The Colours of Dusk

The Colours of Dusk

by Gallifrey

Chapter Ten

So Many Books, So Little Time

Dusk turned to face an empty bed. The curtains rustled in the breeze by the open window.

"Blitz?" said Dusk softly, reaching a hoof out over the empty space that Blitz had occupied not five seconds ago. With a sigh, Dusk picked up Blitz's abandoned book and set it on the cabinet beside his own. Staring at the ceiling, he frowned. He felt... funny; he couldn't exactly put his hoof on it, but Blitz's sudden departure left him feeling slightly hollow inside, and he didn't like it.

He didn't say goodbye...

A gentle tapping at the door distracted him. It was Spike.

"Hey, um, are you guys okay? I just bumped into Dawn and she looked upset."

"I... yeah. I'll go talk to her... what's for dinner?"

"Tomato soup, it'll be ready soon, so you better hurry it up."

"Right," said Dusk, getting to his hooves and trotting up to the guest room.

"Come in," said a small voice after Dusk knocked.

He took a calming breath and entered the room to find Dawn perched on a chair by the open window, morosely batting the dragon bell flower Dusk had given her between her hooves.

"Hey," she said, without turning around.

"Are-Are you okay?" asked Dusk uncertainly.

Dawn sighed and looked up at the shining mountains in the distance. She'd done it again, meddling in affairs that weren't hers to meddle in. She'd tried to help Rainbow Blitz, and she'd only made it worse for him.

I wonder when I'll learn?

She turned to look at him, his face coloured with uncertainty and concern.

"I'm fine," she said briskly. "I expect I'm still tired from the magic."

Dusk approached her and conjured a chair out of thin air, taking a seat next to her.

"You know..." he began quietly, staring out at the shimmering spires of Canterlot in the distance, "Sometimes, it's like I don't understand anything in this world. Do you ever have that feeling?"

"I think I know what you mean. Like the more you learn the less you know kinda thing."

"Mmm," said Dusk, nodding. "Precisely that. In ignorance we know nothing, in wisdom we know that we know nothing." He gave his head a little shake. "Whoa, that's too deep for me."

A prismatic blur streaked the flawless blue sky. Both Dusk and Dawn felt their hearts sink at the sight. They watched as the rainbow sped into the west, disappearing into the summer haze. Dusk wearily pressed a hoof to his face and rubbed his eyes.

"Hey," he said, "you wanna go for a ride in my hot air balloon tomorrow? The weather's supposed to be great again and it's very peaceful."

"You have a hot air balloon?" said Dawn, surprised. "I'd love to! I've never been in a hot air balloon before!"

"You'll enjoy it," said Dusk, suddenly feeling much happier. "That is, if you've recovered from the magic."

"I'm sure I'll be fine," she said, waving a hoof.

"Excellent."

"Dusk! Dawn! Soup's on!"

"Perfect timing," chuckled Dawn, leaving the room, a suddenly hungry Dusk in tow.

Blitz slammed roughly into the ground, which was not wise when the ground was made out of cloud. He stood in front of his house and stomped in. Hurt and upset, he could barely contain his fury, fury at Dawn, at the world, but himself most of all. He'd been so stupid. As if he could compare to Dawn. He roughly opened his bedroom door and went straight to the bottom drawer of his dresser and extracted his bottle of emergency firewhiskey. He looked at it intently, teetering on the edge of a decision so badly he was like Schrödinghoof's famous feline. He hadn't felt the need for it for a long time, not since he'd come out to his father...

He put a tentative hoof on the lid of the bottle, and shoved it back in the drawer. Cursing, the pegasus threw himself onto his bed and let his anger simmer for a while. The face of a white mare swan into his mind.

"Stupid mare, thinks she can one-up me, she can think again."

He bitterly wished he had someone to talk to, but he also wanted to be alone. A nice catch twenty two indeed. He tossed and turned, trying vainly to get comfortable. He then tried falling asleep, he then tried reading a book to distract himself, all to no avail, Dusk and Dawn weighed heavily on his mind. In the end, he started to meticulously clean his bedroom, just for something to do, but he didn't stop there, soon his entire house was spotless. He fluttered up to his roof and flumped down upon it, exhausted. Night had fallen, and the stars sparkled overhead.

It hadn't worked.

He scooted down into his room and grabbed the bottle of whiskey and flew back to the roof. He took a great swig of the honey-brown liquid. His face scrunched up as it burnt his throat, but he immediately felt all warm inside.

"Man that's good," he said to himself, laying back under the stars. He could already feel his mind slowing down, and was grateful it was. He took another gulp. "Tomorrow... I need *hic!* to see... um..." He thought hard. "*Hic!*" And thought harder. "Elusive! Yes... m-maybe I should see him now. It's not too, um, late. *hic!*"

He made to stand up, but all of a sudden, there didn't seem to be any ground beneath him. He hiccoughed and puzzled over this for a second before he realised he'd fallen off the roof. He braced himself at the last moment and felt his front garden slam into his face.

"Ow!" he said lamely, rubbing his head. "I-I think I'm too... drunk to *hic!* fly..." He started giggling.

Rainbow Blitz tried to stand again and collapsed. He took one last drink of whiskey and fell asleep at his front porch.

The sound of hoofsteps echoed along the marbled corridors. A door opened silently, and the steps continued. Princess Celestia was on a mission. She strode past ornately decorated windows, dark in the night. She quietened her steps as she drew closer to her destination, this was too important.

She opened the ebony doors that stood before her and snook stealthily into the room, she could hear the tinkling of water and a soft melodious voice emenating from the bathroom, confirming to the alabaster alicorn that Luna was bathing. Putting her plan into action, Celestia raised a wing and withdrew a whoopie cushion she'd been carrying, placing it on a certain spot under Luna's bed. Giggling silently to herself, Celestia hurried to a corner of the room and hid behind an armchair, waiting patiently.

Eventually, her patience was rewarded, as Luna exited the bathroom, running a towel through her flowing mane. If only she didn't sit on the exact same spot on the bed every time, she could have avoided Celestia's devious flim flams. Nonetheless, she sat her rump down on the edge of the bed, and the resultant sound made her jump so badly that she slipped off and tumbled to the floor.

"'Tia!"

Celestia, trying her hardest not to laugh, couldn't hold back any longer, collapsing to the floor and giggling wildly.

"Why, 'Tia?" asked Luna exasperatedly.

"Because–" Celestia wheezed, "your face! Ahahahaha!"

"Hilarious, I'm sure," said Luna, lifting her bedsheets and flinging the cushion in Celestia's direction. "True comedic genius."

"Oh come," said Celestia, getting to her hooves and sitting beside her. "Sometimes I wonder where your sense of humour is."

"I could say the same to you," said Luna dryly. "Was there anything you wanted? Other than to play practical jokes?"

"In fact, there was: I'm a little concerned at the lack of letters from either of our two students. I would have thought they'd have written by now."

"Is that all?" said Luna. "Celestia, forgive me, but I fear you have forgotten what it is to be young."

Celestia looked thoughtful.

"You think so?"

"Perhaps. Ponies are forgetful in youth, they, for wont of a better phrase 'live in the moment'. Let them be, and do... whatever it is that they do."

"It seems I am not the only one who has forgotten," said Celestia.

"Shut up."

Beams of golden sunlight bathed the early morning land as the Sun rose above the horizon, waking every pony except one.

Rainbow Blitz was fast asleep. The birds that had tried to sing outside his house had given up in trying to make themselves heard over the cacophony of his snoring, and a small puddle of drool lay on the ground beneath his cheek.

An eyelid fluttered, a voice-box groaned, a pair of lungs yawned and a brain throbbed painfully. Rainbow Blitz awoke and sat up, clutching his head.

"Urgh, good goddess, what did I do last nigh– oh yeah," he said, noticing the bottle beside him. Getting gingerly to his hooves, he trudged into his house and made several cups of very strong tea to help clear his mind. It sort of worked. S he was stirring sugar lump into his fourth cup, a thought came to mind.

"I need to see Elusive."

Stretching his stiff wings, he ran outside and threw himself off the edge of his house, gliding down to Ponyville town.

Dusk reached a hoof out in his sleep, as though he were trying to touch something, or someone. Vainly he grasped at thin air, until he overextended and tumbled out of bed, waking with a start. From his world of tangled blankets, he wasn't completely sure which way was up, his head popped out and he found he was upside down, and that the door had just opened.

"Morning," said Dawn. "We heard a bang and Spike asked me to check it out. You alright?"

"I'm fine," said Dusk, extracting himself and stretching. He sniffed. "Can I smell eggs?" he asked hopefully.

"Yup! I guess you want some?"

"Please," he said gratefully. "I'll just, you know, have a wash and whatnot and I'll be straight down."

Dawn nodded and made her way back downstairs.

"He'll be down in a little bit," said Dawn to Spike, who was standing on a stool, cooking eggs merrily.

Ten oil spitting minutes later, Dusk came down the stairs sparkling clean and ready for his breakfast.

"Morning, Spike," he said happily as he made a cup of tea.

"Hey, you're in a good mood today."

"Well, I am looking forward to a ride in the hot air balloon later," he said, sitting down opposite Dawn.

"Aw, can I come?" asked the little drake, looking hopefully at them both. Dusk glanced at Dawn, who nodded serenely.

"Of course you can," said Dusk briskly. "You've been very good lately after all, you deserve a treat."

"Can I bring some ice cream?" he added.

"Don't push it now," said Dusk, grinning at Spike's nerve.

"A-All I want is Dusk... is that too much to ask?"