It Is Always Best Forgotten

The eyes stared at him, evil intentions clearly visible in the bright crimson, their line of sight unbroken. They just... watched him.

"Fluttershy, wake the others up and take them somewhere safe." Illuminous ordered, the seriousness in his voice alarmed Fluttershy, but she didn't question him.

He stood still ready. Ready for anything, but the eyes did not move, did not flinch, and did not blink. They just stood there... watching... like if they were waiting for something. Illuminous was frightened to the core, but the thought of wanting everyone safe overruled it. He stood his ground, keeping a close eye on the two.

"Illy, the rest won't wake up!" Fluttershy said alarmed.

Suddenly one of the pair of eyes vanished. There was just the quiet rumbling of leaves and all stood silent again.

Fluttershy was holding onto him, afraid of what Illuminous would be so worked up about. She had an undying trust in him. Not a single doubt entered her mind.

The other pair of eyes vanished, leaving the night air still, the quietness felt uneasy. Illuminous didn't back down though, he still felt the presences. He would wait it out all night if he had to, he would never let anything happen to his friends.

He felt a light breeze. The trees rustled at the small current.

One pair of eyes appeared, looking at him even more intently. And then, a shadow started to walk out of grass, it was still too dark to see what it was, but it was an outline of a small pony.

"You wish to save your friend? Come for her." it spoke out, its voice hardly recognizable.

Then a small shriek bellowed out of the dark forest. Fluttershy.

He looked around helplessly trying to find the yellow Pegasus who had vanished without his consent. He couldn't. His worry grew deeper and then looked back at the eyes.

"What did you do to her?" Illuminous rang out, anger enforcing itself within his voice.

Strangely, the other ponies just slept through it all.

The shadow let out a shrill laugh, like if it had been expecting his anger. "This will be easy." it followed up.

Then the shadow vanished into the dark forest, leaving no trace behind.

Illuminous ran after it. He was truly afraid... if anything had happened to Fluttershy he'd...

He shook off the thoughts and kept running. He wouldn't let that happen, never again.

Two shadows sped across the dark forest, one carrying a passed out yellow Pegasus with pink mane.

"What was your plan when we got this girl?" one of the shadows asked.

"Simple. Lure him." the other said.

"Remember, he is the only one we want. Nothing happens to the girl." the first one said.

"A soft spot for this... thing?" the other one replied sharply with disgust.

"No, must I remind you what happens if anything happens off according to plan?" he said back in the same sharp tone.

"Eh, and I wanted to have some fun too." A bitter disappointed in the voice shown.

"When everything is done... there will be plenty. Of time. For that." it said in short bursts.

"Why not now!?" the other shot at the shadow.

"Are you thinking of disobeying orders?" Sheer anger visible in the shadow's eyes.

"Whatever" the other one casually said.

The two shadows stopped, they placed the Pegasus down on the ground in the middle of all the trees, and then they quickly blinked on to the trees.

"There, everything is planned. One mistake and I'll personally end your life before mine is ended." the shadow snarled.

"Nothing can go wrong; we've been warned about this one. Considering his stature, he won't be able to even harm us. This is easier than that other stupid pony." it laughed, recalling the past events.

"Don't get a big head, we still don't know what his potential is, but at least we know he won't stop until he sees this one here safe. Let's give him the pleasure shall we?"

His worry grew worse. There was no sound, nothing he could track. No movement, no presences... nothing. As he ran through the forest, he felt helpless, blindingly chasing after a shadow, Fluttershy so easily kidnapped with him present. He fell into utter despair. Not until he saw Fluttershy safe will he forgive himself.

He was afraid of the light. His visions... all of it seemed... dangerous. When he had lost control against the Ursa Minor, he was afraid of his power, afraid of himself. Than dreadful thoughts came into his head, what if that evil pony was there... and what could it have done with Fluttershy?

'No no no no!' he angrily screamed in his thoughts, galloping even harder and faster, the grasses picking out of its roots as he passed by. Tears flooded his eyes, sparkling like gems by the moonlight as they fell to the ground.

"Fluttershy!!!" He yelled with all his might hoping with all his heart it reached the yellow Pegasus.

A dark void surrounded her, she was terrified, and this was pure darkness. She tried screaming out but her voice was mute. Even her thoughts weren't there, just the sense of terror and fear. She curled up, trying to make the darkness go away. A few thoughts appeared. Illuminous. Whatever had happened to her, she knew Illuminous was trying his best to save her. She felt despair and horror. She didn't want him to get hurt... not for her... a tear escaped her eye.

A voice rang clear into her head, a voice of desperation. It called her name out. It was strong, stern, and a bit sensitive. Illuminous quickly popped into her mind. It was him. A sudden hope assured Fluttershy, Illuminous did care, even though she didn't want him to get hurt for her. She felt happy... that he was coming.

"Fluttershy!!!" he yelled again in desperation.

His eyes grew in both worry and relief, seeing her asleep lying down unharmed.

Fluttershy looked troubled though, a sense of dread overtook him. What had happened?

The shadow appeared from the darkness of the trees.

"Seems like you got here just in time." the playful voice of a dark Pegasus pony wearing goggles and a full body suit said as it appeared into the moonlight. Its red crimson eyes making it look more menacing. It never took of its smile. It just stood in front of him.

Another Pegasus exactly the same, dropped off of the trees, this one with a more serious expression.

"We didn't harm her. At least not yet. If you wish to save her, defeat us." it said.

"What did you do to her?!" He snarled at them angrily.

"She is just in a trance, if you fail to defeat us, she won't see the light of day for a very long time." it said calmly.

Illuminous stomped his hoofs towards the two Pegasi.

"Don't make this boring." The playful dark Pegasus said still with the same sly smile.

Illuminous charged, at them. They stood still. He kicked the ground propelling him towards the two Pegasi who remained still. When he nearly reached them, they vanished, making him tumble onto the ground and regaining himself quickly on his feet.

"What a laugh." the cheerful snarl of the Pegasus said.

Then he got hit from the side heavily, leaving an intense pain on his ribs. Before could even turn to see his attacker, he got kicked straight on his chest, knocking him back. He slowly regained himself, hurting from the places he had been kicked. He didn't have time to think before the second wave of attacks took him by surprise. He wasn't able to see them, they were shrouded in the darkness and they were too quick to attack.

"Hah! You're too easy. Then again, we are, The Shadow Bolts. Nothing and no one is faster than us."

Shadow Bolts... this reminded him of what Rainbow Dash told him, the Wonderbolts x Shadowbolts? No... They couldn't be. He would know it.

Illuminous stood his ground ready for an attack.

Like the Pegasus had said earlier, they were fast. Too fast. They knocked him around good until he was finally tired. It was a never ending of barrage of attacks that he couldn't dodge or counter against. His entire body hurt. There was just no way to it. He had to...

Two voices spoke out to him. One that said no, the other one said yes. He was terrified of that power... but if he didn't use it now... he would be defeated and Fluttershy would...

He shook off the possibilities. It was obvious what he had to do.

He didn't know how to use it; the last time... it just... happened... He cried out in desperation. He finally gave up and stumbled to the ground. He looked over at Fluttershy.

"I'm sorry." he whispered over to her.

He thought of all the things he wanted to still do, and it all included protecting those he cared about. A big thought appeared in his head. He wanted to protect Fluttershy, no matter what the cost. Even if it was his life.

Suddenly he burst into a white light. It had appeared! This time though, he felt... different. Stronger, Lighter, Smarter..... Quicker! Two small wings sprouted from his back, not feathery wings, but pure white light. He could control them easily. Like if they were part of his limbs. He beat them towards the trees creating a strong gust. Revealing two ponies trying hard see from the blinding light.

The two Pegasi put on their goggles. "Nice try lover boy. Your fancy lights won't affect us." The voice that once belonged to the cheerful Pegasus said looking at him. He had lost his smile. "Nice wings you got there, care to join us in the sky?" He taunted and the two Pegasi flew into the air high above the trees.

Without a second response, Illuminous shot to the sky, his wings creating a stream of light behind him.

~~~~~~~

Suddenly, a galloping Illuminous replaced the complete darkness, projecting like a screen. Fluttershy wanted to rush to him but she couldn't move she could only watch as he lied down beside her, wondering if she was okay, seeing her own body unconscious. She heard the entire conversation between the two Pegasi before Illuminous had arrived, and she was afraid that he might have fallen into a trap. This confirmed her suspicions when they talked to Illuminous, challenging him for the safety of Fluttershy's.

She couldn't stand seeing Illuminous get beat up like he did. The only thing that went through her mind was "Stop please stop!" but Illuminous just kept standing up.

When he dropped and then looked at her, tears running down his eyes. She wanted to cry, but nothing... the light sent joy to her, giving her hope as he stood back up, stronger and better than he was before, more capable of fighting the two Pegasi.

Fluttershy prayed for his safety.

~~~~~~~

"This is starting to get interesting." The cheerful Pegasi said, this time with an evil smirk.

He looked over at the other Pegasus. The more serious one never lost his poker face. He just nodded, in agreement to something.

Before he knew it, they had already commenced their attack. He took one wave of the attacks, analyzing their patterns and movements in their strategy.

When they had gone to strike again, Illuminous kicked back, hitting the change of attack to surprise attack him. And then quickly got into a ball and spun himself in the air hitting the other pony as he went in for the hit.

"Heh, not bad for an incompetent Earth pony." the cheerful one said.

"Well too bad we can't fool around forever." the more serious one replied.

Suddenly, Illuminous felt a deep strike onto his back; it shocked his limbs and body. A third Pegasus pony appeared from behind him as it had attacked. This one was different, its mane was blue and black, a pattern resembling fire. The uniform had small symbols. The captain.

He fell out of the sky, quickly dropping through the branches, roughing him up before he took a hard hit to the ground, close to Fluttershy. His body felt useless, he couldn't move a single limb. His wings disappeared, and his glow vanished.

The three Pegasi dropped to the ground beside him.

"You foalish Earth pony. I hope you enjoy sharing your father's fate." the captain spoke, the voice that of a mare.

A tear rolled down his cheek. Even with that... he had still failed... he looked over to Fluttershy, his heart full of despair. He closed his eyes, but the tears just kept falling.

He heard the ground being stepped on softly coming towards him. He shut his eyes harder, ready to face his fate.

A warm, recognizable forehead was placed onto his. He opened his eyes. It was Fluttershy.

"How heartwarming, the mare saying her last goodbyes to that wimp of a pony." The captain snarled.

Fluttershy paid no mind to it; she was struggling to keep herself conscious. Illuminous just stared at her, wondering what she was doing.

Without a second thought, he heard her voice. The sweet, gentle, warm and kind voice filled his mind.

'Please don't give up... I... I... love you...' her voice said. His mind was racing. Thousands of emotions just hit him at once.

Fluttershy lied down, exhausted by her efforts.

Illuminous stood slowly.

"Oh what is this? I can hardly believe your even standing when I just shocked your entire body. Well at least you have a little bit of fight left in you, would've been boring to end it so soon." The captain said.

Illuminous just grinned. This infuriated the captain.

"Take him down!" he ordered the two silent Pegasi. They looked like puppies compared to her. Of course they obediently agreed vanishing into the air quicker than a grass leaves they picked up could fall to the ground.

Two kicks straight to his chest threw him back violently. Illuminous tried standing up again really slow and wobbly.

"You just won't die!" The captain screamed, going over to him and throwing him back on the ground, and proceeded to kicking him repeatedly.

The captain stopped once Illuminous stopped moving, huffing loudly and angrily. "He's...."

Illuminous opened his eyes, his yellow eyes staring at the crimson ones of the Pegasus, concentrated and never breaking sight.

"How are you still alive you annoying Earth pony!!!?" She screamed.

Illuminous stood up without any hard effort and grinned even wider.

"I heal quickly." he responded before his eyes turned into white light and his shine came back on, his wings much larger and more majestic.

Without the beat of an eyelid, Illuminous stood behind the two followers who were just as shocked as the captain.

He didn't have a single scratch on him, his mane flowing longer and more majestic. Illuminous touched the two Pegasi and they both fell to ground, unable to move. He walked slowly towards the captain.

Without him even making a movement, she voluntarily lied down, trembling upon his presence.

Illuminous walked over to Fluttershy. He touched her forehead with his. It instantly broke her out of her trance. She stared at him in awe. He put his forehead to hers.

'Sing' the voice of Illuminous rang out into her mind.

She sung a small melody, so sweet and gentle, her voice sounded even more perfect than an angel's. When she was done singing, he took his forehead off and walked over to the now purified Pegasi. They all seemed like regular Pegasus. It seemed they suffered the corruption like the Ursa Minor did. Whatever was after him, he was sure it was using anything it could get its hand on to defeat him. He put the three Pegasi on his back and flew them onto a cloud, gently laying the sleeping ponies down.

And as he touched the ground, his wings and the glow vanished into smaller little lights, the shapes of butterflies. He walked over to where the yellow Pegasus was. And with a sigh, he lied down next to her.

"I....I-" Fluttershy tried saying when Illuminous was down next to her, looking into her eyes, his bright yellow eyes sparkling in the moonlight.

"It's okay Fluttershy, I wanted to save you. I told you, I would always protect you." he said softly.

"No" Fluttershy said shaking her head, and then she leaned in closer to him and kissed him.

This caught him off guard. He was blushing wildly, surprised by the sudden affection. It seemed like it lasted an eternity. Both of them lost in the moment.

Fluttershy buried her face into his chest, trying to conceal her blushing. "I-I've been wanting to do that for a while..." she said quietly and shyly.

Illuminous placed his chin on her mane, nuzzling into it, viewing the bright white butterflies that were still left.

"I was so worried that you would have...."

"It's okay... I would have never allowed you to get hurt. Even if the cost was my life. I promised myself that." Illuminous said gentle and warmly into her ear, placing his hoof onto her chin to pick up her face to see his, kissing her once more.

She retreated to bury her face deeper into his chest, blushing more. He smiled greatly. They fell asleep there together, in the same embrace, with a smile on both of them. When he saw into her mind, it felt like he knew her more, everything about her, what she felt, what she thought. Both their hearts in unison.

Two Hearts United.

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(Author's Note: Its becoming obligatory to make one of these every chapter ((an author's note)) :D. I poured every little bit of my unintelligible grammar into making both the fight scenes and the ending. I hope they are as amazing to everyone else as they were to me. Especially my dear friend Cat if she ever reads this. I had tons of distractions today. It was breaking my head, but really I do love and enjoy making these every day if possible. and I hope you all love them as well. I also thank everyone who reads this story loyally to this chapter. Mostly because we have reached 1,000+ Views! This is a great milestone for me because I just started out 5 days ago. I wrote stories but never for an audience before. Thank you all!
Also, I'm starting to get used to the entire Fluttershy x Illuminous..... but don't worry.... I have something up my sleeve....)