NOIRE POV, ONE MONTH AFTER THE CLASH OF CODES

"..."

"..."

Awkwardness. The invisible tension between people that cannot be filled no matter what you say. Small talk could make the gap seem smaller but a sudden silence can make it feel even wider, wider than canyons, expanding until oceans couldn't fill its space. "It appears as if we cannot socialise as well we hoped we would..." The blue alicorn took a long sip of her tea as we sat in a cosy, but unbearably silent tea room in Canterlot Castle "We... I am still getting accustomed to new Equestrian 'slang but allow us to alleviate both of us from this painful situation by asking 'how is the marefriend?'"

I took a longer sip of my tea ad sighed heavily "It's actually 'how's the wife' but I this case, it makes sense" Luna seemed a little proud of that development of her language "As for Cadance and I, I don't think it's going well. Ever since we pushed Grim out of Canterlot, there has been a lot of work to do to prepare for when he attacks again. There have been requests for more guards in other cities, encoding more armour since most of it was damaged from the fighting and no-one's has been able to properly fill in the spot of guard captain since Shining's 'absence'. All of this just piled up and I didn't even notice how Cadance and I haven't even slept in the same bed until two weeks had already passed,"

"It sounds like you have had a lot on your mind. Having all of this work suddenly thrust upon you must be stressful. I remember wanting to go straight back into court without learning about how nobility had changed..." she shuddered from the memory. I laughed weakly. I was so tired.

"Luna, I'm scared that our relationship is going to end up the same as Cadance and Shining's and I don't want that," when I looked at my teacup, I could see the ripples warping my image until I couldn't even recognise the man that returned my gaze. Whether this warped image was a product of my hazy, sleep-deprived eyes or my terribly nervous hands was anyone's guess. Luna comforted me, holding me tight. This warmth was exactly what I needed from someone that day. I could feel the memory of Cadance's sad or even scornful looks, etching themselves into my eyes, judging me for making the same mistakes "What do I do? I don't want to lose her..."

Luna carefully stroked my head as she consoled me "Now Noire if you realise you're making a mistake, beating yourself up about it and wanting to fix it, aren't you already doing better than Shining?" I looked up to meet her firm gaze, her caring royal shining through "I don't know much about relationships and not much more about Cadance and Shining Armor. However, from what I can summarise, I assume their romance fell apart was due to a lack of effort on both of their parts. They both excused their distance due to their duties and never bothered to make compromises to satisfy both themselves and their responsibilities, leading them to become more roommates than lovers. You already want to solve the problem way before it becomes the same. You are already on your way to fixing it. You just need Cadance to put in the effort herself now,"

"Wow, that is the most consistent equish I have ever heard you speak. It seems that you're getting used to new equestrian quite well," Luna blushed a little from my compliment. We had both grown from his awkward tea party. My reflection was as clear as day and stared at me with determination "Thank you for the tea, Luna, but now know what I have to do next" Luna said her farewells before I teleported away.

"I could only speak such good equish because of you, Noire. You are a sense of relief for me,"

Once I arrived at the castle, I searched all over for Cadance. In her room, the halls, the courtroom, even the training grounds but she was nowhere to be seen. Soon, I spotted Tidal roaming the halls "Tidal!" I yelled after her.

"Oh, hey Noire. What's got you up in a bunch?" She asked, looking over my tired body.

"Have you seen Cadance anywhere I've been looking all over the castle but I can't find her," Tidal pondered on my question for a moment before answering.

"Oh yeah! Right after you left for your little date with Luna, she said something about visiting Ponyville with Ayra for a couple of days,"
I was a little confused bout her answer, mainly why Cadance would go to Ponyville of all places. Little did I know, that one trip to Ponyville was going to change a lot of things about our relationship.

Author's Note

It is time for the spice! I was going to put this story point much later but I think this is a good way to tie together some of the other less developed story points so I hope you enjoyed this little catalyst. The next and final interlude before we enter the next arc will be coming soon!

Stay dizzy. Wuzzy out.