3 days to the Friendship Games

After grabbing more of her textbooks from her locker, Silver Rose closed the locker door with a scrunched up face, amazed at how much homework school was giving them for the weekend to prepare their minds for the Friendship Games.

“It’s not like the rest of us are even participating…” Silver grumbled as she walked off.

On her way down the hall, she spotted Twilight Sparkle by her own locker; she looked more stressed out than she normally was, dropping books and bits of metal on the floor as she took what she needed from her locker, then dropping what was in her hands as she bent down to pick up her other things. A few of the other students laughed as they passed by, but Twilight didn’t even seem to notice them.

Sighing to herself, Silver made her way over, bending down to help the lavender-skinned girl pick up her things. “Here, let me give you a hand.”

“Oh, you don’t have to, Silver Rose, I’ve got this…” Twilight laughed awkwardly, then picked up a strange circular object with a string attached, shoving it in her pocket.

“Um, are you okay?” Silver took a discreet sniff at the girl, smelling a chunk of worry with a small topping of fear. “You don’t seem yourself. Well, not quite yourself.”

“Oh, hehe, don’t worry about that.” Twilight turned her attention to the floor and her books. “I just… have more things to work on today. Yeah, that’s all. Plenty to prepare for.”

Twilight got up to put her things in her locker, dropping two more books as she stood up.

“Hmm…” Silver rubbed a finger along her chin and breathing in through her nose. “You’re more stressed out than usual. Did something happen?”

“Umm… well…” Twilight adjusted her glasses and picked up her books again. “Principal Cinch, she… she…” Then she put her books back in her locker and closed it. “You know what, it’s nothing! I’m fine. Same old Twilight.”

Silver gave her a strange look, but then shrugged and took a step forward. “You know what, if you say you’re fine, then I’ll just take your word for it.”

“Right.” Twilight smiled awkwardly and slung her bag over a shoulder. “Well, I have to get going. More things to do. Guess I’ll see you next week!”

“Right, next week.” Silver nodded as Twilight scurried off, heading down the hall and disappearing up the staircase. “I wonder what she’s up to, that girl…”

Moonglade stood before her closet mirror, tying the sides of her curly blonde hair into its usual braid, excited for yet another date with Home Run. Her mother might’ve ruined the last one when it was getting good, but this time, she knew of this date and she was still in a good mood after spending quality time with her sister.

Moonglade shuddered at the thought of her mother and aunt behind her room door again, but then replaced it with a happier moment. When Home Run had pulled her in for a kiss, Moonglade had been so happy she hadn’t messed up, and she had absolutely loved the kisses she shared with him.

When she was done, Moonglade closed the closet door and skipped downstairs, where her aunt was already waiting in the car, as usual.

“Ready to go, sweetie?” Aunt Ivory asked, then she laughed. “You know, I don’t know why I ask that. If you’re coming to the car, you’re obviously ready to go.”

“That’s right, Aunt Ivory!” Moonglade buckled herself in. “I’m ready for my date!”

Ivory Wings pulled out of the front of the house and drove down the hill. “You will be home by eight, right? Of course, I’ll be there to watch you this time, but you’ll have to leave the boy before your curfew. You don’t want a repeat of your mother’s rage and I don’t want to have to appease her again so soon.”

“I’ll stick by the rules this time, Aunt Ivory. I don’t want to get you all in trouble again.”

“That’s my little changeling,” Ivory chuckled and turned the steering wheel to the left, going down the street. “So what are you doing for your date today?”

“We’re just going to sit in the park and hang out,” the young changeling said. “Quite normal, but I’d like to get to know more about Home Run.”

“That’s it?” Ivory smirked and raised an eyebrow. “Nothing else?”

“Well…” Moonglade’s cheeks turned red. “I kinda do want to kiss him more too…”

“That’s fine,” Ivory said, turning the car down another road. “You’ve already kissed him before. More kisses won’t hurt. The love you bring home doesn’t hurt either.”

Eventually, the car pulled alongside Canterlot Central Park, where many groups of people were already inhabiting. Some were families playing ball, a usual sight in a park, others were jogging or cycling around the various paths, and some were feeding ducks in a pond. At least, those were what Moonglade could currently see.

“I’ll wait here in the car as always.” Ivory leaned to the backseats and retrieved her dart rifle. “If any muggers decide to show up this time, they will very much regret it.”

“Thanks for having my back, Aunt Ivory.” Moonglade opened the car door and stepped out under the sun.

“Anytime, my favorite niece.” Ivory patted the girl on the shoulder. “Well, run along. Your date will be around shortly, if he isn’t already here. I hope he’s already here...” Ivory muttered half to herself. “It’s poor form to keep a girl waiting.”

“Well, he has practice. I’m sure he gets to our meeting places as quickly as he can.”

After Ivory Wings waved for her to go along, Moonglade wandered down the park, searching for a nice spot to wait around. She soon found one just hndr a large tree, where a bench had been nicely placed for her to sit, along with a drinking fountain next to it.

After sitting herself down, Moonglade pulled out her phone and texted Home Run her location, then leaned back, enjoying the breeze around her.

It wasn’t exactly quiet, but the spot she had picked was far enough from the field where most of the families were. She had plenty of time to map out her plans and what she was going to do with Home Run today. She wanted to feed some ducks later, seeing as she had never done it before. She also wanted to go on a walk around the park, mainly to have a change of scenery while they talked. She had only planned out those two things when the sound of a bike drew her attention back to the path near her.

Home Run was now running to her, his face all sweaty as usual.

“Sorry, I’m late.” He rubbed his head. “Had a little bit of a fall earlier while rushing here.”

“You fell?” Moonglade got up and inspected the boy. “Are you okay?”

She checked his body, then sniffed, using her senses to find out if he had any injuries. The young changeling eventually found one on his elbow; he must’ve fallen and scraped it on the ground on the way here.

“You’re bleeding here.” Moonglade lifted his elbow for him to see.

“Oh yeah, this?” Home Run still smiled, which Moonglade found weird. Only her mother smiled when she had injuries, but that didn’t make it any less unsettling. “Just a scratch. It’ll heal in a few days. I’m quite known for being careless.”

Moonglade looked at his wound again, then his face. She briefly considered licking the wound, like she’d seen her mother do with small cuts, but decided against it. If her saliva really contained healing properties, then it would only serve to give away what she really was. “You just couldn’t wait to see me, huh?”

“Well… yeah,” Home Run admitted. “We left off on a rather… you know.”

Oh, I know. Moonglade decided now was a good time and moved in to kiss him. She held his cheeks in her hands and closed her eyes, savoring the feeling of their lips touching. The scent of love emanating from him was so good that Moonglade felt like she was about to swoon over.

When they finally did separate, Moonglade resisted the urge to kiss him again. She didn’t want to keep it up in a public place like this, but perhaps she'll give him more kisses along their date.

“Come on, let’s go for a walk!” Moonglade took his hand in hers and grinned.

The two of them began walking down the concrete pathway, admiring the trees and the various birds making their homes in the them.

“So, how are things?” Moonglade asked, watching a red bird flew back into a tree with a twig in its mouth. She clasped Home Run’s hand firmly and began swinging it back and forth. She really liked being with him. “The Friendship Games are right around the corner now, hmm?”

“Yeah, things have been going okay.” Home Run smiled at her, looking more interested in her than the scenery around them. Moonglade sniffed and found more love coming from him; it was really tasty. “The Friendship Games start on Monday, yeah. It’s really soon. I’m hoping nothing weird happens.”

“Oh? Nothing weird?” Moonglade tilted her head. Does he mean the time the sirens tried to take over?

“Oh, uh, well…” Home Run tapped his chin. “Canterlot High’s had a lot of um… incidents. I mean, I’ve only been here for one, but usually… weird stuff happens. Here’s hoping this event goes by without incident.”

Moonglade nodded. She knew the sirens had tried to take over during the Battle of the Bands event that they had, then she remembered them talking about robotic suits and aliens. She had even felt the rumblings when that huge metal thing in the sky had exploded about two months back, but other than what she saw, she didn’t know what had happened.

“I’m sure you’ll have nothing to worry about,” Moonglade said soothingly. “I wish I could be there with you, but I heard from my sister that it’s a school-only event.”

They walked down the path until they reached the other end of the park, looking up at the bright sun in the sky. Home Run was all sweaty, partly also because he had rushed to get here, but it must’ve been hot today. Moonglade didn’t quite feel it herself, but it wasn’t exactly a cool day either.

“So, Home Run,” she started again. “Come tell me, what do you enjoy doing? I know you like baseball and video games. Anything else?”

They stopped by a bench next to the park’s pond, sitting back down.

“Umm… I like comics, I guess?” Home Run shrugged. “Not too big of a reader, but I like looking at comics.”

Moonglade had heard of comics from the sirens, how they were books with pictures telling a story instead of words, but she had never actually seen one before.

“Um, sounds cool.” She nodded her head. Getting him to talk about what he liked was always a good idea. “So, uh, what kind of comics do you read?”

“Well… I mainly like the classic ones, like Transfarmers and G.I. Jack. Those have been going for a long time.”

Moonglade scooted herself closer and leaned her head on the boy’s shoulder as she watched the ducks paddle around in the calm pond. “I’ve heard of Transfarmers. They have a movie series too, right? My mother is not in any of them, though.”

“Yeah, they’re, uh… not very good if you ask me.”

“One reason why my mother didn’t want a role in the films.” Moonglade inhaled again, pleased to smell love coming from the boy. Then she sat up and turned his face to hers. “Home Run, do you… do you think we c-could… k-kiss?”

Home Run’s cheeks turned red, then he nodded swiftly. “Oh, um, yeah, I’d like that.”

Moonglade smiled, glad that the boy felt the same way. Her heart was always fluttering when she was with him and he always somehow managed to make her feel special in a way that was different from how her aunt did it.

Leaning in slowly, Moonglade parted her lips and closed her eyes, waiting for the moment they would be connected. She didn’t have to wait long, feeling Home Run’s lips against hers ever so tenderly. The smell of love began to grow in strength, swirling around them like a magical tornado. A delicious magical tornado.

Oh yeah, this is the best… Moonglade reached behind the boy and pulled him closer, wrapping her hands around his back.

Moonglade soon lost track of time and everything around her, only focused on her kisses with Home Run. She didn’t know how long they’ve been at it, but she didn’t care. She wanted to enjoy every moment of it with him.

“Mmm… Home Run…” she mumbled as their lips separated, only to meet back in another tender kiss. “Kissing you feels so good.”

“Oh yeah, it really does…” Home Run panted after they had another three kisses. “But… I think we might want to start doing something else… People are looking.”

That was when Moonglade felt all the hair on her body stand up and her eyes shrunk to pinprincks. When she looked around, true enough, plenty of the park goers were looking over at them, surprise on their faces. Perhaps kissing like that in such a public place wasn’t such a good idea, especially if she didn’t want to attract any attention to herself.

“O-Oh, I-I was just… it felt… Can we move along…?” Moonglade buried her face in Home Run’s shirt, afraid to look back out at all the staring eyes.

“Um, sure. Anywhere you want to go specifically?” Home Run put an arm around her to comfort her.

“I-I wanted to f-feed the duckies…” Moonglade looked up just enough to see Home Run’s face. “C-Could we?”

“Oh, yeah! Of course! We’ll just need to go buy some bread crumbs from the machine there.” Home Run pointed to a rectangular white shape under a shelter near the middle of the pond.

That seemed far enough for Moonglade, so she nodded to him and they both got up, with her looking down at their feet, hoping the rest of the park goers were now looking elsewhere. She didn’t dare check just yet, in case they were still looking at them.

On the way to the machine, Moonglade picked up some whispers from nearby people. One said, “Children these days. No respect for others around them.”

Another said, “This is a public place. I don’t know if they’re just not afraid or just dumb kids.”

Moonglade frowned, but chose to ignore their words. They could say all they wanted, but if they would just look away, then she didn’t care if they were speaking behind her back or not.

When they arrived at the machine, Home Run inserted a dollar into it, then pressed a button on its sleek surface. Moonglade watched the machine shake and shudder before popping up a plastic bag in a little alcove near the bottom of the machine.

Home Run picked it up and handed it to her. “Here you go. You can just open it and toss the food into the pond for the ducks.”

“Thanks, Home Run.” She leaned over and kissed him on the cheek before accepting the bag.

The blonde haired girl excitedly ran over to the pond’s edge, breaking the seal on the bag to find breadcrumbs inside. Grabbing a handful, she looked to a group of ducks in the water before throwing the food towards them. The ducks immediately began paddling over, dipping their heads in the water to grab at the crumbs.

“They’re so cute!” Moonglade squealed. She wanted to just take one home as a pet, but she was sure she wouldn’t be allowed.

“You own any pets, Moonglade?” Home Run joined her by the water and put an arm around her shoulders.

The young changeling shook her head and tossed in another handful of crumbs. “My mother wouldn’t allow it. You?”

“Oh, I did get a dog recently,” Home Run answered. “Called him Dirt Dog. Uh, DD for short. Named him after a baseball term, in case you were wondering.”

Of course he did… Moonglade smiled to herself. The ducks weren’t the only things that were cute. She really enjoyed Home Run’s personality as well. “Do I get to see him one day?”

“I don’t see why not.” The boy shrugged. “You could come over to my place one day. Play some video games, see my dog… You play the violin too, so maybe we could play some music together?”

“Oh yeah!” Moonglade knew Home Run could play the guitar through texting. She did like music, so perhaps playing together would be quite a fun thing to do. “I’d love to, Home Run. Any time I can spend with you, I’d like it.”

And she wasn’t lying. She might’ve been lying about her purpose of wanting to meet up on the weekends, but she really enjoyed being with him, hunting or no hunting. He made her feel warm inside, even if she was pretending to be in love with him. Am I really pretending?

When Moonglade found her bag of crumbs empty, she settled with just watching the ducks finish up everything she had tossed in, before heading up with Home Run back to the cement path, tossing her plastic bag into a bin; she wasn’t going to litter in such a beautiful park.

“I had fun today.” Moonglade took Home Run’s hand again as they walked along. “Anything else you would like to do today?”

“Well…” Home Run scratched his blue hair. “I do still want to spend time with you. How about we just go sit down and talk?”

“Sure, we can just sit at this bench here.” Moonglade directed them to the closest bench on the path and sat down beside Home Run, snuggling close. “You like music too, right Home Run? What do you like listening to?”

“Hmm… I’d say I like country music. I’m not too big on rock and all that.”

“Oh, country?” Moonglade tried to recall some. “How do you like… Jargon Cash?”

That man was the only country musician Moonglade remembered, but she did like his music.

“Oh him? Yeah, he’s my favorite!” Home Run nodded happily, much to Moonglade’s pleasure. “His music’s really good.”

“Yeah, I think so too!” Moonglade grabbed both his hands. She looked into his eyes, wanting nothing more than to kiss him again, but she held herself back this time, not wanting people to stare at her. Perhaps she would get more chances to do so later.

“You mainly like classical music, right?” Home Run asked, rubbing a hand on Moonglade’s hand. “I don’t mind it myself. At least it isn’t too noisy. Do you know Copperrear? They’re one of the bands I find, um… overstepping their boundaries.”

Oh, I know Copperrear, alright… Moonglade smiled, then nodded slowly. “I’ve heard some of their songs. I think they’re alright. Not as bad as, uh, some people say they are.”

“Well, I guess they’re not that bad.” Home Run shrugged, then leaned back against the bench. “But yeah, quieter songs are my thing.”

“You can say that again.” Moonglade pulled her legs up on the bench and put her head down on Home Run’s lap. “Something like this, you know? A peaceful park where we get to see nature and people doing their thing. And spending time with you, of course. That’s what classical music does for me, creating these beautiful pictures in my mind.”

“Gee, you sure have a creative mind.” Home Run caressed a hand along the side of Moonglade’s head. “So, what now? Are we going to be sitting here for a bit? I don’t mind.”

“Yeah, I don’t mind either…” Moonglade closed her eyes and breathed in. It tasted and smelt good, it was comfortable, and the sounds around her were just perfect. Before she knew it, she was drifting off to dreamland.

“I’m so sorry I just fell asleep like that…” Moonglade blushed as she and Home Run left the park, heading back to where Aunt Ivory was parked.

“No, no, it’s fine.” Home Run held her hand reassuringly. “You were really enjoying yourself. Even in your sleep. I didn’t want to wake you.”

“Oh, but I wasted our time together like that…” Moonglade looked down disappointedly. She had still wanted some more time for a kissing session.

“Don’t worry about it. There’s always more time.” Home Run waved a hand, then patted her shoulder. “I had fun just sitting there while you slept. It was nice.”

Moonglade smiled to herself as they walked on, glad that she had got to meet Home Run that day outside the pottery shop. It had been a strange way to meet and she didn’t think much more about him after that, but to think she would actually start going out with him… Now that was interesting, and she really liked it.

Maybe it was destiny that I got to meet such a wonderful boy…

As they got closer to the parked black vehicle, the driver’s door opened and Ivory Wings stepped out, pushing her white fringe to the side as the breeze blew against it.

“Home Run. I’ve heard a lot about you, but I realize I’ve never gotten to talk to you, um, properly.” The older changeling reached out a hand. “Ivory Wings, Moonglade’s aunt. A pleasure to meet you.”

“Oh, likewise, uh, Ms. Wings.” Home Run shook her hand.

“Please, my sister is Ms. Wings.” Ivory’s lips curved into a smile. “I must thank you for taking such good care of my niece and for being so nice to her. I can almost smell it off you. You’re a nice boy, Home Run.”

“Well, uh, thank you, ma’am…” He scratched his cheek and blushed. “Happy I got to know her. Moonglade’s r-really nice too.”

“She is, isn’t she? My little niece.” Ivory gave Moonglade a pat on the head. “Well, we must be going now. We shall meet again, Home Run.”

Moonglade was sad they couldn’t spend more time together today, but as Home Run had said, at least there was always another day.

“Okay. Take care. You too, Moonglade.” The boy nodded to her aunt and waved to her.

“Wait.” Moonglade waltzed back up to Home Run. Throwing her arms around him, she gave him one more kiss. It was like a tradition now, to give him a kiss after every date. After all, she really loved kisses now. When their lips separated, Moonglade gave him a hug before stepping back to her opened car door. “I’ll text you, okay?” She gave him a light wave.

“Of course, I’ll see you, Moonglade!” Home Run waved back, standing there until the car finished its reverse, heading away.

Once they were far enough, Moonglade turned back to the front and sighed with contentment. Even if it was just a visit to the park, she really enjoyed their date today. It was a nice time to relax and try something new.

“I take it you had a fun time, sweetie?” Ivory asked from the driver’s seat. “You’ve brought back more love with you again.”

“Yeah, I guess I did…” Moonglade played with her curly hair as she pictured kissing Home Run again. “Did I do alright, Aunt Ivory?”

“You did great, sweetie.” The older changeling pressed down on the pedal as they sped up a low slope. “You don’t really need me there anymore, except to watch out for threats for you. I’m pleased to say, I didn’t spot anything that might endanger you today. Though… Moonglade, I know you like spending time with that boy and he does seem like a good one, but remember, Moonglade may love him, but Chrysidea may not. Don’t let it bleed over into your real self. He is but food.”

Ugh, this talk again… Moonglade didn’t know how many times she’d had to hear this, but in a way, her mother and aunt still had the right to say it. She felt as though Home Run was a big part of her life now, whoever she was. She knew she shouldn’t let her other personas get affected, but something about him kept pulling her back in. Could it be that I’m actually falling in love with him? Is that what this feeling is…?

Moonglade put a hand to her chest, finding that warm feeling deep within. Was Home Run becoming something more than just food to her?

“Aunt Ivory, I don’t know…” Moonglade said honestly. “Home Run he’s… he’s like a really special person to me now.”

“Humans cannot be trusted, sweetie. If it’s one thing I learnt back in the old times, even the closest of humans can betray you once they learn what you are. You know that.”

“But… I think Home Run is different. He feels different…” Moonglade twirled her hair around a finger. “He really cares for me and stuff.”

Ivory sighed and looked down, then quickly back up and swerving out of the way of another car. “I know it feels nice to have someone to love. We all wanted that long ago. Someone to care for us, someone to be with all of our days, someone to have a family with… But after a while, dear, you learn that it cannot be with our kind. Perhaps if you find another changeling out there, or perhaps another non-human, but we cannot exist with humans the way you want to. It just doesn’t work. Humans are simple-minded and they will never change.”

“Oh…” Moonglade looked down disappointedly. She knew all the stories of how her mother and aunt had lost family to humans, but deep down, she hoped that they were different now. They didn’t have witch hunts anymore, nor did they have monster hunters.

“Look, sweetie, I know you want things to be normal, like other people, and I want you to be enjoying yourself, but… just remember who you are and what would happen if you’re found out, okay?”

“Okay, Aunt Ivory…” Moonglade looked out the window at the passing streets. She didn’t want to lose Home Run, and by extension, that meant she couldn’t do anything to compromise changeling kind. She didn’t want to push him away by accidentally revealing she wasn’t quite human.

Maybe if I’m careful enough, I can be with Home Run and protect my family’s identity.

The blonde haired girl kept that thought in her mind as they headed back home.