A Flurry Of Love And Kindness

For years, it was seen that your life was basically a free trial, and your parents made that very plain to you, as they’d always have you do the hardest chores out of everyone else, regardless of age. The earliest you were worked like a slave had to be 6, as your parents taught you how to cook, do laundry, make your bed, and even had you study until your fingers nearly broke or cramped up. You hated them treating you that way.

Though, all that studying did have its perks, as you got to skip a few grades when you were younger, but stopped skipping once you got to 10th grade. Once you got to 12th grade and graduated, turning 18 that same year. You wanted to be free from your parents, but you didn’t want to be ordered around by them anymore, despite their desire to see you succeed.

Right now, you were packing a bag full of stuff to bail. You weren’t gonna take shit from your parents any longer. You headed for the door with a bag of things as your mom stopped you, “Son, where are you going?”

“I’m 18, mom, I’ve had enough” you said, trying to push past her, but she wouldn’t allow it

“Son, this is ridiculous. You’re not even ready for your own apartment. Stay with us, please“ she urged, but you weren’t eager to put up with her bullshit

“Nah, I’m out. I’ve had enough of you and dad using me like I’m some servant“ you said, pushing past her as she just sighed, only for your dad to come to the door

“Son!“ he said, getting your attention, “We just wanna see you succeed…“

“I’ve already had enough, dad. I’m not taking it anymore, I’m gone, and that’s that“ you said, walking away and out of earshot of your parents

After getting away from your parents, you wanted to move in with a friend, though you weren’t quite sure where to go as you wandered the streets of Downtown, soon finding yourself approached by two guys

“Hey pal, got a light?“ one said as you pulled out a lighter, and he pulled out a switchblade, “And everything in your bag“

“Yeah, no“ you said, getting a bit of a tough look from one

“No? Motherfucker, we got knives. Now, last time, hand over anything, or you’re-“ he said as you checked him and decked him, punching him as he held his broken nose, “M-Motherfucker!”

“I got him!” his partner said as he drove a knife into your neck, driving it deep inside your neck and cutting across a little, but you stopped him as you turned it on him and stabbed him right in his neck, slitting it open like butter as he fell, choking on his own blood

“Damn you!” his partner said, taking his fallen friend’s knife, tackling you, and driving the knife into your chest, and right into your heart slowly, but you managed to take the kinfe that was still in your hand and slice his eyes, followed by driving it straight through his skull.

Now, you laid on the ground, bleeding out with no way to save yourself. You swore you saw the light, as if God was calling you to him. You reached out a hand as you felt your life slip from you.

The moment you felt something, you felt nothing, as you felt really cold. As you sat up carefully, you saw that you were surrounded by snow. You shivered a little, and surprisingly, your neck and chest were completely fine.

After a few seconds, you saw something flying towards you slowly as it landed. Whatever landed in front of you had snow boots on. The creature, which you identified as a she, bent down and looked at you, “Excuse me, are you okay?”

“I… think so? W-Where am I?” you said, surprising the female, as she thought you’d freak out by talking to her.

“Well, as of now, you’re out in the cold, but not too far from here is the Crystal Empire, it’s where I live with my family” she explained as she offered you a hand, “Wanna get out of this snow?”

“Very much, yes” you responded as you took her hand, getting pulled to your feet. After that, she took your hand and led you towards a large kingdom, “So, what are you exactly? I know you’re a horse of some kind, but I’ve never seen one look so… humanlike? I don’t quite understand”

“Well, I’m a pony! Then again, I’m not just anypony, I’m a special race of pony!” she said, walking you out of the snow

“Wait, there’s multiple races?” you asked as she led you through the city by hand, and to a castle made completely of crystals

“Yeah! There’s Earth Ponies, who are ponies that don’t have much, except for their special talents. Then there’s Pegasi, ponies that have wings and can fly. And then there’s Unicorns, who have a horn on their forehead and can use magic spells” she explained as you both got closer to the castle

“And what about your race? If anything, you look like a combination of all three” you guessed, getting a giggle out of the horse

“This race is referred to as ‘Alicorns’, which have the strength of Earth Ponies, Flight Capability of Pegasi, and Magic Control like Unicorns, all in one package. Before humans like you came to Equestria, there weren’t as many of us. Think there was only my Auntie Twilight, my mom, my Great Aunt Celestia, and her sister Luna. Of course, I came along, and when some humans came to Equestria, not only were more Alicorns born, but some were even born male, and according to my mom, she didn’t think a male one could ever be born, but after adding my second dad to her herd, she was proven wrong when she gave birth to my little brother, who had the horn and wings, just like my mom. I think Twilight’s daughter was an alicorn too, as well as Celestia and Luna’s children, but it’s been a while since I’ve seen them, y’know?“ by the time she finished talking your ear off, you were now in the castle throne room.

Before you, you saw three thrones. The middle one had a female alicorn sitting on it, so you speculated that it was her mother. On her right was a unicorn with a white coat and a blue mane, and on her left was a human, who looked to be in his 30s. They were both sitting on thrones.

Course, one thing that caught you off guard was a small child rushing towards you with an actual sword, “Stranger danger!“ he shouted as he ran forward and swung the sword, causing everyone to gasp as you caught the blade between the palms of your hands. The alicorn boy looked up at you, shocked, “W-What?! But only my dad’s been able to do that! H-How did you?!-“

“Some are more trained than you think, amigo“ you said as he stomped his foot and you let go of the blade as his father spoke.

“Rage, settle down. We don’t just attack strangers, friend or foe. We find a motive, then we decide what to do, understand?“ he said, getting a nod from his son as he sighed

“I understand dad, my apologies“ Rage responded, bowing towards you as he whispered, “I’ll be watching you…“

“Rage! Enough! To your room!“ the female horse said to the boy as he sadly trudged off and out of the throne room.

“Geez, would hate to get on his bad side“ you said as you looked up and saw them all again, and the human approached you as he stood in front of you.

“Eh, don’t worry about him, he’s not exactly trustworthy of outsiders, it’ll take a while to warm up to him. So, if you don’t mind me asking…“ he turned to the girl who brought you in, “Flurry, what have we told you about bringing strangers into the castle unannounced? You’re supposed to tell either one of us before bringing them in“

“I know, dad, but when I went out to see if anypony had gotten lost in the blizzard, I saw him sit up in the snow, and he was cold to the touch when I found him. Had I not brought him here, he would be an ice cube right now“ Flurry explained

“And can this ’stranger’ provide his side of the story? I’m a little curious after seeing that display of skill“ the unicorn said as he smiled a little

“Not before introductions, Shiny, you know that“ the pink alicorn said as ’shiny’ nodded, “Ahem, human…“ she said, getting up from her throne and walking towards you, stopping in front of you, “I am Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, or Cadence, to make it easy. The man next to me is my 2nd husband, Blade, and that boy you encountered was Raging Halberd, my son on his side. The unicorn over there is my first husband, Shining Armor, and this beautiful, yet rebellious mare that brought you in is my Daughter, Flurry Heart. So, there you go, we’re the royal family of the Crystal Empire. Could you possibly give us insight as to what happened to you?“ she asked, though you felt uncomfortable around Flurry for some reason

“If possible, I’d like it if it could be a private discussion between me and your two husbands, princess, if that’s okay with you“ you said, not wanting Flurry to disturb anything

“Not at all! Flurry, dear, if you could give us some privacy, please?“ Cadence asked Flurry as she pouted

“Mom, do I really have to? I’m a grown mare now!“ she pouted still, and you thought it was pretty cute

“Flurry, please respect our guest’s privacy. I’m sure he’ll give you attention when he’s available, right?“ she asked as she looked at you

“Of course. She was telling me a bit about the different races of ponies in… What is this country?“ you asked, getting a giggle from Cadence

“Oh, you’re in Equestria“ she said, “So Flurry, please give us some privacy for a moment“

Flurry sighed as she nodded, “Okay mom, I understand“ she headed out the throne room doors, and they closed, leaving you with the princess and her two princes

“Now that that’s out of the way, you can tell us your backstory“ Cadence said, taking her seat at her throne

“Well… Damn, where do I start? Well, I guess… one thing you should know is that I missed out on my childhood…“ you said, sighing as the princess gasped, but little did you know, Flurry was listening from outside the throne room

“Really? How come?“ Cadence asked as you sighed

“Well, my parents worked me hard and had me take all these unnecessary classes when I was younger, which meant no friends, and no friends meant no social interaction, and it fucked with my head for like, forever. Once I turned 18, I packed a bag and ran away from them, but, didn’t make it far, as I met my end after being robbed at knifepoint by two guys. Of course, I killed them both, but it wasn’t enough, as I still bled out, and somehow ended up in snow outside of the Crystal Empire“ you explained as Cadence got up and walked over to you, giving you a sympathetic hug. It made you feel important and loved, as you rarely got a hug from your parents.

“I’m terribly sorry you never truly had a childhood. Do you miss Earth at all?“ she asked you as you shook your head

“Honestly, I’m not sure. I’m in a new world unknown to me, so I’d have to be in it for a while to truly see if I do miss it. More importantly, where am I gonna live?“ you asked as she giggled and smiled at you

“Well, it’d be rude of me to leave you without a home, so you can stay here in the castle, I’ve got tons of guest rooms, so you can take one. You should find living in the Crystal Empire to be a joy. And before we go any further, what is your name?“ she asked you, and you introduced yourself

“That’s a nice name. Ahem, anyways, you’re now technically a resident of the Crystal Empire. Welcome“ she said, hugging you again, but you didn’t let it go on for too long, cause you didn’t wanna make her husbands jealous

“Thank you princess, that’s very kind of you“ you said as she let go of you and thought of something as she gasped

“I know! While the servants prepare your room, I could have Flurry and Raging give you a tour of the Crystal Empire! Would you like that?“ she asked, and you thought about it for a while. On the one hand, it meant you could get to know Flurry Heart, as she seemed pretty argumentative when asked to give you and the rest privacy, but then on the other hand, you’d probably have to put up with mean looks from her little brother, but, you ultimately decided to take the good with the bad.

“Alright, I accept, but, just curious, how old are they?“ you asked as she giggled

“Flurry turned 18 a few weeks ago, actually, and Raging is 11. Heh, sometimes I like to think Flurry’s still my little girl, and I tease her for it, but she doesn’t always like it…“ she said, sighing as Shining came up and hugged her from behind

“Don’t feel down, dear. Flurry’s just maturing is all. She’s not exactly our little girl anymore, but she is our daughter, and we love her very much“ Shining said as Blade came over and joined in

“Right Cadence, our little girl’s just growing up is all, it happens. We love her equally, and nothing will change that“ Blade said as he and Shining both kissed Cadence’s cheeks softly, making her giggle

“You boys are such sweethearts~“ she said, giving them both kisses on their cheeks

“Uhm…“ you said, getting their attention, “Where would I find Flurry and Raging?“

“Oh, out the doors, to the left, and down the hall. They’re right across from each other“ Cadence said as you made that a mental note and left the throne, not wanting to know what they had planned.

You walked down the hall, saluting all the guards as you passed by them, making your way to Flurry’s and Raging’s rooms.

It didn’t take you long until you found their rooms, as you were told that their rooms were marked by their “cutie marks“, which sounded silly, but you let it go as you came to their doors. Flurry’s had a Crystal Heart, much like her mother’s, except it had a pink diamond behind it and small strand of yellow or gold, and Raging’s had a blazing halberd with bull horns on both ends of the hilt. You went to knock on Flurry’s door, but heard something.

Pressing your ear against the door softly, you heard gentle crying. You carefully knocked on the door, “Flurry, can I come in?“

She stopped, having recognized your voice as she sniffled a little. After a few minutes of silence, you heard something, “Come in…“

You came in and saw the alicorn made laying down stomach first on her queen-sized bed. Seems her parents really loved her, that much you assumed. Getting out of your thoughts, you sat at the edge of her bed, not wanting to be weird, and she sat up, looking down a little, “So, what do you need…?“ she asked you, sighing dramatically

“I was wondering what’s got you so upset? What happened to the cheery mare I met just a few minutes ago?“ you said, trying to cheer her up

“Well.. I was curious what my family was talking to you about, and I listened in. Hearing your story… It… It reminded me of my childhood…“ she said, shedding a few more tears, “Like you, my family wanted me to study magic and all other kinds of things, and while I didn’t have too many friends, I still got to have fun like a child should, but I felt overworked, Y’know?” she said, wiping her tears away

“While somewhat similar, our stories aren’t entirely similar, as my parents rarely ever gave me affection or let me have fun, asking questions like, ‘Did Einstein ever have fun?’ and ‘No time for fun, son. Get back to studying’. I even went through a bit of a depressive state from my lack of social interaction and friendship with others, and even when I told them why, they thought I was lying just to get them to stop. But, when I turned 18, I ditched em. Course, ditching them is what ended my life, as I’d find it gone at the hands of thieves” you explained as she raised an eyebrow in confusion

“And you’re telling me this… why?” she asked as you cleared your throat

“I’m telling you because of what you sounded like earlier. You sounded upset that your mom still treated you like, well, a teenager of sorts” you said as her eyes widened, “Yep, see, I was right. More importantly, you may feel embarrassed, but I’ll say this, Flurry. When you have family, you never push them away or run away from them. I ran away out of neglect and a lack of love, but you shouldn’t. Now, I don’t know what’s going on in that head of yours, just… don’t run away from family, as they’re some of the best people you could ever ask for in life. Make sense?” you asked as she looked at you, ready to cry, and that’s when she hugged you and cried into your shoulder. Not wanting to be awkward, you instinctively comforted the princess, petting her and hugging her back, which, while surprising,
she accepted regardless, as if she had a sense of trust for you.

“T-Thank you… you’re very sweet…” she said, but felt awkward saying that as she let go, blushing, “A-Anyways, w-what did you really come here for?”

“I actually came to ask if you could give me a tour of the Crystal Empire, your highness” you said, giggling at the last bit, but something blinded you both as Raging appeared, blade in hand. Why he even had a blade was beyond you.

“Bro, are you flirting with my sister?!” he asked, swinging the sword towards you sideways, and yet again, you caught the blade between your palms, getting a gasp out of him, “Rats!”

“To answer your question, no, I was not flirting with her, I just met her. Relax, amigo, I mean no harm” you said, getting a glare from him as he pulled the sword back and sheathed it

“You better not, otherwise it’ll be the last thing you do… I’m watching you… and you too, sis” he said, taking his leave

“Jeez, overprotective of his sister and he’s only 11 years old? Who crushed his sand castle?” you asked as she sighed

“Well, in my teen years, I… had a few bad coltfriends. I was eager to experience love and truly understand why it was so beautiful, but every coltfriend I had just wanted me because of the fact that if you were to do it with an alicorn, you get immortality, and eternal life, as an added bonus, if your heart is pure and serious for the alicorn in question. Luckily, my mom saw through their greed and usery before I ever did it with any of them. Every bad coltfriend gave my little brother all the more reason to be protective of me, and would pretty much get suspicious of every stallion I hung out with. Some even stopped hanging out with me because of him. But I can’t blame him, I just have a hard time with guys, I guess” she said as she shrugged and sighed, looking down a little, but you cleared your throat, getting her attention

“Yeah, I think I get it, could we go on that tour now?” you asked her as she nodded

“Right right, let’s do that!” she said, springing up as she grabbed your hand and her horn lit up, teleporting you both away

After Flurry had teleported you and her outside the castle, you got to exploring, checking out the Crystal Empire spa, library, and even a few of its restaurants. The Crystal Empire was beautiful, no doubt about that, though you were confused when you saw a statue of what looked to be a baby dragon holding the Crystal Heart, which Flurry had told you about during your visit to the library

“Um, Flurry? What’s up with the statue of the dragon?” you asked as she giggled

“Oh, that’s a statue of my uncle, Spike. When he was still a baby dragon, he single-handedly saved the Crystal Heart from being shattered when Sombra returned. Mind you, this was when I wasn’t born” she explained, but that opened up another question

“Who’s Sombra?” you asked as anypony in a 5 mile distance shot a stare in your direction and shuddered

“Well, he was… a bad pony. From what I’ve read, Sombra was actually king of the Crystal Empire, who one day went corrupt with power, and he was ultimately banished. He attempted to return during a harsh winter in the Crystal Empire, and again when a legion of villains was established. He was stopped once, and permanently defeated the next time. He brought sorrow to everypony in the Crystal Empire, hence why they all shuddered at the mention of his name” she explained. She was sure doing a lot of explaining, but hey, you weren’t complaining.

“Ah, makes sense“ you said as you and her kept walking through the Crystal Empire, eventually reaching a small house in what looked to be a small alley, “And what are we-?“ you tried to ask as she knocked on the door

“Professor Sunburst? It’s me, Flurry Heart. I made a new friend and want to introduce him to you!“ she said as the next thing you heard was tripping and the sound of books falling

“Coming! Ooof!“ the voice said, having supposedly fallen. After waiting a while longer, the door opened to an orange pony with glasses and a wizard’s cloak, “Ah, Flurry Heart, good to see you, who’s your friend?“ he asked as you introduced yourself, shaking his hand softly

“Glad to meet you. I’m Sunburst, Flurry’s professor and magic teacher“ he said as he moved aside, “Would you two like to come in and have some tea?“

“Is the tea iced?“ you asked

“Iced? I don’t think I’ve seen anyone drink iced tea, especially if it’s-“ he attempted to say

“No no, clearly you misunderstood. You know how to brew sweet tea?“ you asked him

“Yeah, I do actually“ he said, smiling a little

“Fantastic“ you said, walking past him as you took a seat on a cluttered couch

“Make yourself at home?“ he said as Flurry came in and sat down next to you. Sunburst went into his kitchen while you and Flurry sat on the couch.

“Did you really have to push past him like that? You could’ve at least said ’excuse me’, y’know?“ she said, sighing a little

“My apologies, your highness. He had moved aside, so I assumed he was cool with us coming in“ you said, sighing yourself as she just put an arm around you and ruffled your hair softly

“I know, it wasn’t even that big of a deal, I just made it sound like that to get a reaction, hehehe“ she giggled as you glared at her a little, but smiled and ended up giggling too.

After a few more minutes, Sunburst came back with a glass and a cup. The glass had iced tea in it, and the cup had herbal tea in it, “Here are your drinks. Flurry, I figured you’d like tea as well, so I made you your favorite herbal tea“

“Thank you Sunburst, you’re the best!“ she said, smiling as she sipped from her cup softly

“Indeed, you’re pretty cool“ you said, getting a bit of a smile out of him

“Oh, t-thank you…“ he sweated a little as he decided to change the subject, “So Flurry, I hear you’re 18 now. Did your mom talk to you about taking over the throne yet? And more importantly, have you confessed your feelings to your friend yet?“

Flurry blushed, knowing he was talking about you, but she decided to answer one at a time, “First one, no. My mom isn’t sure if I’m ready to take over the empire, so that’s unlikely. Second one, he’s just a friend! We’ve barely known each other for 24 hours, Sunburst!“

“Alright geez, I see I’ve struck a nerve, my bad“ he said as he sighed and cleared his throat, looking at you, “I’d say you’re the second human to show up in the Crystal Empire, the first being Cadence’s human husband“

“Well, I knew that, but cool” you said, tasting the iced tea, and damn, it was good. It had the right amount of caffeine, sugar, and everything, “Damn, this is some good tea, Sunburst” you complimented, getting a nervous chuckle out of him

“T-Thank you… I-I wasn’t sure if you’d like it, but I’m glad that you do” he said, sighing, “So, wanna hear about Flurry’s goth pha-“ he attempted to say as he was cut off by Flurry silenced him.

“Sunburst, what have I said about telling anypony about my goth phase?” she said, letting him speak as her magic deactivated

“That you don’t like it when other ponies, like myself and your family talk about it” he said, sighing a little

“Exactly, and I’d like to keep it that way” she said as she cleared her throat and looked at you, “Y’know, I never actually got your name, or did I?”

“I don’t think so” you said, taking another sip from your tea

“Well, what is it?” she asked, looking at you with curious eyes as you told her your name.

“Neat, I’ll make sure to remember it” she said, giving you a small squeeze, and for a brief second, you felt her breasts press up against your arm softly. From the touch, you could gather that her chest was at least a F-cup, but that could just be that she’s royalty, or good genetics, you didn’t know which as you finished your tea and set down the cup

“Alright, I’m ready to get the hell outta here” you said, standing up and stretching a little, “Sunburst, pleasure meeting you, but I have a lot to learn about this new land” you said, heading for the door as Flurry finished her tea

“Bye Sunburst! It was great seeing you!” she said as she joined you at the door

“Eh, you too Flurry! Have a good rest of your day, you two!” he said as you and Flurry left.

Time had past faster than you both expected, as you both got back to the Crystal Empire relatively late. When you both got inside, the clock read 7 PM, so it was just getting late out anyways.

“So, just curious, but, what kinda fun things can you do?” Flurry asked as you and her walked to the castle dining room

“Well, other than perform great athletic acts and have a great amount of combat experience, I guess… I’m not exactly a fun person” you said, getting a soft punch in the arm from Flurry

“That’s ridiculous! I had fun with you today! The conversations we had, the walks. For once, I felt like I finally had somepony who understood me. I’m glad to have met you” she said, hugging you before the two of you entered the dining room

“Same here, Flurry. I do feel as though you’re someone I can see eye to eye with” you said, walking into the dining room. From the looks of things, you were both right on time, as everypony had been waiting for their food

“Ah, Flurry, sweetheart, glad you could make it!“ Cadence said, giggling as she looked at you, “And you as well, glad to have you both here with us“

“Nice to see you too, mom. Let me tell you, he’s so nice and smart and gentleman-like, it’s unbelievable“ Flurry explained, making you giggle a little

“Can’t really help it, as it was how I was raised“ you said, taking a seat as Flurry sat in the seat next to you, smiling softly

“If you don’t mind me asking, but what kind of classes did you take to be able to catch a blade in your hands like you did earlier this morning?“ Shining asked you as he tapped his fingers

“I’m rather curious too. When Raging trains, he eviscerates his training dummies, and they’re often found in tiny pieces. When he trained with Shining, he nearly took off his fingers with just a single swing“ Blade asked, seeming as curious as Shining

“Well, I guess it has to do with the fact that my parents enrolled me in self-defense classes, like Kung-Fu, Karate, Tae Kwon Do, Jujitsu, and a few other honorable mentions. And get this, their reason was so that I wouldn’t get my lunch money stolen, my pants wedgie-fied, or anything else done to me by bullies. Though, turns out kicking a bully into a locker or down a flight of stairs after said bully stole my lunch money and nearly gave me a wedgie, just isn’t allowed. So, to avoid me going into juvenile detention, my parents homeschooled me, but just in case I got rusty, I got in contact with old classmates and would practice with them early morning, after school, and on rare occasions, at 12 midnight“ you explained

“Is that so? Well, how come you were robbed by only two guys?“ Shining asked you

“Well for starters, I wasn’t expecting either one to have a knife, and secondly, it was a 2v1 and it’d been forever since I did 2v1 training with my colleagues. We had a bit of a falling out amongst one another“ you explained

“What kind of ’falling out’?“ Cadence asked you

“The competitive kind. We all got into an argument during a martial arts tournament, and when I won, they were too jealous of my success that they refused to speak to me from that day forward“ you explained as everyone fell silent, and before anything else was said, the food was served. You, Raging, Blade were served fish, while the rest were served veggies. It made sense, as ponies were herbivores, though Raging looked to be a hybrid of the two races

Is it possible for human DNA and Pony DNA to mix? Maybe that is something that I should look into… you thought to yourself as you ate

“Hey“ Flurry said, catching your attention, “Do you have any plans for tomorrow?“

“Not a clue. I’ll figure it out“ you said, having finished your food. You must’ve been so deep in thought that you completely forgot the food was there in the first place. You got up, sighing as you as you said. “Everyone, thank you for having me and giving me a home, I mean that sincerely. Goodnight all“ you left, but were stopped as Cadence caught up to you

“Wait, I actually have to show you to your room. It’s right next to mine if you have any questions or concerns, let me show you to it“ she said, smiling a little

“Okay, lead the way, princess“ you said as she nodded and, of course, she led you there.

After walking down a couple halls, you passed by Cadence’s bedroom as you entered a room that looked somewhat plain, aside from a bed in a corner of the room.

“So, this is where you’ll be staying” she said, smiling as you looked around and smiled

“Very nice and well detailed” you complimented, sitting on your bed softly, “Thank you, princess”

“Cadence is fine, and can we talk?” she asked as you nodded and she sat next to you, “So, I know you partook in martial arts, but are you interested in any kind of learning when it comes to Equestria or magic?”

“About history, sure, but why magic?” you asked, cause you didn’t have a horn like her, Shining, Flurry, or even Raging

“Well, you seem like somepony who could potentially make a good teacher, don’t you think?“ she suggested, putting an arm around you softly

“As good as that all sounds, I’m not exactly the ’teacher’ type when it comes to history or magic, but self-defense I very well could teach“ you said, seemingly getting an idea out of the princess as she gasped

“Is that so? Then maybe you could teach Flurry Heart!“ she exclaimed, bouncing a little

“Annnnnnd… Why exactly?“ you asked, confused

“Well, when she was turning 13, Shining and Blade attempted to teach Flurry how to defend herself. She was two things: Prideful and Careless. She said that she didn’t need self-defense and that she was perfectly fine with just her magic, and at her age, she was positive that she could blast anypony to the other side of Equestria two times over” Cadence explained, giggling a little, “So, since you seem to get along with her well, I was thinking you could teach her self-defense”

“I suppose, but what’s to stop her from blasting me into a billboard or oncoming carriage?” you asked, as even though you two got along well, would it stop her from blasting you into next millennia?

“One, I’ve made it clear that you’re harmless, and two, that you’ve got good intentions and would only want what’s right for her like the rest of us, right?” she asked

“Right, yeah” you said, yawning softly

“Somepony’s tired, hehe. I’ll leave you to it then, goodnight dear” she said, getting up as she hugged you, “Also, I have a feeling you’ll be a great asset to the Crystal Empire” she whispered in your ear before pulling away, booping you, and walking out of your room.

Sighing, you laid down and covered up, trying to get your shit together on what you were gonna do tomorrow. You closed your eyes and went to sleep.

You woke up relatively early, and that was due to how you trained your mind and body: Early on weekdays, and Late on Weekends.

As you woke up, you saw it was 3 in the morning, the acclaimed Devil’s Hour. You weren’t sure if Satan existed in this world or universe, but you sure as hell weren’t willing to find out.

You checked the clock on the wall, finding it was 3 am, so you headed out into the hall, which was nearly pitch black, and you smelled coffee, so you followed the scent to the dining room, where you saw Shining Armor drinking coffee. When he heard your footsteps, he looked up and waved at you as you went and poured yourself some coffee, “You’re up early”

“So are you, amigo” you shot back as he chuckled. You poured milk into your coffee and stirred some sugar into it, sitting across from him, “Why are you up so early?”

“Well, I normally wake up this early, as it gives me plenty of time to wake up, have breakfast and coffee, take a shower, and get ready for the day ahead” he said, taking a sip of his coffee, “Why do you wake up so early?”

“I’ve trained my body to wake up early on weekdays” you said, sighing, “So, you down to spar?” you said, making his eyes light up

“You know, I’ve actually been curious how you fare in battle, so yeah, let’s do it” he said as he wasted no time chugging down his coffee

You looked at yours and did the same, setting down your cup as he sprang up, “Alright, let’s go”

After a while, Shining carefully led you into what appeared to be some kind of arena looking room. You saw a wall full of weapons as he walked over and took one down from the wall, “So, I saw how you can catch a sword in your hands, but can you catch a spear?”

“Never have before, why?” you asked as he teleported behind you and swung the spear. Luckily, all that training paid off, as you spun on your heel and managed to stop the spear from hitting, getting a smile out of Shining

“That’s why. Very impressive. Let’s continue” he said, grabbing a sword from the wall, and something told you this’d be a long sparring session.

Later in the day, you had finished sparring with Shining at around 6 am, which was when he had to get his guards in order, so you were left alone.

Not knowing what to do, you decided to wake somepony up and essentially get them to train hard.

You walked down the still quiet halls to a certain princess’s room, knocking on the door 3 times, and softly. At first, there was no answer, but then you heard a groan, followed by hoofsteps as they got closer and closer to the door.

The door opened to a tired Flurry, and she looked to have a crazy bedhead going on as you giggled. She groaned again and rolled her eyes, “Whaaaaatttt…?”

“Hey Flurry, I was wondering, would you be interested in learning self-defense?” you asked her, but she began to close the door, before you put a foot in it, stopping her, “Please Flurry, it’s good to have that kind of training, especially if you don’t have enough time to use your magic”

She sighed, “Did my mom put you up to this?”

“Well yes, but-“ you tried to say as she closed the door on your foot a little, “Wait wait wait! Hear me out! She told me how dependent you are on your magic, and while that’s good, what’re you gonna do when your horn is broken? Or when somepony blocks your magic? Or some other situation in which you can’t use magic?”

“Why are you so Tartarus-bent on teaching me?! I’ve already made it clear that I don’t want to!” she said, closing the door tighter before you had an offer that you believed she couldn’t, and wouldn’t refuse

“Look, if you do, we’ll head down to the spa, sound good?” you said, which got her to open the door and smile a little

“You mean it?” she asked as you winced a little from her crushing your foot, but she hugged you tightly, “Alright, I’ll do it. I finally will have someone I can enjoy the spa with”

“Awesome, argh” you winced more as she giggled sheepishly

“Hehe, really sorry about that… come inside for a sec, I may have a solution to that” she said as you came in, closing the door behind her

Bout an hour later, you both came out and your foot felt better. Turns out, Flurry had memorized a healing spell from a book that her aunt, Twilight, had gotten from Canterlot’s restricted section of the library. You wondered how she even tested the spell, and she mentioned that sometimes she’d make small enough cuts, and then use the spell, which would slowly repair her skin and regrow any lost fur, as well as disinfecting her arm completely of any germs. She used the spell on your foot, which got rid of all the aches from the door, so that was good.

“Can we get some coffee first? I don’t quite…-“ she yawned cutely, rubbing her eyes softly, “…-have the energy yet…”

“Sure, I’m sure they also have some blueberry muffins, from what I’ve heard” you said as she gasped and her wings fluttered softly

“Sweet!” she said, “Race you there!” she said, taking off towards the dining hall

“You’re on!” you said, running after her

You saw the dining hall in the distance, and ran faster, using the wall to your advantage and wall running. As you were running, you lept off of it, and like it was a movie, you saw Flurry look up at you and her eyes widen as you landed in front of her, causing her to skid to a halt as you caught her in a hug.

She panted a little, having nearly collided with you there, but she relaxed, “Thanks but… how did you do that?! I never seen anypony, or rather, anybody pull that off! That’s something I’d see Daring Do pull off, but you?! How?!”

“Has to do with how I was raised, and when I was growing up, I took gymnastics as well, and a bit of track, which covers how I caught up to you” you explained giggling a little as she huffed and pouted cutely

“I would’ve had you… not fair…” she whined as you hugged her tightly as she looked up at you

“Not fair? Which one of us has more strength, wings, and a horn?” you argued, not getting a response as she sighed, “That’s what I thought, but seriously, you did good, Flurry”

Her eyes widened as she shed a small tear, “Y-You think so?”

“I don’t think so, I know so. You’re hands down an amazing pony, and an even more amazing friend, so just because I beat you doesn’t mean you have to take it personal” you said, stroking her chin softly as she giggled

“Thank you, that means a lot” she said as she hugged you tightly and sighed, blushing a little as she realized what was going on, then pulling away, “Anyways, let’s get some breakfast”

You nodded and the two of you entered the dining room, looking forward to breakfast

After having a muffin with Flurry, the two of you headed to the same room that you and Shining had sparred in. It looked the same as you had left it. You looked at Flurry as she was already looking at the weapons, but couldn’t decide on one

You walked over and stood next to her as she looked at the spears, swords, and maces. You tapped her shoulder softly as she looked at you, “Do you even know the first thing about armed combat?“

“A little. My dad, Shining Armor, taught me when I was a teenager, but, I lost interest after a while, so I may be a bit rusty“ she said sheepishly

“Well, to start you off, you should stick with a sword to refine your skills” you said as she took down what appeared to be a broadsword, which, if you got another sword, it’d be a greatsword.

“Right yeah. Oooo, how about we have a sword fight to start off?” she suggested as you grabbed a greatsword

“Alright, sounds good” you said as you both took your positions. You were in a defensive, while she was in an offensive stance

“I’m gonna take you down!” she said, rushing forward as she brought down the sword, and you blocked it, keeping a tight hold

“You’ll have to try harder than that, your majesty” you said, taunting and teasing her as you shoved her away and made an advance, swinging and slashing, though it was easy for her to get distance on you thanks to her wings, but you weren’t gonna restrain her too much

“Don’t get cocky, kiddo” she said, smiling mischievously as she rushed you. You attempted to read her movements, but you couldn’t figure out what the hell she’d do

As she got closer, you made a move to swing your sword out, and that’s when it happened: She jumped on the blade, flipped off it and over you, and landed. The only thing she probably didn’t plan for was her sword going right through you.

As you felt the blade pierce your chest, it didn’t make contact with your heart or any of the arteries or veins connected to it, but it still felt bad as she gasped and you fell to your knees, “Oh no! I’m so sorry!”

You pulled the sword out and let it fall to the ground, “Healing magic… quick…” she nodded and used her magic, managing to stop the bleeding

“Let’s get you to the hospital!” she said, picking you up in her arms as her horn ignited and the two of you were gone in an instant.

A bright light. What you instantly assumed was you were dead, but then you heard what was an EKG beeping next to you, and that’s exactly what that was.

What the hell happened? you thought, as the last thing you remembered was being stabbed by your best friend, but you had yet to completely congratulate her on her efforts, but then you heard something

“Mom, I swear, it was an accident!“ that voice sounded like Flurry, and it seemed like she was with Cadence

“I know sweetie, your story adds up, but let’s hear his side of the story“ Cadence said as the knob turned, but it stopped

“Wait mom, before we go in, can I tell you something?“ Flurry said as her mom nodded softly, “I hope he’s okay… He means a lot to me, mom, and I’d hate to lose him because of some stupid mistake!“ she said as she sounded like she was… crying? It soon became muffled, as it sounded like she was crying into her mom’s shoulder

Damn, didn’t think she cared for me that much you thought as you sighed, attempting to sit up, but you felt your ribs ache with pain. From the X-ray, you saw that, in the same place you had been stabbed, a few of the bones on one of your ribs had broken. It looked fixed at the moment, but it was probably still healing, so you gave up trying to sit up

“Honey, I’m sure he’s okay. Now c’mon, let’s check on him“ Cadence said as she opened the door, and you saw her, as well as the pink made with her. They both entered and sat by your hospital bed, and both mares placed a hand on your hand softly, “How are you feeling?“

You tried to get a chuckle out, but thanks to your ribs, you coughed a little as you chuckled, “Like I fell down the sta-airs… heh…“

“Hey, uh…“ Flurry said and caught your attention as you looked at her with a soft expression as she looked down, “I’m really sorry I stabbed you… I was in the moment, and wasn’t paying attention to the blade… I’m sorry…“

“Flurry… I’m no mad… Heh… I’m impressed… Could even say… I’m proud…“ you said as both mares’ eyes widened

“What?“ both said confused

“Confused? Let me explain“ you said, locking hands with Flurry, “Flurry, when you stepped on the blade and flipped off of it like a gymnast, I didn’t expect you to do that, cause I was trying to read your movements and fight pattern… and I swung, thinking I’d force you into blocking, but when you pulled that off… it put a look of shock on my face… but a smile in my head“ you said, seeing tears in her eyes as she got up and walked over close enough to you.

Flurry bent down and hugged you, crying into your shoulder softly. Regardless of how wet it got, you petted her mane and calmed her down, while Cadence smiled, knowing that you had things under control.

After a while, Flurry finished and she sighed, “T-Thank you for teaching me… while it was short, I did appreciate your efforts…”

“Not a problem… Flurry Heart…” you said as you scratched behind her ears softly, making her giggle

At that moment, a nurse came in and pushed up her glasses, saying, “Your majesties, if you could please give our guest some rest, as visiting hours are coming to an end. You understand”

“Of course, nurse, not a problem. Let’s give him his rest, Flurry” Cadence said, getting up and waiting by the door

“Okay mom” she responded as she kissed your forehead softly, “Get some rest, bestie” she said as she joined her mom, and the two walked out of the door, closing it softly.

You could hear Cadence giggling on the other side, “You must really care about him, eh sweetie?”

“I do, mom, I really do. He’s a good guy, for sure. I think-“ you couldn’t hear what she said next, but you could only imagine it was something sweet.

Now left alone in your hospital room, you sighed and just rested your head on your pillow, closing your eyes, and falling asleep. Course, little did you know, you’d only grow closer to Flurry in the coming years.