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To Befriend the Night

by LucidTech

Chapter 7: Chapter Seven

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Shining Armor shook his head slightly in the dim light of dusk. The captain was not liking where he was heading, nor what the results of his arrival would be. A stallion that had been troublesome in the past had been apprehended once again by the authorities. They had evidence by the miles of his latest offence and all that was left was for the captain of the guard to interview the various witnesses as part of a formality. In the current case, it was of utmost importance that Shining interview those who saw it again, to ensure that they had told the truth before judgement was handed down on the accused.

With a heavy heart of pity for the stallion to be punished, Shining entered the jail. As he came in, he lifted his head and looked straight ahead, letting his desire for resolute justice shine on his countenance, boosting the morale of the jailors and police ponies who saw him. He was approached by a swift younger stallion whom looked to be apprenticing at the jail, a notepad levitating in the air next to him.

“Captain Shining Armor.” The pony saluted and waited for the white armored stallion to return the act before he continued. “The first pony is already in the interview room for you. When you are finished discussing the events with him, we will send in the next. You will be receiving them in the order of those who were closest and most focused on the event. Does that sound all right?” Despite his age, the pony’s voice was strong and full of equal amounts respect and duty.

“Yes it does, thank you.” The captain was about to continue, until a question came to mind. “May I know the name of this first pony?” he asked. He wasn’t sure why the question had come to mind, but in his line of work, he had come to trust his gut.

“Ah yes. He calls himself ‘Hendrick’, sir. An odd name, I know, but I don’t think he’s lying.”

“Hendrick, huh?” Curiosity covered the captain’s features. “Wonder what he was doing there.”

“You know him, sir?”

“As an acquaintance, nothing more.” The young stallion looked around nervously, not wanting to oppose the captain, but remembering something that he was supposed to prevent. Knowing precisely his troubles, Shining decided to put his fears to rest. “I assure you, my judgement won’t be swayed by me knowing him.” The captain smiled at the pony who, in turn, returned a smile and saluted once again.

After another mirror of the action from Shining Armor, the apprentice left toward an office near the end of the hall, around which was gathered several ponies. After glancing toward the mass of ponies and realizing it was going to be a long night, the captain of the guard turned his gaze and headed towards the interview room.

As he opened it, he immediately recognized the familiar stallion and approached the opposite end of the table where a manilla folder rested, so as to begin the interview proper. Hendrick didn’t raise his gaze, keeping his eyes locked on the metal surface. Thinking that he may be in the middle of something, Shining Armor paused a moment to wait for him to look up. In the interim of silence, the captain’s gaze moved to the bruises and swollen horseshoe marks that decorated the pony’s coat and the flesh beneath it.

Coming to the realization that Hendrick wasn’t going to break the silence, Shining did instead. “Hello, Hendrick. Fancy seeing you here,” the captain said with an affable smile. The stallion looked up in response to his name and nodded in recognition, though he remained silent.

Deciding to give the bruised stallion a few minutes to collect himself, Shining reclined slightly in his chair. As he had just barely gotten into a comfortable position he was somewhat surprised when Hendrick broke the silence seconds later. “What would his punishment be if he’s convicted?” His voice was quiet while his gaze remained locked on the table.

“Well, he’ll be fined; his daughter, that reports say he was beating, will be taken from him; and he might face a fair amount of jail time.” The stallion flinched and Shining Armor felt a small degree of sympathy for him. He didn’t like having to dish out judgement either, but sometimes, what a pony really needed was a strong hoof to put them in line.

“And you have all the information and evidence you need to ensure this judgement?” Hendrick asked.

Shining Armor took a brief moment to realize that he was being asked the questions and not the opposite. Pushing this aside for the moment, he nodded. “Yes; these interviews are mostly just part of the drill to ensure that no mistakes are made.”

Hendrick looked up from the table with a smile that expressed embarrassment. “Oh good. You see, I forgot everything about the confrontation.”

“Oh?” Shining said dubiously, seeing the stallion’s inability to look in his eyes for a sustained period of time. He was clearly lying. With a determined demeanor, he flipped open the folder that contained the scene as described by the various ponies questioned. He hated being lied to. His eyes glanced over the familiar material he had read earlier, now replacing the words ‘primary witness’ with ‘Hendrick’. “You forgot about being beaten by a drunken stallion as you stood between him and his cowering daughter who’s suffering from similar bruises as your own?”

“Is that what happened? Sorry, I guess he must have hit me on the head too hard. Can’t remember a thing.” Hendrick hadn’t hesitated, hadn’t flinched, and the smile was still on his face, causing Shining to back off his verbal attack slightly. He’s had a hard time and here I am pressuring him. But why would he lie about this? “Sorry I can’t answer your questions, Captain. If you don’t get what you need from the other witnesses though, ask Luna to get a hold of me and I’ll come in again. Maybe I’ll have remembered something by then.”

The stallion rose from his seat and turned away from Shining as he headed for the door. “Hendrick?” Shining called after the exiting stallion. “Even if you don’t remember it, thanks for doing what you did.” The stallion didn’t answer the thanks, merely keeping his unsteady pace as he left the room. A few seconds after he passed over the threshold, a round of stomping hooves came from the other witnesses, applauding him for the good he had done.

Before the next witness was sent in, the captain of the guard was afforded a few moments to reflect on his talk with Hendrick. The more he thought about it, the more it didn’t seem to make any sense. Why would he have lied just then? His actions at the time of the event showed that he didn’t like, nor agree with, the stallion whom had been beating his daughter. So then, why? This train of thought was put aside as a mare entered the room, obviously eager to tell what she had seen.


Octavia was on her way home from a late afternoon ensemble, her cello in a case on her back. As she walked, she paused for a moment and looked toward a medium sized building as several younger ponies headed inside the structure for the night. As they did so, one of them didn’t seem to notice as a charm from her bracelet fell to the ground. Looking toward the setting sun, the mare realized she had a few more minutes before she was due for some sleep and headed toward the dropped trinket to return it to its owner.

She lifted the small object from the grass with a careful grip, before she approached the building and was slightly surprised as she read the small sign next to the door: ‘Ms. Caretaker’s Home for Lost Children’. The cellist looked to the building again in realization. She had known there was an orphanage nearby, but she never payed enough attention to find it. A particular feeling of joy ran through her as she was filled with more pride for her decision to return the charm to its owner.

Upon entering the building, the mare spotted a few younger ponies heading towards the back, into a room, and decided to follow them, hoping to find the owner of the forlorn bracelet piece. As she approached, a familiar voice exited the room, instantly reminding her of Vinyl’s friend Hendrick, whom she had come to know when he stopped by on his days off to chat with the DJ. She paused in her steps, letting the young ponies enter first, then continued and stood just outside the door to see why the mysterious stallion was there.

He stood next to a bunk bed, carefully tucking in the filly whom rested on the bottom bed. After he finished with the act, he stepped back and was making to leave when the filly called out with a slight twinge of fear in her voice. “Hendrick.” He paused and turned back towards her. “Thanks for being there...” She let the sentence fall.

“It was no problem; think nothing of it.” From her position by the door, Octavia couldn’t make out the face of the stallion, but she assumed he was smiling, given the uplifting tone behind his words. He started to turn, but stopped once again, this time on his own whim. “Moon Light...” He paused to rethink what he was about to do, but shook off his doubts. “Would you like to hear a lullaby so you can go to bed easier?”

Once again, the mare could only assume that the child nodded eagerly. This was followed by the stallion walking back to the bedside and coughing to clear his throat. As he did so, some of the other nearby orphans leaned out of their beds to listen to the stallion.

“For all the light in all the world, I would pay to let you dream.

Let no fearful thing come out, no matter how small it seems.

I wish you peaceful sleep my child, the world to cradle you away.

And in your wonderful dreams, I hope that you may stay.”

The rhythm was slow, the beat and words being drawn out. The stallion’s voice wasn’t singing the words as much as it was saying them to a tune. Despite this, Octavia wished very much that he would sing the pitches, if only so she could have such a song in her repertoire. She stood in the hallway, watching as the young fillies and colts behind the door began to go to bed.

As the last of them fell to their dreams, she was surprised to hear the stallion do one final verse in a low tone as he turned to exit the room. He was clearly not singing to the children. This time, he seemed to be addressing himself.

“I once stood in ashes brighter than stars.

The dark ‘twixt the light left me in scars.

Perhaps this world might mend my skin.

Though only if I let myself in.”

He left the room and moved toward the exit, unaware that his final verse had been overheard by a cellist that had hidden in the shadows of the hall. She watched him leave, curiosity flowing through her from the rhymes she had heard. Her attention was so focused on the door that she was caught completely unaware as a voice spoke up behind her.

“Hello, miss. Can I help you?” After Octavia’s heart slowed back down to its normal rhythm, she remembered why she had come.

“Oh, yes,” Octavia said as she presented the trinket she had picked up to the caretaker. “I found this on the ground, but was too slow to catch the filly before she came in. Do you know who it might belong to?”

“Why that would be little Cardy’s. Her charm bracelet is a gift from her elder sister who is working to sustain a house for them so they can be together again. She was so worried when this piece went missing. I just came from her bedside, I just barely managed to calm her down. Thank you so much for bringing it in.” Octavia smiled broadly as an uplifting feeling hit her heart.

“It was no problem. I really must be going, though. Give Cardy my best wishes,” Octavia said. The caretaker nodded and the cellist set off toward home, the back of her mind dancing with the mysteries that seemed to follow Hendrick around and what they might mean. Eventually, she let the ideas drop and entered her house, smiling at the DJ who lay asleep after an exhausting day playing records for a day club.

“Home sweet home.”

Next Chapter: Chapter Eight Estimated time remaining: 1 Hour, 35 Minutes
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