"You'll be okay?" I walked with Darcy towards the train depot. "I mean if you--"

"I'll be fine." Darcy bumped me with her flank. "And ponies aren't as mean as you said they were up here."

I bit my tongue. "I never said they were mean, I just said we don't interact well. Or at all if we can avoid it." I rubbed my neck. "Bloom and Hicks aren't from around here originally. That's why--"

"Well, they still live here." Darcy hugged herself. "God, it was so good to see her again." She swung herself left and right in the middle of the hall, getting a few odd looks from a few ponies as they walked towards class.

"Weirdo...." A passing mare slapped my leg with her tail.

Darcy's eyes popped open, a dull frown slammed down hard over her lips. "I take it back."

I watched the ponies wander off deeper into the beige stone corridors of Storm Side. "I told you."

Darcy slumped forward. "Fine, but it was still good to see Abby."

"A--B? Abby?" I snorted loudly. "Do you really need to shorten it?"

Darcy punched me square in the chest, soft enough not to bruise, hard enough to knock the wind out of me. "Shorten something else you're not careful."

"Why must you taunt me." I stuffed my hands in my coat pocket and walked on down the hall. Darcy hurried up behind me. She walked beside me as we walked out into the grand train station. A loud metal grinding came from above. "What the hell?"

"Whoa, freaky...." Darcy pulled my sleeve. "The roof is open."

"What? No it's-- Oh pissing hell, it is." I held the top of my head as I looked up. The roof of the train station was peeled open, the sky above a clear warm day. "It's happened. Summer's here." I looked over to the walls. "They're thawing everything."

Darcy looked over in time to watch a few humans start up the barriers that kept the windows safe. The once white frost that lay behind them was now a sunny afternoon fit for Ponyville. Green grass laying for a square mile where they'd cleaned away the ice. "Whoa, balls."

I nodded. "Yeah, it doesn't last long. Usually a week or so." I rubbed my wrist. "They do it right before summer starts, and let it freeze over again as it gets going." I watched as an actual bird flew outside. "Everything's damp for the first day. It's nicer towards the end. ... Like mares."

"That's-- Wait, what?" Darcy snapped her head to me. "What's that mean?"

I coughed into my fist. "Most mares have better asses than faces.... Ponies...I mean." I patted my chest. "Not to say ponies are ugly, I'm just more in tune with a pretty face like yours."

Darcy shoved me a step away. "Nice save."

I nodded. "I thought so." I felt a victorious smile grow over my face. "Oh boy, I'll miss you."

Darcy grabbed my hand. "You're not gonna be gone that long."

"Still." I turned to face her. "I'll miss you all the same."

Darcy smiled at me, a warm, kind little smile. She leaned down and gave me a quick kiss. "Go fix your thingy."

I felt my heart sink slightly. "It's not really something I can fix. But I'll try." I squeezed her hand. "Have a safe trip."

Darcy pulled away. "Bye."

I was blessed to have someone like her watching out for me, let alone settling for my awkward ass. "Goodbye." I couldn't help but watch her the whole way as she walked towards the train out of Storm Side. Maybe it wouldn't last forever, but I had to thank god that it lasted this long. Next Chapter: Hello Mother Estimated time remaining: 6 Minutes