Tranquil Wind walks back into the waiting lobby for her team and stretches a little before being tackle hugged by Silver Stitch who grips her tightly.

"I was worried for you out there. They say Aries is nothing if not effective at her role as disciplinary chair at Crystal Prep. I'm very proud of you." Silver Stitch nuzzles Tranquil Wind softly.

"That's only one fight... We still have a fair few to go before we can even think about relaxing. Although they only do about two fights per day to make the finals last longer. Depends on the amount in the team, though." Veronica states as she plays with one of her knives.

"Both teams have seven members. So, using that logic it should come out as four days of fighting. Though, that is if we don't win the majority of the fights." Moonlit Dusk explains.

"We cannot let it get to the fourth day... Amore is still out and we can't risk losing by default." Aqua Streak states with a sigh.

"So, we are all in agreement that we cannot let this final go more than three days?" Veronica asks the group.

The group nod and decide to relax in their team lobby while the academy construction club repairs the main arena after the last fight.

Vinyl sighs deeply as she takes a heavy swallow of some whisky before glancing at Iluzie, who is holding her head while pouting.

"Mommy..." Iluzie whimpers.

Vinyl whacks Iluzie over the head with a soft toy mallet which makes her whimper more.

"I don't wanna hear a single complaint outta you... Just sit there and think very hard about what you did wrong." Vinyl sighs, putting down the mallet.

A light chuckle from the bar makes Vinyl look back over the sofa into the V.I.P booth with daggers in her eyes.

"You are such a terrible parent, Vinyl." Fancy Pants walks over to the sofa, holding his own glass.

"Bite me bitch... I haven't had to be a proper mother in a long time..." Vinyl sighs deeply.

"Oh, come now, Vinyl Scratch. One never stops being a parent, no matter the circumstances. You of all ponies should know this." Fancy Pants comments, moving to sit down in the armchair by the sofa.

"You don't even have foals, Fancy. I wouldn't expect you to ever understand." Vinyl finishes her whisky, harshly.

"Vinyl, I've never needed foals of my own... To be quite frank, my dear, yours are enough of a handful." Fancy Pants remarks.

"You'd know better than I would, Fancy... I had to take care of a lot of stuff for Princess Luna back then. Didn't help that 'she' was on a warpath with no interest of backing down or talking." Vinyl rubs her temple.

Fancy Pants raises an eyebrow for a moment before shrugging it off and sighing lightly.

"Well, whatever was before, it seems now they have gotten themselves into quite the pickle." Fancy Pants nervously chuckles.

"So it seems..." Vinyl looks back at Iluzie with daggers before whacking her over the head again, making her whimper.

"Uncle Fancy, please make her stop..." Iluzie pleads, attempting to sway him with puppy dog eyes.

"Sorry Iluzie my dear, but you have overstepped the 'childish' mark this time." Fancy Pants sighs deeply before sipping his gin.

Selene is sitting in the waiting lobby for her team with Midnight Allure curled up asleep on her lap. Reine sits opposite her, sharpening her knife set again before staring at the pair in question.

"One loss already. Though, I'll admit, Tranquil Wind put up an excellent fight against our Aries. I wonder who will be made to fight next. I am personally looking forward to a head to head battle between Veronica and myself~" Reine states excitedly, looking into the reflection on her knife.

"You would be. It's hard to imagine a time when you're not excited for a fight." Selene states, stroking Midnight Allure's mane gently.

"Nein, you do not understand! It's an epic fight of massive proportions. A Nazi mare, an officer no less, to face a Hooviet mare, also an officer." Reine states looking at Selene.

"I still don't see what's so big about it. Now, if the pair were pirate descendants, that'd be cool." Selene chuckles.

"Mein Liebling, you still do not understand. It's the prospect of the fight, while no real political standing is involved. It's the very concept of a fight between the two super powers! It's ficken Geschichte!" Reine leaps up out of her seat excitedly, pointing her knife dramatically in a diagonal fashion into the air.

"You get so excited about the simplest of things, it's cute." Selene sighs deeply.

"Idiot, du verstehst nicht..." Reine sits back down, disappointed.

The TV nearby suddenly comes to life and two more cards appear on the screen.

Sour Canary, Lime Beat and Aries walk into the waiting area just in time to see it.

"Oh~ I wonder who is fighting next." Sour Canary states.

"I hope it's me, I want to crush those twins badly..." Lime Beat comments.

The cards flip over to reveal Silver Stitch and Midnight Allure, making Lime Beat groan in annoyance. Selene gently nuzzles Midnight Allure to make her wake up.

"Hmm... What time is it? Is it lunch, yet?" Midnight Allure yawns softly.

"Not quite, It's your turn to fight, sweetie." Selene states.

"Oh... I'll go get ready then." Midnight Allure playfully stands up and yawns cutely before stretching as she starts heading to the preparation room.

With the arena repaired and everypony refreshed for the second match of the day. The audience is electrified at the thought of what might come next.

"Ladies and gentlecolts! You have waited patiently for the arena to be fixed and your break to be over." Silver Vase begins.

"We are back in the box to tell ya'll that that wait is over!" Sandstone Mike yells excitedly.

The crowd erupt into an eager cheer filled with static and excitement.

"You hear that noise, Mike? sounds like everypony wants much more." Silver Vase chuckles.

"Then let's not keep them waiting! This next match-up will keep you all on the edge of your seats!" Sandstone Mike exclaims.

"Introducing, everypony's favourite fashionista, the mare who gracefully trots in her mother's hoofsteps! Silver Stitch!" Silver Vase states as he flips a switch on their dashboard.

The track begins to play as Silver Stitch walks out into the arena wearing a sleeveless cyan hoodie, a plain grey shirt, black leggings and dull silver gloves. She lacks her previously seen fighting equipment and simply has a pouch on the left side of her belt. Silver Stitch gracefully waves with a nice smile to the audience who cheer and applaud her entrance. As she reaches her position the music stops and the announcers clear their throats to begin the next phase.

"Against our fashionista is the Vice Captain of the Shadowbolts, Midnight Allure!" Silver Vase flips another switch on their dashboard.

A different track is started for Midnight Allure as she walks out into the arena wearing a pair of jeans, a midnight blue shirt, a navy blue leather jacket over the top of it, and a pair of black fingerless gloves. She throws a few jabs into the air directly in front of her as she skips to her starting position. Lightly stretching she finishes her entrance by taking a deep breath. The music slowly fades out as the two stare at each other.

"I saw your last fight; no manoeuvre gear this time around?" Midnight Allure asks, placing a hand on her hip.

"Not this time. While it did work out for the best, that was just an experiment of mine. I'd much rather use the fighting style my parents trained me to use." Silver stitch states as she prepares herself by adjusting her gloves.

The bell rings loudly as yet another track is put on to signal the start of the fight. Midnight Allure opens up the engagement by charging towards Silver Stitch who returns the favour. Once close enough, Silver Stitch jumps up into the air with a two hoof aerial kick which is skillfully blocked by Midnight Allure, before she is pushed away making her land on her hands. Silver Stitch pushes off the ground before coming to rest back on her hooves.

"Not bad, Stitch. I imagine this will be a mash-up of both their techniques? Should be interesting." Midnight Allure loosens her neck and smiles.

"Something like that. A style is nothing without one's own personal touch." Silver Stitch comments as she cartwheels towards Midnight Allure.

Midnight Allure skips backwards a few paces before kicking forwards and ends up blocked by Silver Stitch's own kick the moment she stops cartwheeling. Pushing off each other, Silver Stitch pushes up with a flurry of kick attacks which keep Midnight Allure on the defence till she backs off allowing for a response. Midnight Allure replies with a barrage of one-two punches which are blocked using Silver Stitch's arms and legs. Using the momentum, Midnight Allure tries to perform a roundhouse kick but is put on her ass when countered with a sweep kick from below. Flipping herself up onto her hooves, Midnight Allure cracks her knuckles before charging towards Silver Stitch to attempt a flying punch as she jumps up into the air. Silver Stitch rolls out of the way, but as soon as Midnight Allure lands she kicks Silver Stitch in the face making her recoil a little. While she is recovering, Midnight Allure follows up with two punches to the stomach before finishing with an uppercut to the jaw making Silver Stitch stumble backwards.

"You're not half bad, Stitch." Midnight Allure states as she strafes left and right in front of Silver Stitch.

"Likewise... Granted, I've not really had to fight much growing up, but my parents were insistent that I learn to defend myself." Silver Stitch spits out some blood before taking a deep breath.

"If you're not a fighter, then why are you on their team?" Midnight Allure asks, looking very confused.

"Why is any pony in team Bloody Love? Because we believe, regardless of the odds, in one mare in particular." Silver Stitch chuckles.

Silver Stitch charges Midnight Allure again but this time flips onto her hands to deliver a hail of sharp spin kick attacks which she struggles to block. Using the momentum, she pushes off her hands to slam both her hooves into Midnight Allure's defence. The inflicted mare recoils back before standing her ground and grabbing Silver Stitch's leg, so she can spin her around. Once she has gone around enough times, Midnight Allure throws her into the nearby wall. The crowd sit on the edge of their seats, drowning themselves in anticipation for the next move.

"You are resilient, I'll give you that." Midnight Allure pants slightly.

Silver Stitch pulls herself from the wall to fall onto the ground. She then gets up slowly before shaking herself off and wiping her mouth.

"I have to be... I can't afford to falter for even a second... Not only am I the daughter of two well respected and loved ponies, but I have a marefriend... I'd like to think you understand that there are times where we must be resilient." Silver Stitch begins running at Midnight Allure who braces herself.

Once she reaches Midnight Allure, Silver Stitch flips over above her head before kicking her in the back. Upon turning around, the mare is met with yet more harsh kick attacks in various forms. Her defence almost falters as her arms are beaten by Silver Stitch's precise expert kicks.

"Tranquil Wind is not always like her father... She is not always cool, calm, and collected, she has crazy moments... She doubts herself constantly. She strives to push herself past the limit. My mare encourages me to excel myself, but what do you think happens when she falters? When a mare, such as herself, has doubts? I pick her up, I piece her back together... I'm her rock and Celestia be damned if I'll let her see me falter here!" Silver Stitch yells as she finally breaks through to slam both her hooves into Midnight Allures chest.

Midnight Allure stumbles backwards, holding her chest, and is temporarily brought to one knee.

"I do understand... Try being the marefriend to Selene. I imagine it's a lot like Octavia wth Amore... They are both stubborn and normally do long before they think about something. Which, while it seems annoying, is also one of the things we love about them. So, likewise, I can't and won't be beaten here. I hope you understand that." Midnight Allure stands up slowly.

Midnight Allure clouds her eyes before speeding towards Silver Stitch who smiles. Upon reaching her she is met with a storm of lightning fast punches which pepper her steady defence like needles on paper. Every so often a couple of strikes get through and weaken her overall composure until she cannot take anymore and breaks. Stumbling backwards slightly, Midnight Allure pushes her assault with her punches which continuously hit Silver Stitch's chest and stomach. After several seconds of punches, Midnight backs off to recover her stamina. Silver Stitch breathes heavily, still standing. Growling, Midnight Allure charges forwards to deliver a singular harsh uppercut to Silver Stitch's jaw. The blow takes her off her hooves and onto the floor, both mares heave and pant heavily with exhaustion. A timer appears on the board above the commentator's stand which counts down from ten. The audience swallows hard and actually stand up as they watch the timer count the seconds, the anticipation thick in the air as Silver Stitch stays down till the timer reaches zero.

"Midnight Allure wins!" Silver Vase practically screams from the box.

The entire audience erupts into the loudest cheer yet and applauds the amazing fight they just witnessed. Silver Stitch chuckles as she stays laying on the floor, making Midnight Allure frown.

"Why didn't you get up? You could have taken a lot more than this." Midnight Allure stands up straight.

"Yeah... I could have... Despite how well I was doing, I think I'm good for today..." Silver Stitch rubs her jaw while her breathing returns to normal.

Midnight Allure glances behind her as Tranquil Wind walks past her to reach Silver Stitch. After reaching the downed mare, she gently picks her up before she begins carrying her back to their team lobby.

"Hey, sweetie... How'd I do?" Silver Stitch asks.

"You're such an idiot not using your Pixie magic..." Tranquil Wind states with a sigh.

"I didn't need it... I did my part." Silver Stitch nuzzles Tranquil Wind gently.

"You are amazing... As my dad would say, you're twenty percent cooler." Tranquil Wind returns the nuzzle softly.

"Oh, that was awful." Silver Stitch chuckles through her pain as she holds her side.

Midnight Allure sighs deeply as she watches them before walking back to her own team lobby.

Author's Note

The second match of the finals is here, plus some other development stuff which I hope you guys like. I'll hopefully see you guys on another chapter out soon.