Fires of Friendship

                                                                        Chapter 1:

                                                         ~Life for a Colt and his Dragon~

At a small house just outside the city of Baltimare, a silver unicorn with a red mane and tail called out, "Gyro! It’s time to come into the house!"

A small yellow colt with a blue mane and tail came running and squeaked, "Coming Mom!"

As he went into the house, he saw Orbital, his father, who was a big brown unicorn with a dark-blue mane and tail holding a cardboard box in his magic. Orbital's cutie mark was a hammer beating down on a sword which represented his skills with blacksmithing, and his mother’s cutie mark was a frying pan, which represented her talent with cooking.  Inside the box was a young, blue, sleeping dragon. The young dragon had a slim body like a snake but with arms and a bigger head. This type of dragon had no legs and could use magic to fly when it got older. There also appeared to be a small bit of dark-orange hair on his head.

"Happy Birthday, Gyro!" Starlight, his mother, smiled as they gave Gyro the box.

"Thanks Mom and Dad!" Gyro exclaimed, beaming with joy.

"You're turning eight years old and I think you're ready for this special gift. His name is Syvren; I hope you two will be great friends," Orbital stated.

Gyro smiled and replied, "Don't you worry, we’ll be the BEST of friends!"

Later that day, a whole bunch of ponies had come over for Gyro's Birthday party. One of the presents that he got was a model hot air balloon, while another one was a toy boat, but to Gyro the best present of them all was his new friend, Syvren. Everypony thought Syvren was the most adorable dragon they'd ever seen. Even though Syvren wasn't one to reject attention, he didn't really like all the fillies calling him cutie or adorable. One of the younger fillies thought that Syvren might be a female so she tried to put a dress on him, but thankfully the small dragon was saved by Gyro.

"Sorry, Molly, but Syvren here is a boy dragon not a girl one, so no dress up," Gyro stated firmly.

"Aww, but he would look so pwetty in a dress," Molly pouted in protest while Syvren made a barfing face.

                                                                  ~Two years later~

It was the day after Nightmare Night and there were still a lot of goodies in the candy jar and it was only natural that two mischievous boys were after it. Their parents were in the kitchen, where the tantalizing goodie jar was kept.

"Hmm, this is a tough one.How are we supposed to get to the candy jar with our parents in there?" Gyro asked.

"Don’t look at me, you're the smart one," Syvren replied, holding his head while thinking.

"I've got it! You go into the living room and make a distraction while I make a break for the candy jar!" Gyro exclaimed, an evil grin forming on his face.

Suddenly, there was a loud crash, and Orbital and Starlight raced off to see what was the matter. Only spending a split second in the kitchen, Gyro was soon sneaking the candy jar back to their room when suddenly he was picked up in a gold hue. As he looked back, Gyro saw his father and mother who both were standing there, sternly studying him.

"And just where were you planning on going with that jar?" Orbital inquired, raising an eyebrow.

"Um...well...I..." Gyro muttered.

"You two just keep getting better and better," Orbital chuckled, a smile forming on his face. "Whenever there are sweets in the house, you two just can't resist, can you?" He snorted while stifling a laugh.

"I declare, what are we going to do with you two?" Starlight scolded playfully, picking up Syvren while Orbital held Gyro in his magic.

As they took both Gyro and Syvren back to their room, they all had a good laugh about how they did it and decided to let them keep some of the candy for now as a reward for their effort.

                                                                   ~Five months later~

It was a pleasant day in the hills of Baltimare; the birds were singing and the flowers were in blossom, and out on the fields Gyro and Syvren were laying down. Gyro had gotten his cutie mark, which was a yin yang which was half red, half blue. One of the two dots was a thunder crest while the other one looked like a wind crest. His cutie mark represented his talent with elemental magic.

"So what do you feel like doing today?" Syvren asked.

"I don't know, we could practice our magic," Gyro replied as he got up.

"Ok, what kind of magic do you want to try today?"

"How about some more elemental magic?"

"Oh no you don't, last time we did, I wound up be being a burnt, frozen, fried, and watered down dragon," Syvren declared, crossing his arms.

Gyro smirked and snorted, "Oh that was only during my magic spurts."

"Even still, I don't want to take the chance," Syvren humphed.

Gyro looked down at his hoofs and whined, "But...I..."

Syvren rolled his eyes and moaned, "Fine, I'll help you, but make sure you’re careful this time."

"Don't worry, I've gotten better since then," Gyro replied.

                                                   ~Later that day~

"Watch it, will ya!" Syvren yelped, trying to counter the blast of magic.

"Look, I'm sorry, okay?" Gyro offered, charging up another blast.

After some more hard training, it started to get late and they were both heading back home. When they got back, they could smell the familiar sent of fried hay and they ran to the kitchen where their parents were. Later, they all sat down at the table and started eating.

"So how many different types of elemental magic can you perform now, Gyro?" Orbital asked.

"Let’s see- in all there's fire, water, thunder, wind, light, shadow, time, ice, and earth, but I can only do fire, water, thunder, a little bit of wind, and some ice,” Gyro replied. “It’s kinda hard to learn when there are no magic schools around here."

"But still, being able to perform at least five different kinds of elemental magic is some fantastic feat, Gyro," Orbital beamed. "And you, Syvren? Have you been able to fly yet?"

"Not quite, but I'm getting it," Syvren replied as he took a drink of his water.

"Glad to hear that you two are progressing so well," their mother smiled.

After that, each pony exchanged their own thoughts about different things, and eventually they all went to bed.

                                                          ~One year later~

It was 4:00 in the afternoon, and Gyro and Syvren were about to leave for their friend’s birthday party.

"We'll be back by 9:00 o'clock," Gyro called as he picked up the present for their friend.

"Ok, you two be careful." Starlight and Orbital warned.

~Some time later after the party~

"Oh boy, can that Mrs. Potter make a good cake," Gyro moaned while rubbing his stomach.

"Yeah, but not as good Mom's," Syvren sighed.

After exchanging more comments about the cake they both went silent for a while.

"Hey, do you smell that?" Syvren asked.

"Yeah, it smells like...smoke?" Gyro replied, fear making his voice quiver as he took a sniff.

The boys both bolted upright and saw a pillar of smoke rising from the outskirts of the city and the Baltimare Fire Department- heading to their house! They dashed home, a flurry of hooves and a streak of dragon, spurred on by worry.

Skidding to a halt, they saw that indeed, their house was on fire, and they saw the Fire Department trying to put out the fire.  The inferno was too fierce to dare enter, and the Fire Department was at a loss as to how to put it out.

"WH-What happened here?!?! Gyro asked one of the fire ponies.

"We’re not sure how this happened, but we think there are still ponies in there. We’re trying to send somepony in there, but this fire’s too fierce. There’s just no way.”

Without hesitation, Gyro and Syvren bolted inside, ignoring the fire pony to try and find their parents. Gyro used his magic to shield himself from the fire, and since Syvren’s draconic physiology allowed him immunity to the flames. The boys eventually found them caught under a beam that had fallen; Gyro and Syvren immediately moved it out of the way and began gingerly carrying them out. Emerging from the inferno, Gyro and Syvren carefully set their parents down on the cool grass outside. Their parents’ wounds were severe- second- and third- degree burns, plus multiple lacerations all over.

"Mom, Dad! Are you two ok?!?!" Gyro asked urgently, concern playing across his face.

Orbital coughed a few times and croaked, "Gyro??? Syvren??? Is that... you?"

"Yeah, It's us," they replied, tears choking their voices.

"Gyro, Syvren...We've inhaled too much smoke, I don't think... we’re going to make it...." Starlight heaved, gasping for breath.

"No, you're going to be okay, you have to be! Please, stay with me!" Gyro choked. Tears were now openly streaming down both of the boys’ faces.

Orbital and Starlight both drew their last breaths. Nopony knew how the fire had started, and the gashes on the bodies were absurd for the cause of death- smoke inhalation. Gyro and Syvren both openly grieved their loss; in fact, the world seemed to mourn the loss of Orbital and Starlight.

A few days later, their funeral was carried out, and it seemed like almost everypony in Baltimare attended it. After the service, the only ones left sitting in front of Orbital's and Starlight's tombstones were Gyro and Syvren.

"So what are we going to do now, Gyro?" Syvren asked with tear-stained cheeks.

"I don't know, Syvren. We're just going to have to keep moving forward, I guess..." Gyro replied, trying to hold back more tears.

Gyro and Syvren came to live with Mr. and Mrs. Potter.

The next day, Gyro and Syvren were lying out on the fields, and had hardly spoken to anypony since their parents’ death.

"You know, we haven't done any sparring recently," Gyro stated.

"OK, let's get star-" Syvren replied just as he was greeted with a swift kick from Gyro.

"What’d you do that for?!?" Syvren yelled as he rubbed his head.

"You need to be on your toes, err, tail if you want to have a chance," Gyro taunted as he got ready for another attack.

"What's gotten into you Gyro???" Syvren complained as he readied himself.

"Remember? We said we wanted to step up our game so we could get stronger," Gyro reminded his best friend.

"Ok, if that's how you want to play it," Syvren smirked as he charged Gyro.

Gyro tried to lay a good kick into Syvren's belly, but Syvren was too quick and was soon around Gyro trying to squeeze him until he gave up. But then, Gyro used his thunder magic to shock the dragon.

"Hey! That was a dirty trick! I thought we were doing hoof to claw combat," Syvren exclaimed as he tried to get away from Gyro.

"When did I say we weren’t allowed to use magic? We need to be ready for anything, Syvren, especially surprise attacks, and it's not about what's dirty or clean, it's about what's effective and useful," Gyro declared.

Suddenly, Syvren shot a blast of fire at Gyro. Just as Gyro barley dodged the attack, he saw another blast coming at him and was hit.

"Very good, those are the kind of moves we need to practice," Gyro wheezed. "Now for some sword training, and don't hold back on magic either." Gyro picked up two training swords that were leaning against the house. "Now then, let's go!" Gyro cried as he ran at Syvren with the sword held in his magic.

The swords hardly had an edge or point, but could still hurt somepony if swung hard enough. Just as Gyro swung his sword, Syvren parried and laid a good punch in Gyro's back.

"Ugh, darn it," Gyro grunted.

"Humph, had enough?" Syvren boasted.

"You think something like that would make me give up already? Well you thought wrong, because I've got more tricks up my sleeves," Gyro smirked.

Gyro charged Syvren, but as Syvren prepared for the incoming attack, a flurry of ice chunks came in from behind him, hitting him in the back. Gyro then came into range, but was suddenly greeted by a blast of magic, knocking him back.

"Boy, you're getting good, Syvren,"

"You're not so bad yourself, Gyro," Syvren replied as he got ready for his next form of attack.

After a few hard battles, they decided to lie back on the ground.

"I think we're getting better, don't you think so, Syvren?" Gyro asked, lying on his back.

"Yeah, I think we are," Syvren replied, moving around, trying to get comfortable.

"I bet we could take anything on, even the impossible," Gyro sighed, looking up at the sky.

"Now don't get too cocky, Gyro, we're only mortal, after all," Syvren warned, putting his claws behind his head.

"What are you talking about? Together we're unstoppable," Gyro boasted.

The two argued back and forth awhile about how good they were, and eventually decided to call it a draw. They then just lay there, silence settling in.

"Syvren?" Gyro asked.

"Yeah?" Syvren replied.

"We’ve had a lot of good times, haven’t we?" Gyro asked, putting his hooves behind his head.

Syvren picked at his claws and replied, "That we have, Gyro."

"I wouldn't trade the time we've spent together for all the money in the world; even if my life depended on it, I still wouldn't trade the memories that are in my head." Gyro sighed.

"Me either, Gyro," Syvren replied.

Later, after supper, they were all just sitting around the living room, when there was a knock at the door.

"I'll get it," Mrs. Potter chimed.

When she opened the door, she was shocked to see none other than Princess Celestia standing before her, and dropped to her knees in respect.

"Excuse me, but are you the one who's watching over Gyro and Syvren?" Princess Celestia asked with a voice as smooth as butter.

"Ye-yes that would be me, that is, my husband and me," Mrs. Potter stuttered as she got to her hooves.

"May I speak to them about something?" Princess Celestia asked.

"Sure, they're in the living room, I'll take you to them," Mrs. Potter stammered.

When Princess Celestia entered, everypony quickly bowed before her. Princess Celestia smiled and reassured them, “Now, there's no need for that, I just came here to talk about something with Gyro and Syvren."

"Oh, well please get comfortable, your Highness," Mr. Potter humbly suggested as he got a pillow for her.

"Thank you, Mr. Potter. As I said before, I have something to discuss with Gyro and Syvren," Princess Celestia declared.

Gyro and Syvren just sat there, eyes wider than saucers, wondering what the she had to say.

"Gyro, Syvren, I heard about what happened to your parents, and I'm sorry that I couldn't be here for their funeral.  I don't know if you knew it or not, but your parents once served under me. Your mother was the royal cook while your father was the royal blacksmith; your parents and I became good friends and I was sad to see them go when they got married. Since then, Starlight and I have been keeping in touch through letters. The last time she sent me one was on the day before they died," Princess Celestia explained as a tear ran down the side of her face. The princess continued, "And in it, she told me that they were going to surprise you with the information that both of you were going to move to Canterlot so they could enroll Gyro in my school for gifted unicorns, and enroll Syvren in one of our other magic schools. Now, I'm not going to force you two to come with me and enroll if you don't want to, I just wanted to come down here and give you the options that your parents were going to give you," Princess Celestia offered.

"So, will you com-," Princess Celestia tried to ask, but was cut off by Gyro and Syvren.

"YES! Of course we'll come back with you, if it means we can learn more about magic!" Gyro and Syvren exclaimed simultaneously.

Princess Celestia smiled and told them, "Go pack your things- we'll be leaving tomorrow morning." Gyro and Syvren nodded, and ran upstairs to pack what few things they had.

The next day, Gyro and Syvren were preparing to leave.

"Well, I guess this is goodbye for Baltimare," Gyro sighed, looking back over at the city and countryside.

"Yeah, I guess it is," Syvren replied.

"Now you make sure to brush your teeth and wash behind your ears every night, you hear?" Mrs. Potter commanded playfully, hugging the two boys.

"Don't you worry, Mrs. Potter, I'll make sure that they're properly taken care of," Princess Celestia giggled, putting her wings around them.

"Thank ya kindly, Princess, these two mean a lot to us," Mrs. Potter replied, giving one last hug to Gyro and Syvren.

They all got on the chariot and flew off, and Gyro and Syvren waved Baltimare good-bye.

                                                                         ~~~

As they flew for a few minutes, Princess Celestia was the first to break the silence. "Did you know I have a niece?" Celestia asked while looking over at Gyro and Syvren. "Her name is Lilly, and she's about your age, Gyro. I told her that you two might be coming and she's been pretty excited, let me tell you. You see, Lilly doesn't have any brothers or sisters, so she gets kind of lonely sometimes- she's also in the same class you're going to be in Gyro."

Syvren smiled and replied, "Well, it's good to know that we'll have a warm welcome and somepony to play and talk with."

A little while later, they arrived in Canterlot. As they were landing, Gyro and Syvren saw several guard ponies and a midnight blue alicorn awaiting their arrival.

When they landed, Celestia had a concerned look on her face as she looked around for Lilly. "All right, Lulu, where is Lilly?"

Princess Luna pawed at the ground and replied, "I'm afraid that she's...well, she's run off."

"Again? This makes the fourth time this month. Well, at least she does it during the weekend," Celestia sighed, face-hoofing.

"Well, we have Miss Crystal Beak out looking for her right now," the Princess of the Night offered.

"Well, that's another matter, right now I want you to meet Gyro and Syvren," Celestia brought her hoof out in an arc in Gyro and Syvren’s direction.

Gyro and Syvren were getting their stuff from the back of the chariot and hadn't really noticed that the Princesses were looking over at them.

"Gyro, Syvren, I want you to meet my sister, Princess Luna," Celestia smiled as the boys trotted over to them. Gyro and Syvren dropped to the ground to show their respect to the fine princess.

Luna smiled and stated, "It is an honor to meet you both, sons of Orbital and Starlight."

They raised their heads and Syvren offered in a shaky voice, "And it's an h-honor to meet you as w-well, Luna, Princess of the N-Night."

Luna continued to smile and declared, “Its okay, you can just call me Luna."

"Now that we have the formalities out of the way, let's show them to their room," Celestia offered.

Luna nodded and replied, "Good idea, Tia."

As they walked through the castle, there was a brief silence between the four of them until Syvren finally spoke up, "So, uh, where's Princess Lilly?"

Celestia turned her head back towards them and replied, "She's...out for the moment. She has a bad habit of running out on her own. It's a simple side effect of being an only child."

"Oh, I was kinda looking forward to having somepony to talk to," Syvren sighed.

Luna looked back at them and stated, "Don't you worry, I'm sure she'll come back soon."

Syvren scratched his head and asked, "You mean you don't have any guards out looking for her?"

"W-well, we would, it's just, every time one of our guards tries to catch her, she either teleports away or does some fancy get-away tricks. So we thought it best to leave it up to her caretaker to bring her home. But enough talk about that, here is your new room," Celestia replied as she opened the door to their room.

When they looked inside, they could see a bunk bed to the right side of the room with two dressers on the other side. There was a door to the left that led to a bathroom and at the far side of the room was a glass door that led out to the balcony.

"Would you like us to help you unpack?" Celestia asked.

Gyro didn't say anything while Syvren nodded in response.

Gyro hadn't been very open to anypony since the incident with their parents and felt like that the whole world around him had come to an end. Now that he thought about it, he kind of wished it did.

As they unpacked, they each exchanged their own thoughts about different things except for Gyro. Not a single word came from his mouth as he unpacked what few things he had. He just sat there, putting things away into his dresser.

Celestia finally went over to him and asked, "Gyro? Is everything okay?"

Gyro just turned away and walked over to the balcony.

Celestia walked up next to him and stated, "You know, if you don’t open up and let me in, I can't help."

Gyro thought for a moment and replied, "It’s just,” he sighed, “Just forget it...."

"I've been around long enough to know when somepony is hiding their feelings. Now, tell me what the matter is." Celestia smiled slightly.

"I-I, it's just-," Gyro tried to say as his eyes began to tear up.

Celestia wrapped her wing around him and murmured, "It’s okay, Gyro... It’s okay."

"I miss them, I miss them so much," Gyro sobbed as he buried his face into Celestia's leg.

Celestia hugged him tightly and replied, "So do I, Gyro...so do I...." As she hugged him, a single tear drop ran down the side of her face.

"I didn't even get to say goodbye to them," Gyro admitted with streams of tears running down the sides of his face. "I just-"

"Shhhhh, it's okay now," Celestia cooed "I know it's hard, but the main thing to do is to be strong like your parents would want you to be."

"I-I'm sorry, I shouldn't be showing my feelings like this," Gyro sniffled as he pulled his head away from Celestia's leg.

"Now, at some point we all need somepony's shoulder to cry on," Celestia stated as she hugged him tightly. "If you ever have a problem or if you need somepony's support, I'm always here for you."

Gyro made a weak smile and replied, "Thank you..."

                                                                             ~~~

Later on that day, Gyro and Syvren had been enrolled in their schools and were now walking around Canterlot Town, taking in the sights. It was a nice time of day, the sun was high in the sky and the wind was slightly cool. The birds were singing their songs and shop owners were selling their wares. Gyro and Syvren were glad that it was the weekend so that they could get settled and not have to worry about school.

As they walked, Gyro didn't say much while Syvren, on the other hand, was pointing out all kinds of things, hoping to get his best friend interested.

"You know, there are a lot of pretty fillies here. Maybe you could get to know a few of them," Syvren joked.

"Syvren, I'm only eleven years old! When I'm sixteen, maybe I'll get to know one, okay?!" Gyro cried.

Syvren nudged Gyro's side with his elbow and exclaimed, "Come on, Gyro! Lighten up!"

"Will you just leave me alone?! I'm fine, okay?!" Gyro snapped as he pushed Syvren's arm away.

"Gosh Gyro, I-I'm sorry," Syvren offered.

Gyro lowered his head and sighed, "No, I'm sorry; I didn't mean to yell at you. It's just- how is it that you can be so bucking happy when our parents are gone and are never coming back?! It almost seems like you don't miss them at all!"

They stopped for a brief moment and Syvren sighed, "If it seems like I don't care, then I'm sorry. I want you to know that it breaks my heart at the thought of them not coming back. But we have to be strong, Gyro, we can't get anywhere in life if we hold onto the past."

Gyro didn't know how to respond to that and just looked down at his hooves. He looked back up at Syvren, but before he could say a single word, a great big stallion carrying a heavy load of things on his back bumped him in the side. "Look what you did! You made me drop all my stuff and break it! Ya better be ready to pay for it kid!" the stallion snapped as Gyro turned to him.

"B-but, I don't have any bits," Gyro stammered.

"Oh, ho ho ho, no bits, eh? Then I guess I'll have to take this dragon of yours," the stallion snorted as he picked Syvren up.

"Give him back!" Gyro demanded as he tried to grab Syvren.

The stallion held Syvren out of Gyro's reach and mocked, "No bits, no dragon."

Gyro tried to jump up and grab Syvren but to no avail.

"I'll pay the bits; just give him his dragon back,” an unfamiliar voice called.

They all looked over to see a dark pink unicorn with a deep purple mane and tail wearing a dress. She levitated a hefty bag of bits over and declared, "I think that should be worth your while."

The stallion looked inside the bag and couldn't believe his eyes when he saw how many bits were in there. When he looked back up, he saw the three of them running off but paid no attention.

When the three of them knew they were safe, they took a moment to catch their breath in an alleyway.

"Thanks for what you did back there," Gyro wheezed.

The mare smiled and sputtered, "Oh, it was nothing really."

"It was too something, and we are deeply grateful, Miss, uh, Miss-" Gyro stammered.

"Uh, Blossom! Blossom is the name," she replied.

Syvren planted a light kiss on her hoof and stated, "It is a pleasure to meet you, Miss Blossom. My name is Syvren and this is Gyro."

"Gyro and Syvren, eh? It's nice to meet you," Blossom giggled.

Gyro then got to his hooves and replied, "Well, it was nice meeting you, Miss Blossom, but me and Syvren need to get going."

"W-wait! Do you really have to go? I mean, what is it that's so important?" Blossom asked.

Gyro thought for a moment and replied, "Well, we're just taking in the sights. We're also kinda looking for Princess Lilly."

"I know Princess Lilly. I guess you could say that we're kinda close, almost like sisters,"

"Really? Then could you take us to her?"

Blossom smiled and replied, "Of course I can. But only if you play with me all day today."

"Well, um, okay!" Gyro beamed.

As they walked out of the alleyway, Blossom walked ahead of them to a small food stand.

"Gyro? Are you sure we should be trusting a strange unicorn?" Syvren asked.

"Oh, come now, Syvren. Not more than ten minutes ago you were telling me to get to know a few fillies. Besides that, she's cuuuute," Gyro sighed with a dopy smile on his face.

Syvren just rolled his eyes, knowing that this wasn't going to turn out well.

Blossom walked back over to them holding some cracker boxes in her magic.  "Here, I thought that you two might be hungry."

"Uhhh thanks," Gyro replied as he took one of the boxes in his own magic.

Blossom blushed and admitted, "The shop pony was soooo nice. He said, 'You're such a cute mare,' and he let me have them for free."

Syvren leaned into Gyro's ear and whispered, "You know, this might not be as bad as I thought it would be."

They eventually came across a building with a sign that read, "Bomb Bowling." Blossom scratched her head and asked, "What's 'Bomb Bowling'?"

"I dunno," Gyro replied.

They went inside and saw a pony rolling a lit bomb at some glass pins. You played the game by lighting the bomb, rolling it at the pins, and whenever one blew up, you received a point for each pin.

Syvren backed up a little and started, "I don't know about this-."

"Oh, come on, Syvren. It'll be fun!" Gyro cried happily as he grabbed Syvren's arm and pulled him in.

A little while later they were about half-way in the game. Even though it was their first time playing, they were doing pretty well. Gyro had ninety-eight points and Lilly had about seventy-five points. Due to his over-cautious nature, Syvren only had about thirty-four points and decided to quit. The bombs themselves didn't have a big enough explosion to hurt somepony but could still leave a few black marks.

"I wonder what kind of pony Princess Lilly is. Is she beautiful?" Gyro asked as he picked up another bomb.

"Maybe," Blossom replied just as she was about to roll another bomb.

Gyro smiled with mock malice and joked, "Or maybe she's an ugly PIG!"

The moment he said that, Blossom redirected her aim. BOOM! When the smoke had cleared, a very black and dizzy Gyro was left standing there.

"S-see, Syvren? N-nothing to w-worry about," Gyro stated dizzily as his eyes circled in his head.

                                                                        ~~~

It was now about 7:30 in the afternoon and the sun was starting to sink in the horizon. Gyro, Syvren, and Blossom stepped out of a marketplace and saw how dark it was.

"It's night already? Awww man, I was hoping that we could have some more fun," Gyro pouted.

Blossom trotted over to a small fountain and sighed, "The day...is over. Thank you for today."

Gyro smiled and replied, "Oh, it was nothing. We had a fun time as well."

"Well, you two have held up your end of the bargain, now it is time for me to uphold my end," Blossom declared.

"Hmm? Oh, yeah,"

Blossom looked down at her hooves and stated, "It is time for me to tell you who I really am." She then grabbed her dress in her mouth and ripped it off, revealing a pair of wings on her sides and her cutie mark- two crossed golden arrows. "I am Princess Lilly."

"W-WHAT!? But you told us that your name was Blossom!" Gyro exclaimed, an incredulous look on his face.

Lilly smiled and replied, "My full title is Princess Lilly Blossom."

Gyro just face-hoofed, while Syvren stated, "I thought that you might have been the Princess but I wasn't sure."

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to deceive you, it's just, I wanted to be able to buy my own things, pay with my own money, and do things on my own," Lilly admitted.

Just then there was a rustling noise from a nearby alleyway. They all turned to see what it was but there was nothing. They all looked back over at each other, but before they could say anything, several bandits surrounded them. A great big, gruff earth pony stepped up and growled, "Well, well, look what we have here, boys. The royal Princess, a dragon, and a... unicorn. Get the unicorn out of my sight, all we need is the princess and the dragon."

"Oh! You think I'm just going to LET you take my friends away?! Well...YOU THOUGHT WRONG!!" Gyro's horn then started to pulse with energy and the ground underneath his hooves seemed to be getting hotter.

All the bandits looked around as the wind started to pick up with a slight chill. Gyro let out an earsplitting cry and electricity shot from his horn to zap most of the bandits. Some of the other bandits who didn't get hit by the bolt got around behind them and tried to clamp a magic blocker on his horn. Thankfully, Syvren saw them coming and hit them with some magic of his own. By now, most of the bandits had started to run off while others were left unconscious. This left all but their leader.

"Kid, w-what are you?" The earth pony asked.

Gyro smiled and slyly replied, "I am Gyro Scope, son of both Orbital and Starlight!" What Gyro didn't realize was that he was panting heavily from using that much magic and was about to fall over from exhaustion. "So...if I were you, I'd run or suffer the same fate as your cronies," Gyro snorted.

Without another word, the earth pony ran off, fearing for his life.

When the earth pony had disappeared into the darkness, Gyro let out a deep breath and fell to his knees.

"Gyro! Are you all right?!" Syvren cried.

"I-I'm fine, Syvren. I just need a minute," Gyro replied, trying to catch his breath.

"Gyro...that was amazing! I've never seen a unicorn at your age do that kind of stuff with magic!" Lilly beamed.

"Well, that's the first time I've ever used that much magic. I didn't even know I could do it," Gyro admitted as he got to his hooves.

Syvren helped Gyro up and replied, "One way or the other, it was still pretty amazing."

"Indeed it was," came an unfamiliar voice.

They all looked over to see a griffon coming out of the darkness. Her beak and claws were a shiny gold color and her feathers were a pleasant shade of dark-brown.

Lilly smiled and ran up to the griffon and gave her a hug. "It's good to see you, Crystal," Lilly beamed.

"And it's good to see you as well, Lilly," Crystal Beak dutifully stated as she returned the hug.

Lilly let go of her and asked, "So, how long have you been standing here?"

"Long enough to see your friends fight off those bandits," Crystal Beak replied.

"Lilly? Who's this?" Gyro asked as he walked over to them. His legs were still very shaky from the fight.

"Oh! I'm sorry. Gyro, Syvren, I want you to meet my caretaker: Crystal Beak,"

Gyro and Syvren took a slight bow and started, "It is nice to meet you, Miss-"

"I'm sorry, but this isn't the best place for greetings," Crystal Beak interrupted. "When we get back to the castle we can get to know each other better."

"Good idea, let's go," Syvren concurred.

                                                                   ~End of Part One~