Moonlight Trails

As I laid in bed with Moonlight at my side, I looked up at the ceiling, unable to fall asleep. The thoughts of everything happening within the past few hours finally catching up to me. I looked over at her to see her curled up into a small ball with a smile on her face. I smiled before leaning over to give her a gentle kiss on the top of the head before setting up in bed.

As I sat up, I finally had a chance to look around the room. Once more, another massive room that you could fit my house in several times over. The floors were covered in nice, thick, warm, plush, blue carpets. The walls painted in different shades of purple and blue with towering bay windows spread out every few feet.

I pulled myself out of bed and walked over to the closet, looking for a shirt to wear that might now bother my arm. A few minutes passed, but I couldn't find anything. I groaned out slightly before flipping to another shirt. A silky red one with one of the arms gone in it. I put it on to see that it was actually kind of spacious as well. "Hmm, neat." I said to myself before walking out and into the hallway.

This is the first time that I've actually been able to look around by myself, not that I don't mind having Moonlight by my side though. It's sometimes nice to be able to examine and enjoy the view of something rather than being rushed through it like we usually were.

The hallways were different shades of bright reds and blues with a beautiful, dark blue, almost black marble floors. "Sightseeing, Smokey?" Twilight called out from behind me, almost making my leap out of my skin.

I turn around to see her standing there, exhaustion all over her face, though she managed to keep a smile. "Oh, uh, yes ma'am. Sorry if I'm in some place I don't belong. I can go back to my room if it's an issue." I offered.

She shook her head and walked past me. "I do need to talk with you about something. Nothing to worry about though." She requested of me.

I nodded of followed after her and into a study. I looked around to see that this room was rather small. Actually about the size of my own room back home. It was nice and cozy, lavender carpeted floors with bookshelves lining the walls, the only form of light coming from a few lamps placed around the room.

We walk over to two chairs before she sat down. "Have a seat." She offered as I nodded and sat down in front of her.

"Is everything alright?" I asked, slightly concerned.

She nodded, before pulling a bottle of wine from a small shelf located at the side of her chair. "Everything is fine. It's just I need to talk to you about what your boss has informed me about that incident at that Cart Lot and the reasoning behind your termination." She said, pouring two glasses, gliding one glass over to me with her magic. "Now in that attack, what exactly happened?" She asked, concern in her voice.

I looked up at her, slightly beginning to worry at what my boss did tell her. "I was doing my patrols throughout one of the lots, I hear something coming from the woodline and I thought it was the group of teens that lived a few minutes away from there. They occasionally like to go up on the lots and goof around." I stated, trying to recollect my memories.

"After I found out that it was a Manticore, instead a group of teens, I panicked a bit, but tried to make myself look bigger by spreading my wings. It fell for it at first, but was quick to come back. Seeing that the ground was dry, I began to flap my wings to knock up some dust and dirt to blind it." I added before I sat back in my chair, taking a drink of wine.

"Then, having the chance to fly away. I took it. I flew back to the office to call my boss and tell him of my findings. He told me to lock myself in the office and stay as quiet as possible. I didn't agree to that, I refused to be cat food for a giant pony-eating beast." I said, a small chuckle escaping my lips.

"Well, of course you would. No one would like for that to happen." She stated.

"Exactly!" I exclaimed. "But, I built me a club out of wood an a rock and pressed myself against the door to try and listen for it. Well, big boy knew where I was and decided to take out the door upon trying to reach me." I said, before lowering my head, remembering back to that primal rage. "The door, it hit me in the head fairly hard." I added.

"The doctor did mention on his reports that you were possibly at risk of a concussion in his reports." Twilight mentioned, scratching her chin, trying to remember what the reports said.

"Well, something happened." I said, looking down at the ground. "When I hit my head, I kind of flipped and began to beat on the Manticore, breaking its shoulder and crushing its throat. It died about a hundred or so feet ahead of me." I said, kind of worried now.

"And that's when you blacked out from blood loss?" She asked.

I gave a simple nod in reply. "After, I woke up at the hospital to Jackass McSuckasack telling me to get out." I froze and looked at her, after saying the mock name for that doctor. "Sorry, I forget that I'm in front of the Princess of Friendship. I apologize if my phrasing is rude. I'll tone it down if you want." I asked.

She laughed and shook her head. "Oh, you're fine. If it was a problem, I would have said something by now, but I am loving these nicknames you have for others." She said, still snickering to herself.

I gave a sigh of relief and nodded. "Ok then, but that's all that's happened around that time." I said, looking up at her.

She nodded softly and gave a pained sigh. "So, what is of this Beard Man, was it?" She asked, crossing her arms, staring at me.

I froze for a second, speechless for a moment. "W-Well, imagine he's an alter ego. Though, only comes out in situations that needs him." I said, doing my best to explain it.

"What are those situations?" She asked in a stern voice.

I gave a sigh before scratching the back of my head in thought. "Well, obviously if I get hit hard enough in the head being one." I joked, but didn't get a single laugh. "Right then..." I said to myself before continuing. "Other situations that it has happened in is situations that I need to protect someone." I admitted.

She sat there for a minute examining me closely. "Have you ever turned against someone you care about?"

"No, it's helped people I care about out of situations that might hurt them. This isn't the first time this has happened and I ended up in the hospital about it." I stated. "I've been shot. I've been stabbed. Bitten. Hit with a sledge hammer." I said, pointing out different scars and marks along my body that was covered by my fur. "And then this beauty. The thing that created Beard Man." I said, parting my beard to reveal a massive scar along my neck that was unable to be hidden by my fur.

She drew back in terror. "Oh my!" She cried out in fear. "How did you endure all that?" She asked.

I chuckled to myself. "Stupidity as my friends would always say. 'Can't do any damage to an empty head!" I said in a mocking tone. "Though, it's because I cared a little bit too much." I said, hanging my head. "For folk who couldn't care less if I lived or died. So I guess it really was stupidity." I joked.

Twilight looked at me with pained eyes. "What of your parents?" She asked.

"They're not, um..." I paused, gulping down a bit of pain in my throat. "They're not in the picture." I said, clasping my hands together. "My dad left mom when I was 4 and my mom, who is another whole story in and of itself." I said with a slight chuckle. "But her coltfriends were more important than me or my brothers. I was kind of pushed out of my own mom's house by her coltfriend and we haven't really talked ever since." I said, still trying to gulp down the pain lingering in my throat.

"Then who was the one involved in raising you?" She asked.

"Don't get me wrong, my mom raised me, but my mamaw, or grandmother, was the one who made me who I am. She was the pony who taught me right from wrong. That taught me that it is better to be kind and offer things to the less fortunate, rather than be cruel and greedy." I said with a small smile.

Twilight sat there for a moment, thinking about something, but what. Another minute passed before a smirk came along her lips. "Smokey, I have an offer for you." She said, the smirk falling into a smile.

"Ok? What do you got?"

"Seeing as how you were able to protect yourself against a manticore, I want to hire you to be our personal bodyguards. Seeing as how you are one day going to marry Moonlight, we're practically family anyways." She joked.

"W-wait, let's not get that far ahead yet. We just started dating." I said, my faces a whole canvas of different reds.

"I know you wouldn't be the type to hurt anypony without reasoning. I know that you are absolutely head over heels for her from the way you look at her. I see that look in your eye, Smokey, that look of you will do anything to make her happy. Sunset and I have already talked about this. Plus, she's the one who really needs you." Twilight said, referring to Moonlight.

I rose my brow and tilted my head in absolute confusion. "How so?"

Twilight gave a saddened sigh. "She's had her heart broken a fair share of times, she's lost someone who we all loved, though she grew closer to the pony. I'm pretty sure you heard about Momma. Have you not?" She asked.

"Yes, that was her nanny and she died from cancer while Moonlight was at a young age."

Twilight nodded softly. "Ever since then, she has been this depressed, antisocial, dread of a thing. Me and Sunset didn't know what to do. Though the morning after she ran into you, we've noticed a drastic change in her personality. She's back to our happy, little, baby girl." Twilight stated, pure joy in her voice. "We don't know how, we don't see how, but she looks up at you and is able to see hope again. She is able to see joy and happiness again. And I mean no offense by saying that either."

I chuckled and shook my head. "Believe me, I understand. I'm a rugged, monster of a stallion who looks like he probably has a head collection in his basement. Most folk usually steer away from me." I said with a smile.

She sat there with her eyes sprung wide open after my remark. "How did you know that's what I said?" She asked.

I couldn't help but to bust out laughing. "Oh! It hurts." I cried out in laughter, holding my bad arm. "I didn't know that's what you said. That's just a usual representation many folk get around me." I said, still laughing at her reaction. "Why do you think I was shocked at first when Moonlight approached me. Usually folk run in terror." I stated. "Though after my past, it kind of comes with the title." I said, referring to myself.

"Fair enough." She said, the good-hearted smile returning. "So back to the offer. What do you say?" She asked, looking up at me.

"What type of things would I have to give up?" I asked, scratching my chin in thought.

"Nothing to be honest. If you so choose to live in your own home, then so be it. You're all your finances will be taken care of so long as you keep making Moonlight happy." She said with a smile.

I sat there, in disbelief for a moment. "I really can't do that to you. Plus, it's not fair to you or Sunset either having to take care of another household financially." I stated, looking to see her writing something on a scroll.

"How does this sound?" She asked, presenting a contract in front of me, a 5 digit number in the salary box.

I paused to look at the amount and gave a small sigh of relief. "Fifty Thousand really ain't that bad for a yearly income." I said, examining the contract.

"Oh, no that's not yearly." She said walking up beside me.

"It's not?" I said, panic beginning to set back in.

"No, that's the quarterly income. That's how much you'll make in four months....Smokey?" Huh, it got dark all of a sudden. -THUD-