Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Darkness. An all-too familiar darkness, where all-too familiar shadows loomed. She would never escape. She was sure of it.

From the corner, an eerie whisper. “Green is here.”

Green? Who was green?

Another whisper, this one much closer. “Cyan?”

Cyan wanted to run for her life, but she could not move a muscle, not even to scream. She had lost control over her entire body.

“Cyan!”

Cyan’s eyes snapped open. A warm glow flooded her vision. She blinked a few times before making eye-contact with her girlfriend. “White?”

White cupped her face with her hooves. “You were having another nightmare. I could tell.”

Cyan nodded. “I’m so tired. When will they stop?”

White sighed. “I don’t know, Cyan… I don’t know.”

Chapter Text

Thankfully, Cyan was able to fall back asleep in the comfort of her girlfriend’s embrace, and thankfully, she made it through the rest of the night without any more nightmares. It seemed limbo had been engrained in her mind. She saw it in her sleep almost every night.

It had become routine for one mare to sleep over with the other, and this morning, they were snuggled up together in Cyan’s stall. It was very barren compared to the other horses’ stalls. Jovial’s, for example, was decked out to the nines.

On the topic of Jovial, where had she gone? No one had seen her since shortly after the Grand Final. Everybody knew that she had “transcended” after winning, but nobody knew what it actually meant to “transcend”. They had assumed a ceremony would take place, perhaps one that would add her to some hall of fame or even declare her a saint of racing, but there was nothing, not even a celebratory dinner, and Jovial insisted on having a celebratory dinner every time she won a race. Something was definitely wrong.

“You seem antsy. What’s on your mind?”

The calm voice pulled Cyan’s attention back to White. “I’m worried about Jovial. What if something bad happened to her? Like, what if they decided to take the winner to limbo this time?! It should’ve been me! If I hadn’t thrown the race, Jovial would be safe!”

White placed a steady hoof on Cyan’s back. “I’ll admit, I’ve been worried too, but I don’t think she’s in limbo. Something was already off the last time I saw her. I can’t tell what exactly it was, but I noticed it during her interviews.”

“I bet it was the trophy!” Cyan buried her face into her hooves. “It must’ve brainwashed her or something! It should’ve been me! I was gonna win!”

White pulled Cyan into a tight hug. “Please, stop blaming yourself! That won’t solve anything!”

“You’re right! I’m so sorry!” Cyan clung to her girlfriend. “I just don’t know what else to do! And I feel like I have to do something! After all, Jovial helped you get to me, so, whatever it is she’s going through, shouldn’t we help her in return?”

“Of course, but please try not to spiral or you won’t be able to help at all. Trust me–”

Suddenly, there was a bang against the door, followed by another, and then another. Cyan’s heart caught in her throat. During the Grand Final, she had finally stood up to Nighttime Knifemare, but surely, that bloodthirsty beast was now ready for revenge.

“YOU NIGHTMARES NEED TO LEARN HOW TO KNOCK ON A FUCKING DOOR!!!” White screeched.

“At least she knocked at all?” Cyan steeled her nerves, then opened the door. Just as she had feared, Nighttime was on the other side. What shocked Cyan, however, was how she seemed void of her usual aggression. Was this some sort of trick to get Cyan’s guard down? She was not that gullible; they both knew that!

“I’m…” For the first time ever, Nighttime’s voice was quiet and timid. “I’m sorry…”

Cyan’s face hardened. “No, you’re not.” She was about to slam the door shut when Nighttime stuck a hoof between the door and the wall.

“Wait! I really am! Please, listen to me!”

“You’re not gonna leave until I listen, are you?” Cyan opened the door again. “Fine. Let’s get this over with.”

Nighttime took a deep breath. “I know I beat you up and called you a loser just yesterday, but I’ve thought it over some, and honestly, that whole losing on purpose thing was really inspiring. I heard about the plan you and Fantasy formed, and it’s so amazing how far you’re willing to go just for a chance to protect other horses. You had a legendary opportunity to vindicate yourself, but you gave it up in an act of pure selflessness! I’m used to hating everyone without a second thought, but… you moved me. I think I wanna try making some friends, or at the very least, not being such a bully anymore.”

Cyan narrowed her eyes. “Actions speak louder than words, as do bruises.”

Nighttime snorted. “Hey, you beat me up quite a bit too! I was trying to be nice for once, but I guess I’m irredeemable!”

“Hey, wait!” White cut in. “Don’t twist her words. All she’s saying is that she wants to see you try to be nice for a little while instead of expecting immediate forgiveness when you beat her up and called her a loser just yesterday!”

“Don’t you dare use my own words against me!”

Cyan’s breath quickened as she cried out, “STOP ARGUING AND LISTEN TO ME!!!”

The other two horses fell silent. It was unusual for Cyan to raise her voice.

“Nighttime…” Cyan continued, “It’s not that you can’t change. You definitely can. It’s just… I don’t know if you actually want to or if you’re just trying to manipulate me. In the entire time we’ve known each other, we haven’t had a single positive interaction, and, well…”

“And I want to change that.” Nighttime proclaimed. “I mean it. I want to be your best friend. In fact, I never actually thought you were that bad. You have a lot of potential. Remember that first race; the one you almost won? You had a roaring fire in you, and if you hadn’t let Lightning snuff it out, you’d be putting Jovial herself to shame– no steroids required!”

“That’s just a rumor–”

“It angered me how you let that affect you so much, and how you continued to let the other horses clop all over you. You even forgave Fantasy for sending you to limbo! She should be your worst enemy, not the love of your life!”

“Well, neither of us wanted to win, but I managed to convince her to take the carrots, so, technically, I sent myself...”

“Because you let that siren steal your heart! This is exactly what I’m talking about! You have a heart of gold and everyone around you is taking advantage of it, including your beloved girlfriend!”

White snorted. “Excuse me?! I’m right here, you know?!”

“I’ve heard enough.” Cyan began to close the door again, but Nighttime slipped inside.

“Hey, wait! I slipped into my old ways for a moment! I didn’t mean to! I’m so sorry! It’s gonna take me a while to break this habit, but I really want to break it! I promise I’m telling the truth!” Her eyes were wide and she seemed to be shaking ever so slightly. “I didn’t understand the concept of empathy. I saw you as a slave to your competitors, and I kept trying to snap some sense into you, but now, I realize that I was the one who needed sense snapped into. I used to think, if you could just stop caring so much about pleasing others, you would be queen of the world, but yesterday, well… you were queen of your world… and it astonished me. It made me question everything I had previously believed, and now, you’re my ultimate role model. So, please, give me a chance. Teach me how to be just like you.”

Cyan looked to her girlfriend, then back to Nighttime. “You can start by apologizing to White.”

Nighttime took a deep breath. “Fantasy, I–”

“She goes by White now, remember?”

“But that’s not even a name!”

“That’s the point! We’re trying to show everyone that stupid names we don’t even get to choose should not determine our worths!”

There was a long pause before Nighttime spoke again. “Superstitional–”

“NO!” Cyan and White shouted in unison.

“Shit! Gimme a moment!” Another long pause. “Oob’s girlfriend–”

“HOW HARD IS IT TO JUST CALL HER WHITE?!” Cyan snapped. “YOU CAN’T SIMULTANEOUSLY PRAISE ME FOR THROWING THE GRAND FINALS AND CONTINUE CALLING BOTH OF US BY THE WRONG NAMES!!!”

“I’M TRYING TO SHOW HER RESPECT!!! I CAN’T SIMULTANEOUSLY RESPECT HER AND CALL HER BY A PLACEHOLDER!!!”

“IT’S NOT A PLACEHOLDER IF SHE CHOSE TO GO BY IT!!!”

“WOW!!! YOU DON’T HAVE TO BE SO RUDE ABOUT IT!!! YOU KNOW, I EXPECTED BETTER TREATMENT FROM THE HORSE WHO THREW THE GRAND FUCKING FINALS IN THE NAME OF PEACE AND LOVE!!!”

“I’M TRYING SO HARD TO BE NICE TO YOU, BUT YOU WON’T LET ME!!! ”

Nighttime’s hoof shot forward for a hit, but White intercepted it, her face contorted with fury. “How to be like your ‘ultimate role model’. Step one: Cooperation. Cyan always tries her hardest to accommodate everyone’s wishes, and if she doesn’t understand something, she politely asks for clarification.”

Face glued to the ground, Nighttime backed away slowly. “Understood. Thank you, White . And, I’m sorry for being so mean to you in particular. In limbo, Cyan talked about you all the time, and somehow, even though she never spoke badly about you, I got this idea that you were a jerk who used her love for you against her and that Cyan was an idiot for not realizing. But then, while reflecting on everything else, I remembered how happy you made her yesterday. To me, you had kept her from the carrots, but to her, you are the carrots. I had it all wrong. I really hope you can forgive me someday.”

White’s glare slightly softened. “We’ll see. You still have a lot to work on, but maybe, if you’re actually willing to put in the effort, you’ll become a better horse.”

Cyan rested a hoof on Nighttime’s shoulder. “Yeah. Everyone is capable of change, and if you want to change, you’re already making progress!”

Nighttime smiled softly. “I’ll try. Thanks for believing in me.” She looked back toward the open door. “Sorry for barging in. I’ll see myself out now. See you at breakfast?”

Cyan nodded. “See you at breakfast.”

Nighttime’s exit was much quieter than her entrance. Once she was gone, the tension in the air finally dissipated.

“Do you really think she’s gonna change?” White asked.

“I don’t know,” Cyan answered, “but if I don’t encourage her, she won’t try.”

White gritted her teeth. “I’m sick of her being so mean to everyone!”

Cyan sighed. “Me too.”

***

When the couple arrived at the meal trough for breakfast, they were saddened to see Lightning Strikes Thrice eating by herself all the way at the end. She and Jovial had always eaten together, but now, she stood alone, frowning . A frown from Lightning was about as rare as a smile from Cyan. Cyan approached her, White following close behind. By the time they reached Lightning, her familiar smile was back, but this time, it seemed forced.

“Oh, hi, Oob– or should I call you Cyan now? I still can’t believe what you did yesterday! Usually, I can’t take my eyes off my darling Merry, but when you announced you were throwing the race, I just had to watch you! I’ll admit, I may have gotten distracted by Merry’s melon crushers as she approached the trophy, but I did watch you dance with your ‘Sincerity’ as you called her, and you both seemed really really happy, so I’m really really happy for you!”

Once again, a tidal wave of guilt washed over Cyan. “Jovial means a lot to you, doesn’t she?”

“Mhm! She’s my Joyful Outgoing Valiant Inspiring Ambitious Loving Majestic Energetic Radiant Romantic Youthful Motivated Eager Nonpareil Treasure!” Lightning’s eye twitched. “And she’ll turn up sooner or later! I bet she just took a spontaneous trip to China! She’s always wanted to do that!”

Cyan had several questions, but she decided all but one were best left unaddressed for Lightning’s sake. “Wait. Did you make an entire acrostic poem out of her name to list her positive qualities?”

“I sure did! And she made one for me too! I can’t believe how lucky I got to not only score her but then enter a full-fledged relationship with her! She’s my whole world!”

“Yeah, good for you.” Cyan turned her gaze to White. Clearly, Jovial was much more important to Lightning than she was to her own girlfriend. She knew she wasn’t unimportant to White, but clearly, Jovial was a legend by both racing and relationship standards. And, in addition to being an amazing girlfriend to Lighting, Jovial was a hero to everyone . She had even joined White in limbo to save her .

Sharp tears welled in Cyan’s eyes. “I’m sorry, but I feel sick.” And, with that, she ran off.

White looked frantically between Cyan and Lightning. She needed to comfort her girlfriend, but she couldn’t just leave Lightning to sulk alone again.

“It’s okay,” Lightning said. “Be with your girl. I’ll be fine.” Again, her eye twitched.

White hesitated for a moment before answering, “Take care,” and then running after Cyan.

She found her outside, forehead against the barn wall as tears streamed down her face. “Cyan?” Very gently, she rested a hoof on her back. “What happened, my love?”

“It–” Cyan winced as fresh tears burned against her scars like acid. “It should’ve been me!”

White stroked her back. “If the trophy really did put Jovial in danger, it should’ve been nobody . That’s what we’re fighting for, remember? In fact, we really need you here. This movement would never take off without you.”

“But Jovial is a hero, and everybody loves her!” Cyan banged her head against the wall. “I mean, think about it: Who would the other horses rather have here with them? The all star who motivates them to break through their limits or the Debbie Downer who makes them glad racing isn’t a team sport?”

White sighed. “Not everything is a competition. Jovial doesn’t deserve to suffer, but neither do you, and there is no better horse; it’s all subjective!”

Cyan continued to sob. She leaned her head back, preparing another bang, but White pulled her into a hug. “Your prime era is yet to come. It would be such a shame if you missed it.”

“Oh, really?” Cyan asked dryly. “What do you think my ‘prime era’ is gonna entail?”

White smiled softly. “I may or may not have already written a poem about it.”

Cyan’s teary eyes widened. “I get a love poem too?!”

“Well, sort of…” White cleared her throat.

“Beside me stands a leader who doesn’t need a crown. By making others smile, she rids her own frown. Thanks to her special power, she doesn’t need a sword. She keeps everyone safe with her gallant, heartfelt word. That’s all I have so far.”

With her heart aflutter, Cyan eagerly gave White a smooch. “That’s amazing! You’re amazing! I’m so lucky to have you!”

White knickered, her cheeks a faint pink. “And the world is lucky to have you! ”

Cyan gazed into her girlfriend’s loving eyes. “You really mean it?”

In those eyes, a familiar glint of excitement shone. “Of course I do! Kindness is the most powerful force of all, and you are incredibly kind, which means you’re unbelievably powerful! Everyone here is waiting for you to work your magic– they just don’t know it yet!”

“Really? Kindness is powerful? ”

“I would think so.” White leaned her forehead against her girlfriend’s. “At the very least, it was powerful enough to enamor me~”

“You’re such a smoothtalker.”

“A smoothtalker? No, I’m Sincerity! You said so yourself!” Another knicker.

For a few minutes, the mares just stood there, foreheads pressed together, enjoying the moment of quiet intimacy. Gradually, Cyan’s breath slowed and the tears on her face dried.

When Cyan had reached a state of calmness, White spoke again. “Can I tell you something?”

Cyan was quick to answer, “Anything, my love.”

White took a shaky breath before continuing, “I know exactly how you feel. When I won that race and you got sent to limbo, I thought to myself every second of every day, ‘It should’ve been me. It should’ve been me. It should’ve been me.’ and it took me so long to stop feeling sorry for myself, pull myself together, and actually do something to get you out of there!”

Cyan clasped a hoof over her own mouth. “No! No, no, no! Don’t say that! Please! You shouldn’t have gone down there at all, not even to save me! You should’ve enjoyed your victory and continued on without me! That’s what I thought you would do! Why didn’t you?!”

White wiped tears from her eyes. “Because I love you.”

“I love you too…”

Once again, there was a moment of silence before White asked, “Do you want me to be in pain?”

Cyan gasped. “No! Of course not! Why would you think such a thing?!”

White stared directly into the eyes of her beloved. “When you were gone, I was in agony. In fact, the time I spent in limbo with you hurt far less than the time I spent here without you.”

Cyan broke the intense eye-contact. “W-what are you trying to say?”

White put a hoof on Cyan’s cheek, turning her back to face her. “That I’m so fucking glad you threw that race.”

“But Jovial doesn’t deserve to suffer.”

“ And Jovial doesn’t deserve to suffer.”

“But, if it had to be one of us–”

“No. It shouldn’t have to be either of you.”

There was yet another pause before Cyan asked, “Well, how are we gonna save Jovial from… whatever is going on?”

White sighed. “Honestly, I have no idea…” She lifted her hoof from Cyan’s cheek to gently brush a stray locke of hair out of her face. “But, in the meantime, the other horses could really use some… magic .”

***

A few minutes later, the couple returned to the meal trough. As expected, Lighting was still eating alone. Cyan took the place across from her and White stood next to Cyan.

Lighting looked up from her breakfast. “Oh, hey! You’re back!”

“Of course,” Cyan answered. “Nobody deserves to be lonely.”

Chapter Text

At long last, Cyan and White had a day they could truly enjoy. No races, no training, just relaxing and having fun together. Instead of running like their lives depended on it, they could leisurely stroll through the grounds and enjoy the beautiful scenery. They skipped stones over the pond, which sparkled like gold under the sun, searched for figures in puffy white clouds, grazed on bright green grass and delicious dandelions, and exchanged nuzzles and kisses under the shade of a large oak tree. As they watched the setting sun cast a myriad of hues across the sky, Cyan wondered aloud, “Is this the beginning of our happily ever after?” to which White replied, “I sure hope so,” and it was almost enough for Cyan to crack a smile. It was only when the bright warm colors faded into deep blues that they finally headed back inside for dinner.

The mares were thankful that they had been grazing all throughout the day, as there was barely any hay left in the meal trough by the time they arrived. The only other horse in the room was Bullet’n Board, who was standing in front of the bulletin board that had been used to announce upcoming races. Upon noticing a bright orange flier that had not been there in the morning, Cyan’s eyes widened and White’s eyes narrowed. “Not again!” they said in unison, albeit in different tones. Both of them approached the flier, one with fear and the other with fury, to get a closer look.

BASKETBALL COURT OPEN FOR TRAINING!

JUNE 6TH – JUNE 8TH: 3 FFA GAMES

COMELY MATERIAL MORNING

DOWNTOWN SKYBOX

GARBAGE BIN

A MYSTERIOUS FIGURE

LIGHTING STRIKES THRICE

JUNE 10TH – JUNE 12TH: 3 FFA GAMES

BULLET’N BOARD

DOORKNOB

RESOLUTE MIND AFTERNOON

SUPERSTITIONAL REALISM

00B

NIGHTTIME KNIFEMARE

JUNE 13TH: CAPTAINS SELECTED

JUNE 14TH: TEAMS FORMED

“What?!” Cyan exclaimed. “Basketball?! And on June 10th already?! How are we gonna get good at a sport we’ve never played before in just a week?!”

White did not respond.

“White?”

White did not respond.

Cyan turned to face White, who looked like she had just seen a ghost. “It’s okay, White! We’re gonna find a way! We can do this together!” Although she tried her best to sound confident, worry seeped into her voice.

Finally, White responded, barely above a whisper, “That’s not my name.”

Suddenly, it clicked. Cyan scanned the flier again.

SUPERSTITIONAL REALISM

At once, White’s words from just a few days prior echoed in her mind.

“Even though the name Fantasy Fantasy Fantasy doesn’t suit me at all, it’s far better than Superstitional Realism, because that awful name just serves as a reminder that I let you let me leave you to die!”

Cyan tackled her girlfriend into a hug. “It’s okay! I’m okay! Happy, even! You make me happy! I had such a great day today, and you know why? Because I got to spend the whole day with you! And I want to spend my whole life with you! Once we get out of this mess, we’re getting married, okay?!”

White stared at Cyan with wide eyes. “Did you just propose to me?”

Cyan’s breath hitched and her face reddened. “I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to! I just wanted to help you feel better and I got carried away! I do want to marry you someday, but this is such a terrible way to propose! Once the time comes, I’ll do it with a poem and a scenic view and a diamond bracelet! I promise!”

White laughed dryly. “I can’t believe you actually want to marry me!”

“Are you kidding?!” Cyan exclaimed. “It would be a dream come true! In fact, I’m surprised I’m the only horse here who’s madly in love with you!”

“And I’m madly in love with this thing called a room. ” Bullet’n interjected.

The blush on Cyan’s face deepened even further. “Right. Sorry. Uh, White, let’s head back to the stable.”

White was full of conflicting emotions– anger, fear, guilt, hope, adoration, and now embarrassment. There was so much she wanted to say, but all that came out was, “Yeah. Let’s.”

***

On the way back to the stable, White was quiet, a storm of feelings brewing within her. Nobody else could make her even half as happy as Cyan could with a single word; a single touch; a single glance ; and what had she done in return? Given her PTSD? Would she ever be able to undo all of the psychological damage she had caused her own love? Could she even come close? And why did Cyan love her so much when her trauma was her fault? One thing was for certain: More than anything in the world, she wanted Cyan to feel the same happiness she gave her every single day.

“Your place or mine?”

The soft-spoken voice pulled White out of the storm in her mind, at least for the time being. She found herself outside of their two stalls. Even though they were neighbors, they never missed the opportunity to spend the night together. When she looked at the entrance to her own stall, something caught her attention: At the foot of the door was a special package.

Immediately, White’s face lit up, and she held the package above her head triumphantly. “Yes!!! It’s finally here!!!”

Cyan watched her eager girlfriend, a warmth growing within. “What is it?”

White thrust the package into Cyan’s hooves. “I used some of my winnings from the Losers’ Finals to get you a gift! I wanted to give it to you right after yesterday’s race, but it arrived a day late!”

Cyan stared at the package. “You spent your prize money on me? Why?”

White’s smile grew. “Because I love you! Now, open it!”

“ Another grandiose love expression? Don’t you think saving me from my own blade was enough?”

White’s grin quickly faded. “That doesn’t count. I am fervently against suicide. I would’ve stopped you even if you were a stranger. The fact that I love you just made it even more painful that you considered such a thing.”

“Oh…” Cyan sighed. “I’m so sorry for hurting you! Ugh, I can’t believe how selfish I was! Is there any way I can make it up to you?”

“Yes.” White tapped on the package. “By opening this.”

“The gift you got me ?”

“Cyan.” White looked her girlfriend in the eyes. “When you threw the Grand Finals yesterday, you were so happy, and seeing you like that brought me more joy than anything money can buy. You have the most beautiful smile in the world, and if I get to see it again for even a second, I’ll consider myself the luckiest horse to ever live.”

“Wow…” Cyan looked back down at the package. “You really mean it?”

“Of course!” White chuckled. “I mean it with sincerity, sincerity, sincerity!” A soft blush spread across her face. “I may have played you calling me that on loop in my mind as I was falling asleep last night.”

“Well, if that’s the case, then, maybe, this will give you something to think about tonight…” Cyan carefully opened the package and pulled out… “A portable CD player?”

White nodded.

“It’s a kind gesture and I really appreciate it, but…” Cyan sighed. “I don’t have any CDs.”

White tapped her hooves together in excitement. “Oh, yes you do! Come in!”

White led Cyan into her stall, where she handed her a CD. Scrawled on with marker was the phrase Trans Lesbian Horses vs The Powers That Be , and alongside the text was a pair of hearts.

“It’s a custom CD!” White proclaimed. “I found a bunch of songs that fit the theme and burned them onto it!”

“The theme?” Could it be? No… But what if? “Is the theme… us?”

White pumped her hooves in the air. “Yes! There are some songs that remind me of you, some that remind me of myself, some that remind me of our relationship, and some motivational songs to help us fight for our cause!”

“You made this… for me?”

White nodded.

“When?”

“Well… remember how I was late to the Grand Finals?”

“Yeah.”

White took a deep breath, and then, her story spilled out. “So, I made the playlist itself a few days ago, but I didn’t have a CD to burn it onto, so I ordered some blank CDs, and they arrived the afternoon before the race, but I didn’t know they had arrived until we came back here together, and I was really excited to have that CD ready for you, so I went to the library as soon as we parted ways after breakfast, but I’m not good with technology, so it took me a lot longer to figure out than I anticipated, and once that was finally done, I was like, oh shit! I still haven’t cut my hair! And that’s why my haircut was last-minute!”

Cyan stared at White with wide eyes. “Wow. All of that to try to make me smile? Why are you willing to jump through hoops just to possibly make me happy?”

Tears pooled in White’s eyes. “Because you make me happy, and I really want you to feel what I feel when I’m with you.”

“I make you happy?”

“You make me happy.”

A moment of silence allowed the words to sink in. Cyan made White , the most wonderful horse in the whole world; the horse who believed in her when nobody else did; the horse who stuck with her through thick and thin; the horse who made her feel loved every single day; happy .

Tears flowed from Cyan’s eyes, and slowly but surely, a smile spread across her face. “I make you happy.”

Cyan was smiling ! White pulled her girlfriend into a tight hug, sporting a grin of her own. “You make me so happy!”

***

After a few minutes of holding each other and enjoying each other’s happiness, White encouraged Cyan to listen to the CD. Mere seconds after pressing play, Cyan turned to her girlfriend, her eyes sparkling with excitement. “Deacon Blues! That’s my favorite song! How did you know?”

“You told me.”

“I did?”

White nodded. “You know how, whenever it plays, you stop what you’re doing to stare at the speaker with that certain look in your eyes?”

“I didn’t think anyone noticed.”

“At first, I thought the song was bringing you down, so, one time, I tried to snap you out of that trance you were in by giving you a kiss on the cheek, and you whispered to me, ‘Not now. My song is on.’ and, from then on, I knew.”

“Oh, really?” Cyan put an arm around White. “I don’t remember that, but I believe it.”

For the next several minutes, the two sat in silence, leaned against each other, listening to the lyrics that spoke to Cyan so deeply.

Learn to work the saxophone

I play just what I feel

Drink Scotch whiskey all night long

And die behind the wheel

They got a name for the winners in the world

I want a name when I lose

They call Alabama the Crimson Tide

Call me Deacon Blues

And, despite the upcoming trial, for that one night, they were both at peace, just listening to music and enjoying each others’ company…

That was, until there was a bang on the door. And then another. And then another.

“NOT NOW, NIGHTTIME!!!” White shouted.

An uncanny echo of her own voice responded, “No, it’s me!”

“I’ll handle this.” Cyan paused the CD player, stood up, and, with her smile fading from her face, answered the door. A Mysterious Figure stared at her with teary eyes. “Cyan…”

Cyan tilted her head. “Yes…?”

Mysterious sighed. “I’m so sorry. I was wrong about everything.”

Cyan beckoned White to the doorway and she rolled her eyes before meeting her there.

Meanwhile, Mysterious launched into a monologue. “I thought I was so much better than you; that I was out of your league; that, if given the chance to venture out of limbo, I wouldn’t hesitate to leave you behind and go live my best life free of your whining. I thought I was a femme fatale; a bombshell who could turn anything in my favor just by giving pathetic simps a smidgeon of attention. Before I met my precursor, I saw you as a toy to play with for a while and then throw away once I got bored. And, when I finally met Fantasy, I thought for certain you had somehow brainwashed her into a mindless lovergirl who didn’t have a life outside of you!”

“I’m right here, you know?” White mumbled.

“But I was so wrong!” Mysterious continued, “Cyan, you are so sweet, and you bring happiness to everyone around you, especially Fantasy! She is beyond lucky to have you as her girlfriend! In fact…” A blush spread across her face. “I’m kind of jealous of her… but, unlike me, she actually deserves your love…”

An awkward silence fell over the three mares. Cyan and White looked to each other, then to Mysterious, then back to each other, then back to Mysterious. 

Finally, Mysterious broke the silence. “Anyway, Fantasy–”

“It’s White now.” White cut in.

“Right. You’re activists now. So cool! Well, White, I am terribly sorry for having a stick up my ass and thinking I was the wiser of the two of us. Now that I’ve seen how happy Cyan makes you, I understand why you’re always so kind and loving to her, and I no longer see it as a weakness, but rather, a strength. Maybe, if I can be more like you, I can someday win the heart of someone as delightful as Cyan.”

White squirmed as though trying to wriggle her way out of the awkwardness. “Thank you for the apology. I really hope you manage to improve yourself. But, please, don’t do it just to get a partner. That’s a recipe for disaster.”

“Oh, no, don’t worry! Now that I’ve realized I was in the wrong this whole time, I want to be a better horse to everyone regardless of romantic interest! I want to be kind just because it’s the right thing to do!”

“You actually want to be kind?” White asked. “With no ulterior motives?”

Mysterious nodded, a gentle smile spreading across her face.

White’s face softened. “Well, in that case, good luck.”

“I believe in you!” Cyan added.

“Thank you both.” Mysterious backed out of the doorway. “I should probably get going. Good night.”

Cyan and White each wished Mysterious a good night, and then, she was off. Once she was gone, White spoke up. “That’s the second nightmare apology in one day. Do you think they’re planning something?”

“I don’t know,” Cyan answered, “but either we give them a chance and they might change for the better or we don’t give them a chance and they definitely stay assholes.”

White’s eyes narrowed. “And what on earth was with her suddenly being in love with you?!”

“I have no idea.” Cyan put her arms around White. “But rest assured that you will always be my one and only love~”

“Are you sure?” White stared at the ground. “Even though I… you know… Superstitional?”

“Of course I’m sure.” Very gently, Cyan traced the navy blue scar trailing down from White’s bottom lip. “Who else would go through such great lengths just to make me smile?”

Chapter Text

The rest of the evening was peaceful. Cyan and White listened to the new CD while huddled together under the same blanket. Thanks to the soothing music and the warmth of her girlfriend, Cyan’s eyelids grew heavier and heavier until…

Darkness . An all-too familiar darkness, where all-too familiar shadows loomed. She would never escape. She was sure of it.

This time, there were whispers all around. The only word Cyan caught amongst the chatter was “training”. The nightmares were training?! For what?!

Yet again, Cyan was paralyzed. All she could do was stare into the abyss, watching the figures of monsters pace the area and hoping that none approached her. She had to get unstuck so she could run if–

“Cyan!”

Cyan awoke with a start. A warm glow flooded her vision. After rubbing her eyes, she saw her girlfriend standing over her. “Oh, thank goodness! It was just a dream!”

“Yet another nightmare…” White pulled Cyan into her arms and started stroking her hair.

Gradually, Cyan began to relax. “It felt so real… like I was actually back…”

“Unfortunately, dreams about trauma do tend to be very vivid…” White planted a kiss on Cyan’s head, then continued to stroke her hair.

“And I heard them talking about training… and they keep mentioning that Green, like, every other night… and I’m starting to wonder…” Cyan clung tighter to her love. “What if these are visions? ”

White was going to respond but fell silent. It wasn’t impossible, nor was it unlikely, for that matter. With Cyan being the creator of the nightmares, it would make sense for them to have some sort of psychic connection to her. Finally, she answered, “Even if they are, you don’t have to be scared. They can’t hurt you. Your body is still here, safe with me, and I’ll always be right by your side to wake you up as soon as you start stirring. I promise.”

Cyan had so many questions, but she knew White knew even less about the matter than she did, so she instead tried to ground herself by focusing on her girlfriend’s softness, warmth, and sweet scent.

“My poor baby…” White gave Cyan’s head another kiss. “What would help you feel better? Maybe some music from your new CD?”

Cyan returned the favor, gently tilting White’s head down to place a kiss right in front of her horn. “Actually, can you please play some of your own music?”

“My own music?”

“Your horn music. It’s the only thing that lets me go back to sleep after those nightmares.”

“But you have the CD now. Isn’t that an upgrade?”

“No!” Cyan cupped her beloved’s face. “I need your music! I swear, you must have some hidden sleeping spell or something!”

White sighed. “Don’t you at least want to try something different? You’ve gotta be sick of listening to classical piano music night after night…”

“But, my love…” Cyan leaned in closer until their noses were touching. “Why fix what isn’t broken?~”

White’s heart skipped a beat. “You know what you’re doing.”

Cyan nuzzled her girlfriend’s nose. “Is it working?~”

White couldn’t help but crack a smile. “A little…” The smile faded. “But that doesn’t change the fact that my horn is deformed and I only have one power…”

“That’s one more than me… unless you count limbo visions… but that’s more of a curse!”

“But a unicorn without magic is just a horse!” Upon realizing what she had said, White clasped her hooves over her mouth. “I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean– it’s just– I’m not supposed to be like this!” Her breath quickened as she awaited Cyan’s reaction.

“ Without magic?” Cyan asked incredulously. “But didn’t you say just yesterday that kindness is the most powerful force of all?”

Once again, White was rendered speechless. Cyan took the opportunity to pull White into her arms and stroke her hair. “My beautiful treasure, can you please play some of your soothing music for me?~”

“Oh, Cyan~” White couldn’t help but melt into her beloved’s arms. “I used to feel defective, but you make me feel so important…”

Cyan kissed White’s head again. “You are so important.”

White’s buried her burning face into Cyan’s shoulder. “Cyan! You’re doing it again!”

“Hey, you earned it!” Cyan countered. “You’re always like, ‘Wow! I love you so much, Cyan! You deserve to be happy, Cyan! You’re so sweet, Cyan! You’re not a loser, Cyan! I mean everything I say, Cyan!’ and you expect me to just let you go about your life thinking you’re broken?!”

The heat on her face grew. “Alright, alright! I get it! Now, let’s get you back to sleep… love of my life~”

Cyan ignored the heat spreading across her own face to respond, “I’ll need your music for that, Sincerity~”

White’s breath hitched. All she could say was, “Oh my.”

Cyan let go of White at once. “Oh! Oh no! Was that too far?! I’m sorry!”

White shook her head. “I just need a minute.”

For a moment, the couple sat across from each other in silence. Cyan’s heart pounded. She had gone too far; she was sure of it. Then, White’s horn emitted a very soft glow, and from it played a calm classical piece. Was everything fine after all? Right as Cyan let out a sigh of relief, her beloved pounced on her, ambushing her face with kisses until she was a blushing, stuttering mess. “W-what was that?”

White smirked. “Payback~”

Cyan stared at her girlfriend bewildered as White gingerly wrapped a blanket around the two of them. “Ready to sleep?” she asked Cyan.

“I’ll try…” Cyan closed her eyes and focused on the soothing melody. Meanwhile, White rested her head on Cyan’s chest, relishing the sound of her heartbeat. Within a minute, both mares were significantly calmer.

“Sweet dreams~” White whispered to Cyan.

Cyan gave White one last kiss on the head. “You too~”

***

The next morning, the couple headed to the newly-opened training courts right after breakfast. The other horses had immediately gone for more challenging courts, so they got to have the easiest court to themselves. They decided to begin their training with a good old-fashioned game of HORSE.

“Now, remember,” White said, “We’re going to suck at first. That’s normal. But, the more we practice, the better we’ll be, so we can’t give up!”

Cyan nodded in agreement, but she knew that would be easier said than done. A certain past experience had proven that all it took for her to lose her drive was one small slip-up.

“Here, I’ll go first!” White was about to shoot the ball when the door opened. Both horses turned to see none other than Nighttime Knifemare. They stared as she silently took a seat on the other side of the court.

Cyan sighed. “She wants to join us, doesn’t she?”

White shrugged, then shouted across the court, “Can I help you?”

“I’m just gonna watch Oob if you don’t mind!” Nighttime shouted back.

“It’s Cyan!” Cyan yelled.

“That’s not a name!” Nighttime yelled back.

“That’s the point!” Cyan exclaimed.

“If you’re gonna talk to us, can you come closer so we don’t have to yell?” White yelled.

“Oh, sorry!” Nighttime responded. “I’ll shut up now! Pretend I’m not even here!”

Cyan and White turned back to each other. “Should I go for it?” White asked.

Cyan nodded. “Good luck!”

“Thanks!” White aimed and then shot the ball. It bounced off the wall and Cyan caught it.

“You’re up!” White said. “Good luck!”

“Thanks. I’m gonna need it.” With shaky hooves, Cyan shot the ball. It bounced off the wall and White caught it.

For her next shot, White tried going closer to the hoop. Miss.

Cyan also tried going closer to the hoop. Miss.

White tried again. Miss.

Cyan was shaking even more. Miss.

White hesitated before shooting. Was Cyan okay? Miss.

Cyan was about to take her next shot, but White stopped her. “Hey, it’s alright. We’re practicing for a reason. Don’t give up, okay? I believe in you.”

“You always did believe in me…” Cyan let out a sigh of remembrance. “I know I’ve said this a thousand times before, but that's why I love you.”

“I love you too.” White smiled softly. “I have a surprise that may cheer you up. Close your eyes.”

“Another surprise?!” Cyan exclaimed. “Why are you spoiling me so much?!”

“Because I love you! Now, eyes closed! Chop chop!”

“Fine…” Cyan closed her eyes. “Wait. I didn’t see you bring anything–”

“Shhh...”

Cyan fell silent, and next thing she knew, she was engulfed by the fervor of a passionate kiss. Her heart throbbed, nearly beating out of her chest. She wrapped her arms around her beloved, pulling her closer. For that moment, the rest of the world ceased to exist. It was just the two of them and nothing else mattered…

Except, it wasn’t just the two of them. The romantic moment was interrupted by a certain someone cheering from across the court. “WOOO!!! OOB’S GOT GAME!!!”

Cyan and White both stared at Nighttime with bright red faces.

“Sorry…” Nighttime hesitated for a moment before yelling, “WOOO!!! CYAN’S GOT GAME!!!”

“Just ignore her,” White whispered, eyes fixed on the ground.

“Way ahead of you.” Cyan picked up the ball and took a few deep breaths, grounding herself and allowing herself to feel her renewed confidence. “I think I’m ready.”

“Go, Cyan!” White cheered.

Cyan took a few steps back, aimed, and… whoosh! Cyan’s eyes widened as the ball slipped right into the net.

“WOOO!!!” Nighttime cheered. “CYAN’S GOT BOTH TYPES OF GAME!!!”

White tackled Cyan into a hug. “That was amazing! I knew you could do it! I’m so proud of you!”

“Thanks again…” Cyan gazed into White’s eyes. “I couldn’t have done it without you.”

White looked down to Cyan’s mouth in preparation for another kiss, but what she saw shocked her. “Cyan! You’re smiling again! Oh wow! It’s more beautiful than a double rainbow!”

“I am?!” Cyan’s smile grew. “Huh! I guess I am!” Cyan picked up the ball and tossed it to White. “Let’s keep going before all this energy wears off!”

“Okay!” White shot the ball from where Cyan had previously stood. Miss.

“You got an H!” Cyan dove for the ball and spent just a second aiming before shooting… another basket?!

Nighttime’s cheering was near-deafening. “OOB IS BALLING!!! I REPEAT, OOB IS BALLING!!!” She threw open the door. “HEY, EVERYONE!!!” She ran off. “OOB IS BALLING!!! OOB IS–” The door fell shut, muffling Nighttime’s continued exclamations.

Meanwhile, Cyan received yet another hug from her girlfriend. “Cyan, that was incredible! How did you do that?!”

“I don’t know! It must be the power of love or something!” She passed the ball to White. “You try!”

White took Cyan’s spot, aimed, shot, and missed again.

“That’s an O!” Cyan grabbed the ball. “I wonder if I can do a trick shot!” She turned around and threw the ball at the wall. It bounced off the wall and… into the basket?!

“You’re a legend!” White exclaimed, pulling Cyan into yet another hug. “You have got to train me!” 

Cyan thrust the ball into White’s arms. “Let’s keep up this momentum!”

White, of course, missed the trickshot. Meanwhile, other horses began trickling into the room.

“R!” Cyan grabbed the ball again. “Here! I’ll go easy on you!” She lined herself up just a few feet across from the basket. Nothing but net. Several horses cheered from the sidelines.

White stared up at the hoop for a full minute. As though some switch had been flipped, the crowd had gone silent. Finally, she shot the ball, landing her first basket. The half-hearted cheers from the crowd were made up for by Cyan picking her up and spinning her around. 

“You did it! Now, we’ve both made baskets! Isn’t that amazing?!”

“I guess practice makes perfect!” White passed the ball back to Cyan, who easily made another basket from the same spot. The crowd, which had already doubled since her last basket, went absolutely wild. Cyan was beaming . When the races had begun, this was exactly what she had dreamt of.

White’s hooves shook a little as she took the next shot. Miss. Cyan grabbed the ball out of midair. “S!” 

The crowd roared. “Do a trickshot!” someone shouted.

Cyan turned toward the voice. It had come from Nighttime Knifemare, who was now surrounded by every single other horse. Did she want to impress the other horses? Absolutely. Did she want to guarantee a 5-0 game against the love of her life; the horse who had given her this very fervor? Absolutely not. She looked to White, then back to the audience, then back to White.

“I wanna give you a chance to at least give me an H,” Cyan whispered.

White was torn. On the one hoof, she couldn’t help but feel bad about her own lack of skill, but on the other, Cyan needed that moment to shine. She forced a smile. “Hey, Cyan! I dare you to bounce it off the wall again!”

“Off the wall?!” Nighttime exclaimed. “With just a few minutes of training?! If Oob makes this shot, she may be the Jovial Merryment of basketball!”

The Jovial Merryment of basketball! The words echoed in Cyan’s mind. “Alright, bet! And you know what? I’ll even do it with my eyes closed!”

The audience erupted into cheers, and within seconds, a chant had formed. “OOB! OOB! OOB! OOB!”

Oob aimed at the wall, closed her eyes, and threw the ball. There was a thunk several feet in front of her, and then, a clatter behind her, and then, a whoosh . The crowd screamed .

Oob opened her eyes and took it all in. The other horses were clapping and cheering and hooting and hollering. Her beloved already had her in a tight hug. And, for once, she actually felt good about herself. “I am one cool horse,” she whispered.

“You sure are,” White whispered back. “I’m so happy you’ve finally realized!” She pulled away from the hug to grab the ball and take the same position Cyan had shot from. “Hey, everyone! If I miss, I'll kiss Cyan a hundred times in a row!” She half-hazardly tossed the ball into the audience, where it was caught by Garbage Bin, and immediately took to covering her champion’s face with kisses. The crowd began to simmer down, with the exception of Nighttime, who shouted, “WOOO!!! CYAN’S GOT GAME , I TELL YOU!!!”

Cyan was so happy that she could melt. “I can’t believe I almost gave up! Thank you so much for believing in me!”

“Mhm!” White continued to bombard Cyan with kisses.

“And I’m not talking about basketball, you know?”

The kissing came to an abrupt stop.

“I’m talking about my happiness,” Cyan continued. “Less than a week ago, I was ready to end it all, but because you believed in me, not only am I still going, but I’m already happier than I ever thought possible…”

“Wow...” White gazed at Cyan. “My dream came true…”

Cyan gazed back at White. “Mine too…”

White nuzzled Cyan’s nose. “I love you, my champion~”

The nickname made Cyan’s heart flutter. “I love you too, my savior~” She gave her girlfriend a tender kiss. “Oh, and by the way, I could tell the game was getting to you. I’m sure you’ll reach my level– which is somehow very high; not sure how that happened– soon enough. Remember what you told me: Don’t give up. ”

“Thank you, my love. I’ll try.”

Next to the couple, another horse loudly cleared her throat. They turned to see none other than Garbage Bin. “Hey, so, I’d like to make an apology…”

Cyan’s grin faltered. Again? “Sure, go ahead.”

“Oob, I am terribly sorry for being so mean to you! All of those bad things I said about you– they weren’t even true! I guess I was just looking for excuses to hate you… but I don’t want to hate you anymore. You are so cool, so talented, so kind , and you certainly didn’t deserve to be treated the way I treated you. If it’s not too much to ask, can I start fresh? I’m not saying we have to be friends, although that would be amazing, but I no longer want to be your enemy.”

All three nightmares apologizing within 36 hours of each other? What was going on? Was this some sort of trick? Even if it was, it would be best to play along, right? And, of course, it would be better to offer them a chance to improve regardless of whether or not they would take it than to close that door entirely, right?

“Thank you for the apology,” Cyan finally answered. “I really hope we can have amicable interactions from now on.” And that was certainly true. She was sick of Garbage always putting her down.

Garbage smiled. “I hope so too.” She turned to White. “You got yourself a walking green flag. Take good care of her.”

White put an arm around Cyan. “I definitely will!”

Garbage looked to the exit. “Welp, I should continue training! I’d love to chill in the beginner court with you gals, but my first game is in two days , and unlike a certain someone, I don’t have natural talent, so I gotta keep grinding!”

“Two days,” White mused. “And I thought six was too little!”

Cyan placed a reassuring hoof on Garbage’s shoulder. “You can do this! Don’t give up!”

“Thanks…” Garbage turned her gaze to the floor. “And thanks for being nice to me despite… you know…”

“Don’t mention it! Now, get out there and make some baskets!”

Garbage put on a confident grin. “I will! See you around, Jovial of Balling! ”

Jovial of Balling. Cyan was still processing the words when White spoke up. “That went surprisingly well.”

Jovial of Balling. “Yeah. It did.”

“Although, it is weird that all three nightmares apologized back to back.”

Jovial of Balling. “Yeah. It is.”

“Is something on your mind?”

Cyan grinned. “ Jovial of Balling! And from Garbage Bin of all horses! I’ve gone from zero to hero in under an hour!”

“You were already my hero, but…” White trailed off.

“I know, I know…” Cyan caressed White’s cheek. “You were a fan of mine before I was cool! But now, I’m actually popular! I’m getting compliments left and right! And, I used to keep my distance from Garbage, but now, I’m actually looking forward to talking to her again!”

Although White was happy for her girlfriend, she couldn’t help but feel a pit in her stomach. Was she apprehensive? Insecure? Jealous? Some combination of the three? Regardless of how she felt, she couldn’t hold Cyan back. “In that case, why don’t you go catch up with Garbage? Maybe the two of you can train together while I stay here in the baby court. And, while you’re over there, I bet the other horses will be thrilled to see more of your trickshots! At this rate, you’ll be doing blindfolded hallway shots by the end of the day!”

Cyan knew something was off. She could see it in that downcast gaze; hear it in that subdued voice. She would not let her beloved suffer. “If you think I’m gonna ditch you , my ride or die; not an exaggeration; you literally risked your life for me before I’d won a single race; in favor of the horses who didn’t give a shit about me for ages and suddenly became my fans, like, fifteen minutes ago just because I’m good at basketball, you are dead wrong!”

“Are you sure you–”

“And, you know what? I’ve had more than enough training for now! For the rest of the day, I just wanna be your cheerleader! I wanna be here with you to give you loads of encouragement and celebrate every basket you make! I won’t even touch the ball! I’ll just focus on helping you achieve your full potential!”

White placed a hoof to her own chest. “You really mean it?”

“Of course I do!” Cyan glanced where the crowd had once stood. Everyone had left except for Nighttime. “In fact, I have a surprise to get you started!~”

White’s heart skipped a beat. “Do I have to close my eyes?”

Cyan nickered. “Maybe~” She turned to Nighttime and shouted across the room, “Can we please have some alone time?!”

“Oh, sorry!”

The couple watched Nighttime saunter out of the room. When the door finally closed, White shut her eyes, her heart racing in anticipation, only to hear an enthusiastic, “Think fast!” followed by the ball whizzing past her and bouncing off the wall behind her. She opened her eyes just in time to see Cyan catch it.

“Did that surprise you?” Cyan asked.

“Well, yeah.” White chuckled nervously. “I didn’t think we’d go straight to training. If you meant to fake me out, you did well because, honestly, I was 100% sure you were gonna–”

In an instant, she was overwhelmed by a flare of ardor brought on by a passionate kiss. Her mind scrambled, her heart galloped, and her arms clung to the love of her life. Despite everything, Cyan adored her. She was her object of affection’s object of affection. How had she gotten so lucky? Her sweet beloved Cyan loved her too. Cyan loved her too. Cyan. Cyan. Cyan. All she could think about was Cyan and Cyan’s intense love.

After a full minute, Cyan finally pulled away, a gentle smile accompanying the red tint on her face. White was lightheaded, stunned, and blushing profusely. “I– wha– wow– uh– I– well– uh– holy– you– I– uh– huh? ”

Cyan’s soft smile grew into a smirk. “Payback~”

Chapter Text

Cyan and White quickly developed a new routine. While White trained, Cyan cheered her on, and whenever White took a break, Cyan tried out some new trickshots for an enthusiastic audience. Outside of training, the two mares enjoyed each others’ company, partook in outdoor activities, watched the first few games, and exchanged passionate kisses more and more often.

By the end of the first day, White had already gotten the hang of wallshots, and by the end of the third, she could shoot a basket around the corner of a hallway. She would have been proud of her progress if not for the other horses reaching those milestones at around the same time as her. Of course, it made no difference to her whether she won or lost the games, but she couldn’t help but envy her own girlfriend, who, despite training less than a quarter as much as the others, was still the most skilled by a margin.

Cyan, on the other hand, was having the time of her life! At long last, she was actually good at something! She no longer had to beat herself up over being a loser because she was no longer a loser! The only way her life could get any better was if she stopped having those concerning dreams, but even the nightmares weren't so bad because her loving girlfriend was always quick to soothe her back to sleep.

As for the triple redemption arc, A Mysterious Figure and Garbage Bin might as well have been entirely new horses, but Nighttime Knifemare? Well… she was trying her best. Ever since becoming a Cyan superfan, Nighttime had taken to lashing out at any horse who didn’t treat her idol like royalty. Even White got accused of being a negligent girlfriend, as though she didn’t spend almost every minute of the day by Cyan’s side, just because she had left the court for a quick snack while Cyan was putting on one of her shows.

The night before their first game, the couple; one excited and the other nervous, went to sleep early, and it was then that Cyan had a nightmare that was… different… from the dreams she was usually plagued with. This time, she was not in limbo, but in an ice-cold void. Across from her was a green horse. Was that the Green she had heard about before?

“You are bleeding,” the green horse whispered.

For once, Cyan was not paralyzed! Finally, she could get some answers! “What?! Who are you?!”

Green continued to speak in a hushed voice. “I am your gaping wounds. But fear not, for you must bleed out before you can fly.”

Cyan’s heart pounded. “Are you gonna kill me?!”

“No,” Green whispered. “I’m going to bring you back to life.”

Every time that strange horse spoke, it only confused Cyan more. “Back to life?! But I’m not dead!”

“You died the day you arrived in limbo. But I will give you a second chance.” Green pressed a hoof to Cyan’s cheek, causing her to wince in pain. “Let the blood run down your face. Feel it. Embrace it. And you will unlock great power. Understood?”

Due to the searing pain, Cyan was only able to respond with a shaky whimper.

Green finally put its hoof down. “Good. But remember: The other horses will only hold you down. Don’t let them get in your way.”

In the blink of an eye, Cyan was back in the warmth of her stall. She sat up, hyperventilating. “White, White, White! I just had a horrible–”

But the site beside her was even worse than her nightmare. Overnight, all of White’s scars had opened, and she was covered in her own blood.

White sat up and rubbed her eyes. “What happened?” Before Cyan could answer, she let out a shriek. “OH NO!!! CYAN!!!”

“I’m so sorry!” Cyan exclaimed. “I think it’s my fault! I had a dream–”

White shrieked again. “I’M BLEEDING TOO?!”

“WHAT DO YOU MEAN TOO?! ”

“OUR SCARS!!!”

“OUR?!” Cyan put her hooves to her face and felt an all too familiar stinging sensation. “OH NO, OH NO, OH NO!!! THIS IS BAD!!! I SHOULDN’T HAVE TALKED TO GREEN!!!”

“YOU MET GREEN?! WHEN?!”

“JUST NOW, IN A DREAM!!! A CREEPY GREEN HORSE TOLD ME TO LET MYSELF BLEED, AND NOW, WE’RE BOTH BLEEDING!!!”

BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!

Hearts pounding, Cyan and White faced the stall door. “Who is it?” Cyan asked, voice shaking. Please not Green. Please not Green. Please not Green. 

“Everyone in the stable heard you screaming!”

For once, Cyan was relieved to hear the voice of Nighttime Knifemare. “WE NEED BANAGES!!!” she exclaimed.

“LOTS OF THEM!!!” White added, “AND FAST!!!”

“Mysterious, Garbage, come with me! Everyone else, watch over them!”

As the sound of galloping hoofsteps faded into the distance, the stall door creaked open and a familiar pink figure peeked inside. “Hey, can we– HOLY ROTTEN APPLES!!!” Comely flung the door all the way open, revealing the dire situation to the other horses, who let out gasps and shrieks of horror.

“WHAT HAPPENED?!”

“WHY ARE YOU BLEEDING?!”

“I’M GONNA BE SICK!!!”

White was lightheaded from hyperventilating so much. “WE DON’T KNOW!!! STOP SCREAMING AT US!!! YOU’RE JUST MAKING IT WORSE!!!”

The panicked yells quieted into worried murmurs, which continued for a few minutes until the nightmare trio finally returned with bandages. Unlike the other horses, they were completely unfazed by the gore. Nighttime rushed to Cyan’s side, a grin on her face. “I’ll bandage you, Oob!”

Cyan scooted away from Nighttime. “No, it’s okay! I’ve got this! And it’s Cyan, not Oob.”

Nighttime’s face fell. “Should I help… White? ”

“Oh, for crying out loud!” Mysterious shoved Nighttime aside. “I’ve got you covered, White!”

“Thanks, but I really don’t need your help.” White tried to move away from Mysterious but winced in pain.

“It’s the least I can do!” Mysterious insisted. “After all, I’m part of the reason you were covered in scars to begin with!”

“And that’s exactly why I don’t want you touching me!” White snapped.

Mysterious recoiled. “Alright, alright! But someone’s gotta help you!”

Cyan grabbed a roll of bandages. “I’ll do it!”

“But what about your wounds?” White asked.

“I only have a few! They can wait!”

“I can do yours, Cyan!” Comely volunteered.

“And I’ll do Sup– sorry, White’s!” Doorknob chimed in.

The injured horses agreed to let Comely and Doorknob tend to their wounds. The blood soaked into the bandages, creating prominent red stains, but at the very least, their gashes were no longer exposed and they could finally hold each other close without that searing pain interfering.

“I really hope we can be exempt from the game later!” White lamented, “How are we supposed to play like this?!”

“You should definitely sit out if you’re allowed to, but I’m going for it!” Cyan declared. “Just because I’m injured doesn’t mean I can’t win!”

“That’s the spirit!” Nighttime cheered. “And just think about how amazing it’ll feel to beat everyone else while at a disadvantage!”

“Aren’t you going against Cyan?” Comely asked.

“I sure am, and I know for a fact that she’s gonna beat my ass!”

Comely tilted her head. “Cyan, did you brainwash her or something?”

“Not that I know of, but..” Cyan shrugged. “At this point? I wouldn’t be surprised.”

***

Unfortunately for White, she was not exempt from the basketball game. As the countdown began, she and Cyan locked eyes.

10

“Hang in there, White.”

9

“Don’t push yourself, Cyan.”

8

“I’ll be fine.”

7

“Are you sure?”

6

“I’ll split the prize with you.”

5

“Cyan, please…”

4

“I love you.”

GO!

Despite the early start, Cyan didn’t miss a beat. She gave her girlfriend a quick peck, then went searching for the ball. Meanwhile, White stayed near the hoop, her only goal being to not injure herself further. To her surprise, Doorknob stayed by her side and promised to shield her from any bouncing balls or rambunctious players that came near.

At last, Cyan laid eyes on the ball. She rushed toward it, only to be shoved around by Bullet’n and Resolute. “HEY!!!” she yelled. “THAT BALL IS MINE!!!”

“YOU HEARD HER!!!” Nighttime grabbed the ball. “THIS BALL IS–” she launched it as hard as she could– “OOB’S!!!”

“IT’S CYAN!!!”

“THAT’S A LOSER’S NAME!!!”

Before Cyan could protest, something more serious caught her attention: Bullet’n was approaching the hoop; approaching White . “Bullet’n, wait! Don’t touch her! She’s hurt!”

Doorknob ran up to Bullet’n and held her in place. “Stop, please!”

Bullet’n tried to get past Doorknob, but Cyan grabbed her from behind. “Cyan, what the fuck?! I’m just trying to get to the hoop!”

White tried to pull the two horses apart. “Please don’t fight! There’s enough room for all of us!”

Resolute pulled Cyan back. “Yeah, Cyan! Stop being so possessive!”

“Just go get the ball!” White exclaimed. “Make a basket so this game can end before anyone gets hurt!”

Cyan ran just a few feet before turning around. “No! I’m gonna be a good girlfriend and stay–”

Doorknob stopped her in her tracks. “I’m already guarding her. You can be a good girlfriend by getting the fucking ball like she asked you to. ”

Finally, Cyan relented and headed off in search of the ball. As soon as she touched it, a surge of excitement shot through her. This was it; the big game she had waited all week for! How could she have gotten so sidetracked?!

Meanwhile, White was pushed around as Bullet’n, Resolute, and even Doorknob fought for a spot right under the hoop. She left her “safe space” just in time to see Cyan throw the ball. “You were right!” she called out. “There wasn’t enough room for all of us!”

“So were you!” Cyan yelled back. “I got the ball like you said to and now I’m unstoppable!”

The ball bounced around in a corner next to one of the tunnels, giving Cyan an idea. Could she get her first win with a round-court tunnel shot? If she could get the angle just right…

“THIS ONE’S FOR MY GIRLFRIEND!!!” Cyan launched the ball and it bounced off a wall and into the side entrance to the tunnel.

Then, it hit the corner near Cyan…

And then, the next corner…

But the angle was off! It went into the middle of the court!

But no, it was right all along! The ball was back on track!

Bullet’n tried to grab the ball, but kept slipping right past her!

White ran after the ball and watched in awe as it shot into the last tunnel!

And Resolute, who was camped by the hoop, was unable to do anything but stare in shock as the ball sunk right into the basket! 

Oob had won!!! The crowd went wild!!!

“WOOOO!!!” Nighttime cheered. “OOB IS OUR GOAT!!!”

White was quick to pull her champion into a passionate kiss. The short dispute was already a distant memory. At that moment, all she felt was extreme adoration and an urgent need to express it.

Oob melted into the kiss. It was a prize far more amazing than any carrots in the world. It was 1000 “I love yous” singed directly into her heart. It was her own personal heaven .

Of course, Nighttime continued her usual incessant fangirling in the background, but the happy couple were able to ignore her– that was, until she said something that shocked them.

“OOB IS SO GETTING LAID TONIGHT!!!”

Immediately, they broke the kiss. “WHAT?!” Cyan yelped.

Nighttime let out a hearty chuckle. “It looks like you’ve gone from losing races to losing your virginity!”

“Shut up,” White spat. “I thought you were done being creepy.”

Cyan fixed her eyes to the ground. “Nighttime, please… this is so embarrassing… and in front of her too?”

Nighttime put an arm around Cyan. “Don’t act like all that PDA has gone unnoticed! You and your girl have been hot and heavy for each other lately! If you’re making out on the courts, I can only imagine what goes on in private!”

White wanted to strangle that bitch. She and Cyan had never done anything sexual, and even if they had, it was not Nighttime’s business, and it was definitely not the public’s business! Didn’t she know better than to cause a scene while surrounded by reporters and paparazzi?!

A pit formed in Cyan’s stomach. Were they supposed to do the deed? What if she wasn’t ready? “Sorry to disappoint you, but we actually haven’t done it yet…”

Another chuckle. “Good one!”

Cyan sighed. Was it best to let her believe it was a joke?

White snorted. “She’s not joking!”

The laughter came to a halt. “You haven’t been letting Oob hit?!”

Cyan was a very patient horse, but there was one thing she couldn’t stand, and that was rudeness toward her girlfriend. “First of all, it’s Cyan, not Oob, and second, I never asked for it! In fact, I was glad she never brought it up because I don’t think I’m ready, but you just had to make everything awkward, didn’t you?! And in front of the reporters too! I mean, look at them! I just won my first basketball game and they’re not even asking to interview me! They’re just standing there gawking at the scene you created!”

“Wait, wait, wait. Go back.” Nighttime tilted her head. “You don’t think you’re ready? Why?”

Cyan huffed. “Where do I even begin? I feel like shit most of the time, so I’m never really ‘in the mood’. I don’t want to give the love of my life a bad experience, but it’s not like I can practice elsewhere. I have something serious on my mind that I’d rather not get into. And, in case you haven’t noticed, both of us have gaping wounds! ”

For once, Nighttime’s voice lowered. “Oh. All valid reasons. Except the second one. But you’re a big softie, so I can see why that would bother you…”

“Actually…” White gave Cyan a soft kiss on the cheek. “I agree with Nighttime for once.”

Cyan’s eyes widened. “What? What do you mean?”

“I don’t care if I have a ‘bad experience’! That would be so shallow– and hypocritical! Once you’re ready, we can figure it out together, but for now, I’m happy with our relationship as it is.”

Cyan lowered her voice to a whisper. “What if I’m never ready?”

“I’ll always love you,” White whispered back, “Even if we never have sex. I promise.” She gave her beloved another gentle kiss.

“Really?”

“Really.”

After a moment of silence, White glared at the reporters. “Are any of you gonna interview us or are you all just gonna goggle?!”

Chapter Text

Once again, Cyan found herself in that ice cold void, and once again, Green was floating across from her. Her heart pounded and her breath shook. “What do you want for me?!” she stammered. “I don’t understand!”

Green stared at Cyan with a wide grin for nearly half a minute before finally whispering, “Keep up the good work.”

Cyan awoke with a start. “White! White! White! I saw Green again!”

Immediately, White pulled her girlfriend into a hug. “Do you want to talk about it?”

Cyan hesitated for a moment before continuing, “For some reason, Green… praised me.”

“What? How?”

“It told me to keep up the good work! I don’t even know what I did!”

White thought for a moment. “Could it be the basketball game?”

“Maybe…” Gradually, she began to relax into her girlfriend’s embrace. “But why would some creepy nightmare horse care about me winning a basketball game? Wouldn’t it be mad that I won, especially since it tried to sabotage us by opening our scars yesterday?”

White stroked Cyan’s hair. “You think that had to do with the game?”

Cyan relaxed just a little further. “I mean, yeah. The timing lined up perfectly.”

“Wait. Is that why you were so insistent on playing despite being severely injured? Did you feel like you had to choose between risking further injury and letting Green win?!”

Cyan’s eyes widened in horror as she recalled what Green had said the night before. 

“Let the blood run down your face. Feel it. Embrace it.”

“White, I…” Cyan’s eyes filled with tears. “I think Green wanted me to play that game. It wants me to keep getting hurt! That’s why it praised me! It wants me to keep putting myself in danger!”

“Oh, Cyan… my poor sweet Cyan…” White kissed her beloved’s head. “You already had your win yesterday. Let’s sit out today’s game, alright? We’ll just cuddle in a corner while everyone else fights to be tied with you!”

Oob’s face hardened. “Basketball is my passion, and I am not giving up my passion just because of a minor setback.”

“Just for a few–”

“You don’t understand. When I’m on that court; when I hold that ball; when I make that basket and the crowd goes wild; I feel alive . This sport has single-handedly cured my depression. I don’t give a fuck if I get a few new bruises, and I know for a fact that I’m not gonna end up with any more gaping wounds because, first of all, I’m really good at this, and second, this is basketball , not sword-fighting . I’ll. Be. Fine. ”

White let go of her girlfriend. “Cyan, what happened to you? Why are you suddenly being so… cold? It’s like you’ve been possessed! Wait–” she backed away. “Cyan, is that really you?! Cyan, please! Um…

Learn to work the saxophone ”

Oob blinked. Why was White reacting so strongly to her newfound confidence?

No answer?! Had Green really taken over Cyan’s body?! White continued to sing, voice shaky. 

“I play just what I feel”

And why was White suddenly singing Deacon Blues? Did she want her to sing along? She had no idea what was happening, but she decided to oblige.

“Drink Scotch whiskey all night long

And die behind the wheel”

Immediately, a wave of relief washed over White. She sang the next line.

“They got a name for the winners in the world”

Cyan slowly approached White while continuing the song.

“I want a name when I lose”

White closed the distance by throwing her arms around Cyan.

“They call Alabama the Crimson Tide”

Cyan rested her forehead on White’s and finished off the chorus.

“Call me Deacon Blues”

White wiped tears from her eyes. “It is you! I’m so relieved! The things you were saying… you weren’t talking like yourself and I thought Green had somehow possessed you!”

Cyan’s eyes widened. “What?! Why would you think that?!”

“You didn’t care… you just… you…” White sniffled. “You don’t need basketball to be happy! You were already getting better before we even started training! Remember that wonderful day we had together?! What happened to the Cyan whose happily ever after was outside of sports?! Whose happily ever after was… with me? ”

Tears blurred Cyan’s vision. What had she done? “I’m so sorry! I still love you more than anything, and I always will! I promise! I know I don’t need basketball to be happy, but it makes happiness so much easier to come by and it guarantees I always have something to look forward to! Of course, settling down with you is my ultimate dream, but let’s be real, White… will we ever get the chance? Race Master created us with one purpose. Will we ever be allowed to do anything else?”

White gritted her teeth. “First of all, don’t say their name or you might catch their attention, and second, are you already forgetting about our plan?!”

“Do we even have a plan?!” Cyan countered. “I bet the only reason they haven’t thrown us back into limbo yet is because they know our protests aren’t actually gonna do anything! No matter how much support we garner from the public, the games won’t end unless the tickets stop selling!”

“But you’re not even trying anymore!” White exclaimed. “Just a week ago, you told the reporters that horses will continue to suffer for as long as the races last, but yesterday, you didn’t even correct them when they called you Oob several dozen times!”

“I–” Cyan fell silent. She knew exactly why she hadn’t corrected the reporters, and now, the guilt ate at her. Barely above a whisper, she finally responded, “I finally felt like I had earned it.”

A loud silence fell over the stall. The two mares just stared at each other with teary eyes and aching hearts. Finally, White pulled Cyan into a hug and emitted a gentle piano tune from her horn.

“I’m sorry,” Cyan whispered.

White stroked Cyan’s hair. “It’s okay.”

Cyan clung to her beloved as more tears spilled out. “Really?”

“Really.” White kissed Cyan’s head. “You’ve been through so much… I can’t even imagine…”

“So have you…” Cyan sniffled. “Because of me…”

“And you because of me…”

“I deserved it…”

“Neither of us did…”

“I was a loser at racing… but at basketball, I was a… so, you can see why… I just…”

“Shhh. You were never a loser.”

“That doesn’t even make any sense.”

“You were never a loser to me, Cyan.”

“But to everyone else…”

“None of them know you the way I do. You mean the world to me, and if they knew you even half as well as I do, they would feel the same.”

Cyan sighed. She wished she could believe her beloved. “Thanks. Now, can we go back to sleep? I’m so tired.”

White knew it would take a while to open her girlfriend’s eyes, especially after all of the trauma she had suffered through, but someday, Cyan would understand. White would make sure of it. But, for the time being, she answered, “Of course, my love.”

***

The next morning, Cyan and White changed each other’s bandages. They found that White’s wounds had begun healing but Cyan’s had not. This, of course, worried White, and she once again urged Cyan to sit out the upcoming game. Cyan was still on the fence, but she didn’t want a repeat of the previous night, so she finally agreed to do so.

Regardless, Cyan was eager to seize the day and go for a morning run. It took some convincing, but White reluctantly agreed to let her go as long as she had a spotter. White herself still had gashes on her legs, so, during breakfast, the couple sought out a volunteer. Unfortunately, all of the other horses were adamant about hitting the training courts as soon as they finished breakfast– that was, all except one.

“Me! Pick me! I’ll be Oob’s spotter!”

White glared at Nighttime Knifemare. “For the last time, no. ”

Nighttime stopped her hoof. “Seriously?! I’m literally your only option, you know?!”

Cyan sighed. “Fine, but on two conditions.”

Nighttime grinned. “Anything!”

“First of all, do not speak to me unless there’s an emergency, and second of all, call me Cyan, not Oob. ”

Nighttime’s face fell momentarily but then turned into a look of determination. She gave a firm nod.

“Good, good. Now…” Cyan turned to White and gave her a tender kiss. “Get some rest, my treasure. I’ll be back before you know I’m gone.”

“I will, my sweet love.” Very, very gently, White placed a kiss over the bandages on each of Cyan’s cheeks. “Don’t overexert yourself. Promise?”

“Promise.” Cyan gave White yet another kiss, then turned back to Nighttime. She wore a prominent smirk but remained silent. “Alright, Nighttime. You passed the test. Let’s go.”

Cyan took off into a canter and Nighttime followed close behind. Thankfully, she was able to enjoy the great outdoors without her typically-talkative spotter yelling in her face. However, after just a few minutes of relishing the sun on her skin and the wind in her hair, her focus turned inward. Wouldn’t sitting out the game be worse for her health? Sure, if she partook in the game, maybe it would take longer for her wounds to heal, but to her, that was a small price to pay for what was essentially an antidepressant and a money-printer rolled into one.

“Jump!”

Nighttime’s shout snapped Cyan out of her daze just in time for her to jump over a fallen log in her path. A rough landing shot pain up her legs, causing her to stop in her tracks. All at once, she realized that she was lightheaded, her muscles ached, and she could feel her pulse all throughout her body. Nighttime tapped her shoulder, but she was too out of breath to answer. White was right. She really did need a spotter. If not for that warning, she could’ve ended up with a sprained ankle if not worse, all because she wasn’t paying attention!

“Are you okay?” Nighttime asked.

Finally, Cyan was able to sputter an answer. “Water. Now.”

“Okay, okay, okay!” Nighttime looked around frantically. “There’s a drinking trough up ahead! Can you walk another hundred yards or so?”

“I’ll try.”

Very slowly, Cyan made her way to the trough. Her legs buckled, but Nighttime’s continuous encouragement motivated her to keep walking. “C’mon, champion! You mopped the floor with your opponents yesterday, so this is light work for you! Keep going! You just need a short break, and by the time you return to the court later, you’ll be ready to make another insane trickshot! You legend… I can’t wait to see you take the win today! Look, you’re almost to the water! You know, you should be so proud of yourself! You’re the only horse here who can be severely injured and still run a whole eight furlongs before needing a break! Oh, hey, you made it! Go drink that water! You earned it!”

Cyan spent a solid two minutes lapping up that glorious water. With her body finally at a standstill, her breath and heart rate finally slowed, and the salt lick positioned next to the water trough helped cure her lightheadedness. Still, she was exhausted, drenched in sweat, and wanted nothing more than to rest in the cool, quiet stable with her beloved.

“Do you want to keep going?” Nighttime asked.

Cyan shook her head. “Take me back. Please. ”

“Alright, if you say so. Although, I thought you’d be cooler than that.” They headed back down the path, and it was only a few seconds before Nighttime spoke up again. “Wait, what am I saying?! That's actually good thinking! Save your energy so you can win the game even faster!”

Clearly, Nighttime had forgotten about the no talking rule, but Cyan was too worn out to protest, and she did need someone to talk to who actually understood how important basketball was to her. “Actually, White said I need to sit out this game so I don’t get injured further, and considering how I almost wiped out just now, I think she may be right. Of course, I really don’t want to, but, like, what if I get hurt so badly that I can’t walk?”

“Seriously?!” Nighttime snorted. “She’s trying to hold you back?! What a bitch! I bet she’s just jealous!”

“Don’t talk about my girlfriend like that!” Cyan snapped.

“Sorry,” Nighttime mumbled. After a moment of silence, she continued, “What I’m trying to say is, you should do what you think is best. Just for a moment, pretend that your tReAsUrE will be happy no matter what you decide. Do you want to play in today’s game?”

“Of course, I do, but–”

“Well, there you go! Just–”

“You didn’t let me finish.”

“Sorry…”

“I don’t know if I’ll be able to play without putting myself in danger.”

“Of course you will! First of all, the court is flat, so you have nothing to trip over, second, the only reason that log almost got you was because you were distracted, which I know for a fact you won’t be during the game, and third, you are the Jovial Merryment of basketball, so there is no way the other horses are gonna be able to leave any marks on you! Except maybe your girlfriend if you decide to recreate the back–”

Cyan’s face flushed. “DO NOT FINISH THAT SENTENCE!!!”

“Sorry…”

Finally, there was silence, but in that silence, Cyan couldn’t help but mull over what Nighttime had said. Embarrassing remark aside, she had made three good points. And, yet again, that incredible nickname echoed in her mind.

By the time they returned to the stable, she had made her decision. She felt bad keeping it a secret from White, but she had to lest she risked being charmed against her own intuition.

***

Oob’s signature frown disappeared as soon as she entered the court. She, the Jovial Merryment of basketball , was eager to crush her opponents with ease. As the countdown began, she and white locked eyes.

10

“I’m sorry.”

9

“For what?”

8

“I...”

7

“Cyan?”

6

“You’ll see.”

5

“Oh shit. Cyan, don’t. ”

4

“I love you.”

GO!

Oob gave White a quick peck before heading off. Behind her, her girlfriend called out, “CYAN!!! CYAN, STOP!!!” But she didn’t stop.

White watched in horror as Cyan plunged herself into the mob of players. She kept calling out to her girlfriend, but she had to keep a safe distance in order to avoid being shoved around. Even Cyan herself almost rammed into her in her mad dash for the ball.

Before long, that coveted ball was Oob’s. This was it; her time to shine!

“CYAN, ENOUGH!!!” White tried to grab the ball, only for it to slip past her as Nighttime Knifemare took hold of her from behind.

“JUST LET HER HAVE THIS, YOU BITCH!!!” the nightmare screamed.

“ YOU’RE THE BITCH!!!” White managed to free herself from Nighttime’s grasp and headed straight for Cyan. “CYAN, PLEASE!!! YOU’RE–”

To her shock, Cyan pushed her away. “LET ME FOCUS!!!”

Unfortunately, it was too late. White’s distraction had allowed Resolute Mind Afternoon to get ahold of the ball that was rightfully hers! She tried to get it back, but she was just a little too slow!

“I’ll get it back, Oob!” Nighttime exclaimed. Since her very angry girlfriend was rapidly approaching her, Oob obliged. She took off to the other side of the court, and by sheer luck, so did the ball! 

White was forced even further away from Cyan when the other players ran after the ball, which, by sheer misfortune, happened to fly right over to her girlfriend. She continued to call out in vain. “CYAN, PLEASE!!!”

Cyan narrowly missed the ball, and instead, it was grabbed by Bullet’n Board. “I SAID, STOP DISTRACTING ME!!!”

Cyan continued to chase the ball and White continued to chase Cyan, ignoring the pain in her injured legs as she did so. Unfortunately, Cyan once again narrowly missed the ball. Doorknob got it, then Resolute, and then, it whizzed toward Cyan, only for her to narrowly miss yet again! But she didn’t give up. She headed back up to the ball, only for it to fly past her. This was getting ridiculous! Was the game rigged?! It had to be! Otherwise, she was a loser again!

“YOU DON’T HAVE TO DO THIS!!! YOU’RE NOT A LOSER!!!”

Had she read her mind?! Cyan finally made her way to White. “I’m really sorry, but I need that ball! I wish you–”

“What you need is rest!” White countered.

“YOU SAID NOBODY UNDERSTANDS ME LIKE YOU DO, BUT IT SEEMS YOU DON’T UNDERSTAND ME AT ALL!!!”

Cyan stormed off to get the ball back and White, holding back tears, took to the corner. She had to stop her beloved from throwing herself into harm’s way, but how could she do so when Cyan kept lashing out at her?

Yet again, Cyan managed to get within inches of the ball, only for it to slip past her. Why was she suddenly so slow?! Still, she wasn’t ready to give up.

Meanwhile, White finally had an idea. Pushing through her pain, she ran across the court to her girlfriend. “Cyan, you're doing great, but I’ll take it from here! You get some rest and I’ll get the ball!”

“That ball is impossible today!” Cyan countered. “There’s no way you can–”

“I got it!” White cheered. “Go to the hoop!” She threw the ball, but it bounced off the wall and into the middle of the court.

“That shot was terrible! ” Cyan lamented. She ran for the ball but miscalculated its trajectory. It bounced off the wall in front of her and was caught by Resolute, and then by Doorknob, and then, Cyan’s stomach dropped as the buzzer went off. Doorknob had made the basket. Cyan was once again a loser. And it was all because White had thrown that ball directly into the crowd.

Cyan stormed over to White. “WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT FOR?!”

“I-I’m sorry!” White stammered. “I didn’t mean to! I just wanted to help!”

“WELL, YOU DIDN’T!!!”

“YEAH, YOU DIDN’T!!!” Nighttime echoed.

“OH, AND ALSO, ALL YOUR YELLING KEPT DISTRACTING ME!!!” Cyan continued. “I LOST THE BALL BECAUSE YOU–”

“BECAUSE I WAS CONCERNED ABOUT YOUR HEALTH?!” White snapped back, tears streaming down her face. “YOU’RE PUSHING YOURSELF TOO HARD!!! ONE OF THESE DAYS, YOU’RE GONNA HURT YOURSELF SO BADLY YOU’LL NEVER BE ABLE TO PLAY AGAIN!!!”

“NO I’M NOT!!! STOP BEING SO OVERPROTECTIVE OF ME!!!” Cyan tried her best to ignore her growing headache as she ran off.

Yet again, White pushed through the pain in her legs to chase after her girlfriend. “I’M NOT BEING OVERPROTECTIVE OF YOU!!! I JUST FUCKING LOVE YOU!!! YOU ARE MY EVERYTHING, AND IF I FAIL TO KEEP YOU SAFE, I’LL NEVER FORGIVE MYSELF, JUST LIKE I’LL NEVER FORGIVE MYSELF FOR WINNING THAT HORRIBLE RACE!!!”

Cyan stopped in her tracks, a quickly-worsening dizziness not letting her run anymore. Her skin burned and she was drenched in hot liquid, but she paid no mind to the unpleasant sensations. “You did the right thing.”

“Cyan.”

“You’re not a loser.”

“Cyan.”

“But I am.”

“Cyan.”

“And I always will be.”

“Cyan.”

“What?”

“I don’t mean to alarm you, but, um… while you were running, your skin… cracked? And now… you’re bleeding… everywhere… ”

Very slowly, Cyan looked down at herself, and her eyes widened at the gory sight. Her skin had cracked like an eggshell, creating rivers of blood that ran through her entire body, and in her wake was a long red trail. Her vision began to blur.

On the inside, White was screaming, but she kept her voice as calm as she could to keep Cyan from panicking. “You need medical attention, now. ”

Cyan coughed up blood. “I’m so sorry,” she croaked. “You were right all along. I should have listened to you. I love you.” Before she could hear her beloved’s response, everything went dark.

Chapter Text

Maybe, if there had been a paramedic for the horses, this could have been prevented. Maybe, if the other horses were quicker to respond to White’s cries for help, this could have been prevented. Maybe, if White had just tried harder to get through to Cyan, this could have been prevented. But now, instead of the usual kind voice quelling her worries, there was a somber silence. Despite there being a crowd surrounding Cyan and White, not a word was uttered until, finally, after what felt like an eternity, someone whispered, “Is she gonna be okay?”

It took a moment for White to unfreeze; to open her mouth; to force out a response. “No…” She blinked the tears out of her eyes, only for new ones to immediately take their place. “She’s…” She inhaled sharply, ready to release an avalanche of sobs.

“She’s dead.”

***

Darkness. Coldness. Hopelessness. Was Cyan dead or was she back in Green’s domain? Or maybe both?

Behind her, there was an all-too-familiar creepy whisper. “What a beautiful transformation.”

It was both, wasn’t it? Cyan had never been so angry in her (now ended) life. Without thinking, she turned around and hit Green as hard as she could. “I KNEW IT!!! I FUCKING KNEW IT!!! I KNEW YOU WERE GONNA KILL ME!!!” Tears streamed down her face. “HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO ME?! I WAS FINALLY ENJOYING MY LIFE!!! AND YOU MADE ME LEAVE WHITE BEHIND!!! I KNOW FOR A FACT THAT YOU FUCKING BROKE HER!!! YOU CAN TORTURE ME ALL YOU WANT, BUT MY GIRLFRIEND IS OFF LIMITS, YOU MONSTER!!!”

Green remained eerily composed. “You did this to yourself. You kept your wounds from healing. You let them grow. You felt your pain. You embraced it. You handed me the knife. I am only fulfilling my promise. Thanks to me, you are ready to fly.”

“I DIDN’T DO ANYTHING!!!” Cyan shrieked. “I WAS JUST TRYING TO PLAY BASKETBALL!!!”

“You wanted to win so badly.”

“OF COURSE I WANTED TO WIN, BUT WHAT DOES THAT EVEN HAVE TO DO WITH ANYTHING?!”

“You were scared to lose.”

“I WASN’T SCARED!!!”

“You were scared to be a loser.”

“I–” Cyan fell silent. It was true.

“But, Cyan…” Green’s grin grew further than what should have been anatomically possible. “You were never a winner to begin with.”

Cyan’s voice quivered. “What?”

“Once you had that realization,” Green continued, “you also realized that you’ve been dead this whole time.”

“No!” Cyan cried. “You just killed me a few minutes ago, and now, you’re making up an excuse that doesn’t even make any sense!”

Green shook its head. “I’m not a killer. I’m a resurrector."

***

White was sobbing uncontrollably. She wanted nothing more than to be comforted by Cyan, but Cyan was gone. She couldn’t stand to touch or even look at the cold, lifeless, blood-drenched body before her, but at the same time, she felt guilty for being so repulsed by the love of her life. She had so much she wished to say to Cyan, and she knew she couldn’t hear her, but she had to let it all out, so she finally mustered the courage to kneel down in front of the body. Her tears continued to fall as she spoke:

“My dearest Cyan, I love you more than anything, and I always will. Thank you so much for being in my life, even if it was just for a little while. I’m so sorry for everything you’ve had to go through because of me, and I’m so sorry that I didn’t try harder to save you. You changed my life forever. I love you so much. I was hoping we could retire and get married and maybe even start a family, but I guess those dreams will never come true. It’s my own fault. I’m so sorry. I love you, Cyan. I love you forever.”

Her blinding tears rained onto Cyan’s body, but there came no response.

***

Green leaned in until its face was just inches away from Cyan’s. “It is time for you to join me.”

Cyan pushed Green away. “Never!”

“If you don’t join me, you die for good.” In between Green’s hooves, a beam of bright green light formed, and from it materialized an apple. Half of it was red and crisp, but the other half was green and rotten. Green once again leaned in uncomfortably close, and this time, it pressed the apple against Cyan’s muzzle. “Take a bite and join me.”

“M-m!” Cyan tried to move her head away from the apple, but Green pressed a hoof against the back of her head to lock it in place, and then…

It started to rain.

Droplets of white light fell from nowhere. They were warm and wet against Cyan’s skin, and each bright bead that touched her made her feel slightly less hopeless. Accompanying the rain was a voice faint and muffled yet familiar and comforting.

To Cyan’s shock, the drops that felt so pleasant to her appeared to be hurting Green. Every time a glob of light hit Green, it winced as though it had been splashed with acid.

What was happening? In the past few minutes, Cyan had died a bloody death at the hands of a cryptic evil entity, came face-to-face with said entity in a cold dark void, nearly been force-fed an apple that was definitely cursed, and now, there was a bright warm light falling from the non-existent sky that was comforting to her but painful to Green.

Wait. Raining light after death that was hurting a demonic creature? Cyan’s eyes widened, and, presumably coming to the same realization, so did Green’s. They both spoke at once:

“Unicorn tears.”

***

White’s eyes stung from crying so much, but she was nowhere near finished. In fact, at this rate, she expected to cry herself to death. Around her, the other horses had begun murmuring amongst each other, but she paid no attention to what they were saying. All she could think of was Cyan, the love of her life who had lost her own. There was a tap on her shoulder, to which she responded with a shaky, “What?”

“Do your tears normally do that?”

“Fall?”

“Glow.”

“What?!” White wiped the tears from her eyes, finally clearing her vision. Below her, glowing liquid had pooled on Cyan’s body, and from the epicenter outwards, the cracks in her skin had begun to heal and scar over. The ordinary tears that continued to drip from her face took on a bright shine upon making contact with Cyan. If she hadn’t been the last to notice, she would’ve assumed she was hallucinating. Her tears continued to fall as she frantically spilled out words to the deceased:

“Cyan! Cyan, can you hear me?! I am so sorry! I should’ve tried harder to get through to you! I shouldn’t have let you go on that run and I shouldn’t have just let you go to sleep when I knew you didn’t believe me! This is all my fault! But I think I can still save you! At the very least, I’m gonna try! Hang in there, Cyan! Please! I love you and I need you and I can’t go on without you! Please wake up, Cyan! I can’t let you die! I love you so much! You have to get better! You have to! And I know you can! You’re so strong, Cyan! Please, just follow my voice! You’re my everything! Please don’t go! I’m gonna bring you back! Just hang on a little longer! Here, I’ll even sing for you to give you strength!”

***

Now, White’s voice was loud and clear, heartwrenching sobs included. Cyan spread out her limbs, letting the rain soak her. “I won’t leave you, White! I never will! I promise! And, please, don’t blame yourself!”

And then, that heavenly voice began to sing:

“Learn to work the saxophone”

More light poured onto Cyan, restoring her spirit.

“I play just what I feel”

“Make it stop!” Green hissed.

“Drink Scotch whiskey all night long”

Large globs of light formed around the two horses.

And die behind the wheel”

“This isn’t over.” And, with that, Green vanished without a trace.

“They got a name for the winners in the world”

The globs of light continued to grow until there was more light than darkness.

“I want a name when I lose”

The void that was once dark, cold, and scary was now bright, warm, and comforting.

“They call Alabama the Crimson Tide”

Suddenly, Cyan felt like she was falling upward, and then, her eyes flew open and she gasped for air. She found herself back in White’s arms. She was alive again.

White stared down at Cyan, speechless. She had actually done it. Not only was Cyan alive, but every horrible crack in her skin had scarred over.

Cyan gazed up at her savior with adoration as she finished off the chorus:

“Call me Deacon Blues”

White’s heart skipped a beat. “You… you heard me.”

“It wasn’t your fault,” Cyan responded at once. “You tried your best to keep me safe. I was the one who not only ignored your warnings but then got mad at you for trying to protect me. I am so, so sorry. I don’t know what got into me. Thank you for looking out for me. I love you so much.”

So many thoughts flooded White’s mind, but all she could say was, “I love you too.”

To her surprise, A Mysterious Figure of all horses began to applaud, and before long, all of the other horses had joined in on celebrating the miracle they had just witnessed.

Cyan continued to gaze at her darling White. “I had no idea you could resurrect the dead.”

White gazed back at her precious Cyan. “Neither did I.”

Cyan was about to reach up for a kiss but was interrupted by Downtown Skybox. “Uh, sorry, but what exactly just happened, and more importantly, how?!”

White’s eyes remained locked with Cyan’s while she explained to the other horses:

“Legend has it that, back when there were more of my kind, a few of the most powerful unicorns could resurrect the recently-deceased with their tears of healing light. Never in my wildest dreams did I think I could achieve such a feat. I’m so weak and defective that I hesitate to even call myself a unicorn in the first place, not to mention my tears never looked anything out of the ordinary. And, honestly, I have no idea how I managed to do it just now. I know this is corny, but the only explanation I can come up with is that my deep love for Cyan and desperation for her to live allowed me to accomplish the impossible.”

“Wow…” Cyan reached up to caress her girlfriend’s face. “You really love me that much?”

White smiled softly. “You are my everything.”

Awestruck, Cyan was quick to pull White into a kiss, and despite recent events, she finally felt like everything would be alright.

***

The couple spent the rest of the day cuddling and listening to their CD, only leaving the comfort of White’s stall for dinner and returning as soon as they finished eating. It was only when she gave her full attention to her beloved that Cyan realized what she had been missing. While she was riding the high of being “the Jovial Merryment of basketball,” the dopamine hit from every basket was just a distraction from the darkness; the coldness; the hopelessness that followed her everywhere. But, when it was just her and White and nothing else mattered, they shared their own little world; a world of comfort, warmth, and light.

That night, Cyan finally had a peaceful, dreamless sleep.

Chapter Text

Unfortunately, the couple couldn’t hide in their own little world forever. At breakfast the next day, their moods were already dampened. Not only were the other horses still discussing Cyan’s death and wondering what could have spontaneously caused such a brutal injury, but some of them were already debating who the new basketball champion would be following “Cyan’s downfall”. Garbage Bin in particular wouldn’t shut up about how she “fell off” and how the Jovial comparison “aged like milk”. And the worst part? The other horses were so eager to talk about Cyan, but none of them seemed to have any interest in talking to Cyan. Unfortunately, this was nothing new. In fact, it was merely a return to the status quo.

The next basketball game was very different from the previous ones. Cyan roamed the court in a malaise, and although she got a hold of the ball numerous times, she didn’t make a single basket. That fire was gone. She was once again a loser.

Meanwhile, White wandered aimlessly with a thousand yard stare, unable to shake the image of Cyan’s bloody corpse from her mind. Although she also got a hold of the ball many times, she wasn’t able to make a basket either. She was too distracted by thoughts of the many things she could have done differently.

Ultimately, Doorknob won yet again, leading most of the other horses to celebrate her as the new GOAT the same way they had celebrated Cyan just a few days prior. At first, she was desperate to reclaim her glory, but that urge was subdued when night fell and she finally retreated back into that little world of love with the only horse whose opinion actually mattered.

But that peace was interrupted all too soon when Cyan had yet another nightmare. She was back in the void. The darkness was returning, but wet clumps of light still floated about. She did not see Green, but she heard that awful whisper. All it said was, “Tell her to let you bleed,” and then, she woke up with even more scarred-over cracks on her body. White had not used her healing tears again, so the two mares came to the conclusion that the tears she cried when Cyan died were still in her system, immediately healing any more injuries she sustained. So, for the time being, she was immune to whatever curse Green had put on her, but how long would that protection last?

When Doorknob was chosen as one of the team captains the next day, it came as no surprise to anyone except Nighttime Knifemare. Nighttime threw a fit, relentlessly insulting Doorknob and insisting that “Oob” should have been chosen instead. The more Cyan begged Nighttime to leave Doorknob alone, the colder the nightmare became toward Cyan. By dinner time, Nighttime’s interactions consisted of yelling at Cyan for being a loser, yelling at White for ‘making Cyan lame’, and yelling to both Doorknob and Comely that she should have been team captain instead. Needless to say, Nighttime Knifemare was back to her old self.

Cyan and White were both beyond stressed out, so, after dinner, they decided to take a relaxing stroll under the stars. Unlike Nighttime, nighttime was quiet and serene. Crickets chirped, a gentle breeze cooled the air, and the moon’s reflection shimmering in the pond reminded Cyan of the healing light her beloved had blessed her with.

While Cyan gazed up at the stars, White turned to her girlfriend. “Cyan?”

Cyan continued to stare upwards. “Yes, White?”

“I was thinking…” Her eyes traced the many scars on Cyan’s face. “Now that you’re no longer so obsessed with basketball, we should make a proper plan for our mission.”

The stars against the night sky reminded her of those first drops of healing rain. “Do you have something in mind?”

“Actually, yes. I’ve been thinking about it for days now.”

Finally, Cyan turned to White. “Really?”

White nodded. “You see, there can’t be a game without any players. We need to convince every other horse to stand still; to not even touch the ball; for hours, if need be, until they cancel the game. The next game, we’ll do it again, and again and again until they have no choice but to cancel the games entirely.”

Cyan’s eyes lit up. “That’s brilliant!” Then, her face fell again. “But wait. How are we gonna convince every other horse to throw the games?”

“We need to get them on our side first. That’s where teams come in.” White traced her hoof through the dirt to write:

COMRADERY

“Until now, it’s been every horse for themselves, but once teams form, we should have two distinct friend groups. Our teammates will see us as allies rather than rivals, which will make it way easier to get through to them. For the next few weeks, we’ll focus on growing closer to our teammates, and in the meantime, we’ll continue our peaceful protest. Once we can finally get everyone to call us ‘White’ and ‘Cyan’ instead of ‘Superstitional Realism’ and ‘Oob’, it just might be time to advance to…” White traced her hoof through the dirt to write:

ADVOCACY

“At this point, we’ll tell the other horses about our time in limbo, how it affects us to this day, and how we must put an end to these twisted games to ensure no other horses get hurt. At first, they’ll probably shrug it off like, ‘It’ll never happen to me!’ but, if we keep bringing it up– but not too often, of course– they’ll start to think, ‘But what if it does happen to me?’ or, ‘What if it happens to someone I care about?’ Slowly but surely, they’ll prioritize the mission over the games, which brings us to the final step…” White traced her hoof through the dirt to write:

REVOLUTION

“Once we can convince every single horse to throw the games– and make sure none of them are feigning agreement for an easy win– we’ll finally enact our plan to shut everything down once and for all. It’ll probably take at least several weeks to get to this point, so we gotta start now.”

Cyan stared at her beloved in awe. “You really think all of that will work?”

“I’m not sure,” White admitted, “but it’s worth a try.”

Cyan reread the words written in the ground, thinking over the plan in her mind. “I have two questions.”

“Hm?”

“Well, first of all… How do we keep this a secret from them? Now that we actually have an organized plan, don’t you think they’ll try to counter it?

“Codenames.” White crossed out each word and wrote a new word next to it.

COMRADERY GATHERING

ADVOCACY PREPARATION

REVOLUTION SLAUGHTER

Cyan tilted her head. “Now, it looks like we’re preparing a mass murder or something.”

White smirked. “Exactly! Not only would they let it play out; they’d be excited for it to go down!”

“But what if the other horses overhear and think we’re gonna kill them? Then, they would never trust us!”

“We’ll make sure no other horses are around while we’re discussing this, but if we slip up and someone overhears us, we’ll either just admit the truth or tell them we’re LARPing depending on how much we trust them.”

“How about we just say Phase 1, Phase 2, and Phase 3?”

“Fair enough, but we still don’t want them getting too curious, and we never know when they’re listening. They could be listening right now! Wait. If that’s the case, we’re fucked! Oh shit! Are we already fucked?!”

“I don’t know! I sure hope not! Maybe we should sprinkle in those names every once in a while!”

“Nothing to see here!” White chuckled nervously. “We’re just making a plan to kill everyone! Can you believe it?! We were evil all along! Haha… ha…” 

Cyan looked around. “Well, we haven’t been sent back to limbo nor struck dead, so I think we’re okay?”

“Hopefully…” She stared down at her writing on the ground. “I came up with a name for the mission too. We’ve just been calling it ‘the mission’ this whole time and I had a cool idea...” Above the other words, she wrote:

OPERATION SYANIDE

“Get it? It’s a pun on your name!”

Cyan was flattered but confused. “Uh, White? That’s not how you spell ‘Cyanide’.”

“We don’t want them thinking we’re smart!” White scoffed.

“True…” After a moment of silence, Cyan continued, “As for my second question… how are we gonna reach the horses on the other team?”

White’s stomach dropped. This was the part she had been putting off mentioning. “Well, you see, Cyan, my love, my world, my everything, in order for this to work, we… we… we…” She took a deep breath, then wrote on the ground:

SEPARATE TEAMS

Cyan’s eyes widened. “What?”

White put an arm around Cyan. “I’m so sorry, but it’s the only way. I mean, how would we ever convince the opposite team to throw? And besides, if you look at the big picture, we’ll always be on the same team. Remember what I named the CD?”

“Trans Lesbian Horses vs The Powers That Be?”

White grinned. “Exactly.”

Cyan sighed. “Fine. If it’s really the only way, we’ll make sure we end up on opposite teams tomorrow.” She held a hoof out to her partner. “For the greater good?”

To her surprise, White took her hoof and kissed it. “For the greater good.”

***

After White thoroughly scratched out all of the writing on the ground, the couple returned to the stables to wind down. As usual, they fell asleep snuggled together, and then…

Darkness.

This time, Cyan was back in limbo, surrounded by looming shadows. She couldn’t move her legs to run nor open her mouth to scream. She would never escape. She was sure of it.

To Cyan’s horror, a loud, gravely voice spoke to her from the darkness. “Who made the assist again?”

In response, an all-too-familiar whisper escaped her own mouth. “Nighttime Knifemare.”

The voice grew excited. “Right! Now, how about this: Get Nighttime Knifemare–”

“CYAN, CYAN, CYAN!!!”

Cyan’s eyes flew open. She was back in her warmly-lit stall with her beloved cupping her face.

“You just talked in your sleep!” White exclaimed.

Cyan slowly sat up. “I did?”

“You did! I noticed you were having another bad dream, and right before I woke you up, you whispered, ‘Nighttime Knifemare’! Why were you dreaming about her?! What did she do?! Do I need to kick her ass?!”

Cyan’s heart pounded. “I don’t know! She wasn’t even in the dream! It was another limbo dream, but for once, I could actually talk, and someone asked me who ‘made the assist’, whatever that means, and for some reason, I said, ‘Nighttime Knifemare’, and also… and also… for some reason…”

White pulled Cyan into a hug. “Take your time, my love.”

Cyan buried her face into White’s shoulder, took several sharp breaths, and then blurted out, “I SOUNDED JUST LIKE GREEN!!!”

White stroked her girlfriend’s hair in an attempt to calm her, but her own eyes were wide with terror. Had the visions been tied directly to Green this whole time? Had Cyan somehow managed to enter Green’s mind and maybe even body? And, if so, who was to say Green couldn’t do the same to Cyan at will?

“And I think Nighttime is in danger!” Cyan continued. “Another nightmare suggested that I– or was it Green– ‘get Nighttime Knifemare’, and it sounded like they weren’t done talking, but I woke up before I could hear the rest!”

White pushed herself to form a response. “That’s big talk coming from the horses who can’t even leave limbo! And I know for a fact they can’t just kidnap someone on a whim or else they would’ve tried to take us back by now!”

“And what do they mean by ‘assist’?! I know it’s a basketball term, but what if it’s also part of some nightmare code?! What if Nighttime has been working with Green and its henchmen this whole time?! Is that the real reason she suddenly switched up and wanted to redeem herself?!”

Once again, it took a while for White to form a response, and ultimately, all she said was, “I don’t know.”

Cyan shook her girlfriend by the shoulders. “What do we do, White?! What do we do?!”

White leaned her forehead against Cyan’s. “For now, all we can do is wait.”

***

Even with the aid of White’s horn music, it took both horses a while to fall back asleep. They woke up feeling unrested, but this didn’t stop White from continuing to plan their mission in great detail. Cyan tried to pay attention, but her mind kept drifting back to the abundant Doorknob praise she had overheard during breakfast. Why did the others have to change their minds so quickly? Why couldn’t she have been the favorite for just a little longer? After everything she had gone through, she deserved to be queen, but–

“Cyan?”

Crap. She had gotten lost in her thoughts again. “Yes, White?”

White guided Cyan’s head onto her shoulder. “You’re still thinking about last night, aren’t you?”

Cyan sighed. “Well, now, I am…”

“Oh? What were you thinking about before?”

“Nothing important. Just breakfast.”

White had a hunch about what exactly was on Cyan’s mind, but she opted not to probe further.

For a moment, the only sound came from the tree leaves rustling above them. Then, Cyan continued, “How the fuck are we gonna get Nighttime Knifemare to agree to our plan?! There’s no way we can gather her, especially if she’s on Green’s side! I don’t know what Green’s deal is, but what I do know is that Green wants me dead, so if Nighttime really is assisting Green, then there’s no way she’ll even consider joining us! In fact, she could be forming a plot to kill us as we speak!”

“We’ll figure something out!” White insisted. “I’m not saying we can turn her good, but there’s got to be some way we can turn her against Green, and from there, maybe we can bribe her or something!”

“Nighttime doesn’t care about anyone but herself, and she thinks everyone is a loser but her, so if she really is one of Green’s minions, chances are Green offered her something big in exchange– probably the same ‘I’ll give you great power’ bullshit I got! If we can show her that it’s just a trick and that Green will probably just kill her–”

“Who the fuck is Green?”

The two horses flinched in response to the third voice that came from behind them. They peered around the tree trunk and saw none other than Nighttime Knifemare herself sitting on the other side.

“How long have you been eavesdropping?!” White exclaimed.

“Long enough to hear about your little plan!” Nighttime spat. “It’s a stupid plan with a stupid name! I mean, seriously? Operation Syanide? As if you weren’t already cringy-ass edgelords!”

“I had a good reason for choosing that name!” White countered. “I actually formed a strategy, and part of that strategy involves pretending to be a bit edgy!”

“Oh, sure, it’s just pretend!” Nighttime sneered. “You think you’re so cool, but just one second on opposite teams and you’re gonna abandon the game to cry in each others’ arms and then have a sloppy makeout session while I shoot a basket right over your heads!”

White hesitated for a moment before responding, “We’d be equally if not more likely to make out during a game if we were on the same team.”

Cyan’s face heated up. Why did that part of Nighttime’s insult have to be the focus of the comeback?

Meanwhile, Nighttime scowled. “You freak! You know that’s not what I meant!”

“Wait. I know what’s going on here.” White smirked. “I think you’re just mad ‘cause you’re single.”

“Why the fuck would I want a ball and chain?!” Nighttime fired back. “And besides, that has nothing to do with what I was saying! My point is, your plan is cringe, so are you, and you’re way too obsessed with some imaginary horse!”

White tilted her head. “Imaginary horse?”

“That Green fucker!” Nighttime stomped her hoof. “Clearly, Cyan made it up as an excuse for not wanting to work on oPeRaTiOn SyAnIdE when, in reality, she just wants to go back to being basketball champion with an armpiece rather than pretentious bitch’s sad little simp!”

“She’s not pretentious nor a bitch!” Cyan interjected. “And I didn’t make up Green! I’ve talked to it face to face in my nightmares, and last night, I had a dream in which it mentioned you!”

“In your dreams?! So, in your imagination?! Maybe you’re too stupid to realize it, but you literally made up this horse!”

“Green is real, and I have the scars to prove it!” Cyan shoved an arm in Nighttime’s face. “How do you think I got all these, huh?! Why did you think White and I woke up with gaping wounds?! It was all Green! I know I sound crazy, but you have to believe me, because if you really don’t know who Green is, you could be in serious danger!”

“If you’re trying to scare me, it’s not working!” Nighttime scoffed. “As for the scars, you’re Cyan, aka Race Master’s favorite plaything! Maybe they wanted to have a little more fun with you– or, maybe, it was a punishment for protesting the races! You better be careful proceeding with oPeRaTiOn SyAnIdE!”

“Don’t mention–”

White put a hoof over Cyan’s mouth. “I’ve got this.” Then, she turned back to Nighttime. “I think they will be very pleased with Operation Syanide, but we want it to be a surprise, so you better shut your mouth or you may be our first victim!”

“Well–” Nighttime’s scowl faltered. “Wait, what?”

White’s heart was pounding, but she didn’t let her nerves show. “Yeah. We’re gonna kill you.”

“With what, kindness?”

“You’ll have to wait and see.”

Nighttime chuckled. “You fucking edgelords! You really think that’s gonna scare me?!”

Unsure how to respond, White looked to Cyan, who promptly stepped in. “Two words: Grand Finals.”

“Oh yeah!” Nighttime continued to laugh. “You threw the most important race of your life!”

“Yup! And where were you when Jovial grabbed the trophy?”

Nighttime fell silent for a moment before muttering, “Dealing with an idiot.”

Cyan gave a slow nod. “Exactly.”

White put an arm around Cyan. “And, next time, you’ll be dealing with two.”

“For the last time, you’re not gonna scare me!” Nighttime stomped again. “Quit wasting my time!”

“We’ve been waiting for you to leave!” White countered.

“Whatever! I’m sick of you pests bothering me!” Finally, Nighttime turned her back to Cyan and White and began to walk away.

“Bye, Felicia!” White called out.

“Later, losers!” Nighttime called over her shoulder.

And then, at long last, she trotted away.

Once Nighttime was out of earshot, Cyan turned to White. “She’s lying. She knows who Green is. I’m sure of it.”

“Definitely.” White looked to the ground. “And you know what that means.” In the dirt, she wrote a sentence short yet straightforward:

WE ARE SO

FUCKED

Chapter Text

Cyan and White had no clue how to proceed. For the time being, they had just one goal: Stay away from Nighttime Knifemare at all costs.

When they returned to the meal trough for lunch, they were relieved that Nighttime was nowhere to be seen. They ate quickly, itching to be in and out before the nightmare inevitably showed up to cause trouble. They had hoped not to make any conversation, but across from them, Resolute Mind Afternoon spoke up.

“Hey, Cyan, I’ve been meaning to ask, is something wrong? Or, rather, is there more wrong than usual?”

Cyan didn’t look up from her hay. “No. There was less wrong than usual for about a week– or, at least, I thought so, but it turns out I was just repressing it all– and now, it’s back to the same amount of wrong.”

“Is it because you… died?”

“In part, yes, but it’s more complicated than that.”

“Look, I just want to know why you suddenly lost your basketball skills. No offense, but if we end up on the same team and you don’t get better…” Resolute trailed off.

“OH, REALLY?!” Nighttime snapped. (Where had she come from?!) “YOU’RE THE ONE TO TALK?! WEREN’T YOU TRAPPED IN THAT CIRCLE FOR THE ENTIRE GRAND FUCKING FINALS?!”

“Nighttime Knifemare!” White scolded at once. “I thought you wanted to stop being a bully, but since yesterday, you’ve been nothing but an asshole! Whatever happened to being sO sOrRy about your behavior?!”

“I don’t give a fuck anymore!” Nighttime retorted. “If everyone else is gonna be rude either way, I might as well be rude back!”

“Nighttime,” Cyan interjected, “You really don’t have to defend me. Resolute had a reasonable concern. I mean, yeah, it was brought up in a very insensitive way, but I’m sure we can–”

“GROW A BACKBONE ALREADY!!! WHY ARE YOU SO FUCKING WEAK ALL THE SUDDEN?!”

“I literally just asked–”

“STAY OUT OF THIS, CIRCLE GIRL!!!”

“Hey, in my defense, those circles are evil! You think you’re gonna do a quick little loop de loop, and next thing you know–”

“I SAID, STAY OUT OF THIS!!!”

Resolute fell silent.

“AND YOU–” Nighttime glared at Cyan– “YOU NEED TO STOP LETTING EVERYONE WIPE THEIR MUDDY HOOVES ON YOU!!! I CAN’T STAND TO WATCH YOU ACT LIKE THIS!!! WHEN YOU WERE BALLING, YOU WERE THE MIGHTY OOB, AND I ACTUALLY THOUGHT YOU WERE COOL, BUT NOW, YOU’RE BACK TO BEING LOSER CYAN!!!”

Despite her heart pounding, Cyan tried to keep a steady composure. “Actually, you thought I was cool before I ever even touched a basketball. You came knocking on my door the morning after I threw the Grand Finals. You apologized for being an asshole, asked me to be your role model, and wouldn’t take no for an answer. Why is ‘loser Cyan’ suddenly a bad thing again?”

Nighttime scoffed, “Have you admitted to your partner in crime and virginity that you don’t wanna work on that stupid mission of yours or should I be the one to break the news?”

“Why wouldn’t I wanna work on the mission?!”

“You already know. Now, allow me to spell it out for her since she hasn’t taken the hint yet.” Nighttime turned to White. “Cyan may claim that her dream is to run away with you, but the truth is, there’s a little part of her that longs for those glory days as the Jovial Merryment of Basketball, and if you put an end to the games, you’ll snuff out her real dream: To prove to every horse here, including you, that she has been the ascension-worthy top gun since day one.”

“None of that is true!” Cyan exclaimed. “Stop telling lies about me! What are you even trying to do, abort the mission so more horses get sent to limbo?! You know you could be the next horse to disappear, right?! In my dream–”

“Oh, you think I’m afraid of limbo?! Bitch, I came from limbo! And, you know what?! All of you insufferable shits are making me feel homesick! Race Master almighty, please take me away from these pathetic–”

“Don’t joke about them! It may come true!”

“I’m not joking! Take me home, Race Master! I hate this place! The sun is constantly shining in my eyes, there is grass all over the ground, and everyone from here has a smooth rounded face and hates violence! I can’t stand it! Please, Race Master, let me go back to being the monster that lurks in the dark!”

“YOU KNOW WHAT?!” Cyan screamed. “WE DON’T WANT YOU HERE EITHER!!! RACE MASTER, TAKE NIGHTTIME KNIFEMARE BACK TO LIMBO!!! AND NIGHTTIME, YOU’RE GONNA BE BEGGING RACE MASTER FOR MERCY WHEN YOU FIND OUT WHAT IT’S LIKE TO BE THE HUNTED IN THERE!!!”

White gasped. “CYAN!!! WHAT HAS GOTTEN INTO YOU?! DID YOU JUST CONDEMN A HORSE TO LIMBO?!”

“I ASKED THAT A DEMON BE SENT BACK TO THE PITS OF HELL SHE CRAWLED OUT OF!!!” Cyan fired back. “BIG DIFFERENCE!!!”

“I HATE HER JUST AS MUCH AS YOU DO, BUT THE WHOLE POINT OF OUR MISSION IS TO PREVENT OTHER HORSES FROM BEING SENT TO LIMBO!!! THIS IS THE EXACT OPPOSITE OF WHAT WE’RE TRYING TO ACHIEVE!!!”

Nighttime dug her snout into a bucket of cracked corn. (Where did she get that from?)

“SHE LITERALLY WANTS TO GO BACK!!!” Cyan protested. “IF ANYTHING, I’M HELPING HER!!!”

“SHE’S JUST SAYING THAT!!!” White retorted. “IT’S PART OF THAT ‘I’M NOT SCARED OF ANYTHING’ ACT SHE ALWAYS PUTS ON!!!”

“HEY, IT’S NOT AN ACT!!!” Nighttime cut in.

“ARE YOU FORGETTING THAT THIS HORSE MAY BE PLANNING TO KILL US?!” Cyan snapped. “IF YOU HAD TO CHOOSE BETWEEN NIGHTTIME IN LIMBO AND BOTH OF US DEAD, WHAT WOULD YOU PICK?!”

“ENOUGH!!!” White kicked the trough, which emitted a loud bang. After a few seconds of complete silence save for Nighttime crunching on corn, she said curtly, “Cyan, we need to talk. Come with me.”

As Cyan followed White out of the barn, she couldn’t help but notice A Mysterious Figure giving her the stink eye.

***

Once outside, White looked Cyan in the eyes. Her gaze had lost its usual softness. Cyan’s heart beat even faster.

“You cannot fight fire with fire,” White said sternly. “The more you lash out at her, the more aggressive she’ll become.”

Cyan averted her gaze. “I know, I know, but it makes me so angry when she tries to hurt you. I know you’re really strong and there’s no way she can possibly break you, but I can’t stand to watch her even try.”

“Remember, Cyan–” White put a hoof on Cyan’s cheek– “Kindness is power–” she tilted Cyan’s head up– “And you’re the kindest horse here. I know you can do this.”

Cyan sighed. “I can’t. I never mean to. It just happens.”

White’s voice turned stern again. “Well, you have to find a way to stop it from happening. Otherwise, your anger could cost us our lives. I’m not afraid of Nighttime herself, but what if she tells them about our plan and we both drop dead without warning?!”

“She’s probably gonna snitch soon regardless,” Cyan lamented. “We basically already have a death sentence.”

“I’m not giving up yet! There has to be a way to convince her to keep quiet! But, in order for her to be willing to negotiate, we gotta be nice to her! I know it’s hard– I’m struggling too– but we have to keep each other in line if we want to survive!”

“I’ll try to try harder…” She always tried hard to be kind. It only came naturally with White.

“Thank you, Cyan.” White pulled her girlfriend into a hug. “Let’s kill her with kindness, just like she said.”

“Okay.” She had unintentionally led White to believe that she was sweet and selfless, and often, she even tricked herself, but the real reason she bothered being so nice was because she was desperate for some kindness in return.

“You know I’m not mad at you, right?”

“Yeah.” Did the other horses even deserve to be saved from limbo? They didn’t care at all when she went missing!

“I love you, Cyan.”

“I love you too, White.” If White ever found out that Nighttime had told the truth, she would never love Cyan again.

***

The team selection process was strange, to say the very least. The captains went on a boat with fishing rods while everyone else waded into the lake. Soon, the captains would choose their team members by fishing them out of the water with giant hooks. Luckily for Cyan and White, this convoluted selection method gave them enough control to ensure they ended up on separate teams.

After what felt like an eternity, the shabby wooden boat reached the opposite side of the lake and the countdown finally began.

10… 

9…

Cyan looked to White, but she was already focused on the right side of the lake. 

8…

7…

Without even turning to face her girlfriend, White commanded, “You go left. I’ll go right.”

6… 

5…

“Okay.” Cyan took a deep breath. For the greater good.

4– GO!!!

As White swam to the right, Cyan was overcome by a rush of panic. She couldn’t help but chase after her beloved. “White, I need you to know that, whatever happens, I’ll always love you! I promise!”

White continued to speed through the water. “I love you too, Cyan! Now, go! Do it for them and for me!”

And for her. Cyan couldn’t let her down. “I will.” And then, despite every bone in her body screaming for her to stay by White’s side, she took off to the left.

A hook came down. Cyan managed to push past Nighttime Knifemare and Downtown Skybox but was shoved out of the way by Garbage Bin. Only when Garbage was pulled toward the boat did Cyan realize it had been the wrong hook anyway. She had almost messed up big time. She had to be more careful.

Right next to her was Comely’s hook. All she had to do was grab on, but Nighttime Knifemare was going for it too! In an instant, she was overcome by rage. As she charged through the water, she yelled, “NOBODY WANTS YOU ON THEIR TEAM, YOU PIECE OF SHIT!!!” When she reached Nighttime, Cyan pushed herself off her enemy’s body and used the momentum to snatch the hook from right in front of her.

While clinging to the hook, Cyan zoomed through the water, and next thing she knew, she was on land next to Bullet’n Board. On the boat, Comely Material Morning smiled. “Welcome to the team, Cyan!”

That was a much warmer welcome than Cyan had expected. “Oh, uh, thanks, Comely! I know I’m having a dry spell right now, but rest assured that you made the right choice!”

Just then, White flew across the water on Doorknob’s fishing hook, causing Cyan’s heart to sink. Had she made the right choice by going on Comely’s team? She pushed her worry aside, instead watching the rest of the team selection take place. Lightning Strikes Thrice and Resolute Mind Afternoon joined her on Comely’s side, and then, a gong sounded signaling that the teams had been formed. All the way on the other side of the lake, a dark figure stuck out of the water.

Nighttime Knifemare.

Cyan’s last interaction with Nighttime replayed in her mind, and all at once, she realized what a grave mistake she had made. She had to apologize to Nighttime before she spilled the secret plan to Race Master!

“I need to go back,” Cyan told Comely.

Comely tilted her head. “What makes you say that?”

Cyan’s heart pounded. “I need to talk to Nighttime Knifemare now and she’s still all the way out there! Please, cast me back in before it’s too late!”

“Too late…?”

“No time to explain! Just throw me in!”

Comely looked out to the water, then back to Cyan. “I don’t see her. Are you sure she didn’t head out when the gong went off?”

Cyan looked back to where she had just seen Nighttime. Her eyes widened in horror. No. It couldn’t be. She must have just swam elsewhere. She scanned the entire lake. Where was Nighttime? Where was Nighttime?! WHERE WAS NIGHTTIME?!?!

The lake was empty. Nighttime Knifemare was gone.

Chapter Text

Cyan and White searched the entire grounds, but Nighttime was nowhere to be found. The only logical conclusion was that, whether thanks to Green, Race Master, or some awful team-up, she had been sent back to limbo.

“And you last saw her across the lake?” White asked.

Cyan nodded.

White thought for a moment before continuing, “Well, when was the last time you saw her up close? Was there anything off about her?”

Once again, Cyan’s last interaction with Nighttime replayed in her mind.

“Cyan?”

Cyan flinched. “Ah! Sorry! I zoned out! I last saw her going for Comely’s hook, but… someone else… got to it first. She didn’t look nor act any different than usual.”

“Hmmm…” White continued to think. “So, she was the last one in the water, and then, she disappeared shortly after the gong rang… I think her plea to a certain someone actually got answered…”

“Oh no, no, no…” Cyan’s voice shook. “Do you think she’s being punished for not making it onto a team?”

White’s eyes narrowed. “Maybe that’s just what they want us to think. Considering recent events, I wouldn’t be surprised if some sort of divine intervention caused her to be the unchosen horse.”

Yet again, Cyan recalled that final confrontation. Her breath quickened, tears pricked her eyes, and her entire body trembled as she cried out, “IT SHOULD’VE BEEN ME!!!”

White threw her arms around Cyan. “Please, please, please don’t say that, my love! It never should’ve been you! Out of every horse here, you deserve it the least!”

Tears burned against Cyan’s scars. “But it was all my fault! Green used Nighttime to get to me, and I was the one who told them to send her back to limbo, and in the lake… it should’ve been me, okay?! And you know what?! There is no way our secret is safe now, so we’re literally gonna die soon because of me! It could happen at any moment, and it’s all my fault!”

“It’s not your fault at all, but…” White sighed. “There’s nothing we can do to stop our creator from deleting us, so I guess we might as well make the most of the time we have left…”

Cyan gazed at the setting sun. “Yeah… It was nice while it lasted, I guess…”

For a few minutes, the two horses watched the sunset side by side in somber silence, and then, White gently tapped her girlfriend’s shoulder. “Cyan?”

Cyan turned to White. “Yes, my love?”

“I was wondering…” White’s heart pounded. “Would you like to… um… marry me?”

Cyan’s eyes widened. Had she just heard right? “What?”

“If we’re gonna die tomorrow, we should get married tonight.”

Cyan stared at White, fresh tears forming in her eyes. “I can’t.”

White’s face fell. “What? Why not?”

“Because…” Cyan let out a sob. “Because I haven’t been honest with you.” Another sob. “My kindness only comes naturally for you.” Another sob. “For everyone else, it’s conditional.” Another sob. “I only make an effort to be kind to them in hopes they’ll be kind to me back.” Another sob. “What I’m trying to say is…” She continued to sob, no longer able to speak. Tears cascaded down her face.

White stroked Cyan’s hair. “It’s okay. Just let it all out. I’m here to listen, not to judge.”

Finally, she whimpered, “Nighttime was right. That’s why I got so mad at her. I called her a liar, but the liar was me.”

White froze. “Right about what?”

After reigning in her sobs, Oob managed to choke out, “I wasn’t given a fair chance, and I don’t want this to end until I can prove myself to you all.”

White’s heart ached for her girlfriend. Why was she so desperate to prove herself to the others? It was as though she had been brainwashed! Had she been brainwashed? “Oh, Cyan, you don’t have to–”

“Oob.”

“What?”

“I don’t want to be Cyan anymore.”

White’s blood ran cold. This was not her beloved. She let go of her immediately, and with a shaky voice, she sang:

“Learn to work the saxophone”

To the tune of the next line, Oob responded:

“I have not been possessed”

That was not the answer White had expected. “Um… Drink Scotch whiskey all night long?”

Oob continued to sing her own words to the tune:

“This is the real me”

White tilted her head. “Should I keep singing or…?”

Oob nodded.

“Okay, um…

They got a name for the winners in the world”

Oob added:

“You don’t want to marry me”

White decided to try responding while continuing the tune:

“But, you see, Cyan, that’s where you’re wrong”

No. She refused to believe it.

“Can it, Realism”

A heavy silence filled the air as the two mares stared at each other. The broken look in White’s eyes was like a knife through Cyan’s heart. This was exactly what she knew would happen. Why couldn’t she have just accepted the proposal and let her beloved live the last few hours of her life in ignorant bliss?

Meanwhile, that name echoed in White’s mind. Realism. Realism. Realism. Every time it was spoken, be it by another horse, the announcer, or an interviewer, it caused her a sting of pain, but nothing could have prepared her for the sheer agony that came from Cyan saying it. All she could do was repeat the same thing she had told her girlfriend when she first learned that name shortly after they reunited in limbo:

“Please don’t ever call me that name.”

Cyan fell to her knees. “I’m so sorry! I promise I won’t ever do it again! And I’m sorry for everything else too! I should’ve kept it to myself just a little longer! Now, you’re gonna die heartbroken, and it’s all my fault!”

Tears streamed down White’s face. “No…” Her voice quivered. “I’m sorry… It should’ve been me…”

Cyan’s heart raced. “No, please don’t say that! White, please! It hurts so much when you put yourself down!”

“AND IT HURTS ME TOO!!!” White snapped. “YOU REJECTED MY MARRIAGE PROPOSAL ON WHAT COULD BE OUR FINAL NIGHT ALIVE BECAUSE YOU THINK YOU CAN TELL ME WHETHER OR NOT I LOVE YOU!!! I DON’T CARE IF KINDNESS DOESN’T COME NATURALLY TO YOU!!! IN FACT, AFTER EVERYTHING YOU’VE BEEN THROUGH, I’M AMAZED YOU HAVE KINDNESS LEFT IN YOU AT ALL!!! AND, AS FOR NOT WANTING TO CONTINUE THE MISSION, YOU HAD THE RIGHT IDEA, BECAUSE NOW, WE’RE GONNA END UP DEAD THANKS TO MY STUPID PLAN!!!”

“It wasn’t—”

“BUT YOU KNOW WHAT I CAN’T PUT UP WITH?! YOU TELLING ME HOW I FEEL AND WHO I FUCKING AM!!!”

“I’m so sorry! I don’t know what got into me! I guess I just wanted you to—”

“TO MINDLESSLY AGREE WITH YOU INSTEAD CHALLENGING YOUR BELIEFS!!! HOLY SHIT, CYAN!!! WHY CAN’T I HAVE MY OWN FUCKING OPINION?!”

“I’m so sorry, my love! It just spilled out! I wasn’t expecting you to propose out of nowhere and I panicked! But it’s not your fault! I should’ve just gone along with it! Till death do us part would probably be just a day at most anyway! But I guess I tried to self-sabotage or something because, the thing is, I don’t want to get married tonight either way! If we get married, I want it to be the beginning of a new chapter, not the end of the entire story! Weddings are supposed to be happy, and I wouldn’t be able to marry you tonight without being devastated about this being our final night together!”

“WELL, WHY DIDN’T YOU LEAD WITH THAT?!”

“I– I don’t know, okay? I guess it just needed to come out.”

“AND WHY DID YOU HAVE TO CALL ME… THAT?!”

“Because… well…” Cyan sighed. “I guess I was upset. You thought I was possessed and then did a 180 and said you still wanted to marry me. I thought you were lying to preserve my feelings and that, if I didn’t call you out on it, you’d keep stringing me along. I am so sorry, my darling White, my healing light, my stars in the night. I promise I’ll never do it again.”

Again, there was a heavy silence until, finally, White pulled Cyan into a hug. “I’m sorry too, Cyan. I lashed out because I got triggered by that name, and as for the possession accusation, well… I panicked. I really don’t want to die.”

Cyan held White as tightly as she could. “Me neither.” She buried her face into her beloved’s shoulder. “We’ve only existed for a few months and this is already our second time waiting to die in each others’ arms.”

“And you actually died just a few days ago…” White stroked her girlfriend’s hair. “My poor girl… You can’t catch a break…”

“You know how the tabloids call us CloudySkies?”

“Yeah. Why?”

“Maybe, when we die, you’ll become the clouds and I’ll become the sky, and I’ll hold you for the rest of eternity.”

“If that happens, overcast days will be a thing of the past. I’ll make sure your beauty is always on display.”

Cyan looked up at the sky. It was getting dark. “But, I guess, no matter what, nighttime will always come around…”

White looked up too. “Yeah… She always ruins everything…”

Cyan sighed. “She wasn’t all that bad. Maybe it wasn’t her intention, but she boosted my confidence quite a bit while she was cheering me on. At the time, I found her embarrassing, but now, I kind of miss having a superfan…”

White narrowed her eyes. “She’s the reason we’re dying, Cyan.”

“I know, I know, but–” Cyan continued to gaze up at the sky– “I’m done fighting fire with fire. It causes too much trouble.”

“Is it fighting if she’s not here?”

“I guess not, but–” another sigh– “I don’t want to be angry anymore. It’s exhausting and doesn’t accomplish anything.”

White rested her head on Cyan’s shoulder. “Your self-control continues to amaze me.”

Cyan let out a dry chuckle. “I try.” She really, really tried.

***

As the first stars appeared in the night sky, the couple continued to cuddle. They exchanged compliments and “I love you”s like there was no tomorrow– because, for them, chances were there was no tomorrow.

“I love you, Cyan.”

“I love you too, White.”

“I love you more.”

“I love you most.”

White giggled. “Do you, now?~”

“Sure do,” Cyan whispered into her ear. “And I can prove it~”

White’s face heated up. “Oh, really?~”

Cyan nodded. “It just so happens that I recently wrote another poem for you. Would you like to hear it?”

White’s eyes sparkled with anticipation. “Oh, Cyan, you spoil me! I would love to!”

Cyan gazed into her beloved’s eyes as she recited her poem:

“My darling White

My healing light

My stars in the night

My heart beats for you

Your love for me

It set me free

Now I can see

What’s really true

In my own chokehold

I succumbed to the cold

You healed me with your gold

I’m your kintsugi

Yes, it is true

I’ve been born anew

It’s all thanks to you

There’s warmth within me”

White blinked tears out of her eyes. “That was so beautiful. I hit the jackpot with you, Cyan. I really wish we could have more time together…”

“If only there was some way we could fight back…” Cyan’s eyes widened. “White, I just had an insane idea! There may be a way for us to survive! It probably won’t work, but it’s worth a shot!”

White shook with excitement. “Tell me, tell me, tell me!”

“Trust me on this, okay?” Cyan looked up to the sky, took a few deep breaths to steel her nerves, and then cried out, “RACE MASTER, PLEASE SPARE US!!! I KNOW WE’RE NUISANCES, BUT WE’RE WORTH KEEPING AROUND!!! PLEASE, RACE MASTER!!! YOU HAVE TO BELIEVE US!!!”

“CYAN IS, LIKE, THE MAIN CHARACTER OF YOUR TWISTED STORY AT THIS POINT!!!” White added. “DO YOU REALLY WANNA KILL OFF YOUR PROTAGONIST, RACE MASTER?! HOW WOULD THE FANS REACT?!”

“White, I barely have any fans,” Cyan whispered.

“WE’RE INCREASING YOUR VIEWERSHIP, RACE MASTER!!!” White continued. “IF YOU REALLY NEED TO, YOU CAN GIVE US MORE INJURIES TO KEEP PEOPLE’S ATTENTIONS, BUT TO KILL US OFF WOULD BE SELF-SABOTAGE!!!”

“OH, AND ALSO,” Cyan chimed in, “EVER SINCE JOVIAL DISAPPEARED, WHITE AND I HAVE BEEN THE NEW IT COUPLE!!! IF YOU DISPOSE OF US, WHO’S GONNA BE SHOWN KISSING IN THE TABLOIDS?!”

“I wouldn’t call us an it couple,” White whispered.

“AND WE’RE TRANS LESBIANS!!!” Cyan continued. “IF YOU KILLED US OFF, PEOPLE WOULD ACCUSE YOU OF BEING HOMOPHOBIC AND TRANSPHOBIC, AND THEN, YOU WOULD BE CANCELLED EVEN FASTER!!!”

“SPARE US, RACE MASTER!!!” White cried out. “LET LOVE WIN!!!”

Together, the two mares chanted, “LET LOVE WIN!!! LET LOVE WIN!!! LET LOVE WIN!!!”

Suddenly, darkness.

Was this the void again?

No. In the void, Cyan had a body. Here, she just was.

And then, from everywhere at once came a whisper. It was not Green’s whisper, but it was familiar nonetheless.

“TOXIC YURI WILL NEVER DIE”

A split second later, Cyan and White found themselves back on the grounds under the stars as though they had never left. They stared at each other in disbelief.

“Did it happen to you too?” Cyan asked.

White nodded.

“That whisper… was that…?”

“I think it was.”

“So, we were spared?”

“I sure hope so.”

“It actually worked?”

“I think you saved us.”

“From certain death?”

“Well, yeah…”

“I guess we’re even now.”

“Yeah… but I wish we never had to be… especially not so soon…”

A moment passed when neither of them spoke. They just held each other, thankful that they would be able to live another day.

Then, Cyan broke the silence. “Why did they say toxic yuri? We’re not toxic, are we?”

“Of course not!” White held her girlfriend tighter. “At least, I don’t think so…”

“Neither do I, but I want to make sure…”

“I think they meant that… that…” White’s voice turned shaky. “I think they want us to be toxic.”

Unfortunately, it made perfect sense. Not only did their creator clearly have a sadistic streak, but the relationship turning toxic would guarantee the failure of Operation Syanide. All Cyan could say in response was, “Oh…”

Both horses had the same thought, but neither dared speak it aloud:

“I’d sooner die than intentionally hurt you.”