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The Golden Armor

by Comet Burst

Chapter 14: Past, Present and Future

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"You know, that wasn't very nice of you," Sun Storm said. He was standing near the closet of a cramped room he and Mangrove were sharing while they stayed in Canterlot. The room was barely big enough for the two full grown ponies to walk around freely, but it had a large panoramic window to the south that had a spectacular view of Canterlot castle. Mangrove stood dejectedly over the bed, staring into a bag of clothes.

"I know. I was just so happy to see my little Comet spending time with mares, I just..." she trailed off. Mangrove reached into the bag and came out with a pale, but brilliant yellow dress and trotted over to Sun. She passed him the dress and, without opposable digits or magic, Sun somehow hung the dress up on a hanger. Mangrove trotted back to the bed sadly and sighed. "I want him to be happy. Does that make me a bad mother?"

"No," Sun replied, "But that doesn't mean you should try to control his life. He didn't ask that bat pony, er..."

"Angel," Mangrove said.

"Angel! Thank you. Yes, you shouldn't have forced him to go out on a date with her. Comet is a full grown stallion now and he can make his own decisions. If he didn't ask her out yet, he probably has a good reason. Now, if the date fails, that will probably ruin Comet's friendship with her."

As Sun stopped his chastising, he heard a slight sniffle come from the green mare standing over the bed and his chest instantly dropped. Mangrove was a very emotional mare, often bouncing between excessively happy to morbidly depressive in minutes. Sun rolled his eyes at the closet, gave a deep sigh and trotted over to her. She was sniffling more now and Sun offered a smile. He reached out his right wing and wrapped it around the gorgeous green mare and she looked up at him with big watery magenta eyes. "A-am I a horrible mother?" she asked, choking back tears.

Sun stared into her big magenta eyes with his own brilliantly deep blue ones and he planted a soft kiss upon her forehead. "No, sweetie, you are not a horrible mother. A stallion never really outgrows his mother. You may have been a little pushy, but Comet has always had a problem with mares," he spoke in his calming voice.

"B-b-but I, I might've ruined his relationship with her!" Mangrove almost wailed back.

Sun reached out his forehoof and put it around her neck. Mangrove allowed him to do that and set her head against his chest. He looked down as Mangrove looked up, and nuzzled her nose. "I highly doubt anything will be ruined," Sun Storm said gently, "Comet may not have any experience around mares, but there's only one way for him to learn." Sun lifted his chin and set it on Mangrove's head, gently holding her.

The couple stayed like that for a little bit before Mangrove finally calmed down. "Where would I be if you hadn't hit me with that hoofball?" she wondered aloud. Sun gave a small chuckle as he remembered the first time he had met Mangrove.


Sun was never really what you'd call 'popular' in high school. About thirty years ago, he was a skinny pegasus with an overbearing father who pushed him to be athletic. He went through endless days of training, wing conditioning and a strict diet to push him into peak physical condition. Sun Storm's mother was his savior, though, since Sun always went to the market with her and allowed him to have some sweets. That day, Sun was at school and, during his lunch period, was at the hoofball field, trying to perfect a long range kick pass.

Mangrove herself was no social butterfly. She looked very different back then than she did today. Mangrove had braces to perfect her smile, thick glasses and a saddlebag stuffed with large books. She preferred to read while other ponies spent their time making out, trying to start movements for equal equestrian rights or, if they were popular mares, making fun of her. Their favorite way to tease was to say Mangrove was still a blank flank. She had actually gotten her cutie mark already, a patch of several mangrove seeds, but the mares often tried to prove she stuck them on her flank herself.

So, with very few friends, Mangrove headed off to her favorite reading spot, the abandoned bleachers of the hoofball field. When Mangrove finally made it there, she sighed happily. At the same time, a hoofball flew awkwardly off of Sun Storm's rear left hoof. Mangrove smiled, but then felt a large impact against the side of her head and passed out.

When Mangrove finally came to again, she was laying on her side, staring at a horribly pale pink wall and felt the cold of an ice pack on the left side of her head. She blinked and gave a small moan, hoping to get the nurses attention. Instead, a violently yellow pegasus leaned into her vision and said, "Oh my gosh, thank Celestia you're awake! Just hold on, I'll get the nurse," he said in a voice laced with concern. He turned to leave, but Mangrove reached out a hoof and pushed his side. Why she did this, even she couldn't remember, but the yellow pegasus turned back and stared at the green mare. She looked at him weakly with her beautiful magenta eyes and he felt himself unable to move.

"Hey," Mangrove said in a weak voice, "What's your name?"

Sun gulped hard and said, "Sun Storm."

The green mare gave a cute smile and said, "That's a nice name." Sun never did go and get the nurse. Instead, he spent the last forty five minutes of school talking to Mangrove.

The two became good friends throughout high school and by the time their senior prom came around, Sun was almost inseparable from Mangrove. His other friends tried to get him to ditch her, saying she wasn't worth his time. When they both graduated, Sun had dumped his friends and had officially started dating Mangrove.

Three years later, he was standing at an alter, kissing a stunning Mangrove in a beautiful white dress. Seven years after that, Sun was holding a baby orange pegasus colt, smiling wildly at a gorgeous Mangrove laying on a bed, smiling weakly at him like the first time they met.

Sun looked back to the green mare now hugging against him and kissed her again. She really was the best wife and mother he could've asked for.


Back at Canterlot castle, things were less calm. Angel was excitedly trying to find Valyrie to tell her the good news, but the gryffon was nowhere to be found. Angel checked the bunks, the mess hall, the gardens, the mess hall, Philomena's room where she was assaulted by an overjoyed phoenix, the mess hall and finally the bunks again. Upon not finding her, Angel gave up and sat on her bunk with a roll of parchment and a quill. She spent her time trying to draw, but got bored and soon played Tic-Tac-Toe with herself, celebrating her wins and sulking at her losses. She had hoped Comet would take her out tonight and wondered just what he had planned.


Comet, in contrast, was sitting on his bunk, consulting a tourist's guide he had borrowed from his mother. He was frantically trying to find the right place to take Angel since he thought she expected the date to be tonight. He compiled nearly everything he knew of Angel and came up with some idea of what she liked. She ate fruit nearly all the time, she was loud and childish and she was afraid of loud noises, ironically. Comet narrowed down three ideas: a buffet, an outdoor restaurant and a permanent carnival. He mentally kicked the snot out of himself for thinking the first idea was any good. The second idea was a good one, but he could just see the other ponies staring at him and Angel, especially if she was trying to have fun, plus the prices were way too big for Comet. So, he settled on the carnival and hoped to Celestia this was the right idea.

Unknown to either of them, Valyrie sat atop a spire on the castle, thinking to herself. She had made the mistake of allowing herself to muse at the thought of her and Comet dating and wondered what it would really be like. Comet was nice, caring and sweet, but dating ponies in her homeland was strictly forbidden, as was free thinking.

Gryphons at home were heavily against gryffons like Valyrie doing anything but cooking, cleaning and raising a family. Her father even more so, drilling into her that she should be submissive to his leadership and she should be actively looking for a mate. Shortly before coming here to Equestria, a prospective mate had found her and tried to take her back to his place against her will. After beating the daylights out of him, it was agreeed that Valyrie would be banished as punishment while the gryphon would deal with the shame of getting his hide tanned by a gryffon.

Still, though, Valyrie was miles away from the Gryphon Kingdom. The idea of finding a mate here was slightly appealing, if only the stallions here were more like Comet.


Hours later, Comet and Angel trotted along, smiling happily at the carnival. Angel had attempted to win some prizes, but despite her amazing fighting skills, she hadn't won a single thing. Comet, however, had won several prizes of her choice and now she wore a fake gold ornate necklace, a plastic tiara in the style of the Element of Magic and carried a plushie Princess Luna on her back.

It was getting late, so Comet stopped by a food vendor and bought some caramelized pears for Angel and fried asparagus for himself. They sat at a picnic table and Angel ate her pears quickly while Comet fought with a tough piece of asparagus. Angel sighed contentedly and looked around at the carnival. Here she was free to be herself and she had Comet. He had won several prizes just for her and, although they were obnoxiously cheap, she wouldn't trade them for anything.

While looking around, she saw two ponies, one unicorn stallion and a pegasus mare, with three little foals, two unicorns and an earth pony, running around their legs. The three little foals made her happy as she watched them and she looked back at Comet. He was fighting with a piece of asparagus now stuck between his teeth and noticed her stare. He gave a terribly awkward smile and Angel laughed. It wasn't in her usual sarcastic tone, but one of just reacting to a funny situation.

She half opened her eyes and stared at Comet, who felt an increasing sense of embarrassment about the food stuck between his teeth. Angel was adorable, but looking at him like that, she was well beyond adorable. She was stunning, even if she was wearing those cheap props.

Angel began to lean across the table to Comet and he was sure he was blushing horribly. He stared straight into her giant pools of gold in her eyes and felt his stomach contort into several knots. He hoped to Celestia that she wouldn't headbutt him this time, especially with that tiara on, and he braced himself. She was less than an inch away when she rubbed her nose against his, beaming the whole time. Comet was fairly sure he was forgetting something, but when she leaned back, he realized he wasn't breathing. He took a deep breath and smiled to her, unsure of what to say.

When they had finally returned to the castle, Comet stood outside the bunk room with Angel. "Thanks," she said, "Tonight was definitely one to remember."

Comet gave her another smile and said, "Yeah, we should do this again." He mentally kicked himself for that boneheaded comment and Angel batted her eyes at him.

"Is that a request?" she asked slyly. Comet tried to work out a sentence, but felt his throat close up. Angel gave her soft laugh again and leaned in to the orange stallion. She planted a soft, but sweet, kiss on his cheek and bid him goodnight. Comet stood there, blushing as red as his eyes and when he was sure she couldn't hear him, began to celebrate.

"Yes, yes, yes, YES!" he squealed to himself and shot a hoof into the air. His wings fluttered happily as he trotted off to his own bunks. After all the stuff that had gone wrong in the guard, and by extension his life, taking Angel on a successful date made him view the next day more optimistically.Maybe, just maybe, his life would finally start moving in the direction he wanted.

Author's Notes:

Here's my salvaged version of the chapter. I changed a couple things, but I'm still pretty happy with it.

Next Chapter: Paradoxes Estimated time remaining: 2 Hours, 18 Minutes
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