> Rap, Pain, and Friendship
>  by Twilight Best Pony
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Moving on(e)
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

*DING DING DING DING DING!!!*
Lyrical woke up to the sound of his clock -- the damn thing scaring him shitless. He looked over to his clock and checked the time, his eyes widened. "Damn!" Lyrical shouted out loud. "I'm going to be late for the bucking train!!!" He got up from his bed, tumbling around his messy floor. He ran to his bathroom and quickly brushed his teeth. His hair was a spiky mess, but he didn't care, he never cared about how his mane looked anyways.

Rushing to his closet, he pulled out all of his hoodies. There were some all black ones, white ones, one black with white, blue, dark green, orange, and his personal favorite, a brown hoodie with a logo on the chest. It was the Mexicolt eagle standing on a cactus with the national flag as the background. He smiled at the hoodie, and quickly placed it on himself with the help of his magic. He then threw all the remaining hoodies in a suitcase, locked it, and swung it over his back, securing it with the help of a strap, of course. He took one last look in the mirror and smiled at himself. His coat was a light caramel brown and both his mane and tail were spiky with white lines at the tips. His eyes were a grayish white, glistening with determination. He turned around and took one last look at his cutie mark, before he turned around.

His mark was a microphone with the cord wrapped around itself. Behind the mic on the left and right sides were two writing quills. "I got you so long ago," Lyrical muttered. "Still can't believe I got you that way." His sad expression was quickly washed away when his mother spoke.

"Lirico, you're going to be late!" his mother shouted, snapping his mind out of his thoughts as he quickly ran outside the door.

"I'm leaving, ma! I'll see you soon!" Lyrical shouted, galloping out of the house and closing the door behind him.

'All I’ve got to do now is get Shadow, and then we're out of this hell hole!' Lyrical thought.

He made a few left turns down the street and, in a few seconds, he was in front of his boy Shadow's house. He knocked as hard as he could on the door, hoping Shadow would answer.

"SHADOW!!" Lyrical shouted, "OPEN THE DAMN DOOR! WE'RE BUCKING LATE!!! SHADOW?!?!"




Shadow Breeze woke up to the sound of somepony shouting. He quickly flew over to the window and noticed his bro, Lyrical, shouting at the top of his lungs

"SHADOW!!" Lyrical shouted, "OPEN THE DAMN DOOR! WE'RE BUCKING LATE!!! SHADOW?!?!" Shadow looked at the time on his nearby clock which read: 8:30. He got up to his mirror and examined his looks. He had an ice and black mane and tail; his eyes were brown and his coat was a shaded gray. He turned around to check out his cutie mark. He and Lyrical never liked calling them “Cutie Marks” so they called them “Bro Marks”.

Yea, very Stallion-ly.

His “Bro Mark” was a black heart with a white dove in the middle. He shook his head, remembering the bad times he had as a colt. Luckily, Lyrical grew up with him, so they both knew what poverty was like. Their parents struggled everyday to make ends meet, trying to raise enough money to feed their families. Shadow was broken out of his trance by Lyrical’s shouting.

"SHADOW, IF YOU DON'T GET DOWN HERE, THEN I WILL BREAK THOSE WINGS OFF SO YOU'LL NEVER HAVE THE JOY OF WINGBONERS AGAIN!" Shadow just shook his head and glanced at his clock. His eyes widened as the time struck 8:35.

"SHIT!" shouted Shadow, " WE'RE SO BUCKING LATE!!!" He quickly flew by his mom, gave her a loving hug, then opened the door. There he saw his best friend, knocking on the air, still shouting.

"SHADOW YOU GOT ‘TILL THE COUNT OF THREE! ONE...TWO...!" Lyrical looked down to see Shadow with an annoyed look in his eyes. Lyrical smiled sheepishly, rubbing the back of his mane with his hoof. "Oh, there you are…

Come on, we're bucking late and we only got, like, five minutes!" Shadow closed the door behind him and lightly punched Lyrical in the foreleg.

"Come on, bro, just teleport us over there and we'll be on time!"  Lyrical just shook his head, saying: “no”. 

"I wish it were that easy, but my magic only knows things about my Bro Mark. If we're lucky, there might be somepony in the park that can help me with my magic… Let’s just quickly gallop over there-" Lyrical was cut off mid sentence by a certain dark grey hoof. He spat out his buddies hoof from his mouth, releasing his tongue. "Bro! Don't do that! For all I know, you could have been clo-"

"Shut up and grab my tail!" Shadow shouted with a look of determination in his eyes.

"What...?" Lyrical said plainly. 

Shadow just shoved his tail at him. "I know it sounds weird," Shadow began, "But it’s the only way we can make it to the train station! Now… GRAB. MY. TAIL!!!" Without hesitation, Lyrical bit his tail, and Shadow flew quickly into the sky. Lyrical and Shadow could have sworn they heard some pony shout out "ADVENTURE!!!" but they decided it was only in the back of their heads.




"WE'RE GONNA MAKE IT!!" shouted Shadow. Behind him, Lyrical was pulling out two train tickets from his invisible pocket. Even he doesn't know how that happens. They quickly flew pass other ponies. Shadow was flying with such speed and agility, zigzagging through any pony in his way. Lyrical on the other hoof was crashing into every pony because he was biting Shadow's tail loosely.

"MPH ALMOST DER!" Lyrical said through clenched teeth.

"HUH?" Shadow questioned, he was flying so fast that he couldn't understand a word his boy was saying.

"I SAID… oh shit," Lyrical realized as he opened his mouth, sending him crashing into the ground. Shadow stopped and turned around, checking to see if his bro was all good. "You all right, bro?" Shadow asked. 

Lyrical nodded and and glanced at the nearest clock. "Dude, we only got ten seconds left!" shouted Lyrical. Shadow knew what he had to do. He grabbed Lyrical by the left foreleg, and dashed towards the train.

"LYRICAL!"

"YEA, SHADOW?"

“ATTACK MOVE ALPHA: T.S.F!"

Lyrical nodded as Shadow, along with himself, threw themselves at the entrance of the train.

Everything was quiet, as if time was moving in slow motion. Lyrical slowly made it to the entrance of the train, pulled out the two tickets, and slowly, yet dramatically, gave them to the conductor. He was followed shortly by Shadow. The boys quickly crashed into the two seats on the left side of the train. Lyrical and Shadow simultaneously got up, shaking their heads.

"Bro, we did it," said Shadow, "we made it. Our new life shall start in Ponyville." 

Lyrical nodded. "Yea, and we entered the train," Lyrical pulled out a pair of sunglasses out of seemingly nowhere, "like a boss."

"...Where did you get those shades?" asked Shadow. 

Lyrical just chuckled nervously. "Uh....Found ‘em?"

Suddenly, Lyrical was turned around by a grey maned, blue coated earth pony. "Give me my glasses back," he said with an annoyed look. Not wanting to start any problems, Lyrical gave them back, and made his way to sit down on a nearby seat. In front of him sat Shadow; a big ass grin on his face.

  "Well, here we are, on our way to Ponyville," he said, grinning. Lyrical only nodded back with a small smile.

"Yea! We'll start new there. Forget everything from our past…" Lyrical's smile turned into a sad gesture.

Frowning, Shadow said, "Dude, we're out of there. We'll start new… don't worry, I'm sure there will be someplace where you can rap at," Shadow finished with a smile. "Now, come on, get some rest. We'll be there by the ‘morrow."

"Yeah," Lyrical said glumly, "..Hopefully." With that Lyrical closed his eyes, awaiting the next day.


> Ponyville(e)
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	
	Lyrical walks down the street of his old neighborhood, Normane St. He was only just a small colt back then, only eleven years old. It was night time, and since he didn't know how to use his magic, he had to walk alone in the dark. He is only two houses away from his home, he was so close to the safety of his warm, comforting bed,  until he heard a scream coming from an abandoned house. He walks into the abandoned home, standing in the doorway. Only the moon's light could be seen and his silhouette was covering some of the light that entered the house.



"I-Is any pony there?" Lyrical asked. In response, he was quickly pushed aside by a big pony, wearing a black hood and a smiley face mask. As soon as he hit the ground, he caught a glimpse of what the stallion was carrying before he was pushed to the hard, cold wooden floor.



The stallion had a small rusty knife, dripping with fresh blood. Lyrical's eyes widened at the sight of a large pool of blood, covering his coat. He looked up, and in front of him, was a light grey stallion with ice colored hair. Behind the pony, was a colt that looked at least thirteen years old.



"My- My dad...That guy stabbed him." Cried the shaded gray coated colt. He had a black and and ice colored mane. Lyrical walked up to the crying colt, and patted him on the shoulder.



"Are you o-okay?" Lyrical said between stuttering and tears. The blood on his coat traumatized him only slightly. But since he had never seen a dead body, he had tears swelling up his eyes. The colt only sobbed even louder.



	"Stay here, I'm going to go get help!" Lyrical said. He galloped as fast as he could outside, but was quickly pushed back in by the same stallion that stabbed the colt’s father. He took a few steps closer, causing Lyrical to stumble on his hooves and crawl behind the lifeless  body of the colt’s dad. The masked pony didn't say anything, he just stood there, causing the small colt’s to wince in fear.



	The stallion trotted to the too colts, raising the rusty, blood stained knife. "We can't have any witnesses, now can we?" The masked pony said, smiling under the mask. He quickly brought the blade down straight to Lyrical's forehead.






	"NO!!" Shouted the grey colt. In a few seconds, both the colt and Lyrical were wrapped in a black, shield like aura.






	Lyrical suddenly snapped his eyes open, breathing heavily. Shadow was just staring at him, concerned for his friend. Lyrical looked around, and released a sigh of relief, thankful that he was just dreaming. About the past. "You all right Lyrics?" Shadow asked his panting friend. Lyrical only gulped and wiped his forehead with his left foreleg.



"Yea man, I was just....Dreaming." Lyrical said. Shadow only shook his head, sighing. He knew what his friend was dreaming about, he's been having the same dream for weeks.



	"Look pal," Shadow said, lightly punching Lyrical's right foreleg. "That happened a long time ago. We don't live in that terrible place anymore. We're in Ponyville, we can start new here, forget about all the bullshit we suffered through. Besides, don't you remember what 2trot said?" Lyrical's ears instantly perked up, a smile forming on his face.


	"You got to smile through all the bullshit." Lyrical said, quoting one of his favorite Old School rappers. The corners of Shadow's mouth quickly stretched to a large grin. He hopped off his seat, helping Lyrical get up from this.



"That's the spirit!" Shadow said, walking outside of the train. "Now come on, let's go, the train already stopped 5 minutes ago." Lyrical's eyes widened slightly, amazed that they reached their destination so quickly.



"We’re here already? But I thought it would take a good, one full day?" Shadow only gave a "Are you serious?" look before he facehoofed. "Dude it was a full day, you SLEPT the whole way here."



"....Get the buck out the train."





	The second Lyrical stepped out of the train, he was instantly greeted with air. FRESH air. Back home, he could only smell the stink of factories, the smell of the morning grass, (The bad kind) and the burnt oil coming out of trains. The economy of Detrot was in the gutters. It used to make money off of its trains, but since most earth ponies walk, the business went down dramatically. Lyrical gasped in awe as he stared up into the sky: it was a beautiful cyan blue color, with only small patches of clouds around. Back home, the weather did not look nearly as nice as Ponyville's, since the factories’ smoke clouded up the skies. There was one downside though.



The sun. The bucking sun.



Don't get him wrong, Lyrical was thankful that Celestia's sun grew food for them, but he just could not handle waking up every damn day with the shine in his eyes.



Every.



Bucking.



DAY.



	Anyways, he just wasn't a day kind of guy. He was more into the night. How mysterious it is, the cold it brings with the moon shining down on his city. And the stars. Oh dear Luna, the STARS. Besides, he wore a hoodie, and was getting a little bit warm, but he didn't mind. Too much. He was just glad he and Shadow moved out of Detrot. Don't get him wrong, yes he might call it a horrible city, but it had its beauty before, but it was all swept away due to the mayor’s greed. Moving on, he was staring at the houses, left and right. So colorful and filled with easygoing lives. His peaceful zen state however did not last, because somepony just had to wave a hoof in front of his face.



	"Yo, Lyrical, you ok?" Shadow said, waving a hoof in front of his dazed friend. Lyrical just snapped his head side to side, mumbling something about strangling somepony for ruining his sightseeing. 



  "....freaking, grey ash trey lookin' mother- what is it Shadow?" Lyrical said, calmed down. The pegasus just chuckled at his friend’s cursing and waved a foreleg behind him.  "How are we gonna find a place to stay? This place got's like, dozens of ponies trotting everywhere!"






Lyrical brought up his left foreleg and thought for a few seconds. "Maybe we can ask somepony for directions to an inn, and from there on we can get started by sightseeing and all that other shit." Shadow nodded in agreement, and the duo walked around asking for directions.



	Eventually, they stopped in front of a giant gingerbread looking house. They walked in, and were assaulted with delicious smells of sweets. Lyrical and Shadow looked around the store, mouths watering with hunger. Eventually, Shadow stopped in front of Lyrical, pulling out 50 bits.



	"Ok, I got about fifty bits here, that should be enough for-" Shadow looked up from counting his bits, looking left and right for Lyrical.



"Lyrical? Where'd you go?" Shadow said.






"I'll have four chocolate eclairs, two glazed donuts, and four chocolate frosted cupcakes." Lyrical was standing in front of the counter, ordering food from a blue colored mare. She had a frosting like hairstyle, and slightly chubby body. Shadow only facedhoofed and groaned. Lyrical turned around to his annoyed friend.



"Oh did you want something, Shadow?"



"Fat motha- Yea, just get me a small, piece of chocolate cake." Lyrical turned around and told the mare his order. "That will be fifteen bits please." She said. Shadow walked up and payed the mare. "Thank you Mrs.?" Shadow said, pondering her name.



"Cake. My name is Mrs. Cake." said the mare with a smile. Lyrical returned the gesture and Shadow nodded.



"I haven't seen you two before, are you...?" Lyrical  shook the mare’s hoof. “names are Lyrical, that's me, and this is my friend, Shadow Breeze, we're new here, and we're looking for a-" Lyrical however, was caught off guard, because he and Shadow were suddenly tackled by a pink, curly maned pony.



"HI MY NAME’S PINKIE PIE, WHAT'S YOUR'S, DO YOU LIKE PARTIES, ARE YOU KNEW, YOU MUST BE KNEW BECAUSE I'VE NEVER SEEN YOU TWO HERE BEFORE, DO YOU LIKE CUPCAKES, I LIKE CUPCAKES, DID YOU ORDER CUPCAKES, MRS. CAKE WHERE ARE THE CUPCAKES? OH MY GOSH I FORGOT I NEED TO THROW YOU TWO A PARTY, GOTTA THROW ONE SOON, I'M SURE WE'LL BECOME BEST FRIENDS, RIGHT GUYS?" Pinkie Pie said, hugging the two stallions.



	Fun fact, Lyrical and Shadow Breeze are INCREDIBLY SHY. Whenever they  tried to talk to a mare, their faces would go red quickly, and stumble on their words. So, obviously, Lyrical and Shadow had no idea how to react, the best they could do was just stay quiet. Their faces already red of course.



"Um...this is a nice hug but...can you let go...?" Shadow muttered, very shyly.



"......Cupcakes?" Lyrical said, face even redder. He and Lyrical could both smell the  sweets and sugar in the mare’s mane. Lyrical's face got even redder when he said:



"You...smell nice.." He muttered.



	Pinkie Pie quickly placed both stallions back on the ground after the long hug. She grinned at the compliment. "Thanks!" She said. Out of nowhere, she pulled out both orders, as if she conjured them out of thin air. Lyrical and Shadow stared in shock, how could she cook so fast?



	"Here's your order, and make sure to be at your party at six o'clock sharp!" Shadow looked at a nearby clock, and the time read 12:30. The pink mare then ran back into the kitchen, as if nothing happened. Mrs. Cake walked up to the confused ponies, smiling.



"I'm sorry, she's just a bit energetic when a new pony comes to town. But now that she has two stallions here, she's most likely going to throw a bigger party." She said, walking back to the counter. The stallions then got up and left, waving goodbye to Mrs. Cake. Shadow just shakes his head and scratched his mane.



"Well that was interesting, right Lyrical?"



Lyrical just kept walking.



"Lyrical? You ok?" Shadow said, nudging his friend.



"....No."



"What happened?"



".....Pinkie lost me when she said cupcakes." Lyrical said, staring at the bag he was levitating with his magic, hunger in his eyes. Shadow just rolled his eyes and facehoofed.



"Come on, lets go find an inn before more unexpected things happen." With an agreeing nod, the two trotted faster, hoping to find a good place to stay..



>  Meeting The Other 4.....And Later 5.(e)
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


After about an hour of wandering, Lyrical and Shadow found an inn. After making sure to check-in, they went to their new room: two beds, a mini fridge, and a large window that has a view of Ponyville’s market.



	Lyrical placed his suitcase on the left bed, while Shadow was taking a nap on the right one. The unicorn took all of his hoodies out from the case, examining them one by one, thinking of which hoodie to wear for their party. He then decides to just take the next one that comes out, and luckily for him, it was his second favorite. He levitated it in front of him,using his black magical aura covering the hoodie. It had a white hood, while the chest area was black and the sleeves were white. The strings that dangled from the hood were white as well. Lyrical smiled, he got this hoodie when he went to his favorite artist's concert. South Park Mexicolt (S.P.M) was playing in the Detrot area that day, and they were throwing hoodies at the crowd. Lyrical was one of the fans to catch one, and he kept it with him ever since. So many good memories while wearing this hoodie rushed into his head all at once, causing a smile to creep up on his face. But if he had so many good  memories with it, then why is it his second favorite?



Lyrical snaps out of his daydream to the sound of Shadow snoring. He turned around, and sure enough, Shadow was sleeping peacefully. He looked so comfortable sleeping, that Lyrical almost did not want to wake him up.



Almost.



	He creepily walked to the side of the bed, a big ass grin on his face. With  both of his forelegs, he flipped the bed over, biting his lower lip.



	"GET THE BUCK UP SHADOW!" Lyrical shouted.  This moment reminded him years ago, when he was just a colt. He was writing his name on a piece of paper and underlining it, But half way, he had a random hoof spasm, causing him to underline not only his name, but his entire right side of the desk. He was so shocked and angry this was his only response.



"CELESTIA BUCKING DAMN IT!!"






Lyrical was sentenced to nap time without a cookie. He never saw those delicious chocolate chip's again. He sighed at his little stroll through memory lane, a small smile on his face.



"Good times, good times." The stallion muttered. Shadow shot back up from the ground, only to stare at his grinning friend in the eye. "The buck was that for?" Shadow said, rubbing the side of his skull. Lyrical just shrugged his shoulders.



"I dunno, but since you’re up, lets go take a look around Ponyville. I got bored just waiting here." Shadow just sighed in defeat. He was enjoying his little nap, dreaming about sunshine and shit.



Wait, what?



	Shadow and Lyrical walked out of the room, locked it, and headed for the main entrance.



'        "By the way I flipped the bed because I was bored and I wanted to relive the good times." Lyrical said chuckling. Shadow only grunted in annoyance, and facehoofed.






1:15



	Lyrical and Shadow walked out of the inn, and headed towards a clouded area of Ponyville. Shadow said he wanted to stretch his wings out a bit, so Lyrical followed him. There weren't as many clouds as they thought, so it was a perfect chance for Shadow to test his speed. He extended his wings at full length,  and shot straight up into the sky.



Shadow wasn't known for flying fast, but thanks to years of training and some athletic abilities, he gained muscle in his wings, allowing him to fly a little bit faster than he used to. He zoomed by nearby clouds, spinning circles around them, causing a wispy tail whenever he flew around a cloud.



"Man, I haven't been flying this fast since my days playing in air hoofball." Shadow said, zigzagging by a few fluffy clouds. He was caught off guard however, by a pony flying past him.  She was flying straight down, unable to control herself. Shadow only saw her for a few seconds but it was enough for him to describe her. She had a rainbow mane, cyan colored coat, and magenta colored eyes. Her cutie mark was a red, yellow and blue lightning bolt, with a cloud above it. As she continued going down, Shadow glanced at the direction she was crashing to.



And it just happened to be towards Lyrical.



Shadow tried warning him, but she was going so fast that he couldn't yell at Lyrical on time. The male pegasus just shrugged.



"Meh, he'll be all right."



	On the ground, Lyrical was just staring up into the sky, not even paying attention to his bro. He smiled but it didn’t last long as he was suddenly, blinded by a cyan colored mare about to crash on top of him.



"LOOK OUT BELOW!!" She shouted. Lyrical's eyes widened, not sure of what to do. He had two options, avoid a possible awkward situation by just simply taking a step back. Or, staying in the same spot for no freaking reason whatsoever. Lyrical decided to go with the first one, and took one step back.



Maybe he should have gone with the second option.



	It turns out the cyan mare had a small chance to move out of the way, just by one space. Lyrical, being the accidental gentlecolt he is, stepped back and absorbed the impact. The mare crashed on top of Lyrical, causing dust to scatter and create a small dust cloud around them. Shadow saw the whole thing. and decided to check up on his friend.



Lyrical's head was throbbing, he tried rubbing his head with his hoof, but was unable to do so. Opening his eyes, he was instantly greeted by a familiar cyan colored mare with a rainbow mane. Her forelegs were pinning Lyrical's and their faces were only inches away. It took Lyrical a good 10 seconds to process the scene before him.



'Mare on top of me? Check.



Faces only inches away? Check.



Eyes growing wider each second? Check.



Bangs over her eyes touching my forehead? Check.' Lyrical's pupils broke away to find Shadow, mouth agape.



Shadow standing there and doing nothing? Check.



Face incredibly red from awkwardness?'



"Why is your face so red?" Asked the cyan mare, breaking Lyrical's thoughts.



'.....Check.'



Lyrical stared into her eyes, face growing even more and more crimson. "Can you.....get...off?" The unicorn muttered. Not breaking eye contact, the cyan mare slowly got up. Lyrical, realizing the awkward position he was in, quickly shot back up from the ground, face still red. Shadow, quickly walked up to his bro, with a look of both shock and laughter.



"You okay bro?" Shadow said snickering. Lyrical only nodded, trying to break eye contact with the mare. She only shook her head in confusion, and decided to break the tension. "My name’s Rainbow Dash, fastest flyer in Equestria!" She gloated.



Lyrical, still staring at the ground, muttered. "My name mrcl..."



Rainbow Dash shook her head. "Sheesh, you remind me so much of Fluttershy." Lyrical, spoke a little louder.



"I said my name is Lyrical....and I like your eyes." Shadow and Rainbow were shocked. Realizing what he said, Lyrical got embarrassed, and glared at Shadow. "LETS GO!" He shouted.



Shadow nodded, stretched his wings and flew Lyrical out of the awkward situation. Now, it was Rainbow's turn to show a crimson red, but was quickly wiped away. She stretched her wings, and flew in the opposite direction, still confused at what happened.






2:23


	"Well that could have gone better." Shadow said, placing his friend on the ground. Lyrical's face was cooling down now, but still showed a small sign of red. "What was that last line again?" Shadow said, a  grin appearing on his face.



Lyrical ignored him and walked up to a small, apple bin. He looked around, and found a delicious, apple pie. Its scent filled his nose, eyes and stomach filled with hunger. Shadow walked up to him. "Lyrical what are you-" He was cut off by Lyrical slowly turning around, hunger and desperation in his soulless like eyes.



"PIE." Lyrical said in a deep whisper. Both stallions were so oblivious to the orange mare in front of them, she let out a low chuckle, snapping Lyrical out of his daze and Shadow out of his thoughts.



"Ya like what ya see?" She had a southern like accent, light green eyes and a blond mane. Lyrical and Shadow were lost in her looks. The orange mare just grinned, and waved a hoof in front of their faces. "I reckon you colts like what you see right?"



Lyrical and and Shadow shook their heads up and down, agreeing with the mare. Lyrical's face was redder than before, while Shadow only showed signs of red throughout his cheeks. The mare only chuckled, stepped behind the counter and shook the colt's hooves rapidly.



"Name’s Applejack. Proud owner of Sweet Apple Acres." Applejack points to a barn, with apple trees on the sides. "And your names are?" Lyrical and Shadow looked away from the barn and stared as the smiling mare.



	"My name is Shadow Breeze, and this is my friend Lyrical. We're new here, and he just wanted to buy that pie." Shadow said, pointing at Lyrical then the pie. Applejack walked back behind the stall, pushing the pie towards Lyrical and Shadow.



"Take it, it’s on the house." She said smiling. In a quick swipe, Lyrical took the pie and stared at it. "My precious..." He muttered. "Lets go Shadow, we still got to get ready for a party." Shadow nodded and they both waved good bye to the orange mare. Applejack smiled back and waved.



"Those two colt's are pretty cute." Applejack said, with a smirk.





3:45


	Lyrical and Shadow finished up eating the pie at a nearby park. They were about to leave until they heard some singing and birds chirping. They turned their heads to the left, mouths agape.



A butter like Pegasus was singing and flying around with five other birds. She had a light pink mane and tail, three butterflies for her cutie mark, and sky blue eyes. Lyrical turned to his friend’s side, and almost burst out laughing.



"Dude...(snicker)....your wings." Shadow looked down, and his eyes widened. His wings were fully extended, feathers and everything. Shadow quickly hid behind the bench, trying to control his wings. Lyrical laughed his flank off and walked behind the bench. "Come on, lets go before she notices."



While the two sneaked away, Fluttershy turned around to see two stallions quickly rushing away. She just shrugged, and continued singing.






4:40


	After about an hour of of trying to calm down his wings, Shadow and Lyrical decided to walk back to the inn. Both were thinking about the buttered coat pegasus. The way her voice sounded as she sang was straight up EARGASM.



In other words they liked her singing.



"Bro, I think I like that mare." said Shadow, turning to look at his friend."Did you hear her voice? Like a thousand angels pissing in your ears, but the piss isn't all, swoosh swoosh, its all calming and shit." Lyrical only looked back at his love struck friend, eyebrow raised.



"What did you say?"



"I said I liked her singing." Shadow said.



"....Right, well we're almost at the inn, a good three blocks away, if we make it on time we can change and head back to Sugar Cube Corner and-"



*CRASH!!*



Shadow and Lyrical fell to the ground. Papers flew everywhere, a random book landed on top of Lyrical's face. "Ow..." Lyrical muttered. He got up from the ground to see who he bumped into. Now, it was his turn to laugh.



	On top of Shadow was a lavender colored mare, mane was a dark purple with a pink highlight. The pegasus opened his eyes. "Who the...buck..." The mare was inches from Shadow's face. Her violet eyes staring into his brown eyes. Lyrical could only laugh from his reaction.



"Oh my gosh I'm so sorry I bumped into you, My name’s Twilight Sparkle by the way." Twilight said, rising above from the grey stallion.  



"Well that escalated quickly." Lyrical said between laughs.



"Uh....derrr....uh..." Was all Shadow could say. His face was growing red from shyness, and awkwardness. The pegasus slowly got up from the ground, confused out of his mind. Twilight grabbed her book from Lyrical's magic aura and ran off, red faced.



"What....What just happened?" Shadow said. Lyrical only shrugged and nudged his buddy to keep on moving.






5:50


"About time we got  here. Who knew that pony in a jam jar can take so long to get shit done?" Lyrical said, licking some jelly from his face. Shadow just shook his head.



"Let´s just head inside before any more crazy amazingly pretty mares come."



"Yea, I doubt we'll see anymore ponies for awhile."



Oh how wrong they were.



As soon as Lyrical opened the door he and Shadow were both greeted by a familiar pink pony.


And friends.



Lots of friends.



"SURPRISE!!!!" the ponies shouted. Both Shadow and Lyrical were sent flying out of the inn due to the shout of the couple one hundred ponies.



Pinkie Pie bounced in place, while the other five mares, Twilight, Applejack, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash and Rarity, stared in shock.



"....Too loud?"



> Party Time(e)
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


"NO!!" Shouted the grey colt. In a few seconds, both the colt and Lyrical were wrapped in a black, shield like aura. Lyrical opens his eyes just to be covered in complete darkness. At first, he was scared, not knowing what to do, and screamed.



"GAUGH!!! HELP! HELP ME!" Lyrical shouted. He was silenced by an unknown hoof, covering his mouth. Lyrical looked around the black dome, only to find a glowing symbol. It's glow filled the entire dome, the light later fading away.  



Outside the dome.



The pony with the smiley face mask just stared at the black sphere in confusion. "The buck just happened?" Smiley pony said. He decided it would be wise to walk away from the dark magic like ball, pretending like it was never there. He was about to walk away, when heard something dragging along the floor. He turned around, eyes wide under the blood stained mask. In front of him, the lifeless body that was once in the same spot, was being dragged by a shadow like substance. The dead stallion’s body was slowly engulfed in black, and after a few seconds, it was gone. Not wanting to see what happened, he was galloping outside the door. He only made it towards the front yard, until he was struck by a shadow like pony from the back. Glowing white eyes with brown irises were the only feature he make of the shadow.



"Wha- What do you want!?" Smiley pony said, in front of the shadow pony. It only stared down at him, clearly pissed off.



"You killed my dad.." The shadow pony said. "And I want.....



Lyrical, who was also covered in shadow like armor, ran outside to the shadow covered pony. His eyes only widened as the pony raised its hoof. Lyrical shouted for him.



"SHADOW! STOP!!"



VENGEANCE!!!" It brought down a shadow like sword, heading straight for Smiley pony's skull.




	Lyrical woke up, gasping for air as if he could not breath. He quickly tried standing up, eyes closed. His head however, was met with a familiar soft, curly mane. He sniffed the air in front of him, snout quickly engulfed in sugar and other sweets. Lyrical quickly opened his eyes, In front of him, or should I say, on top of him, was none other than the grinned face, excited pony, Pinkie Pie. Lyrical looked around, tons of other ponies gathered around him, along with four other familiar mares, and one white coated, purple maned unicorn. He looked to his left, and saw Shadow, still knocked out, tons of other mares staring at him as well. Lyrical looked at his forelegs, both were being pinned down, due to Pinkie’s hooves being on top of him.



"Girls look!! He's up!!" Pinkie said, still staring into the eyes of Lyrical. The stallion, being SO VERY FREAKING SHY WITH TALKING TO GIRLS, felt his expression turn into a poker face look. Again, it only took him 10 seconds to realize the situation he was in.



'Pinkie Pie pinning me down while I was knocked down? Check.



Applejack, Twilight, that yellow pony from the park, and a white unicorn with a purple mane staring at me in confusion? Check.






Background ponies whose voices caused me and Shadow to crash into a house’s wall, are  standing around, some giggling and, staring at me? Check.



Pinkie's bangs over my eyes, touching my forehead and horn? Check.



Face, red again from awkward position?'



"Hey Lyri! Why does your face look so red?" Pinkie asked, innocently, smiling at Lyrical.


'.....Check'



	"Pinkie, I think you should get off of him." Rainbow said, nudging her pink friend. "I think he might be enjoying this." She said with a smirk. This only caused Lyrical's face to grow hotter each second. Pinkie, being the fun mare she is, only gave a confused smile.



"What do you mean Dashie? Of course he's enjoying this. It's his and Shad's party after all!" She turned to Lyrical, backing up a little, allowing him to see Pinkie's face."Are you enjoying the party so far Lyri? Huh? Are ya are ya are ya!?"



Lyrical, still red faced, gave a yes nod, causing Pinkie to make a realistic "squee" noise. "Sweet Celestia that was cute.." Lyrical said, loud enough for the main six to hear. Rarity just stared at Lyrical with amusement in her eyes.



"What was that dear?" She said. Realizing his quote, Lyrical got back on all his four hooves, quickly rushing to Shadow, trying to ignore Rarity. He made his way past the other mares, and a devious idea came to his mind. He walked up to the right side of Shadow, lifted both forelegs under his body, and flipped him over.



"GET UP!!" Lyrical said, throwing Shadow in the air. In response, Shadow opened his eyes, flapped his wings, and landed safely on the ground. A group of mares awed, causing Shadow to blush. He walked up to Lyrical, and hoof bumped him, glad to see his friend was all right. The rest of the partygoers just shrugged, and continued partying. Pinkie, being the unpredictable mare she is, hung upside down between Lyrical and Shadow's hoof bump, grinning and embracing them in a tight, breath taking hug, causing both of the friends to blush.



"It's time to meet my friends!" Pinkie said, falling down from the ceiling, still hugging Lyrical and Shadow. She dragged them by the waist, placing them in front of the other five mares. "That's Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Twilight Sparkle, and Rarity!" She said in an upbeat tone. Shadow and Lyrical already knew who the other three were, but they did not know much about Fluttershy and Rarity. The white unicorn was the first to speak, since Fluttershy was hiding behind her pink mane. Rarity gave a smile, causing Shadow and Lyrical to blush and smile back. She stuck her hoof out, waiting for one of the colts to shake it. Shadow and Lyrical stared at each other then shrugged.



"You first?" Shadow said. Lyrical shook his head.



"You first." Shadow shook his head, until eventually both of them shrugged.



"Both of us." They said in unison. Shadow and Lyrical leaned in and kissed Rarity's hoof. Not in the same spot of course but on opposite sides. Taken back a bit, Rarity was both shocked, giddy, and blushing at the same time. Shadow couldn't believe what he just did, but Lyrical just smiled at Rarity.



"My ma always told us that you should treat a mare with respect if she ever comes from Canterlot." Lyrical said shrugging. The other ponies just stared, mouths agape. Well besides Fluttershy, She was still behind her mane. Rarity, tried to hide her blush, but failed at doing so.



"Your mothers have raised such gentlecolts," Rarity continued. "It's a shame I am not from Canterlot though."



That hit Lyrical like a ton of bricks. How can this mare not be from Canterlot? His face quickly blushed, realizing he kissed a random but pretty mare's hoof. Rainbow Dash just fell to her sides, Shadow facehoofed, Pinkie was somewhere else, Twilight blushed a little, Fluttershy was still behind her mane, and Applejack just chuckled.



	"We'll now that you met Rarity," Twilight said, giggling softly. "I think it's time you meet Fluttershy. “Come on Fluttershy?" Lyrical and Shadow turned around to the quiet Pegasus. Shadow decided to grow some balls, while Lyrical turned the other way, his face deep red.



"Hi..." Shadow muttered. Fluttershy came out from behind her mane for a second, only to quickly retreat after seeing Shadow's facial features, she blushed slightly. The stallion turned a bit red and backed away slowly. "Maybe some other time." He said quietly. Lyrical turned around to his rejected friend, feeling bad for him, but oddly feeling better about himself. Suddenly, Pinkie Pie popped out of nowhere and poked his flank. He yelped and quickly turned around to see a giggling Pinkie.



"What does your cutie mark represent Lyri?" Pinkie asked. Shadow stood next to Lyrical. "Bro Mark." He reminded his friend. Lyrical gave a slightly sad expression. "It means my talent is rapping." He said a little bit grimly. Pinkie just smiled and bounced in place, while the other five mares, including Fluttershy, were curious.



"Rapping? What is that?" Rainbow asked, hovering over Lyrical.



"Is it a fashion design, darling?" Rarity asked.



"Does it involve some fancy mathematics?" Applejack said, waving her hooves, in front of her.



"Science?" Twilight perked up smiling.



"Singing?" Fluttershy managed to speak.



Lyrical only shook his head side to side."Nope, nope nope nope, and kind of. You see, rapping is-" He was cut off by Pinkie pushing him in front of a DJ before he could blink. She had electric blue mane and tail styles, white fur just like Rarity, and huge glasses. Her cutie mark was a music note. Pinkie bounced in place, talking to the mare. She then walked up to Lyrical with the white pony. "Lyri, this is DJ P0N-3, or Vinyl Scratch if you want." Vinyl nodded at the light brown pony, and he nodded back.



"So Lyrical, Pinkie told me you can rap?" She asked. Lyrical nodded and Vinyl smiled. "Great, now's your time to shine."



"Huh?" But before he could protest, Vinyl threw a microphone at Pinkie and him. He caught it with his magic, and Pinkie with her hooves. Vinyl smiled and turned to the crowd partying. "Hey everypony!" The gathered ponies stopped what they were doing. And stared at Vinyl, Pinkie and Lyrical.



"Tonight, our special friend Lyrical is going to be rapping." The crowd cheered in excitement, some confused, others just for the heck of it. Lyrical turned Pinkie around from the stage and stared at her. "Pinkie, I'm glad you and Vinyl let me rap, but I just can't. There's way too many ponies here and-" Lyrical was silenced by Pinkie's hoof.



	"Don't worry Lyri, I'll sing my part and yours will come up, understand." Lyrical was not very good at free-styling, but he couldn't say no to that smiling pink pony. With a defeated sigh, he agreed.



"Fine, lets just get this over with." Pinkie hugged him, causing Lyrical to blush. They both made their way to the front of the DJ equipment. Lyrical and Pinkie gave a nod, signaling for Vinyl to start.



"Here we go." Lyrical said with a shaky voice. Soon Vinyl starts the beat, and everypony is quiet.


Click here for music.

Pinkie: When you're rife with devastation


There's a simple explanation:


You're a toymaker's creation


Trapped inside a crystal ball


And whichever way he tilts it


Know that we must be resilient


We won't let them break our spirits


As we sing this silly song


When I was a little filly, a galloping blaze overtook my city


So they shipped me off to the orphanage. Said, "ditch those roots if you wanna fit in"


So I dug one thousand holes and cut a rug with orphan foals


Memories are blurred, and their faces are obscured, but I still, know the words to this song


When you've bungled all your bangles


And your loved ones have been mangled


Listen to the jingle jangle


Of my gypsy tambourine


'Cause these chords are hypnotizing


And the whole world's harmonizing


So please children stop your crying


And just sing along with me


Lyrical: Everypony gather 'round, stomp your hooves on the ground,


wake the colts and fillies with our happy silly sounds,


Pink and Lyrical on this track shaking up the house,


Are you all happy with what you found?


Smile smile smile through, all the hurtful pain,


Life is short so chill out and play!


Every day's colorful so stay outta grey,


Scream the word "yay!" and smile in the rain.


When you party with the pink pony everything is fun,


give a goofy grin and stick out your tongue,


every pony rise and sing along,


Yo Pinkie, show these colts and fillies how to sing this song.


Pinkie: Gladly!


When I was a little filly, a galloping blaze overtook my city


So they shipped me off to the orphanage. Said, "ditch those roots if you wanna fit in"


So I dug one thousand holes and cut a rug with orphan foals


Memories are blurred, and their faces are obscured, but I still, know the words to this song


Lyrical: When you've bungled all your bangles


And your loved ones have been mangled


Listen to the jingle jangle


Of my gypsy tambourine


Pinkie:'Cause these chords are hypnotizing


And the whole world's harmonizing


So please children stop your crying


And just sing along with me!


BOTH:When you've bungled all your bangles


And your loved ones have been mangled


Listen to the jingle jangle


Of my gypsy tambourine


'Cause these chords are hypnotizing


And the whole world's harmonizing


So please children stop your crying


And just sing along with me!


	Lyrical  was back to back with Pinkie, both raised their hooves in the air while they struck a winning pose.



"...They’re not cheering." Lyrical said, worried the crowd did not like it. Pinkie only smirked.



"Wait for it." She chimed.



Suddenly, the whole crowd went wild. Hooves were stomping on the ground, mares whistling and in the distance, Lyrical could have sworn he saw an alicorn yelling DOPE! then vanishing in a flash. Besides that, the unicorn was happy that he overcame his fear of performing in front of large crowds.



The whole night, ponies partied, Lyrical and Shadow Bro Hoofed, and chilled out with the mane six. Lyrical did not notice Vinyl was standing next to a grey earth pony with a black mane and light pink bow tie after his performance.


"He's not that bad, could use some work but he ain't bad. What do you think Tavi?" Vinyl said, pointing at Lyrical who was chugging down some hard cider.



"He needs to perfect his posture when performing onstage." Octavia said, fixing her bow tie. "But besides that, he is pretty good." Vinyl nodded in agreement, and continued to play some tunes while Octavia went to go get a drink.




It was a good day for Lyrical. His new life in Ponyville seems to be full of surprises.




> Moon Child.(e)
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


	The party is still going on in the inn, and surprisingly, it was only 10:30. Ponies kept partying, and Lyrical and Shadow were sitting at a round table with Rarity, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and Twilight Sparkle. They were all laughing and giggling about how both stallions get red every time they talk to a mare. Shadow, whose face was flushed, only smiled nervously at the mares’ antics. Pinkie noticed his blush, and smiled at her new friend. She somehow ducked beneath the table and sat between Shadow, and Lyrical, who were sitting, as expected, across from the girls. She embraced the stallions in a hug, causing Shadow to blush more. Pinkie grinned.



"Awe you don't have to blush when we’re here Shad! we’re your friends!" Pinkie said smiling. The other mares nodded in agreement. Shadow smiled, face still red. "Thanks Pinkie, it's just me and Lyrical aren't used to getting warm hugs like this everyday." For a second, everything was quiet. Pinkie turned her head slightly to the left, eyebrow raised.



"What do you mean you aren't used to getting warm hugs?" The other mares also raised a brow, causing Shadow to rethink his statement. "Well we do, b-but not from ponies we just met." He said, slightly stuttering. Pinkie smiled even wider, nearly squeezing Shadow to death. Shadow smiled, and hugged Pinkie back.



"You likes hugs too right Lyrical?" Pinkie said, turning to her left. Lyrical was just sitting there, still in Pinkie's death grip, but did not respond. Worried, Pinkie shook him. Lyri? Is everything OK?"



Lyrical still did not respond, he just kept staring forward. Pinkie looked in his direction, and saw what his gaze found.



"Lyri, why are you looking out the window?"  Pinkie said, sitting on top of Lyrical's head, with a smiling attitude that says, "Zero bucks are being given." Shadow manages to escape from her iron hug grip, and lightly pushes Lyrical.



"Bro, you OK?" He says. Lyrical snapped out of his stupor and turns his head to Shadow. "I think I'm going outside for awhile." The male unicorn then turns towards Pinkie, who was still staring into his eyes. "Thanks for the party Pinkie, but I'm going outside okay?" At first, Pinkie looked sad, making Lyrical regret his decision, but she smiles and hops off his head. "It's OK Lyri, just make sure you have some cake when you come back." Lyrical smiles and heads his way towards the door.



"Whats wrong with him?" Rainbow said after Lyrical leaves. Shadow only shook his head. "I don't know, but lets just give him some time to be alone." With six other agreeing nods, Pinkie stands up from the table, bringing out a large, blue cannon out of nowhere. The mares  just giggled while Shadow just stared, mouth agape. Twilight noticed the look on his face and smiled. "Don't worry, it’s Pinkie being Pinkie, you'll get used to it." Shadow just stared at the pink one, head nodding. Pinkie just lit the fuse on the cannon and covered her ears.



"PARTY IN THE HOLE!!" A sudden explosion came from the cannon, shooting out straw hats and flowers. She put one of the hats on her head and smiled.



"CONGA LINE!!!"






Lyrical closes the door behind him and sighs. He has only been in Ponyville for one day, and he already misses his loved ones. He turns around from facing the door and walks towards the center of the town. It was a beautiful night, Luna outdid herself yet again. The stars and moon were as bright as Luna's own mane. Lyrical smiles and stands in front of a fountain. He looks up at the moon, a small tear escaping his eye. He sighs yet again and walks around the fountain, thinking about his new life.



"So this is Ponyville huh?" He says out loud, staring at the houses and gardens. "It's a lot better than Detrot, I'll say." Lytical stops in front of the fountain, once again staring directly at the moon. He smiles at the memory he had with his father, going outside every night and staring into the few stars that were not covered from the cloudy skies in Detrot. He tries not to cry, but more tears were rolling down his fur. He stares at the ground covered in small tear drops and smiles.



"Ha, first day and I get all emotional already." He cleans his face with his left foreleg. Putting on the white hood of his hoodie, Lyrical heads to the nearest hill he saw. He climbed it, and behind, he saw the glowing moon itself.



"Damn, it looks so close yet it is so far." He thinks of reaching the moon with his own foreleg, but decides to just stand and stare at the giant, beautiful white glowing orb. Lyrical starts thinking of past memories. He and Shadow had to fight all their lives against neighborhood gangs, bullies,and even the cold.



"Shadow and I have gone through some tough times, survived them, yet I'm still scarred. All the lies I have heard, all the pain I have felt, all the shit that's been thrown at me and I still stand....Why?"



He looks at the moon and just smiles.



"Ya know, I never really liked the sunshine that much. It always got in my eyes when I wake up." Lyrical said to no one, chuckling to himself. His eyes widened at the moon. Everything about it just made him smile. The way it would guide him home when he got lost. The stories his father would make up using no pony other than Princess Luna.



Luna.



Though she was Nightmare Moon, Lyrical never really hated her night. 'Nopony liked her glorious night skies,' His dad would tell him. 'They would cry in the dark and laugh in the light.' Lyrical smiled at the stars in the sky. "Luna, If you’re listening up there, some pony does like your night sky. And his name is Lyrical."



Lyrical turns around to leave, but a sudden  memory entered his brain.



'Luna was also a singer Lirico.' His father said. Lyrical turns around and gazes at the moon. He sighs, and then smiles.



"My pa told me you were a singer. We'll, I'm not a singer, I'm more of a rapper. But you’re a princess, so I guess poetry would do?" Lyrical stayed quietly, waiting for a response. The wind that was blowing the trees stopped, and for a second, Lyrical could have sworn the stars grew brighter.



"I'll take that as a yes." Lyrical chuckles.






The princess of the night stares into her starry sky. Smiling at another creation of hers. Ever since her return though, she has been trying to perfect her night sky for the ponies across Equestria. Sadly, some still fear her, even after her first appearance in Nightmare Night. She sighs, a tear rolling down her furry, dark blue cheek.



"Let's take a look at Ponyville, maybe some pony will enjoy my night sky." She says, sniffling. She lines up four stars, and pushes them with her magic to four corners. The stars connect with each other by a very thin, glowing line, creating an all most screen like appearance.



(There's a hint in case you think she does play video games.



Luna waves a hoof at the center of the square, creating a map like structure of Equestria. "Take me to Ponyville please." Luna says. The map zooms in to the village, viewing the town in the dark. Luckily for Luna, she can see in the night time. The screen moves around the town searching for ponies. Luna could not find one, but she did notice a 'house party' with all the lights on and blasting music.



"They even celebrate in the night, but refuse to go outside." Luna says glumly. She was about to move the stars from the corners, until she saw a light brown stallion walk out of the door. "Is it not too late for him to leave?" Luna says, eyebrow raised.  The pony with the hoodie walks away from the party, and stares up into the night sky.



"Is....is he smiling at MY, night sky?" Luna says out loud confused. She shakes her head, thinking he was smiling about something else. "He must be glad the party is over." She says sadly. The stallion walks around a fountain, stops and stares at the ground. Luna noticed small little glitters falling from his face. She assumed he was crying. Not wanting to stare at the crying pony, she decided to close the portal.




"Ya know, I never really liked the sunshine that much. It always got in my eyes when I wake up."



Luna stopped the portal from closing in shock. Did this pony say what she thought he just said?



"Luna, If you’re listening up there, some pony does like your night sky. And his name is Lyrical."



Yup. He did.



Luna could not believe what she heard. How can somepony not like her sister's sunshine? The princess felt a smile creep on her face, tears of joy rolling down her eyes. "This...Lyrical enjoys my night skies more than sister's sun.....



IN YOUR FACE!!!!" Luna shouts. She realizes her sudden outburst and covers her mouth. She looks around but there were no ponies around. She turns back to see Lyrical walk away, a sudden rush of sadness filled her heart. Her eyes however, grew wide when he turned around.



"My pa told me you were a singer. We'll, I'm not a singer, I'm more of a rapper. But you’re a princess, so I guess poetry would do?" Lyrical said to the moon. Luna did in fact sing, and enjoyed poetry. She did not know what this "rap" was, but she kept it in the back of  her head to remember later. Noticing Lyrical waiting, Luna stopped the wind for a brief second. Her stars grew brighter, signaling Lyrical to proceed.



"I'll take that as a yes." Lyrical chuckled.



Luna raised her ears, waiting for the stallion to speak.






Lyrical cleared his throat, staring into the center of the moon. "I'm not that good freestyler, but what I say will come straight from the heart, Princess."


Moon Child
When I was but a foal, my father would tell me stories,
About how a certain princess, poured her heart into the sky for her ponies.
Sadly, they did not enjoy the darkness of the night,
For when in fright, the children would look for their flashlight.
She was a sad princess, nopony admired her work.
They would rather play in the sun, then to witness a stars birth.  
But there was one who would stare up into space.
admiring her work, brought smiles to his face.
His life was tough, and he struggled every day.
But when the night time came, all the sadness was drained.
In all honesty, he did not enjoy the sun so much,
for when he woke up, his eyes would have the worst of luck!
He has heard other stories, of how she was once a Nightmare.
But this colt knew, that she was a beautiful mare.
Just hurt from the pain, of being ignored,
But there was this stallion, telling her, "You are Lonely no more."
Moon Child, oh Moon Child, Princess of the Night,
Princess Luna, or Nightmare Moon,
I am glad to be in your moons light.


	Everything was quiet. Lyrical could not even hear the sound of booming music coming from the inn. He smiled at the moon, and stared into the starry night sky.



"Good night Princess Luna, I'll be waiting for another sparkling sky." He walked away from the hill, a smile on his face. He turned around once again and ran on top of the hill.



"Oh and Princess? I bet Celestia never gets poems like that huh?" Lyrical chuckles to himself, and walks back to the inn.





Luna stood there, eyes widened. She was in shock, sadness and in joy at Lyrical's words. "I can't remember the last time somepony dedicated a poem to me." She said, eyes slowly starting to flow with tears. She wipes her face with her foreleg and smiles.



"Thank you, Lyrical. I will remember this night." She says as she closes the portal.



"No, Celestia might be praised more than I am, but at least I get more poems than she does." and with that, Luna giggled and closed the portal, sending the stars back to their places.



	That whole night, Luna was happy that one pony enjoyed her beautiful night sky.






Lyrical walks back into the inn, and to his surprise, it was empty. All the mess was cleaned up, and only seven ponies stood in the lobby. He walks over to them, and Shadow was the first to notice his arrival



"Hey Lyrical you’re back!! What took you so long?" Pinkie jumped out of Lyrical's hoodie, laying on top of his mane. "Yea!! where were you!?" Pinkie said smiling. Lyrical looked up and smiled at the pink pony, levitating her off of his head.



	"I just went for a walk Pinkie, nothing special." He said smiling. All the ponies were suspicious, including the element of Honesty herself, Applejack. She walked up to Lyrical and stared him in the eye.



"Lyrical, are you lying?" The male unicorn only looked at the mare and smiled. To her surprise, she was embraced in a hug. Lyrical's face was only a little bit red, while Applejack’s was completely flushed He let her go and she stammered back.



"Wha- What was that fer?" She said, face still red. Lyrical only smiled and shrugged.



"I don't know." He said happily. He walks away from the seven baffled ponies and into his room. "Night." He said, and closed the door.



"Wha- What just happened?" Applejack said. Shadow shrugged, and walked into the room as well, while the others giggled and left, leaving a red faced Applejack alone with her wonder.



"What the hay is going on here!?"




> Jobs, Nakedness, and breakfast.(e)
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


	Yesterday's events were pretty crazy for Lyrical and Shadow. Being tackled and almost hugged to death by Pinkie's iron grip, meeting the other mares red faced through some embarrassing moments, Lyrical performing on stage in front of the whole town. Well, besides the colts and fillies but you get the idea. Not to mention Lyrical's poem to the night princess herself. Life was good for Lyrical and Shadow so far. But there was just one problem.



	BITS!



Before Lyrical left for Ponyville, he decided to send money to his family back in Detrot. You see, money was always tight for them, and having five other mouths to feed was not easy for his father. He was a hard working stallion, stubborn and grouchy sometimes, but he cared for his family. So the day Lyrical's dad died. 



.....


He decided that when he grew up, he would help his family with bills. But first, he has to get a job. He did, but they did not pay him as much. Lyrical use to work at a Hay and Vegetables shop. He would season the vegetables, sell them, collect the bits, clean the store, and repeat. He did not want to do this everyday, so when he saved enough, he bought the next train ticket to Ponyville. His father talked to him about finding a job, even at an early age. But his dad wanted him to have a job he would love. In fact, he did not want a job. He wanted a career.



	But here he is, in Ponyville, renting a room thanks to his buddy Shadow, who also wanted to move with his bro Lyrical. Now all he has to do is earn some bits, send some home for the family and keep a little for himself. Pretty easy day it’s going to be.



Right?






	Lyrical wakes up, the sun shining in his face once again. Man he hated it. The freaking moonlight doesn't blind you...unlike the sun. He slowly gets up, all groggily like. His eyes were half open, under them were dark bags. He clicked his tongue and looked around the room. It was a really big mess, even though he had been there once. Twice now that he slept in it. He turned to the clock at his left and the time read 11:00.



"Ha, if I was back in Detrot I would have been late..." Lyrical said, opening his mouth for a loud yawn. He slowly got out of his bed, weakly and lazily. He quickly fell on the ground, face making contact, strangely not making a noise. He closed his eyes, preparing to sleep again. "HMMMM....This carpet is so soft, and sweet, and pink....



Pink?"  



	Lyrical's eyes shot open, and he was indeed, laying on top of a pink party pony, her stomach on the ground and Lyrical  facing the other side, cross like.  Normally, Lyrical would freak out and turn red, but because it was a Friday, he was too lazy to do anything but stand. He got off of the pink pony and made his way to the bathroom, not quite ready to start a new day. He grabbed a nearby towel from the towel rack and turned the nozzle on warm. He took off his hoodie, closed the door, and sleepily made his way in the tub. He closed the curtains, and his coat and mane were immediately covered in warm water.



"Ahhhhhh, that feels better." Lyrical said, standing in the middle of the running water. He grabbed a nearby loofah and scrubbed. After about 10 minutes, he walked out of the shower, towel wrapped around his waist. He looked in the mirror, mane all wet and the spiky, messy part of his hair covering his eyes. He moved them out of the way, and smiled at his own reflection.



"New town, new beginnings." He muttered. His shiny, grey-white eyes in the mirror stared back at him. After about what seemed like centuries, he dried his mane, reverting it back to its old, spiky, messy self.



"Wait," He realized, 'What about Pinkie? How is Shadow going to-"



"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!! PINKIE WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE!?"



Lyrical walks out of the bathroom to see Shadow red faced and Pinkie yawning, smiling.



"-react." Lyrical said chuckling. Shadow turns around to his laughing friend, a thought suddenly coming to him.



"Lyrical, why are you wearing a towel?" He said. The unicorn looks down at his waist and shrugs. "I don't know, just felt like it I guess." He walks over to his suitcase and searches for a hoodie he would like to wear.



"Red? Nah. Blue? Nah. Black? Naahhh not today. All white? Sure why not."



	Shadow rolls his eyes, and noticed Pinkie smiling at him. But this was no regular smile, no it was a mischievous grin. She looks at Lyrical, and then back at Shadow. At  first the pegasus was confused, but then grinned at Pinkie's idea. Both ponies slowly walked up behind Lyrical, who was deciding between an all white hoodie or and all black hoodie. He turns around just in time to face a smiling Pinkie and a chuckling Shadow.



"Hey, should I go with all black or all-Why does it feel so breezy all of a sudden?" He asks, eyebrow raised.  Pinkie and Shadow were now on the floor laughing their flanks off. Slowly, Pinkie raises part  of a white towel, while Shadow raises the other. Slowly, Lyrical's eyes widen, and he looks behind him. The towel that was covering him was gone. Red faced, he pulls the towel back from the Pink one and the Grey one, and places it over his flank. Pinkie slowly gets back up, still giggling.



"Whats wrong Lyri?" She says innocently. Shadow slowly gets back up, still laughing. "Yea...whats wrong Lyrics?" The unicorn glares at Shadow,



"Dude, not cool. I WAS NAKED FOR 5 SECONDS!" Shadow stopped laughing and gave Lyrical a "are you serious?" look. "Bro, we’re always naked."



The words echoed in Lyrical's head. Slowly, he raised his left hoof, and slaps himself in the face. Defeated, he drops the towel and puts on the all white hoodie. "Say Pinkie, why did you come to our room? I thought you went home?" Shadow said. Pinkie was messing with one of Lyrical's hoodies, and placed it on. It was a light blue hoodie, matching her eyes.



"Hmm? Oh! I came by to leave you some cake, but then I fell asleep." She said, sticking her head through the hoodie.



"...That's it?" Shadow and Lyrical said in unison.



"Yup!" She said. Both stallions chuckled. Lyrical had to admit, she did look cute in his hoodie.



"Oh! and I want to know if you guys would like to come and get some breakfast at Sugar Cube Corner." She said. Shadow thought about it and nodded his head. "How about you Lyrics?" He said.



Lyrical was outside in the lobby, already waiting. Pinkie giggled and Shadow smiled. "That would be a yes Pinkie."



	Lyrical was outside in the lobby wondering around with a growling stomach. He stumbles over something, and looks down. He sees a mixed tape, labeled "For the rapper." He picks it up, and since he was the only rapper in the inn, placed it in the pocket of his hoodie. He turns around to the hallway where his room is and waits.



"LYRICAL HUNGRY!!" He says. Pinkie walks out of the room, followed by a hungry Shadow.  The pink pony comes out of Lyrical’s hoodie, sits in his hair, and points towards the door.



"ONWARD POWERFUL STEED!! TO THE SUGAR OF CUBE CORNERS!" She exclaimed   giggling. Shadow and Lyrical chuckle with her giggle, and set their way towards the store.






	Lyrical, Shadow, and Pinkie, who was still sitting in Lyrical's messy, spiky hair, walked into the bakery. The sign said it was closed, But Pinkie had a key, allowing them to enter the sweet, wonderland. Instantly, Lyrical and Shadow's snouts were filled with the smell of sweets. Lyrical was drooling, staring absentmindedly at sweets, while Shadow took out some bits. "So Pinkie, how much do we have to pay?"



Pinkie gasped and rushed up to Shadow. "One does not pay, when you are with the pink one." She said smiling.



"....What?" Pinkie, in a fit of giggles, dragged Shadow by the foreleg into the kitchen behind the counter. Lyrical, who was not paying attention at all, did not noticed the pegasus being thrown and, crashing into the kitchen. Pinkie jumped behind it, landing perfectly on her hooves while Shadow fell into a bag filled with powder. He got up, shaking the white powder off of him. Pinkie, who was just in front of him, somehow came from behind him and sit on his back. Shadow noticed his sudden weight change and looked behind him. Pinkie, who was still using him as a chair, had a cupcake pan in one hoof and a cake cutter in the other. While his face was red, Shadow just smiled at the pink pony.



"Pinkie, what are you doing?" For once, the pink one had a serious expression on her face. She looked Shadow in the eye.



"My name is not Pinkie Pie grey one. In this time of breakfast, you will address me as The blue hooded chef. Now..."



She hops off of Shadow, placing a small, white chef's hat on him. Standing on her hind legs, cupcake pan covering one side of her body like a shield, wielding the cake cutter in the air with other hoof, she takes a dramatic pose.



"LET’S GET BAKIN"!!" Shadow stares out of the doorway to see Lyrical, staring at the goods with hungry eyes. He looks back at the still posed Pinkie.



".....May Celestia have mercy on my soul..."






Meanwhile outside of the kitchen...  




	Lyrical was drooling over the sweets under the locked counter. Chocolate chip cake, apple pie, chocolate covered eclairs and....



Glazed donuts.



Now you might be thinking, "Glazed donuts? Seriously Lyrical?" in your head, but Lyrical had a sweet memory about these specific donuts long ago.



	It was a chilly Friday morning in southwest Detrot, and poor Lyrical had to walk to school in the snow. Only wearing a dark brown hoodie with brown and light brown checker marks covering the sleeves as designs, he walked through the cold. He was far from school, and he did not have the will to go on. He fell in front of a store, eyes closed.



"I'm going to die." He thought. "Goodbye cruel wor-WHAT’S THAT SMELL!?" Snapping out of his not overly dramatic death, he walked into the store. It was warm inside the building. Walking around, he noticed a mare standing behind a counter with a doughnut cutie mark. He walks up to the mare, and asked about what she was selling.



"Glazed Donuts." She said with a smile.The unicorn took out one bit, and the mare gave him one, hot glazed sweet. Lyrical, who was not as good with magic back then, took it with a hoof, and slowly took a bite out of the doughnut.



".....It tastes as if Celestia glazed this wonderful baked good with her own magic." He said, raising the sweet donut in the air. He looked at the smiling mare and he whips out five more bits.



"...MORE." He said hungrily. He took a small bag of hot glazed donuts and ate them on his way to school, and they were delicious.



Sure he wound up arriving 2 hours late but who cares! Them goods were good!



	Lyrical snaps out of his daydream, and places his hooves on the counter. "You will be mine my love." He says. Turning around, he sees a mare with black hair and a grey coat staring at him with confusion. Her cutie mark was a musical note of some sort. To her left, was a familiar DJ, snickering. Her shades were covering her eyes, but Lyrical did not care. He stares at the two mares for a second, face turns a little bit red, and he lets out a small smile.




"Err, did you hear that?" Lyrical said, scratching behind his mane with one hoof. Vinyl stops snickering and Octavia rolls her eyes. "Yea, we heard it all buddy." She turns her head to Octavia and nudges her side. "Right Octavia?"



Octavia lets out an annoyed sigh. "Of course, I did not know you liked glazed donuts Lyrical." The male unicorn chuckles, and his blush decreases. He realized who he was talking to.



"I'm sorry, but who are you? I never told you my name."



Well he did not know who he was talking to but hey, can't blame the guy for not knowing.



Octavia looked shocked, while Vinyl rolled her eyes under her shades. "How can you not know me? I was at your party! Vinyl, did you not tell him who I am?" The DJ pony on the other hoof, was bobbing her head up and down to some music she was listening to. "Figures." Octavia sighs. She fixes her bow tie, and looks Lyrical in the eye.



"My name is Octavia Melody, a musician who specializes in playing the cello.”



"Yea I kinda figured music was important to you, considering your cutie mark.” Lyrical mutters.



"What was that?"



"Hmm?"



	"...Anyway, Vinyl and I were walking into town, until we noticed you, Pinkie and another stallion walk in here. The sign said it was closed, but Pinkie Pie must have left it open."



'Hey, where are Pinkie and Shadow anyway?' Lyrical thinks to himself.






In the kitchen



"I'M HIT! I'M HIT!!!" Shadow said, clutching his right side, which was covered in red frosting. Pinkie stepped in front of the stallion, protecting him from the oven that was shooting out red frosted chocolate cupcakes. The cupcake pan she had in her hoof was deflecting the cupcakes, but she knew at any moment, the pan could shatter from the sheer, sweetness of the baked goods.



"GET OFF YOUR FLANK SOLDIER! WE GOT CUPCAKES TO TAME!!" Pinkie pushes Shadow out of the way, and jumps into the air.



Slow-mo style.



She lands on top of the oven, laughing as she jams the cake cutter into its handle. Pinkie closes it, and jumps off of the machine. She lands in front of Shadow, and behind her, the machine explodes, with red frosting and chocolate chunks flying around. Shadow could only stare in awe as the mini explosion filled the room with red frosting.



"GET UP SOLDIER! WE HAVE TO CLEAN THIS MESS AND STILL MAKE BREAKFAST!!" She gives Shadow a mop and bucket she got out of nowhere. The pegasus could only sigh.



"What have I gotten myself into?"






	Outside of the kitchen..



'Meh, I'm sure they're good.' He thought, completely oblivious to the noise that just happened behind him. Only Octavia noticed this.



"Did any pony hear that loud boom?" She asks. Lyrical shakes his head to clear his thoughts, and Vinyl takes out one ear bud.



"What?"  



Octavia's eyebrow twitched, wanting to give them both a piece of her mind. But then she remembered why they followed Lyrical. She nudges Vinyl's side, and in response, the DJ nods back.



"Listen Lyric's, we followed you here because we want you to work at my club, rapping and entertaining our guests."



	At first, Lyrical thought they were kidding, but remembering yesterday's events, he grins widely. But he also remembered why he wanted a job in the first place.



"I don't want to sound greedy, but how much will it be?" Lyrical asked. Vinyl shrugs and Octavia speaks. "It depends on how well your first performance is. We can't just pay anypony like that. They need to prove themselves." Lyrical was hurt a little bit by her lack of faith, but quickly smiled. 



"That’s OK, I'll be glad to rap for you guys." Octavia snickered and Vinyl grins.



"Who said it was for us?" Vinyl said.



"...What?" Lyrical asked confused.



"You’re going to be performing in front of other ponies Lyrical," Octavia said. The stallion felt his heart fall for a split second. Vinyl chuckles. "You start next Friday, I'll come for you when it's time ok?" Before Lyrical could protest, the mares made their way out of the building. Octavia leaves while Vinyl turns around to the shocked Lyrical. She gives him a mix tape player and earphones. She lifts up her shades, revealing her blood red eyes, leans into Lyrical's ear and whispers.



"By the way, nice 'Cutie Mark.' "



She leans away to a deep red faced Lyrical, and giggles. "You’re too easy to embarrass you know that? Chow." With that, she leaves the flushed unicorn by himself. He snaps out of his stupor when his stomach grumbles and he enters the kitchen.



	"Hey did you guys finish ma-" He was cut off by a small chocolate cake smacking into his face. He hears Pinkie and Shadow laughing.



"..-Breakfast. Ah who cares, it's cake." He licks the frosting and chocolate chunks from his face, finds a nearby cupcake, picks it up with his magic and grins



"My turn."



And in a matter of seconds, Pinkie and Shadow were covered in frosting. Where those extra cupcakes came from we will never know but we do know this.




Red frosting stains white hoodies, buck!!



> Apples and Clothing Part 1(e)
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	
12:00



	After a full belly of sweets and leaning up the kitchen, Lyrical and Shadow waved goodbye to Pinkie Pie and proceeded to their next destination. "So, where to next Lyrical?" Shadow said, walking next to his buddy. The unicorn was licking some red paste from his left shoulder. He frowned a bit. His all white hoodie was covered in frosting, but he shrugged, he couldn't stay mad a Pinkie. In fact, he could never be mad at Pinkie, that bubbly attitude and face full of smiles made him feel like there weren't any problems.



In Ponyville..



"Yo, Lyrical, what's next on the quest for jobs?" Shadow said, slightly pushing his friend. Lyrical snapped out of his daze and stopped in his tracts. "Well, I think I'ma go back to the inn and see if they got a washing machine." He sighed. Lyrical knew the stains would not fully evaporate, but he had to clean anyways. Shadow nodded, waiting for his buddy to respond.



"Alright, how about you go chill in the clouds or something? Don't want to hold you back, you know." Shadow protested, but Lyrical turned around, eyes closed.



"Ain't taking no for an answer, go chill with Rainbow Dash or some-" He was cut short however, bumping into a random pony. Lyrical fell on his flank, along with the other pony who bumped into him. Lyrical slowly got up, slightly irritated. "Hey, watch where you go...ing?"



	The pony who bumped into Lyrical, was Rarity. Her purple mane styled to perfection, white coat as bright as the white, snowball clouds. Behind her, she was accompanied by a small filly. Her mane was a bit swirly with two colors, light pink and a really light purple. She was a unicorn as well, except she did not have her cutie mark yet. Rarity got up, eyes closed, with her sister standing in front of Lyrical.



"Why did you push her you big meanie!" She said, trying to hurt Lyrical. She was on her hind hooves, "punching" Lyrical's red stained hoodie. Lyrical only smiled.



'DAWWWWWWW!' he thought. 'She's trying to hurt me, that's cute!' The filly kept hitting Lyrical, while he was smiling at her attempt of injuring him. Lyrical saw a white blob rise behind the filly before he heard a scream.



"WAHH!!! Sweetie Belle! You’re going to get your coat stained if you keep assaulting him!" Rarity exclaimed. Sweetie Belle turned around with a look of confusion. "But Rarity, he pushed you to the ground!" She said, turning back around to stare at Lyrical. "Say you’re sorry!" She demanded. Not wanting to cause anymore problems, Lyrical smiled at the little filly and looked apologetically at Rarity.



	"Sorry I bumped into you Rarity, I was just about to go back to the inn to wash my clothes." For a second, Lyrical saw Rarity's eyes widen and then twinkle.



"Really? Well I have a washing machine at home, and you can use it if you like." She said with a smile. Even though they met yesterday on....certain circumstances, Lyrical could not understand why she was so generous. He smiled and shook his head.


"Nah, I'm good Rarity, but thanks for the off-" He was cut off by a light blue magic aura clamping his mouth shut. Sweetie Belle giggled, and Rarity only smiled.



"Oh no you don't! That hoodie of yours is stained with too much frosting. Luckily partying with Pinkie allowed me to create a spell that could clean any stain, as long as it is drenched in water, soap, and properly hanged. I will not take no for an answer Lyrical, now, let's go!" Rarity began tugging the stallion by the hood, a worried look in his eyes. He looked to see dark grey feathers in the same spot where Shadow was.



'That grey feathered colt's gonna pay when I see him..' Lyrical joked. He was being dragged by his hoodie, with his flank being dragged on the ground. Sweetie Belle began to follow him, already satisfied with the stallion's apology.



"One more thing darling, I need some help with dresses, and Sweetie Belle is too small for her to fit into one of them. So, I am going to need your help while your hoodie is being cleansed." She said in a happy tone.



"Yea! And when you finish helping my sister, you can play with me! You like tea parties, right?" Sweetie said.


'......Celestia, if you are listening, HELP ME.' Lyrical said in his head.



The only thing he got was a sudden shiver up his spine, and increased warmth from being in the hoodie.





Canterlot



	Luna was in her room, and even though it is day time, she could not sleep, knowing that brown pony was out there admiring her work. She lay in her bed, smiling the entire time.



"I still cannot believe that some pony enjoys my night...it makes me feel happy." She smiles. Luna sits on the edge of her bed, opening the balcony door in the process. She gets up from the bed, and walks out of her room to stand at the balcony, smiling down at the city of Canterlot. Above the horizon, she can see the small town she was once in for Nightmare Night.



Ponyville.



Luna smiles, remembering the small colts and fillies she met. Even though some were afraid, they still had fun with her that night. She, of course, remembers the small, colt from Trottingham. He wore a pirate costume, gold rings and everything. He had brown spots on his coat, which was pure white. "A fun little earth pony he is, that Pip." Luna said, watching over the citizens of Ponyville. From behind, she hears her door creak. She turns around slowly to be greeted by an all white pony, and like Luna, she was also an Alicorn, a pony with wings, horn, and the same abilities as an earth pony. She was tall, a little bit taller than Luna, and had a motherly like tone. Luna smiles and walks towards her.



	"Hello sister." Luna said, greeting the alicorn. In response, the newcomer smiles and hugs Luna, who gives her an annoyed look. "Celestia, I do not want to be rude, but why are you in my room?" The Sun Princess Celestia smiles and closes her eyes. "I was just wondering why you are awake LuLu."



Luna sighed. She did have a few nicknames for the day princess herself. "Celly, you know I am nocturnal right?" Luna said. Celestia smiled and nuzzled her little sister. "I know, but even a pony of your age needs her sleep, Woona." Luna facehoofed. She did not like to be called LuLu, let alone Woona. But she put up with it, for Celestia's sake.



	"Celly! Stop calling me that!" She whined. "I told you ever since we were foals, I don't like to be called that." Celestia chuckled, Luna pouted, then too soon broke out into friendly laughter before she spoke.



"Celestia? I do not remember if we have ever gotten poems. Do you?" Luna asked. On the outside, she did not remember the last time she or her older sister received a poem. But on the inside, she was holding back a grin, knowing her sister has NEVER received a poem. Praises and thanks yes, but a poem?



"No Luna, I do not remember the last time you or I received a poem. Why do you ask?" Luna could not hold back anymore. The hidden grin behind her curious face showed, making Celestia raise a brow and smile. "And what is so funny sister?" She asks playfully.



"Oh nothing, it is just that I received a poem from a resident of Ponyville last night." She smirked. This time, Celestia raised both brows.



"And who was this poem from LuLu?" She asked. Ignoring her nickname, Luna conjured up a memory spell, and touched Celestia's  forehead with her horn.



	Celestia was greeted by Luna's memories of the night she received the poem. A light brown pony was walking out of an inn, toward a fountain. Celestia did not like seeing her ponies cry, for it would hurt her as well. But before she could tell Luna to stop, the light brown stallion stared up into the sky. He walked to a hill, and gazed at the moon. He smiled and to Celestia's surprise, he said the following words.



"Ya know, I never really liked the sunshine that much. It always got in my eyes when I wake up."



This sentence. This sentence right here? It almost caused Celestia to leave her mouth wide open in shock. How can somepony not enjoy her sun's shine.







"Luna, If you’re listening up there, some pony does like your night sky. And his name is Lyrical."



	Celestia smiled at the stallion's kindness. No pony has complimented her sister’s starry night sky in so long, and this Lyrical was the first to do so. She noticed the pony walk away, until he turned back around.



"My pa told me you were a singer. We'll, I'm not a singer, I'm more of a rapper. But you’re a princess, so I guess poetry would do?"



Celestia smiled at the memorized pony. Poetry she was very familiar with, but rap? What was this rap? She stayed quiet when Lyrical performed his poem to the night sky. She was impressed by Lyrical's words, and still surprised at how he enjoyed night time more than the day. As soon as he finished, Celestia did a mental nod, approving his poem.



"Oh and Princess? I bet Celestia never gets poems like that huh?"



Before Celestia could say anything, the memory stopped right there, and behind the fading flash of light, stood Luna with a smug look on her face. Celestia's face on the other hoof, was mixed with confusion, happiness, and a hint of anger.



"Well?" Luna asked. "What did you think of his poem, sister?"



Celestia stood up quietly and walked out of Luna's room. Before she was out of earshot, Celestia heard Luna’s words.



"Aren't thou mad sister?"



	Celestia walked into her room, clearly jealous that she has never received a poem herself. Her horn glowed, revealing the entire landscape of Equestria: It was almost like she used the sun as a window. She looked down into Ponyville, and zoomed in and searched for the one called "Lyrical". In a short amount of time, she found the light brown stallion being dragged by the element of generosity. She zoomed into him closer, attempting to listen to their conversation.



"One more thing darling, I need some help with dresses, and Sweetie Belle is too small for her to fit into one of them. So, I am going to need your help while your hoodie is being cleansed."



"Yea! And when you finish helping my sister, you can play with me! You like tea parties right?"



	'......Celestia, if you are listening, HELP ME.'  She heard him say in his head. Celestia only smiled, and increased the heat, causing the hoodie to warm up a bit, and shining the light in his eyes.



"That will teach him for not sending a poem to me." She said, smiling. She then went on her regular day, royal business and such.






Meanwhile with Shadow Breeze.



	Shadow was in his "Lazy Day" zone, He was laying on top of a soft, plump cloud, with a small patch of another clouds resting on top of his eyes. With a sigh of comfort, he began to slowly drift into dream land...


"COME BACK APPLE BLOOM!"


So much for dreaming.



	Shadow turns around and digs a hole through the cloud so he could see what was going on. On the ground, he saw Applejack laughing and playing with a little filly. She had a big red bow on the top of her head. Her eyes were an apple juice color, while her coat was a bit, cream-yellow-ish. Her mane was crimson red, and she was laughing with Applejack. Apple Bloom was balancing a wooden bucket full of apples on her head. Applejack was throwing freshly picked apples from a nearby apple tree into said bucket. She sent one of the apples too high and it smacked Shadow right in his face. He fell off the cloud, back hitting the ground with a loud groan.



"My back..." Shadow whimpered. Applejack and Apple Bloom quickly rushed to his aid, helping him up. He groaned attempting to stand, but managed to not scream in pain. Applejack let loose a nervous chuckle, while Apple Bloom stared at his cutie mark. "You all right, Shadow?" Applejack asked his slightly injured friend. He only nodded in response, then was quickly poked on his flank.



"Hey mister? What does ya cutie mark mean?" Apple Bloom asked, with big curious eyes. Shadow turned around to the curious filly and smiled. But his smile quickly vanished when he stared at his mark. "It's a long story Apple Bloom, but  maybe some other time?" The filly only nodded and went back to apple picking. Shadow stared at her and then at the large acre of apple trees. Applejack came up from behind him and patted his shoulder.



"You all right sugarcube?" She asked. Applejack had a foreleg wrapped around Shadow, causing him to blush and back away from the friendly gesture.



"No, its OK Applejack, you don't need to worry." He was taking off in mid flight, but felt a tugging sensation and was brought to the ground. Applejack pinned him, standing over the pegasus.



"Horse apples." She said nose to nose. Every second that passed by, Shadow's face got redder and redder, and thankfully, Applejack was too close to notice.



"You'r gunna tell me whats on ya mind Shadow, even if Ah have to take it by force." Her green eyes met with Shadow's brown eyes, staring deeply into each other.



"And if I don't?" Shadow dared to respond. Applejack backed away slightly and turned his head towards the apple field.



"If ya don't, your gunna be pickin' apples for ah week." She said, demanding  answers from him. Shadow took a good look at the field. So many trees. SO. MANY. BUCKING TREES.



Shadow gulped and nodded. With a smile, Applejack stood up and helped the stallion get up as well.



"Great! See ya at the barn Shadow!" She said, letting the stallion know who was boss.



Once she was out of earshot, the pegasus shook his head.



"Buck me..."  And with that, he flew up to the barn, where Applejack went.


> Apples and Clothing Part 2(e)
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


	"......Sweet Luna's moon, I AM NOT WEARING THAT!! I'M A STALLION NOT A MARE!" Lyrical shouted. They were already in Rarity's boutique, where the stallion was trying to escape the white coated mare’s store.



"Oh hush now, I only need you to wear one. How bad can it possibly be?" Rarity pulls back Lyrical with her magic, forcing him to stand still on a small block of wood. Before he could jump, Rarity shot a beam of magic at Lyrical. He immediately stood straight up on all his four hooves, perfect posture in order for Rarity to place the dress over him.



"Why can't I move the rest of my body!?" Lyrical panicked. He could only move his eyes and his mouth, nothing else. Rarity walked up to him, smiling. "I don't like being forced to do things, Rarity. Besides, I usually slouch, and this position is VERY uncomfortable." Sweetie Belle was standing behind Lyrical, who was still trying to move. Rarity, using her magic, took off Lyrical's red stained hoodie, handing it to Sweetie Belle.



"Sweetie Belle, be a dear an-"



"OH SWEET MOTHER OF ALL THINGS THAT I CAN'T COME UP WITH BECAUSE I DON'T KNOW WHAT ELSE TO SAY!! I'M NAKED!" Sweetie Belle took the hoodie from Rarity's grasp and threw it into a laundry basket. She giggled at Lyrical's outburst. Rarity raised a brow, confused.



"Lyrical, we're ponies, we're always naked." Rarity said. The stallion, oblivious to Rarity's comment, continued his rambling. "I'M NAKED IN FRONT OF TWO PONIES! AND ONE OF THEM IS A FILLY!! HAVE YOU NO SHAME RARITY!?"



"Lyrical, like I said, ponies are always-"



"THIS IS MENTALLY SCARRING FOR SWEETIE BELLE!! SHE'LL NEVER LIVE THIS DOWN! THIS SCENE IS NOW BURNED INTO HER MIND!! I'M SO SORRY!"



"Lyrical, calm down. It's okay." Sweetie Belle cut in. "Besides, like my sister said, we're always nake-" She was interrupted by the stallion’s futile attempt at shaking his left foreleg.  



"YOUR SISTER! IT'S HER FAULT! WHY RARITY WHY!? WHY WOULD YOU DO THIS TO YOUR SISTER! SHE IS TOO YOUNG FOR THIS!!! WHY!"  Rarity rolled her eyes and stepped in front of him.  "Come now Lyrical, you are just overreacting, now, be quiet so I can-"



"NO! I WILL NOT BE SILENCED! HELP! HELP! THERE'S A MARSHMALLOW MARE FITTING ME INTO DRESSES AS HER TEST SUBJECT AND HER LITTLE SISTER HERE IS WATCHING!"



"Lyrical.."



"HELP! HELP! I NEED AN ADULT! I NEED AN ADULT!"



"...You are an adult....." Sweetie Belle facehoofed. She walked back behind Lyrical, ignoring his yelling. She stopped however, staring at the stallion’s cutie mark. "Lyrical, what does your cutie mark mean?" The male unicorn ceased his yelling. Glad, but confused at Lyrical's sudden silence, Rarity could not help but wonder as well. "It means he has a talent in rapping Sweetie, though I bet there is more to it, right Lyrical?"



".....Finish the dress Rarity." Lyrical said. His eyes were closed. Rarity raised a brow, and Sweetie Belle just stared at his mark. "Is something the matter, darling?" Rarity aske in concern.



"No...finish taking your measurements please." Lyrical said, opening his eyes. Rarity frowned a bit, clearly wanting to know what was wrong with the light brown stallion. "Lyrical, if there is anything wrong you can tell me, I am your friend of course."



Friend.



	That word echoed in Lyrical's thoughts. He glared a bit at Rarity, but his eyes became watery in seconds. Sweetie walked away from Lyrical's mark. "What do you mean 'rapping'? Lyrical, what's...." She stopped next to her sister, and a worried look came across Sweetie's face.



"Lyrical, why are you crying?" She asked innocently.



If it wasn't for Rarity's freezing spell, Lyrical would've run away from the boutique, ignoring all who were around him. He felt his tears running through his eyes,  water touching his cheeks. Lyrical calmed down, and gave a goofy grin. "I wasn't crying Sweetie, I was sweating through my eyes."



Rarity did not believe this at all. 'Sweetie Belle, I need you to go to the market to buy some red thread." She brought a white bag and levitated three gold bits. "Here, now shoo, Lyrical and I need to talk."



Sweetie could not protest, she was already pushed out the door by Rarity's magic. The designer locked the door, and turned back to Lyrical. His goofy grin faded, and his brave act was vanishing as well. "Rarity, I'm not saying anything. There's nothing you can do to make me."



"Oh really?" Rarity walked to his right side, and gently pushed Lyrical. Slowly, he fell to the ground with a grunt, and an annoyed sigh. "Really Rarity? I'll admit, this posture is uncomfortable, but this ain't gonna get me to spill anything." The mare sighed. She walked away, swishing her tail. "Have it your way then." She approached a light switch and turned off the lights, leaving Lyrical in  the dark. She then opened the door.



"Aye! You’re just going to leave me here?" Lyrical asked. Rarity turned around and gave him a smart-flank smile. "If I cannot get you to talk, I'm sure Applejack can. Ta Ta for now!" She closed the door behind her, locking it in the process.



	Lyrical was alone, with only the light of the window to keep him company. He moved his pupils all around, and eventually stopped. His eyesight fell on a tall, pale mannequin, wearing a slender black suit. Behind it, shadows from other objects in the window's way created tentacle-like whips behind it. Lyrical's eyes widened.



"...Help me.."    






Sweet Apple Acres



The big red barn.



	Shadow Breeze walked into the barn. Nothing special about it, red on the outside and red inside. Applejack was laying down on a pile of hay, her stetson hat covering her eyes.



"She must be asleep." Shadow muttered. He slowly walked out, only to be stopped by a big red stallion. "Nope." He said. He grabbed Shadow by the tale and tossed him back into the barn, landing in front of orange hooves.



"Can't escape that easily now, can ya?" She snickered. Applejack pulled him up to his hooves, staring into his eyes. "Now, you’re gonna tell me what gets you so down 'bout ya cutie mark." She forced Shadow into a wall, snouts only inches away. Shadow's face grew red, but Applejack didn't care.



"A-Applejack, you’re in my per-personal space.." Shadow stuttered.



"Ah don't care, now tell me 'bout yer past, all of it. Or Big Mac over there's gunna be makin' you buck apple trees for a week. Non-stop." Shadow looked to the entrance where Big Mac was standing, eyes half closed.



"Eeyup."



	Shadow took a deep breath, and exhaled. "Fine, I'll tell you but can you back away please? I'm not comfortable in this position." Applejack's face had a slight blush, but her glare still remained. She pushed Shadow into a pile of hay, while she stood, trying to intimidate him.



"Speak. Now." She said. Shadow took another deep breath.



"It was night time when it happened. The night my dad-"



"Applejack are you in here? I need your help with a little problem."



Rarity walked in to see Applejack standing above Shadow Breeze. From their point of view, Applejack's hooves were just barely touching the hay pile, while Shadow lay on the hay. But for Rarity, her point of view showed something different. Her smile before she walked in, turned into a sly grin.



"Am I interrupting something?"  



Applejack turned around, glaring at Rarity. "Course you are! Shadow here was just about to tell me about how he got his cutie mark." Rarity raised an eyebrow.



"Really? I was just about to come and get you because Lyrical refuses to tell me about his cutie mark as well." At this, Applejack had a sly grin on her, and looked at Shadow.



"Lets go visit your friend, partner." Applejack tossed a nearby rope at Shadow, lassoing him into submission. She tied the rope tightly around his waist, so he couldn't fly away. "And you know what? Let's round up the other girls Rare. Ah'm sure they'd like to know how Lyrical and Shadow got their cutie marks."



	Applejack lifted Shadow on her back. The pegasus got a little bit red. Rarity noticed his blush and winked at him. This caused him to blush even more. "It's just too easy to make these colts blush, right?" Applejack turned around to Shadow's blushing face. She winked at him as well, making his grey, coat a crimson red.



"Eeyup." She chuckled.



	Shadow looked up to the skies, worried for his friend and himself. They never really liked talking about their Bro Marks. He could only hope Lyrical was prepared to spill the beans.



> Getting Rid of The Pain: Part 1(e)
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


1:30



	Lyrical was still frozen and on the floor, giving up on ever deciding to move. He started wondering how Shadow Breeze was doing. Still a little bit pissed about not being able to move, he was thinking of multiple ways on how to exact revenge on his grey feathered friend. Lyrical was worried that Rarity would never come back, so he did what any stallion would do when locked up in a girly boutique not able to move their legs and can only move their eyes and mouth.



Sleep.



"You know what? Buck it. The amount of waiting is too damn high! I'm just gunna sleep here on this floor." Lyrical said. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He could feel the relaxation quickly taking over his body as he exhaled. All the worrying about telling Rarity about his Bro Mark washed away, along with his fear of being 'naked'. All was quiet throughout the boutique, not a single mouse made an amount of noise. It was relaxing to Lyrical. Nothing could mess up this total amount of peace and quiet.



*CRASH!!*



*SLAM!!*



*CLIP-CLOP-CLIP-CLOP!!!*



Lyrical opened his eyes. The universe could be a harsh mistress at times. Rarity, along with five other mares and his ice black maned friend stood there. Rainbow Dash grinned, Twilight raised a brow, Applejack furrowed her brows, Pinkie Pie hopped in place, obviously not sure what was going on but who cares? She's Pinkie Pie! Fluttershy hid behind her mane and Rarity had a devious smile on her face. Lyrical moved his pupils to Shadow Breeze, whose wings were being strapped down by rope. He had a sad and defeated look in his eye. Lyrical knew what was going on but he had one special matter to attend to.



".....You bring the REST OF YOUR FRIENDS!? HAVE YOU NO MERCY RARITY!? I'M NAKED FOR LUNA'S SAKE!!" He shouted. All the faces raised a brow, except for Rarity and Shadow Breeze. Their only response was a face to the hoof, making a slapping sound.  Shadow Breeze ran his hoof down his face sighing. He walked up to his frozen friend and shook his head.


"Again, we're PONIES. We're ALWAYS NAKED." He said slowly. Lyrical took a few seconds for it to sink in and furrowed his brows. "Shadow do me a favor."



"What up?" Shadow said. Lyrical looked down with his eyes at his lower body.



"I want you to take my left foreleg, bend it at a 90 degree angle, and place my hoof on my face." Lyrical said very sternly. Shadow sighed. Rarity told him and Applejack what had happened with him. Doing what he was told, he placed Lyrical's hoof on his face, making a slapping sound.



"You good?" Shadow said. Lyrical grunted. "Yea. Good."







Rarity released Lyrical with an unfreeze magic spell, then turning around to her friends. "I called you all here because I would like to discuss Lyrical's cutie mark. He seems to be upset about it." She turned back around, only to see both stallions bolting out the door. Rarity sighed. "Dash? Applejack? Do you mind bringing back Shadow and Lyrical?"



	The mares nodded with a grin. They bolted out the door, already bringing back the two bro's. "I do not want to use the spell again, Lyrical." Rarity continued. Applejack and Rainbow Dash blocked the door. Pinkie sat on Rarity's dramatic couch, eating some popcorn. Lyrical sighed in defeat. He and Shadow stood in front of all the six other mares, clearing their throats.



"We don't want to explain how we got our marks." Lyrical started.



"We just think it's a little too dark to tell you girls. This town is too innocent for the kind of lives we’ve had." Shadow continued.



Applejack, Rarity and Rainbow Dash were not even phased by this. Twilight stood straight, ready to learn more about them. Pinkie still wore Lyrical's blue hoodie, though she was a little bit more interested in his hoodie than what was going on.  Even Fluttershy popped out of her mane a little. Shadow and Lyrical gave each other a nervous glance.



"Before we start, do any of you know where Detrot is located?" Lyrical said. All the mares shook their heads. "It's only a day away from here surprisingly." Shadow continued. Pinkie raised her hoof. "Um… yea Pinkie?"



"Lyrical do you want this hoodie back? I really like it!" She said gleefully. Lyrical got a little red but smiled at the pink mare. "Nah, it's cool Pinkie, you can keep it."



The other mares raised a brow and, of course, Dash grinned. "Why did you give her your hoodie Lyric? Is there something special behind it?" The other mares caught on this little act as well, but only Fluttershy was confused. Red faced, Lyrical ignored Rainbow's comment, proceeding with where he started.



"Detrot. Let me just give you a little history about it." He began.



"Twenty years ago, it was a beautiful city. The ponies were nice, the air was fresh, and business? Well, it was booming. You see, Detrot was known for making  trains. They were fast, they were strong, and best of all, they were Detrot made." Twilight's eyes widened in wonder. She wished she brought her quills and scrolls. Lyrical stared up into the ceiling smiling. Shadow did the same.



"...But this was twenty years ago." The mares looked at Lyrical's sudden change of expression. The warm smile was now washed away by an angry scowl and sad frown. Shadow, just as Lyrical, did the same.



"Over time, the city changed. Fast. Eventually, ponies started building other trains in other companies. Detrot was the only city where you could buy trains, train tracks, and other objects needed for a working train. Soon, ponies, diamond dogs and even griffons stopped coming. Ten years later you know what happened?" Lyrical asked. All the other mares shook their heads yet again. Shadow looked down at the ground. Lyrical closed his eyes, trying not to stare at the ponies with anger in his eyes.



"Crime." They both said in unison. The mares gasped, as expected from them. Lyrical opened his eyes slowly.



"And do you know what happens when crime starts?" Lyrical said.



"Fights?" Fluttershy squeaked.



"Poverty?" Rarity said.



"Hunger?" Pinkie said. Her hair was slightly deflated. Lyrical and Shadow noticed this, but said nothing.



"Betrayal?" Rainbow Dash said, clenching her teeth.



"Lies." Applejack said. She was as angry as Lyrical and Shadow were, though she remained calm.



Both stallions looked towards Twilight. "Yes Twilight. Even loneliness." She opened her mouth to say something, but no words came out. Shadow and Lyrical took one last look at the innocent ponies. Shadow could feel tears swelling up in his eyes. Lyrical cleared his throat. He was also not handling this situation very well.



"Killing." Lyrical muttered. Twilight's ears perked up and her eyes widened in shock. Fluttershy was already on the verge of crying, so Applejack and Rainbow tried to calm her down. Pinkie Pie's mane was completely flat. She sat on her haunches, her blue hoodie turned into a dark blue due to her tears. She whimpered, clearly not happy with the thought of anypony not eating. Rarity cleared her throat.



"Lyrical, Shadow, we understand now that this is a little too dark to continue and we would like to-"



"No." Lyrical and Shadow said. The male unicorn looked up at the mares, his eyes were red. "We need to get this off of our chests, Rarity. Shadow, you wanna go first?" The male pegasus nodded his head. "Yea, it’s not good to keep emotions bottled up… right?" Shadow's voice cracked. He looked at Lyrical, eyes red with years of pain and anger at their city. He took a deep breath.



"It all started when I was about 13 at the time...."






Southwest Detrot.



Night time.



My dad and I were walking to our house in the night time. Luna's moon and stars guided our way back home. Our house was only two blocks away, so it wasn't that far. We just left the batting cage, I hoped that then and there i would have found my bro mark.



Shadow looked down on the ground, his head hung in shame. He had small tears escaping his closed eyes as he walked home next to his father. Shadow tried earning his cutie mark at hoofball, but just like the C.M.C., he did not succeed. His father, Grey Snow was a grey pegasus, with an ice blue mane and brown eyes, just like Shadow Breeze. Grey looked down at his sniffling son. "You know Breeze, I got my cutie mark when I was just 15" he said. 



Shadow looked up at his dad. "You’re just saying that to make me feel better" Shadow muttered. Grey smiled and rustled his son's mane with his hoof. He stopped in the middle of walking, Shadow did the same.



"I'm being honest with you Shadow, when the time comes, you'll know when you got your cutie mark. You see this?" Grey pointed at his cutie mark. It was a snow colored dove, with the background of a blue heart. "I got this when I had to stallion up and protect your mother. She was being bullied in flight school for not being able to fly very fast, thanks to her right wing. She had to take it slow at times so the bones wouldn't break. This made her an easy target for them jerks."



My dad told me how he defended my mom. Three bullies came up to her and started calling her names. He grew tired of it and so he socked the biggest one in the face. Drawing a little blood out of the big jerk, who got mad and charged at my dad, who was smart too. He fell through the cloud and brought down the attacker by his hooves. The were fighting with their hooves, free falling. They weren't that far from the ground, so my dad flipped him over to his back and brought him down onto the brown, hard dirt. My dad stood on all four of his hooves, scowling at the pegasus that tried to hurt my mom. He flew back to my mom, and she gave him a kiss on the cheek, flushing his face red. That's how he got his cutie mark, by defending the ones he loved and cared for.



Grey Snow finished telling his son how he got his mark. Shadow's eyes went wide, astonished by his father's bravery. "Did you really do all of that dad?" Grey smirked. "Sure did. But my point is, Shadow, that it takes time for things like this to happen. Who knows? Maybe you can get your cutie mark at this moment."



My dad had no idea how right he was.



As they walk by an abandoned house, Grey heard somepony's voice.



"Help me." It came from the darkness of the abandoned house. Shadow tilted his head. "Dad, are we gunna leave him like that?" He said.



"No." Grey said, very seriously. He flew straight into the house.



I stayed in front of the house for what seemed like hours. Finally, I decided to go check up on my dad and the moaning pony.



Shadow walked into the abandoned house. Everything was dark. He couldn't see a thing. Shadow was a little scared, but kept his ground.



"Dad? Where are y-"



*CRASH!*



	Shadow looked to his left and found a stallion wearing a black hoodie and a smiley face mask on him. Ironically, his cutie mark was a smiley face. He was wrestling with his father, both of them throwing punch after punch. Grey had enough time to push him out of the way.



"SHADOW!? GET OUT NO-"



*SHING!*



Grey stopped at mid sentence. The Smiley Pony pulled out a rusty knife and slashed the air with force. Grey Snow was dodging every move Smiley Pony did. He missed his third slashing, allowing Grey to buck him in the face. The attacking pony stumbled backwards into Shadow. The colt fell to the wooden floor with a loud thud. He tried getting up, but to his horror, the Smiley Pony was already up first. This time however, he was facing Shadow's direction instead of Grey's.



I couldn't see his eyes. All I saw were black dots, a yellow plastic mask with a fake friendly smile covered in dried blood. He looked down at me, I could've sworn I saw the corners of his mask grow wider. He pulled out his rusty knife and then-  


	Shadow waited for his life to end so quickly, but when he opened his eyes, his voice started to cringe and stutter.



"D-Dad?" Grey stood in front of his fallen son. He turned around, and in his eyes only said two words.



"I'm sorry." He said. Smiley Pony pulled out the blade and stabbed him once more.



Again.



And again.



And again.



And again.



Satisfied, Smiley Pony grabbed Grey's lifeless body, pulled out 27 bits, and threw his body in a corner.



What I had witnessed scarred me for the rest of my life. My own father died saving my life. That sick smiley masked pony stabbed him repeatedly. I ran towards my father’s lifeless body. His chest and sides were covered in blood, and the floor he was laying on already was drenched in the color red. I cried, sad and angry at that sick bastard that killed my dad.    






Shadow cried in front of all the other mares. Lyrical placed a hoof over his friend's shoulder, crying as well. They both looked around the room. Rarity's eyes were filled with shock and disgust. Pinkie's eyes were red from crying, her hair still straight. Applejack looked like she was going to be sick, while Rainbow Dash wiped some tears out of her eyes. Behind her mane, Fluttershy was crying. Twilight decided to speak.



"Why...Why would anypony do this?" She asked. Shadow looked up at her.



"For money."



Lyrical noticed how uncomfortable Shadow was, so he decided it was best for him to finish it.



"Shadow, go sit down next to Pinkie, I'll tell the rest from here." With a nod, the male pegasus rushed his way towards the pink mare, embracing her in a big hug. They both sobbed. Lyrical took a deep breath and continued.






> Getting Rid of The Pain: Part 2(e)
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Southwest Detrot.



Night time.



I was walking down my old street, only two houses away from my home. I left my friend’s apartment because our spending time with each other was up. My dad always told me to stick with my ma, no matter what happened. My pa was a hard worker, stubborn at times but hey, that's just how he is. He has a dark tan coat color, and his mane was curly and black. Kinda like yours Pinkie, except it doesn't smell like sweets. More like train parts. Anyway, my mom didn't have enough time to pick me up, so I decided to walk home. My dad was always against me walking by myself, he didn't want me to walk home alone in the dark. I used to tell him not to worry about me, I knew how my city worked, even though I was eleven at the time.



	Lyrical closes the door of his friend’s apartment and begins to walk away. That  street was close to his older sister’s school, so if anything went wrong, he would just run there for safety. The moon is the only light source Lyrical had; he was not that advanced in his magic because he barely paid attention. It was mostly because the teacher kept explaining about other random subjects rather than the actual school topic.



Oh the irony.



"Wish I brought a hoodie." Lyrical said. It was pretty cold that night. Only two houses away from his home, and he can go back to doing what he loves most.



Listening to music.



	I would listen to music on a cassette player, playing my favorite songs by my favorite artists. South Park Mexicolt, S.P.M. is actually the reason why I started rapping. I didn't know how to freestyle back then, or, actually write a song, but I would try my best.  



	Lyrical walked by an abandoned house. It looked burnt, something homeowners did often when they could not pay off the bills. He ignored it and continued walking, until-



"AAAAAAAUUUUGGGGGHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!"



I stopped walking by the side of the house. I didn't know what to do. I had two choices, go get an adult, or go inside.



Obviously I chose the latter. I walked inside the house, looking around for the source of the noise.



It was too dark for Lyrical to see the whole interior. Only the moon's light filled the entrance, and he could see his shadow stretched out on the floor. "I-Is any pony there?" Lyrical asked. He walked in a little closer, but was pushed away by a stallion wearing a smiley face mask and a black hoodie. The stallion had a small rusty knife, dripping with fresh blood.



Pushed down to the ground, I was on top of some sort of liquid. I look down, and the blue, night sky’s light was reflecting off a dark red color. I backed away in fear.



Blood.



Blood was on my coat, and my eyes only widened even more when I heard silent sobbing.



In front of Lyrical, was a young Shadow, crying over his dead father. Lyrical made his way towards the body and the young pegasus. “My- My dad...That guy stabbed him." Young Shadow sobbed. Lyrical placed a hoof on his shoulder.



"Are you o-okay?" Lyrical said between stuttering and tears. The blood on his coat traumatized him only slightly. But since he has never seen a dead body, he had tears swelling up his eyes. The colt only sobbed even louder.



"Stay here, I'm going to get some help!" Lyrical shouted. He ran towards the door, but was pushed back to the ground by the same stallion with the smiley face.



He slowly walks towards us, raising the bloody knife in the air. I closed my eyes tightly, waiting for the pain to settle. I open my eyes, and the next thing I know, I was trapped in some black, lightless dome-






Lyrical was interrupted by a knock on the door. All heads turned towards the door, Applejack and Rainbow Dash move out of the way.



"Yo! Lyrical you in there? I need to talk to you about the job!" The voice said. Wiping away some of his tears, he walked towards the door. Before he could reach the doorknob, he was tackled to the ground by Pinkie Pie. Her hair was still flat, and her face and eyes were covered with tears.



"Why would anypony do that to Shadow and his dad?" Pinkie stared into Lyrical's eyes. The male unicorn was about to bawl, staring at a sad Pinkie Pie is not good for your health. Lyrical was about to speak, but the pony outside knocked again.



"Lyrical! I know you’re in there! Whatever you and Rarity do in there is your business, but now, we need to talk about our own business!" The voice said. Lyrical slowly rose back onto all four hooves, Pinkie Pie still sobbing on his shoulder. He opens to door to a bored Vinyl Scratch.



"There you are bro, I need you to..." Vinyl noticed the crying Pinkie on his shoulder. She looked up at Lyrical, confusion on her face. "Is everything all good here?" She asks. Vinyl noticed Lyrical's red eyes. Peeking over his other shoulder, she noticed all the mares in the boutique, along  with another stallion,  who were crying as well.



"Did I interrupt something?" Vinyl said. Lyrical smiled sadly, and motioned a hoof for the DJ to come inside the Carousel Boutique.



One explanation later



	"Dang, I didn't know Shadow had it that rough, Lyrical." Vinyl said. She was glad she wore her tinted glasses everywhere, nopony could see her cry. Shadow nodded his head, calmed down a bit. Pinkie was still attached to Lyrical's shoulder. He didn't bother getting her off, like before, nopony likes a sad Pinkie, so Lyrical hugged her back in order to calm her down.



"So this all started because Rarity wanted to find out more about your guy's past?" Vinyl asked. Rarity nodded her head, sadly. "Yes, and again, I am deeply sorry for wanting to know more about you two gentlecolts," She, along with the other mares, sobbed quietly. Lyrical and Shadow both waved a hoof.



"Don't be. We had to say something to somepony. It was killing us both inside." Shadow said. He patted Lyrical's free shoulder, smiling at his friend."The depression was killing us, right Lyrical?"



Lyrical was still hugging Pinkie. Her mane was flat, but a bit brighter than it was before. "Lyrical?" The rapper stared at the ground, Pinkie's mane smelled of dried sweets. "Lyrical?" Still not paying attention, he only tightened Pinkie in a hug.



"Lyrical!" Shadow yelled. The male unicorn snapped out of his daze. Realizing he brought Pinkie into a closer hug than before, he… did nothing. Right now, the pink mare was crying, and she needed a mother bucking hug. He was blushing, everypony was forming a circle around them. Though Dash had tears in her eyes, she found this opportunity  to lighten up the mood.



"So.... does this mean Pinkie's your marefriend? You did give her your hoodie after all."



Lyrical's red face showed how quiet he was. He only gave Dash a small glare, while the others gave a light chuckle. "All right… can I continue?" Lyrical said. Some were hesitant, but nodded anyways.






Everything went dark. I couldn't even see my own hooves. I started to freak out, but Shadow silenced me. Then, all of a sudden, the dark dome we were in was filled with a glowing light. But as soon as the light came, the dark aura around us left, leaving only me, Shadow, and his father’s corpse in front of us. The next thing I knew, I was wrapped around more dark aura. Except when I looked down, the shadow that was supposed to be in front of me was missing. I then realized I was covered in my own shadow.  



"Woah, what happened!" Lyrical said. He looked towards the grey colt. He was also covered in shadows. The young unicorn took a good look at him. His mane was whipping with dark, tail like auras and his whole body was pitch black. The only thing Lyrical could see, was a white dove on the colt’s flank.



"Dude… boss cutie mark." Lyrical said. The shadow colt said nothing, he only stared at the doorway. Lyrical turned his shadow covered head towards the door, and noticed the Smiley Pony walking away.



"Revenge." Shadow said in a whispered tone. Lyrical's eyes widened at Shadow's words.



 The young pegasus took a few steps closer towards the door, his shadows whipping the air around him.




..."Revenge."



Shadow bolted out of the door, and the next thing I know, BAM! He punches Smiley Pony in the back of the head, causing him to drop to the floor.



Lyrical could only watch in shock. Shadow's body moved quickly in the night. He then noticed the Smiley Pony on his back, horror on his face. Shadow raised a hoof, and it turned into a long,  sharp shadow sword.



"Wha-what do ya want!?" Lyrical heard Smiley Pony said.



"You killed my dad.... I want REVENGE!!" Shadow shouted.



"NO!!" Lyrical shouted. He raised a hoof, and a blob, shadow shape shot out of his hoof at incredible speeds. It hit Shadow's sword, breaking it just when it was about to pierce into Smiley Pony's skull. The criminal pushed Shadow out of the way, and ran off. When Shadow got back up and saw that the Smiley Pony, he turned around to face Lyrical.



"What the hell was that for, dude!?" Shadow shouted. Lyrical stood his ground, the shadows covering his body whipped around. The same happened with Shadow.



"How old are you? 13? Do you really want to go to jail, at that young of an age!?" Lyrical shouted back. Shadows whipped around the grey colts body, his eyes glaring at Lyrical.



"That sick mother bucker killed my father, I DON'T CARE IF I GO TO JAIL!" Shadow said. The young unicorn stood there, quiet while Shadow continued.



"I saw it with my own eyes...That stallion killed my DAD! Do you know what it's like to lose a father? HUH!? DO YOU!? OF COURSE YOU DON'T. YOU DON'T EVEN WANT TO KNOW THE PAIN I AM FEELING RIGHT NOW!" shadows were whipping out of his back. Slowly, black aura shadows were falling off of Shadow Breeze. Tears went rolling down his cheeks, his eyes filled with redness. Lyrical's shadows fell off soon after.



"No… I don't." Lyrical said. He walked closer to the crying colt. He placed a hoof on his shoulder. "Because I wasn't there when he died… and I could have saved him...."






Lyrical looks up at the ceiling, eyes packed with so much water. Shadow had calmed down, Applejack, Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie did as well. Twilight was crying more than before, and so were Fluttershy, Rarity and Vinyl. Shadow noticed that his friend was staring up into the ceiling. He walked over to him, lightly punching his shoulder.



"Hey, we all finished crying for today, let’s tell them more about it when we have some time." Shadow said. Lyrical stared blankly into space.



"Lyrical?" The sound of Pinkie's voice snapped him out of his daze. He looked over at the pink mare. "Why are ponies in Detrot so mean?" Pinkie asked. Lyrical only gave her a bear hug in response. He was bawling on her shoulder, all the pain, and losing the life of a loved one you could have saved got to him. Shadow came up and also hugged his bro. It wasn’t long before all the other mares joined.



	After about a few good minutes, Vinyl backed away from the hugging session. Lyrical noticed this, and broke out of the hug as well. He walked behind Vinyl, patting her back. "So… what was it you would like to tell me?" He gave a sad smile. Vinyl took off her glasses and wiped them against her coat.



"I was going to tell ya that if you want, you can start tomorrow. We haven't got that much business, so Tavi said that you can start when you feel like it." Vinyl turns to the sniffling mares. "But It seems like you were already busy. I'll just tell Tavi that you'll come next time." She tried walking away, but was stopped by a magical, black aura. She was turned around to a happy Lyrical. His cheeks still covered with wet spots.



"I'll be there. Just come and get me cause I have no bucking idea where your nightclub's at." He released Vinyl Scratch out of his grasp, and she smiled back at him.



"Cool." She said before leaving the store.



Lyrical was scared. Tomorrow, he was going to perform at Vinyl's nightclub. Though at the same time, he felt excitement. He could get a job, and send home bits to his family. He looked up smiling.



'You know pa, if you’re watching me, thank you. Thanks for being my guardian angel, when I was supposed to be yours.' Lyrical thought. He turned back around, smiling at the crying ponies.



"Why you smilin' " Applejack asked, wiping her eyes. Lyrical's smile grew into a grin.



"I got me a job."



At that moment, Lyrical was tackled by Pinkie Pie, her mane as fluffy as ever. She reverted back to her sweet, bubbly happy self. "I'm so glad you got a job Lyri!" Pinkie said. Lyrical would have said thanks, but due to Pinkie's iron grip, he could only mutter: "Ribs....Crushing..!"



Pinkie gasped, releasing Lyrical, dropping him on the floor. She blushed a little, but ignored it and began hopping in place like she usually does. Lyrical got back up, breathing heavily. Suddenly, everypony heard a *Ding!* and Rarity's eyes widened.



"OH! That must be your hoodie Lyrical, I'll be right back." She said. Lyrical and Shadow decided to leave before Rarity returned with the hoodie. It was getting late, and they were tired from all the *Ahem* Stallion-ly tears they shed.



They bid their farewells, and headed their way back to the inn.






Meanwhile



Vinyl left the boutique with a smile on her face. Lyrical agreed that he will come the next day, and if other ponies liked his rapping when he first came, then they'll probably like him even more. The DJ makes her way back to her house, which she shares with her best friend, Octavia.



"Yo Tavi! I got Lyrical to...." She walks in to see a red colored pegasus, his mane was a dark blond and his eyes were a darker shade of red that Vinyl's. He was standing next to a confused Octavia.



"Vinyl, do you know this stallion?" She asked. Vinyl walked up to him. The colt smiled at Vinyl.



"Sup."



"E-enigma?"



Vinyl falls to the ground. Octavia shrugs her shoulders. Enigma smiles at her.



"Good to see you too."