Dusk

Chapter contains mild sexual themes

Even though cold, icy winds whipped around Dusk, he couldn’t feel a thing as he locked lips with his new fiancé. Warm tears of joy rolled down Soprano’s face as she affectionately kissed her to-be husband.

“Let’s go home,” Dusk said, pulling away from Soprano’s face. “I’ve got an idea of how we can celebrate.”

She stroked his mane delicately. “I’ve got a better idea. We do it in my room tonight.”

“Are you sure?”

She smiled erotically at him. “Of course. What fun is it without a little risqué behavior?”

***

Dusk followed Soprano into her room, realizing he had never been in it. It was messy, really. Papers with everything on them from music to poems to unidentifiable scrawls covered the wooden floor. A desk facing the wall was strewn with quills and discarded bottles of perfume. An old bookcase hosted many books carelessly thrown onto its shelves, in no particular order. The only organized part of the room was the musical instruments propped up against the wall in the corner.

“Wow. Messy,” he jokingly remarked.

“Yeah,” she giggled. “I call it ‘Organized Tartarus’. A place for everything and nothing in its place. I’m the only one who can ever find anything in here. All I need is my instruments and I’m happy.”

Dusk walked up and put his front hoof on Soprano’s upper chest. Her heart was beating softly, muffled by the layers of clothes. “You sure there isn’t anything else you can think of that makes you happy?”

She backed up slowly into Dusk’s chest and sat down. “Well…there might be something else that can please me.”

That’s all he needed to hear. Using his magic, Dusk ripped off Soprano’s multiple layers. Goosebumps appeared all over her body and fluffed her coat. Her horn sparkled, and Dusk felt his clothes peel off layer by layer. Now, they were both shivering in each other’s forelegs in the cold winter air.

Soprano ripped herself out of the hug and jumped onto her bed. “M-mind moving somewhere w-warm?”

She was right. No sense in making love on the cold floor. “S-sure.”

As he slipped under the covers, the warmth relaxed his muscles tense from the cold.

“Dusk?” Soprano asked seriously.

“Yes?” he asked, not relenting with kissing her neck.

She pushed him away. “What are we going to do for the future?”

He stopped trying to seduce Soprano. Instead, he sat up against the wall that the bed backed up to. “What do you mean?”

“Well, I mean, what if everything doesn’t work out? We’re basing our whole future on the idea that they accept me for the Royal Orchestra. If I don’t get in, what will we do? The capitol isn’t exactly a cheap place to live. At least not in the parts I’d feel safe living in, anyways. This easily could turn out as a very bad move.”

He pulled Soprano in close and hugged her. “We’ll make something work out. We’ll have each other.”

“That’s the other thing. How will we break this to my parents? He’s pretty protective of me. I know that he wouldn’t approve of us getting married and eloping. I mean, he hit the roof when I was a little filly and he found out I kissed a colt in school. Can you imagine it now? ‘So, daddy, I’ve given my body to this stallion multiple times over the last few months while he’s slept in our cellar. Now, we’re running away to the capitol so we either end up living my dream or living on the streets.’”

Dusk shut her up by kissing her. “I promise you, we’ll talk about it tomorrow. I believe you said something about celebrating?”

***

Loud banging from the door knocked Dusk out of his sleep.

“Soprano!” Carolus was demanding from behind the door. “Get up! It’s late, and I’m not going to ask again!”

Dusk could feel his heart nearly stop. “Soprano!” he whispered, jabbing her in the ribcage. “Your father!”

She instantly snapped out of sleep. “Shit!” she quietly exclaimed. “I’m sorry for this,” she said, turning to Dusk and shoving him out of bed. He landed flat on his flank. And not a moment too soon. The door opened almost instantly after, and he could only guess that her father had walked in.

“M-morning, daddy,” she shivered.

Even though he couldn’t see him, Dusk could tell that he was glaring at his daughter.

“Why aren’t you wearing anything?” he asked, suspecting something.

“Oh, well, I was warm last night.”

“I see…” He clearly wasn’t buying any of it. “Is that why you’re shivering?”

As she realized he could see right through her lies, she pulled some covers over her body. “It was much warmer under the sheets.” Now that she started to believe herself, maybe he could be convinced easier.

Dusk could hear him starting to walk around to the foot of the bed. “Whose robes are these?” he asked.

Uh oh.

“They’re mine,” she replied. Her voice was much more calm now.

“Really?” he asked in disbelief. “Since when do you wear robes made for a stallion?”

Carolus had his daughter cornered. And he knew it. Dusk knew it. Even Soprano knew it.

“Also, what was the thump I heard before I came in? It sounded almost as if…" his voice trailed off, and Dusk could tell he was turning his head toward the opposite side of the bed. "...Somepony fell out of the bed...”

Dusk heard hooves coming around the bed to where he was lying on the floor. He backed up against the wall in fright. It was fruitless, however; Carolus came around the corner and saw Dusk, naked and pushed up against the wall.

“WHAT ARE YOU DOING?” he roared.

“Please, sir, I-“

A hoof smacking across his face cut off his stumbling for ideas. Blood started trickling out of his nose. “Okay, I might have deserved that one,” he admitted.

Carolus grabbed Dusk’s ear with his magic and threw him into the hallway violently. “I found your crap downstairs. Go and put something on.”

The door slammed shut, and shouting started coming from the other side of the door. Hanging his head in shame, he walked downstairs to his normal bed. His saddlebags were open, and he grabbed some clothes that were spilling out.

Levitating his bags onto his back depressed him even further, but he knew it was what was required. He walked as stealthily as he could to the top of the stairs and opened the door quietly.

“Dusk?” he heard a soft, female voice calling from the living room. Soprano’s mother was sitting at the table, alone. There were two empty chairs on her side of the table, sitting across from a solitary, unoccupied chair.

He walked to the table and slid into the lone chair, figuring it was for him.

Soprano’s mother looked up and faintly smiled at him.

“I’m sorry,” she said, “For multiple things. First off, I don’t believe we’ve ever really been formally introduced. My name is Sopranino.”

“And you obviously know who I am,” he muttered angrily. “So, I assume you already know why I was just thrown angrily out of your daughter’s room?”

Her only response was a tiny nod. “That’s the thing. I don’t condone of what you two have been doing, but I can understand it. You two love each other, and well…What you two do in private should only exist between you and my daughter.”

Dusk smiled weakly. How did a mare like this ever get married to somepony so opposite of her?

Soprano’s door slammed shut, and Carolus appeared out of it, fury painted over his face. He sat down in the center chair, next to Sopranino. Nopony said a word for minutes, and when Soprano walked out fully clothed, her face was streaked with tears.

Soprano sat in the only remaining chair on the right. Fixating her eyes on the floor seemed to be the only thing she wanted to do.

Carolus glared across the table at Dusk, his fiery gaze seeming to study Dusk’s soul itself. “What on earth were you doing with my daughter?” he demanded.

Dusk glared back. “Do I really need to spell it out for you?”

This only angered Carolus more. “I don't ever want to see you again.”

Dusk shoved his chair back and stood up in anger. “Good. I don’t want to stay here anyways.”

“No!” Soprano yelled as Dusk stormed out of the house and into the snowy street. He could hear her outcry, but ignored it.

A few feet into the road, a pony grabbed him. Now he decided to stop. Turning around, he could see it was Soprano. Pequot’s scarf was thrown around her neck.

“Dusk, don’t leave!” she begged. “We can still make something work! It’s not over!”

She was cut off by Dusk putting his hoof up. “No, we can’t. You saw what happened back there; I’ve stirred up a pretty substantial amount of anger in your father. If I stay, I know what will happen. I’d drive your family apart. Trust me, it’s better for everypony if I leave.”

“NO!” she screamed. “IT’S NOT! YOU’RE STAYING RIGHT HERE!”

“Soprano, I’ve made up my mind!” Seeing as Soprano started to bawl, he pulled her close into a hug. “Listen, I’m sorry. I want to do this about as much as you do, but I need to. You’ve been the best mare a stallion could ask for. This last year and a half has had some of the best times I will ever experience. I don’t know if I’ll ever find another mare I love as much as you.”

She took Pequot’s scarf and put it around Dusk’s neck. “I-if that is w-what you think y-you need to d-do, o-o-okay.” She was practically choking on her tears. She put her hooves behind her neck and unchained the necklace she always wore, with the charm of the Alto Clef on it. “Take it.”

Dusk just stared at the necklace. Her prized possession, and she was just giving it to the stallion who just broke her heart and was leaving forever?

“Soprano, I can’t. This is yours.”

Tears were flung off her face as she shook her head. “Not any more. If you’re leaving forever, I want you to have something to remember me by.”

She put the necklace into his saddlebag and hugged him. “Will I ever see you again?”

Now, even Dusk had started crying. “One day, my love. I will see you again.”

“I hope so.” Soprano turned around and started walking slowly to her house.

Dusk sighed and started walking away. “Okay,” he started to ask himself, “What should I do know. Let’s see…Cutie Mark is learning. I could always join a monastery, actually do something productive with my life.”

Dusk remembered back to the wine on first night he met Soprano.

‘It’s from the Northwoods Monastery. They're incredibly exclusive, and they certainly make good wine.’

“Northwoods Monastery. My new life.”