Out From the Shadows

Out From the Shadows

Chapter 3

New Perspectives

Darkness was enveloping me. Comforting, securing. I felt some tingles coming from my body, but I was far too exhausted to even care about what was happening. All that mattered was that I could sleep. Rest.

Even if I had wanted to, I’m sure I could not have opened my eyes. They were closed. Unmovable. I had never pushed myself so much. I needed to take a break. To stop thinking.

I was drifting in the nether. Existing, but not quite. I don’t know how much time it went for, but it felt good nonetheless. Finally I was getting some peace, and much deserved rest. I could not even remember how I had put myself in such a state.

For some reason, I wanted an answer to this question.

I began to dig inside my memories for a moment, but every time I felt like I had grabbed something important, it disappeared a fraction second later, leaving me in complete confusion.

I tried to dig harder and harder, but it only served to break my peace of mind... Until the memory I was looking for finally sticked to my mind. The whole ordeal preceding my blackout came back to my brain, and suddenly, my thoughts became much more clear.

The scene played back in my mind, slowly, and in a kind of external point of view. It allowed me to almost take a critical eye over what had happened, and how I had reacted.

My familiar had warned me. I had been struck by fear, and I had not even tried to defend myself when I had a clear shot, and a great opportunity to cast a powerful spell to engage the bear.

Then again, I remembered how I had not even tried to use magic in the first few moments of the fight. I mentally laughed at my lack of good sense at the time as I watched myself flee.

Now was the part I started using magic, and I missed most of my arcanic missiles because I had not even took care to focus. I had not been concentrated enough on my target, probably because of panic. The mere sidestep the bear had done should not have been a problem for telepathic-controlled projectiles.

Clearly, this could have been improved if I had been more thoughtful.

The bear had me pinned down, and was now about to strike me. It would have looked like a helpless situation, but a few inches before the bear could strike me down, I had cast that shielding spell.

Strangely, the timing on the shield had been perfect. Should it had been a few moments later, it would have been too late to save me. If I had cast it a few moments before, the shield would have had time to solidify itself, and would not have exploded like it did because of its instability.

I would not have been able to hold the shield for more than two, maybe three strikes… And then? I prefer not to even imagine what would have happened to me.

Luckily for me, the shield’s shockwave was emitted outward, and thus did not affect me. However, the bear have had less luck, and got stunned right onto a tree.

And… I stopped the mental image right then. I did not want to see again what had happened after. My curiosity satisfied, my mind became blank again, and I tried to go back to get some rest…

However, I was interrupted.

“That was the first time you killed something, wasn’t it?”

I heard that voice, but clearly it was not a physical one since I was too deep asleep to even notice the sounds from the world around me. It felt very much like the way I was communicating with my familiar, so i tried to reply in the same fashion, using mind thoughts.

“Who are you?” I asked.

“How could you ask such a question to yourself? That makes no sense.”

I pounded over the matter for a few moments. Maybe that was my subconscious? Or was it the beginning of a mental disorder?

Ouch. Thinking too much was hurting, while all I wanted to do was to recover. I really had overused my mental resources, and I wanted to stop thinking. I decided to try to let things go.

“Did you enjoy it?” Again, the voice troubled the quietude of my mind.

“I don’t really get where this is going.” I said.

“Have you not felt it, when you killed the bear? The power you could have, if you just let your emotions drive you?”

As much as I disliked thinking about the fight with the bear, I decided to follow along with the voice, if only to understand what it wanted from me.

So, I went back over the last part of the events.

I had then cast the fireball spell. That one spell is very, very consuming. Now that I thought about it, there was no way I could have done this considering my low reserves at that very moment, even considering I had been threatened.

It had felt like I could have moved mountains by sheer force of will at this point.

“Yes, of course, it was very… Energizing to say the least. But…”

I shivered at the thought of what this power had led me to do.

“I do not want to have power, if I can not control what I do with it.”

Most of my first lessons with Dahrim had been about controlling magic, and not letting it control me. As a sorcerer, I should be very careful about this. However, that one episode with the bear had been a necessity. After going through such an ordeal, I am even more convinced this is not something I can let happen, except for really dire situations. Who knows what it could lead me to do.

“Think about it more thoroughly . About what you could do with such power. Until now, you were forced to live in that miserable castle. If you were to be a renown spellcaster, you would not have to stay there. You could have more than a city to yourself… Maybe, a whole... Kingdom…” the voice said in a tantalizing manner.

I gave it some thought for a while.

Yes, one of my dreams was to finally handle things by myself, going off to live somewhere else. It was also true that I would have liked to be famous, and powerful as a sorcerer. I would even like to become part of the Cowled Mages of Athkatla, an organisation made to regulate the illicit use of magic within the city, which is composed only of elite spellcasters...

...But I had to work my way to it. Becoming a good spellcaster isn’t about raw power. It is about using the right spell, at the right moment. If I was to simply let my emotions guide my steps and spells, what would be the point of all my studies?

Also, most sorcerers are known to become rogue when they completely let their emotions drive their life. They become more in tune with their instincts, and in doing so, they acquire more powers, but in turn, that makes them quite mentally unstable.

There is even a prison that is under control of the Council of Six, specially designed to retain such persons if they start threatening other people’s lives, and I don’t exactly want to end up there. It is named “Spellhold”, and for a reason. None of the mages that were imprisoned here ever got out. Well, actually there had been an exception recently, but it has been dealt with.

“As interesting as it might sound, I have already made my choice. I will not allow my emotions to control my life, and that is final.” I replied with determination.

Following my statement, there was only silence.

I had conflicting guesses about who, or what that voice had been for a few moments, but decided to just let it slide for now. Anyway, there was some rest to be had, and somewhat easily, I was able to make my mind blank again.

I went back to that state, where I was simply existing. I don’t really know how much time it went for. Maybe it was only a few seconds. Maybe whole days. I couldn’t say. But in the end, I finally felt rested enough that I could try to wake up.

The world came back to my senses, and I woke up to the sound of chatter. The first thing I felt was the fact I was laying on my back, resting on a mattress.

My ankylosed muscles greatly protested when I tried to move, so I made it slow. I moved my arms, emitting grunts of pain as I felt every fiber of the muscles tensing inside them.

Strangely, the background noise that had awaken me stopped at this moment, but I could hear some kind of clattering sound of something hard hitting on wood.

Trying to move my shoulders, I quickly realised I couldn’t. Something was constricting them, and the sensation prolongated to my whole torso.

I slowly opened my eyes to try to understand what was going on, and at first, I could only discern a blurry violet form. I blinked a few times to get rid of the excessive moisture in my eyes, and when I could focus my vision, I could see two huge purple eyes were staring at me.

Being the first thing I saw as I woke up, that was terrifying.

I felt fear beginning to spread in my entire body. Even though I also felt a distant feeling promising me security, I couldn’t help it.

So I did the manliest thing I could do to defend myself against this soul-piercing gaze.

I fainted.

…

It seems that this happens way too much lately...

[...]

When I woke up again, it was the morning.

As I opened my eyes for the second time now, I was met with a peculiar view.

First, I noticed I was in a bed, with a blanket made of a tanned skin.

I was in a small alcove, and the room was not lit, but the morning sunlight flowing from a small window to my left was enough for me to analyze my surroundings. There was no glass covering the window, and the only indication it was meant to be a window, as opposed to a hole in the structure, was the presence of two wood sticks held together with a small rope at the center of the hole.

The whole structure itself looked like it was made out of wood, but strangely enough, I could not make out any separations in the wood material of the wall. It looked like it was made as a whole, without planks whatsoever. I found it odd, but guessed it was some kind of trick of a very good cabinet-maker. There were also a few branches coming out of some walls and ceiling, with some small leaves at the end of each.

In the only room composing the structure I was in, I could see a lot of different colored vials, either suspended with cords to the quite-low ceiling, or laying in some of the few shelves. Along with those, there was a wide array of alchemical reagents, ranging from flowers to minerals, and all that was completed with a few books.

There was not much as a decor, but it was still noteworthy. There were a few masks hanging off the walls, or on the ground, held balanced against said walls.

The masks, made of wood too, looked very elongated and were probably not meant for wearing. It reminded me of an ancient subculture of the human race, that used to live in the Chult isle, in the south-west of Faerûn.

Maybe that could be a start as to find where I was…?

Well I sure hope it doesn’t mean I am actually in Chult right now, because that is a very long way from Amn. I think, it’s actually as far as you can get from here. Also that jungle-ridden island is not exactly known to be a welcoming and peaceful place.

Anyway, completing the scenery, I could see a worktable against one of the walls, manifestly used for alchemical needs as could attest the many colored stains on it, and in the very center of the room was a cauldron atop now put-out coals.

And, last, but not the least, there was… A zebra… Or something that looks partially like one.

It was laying on the only carpet of the building, apparently sleeping, as its steady breathing and closed eyes could attest.

First I noticed an intricate pattern on its flank that was made out the black-and-white stripes of the animal’s fur, but that was only one of the things really standing out about it.

Its… hair… was shaped as a mohawk. The eyelids of the zebra were quite huge compared to what I was expecting for an equine, and its face overall looked like it had been flattened.  Also, the animal was quite smaller overall than an normal zebra.

The strangeness did not stop there, as it had a few gold rings stacked around one of its leg, and neck, and adding to the already very weird picture, it was wearing two matching golden earring.

Who the hell takes a zebra as a companion animal, and lets it live in his own house?

I was not given the time to think things through, that I heard this:

“Half-elf, you are finally awake!”

I identified the voice as coming from my familiar, and it also gave to my senses a rough approximation of its position, and instinctively, I turned my head to look there.

And there she was, right above me, perched on one of the hanging branches of the structure.

Manifestly, I could feel she was happy to see me, and I would lie if I’d say it was not mutual.

Seeing she was still here began to reassure me of my current situation. If she had been able to stay at my side while I was passed out, chances are I was probably being taken care of by someone else.

This was further confirmed when I tried to move, and finally could see that what was constricting me before were in fact bandages running around my whole torso, and secured on my left shoulder.

I could only assume that whoever is the owner of this house, he had probably saved me.

That is when I noticed I was kind of naked under the blanked. I almost got obfuscated by this fact, but it kind of made sense considering the bruises I had received from the bear. You can’t really apply bandages to someone who is clothed.

Speaking of clothes, I noticed my robes were hanging on one of the wall of the alcove, on my right., and the fact my coinpurse was still hanging off of it further confirmed the fact that my caretaker had no ill intents toward me. The robes had suffered slightly from the episode, but they still looked wearable if you disregarded the few stains on the fabric.

I adjusted myself, painfully moving to rest my back on the bed frame. My torso was still hurting, but not as much as before. The fact my movements were limited by the bandages did not really help either, but at least it probably helped with the healing.

“What happened exactly since the fight with the bear?” I asked my familiar, trying to understand exactly my situation.

“You were not moving, just like if sleeping. So I went to the nearest city which is the one we were going to. I tried to get help but no one could understand me. In the end, I found someone that could, and I brought them back with me to save you.”

That explained a lot of things. She had probably met a druid and that meant I had probably got quite some luck, because druids aren’t exactly known to live in cities, or even small towns. They prefer the companionship of other druids, and nature itself. But of course, sometimes they will eventually visit a city for business reasons, but most of them will try to make their journey as short as possible, as they are not comfortable in civilised parts of the world.

At least, their ability to communicate with animals really saved me here. Frankly, I was really surprised to be still alive by that point.

“They had difficulties to carry you, so they moved you to the nearest…” She interrupted herself to think for a few seconds.

“‘house’ I think you call it?”

I mentally acquiesced her choice of word, and invited her to continue her explanation.

“So, they put you in here, and the yellow creature told me that I could stay at her home while she healed you, but I did not want to. I wanted to make sure nothing bad happened to you.”

I mentally noted the use of ‘yellow creature’, but decided to ask her about it when she would be finished with the relation. I did not want to disturb her, since it is quite hard for an animal to do such an explanation of past events. Wild animals mostly live in the present, and rarely store up informations of the past. Of course, my familiar was not a wild animal anymore, but she’s still an animal.

“Then for... a few days...? The yellow creature and her friends kept coming to see you. The yellow one is very kind. Everytime she came, she brought food and water so I did not have hunt for it. She did not bring me meat, but at least I had something to eat, and I could stay here.

Sometimes the black and white one would bring you some food, but most of the time she is either absent or doing things on that table over there.”

She mentally indicated the worktable I had noticed before. I also noted the fact she used the word “doing things”, which is the exact word she uses for when I am working on magic, or reading.

Well, to her, this is basically an abbreviated version of “doing nothing useful while sitting in a chair”, so I could only assume the owner of this house is an alchemist of some sort, if the tools on the worktable and the reagents present everywhere in the house itself are anything to go by.

Now the question is, why does she keep calling them using a color, followed by the word “creature”? She is supposed to know how to recognize humans at least. Basically, she calls anything that is humanoid a “human”. She only calls me “half-elf” because one day, I had told her I was one, and since she insists that names can not be used to describe living beings, she calls me by my race ever since I told her, instead of calling me “Cynder”.

Anyway, that piqued my curiosity, so I asked her.

“Why do you keep calling them ‘yellow’ or ‘black and white’ creatures?”

She thought about it for a while before answering.

“I am not sure what they are.”

After pondering over the matter for a while, I asked:

“Your call them by their color, is that because of their clothing?”

“It’s not clothes,” she answered. “It is their skin and fur color”.

Wait… Fur and skin?

While reflecting on the matter, I thoughtlessly let my eyes wander in the room I was in. What kind of creature could have yellow or black and white fur? And of course, after a few seconds of staring at the face of the answer, it finally clicked in my mind... Black and white fur and skin…

“Do you mean that zebra over there?” I asked, as I mentally indicated said creature to my familiar.

“If that is how you call that creature, then yes, that ‘zebra’ is the black-and-white-furred creature I was talking about.”

… Really?

“Do you mean, that this creature,” I insisted on the mental image of the zebra, “is the one that fed me for days, and is the one that is… ‘doing things’ on that table over there?”

“Yes. Why are you being so insistent over that fact, half-elf?”

Alright, so either I was in front of a very well trained zebra, which is probably in that case a familiar of a very good spellcaster, or this being is actually sentient. And the fact my familiar never ever talked about a humanoid being in her story kind of makes the second possibility the only explanation.

“Can you confirm me that you have never seen a human here?”

“As you have the habit to say… I am ‘a hundred percent’ sure.”

I felt she was amused to use one of my expressions, while I only felt confusion about the whole situation. Never in my life had I heard about a zebra tribe being sentient. The only few creatures that are indeed sentient are most of the humanoid races, or a few magical-blessed creatures, such as unicorns, and a few others, including those coming from outer planes. And zebras are not part of those.

Well, since it is morning, I should work on getting up. I’ll probably have a chance to see if this zebra is indeed sentient anyway.

Executing myself, I slowly got out of the bed. I winced at every muscle movement, because of the fact they still were ankylosed. However, I managed to get up, and dress myself, even if I had to support myself on the nearest wall due to relative weakness.

Now that I was nearly standing, I noticed the ceiling was somewhat low. I would probably almost touch it with my head if I was to stand on the tip of my toes.

Slowly, I began doing a few steps with no help from the nearest wall, making sure I could still walk, and indeed, I could now stand on my own.

At least I was not going to be crippled for too long.

Suddenly, my familiar jumped on my right shoulder. It kind of surprised me, and the abrupt addition of weight almost threw me off balance, but I held good. Then, she rubbed her head on my cheek - her way of signifying me her affection. She sure was happy to see me again, and so was I, so I gratified her with a few scratches on her head with my hand.

It seems this scene was witnessed by someone else, because as I focused my attention back to the room, I saw that the zebra had awaken, and was now staring at both of us silently.

As I noticed this, I started speaking, while being a bit startled for not noticing this before.

“Oh, Hum… Hello? From what I can understand, you are the one who saved me? If so, you have my thanks for what you have done, and my eternal gratitude,” I said, while making a slight bowing gesture, further emphasized by a movement of my right hand. I could not exactly bow down too much with an eagle on my shoulder, and considering my actual condition.

It seems my gesture was not lost on the animal, as it responded with what I could only interpret as a bow - it knelt on one of its forelegs while lowering its head. However, as it did that, it seems the zebra made some noises with its mouth.

Upon further analysis, it was probably some kind of speech, but which I could not understand. There was some kind of structure in the sounds it made but none that I could recognise as words, or dialects I know of.

Since there was already enough signs pointing to the fact this creature was probably sentient. I decided to try to establish some kind of communication with it, and the first idea that I thought of was to use a tongues spell.

Basically, this is a divination spell that is used to allow one to speak, and understand any language, as long as it uses structured sentences. Of course, it normally can not be used to understand animals, as they only use cries instead of speech, but sentient animals? Might as well give it a try.

Of course, it can not be used to learn the language itself, since the spell directly translates the speaker’s language to something understandable by the person the caster focuses on ( also, anybody else who understands this language can hear and understand it too ).

This is a very simple spell I learned for the first time when some of my father’s family visited us at the castle. Of course, I had not learned the Elvish language, because Common was the most widespread one in Amn, but at least, I did not dishonor them, because they thought I had learned it when I used this spell.

After focusing on myself a few seconds to channel the necessary magical flux to activate the spell, I tried again to speak with the zebra.

“Hello…? Can you understand me now?” I asked, a bit impatient to see if the animal could answer.

And the answer did not take long to arrive. The zebra opened its muzzle for the second time, but instead of unintelligible rambles, I heard this:

“Ah, I see that you can speak just as I do, now was that magic or some kind of voodoo?”

I had to say, I was really not expecting for this to work. Its voice sounded very much like what I would have expected from a native of Chult, with an unmistakable accent consisting of mostly basses, but yet clearly understandable and audible.

As such, I was most obliged to answer the creature’s question.

“Yes, as it seems our languages were not the same, I am holding a spell allowing me to understand and speak to you… So, as I said before, I would like to thank your for rescuing me and taking care of me and my familiar while I was unconscious. If there is anything I can do to repay you, then I would be much obliged.”

The zebra shook its head. “That won’t be necessary, as it is only natural to help others who are in danger. Also you should be wary, as I was not the only one that acted to help you stranger.”

Was the rhyming made on purpose? I could blame luck the first time, but twice in a row... Well, it seems the creature was not obfuscated that I don’t do it, so I guess I can continue that way.

“Then I am forever in debt of you and your friends. May I know who you are, and maybe the names of those who saved me?

“I go by the name of Zecora, and as you can guess, I am a zebra. I am not from this area, but my friends are ponies that are indeed from Equestria.”

Well, at least I can now use a name to describe this creature. Also, if voice tones are anything close to humans’, I’d say she is a female. However, I better not try my luck and risk looking disrespectful. I will simply address her as Zecora for now.

Also I am now convinced the rhyming was not random chance. And so,she went on with the next sentence.

Wait did I just…?

“While only two of them actually participated in your saving, they are a group of six friends which are quite interested to know how you will be behaving.”

So far, I have collected a few valuable informations from this conversation.

I am not in Chult, but in ‘Equestria’, wherever that is. What puzzles me is that I have studied maps of Faerûn for quite a long time, but never heard about such a place. Well, it kind of makes sense, because I also never heard about sentient zebras or ponies.

Chances are, I am either in an unexplored part of Faerûn… Or a totally different realm… Or even plane, as far as I can tell, because I think by today’s standards, we would have explored enough of the world to know about an area ruled by seemingly sentient equines creatures. However, Zecora did not stop there in her rhyming frenzy.

“Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash are the ones who helped you. These are the ones you should seek out to say ‘Thank you’ to.”

Zecora moved around the cauldron, and indicated the ground with her right hoof in an invitational manner.

“Now while you present yourself, maybe we could eat? I am interested and curious to hear more about you, so please take a seat.”

Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash? What kind of names are those? Well, anyway, I noted them in a corner of my mind for later. And I also just remembered I did not present myself to my host. Where did manners go?

“My name is Cynder, son of Eruadan, who is the landlord of the de’Arnise castle, in Amn. I am a half-elf, which is basically a being born after the union of a human and an elf. And so, it is a pleasure to make your acquaintance Zecora.”

I bowed down again like before, and she returned the gesture.

“I am also pleased to meet you. By the way, I hope you don’t mind eating stew.”

So, Zecora invited me to share her food, and in my current state, it would have been unwise to refuse. I did not have any other choice but to sit near the cauldron with her. It was somehow uncomfortable to sit on the plain ground, but I managed, and did so without complaining. As a guest, I did not want to be seen as ungrateful.

Zecora took care of lighting up the fire under the cauldron, and to my surprise, she did that very easily considering she only used her mouth and hooves to hold and manipulate the tools of the trade.

Also, I only now noticed that I was hungry. The fact that I had just woke up probably was the factor that had inhibited my senses.

The preparation of the food did not take too long, but it allowed the two of us to chat idly about one another. I learned, to my dismay, that humans or any human-like creatures have not yet been in Equus, making me the first of the genre to set foot in here.

She also told me that it attracted the curiosity of Fluttershy’s and Rainbow Dash’s friends, who visited us once while I was unconscious. I guess those were the friends she had mentioned before. I kind of hate being put under the projectors but I can understand their interest. I’d probably have the same reaction if a new unknown specie suddenly arrived in my homeland.

While I ate in company of Zecora what was probably a vegetables stew by the scent of it, ( but I did not ask by fear of being rude, ) I explained that my presence here was merely a mistake of my own. In between sips of a bowl of her preparation, I related the events from the portal creation up to my confrontation with the bear.

It seems the fact that I could use magic got her curious, but I carefully left off the part where I killed the bear in my tale, instead saying I simply left him stunned behind me when I walked away. Since I am not exactly sure about the relations in-between other animals, I could only assume others animals are sentient too, and that they can eventually share bonds. However it seems she did not care much about the fate of the bear.

“So if I am not mistaken, this eagle you have here is protecting you? That is quite a loyalty token, because even when passed out it always stayed near you.”

Zecora’s words reminded me of something, so I addressed to my familiar.

“Now that I think of it, I did not really properly thank you for helping me. You played a big role in my saving, so I’ll make sure that you get properly rewarded for being such an awesome companion when we get back home.”

I felt she was proud of this, but there was another feeling mixed in I didn’t quite really identify. However I continued my conversation with Zecora in the meantime.

“Yes, this is my familiar, but I am quite as much hers as she is mine. Wild animals can share their friendship, but never do they acknowledge they belong to someone.”

I did not explain the empathic bond we shared for now, because it would be a lot to tell, and maybe quite strange to understand, so I did not pass over those details yet. I will probably explain them another time maybe.

After my relation was finished, she told me in return the basics of the land I just got in. By this point, we had almost finished our breakfast.

It seemed that this region was populated by sentient equine races. The three main ones being Earth Ponies, Unicorns and Pegasi. She also stated that there were much more than these outside of Equestria, such as Griffins, of course Zebras, and a few other creatures.

I felt like this bestiary was coming right from the top list of the rarest creatures I ever heard of, but at least, I now know why there was a symbolic unicorn-pegasus-thing in the castle I was in at my arrival.

The difference between the three first races were quite… Obvious.

Pegasi could fly, simply by using their wings, while Unicorns could use magic. Earth Ponies if I understand correctly, simply have more endurance strength than their counterparts.

Actually, I don’t really get why Unicorns are the only ones to be able to use magic. Throughout history, it has been proven that even those who are not gifted with magic at birth can train and eventually become spellcasters, and sometimes even be better at it than sorcerers.

Of course being born as a sorcerer as I am can help a lot, but Zecora clearly explained to me that only Unicorns can use it, which I find quite odd.

Well, who am I to even question the functions of a land I am not even from?

As I questioned her, Zecora told me more about the Zebra tribe.

“My homeland, from the world we live in, is clearly withdrew. But using the most of our resources is the field in which all other races we outdo. From ointments to potions, we can craft them all. We only need a few ingredients to make them functional.”

So, basically, she told me the reason why Zebras are alchemists. They live in a land where their resources are quite limited. Doing the most with the less is kind of the only option here.

This new land was getting most of my curiosity, and I tried to press a few more questions about it. However, I could not get any more details, as our breakfast was now done, and it seems Zecora had to take her leave.

“Now please excuse me, but I will see you in a few hours. Someone needs my care and her illness can be cured by these flowers,” she said, as she equipped herself with saddlebags, and threw some elegant eerie-pink and white flowers in one of said bags. She also began to charge herself with a few others materials.

“Maybe when I come back, you could tell me more about you. Unless if you consider talking about your species as a taboo.”

I nodded at her question. She shared quite a bit of her history with me, so there is no reason I would not do the same. “I would be glad to present you my culture, and the functioning of my land too. Whenever you come back from whatever you have to do.”

Only after I had said this sentence had I noticed it rhymed. Funny, how her way how speaking seemed to affect me.

She smiled at me while suggesting, “You may stay here to recover. Just make sure to keep warm under your covers.”

While the prospect of being alone in her house for some time was not so bad, staying in bed did not seem like an interesting activity, so I asked “Do you mind if I visit the nearby town you mentioned? I wish to know more about this land, and walking around a bit would help to make sure I am still okay, rather than staying in bed all day.”

Zecora stopped her affairings to look straight at me, and worry could be clearly seen in her eyes.

“You should maybe not visit them that early, for they might not take your presence kindly. They might not do something to harm you directly, but they will hide from your presence like they first did with me.”

She sighed, and looked on the ground for a moment before continuing.

“Even if you go now, you will probably find no one to talk to. They will avoid you like the plague, that I can relate to.”

I thought about it for a moment, but Zecora moved to the door and and opened it. She was about to leave, but she turned around to say something before actually going.

“If you wish, tomorrow I can make some of my friends introduce you to their city. The townsfolk might be easily frightened, but they will accept you if you come with a committee.”

I crossed my arms while pondering over the question.

Well, if that was the only way, I guess I’ll take her up on the offer. There is no reason to cause a panic just by going in as a complete stranger.

… Oh god I did it again, even when thinking now… Her speech is infectious I swear.

“That would be most appreciated. I might go take a walk at some point anyhow, but I will avoid the city then. Thank you for your offering though, I would be very interested to see the townsfolk, and even maybe even meet those who saved me.”

“Then I shall now go out. I should be back before Celestia’s star could be put-out. My advice is that you should stay here and rest, but as you suggested walking for a bit for your health, would be best.”

And with that, she left, closing the door behind her.

Now that I thought about it, what exactly was ‘Celestia’s star’...?

“I have no idea, half-elf.”