To Gaze Upon Starlightby ShobieChaptersChapter OneChapter TwoChapter Three[Archive] 1 (Pre-rewrite)[Archive] 2 (Pre-rewrite)Chapter OneIt had been a beautiful day in the fields on the outskirts of Ponyville. The gentle coolness of the breeze gave a nice contrast to the mild heat of spring. The grass swept along, creating a stunning ocean-like display. And the sun was close to setting, giving the landscape a peaceful orange tint. I was sitting on the top of one of the many hills, my back against a small tree, which was just big enough to cast some comforting shade, but not big enough to cause any issues with my kite flying high above me. I gave a sigh of content and smiled as I watched the kite soar above. My kite was not alone though. Flying alongside it, just a few feet away, was another kite. This one was not mine though. No, this one belonged to the main reason I was so relaxed right now. I felt a small shift in my right side, caused none other than by this reason. The wonderful pony who was napping, leaning into me, lightly snoring. I stifle a chuckle at the adorable sight. Her two tone purple and blue mane falling in front of her face moved slightly at her breaths, and her hind leg kicked softly every so often. Oh, she’s so not living this down. I thought as I watched both her and our kites. She had been asleep for about half an hour or so, but I didn’t mind. And that was true up until I noticed the sun touch the horizon. We’d been flying these for around two hours now, so it was probably time to pack it up. I wound up the strings on both kits and set them down carefully in front of us. I reached my hand over and gently shook my companion awake. “Starlight, it’s time to go.” She gave a louder than normal snort and her eyes jolted open. “Wha? Huh?” she questioned as she rubbed her eyes and took in her surroundings. “Oh, uh, sorry about that… Didn’t realize how tired I was.” I smiled and lightly ruffled her mane, much to her annoyance. “It’s no problem, you weren’t out for long. And it was peaceful just watching the kites.” I grabbed my kite and started to disassemble it. “Ready to head back to town?” Starlight glanced over to the sun, which was now nearly gone. “Yeah, don’t want to be out too late. As much as I love it, Ponyville doesn’t exactly have many things going on at night.” I gave her a smirk and a raised eyebrow. “I can think of a couple things.” I said, wiggling my eyebrows. Her face goes flush. “O-oh, I-uh-I don’t-” she stuttered out. I laughed loudly at her embarrassment. “Relax, Starlight, I was just joking.” She playfully punched my shoulder. “Don’t do that to me! You know I’m still trying to learn this whole friendship thing.” “Well, consider that a lesson.” I countered. “Touche.” I finished packing up my kite and slung my bag over my shoulder. “Ready to go?” Her horn lit up and in a couple flashes, her kite disappeared and her saddlebags were now resting on her withers. “Ready.” “Cheater.” I mumbled. She giggled and we both set off back to town. As we walked, I began thinking about how Starlight was my first real friend here in Equestria. While everypony was perfectly friendly after the initial shock, the first pony to really try to get to know me was Starlight. She would come visit me in my room in the castle and hang out or invite me to places with her. Although I’m almost sure she only started doing that because of Twilight’s insistence, I can honestly say that even though it’s only been about a year and a half or so, she’s become my best friend of both worlds. Sure, she has her flaws. I remember when she accidentally spilled her drink on me while I was passed out on a couch in the castle, and I woke up to find all my clothes were bright red. The look on her face when I woke up was priceless. She kept apologizing, but all I could do was laugh at the situation. She helped me through my adjustment to being here in Equestria so much, and I don’t think I can ever repay that. But that won’t stop me from trying. After a pleasantly silent walk through town, we arrived at the castle. Opening the door for her, she smiled and walked past. We headed upstairs and stopped at the door to her room. “Alright, I can see you’re absolutely exhausted.” I said. She yawned. “Yeah, it’s been a long day… Lots of thinking...” I raised an eyebrow in concern. “Thinking? You wanna talk about it?” She shook her head and smiled at me. “I’m okay, thank you though.” Her horn lit up and she opened the door. “Goodnight, Seth. See you tomorrow?” I smile back. “Of course. Goodnight Glim.” Starlight then raised an eyebrow. “‘Glim’? Are we doing nicknames now?” she teased. I shrugged. “Eh, just thought it was cute. If you don’t like it, I’ll stop.” She held up a hoof in reassurance. “Seth, it’s fine... I actually like it.” “Oh?” “Yeah. Only if I get to call you something too.” She smirked. My smile widens and I leaned forward slightly. “Do your worst.” “Oh I will.” She tried to keep the smirk, but her mind betrayed her, causing her to yawn again. “But for now, bed.” “Agreed. Goodnight Glim.” “Goodnight.” And with that she trotted into her room, leaving me with the silence of a mostly empty crystal castle and my thoughts as I walk down the hall to my own room. I’ve gotta do something soon for Starlight. I thought. I’ll think of something tomorrow… I entered my room and sat down at the table, picking up today’s local newspaper I had bought earlier that day. Skimming down it, I saw something that would’ve made me do a spit take Had I been drinking anything. Oh this is too perfect. Turns out there was a kite festival happening in Canterlot this weekend. And considering she hadn’t mentioned it, I doubted she knew about it. I smiled to myself as I schemed this surprise into our normal hangout times. She’s going to flip her shit and it’s going to be glorious. I set down the paper, still smiling, stand up, and face planted onto my bed in pure exhaustion. And before I passed out, I could only think one thing. Something that would make Twilight squee if she heard. Friendship really is magic. Author's Note This chapter is less of a rewrite and more of an "Edit+". I like where I went with this one, but the next chapter will change a bit more as the direction that one took wasn't where I originally intended it to go. Either way, I hope you enjoy! Chapter TwoI managed to wake up on time for once, and I don’t need a psychologist to tell me why. The Canterlot Kite Festival couldn’t be timed more perfectly. Now, how to bring it up? I was halfway through with my breakfast when I heard a familiar yawn to my right. None other than Starlight herself trudged through the doorway, eyes half closed, ears halfway down, obviously only half awake. She didn’t seem to notice me as she grabbed her own plate of food from the counter stacked with various breakfast foods. Pancakes, eggs, toast, muffins, you name it. Spike spoils us. I’ve got to thank him at some point. Starlight turned and sat down across the table from me. She took a couple bites before stopping, eyes widening, with her third halfway to her mouth. She gazed up at my smirking face as I was attempting to stifle a giggle. I couldn’t help myself and just chuckled to myself. Her face flushed as she finished her third bite before smacking the top of my head with her fork. “Ow!” I exclaimed, a smile still plastered on my face. “What’s so funny?” Starlight asked as she took another bite. I let out a few final chuckles before answering, “Not really funny, you’re just cute when you’re tired.” There she goes, blushing again. “And also when you blush like that.” Her blush deepened and she just returned to her food, mumbling about something or other. I guess this is as good of a time as any to ask. “Hey, Glim?” She looked back at me, a single eyebrow raised. “Wanna go to Canterlot this weekend with me?” Her dissipating blush returned in full force, cute, and her eyebrow somehow raised slightly higher. Gulping down the food in her mouth, she responded, “Uh, what’s in Canterlot?” I leaned on the table. “Oh, nothing much,” I say nonchalantly. “Just the Canterlot Kite Festival.” Her mouth hung slightly agape, eyes wide as probably possible. “That exists?!” I allow myself a small smirk. “Yeah, but since you haven’t even heard of it, I’ll assume you’re not interes-” “NO!” She all but screamed as she practically leapt over the table, knocking me onto the floor, pinning me, her face mere inches from mine. “Please, let’s go!” Gathering myself after the commotion, I chuckled at her before reaching up and booping her muzzle. Her face scrunched up and her eyes went crossed. “I figured you’d want to, don’t worry.” When she regained her senses, she noticed her position on top of me and quickly got off with a light blush. “Sorry...” she said, giggling nervously and shifting on her hooves. Damn she’s cute when she does that. I rose to my feat and ruffled her mane slightly. “Let’s finish our breakfast, then we’ll head to the train station and get our tickets, that way we don’t have to worry about it the day of. The lines on the weekend always suck.” Starlight sat back down in front of her food, face still flushed, and a dopey smile on her face. “Sounds good to me.” She said, taking occasional glances at me. I sat down as well, finishing my own breakfast, looking forward to the weekend. A loud knock sounded off at my door, rousing me from my sweet slumber. I groaned my disapproval. “Seth! Get up, we're going to be late!” I heard Starlight from outside my door. I opened my eyes a bit and glanced at my bedside clock to see it was a quarter til six in the morning. Mustering up my strength, I tiredly yelled out, “Starlight, the train doesn't leave for another three hours. Let me sleep through one of them.” A burst of light appeared on top of me, blinding me as I felt a weight on my stomach. “Please~? I want to make sure everything is ready, and I could really use your help.” I rubbed my eyes in an attempt to cure my temporary blindness. Opening my eyes, I find favorite pony and best friend sitting on me, giving me those damn sad puppy dog eyes she likes to use. Not being able to take the cuteness any longer, I sighed and conceded. “Fine. But you owe me.” I said, giving her a wink. If I didn't know any better I'd say she blushed before composing herself. “Yes! Thank you! Come on!” she said, dragging me out of bed with her magic. We made it about halfway down the hall before I decided to bring my current predicament to her attention. “Yo Glim, you don't have to drag me all the way to the festival.” She turned and realized she had been dragging me by my arm the whole time. And with a small squeak, she dropped my arm. “Sorry, I guess I'm just a little excited.” She said with a nervous giggle. That’s when I came up with an idea to tease her a bit. “It’s all good, you can restrain me all you like.” I said with a sly grin. This time, I know I saw her blush. “I, uh… hehe… Well, our bags aren’t going to pack themselves!” I chuckled and followed her down the hall to a storage closet where we kept most of our things that we didn’t use often. With her magic, Starlight opened the door, grabbed her soft pink suitcase, and not so gently threw my dark purple suitcase at my chest. It hit me with a thump and I had to take a step back. “Yo, what was that for?” I asked. She threw a sly smile at me, mimicking my previous smirk. “For teasing me like that. Now go put that in your room and come down to the dining room. I already have breakfast prepared.” “Yes, Mom.” I blew a raspberry at her and smiled as I turned and headed back to my room to toss the suitcase in it. I walked downstairs to the castles dining room, or from my perspective, dining cathedral. Seriously, that thing was massive and had no place being that big. But I digress. I opened the doors to the dining room to see Starlight placing a couple plates with omelets on them on the table. “Omelets? Are you actually my mother?” I joked, gaining her attention. She looked at me with a small smile. “Well, you can call me mommy if you want.” she retorted. Now it was my turn to blush, unable to come up with a comeback. The sound of giggling brought me out of my stupor. “You alright there, Seth? I was only teasing.” I shook my head to clear my... thoughts. “Uh, yeah. Where’s my food?” I said in an attempt to change the topic. Starlight giggled. “Right here.” She gestured to the plate to her left and patted the seat in front of it. I sat down next to her and proceeded to take my first bite of my omelet, only to be taken aback by how good it was. “Holy shit, Starlight. Did you make this?” She turned to me, a confused expression adorning her face. “Uh, yeah? No one else is up. Why?” “This shit is wonderful! I don’t think I’ve ever had eggs that taste this fantastic before.” I took another bite and suppressed a satisfied moan. Then I turned to face her again, but with a serious expression. “Will you marry me?” Her face exploded into a visible blush that made me instinctually press my foot against a non-existent brake pedal. “Let’s just make it past today.” she responds, her blush deepening. Huh, usually she either changes the subject or comes back at me. I thought as I continue eating my own piece of heaven. Wait, what about today? “What’s today?” “Uh, our date?” she responds with a nervous look. “Right?” Date? Oh shit, she thinks the festival was me asking her out? I didn’t mean to do that! Fuck, how am I going to fix this? She’s my best friend, I don’t wanna ruin that! Is this even salvageable now? Wait, does that mean she’s interested in me? I don’t even like ponies like that! I mean, I joke around when I flirt with her, I think… I was joking, right? I joke flirt with all the mares I know, don’t I? … Nope, only Starlight. I mean, sure they’re cute as fuck, but they’re ponies! They do talk and think like people, but they’re ponies! Alright, I’ll admit some of them have nice asses, but ponies! And the way Starlight looks at me whenever I do something nice for her makes me feel butterflies, and the way she styles her mane when we hang out is pretty sexy, but… but… And that’s when it hit me. Starlight Glimmer, my best friend across both worlds, at the very least, was romantically interested in me. And thinking about it a bit more, I think the feeling is mutual. And at this point, I’d been staring at my food for a solid minute and a half while my friend is probably feeling pretty shitty because it looks like I turned her down. I heard a sniffle from next to me. “It’s okay, Seth… I thought… We… The teasing...” She sighed. “I’ll run and cancel our tickets… You can go back to sleep if you want...” She gets up to do so, but I react quickly and sit her back down. “Woah, hold up. Don’t do that.” Starlight refused to look at me, and instead, stared at her own plate. “Why? It’s clear you didn’t mean what… what I thought you meant, so why continue?” she said between sniffles. Tears began to flow down her face I reach over and turn her face towards me, forcing her to look me in the eyes. I wiped away the tears from her face with my thumb and smiled slightly. “Because, while I didn’t mean to ask you out, I do mean this; You are a wonderful mare, Starlight. You’ve stuck with me, an alien who dropped into town randomly, through a lot and asked for nothing in return, and that means a lot to me.” She tried to pull away, but I pulled her back. “Look, what I’m trying to say is, I like you Starlight. I like you a lot. And I’d be thrilled to go on a date with you.” Her mouth opened slightly, and all I could see was surprise as her wide eyes shimmered in the morning sun. I pulled my hand away, smiling. She stared at me for about ten seconds or so before reaching up to place her hooves on my shoulders and kissing me. To say I was shocked is an understatement. My eyes went wide before I gave in halfway through and leaned back into it. While it only lasted for a few seconds, it was far from unpleasant. The fur on her lips was a bit weird, but nice. She broke the kiss and went back to sitting on her own seat. “Um, sorry.” “Don’t be.” I said. “I liked it.” “Can we do it more?” she asked sheepishly. I give her a smirk. “Let’s just make it past today.” Author's Note Added the actual scene where Seth asks Starlight to go to the festival and edited the other bits to contain more thoughts. Hope the pacing is at least a bit better. Also, I will be writing chapter 3 during the road trip to BronyCon tomorrow! As always, hope you enjoy! Chapter ThreeThe train ride to Canterlot was uneventful, yet pleasant. I decided to bring the camera Starlight bought me for my birthday last year. It was like one of those older cameras that printed out the picture after you took it. Outside the window were trees of all different colors, creating a red, yellow, and brown static of sorts across the mountainside. But the best view in my opinion was the bundle of pony laying on my lap, snoozing away. Ammo? Ammo. Smirking to myself, I brought up my camera and took a picture of the sleeping Starlight. She had her mouth open slightly, allowing a trail of drool to escape and run down her chin. Perfect. I thought, still grinning, as I looked at the newly printed picture. “Anyone sees that and I’ll send you to a different dimension.” I heard a familiar voice say from below me. I glanced down to find a slightly open eye peering up at me. “Do your worst, I’ve already been through a change of dimensions.” I replied smugly. Starlight gave me a malicious look. “Then I guess you could adapt to the tentacle dimension discovered a few years back.” My mouth betrayed me and let out a muffled whine. “That’s what I thought.” she said as she laid back down on my lap. Unable to help myself, I reached out and began to gently pet her mane. Her soft smile grew slightly and her breaths got replaced by soft snores. The sound of the trains whistle drew the two of us out of our impromptu nap. With groggy vision, we managed to grab all of our bags before the train stopped completely. Starlight stepped off the train and as she looked up, adopted an expression of wonder, not unlike a kid in a candy store. I stepped off the train and instantly understood her reaction. Hundreds, if not thousands, of kites flew high and low all across the Canterlot sky. There were so many you could see gusts of wind as they were pushed around. “Excited?” I ask after she stared for about a minute. She flicked her ear as she snapped out of her trance. Then she turned to me with a slightly annoyed expression. “What are you waiting for? Let’s go!” She tugged on my shirt with her magic and briskly trotted away in the direction of the hotel. I chuckled at her enthusiasm and followed my... date… Oh, this is going to be fun. I won’t lie, it’s rather unreal in my head to think of Starlight as my girlfriend, or marefriend, but I could feel myself warming up to it quickly. My mental hesitance not because she was a pony, but because we’ve been close friends for so long. My mind snapped back to the present and I began attempting to recall the little snippets of the festival’s activities I read in the article. The Kite Height Contest was one of them, Kite Construction Race another, and the last one my brain allowed me to remember was something that especially excited me. Kitechella. I guess the puns don’t stop at horse puns. I reached the hotel about fifteen seconds after Starlight, as that’s how far ahead she remained. I walked up next to her in line for the front desk. “Is this the line?” She stopped her excited hoof tapping and looked up to me with a curious look before one of realization took it’s place. “Oh my god, I’m so sorry! I totally just left you!” Her wide eyes darted everywhere except your face. “I was just so excited and I didn’t want us to wait in line too long so we could get our room and explore sooner!” Her face fell and she looked down at the floor. “Some date I am...” “Hey, hey,” I started as I knelt down and used my index finger to point her chin up so she’d look me in the eyes. “I get it, you’re just hyped up. I’m not mad, I’m glad you’re so happy about the trip.” With a nervous blush, she smiled apologetically at me. “Thank you.” She nuzzled my hand before turning to stand in line next to me. “Alright, let’s check in.” I smile and nod in response. After checking in and dropping our stuff off in the room, we decided to explore what the festival has to offer. We stopped by a festival info booth to grab a festival pamphlet for each of us. The pamphlets contained a map, schedule, and unavoidably, ads. Kite themed stands littered the nearby streets, varying in size, color, and stock. I never thought kites could be so in-depth, have so many types, nor require so many upkeep products. While Starlight made tiny gasps, swiveling her head so fast and so often that a part of me feared she might give herself whiplash, I was checking out the complete schedule in my hand. It appeared that the Highest Angle Kite contest would start in about an hour in the South Canterlot Garden, and in the description, it explained to arrive early to sign up. Starlight might as well have been a human teenager walking in a supermarket with family, looking at their phone. She continued her attempt to look at everything she could, using her peripheral vision to maintain her pace and location beside me as we walked. I used this to my advantage and steered us towards the contest location. When I first arrived in Equestria, I made my fair share of visits to Canterlot to answer questions for the Princesses, and during those times, more than once I would stand on a castle balcony and stare at the fantastic view of the land it provided. But I never looked down at the city itself. Part of me wishes that I did, but the other part was glad I didn’t because walking up to the open fence gate of the South Canterlot Garden was a visual experience. Carefully crafted arrangements of domestic and exotic flora twisted and turned, creating maze-like pathways that draped over the hills along what I estimated was around 20 acres of land. Trees were scattered about, the larger ones laying spots of protection around more popular areas. A rainbow of kites of all shapes and sizes flew above along the edges of the park, framing the clear sky and sun above. Ponies of all ages were scattered about, casually making their way across the garden. Families, groups of friends, couples, most with their own kites, smiled and laughed with each other. Not long after passing the front gate, Starlight noticed the lack of street under her hooves and took a more collected look around, finally taking note of how far we walked. “Uh, Seth, where are we?” she asked, taking more looks around. “I figured we could sign up for the Highest Angle contest.” I say, taking the pamphlet out to show her. “Each pony gets two-hundred feet of string, and the kite with the steepest angle wins!” Her eyes lit up, looking at the pamphlet as if I just showed her a winning lottery ticket before smirking deviously at me. “Oh, those other ponies are going down!” I can’t help but grin at her enthusiasm as we continued our trek through the garden, making our way to the two table setup facing outward away from a large open field, devoid of anything but grass. The mare behind the table noticed our approach and lifted her gaze from the paper she was reading from, beaming. “Hi! Are you two here to sign up for the contest?” “We are.” I answered. “Wonderful!” She tapped her hoof on a piece of paper on our side of the table. “Just write your names down here, please!” Using her magic, Starlight picked up a pen from the table and jotted down her name in the next available space. She set down the pen and gestured for me to do the same. Grabbing the pen, I put my own name next to hers in the same space, causing Starlight to look at me confused. I rolled my eyes with a smirk. “Like I’d want to enter a kite contest against you. You’d kick my ass any day.” She briefly returned the smirk before adopting another confused expression, albeit less pronounced. “Is that even allowed?” she asked, turning to the mare behind the table. The mare nodded. “Mhm! While only one pony is allowed to fly the kite, we get couples and families entering together all the time. It’s more about moral support, really.” “Then it’s settled.” I say. Then, raising both fists in the air, I shouted, “Team Glim! Woo!” Both mares giggled at my display as Starlight nudged me with her head as she began trotting away. “Alright cheerleader, let’s go explore some more while we wait.” “Alright, alright.” I conceded, chuckling slightly. I turned back towards the mare and gave her a quick “Thank you” as I walked alongside Starlight, heading back into the city. [Archive] 1 (Pre-rewrite)It had been a beautiful day in the fields on the outskirts of Ponyville. The gentle coolness of the breeze gave a nice contrast to the mild heat of spring. The grass swept along, creating a stunning ocean-like display. And the sun was close to setting, giving the landscape a peaceful orange tint. I was sitting on the top of one of the many hills, my back against a small tree, which was just big enough to cast some comforting shade, but not big enough to cause any issues with my kite flying high above me. I gave a sigh of content and smiled as I watched the kite soar above. My kite was not alone though. Flying alongside it, just a few feet away, was another kite. This one was not mine though. No, this one belonged to the main reason I was so relaxed right now. I felt a small shift in my right side, caused none other than by this reason. The wonderful pony who was napping, leaning into me, lightly snoring. I stifle a chuckle at the adorable sight. Her two tone purple and blue mane falling in front of her face moved slightly at her breaths, and her hind leg kicked softly every so often. Oh, she’s so not living this down. I thought as I watched both her and our kites. She had been asleep for about half an hour or so, but I didn’t mind. And that was true up until I noticed the sun touch the horizon. We’d been flying these for around two hours now, so it was probably time to pack it up. I wound up the strings on both kits and set them down carefully in front of us. I reached my hand over and gently shook my companion awake. “Starlight, it’s time to go.” She gave a louder than normal snort and her eyes jolted open. “Wha? Huh?” she questioned as she rubbed her eyes and took in her surroundings. “Oh, uh, sorry about that… Didn’t realize how tired I was.” I smiled and lightly ruffled her mane, much to her annoyance. “It’s no problem, you weren’t out for long. And it was peaceful just watching the kites.” I grabbed my kite and started to disassemble it. “Ready to head back to town?” Starlight glanced over to the sun, which was now nearly gone. “Yeah, don’t want to be out too late. As much as I love it, Ponyville doesn’t exactly have many things going on at night.” I gave her a smirk and a raised eyebrow. “I can think of a couple things.” I said, wiggling my eyebrows. Her face goes flush. “O-oh, I-uh-I don’t-” she stuttered out. I laughed loudly at her embarrassment. “Relax, Starlight, I was just joking.” She playfully punched my shoulder. “Don’t do that to me! You know I’m still trying to learn this whole friendship thing.” “Well, consider that a lesson.” I countered. “Touche.” I finished packing up my kite and slung my bag over my shoulder. “Ready to go?” Her horn lit up and in a couple flashes, her kite disappeared and her saddlebags were now resting on her withers. “Ready.” “Cheater.” I mumbled. She giggled and we both set off back to town. As we walked, I began thinking and realized that Starlight was my first real friend here in Equestria. While everypony was perfectly friendly after the initial shock, the first pony to really try to get to know me was Starlight. She would come visit me in my room in the castle and hang out or invite me to places with her. And I can honestly say that even though it’s only been six months or so, she’s become my best friend of both worlds. Sure, she has her flaws, but who doesn’t? She helped me through my adjustment to being here in Equestria so much, and I don’t think I can ever repay that. But that won’t stop me from trying. After a pleasantly silent walk through town, we arrived at the castle. I held the door for her and she smiled in thanks. We headed upstairs and stopped at the door to her room. “Alright, I can see you’re absolutely exhausted.” I said. She yawned. “Yeah, it’s been a long day… Lots of thinking...” I raised an eyebrow in concern. “Thinking? You wanna talk about it?” She shook her head and smiled at me. “I’m okay, thank you though.” Her horn lit up and she opened the door. “Goodnight, Seth. See you tomorrow?” I smile back. “Of course. Goodnight Glim.” Starlight then raised an eyebrow. “‘Glim’? Are we doing nicknames now?” she teased. I then realized what I’d said. “Oh, sorry, I don’t know why I said that.” She held up a hoof in reassurance. “Relax Seth, it’s fine... I actually like it.” “Oh?” “Yeah. Only if I get to call you something too.” She smirked. I smile back. “Do your worst.” “Oh I will.” She yawned again. “But for now, bed.” “Agreed. Goodnight Glim.” “Goodnight.” And with that she trotted into her room, leaving me with the silence of a mostly empty crystal castle and my thoughts as I walk down the hall to my own room. I’ve gotta do something soon for Starlight. I thought. I’ll think of something tomorrow maybe… I entered my room and sat down at the table, picking up today’s local newspaper. Skimming down it, I saw something that would’ve made me do a spit take if I was drinking anything. Oh this is too perfect. Turns out there was a kite festival happening in Canterlot this weekend. And considering she hadn’t mentioned it, I doubted she knew about it. I smiled to myself as I schemed this surprise into our normal hangout times. She’s going to flip her shit and it’s going to be glorious. I set down the paper, still smiling, stand up, and face planted onto my bed in pure exhaustion. And before I passed out, I could only think one thing. Something that would make Twilight squee if she heard. Friendship really is magic. [Archive] 2 (Pre-rewrite)A loud knock sounded off at my door, rousing me from my sweet slumber. I groaned my disapproval. “Seth! Get up, we're going to be late!” I heard Starlight from outside my door. I opened my eyes a bit and glanced at my bedside clock to see it was a quarter til six in the morning. Mustering up my strength, I tiredly yelled out, “Starlight, the train doesn't leave for another two hours. Let me sleep through one of them.” A burst of light appeared on top of me, blinding me as I felt a weight on my stomach. “Please~? I want to make sure everything is ready, and I could really use your help.” I rubbed my eyes in an attempt cure my temporary blindness. Opening my eyes, I find favorite pony and best friend sitting on me, giving me those damn sad puppy dog eyes she likes to use. Not being able to take the cuteness any longer, I sighed and conceded. “Fine. But you owe me.” I said, giving her a wink. If I didn't know any better I'd say she blushed before composing herself. “Yes! Thank you! Come on!” she said, dragging me out of bed with her magic. We made it about halfway down the hall before I decided to bring my current predicament to her attention. “Yo Glim, you don't have to drag me all the way to the festival.” She turned and realized she had been dragging me by my arm the whole time. And with a small squeak, she dropped my arm. “Sorry, I guess I'm just a little excited.” She said with a nervous giggle. That’s when I came up with an idea to tease her a bit. “It’s all good, you can restrain me all you like.” I said with a sly grin. This time, I know I saw her blush. “I, uh… hehe… Well, our bags aren’t going to pack themselves!” I chuckled and followed her down the hall to a storage closet where we kept most of our things that we didn’t use often. With her magic, Starlight opened the door, grabbed her soft pink suitcase, and not so gently threw my dark purple suitcase at my chest. It hit me with a thump and I had to take a step back. “Yo, what was that for?” I asked. She threw a sly smile at me, mimicking my previous smirk. “For teasing me like that. Now go put that in your room and come down to the dining room. I already have breakfast prepared.” “Yes, Mom.” I blew a raspberry at her and smiled as I turned and headed back to my room to toss the suitcase in it. I walked downstairs to the castles dining room, or from my perspective, dining cathedral. Seriously, that thing was massive and had no place being that big. But I digress. I opened the doors to the dining room to see Starlight placing a couple plates with omelets on them on the table. “Omelets? Are you actually my mother?” I joked, gaining her attention. She looked at me with a small smile. “Well, you can call me mommy if you want.” she retorted. Now it was my turn to blush, unable to come up with a comeback. The sound of giggling brought me out of my stupor. “You alright there, Seth? I was only teasing.” I shook my head to clear my... thoughts. “Uh, yeah. Where’s my food?” I said in attempt to change the topic. Starlight giggled. “Right here.” She gestured to the plate to her left and patted the seat in front of it. I sat down next to her and proceeded to take my first bite of my omelet, only to be taken aback by how good it was. “Holy shit, Starlight. Did you make this?” She turned to me, a confused expression adorning her face. “Uh, yeah? No one else is up. Why?” “Thi shit is wonderful! I don’t think I’ve ever had eggs that taste this fantastic before.” I took another bite and suppressed a satisfied moan. Then I turned to face her again, but with a serious expression. “Will you marry me?” Her face exploded into a visible blush that made me instinctively press my foot against a non-existent brake pedal. “Let’s just make it past today.” she responded, her blush deepening. Huh, usually she either changes the subject or comes back at me. I thought, continuing to eat my own piece of heaven. Wait, what about today? “What’s today?” “Uh, our date?” she responds with a nervous look. Date? Oh shit, she thinks the festival was me asking her out? I didn’t mean to do that! Fuck, how am I going to fix this? She’s my best friend, I don’t wanna ruin that! Wait, does that mean she’s interested in me? Is this even salvageable now? I don’t even like ponies like that! I mean, sure they’re cute as fuck, but they’re ponies! They do talk and think like people, but they’re ponies! Alright, I’ll admit some of them have nice asses, but ponies! And the way Starlight looks at me whenever I do something nice for her makes me feel butterflies, and the way she styles her mane when we hang out is pretty sexy, but… but… And that’s when it hit me. Starlight Glimmer, my best friend across both worlds, at the very least, was romantically interested in me. And thinking about it a bit more, I think the feeling is mutual. And at this point, I’d been staring at my food for a solid minute and a half while my friend is probably feeling pretty shitty because it looks like I turned her down. I heard a sniffle from next to me. “It’s okay Seth… I thought… We… The teasing...” She sighed. “I’ll run and cancel our tickets… You can go back to sleep if you want...” She gets up to do so, but I react quickly and sit her back down. “Woah, hold up. Don’t do that.” Starlight refused to look at me, and instead, stared at her own plate. “Why? It’s clear you didn’t mean what I thought you meant, so why continue?” I reach over and turn her face towards me, forcing her to look me in the eyes. “Because, while I didn’t mean to ask you out, I do mean this; You are a wonderful mare, Starlight. You’ve stuck with me, an alien who dropped into town randomly, through a lot and asked for nothing in return, and that means a lot to me.” She tried to pull away, but I pulled her back. “Look, what I’m trying to say is, I like you Starlight. I like you a lot. And I’d be thrilled to go on a date with you.” Her mouth opened slightly, and all I could see was surprise as her wide eyes shimmered in the morning sun. I pulled my hand away, smiling. She stared at me for about ten seconds or so before reaching up to place her hooves on my shoulders and kissing me. To say I was shocked is an understatement. My eyes went wide before I gave in halfway through and leaned back into it. While it only lasted for a few seconds, it was far from unpleasant. The fur on her lips was a bit weird, but nice. She broke the kiss and went back to sitting on her own seat. “Um, sorry.” “Don’t be.” I said. “I liked it.” “Can we do it more?” she asked sheepishly. I give her a smirk. “Let’s just make it past today.”
Chapter OneIt had been a beautiful day in the fields on the outskirts of Ponyville. The gentle coolness of the breeze gave a nice contrast to the mild heat of spring. The grass swept along, creating a stunning ocean-like display. And the sun was close to setting, giving the landscape a peaceful orange tint. I was sitting on the top of one of the many hills, my back against a small tree, which was just big enough to cast some comforting shade, but not big enough to cause any issues with my kite flying high above me. I gave a sigh of content and smiled as I watched the kite soar above. My kite was not alone though. Flying alongside it, just a few feet away, was another kite. This one was not mine though. No, this one belonged to the main reason I was so relaxed right now. I felt a small shift in my right side, caused none other than by this reason. The wonderful pony who was napping, leaning into me, lightly snoring. I stifle a chuckle at the adorable sight. Her two tone purple and blue mane falling in front of her face moved slightly at her breaths, and her hind leg kicked softly every so often. Oh, she’s so not living this down. I thought as I watched both her and our kites. She had been asleep for about half an hour or so, but I didn’t mind. And that was true up until I noticed the sun touch the horizon. We’d been flying these for around two hours now, so it was probably time to pack it up. I wound up the strings on both kits and set them down carefully in front of us. I reached my hand over and gently shook my companion awake. “Starlight, it’s time to go.” She gave a louder than normal snort and her eyes jolted open. “Wha? Huh?” she questioned as she rubbed her eyes and took in her surroundings. “Oh, uh, sorry about that… Didn’t realize how tired I was.” I smiled and lightly ruffled her mane, much to her annoyance. “It’s no problem, you weren’t out for long. And it was peaceful just watching the kites.” I grabbed my kite and started to disassemble it. “Ready to head back to town?” Starlight glanced over to the sun, which was now nearly gone. “Yeah, don’t want to be out too late. As much as I love it, Ponyville doesn’t exactly have many things going on at night.” I gave her a smirk and a raised eyebrow. “I can think of a couple things.” I said, wiggling my eyebrows. Her face goes flush. “O-oh, I-uh-I don’t-” she stuttered out. I laughed loudly at her embarrassment. “Relax, Starlight, I was just joking.” She playfully punched my shoulder. “Don’t do that to me! You know I’m still trying to learn this whole friendship thing.” “Well, consider that a lesson.” I countered. “Touche.” I finished packing up my kite and slung my bag over my shoulder. “Ready to go?” Her horn lit up and in a couple flashes, her kite disappeared and her saddlebags were now resting on her withers. “Ready.” “Cheater.” I mumbled. She giggled and we both set off back to town. As we walked, I began thinking about how Starlight was my first real friend here in Equestria. While everypony was perfectly friendly after the initial shock, the first pony to really try to get to know me was Starlight. She would come visit me in my room in the castle and hang out or invite me to places with her. Although I’m almost sure she only started doing that because of Twilight’s insistence, I can honestly say that even though it’s only been about a year and a half or so, she’s become my best friend of both worlds. Sure, she has her flaws. I remember when she accidentally spilled her drink on me while I was passed out on a couch in the castle, and I woke up to find all my clothes were bright red. The look on her face when I woke up was priceless. She kept apologizing, but all I could do was laugh at the situation. She helped me through my adjustment to being here in Equestria so much, and I don’t think I can ever repay that. But that won’t stop me from trying. After a pleasantly silent walk through town, we arrived at the castle. Opening the door for her, she smiled and walked past. We headed upstairs and stopped at the door to her room. “Alright, I can see you’re absolutely exhausted.” I said. She yawned. “Yeah, it’s been a long day… Lots of thinking...” I raised an eyebrow in concern. “Thinking? You wanna talk about it?” She shook her head and smiled at me. “I’m okay, thank you though.” Her horn lit up and she opened the door. “Goodnight, Seth. See you tomorrow?” I smile back. “Of course. Goodnight Glim.” Starlight then raised an eyebrow. “‘Glim’? Are we doing nicknames now?” she teased. I shrugged. “Eh, just thought it was cute. If you don’t like it, I’ll stop.” She held up a hoof in reassurance. “Seth, it’s fine... I actually like it.” “Oh?” “Yeah. Only if I get to call you something too.” She smirked. My smile widens and I leaned forward slightly. “Do your worst.” “Oh I will.” She tried to keep the smirk, but her mind betrayed her, causing her to yawn again. “But for now, bed.” “Agreed. Goodnight Glim.” “Goodnight.” And with that she trotted into her room, leaving me with the silence of a mostly empty crystal castle and my thoughts as I walk down the hall to my own room. I’ve gotta do something soon for Starlight. I thought. I’ll think of something tomorrow… I entered my room and sat down at the table, picking up today’s local newspaper I had bought earlier that day. Skimming down it, I saw something that would’ve made me do a spit take Had I been drinking anything. Oh this is too perfect. Turns out there was a kite festival happening in Canterlot this weekend. And considering she hadn’t mentioned it, I doubted she knew about it. I smiled to myself as I schemed this surprise into our normal hangout times. She’s going to flip her shit and it’s going to be glorious. I set down the paper, still smiling, stand up, and face planted onto my bed in pure exhaustion. And before I passed out, I could only think one thing. Something that would make Twilight squee if she heard. Friendship really is magic. Author's Note This chapter is less of a rewrite and more of an "Edit+". I like where I went with this one, but the next chapter will change a bit more as the direction that one took wasn't where I originally intended it to go. Either way, I hope you enjoy!
Chapter TwoI managed to wake up on time for once, and I don’t need a psychologist to tell me why. The Canterlot Kite Festival couldn’t be timed more perfectly. Now, how to bring it up? I was halfway through with my breakfast when I heard a familiar yawn to my right. None other than Starlight herself trudged through the doorway, eyes half closed, ears halfway down, obviously only half awake. She didn’t seem to notice me as she grabbed her own plate of food from the counter stacked with various breakfast foods. Pancakes, eggs, toast, muffins, you name it. Spike spoils us. I’ve got to thank him at some point. Starlight turned and sat down across the table from me. She took a couple bites before stopping, eyes widening, with her third halfway to her mouth. She gazed up at my smirking face as I was attempting to stifle a giggle. I couldn’t help myself and just chuckled to myself. Her face flushed as she finished her third bite before smacking the top of my head with her fork. “Ow!” I exclaimed, a smile still plastered on my face. “What’s so funny?” Starlight asked as she took another bite. I let out a few final chuckles before answering, “Not really funny, you’re just cute when you’re tired.” There she goes, blushing again. “And also when you blush like that.” Her blush deepened and she just returned to her food, mumbling about something or other. I guess this is as good of a time as any to ask. “Hey, Glim?” She looked back at me, a single eyebrow raised. “Wanna go to Canterlot this weekend with me?” Her dissipating blush returned in full force, cute, and her eyebrow somehow raised slightly higher. Gulping down the food in her mouth, she responded, “Uh, what’s in Canterlot?” I leaned on the table. “Oh, nothing much,” I say nonchalantly. “Just the Canterlot Kite Festival.” Her mouth hung slightly agape, eyes wide as probably possible. “That exists?!” I allow myself a small smirk. “Yeah, but since you haven’t even heard of it, I’ll assume you’re not interes-” “NO!” She all but screamed as she practically leapt over the table, knocking me onto the floor, pinning me, her face mere inches from mine. “Please, let’s go!” Gathering myself after the commotion, I chuckled at her before reaching up and booping her muzzle. Her face scrunched up and her eyes went crossed. “I figured you’d want to, don’t worry.” When she regained her senses, she noticed her position on top of me and quickly got off with a light blush. “Sorry...” she said, giggling nervously and shifting on her hooves. Damn she’s cute when she does that. I rose to my feat and ruffled her mane slightly. “Let’s finish our breakfast, then we’ll head to the train station and get our tickets, that way we don’t have to worry about it the day of. The lines on the weekend always suck.” Starlight sat back down in front of her food, face still flushed, and a dopey smile on her face. “Sounds good to me.” She said, taking occasional glances at me. I sat down as well, finishing my own breakfast, looking forward to the weekend. A loud knock sounded off at my door, rousing me from my sweet slumber. I groaned my disapproval. “Seth! Get up, we're going to be late!” I heard Starlight from outside my door. I opened my eyes a bit and glanced at my bedside clock to see it was a quarter til six in the morning. Mustering up my strength, I tiredly yelled out, “Starlight, the train doesn't leave for another three hours. Let me sleep through one of them.” A burst of light appeared on top of me, blinding me as I felt a weight on my stomach. “Please~? I want to make sure everything is ready, and I could really use your help.” I rubbed my eyes in an attempt to cure my temporary blindness. Opening my eyes, I find favorite pony and best friend sitting on me, giving me those damn sad puppy dog eyes she likes to use. Not being able to take the cuteness any longer, I sighed and conceded. “Fine. But you owe me.” I said, giving her a wink. If I didn't know any better I'd say she blushed before composing herself. “Yes! Thank you! Come on!” she said, dragging me out of bed with her magic. We made it about halfway down the hall before I decided to bring my current predicament to her attention. “Yo Glim, you don't have to drag me all the way to the festival.” She turned and realized she had been dragging me by my arm the whole time. And with a small squeak, she dropped my arm. “Sorry, I guess I'm just a little excited.” She said with a nervous giggle. That’s when I came up with an idea to tease her a bit. “It’s all good, you can restrain me all you like.” I said with a sly grin. This time, I know I saw her blush. “I, uh… hehe… Well, our bags aren’t going to pack themselves!” I chuckled and followed her down the hall to a storage closet where we kept most of our things that we didn’t use often. With her magic, Starlight opened the door, grabbed her soft pink suitcase, and not so gently threw my dark purple suitcase at my chest. It hit me with a thump and I had to take a step back. “Yo, what was that for?” I asked. She threw a sly smile at me, mimicking my previous smirk. “For teasing me like that. Now go put that in your room and come down to the dining room. I already have breakfast prepared.” “Yes, Mom.” I blew a raspberry at her and smiled as I turned and headed back to my room to toss the suitcase in it. I walked downstairs to the castles dining room, or from my perspective, dining cathedral. Seriously, that thing was massive and had no place being that big. But I digress. I opened the doors to the dining room to see Starlight placing a couple plates with omelets on them on the table. “Omelets? Are you actually my mother?” I joked, gaining her attention. She looked at me with a small smile. “Well, you can call me mommy if you want.” she retorted. Now it was my turn to blush, unable to come up with a comeback. The sound of giggling brought me out of my stupor. “You alright there, Seth? I was only teasing.” I shook my head to clear my... thoughts. “Uh, yeah. Where’s my food?” I said in an attempt to change the topic. Starlight giggled. “Right here.” She gestured to the plate to her left and patted the seat in front of it. I sat down next to her and proceeded to take my first bite of my omelet, only to be taken aback by how good it was. “Holy shit, Starlight. Did you make this?” She turned to me, a confused expression adorning her face. “Uh, yeah? No one else is up. Why?” “This shit is wonderful! I don’t think I’ve ever had eggs that taste this fantastic before.” I took another bite and suppressed a satisfied moan. Then I turned to face her again, but with a serious expression. “Will you marry me?” Her face exploded into a visible blush that made me instinctually press my foot against a non-existent brake pedal. “Let’s just make it past today.” she responds, her blush deepening. Huh, usually she either changes the subject or comes back at me. I thought as I continue eating my own piece of heaven. Wait, what about today? “What’s today?” “Uh, our date?” she responds with a nervous look. “Right?” Date? Oh shit, she thinks the festival was me asking her out? I didn’t mean to do that! Fuck, how am I going to fix this? She’s my best friend, I don’t wanna ruin that! Is this even salvageable now? Wait, does that mean she’s interested in me? I don’t even like ponies like that! I mean, I joke around when I flirt with her, I think… I was joking, right? I joke flirt with all the mares I know, don’t I? … Nope, only Starlight. I mean, sure they’re cute as fuck, but they’re ponies! They do talk and think like people, but they’re ponies! Alright, I’ll admit some of them have nice asses, but ponies! And the way Starlight looks at me whenever I do something nice for her makes me feel butterflies, and the way she styles her mane when we hang out is pretty sexy, but… but… And that’s when it hit me. Starlight Glimmer, my best friend across both worlds, at the very least, was romantically interested in me. And thinking about it a bit more, I think the feeling is mutual. And at this point, I’d been staring at my food for a solid minute and a half while my friend is probably feeling pretty shitty because it looks like I turned her down. I heard a sniffle from next to me. “It’s okay, Seth… I thought… We… The teasing...” She sighed. “I’ll run and cancel our tickets… You can go back to sleep if you want...” She gets up to do so, but I react quickly and sit her back down. “Woah, hold up. Don’t do that.” Starlight refused to look at me, and instead, stared at her own plate. “Why? It’s clear you didn’t mean what… what I thought you meant, so why continue?” she said between sniffles. Tears began to flow down her face I reach over and turn her face towards me, forcing her to look me in the eyes. I wiped away the tears from her face with my thumb and smiled slightly. “Because, while I didn’t mean to ask you out, I do mean this; You are a wonderful mare, Starlight. You’ve stuck with me, an alien who dropped into town randomly, through a lot and asked for nothing in return, and that means a lot to me.” She tried to pull away, but I pulled her back. “Look, what I’m trying to say is, I like you Starlight. I like you a lot. And I’d be thrilled to go on a date with you.” Her mouth opened slightly, and all I could see was surprise as her wide eyes shimmered in the morning sun. I pulled my hand away, smiling. She stared at me for about ten seconds or so before reaching up to place her hooves on my shoulders and kissing me. To say I was shocked is an understatement. My eyes went wide before I gave in halfway through and leaned back into it. While it only lasted for a few seconds, it was far from unpleasant. The fur on her lips was a bit weird, but nice. She broke the kiss and went back to sitting on her own seat. “Um, sorry.” “Don’t be.” I said. “I liked it.” “Can we do it more?” she asked sheepishly. I give her a smirk. “Let’s just make it past today.” Author's Note Added the actual scene where Seth asks Starlight to go to the festival and edited the other bits to contain more thoughts. Hope the pacing is at least a bit better. Also, I will be writing chapter 3 during the road trip to BronyCon tomorrow! As always, hope you enjoy!
Chapter ThreeThe train ride to Canterlot was uneventful, yet pleasant. I decided to bring the camera Starlight bought me for my birthday last year. It was like one of those older cameras that printed out the picture after you took it. Outside the window were trees of all different colors, creating a red, yellow, and brown static of sorts across the mountainside. But the best view in my opinion was the bundle of pony laying on my lap, snoozing away. Ammo? Ammo. Smirking to myself, I brought up my camera and took a picture of the sleeping Starlight. She had her mouth open slightly, allowing a trail of drool to escape and run down her chin. Perfect. I thought, still grinning, as I looked at the newly printed picture. “Anyone sees that and I’ll send you to a different dimension.” I heard a familiar voice say from below me. I glanced down to find a slightly open eye peering up at me. “Do your worst, I’ve already been through a change of dimensions.” I replied smugly. Starlight gave me a malicious look. “Then I guess you could adapt to the tentacle dimension discovered a few years back.” My mouth betrayed me and let out a muffled whine. “That’s what I thought.” she said as she laid back down on my lap. Unable to help myself, I reached out and began to gently pet her mane. Her soft smile grew slightly and her breaths got replaced by soft snores. The sound of the trains whistle drew the two of us out of our impromptu nap. With groggy vision, we managed to grab all of our bags before the train stopped completely. Starlight stepped off the train and as she looked up, adopted an expression of wonder, not unlike a kid in a candy store. I stepped off the train and instantly understood her reaction. Hundreds, if not thousands, of kites flew high and low all across the Canterlot sky. There were so many you could see gusts of wind as they were pushed around. “Excited?” I ask after she stared for about a minute. She flicked her ear as she snapped out of her trance. Then she turned to me with a slightly annoyed expression. “What are you waiting for? Let’s go!” She tugged on my shirt with her magic and briskly trotted away in the direction of the hotel. I chuckled at her enthusiasm and followed my... date… Oh, this is going to be fun. I won’t lie, it’s rather unreal in my head to think of Starlight as my girlfriend, or marefriend, but I could feel myself warming up to it quickly. My mental hesitance not because she was a pony, but because we’ve been close friends for so long. My mind snapped back to the present and I began attempting to recall the little snippets of the festival’s activities I read in the article. The Kite Height Contest was one of them, Kite Construction Race another, and the last one my brain allowed me to remember was something that especially excited me. Kitechella. I guess the puns don’t stop at horse puns. I reached the hotel about fifteen seconds after Starlight, as that’s how far ahead she remained. I walked up next to her in line for the front desk. “Is this the line?” She stopped her excited hoof tapping and looked up to me with a curious look before one of realization took it’s place. “Oh my god, I’m so sorry! I totally just left you!” Her wide eyes darted everywhere except your face. “I was just so excited and I didn’t want us to wait in line too long so we could get our room and explore sooner!” Her face fell and she looked down at the floor. “Some date I am...” “Hey, hey,” I started as I knelt down and used my index finger to point her chin up so she’d look me in the eyes. “I get it, you’re just hyped up. I’m not mad, I’m glad you’re so happy about the trip.” With a nervous blush, she smiled apologetically at me. “Thank you.” She nuzzled my hand before turning to stand in line next to me. “Alright, let’s check in.” I smile and nod in response. After checking in and dropping our stuff off in the room, we decided to explore what the festival has to offer. We stopped by a festival info booth to grab a festival pamphlet for each of us. The pamphlets contained a map, schedule, and unavoidably, ads. Kite themed stands littered the nearby streets, varying in size, color, and stock. I never thought kites could be so in-depth, have so many types, nor require so many upkeep products. While Starlight made tiny gasps, swiveling her head so fast and so often that a part of me feared she might give herself whiplash, I was checking out the complete schedule in my hand. It appeared that the Highest Angle Kite contest would start in about an hour in the South Canterlot Garden, and in the description, it explained to arrive early to sign up. Starlight might as well have been a human teenager walking in a supermarket with family, looking at their phone. She continued her attempt to look at everything she could, using her peripheral vision to maintain her pace and location beside me as we walked. I used this to my advantage and steered us towards the contest location. When I first arrived in Equestria, I made my fair share of visits to Canterlot to answer questions for the Princesses, and during those times, more than once I would stand on a castle balcony and stare at the fantastic view of the land it provided. But I never looked down at the city itself. Part of me wishes that I did, but the other part was glad I didn’t because walking up to the open fence gate of the South Canterlot Garden was a visual experience. Carefully crafted arrangements of domestic and exotic flora twisted and turned, creating maze-like pathways that draped over the hills along what I estimated was around 20 acres of land. Trees were scattered about, the larger ones laying spots of protection around more popular areas. A rainbow of kites of all shapes and sizes flew above along the edges of the park, framing the clear sky and sun above. Ponies of all ages were scattered about, casually making their way across the garden. Families, groups of friends, couples, most with their own kites, smiled and laughed with each other. Not long after passing the front gate, Starlight noticed the lack of street under her hooves and took a more collected look around, finally taking note of how far we walked. “Uh, Seth, where are we?” she asked, taking more looks around. “I figured we could sign up for the Highest Angle contest.” I say, taking the pamphlet out to show her. “Each pony gets two-hundred feet of string, and the kite with the steepest angle wins!” Her eyes lit up, looking at the pamphlet as if I just showed her a winning lottery ticket before smirking deviously at me. “Oh, those other ponies are going down!” I can’t help but grin at her enthusiasm as we continued our trek through the garden, making our way to the two table setup facing outward away from a large open field, devoid of anything but grass. The mare behind the table noticed our approach and lifted her gaze from the paper she was reading from, beaming. “Hi! Are you two here to sign up for the contest?” “We are.” I answered. “Wonderful!” She tapped her hoof on a piece of paper on our side of the table. “Just write your names down here, please!” Using her magic, Starlight picked up a pen from the table and jotted down her name in the next available space. She set down the pen and gestured for me to do the same. Grabbing the pen, I put my own name next to hers in the same space, causing Starlight to look at me confused. I rolled my eyes with a smirk. “Like I’d want to enter a kite contest against you. You’d kick my ass any day.” She briefly returned the smirk before adopting another confused expression, albeit less pronounced. “Is that even allowed?” she asked, turning to the mare behind the table. The mare nodded. “Mhm! While only one pony is allowed to fly the kite, we get couples and families entering together all the time. It’s more about moral support, really.” “Then it’s settled.” I say. Then, raising both fists in the air, I shouted, “Team Glim! Woo!” Both mares giggled at my display as Starlight nudged me with her head as she began trotting away. “Alright cheerleader, let’s go explore some more while we wait.” “Alright, alright.” I conceded, chuckling slightly. I turned back towards the mare and gave her a quick “Thank you” as I walked alongside Starlight, heading back into the city.
[Archive] 1 (Pre-rewrite)It had been a beautiful day in the fields on the outskirts of Ponyville. The gentle coolness of the breeze gave a nice contrast to the mild heat of spring. The grass swept along, creating a stunning ocean-like display. And the sun was close to setting, giving the landscape a peaceful orange tint. I was sitting on the top of one of the many hills, my back against a small tree, which was just big enough to cast some comforting shade, but not big enough to cause any issues with my kite flying high above me. I gave a sigh of content and smiled as I watched the kite soar above. My kite was not alone though. Flying alongside it, just a few feet away, was another kite. This one was not mine though. No, this one belonged to the main reason I was so relaxed right now. I felt a small shift in my right side, caused none other than by this reason. The wonderful pony who was napping, leaning into me, lightly snoring. I stifle a chuckle at the adorable sight. Her two tone purple and blue mane falling in front of her face moved slightly at her breaths, and her hind leg kicked softly every so often. Oh, she’s so not living this down. I thought as I watched both her and our kites. She had been asleep for about half an hour or so, but I didn’t mind. And that was true up until I noticed the sun touch the horizon. We’d been flying these for around two hours now, so it was probably time to pack it up. I wound up the strings on both kits and set them down carefully in front of us. I reached my hand over and gently shook my companion awake. “Starlight, it’s time to go.” She gave a louder than normal snort and her eyes jolted open. “Wha? Huh?” she questioned as she rubbed her eyes and took in her surroundings. “Oh, uh, sorry about that… Didn’t realize how tired I was.” I smiled and lightly ruffled her mane, much to her annoyance. “It’s no problem, you weren’t out for long. And it was peaceful just watching the kites.” I grabbed my kite and started to disassemble it. “Ready to head back to town?” Starlight glanced over to the sun, which was now nearly gone. “Yeah, don’t want to be out too late. As much as I love it, Ponyville doesn’t exactly have many things going on at night.” I gave her a smirk and a raised eyebrow. “I can think of a couple things.” I said, wiggling my eyebrows. Her face goes flush. “O-oh, I-uh-I don’t-” she stuttered out. I laughed loudly at her embarrassment. “Relax, Starlight, I was just joking.” She playfully punched my shoulder. “Don’t do that to me! You know I’m still trying to learn this whole friendship thing.” “Well, consider that a lesson.” I countered. “Touche.” I finished packing up my kite and slung my bag over my shoulder. “Ready to go?” Her horn lit up and in a couple flashes, her kite disappeared and her saddlebags were now resting on her withers. “Ready.” “Cheater.” I mumbled. She giggled and we both set off back to town. As we walked, I began thinking and realized that Starlight was my first real friend here in Equestria. While everypony was perfectly friendly after the initial shock, the first pony to really try to get to know me was Starlight. She would come visit me in my room in the castle and hang out or invite me to places with her. And I can honestly say that even though it’s only been six months or so, she’s become my best friend of both worlds. Sure, she has her flaws, but who doesn’t? She helped me through my adjustment to being here in Equestria so much, and I don’t think I can ever repay that. But that won’t stop me from trying. After a pleasantly silent walk through town, we arrived at the castle. I held the door for her and she smiled in thanks. We headed upstairs and stopped at the door to her room. “Alright, I can see you’re absolutely exhausted.” I said. She yawned. “Yeah, it’s been a long day… Lots of thinking...” I raised an eyebrow in concern. “Thinking? You wanna talk about it?” She shook her head and smiled at me. “I’m okay, thank you though.” Her horn lit up and she opened the door. “Goodnight, Seth. See you tomorrow?” I smile back. “Of course. Goodnight Glim.” Starlight then raised an eyebrow. “‘Glim’? Are we doing nicknames now?” she teased. I then realized what I’d said. “Oh, sorry, I don’t know why I said that.” She held up a hoof in reassurance. “Relax Seth, it’s fine... I actually like it.” “Oh?” “Yeah. Only if I get to call you something too.” She smirked. I smile back. “Do your worst.” “Oh I will.” She yawned again. “But for now, bed.” “Agreed. Goodnight Glim.” “Goodnight.” And with that she trotted into her room, leaving me with the silence of a mostly empty crystal castle and my thoughts as I walk down the hall to my own room. I’ve gotta do something soon for Starlight. I thought. I’ll think of something tomorrow maybe… I entered my room and sat down at the table, picking up today’s local newspaper. Skimming down it, I saw something that would’ve made me do a spit take if I was drinking anything. Oh this is too perfect. Turns out there was a kite festival happening in Canterlot this weekend. And considering she hadn’t mentioned it, I doubted she knew about it. I smiled to myself as I schemed this surprise into our normal hangout times. She’s going to flip her shit and it’s going to be glorious. I set down the paper, still smiling, stand up, and face planted onto my bed in pure exhaustion. And before I passed out, I could only think one thing. Something that would make Twilight squee if she heard. Friendship really is magic.
[Archive] 2 (Pre-rewrite)A loud knock sounded off at my door, rousing me from my sweet slumber. I groaned my disapproval. “Seth! Get up, we're going to be late!” I heard Starlight from outside my door. I opened my eyes a bit and glanced at my bedside clock to see it was a quarter til six in the morning. Mustering up my strength, I tiredly yelled out, “Starlight, the train doesn't leave for another two hours. Let me sleep through one of them.” A burst of light appeared on top of me, blinding me as I felt a weight on my stomach. “Please~? I want to make sure everything is ready, and I could really use your help.” I rubbed my eyes in an attempt cure my temporary blindness. Opening my eyes, I find favorite pony and best friend sitting on me, giving me those damn sad puppy dog eyes she likes to use. Not being able to take the cuteness any longer, I sighed and conceded. “Fine. But you owe me.” I said, giving her a wink. If I didn't know any better I'd say she blushed before composing herself. “Yes! Thank you! Come on!” she said, dragging me out of bed with her magic. We made it about halfway down the hall before I decided to bring my current predicament to her attention. “Yo Glim, you don't have to drag me all the way to the festival.” She turned and realized she had been dragging me by my arm the whole time. And with a small squeak, she dropped my arm. “Sorry, I guess I'm just a little excited.” She said with a nervous giggle. That’s when I came up with an idea to tease her a bit. “It’s all good, you can restrain me all you like.” I said with a sly grin. This time, I know I saw her blush. “I, uh… hehe… Well, our bags aren’t going to pack themselves!” I chuckled and followed her down the hall to a storage closet where we kept most of our things that we didn’t use often. With her magic, Starlight opened the door, grabbed her soft pink suitcase, and not so gently threw my dark purple suitcase at my chest. It hit me with a thump and I had to take a step back. “Yo, what was that for?” I asked. She threw a sly smile at me, mimicking my previous smirk. “For teasing me like that. Now go put that in your room and come down to the dining room. I already have breakfast prepared.” “Yes, Mom.” I blew a raspberry at her and smiled as I turned and headed back to my room to toss the suitcase in it. I walked downstairs to the castles dining room, or from my perspective, dining cathedral. Seriously, that thing was massive and had no place being that big. But I digress. I opened the doors to the dining room to see Starlight placing a couple plates with omelets on them on the table. “Omelets? Are you actually my mother?” I joked, gaining her attention. She looked at me with a small smile. “Well, you can call me mommy if you want.” she retorted. Now it was my turn to blush, unable to come up with a comeback. The sound of giggling brought me out of my stupor. “You alright there, Seth? I was only teasing.” I shook my head to clear my... thoughts. “Uh, yeah. Where’s my food?” I said in attempt to change the topic. Starlight giggled. “Right here.” She gestured to the plate to her left and patted the seat in front of it. I sat down next to her and proceeded to take my first bite of my omelet, only to be taken aback by how good it was. “Holy shit, Starlight. Did you make this?” She turned to me, a confused expression adorning her face. “Uh, yeah? No one else is up. Why?” “Thi shit is wonderful! I don’t think I’ve ever had eggs that taste this fantastic before.” I took another bite and suppressed a satisfied moan. Then I turned to face her again, but with a serious expression. “Will you marry me?” Her face exploded into a visible blush that made me instinctively press my foot against a non-existent brake pedal. “Let’s just make it past today.” she responded, her blush deepening. Huh, usually she either changes the subject or comes back at me. I thought, continuing to eat my own piece of heaven. Wait, what about today? “What’s today?” “Uh, our date?” she responds with a nervous look. Date? Oh shit, she thinks the festival was me asking her out? I didn’t mean to do that! Fuck, how am I going to fix this? She’s my best friend, I don’t wanna ruin that! Wait, does that mean she’s interested in me? Is this even salvageable now? I don’t even like ponies like that! I mean, sure they’re cute as fuck, but they’re ponies! They do talk and think like people, but they’re ponies! Alright, I’ll admit some of them have nice asses, but ponies! And the way Starlight looks at me whenever I do something nice for her makes me feel butterflies, and the way she styles her mane when we hang out is pretty sexy, but… but… And that’s when it hit me. Starlight Glimmer, my best friend across both worlds, at the very least, was romantically interested in me. And thinking about it a bit more, I think the feeling is mutual. And at this point, I’d been staring at my food for a solid minute and a half while my friend is probably feeling pretty shitty because it looks like I turned her down. I heard a sniffle from next to me. “It’s okay Seth… I thought… We… The teasing...” She sighed. “I’ll run and cancel our tickets… You can go back to sleep if you want...” She gets up to do so, but I react quickly and sit her back down. “Woah, hold up. Don’t do that.” Starlight refused to look at me, and instead, stared at her own plate. “Why? It’s clear you didn’t mean what I thought you meant, so why continue?” I reach over and turn her face towards me, forcing her to look me in the eyes. “Because, while I didn’t mean to ask you out, I do mean this; You are a wonderful mare, Starlight. You’ve stuck with me, an alien who dropped into town randomly, through a lot and asked for nothing in return, and that means a lot to me.” She tried to pull away, but I pulled her back. “Look, what I’m trying to say is, I like you Starlight. I like you a lot. And I’d be thrilled to go on a date with you.” Her mouth opened slightly, and all I could see was surprise as her wide eyes shimmered in the morning sun. I pulled my hand away, smiling. She stared at me for about ten seconds or so before reaching up to place her hooves on my shoulders and kissing me. To say I was shocked is an understatement. My eyes went wide before I gave in halfway through and leaned back into it. While it only lasted for a few seconds, it was far from unpleasant. The fur on her lips was a bit weird, but nice. She broke the kiss and went back to sitting on her own seat. “Um, sorry.” “Don’t be.” I said. “I liked it.” “Can we do it more?” she asked sheepishly. I give her a smirk. “Let’s just make it past today.”
