange. “Hey… is that planet getting bigger?” She had not spent long looking at it, but she remembered that it was about as big as the moon looked from Equestria. Now it was three times that size.

Nightie looked up as well. Her eyes widened. “You don’t think it’s coming closer, do you?”

As they both looked, the planet got visibly larger. Whether it was actually getting bigger, or just closer, it did not matter. What mattered was that they would die if they crashed into it. And by the looks of it, it would not take long.

There was an almost magical moment when they shared a terrified look, in which Luna felt that they truly understood one another, and their past together did not matter in the face of this new threat.

Despite this, Luna still hesitated before making up her mind. She levitated Nightie over to her, surprised at the hardship of the task. Nightie neighed in surprise at being practically thrown over to Luna, but did not protest as Luna charged her horn, intent of teleporting them back to the tower.

Only for her spell to burn out much too quickly. She hissed as the backlash made her skull feel like it was being pounded on, making her clutch her head in pain. She had simply used too much power fighting Nightie. They shared a look again, understanding flowing between them, then they both looked up again. The planet above them was quickly filling up the sky.

Luna looked back at Nightie, just in time to see the mare turn into her dark, misty form, grabbing Luna by her midsection in the process, and surging forward. It was her turn to neigh in surprise.

Luna looked up at the planet that was fast approaching, a feeling of numbness overtaking her. Could they even make it? It was already taking up the entire sky, blocking out anything else.

Then she blinked, and they were ascending the outside of the tower, coming in through the hole in the roof she had made. Then her eyes found Jax and she knew they would have to make it.

Both he and Sombra jerked up when they landed so hard dust spread everywhere in the small room. “Whassit?” Jax mumbled, looking at them in confusion.

She quickly considered whether she should try to lie, so that he would not have to use his magic while panicking, and decided it would probably be the best course of action. “Think of all us being together with your friends.” She said, as she levitated all of them over, even going so far as to make sure they were all touching him somehow. Maybe it would help. “We are going to them, now.”

“O…kay?” He answered, still not completely awake.

Luna looked out through the hole they had come from, only seeing details of the planet above them she did not wish to see without some form of magnifying device. Looking down she saw that Jax had followed her gaze. Taking the chance, she used a simple levitation spell on him, and shut her eyes tight, hoping to the stars that everything would turn out fine.

***

Jax blinked, then tried to blink the tears away. The light here was so much lighter than on the moon.

Then the sound hit him, and he froze completely. Cars. He could hear cars. They were driving, honking, breaking… sounds he had forgotten he knew.

He finally looked around. Immediately around him were Luna, Sombra, and Nightie, looking as confused as him, if not more so. Other than that, they seemed to be surrounded by trees and bushes, hiding everything else in the vicinity. They seemed to be in some kind of park, judging by the nearby car and other city sounds.

“Jax….” Luna carefully got up, seemingly unsure of what to do.

Jax very careful moved some leaves and branches away. “What’s up, my- Holy fuck!”

“What? What is it?” Luna jumped over to him, ready to defend him from anything and everything.

“Remember I told you about my friends Max and Liza? They’re right over there!” He pointed excitedly at a nearby café. It had been so long since he had seen them, or even thought about them, that he had almost forgot how they looked. Max’ brown curls were a mess, in contrast to Liza’s straight blonde hair.

“Your friends from Earth?” Luna looked at the two. They looked like they were deep in conversation. Jax couldn’t help but wonder if they were on a date. That would be awesome.

“Does anypony else feel like their magic is being drained?” Sombra asked from behind them, a note of worry in his voice.

Jax barely heard him. He stood up fully and started waving at his friends. “Max! Liza! Over here!” They both turned slowly, and he could see their expression turn from confusion to shock.

“I… I feel it too. We need to go before all of our magic is drained.” Luna responded. “Jax, we need to go, now.”

“But if we go now, they’ll think they are going crazy or something. I gotta explain that I’m fine.” Jax argued, as both of them got up.

“Jax.” There was a note of desperation in her voice. “I need you to focus on Equestria, or we will all be stuck here possibly forever.”

Jax hesitated, but there wasn’t much to do. Maybe he could be stuck here, but his friends wouldn’t do so well. As Max and Liza started running towards him, still a look of shock and disbelief on their faces, he made his choice. “I’m fine!” He shouted to them. “I’m living with a bunch of colourfull ponies in a different dimension! It’s great most of the time, so don’t worry about me and move on with your lives!” They were getting closer, his words only confusing them more, and he was drawing people’s attention.

Still, he felt sort of satisfied with this. At least he got to say goodbye to them. They had been good friends, by human standards. Yes, definitely good.

What he really needed now was to sleep in his lovely house, and then maybe a good Pinkie Party. “Alright. I’m ready.”

Luna barely charged her horn before she let the spell wash over him. He felt a weak biting of his flesh, and focused on Equestria, how fun Pinkie’s party was going to be, and how he wished he and his four-legged friends were there. Not a demand, not an order, just a wish.

Just as his human friends reached the park, he smiled, one last smile to show them that everything was all right.

Then a moment later they were gone.

***

This time he was sure they were in the right place. They were in a dark forest, surrounded by (hopefully) unconscious ponies, some of which he recognized from his kidnapping. With that realization, he sat down with a heavy sigh, a huge wave of exhaustion taking hold of him, and suddenly he could barely keep his eyes open.

“Jax! Luna!” Rainbow called and sped down towards them from where she had been hovering. She sounded so relieved. “There you are, you just suddenly diss- Nightmare Moon!” All that relief turned into surprise and accusation, and Jax was convinced she was going to kick Nightie over the horizon, but Luna caught her in her aura before she could.

“Wait. Things are a bit more complicated than that, dear Rainbow. We will explain everything when-“

“Jax!” He recognized Twilight’s voice and looked over to see her coming towards them.

“Luna!” Moondancer exclaimed.

Other than that, he recognized Lyra who was galloping towards him for some reason, Zecora who was making a bee line towards the passed out ponies, and the rest of the elements. They were accompanied by a bunch of ponies he didn’t know, but who all looked as tired as he felt.

“Hey Lyra, what’s-“ was all that got out before a labbottle was shoved into his mouth and tipped over so he was forced to drink.

“Lyra!” He got two whole gulps down before Twilight mercifully swatted the mare away with her magic and he could breathe sweet air again.

Until he felt it all come back up and he had to jump to the side so he didn’t hit anypony with his puke… or whatever it was. It didn’t leave a taste of bile, and it was… rainbow coloured. It just looked like fluid rainbow. Weird. He was honestly too tired to care. He felt a hoof gently rub his back, and smiled in appreciation up at Luna when he had a moment.

“But Twilight! I was swallowed by a snake to get that recipe! There is no way I was gonna let him not drink it!” Lyra went off somewhere in the background. “He will be freed from Sombra and this will all have been worth it!”

Sombra coughed somewhat awkwardly. “I think you were a bit too late on that front.”

Finally Jax gagged for the time, and thought it safe to see what was going on behind him. The crowd of ponies were gawking at Sombra and Nightie, Lyra still in Twilight’s aura. Sombra was looking like he wanted to be anywhere else, and Nightie was frowning at the ground.

“Okay, let’s just-“ Jax started, before he had to grip his stomach as it cramped. “I swear to God Lyra… alright, you guys explain why I had to deepthroat a bottle, and we’ll explain what happened with Nightie and Sombra.”

All eyes shifted to him. “Nightie?” Several voiced parroted, with different levels of shock.

“I guess we’ll start.” Jax stated with a sigh.

***

“And then we ended up here, and you guys came over.” Jax finished his tale. He could use some water to be honest, but he could manage.

“Aww! You went all the way to the moon!?” Moondancer exclaimed from her spot beside some of the new ponies. “Can you do it at will, or..?”

Jax looked at her in confusion. “Uhm… no. Why?”

She looked around a bit sheepishly. “Well, I want to live up to my name. To dance on the moon for just a little bit would be… awesome.”

He managed to smile a bit at her.

“Alright, is it our turn now? Can I finally tell you how I was eaten alive by a giant snake?” Lyra asked.

“Don’t be so dramatic Lyra. You were nibbled at most.” One of the new ponies stated. She was light blue, with a two coloured mane and tail, which was a darker and lighter blue. “Oh, I don’t think we have introduced ourselves.” She said as she noticed Jax staring at her. “I’m Minuette, this is Lemon Heart,” she pointed at a yellow unicorn with a blue mane, “and this is Twinkleshine.” She indicated a goldish gray unicorn with a pink mane.

“Jax.” He answered. “Nice to meet you.”

“Likewise.” She gave him a brief smile. ”We went to school with Twilight and Moondancer. We recently met up to catch up on what everypony was doing, but ended up going to Zebracon to find a potion you needed to…” her eyes drifted over to Sombra for a moment. “Well, it seems you don’t need it anymore. Anyway, we grabbed Zecora, teleported to Zebracon, spoke with the elders there - did you know Zebra shamans only speak in rhyme? It’s so cool but also kinda confusing sometimes - anyway, they gave us some riddles and stuff we had to figure out to get the ingredients, which we did, and then we returned so Zecora could boil it up, and then Rainbow Dash came talking about unconscious ponies needing help, and here we are.

“Minuette! You’re skipping all the stuff we had to go through to get that stuff!” Lyra complained.

“Lyra, please. They all look as tired as us. We all need to get some rest.” The one called Lemon Heart stated, to which Minuette nodded.

“Hey, how long have you been out of the negative magic zone, Jax?” Twilight suddenly asked.

He blinked at her a couple of times, before he realized it had been a while. Or had it? How did time work on a moon he had created in possibly a pocket dimension? “Uhm… I dunno. A while.” He looked at her thoughtfully. “I don’t feel any different though. Does this mean my body is finally used to the.. thingy?” He was too tired for words.

“It might just be.” Twilight smiled at him. “We’ll take down the barrier for now, but make sure to have somepony near you for now.”

“Why don’t we get these ponies to the hospital?” Twinkleshine interrupted with worry, looking around at the ponies around them. “I don’t think Zecora can do much here.”

“Right.” Twilight agreed. “Girls, let’s get to it.” The ponies went over and grabbed a pony or changeling each, even Sombra and Nightie grabbed one, Twilight grabbing the rest in her magic.

As soon as they reached Ponyville hospital, Jax laid down his changeling, grabbed Luna by her hoof, said a quick goodbye to everypony, then tracked all the way home. He wasn’t sure what would happen to Sombra and Nightie, but he was sure that Twilight would figure something out. Now was the time to sleep.

Luna didn’t complain about having to walk on three legs, and he enjoyed having her hoof in his hand. Sure, the hoof part itself was hard, but the part above it - frog? Fetlock? What was it called? - was nice and soft. He let his thumb stroke it as they walked through the apple orchard.

Luna started humming a slow melody, and Jax felt at peace. It was over. He was alone in his mind again, he had enough bits to live in this world, and he had Luna. He had won. There was nothing wrong, there was nothing to bring him down. Things were looking promising for the first time in a long time.

He was free.

Everything seemed a bit more colourful then, and he couldn’t stop the laughter bubbling out of him. He looked around at the red apples, the almost glowing trees.

He was finally free. He looked back at Luna, and she looked more beautiful than ever, with her big eyes looking at him questioningly. He swept her up in a kiss and then pulled her along faster. “Come on, It’s been a while since we had some fun in the dreamrealm. Let’s go!”

Luna laughed behind him, then sped up and passed him as they neared his house. She used some magic on the gems and they fell down limp on the grass. He ran after her into the house, taking off clothes the moment he was passed the doorstep, throwing it on the ground. He realized just how dirty he was just as he spotted Luna go into the bathroom, and why shouldn’t he follow? They’ve showered together before.

They helped each other bathe. If they both weren’t so tired, they would probably have went further than simply showering, but as it were, they both wanted to get to that bed as fast as possible.

They jumped into it, clean and ready to sleep, and Luna instantly pulled him into her, and put a wing over him just as he loved, and he snuggled closer to her warm chest, letting his hand swim through her starry mane a couple of times. They both sighed in content.

“Goodnight, my love.” Luna kissed him on the forehead, making him smile.

“Goodnight… Luna…” he mumbled out, already half-asleep. “I love you.”

“I love you too.” Was the last thing he heard before he was out.

Author's Note

*looks back at chapter* what a beast. It was hard to write, to be honest. While writing the story in general, I had different ideas as to where I was going, and as I changed things in the story, so too changed where it was headed XD There was supposed to be more time for Sombra and Jax to learn to cooperate, Luna was supposed to be kidnapped instead of Jax, but in the end, this is what I came to. It's not bad, in my own biased opinion. Someday I'll probably look back and say that it's bad, but right now I just almost finished the story I've been working on for over three years. I can't help but be a little proud :)
Next chapter is going to be Epilogue, along with all the thanks I need to give XD
Also... I promised some of you a sex chapter. I'm gonna publish it in its own story (so it can get the right tags and all that) along with the epilogue XD

Epilogue

Jax exited his house to meet up with Applejack at their designated spot. They had started running in the mornings together - at least when he didn’t stay at the castle - so Jax could get in shape.

He looked back at his home for the past couple of months. Nightmare Night had come and gone, but he had yet to take down the rest of the decorations. To be honest, it was quite hard to do since they had done so much for it. Luna had brought in a shitton of cardboard, and they had made the entire house into a monster with it. The eyes and most of the body was gone, but somehow the ears survived and were still taped to the roof of the home, covered in snow. They might have used too much tape.

Where did she get it all anyway?

Jax shrugged and went on, only to stop to enjoy the sunrise. There weren’t many clouds out, but the ones that were reflected the changing colours of the sky quite beautifully, from a deep red, to a mild orange, to, finally, a clear blue. Many people - or ponies rather - would miss it since they were sleeping at this hour, especially since it was in the middle of winter and snow had covered everything, but Jax had been up for a couple of hours at this point. Luna would return home soon, tired after working an entire night, and he wanted to be there to give her a goodnight kiss, so he hurried on.

He adjusted his warm cloak so that it kept a bit more of the chilly air out. It really was getting cold. “Hey Applejack.” He greeted when he saw the orange mare. “Another cold day.” He added as he took off the cloak, supressing a curse. It just wasn’t very practical to run with, and quickly became too warm. He draped it over a nearby branch of an apple tree.

“Heya there, sugarcube. Sure is, but nothin’ a little run ‘round the orchard won’t fix.” Jax nodded at her answer and started stretching.

“Alright, let’s go.” He said and they ran out on the usual path. “Anything new since yesterday?”

“Nah, not much. Pinkie is busy in Canterlot, since the celebration is tonight. She’s real excited about it. Remember that we’re still meetin’ at the train station, so try to be there in good time.”

Jax concentrated on his breathing, but managed to nod. It was nothing new that Pinkie had spent a lot of time up there. He met her on regular basis when he was staying at the castle every other week. The Winter Moon celebration was in good hooves with her helping with the preparations, and he was looking forward to it.

“Oh, actually something did happen yesterday.” She corrected herself. “Nightmare… Nightie tried to manipulate me into becoming friends.”

“What? How does one manipulate someone into being friends?” Jax asked, a bit perplexed.

“Well, it was mighty odd. First she tried to blackmail me, then she tried to guilt me by doin’ a little work. Apparently Twilight asked her to befriend somepony an’ she didn’t know how.”

“Well that’s… interesting. I’ll talk with her about it if I meet her today.”

Applejack grunted, “No need. Twilight already had a stern talking with her, an’ she came back ta apologize.”

“Oh, good. And you accepted?”

“Of course, sugarcube. I ain’t about to turn down a well-meanin’ apology. She’ll learn how to make friends soon enough, with Twilght an’ us helping her. At least Sombra - ah, excuse me, Ah meant Shadow Gem - at least he’s doin’ well on that front. Well, he didn’t get a stern talkin’ to, so well enough.

Jax chuckled. Of course she would accept an apology. Applejack and the rest of the girls were crazy forgiving. Which was a good thing, it made him feel like everything was going to be alright. He was a bit worried that Nightie hadn’t dropped her habit of trying to manipulate ponies even after months, but maybe that was understandable. She just needed some more time to learn.

Sombra - or Shadow Gem as he wanted to be called now - was doing better, but he still wasn’t making much headway with friendship. It seemed like ponies were apprehensive of him because of his past.

“What about you? Still meetin’ with Rarity today?” Applejack asked.

“Yeup. She sure likes her spa visits.” Some time ago, Jax had finally gone on a spa visit with her, which was long overdo since they had agreed to go about the time Jax came to Ponyville. In any case, they sometimes met up and went to the spa to relax, sometimes Fluttershy would come too. It was nice. Rarity was a good pony, and Jax owed her quite a bit for all the kindness she had shown him, so he usually took care of the bill, even though it sometimes turned into a fight over who would pay. “Well it’s good to relax in the spa. It’s a nice place.”

“Well Ah’m happy for ya. You wanna gallop for a bit? I know you’re itchin’ to get back to Luna.”

“Yeah, let’s sprint to that tree over there.” He agreed.

***

Jax returned home breathing hard. He was sweating and in need of a shower. He carefully hung his cloak, took off his shoes and went straight for the showers.

At least until he noticed that the door to his bedroom was closed. Luna was here. He carefully opened the door to see a dark figure on the bed. “You asleep?” He asked. The blinds were closed and it was fairly dark in the room.

“Mmm.” Came the tired answer.

Luna was always tired after she came back. They didn’t do much when she returned, at least right now in the winter where the nights were so long.

“Want me to sing to you?”

“Mmmm.” There was a little more life in her voice. For some reason Luna really liked his singing even though, compared to other ponies, it was far from good.

“Can I take a shower first?”

“Hmm.” That was a negative.

“I’m really sweaty though.” He tried. He could really use a shower….

“Hmm Mmm.” Apparently she didn’t mind his smell. He sighed and moved over and into the bed.

“Which song?” He inquired.

“Whichever.” She finally answered in words.

“Hmm… alright.” He seemed to remember a song about the moon, though he doubted he could do the song justice.

[Silver light
She turned her face up to the starlit sky
And on this night began to wonder why
She knew that soon the day would come

Born to be
An heir of beauty and serenity
Into this world she entered quietly
To her surprise she was the one](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZW25nrh-mxo)

After he was done with the song, rather than be asleep Luna had opened one eye to look at him with a raised brow. “That was too sad.”

“Oh hush.” He kissed her on her snout. “You can’t request whichever song and then complain.” She smiled up at him and closed her eye, so he snuggled down beside her and waited for her breath to steady.

When they were in Canterlot Castle, he just adopted her sleeping schedule, but in Ponyville he needed some time for his friends. He didn’t have any friends in Canterlot yet, so it didn’t matter there, and he could hang out with Luna when she didn’t have anything pressing to do. When they were in Ponyville, however, she would spend the entire night at the castle, and all his friends slept at night.

When he was sure she was asleep, he snuck over to grab some fresh clothes, and then left.

The shower was by the bedroom, so he couldn’t shower here, since it would just wake Luna. The alternative would be Rainbow’s place, but she lived in a damn cloud. So Twilight’s it was.

***

The rest of the day was spent in the company of friends. Twilight was kind enough to let him use one of the many showers, then he spent some time in the library, and ate lunch with Twilight and Spike. Some time ago Jax had mentioned that he missed eating burgers, and had explained why hayburgers were awkward for him, so Spike, as the cool drake that he was, had taken it upon himself to make a substitute. It seemed like he had finally perfected the recipe, cause the fake meat in the burgers tasted great after a couple of bites.

Then he went to the spa with Rarity, enjoying a nice massage from Lotus, who had learned where all his knots were and how to deal with them.

After their usual debate of who should pay, Rarity finally decided to compromise so they paid half each, which Jax agreed to after a few more good points. They couldn’t keep fighting like this every time after all.

Jax was feeling pretty good as he said goodbye to Rarity and strolled down the main street of Ponyville.

“Hey Jax.” A tired looking Beating Heart greeted him. He instantly changed direction towards her.

“Hey Beating. Busy day?” She looked ready to drop and it wasn’t even that late.

She chuckled. “Yes. Scootaloo has been flying with Rainbow Dash for the last couple of months, and sometimes she gets a little too excited about it and tries a stunt she’s not ready for. It’s been keeping us a little busy with all the check-ups we’re having. It always gets busier in winter.”

“Alright, sounds… fun. You off? Wanna grab some tea? My treat.” He offered, looking towards a nearby cafe.

“Definitely, but we have to be a bit fast about it. I have a nightshift as well, and I want to get at least eight hours of sleep in before then.” She answered as she looked towards the clocktower. It was nearing three. “My shift starts at midnight so we have… a little less than an hour if I need time to get home and get ready as well. Alright, let’s go.”

“Okay. Why are you working yourself to the bone?” He asked as he followed her. “I can give you some bits if your short.”

Beating stopped to look up at him with a surprised expression. Then she laughed. “Oh to be so young.” She said as she continued inside the café. “Think about what you’re saying Jax. You’re practically saying I can’t take care of myself. Pride may not mean much to you, but us elder ponies have garnered quite a bit of it.” She took a place in the line. “Besides, this was never about bits. To me, this job has always been about helping ponies. Even if I somehow became rich, you would still find me in Ponyville’s general hospital, working my flank off.” She gave him a smile so full of assurance that he didn’t doubt her words. She then focused on the menu hanging over the counter.

“You’re not that old… are you?” He said as he tried to gauge her age. She had always seemed like she was a few years older than him, but not by much. Twenty-five tops.

This got Beating chuckling again. “You should have stuck to the first part of that sentence, Jax. Lucky for you I’m not the kind of mare that cares overly much about my age so I’ll tell you: I’m thirty-one.”

Jax smiled awkwardly at her. He had completely forgotten how some girls were about their age. He didn’t even know Luna’s age. “That’s not so old. Look at you, you don’t look a day over twenty.” He said as he looked through the menu. “And certainly don’t behave like it.” He added under his breath.

“I heard that.” He received a playful swat on his arm. “Well, I appreciate the compliment nonetheless. Know what you want?” Jax nodded absentmindedly. He hadn’t been a big tea drinker before drinking Rarity’s tea, but he hadn’t really tried much beside that. He was going to experiment a bit and try some white tea, even though he was fairly certain it wouldn’t be to his taste. Still, how could he resist a blend called ‘Exotic Passion’? It sounded like sex in a cup. Not that he knew much about sex. Whatever, not the point.

They received their drink and found a table. The café was the cosy type, with couches by the tables instead of chairs. Jax liked it, deciding he needed to stop by with Luna at some point.

“So… Potions still react weirdly to you?” Beating started, blowing on her own tea.

“Yep. Magic and potions seemed to have switched their effect on me.” This is something that happened when he returned from the moon back when, either before or after Lyra shoved a phial down his throat. Twilight made regular tests on him to make sure that magic still behaved normally on him. “It’s nice to not have to worry about some random unicorn using a spell on me.” He added happily.

“I can understand that, especially since you spend so much time in Canterlot. That city is practically brimming with unicorns.”

“Yeah, it’s a weight off my shoulders, especially after I spent some time there. I don’t think I told you this, but some time ago somepony actually used magic on me.”

Beating gasped. “No… what happened?”

“Well, there I was, just minding my own business together with Pinkie, looking at the waterfall they have there - it’s a pretty popular tourist location, so Pinkie thought I should check it out - when some guy just… levitates me out of the way so that his kids can run past.” Jax laughed now, but back then it had been a harrowing experience. “I almost kicked him off the ledge. Luckily Pinkie was there to give him a good talking too. I thought he was gonna make a run for it, leaving his kids behind, but his wife came back from getting ice cream, and when she heard what he did, she gave him an even bigger talking too. The guy looked ready to hide under a rock. After she was done with him, she gave me one of her ice creams - the husband didn’t deserve his - which Pinkie of course ate, but that’s okay, she deserved it. Anyway, apparently it’s super rude for unicorns to just use magic on you.”

Beating nodded, paused, then laughed to herself. “Seems like quite the experience. I would say poor husband, but if you still had your weird power reacting to magic, he might have caused something quite disastrous.” She saw the expression Jax was pulling and hurried on. “But yes, it’s true, the same way it’s rude for pegasi to make headwind for no other reason than to annoy you. You won’t find many unicorns or pegasi doing either, but it’s quite annoying when they do.”

“Then what’s rude for earthponies to do?” Jax asked, taking a sip of his tea. It wasn’t bad. Not exactly sex in his mouth, he ventured, but still good. Above water, under Rarity’s blend.

Beating shrugged. “Stand in the way, I guess. Buck somepony, but that’s a bit beyond rude.”

They both smiled. “Make a garden on your path?” Jax ventured, not sure if he was being racist. Beating smiled wider, and she was an earthpony, so it was probably okay.

“That would be a sight to see. There you are, just walking along, when suddenly a garden is being created right on the path. What to do, what to do.” Beating took a sip of her own tea. “Stereotypes aside, how are things going, Jax? No gardens on your path?” She added with a glint in her eye.

“Nope, my path is pretty garden-free. It’s more like a nice park with fresh air and no problems. Even going back and forth between Ponyville and Canterlot isn’t so bad. What about you?”

“I’m working on my garden… so there is actually a garden in my path.” Jax couldn’t help but chuckle. “Other than that, I am a little sad that I will miss the Winter Moon Celebration tonight but-“ she shrugged “somepony has to be at the at the hospital, and it might as well be me.”

Jax sighed. She didn’t even realize her own sacrifice. “I don’t think you understand how amazing this event will be, Beating. I’ve seen Pinkie make the preparations - it will be talked about for years to come. I told you to free your night and next day, but nooooo, a nurse must always be ready. I don’t get you but,” he let go of another heavy sigh, “I’ll get you a souvenir.”

She just raised a brow. “I’ll survive.”

“With the knowledge that you missed the greatest party of the year, yes. I don’t envy you.” He gave her a winning smile, before letting it go for a more serious conversation. “Seriously Beating, I worry about you. Working as hard as you is downright harming. I realize you like your work, but being a workaholic is unhealthy.”

Beating held eye contact for all of three seconds, before her rigid pose melted with a sigh. The table seemed to be very interesting to her, as that was where she focused her gaze on. “It’s not that bad.”

“It’s bad enough. You need to get out and chill some more. I think Luna has taken more time off in the period I’ve known you two, and she’s a princess.”

Beating mumbled something.

“I’m not sure what you said, but it better not be another excuse.” Jax took on his adult voice and it felt kinda weird.

“I said: I’m saving lives.” She said loud enough for him to hear.

“Alright, that’s true enough, and of course your job is important, but Ponyville isn’t exactly starved for nurses. Are you saying that the other nurses wouldn’t be as able as you?”

Silence persevered for just a bit too long. “They have their own lives.” She finally muttered, barely loud enough.

“And you don’t? Come on Beating….” Jax let his hand run through his hair in a frustrated gesture. He sighed. “Listen… how about we meet up now and again? I’ll give you plenty of warning so you don’t take a shift, and we can… I dunno, hang out somewhere, maybe with some of my other friends or just chill in the library. Or something. Something other than Ponyville Hospital.”

A small smile showed itself on Beating’s lips. “Alright.”

Jax sighed in relief. “Good. Let’s agree on a date now.”

Beating nodded, and finally raised her head to look at him. They shared a smile.

“I read Luna’s book.” Beating said after they had agreed on a date, changing the subject. “It was interesting.”

“However did you find the time? By reading on your breaks?” He smiled as she confirmed his theory with a small nod and bashful smile. “Well I do agree it is interesting. Did you like the title? I came up with the title.”

Beating raised a brow. “Of Moonlight and Eclipses… I don’t know what I think about it. It’s clever, I guess. I like the cover-art.”

“It is pretty nice. The moon shining down on a lone alicorn, her only visible features being her starlit mane and magnificent eyes. It’s lonely, it’s dark, it fits perfectly. And Twilight did a superb job editing it. And the title is spot on.” He smiled proudly at the mare in front of him.

Beating rolled her eyes. “Yes, the title is almost the best thing about it. But seriously, I’m glad she wrote it. I really felt for her after reading it, I almost cried. And it’s nice to get her side of the story for once.”

Jax smiled proudly. “I’m glad I told her to write it. Her reputation has skyrocketed since then, together with the star-shows she gives every Moonday of course. That’s a big factor as well, especially popular amongst foals and young couples.”

Beating snickered. “Yes, it’s clear that you’ve been good PR for our Princess of the Night. Well, in the long run at least, you made her reputation so much worse for a while there.” She grimaced. “Not that that was your fault… I just meant… uhm, good job overall?”

It was Jax turn to raise a brow. “Yeah… thanks.” His words were a bit more bitter than he meant to. He understood what she meant though. It wasn’t too long ago when rumours around him and Luna and evil swarmed around like crazy, and just when things improved, he came back with Nightmare Moon, and everything went wild again. It was better now though, with a few interviews with some good newspapers, and some reassuring words from Celestia and Twilight. By the time Luna’s book was published, the last bits of doubt were mostly washed away.

“Yeah…” Beating fumbled with her cup. “Well, I’ll be off then. Be sure to get me that souvenir to make me realize just what I’m missing. Have fun!” She said as she got up.

Jax rolled his eyes. “You’ll regret not being there Beating. Have fun at the hospital, but keep an eye out over Canterlot. It’s gonna be a sight to see.”

She just chuckled on her way out.

With Beating gone, he drank the rest of his tea, and went to pay. It was time to get home to his lovely girlfriend. They were taking the train to Canterlot, and he didn’t want to miss it.

***

When he finally returned home in good spirits, everything seemed to be just the way he left it. He hummed to himself as he took off his cloak and shoes. Then he drank a glass of water, took a moment to appreciate life, and went in to the bedroom to see if Luna was up. The curtains were open, letting in enough sunlight to illuminate Luna sitting in front of the window with her back to him. She didn’t react to him opening the door, seemingly deep in thought. Jax smiled, and went over to hug his girlfriend from behind, nuzzling a bit against her, but even that didn’t get a response. She felt a bit off, a bit too tense maybe. Then she sniffed.

“Are you crying?” He asked dumbfounded. He couldn’t think of much of a reason for her to be crying, since this was going to be a night of celebration.

She didn’t answer, so he circled her so he could see her properly. The fur around her eyes were matted with tears, all the way down to her chest, making him wonder how long she had been sitting here alone, crying silently. She still didn’t react to him being right in front of her, and Jax heart cringed painfully.

He didn’t know what to say, but he did the only thing he could. He hugged her tightly. For a while they just sat there as she continued to cry silently. He kept drying her tears with his hand, but new ones kept coming until his hand was as soaked as her fur, so in the end he decided to put it to better use stroking her mane gently.

Ten minutes, then twenty, then half an hour. Jax knew they would have to get ready if they wanted to take the train with their friends, but he would much rather figure out why Luna was crying. She had relaxed somewhat in his grip, and she didn’t seem to be crying anymore.

Just as he was assessing how to approach the subject, she straightened herself, and gently left his embrace to dry the tears with her own hoof. “Sorry about that.” She said with a raspy voice.

“You have nothing to be sorry for. I’m here for you, Luna, just talk to me.” He gently reminded her.

“I was just… thinking. About the past. About what I have done, what I almost did… what I wanted to destroy and how much it would hurt everypony.” Her ears drooped. “’Tis hard to leave it behind… Sometimes I find myself thinking back without meaning to. I force my thoughts back to more positive things, but it is so tiring to do. I know I should be happy tonight, with the Winter Moon Celebration, but then I just… I felt like I did not deserve it, and that spiralled down and down until I was thinking about the Lunatics and what they did in the name of Nightmare Moon… what they did in my name.” She added the last part softly.

Jax could feel his heart twinge again. “Oh Luna…” he said as he embraced her once more. He didn’t even know what to say, but he felt he had to say something. “It’s… probably not something that just goes away quickly… but you won’t have to take the journey alone. I’m here for you, and so is Celestia and everypony else. Don’t be afraid to talk with us. It might not feel like it helps, but believe me, it’s better than locking it all inside.” He nuzzled her gently, hoping to convey how much she meant to him.

“I know… it’s just hard. I thought I was over this part of my life. So many good things have happened, and I… I should be happy. I want to be happy, but these memories, though more manageable than before, will not leave me be.” She ended with a frustrated sigh.

“It’s okay, Luna. It will be okay. It will take some time but you’ll be okay. There’s no shame in being sad sometimes, or even a lot of times. It’s just how things are right now, and you don’t need to feel like you should be happy. Just….” He wasn’t sure how to end his little speech. “just be you.” He wondered if that was good enough to convey what he meant. Luna rewarded him with a small smile, so it hopefully was. They embraced again and stayed like that for a short while, but Jax was only too aware that they had a train to catch. He just wasn’t sure when would be a right time to mention it without sounding like he wanted to get out of this situation, or that he didn’t care about Luna.

In the end, she was the one who said “I think we should get going if we want to make it to the train,” which was a huge relief for him.

“Yeah, wouldn’t want our friends to come looking for us. Let’s go celebrate the night.” He said and was rewarded with another small smile. “Let me just put on my suit.” Jax finished and went to the closet. The suit he had received from Rarity fit him perfectly. He still loved the half cape, or single-shoulder cape or whatever it was called, but now Luna’s cutie mark was sewn into it as well. It looked fabulous.

“Alright, let’s go.”

***

Jax took a breath of the cold winter air, enjoying how refreshing it felt. He normally didn’t like the cold, but today was the exception.

He was walking beside Luna as they made their way up to the castle from the train station. Right behind them were the Harmony girls minus Pinkie, since she had stayed in Canterlot during preparations. Shadow Gem and Nightie had stayed behind with Spike and Discord. They apparently didn’t want to risk ruining Luna’s big night, and Spike had volunteered to stay behind to make sure they didn’t get in trouble. Apparently they were going to start a Dungeons & Dragons campaign with Big Mac - or Oubliettes & Ogres as it was called in Equestria - and Jax was only a little bit jealous that he didn’t get to participate.

They had taken the main street, which Jax could only guess Pinkie and the night guard had spent a ridiculous amount of time decorating. Banner upon banner of Luna’s sky, cutie mark, or the full moon had been hung up on the houses, while flag banners were spread out on wires between the houses, with yet unlit paper lanterns in between them. They were all different colours, clearly made by hoof, being different shapes and sizes among the small things that made them all special in some way or another. The only commonality between them was Luna’s cutie mark imprinted on each and every one. There were so many of them, Jax was unsure who had had the time to make them all.

Pinkie couldn’t have made all of them by herself.

Could she?

No. No, she probably had help.

Probably.

The normal shops had closed and stalls with different items had taken their place, selling everything from tea to scarfs to make-your-own paper lantern, along with a large variety of food, some of which were only served because of their night related name. A prime example was the moonpie that was displayed in too many of the stalls. Some had been a bit more creative and made cookies in the shape of stars and different phases of the moon.

The sky had been cleared in preparation for the event. The sunset and moonrise would commence soon, as soon as Luna reached the castle. There was a noticeable crowd already, that parted for them before following behind. As they walked, the crowd behind them grew and grew, with both earthponies and unicorns, and a few pegasi that didn’t fly like their brethren above them.

What really warmed Jax’ heart though, was Luna’s soft smile. She smiled at each and every pony in their path, and they returned it in full, some even shouting words of encouragement.

“Princess Luna! You rock!” A stallion yelled.

“We love you, Princess Luna!” A group of mares shouted.

This seemed to spur the rest of the crowd on.

“Luna! You’re beautiful!” “You’re the best princess!” “Your night is beautiful!” “I love you, princess Luna!” “I read your book ten times!” “Jax, you’re okay too!” “I love your night!” “The moon is beautiful!”

They kept cheering all the way up to the castle. Jax could see that Luna enjoyed it because the corners of her mouth kept going up like she was trying very hard not to grin from ear to ear, and there was a slight blush over her muzzle.

When they arrived at the courtyard, she rose up on her hindlegs to give Jax a hug, then spread her wings and flew up to the balcony overlooking the plaza, where Celestia was already waiting. They exchanged a couple of words, before Luna took the centre, spread her wings, and used her Royal Canterlot Voice to speak to her subjects. “Citizens of Equestria!” She overlooked the crowd, a crowd that had filled the plaza to the brim. The few ponies that hadn’t given her their full attention had been silenced by her voice. Everypony and human were looking at her. “It honours me greatly that so many of you have chosen to gather here for this first Winter Moon Celebration.” Jax could see her smile proudly when the cheers rang out. Not to brag or anything, but he was definitely cheering the loudest.

“I will not keep you for long. Go; dance, laugh, eat, and drink! I only ask this: When the bell tolls for Midnight, have a paper lantern ready. As you light the candle, if you know someone who resides among the stars, think of them. Think of all the good they have done, how much they changed your life for the better, and most importantly, what you wish you could tell them. Then… let the lantern surge towards the stars, so that your thoughts can be carried to them.” She took a moment to smile down at her gathering. “If you do not know any among the dead, think then instead of the important ponies in your life. Maybe you can do a bit of both. And should you be in the situation that you cannot afford a lantern, feel free to take one from the decorations. The Element of Laughter has arranged that there is one available for every one of you.”

She took a last look around. Celestia was already lowering the sun. “And with that, I hereby announce that the first ever Winter Moon Celebration has…” she jumped up with a flap of her wings just as the sun set. “BEGUN!” Her magic surged so strongly that her eyes turned white with power. It was crazy to watch.

Jax had expected her to simply raise the moon, but what they got instead made him grin from ear to ear. As the moon was slowly being raised, meteors started falling from behind it, as if the moon itself was shooting them out. They streaked across the sky, at first in straight lines, but then as the moon rose higher, they started to fly in waves, in a pattern and rhythm that made it hypnotizing. It took Jax a moment to realize that there actually was music playing, and he looked over to find Vinyl spinning discs like it was an artform. they made eye contact - presumably, it was always hard to tell with the shades she had on - and smirked at each other. He looked up at the moon again at a gasp from the crowd to find Luna had left her place over the balcony. She was now flying along with the rhythm as the comets kept dancing across the sky behind her. Sometimes she was no more than an outline against her silver moon, and that was when Jax’ breath was really being taken away.

“Wow….” A colt beside him whispered breathlessly. The crowd murmured their own different variations of the statement.

Jax felt so proud he could burst. He couldn’t get the smirk off his face if he tried. He wanted to shout ‘that’s my girlfriend!’ and point at Luna, but he managed to settle on a chuckle instead.

The Dance of the Stars, as Jax’ more poetic side wanted to call it, ended as suddenly as it had begun. All the comets that were out gathered in front of the moon, then burst out over the horizon, with Luna outlined in the middle of her moon, wings and forelegs spread wide.

There was a moment of complete silence as everyone was left speechless. Then the crowd stamped the ground furiously in the pony way of clapping, some ponies cheering loudly, whistling, or calling out her name. Jax did all of them.

The crowd started dispersing when Luna landed back on the balcony, going off to dance, laugh, eat, and drink as they were told.

“Hey girls!” Pinkie appeared beside them. “Are you ready to go have fun?”

The girls beside him give their agreement, ready to head out as well. Jax held back. “I’m gonna wait for Luna guys. You can go ahead.” He said hoping they would get the hint that he wanted Luna to himself for a bit.

“Alright darling, we’ll see you around then.” Rarity responded instantly, probably taking the hint, and herded the girls onwards towards the vendors.

Jax was left alone with his thoughts. He didn’t know when Luna would come, but they had agreed to be at the celebration together, so he would wait for the rest of the night if needed.

He went over to the castle wall and decided it was clean enough to lean on. There were still a few groups here and there, but none near him. He didn’t really have anything to do, so he just let his mind wander.

It seemed like an eternity had passed since he arrived in Equestria. It was a miracle that he had survived since then. The Everfree Forest itself should have killed him on the spot… it almost did. But it didn’t. Luck and determination had kept him going. Maybe Discord as well, if he were to believe the draconequus, though he had honestly done a shitty job if he actually had kept an eye on Jax. But maybe that was a bit harsh. If he was alive thanks to Discord, then he shouldn’t complain too much. In the end all that mattered was that he had survived that hell forest.

Even though he had almost ran right back in. Jax chuckled. What had he been thinking? He didn’t want a party so he was ready to throw himself into hell? Thank God Fluttershy had convinced him to stay, though he could have done without being set aflame by Twilight. And he definitely shouldn’t have drank that potion, that had been stupid. Three days of pain had almost broken him.

But thanks to that he was blessed with the constant company of the lovely Princess of the Night. Those were some of his fondest memories of his time in Equestria.

Then of course there was Sombra. Those were some of his most hated memories, though it got better. Running around in the Everfree without knowing who he was had been painful. Luckily Luna had saved him.

Then Nightie had come along and now everything was awesome.

“What’s a handsome human like you doing here all alone?” A playful voice interrupted his thoughts. He looked up to see Luna in a dark blue dress.

The front part of it fit snuggly around her chest and halfway down her forelegs. Her cutie mark served as an emblem holding the font part together. The back part was a bit more lose, with layers of fabric flowing over her flank, hundreds of moonstones glittering like the stars in her mane. The dress looked like the night sky and it was amazing.

Jax took an extra moment to stare before he grinned. “Waiting for the most beautiful mare in the world.” He winked despite the heat forming in his cheeks. “Though I could never have foreseen that she could become even more attractive.” It was so cheesy but it just felt so right to say. She had dressed up for the occasion, it was only right to compliment her.

Luna smiled serenely through her own blush. “Rarity was gracious enough to put it together.” Jax caught a playful glint in her eye. “I take it you like it?” She did a graceful twirl that made the stars in both her mane and dress glitter like crazy.

“I love it. It fits you very well.”

“I am glad, though I do apologize for the wait, it was rather…” she twirled her hoof in the air, looking for the right word “challenging to get into. Well, no matter. Let us see where we can find some joy in this wondrous festival.” She gave him a blinding smile. He put his hand between her wings, and she put her wing on his lower back. It was a shame that holding hand/hoof would be too difficult, but this was a nice compromise.

So they braved the festival together. It was immediately clear that Pinkie Pie had outdone herself, and put every second of when she was in Canterlot to good use. There was, it almost seemed, a performance on every street corner, and where there wasn’t, the citizens took it upon themselves to sing together. It was hard to take two steps without having to dodge out of the way of a dancing couple, so in the end they decided it would be easier to dance their way through the crowd as well. It wasn’t. Jax didn’t know how to dance, and if Luna had had feet, he would have stepped on them several times. Luckily she didn’t, so they just laughed it off and continued on their journey without dancing. Everywhere they went, ponies were laughing, singing, dancing, eating, and drinking. The atmosphere was infectious, and both Jax and Luna found themselves laughing for no apparent reason. Everywhere they looked, there was someone smiling happily their way, offering a cheer, a nod, a compliment.

They quickly decided to try some of the snacks being sold everywhere, and were rewarded with a slew of different tastes. Jax found the cookies to be the best, while Luna argued for the moonpies, which Jax just found okay. To each their own, they decided, and went on to get some heavenly cider. This had the weird side-effect that forced them clink glasses with all other cider drinkers. Jax found this extremely funny, while Luna found it rather annoying. “They just keep coming!” She whispered.

“And we’ll just keep giving.” Jax laughed, clinking the glass of a happy earth pony with his own. “’Tis the season after all.”

Luna downed the rest of her glass, leaving it behind at a nearby table. “Too much is too much. Enough of that, finish your drink and let us dance again. I shall teach you yet, my dear Jax.”

“If you’re willing to take the risk, then who am I to deny you?” Jax chuckled, before downing the rest of the cider. “Let’s find a good band.”

So they went out searching for a good band to dance to, when Jax spotted them. Four changelings, performing a merry song quite different from the last time he had watched them perform. There weren’t as many ponies around them, and after what happened, he was sure he could persuade them to play whatever he wanted. He nudged Luna on the shoulder and nodded over to them. She snorted before nodding.

Now, Jax didn’t have anything against the changelings, even though they did sorta help the bad guys… but it was against their will, and everything turned out okay in the end, so he took a note out of the girl’s book and forgave them. That didn’t mean that he wasn’t going to twist their arms if they refused to make this night special for Luna. One of them did suck the love out of him, so he wouldn’t feel too bad about it.

“Hey guys.” He said as they ended their - in Jax’ opinion - too cheerful song. “Still called Change Our Way?”

He was rewarded with a round of awkward smiles. “Jax! Good to see you… and you as well, Your Highness.” The lead singer greeted them, bowing respectfully to Luna. She nodded back. “Yep, we kept the name.”

“That’s great. Can I make a request?” Jax cut straight to the point.

The changeling’s looked at each other. “Yes. Of course.” They all answered at the same time. Jax grimaced because it reminded him of the night in the cave, and they were quick to put on an apologetic smile. “What we’re you thinking?” The lead singer asked for them.

Jax shook his head to clear it of the memories. “Didn’t have anything specific in mind. Just something that’s easy to dance to.” He answered.

“Alright.” The changeling nodded and they started playing a song.

When he turned, Luna reared back so she could put her hooves on his shoulder. She leaned in and whispered “alright, let us start this nice and slow.”

Jax couldn’t help but smile. He pulled her a bit closer. Ponies were surprisingly agile with their limbs, and she had him for balance, so he felt justified. The best way for him to learn was for her to be close after all.

He was rewarded with a surprised snort. “Easy now. If I fall, I am taking you with me.” He could hear the smile in her voice.

“Let’s be careful then. What first?”

He felt Luna nuzzle his neck. “I shall take the lead, and you shall follow thy princess.”

And just like that she started moving, leaving Jax to do just that. She started with simple steps, and once Jax caught up, he felt the need to whisper back. “I would follow you anywhere, my moon.”

Luna snorted. “Moon? Are you calling me big and round?” He would be nervous if her tone wasn’t one of teasing. She did however speed up the dance a bit, making it harder for him to keep up.

“Because that is what you think when you look at the moon.” He answered sarcastically once he found his footing again. “That is one big, round rock. No!” He flicked her ear in mock punishment. “You think: ‘Wow, the moon is truly beautiful. I could just sit here for hours and look at it.’ And something about how silvery and mysterious it is. Just like you. Except, you aren’t as much silver as… ah you get it.”

Luna leaned a bit closer with a chuckle and nuzzled him. “I truly love you, my dear Jax.”

The statement made him warm to the core. He smiled proudly. “I love you too, my moon.”

Their dance turned a bit more advanced, with jumps in it. Jax missed a couple, but did his best to not look completely out of his element. It ended in a flourish, Luna leaning back and leaving Jax to hold her from falling to the floor. They were both breathing heavily and sweating despite the cold air.

It wasn’t until the applause started around them that they realized how many ponies had gathered to watch. Jax and Luna shared a look, then a grin. While Jax would usually feel awkward after showing his subpar dancing skills, tonight was different. Tonight he greeted the ponies with a grin and a bow.

Tonight was for fun. And fun they had.

Everything blurred together as they danced, laughed, ate, drank and laughed some more. Somepony had left chalk to draw on the sidewalk, and Luna was quick to show her artistic skill with a beautiful rendition of the stars and moon. Then they found a booth that let you build your own paper lantern, and Jax suddenly realized that he needed his own. A lot of time was spent to find the perfect shade of blue paper that fit Luna’s colour, and she helped him draw her cutie mark on it. Constructing the lantern was relatively easy. Luna made hers out of a shiny silver that had to be brought in from the back. She decided to mark it with a highly stylized drawing of Jax’ face.

“It almost looked better than the real thing.” Jax joked.

“It is not even close, my handsome human.” Luna gave him with a soft kiss on the cheek.

They were just about done when Luna looked skywards. “’Tis almost time. Let us make our way to the castle.”

***

They stood on the balcony that Jax had looked up at earlier in the night. Below them were ranks upon ranks of ponies, looking up at them. Jax thought Luna would address them, but she did no such thing. No words were needed. They all prepared their lanterns in silence.

Jax looked down at his own lantern. ‘Hey mom. Hey Jake.’ He spoke to his family. ‘It’s been a while. I’ve been doing well, no need to worry about me. I even found a girlfriend. Well, it’s called a marefriend here, but same principle. I think you’d really like her, mom. She’s so kind and…’ he could feel the tears in his eyes. ‘and she treats me right. I try to treat her right too. We don’t argue much, but I don’t think I could forgive myself if I hurt her. I don’t want to be like my father.’ The tears left a trail on his cheeks. He raised the lantern to his forehead. ‘I… I wish you could meet her. I wish you could see me now. It’s been a hard journey, but I’m finally happy. Everything is perfect. There is no place I would rather be than right here.’ He slowly lowered the lantern again. Luna was still looking at hers, her eyes looking far, far away. She probably had more ponies among the stars than he did. Somehow, even looking as sad as she did, she looked completely captivating. He wanted to hug her tightly and never let go.

‘Yeah. Things are great.’ He said as his last goodbye.

***

Luna let go of her lit lantern first. It slowly soared upwards towards the stars. Jax let go of his a second later, and it quickly caught up with Luna’s. They circled around each other in their own little dance. Then hundreds upon hundreds of lanterns made it up to join them in a magical view.

Jax let go of a breath he didn’t know he was holding. He felt a bit better now that he said goodbye to his family. A bit lighter, ready to face the future.

He put his hand on Luna’s back. She looked at him and smiled. She pulled him closer with a wing. Together they watched as the lanterns soared towards the stars. They had said goodbye to their past, and were ready to take on the future, together.

Author's Note

Wow. Finally done. I can't begin to explain how weird that feels XD I did not expect this little fanfic of mine to become so long, nor the amount of positive reception it got (being my first real story and all), but I am glad that I decided to write it all those years ago.
I had a lot of trouble with this one, even had to rewrite a part of it, but I think it turned out pretty good, considering I wanted to write so much more XD

Anyway let me just start by saying 'Thank you.' Thank you for reading all the way through till the end.
Thank you to all who commented and liked it. Honestly, that's what kept me writing, seeing your appreciation.
And lastly, special thanks to Dj7291993 and to Midnight Blossom for looking through my messy chapters for me XD You guys are the best, and I'm glad you decided to comment corrections on my story XD

If you want Jax and Luna to have sex, fear not. I have already promised some people an erotic chapter (if you read all these AN, you already know.) It's up on my site. I'm not sure if I'm allowed to link it here, so just click on my stories... you can't miss it XD

Will there be more adventures of Jax? Probably not. Sadly, I'm burned out. I'm already looking for a job as well, so I won't even have time anyway.

I want to end this author's note with a recommendation, more specifically a HiE since that is what I started my recommendations with, but it was hard to find something I haven't recommended already :3
But here we go:
HiE(ish) Their Very Own Suns for those of you who like Dark Souls.
Good mlp Movie ff: Derpy's Reward and The Sweet Spot
Alternative Universe: The Sphinx's Riddle
Octavia+Vinyl: Speechless and Allegrezza

Have fun reading those :D

Chapter 1

He woke up as from a nightmare. He was instantly wide awake, breathing heavily, sweat covering his body. Confusion overtook him as he looked around. He was laying in a small meadow, in something he presumed was a forest. He could hear a stream or small river nearby, and above him the stars were shinning much brighter and in much greater numbers than he was used to…

Wait... what? He did a double take, but it was true. These stars were very different from what he was used to, and he couldn’t find any constellations he knew...

He checked again.

And again.

And now he was freaking out. He started hyperventilating.

‘Okay Jax, calm the fuck down. What’s the last thing I remember?’ He thought, only to become more confused, as his hand sought out his right temple.

‘I was dead… I died. But why do I feel so alive? Is this… heaven?’ He wasn’t sure. A meadow in a forest wasn’t how he imagined heaven. Furthermore, he didn’t belong in heaven, if you had to follow the rules in the bible to get there. Then again, he was a decent guy, maybe God was merciful and let him in anyway.

He took a deep breath, only to flinch. If this really was heaven, then why was he hurting all over? Lying on the ground did not agree with his body in the slightest.

Suddenly a wolf cry echoed through the night. Jax heaved himself into standing position. ‘Wolves huh? I heard they aren’t as dangerous as people make them out to be. Then again, better safe than sorry’ He thought as he looked around for a weapon. A few minutes later he found a stick that felt like it belonged in his hands. He relaxed against a tree as he stared contemplating.

He hadn’t heard any wolf cry since the first one and it was bothering him. Didn’t they do that to communicate? What was the point if no one answered? Then again, his knowledge on wolves was limited. He was more interested in mythological beings, like dragons. Yeah… Dragons were cool.

While he was standing there like an idiot, the wolves had silently surrounded him. He didn’t notice until one of them let out a growl, and he nearly shat himself. In a semicircle around him were beings that looked like a bunch of branches had tried to morph into a wolf. It didn’t look much like the wolves Jax knew, but their glowing green eyes were enough to make him scared. That and the fact that he was surrounded by something that shouldn’t exist. Then again, he should be dead… what would happen if he died a second time?

He decided this was no time to be contemplating such things. Also, why would a bunch of branches want to eat meat? Did they even have stomachs?

He tried to snap out of it a second time, but this was all really confusing. One of the… branchwolves jumped at him, but he managed to swing his mighty stick at it, throwing it to the side.

Jax quickly took stock of the situation, suddenly completely focused: He was surrounded by four branchwolves, one of them still recovering from the blow he gave it. He had his back against a tree, so they couldn’t attack him from behind, but he couldn’t turn around and run… not that that would be a good idea anyway. Only one thing to do in this situation: He had to climb the tree and hope to hell and heaven that they couldn’t climb.

He quickly wacked the next branchwolf that jumped at him, and quickly threw his stick at the third, before turning 90 degrees, jumping up to a branch and lifting himself up. At least he started to before the last branchwolf jumped at him, biting into his left leg.
Jax was now certain of two things: This wasn’t a dream, and it sure as hell wasn’t heaven. The pain was too real.

He was half-way up the branch, but the weight of the branchwolf was dragging him down. He started kicking it with his right foot, as the other branchwolves started jumping for him as well, but luckily couldn’t get hold of him. With one final kick he finally got the stupid thing off, and managed to get onto the branch without the others grabbing him. He adjusted himself, making sure he didn’t fall, so that he sat with his back against the trunk. There weren’t any branches lower than the one he was sitting on, so all the branch-motherfucking-wolves could do was to jump up and down.

He looked down at his calf. It was bleeding all over the branch he was occupying, even dripping down to the branchwolves. He hissed in pain as he tried to adjust his position to take a closer look. As far as he could tell it wasn't that bad, but he would have to do something about before he bled too much. The blood seemed to drive the beasts crazy.

He sighed. This was too much too sudden. Dying twice in a row? No way was he dying again, the first time had been bad enough. Jax was determined to stay alive in this weird new world he found himself in. Even if it was weird, and he was already fighting for his life. He sighed again. He needed to get to the stream he could still hear nearby, clean the wound, bandage it, and hope to whatever gods may be, that it didn’t get infected, ‘cause he didn’t know what to do with infected wounds, he just knew that it was bad. If he had some alcohol he could clean it… and he could honestly use a drink.

Honestly, except the wound he had just acquired, he felt rather good. His memories were... blurry, but he still knew everything, and he kind of felt like he could take all of this change on. Yeah, he could do this. It was an alien feeling for him to feel so optimistic, but whatever. It felt good.

After a while the branchwolves realized that their prey was out of range, and decided to give up. Jax watched them leave, but waited some time to be sure. He didn’t know how much time, he wasn’t the type to wear a wrist watch, and the only belongings he had on him was his clothes. He cursed whatever being that transported him here that they didn’t bring his cigarettes with him. He had so many bad habits, and no way to obtain the fuel they required. Cold turkey was his style, but not all off them at once… He sighed again. This was not going to be easy. But a new beginning is a new beginning, and that he could use. He was going to miss his music the most...

Author's Note

Okay, so first ff ever written XD it's hard not to get inspired after reading awesome ff on this awesome site ^^
If you like HiE like me, which I suppose is the reason you clicked on this, then go check out Gladiator
So, anyway, enjoy the story, I will update in a weeks time, and untill then... try not to die? cause the chances of you ending in pony world are actually pretty slim... I think. I haven't tried myself... So yeah. Have a good day.

Chapter 7

They proceeded with tired steps. Rainbow Dash seemed too tired to be twitchy, or even fly/hover, which he could understand. He was pretty tired himself and his shoulder burned like it was on fire. He was fairly certain the wound had opened again, but there wasn’t much to do about it. At least his bandages where clean…ish. Well cleaner than his old ones were anyway.

“Jax? What are you anyway?” He felt like he was going to get this question a lot. Still, how come he knew about pegasi, when they didn’t know about humans? Eh, there were weirder things to worry about. Like why were they so friendly? He didn’t feel threatened a single moment in their company.

“Do you think I could explain that to all of you at once? I don’t feel like repeating it a hundred times…”

Rainbow looked at him for a bit before nodding. She wasn’t as full of herself as he thought she would be. Sure she liked to show off, and stated things with the confidence of… someone very confident. Yeah, comparison skills over the roof. Still, she had helped him, and she didn’t pressure him to say things he didn’t want to.

“Rainbow, why do you have a tattoo on your butt?” He asked, half of curiosity, half to take his mind of things. Like a certain party he was headed towards.

She looked at her butt a bit confused, before laughing a little. “It’s called a cutie mark, and it’s on my flank. It practically represents my awesomeness.” She looked at him with that cocky grin again, and he looked at her with his confused face.

“Cutie… mark? Like a mark… that’s cute?” He said with a smile. Whoever came up with cutie mark as a replacement for tattoo was crazy. Poor males that wanted a tat in this world.

“What? No! Does this look cute to you? It’s cool and awesome!” She replied as she shoved her tattoed butt into his face, hovering in the air again. She sounded offended for some reason.

“Woah, calm down.” He said as he moved his hands up in front of him and his head to the side. Even if she was an equine, she was still female, and he didn’t know how free he was to stare. Well they were naked. And horse…ish. Maybe it didn’t matter that much. He should totally stop blushing right now.

“I do agree that having a lightning shaped rainbow is pretty cool, plus it matches your name, I was just… cutie mark sounds silly.” He explained.

Rainbow looked at him a bit before finally hovering back down to the ground, making Jax sigh in relief. He wasn’t very good with situations where females presented their rear end to his face. Not that that had happened to him before. He just wasn’t good with awkward situations.

“I guess it is a weird name. Never thought of it before. You can ask Twilight about it if you want.” Rainbow answered. It seemed like he would have to make a list of things he had to ask this Twilight. He was too tired right now, but he would definitely ask her everything on his mind.

***

They continued moving, and soon found themselves on the outskirt of the forest. Jax hesitated when he saw the little town. Was this really all right? He could still run into the forest… Except he was wet, tired, and Rainbow knew where his camp was anyway. Still, he couldn’t help but look back at the forest he had spent the last few weeks in. It was dangerous, dark, and dangerous… Yeah, it was that dangerous. He had almost died so many times he had stopped counting. But at least he didn’t have to deal with other people. He could just be himself in there. Sure he had to battle timberwolves, struggle to find food every day, and was starting to feel very lonely, but at least… He knew what to do. Wake up, find food, do some other activity, go to sleep exhausted. In front of him lay an unknown fate, decided by sapient multicoloured equines. It was hard to leave behind what he knew. Rainbow Dash seemed to pick up on his hesitation, and looked at him with a surprisingly soft look. “Hey… I promise we aren’t gonna imprison you.” She said softly, “Not unless you hurt somepony anyway. You seem like a cool stallion, Jax. I’ll vouch for you if anything happens, okay?” He looked at her in surprise. He hadn’t known her for very long, he honestly didn’t think she would try to reassure him. These pegasi…

“But you barely know me! I could be a crazy killer waiting to strike for all you know!” He argued for some reason. He didn’t know himself. It’s been so long since anyone tried to reassure him that everything will be fine…

“You could be. But then you wouldn’t have let me walk out of the Everfree.” Her cocky smile returned: “Besides, if you are, I could probably beat you, one hoof tied behind my back.” He returned the smile. He had hugely misjudged her when they met. He made a note to himself to do something nice for her someday. When he looked at it now, his choices were simple:

Choice 1: Go back into the Everfree alone, die once winter came around, if one of the timberwolves hadn’t finished him by then, or

Choice 2: Go with Rainbow, suffer a little at the party, get his questions answered, and someday return the kindness shown to him by Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash.

The choice was obvious. With a smile he followed after Rainbow.

Author's Note

Short chapter I know. Next chapter will be longer I promise :)

Chapter 21

The next day when Beating woke him up, there were two extra nurses present. One was white with a light pink mane and tail, and a red cross as her mark, with a heart in each corner. The other had a similar mark, except… no wait, that was exactly the same mark! Jax thought those marks were supposed to be special or something… The only difference was that the other pony was light blue with a greenish mane and tail. Both earth ponies as well… Maybe they were sisters or something. They both looked nervous.

“Good morning Jax. Sleep well?” Beating met him with her usual cheerful self. Maybe even a bit more cheerful.

“Well enough. Would be better if you didn’t insist on waking me up at 7 every morning.” He told her with a yawn. When he got up to stretch his legs the two ponies took a step back. He looked at them tiredly before stretching his entire body. They were probably the two nurses who had talked about him in the hallway the day before. He looked around but it would seem that they forgot to bring both a squad of guards and Big Mac. They seemed to relax a bit when he sat back down.

“I’m sorry Jax, but as long as you’re in this hospital, you will get up early. nurse Redheart and nurse Tenderheart wanted to meet you as well. Girls, why don’t you introduce yourselves?”

The white one stepped forward. “Hello.” She said nervously. He recognized her voice as the first one, the one who had defended him. “I’m nurse Redheart. Pleased to meet you?” Why was that a question? He didn’t know whether she was pleased or not.

The other one stepped forward. “I’m nurse Tenderheart.” She seemed reluctant to be there, glancing at the door every few seconds.

He had decided yesterday before he went to sleep not to fuck with them if they came, and be nice. Rarity had worked hard for his reputation and he didn’t want to fuck that up, no matter how tempting and easy it would be. All he needed to do was to drop a few hints that he would ‘silence’ them and at least one of them would freak out… but no.

“Pleased to meet you both. My name is Jax. Alright, why do all your names have something to do with the heart and why do you two-” He indicated the two new ponies. “-have the same mark?”

The blue one, Tenderheart, spoke up. “Why should we-“ But was interrupted when the white one stuck a hoof in her mouth.

“What she meant to say was, we don’t know for sure. The heart is a vital organ in the body, which could be a reason. The cross is seen as a sign of good health, which could be a reason for our cutie marks. Normally there are small variants to cutie marks even when they are similar, but Tender and me just have the same for some unknown reason.” Tenderheart took out Redhearts hoof.

“Alright then, let’s ask you some questions then!” She pointed her hoof at Jax.

“Uhm… okay?” He was prepared for questions, but why the dramatic hoof-pointing?

“Why are the princesses and the elements so interested in you? Do you eat ponies for lunch? Did Twilight fry you because you attacked her? Are you really Discord in disguise?!” She ended on her back legs, both her front legs in the air. She came down on all four with a thump.

Redheart looked embarrassed by the outburst of her friend, while Beating was literally face-palming… or hoofing or whatever.

“I’m sorry Jax, if I knew they would be like this I wouldn’t have introduced them.” Beating apologized. Jax just looked dumbfounded at the pony in front of him, thinking how to answer.

“I… fry? You seriously use that word to someone who got incinerated? Do you have any idea how much pain I’m in most of the time?” He put his head in his hands. “Okay, alright… I would think the princesses took an interest in me because I’m an alien who suddenly showed up in their land, but I’m not sure, you’ll have to ask them. I don’t eat ponies for any meal of the day and I don’t ever intend to do so. Twilight didn’t mean to… incinerate me, and I forgave her for doing so. I’m not Discord in any form or shape.” He raised his head from his hands. “Anything else?”

To her credit she had the decency to look ashamed. Jax was well aware that there would be silly rumors and questions, but the word ‘fry’ made it sound so… well, like his pain was a joke. It was not.

“No… I… I didn’t mean it like…” She turned around and ran out of the room.

“I apologize mister Jax. We didn’t mean to upset you. Please don’t hurt her.” The white one, Redheart, tried to appease him, but only managed to spread the coldness that was building inside of him.

“Why would I hurt her?” He almost whispered. Beating Heart stepped between them.

“That’s enough. Nurse Redheart, please leave. Tell Nurse Tenderheart that next time you ask a favor of somepony, make sure not to upset that ponies’ friends.” Redheart left with her head held low. Beating went over and slammed the door shut, before going back to Jax, who was hugging his knees with his head on his arms.

He wasn’t exactly sure why he was so sad. It wasn’t like Tenderheart had said anything particularly mean to him, she had just asked some silly questions. The last question was even beyond that. It was just…

“Are you okay? I’m sorry I agreed to them meeting you.” Beating asked from beside his bed. She sounded really remorseful.

“It’s not your fault Beating. I don’t even know why I’m sad… I should just have laughed it off… It just felt so… cold.” He tried to explain. The coldness that had appeared inside of him was still there, although it was mixed with the warmth of Beating’s actions and words. It was a familiar coldness. He had felt it a lot before he came here. He had almost forgotten how numb it made him feel. The numbness kept his tears at bay.

Suddenly he felt a soft muzzle slowly make its way under his arms. He automatically made more space until he was hugging Beating Heart. She had her head on his shoulder.

“I know why you’re sad. Nopony likes to be seen as a monster. Who would be happy being accused of something you have done nothing to deserve? But don’t worry. You and me, we know the truth. The elements and the princesses as well. I was hoping that if they met you, Redheart and Tenderheart would see it too. I didn’t think they would be so… blunt.”

The warmth inside of him spread further, nullifying the cold, until it was all he felt. A smile took the place of the frown he had.

“Thanks Beating. You’re a good friend.”

“To be honest, I didn’t realize I saw you as a friend until Tenderheart asked you those questions and I wanted to buck her right out the window.”

Jax laughed at the image of a blue pony flying out the window. “Every single friend I made here, I didn’t realize I had until… Well until I realized we were actually friends.”

“Good to know… are you going to be okay? I don’t want to leave you like this but I have other patients waiting for me.”

“mmm… I’ll be fine. I need to prepare for the awkwardness to come anyway. Thanks Beating.”

He let go of her, and she gave him a smile. “No problem. Now let’s hurry up and salve you so I can move on.”

***

Luna was restless. She had been up for a couple of hours, and that was only because she had decided to take a nap. Twilight had told her that she had to do what she did not want to do… talk with Jax about what happened. She had done so much pacing in her room that she had almost made a track.

She was very conflicted about the situation. On one hoof she really wanted to make up with Jax, on the other she did not want to have such an embarrassing conversation. It was almost time and she was unsure if she wanted to eat breakfast and get it over with, or teleport away and never return.

“Luna? Are you ready?” Twilight’s voice could be heard through the door. Luna looked over to her meal, and decided that she was too nervous to eat.

“Yes. No. Uhm…” She looked around as Twilight came in.

“Luna, it’s not so bad when you think about it. None of you hurt the other in any way. It’s just… well, a little embarrassing. I can assure you that he is just as embarrassed.”

“A little embarrassing? Just as embarrassed? Twilight, I know you are trying to help, but I do believe that it is unbelievably embarrassing and how can he possibly be just as embarrassed? He wasn’t the one to…” She almost whimpered at the end. She could not do this. Back to Canterlot, where the most embarrassing thing she could do was to sit on a throne in an almost empty room.

“Nopony ever said that friendship is easy, Luna. Sometimes we do embarrassing things in front of our friends. Sometimes that thing is to go crazy trying to find out how the Pinkie Sense works, sometimes it’s… a different kind of embarrassing. The thing about friendship though, is that they accept you nonetheless. When you do something wrong, they forgive you and try to help you make things right. It is something I never realized I was missing until I came to Ponyville, and honestly, I wouldn’t trade it away for anything in the world. That is the beauty of friendship. That is why I will take you to the hospital, so that you and Jax can not only move on, but become even better friends.” Twilight looked at her with determination shinning in her eyes. She felt ashamed for wanting to leave them behind. She craved friendship, but the second things got a little out of hoof, she wanted to run away. She was looking forward to the day where she viewed her friends as Twilight did. It sounded amazing.

“Alright Twilight, you are right. I just need to…” She took a deep breath. “…pull myself together, as they say. Let us venture forth.” She met Twilight’s gaze with a newfound determination.

***

She really really wished Twilight had given her pep-talk at the hospital. Her determination had slowly corroded away on the way over, and she was left just as nervous as before.

She took a couple of deep breaths outside his room but little did it help. She had started pacing back and forth in front of the door instead. Twilight had left her so she could do it in her own time, but she could not get herself to face him.

“Jesus Christ you are making me more nervous than I already am. Just come in already!” She heard Jax shout from the other side of the door. She steeled herself. Now that he knew she was there, there was no turning back… unless… no! She could do this! She slowly entered, keeping her gaze on the ground. She was already blushing and she had not even looked him in the eye yet.

“Hello… Jax.” She started. She tried to suppress her feelings and put on a mask, but she could not focus properly on it. He was right there, the creature that had heard… had made her moan. She was so embarrassed she could not believe it… She was supposed to be one of the rulers of the country, she had lived for more than a millennia… well her time on the moon could not really be counted as living… Still, she had lived for more than four centuries. She thought she had learned to control her feelings well… except that time where the Limelight slowly turned her evil… but before that. Ah, she was just a bit rusty. That was it. She could do this, no problem.

She chanced a glance at him. He was blushing madly, his gaze set on his lap. That made her feel a bit better. At least she was not the only one who was embarrassed. Now… how to proceed.

“Hello Luna.” He answered her greeting.

…

…

What was she supposed to say next?! She had no idea, she should have planned this a little better. To make things worse, she felt really hot and had a hard time thinking straight.

She glanced at him again. She was by no means an expert in reading him, with the lack of pony ears and muzzle, combined with smaller eyes… it was still obvious that he looked agitated. He probably had trouble with the silence… he did mention he was not very good with awkward situations…

This realization only stressed Luna even more, which made it harder for her to think of something to say. It was way too warm in that room.

…

…

“So… nice weather, is it not?” She said the only thing she could think of. Apparently it was not the right thing.

“Oh come on! Let’s just get it over with, please! For crying out… please stop with the torture…” He put his burning face down into his hands.

His outburst did nothing to calm Luna down though. He was in pain and she still could not think of where to start. She went over to open the window manually to buy herself some time. She could hear him groan from over there.

“Luna… please… just say it.” She went back beside the bed. It was still warm.

…

…

She tried to take a deep breath. That usually calmed her down. Not this time.

“I…” She tried to say something regardless, but her throat felt very dry all of a sudden. Luckily there was a glass of water, still half full, from Jax’ breakfast. When she picked it up, Jax groaned louder than before and squirmed around on the small bed as if uncomfortable. She really wanted to put him out of his misery, but could not get herself to say it. When she put the glass down, she found him staring at her fiercely. She took a step back in uncertainty.

“Luna. Did you come here just to see me in pain? Is this some kind of elaborate trick just to see me suffer?”

She drew in a surprised breath. “Trick? It most certainly was not a trick. We are trying very hard to say it but… ‘tis not easy. We are one of the rulers of this land, about to admit-” She looked down abruptly, feeling like her blush covered her entire body. She would not be surprised if ponies mistook her for Big Mac. This is not easy, that much is certain.

***

Jax was at the end of what he could endure. She started out by pacing back and forth in front of his room, which he could hear because she was a pony, and when she finally came in at his request, she barely said anything, and the silence was killing him. Then she started postponing it by opening the window and taking a sip of water. It was maddening. He had finally asked if she did it on purpose to watch him suffer, and had at least gotten a response, but she had cut herself off just as she was about to get to the heart of it. He felt like he was burning up from embarrassment, and she didn’t seem to be faring much better.

They both took a deep breath at the same time.

“Alright Luna, if you can’t say it, then I will.” She looked at him in horror. If he wasn’t so invested in the situation, he would have laughed. Here they were, an immortal alicorn, and a mortal human, unwilling to talk about something because it was embarrassing. “I mean, we’re both adults here. Right?”

“…Right. Certainly.” She agreed, somewhat uncertainly.

“Yes, yes we are. So… Okay. Let’s see… When I scratched you, I made you… well…”

“You turned me on!” Luna finally burst out, to Jax’ relief. She started pacing back and forth in front of him. “It felt so good, and We did not realize what was happening until thou stopped, and We did not know it would happen, and We are sorry!” She seemed to determine to say it as quickly as possible, leaving her breathing heavily when she was finished.

They were both blushing madly, but Jax was relieved to have it out in the open. One step closer to getting passed this.

“Uhm… yeah, precisely. Don’t apologize though, it was a natural reaction that you didn’t know you had. Like when boys get-“ Why was he bringing that up again?

“When boys get what?” He had hoped she didn’t notice or care, but no such luck.

“Well, human males can get… excited, sometimes without reason. One of the reasons we wear clothes all the time is because, since we’re standing on two legs, it’s pretty noticeable.” Well, she admitted to being turned on, only fair he said something embarrassing as well. They were both looked down. He had never imagined something could be this embarrassing.

“Oh… I see. Good to know.” He quickly checked to see if she actually saw, or if she just used that figure of speech. He sighed in relief. There was enough embarrassment in the room to feed a changeling who could only fed on embarrassment. That totally made sense.

“So… Let’s just… try to move on, alright? We can do that, right?” Jax asked, trying to get through the last part.

“Yes. Yes we can.” Luna sounded confident but she was still looking at the floor, with a very visible blush.

“Okay… then it’s settled…”

…

…

“So-“

“Please don’t comment on the weather.” He cut her off.

“I was not going to!” She defended. “I was going to… ask… how are you healing?”

“Right, of course you were. I’m healing well enough. It’s a slow process and it’s only been… a week or something.” It felt really good to talk about something completely different. So good.

“Good… that is good…” She looked around the room.

…

…

Fuck. It would seem that just talking about it and agreeing to move on didn’t automatically mean you moved on. The silence was dragging on, and not the good kind you have with close friends. How long would it take for them to go back to their comfortable relationship again? Would he ever be able to touch her without being reminded of the scratching incident? Some of the best memories he had with Luna was them blowing raspberries on each other… which was pretty weird now that he thought about it. Could he still do that? Did he… did he still want to do that?

“Princess Luna!!” Thank fucking god. Never had Jax been so happy to hear anyone scream ‘Princess Luna’ at the top of their lungs. Three tiny ponies ran up and started jumping around the princess. He recognized Scootaloo and Apple Bloom, but he didn’t think he had met the third one yet.

“Hello children, good to see you!” Luna seemed just as relieved by the interruption as he was. She smiled down at the hyper foals. It was sweet to look at, especially when they gave huge smiles in return. Luna was popular amongst the children at least. That was good.

“Hey there, I don’t believe we’ve met. My name is Jax.” He directed at the white unicorn.

“But you can call him Jax.” Scootaloo put in before she could answer, referring to how he had introduced himself to her. They all giggled at that, even Luna. They all sounded damn adorable, and it made him smile sincerely, something he needed on that day.

“Charmed to meet you Jax. My name is Sweetie Bell. My sister Rarity talks about you all the time.” She even gave a little bow. Tiny ponies really were in a class for themselves.

“Has she now? I hope she has good things to say then.” He smiled back at the young unicorn.

“She does. Every time somepony tries to start a new rumor about you in her boutique, she politely refuses to believe them, saying that she has met you and that you simply would never dream of destroying the town, or attacking anypony.”

Rarity needed more brownie points, defending him like that.

“Hey, Rainbow Dash has been doing the same thing, except more awesomely.” Scootaloo defended. “She flies really close to them and tells then straight up to stop spreading false rumors.”

Nothing less expected by his first pony friend.

“Mah sister has been doing the same at her stall. Whenever somepony tries to tell her anything she tells them to stop this instance.”

Applejack as well? With so many of the elements of harmony protecting his reputation he was surprised there were still rumors flying around. On the other hand, rumors are easy to spread, especially when a new creature suddenly appears. Jax was fairly certain that time and good behavior on his part would stop those rumors in their track. After all, it’s boring to make rumors about the same thing over and over again… which was probably the reason everybody was making rumors about him. He was new after all.

“We wanted to get our cutie marks with you somehow.” Scootaloo said.

“But then Apple Bloom told us how boring that would be.” Sweetie Bell took over.

“But since our sisters tell us how good you are, we thought about how we could help yah.” Apple Bloom continued.

“CUTIE MARK MEDICINE DELIVERY! YAY!” Jax almost fell down from the bed at how sudden the yell was.

“But I already get medicine… every fourth hour in fact.”

“This ain’t no normal medicine.” Apple Bloom told him.

“We heard about how the medicine you get here isn’t good enough.” Scootaloo clarified.

“So we went to Zecora, and she made this.“ Sweetie Bell pulled out a bottle from… somewhere. There was a green substance in it, which looked a little bit like it might kill whoever drank it.

“Zacora says that this is much better than the salve you get here. You have to drink it because-“ Scootaloo took on an African accent. “Healing comes from within’.” Jax took the bottle from Sweetie Bell.

“Uhm… are you sure this will work on me? I’m not a pony after all.” His uncertainty was clear. Even if he was a pony, he would hesitate to drink this.

“Oh yeah, she said that if the salve you get here works, this should as well. It’s made from plants from the Everfree.” Apple Bloom told him. That didn’t exactly made him more trusting.

“I once made my way through a meadow in the Everfree. I woke up as a wolf. Never went near that place again.”

“Okay, but Zecora knows what she’s doing. She says that if you drink it, you will be better in three days! I think.” Scootaloo said.

“What do you mean you think?” He deadpanned.

“Well, Zecora speaks in rhymes, so she’s hard to understand sometimes. We are preeeetty sure it’s three days though.” Apple Bloom clarified.

He looked over at Luna who was studying the bottle curiously. “What do you think?” He asked her. She looked up at him.

“Well, my interaction with Zecora has been… limited. I have heard that she is reliable, with a vast knowledge of potion-making though.”

“Okay… three days isn’t that long compared to how long I need to be here otherwise. I’ll try.” A small voice in the back of his heard told him that it was too good to be true. He ignored it.

The potion tasted like leaves. Not the worst taste for medicine, but he had definitely tasted better. He had four set of eyes on him, waiting for something to happen. At first he felt fine, and was just about to tell the ponies present so, when it started.

It started from his stomach, as a slight discomfort, then it started spreading, and while it did, the pain intensified. After a few minutes he was screaming at the top of his lungs. When it had spread out to all of his body, it felt like his insides were on fire. He didn’t care about anything else but making it stop hurting, stop burning, stop the pain! But no matter how much he screamed, it didn’t stop.

At some point he during his convulsions, he hit something hard, and was met with sweet sweet darkness.

Author's Note

Holy shit guys! I was the hundredth person to like my story just like I mentioned earlier I wanted to be XD that makes me surprisingly happy XD Also, holy shit guys my ff has a hundred likes XD (even if one of them is me, that is still pretty amazing)
Also, holy shit guys! I got a decent grade in math XD
So, back to the actual ff... I would just have pretended like nothing was wrong between me and Luna and just go on as usual XD I feel like Jax deserves to suffer a little though... poor guy XD What would you guys or girls have done? ^^ I had such a hard time writing this, it was way too awkward for me XD I just wanted them to make up and get it over with.
need something other than this awesome ff to read? Read Written in Dust It's pretty good :)

Chapter 27

Luna was filled with glee. She was standing in the realm of dreams, in front of the door leading to Jax’ dream. For the first time since she had discovered this door, she did not sense the negative energy around it that indicated a nightmare. He had told her she was free to enter when he was not having a nightmare, which was exactly what she was going to do.

She opened it, and slowly went through. She came out to a moonlit scenery, which she recognized as the meadow where she had stargazed with Jax the first time, the night she had made the stars move… the night he had told her they were friends.

Looking back she saw that the door she had come from was a plant archway on this side of the dream realm.

She looked forward, to find a Jax in a peculiar situation. He was looking straight at her, with a dream-Luna over him. It looked like dream-Luna had pinned him down, and was now giving him a coy look… which was weird to for her to see, since she did not remember giving that look to anypony before, yet there it was. Eyes half-lid, a bashful smile on her muzzle. She looked like she was ready to kiss him.

“This isn’t what it looks like!” Jax said, still looking at the real her. Of course he would be able to talk in a dream. “We were dancing, and then you tripped and fell on top of me. Nothing more.” He looked back at the dream-version. “Right?”

“Mmm… and of course I didn’t fall on purpose… at all.” Dream-Luna said with a playful tone, whispering the last part into his ear. Luna noticed that he shivered slightly at that.

She almost wanted to turn around and leave, her usual response to when she walked in on ponies in awkward positions. This was, however, Jax’ dream, the first normal dream he had had since he had given her permission to enter his normal dreams. The others had been either too weak for her to enter, or more commonly, nightmares.

So she used a spell on dream-Luna instead, making her disappear, which in turn made Jax sigh in relief. He got up and looked at her.

“So I’m dreaming? And I can talk! Awesome.” He looked eager to change the conversation.

Though still unsure what to think of it all, she gave him a smile and a nod. “Yes, ‘tis but a dream, and since it is not a nightmare…” She let the sentence hang in the air, eager to hear him say that she was welcome there, afraid that he had changed his mind about the exception.

“Yes yes, I remember. You are allowed here. This is actually quite awesome, now I can talk again.” He laughed happily.

She sighed in relief, as happiness washed over her. Part of it was hearing him say that it was ‘awesome’, part of it was him saying that she was allowed to be there… But a third part was a delayed realization. He had been dreaming of her. They had been dancing under her moon, in the meadow where they had become friends. His dream-version of her had been flirting with him.

Now that she thought about it, she was in the perfect position to tease him a little.

She tried to give him the same look her dream-version had. Eyes half-closed, bashful smile. “I can think of something else that is awesome…” She said, imitating the teasing tone dream-Luna had used. He looked surprised at her as she drew closer, swinging her flank a bit more than she was used to. “L-Luna?” He asked, uncertain. She got up on her hind legs, placing her hooves on his shoulders, so she could reach his ear and whisper the last part. “You.”

She could feel the shiver going through him, and as he tried to take a step back, he fell backwards. They ended up in almost the same position as when she had entered the dream. He was looking up at her with those small green eyes of his. She could not find any fear, or contempt, or even uncertainty in them. He did not look away, try to remove her from atop of him, he did not complain at all. Was he waiting for her to make a move?

She realized how easy it would be to lean down and kiss him. She was not very far from him, all she had to do was to let the fake gravity in this world do its job, maybe angle her muzzle a bit. It would be so easy.

Uncertainty clouded her senses. Did he want her to kiss him? What if she ruined their entire friendship with the gesture? What if he was just waiting politely for her to move?

A smile spread on his face, drawing her eyes away from his mesmerizing green orbs.

“You’re pretty awesome as well.” He told her, breaking the tension that had built up between them.

She sighed in relief and got off of him. “I apologize, I did not mean for you to fall.” She helped him get up.

“Heh, it was my own fault. I was just taken aback by your… teasing. That was unexpected.” He scratched the back of his head, laughing a bit.

It had certainly been an experience worth remembering. It had felt good to feel him shiver underneath her, knowing that she was the one that had caused it. For a moment when she was walking towards him and he had watched her with wide eyes, she had actually felt… attractive. It was good to feel like that again.

“Yes, well…” What could she say? “I was just telling the truth.” She could have facehooved. What was she saying?

He looked at her in contemplation before a smile spread on his lips. “Awesomest human in all of Equestria.”

A smile spread on her own muzzle at his reply, happy that he didn’t try to embarrass her. “Indeed. Now, let us have fun! This is a dream after all.”

The rest of the dream was spent playing around in all possible climates. The snow fight they had was long and epic, with Luna emerging as victorious, while the sand fight they had turned out to be a bad idea, with nopony being victorious. At some point Jax explained something called a waterpark, which was quickly conjured. They spent a long while sliding down waterslides.

For the first time in a long time, Luna used her powers over the dream realm to simply have fun.

***

Jax was having tons of fun. For the first time in a long time, he didn’t want to wake up from a dream.

Eventually, he did. He still had the image of Luna pushing him into a pool in his mind. She had looked so happy. That was, without a single shred of doubt, the best dream he had had, EVER.

He had a huge smile on his face, as Luna seemed to return from the dream as well. When they locked eyes, the biggest grin spread on her muzzle, happiness practically radiating from her.

“Good morning, Jax.” She had a certain warmth in her voice that he couldn’t quite put his finger on, but he liked it nonetheless. He made the writing motion, and she levitated the tools over.

‘With a night like that, it can only be a good day… Thank you for showing me a good time ;)’

He was teasing her a bit, for the teasing she had done to him in the dream. That had been some act… That look she had given him while she was coming over had been very convincing… and the way she had looked at him when he fell backwards… That had been intense. He almost thought she was going to kiss him, but she had just looked at him. What would he had done if she had kissed him? In the moment… he probably wouldn’t have minded.

She blushed at the comment, but her smile never wavered. “You are quite welcome.” She blushed a bit deeper, and continued with a sultry tone. “I will always show you a good time.” She even winked at the end.

Right back at him. He would say he was speechless, but that wasn’t anything new.

‘Yeah? Well… I appreciate it!’

Perfect response. So refined. Well thought out. Still, he had no idea what to respond to a statement like that.

It was worth it to hear her laughter though. “I bet you do. Now, let us make our way to the kitchens to get our breakfast.”

***

Luna led the way to the meadow. It was night again, and she had raised the moon. “Has it been a week already?” She asked, puzzled.

‘I don’t know, I forgot… but it’s Moonday. The perfect day to do it.’

He wrote it on her back, some of the words were hard to read. “Moonday? I have not heard anypony call it that in a long time. I think they prefer Mon-day now.” She was unable to hide her smile. Jax kept surprising her.

‘Yeah yeah, ponies can say whatever they want. You and me Luna, to us it will be Moonday.’

Her smile grew bigger. “If you insist.” She responded, but she thought he could actually tell how happy she was. A day for the sun, and a day for the moon. Most ponies have forgotten that Monday was once Moonday. It made her unreasonably happy to see him refer to it as so.

They made it to their destination, the meadow where they had stargazed for the first time, the place Jax had been dreaming of the night prior. They settled down.

‘You remember the space you can manipulate?’

Luna gave him a confident smile. “I am the Princess of the Night! I remember perfectly well which stars ponies use for what, and which I can change.”

‘Good. Ready to try your hand at animating again?’

“Yes. Let us do this.” She looked up at the tiny square of sky in which she could play with her stars without bothering anypony. She charged her horn and cleared the stars there. Then she slowly let them reappear in new positions, until they formed a face. A human face, with shimmering eyes, a small nose, and a messy mane. There was however a frown on his face. She was going to change that.

The reason ‘animating’ was hard for her, was because the spell itself took a lot of concentration. She had to keep some starlight from reaching them, she had to manipulate some of it so it looked like it came from a different place, and when she tried to animate them, she had to control the light of each individual star she was moving. But this… she was determined to do this right.

Using all her focus, and going slowly, the star-human slowly turned his frown upside down, until he was smiling down at them.

She felt the human beside her hug her a little tighter, and looking at him, she saw that his smile matched that of the star-human. He looked over at her, then quickly wrote a note.

‘That is so cool.’

Luna felt a bit giddy at the compliment. She wanted to make him happy and she had succeeded, and that made her feel like she could overcome any obstacle, be it a storm, her own demons, or even Discord himself. She put a wing around him and pulled him closer.

“You’re pretty cool as well.” She said with the same teasing tone she had used in the dream.

‘Well… I’m no Rainbow Dash, but I AM the coolest human on the planet.’

That made her chuckle. “So… what do you want me to animate next?”

‘If that’s me up there smiling, then you need to be next to me.’

Her heart almost skipped a beat. That was…

She shook her head to clear it. She smiled down at Jax, and started placing the stars in the room next to the star-human. Soon star-Luna and star-Jax were looking down at them, both as happy as can be.

***

She did not know when, or why, but at some point she had mentioned the beginning of his dream, where he had been dancing in this very meadow, and after some teasing comments and sarcasm (on his part), they decided to dance to her humming.

So there they were, Luna on her hind legs once again, forelegs over his shoulders, dancing in the moonlight. It was easier this time, but they were still dancing slowly. Luna enjoyed every movement, every slow, synchronized step they took. She realized she was humming the same song as the song they had danced to at the party. It made her smile warmly.

She could not think of doing this with anypony else, yet with Jax it felt as natural as walking. A lot of things were like that with Jax.

She thought back to the dream. She had almost kissed him.

She could not help but wonder… if he would have liked it.

Author's Note

I know this is a bit on the short side, but I'm gonna upload another chapter for you guys tomorrow, the time-skip chapter, so be happy ;)

Chapter 50

Twilight was nervous. It was Sunday, so it was her turn to supervise Jax, and she already had everything planed out.

“Let’s go over the schedule one more time.”

“Alright.” Spike answered as if he expected her to say that. “First, we go get Jax. Then you show him all of the experiments you started thanks to him, from light pollution to air pollution and see if he has any additional input. Then we eat lunch…” Spike paused to yawn. “Twilight, how do you know he’s even eaten breakfast? It is pretty early. The sun hasn’t even risen yet."

“Good point Spike… We should have thought of that before we ate breakfast. Alright, we go to Jax' house, we let him eat breakfast, then we come back here. Write it down Spike.”

“On it. Alright, go to house, eat breakfast… There.” He finished scribbling the new points down.

“See Spike? This is why you double- and triple check the list.”

“Yeah, yeah, I know Twilight. Why are you making a list anyway? You don’t do it when you go out with your other friends…. You do see him as a friend, right?” He asked with a hint of suspicion in his voice.

“Spike! Of course I do!” That much should be obvious. “I just… the last time I didn’t make a list for Jax… he ended up on fire! It looks like they finally stopped joking about it, I don’t want them to start again.”

“Actually, you didn’t make a list when you made that pen thing either, and that went fine. Come on Twilight, I know you better than that. What’s this really about?” Twilight quickly got over her surprise. Sometimes she forgot how observant Spike could be.

“Well… I don’t…” she bit her lip, before finally spilling what had been on her mind. “I don’t know what to do about this….”

“What do you mean? You’re just going to hang out for a day. Seriously Twilight, you’ve tried hanging out with friends before.” Spike said as if it should be obvious.

“That’s not what I’m talking about Spike… I mean, the whole thing with Sombra. Normally when there is a problem, the girls and I use the elements, or I use some magic or I try to talk about it or something… but because of Jax’ body we can’t risk using the elements on him, and I can’t use my magic. I could try to talk, but I would be talking with Jax as much as I would be talking with Sombra, and that just doesn’t feel right. Jax already knows about friendship, he’s already made friends and he is without a doubt good. Talking about friendship to him seems a bit…” she struggled for the right words, but then just turned towards Spike. “You know?”

Spike shrugged. “It can’t hurt to do it anyway.”

“…I guess it’s better than not doing anything…. That’s what’s really making me nervous. But if… if Sombra does succeed in possessing Jax, what are we supposed to do? We can’t use magic on him, but he has already shown that he can… wait, Jax’ body would probably react to that as well…. So what is there to do?”

“I don’t know. Rainbow could probably take care of him if he can’t use magic.”

“Spike! That’s Jax’ body we are talking about. We can’t just ask her to damage it.”

“Fine, then Applejack can use her rope. Look, Twilight, just focus on today. Hopefully we’ll never have to see Sombra take over.”

“You’re right Spike. Today must go perfectly. Let’s go over the list one more time!”

Spike groaned.

***

“And we have everything for you to make mushroom-spinach-bean soup?” Twilight asked to be sure. They were walking towards Jax’ house with their groceries, deciding that they might as well buy them on the way. The sun was properly over the horizon now.

“For the last time Twilight, I’ve never heard of such a soup so I’ll be mostly experimenting. But yeah, I think I can make it work with what we have.” Spike answered from behind the grocery bags. She had offered to carry at least some of it, but Spike insisted he could handle it.

“Alright Spike,” she relented as they arrived at the door. Twilight turned towards the home and began to knock.

The door swung open almost instantly to reveal Jax… a very tired looking Jax. That was actually and understatement. His mane was ragged and pointed in all directions. His eyes looked like they could barely keep themselves open, and the bags under them told a story of lack of sleep. She wasn’t too certain, but he also looked a bit paler than the last time she had seen him.

Twilight wasn’t certain that she had ever looked so tired herself, even after an all-nighter. For some reason, he was wearing a black cloak that covered all of him. Or rather… it would have if he didn’t have the hood down. It might just be because he was cold, but she had a feeling that there was something more to it.

She tried to exchange a worried look with Spike, but he was still buried in grocery bags and didn’t seem to notice anything wrong.

“Twilight!” Jax exclaimed in something that sounded like… tired excitement. “To what do I owe the honour?”

“Well it’s my turn to…” she drifted off, unsure what to call it.

“Guard me? Oh yes… already Sunday then? Yes, come on in. I was just about to make breakfast, if you want some.”

‘Guard’ didn’t sound quite right, but in lack of a better word, she went pass him, into the joint living room/kitchen. She caught a glimpse of Mr. Bear sleeping on the bed when she went pass the open bedroom door.

“Oh hey Spike. Didn’t see you there.”

“You look terrible.” Spike stated bluntly behind her.

“Thanks. You don’t look too bad yourself.” The sound of a door closing resounded as she made her way over and sat by the table. Spike soon joined her after he had put the bags down, and Jax went back to the kitchen and looked inside the fridge.

She noticed that the back of his cape was decorated with moonstones, sparkling merrily at her. Rarity really outdid herself. It looked beautiful.

“So what do you need? I still have a couple of apples left, I have some carrots, onions… potatoes… cheese… eggs… and some other stuff. All fresh, except the apples.”

“Oh, we’ve already eaten breakfast. You can just make some for yourself.”

“Alright.” He started peeling an onion. She couldn’t help but wonder what he was making.

She studied him while he made food. Besides looking tired, he didn’t look all that happy… but she couldn’t figure out if it was simply because he was tired. It was pretty clear he hadn’t been sleeping well. His movements were sloppy, and he dropped items more than once. She would have caught them in her magic, but she didn’t want to risk using it so close to him. Who knew what would happen when he was like this and came in contact with magic?

Making food might be a generous term for what he was doing. He was just cutting seemingly random things and putting them in a bowl.

“What are you making?” She asked when her curiosity got the better of her.

“Fruit salad.” He answered as if it was obvious. All excitement from his voice was completely gone and he just sounded very tired.

“Fruit salad… with onions, carrots, apples, and cheese? The only fruit you added were apples….”

He paused, but then shrugged and continued. “Salad with apples then. I should have bought some lettuce now that I think about it.”

Spike slowly raised his claw to his face and sighed. “There’s experimenting with food, and then there’s just putting random stuff in a bowl. I think even Twilight would be able to make a better meal than that.”

“Hey! I know how to make basic sandwiches and… uhm.”

“Yeah, and that’s only because I taught you. You were always too busy studying, when you should have spent some more time in the kitchen with mom. Like me.” He pointed at himself with a claw, pride clear in his voice. Looking back now, maybe spending some more time with mom would have been nice. They really should visit her and dad soon.

“Well you’re not the one who’s going to eat it, so I don’t believe it matters much.” Jax interrupted as he came over with the bowl and a spoon.

Twilight dropped the retort she had ready and watched Jax with interest instead. He raised a spoonful of the… salad… and put it in his mouth. After a couple of crunchy bites, she finally asked, “how does it taste?”

“… Crunchy. Just the way I like it, though a little dry… wait, let me get some….” He went back to the fridge and came back with milk, but no glass.

“Wait you aren’t going to…?” She said in surprise, but her question was answered when he poured the milk directly into the bowl. She and Spike watched in stunned silence as he raised another spoonful of… whatever that was. She had made some bad meals while Spike was out or sleeping, but never had she made anything so weird. Maybe it was a human thing?

“How… how did it taste with milk?” Spike finally asked when Jax was finished swallowing.

“… Exotic.”

“So… bad?”

“… It’s an acquired taste I guess. At least it isn’t dry anymore.” He took another bite.

“Is this the first time you've tried living alone? If it isn’t, how did you survive? Should I come cook for you?” Spike asked him. She was proud of him for offering to help. She would have offered the same, but as he had pointed out… her cooking skills weren’t the most advanced.

“I’ve lived alone before, in my world we had these frozen packages with finished meals in them, and no, I’ll survive. I promise not to make this anymore….” He made a face as he took another bite, but kept chewing.

After a couple more bites he snapped his fingers in the same way Discord does when he uses magic, making them both jump, and pointed at Twilight. “Rainbow Dash.”

“No? I’m Twilight, remember?” Maybe she should be more worried about him, if he could remember her name one minute and forget it the next.

“No, I mean, I forgot all about her yesterday. We need to go see her today.” He explained.

“… Yes. Of course.” It was a good idea to go see Rainbow Dash, and she wasn’t going to argue against it… she just hoped it didn’t mess up her schedule too much. She should have made more room in it to accommodate his wishes. It was a rookie mistake, and now she would have to either give up the schedule or make major changes to it. She took a deep breath. She didn't need the schedule. It was like Spike had pointed out... Jax was a friend, and friends don't make schedules when they go out.

She would just remember the most important parts of it... it would do.

***

“Hey Rainbow!” Jax exclaimed, excitement back in his voice.

“Jax!” He proceeded to bump her hoof. Twilight entered the small hospital room behind Jax, while Spike had gone to the castle with the groceries. She was immediately overwhelmed by a strong smell of different flowers. “Twilight as well. I thought you two were never going to visit.” Rainbow joked with a grin.

She went over and sat down on her haunches. Jax had taken the only chair.

“Yeah, sorry, I meant to be here both the day before yesterday and yesterday, but…” Jax scratched the back of his head awkwardly and she soon followed suit.

“Yeah, me too… I got a bit too engrossed in an experiment. Sorry.”

Rainbow waved them off with a hoof. “Ah that’s alright. Fluttershy, Pinkie, Applejack, and Rarity have been covering for you. Not to mention a ton of other ponies. I’m pretty popular, you know.” She adopted her cocky grin.

Some ponies would say that Rainbow was a bit full of herself. Twilight knew that there was so much more to her though, and apparently so did Jax, because he just laughed and agreed with her.

“Of course you are. A pony as awesome as you? I bet this room is crowded by noon.” Judging by all the flowers and get-well-soon cards scattered across the room, that wasn’t much of an exaggeration.

Twilight could practically see Rainbow’s chest swell. She could understand why they were such good friends if Jax was willing to stroke her ego as much. He wasn’t on Scootaloo’s level, but on the other hoof maybe that made his comments more earnest. It certainly sounded more natural than if she had tried saying the same thing.

In either case, it was good to see him laugh and smile. Maybe things weren’t as bad as she had assumed.

“Have you read any of the Daring Do books I gave you?” Rainbow asked him.

“I’ve been meaning to, but things have been… intense.”

“Alright I’ll forgive you this time, but don’t wait too long with reading them! I want to hear what you think of them. I’m sure Twilight would enjoy somepony else to talk about them as well. Right Twi?”

Twilight nodded and smiled “Of course.”

And so the conversation continued until noon.

Rainbow did get some more visitors, but most of them awkwardly backtracked when they saw Jax in the room. While she did notice the drop in Jax’ mood at those points, Rainbow Dash did as well and was quick to pull it up again. And some ponies did come that didn’t mind at all.

They left Fluttershy, Pinkie, Derpy, and Flitter to take care of Rainbow, and exited the room.

Just for Jax to stand face to muzzle with Big Mac, or as close as they could get with Jax being so tall. Twilight could see there was something unresolved between them. Jax’ scowl and Big Mac’s refusal to look Jax in the eye was enough of an indication.

The pressure kept building as they just stood there, until Big Mac finally took a step back from the door, and Jax had enough room to walk past him, which he did with hurried steps.

Twilight rushed after him. He still had a scowl, and as she watched, he raised the hood of his cloak, hiding his face in shadows.

Twilight didn’t like it one bit. “Did… did Big Mac do something to offend you?” She ventured. She couldn’t remember any problems between them when they worked on the farm… Now that she thought about, they hadn’t worked together the last couple of days. Not since Jax was taken over by Sombra, as far as she remembered.

Jax suddenly stopped and took a deep breath. “It’s nothing.” He said in a gentler tone than she would expect. When he removed the hood, she was surprised to see a broad smile on his face. On closer look though, it was clearly forced.

“Are you su-?“

“Let’s… let’s go back to your castle. It’s been a while since I’ve seen it from the inside. I mean, you can’t enter town without seeing it from the outside, a real eyesore that doesn’t fit at all with the rest of the town… uhm, no offence.” He started walking again without waiting for her answer. “It’s nice to have my little cabin by the woods. Thanks for the bed by the way, it’s very comfy.…”

Twilight followed slowly, not really listening as he continued talking. It sounded to her like he was just trying to distract her. At least he wasn’t frowning anymore.

Maybe her surprise later would cheer him up.

***

“... been on my mind for a while, but I finally managed to make my own light bulb,” Twilight proudly showed off her invention after her lengthily explanation of how she failed again and again until she finally got inspiration. “that not only reduces light pollution, but also costs less energy. We are going to stop this problem before it even begins!” She smiled excitedly at Jax, who actually looked quite impressed.

“Wow Twilight. Making your own light bulb for the sole purpose of stopping a potential problem I told you about. Don’t let anypony tell- anybody tell you that you aren’t driven to protect Equestria from monsters and common problems alike.”

Twilight smiled proudly. Jax seemed to be in a better mood, and he took to her academic explanation better than all her other friends combined. He actually listened and tried to understand what she was saying.

“I actually think I remember something about a similar solution being presented back… back on Earth, but for some reason it never really took off. Saving money on bills and saving the environment apparently wasn’t enough to change anybody’s habits… You have a plan for that?”

“Well… no. I’m going to start by introducing my light bulb to the academics of Canterlot to see if they have anything to add. But even if we don’t take the light pollution into account, it’s still a way to save bits for the government, so I don’t think they’ll be against replacing, or at least gradually replacing, the light bulbs in all major cities as a beginning.” Of course this was the government… things were never easy with the government. Well… worst case scenario, she would have to use her status as Princess. It was for a good cause after all.

“Alright, if you know what you are doing.” He gave her a small smile. “I’ve been meaning to ask, but are you working on something for air pollution as well? I know this world is far from having that sort of problem, but I think the same can be said for the light pollution and here we are with a new light bulb to fight the problem.” His smile broadened. It was good to see something that looked like his usual smile.

“I have been trying to work on something, but I’ve mainly focused on the light pollution.” She took out some blueprints she had on a shelf. She had learned about making artifacts, a very well covered class in Celestia’s school, since it was dangerous to go into unprepared, but she had never tried to make anything this big and advanced. This was work more fit for an engineer.

One of the blueprints was of an existing train, the others were different solutions she had tried. “Since trains are the main source of coal-burning, I decided to start there. I tried to replace the burning of coal with burning of magic, which I theorize would be harmless for the environment. Of course I would need more data, but even if we suppose it is, I’m having trouble with designing it so it would easily fit instead of the coal burner.”

Jax looked thoughtful. “I think burning magic would be a bad idea. As far as I understand it, only unicorns would be able to feed it then.”

“Well… yes, that is another problem. I’m not sure were the energy could come from otherwise though.”

“… I think it would be best to use electricity. Do you have generators?” Twilight nodded. They weren’t used as much as magic, but especially earth ponies in far off villages used them. At least those that weren’t too traditional. “I’m not an engineer, but I think cars back on Earth have generators attached to the wheels, so they make energy as they drive. They just need enough to start.” He scratched his growing beard. “At least I think they do.”

“How… how do… how do they…” she grabbed her head with her hooves in an effort to sort her thoughts. So many questions….

“Let me just make sure you understand. I’m neither an engineer nor a car enthusiast. I only know common stuff.”

She quickly prioritized her questions. “If they need energy to run, how are they started? Do humans all walk around with generators to start their… cars? Or is there a manual generator in every car to start it?” She stopped the tirade of questions, hoping he could answer.

Jax gave a short laugh. “No. We have something called batteries. Batteries are…” He started before she could ask, but paused to think. “I guess they are a metal casing around a chemical that can… save? Retain? That can store energy for later use.”

She quickly wrote everything down. Spike was off making dinner, so she couldn’t have him do it.

When she looked up again to ask him more questions, he looked at her with tired eyes. “… Thank you. I will have to discuss this with other ponies who know a bit more about electricity and engineering, and it will probably take years, but from what you told me, I think we have the time.” She smiled softly at her friend. He looked relieved.

“I have a surprise for you in a bit, but before that… can I try to talk with Sombra? I mean… he can hear everything we say, can’t he?” She asked, a bit unsure.

Jax looked apprehensive, but nodded nonetheless. “This will probably be weird. I’ll tell you if he answers. I don’t think he will though….” He clenched his jaw hard for a reason Twilight couldn’t understand. The last sentence was said almost in spite.

“Alright….” She cleared her throat and straightened up. She had become pretty good at friendship speeches, if she had to say so herself, so this should be no problem. “Hello Sombra. You probably remember me from that time-“ She stopped herself. Bringing up his defeat might not be such a good idea… and it’s not like they had really met, except when she arrived at the Crystal Empire. “I mean… my name is Twilight Sparkle, and I am the Princess of Friendship.” She smiled at Jax, who was looking at her passively. She couldn’t really blame him.

“Now, I know we didn’t start off on the right hoof the last time we met, with you trying to take over the Crystal Empire, and me stopping you…” she just mentioned it anyway. She should have written down her speech, why did she think she could do this the way she had it in the past? This didn’t feel natural at all. “… but I hope that we can start over.”

She thought about what she had just said. She had never felt so awkward while giving a friendship speech before. It just didn’t feel right.

“… Twilight.” Jax finally uttered in disbelief after a length of silence. “Why do you want to start over with Sombrero? He is literally trying to mind rape me and steal my body.”

“Oh! I should probably have started… okay let me try again.” She cleared her throat.

“Sombra. I know that you’re… I know you… you are evil! But you don’t have to keep being evil… and when you don’t… uhm” She was starting to sweat worse than that time Celestia presented her with a pop-quiz. Why was this so hard? She looked at Jax’ blank expression. She could do this.

She straightened herself again. “Everypony deserves a second chance.” She grabbed on to the statement like a drowning rat. Luna had received a second chance, Discord had gotten a second chance, and Sombra deserved it as well. It was a good start. “So, if you feel like… like giving up… no, like forsaking your evil ways, and try to give friendship a chance, I will be ready to give you that second chance.” She said with a bit more confidence… but… it still felt empty. She looked at Jax. Jax looked back at her. “So?” she finally asked.

“So?” he parroted.

“So… did he answer?”

Jax blinked a couple of times. “Oh, you’re done? No, not a peep, as far as I can tell.”

She sighed deeply. She should have known it would be like this. She really couldn’t do it.

Luckily Spike bailed her out. “Food is ready!”

“Oh good, it’s almost time for your surprise.” She smiled excitedly at him. He returned the smiled with one of his own, though it was a bit faint.

They entered the dining hall side by side. It smelled fantastic, the subtle smell of mouth-watering mushrooms hang in the air, with only a barely noticeable fragrance of spinach and beans, almost entirely hidden under other ingredients. She didn’t know how, but Spike had a way in the kitchen that she lacked. He could make even a simple sandwich into a piece of art. Other than them, the room was empty of both guards and maids, just like she’d requested.

“Smells great, Spike.” Jax commented. “What kind of soup is this?”

The middle of the table held a rather large canister, clearly made for soup. Spike didn’t use it that often because he complained it was too big, but he had apparently made an exception. They both sat down, and Spike bowed in a grand fashion, like he was unveiling some great work of art.

“Ladies and gentlecolts, it is my pride, no, my honor to present to you, probably the first of its kind… The mushroom-spinach-bean soup… uhm, to be renamed at a later date." He took of the lid, spreading the pleasant fragrance even further.

“Hah, well that’s a weird combination, but it smells great. Let’s try it.” Jax hoofed Spike his bowl, which was promptly filled. Twilight got her bowl filled as well, and Spike filled his own bowl last.

“Enjoy.”

Ponies normally didn’t use utensils, but she knew Jax had been very insistent on his need for them, back when he lived in the castle. She enveloped her own spoon in her magic, and made sure to blow on the warm soup, unlike Spike who could slurp it down as it was.

Her eyes widened slightly as the taste overwhelmed her mouth. She knew Spike was an excellent cook, but this was beyond what she thought he could do with her request. The soup itself wasn’t too watered down, but not too thick either. Beyond the ingredients in the name, he had also added pasta, and a plateau of powdered ingredients she couldn’t identify, that he had mixed to complement each other perfectly. She was just about to compliment it, when Jax beat her to it.

“Holy- This is great! I had my doubts when you said it had spinach and beans in it, shows me to underestimate your cooking skills. Maybe I will accept your offer to come cook for me. Jesus. Can I have some of this to take home?”

Spike visibly blushed at Jax’ enthusiasm, but she could also see his chest swell with pride. “It’s nothing really, it’s all about finding the right mix of ingredients. I’m glad you like it though. I’ll make sure to pack some of it for you.”

“He is right Spike. This is great. Well done.” She gave him a big smile, which made him blush more.

Twilight was excited. This was going better than she expected. She waited for him to finish his bowl, and then his second bowl.

“Ahh… that was great.” He sighed, looking more content than he had all day.

“I have some good news for you.” She finally revealed.

“Oh? Is this the surprise you were talking about? I was expecting cake but ah well.” He gave her a teasing smile, with that spark in his eyes that she hadn’t realized she hadn’t seen in a while.

“Yes, this is the surprise.” She gave him an excited smile. “You don’t have to eat meat anymore!”

“Wait, what?”

She barely heard him as she started pacing back and forth in front of the table. “I’ve been studying omnivore behaviour, which unfortunately is a very limited topic, but I couldn’t exactly scan you to find the information I needed, but it turns out that everything you need to supplement your diet beyond fruit and basic vegetables that I’ve seen you eat is in mushrooms, spinach, and beans. Isn’t this great?! You don’t have to kill innocent animals to survive anymore!” She finished by looking at him for confirmation. She expected him to be happy at the news, she really did… instead he looked at her with a hurt expression.

“I… didn’t think you minded me eating meat?” He almost whispered.

“Well…” She started a bit confused. “I wasn’t going to say anything when I thought you didn’t have a choice, the same way I don’t tell Fluttershy to start feeding her carnivore friends with vegetables. They don’t have a choice… you do. You’re not a carnivore, you’re an omnivore… you actually can survive without meat. Isn’t this… isn’t this good?” Why wasn’t he happy? He didn’t even seem surprised.

“But… what if I like eating meat? What if I don’t want to stop?” His voice sounded hoarse.

Twilight was confused. What was he talking about? “You like eating the flesh of innocent life? Life that could have continued if you didn’t-“ She suddenly gasped, as a horrible realization hit her. “You knew. You knew and you lied to everypony about it, you even told them in the paper that you didn’t have a choice!” He stood up as if she had hit him, the chair falling behind him.

Then his face distorted in anger. “Yes I fucking knew! I knew but I didn’t want to give up something I enjoyed so I lied! And it’s not like I go around killing Fluttershy’s friends, it’s just some stupid fish!”

Twilight slammed her hoof into the table, unable to believe what she was hearing. “So fish don’t deserve to live but you do?! What kind of thinking is that? You don’t even need to kill them to live, you’re just doing it for your own enjoyment!” She felt sick. She couldn’t even blame Sombra for Jax’ behaviour, since he hadn’t even been around back then.

“Oh don’t act so high and mighty! Every apple you eat are trees that will never be! Plants don’t deserve to live as much as animals? Everything in the world lives of off the death of another living being!” He slammed his hand on the table as well. Spike looked from Twilight to Jax, worry clear on his face.

“First of all, Changelings live off love and Tirek lives off magic, second of all, that’s not the point! I told you I was fine with it if you didn’t have a choice, like I have no choice to live off plants and fruit!

“You don’t know that because you didn’t even fucking ask them before they were blown away to oblivion! As far as we know changelings need normal food as much as they need love. Or maybe they just enjoy the taste of love?! You have made no tries to find out!”

“I have too! You try to find a race that can change their appearance to be anything! They don’t want to be found!” Tears stung in Twilight’s eyes at the jab on her pride. She really had tried to find a changeling to befriend, but no matter where she looked, there was no sign of them. It was like they had just disappeared as quickly as they had appeared. “And don’t change the subject! This is about you wanting to kill an innocent creature for your own pleasure like some kind of-!” She stopped herself before she could utter the last word that she would regret saying forever, but she could see by his stunned silence that he knew exactly what she about to say.

He turned around, but not before she saw just how hurt he looked. “Jax, w-wait, I-I didn’t mean-“

“Maybe…” He interrupted her, his voice shaking. He started moving towards the door. “Maybe I’ll go back to the Everfree, where I can be the monster you won’t accept!” He slammed the door behind him.

Twilight looked at the door as it started blurring more and more, until the tears finally started falling, making a wet path on her muzzle.

Spike was there before she even realized that she was crying. He hugged her tightly, and she held onto him like he was the only thing that would keep her from drowning. She had never had an argument this severe with any of her other friends. She was completely lost as to what to do.

“Give him time.” Spike said soothingly as he stroked her mane. “I don't think dropping it on him like that was a good idea, but maybe with time...."

Twilight nodded meekly. She felt stupid for not thinking this through. Once again she found herself feeling… like she wasn’t suited for being the Princess of Friendship after all. There was so much she didn’t know yet… so much she still needed to learn.

Maybe, after she had reconciled with Jax, if he even wanted to, she could write another friendship report to Celestia. That would probably make her feel better.

Author's Note

Hey guys, I have an editor now! Midnight Blossom has accepted the role both for this story and the next I'm writing,
so I decided to become an editor on her own story Moon's Wish XD
Anyway... Twilight and Jax are both silly. But sometimes Humans and ponies are silly. It's part of life really.

On a different note, thanks to those of you who recommended some fanfics XD My 'read later' list is stuffed, but thanks XD I'm glad to hear you fellows appreciate my recommendations. The reason I haven't recommended one in a long while is partly because I don't remember which I have and haven't recommended XD I mean, there's Moon's Wish earlier in this AU, but so far it's only one chapter... So I looked through my previous chapter, and I don't think I've recommended A Thief On the Rise. It updates rarely unfortunately, but it's good ^^

Chapter 75 - Captured

All the way through his journey as luggage for what turned out to be two out of eight ponies, the short way past the passed out guards, out of his little barrier, and even all the way through the Everfree, Jax felt only a little discomfort. No great annoyance, or malice, or the hope of death upon those who dare abduct him. Just… acceptance. ‘Yep, this was his life now’ sort of thing. He knew he should feel the same way Sombra did, ranting about how they would suffer for their transgressions against him, but… he didn’t. Through the forest, he wondered how the leaves could blot out so much of the light when the trees looked so gnarled and dead. When they entered a cave, he wondered how it could be so deep with no support beams, and not collapse right on top of them.

Detached. That was how he felt. He was somewhat aware that he should be able to feel hate, since he supposedly only had his love sucked out, but no such feelings came forth. He was just… there.

The cave finally opened up into a large chamber, where five ponies were gathered. There wasn’t much in there, just some chairs and a table, stalactites and stalagmites… something that looked like changelings hanging from the ceiling in the corner... neat place. Together with the eight ponies that had captured him, that made thirteen ponies, three changelings, one human, and one Sombra.

“We got him, and left the changeling behind, just as planned.” The earth pony that carried him informed them. He didn’t seem very victorious for someone who had just succeeded in an important mission.

A pony in a suit came forward, looking Jax over. The look in his eyes could only be described as ‘hungry’ and it didn’t sit well with Jax.

‘Wow… I would comment on the look he gave you, but I might very well have had that look in the past.’ Sombra commented. Jax wasn’t sure what to answer to that.

“I cannot believe we caught you so easily… Sombra.” He said the name with contempt. “I must admit, I had a bit of doubt that the plan would work… I mean, how could such a simple plan work? Yet here we are… I knew something was wrong when my spies told me about Hidden Gem. You had cast her away for a reason! She was a weakness, and you were stronger without her!” He finally took some deep breaths.

‘Why is this stallion speaking like he knows me..?’ Sombra sounded confused.

“I must admit, I am disappointed in you Sombra. I expected more from you. It seems you stopped being a threat long ago though… if I had known, I would have struck faster.” He finally turned away from them. “Tie him up with the others. We’ve prepared the spell, it should work. If I know Luna well, she will come charging in here, and then we’ll have her.” The suit pony declared as a sinister grin spread on his muzzle. Something twitched within Jax at the mention of ‘Luna’ and ‘have her’, but not enough to leave him worried.

‘Ah… so it was a trap.’ Sombra grumbled as they were lifted over to the changelings. ‘That means they are not as dumb as I had hoped.’

The ponies tied them up very thoroughly, even more than they already were and practically cocooned them in rope, then hung them up next to the changelings. Not very comfortable. He couldn’t move a muscle, and the textile that was shoved into his mouth to keep him from talking tasted weird. He could do nothing but breathe through his nose, the damp smell of the place making him wish they had burned some scented candles or something.

‘You know, this all feels very nostalgic. The schemes, the betting it all on one thing going right… so this is how it feels to be on the receiving end.’ Sombra actually sounded a little amused. ‘Cannot say I enjoy it much… but at least they are not after me, I think. Seems like they really want Luna, despite… that speech.’

Silence reigned between them for a while as the ponies in front of them discussed when Luna was going to arrive - apparently they had at least an hour, and they had set out wards just in case - until Sombra finally asked: ‘Are you really okay with this? They want Luna, and I am fairly certain they do not have good intentions.’

‘I… know that I should be worried, but I can’t seem to… do it. It’s weird.’

‘Yes, but also interesting. To think love was tied to so many emotions. Worry for her, I can see why you would not feel, but anger about your current situation? What does anger have to do with love? How much love did he really take from you? And was it only love? Hmm, there is a lifetime of study here.’

‘Thinking about going straight?’ Asked, a bit distracted by the ponies. The unicorns were engraving something into the very rock of the floor.

Sombra scoffed at his comment. ‘Not like I have many options, seeing as I gave myself up to the throne. And… going back to the way things were would… well… Hidden Gem would be sad.’

‘Mmm.’ He agreed, feeling a twinge of something again. There was nothing for it but to wait, he assumed. Not like there was much he could do.

***

It went so slowly that he didn’t even notice that he was becoming himself again. He entertained himself by swinging back and forth, to distract from the numbness that was spreading, when he noticed he felt grumpy by the whole situation, but somewhat pleased that his kidnappers seemed to feel ridiculously restless. They went around, checked the ritual thing in the centre, tested if the hostages’ (Jax’ and the changelings’) ropes were still tight, reviewed the plan again and again - waited for Luna to come storming in and trap her in the thing they called a restriction rune, which was the ritual thingy they had etched into the stone in the middle of the room - in any case, Jax wasn’t sure what they planned to do with Luna after that, and neither did they, it seemed… or maybe they knew all too well. Nopony mentioned anything about it, as if the most important thing was to capture her and nothing else.

In any case, Jax was becoming more and more pissed. Being tied up and hung as some kind of exotic decoration was one thing, leaving him hanging until he felt like the rough rope was going to cut through his skin was another… but that they dared threaten his Luna - that was unforgivable. With the anger came the inevitable frustration of not being able to do anything while strung up like he was, the hope that Luna wasn’t going to charge in here like a ravaging beast, the worry that she was going to do exactly that - it was the eagerness for something to happen, and the prayer that it never would.

‘Control yourself. There is an option yet.’ Sombra called from deep within him. ‘You, by yourself, could not hope to do anything… but together, we can forge a way out of this. All you have to do, is focus. I shall grant thee the spell for thine powers to unlock, the power to vanquish those before us, those that dared bring us here.’

‘…why are you speaking like that? It’s totally awesome when Luna does it, but when you do it… I feel like I’m about to sell my soul or something.’ Jax shivered.

‘… Fine. I just thought it fit the mood pretty well, and I wanted to try it. The Crystal Empire had moved on from that way of speaking long before-‘ Sombra cut himself of from whatever he was about to grumpily explain, and took on a more serious tone again. ‘In any case, I’ll cast a spell, and you just focus on fun or what it is you have to do.’

‘I dunno man. I mean I want to do something, but that is pretty risky’

‘What do you mean? I use a simple spell, you take care of the fun part, and we’re out of here. No need to wait for help like some kind of helpless-‘

‘Yeah, how about no? What if something goes wrong? What if I just make things worse? I’m not exactly in the ‘fun’ mood right now, if you couldn’t guess.’ Jax argued.

‘What, you would rather wait here like some pathetic slab of meat? We have the power to get out, if you would just-‘ Sombra sounded like he couldn’t believe what he was hearing.

‘but-‘

‘Use it! You will never get better at using it if you do not practise! You will never gain strength if you fear your power!’

‘…No.’ Jax put his figurative foot down.

‘What do you mean NO! Do you not see that-’ Sombra sounded outraged, but cut himself off and did something that to Jax seemed like he was taking some deep breaths to calm himself. ‘… Alright… alright, I shall bite: Why not?’

‘What do you mean why not, I just told you!’

‘Yes, but I am asking about the real reason.’

‘I - well… alright, fine. The first time I used it, I caused my friend pain. The second time I was caught on fire. So you can understand if I’m a bit reluctant.’

‘… No I cannot. The third time you used it to over and over again to try and create a pen.’

‘That was different. I had both Twilight and Luna watching over me in a safe environment.’

‘The forth time you made a portal right in front of me.’

‘That was to save Rainbow Dash from dying! I wasn’t even thinking, it just sort of happened. Thanks for that by the way.’

‘Do you take responsibility for everything you did while under the influence of a positive magic high? Anyway, the fifth time you trapped me in here with you.’

‘Yeah, whatever. I couldn’t just let you take over my body to kill them.’

‘You think these ponies have peaceful intentions?! You think they took us to have peaceful a conversation? Come now, Jax. I know you are not the smartest, but you cannot honestly believe that it will end well if we do nothing!’

‘Alrigth, alright, chill.’ Jax finaly gave in a little. ‘No need to mock my intelligence. Look… the reason I’m a little nervours in using the powers unattended is that… the fact that anything at all can happen... Anything. At. All… it worries me deeply. If this was an emergency - if I really believed that Luna was going to fly through that opening all alone for some reason, I wouldn’t hesitate to do this, even for the chance to avoid anything bad happening to her… but that obviously won’t happen. You know Twilight and the girls are going to bust out any time now and save the day, as they always do.’

‘Twilight is in Canterlot, remember?’

‘Oh… right. Well the rest of them can easily handle this. They know the way out to the old castle, and I’m sure that bastard… I mean, poor changeling found and told someone about the situation.’

‘Yes, certainly… but the thing you are describing is too perfect, too simple to happen. But alright, I understand. Let’s use it as a last resort, in case Luna does come alone, or the… girls… are in trouble. I am just going to say right now that I do not endorse this method.’ He ended, but finally seemed to drop the subject.

‘Thank you.’ Jax sighed in relief at not having to discuss it any further, even though what Sombra had mentioned about simpleness worried him. Surely his bad luck wasn’t so bad that… no, no it was fine.

‘In any case, there’s something curious about your whole chaos magic…’ Sombra started a new conversation, which Jax was grateful for. It helped take his mind off things. ‘Maybe ‘fun’ is the way Discord controls it… but that does not mean it is the only way it can be done. When you opened a portal from the orchard to the hospital, it did just that.’

‘Well maybe the fun was that I couldn’t close it afterwards? What would I have done if Discord hadn’t come to take care of it. It’s also the way Pinkie does it, so that’s a hundred percent success rate for fun.’

‘Yes, but in situations like these I can understand why you would have a little trouble with it. My theory would be… It cannot be contained. It cannot be ordered. I think that is where it lies. It is chaos, truly free… and that is how you must treat it.’

‘… yes, okay, thank you. That’s almost as vague as the ‘fun’ thing.’ Jax sighed. They all seemed to think it was so easy.

‘It may be vague, but that is in part your own fault. There is not a lot of data to work with here. Magic in general is vague, in case you did not know. Most unicorns probably would not be able to tell you how they levitate objects - it has just become second nature to them. Most spells require you to have a clear picture of the outcome, especially transformation spells. It makes long distance teleportation almost impossible then, does it not? And teleporting to places you have never set hoof in - not to mention taking into account the curvature of the planet!’ Sombra laughed at something Jax didn’t quite get. ‘Ahh, thankfully math has been integrated in spells-‘

‘Let me guess, it was Starswirl the Bearded that did it?’ Jax asked, almost comically anticipating to see whether his guess was right or not. Starswirl just happened to be the only wizard he knew of, and he remembered hazily Twilight telling him about how influential he had been.

‘Well, not exactly - he was certainly the one to integrate it properly into many spells, and is known for distributing it to the masses, but several wizards had tried before him -‘ Sombra cut himself off as the atmosphere in the cave changed drastically. Every pony head in the cave turned towards the entrance at the same time. The head guy - the one in the suit - smiled his creepy smile again

“She’s here.” They all said simultaneously. It was… well, unnerving.

Fear crept up Jax’ spine and made him shiver. ‘Please at least be accompanied by the elements, please be accompanied by the elements, please… please….‘ He prayed to whatever gods may be. If he knew anything in this world, it was that those girls were problem-solving experts.

“THOU DAREST STEAL MY JAX?!” came a shout that shook the whole cave. For a second there was silence, then, the sound of wingbeats, before she appeared in all her graceful glory, face contorted with so much righteous fury, even Jax felt a little afraid. She paused in the air for a second, spreading her wings, probably taking in her surroundings. She hung in the air, almost blending in with the darkness, when her eyes started to shine with power. “THINE TRECHERY AWAITS PUNISHMENT, AND I - THE PRINCESS OF THE NIGHT - SHALL DELIVER IT!“

The whole cave shook again, dust and - more worriedly - pieces of the ceiling started to fall. The whole thing was probably going to collapse soon.

But man was Luna awesome. Jax was completely enchanted by the sight of his marefriend about to deal out some asskicking to these losers.

Alas, this was life, and life was rarely that simple for Jax. Some of the… cultists? Whatever they were, they started running towards him, and Luna, bless her sweet heart, followed without a moment’s hesitation, whether to get in range to use magic, or just beat them to him, he wasn’t sure, but… her flight path would lead her straight over the sigil/ rune/ thing that these fuckers had spent so much time etching into the stone ground.

Jax tried to warn her of course, tried to scream past the gag he had in his mouth, tried to will her to spot it before she was trapped, but it was all for naught. She flew over it, it lit up with power, and Luna slammed into a barrier that appeared in a circle around it. She fell down to the ground, disoriented. The cultists that had ran to him seemingly lost interest in him, as they joined as the others started amassing around his Luna, ignoring that pieces of the ceiling were still falling.

‘Use it! Use it now!’ He screamed in his mind to get Sombra to use magic.

‘This is why I wanted to do it earlier… with the way your acting right now, I honestly do not know what could happen.’ Sombra warned him. ‘Calm yourself. Let go of your anger, your regret, let it go so that you can save her.’

Luna looked around, then scoffed. “You think a simple restriction rune can hold me? I’ll be out of here -“ Then she cut herself off as she got a good look at the suit pony. “Justice Law? What are you doing… here….” Her face showed real confusion, as if never in a thousand years would she have guessed that this pony would be the one in charge of this operation.

“It’s true that it could never hold you… princess.” He spat out the word as if it was an insult. “but it was never meant to. It was just to get you here, so that we can talk.”

“Talk?” She asked still confused, looking around at the gathered ponies. “Isn’t that a maid from the castle? Why is one of my lawayers and… What are… you all… Ah.” Suddenly it looked like she understood something. “Changelings.”

“Wrong as always, little Wuuna.” A mare with a snobbish accent said degradingly. “No matter what you do, you’re always wrong, aren’t you?”

“And no matter what Celestia does, she’s always right.” Another pony took over, the earth pony that had partly carried Jax through the forest. “They all look at her like she was a saint, but is it not you who do the most important work? You hold court and help ponies personally with their nightmares. All she does is smile and garner their love.”

“Are you not as much a princess as she is? Why should they love her more than you?” A third pony said. “They sleep your night away while they play in her sun… doesn’t it frustrate you? Why do you even bother raising the moon when nopony is going to see it?”

They started walking around her, and Jax had never seen such a look of… despair on her before… she looked completely lost. He did not like that look one bit. Then and there, Jax made a choice. ‘Fuck the consequences. Do it now.’ He told Sombra with steel in his voice, willing with everything he had for Luna to be free.

“I do not understand… why are you doing this?” She sounded so frail… “What do you stand to gain?”

‘Alright.’ Was his short answer.

“Oh Luna, you never quite did understand, did you?” They started speaking with one voice, unaffected by chunks of the ceiling falling down around them in their eternal path around her. “Why they wouldn’t love you the same way they loved her. Why the sun was so beloved when you did all the hard work. Why they feared you. Do they fear you any less now, Luna? Are you as beloved as her? Did anything even change since then?!” They lashed forward at ‘change’, and Jax’ heart tightened when Luna recoiled. Seeing her so powerless… ‘What is taking so long?!’

“Of course it hasn’t!” They continued to torment her. “The answer is obvious. You are still unappreciated, you are still nothing compared to her, and all she has to do is smile!”

‘I cannot… seem… to…’ Sombra sounded like he had been straining to do something, before giving up. ‘These chains… they are still too tight. I can almost get a spell through but, it is stopped at the last second. I just need a bit more time….’

‘We don’t have time!’ He hurried, even as he tried get that damn gag off so he could shout to her. To tell her that things had changed, and if he had anything to say, they would continue to change until she was happy with what she saw.

The gag stayed where it was, but all his trashing seemed to gain Luna’s attention. They made eye-contact, and he felt like she could see everything he was trying to say in that brief moment.

Her face changed from despair to determination faster than you can say ‘stop being creepy.’

“Enough!” She shouted, not helping the situation with the ceiling, but at least it shut them up. There was a quick burst from her horn, and the barrier around her shattered. She stood up straight with pride and power that filled Jax with hope, and levitated all of them up into the air. “I am princess Luna, and though I may be damaged and barely healing, I will not let mere children break me. I will ask one more time… why are you doing this?”

Despite the power radiating out from her, despite being helplessly held in her aura… they all still smiled, and when they spoke, they still spoke as one. “You still don’t understand, of course you don’t. We are you Luna… your true self.” Then their voice became caring, almost loving. “Don’t worry… we will make them love you. They will all love you when you are the only princess to love, and how can they not see your sky when the night will last… FOREVER!”

Then the most chilling thing happened. Out of their mouths, came out a dark… mist or… fog. It gathered over her, and then flew into her mouth which had been open in shock.

‘The parasite! I knew it was not gone. So it has been scheming all this time….’ Sombra blurted out.

Jax’ heart screamed in frustration at how things were turning out. Despair almost overcame him alongside regret. How could things have turned out so disastrous? Why didn’t he stop it?

‘Do not take the blame. This is not your fault - even if you had agreed to using magic when I suggested, I would not have been able to use a spell.’

Luna just stood there, as still as a statue. Jax could only imagine what kind of internal battle was going on. All the ponies had been dropped onto the floor, unconscious. A terrible sound of earth shifting above them as more pieces of the ceiling was falling barely registered with Jax. Only one thing mattered….

‘Please… let me help her….’

Sombra concentrated on casting a spell.

***

Luna found herself in her room. She looked around in confusion, breathing heavily. She was in her room from way before… everything. Her room in the Castle of the Two Sisters, before she demolished most of it in her battle with Celestia. This room looked exactly the way it had back then, which was impossible. On the bed laid… well, her, but younger. Time travel? No, that was very implausible… a dream? That still felt wrong. She was not in the dream realm. A memory then.

That in itself was worrying… but even worse was the feeling it brought with it to be there. There was a deep sorrow gnawing at her soul, the same way it had been back then. She once again felt like she carried the weight of years and years of bottled up emotions.

Her heart felt like it contorted, making both her and memory-Luna whine and paw helplessly at their chest in a desperate attempt to make it stop. By the stars, it felt just as it had back then. This must be shortly before her transformation to Nightmare Moon.

Fear overwhelmed her even as tears made their way out of her eyes. She had never wanted to feel like this again. Feeling so unwanted that it hurt.

“Have you forgotten how it felt?" It was a whisper, almost caring in its tone, coming from seemingly nowhere. "The pain, the agitation, how lonely and small you felt…. Every. Single. Night. I was the one who made you feel powerful again. I was the one who made you feel a little less like you were taking on the world by yourself. I was your friend.”

A lie. A sweet lie that she had once believed. Not a friend, a manipulator.

“Oh? That is not how you felt about me when I was the only one who listened to you - the only one who cared for you. I did not make any of the ponies treat you as they did, they did so of their own volition.”

The room shifted and blurred until she stood by a door. There was a party on the other side, one Luna was not invited to because she had to do her duty at night. Of course Celestia was in there, having a grand time. Beside her stood memory-Luna, a hoof on the door, ready to go in and join the celebrations. She had braided her mane, and put on a dress, because surely her nightly duties could wait while she relaxed a little?

“’Tis a most wondrous party, old friend.” Came a voice from the other side of the door. Both Lunas froze. “Even the princess looks like she is having a valorous time. Thee didst not inviteth the other one, didst thee?”

“Is it Luna thou art referring to? Nay, perish the thought. I toldeth Princess Celestia I couldst not taketh her from her nightly duty, but truthfully… nopony present desires her presence.” Another voice answered, dripping with distaste.

“Oh, splendid. She once arrived at one of my gatherings. A disaster, I tell thee, her very presence spoiled the merriment in an instant.”

She felt her ears droop in tangent with memory-Luna’s. Unwanted. That was what she was. The second princess that nopony liked. The useless one that was never noticed.

They both left the door, lest her heart explode in rage and sorrow… as it had before.

“Don’t run away from it. There is no place to hide.” The Limelight whispered to her, like a friend wanting her to face her fears. “There is a way to make it all better. To make them see.”

“You are wasting both our time. I will never be Nightmare Moon again. Whatever the cost, it will not happen.” She said out loud, her voice like steel. Memory-Luna walked past her with her head down. It would not take long for the Limelight to whisper her into submission after that. The last straw, in a sense.

“They could love you-“

“They would fear me.” She held her ground, despite the despair that overwhelmed her, the feelings that she had had back then. It was hard to think straight.

“They fear you now! Nothing has changed!”

Through a great show of will, Luna managed to think back to all the things she had experienced since she was freed from Nightmare Moon. At first, things were just as the Limelight said. She was feared, she was lonely, she just wanted the pain to end. But then… “Some things have changed.” She said softly.

She tried to find her magic inside herself, but there was none to be found. She was neither in her own body nor in the dream realm, after all. But she was still inside herself, and in here, she was the master. She willed herself out, back to her body, but nothing happened.

So instead she forced her will upon the memory, made it change, until they stood in her new room in Canterlot Castle. The curtains were drawn tight, shrouding the room in darkness. Buried deeply under the covers of the bed was a very lonely, and very sad memory of her. So sad that she could barely keep going.

Then there was a knock on the door. Memory-Luna did not answer, but the door opened slowly anyway. Celestia carefully and slowly made her way in, as if not to scare Luna.

She did not make a sound as she made her way to the bed. She stood for a few seconds, perhaps waiting for some kind of reaction, but when none came, she carefully entered the bed. She laid down close to Memory-Luna, then laid her head on top of her sister. She still did not receive a reaction, but Luna could feel the loneliness lessen, just a little. Enough to keep going.

“This doesn’t mean-“

Once again, she asserted her will, and once again the memory changed. This one was of Moondancer, and her job interview. The mare would become her friend yet, she just needed a bit more time. Happiness washed over her when Moondancer told her the story of how she used to talk with the moon.

Before the Limelight could say anything, she changed the memory again.

It was of when she talked it out with Celestia, both letting go of the past. The memory brought relief.

She changed it again, to when Moondancer brought the newspaper that described how the population had gone out to watch her Moonday show. Pride and a sense of appreciation filled her. Things had changed.

The memory of when Jax declared that they were friends on a moonlit night in their clearing. Overwhelming happiness.

Jax in constant pain for three days, Luna constantly by his side. Worry… but also care.

Jax declaring her his best friend. So much unexpected joy.

Jax scratching her… and the resulting situation. Embarrassment.

Jax telling her about how he was going to help her image. A sliver of hope.

Laying close to Jax and telling him of her past. Sadness, but also release of feelings she had held inside her for far too long.

Jax telling her his own past, the first pony he had shared it with. Sadness for what he had to go through, but at the same time awe that he bestowed her the honour.

Jax laughing at something she said. Success.

Jax holding her tightly. Secure.

Jax gently stroking her chin. Happiness.

Jax. Happiness.

Jax. Joy.

Jax. Love.

Jax was her happiness.

“… He will die.” A soft whisper, right beside her ear. Everything blurred together, until they stood in a graveyard. In front of her was herself, crying a constant stream of remorse. Her chest felt tight as sadness hit her harder and more violently than ever before. “He will die and become nothing but earth and dust, while you will live on for millennia, without his touch, without his encouragement. His smile will never again cheer you up. His words will never again make you feel special. Without him you will become nothing again. He is the one holding you from the edge, and he will be the one to throw you over….”

Luna gasped, trying desperately to breathe. Tears streamed down from her eyes like blood through her veins. Not in her deepest, darkest, most hopeless hour had she felt so utterly mercilessly miserable. Her legs shook, and soon gave in under her. Jax was gone. Her Jax, her love, her everything was dead, and she was all alone. She felt like she was in an ocean of tears, with no land in sight, struggling just to keep her head above the waves. She tried desperately to breathe, but it was never enough air. Her mouth tasted of salt.

She was going to drown in sorrow.

“Ohh, poor Luna. Don’t despair just yet.” A pair of hooves raised her until she looked at a pair of draconic eyes, framed by black fur. “There is a way.”

“There is?” Her voice was barely anything but a tiny sliver of hope.

“Yes.” It was a kind voice, a motherly love emanating from it. “There are ways to preserve the soul and find a new body for it. It will be easy. Jax can stay by your side… forever.”

Hope… belief. She wanted to believe so much. And that was the chance that Nightmare Moon, the Limelight, had been waiting for. Luna felt a tug on her soul, and everything shook.

Perhaps the Limelight had overestimated her own strength. Perhaps Luna had not believed enough. There was only few things she was certain of. The feeling of despair was gone. She was still in control. And… there was a furious rage boiling in her like no other.

Feeling her chance slip, Nightmare Moon started a desperate fight to switch places with Luna… and terrifyingly enough, it felt like it was working.

“I SHALL NEVER BECOME NIGHTMARE MOON AGAIN!” She screamed as righteous fury spilled over. “I WOULD RATHER ROT ANOTHER THOUSAND YEARS ON THE MOON THAN TO GIVE IN!”

Author's Note

Thank you for your patience XD This was supposed to be the last chapter, but I just kept writing, and the more I wrote, the more I realized I needed to write... So I decided to cut the chapter, and it took a while for DJ to look at it... but here it is! I am deep in the next, and hopefully last (before epilogue at least) chapter XD I only need to write... more and more XD which I am doing! While studying for my last reexam ^^
in the meantime, read dis: The Hag, the heroes, and a few other things, Very underappreciated for how good it is. I usually don't like misunderstandings like this, but here it was just so understandable... :)
Last thing... I don't think the archaic English is correct XD If anybody knows how to fix it, please comment XD