PyraohXBlaze - Lol we'll find out soon enough on all counts ;) And thanks :D

DarkSpider11 - Well, technically, he noticed it too

KillerWoW - Stuff... stuff happened :P

Alucard-Masters (Ch86) - Nice :D Lol well, it is still a work-in-progress.

Chaosstripe - Maybe. Vi doesn't really strike me as the 'settle down' type though

Ponified Bacon Boss - Well, I used a website for this one, because my cipher wasn't sophisticated enough to make the kind of language that I wanted for the ponies, but I'll PM you the translation index. For anyone else who's curious; go to fantasynamegenerators *dot com* and click the 'language generator' link at the bottom of the page. I may do that; when I wrote that, I fully had no intention of doing so, but I realized that that was a potential hindrance to my writing, so I opted to change that. And thanks for pointing out those mistakes, I went back and fixed them already

Pianouniverse - Lol that would only end poorly... I've actually thought about doing like a Q&A for the characters, but I didn't know if enough people would be interested.

flammablefiredragon - Lol lil bit...

centaurus2 - Lol. Wanted the extra immersion of not knowing what they were saying?

Lol I know right? Thanks, I went through a bunch of iterations to make it what I wanted it to be.

Kyguy - Just a wee bit. Lol though she wouldn't mind making it up to him ;)

cking1996 - The longest part was getting the translation index right, which took about twelve hours total to get right

Alucard-Masters (Ch10) - I dunno if I'd go that far...

TurnupGrain43 - Lol you wish :P (But who knows ;) )

animefan192 - Mwahahaha! Here's my atonement, even if it is a day late :P

MortBlackthorn - Woot!

AntiVillian1 - Which has never been seen or heard from ever again... ever

DragonLovingBrony - Yeah, she does seem to be acting out-of-character, doesn't she?

shadows being - Who knows? With the way she's acting, she may have enjoyed that... Read my response to Ponified Bacon Boss, I explain it there.

coldshadow92 - Hmm... there might be; we'll have to wait and see what happens, won't we?

tcp25able - Lol right?

Killerbeast1998 (Ch85)- Oh, don't worry, it's coming ;) As for keeping you up-to-date... you know how I roll when it comes to spoilers.

RussianHwak100 - Lol I don't think Blake and Derpy expected her either...

DragonLord RyuKizoku - Hmm... Lol don't worry, I'll take care of her ;)

Mikalzilla - Of course! Everypony has one, otherwise their house would fall down!

xel101 - You mean a 'menage a trois'? Lol. Who knows whats going to heppen next...

Wellington99 - I thought about styling it after the Greek language, but I thought that might be a little too obvious. There might be plans for that, but there might not... You'll just have to wait and see :P

Zero the Warrior of Chaos - Lol it was, wasn't it?

A/N - Howdy everypony! Sorry for the delayed post, my internet was down most of yesterday. I hope everyone had a great week, and that you've all been looking forward to this chapter. If you haven't done so already, I still recommend everyone who's interested go check out CandyClops on Tumblr, she's a very good artist, and she does commissions, so if you want a pic of your character, she'll make sure you get a great one. As always, don't forget to follow/favorite, review, and most importantly; enjoy!

After shooing Vi out so I could calm down and redress, Derpy and I headed downstairs to meet Vi, Lyra and Octavia; all three of which had decided to come visit when they heard what had happened. I couldn't help but feel a little frustrated at the Vinyl for interrupting us; not only did Derpy and I both have to suffer through orgasm denial, but poor Derpy was so red that she was literally glowing.

"… So there ya have it; we all came over here while Twi went back to the library, and I went upstairs to find you. It's not my fault you forgot to close the door." By the end of Vinyl's explanation, Derpy wasn't the only one who was red-faced.

"I see… well, I suppose I can't blame you for that then. You didn't have to stare though, you know."

She gave me a wry grin. "Dude, how could I not? That was the hottest thing I've seen in a long time."

I groaned. She's worse than Pinkie and Rainbow combined sometimes. The sudden thought of the blue Pegasus made my heart ache and my blood boil at the same time. I did my best to push my confused emotions about that particular situation aside for the moment so I could deal with the trio of friends who had come calling unannounced. "So… who let you in then?"

"Why, I did of course." I looked over to my right to see Cadance trot out of the kitchen holding a tray of drinks and snacks in her magic. "I knew you were having troubles, so I offered to make them something to tide them over until you could understand us again. I had no idea Vinyl had gone off to look for you, or I would have stopped her."

"It's ok Cadance, it's not like you knew. Besides, it could have been worse." She quirked an eyebrow at me, but didn't say anything.

"So Blake," Vi leaned forward in her chair. "I seem to remember you promising to tell us what all happened since the last time we saw you… and that includes this deal with Rainbow Dash. I mean, seriously; a cantaloupe?! Who throws a cantaloupe?!"

Derpy and Cadance decided to sit in while I regaled the trio with the yet another retelling of the events that led up to the present, including Scootaloo's attack, so that they could better understand why I was so upset.

"Dude… that all sounds pretty messed up. I mean, I can see Dash being upset after what you said, but still."

Octavia cleared her throat. "Well, I for one think what she did was brutish and uncalled for; there are other, more peaceful ways to resolve matters of the heart like that… Not that I think you were in the right either, Blake."

I looked over to Lyra, ready to ask what she thought about the whole situation, but I could tell from the look in her eye that she wanted to know more about my 'anatomy'; it was the same look she always got when she had a question about humans.

"You're probably right Octavia, but I didn't know what else to do. Dash has been acting strange for a while, and no one seems to know why. We've known she has a thing for me for some time, but her behavior doesn't really match up to that."

Vinyl nodded. "Yeah, throwing a cantaloupe at somepony doesn't sound like Dash at all. I mean, she pulls pranks once in awhile, but they're always harmless."

I thought that over for a moment. "Yeah, I've heard they're usually pretty funny. Anyway, I'm sure you three didn't stop by just to talk about my problems."

"Aww… we don't mind Blake. But, if you don't want to talk about it, you could always come on over to my place and we could listen to some sick jams."

I shook my head at the offer. "No thanks Vi, not tonight at least; after everything that's happened, I kind of just want to stay home, you know?" Before anyone had a chance to look too down, I spoke up again. "Although… if you want, the hot tub's always ready to go; we could all head down there and chat about other things."

Lyra's ears instantly perked up at the mention of 'hot tub'. "Ohmygosh! You have a hot tub?! I love hot tubs! Let's go right now!"

I chuckled and got up. "Now that's the kind of enthusiasm I like. Come on, let's go."

The five mares followed me downstairs, where I opened the fogged-glass doors for them. "My word… this is positively enormous Blake! However did you afford such a thing?"

Cadance trotted up next to her. "Oh, that's easy; my aunts had it built for him when they made him a knight. This whole house was something he was designing for himself as a sort of dream house, but Twilight gave them a copy of the blueprints he was working on and they had it built for him in secret. They said they wanted him to have a 'home befitting his station', but I think it was really a thank you for everything he's done since he's been here."

Octavia looks up to me, then away. "Yes… he's certainly done more for me than I can ever repay."

I patted her on the shoulder lightly. "Hey now; I told you before, you don't have to beat yourself up over that. That night was total chaos, and it would have been easy for anypony to lose their head. I just happened to see you in trouble, and I helped you. I don't need any credit, praise, or repayment for that."

She sighed and trotted towards the water's edge, looking at her faint reflection in the clear water. "I know, and I know it's silly of me to keep bringing it up, but I also can't help but think that… well, I wouldn't be here if not for you." She shook her head, ebony mane swishing to-and-fro. "Anyway, enough of these depressing thoughts; we came down here for a happy conversation and camaraderie, didn't we?"

Vinyl trotted up alongside her. "Yeah 'Tavi, so let's have some fun!" She punctuated the statement by bumping into the cellist, knocking her screaming into the hot water below.

Octavia popped out of the water with a splash, coughing and sputtering as she broke the surface of the surprisingly deep hot tub. "Vinyl Scratch! What on Mythis do you think you're doing?!"

The DJ chuckled. "Re-lax 'Tavi; it was all in good fun."

Octavia growled as I helped her out of the tub. "I had been hoping to avoid getting my mane wet you know! Now it'll be all frizzy and I won't be able to do a thing about it without a shower!"

Vinyl laughed harder. "You sound just like Rarity!"

And so the evening went, with the five of us laughing and playing around; even Octavia eventually got into the fun, and I started to forget the uncertainty I felt about the future concerning a certain Pegasus.

The whole week seemed to fly by like that; I would go out and spend time with all the various friends I'd made around Ponyville, and even managed to make a few new ones in the process. I stopped by Hammer Hoof's shop to ask one more time if she needed my help, but what I got instead was what I discovered would be my monthly salary as her partner; five thousand bits, not including the royalties she was giving me for everything I'd taught her. I was glad to find out that she opened the shop to me, so that I could stop by and work on my own personal projects if I wanted.

Cadance continued to teach me about healing magic once my concussion had passed. During an attempt to practice with it, myself being the 'patient' of course, we discovered that human healing magic, unlike pony healing magic, was actually capable of mending bone. It was a happy surprise made happier by the fact that I wouldn't have to wait for a month or more for all the fractured bone in my face to heal.

I kept an eye on Twilight, who seemed to be recovering with few symptoms. The weirdest thing about her recovery was that whatever had struck her had left her with an aversion to sunlight. It didn't hurt her, and she could walk around outside in the daytime just fine if she closed her eyes, but she just couldn't stand the sight of it for some reason. She also started sleeping later into the day and staying up later at night.

Luna went back to Canterlot for a few days, citing that she had been neglecting her duties. I wished her farewell and watched as she took wing into the early afternoon air. She came back after nearly three days, a chariot lugging a chest following her own. She told me that one of the benefits of being a Knight, one that I had apparently forgotten about, was that I would receive a monthly stipend. I hadn't known that the stipend would be nearly ten thousand bits, or I would have tried to talk them into a lesser amount.

Not being one to hoard wealth, I quickly set about finding ways to spend it. My first thought was to hire a few helping hooves for Applejack's farm, and after some convincing, I finally got the Apple clan to agree to the deal.

I also set about designing some additions to the house, including a workshop where I could build hobby projects, home improvements, or simple knickknacks and toys for the girls.

The hardest part about the whole week was convincing Scootaloo that seeing Rainbow Dash wasn't the best thing for the time being. It broke my heart to force her to stay away from her idol like that, and the anger in her eyes when I told her made matters even worse. The poor filly had been avoiding me all week, and it tore at my heart that I had no idea how to make things right with her.

Before I knew it, it was the night before Nightmare Night, and Rarity had stopped by for some last-minute adjustments to our costumes, particularly mine.

"I still can't believe she hasn't even stopped by to apologize… Honestly, I have no idea what's gotten into that mare lately!" Rarity was busying herself by taking final measurements and making small adjustments to my costume as she talked. "I must say Darling… this costume looks rather strange, but there's something oddly… dashing about it."

I chuckled as I twisted around, checking the fit. I had left myself shirtless so that the completed costume would be easier for Rarity to envision, though from the movement of her eyes, it was clear that that wasn't all she was envisioning. "Yeah… centaurs seem to be attractive to females of just about any species for some reason… especially the pretty ones." I punctuated my statement with a wink in her direction, causing her cheeks to turn a deep pink.

"D-do you really think I'm pretty?"

I chuckled as I tested out the legs, making sure they moved the way they were supposed to. "Oh come on Rarity, we had this conversation a couple of months ago; of course I think you're pretty. Who wouldn't think you were pretty? And the best part of it all? While you may flaunt it a bit, as you have every right to, you don't tend to be stuck up about it. There were people back on Earth that literally had the mindset of 'I'm too good-looking to be talking to that person' or, 'I look good, so I should have someone to do this for me'. But you don't tend to do that."

Rarity made a face. "And a good thing too; that's a positively wretched attitude to have. I may not like getting dirty, but at least I'm willing to do things for myself. After all, a real Lady must be able to look after herself."

Satisfied with the fit of my costume, which was expertly crafted thanks to some help from Hammer Hoof, and strikingly realistic thanks to Rarity's keen eye, I slipped out of it to await tomorrow's fun. "You're going to make a great wife for some lucky stallion rarity, you know that? I only hope he makes you feel just as lucky."

The blush, which had never left her face, deepened. "Oh, now you're just being a flatterer Darling."

I shrugged my shoulders. "It's only flattery if it's not true. Now, why don't I store this for tomorrow, then I can take you out to dinner to thank you for all the hard work you put into this for me?"

"Oh Darling, I couldn't accept an offer like that, what would the others think?"

That gave me an idea. "Well, why don't we all take you out then? That way, you don't have to worry about them being upset, and I still get to thank you for this awesome costume."

"I… I err uh…" Rarity struggled for a counterargument. "Oh, very well… you know, you really are too clever for your own good sometimes."

The remark got a chuckle out of me. "Heh heh… I do have my moments. So, anyplace in particular you want to go?"

Rarity shook her head. "I'll let you decide Darling. Wherever it is, I'm sure I'll love it."

"Sure you'll love what?"

I turned my attention to the staircase. "Oh, hey Twilight! I was just talking to Rarity about the possibility of us all going out to eat together."

The purple bookworm smiled at the thought. "That's a great idea! I haven't eaten all day, and I'm starving." She turned around and headed back up the stairs. "I'll go talk to the others about it."

Rarity trotted up next to me. "I've been meaning to ask; how are things with you and Scootaloo? Twilight told me she was upset with you when you told her about Rainbow Dash."

The subject of Scootaloo hit me in the chest like a cannonball. "She… she hasn't even spoken to me since I told her. I tried going to Rainbow Dash's house, to see if she would talk to Scootaloo, but she literally pulled the carpet out from under me… I barely had enough time to recover before I splattered on the ground. And then she threatened to leave Ponyville for good if I ever tried anything like that again."

Rarity shook her head. "That's terrible, Darling. And this is supposed to be your first Nightmare Night together too… Oh, if I could fly, I would give that mare a piece of my mind!"

"It… it's not entirely her fault, Rarity. I messed up too; I was upset, and I was way harsher than I should have been with her. If I could, I would take back everything I said in a heartbeat and make everything go back to normal again." I sighed and slumped down in the closest chair. "I screwed up, and now Scootaloo's paying for it…" I sighed and held my head in my hands. "I… I'm scared Rarity. I'm scared that I'm going to wake up one day and find that Scootaloo ran away from home. I'm scared that she's going to hate me forever for my stupid mistake… and I'm scared that maybe… maybe she'd be better off without me as her father." My hands balled into fists, pulling at my hair in an attempt to keep my emotions in check.

"Don't say that Papa!" My head jerked to my left, and I saw Scootaloo sprinting at me a moment before she leapt through the air, landing solidly against my chest, where I quickly wrapped my arms around her. "I love you Papa… and I'm sorry I was so mad at you. I didn't mean to make you sad, really I didn't!"

I hugged her tightly to me, and I could feel my eyes moistening. "It's ok Scoots… you had a right to be mad at me. Papa screwed up, and you ended up getting hurt because of it. I'm so, so sorry Scootaloo; I never wanted anything like this to happen."

She nodded into my chest, and I could feel her tears dampening the scar there. "It's not your fault, Papa. You said some mean things, but Rainbow Dash took it too far." I stroked her wild little mane as she snuggled deeper into my grasp. "I wanna have a good first Nightmare Night with you Papa… and a whole bunch more after this too, so let's not fight anymore, ok?"

I nodded and kissed my little filly on her forehead. "Ok Scoots. I love you kiddo, more than I could ever tell you."

"I love you too Papa."

A sniffle to my right caught my attention, and I looked over to see Rarity, mascara runs down her face and tissue in her magic. "I-I'm sorry Darling… I should've given you two some privacy; it's just… it was so heartwarming to see you two make up like that."

I sniffled too, trying to get my emotions back in check. "It's ok Rarity, Papa and I don't mind." I couldn't help but laugh as the little munchkin beat me to my own sentiment.

I looked down to Scootaloo. "So kiddo, we were all thinking about going out to eat in a little bit, how does that sound to you?"

Her eyes lit up. "That sounds awesome, Papa! Where are we going?"

I chuckled and cradled her in my arms so I could get up. "We haven't decided that yet; Twilight's upstairs talking to everyone else about it, and once she's done with that, we'll all decide together."

"Speaking of me," I looked up to the stairwell to see Twilight coming down it again. "I just finished talking to everypony else, and they all loved the idea; they're all getting ready now in fact." She gasped suddenly as she saw us embracing one another. "You two made up?! I'm so happy to see that!"

I squeezed Scootaloo tight. "That's right. I heard Papa talking to Rarity about how bad he felt for everything, and I realized how bad my being mad was hurting him." She wiggled around in my grip and wrapped her hooves around my chest as best she could. "I didn't mean to make Papa sad, and I felt really bad, so I told him how sorry I was."

Rarity sniffled and dabbed at her eyes with her tissue. "It really was a touching moment, Darling."

I chuckled and set Scootaloo down. "Yeah, I bet it was. Now, I suppose I should go get ready so we can all decide where we're going to eat." I walked away from the group and headed up the stairs to the master bedroom to pick out something fitting for a nice dinner.

Once I had picked something out, I headed back downstairs to see that, besides Shining Armor, everyone was already downstairs and waiting. I looked over to Cadance with a questioning look. "Oh, he's still getting ready. I swear, that stallion's more fussy about his mane than I am!"

"Hey! Just because I like to look nice doesn't make me fussy."

We all turned our attention to the stallion at the top of the stairwell, and I quirked an eyebrow. "Wait… you spent all that time on your mane, and it still looks just like it always does?"

"No it doesn't! I changed plenty of things about it… they're just, y'know, little things…"

I chuckled and turned towards the door. "If you says so princess. Now, where are we going to eat?" I was answered by a chorus of grumbling stomachs. "Heh… I guess everyone else is as hungry as I am."

It took nearly ten minutes for us all to decide where we were going, even though there were only a few places to choose from. Eventually, we decided on the relatively new restaurant, though with Scootaloo at my side once again, I would've been happy eating at the Hay Burger.

The waitress seated us quickly, and after she took our orders, we all started to chat. "So Blake, I think you're getting the hang of your healing magic pretty well… what should we cover next? I was thinking that Shining could show you a few tricks with your shield spell."

I regarded her from across the table. "If it's all the same to you Cadance… I'd like to learn some combat magic." She gave me a questioning look, but I continued before she could say anything. "After what happened in the temple, I realized that I really need something extra to help me fight back against an opponent, especially in my role as a Knight."

Her jaw worked up and down as she struggled to find words. Eventually, she sighed. "You're right I suppose… it would be good for you to have more than your sword and your shield spell to fight with, especially if you just want to subdue whoever it is you're fighting."

Luna, who was sitting across from me, on the opposite side of Cadance from Shining Armor, nodded. "I agree; the more prepared Blake is when he goes into battle, should that unfortunate day ever come, the higher the likelihood that he will… come back." Her tone sombered as she finished speaking.

I nodded to them. "So it's settled then; tomorrow morning, we'll start training on combat magic. For now though, let's focus on happier things, shall we?"

The conversation quickly turned towards Nightmare Night; namely, what everyone would be wearing for the event. Luna had decided to join the festivities as well this year, and had had Rarity make her a witch costume to wear. Twilight was going as some ancient pony wizard, though I couldn't hear his name over the din of the restaurant. The others all had their own costumes as well, though none seemed as intriguing and/or terrifying as the homemade human costume that Lyra had sought Rarity's artistic advice on.

Our meals quickly arrived, and we wasted no time in digging in. There was no end to Rarity's praise as she daintily ate her meal, praising each bite for its flavor and presentation. I could tell that everyone else at the table enjoyed their meals just as much as she did, though they were decidedly less vocal about it.

After the meal was over, and we all enjoyed our desserts, we left the restaurant. Rarity bid us goodnight and headed off to her shop to finish up everyone's costumes for tomorrow while the rest of us headed back to our own home for the evening.

We had just gotten back inside when I remembered something I'd forgotten. "Oh, shoot!" I said, snapping my fingers.

"What is it, love?" Luna asked as she trotted up to me.

I sighed and looked out the window. "I forgot about all of our stuff that we left back at the Kokello village. I hope Quickhoof isn't too upset for having to watch over it for so long."

Luna placed a hoof on my shoulder. "I wouldn't worry too much about it, my dearest; I don't think Quickhoof would mind watching it for you. But, if it would make you feel better, we could fly out and retrieve it first thing in the morning, before Cadance and Shining Armor are even awake, that way you can be back in time for their lessons.

I patted her hoof with a hand. "Yeah, I'd like that Luna. If nothing else, I want to finally be able to read that letter Celestia sent me while I was in the temple."

She giggled and rested her head on my shoulder. "Yes, I am curious to know as well. She says that it's a simple apology, but I think there may be more to it than that."

The two of us headed up the stairs, everyone else having already headed up to get ready for bed. I paused for just a moment as I passed the door to Candace and Shining Armor's room, a smirk coming to my face as I caught the familiar sounds coming from within. Hmm… sounds like Shining really took my advice about giving her a foal to heart…