Chapters Chapter 1
Why can I not escape this? Why won't it leave me alone? Was it my fault?These questions are constantly reverberating in my head, as a constant reminder of what happened that horrific day, the day everypony I knew and loved vanished. No matter where I go, the chilling memory still follows, even after I had gotten rid of everything relating to the incident, it still persists! Why? I'd like to forget, but I just can't... my therapist told me to move to a more rural area, as to calm my nerves, Ponyville, to be exact. I'm riding on a train right now, it's bright and cheery on the inside, much like a child's room, but with an air of sophistication as well. As I saw the town approaching, I could't help but let out a small sigh of relief, seeing that it was a small town, with no real traffic on the streets. I was also given a ticket which contained the address of a mare who could give me a place to stay until I find and rent a house or apartment .
1489 Everfree Road...
The train made a stop, and I grabbed my bags and headed off towards the address given. It took a bit of walking to find, but I eventually found a direction's officer at what I presumed to be the town square, lazily sitting behind a tall booth with many vouchers on the sides. I walked up to her, and began to speak.
"Excuse me, miss? Can I have some directions on how to reach this address?" I said, handing the slip to her.
"Alrighty, I'll just be a second." She said, pulling out a map of Ponyville and marking the point specified with a dot and arrow."There ya' go, need anything else?"
"No thanks, but thank you for the directions."
I trailed off in search of the house, but I was stalled by a purple dragon pulling a cart of boxes down the street, and seemed to be exhausted. I decided to go up and offer assistance to the little guy.
"Hey, do you need any help there little guy?"
"*Huff*...*Huff*...Yeah, I guess I could use a little bit...*Huff*.."
I pulled the harness around my neck, and levitated the dragon onto my back, making sure to put him in a position where he could relax.
"What's your name, little drake?"
"Spike, the proud assistant Dragon of Princess Twilight Sparkle, who're you?"
"Cobalt Glint, I'm from the Crystal Empire, used to be one of the Chefs for the royal family...but some issues arose."
"Ouch, must suck to lose such a high-class job."
"Yeah, hey, listen... could you tell me what the best route to take is if I want to reach this address quick?"
I flashed him the card, and he got wide-eyed as a result.
"Hey! You're headed to the same place I am!..Wait, you must be the pony who's staying with Sweetie Belle!"
Sweetie Belle...Have I heard that name before?
"Yeah, I'm moving in with her until I can get a place to stay. Is she nice?"
"Nice as you can get, just...don't get her mad. Trust me."
"Don't worry, I'll remember."
I guess It'd be in my best interests not to piss this mare off...
We walked down the road for a bit, cutting corners and such to get there faster. After about 15-20 minutes, we arrived at the house. It was big, at least 3 stories, and had many windows. The top had a flag with what appeared to be a young foal with a cape on it, and the letters "CMC" on it. I snapped back to reality, and let Spike off, and he knocked on the door. A light grey mare with a lilac and dark purple mane stepped out.
"Hi there Spike! Did you bring the items I ordered? Oh...who is this?"
"Hi there, my name is Cobalt Glint, I was supposed to be staying with you?"
"Oh, that's right! My name is Sweetie Belle, come on in! Spike, grab his bags please! Do you want anything to drink Cobalt?
This mare is kinda cool.
"Oh, uh...water is fine. Thank you."
"Okay, be back in a jiffy!"
I wonder what she does for a living. her cutie mark has a Microphone and a heart...I wonder what that portrays...Meh, It does not really matter right now, I could always ask her anyways. Hmm...this house is even bigger on the inside than on the outside. The layout is pretty weird too, the kitchen appears to connect to the bedroom, (Or at least what I think is the bedroom.) and that connects to a bathroom from what I can see. Geez, this place is going to take some getting used to. Oh, she's coming back.
"Here you go, one glass of water!"
"Thanks, Ms. Belle."
" *Giggle* You can just call me Sweetie, you know!"
"Alright then, thanks Sweetie ."
"Come on then, let's get you unpacked!"
She pointed towards the stairs, and I levitated my stuff above my head, making sure I didn't knock over something. These stairs led to the second floor, and what could pass as a separate house for all intents and purposes. It had the same rooms as before, just confined to a smaller space. I headed towards the bedroom, set my luggage down, and began to unpack.
"Remember Cobalt, if you need anything, don't hesitate to call me!"
" Ok Sweetie, It's getting late, I should probably finish unpacking then go to bed."
"Alright, I understand, with the whole train-ride and all. You're probably REALLY tired, aren't you?"
"Yeah, It was a 9 hour drive."
"Woah, that's a long drive, where did you come from?"
I hesitated to tell her at first, but then decided it was OK to tell her, since she is my landlord.
"Crystal Empire."
"Oh wow! It must of been really awesome there, huh?!"
"Y-Yeah...it was okay, I guess."
Author's Note
Yay, an actual good story! (Bet y'all 5 dollars people will still hate it.)
Note: the italicized words are a characters thoughts.
Question: Are there any tags I should add onto this? *Squee*
Chapter 2
"Okay? What are you talking about, the Crystal Empire is practically perfect!"
"It's just...my experiences there aren't exactly golden..."
"..Huh? What do you mean? Did something bad happen?"
"I...really don't want to talk about it, Sweetie. Plus, I wouldn't want to be a bother."
"You aren't bothering me, I have the entire week off! We need time to get you settled in, don't we?
She's giving me a warm smile, maybe...I could talk to talk to her about it. But I'm not sure whether or not I could handle it myself... but I guess having her right here might help.
"O-Ok, the reason I left the Crystal Empire was because of a tragic accident that occurred."
"You don't mean..."
"Yes,the Blanks incident..."
No...I-I can't cry, not in front of her...!
"That's terrible Cobalt, what happened to you and your...Cobalt, what's wrong?"
Dammit, why can't I hold back my tears?
"I-it's just that...I was the only one in that part of the empire that survived, not even my family survived, I was left alone, rummaging the streets for food, hoping to avoid any blanks that still roamed the alleyways. It wasn't until Celestia and Princess Cadence came in and destroyed them that I was able to leave the place, of course, I was 19 by then, and I decided to rent an apartment in Fillydelphia until I could find a place to settle, and now I'm here, crying in the house of another..."
"I-I'm so sorry Cobalt, I didn't know..."
Huh..she's leaning in..she just hugged me..?! I guess this is what the saying "A shoulder to cry on" means. This. actually feels..nice. Maybe I should hug back...
"Don't worry, I promise I'll keep you safe here..."
"I-I.."
"Shush, Cobalt, I'm not going to let anything happen to a friend, especially one as hurt as you are. Come on, you can sleep with me tonight, If it makes feel any better, considering you have been alone for all that time."
Did she just tell me to sleep with her...What the hell? I really can't help but blush right now, damn it.
"Oh come on, it's not that bad Cobalt, the bed is really big, it won't bother me if you sleep in it as well."
"I really don't want to impose, you've done enough for me already.."
"Don't you talk like that! I want you to feel as comfortable as possible, come on, I'll lead you to my room."
I can't believe she's acting so nonchalantly about having a colt she met half an hour ago in her bed, a normal mare would never do such a thing, she really is as nice as they come.
We walked to her part of the house, where the color scheme matched her mane colors, honestly, she looked really good when she was in here. I just wish that I didn't look so absolutely pathetic in front of her. She does seem like a really nice mare, like someone who always helps, no matter what it means to do so. It also seems like I've known her my entire life, the way she talks to me, like I'm her best friend...It just makes me feel happy inside. I don't know how to describe it, but it's a great feeling.
"Here we are, Casa de Bedroom..you can go to sleep now, or we could just talk, it's up to you."
"I...guess we could talk for a bit, it would do me some good to calm down a bit."
"Well come on then, climb into bed, and we can talk about whatever you want, Cobalt."
"...Alright."
So, what should I talk about? Should I ask about her, or tell some more about myself? *Sigh*,I'm worrying too much about this, it's just a simple conversation, but I can't help but feel really nervous when speaking to her..could it be that I....No, I just met her I can't be in love with her. I just need to keep calm and troop on...but I can't do that when Sweetie is staring at me with those wide eyes.
"So, Cobalt, tell me what your cutie mark means."
"Well, as you can see, It's a flaming heart...It means I never really had someone to love, and the flames symbolize the pain it caused.."
That came out wrong.
"Awww, don't worry, I'm here to love you now..."
She hugged me, and nuzzled up against my chest. I was blushing furiously, and about 5 seconds later, she realized what she said, and looked up at me with her glistening eyes and rosy cheeks. She was about to say something, presumably to say sorry, but before she could, I pulled her in tighter, relishing every second her warm, soft fur stroked against my own. I realized at that exact moment...that we were in love...
"I-I'm so sorry Cobalt, I didn't mean to-"
"Sweetie..."
We looked at each other with misty eyes for what seemed like hours, simply building up the tension, until she finally rested her head on my chest and said...
"I love you, Cobalt...."
"I..love you too, Sweetie."
Did...did that really just happen?! Oh sweet Celestia, it did! I...actually feel...happy? That's a first. But how will this affect my status as a house guest? Unless...she wants me to move in, permanently? *Sigh* I guess I should get to sleep, but I can't wake her up, she's asleep on my chest...I suppose I can rest my head against her own. This...it's just too great. Coming to Ponyville was the best decision of my life, I have everything I could ask for now, food, shelter, and most importantly, true love...
"Goodnight, Sweetie..."
Chapter 3
"... Ugh..."
After having a good nights sleep, along with a new love found in Sweetie, my brain told me it was time to wake up. And It had a good reason why.
"Morning Cobalt!"
"Good Morning Sweetie."
She certainly seems peppy today I wonder why...oh, right .
"*Rumble*"
"Looks like somepony's hungry!"
"Hehe...yeah, I guess I am."
Oh jeez, this is embarrassing, I didn't expect that to be so loud.
Next thing I know, I'm being hugged and nuzzled by her. I could really get used to this whole "Relationship" thing. Well anyway, she's leading me to the kitchen, to eat, of course.
"What'cha want to eat Cobalt?"
"Hmm... got any celery?"
Odd, I've never seemed to take any sort of interest in celery. Seriously, what the buck.
"Yeah, I just bought some yesterday. Want me to cut some up in a salad?"
"Sounds great!"
Uh-oh, that was a bit loud.
"Oh, somepony's excited too ,it seems!"
"Hehe..I'm just really hungry, that's all."
"Well don't worry, it shouldn't take long to make a simple salad. Oh, and Cobalt?"
"Yes?"
Oh no, what's she gonna ask?! Wait, why am I worried?
"I was going to have my big sister come over today, and go shopping. Would you like...to come with me? I want to introduce you to her." She said, hiding behind her mane a bit, blushing.
Oh haystacks, what should I say?
"Sounds great, Sweetie."
"Oh, thank you! You don't know how excited I am to introduce my new coltfriend to her! Eep-!"
She just sort of froze, it took me a minute to realize why, then it hit me in the snout.
"I'm your coltfriend?"
"I-I'm sorry, it's just that after last night..."
Without thinking, I pulled her head in with my hooves, and gave her a long, meaningful kiss of agreement. I simply looked at her for a few seconds, eyes glistening, and spoke up.
"I'd love to be your coltfriend."
"I love you..."
"And I love you too, Sweetie. Now, let's fix that salad, and head out."
"Good idea."
So now I'm her "Official Coltfriend". YES! Woohoo! *Ahem* Well I guess I should eat this salad, so we can leave. I wonder what her sisters name is...It feels like I've actually heard her name somewhere. Ah, oh well, no use in worrying about it If I can just meet her in an hour. Well an hour passed, time to head out I guess.I should ask when we head out.
"So Sweetie, when are we heading out?"
"Right now, I guess. She never said when she said she was--"
*DING-DONG*
"Oh, oh, she's here! Come on Cobalt, stop being so lazy and get the door!"
Oh jeez, was it necessary to call me lazy?
"Alright, alright, I'm coming."
She must be really excited to introduce me, she's got this giant smile sprawled out across her face. It's kinda cute, the way her eyes get all twinkly and wide when I'm around, *Sigh* maybe her sister will be able to calm her down a bit.
I opened the door, and saw a white mare with a curvy purple mane.
"Hey there, you must be Sweetie's big sister, come on in!"
"Oh my, your so well mannered, AND you know how to treat a lady! Sweetie, I dare say you caught yourself a keeper!" The mare said, causing Cobalt to blush slightly.
Rarity pranced in, and Cobalt closed the door gently. Rarity proceeded over to Sweetie, and Cobalt followed.
"Big sis! I'm so glad your here! I've GOT to introduce you to my Coltfriend!"She pointed towards me, and I stepped in a little closer to the girls . " This is Cobalt Glint, former royal chef of the Crystal Empire! Cobalt, this is my big sis, Rarity! She's a dressmaker and she lives in downtown Ponyville, at Carasoul Boutique."
Sweetie nuzzled up against me, and unrelentingly striking my soul with her cuteness. Confound this mare, she makes my heart melt at the most awkward moments. . .
"I daresay Sweetie, you two make the cutest couple! I'm glad my little sis is finally going to start a family of her own!"
"F-family?!" I squeaked.
"Oh I know Rarity, what do you think our foals would look like?"
"F-f-foals!?" I squeaked a bit louder this time, causing Rarity to take notice.
"Oh I'm sorry dearie, am I making you uncomfortable, we could leave now if you'd like!" Rarity said apologetically
"That sounds great, I need to stretch my legs out, been cooped up for a while."
" OK, Rarity, we need to lead Cobalt around, he hasn't been into town for very long yet. He might get a little lost if we ditch him. . ."
They were going to ditch me? What the buck mare.
"Ah yes, I could show him around a bit. Cobalt, do follow me and Sweetie, OK?
"Yes, ma'am."
"You don't have to be so polite deary, Rarity is just fine."
"Alright, Rarity. What will we doing at the market?"
"I was sort-of thinking we could get some veggies, I'm running a bit low, but whatever you want to do is fine too!" Rarity Chirped.
"Big sis, could we maybe stop at the fabric store? I want to pick out some materials for a ...special dress."
"Oh my, sounds like fun! I'd be happy to make anything for you Sweetie!"
Sweet Celestia, can't we just move already?
"Well then, let's go Coablt, Sweetie."
Finally.
We started to head down to the market, but Rarity was talking all the way there. I'm surprised Sweetie didn't get bored, instead, she was humming some sort of tune.I could make out the words "Cutie Mark Crusaders" and that's about it. Wait... Cutie... Mark... Crusaders. AHA! That must be what the "CMC" stands for on that flag! Oh, look we're here, good, now I can see what this place is really like!
I could probably use this time to get to know Sweetie some more as well.
"Come along darling, Sweetie is going to shop at the fabric store, and I'm taking you on a tour of the Market!"
OR NOT.
Chapter 4
"Sweetie, can't I come with you?" I tried my hardest to put on a puppy-dog face, in hopes of getting away from Rarity.
" *Tee-hee*! Sorry Cobalt, but I kinda need to shop alone for now."
Sweetie ran up to me and gave me a peck on the cheek before she left. I couldn't help but blush again, luckily my tan is orange, so it's hard to tell.
""I'll meet up with you guys at around 5:30 at my house, sound fair?"
"I suppose, see you then I guess."
4 hours with Rarity, oh horse-apples this can't end well.
We spent almost 3 HOURS shopping for clothes and various other mare necessities, and of course, I was brought along to carry them. We had an hour left, and decided to take a rest at the "Muffin Stand". The shop was run by a cross-eyed mare, along with a lavender-grey unicorn filly. We ordered 2 dozen strawberry and marshmallow-cream muffins. Rarity said they were her and Sweetie's favorite, so I thought it would be nice to get some for them.
"Are you sure these are Sweetie's favorites?"
"Absolutely darling, it's her favorite snack! Oh, look at the time! we should start heading back, don't you say?"
"Yeah, we don't want to be late. From what I've seen, she's kinda impatient."
"Oh darling, you don't even know half of it."
That...scares me.
*Half-an-hour later...*
We headed back towards Sweetie's house,but as we were headed down the road, we saw the small grey/lavender filly from the muffin shop. Dinky, was it? She was slunched down on a bench, crying really hard. I immediately rushed over to her, set down my bags, and tried to see whats wrong.
"Dinky? What's wrong?"
"M-mommy left to go get her bag, but she hasn't come back yet! Waah!"
"Where did she go?"
"Well, a bird came in and swooped her bag up, and then ran off into the Everfree. Mommy went to chase it, but she hasn't come out yet! Please help her!"
The poor thing was crying even harder, so I did what felt natural, I hugged her, and let her cry on my shoulder. That seemed to calm her down. I let her down, and help her chin up.
"Don't worry, I'll find your mommy, trust me."
She quit sniffling, and wiped her eyes.
"T-thank you..."
I adorned a rather serious expression, and both Rarity and Dinky took notice of it.
"Rarity...take this stuff and go get Sweetie Belle, take Dinky with you. I'm going in after Ditzy."
"Cobalt...I can't let you go in there alone, let me get Discord, he can help you look."
She pulled out some sort of necklace, and it started to glow. Next thing I know, some sort of chimera-like thing is standing right next to her.
"Discord, Ditzy is in trouble, and we need your help. Can you accompany my friend here and look for her?"
"Really, you woke me up for this? Oh, alright! I'll do it. Lead the way, orange guy."
We ran into the Everfree, well technically I ran, he just sort of levitated his way across the road. Next thing I knew we were in a dark forest, which seemed to be as dark as the night, even though it was clearly daytime. I looked up at Discord, who looked rather grim in his expression.
"Kid, I have a bad feeling about this, and that isn't normal, considering I'm the god of chaos."
God...of chaos?!
After stopping a bit to check for a sign of Ditzy, we found her bag, only to see that it was ripped to pieces, along with a tuft of her mane...with a red splotch on it...
"...Oh no...! Discord, we need to hurry, she's in trouble!"
"She's to the left of you..."
He pointed to a trail of blood leading to a small cave, wait...that only means...
"Discord, you don't think..."
"I'm afraid so..."
We rushed as fast as we could to the small cave, and as we got closer, moans of pain and flapping of what sounded like wings could be heard. Poor Ditzy, please don't be too hurt!
"I-is somepony out there? Please...help... me! Erck "
"Ditzy, is that you? We've come to help you, yell if you can here us?"
"I'm over here...AAH !"
I can't stand to hear that scream...It sends a pain down my spine every time she does it, I need to help her, fast!
We ran into the cave, looking everywhere for Ditzy, we found her...or what's left of her.
"D-Ditzy, we need to get y-you out of here, come on, please, get up!"
I couldn't help but cry as I saw her breathing slow down and she began to screech from pain, I need to get her help NOW.
"Mr. C-Cobalt...?..take me to Dinky...please..."
"Of course..Ditzy.."
"Discord, do you have any magic that can teleport? I'm not strong enough to carry her..."
"Sure thing, kid...*Snap*"
Next thing I knew, we were right by Dinky... and everyone that Rarity gathered.
"MOMMY! A-are you ok..?"
"I-I'm fine...don't worry about me..."
She turned towards me, with many tears streaming down her face. I knew for a fact she had only a short amount of time left.
"Mr C-Cobalt...I want you to take care of Dinky."
"Don't say that Ditzy, I'm sure you'll be fine, we just need to get someone to fly you to the hospital...!"
"S-sorry...*Hack*...but I think my time's up, that changeling tore me up really bad..." She turned to Dinky, tears in her eyes, and her breathing slowed down dramatically,and continued."Dinky...be nice to Mr.Cobalt...and remember....mommy....loves...y-you..."
"M-mommy..?!"
She's....she's....dead...
Dinky just stood there for a moment, but just before anypony could comfort her, she LOST it.
"N-no! Mommy, you can't be dead, you can't be! Wh-who's gonna tuck me in at night, and read me stories, and bake me muffins! Come on...wake up!"
I spoke up, trying my hardest to comfort her. "Dinky, I'm sorry...but your mommy is...gone. She wanted me to give this to you though..."
I pulled out a pendant that she gave me a few moments ago...right before she...passed. It was muffin shaped, and had a picture of Ditzy and Dinky hugging and had the following words on it... "Mommy always loves you, Dinky."
"Huh..*Sniff*...Mommy wanted me to have her pendant?...This was her favorite pendant...thank you for giving it to me..."
Poor kid, what's she gonna do without her mom?
Sweetie walked over, head hung low, and began to comfort Dinky " Dinky, I know it's hard for you to accept, but your mommy is gone now, she wanted us to take care of you, so, would you like to stay with me and Cobalt? I promise that we can make you feel a whole lot better..."
I saw the little filly's face get a little brighter when she heard this, but not by much. She walked back over to Ditzy's corpse, and curled up under her...It was really sad, and actually caused me to cry a little...she's probably traumatized by this, seeing her own MOTHER die right in front of her...just like me...Agh! Why did I have to think about that? If I had been there sooner, this would of never happened, this is all my fault!
"I..Love you mommy, and I walways will....always..."
She fell asleep right by her now deceased mother, and was slowly wimpering in her sleep, Cobalt and Sweetie Belle took her and put her on Cobalt's haunches, and headed back towards their house.Discord carried Ditzy to the Mayor, to set up a funeral for her. Rarity decided to break the news to Ditzy's friends, and the Doctor as well, seeing as how close the two were. That day was a sad day for everypony, and after the Mayor had settled all the business affairs, she set up a funeral plan for 8:00PM tomorrow. The Mayor had also requested that Cobalt and Sweetie fill out a form so show that they are now the legal guardians of Dinky Hooves. Of course, they accepted, but Cobalt felt extremely guilty about the whole ordeal, he didn't know why, but he did. Sadly, Dinky was in even worse conditions, crying through almost the entire night.
"Normally, I love chaos, but this is just pure evil..." Discord said with a saddened look as he looked over Ditzy's casket.
Nopony could keep a smile in Ponyville, not even Pinkie, this was truely a sad time for everypony.
Author's Note
Uhm...Please not that I did not want to kill Ditzy on purpose, it's relevant to the plot.
I *Spoilers (Meh..not really.)* plan on having Cobalt and Sweetie adopting Dinky, because they grow so attached.
DONT YOU DARE DISLIKE CUZ I KILLED DERPY. I WILL FINDZ VOU.
Not really, but really, I worked on this chapter for a while.
(I'm still waiting for that editor, brah.)
