You might be surprised to see a certain unicorn mare slowly walking through the park in Manehatten. The surprising aspect of this normally not out of the ordinary observation is two fold. For one thing, the mare was all by her lonesome. For the second thing, it was quite late at night, almost midnight in fact. Yet, the cream colored mare walked alone through the darkened park, only minimally illuminated by the moon above. A very chilly breeze blew through her light-leaf-green mane, causing her to shiver slightly. However, the cold night air was the least of her worries at the moment. Her short tail hung low and un-wagging as she dragged her similarly colored hooves across the park path. Her golden eyes were looking ahead, but at the same time they were viewing the world in front of her, they were also lost in memories of the recent past.
It was in this very park, several months ago, that Starshine Limelight had met him.
She had just been on one of her many normal evening walks through the park, thinking about her auditions, whether they be her past failures or future upcoming opportunities, when he first caught her eye, just sitting by himself on a park bench. He was an Earth Pony, with a coat that was primarily a rustic grayish brown, with the exception of the fur around his ears, hooves, and snout, which was a lighter shade closer to a dark beige. His actual hooves were a darker brown, almost a dark mahogany in color. His mane was interesting, a mixture of dark brown, brown, and tan. His Cutie Mark depicted a film clapperboard next to a thick yellow screenplay.
A mare of her lifestyle could say with confidently that the stallion was rather handsome, but what truly attracted her to him was the way he was sitting, and how utterly lost he looked. He was just sitting up on his rump, holding his forehooves out in front of him and staring at them. It was quite odd, to say the least, and Starshine Limelight couldn't help but feel concerned for him. So, she simply approached the stallion and asked if anything was the matter.
The stallion didn't respond right away, but asking again got a response out of him, which was a rather blunt declaration that there was nothing she could do to help.
Starshine couldn't help but feel a bit miffed at this, especially when the stallion didn't even bother to look at her when he spoke. And so, the mare persisted, insisting that she at least know what his problem was. Eventually, the stallion did respond, still without looking at her, with a rather cryptic response.
"Have you ever felt that you don't belong in your own skin?"
This did take the unicorn off guard at first. However, much to the stallion's surprise, Starshine answered the question quite fluently, talking about her struggles trying to become the great actress her Cutie Mark purported herself to be. She had yet to find the perfect role for herself, and had been turned down or quit dozens of times so far. Nevertheless, she refused to give up, and resolved to keep looking and trying and working hard to become her best self. She didn't care that life was throwing her obstacles, she simply saw them as what anypony should see them as: things to overcome.
After the unicorn articulated all this, the earth pony finally turned away from his forehooves and looked the mare in the face. His amber-brown eyes widened at the sight of her, and he seemed to wince and become rather self conscious all of a sudden. He quickly composed himself, however, and politely asked for her name. She gave it, and asked him in turn.
". . .Intercut Montage."
Starshine did notice how it took him a moment to give his name, but she let it go, and asked how his screenwriting career was going, giving a nod to his Cutie Mark. The stallion sadly admitted that it was going rather poorly, with every single one of his pitches being rejected. For a while now, he had been waiting tables in restaurants just to afford a cheap apartment sleep, eat, and write in. He was in the process of reworking one of his old ideas, but he wasn't confident that things would work out any better than before. At this point, he was expecting another rejection.
Starshine's heart went out to the down on his luck screenwriter, and she sat down on the bench next to him. Wearing a charming smile, she talked about how the two of them were traveling in similar circles, and that he would be smart to follow her philosophy. Just as she wouldn't give up on being an actress, he shouldn't give up on writing the perfect screenplay.
Her words has quite the profound effect on Intercut, cheering him up a great deal. The next thing the pair knew, they were in the midst of a deeply involved discussion in film theory and acting methods that lasted until the stars were in full view above them.
And so, the pair said their goodbyes, and agreed to meet at the park bench again at the same time the next day.
Inevitably, one day led to another, and another, and another. Also inevitably, the simple chats while sitting on a park bench evolved into long walks together through the park, which often involved Intercut Montage treating his companion to a carrot hot dog or an ice cream cone or a soft pretzel... just to be polite, of course.
Starshine would also frequent the restaurant Intercut waited tables at, just so she could smile in amusement whenever he would blush with embarrassment and implore her to not give him such excessive tips. Although she was doing financially better than he was, it wasn't by all that much, after all. At any rate, these restaurant visits were how Starshine integrated the stallion into her own circle of friends, who found him quite likable and welcomed him quickly. Intercut was still the closest to Starshine, however, and the two ponies wouldn't have it any other way.
Whether it was on the bench, on the paths, in a restaurant, or even in a movie theater for a matinee showing; the uppermost thing on both of their minds was to encourage each other to follow their dreams, even going so far as to give each other pointers, as they were technically both in the same industry.
During these two months, Starshine lost out on two separate auditions. Normally she'd feel sad for a day or two before bouncing back up, usually with a bit of encouragement from her friends. But with Intercut around, her rebound was instantaneous. He would occasionally remark on how good her voice was. According to him, Starshine had a melodious voice, as if whenever she spoke, her words flowed out as if she were singing. Not literally of course, for as prone to singing as ponies were, nopony could handle or tolerate constant singing. Rather, Starshine's voice was pleasant to listen to, and ranged from quick and confident to slow and soft, while always remaining sweet. At least, that was how Intercut felt about it. Perhaps it was somehow connected to how Intercut would sometimes quote lyrics from songs that Starshine had never heard before.
In return for his kind words and compliments, Starshine would praise his understanding of themes and unspoken lessons that can be planted in the medium he was working in. She genuinely shared in his believe that all film, any film, should have some deeper meaning, even if said meaning wasn't spelled out. In fact, not spelling things out was most assuredly a strength according to Intercut, and Starshine wholeheartedly agree. As a result of the unicorn mare's support, Intercut finally believed that his next screenplay would finally sell, thanks to her.
Things eventually all came to a head one Sunday night, when the two ponies ended up surprising each other with a small picnic basket each of them had put together. They both had a good laugh at this, and as both struggling success stories in the making didn't have much money, the two small picnics put together resulted in a very satisfying supper for two.
After the meal, which lasted quite a while due to all the talking the pair had done, Intercut produced something particularly non edible from the bottom of his basket. It was excerpts from his latest screenplay attempt, and as Starshine read through them, a shocking realization came to her, one that Intercut was quick to confirm. He had written a part in the screenplay specially made for her.
Starshine squeed with delight and promptly embraced the stallion, hugging him tightly for a full minute before letting him go. Her excitement deflated when she saw a shocked, worried, and downright guilty look on the stallions face. After a tense moment of silence, the stallion finally spoke.
"Starshine, we need to talk about... us."
Starshine was stunned by this, and she nervously asked what he meant by that. Intercut sighed, and what he said next was the absolute last thing Starshine Limelight could have possibly expected to hear.
"I'm not a pony. . . I'm a human. . . A creature from another world."
Starshine sat on the picnic blanket in stunned silence as Intercut told his tale. He spoke briefly of his life in a place called "Manhattan", how he was robbed on a bridge and thrown over the side, splashing down into the water, and then winding up as an earth pony being pulled out of the water by some Manehatten rescue pegasi. He had been in this world about a month when she had found him staring at his hooves in the park, and the name he had given was one he made up on the fly, as his nondescriptive human name didn't fit in at all. He also revealed that the song lyrics he'd been quoting were from songs from his world, which explained why she had never heard them before.
The now depressed and guilt ridden stallion hung his head and apologized many times for hiding the truth from her, but Starshine's only response was to tenderly nuzzle his cheek as she reassured him that it was okay, and that she wouldn't have been quick to tell anycreature something so unbelievable. When he asked her if she believed it, she immediately said yes. When he asked why, Starshine understood his thought process. Most ponies would write off such wild claims as utter horseapples. However, she simply could not, and she gave her reason why.
"I don't think either of us could ever truly lie to each other."
Intercut was amazed by this, but found that he could only agree with it. However, Starshine wasn't finished speaking yet.
"And I don't care what you are, Intercut Montage. All that matters to me is WHO you are."
. . . .
. . . .
. . . .
"I feel the same way about you, Starshine Limelight."
A few weeks later, the pair went to a fancier restaurant to celebrate Intercut's first success in selling a screenplay. A few weeks after that, the pair returned to that restaraunt to celebrate Starshine securing a role in the production of that very screenplay. All in all, life was good. It was very good. Perhaps it was too good.
Intercut and Starshine were in the latter's nicer apartment, where the mare was showing him family photos in her album when there was a knock at the door. Intercut chivalrously went to answer the door for his hostess, and was suddenly face to face with the sole ruler of Equestria: Princess Twilight Sparkle.
After much bowing and scraping to the Alicorn, the pair finally calmed down enough for the Princess to explain why she had come to them. She had picked up a strange magical disturbance in Equestria, and it was eventually found to be located somewhere in the Manehattan area. It then didn't take too long for Princess Twilight to track it right there. The stallion instantly knew what this was about, and he told the Princess his story.
Twilight Sparkle's countenance became regretful once the story was done, and with a heavy heart, she explained the situation. The reality of his world and the reality of Equestria was so fundamentally different that they were very much incompatible. She was unsure how the human had gotten into this world, but she could only conclude that his subsequent transformation was the universes' way to lessen the disturbances. However, this was not a perfect fit. The man's spirit was still dependent on his home universe, and was in constant conflict with Equestria's magical energies. So, unless he returned to his own world, he would soon grow deathly ill and die a most painful death.
Shocked beyond belief, Intercut staunchly denied this, only for Starshine to slowly and regretfully remind him of the strange symptoms they had been writing off for the past few weeks. His chronic shortness of breath, his odd off and on cramps, his itchy Cutie Mark, even the color in his eyes had been growing pale recently.
As Intercut stood in disbelief, the Princess did his best to cheer him up with her words.
"I can send you back home, and you'll recover quickly. And I know it hurts to have to leave what you've built in Equestria, but now you get to return to your family, friends, and whatever else you left behind in your world."
He didn't respond this right away. After a moment, he just sighed and said it would be best to simply get it over with. Then he turned to Starshine and apologized profusely for all of this, clearly regretting running out on her in this way after how she'd inspired him to keep writing.
Starshine's response was a sad smile and an assurance that this was is no way his fault and was simply something beyond their control. She said it was just another one of life's obstacles that they each needed to overcome. On the inside, however, the unicorn was screaming at how unfair this all was, silently begging and pleading for him to stay. But, she kept it all inside her, knowing that if he did stay with her, she would only get to watch him die.
Like most terrible disasters, it all went by in a blur for Starshine Limelight. Princess Twilight had gathered together Intercut's employer from the restaurant he worked at, as well as the small group that was the pair's closest friends. She brought everypony to Canterlot so they could be informed of the blizzarre situation, as well as be given a chance to say their goodbyes.
Intercut said a myraid of words expressing his gratitude to Starshine, but the mare could barely hear his words over the sound of her own heart shattering. But, she held it together, and expressed her own gratitude to him in turn. Then, after one last embrace, Princess Twilight and a group of unicorn mages cast the spell to return him to his own body, and to his own world.
And now, roughly one month later, Starshine Limelight was reliving these memories in her head for the umpteenth time, all the while wandering aimlessly through the park after an hour or two weeping at the park bench where she had first met that one in a million stallion.
Her tears had all been used up for now, so as she slowly made her way through the city and back to her apartment, she simply softly quoted lyrics from one of the many human world songs Intercut had recited for her during his relatively short time in Equestria.
"If happy ever after did exist. . . I would still be holding you like this. . . All those fairy tales are full of it. . . One more stupid love song, I'll be sick."
The freezing night air made her shiver as she walked and talked, yet the fact that she was cold was hardly important to her.
The one thing that ached in her heart the most of all was that she never told him those three special words she often fantasized about saying. She had even practiced saying them in front of mirror, literally rehearsing as if for a role. However, those three words were as far away from acting as she could get. They were truly a part of her, and would have came from her heart of hearts. But right now, it seemed as if it were never to be. Even worse, she knew that she would never find out if he had felt the same.
Initially, it had been hard for her to get into the spirit of the role she had worked so hard to finally achieve. However, she quickly came to the realization that if she failed to play the role Intercut had wrote especially for her to the best of her ability, it would be an insult and a disgrace to him and everything he had done for her. So, she doubled down on her philosophy of always overcoming life's obstacles no matter what, and put all of her heart into performing that role in the way he would want her to.
Even if it meant sometimes crying herself to sleep every once in a while.
Back in the present, Starshine continued to walk, her body still freezing and her mind still paying no mind to it. As for her heart, it was currently empty of any particularly strong emotions. She entered into the very familiar building, climbed the very familiar stairs, and opened the very familiar door to her very familiar apartment.
Nothing could have prepared her for seeing Intercut Montage standing in her living room, smiling while holding a bouquet of one dozen yellow, red tipped roses.
Starshine gaped at the stallion, looking as though a cockatrice had petrified her. Then she closed her eyes tight, and slowly opened them back up again, certain the hallucination would be gone. But the stallion was still there. She took two steps forward, her horn glowing to close and lock the door behind her out of habit.
"Intercut. . ." she whispered.
The stallion's smile increased at the sound of her voice, and he replied, "'The search is over. . . You were with me all the while. . .'"
Starshine's golden rimmed eyes were wide, and she was breathing heavily as if she had just finished singing an aria. She immediately knew the truth: this was no hallucination, he truly was here.
"How?" she gasped out, "Princess Twilight. . .she said. . ."
Intercut took a step forwards, still holding the bouquet in his bent right foreleg, and said, "Well, a month after I got back, a certain powerful, mismatched spirit with a strong dislike for rules paid me a visit."
Starshine was confused by this at first, then her eyes widened slightly in realization and she said, "Discord. . .the Spirit of Chaos."
Intercut nodded and said with a laugh in his voice, "That's right. Apparently he was a bit upset that Princess Twilight sent me back without consulting him first, and he offered to fix it so that I could live in Equestria without. . .well, you know." He then smiled awkwardly and looked down at his chest, and said, "It was kind of unnerving to have an eagle claw fiddling around inside of me. . ." He then looked back up at Starshine and said, "But it was worth it! He even converted all of my money into Equestrian Bits, which Princess Twilight socked away in my bank account for me when I returned earlier today. Discord also helped me. . .get inside your apartment. Just for this nice surprise, of course."
Starshine's mind was reeling like a runaway film projector at this point. Her eyes darted between his amber-brown eyes and bouquet of roses, her brain desperately trying to recall what yellow roses with red tips symbolized as she said slowly, "But. . .what about your old life? Your friends? Your family?"
Intercut "hmphed" at this, his eyes rolling slightly as he remarked with a wry grin, "You mean the friends and family that weren't important enough for me to ever mention?"
Starshine tilted her head slightly in confusion, and Intercut took this a cue to go on.
"First off, I'm an only child, and my parents and I went our separate ways a while ago. And as for friends, I honestly only had general acquaintances. They were nothing like the friends you introduced me to. No one who really depended on me, or vice versa. Just 'hey there, how are ya, good, good bye'. They never went out of their way to help me out, not that I ever did much for them anyway. So, I just sent them all a message about how I was going to move to a new city for a new start, which wasn't a lie."
Intercut then gave a sad sigh, and continued, "And you know something else? I tried to sell the screenplay I wrote here in Equestria, with humans instead of ponies of course. Same story and everything, just switched the species. I was confident it would go over well, seeing as everyone. . . that is, everypony here liked it."
Intercut gave a sad smile and said, "No one I showed it to liked it all."
Starshine gasped at this.
Intercut shrugged his shoulders and said, "All those rejections I told you about. . .they all happened back my old world. And when the screenplay that you inspired got rejected again and again, I finally understood something. My work just didn't belong there. It belonged here, it always belonged here. And so did I." He shuddered nervously, and remarked uneasily, "I was. . . Well. . . It's a good thing Discord showed up when he did. I was so close to throwing myself off of that bridge."
"No!" Starshine said with wide eyes
Intercut nodded and said, "Yeah, I know. As far as I knew, it would've been suicide whether it worked or not." Then he gave a nervous grin and said, "Like I said, I owe Discord big time."
An awkward silence hung in the air between the two ponies for a moment, then Intercut resumed speaking.
"But even if my screenplay had sold instantly and made me the most famous screenwriter of my time, I still would have taken Discord offer to come back here in an instant," he said warmly, then he stepped closer to Starshine held out the bouquet of roses to her, and said, "Because I'd left behind the best friend I had fallen in love with."
Starshine brought her left forehoof up to cover her mouth, her heart pounding after that revelation, which was further compounded as she finally remembered the meaning of yellow roses with red tips.
"I'm sorry I didn't tell you before I left," the stallion said with regret deep in his eyes, "But I couldn't do that to you. The Princess said I couldn't stay, that it was impossible. If I had told you, I'd only be hurting you, and making it harder for you to move on. It would've been selfish and cruel of me. But now we don't have to worry about that. So I'm going to say it. I love you, Starshine Limelight. I love you and will never leave you or let anything split us up again. I promise-."
Starshine lunged forward and embraced Intercut in her forelegs, pressing her cheek against his, smiling and crying as she said in a squeaking yet emotional voice, "I love you, Intercut. I've always loved you."
Starshine's horn glowed, and the roses were picked up in her telekinetic grip. This allowed Intercut to return the hug, gently running a dark mahogany hoof down her back. "I won't leave you," he whispered in her ear, "I won't. I promise."
A clock chimed, indicating that midnight had arrived. The bouquet of roses floated over to the kitchen counter and was gently laid down on top of it. Then, Intercut felt Starshine pull her face away from his, and she now held him with only one of her foreleg. Then, she slowly pulled, nudged, and generally guided him further into her apartment, turning out the lights with her magic as she did so. Truth be told, actually reuniting with her had put Intercut into a love induced daze. The emotional whiplash of having spent a month forcing himself to admit that she was forever beyond his reach, to now having her so close to him was intoxicating.
However, Intercut eventually became aware enough to take note of his surroundings, and as a result he let out a nervous and concerned, "Uhm. . ."
Starshine gave a coy smile as she magically turned on the lamp next to her bed and said, "It's really late so I'm tired. I was walking in the freezing park in the chilly night air so I'm cold. I don't want to be alone, I've known you on a deep personal level for months, I know you're a good stallion, I trust you, and I love you. Add it all up and you get a night of us snuggling." She fixated her golden eyes upon him and asked with a cute tilt of her head, "You can't argue with that, can you?"
Intercut blinked at her once, then smiled as he gently wrapped a foreleg around her. The two then slid on top of the bed, with Intercut lying on his back as Starshine laid her head on his chest, a contented smile om her face as she listened to his heartbeat. Intercut still had his left foreleg wrapped around her in a gentle embrace, feeling a sense of fulfillment and purpose that was hard to adequately describe. As he laid there, smiling at sweet unicorn, it occurred him to ponies put a higher value on physical contact than humans did, and all in all had a much higher desire for it. A hug, the touching of hooves, or a nuzzle could very much make a world of difference at times, and Intercut was very quickly starting to understand it. It was all so simple, sweet, and innocent; and yet it felt more than enough at the moment. In fact, Intercut was very much content to just let things be as they were at that very moment, gently stroking the mare's back as the two of them laid there.
But then, Starshine suddenly lifted her head off of his chest. She raised her head so that she was eye level wit him. Then, without any pomp or circumstances, she kissed him.
Intercut immediately kissed back, most assuredly out of reflex or some sort of instinct, because his mind became a flood the moment their muzzles touched. The very essences of various love songs he had heard flooded through his mind during this wonderful moment. Counting Stars, You're My Best Friend, I'm Yours, Rhythm of Love, The Search is Over, Can't Fight This Feeling, and perhaps most prominently, Come What May.
The kiss was soft and gentle, in spite of the intense emotions being conveyed through it. The couple's hearts were pounding, even though they both felt more at peace than they had ever felt before in their lives. As they pulled apart for air, both of them had rosy blushes on their faces. Intercut nuzzled Starshine's right cheek, causing her right eye to wink at him as she giggled slightly.
"My love," Intercut Montage said, and that was all he needed to say.
The couple's future, once seemingly deemed impossible, was now wide open to them. It was not to say that things would always go perfectly for them. Like all and any living creatures, they would face obstacles and problems, they would at times disagree and have misunderstandings. However, what set these two apart was the full extent of their love for each other. Never would either of them purposely do something that would hurt the other, emotionally or physically. Always would each of them put the other first. And if a dispute were to ever happen, they would not let the Sun go down upon it, and work to solve it as quickly as possible. For in their minds, they loved each other too much to let anything spoil it. They both felt that they owed the other so much, and for all the good turns they'd received in their lives since they met.
The universe itself had tried to keep them separate, and yet their love was still stronger.
Seasons may change, winter to spring
But I love you until the end of time
Author's Note
Well, I had so many different inspirations for this story!
First was the cover image, which was created by Scheadar on DeviantArt. Seriously, this guy is an amazing artist. He's one of the few artists who's able to draw My Little Ponies in that "greater enhanced detail sorta realistic but not really cause it's still looks animated" style while still getting the hooves to look right. Bravo, Scheadar, bravo.
Second were all the songs mentioned in this story. I had them in a playlist I was listening to while I was writing.
Third was the Wedding Season event in Animal Crossing: New Horizons, of all things. Happy Anniversary Reese and Cyrus! If anyway can draw or has seen a comic or fanart or anything making a joke or remark about how Reese is giving away "Crystal Hearts", please let me know! That's just begging for a MLP joke!
