Author's Notes:

Sorry for the wait, been writing on other things and work is being a dummy.

Once we finally got back to Ponyville later that night, Strawberry and I were making our way back to the house. I had a hard time keeping my eyes open and were nearly dragging my feet behind me. I yawned and stretched my arms, rolling my shoulders once finished. I jammed my hands down in my pockets and glanced down at Strawberry who had been giving me the silent treatment.

“So, Twilight's at the house?”

“She came over before I left and I explained the situation.” She adjusted her saddlebags. “She didn't look very happy but she told me that she'd keep an eye on things.”

'Crap.'

I nodded and we kept walking through town. There were a scarce few ponies here and there, most of them were probably making their way home or just late night walks. Eventually, we came to the house. I opened the gate and waited for Strawberry to pass before I followed her.

“So what was the good news you wanted to tell me?” She asked when I fished the key out of my pocket and unlocked the door.

I yawned. “Let's go inside, I'll tell Twi at the same time so I don't have to run around and tell everyone.” We stepped into the house and I threw my suit jacket over a coat hanger and sighed. “Feels great to be back home...”

I glanced to the right wing and saw the lights on in the right wing where the living room was. I placed my bag next to the staircase and walked over. Strawberry excused herself and walked upstairs. I heard murmuring coming from the living room and walked over. I heard voices and I stopped before entering, staying in the dark.

“So Twilight,” Rarity paused for a few seconds and I heard a glass clink to the table. “what do you think of Jay's relationship with Strawberry?”

Huh. Gossip.

"Well... I think it was a little fast for her to move in so quickly, but I'm sure they have their reasons so I'm not going to judge them." She also paused for what I assumed was a drink. "They seem happy together and I think she's really helping to tone down on his... More extreme behavior. As long as they're happy and enjoy each other I'm fully behind them."

They continued talking but I stopped listening, I smiled and rubbed a hand on my neck, glancing down at the floor. I mean... Shit. I know I shouldn't care about what others think about me or my relations. But knowing that the first pony I got to know more has my back in this is oddly comforting, to be honest. They eventually quieted down and I took a deep breath, then walked inside.

The ponies turned to me. I spotted Spike lying next to Twilight, fast asleep. I continued closer to the light and a sharp gasp came from Rarity when she noticed what had happened to the shirt.

"You!" She blurted out but lowered her volume as she glanced at Spike. "What have you..." She held out a foreleg at me, glaring at me. "Do you have any idea how-" She stopped and placed her foreleg pointing at me to her forehead, then counted to ten. Her hoof dropped but her glare remained.

She glanced down at the table and I followed her eyes. On the table were two glasses of red wine. The one in front of Rarity was nearly empty and Twilight's looked almost untouched. Rarity's blue aura surrounded the bottle and she connected the neck to her mouth and tilted back, chugging.

She eventually stopped and I raised an eyebrow. Honestly, that was pretty cool. She got up from the couch and walked toward me, still giving me the stink-eye. I gulped as her magic turned on again.

Her magic unbuttoned the shirt and pulled it off me. I took a step back and raised my hands. The look she gave me silenced any cheeky rebuttal I could think of.

She pulled down my head with her magic so I crouched over. With a voice that could turn boiling water into solid ice in the span of exactly three and a half seconds, she growled out.

“If you ever damage any of my work like this again, you and I will have a problem.” Her eyes narrowed. “Am I clear?”

I nodded ferociously. “Y-yeah... Crystal clear.” She glared at me for another few seconds, then sighed and let go of me. I immediately straightened my posture and took a big step back away from her.

“I'll take this back to my boutique to patch it up, pick it up in a few days.” She neatly folded it and then turned to Twilight who had been holding back a laugh at what transpired. “I'll be going home now, it is rather late after all. Goodnight, darlings!”

I waved at her when she exited the house and passed Strawberry that was walking toward me. She stared at me, then at the shirt in Rarity's grasp and rolled her eyes.

"Sorry for the trouble, Rarity... Have a good night though!" They shared a hug before the door was closed and locked again. We walked back into the living room and I slumped over on a couch. Strawberry joined me and I laid a hand over her withers.

It was quiet for a few minutes, the only sounds were some light snoring from Spike. I craned my head back and laid it on the backrest, closing my eyes. I felt a poke on my thigh and cracked my right eye open.

“What was it that you wanted to say to me and Twilight?”

Oh shit, I completely forgot... I blew some air out of my mouth and leaned forward in my seat, brushing away a few strands of hair out of my face.

"Alright so, the prince and his ponies really liked my product." I scratched my chin and a small smile grew on my face. "It will go into the main production in two weeks time and I'll be able to work from Ponyville which means that I don't have to go to Manehattan weekly, only like once a month or so."

Strawberry squeaked and launched into a hug. “Oh my gosh, I'm so happy for you!” The volume of her voice was still restricted due to the sleeping dragon but I could hear her strain to contain it. Her ears lowered a tad. “Are you sure that this is okay with Prince Blueblood though?”

I rubbed my hand on her back and her trepidation disappeared. “He suggested it, actually. He told me that it's better to work from where I'm comfortable for productivity's sake.”

Twilight smiled. She let out a quiet yawn. “I'm glad to hear that everything is working out for you, Jay.” She rolled her shoulders. “I'd recommend not getting arrested though I get a feeling you won't listen to me..." I grinned and shrugged.

“Well, as I've said before I aim to impress.” Strawberry gave me a light jab on my right shoulder. I never lost my smile.

"There's one thing that I've been thinking on, Jay..." Strawberry pursed her lips and stared down at the floor. "You didn't exactly look phased about being in that cell like it's nothing new for you..." She glanced up at me. "How so?"

I rolled my shoulders. "Oh, that's nothing fancy, really." I gathered the glasses on the table. "I was in juvie when I was fourteen."

Strawberry and Twilight shared a glance. “What's... juvie?” Twilight eventually asked.

“Juvenile detention center. Kiddie jail.” I rolled a hand before I grabbed the empty wine bottle and was about to go into the kitchen with it. I was stopped by a tug on my right pant leg.

“You were in jail... when you were fourteen?!” Strawberry snapped, staring up at me with wide eyes. I glanced over to Twilight who had equally wide eyes.

“Well, it's not exactly prison jail, it's more like secure containment. I was still a kid so we had school and a lot of free time, it was more to keep us in one place for rehabilitation and shit.” I set the things I were carrying on the table again and placed a hand on Strawberry's shoulder. “Besides, I wasn't there for long and I was released after two months.”

“What happened to put you there?” Twilight asked quietly. I sighed and bit my lip, then sat back down on the couch next to Strawberry.

"I was fourteen like I said." I knitted my hands together "I had a ...friend who was three years older than me. He came to pick me up in a car once and we went for a drive. We got pulled over by the police. Turns out that he had stolen that car and I was arrested as a suspect for assisting in grand theft auto." On their confused faces, I realized they had no idea what a car is. "Before you ask, a car is like a self-propelling chariot that can go much faster and usually made of metal and plastics."

“I was arrested, so was he.” I shrugged. “Didn't see him much after that and couple of years later I heard he got killed in a drug deal gone bad. Nothing lost, really. That's all in the past and I've moved forward.” Strawberry pressed her head to my right arm. I glanced up at the clock.

"It's getting really late, Twilight." I gestured at the clock. "You and Spike should start heading home unless you want to stay in a guest room?"

She shook her head. "N-no, I'll... I'll walk home." She stood up from her seat and gently levitated Spike to her back. He groaned, then stretched his arms around her neck and continued snoring. I separated from Strawberry and walked her to the door, unlocking it.

“Thanks for keeping an eye on things on such a short notice when we were gone, Twi. I really appreciate it.” I smiled at her and leaned at the doorframe after she had passed.

“No problem, if you need help with anything just let me know and I'll come over...” She looked up at me as if she was searching for something or looking for something to say. “See you around, Jay.”

“Later.” I waved, once she had walked a fair bit down the path I closed the door and locked it for the last time tonight.

I turned back to the living room and Strawberry came out carrying the glasses and the bottle. She levitated it into the kitchen. When she was finished, she walked over to me and jumped up at me, placing her forelegs on my stomach as a brace and leaned close.

“Are you sure you're fine after talking about that?” She asked hesitantly. I craned my head down and kissed her.

“I'm sure, don't worry.” I ran a hand through her hair. “That was ten years ago and it really wasn't as bad as it sounds. I've recovered from it but it never was a big deal.” I kissed her again. “I promise.”

"Okay..." She rested her head to my chest and we stayed like that for a minute.

“You should head up to bed.”

She sighed and dropped to the floor, pouting up at me. “Don't keep me waiting...” She turned around and walked to the staircase, dragging her tail down my leg.

Looks like I get to dodge sleeping on the couch, after all...

Eventually, days turned to weeks and said weeks turned to a month. Things progressed smoothly, the backscratcher had released in major cities and it was the new hot thing, apparently. I requested two custom orders from the factory for the princesses and I would receive them at any moment.

I leaned back in my office chair, scratching my scalp with my eyes closed. I glanced over at the clock and saw that it was nearing lunchtime. I left the office and walked down the stairs. I glanced outside for a second and kept walking.

I froze.

I walked back slowly... And looked up.

“Strawberry?!” I shouted.

“Yeah?” I heard her shout back from somewhere in the house.

"There are clumps of lands floating in the air outside, the sky is pink and the sun is freaking out!" I was quiet for a few seconds. "Did you put anything in my coffee?"

“Of course not, why would I?” She said as she rounded a corner and joined me by the window. She gasped. “Oh no... It's Discord again!” I furrowed my brows and coughed.

“...Who?”

“He's a spirit of disharmony and chaos that messes up nature and ponies because he dislikes harmony... Or so I've heard...” She looked genuinely scared. “And since it looks this bad... He must be close.”

“Babe?” My gaze hardened as I reached for the door.

“What is it?” She stared at my hand as I went to turn the handle.

“Get me my baseball bat.”