Kyle Havoc-Thanks for all the support you guys...
Ponyville appeared worried in the cold evening. The trail at Sin's door, left behind by the princesses was nothing more than empty, as hollow to the connection that fell asleep a millennia ago. The woman known as Elizabeth was given refuge inside his bedroom with a large variety of hexes, jinx's, and protection spells, followed by the most forbidden tome within Sin's knowledge; his once strange persona destroyed by the bond that ties him to his sister. Scorch marks from every healing spell he knew flooded the floor, marring said bedroom with dark streaks. The bag that held his belongings rest on the table with all of his items scattered. The weapons he collected were propped against the walls, the clothes he wore still held a musk of burning skin that overpowered his odorous form. The door was sealed tight with no one allowed to enter unless by his permission.
A thousand years the man endured the loneliness and insanity of the world never having a place for him and each day brought another jab into his heart. A thousand years without a true friend or someone that is family to keep him alive as time waged pain and suffering against him. For that long journey he walked the world as an empty legend, cold and grey inside.
The Princess of Love shifted nervously in front of Sin's door with dinner in her eerie glow of magic as she awaited the sound of life on the other side. It would be a terrible night, should she not reach deeper into the man he truly is, but every attempt to get inside the room proved useless as the day went on. The rest of the gang, Spitfire, Rose Spark and Skyla, were waiting patiently for word from the man. The fillies did not know it, but Spitfire and Cadance were no fools to the conflict within Sin. With Cadance sensing Sin's fear, for what she may have suffered, her effort became more and more a set in stone reality.
"Sin, I've brought you some food." Cadance knocked on his door and waited for the rippling of spell after spell to disable at his command. She sighed in disappointment when one minute of waiting became longer than expected. Surely he was not ignoring her, she hoped. "Sin, I know helping that girl and finding out why she was on the outskirts of Ponyvile is very important to you. Ignoring everypony, however, is not going to help. You can't ignore us forever, especially Rose Spark. She needs you, her father, to reassure her that everything is alright."
Another minute drifted by before she heard footsteps at the door. She was about to drop the tray and give up on helping the man and embarking on this twinkling relationship she started by kissing him. A flash of light broke the alicorn out of her worry. She closed her eyes as the mystifying illuminance glowed until it vanished and the tumblers clicked, making her worry a little less. The princess entered the room with ease as she adjusted to the dull illumination. Whines and hisses of powerful magic reached her ears and she followed them to find the human girl in his bed with an orange dome surrounding her. She eyed the dome as a barrier and healer, noting that a few strands of white hair was slowing breaking down into specks of sparkling dust and falling onto her wounds to repair.
Cadance gasped not at how forbidden it was to use pieces of another creature, even the use of hair, to heal another, but at how intricate the process was. Such a high level of healing magic usually required the equivalence of ten unicorns working in sync to start the spell before another five could focus the process, but she had not seen a single unicorn come into the house. Her aunts were not the source of this and Twilight was not around, so the only logical explanation had to be Sin.
But how could he do it by himself, she'd thought to herself while setting his dinner on the table to her right, and with a sigh to her left, she turned to see that he was sitting in the far corner with candle revealing his new appearance. Cadance almost mistaken the man as an intruder and come to grips with his once hidden face now open to the world.
"I had to cut most of my hair off to use as a medium for her wounds. She's lost too much blood and experienced too much physical trauma to recover on her own."
Cadance shook her head. The man she kissed had her confused and she wondered if he was in front of her or just an imposter that did something with the real Sin Firestorm. Back when she was teenager she would not have judged anypony for making a slight adjustment to their look, but given that he is not a pony and the first male to kiss since the downfall of her marriage, she found him to be a little more handsome with how young he looks.
"What have you been doing this entire time?" She asked, stepping over the scorch marks as she looked around the room. "This place is a complete disaster, and you look like you've been through Tartarus."
The man in his own thoughts right now, nodded in agreement. "I've spent the rest of my day healing her while transferring a steady stream of my magic to Elizabeth. She did not have a stable system to keep her alive."
Cadance turned to the girl and glared. "Are you talking about her bodily system?"
Sin gazed at the curious mare next to him with sharp eyes. The injuries and disruptions had attacked her body and it had come in the form as an emergency. The man nodded and stood up to loosen his muscles before making his way to the tray.
"Yeah, her entire nervous system is shot." He took the first sandwich into his grasp and ignored Spitfire and both fillies spying through the doorway. "I had to link my magic with hers to have a proper assessment of her situation; and let me tell you that doing such a thing hurt like hell."
Cadance approached the bed and listened to the unconscious girl moaning in pain. "That's what you've been doing this whole time?"
He nodded.
"Well what did you find out?"
Sin walked to the other side of the bed with little reason to explain to the princess. In fact, he didn't want to tell her what he found out because it sickened him, but his infatuation for the mare made him talk.
Sin's eyes observed the girl with worry as he collected every fact of her condition. As he knew, Princess Luna was still in the fray with entering his mind and coming to some agreement for her to reawaken their slumbering connection, and with Princess Celestia not in his sensory could only mean that she was busy being a princess or taking his words to heart. He chose the latter of the two and veered towards the alicorn pitying his sister. He cleared his throat before began detailing to her what he has so far about her mysterious appearance and condition.
"Whoever did this is either a genius or insane. Perhaps both." He said to her. "I had to clean her up by hand since I'm drained from keeping her alive, but I found some very interesting things." He eyed the wings, which he bandaged up with clothes he ripped into rags. "Her bone structure was altered and strengthened with the dark tome to handle the infusion and weight of the wings. The central nervous system was reconstructed to handle the amount of magic flowing through her. Judging from the wounds I'd say she went through the same torture I went through when I was experimented on."
Cadance was starting to feel sick to her stomach, on the urge to gag at the idea of some monster turning a beautiful girl into something she is not.
"And what did you go through?" She asked with apprehension.
Sin was silent for the moment, remembrance in his eyes for the darkest years of his life. Although he appeared calm and collected, there was conflict in his heart and it pounded in his chest with each memory of his waking moments to ponies doing heinous experiments to his body and mind. The screams were still there, each repeating over and over as he stared at the alicorn.
"I was put on a table and gutted like a fish while having loads of magic injected into my body, but that was centuries ago." He replied with a grim tone. "I was taken apart numerous times to see how long I can live on Holy Nova and Dark Rai's magic. Elizabeth doesn't seem to have experienced that though.."
Sin sent Cadance and the unconscious girl one silent look, turned on his heel and abruptly left the room after reopening it, striding away, the set of his shoulders the only thing that gave away his fury. There was no doubt in Cadance's mind in due time he intended to find those who had tortured his sister.
Spitfire stood up and stepped in Sin's way while he came down the last step, she looked straight up to the human, worried. The light revealed he was covered in scorch marks from his work. The fillies sated at the immortal with scared eyes as he stared at the Pegasus. No one said a word. No one moved, not even when Cadance emerged from behind to comfort Sin.
"She's going to need time to recover," he announced. "It appears as if whoever did this to her was aware of her limitations, but I cannot tell if all of the wounds were physical or magical."
Spitfire reared up and hugged his stomach. "Celestia and Luna were at the door while you were upstairs. Celestia left a little while ago after realizing she could not come in, but Luna is in the living room." She nuzzled him affectionately. "You going to be okay?"
Sin frowned at her. "The last thing I need is for either them to try and be part of my life again, but I guess it's nothing new, especially with Luna. She cannot let go."
Cadance gestured for him to sit. "Obviously they want you back, but you have your reasons for avoiding them. Still, these feelings you have for the past will not do you any good. Knowing my aunties, they will not stop. And from what I felt between you and them, they will not give up."
Abruptly, Spitfire adjusted and clung onto Sin after he sat down. "Well we saw him first, and they blew it a long time ago. He's open season right now."
Sin hung his head, his eyes lifeless. "It hurt to tell them to go home, but I am still pissed those two." He looked to his left after hearing the fridge pillaged by the only other mare in the house. She closed the fridge and turned to him at the sound of his voice, her eyes wide with concern while he gave her a hollow stare. The connection they share fed her information on his feelings for her, giving the alicorn necessary data to press further, but this was different. Her conscience told her to be assertive but with ease, but Luna had gleaned much more. She knew him, his person, how the man she fell in love with worked. She kept her mind merged with his, learning his new personality, and how the soft, sensitive teenager before was now a man.
She found her chest swelling with love and respect. There should be other feelings with her mate, yet she astonished herself with these old emotions. Her desire for his touch continued to grow along with her confidence. Was it her need to have him back, or the competition she feels with Cadance and Spitfire.
The atmosphere shifted to Luna's favor and then cut sharply back to the human. He could sense the fear in her.
"What the hell are you doing here?" He asked in a very unpleasant tone, which was no surprise to Luna. He stood up and approached her, his arms crossed and dislike in his eyes. "I thought I made it clear that I don't want to see either of you."
A sense of grief swept through Luna when she eyed the man's scars. Lacerations and burns from god knows where reflecting in her eyes while the next breath she took became a hard one. She wasn't anywhere near ready to accept this disposition her mate has and she doubted he would give her the time to talk. She wanted to get close to him again without the past affecting them.
Sin waited for an answer, counting the seconds ticking by, knowing any moment Luna would make her move. After what was an aggravating silence, the princess of love gave into her desires and made the first move.
"I'm here to see you," she told him, her concern genuine but unconvincing to the man as she approached. "I'd thought you passed away, but you're here." She stopped and looked up to Sin, her gaze meeting differently with his while the group watched, worry in Spitfire's and Cadance's eyes when Sin crossed his arms. Luna didn't know what to say to him after that, except for what her heart was telling her.
"Sin—" She leaned into him, her face pressed into his torso, tears streaming. "I've missed you so much, my love."
"Saying that will not fix what you did." He breathed the words like venom, accompanied by his deep distrust for her. He still loved her, unconditionally. But he was wiser than that, wiser than the weak teenager he was a thousand years ago. "I honestly didn't think you would have the stones to come here and confront me, let alone consider me as your love, but you did. And now everything comes to full circle with you trying to soften me." He gently pushed the alicorn away, stunning her as much as hurting her before pointing at the door. "Get of this house right now. I'll come see you when I feel like it."
"But I'm here to talk with you," she confessed desperately, ignoring his command. "Sin, I know what I did was wrong and I do not deserve your forgiveness. But I want you to know that I was not trying to kill you. I did those things for you. For us."
"For us?" He stepped back and pointed at his chest, anger building in his tone. "You thrust your horn into my chest. I was lucky to have absorbed some of the dark magic before you kicked me into a wall afterward. How is that not attempted murder on your part?"
Luna tried to rise, clutching the engagement ring beneath her breast plate like a weapon. She held it up as if to show she was indeed still in love with him, that she'd come to clear his mind. She halted the small distance from him.
"I became Nightmare Moon from the jealousy of my sister being praised by our subjects and having to share her with you." She said in a loud tone, something that should not have surprised the man, but it did and he was starting to wonder where this was going. She took a few steps forward and forced his focus onto the ring, her lips nearly curled into a grimace. "You were supposed to be mine and no one else's. It was I you chose on the night of my birthday to dance with, but Celestia wormed her way into your heart. And when that happened, I felt it was time to take matters into my own hooves by becoming that monster to take you away from her." She took in a deep breath to stop the tears from starting. "It wasn't fair that you loved her as well. It was agonizing to see you share your time with her."
Sin pressed his lips together as if wondering if he could believe that. It did not come across his mind that Luna may have been jealous of her sister for stealing Sin from her. He felt conflicted by this, if not confused by the teary-eyed mare's confession. "Well you could have said something instead of trying to use dark magic." He spoke with a calmer voice, although he spoke the words shakily. "How can I know how you feel if you don't tell me?"
"How can I know what the mare who gave me a foal feels about our relationship if she keeps to herself all the time?" He asked boldly, moving a little closer to her.
Luna lifted her wings in reflext action. It seemed a little pathetic since she was certain he was not going to be kind and could move as far as he could, but still, she couldn't help herself. She wanted to feel his touch again.
She curled said wings around his stomach and nuzzled him lovingly, switching from the princess to the mare within. "I wanted to make you immortal. I thought if I cursed you if would help me pull you away from my sister." She began to cry to sob. "I cannot tell you how much I have missed you. And to find out my sister banished you to protect herself made it harder to remain with her. I. . . I just wanted to have you to myself, but I drove you away and now you're something I cannot fathom."
Sin chuckled. Why, nobody knew, but it scared everyone a little while he put his hand on her head and proceeded to pet her.
"Just my body has changed, and some of my personality. But I'm still the same man you knew before, Lulu."
Her face brightened. "Did you just call me 'Lulu'? Really? I thought we agreed to never use that name for me unless it was just the two of us." She laughed a little, happy to see he had yet to be anymore cruel. "My word you've grown so much, and your hair has grown so long."
"Don't start acting as though we're a couple again," he warned her. There it was again, his cold and heartless attitude. But only for a moment before it dissolved into an evil smile that was directed to Cadance. "Besides, I'm pretty sure Cadance beat you to the punch with the kiss we shared in the forest."
Cadance's eyes bulged at those words while the very stunned Luna gaped at her. She knew trouble. Real trouble, and right now, she had to deal with the princess of the night expressing multiple emotions. She was no longer with words or to be on the defensive or even in denial. She did kiss the man for her own intentions to see what it would feel like. And sweet Celestia did it feel wonderful. She was not intuitive to the nature of a good kiss—granted she only had Shining Armor throughout her love life. But there was something unique to a human's lips pressed against hers and she was not going to speak differently. She was a grown mare with needs of her own. With a deep desire for this man. With a strong hunger her ex-husband could not feed, and she wanted to be full through this person. She took several deep breaths as her best friend and fellow princess joined sides to stare at her in suspicion. She fought off the need to turn and run upstairs, to keep from feeling that the competition for Sin's feelings was overwhelming her. Her wings shivered continuously, and there seemed little she could do to protect herself.
A cough from Spitfire and she returned to reality to see both mares inches from her, eyes locked on her, giving her piercing gazes.
"Is this true?" Luna asked in a deadly serious tone. "Did you kiss my mate?" She sounded very possessive on that last part.
"When were you going to tell me?" Spitfire cooed, smiling like a troublesome filly. "Or did you plan on having him all to yourself?"
Cadance gulped while Sin sided with her, his hand gently pressed on her back. She didn't notice it though, not when she's backed into a corner with her daughter giving a mischief smile.
"Mommy kissed Mr. Sin," Skyla giggled.
At that point she was in scared. . .
"Hey, you messed up your relationship with him. And you're just acting perverse with every chance you get." The princess stated, her panic becoming obvious as both mares flinched in response. "I didn't ask to suddenly meet a creature that is handsome and single, nor did I ask for what I feel when I'm around. Plus I am a mare too, so it's only fair that I have a shot at him."
"Good shot by the way," Sin chirped, adding fuel to the fire. "That was the first real kiss I've had since Luna was banished."
"You're not helping!" She yelled.
A flap of Luna's wings broke them of their thoughts. Sin, Cadance and Spitfire ceased talking as the aggravated princess took several deep breaths. She collected her thoughts to the idea of Cadance dating the man until her mind was at peace with the emotional conflict that weighs on her heart. She stepped forward with a serious look as the man readjusted himself, though with some intention to anger her. She eyes his hand on Cadance's back and then back to him, her lips forced to curve a frown instead of a scowl. Once upon a time, she would have destroyed the idea of anyone other than her and Celestia coming into his life, but given the circumstances, she had no say in the matter. The mistakes she made, the parasitic guilt in her chest, and the loss of her lover for the pain she caused.
"I'm not going to get in the way," her eyes narrowed on him, burning with passion. "But I will not be replaced. I came here to see if I may have a second chance, and I aim to earn it."
The man coughed to clear his throat. "Well you better work hard, because telling me the truth doesn't change anything. You fucked up, and you will have to prove yourself."
Luna smiled evilly. "I spent a millennia on a moon with no one to speak with. Patience will not be a problem."
Sin glanced at the alicorn beside him with suspicious eyes. "You know everything that's happened between her and I. What do you think should happen now?"
Cadance flinched. It was not the question she had wanted to be pressed upon, but today had given void to the situation she'd put herself in. Her locked onto the blue princess who remained silent. With a tied tongue, she tried to speak, the desire to tell everyone she wanted him was very obvious, but she could not produce a single word. Again, she felt the weight of Sin's question push on her. What would they say if she said no? What would Luna do if she said it was a bad idea? What if she did not deserve a second chance? Her wings began vibrate with the idea of hurting the alicorn, but she swallowed her selfishness. She had to be kind for her as well.
"Starting over. . . that's what I think should happen."
Sin and Luna had raised eyebrows at her answer.
Cadance stepped between them, but kept a stern look as they waited. She looked up to Sin. "The past is the past, so you need to let it go." Next was Luna. "But that doesn't you two are a couple once more. You did very hurtful things and it is your job to make up for them. And you will have to understand that it's not you and Celestia that has Sin. Spitfire and I want a chance as well. But as for you, you nee to start by bringing your daughter into the equation. It's only fair that Sin sees her." She prompted softly, before eyeing the couch. Curiosity shivered throughout her mind. "But first, you two need to talk and make up."
Sin and Luna gawked at her.
"What!?"
Cadance nodded then pushed them into the living with her wings. "Yes, you have not seen one another in a thousand. It's not healthy for either of you to be acting this way, so take a seat and let's get started."
"You really think I'm going to just talk?" Sin moaned in frustration as his thoughts melded to the idea, a forced affirming he wanted to reject. His body, however, moved without control, and he found himself sitting on the far side of the couch with Rose Spark taking up his lap.
Luna bit her lip. She did not want to talk, just take him back to Canterlot. She couldn't fathom the importance of talking, but it was too late to speak up when her fellow alicorn sat in the chair across them.
Cadance hugged her daughter when she hopped up to her, wings of comfort surrounding the filly while she prepared herself for what may be the most awkward discussion between two mistaken lovers.
"So," she coughed. "Let's down to the dirt." She started with Sin. "Why do you hate Luna so much? After seeing her here and hearing what she has to say, why do you still hate her?"
Sin was not kind with his words, nor was he subtle. He turned to the nervous princess staring at him in worry. He stilled for a moment before giving them his answer.
"I don't hate her. Never did and never will. I just don't trust her. I mean look at the scar on my chest. She stabbed me with her horn when she was Nightmare Moon."
Cadance nodded. "Yes, but she's not Nightmare Moon now. She's been reformed by the elements of harmony and has done good things for Equestria since the day she was freed." She became very serious on this next question. "Do you still love her?"
Did he still love Luna? Sin put his mind to work. He almost choked on the emotions this pink pony was drawing out of him. Opening his eyes to the circumstances, his eyes soften on the hurting alicorn as he scans for any deception. It was no surprise to sense nothing within her, but that put him in a rather strange position. There is confusion in his expression, as well as numerous thoughts rushing his head. Before him was the mare he remembered to be so vibrant and beautiful, sitting idly yet anticipating the painful answer. In the back of his mind, he could feel old feelings come to the surface.
Was he getting a taste of what he locked away after being betrayed. It was perhaps the love he tried to bury so deep that it would die in the darkest corner of his heart, but he had to admit, there was a similar feeling he felt unfamiliar too.
"Yes, I do."
Luna's eyes widened as Cadance took that to heart.
"Okay," she turned to Luna. "Do you think you deserve a second chance?"
Having the eyes of her mate on her, Luna could not help but swallow the lump of fear in her throat. Though most of the past was buried and the pain was rather dull in her body she was still cringing on the inside for what her actions did to him. Now that she got a good look at the man and all of his scars she was uncertain if there was the smallest chance for her to win him back. But all she needed to do find the courage lurking inside her so that she may understand what comes next. She was going to be on a difficult road with this one.
"Yes, I do." She said, scooting closer to the man when he took his eyes off of her to tend to the filly in his arms. "My actions towards him will not be excused, but I believe I deserve a second chance."
Her words stung like a hornet as Cadance eyed her. The room was silent and, as far as she could tell, possessed a heavy atmosphere of differences between the alicorn and the human. Casting a glance to her best friend, Cadance gave a slight nod.
"And what would you do if you were not the only mare with Sin?" Spitfire asked carefully then pointed at Cadance. "What if he has a herd that has her and I in it?"
Freezing, Luna looked down to the floor to contemplate. Since it had already been established by the cutie marks on Sin's chest, she was without a doubt possessive of him to high degree and unwilling to share him with anyone but her sister. Still, she had always known from the day her sister banished her the inevitable would catch up with her. Her worry of a third of fourth mare coming into the equation was the hell Sin had created when he accepted Celestia.
"It's not something I am fond of," she told them. "I'm not altogether certain I would be able to accept that. But I suppose I have no choice but to accept it."
"Good," the pink alicorn smiled brightly. "We're getting somewhere. Now onto the more personal stuff." She turned to Sin once more. "Sin, what have you been doing since Luna was banished?"
Sin struggled to answer her, shocked at how blunt she was.
"Take a look at my body," he said rudely, not that anyone cared anyway. He held his arms up for all to see the history of his life. "I've been saving the world for hundreds of years now. Every scar you see is either from being tortured and experimented on or living through war. In case you haven't noticed, I look like a walking canvas. You can practically draw a picture with each scar."
"You look pretty sexy with all those scars." Spitfire complimented, giving the man a wink. "Some mares, like myself, are into stallions who have scars."
"Spitfire," Sin droned, slapping his own forehead. He glared at the mare as she approached, ignoring the possessive look Luna was giving. "I look like the offspring that came out of Mona Lisa after Freddy Crougar hatefucked her. And let me tell you, that asshole looks like a rectum with teeth."
Cadance coughed again to interrupt. "Anyway, back to the questions." She turned her attention to Sin. "Most importantly is the question I'm sure Luna wants to ask. That question is 'where have you been this entire time'?"
She hit the nail on the head, and it worried him as the girls stared at him.
He sighed deeply as the twiddling of Rose's mane grew, his eyes reflecting the horrid past.
"Running from her."
"Her?" Luna questioned.
Sin looked up to her with a deadly serious look.
"Your mother."