Survival Begins at Home

When Shining regained consciousness, he was underwater. He immediately panicked, inhaling a lungful of seawater. As the burning sensation spread through his chest, he swam desperately for the surface, holding tightly to whatever breath he had left until finally he reached the top. There were a few pieces of buoyant material up here, most notably a keg of black powder that had been mostly emptied in the battle. He grabbed that and lifted himself up above the water's surface, coughing out what he could.

He looked around. There was a ship coming toward him, one of the fluyts that had just been reclaimed. Shining shouted and waved, as best he could under the circumstances, trying to gain their attention somehow. It took several minutes for them to reach him, and a few more minutes before they were able to bring him aboard.

Shining coughed and spluttered on the deck, trying to remove the rest of the seawater from his lungs. "What happened?" asked one of the crew members. "We were on our way back, and we heard this loud explosion. We look back, and your ship's on fire and sinking."

"I don't know," said Shining, shaking his head. "I don't remember. I was having a conversation with the prisoners, then I just... I blacked out. The next thing I knew, I was waking up underwater. I don't know what happened in the interim..."

The ensign in charge of the vessel came forward. "What about the prisoners?"

Shining looked up. "If you have a diving bell, and they've managed to hold their breath for the last five minutes, you may be able to save a few of them, but they were questioning why we didn't just kill them. I think they were ready to die. Or at the very least, they were willing."

The ensign raised his eyebrow, but said nothing. He returned to the helm and started the ship back toward the harbor. On arrival, he had to file a report, and as he was unsure of how the ship managed to be sunk, he posited a few theories. One of them was that Shining had sunk the boat of his own accord. He couldn't prove it, but he suspected it.

Shining went back to his hotel to see the new room. He hadn't been there yet, so he wasn't really expecting much. He found the room. It was on the second floor, not the tenth, as he had been. He took off his armour and dropped it in the corner, walked across the dimly lit room to the bed and sat down, letting out a soft sigh.

The light clicked on in the corner, revealing the chair. In it sat Cadance, a disappointed scowl on her face. "Shining."

The single word hit Shining harder than any weapon could have. The feeling that he'd betrayed her hurt worse than almost drowning. "Hi, Cadance..."

She folded her arms and looked around. "I must say, I didn't think you were the type to run off like this. What else should I change about my expectations? Is there a young lady coming to keep you company tonight?"

Shining shook his head. "No, nopony's coming. Not unless I order something to eat, anyway."

"Why would you do this, Shining? Why would you just pack up and leave me alone up there? Don't you love me anymore?"

"Of course I do, it's just..."

"Just what? I've been very patient with you all this time. I've done everything I can to try to help you through this. I've ignored my own pain in losing Twilight because I wanted to help you first. I don't understand why you would try to shut me out like this. Do you not care about my feelings in this?"

"Of course I care about your feelings. That's why I did this."

"How could you think that reserving a second room so far away from me would be good for me?"

Shining sniffled. He was in tears now. "Every night, I wake up screaming. Every night I wake you from your slumber, and I'm sick of it. All of it. I don't like having the same nightmare every night. I don't like waking up in fear. I don't like being unable to receive a full night's rest. And most of all, I don't like throwing you onto hotel floors in a fit of panic." He put his head in his hands, his fingernails digging into his scalp. "I don't want to hurt you anymore. I'm sick of it. That's why I left. I want you to sleep for a full night, and not wake up groggy and lethargic. There's no hope for me, but at least you'll be better off."

Cadance took a deep breath and closed her eyes. "You did this so I would sleep better? Is that what you're trying to tell me?"

Shining said nothing, he just nodded. He couldn't bring himself to speak.

Cadance stood up, walked over to the bed, and placed a hand on her husband's shoulder. "Look at me, Shiny. I want you to look me in the eye." Slowly, Shining looked up at his wife's face. The look she was giving him was stern, strong and stoic. She pushed him back a bit to help him meet her gaze. "My place is next to you. If you're suffering from these nightmares, I want to be there to make sure you're alright. I realize you want me to be taken care of, but you need more help than I do right now. I wouldn't be able to sleep well at all if you were somewhere else, and I couldn't know if you were alright. I'd worry myself sick."

She continued to push him back onto the bed, pressing her lips against his as he lay down. "I love you, Shiny, and I want to be there for you. But if you're sure that the thought of me sleeping well will help you to do the same, I suppose we can give it a shot. But if you change your mind, and you want me there beside you," she placed in his hand a keycard, "you know where to find me."

She stood up and walked to the door. As she placed her hand on the handle, her other wrist was grabbed by Shining. She turned back and looked at him. He was visibly terrified. "Please, wait." He took a step closer. "Cady... I-I'm sorry. Please, stay with me. I was wrong."

She pushed herself forward into his arms. "Of course I will, Shiny."