Things were getting a lot busier compared to last night. Ponies everywhere are bustling about, getting to where they needed to go. Rainbow decided to stop flying and walk alongside me.

“We should probably hit the place I’m suggesting before you do your business,” Rainbow inquired. “You look like you’re going to topple over any second now.”

“I’ll be fine…” At that moment, my stomach made a somewhat quiet growl in disagreement. “But I guess it couldn’t hurt.” Rainbow sniggered. “What is this place you keep mentioning anyways?”

“You’ll find out soon enough,” she said simply. “C’mon, this way.”

A little too tired to be annoyed by her evading my question, I simply complied and followed her. She’s right though, can’t be trotting all this time for nothing. Besides, it’s not something THAT important that I need to know at the moment. As I followed behind her, I took a look around. Ponies all over giving me a quick glance before going about their business. No surprises there, I’m not exactly the most common type of pony out there. I looked back ahead of me to check where Rainbow is. I almost forgot to check her Cutie Mark. There’s a lot you can infer from one’s Cutie Mark. Her’s being a cloud with a rainbow-colored lightning bolt, not unlike her mane and tail. Interesting…I wonder if she’s a racer of some kind. That would explain that speed before. That cloud has to mean something though.

“Like what you see?”

“Huh?” I blinked. Then I realized what I was doing might have looked like and rapidly stood up tall to try to save face.

She laughed. “Don’t worry, I get that a lot. The best pony just has to have the best body, am I right?”

“Oh dear…” Nice going, just give her more ammo to work with. I shook my head and decided to play her little game to get over my fluster. “Can’t say I disagree with that statement. You are certainly eye-catching.” She just smiled a cheeky grin at me. “Though while I was looking over your goods, I couldn’t help but wonder about your Cutie Mark.”

“This? Just means that I’m awesome and ready to rock your world! Got the speed and the talent. As long as I’m in the air, there’s nothing I can’t do better than everypony else. I didn’t get to be weather manager of Ponyville for no reason. Though that’s mostly a side gig for the time being.”

“Ham it up some more, why don’t you?” Interesting, so she’s a weather manager as well? That explains the cloud. I can totally see that the sky is her playground. I did a short pause. “Wait, ‘just a side gig’? What are you really doing then?”

“Practicing and refining my stunts to earn my deserved place in the Wonderbolts.”

“The Wonderbolts, huh? ‘Deserved’? Aren’t we being a little presumptuous?” She certainly has the speed but…

“Don’t think I got what it takes?” she challenged.

“I just met you. I haven’t seen anything you could do yet. It takes a lot of work to be a part of the Wonderbolts, especially if you’re aiming for the main team.” Something in the back of my mind says that I did saw her do something, but I can’t remember what.

“Oh hoho, you haven’t seen anything yet, you say? Just you wait. If you thought the speed I showed in the morning contained too much excitement, then get ready to have your eyes break from widening in surprise and your jaw fall off your very face when you get a look at the rest of my skills, starring me! The one and only Rainbow Dash!" As she yelled all this, she soared up into the air and spread her wings, holding a single hoof to her chest before floating back on the ground. “All of this free of charge. Just as soon as we’re finished up here and at my house, I’ll show you just how much I deserve that spot.”

This mare certainly likes talking about herself a lot. Not that it’s annoying. It’s actually pretty entertaining. “I just can’t wait,” I said as flatly as I could. This earned me a quick but harmless punch to the shoulder. I chuckled.

“Laugh it up now, pal. You’ll be eating those words, completely and fully. Anyways, we’re here.”

I paused my snickering and looked up. I was barely paying attention to where we were going. We’re in front of a familiar building: Sugarcube Corner. Didn’t think I would be visiting this place so soon. Rainbow moved on ahead of me and headed inside. I followed her and as soon as I got inside, my olfactory system went into overdrive. There was more than sweetness in the air here. There was a smell more permeating than that: the smell of fresh bread, yeast, flour, and dough of all sizes being prepared. My stomach grumbled. I hunger.

The place was compact, but not suffocatingly so. A few tables were place near the windows, some occupied with the residents, either alone or with a couple of associates. There was a large counter near the entrance, showing what they had in store for those that decided to dine here. I saw that Rainbow was walking up to the counter, towards some pink pony. I quickly located myself to her side.

The pink earth pony with a very bouncy-looking mane looked up from the register and waved over to us.

“Dashie!” she exclaimed as she jump over the counter to meet us, or rather Rainbow. Seriously? Isn’t there a rule for proper workplace etiquette?

“Hey, Pinkie.” Rainbow responded before being almost tackled down by the energetic pink blob. Surprisingly, she held her ground and remained upright. She simply hugged this “Pinkie” back, rubbing her withers and mane. I noticed that “Pinkie” had balloons as her Cutie mark.

“It’s been SOOOOOO long since we last saw each other!”

“You mean just yesterday?”

“Too long!” While Pinkie was nuzzling her friend’s mane, she opened her eyes to see me. She just stopped and stared at me.

“Uh…yo.” I awkwardly managed to say.

Rainbow turned her head to me. “Oh yeah. Shadow, this is Pinkie Pie. Pinkie, this is my friend, Shadow Heart. He’s been feeling under the weather and could use one of your special pick-me-up recipes.”

Friend? Really? I extended my forehoof towards the introduced mare. “Just call me Heart. I’m kinda new-”

I was interrupted by a loud gasp. Pinkie jumped, staring at me with wide eyes, her pupils dilated to pinpricks. Then it was almost like she teleported…or something. All there was in her place was a small amount of dust. None of the customers here batted an eye.

I dumbly stood there. “What…did I do?”

I heard an exasperated sigh to my right. “Not sure how else I expected that to go.”

I faced Rainbow. “Is she alright?”

“She’ll be just fine. She just gets really excited when she meets somepony new.”

“Excited? You sure she wasn’t scared?”

“Scared?”

I motioned for her to look at my wings, spreading them only slightly.

“Oh no, we’re not really like that around here. Besides, you’re not all that scary-looking” she said.

I heard a voice call out from what I assumed to be the kitchens. “What happened? I just saw Pinkie ran off and-” A yellow and lanky stallion with an orange mane poked his head out of the kitchens. A couple of freckles adorned his nose. He actually managed to see Pinkie? “Oh, a brand-new face. That explains it.” He stepped out to greet me and I noticed he had three cakes on his flank to represent his talent. “Ahem, welcome to Sugarcube Corner, run by yours truly, Carrot Cake, and my wife, Cup Cake; at your service.” He made a small bow and then tipped his work hat. “What can I do for you, kind sir?”

“Hello, Mr. Cake. I’m Shadow Heart, just call me Heart. I was just looking for a little something-something to get me running.”

“Oh, we pride ourselves in being able to make your day nice and bright. Just take a look at our wares and if something doesn’t catch your fancy, we’ll be able to make a custom order for you, Heart.”

“Thank you very much.” I started my way down the counter, looking over their options.

Searching, searching, search-

I paused. I stared closely to make sure. I can almost physically FEEL a glint in my eyes. I also felt Mr. Cake take a cautionary step back.

I smiled, showing two fangs that I usually keep hidden, as I take out a couple of bits.

“You’re awfully chipper now.” Rainbow said, noting the slight skip in my step as we exited the shop.

“Are you kidding? It’s been a while since I had one of these babies.” I’m almost drooling now, but I have no shame. Maybe this day wasn’t going to be so bad after all. I held the jelly-filled chocolate donut with my wing and moved it to my muzzle and bit onto it. Oh Celestia, it’s true: strawberry! Why is it so hard to find a STRAWBERRY-filled CHOCOLATE donut? It’s always that nasty cream stuff for chocolate instead or simply glazed for strawberry. I felt the sugar seep into my teeth, giving me that zing I haven’t felt for a long time. I shivered and close my eyes, savoring every second.

“Wow, you’re REALLY enjoying that, aren’t you?”

“Aw yeah~ Simply amazing~” I finally bit down after draining the jelly a bit. I took out the small carton of milk I also bought with my other wing and drank a little. Yup, this day isn’t going to be so bad.

“Hurry up, we’re wasting time.”

Maybe it’s too early to say that. “I’m coming, I’m coming. Just let me have this pleasure, alright?” I took another hefty bite, shivering again. Absence makes the heart grow fonder, and that apparently includes taste buds. Or maybe the shop is simply THAT good. I hope I never tire from this.

Rainbow rolled her eyes as she watched me. “Let’s just get going to getting you all set up so I won’t feel bad for having you fix my cloud-house.”

“I said I was sorry. If it makes you feel bad, why not let me go?”

“Not a chance.”

I wasn’t really going to just leave if she agreed anyways. Still, it’s better to just joke about this. Better to laugh than to cry, as my mother said. Though there are some things that one doesn’t find funny quite yet. I finally finished my small meal and felt refreshed, even from lack of sleep. It might be just from the sugar rush though, but I’m confident that the sugar crash won’t be as bad.

“Hey, Shadow.”

“Hm?”

“I noticed that I’ve been the one talking the whole time. So I think it’s time that it’s your turn.”

“What do you want to know?”

“I don’t know, just tell me about yourself.”

“Well, I like long walks at the park, my favorite color is red, and I like eating-”

“You think you’re funny, don’t you?”

I shrugged. “I have a sense of humor at least, unlike SOMEPONY.”

“You wouldn’t know funny if it went right up to your face and kicked it in.” She shook her head and starting flying low to the ground. “Seriously though, what’s your story?”

“Oh, where to start…?”

“How about at the beginning? Like, you asked for what my Cutie Mark meant. I’m actually a little curious about yours.”

I looked at the target of interest. I guess it could have been sending mixed messages. It was easier to see now that the sun is out. The redness of the heart stood out prominently against my dark coat. One could see upon closer inspection that the heart had a crack in the middle, held together with a band-aid.

“So are you a doctor or a surgeon or what?”

I chuckled softly. “Not exactly. You could say I’m a love doctor.”

Rainbow raised a single eyebrow.

“Yeah, I mean literally. Anything about relationships, you can ask me. I help bring together all kinds of couples and help fix any problems they might have, if it’s possible or worth keeping. Coltfriends, marefriends, marriages, divorces, young and old, even friendships in some cases. Everything that is anything about love, I’m the stallion most ponies come to. I work as a counselor for most of these situations.”

“Wow.”

“Yeah, given the time, I can even figure out who YOU actually want and maybe set you up with him or her.”

“Hey!”

“I don’t judge. I’ve seen most of it, if not all. Griffons, ponies, diamond dogs, minotaurs, even dragons. Though I wasn’t always a counselor. I actually studied a bit over the physical heart and worked as a medic for a bit. But that didn’t last long, since I don’t like seeing hurt ponies. Still, what I learned about the heart does help at times. If I focus hard enough, I can even tell when somepony’s lying, tired, or scared. There are things about the body that we can’t control, as much as we believe we do.”

“Great, ANOTHER lie detector.”

“What?”

“Nothing. Hey look, we’re here,” announced Rainbow.

Sure enough, I looked up to see the grand Town Hall. Sweet.

“Don’t take too long. We’re burning daylight.”

I snorted. “Technically, it’s still just morning.”

“Move it!” shouted Rainbow as she started pushing me inside the building. “I’ll be just outside when you get out.”

“I’m going, I’m going, jeez...Alright.” I dusted myself off as I walked inside.

The inside was impressive, to say the least. There was a very wide and spacious ground floor. On the walls, slightly higher, sit numerous balconies. Higher still, is a wide array of flags of all sizes and colors. I couldn’t quite make out any unique emblems, if they had any. I wonder if this building is commonly used to hold events. Certainly would make good use of the room. It wasn’t empty either. Numerous pegasi and unicorns were busy with making preparations of some kind, using plywood and fabrics. I spotted a random ladder in the middle of the room and wondered why anypony would need it. I also wondered what the occasion is. I saw a white unicorn mare with a fancy-looking purple mane pointing and guiding the workers to where they were needed. Three gems…they look like diamonds, her Cutie Mark I mean. She must be the organizer of this project here, if not the holder. I trotted up towards her. “Um, excuse me?”

“Hm? Yes-oh, my word…” As she turned to face whoever called her, she faltered slightly when she took a good look at me.

“Hello. I’m just looking for the mayor. Something told me that he or she would be here. Housing plans,” I stated.

“Oh, a new resident? Very well then, you can find Mayor Mare right over there, darling. She would be the pony with the gray mane, collar, and glasses.” She pointed a hoof towards my right, slightly behind me.

I nodded and bowed my head slightly. “Thank you. Sorry to bother you.”

“Not at all, it was my pleasure.”

I made a small bow again and turn to find Mayor Mare as the white mare went back to her duties. Mayor Mare wasn’t too hard to find, seeing as she was surrounded by a few construction ponies with a blueprint in front of her. I really dislike doing stuff like this with everypony being so busy but it’s necessary I suppose.

I cleared my throat. “Mayor Mare?”

The whole group looked up and stared at me. I should be used to this by now, all considering, but it still unsettles me. It’s easier when it’s one or two, but a group like this just makes me feel self-conscious. I can’t let my nerves get the best of me though. Not right now.

“That’ll be me,” piped up the mature-looking mare. “What do you need? I haven’t seen you around before.”

“You’re right. I’m actually new here and looking to move in. Name’s Shadow Heart. Just call me Heart. I already have a place in mind.”

“Oh…very well then.” Mayor Mare turned to the group of construction workers. “Let’s get started on the first part of the plans and meet back here in…let’s say two hours.” The workers nodded and walked off.

As the mayor spun around to face me, I bit my hoof slightly. “You didn’t need to make it that long. It was going to be short and I already have everything.”

She shook her head, waving a single hoof. “No, no, it’s fine. We needed to get started soon anyways. The workers were getting kind of restless, plus I need to check up on how the rest of the preparations are going.”

I still felt guilty but if it’s her decision… “Huh, so what seems to be going on here?”

“Oh, right, you’re new here, Heart. We’re just preparing for our annual Summer Harvest Parade. There’s more to the event than just the parade, and here,” she motioned towards the whole room, “is where we’ll be setting up the rewards of our harvest.”

Ah, so this place is where everyone will gather at the end for the food. This place may be huge but there still has to be some sort of preparation to hold all the townsponies AND the tables or stands.

“Come along now. Let’s get you settled in.” She trotted towards one of the alcoves in the walls. “Oh, you’ll enjoy Ponyville. And you came around just the right time. Now, I know I have the paperwork around here somewhere…”

I followed her, noticing that she had a scroll with a blue ribbon representing her skill. I wonder if she has an affinity for paperwork or something. Then I remembered mayors are encouraged to interact with their community. Hm…maybe a stretch but…speech-making?

“Ah-ha!”

I jumped out of my thoughts, hoping that she wasn’t talking to me. I didn’t need to worry it seemed, since she was busy looking inside a box. When she lifted her head up, she had a set of papers in her mouth and set them down on a nearby table. She dug in again and took out a feather and a bottle of ink.

“Now, Mr. Heart,” she started to say as I stood up straight, “you said you already had a place in mind?”

“Yes, it was,” I put a hoof up to my mouth in though, “it was…near Golden Oaks Library.”

“Ooh, that one. You know I was kind of worried about the balcony extension going to waste, but I see that somepony has taken a liking to it. A bit expensive though, but I’m sure you noticed that on the sign. I’m guessing you want to lease-“

I unceremoniously dumped a heavy bag of bits I set aside for this transaction on the table, making a very audible thud. Maybe that was a little rude of me, but it was kinda heavy. Mayor Mare blinked and lowered her glasses a bit as she studied me with a questioning eyebrow raised.

“Sorry but I was thinking of buying it straight out.”

“That’s…not really common to do. Most just set up payment plans for the property, but that’s usually because it’s a lot of bits to buy it on the spot. Very well, just sign these papers here while I make sure of your…investment.” I noticed a suspicious-looking twitch in her eye as she uttered the last word. I shrugged and got down to writing my signature and dates on the paperwork, holding the feather in my mouth.

I placed the feather down when I finished and saw that Mayor Mare was done, having already got the key and deed to my new home. She handed them over to me, smiling. “Thank you for choosing Ponyville for your place to settle in.”

“No, thank you.”

We both made a small bow towards each other.

“So you know where it is, right?” she asked.

“Of course, no need for you to worry.”

She nodded. “Good, now if you excuse me, I have some important work to get back to.”

“Not at all. I wish you well on your endeavors.”

She smiled back and trotted to wherever she needed to go, with a slight skip in her step. I smiled, shaking my head a little. Some things never change no matter where you go. I tuck my items in my wings and decided to make my way towards the exit.

Just like she said, in a flash, the cyan pegasus was in front of me.

“Got everything taken care of?” Rainbow had a slightly annoyed expression, even though I felt it didn’t took long.

“Yup.”

“Finally! Are you feeling up for flying? I really don’t feel like going at your pace right now.” She gave me a surprisingly concerned look. “You are ok, right?”

I quickly made a short nod. “Feeling loads better. I’m up for flying if you are.”

“Awesome. Just try to keep up with me.”

That’s going to be a bit hard. “Sure.” I spread my wings, sorting out the kinks.

We both soared up in the air. It was refreshing to feel the wind like this again. My enjoyment was short-lived, as Rainbow was already flying towards our destination. I shot myself forward to make up for lost distance.

I’m fairly certain she’s not trying to race, but it’s tough to keep up with her. I never met anypony who was this fast. I’m pretty sure this is her most leisurely pace, yet I can barely keep up. I flap my wings harder, just trying not to be too far behind. She looked behind her shoulder and smiled before rolling on her back and slowing down to me so we’re next to each other.

“You don’t have to try THAT hard, bro.” She had this small smirk that I didn’t really know what to make of.

“Don’t patronize me,” I hissed softly. “You told me to stay close and I’m going to do just that.”

“I didn’t really mean that literally, but ok. I’m actually surprised you can get this far with me.”

Really? Was that…a compliment?

“And yes, that was a compliment. From yours truly. So take that as you will.” She smiled and flew up ahead a bit.

Wait, I didn’t say that out loud, right? No, it must be my expression. I need to keep a lid on that, if I want to at least keep from reliving my memories. That was always my problem; I wear my heart on my sleeves. It’s very easy to know what I’m thinking or feeling because I simply don’t try to hide it. I’m very honest with my feelings. This goes for positive AND negative emotions. I sigh to myself.

Considering how fast we were flying, it’s not really a surprise how quickly we reached Rainbow’s house.

I stared at her home, and feel it again…the betrayal, the pain. I shut my eyes and breathe in deeply. I can’t let this keep happening. I just need…some time to digest what happened last night.

“You’re going to be alright, dude?”

I opened my eyes and turned to Rainbow. “Yeah, I’ll be fine. Just…I’ll just get right down to doing this.”

“Alright then…” Rainbow doesn’t seem convinced. I’m not really the best of liars, but it’s not really anything she could help with. She doesn’t need to handle my burdens.

As I looked for where the cloud I used was, I heard somepony call out.

“Hey, Dashie!”

We both turned to see that hyperactive pony again. Rainbow turned to me, as if for asking permission, oddly enough. I nodded.

“Go, she called you, not me. Besides, I’ll probably just make her run off again.”

Rainbow nodded and flew down to her friend while I inspected the damages.

It’s nothing too bad. Our small scuffle in the morning made some of the pieces break off, but nothing that couldn’t be done. I gathered all parts of cloud I could see and made sure I got everything. I looked over towards Rainbow and Pinkie.

They seemed to be making plans of some sort, noting their body movements. The pink one was especially excited, though I think she could be excited for watching grass grow, personally. Rainbow sat on her haunches and had a hoof to her mouth in thought as she listened to Pinkie. Pinkie suddenly turned to me and pointed a hoof towards me and Rainbow followed her gaze.

I raised an eyebrow as Rainbow brought down her friend’s hoof. She turned to me and waved her hoof side to side, smiling awkwardly and gesturing that it was nothing important. I shrugged and went back to work. I started patching up the small dent I made and kept prodding and poking until it was exactly how I remembered it.

I turned back to the girls, seeing that Pinkie was already hopping off back to Ponyville and Rainbow flying up towards me.

“Oh hey, you’re done. That’s cool.” She inspected my patchwork quickly. “Listen, there’s someplace I got to be. You got a place to stay, right?”

“Well, yeah, that’s why I came to town hall.” I took out the key the mayor gave me to show Rainbow proof. I then put it back.

“Awesome. Just making sure. I’ll see you later, alright? Nice work, by the way. If there’s anything you need to ask, you can come to me. Bye!”

Barely letting me even have the chance to breathe, she zoomed off towards Ponyville as well, leaving a faint trail of rainbow in her wake.

I wonder what the rush is. Hope it’s not the bad kind of urgency. A little rude but I’m sure she’ll explain it more in detail if I get to see her again. I looked back to her home and snorted. I shouldn’t blame Rainbow for what her home reminds me of. It’s going to take me a while to even visit her without being slightly abrasive.

Wait…visit her? Does that mean we’re…friends? No…more like acquaintances. Still, it’s a start. Much better than how it usually is like when I go to a new school or something. I looked up to the sky, the sun still strong. Maybe I should check on how my home looks like. I flew towards my new house in Ponyville.

Something was very off. The town was…quiet. Still. I can almost hear the wind howling. Where is everypony? This was eerie, not to mention sudden. I feel a chill crawl up my spine. I slowly walked on the cobblestone path towards my house. Why do I feel so apprehensive? I can’t shake it off. I need to get inside. Or at least see ONE pony walking around and tell me what’s going on. As I reached the door, I still haven’t seen a single soul.

What is wrong in this town? I quickly took out my key and put it in the lock.

Then I opened the door.

Author's Note

So as it turned out, I forgot a very important detail that I forgot to add that's paramount in my story back in the first chapter. This bodes well, right? Anyways, the change is in the second paragraph. If you don't know what I changed, it's just the dark cloud thing. Anyone who started reading this AFTER I posted this chapter, don't need to worry. You already read what I added.

I feel really pressed for time. Like I need to update this story with a chapter every 4 days. I know there's no actual deadlines but I feel this way, so that's why I posted this chapter since I was already really far in development (sorry, Flutterpriest I promise I'll do better).

As always, I'm looking for constructive criticism so I can improve. Don't be shy, give me what you got. Just know there's a difference between "criticism" and "insulting". Also still looking for an artist to do cover art.