Tempest lets out a deep, melancholic sigh as her march gradually slows. By the time she stops, she’s standing before a humble, single-story house near the outer edge of Canterlot. On either side of the house, large mansions and vacation homes stretch as far as the eye can see. Make no mistake, Canterlot is a city of the wealthy, and a comparatively small house such as this sticks out like a sore thumb.
But it’s still home.
She closes her eyes for a moment, allowing herself to get lost in thought. It’s the middle of the night, almost 1:00 in the morning. On one hoof, a wave of guilt is washing over her. She’s late. She’s very late.
On the other hoof, arriving in the middle of the night means that there’s nopony around to see her. There isn’t a single creature around to see Tempest Shadow, ex-soldier of the Storm King. It’s been a few years, sure, but how could anyone forget the attack she led on the city? The cages she forced them all into? Heck, if it weren’t for Princess Twilight’s protection, she’d probably be tarred and feathered in the streets if she were caught by surprise.
Tempest shudders. These thoughts aren’t new to her, and it’s not like she isn’t capable of defending herself. Still, that awful feeling never really goes away. It’s not pleasant knowing that almost everyone around you despises you.
Almost everyone.
With a deep breath, she reaches into her saddlebag and produces a small key. It takes some fiddling to get it into the keyhole correctly (not being able to see will do that to you), but eventually the lock relents, allowing her to step inside. The house is extremely quiet, and it’s almost as dark as the street outside. However, from the entryway, she can see a light shining from around the corner.
On heavy hooves, she slowly makes her way into the living room. Sure enough, the spacious room is lit by a single lamp resting on a wooden nightstand. It gives the room a dim, cozy feeling, though she can’t help but feel on edge. After all, sitting on the sofa next to the lamp is a lanky figure with a large novel in his lap, his bright eyes looking directly at her.
Both remain silent for several seconds, the only sounds in the room being a ticking wall clock and Tempest’s shaky breaths. She clicks her tongue against the roof of her mouth, only to find that it’s very dry. She clears her throat in an effort to say something, but the words don’t make it past her lips. At the sight of her doing so, the human gives her a gentle smile and pats the space on the sofa next to him. Her gaze is cast downwards at the space, and she hesitates before stepping forward and gently placing herself down.
“Welcome home, Berry.” His voice is quiet, nearly a whisper. It’s calm. It’s warm. It’s comforting. “You’re looking thin.”
“Yeah,” she squeezes out. “It’s… it’s been rough.”
“Still, I’m happy to see you.”
“You too, Anon.”
Anon, one of the few creatures willing to stand by Tempest’s side after the death of the Storm King, lets out a sigh as he leans towards Tempest. He wraps an arm around her, but as his hand slides across the side of her torso she lets out a sharp, pained inhale, causing him to back away.
“S-sorry. I, uh…” With a bit of shuffling, Tempest removes her cloak, revealing a massive gash on the side of her body stretching from her shoulder to just shy of her tail. It doesn't look fresh, but it’s the type of wound that will take a very long time to heal. “I had a bad encounter.”
“With who?”
“Some thug in Klugetown. I don’t know his name.”
“You were attacked by someone you don’t even know?”
“I don’t know most of the creatures I’m apologizing to, Anon. He’s not the first, and he won’t be the last. He just… he caught me off guard. Here, scoot over a little bit.”
Guiding him with her front hooves, she pushes him into a position where he’s sitting back against the sofa. After doing so, she crawls into his lap and turns onto her side, nuzzling her face into his neck while keeping her wound facing away from him. He wraps one arm around her upper body, being careful to avoid the wound as best he can.
“How much longer do you have on this whole ‘apology journey’ of yours?”
“It’ll be a while. It should only be one more trip, but it’s going to take me far, far away from here.”
“And where will you be heading?”
“I saved the worst for last. The last stop is Mount Aris.”
“Ah. The hippogriffs.”
“Yeah. It hasn’t exactly been a pleasant experience journeying across the world to apologize and help rebuild in all the places that I helped conquer, but I don’t think anyone had it worse than them. I’m… ugh.”
She winces and bites her tongue, closing her eyes as she turns her head slightly to look away from Anon.
“If it’s not something you want to talk about, that’s okay. I know you’ve gotten used to surrounding yourself with creatures that want you dead, but you’re home now. You’re safe.”
“...Right.” She takes a deep breath before continuing. “I’m scared, Anon.”
“Well, of course you are. What you’re doing would terrify anyone.”
“I’m not used to fear. I thought I threw it away when I faced that ursa all those years ago. Figured I didn’t have much more to lose.” Slowly, she turns to look up at Anon, her beautiful blue eyes shaky and uncertain. “I… I can’t say that anymore.”
“Don’t worry,” Anon whispers as he plants a kiss on the top of her head. “I’m not going anywhere.”
“I know that. It’s not you I’m worried about.” She lets out a single, incredulous chuckle. “But that doesn’t make me feel very good, either. Here you are, waiting for me to come home, and I get here late.”
“Very late. Do you have any idea what time it is, young lady?” he asks in an obviously joking tone.
“Hmhm. You have the patience of a saint.”
“It’s easy to be patient when you have someone as lovely as you waiting on the other side.”
“Hah! You know, I’ve been called a lot of things these past few years, but I don’t think ‘lovely’ has ever been on the table.”
“Really? Hm. Maybe I should tell Celestia we have a national emergency.”
“What?”
“Because apparently, half of Equestria has gone blind!”
“Shut up.” She lightly punches him in the arm, but there isn’t nearly enough force for it to hurt. “Just because I’m tired doesn’t mean I’m gonna take your crap lying down.”
“Fine, fine. No more of my ‘crap’ tonight,” he laughs as he shrugs with a free arm. For a while, the two just sit like that, content to cuddle and enjoy each other’s company. Eventually, however, Anon speaks up once again. “Do you want anything?”
“Not particularly. A warm bed would be nice, though.”
“Trust me, I’ve got it all ready and warmed up for you,” he chuckles. “Still, you sure you don’t want dinner? You don’t look like you’ve been eating too good lately.”
“I… I haven’t, but I’m not hungry right now.”
Her words cause Anon to furrow his brow, but after a moment he relents and simply lets out a sigh.
“Fine. But I’m making you a big breakfast.”
“Hmhm. Deal.”
With a bit of shuffling and some careful placement of his hands so as to not touch her wound, Anon manages to stand from the sofa with a surprised, wide-eyed Tempest in his arms.
“Wh-what are you doing?!”
“Taking you to bed. That’s what you wanted, right?”
“I-I am fully capable of getting there myself!”
“I know that, but you’ve already walked, what, twenty miles today?”
“More than that,” she mumbles, just barely loud enough for Anon to hear.
“Oh yeah,” he says with a laugh. “You’re not taking another step. Just let ol’ Anon take care of you.”
“Uggggggh.”
Despite her groaning, Tempest doesn’t protest. If anything, she snuggles in closer to Anon’s chest as he brings her through the living room, down the hall, and into the small, cozy bedroom. With surprising deftness, he removes the covers with one hand while holding Tempest in the other before gently laying her down on her side of the bed. She looks up at him with surprise, but he just gives her that signature warm smile of his. After briefly disappearing to turn off the lamp in the living room, he returns to the dark bedroom and undresses before taking his spot in bed next to her.
It takes almost no time at all for the two of them to begin cuddling under the covers. Despite the tough, hard-to-approach appearance she puts on, Tempest truly does love being with Anon like this. She’d sooner die than let anyone figure that out, but both she and Anon know it to be true.
“Anon?” she whispers into the darkness.
“What is it?”
“I’m… I’m glad that I have someone to come home to. A-and I’m glad that someone is you.”
Anon reinforces his grip on her, pulling her even closer into his chest.
“I’m glad to have you too, Berry.”
“Thank you. For everything, I mean. Believing in me, waiting for me… l-loving me, I guess. I really don’t deserve it.”
“Oh? And who convinced you of that?”
“Everyone outside these walls.”
“Well, that’s a bit of an exaggeration, but still. Even if the whole world stands against you, don’t let them convince you that you’re worth less than you are. You’re an incredible mare, Berry. The fact that you want to help everyone, that you want to make up for past mistakes even after everything they’ve done to you in the process… well, I think it takes someone pretty special to do that.”
“Mmmmmmm why are you so smooth all of a sudden?” she playfully asks while gently squirming in his grasp. Both share a laugh for some time before she’s able to regain her composure and speak again. “But that’s part of why I love you.”
“I love you too, Berry.”
In the pitch-black darkness of their bedroom, beneath the heavy covers protecting them from the outside world, Tempest’s broken horn begins to glow with faint light. It’s extremely dim, but it’s just enough for them to be able to look into each other’s eyes. Slowly, they begin to lean forward, neither loosening their grip on the other. They draw closer and closer until they’re practically sharing a hot, single breath.
Then, the gap closes.
Neither is sure how long they stay like that. Their lips press against each other, their tongues battle for dominance, and their minds fill with nothing but thoughts of the other. It’s passionate, it’s comforting, and above all else, it’s filled with love. Somewhere deep in the recesses of her mind, Tempest’s stubborn self-loathing begins to weaken. After all, if someone as incredible as Anon is willing to love her like this…
She can’t be all bad.
Author's Note
As always, I appreciate any and all feedback!
