PyraohXBlaze - Lol yeah... no one wants to see Shining's ugly mug

KillerWoW - Oh come now, it couldn't have been that boring :P

PBJFanFiction - Lol looking for the Punny Man (that's me ;) ) to tickle your McRibs?

Guest - Lol she sure can... Bow chika bow wow!

xel101 - All valid questions... though is Dashie really in denial, or is something else going on...?

Killerbeast1998 - Either a threat... or some comedy relief ;)

Fusion Blitz - Lol to be honest, that was purely coincidence; I never actually planned for the Nightmare Night season in the story to be near Halloween, it just kind of worked out that way.

MortBlackthorn - Perhaps... or maybe Cadance withheld her flank from him... ;)

ShadowfireAngel - This is very true...

centaurus2 - Ah. Can't say I've ever played it.

Chaosstripe - Maybe you can; I'd probably just fall on my face :P

DragonLord RyuKizoku - Eeyup... Also, go wash your mouth out young man!

PSYCHOPATH - Wow... that sucks. I guess I got lucky; the guy stabbed me in the gut, and managed to miss anything important, so I managed to beat him down without having to worry too much about dying (even though I didn't really know that at the time)

theflammablefiredragon - Perhaps

RenaTamer - Herd Oath huh? Can't say I've heard of there being an official oath to it.

Lone the Dark Hearted Wolf - Indeed

Kyguy - Lol maybe... but then again, maybe not ;)

Ponified Bacon Boss - Well, heat season would have been drawing to a close when Blake first came to Equestria, so there's that. Also; I'LL UPLOAD IT WHEN I HAVE TIME TO WRITE IT! :P

coldshadow92 - Why thank you :D

Mikalzilla - Because nothing ever ends well for poor Blake?

A/N - Howdy everypony! I hope everyone had a great week! I forgot to mention it last time, but I hope everyone got a chance to see that awesome supermoon/lunar eclipse combo we had on the 27th, that was amazing to see! Anyway, it was a pretty calm week for me, outside of the usual busy-ness so I'll cut my ramblings short so you can enjoy the new chappy! As always, don't forget to follow/favorite, review, and most importantly; enjoy!

After a warm hug from the pink princess, I invited the two of them inside. Cadance hadn't gotten more than two steps into the house before Twilight rushed over and they did their 'Ladybugs Awake' dance. I didn't miss the eye-roll from Shining Armor, but I also didn't say anything.

The lot of us moved to the living room, and Scootaloo predictably hopped up on my lap while Dinky sat next to her sister. Twilight went into the kitchen to put on a pot of tea, and from the smell of it, she was making the special Chai tea I had taught her to make some time ago. "I thought you wouldn't be back for a few more days Blake? I hope everything went well." Cadance snuggled into the plush cushions of one of the comfy couches as she spoke.

I shrugged and stroked Scootaloo's back. "There were a few hiccups, but all-in-all, things turned out for the best."

The pink Princess nodded slowly. "I'm glad to hear that. I could tell that you weren't using your Aurasight spell, so I assumed that you'd gotten your sight back. I'm sorry to have heard that you lost it in the first place though."

Shining Armor cleared his throat. "We um… we wanted to thank you for helping Twilight like you did. From what she told us in her letter, the library would probably have come down on top of her if you hadn't been there to help." Cadance elbowed him, quite hard from the wince it caused. "And… I wanted to apologize for the way I reacted the last time we were here; Cadance helped me understand that I should have gotten your side of the story before I jumped to conclusions like that."

I didn't say anything for some time, so long in fact that Shining actually started to visibly squirm under my scrutinizing gaze. I wanted to hate the stallion, to throw him face-first into the dirt at my step, but I knew that I would have been just as defensive if our roles had been reversed.

I finally sighed and held out my hand. "I still think you're pretty rotten for attacking me like that… but I can understand why you did, so… apology accepted." Shining Armor stood up and placed his hoof in my hand and we shook. Everyone in the room cheered, and when it calmed down, I looked him in the eye. "Just make sure you take your wife's advice next time, because I may not be as forgiving if you try to take me away from my family again." Shining actually gulped and looked over to Cadance, who was giving him a look that said she agreed whole-heartedly.

Twilight walked back into the room with a tea set at that moment, steam billowing out of the pot's spout. "Well, I'm glad you two got that worked out…" She set the platter with all the tea utensils on it down on a coffee table. "So, what brings you two here so early? I thought you weren't supposed to get here until a few days after we were originally supposed to get back." Cadance wrapped a teacup in her pale blue magic and poured herself a cup, taking a deep whiff of the fragrant tea before taking a sip. Poor Cadance almost immediately made a face at the strong flavor, and set the tea back down on the table. Twilight giggled into her hoof. "Sorry, I should have warned you; that tea is meant to be taken with vanilla cream and sugar."

Cadance took Twilight's advice, pouring some of the specially prepared vanilla cream into her cup and following it up with a few sugar cubes. After stirring the tea to mix everything in, Cadance took a dainty sip of the light brown liquid. Her eyes instantly lit up and she set her cup down. "This is amazing! How did you make it?"

Twilight giggled and looked over at me. "It's a secret recipe that Blake taught me to make."

Cadance took another long sip of the flavorful tea. "I hope you'll be willing to teach me how to make this someday; this would be a perfect unwinder for a long day at the Crystal Court." She drained her cup and set it back down on the china platter. "Anyway… the reason we're here so early is that Shining and I felt like we could use some vacation time after everything that's happened recently, and we convinced the Crystal Council that coming here and helping Blake was a personal favor to my aunts, and that being here early would help us be ready to help him when you all got back."

Twilight nodded as she sipped her own tea. I leaned in as best I could with Scootaloo perched on my lap, and started making up my own cup as well. "Sounds like you two had this all planned out from the start. Where were you going to stay if we hadn't already been here when you got here?"

Shining shrugged. "Well, we probably would've just stayed in the palace; that's where Princess Celestia and Princess Luna would stay if they were to visit the Crystal Empire."

Luna gave Shining a look. "You do not need to refer to us by our titles Shining Armor; after all, you are our nephew-in-law now."

Shining rubbed the back of his head. "Oh yeah… right. Sorry, I guess old habits die hard."

We conversed for some time after that, simply unwinding from our various stressors of the day, though Applejack quickly excused herself, citing that she wanted to head back to the farm and spend some time with her family after so long away from them. I gave her a hug and a parting kiss, and we waved her on her way as she left our house and headed for the Apple family farm.

Sometime later, the conversation between the rest of us lulled and I offered to help our guests take their luggage up to their room. Cadance politely declined, stating that Shining Armor would take care of their things, earning a dejected look from the normally proud stallion. I hid a smile as I realized that this was Cadance's final, subtle punishment for Shining's actions.

When the two of them were settled, they came back downstairs, just as the rest of us were finishing up a board game. The game was unique to Equestria as far as I could tell, since I couldn't remember ever seeing its analog back on Earth.

Cadance offered to help me make dinner for everyone, and I allowed her to when she insisted she would feel like a burden if she didn't help out somehow. I recalled that she used a similar ploy the last time they had visited, but I shrugged it off; I understood how she felt after all.

After we all ate, Dinky and Scootaloo played with Cadance for a while, and I watched as the foalsitter in her bubbled forth, a huge grin spreading across her face as she and the fillies took turns chasing one another around the house. Twilight, Luna, Shining and I all watched the spectacle, grins of our own quickly spreading. At one point, when Cadance had chased the fillies upstairs and into one of the many upstairs rooms, I leaned in towards Shining. "Dude… you need to give her a foal or two, and soon."

The poor stallion did a double-take with a blind-sided look on his face. "What?!"

I elbowed him in the ribs. "Come on! It's so obvious that she loves foals; don't you think she wants one of her own? I mean, just look how happy she is playing with those two."

Shining watched as Cadance came barreling back into the living room briefly, only to go shooting back out again and towards the back hallway, followed closely by a pair of madly giggling fillies. "I… I guess you're right. It's been a long time since I've seen Cady that happy."

"Well, what's stopping you then? I can tell you from experience; there's no better feeling in this or any other world than being a father."

Shining looked at me quizzically. "But… You've only been an adoptive father, and even then, only for a few months." The words stung, but I did my best not to let that show.

Luna got up from her seat and walked over to the white stallion, placing a hoof on his shoulder. "This is technically true, but I can tell you that Blake and young Scootaloo could not have a closer bond if they were flesh-and-blood. I can also tell you that there is nothing that he would not sacrifice for his daughter."

Shining's ears perked up, and he looked between the two of us. I caught Twilight looking out the window as we spoke, and the look on her face told me she didn't want to think about recent events. "What happened Luna? What did Blake do?"

Luna sighed, and looked over to me. "That is his tale to tell. Suffice it to say that our dear human was willing to relinquish the prize he overcame so much hardship to obtain in an instant in order to protect her."

Shining blinked and looked at me. "I've got to hear this story!"

I shook my head. "Not now. I'll tell you and Cadance all about it later." I gave him a sly wink. "Maybe over drinks in the hot tub later."

Shining Armor tilted his head to the side. "What do you mean 'drinks'?"

I resisted the urge to facepalm, but only just; I had to remind myself that alcohol wasn't exactly a common thing in pony lands. I thought for a moment on how to describe the beverage before an idea popped into my head, a memory of something Applejack had once told me. "You know what salt does to a pony, right?" Shining nodded his head, with an obviously skeptical look. "Well, alcohol, or the 'drinks' I was talking about, have a similar effect, though they don't dry you out like salt does."

We watched as a pair of quickly tiring fillies managed to pounce on an equally tired Cadance, who promptly stood back up and started trotting around with them on her back. "I don't know… I'm not sure something like that would be a good idea…"

Luna punched him in the shoulder. I could tell she was trying to be gentle about it, but it was still enough to make the Guard Captain wince. "Oh come now Shining Armor! You have only one life on this world after all. Besides, I believe you will sing a different tune once you've tried one of Blake's… err… what do you call them again, my love?"

"'Daiquiris'. They're called daiquiris, Love."

"Ah, yes. Thank you. Anyway, once you've tasted a daiquiri, I believe you will change your mind."

I stopped for a second and played back what Luna had just said in my mind. "Wait… did… did you just use a contraction?!"

She gave me a beaming grin. "I did indeed. I've been practicing while you were away, though I admit that I am still not quite comfortable using them." I gave her a questioning look, and she guessed what I was going to say before I said it. "And yes, I slipped that in on purpose; I wanted to see if you were paying attention, Love."

I chuckled at the coy mare. "You're just full of surprises, aren't you?"

Her grin grew even wider. "I am indeed. And we will have all of eternity to find one another's secrets… together." She sprang forward and wrapped her hooves around my neck, cocooning me in her warm fur and filling my lungs with the sweet smell of blackberries as she hugged me tight.

We broke the hug before things got too uncomfortable for poor Shining, and I glanced over Luna's shoulder to see Twilight passed out on the chair across from us. I felt a sudden pang of guilt as I realized we'd been ignoring her. I motioned towards her, and both Shining and Luna looked in her direction. I stood up and walked over to her, gently scooping her up in my arms and lifting her off the uncomfortable chair. I looked around, but didn't see Derpy anywhere, and I realized that she must have already gone off to bed.

I still felt a little woozy, but I could tell that I was already fairly recovered from the ordeal from earlier today. "The poor mare must be exhausted after all she has been through. You doubly so."

I nodded. "I feel like I should be; but honestly? I feel more excited to actually have everything back to normal than anything else. Now come on, I'll take this one up to bed, and you two can find Cadance so we can put the fillies to bed, then the three of us can head down to the hot tub."

"That sounds… good to me…" I looked over to the base of the stairwell to see a panting and disheveled Cadance standing there with a pair of sleeping fillies on her back. "These two… did a good job… of wearing me out…"

I chuckled and led the way up the stairs as Cadance and I put the three sleepy-heads to bed while Shining Armor and Luna made their way down to the hot tub ahead of us. Right about the time we got back to the top of the stairs, Cadance flopped onto her rump. "Whew! That really took it out of me… I guess I'm out of practice at foalsitting."

I smirked at her. "Would Milady care for the knight to carry er down to the hot tub?" Cadance giggled as I scooped her up and started down the stairs.

Surprisingly enough, even though she was bigger, Cadance was lighter than Twilight. "Oh dear! What would Shining Armor think?" I could tell by her giggles that it wasn't a serious question.

"Oh my, I hadn't thought of that… I suppose we'll just have to have a duel to the death over the Lady's honor."

Cadance giggled harder. "You would probably win… Shining may be the former Captain of the Guard, but he's always been a big softy."

We reached the base of the stairs leading into the basement, and I set her down on her hooves. "You never know… now, why don't you go in and get situated? I'll bring us all some drinks and join you."

Cadance trotted through the fogged-glass doors of the spa room while I turned off to the right, down the short, curved hallway to the alcohol store situated on the other side of the wall directly behind the bar. After grabbing a few choice selections, I headed back into the spa room, intent on making drinks for everyone so we could all truly relax after our various hardships.

I nearly bumped into Cadance as she came back out through the double-doors. "Oh, Blake! I… I just remembered; I didn't bring anything to wear in the hot tub, and neither did Shining."

I gave her a look. "Really? Cadance, neither one of you are wearing anything right now… why would you need a bathing suit to go into a hot tub?"

She craned her neck and looked back at the rest of her body. "I um… I guess I never thought of that. What about you though? You'll be wearing something, won't you?"

"Why Cadance… if I didn't know any better… I'd say that you sound like you hope I won't be…"

Her already pink face grew even pinker. "N-no! That's not what I meant. I just heard from Twilight that human anatomy is… different from ours."

I chuckled and grabbed the door's brass handle with my free hand. "That's an understatement. See, unlike stallions, we human males don't exactly have a place for our naughty bits to hide; they're kind of just… out there. That's why we wear clothes… well, part of it at least."

Cadance looked me up and down. "I see… She also mentioned that you need them when it gets cold because you don't have fur."

I shrugged and opened the door. "Yeah, that's the other part. Shall we?" The pink princess nodded her thanks and trotted through the proffered door.

The two of us entered the spa room to find Luna and Shining already relaxing in the steaming hot water. I walked over to the bar and set the bottles of alcohol down before strolling back to the small changing room set into the wall and grabbing myself a clean pair of swimming trunks.

Once I was changed, I walked back out to see Cadance had joined her husband and my fiancé, golden slippers and chest piece resting next to the edge near them. I walked back over to the bar again as they chatted and began mixing drinks for everyone, making daiquiris for everyone else while I settled for a chilled glass of straight honeyed scotch.

I came back over once again, floating the drinks in my quickly recovering magic and passing them out before lowering myself into the relaxing waters myself. Cadance sniffed her drink and made a face, but decided to take a sip anyway. "Wow! This is actually really good Blake! Is this something you learned back where you're from?"

I nodded and took a sip of my scotch. "Yup… we humans have a bit of an obsession with alcohol, always trying to make better and more complex mixed drinks out of it. A daiquiri is actually pretty simple compared to some of the others I've heard of. I actually know of one that takes thirty different types of liquor to make."

Cadance's eyes went wide, and she took another sip of her alcohol. "Wow… I wonder what that would taste like."

I shrugged and downed the rest of my drink. "Couldn't tell you; I've never had one myself. But anyway, why don't you tell me about your trip down here?"

Shining Armor cleared his throat before she could say anything. "Didn't you promise me that you'd tell us what happened to your little filly tonight?"

I sighed inwardly and poured myself another drink. "Alright. But I warn you; it isn't a happy story."

Cadance and Shining listened with rapt attention as I recounted the events of the previous days, from our leaving Ponyville, to finding the Kokello, and ending with my giving Scootaloo the Quagon'Leth potion. I had to stop more than once as the memories threatened to overwhelm me, and each time, I felt a pair of soggy hooves on my shoulders to comfort me; one a midnight blue, and the other a light, pastel pink.

Cadance didn't say anything for awhile, and Shining seemed content to stare into his drink. Finally, Cadance heaved out a big sigh. "I'm so sorry you had to go through all that, and almost for nothing too. I'm glad Scootaloo is alright too; timberwolves can be vicious creatures."

I nodded and downed the remnants of my latest glass. "Yeah… If I hadn't gotten back to Zecora's when I did… I don't think she would have made it."

Luna put a hoof on my shoulder. "Best not to think about that, my Darling."

"You know, I underestimated you… more than once actually. Here all I saw was a stallion with blood on his hands; a threat to both my princesses and my sister, but now I see that you're much more noble than I would've given you credit for. I guess I should have seen that when you defeated Nightmare Moon."

Luna nodded next to me. "Especially since he dared face her after being impaled by my accursed nephew. I don't think I should be allowed in his presence when he is finally brought to justice; I doubt he would survive the encounter for what he has done to my fiancé."

Cadance's eyes went so wide I was afraid they might just pop out of her head. "What?! You two are getting married?! Aunt Luna, that's so wonderful!"

Luna nodded and hugged me close. "Yes, dear Blake proposed to me some time before he left on his journey. It was in this very hot tub in fact."

Shining Armor looked around. "H-uh… he could have picked a more romantic place than- WHOOF!" Cadance stopped him in his tracks with a well-placed elbow to the solar plexus.

"Well I think it's wonderful! I can feel the love between you two, and I know you two will be happy together."

Shining took a few deep breaths and rubbed his chest. "So, if you two are really tying the knot, where's Luna's ring?" Cadance silenced him with another elbow shot.

I gave Luna a peck on the cheek. "Well, it was kind of a spur-of-the-moment thing, I hadn't really planned it out. But I do know that I want to spend the rest of time with her, and after she offered to make that possible, I knew she felt the same, so it felt right to ask her right then and there."

Cadance looked like she was about to melt into a puddle. "That's so adorable! I hope you two invite us to the wedding!" Cadance beamed for a moment before her face screwed up in confusion. "Wait… what did you mean when you said 'make it possible'?"

Luna cleared her throat. "It was discovered after Nightmare Moon's attack that Blake and I share the same blood type, and since he needed a transfusion, I offered some of mine. My sister later discovered in Starswirl the Bearded's writings that such a transfusion would extend the lifespan of its recipient by roughly thirty-fold. It was also discovered that a second such transfusion could grant the recipient an eternal life, such as we Alicorns have."

Cadance stared at Luna for a long time, then looked over to Shining Armor, then back to Luna. Her head swiveled back and forth several times before her eyes lowered to the water somewhere between the three. "I-I never knew anything like that was possible. And Blake… you agreed to this? To live forever with my aunt?"

I nodded. "I did. I can't really explain why, but ever since I've been here I've felt more… alive than I ever have before, like I'm actually living life rather than just going through the motions while I wait for my body to give out on me. And Luna makes me feel even more alive than this place or anyone else I've ever met." Cadance looked like she wanted to say something. "Don't get me wrong; I love all my other girls dearly, and I would never want them to think I love them any less than I do her… it's just that I feel more connected to Luna than I do to anyone else. I don't really know how else to explain it."

Cadance nodded slowly. "Yes. I can feel that you really do love them all with all of your heart." She turned back to Shining Armor, who suddenly looked very uncomfortable, and if he was thinking what I was, I could guess why. "Shining… I know this is a lot to ask… but, would you be willing to take some of my blood… and spend eternity with me?"

Shining looked all over the room, trying to find a way out of the conversation. He started sputtering. "I-I um… I have to go!" He leapt out of the tub and bolted for the door before any of us could stop him.

Cadance stretched out a hoof after him. "Shining! Wait!"

I put a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry too much about it Cadance; it's a lot to take in, he probably just needs some time to think first."

Her eyes were wide, and I could tell she was fighting the urge to cry. "B-but… you were ok with the idea!"

I shook my head. "Not at first; when I found out that Luna had given me some of her blood to save my life, and that I was going to live for another three thousand years, I pretty much shut down for the next three days. It wasn't until after I'd accepted my new lifespan that Luna asked me to become fully immortal with her." I patted her shoulder and offered her the remains of my final glass. "Trust me, if he loves you, and it's pretty obvious that he does, he'll come around; he just needs some time to let it all soak in first."

Cadance sighed and downed the last of the scotch, settling into the hot tub to let the alcohol sink in as the warmth relaxed her mind and body.