Nona - Is It True What They Say About Humans?

So there I was pacing back and forth on the banks of the Celestia river waiting for Rainbow Dash to finish her self-imposed time trials, testing herself to see if she could squeeze that extra mile-an-hour out of her top speed. She had qualification trials for the up coming Equestria Games and she wanted to be as ready as she could be.

I kept watching the minutes tick by on the stop watch she’d given me to time her with. She was flying a hundred mile course. She was hoping to do it in under ten minutes. Three minutes, sixteen seconds and counting.

The sound of hooves softly crunching on sand caught my ear. I turned to see who it was.

My jaw dropped and I almost fainted when I turned to see Nona standing about ten feet away, her hands behind her back, her eyes swollen from crying, her face sheepish and contrite.

“Thank you... for that letter,” she said softly as she hesitantly took a step toward me, paused.

I dropped the stopwatch and ran to her, threw my arms around her, hugging her tightly, touching my lips to her face in little staccato kisses. She giggled,  hugged me back, holding onto me like she never wanted to let me go. I held her close and tight to me. I didn’t want to let her go any more than she did me.

***

We were sitting on the sand talking when I heard Rainbow Dash’s wings moving air above our heads. She floated down and settled to Earth a few feet from us, smiled and gave us a weak wave. Finding her stop watch she picked it up, smiled back at us one more time and flew off, leaving us alone. Was it me or did I see a trace of hurt in her eyes?

“It took a lot of guts for you to write that,” said Nona, quietly, as she leaned on my shoulder, her arms wrapped around me, “I want you to know I really appreciate it”

I sighed, smiled. Whatever happened next didn’t matter as much as having her snuggled up next to me in that moment. It felt so much like when we’d first gotten together, so sweet, that I didn’t want it to end.

“You know, you’re not the only one who made mistakes,” she said quietly, “I made quite a few of my own, too”

“I’ve learned I have no place looking at your mistakes, babe, only at my own” I said, stroking her mane, now. She closed her eyes and sighed, loving my touch.

“I’m proud of you,” she smiled, “you’re finally growing up and becoming a man”

“Thanks,” I said, “I just wish I could have started long before...” I felt the tears well in my eyes, deeply felt the sense of guilt for having hurt this truly wonderful and loving pony.

“It’s okay,” she said turning, taking my face into her hands, looking deeply in my eyes, “everything in its time and in its place. Your mother taught me that. In fact, your mother taught me a lot of things”

she kissed the end of my nose as I looked at her surprised that my mother had taught anyone anything. But, then, maybe that was just me, again? After all, I’d been at odds with my mother for so many years how could I have learned anything from her?

“Oh! She wants you to know she’s very proud of you for making a good home for yourself, here,” she said with a quiet smile.

I looked at her with renewed shock to hear that. After all these years of butting heads with my mother it never once occurred to me that she’d be proud of me for anything. I realized I had a lot of mothers day cards, Christmas and birthday presents to make up for.

“Yeah?” I asked, smiling now, “proud of me? Did she really say that?” Nona nodded.

“Hey, you wanna go home,”, I asked, hopefully. She looked down, started tracing the sand with her finger.

“I didn’t think I still had a home to ‘go home’ to,” she said, sounding a little insecure as well as surprised, “I mean, if we’re not together anymore than is it right for me to be there with you?”

I stood up, reached down smiling, offering my hand. She took it and rose to her hooves facing me, smiled back at me. She kissed the tip of my nose.

Still holding her hand I turned and we started walking up the bank toward town. “You know what?” I asked.

“What?,” she asked back.

“No matter what happens from now on, or how this all turns out in the end, you always have a home with me,” I smiled. she wrapped her arm around me, snuggled in close to me as we walked.

“Thank you,” she said in sweet, grateful tones, “I was hoping you’d say that” I chuckled. If there was one thing I knew it was that Nona was smarter than me and her being a mind reader didn’t hurt, either, even if she had gotten into the habit of not getting into my head without asking first.

“You know what else?” I asked again.

“What?”, she asked again.

“I’m never sure about too much stuff in my life but there’s one thing I’m absolutely certain of right now,” I said.

“What’s that?”, she asked.

“After everything we’ve been through, together, one thing is totally clear to me;  you always were, are and always will be my best friend”

“Mine too, babe. Mine too,” she smiled as she rested her head against my shoulder as we slowly meandered up the bank taking our time and taking the long way...

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