Sins of Our Sisters

Chapters

A Chance Storm
Dreams of the Past
Deep Wounds

A Chance Storm

Author's note: I do not own My Little Ponies: Friendship is Magic. That is Hasbro. I did not develop My Little Ponies: Friendship is Magic. That was Lauren Faust. No money has or, hopefully, ever will change hands because of this little fictional thingy. Please don't sue me. Keep your hands/hooves where I can see them please. Also, this features an OC pony. Cause I suck at writing and I need a crutch.

Castle of the Royal Sisters
563 RSR (Royal Sisters Reign, 17 years prior to the War of Moon and Sun and 42 years prior to the beginning of Celestia's Reign)

“Luna! Luna … wherefore art thou?” The soft thumps of hooves on plush carpeting announced her coming better then any of her vaunted heralds. The sound fluctuated, first getting further away before stopping and coming closer. “Luna, tis of great import!” A grayish-purple pony shaped lump shifted slightly under a thick blanket at the noise. The window sill was quite cozy and she wanted to stay put just a bit longer. She kept her eyes firmly shut against the intrusion as if to will it away.

“Luna … Loo-loo!” Groaning at the nickname, the pony-shaped lump tossed her head, mostly dislodging the covers from her body and only leaving a drape around her head. Looking around, she realized her horn had gotten speared through the blankets she had been resting under. With a flick of her hoof and a roll of her teal eyes she removed that irritation, sending the offending piece of cloth slipping to the floor.

Celestia, her sister, had not yet found her but Luna knew it was only a matter of time. The moonlight streamed through the window she was perched on, her silhouette stark against the gray stone of the far wall and the dimly lit red carpeting. Her dark coat blended remarkably well with the stonework around her but her perch was not one of much concealment. A breeze ruffled the indigo feathers of her wings and the pony absently shifted them back into shape. The night lived and breathed around her and despite the interruption of her sister, Luna – Princess of Night – felt a slight smile creep to her lips. Her night. Their night.

The scrape of hoof against stone brought Luna out of her mental wandering. Her sister was getting closer and Luna knew she would be discovered soon. Better to get this over with.

“Tia,” she whined, fully aware it was whining, “verily, I was trying to nap. What causeth thou to howl as a griffon?” She sounded petulant and unhappy and she didn't care. The noise of her sister's hooves stopped momentarily before beginning again, this time getting much closer.

“Luna, tis nearly dawn. Whatever art thou doing up here all alone?” The regal form of her sister turned the corner. Where Luna was the purple of a dark night sky and the silver of the gentle moonlight, Celestia – Princess of the Day – was the white of the sunlight on water and the pink and red of a dawn's first light. Two opposites, birthed decades apart and yet for their ancient time together, seen as equals in nearly every way.

“I was napping, Tia.” Luna rolled her eyes once more. “I believe I said that.”

Celestia smiled gently at her sister, her blue eyes shining in the silvery light. Luna never was one for early days – or nights as it were – and Celestia knew how cranky she could get when one of her naps was interrupted.

“Well, wipe that sleep out of thine eyes, dearest. Tis almost dawn yet the moon stays still in the sky. Indeed, many a noblepony hast come to the castle to wonder after thine health.” Luna rolled her eyes at this, the third time since awakening. “And be thou ever cautious about thine eyes. Verily, if thy roll them once more I'd be not surprised to see them roll into a corner.”

Luna almost rolled her eyes again but caught herself. “Ugh, Tia. Thou knowest as well as I that your little ponies care little for my night.” Celestia frowned at the phrase but Luna continued on before she could object. “But yes, my moon has stayed still too long. She shall set as quickly as I may move her without disruption. I,” Luna paused and lowered her head, “apologize. I knew not how late twas getting.”

Celestia stepped forward and nuzzled her sister. Luna backed slightly at the touch but made no motion to stop her.

“Oh Luna, tis difficult work to set the world right after the chaos of Discord and our ponies,” Celestia stressed the phrase drawing a slight wince from her sister, “are tired from their labors. You bring them rest and they adore you for it while I bring naught but hardship and heat. Calm thy heart, dearest.”

Luna said nothing, though she nuzzled her sister back slightly. Satisfied that all would be well, in time, Celestia drew back and smiled as Luna raised her face to her.

“Well, away I go to the throne room. Goodness knows many a pony will be wondering if this longer night will be cause enough to rest a bit more and yet, as the bearer of all that is ill, I must stamp that hope dead.” She smiled at Luna as a hint of smile was returned. With a nod, Celestia turned and left, her task complete as her hoofsteps fading into the dark night.

As soon as the sound disappeared, Luna let loose a breath she had held for far too long, sagging where she stood.

“T'was too close, that.” She turned and motioned at the window. The moon, once still in the sky, began to move noticeably toward the distant horizon. Glancing around to be sure of her solitude, Luna crept to the sill and stuck her head into the cool night air, her forehooves propped on the still warm seat she had laid upon. Nopony was around in the courtyard below, just as nopony was in the streets or in the shops or in the throne room save the cast offs of the Day Court. Sycophants and the poorest of nobles. Here, though, it was just Luna and her night. And her new friend.

“We must be more careful, dearest. My sister, close though she is to mine heart, would ne'er accept our friendship.” A slight stir of the night air drew the Princesses eyes. Slowly, as if afraid to disturb Luna, a small whisp of light flickered into existence in front of her nose. It pulsed with a cold light, barely noticeable in the now slowly dimming moonlight. “I must say, it was as exhilarating as thou saidest twould be. Yet thou must rest, as I must. Thou art a creature of the night and the night cannot last forever.”

Luna pulled herself back into the castle and began to head for her lonely room. Behind her, the whisp pulsed slowly. It lingered at the window as the moon slid gracefully behind the horizon. Luna suddenly stopped and turned, confusion on her face.

“Coming dearest? I know thou love mine company but the sunlight hurts thy kind as surely as fire t'would mine. Come, my room is dark and there is plenty of time next eve.”

As the last ray of moonlight faded from view and just before the first rays of dawn crested the edge of the world, the small whisp bolted into the dim confines of the castle, zig zagging its way to burrow into Luna's ethereal mane. She brought a hoof up and stroked the small creature.

“Ah, but for a time when thou and I would not have to hide away from the bright sun, hmm little one? Alas, it will never come to pass. The night cannot last forever.”

Everfree Forest/Ponyville
1005 CR (Celestia's Reign)

The wind whipped through the trees, shaking and tumbling the branches. Though it seemed as though it was a storm, no rain fell. The confused young pony was glad for that. Cautiously, it stood, its underside caked with cloying dust, the pale lavender coat now a dusty gray. It tossed its head, baby blue hair lashing it in the face. Where was … ? What was, er … The young pony glanced down, checking between … her legs. Bringing her head back up, she felt a concerned frown growing on her lips. How could she not know her own gender? Who was she? Where was she? How had she gotten there? She knew words, words that held meaning, but nothing else. Her gender confused her, at first. She seemed to remember … there was something, something that seemed important but no definitive memories surfaced.

A crack of thunder startled her from her reverie. As much as she'd love to stay in this clearing all day trying to get her bearings, she needed to get to some form of cover. The wind was whipping through her feathers almost hard enough to … wait, feathers? She glanced at her sides. Sure enough, small wings were attached to her just above her shoulder blades. She gave her limbs a weak and experimental waggle. Wings. She found this odd, even odder than her gender. And then found the fact she found this odd odd itself. Was she born a pegasus? What had happened to her?

“Get your head together!” She shouted, though with the noise of the wind it was hard to hear anything besides. The words felt strange in her mouth. No, muzzle. Both? No time for confusion. She glanced around for some sort of indent or ditch she could crouch in but saw nothing of the sort. She stood alone in a flat field a hundred paces across, ringed with dark and threatening trees that seemed strangely red in this light. At least she thought it was strange. Shrugging against the wind, the young pegasus tried to think of the best course of action.

Either she was to stay in the clearing and hope nothing was wrenched from the trees or try to enter the forest proper and find some sort of cover from the storm. A sudden howl of wind drove her to her belly as she pondered, momentary fear blocking out any attempts at solving the problem. The fear passed after a moment, as did the gust of wind, but the young filly stayed on her belly. She sighed and her huff of air was torn away as it left her lips. The choice was almost made for her. She supposed that here she at least could see possible wind-borne projectiles. Weary from trying to stand against the lashing air, the young filly settled into the ground and folded her wings close to her body. Trying to prevent herself from being lifted by the force of the air around her. It was going to be a wild ride.

Twilight Sparkle, purple pony protégée of Princess Celestia and Bearer of Element of Magic, looked out from the uppermost balcony of her library and home. A line of black clouds stretched from horizon to horizon right outside of Ponyville, a line that marked the end of pegasus controlled weather and the start of the wild lands. The Everfree Forest. A place where the weather did not bow to pony will, where the animals cared for themselves and the seasons changed on their own.

Looking down at the streets, Twilight couldn't see a single soul despite the relatively early hour. The Weather Patrol had assured the citizenry that they would keep the storm out of the town but they cautioned against going outside until it had been dispersed. Everypony that had a moment to spare was watching it with trepidation, however, she was sure of that High above, Twilight could see pegasi circling in the clear part of the sky, darting behind or above the clouds, trying to break them up. For a brief moment, she could see a rainbow maned blue streak peak above the darkness before plummeting back into the clouds.

“Rainbow Dash,” Twilight breathed, with some faint amusement and a hint of a smile playing across her lips. “Of course you'd be up there.”

“You say something Twi?” Spike, her baby dragon charge and voluntary assistant, peeked around the corner of the doorway. His purple and green scales seemed dull somehow. A look of confusion graced Twilight's face before she remember what he had been doing. Cleaning day. No doubt he had been in the middle of some chore when her voice drew his ear and the dust that coated him was what made his usually shiny scales so dull. Ever hard working and at such a young age, Twilight was infinitely glad she had his help keeping the Books and Branches Library clean and sorted. If she didn't have his help, running the public library would be a full time job for her.

“Nothing important, Spike. Just watching that storm.” She nodded her head towards the line of black clouds. Spike whistled.

“Wow, I had heard about it but I guess I've been so busy in the library cleaning SOMEONE'S mess that I hadn't looked at it very hard.” Twilight chuckled and flushed slightly at his tone. She knew her research tended to be, well energetic but that was his job, after all. Spike climbed out onto the balcony with her, a duster in his hand. “Never seen anything like that before in Canterlot.”

“Yes, well, it's coming from the Everfree. Even Rainbow Dash said it's rare for such weather to come out of the forest like that. They had to scramble the Weather Patrols to keep it out of Ponyville and Hoofington. Thankfully it missed yesterday's Summer Sun Celebration.” Twilight gave the clouds a last glance before an idea took shape in her head. With a smile, she walked through the door Spike just came out of. “Let's get under some cover. I suddenly have an urge to do some … research.”

Spike sighed, resigned to his fate. And he had just finished putting the last round of books away.

The young pegasus hugged the ground tightly as the wind tried desperately to claw her from its embrace. It was no use staying here, the clearing provided the air too much purchase on her body. But as she desperately tried to crawl towards the nearest line of trees, every centimeter threatened to send her hurling into the storm itself.

“Damn it,” the young filly said, her strange voice lost even to her own ears. The wind was at her back, tearing at her short fur. She risked a wary glance behind her, eyes squinting into the blast of air. Though the storm raged, few loose branches or debris were airborne. This spoke strange volumes to the filly. Storms must be common here to clear out the weaker limbs of the unsettling trees around her.

A scream of wind broke her thoughts, grabbing at the pegasus and trying to send her skyward. Lacking anything to grab with, she took hold of the grass with her mouth, teeth clenched tighter than her eyes against the howling menace. Half in a panic, she hoped that it would be enough to keep her from being dashed against the surrounding woods.

“Everfree Wildlife,' 'The Geography of the Wild Lands,' 'Olde Magick of Southern Equestria.' No, no, no, no! SPIKE!” Irritated, Twilight yelled at the top of her lungs, the books floating in air around her shaking in turn. A crack of distant lightning cast a sudden, harsh glare across the purple unicorn as well as the stacks of books clustered around her. The drama was lost on Twilight, however. “None of these books have anything to do with weather around Everfree!”

“Geez, Twi, calm down.” Spike dumped another load of random books unceremoniously on the floor with a roll of his eyes. “Everywhere else the pegasi control the weather so why not look for pegasi-specific books? Or pegasi authors?”

“That … that's actually a pretty good idea, why didn't I think of it?” Twilight stopped concentrating on the magic holding the half dozen books aloft causing them all to plummet with some force to the floor. Spike's jaw fell open as Twilight walked calmly passed him. “Could you straighten up in here? Thanks Spike.” She ignored the young dragon as he began to grumble under his breath.

The file room of the library was once a meticulously kept place. Once, perhaps. Many years before her mother was born. Now it was a precariously piled mountain of unclaimed notes, unfinished inventory sheets and half-filled index cards. Somewhere, deep in that mess, was a bureau with the finished and sorted index cards but it hadn't seen light for decades. Since she had moved into the tree building, Twilight had been meaning to sort through and organize the place but things just kept coming up. If Pinkie Pie wasn't trying to host some sort of party, it was a festival or a problem she had to deal with.

Twilight sighed dejectedly. Time to start digging, she supposed.

Inch by painful inch, the exhausted filly slowly made her way towards the relative safety of the treeline. Her limbs screamed at her, her lungs burned, her mouth was filled with the taste of dirt and weeds. It had been hours since she had awoken in the screaming maelstrom of the forest, hours of holding herself against the ground, of crawling towards a distant goal of safety. She'd have cursed herself a fool for her decision had she the energy for it. Staying in the middle of a massive wind storm. Idiot. But energy was the one thing she seemed to be running low on. The pegasus panted against the ground as a strange hopelessness began to weigh her down, more than the exhaustion or the confusion. She let the waves of air wash over her. How much easier it would be to let go, to fall into the sky and sleep. To rest, just a moment.

A sudden gust lifted her wings against her will, skidding her forward against the hard earth. Terrified, she fought the air, fought her own limbs futilely. Her back ached as she brought the feathered rebels back under her control. And yet, with the angle just right … the trees were much closer now. She looked down at the small and pathetic things now held tight against her sides. On closer inspection, they seemed so very frail. A faint glimmer of hope came to her. Was it possible to fly with such weak things? The terrific wind surrounding her prevented exploration of that possibility of course but they had worked surprisingly well as a sail.

Lightly, gently, the filly opened her wings, forcing them to stay down against the flow of air. She gasped, startled, as she slid another few feet. Clamping down on her wings with a yell, she managed to bring herself back under control. Her hooves hurt, her knees were scraped and bloody. Yet she could feel the air beginning to lose it's grip on her body. The trees ahead were breaking up the wall of air that crashed around her. She was almost there. Almost safe. Hope turned to grim determination. One more controlled glide …

Several hours later, Spike finally put the last of the scattered books on the shelf. He wiped his brow as he climbed back down the ladder, stepping back to survey his work. Organized by subject, title and author. In that order. He glanced out a nearby window, one of many facing the Everfree Forest, as he enjoyed the feeling of a job well done. Though the black clouds still threatened, they were noticeably diminished in size. He could have sworn he saw a rainbow trail across the sky but Rainbow Dash couldn't still be up there. Not after all this time … huh, it was her.

“Maybe she took a nap or something.” He shrugged and turn to put away his cleaning supplies when his stomach growled loudly. Checking the time by the Einsiedler cuckoo clock Twilight had bought almost on a whim several months ago – and finding it very much past lunch – he wondered idly where Twilight had gone off to. “Probably got lost in the index room. Again!”

“What was that Spike?' Spike jumped and spun around at the sudden voice. Twilight cocked her head obliviously at him with a smile in return. He stared at her flabbergasted, his jaw nearly unhinged from the sight. She was covered head to toe in dust, various unfinished index cards sticking out of her mane and tail, while a drawer of cards – well stacked and obviously painstakingly organized – hovered nearby. Twilight blinked down at him, obviously confused. “What?” With a twist of her eyes, she noticed her state and smirked.

“Oh, right.”

“Don't shake, DON'T SH-” Spike's cry went unheeded as Twilight gave her whole body a quick and vigorous shaking, dust billowing and cards flying out from her body, coating the newly cleaned and organized library with a fine layer of particles and cards, “-ake.” Twilight chuckled.

“Oh Spike, I'm far too busy to shower right now. I just organized the index room and now have all the authors categorized by name, pony-type and work-type, as well as cross referenced if they were more prolific.” She walked out of the room, back towards the stairs leading to her bedroom. “I'm going to need some of these books pronto, Spike. This lack of any real research into the strange Everfree weather phenomenon is bugging me.” Intent on her research, she ignored the look of utter surprise on her assistant's face and clopped merrily up the stairs. Behind her, Spike kicked the ladder in anger, hopping around grumbling at his now hurt foot.

The young filly panted against a tree, the wind still pulling at her but with greatly reduced force. Again she cursed her own decision. Had she remained she would have undoubtedly been pulled into the air and dashed to pieces. But she was safe now – mostly– and for that she was glad. Though the storm still raged, the trees provided plenty of cover from the winds. Huddled in the lee of one of them, the filly looked at it with a new eye. They were so big up close. Old growth forest perhaps.

With some room to actually think, finally, she began to take stock of her situation. She was alone, lost presumably, in some forest with a massive storm raging overhead. She had no memory of, well, anything really. That bothered her a great deal. She was young, she supposed, though how young she couldn't hazard a guess. She didn't feel young, mentally, and yet there was something that told her she wasn't as old as she felt. She was a female and some form of horse, a pegasus. A pegasus. That made her grimace. For some reason, it didn't seem like that was possible and yet here she was.

She looked at her wings, spreading them without fear of being blown about and ignoring the burning ache that radiated from her muscles. They were so small, delicate, dainty. They looked fresh. An impossibility. She knew this, somehow. A mystery for another time. Drawing them back against her sides, she turned her attention back to her lack of memories. Nothing from her past came to her no matter how much she concentrated. Family, mother, father. Friends, house, car? Access card, creche-mates, conditioning center codes. These words came to her mind when she thought of youth but nothing was attached to them from her own past. No faces, no voices. Bare images of things, still pictures taken by her mind remained but little else. And what she did remember seemed to be contradictory. Siblings and creche-mates? Security codes for the barracks and a single-family home, white picket fence and all? It was all so strange.

The young filly should have felt fear at all of this. No memories, alone in a forest probably far from any form of civilization. She should have been afraid. This thought came from deep inside her. She should have been terrified. But she wasn't. Not entirely. There was … trepidation. Nervousness, confusion. But no real fear. Something was definitely not right. This was not natural.

She peeked her head around the bulk of the tree, her hair snapping in the wind. The storm seemed to be losing its power. It must have been hours since she had awakened in that field and the sky was beginning to get dark. Well, not as dark as it had been but darker nonetheless. As if to remind her of the time and energy her poor decision had cost her, her stomach rumbled. With a resigned sigh and a roll of her eyes she withdrew back into the relative calm of the tree.

So. Hunger requires food to solve. What do ponies eat? Why was she asking this question? Thoughts surfaced, unsure of themselves. Grass, perhaps, or other plants. Ponies were not meat eaters. Hunting was then out of the question. Though she was now at the mercy of the growing seasons and perhaps the migration patterns of her species, she didn't have to invest the time or energy to attempt to hunt.

What in the hay was she thinking? Hunting? A confused look passed across her face, leaving a growing sense of dread behind. Why did images of stone spear points and the proper way to dress a carcass come to her mind when she thought of that? Incision down the torso, underbelly, four radiating cuts to loosen the skin near the limbs … where did she know this from? How did she know this? Words. She put hoof to chin in thought. She knew how to speak, some language she couldn't name. The words felt odd leaving her lips but they were words, words with meaning. Where did she learn this?

A flash of irritation ignited a smoldering anger, causing her to beat her head with a hoof. She winced and stopped after the third strike. A growing knot was all she had gained from that. But though this knowledge came unbidden and unwanted, it was not total. She did not know how to, say, build a train. What even was a … oh. She knew what is was, the general principle under which it worked but not it's construction. She didn't know how to cook meal rations, though for some reason she did know how to make pancakes. But the strangest things came to her mind. Hunting, stalking. How to cover scent, how to avoid being seen or smelled, how to note tracks and markings of … she almost said 'prey' but she did not eat meat. Did she? A disturbing thought entered her mind. The taste of bacon and fresh qagh.

“This is so confusing.” The wind whistled Confusing yes, but something else as well. She did not want to admit it to herself but she was beginning to feel fear. Fear, that was the last thing she needed to deal with right then. She needed to keep a calm head to survive in this environment. Large predators would have bedded down to survive the storm but they would be active soon enough.

With a sigh and a groan, the young filly stood. She ignored the screaming of her muscles. The waning light of day was nearly gone and it was pointless to sit around here what little day was left trying to sort through her thoughts. Surely it was still early evening but with the clouds as they were, it was surprising any sunlight managed to cut through to light the forest floor. She needed to find someplace safe to sleep. She was hungry, thirsty and sore but with the little light left her, she doubted she'd be able to find much of anything.

“Hmm, this is so odd.” Twilight sipped absentmindedly from a near-cold cup of dandelion tea. Her irritation at the lack of good research on Everfree weather was wearing on her usually decent mood. She was laying on her bed with a book propped against her pillow, enjoying the rather nice sunset Princess Celestia had put together while she read but oddly enough, the more she read the more confused and muddled the subject became. There were a few small stacks of books near her, all with notes and sheets of paper jutting out from the covers, though the rest were all closed. She levitated her cup back to her nightstand and closed her last book with some force.

“It's like no pony – no unicorn, no pegasus, no earth pony – no pony has ever really looked into the WHY of Everfree. It's such a mystery, just staring all of Equestria in the face and no one has the wherewithal to look back. Like it's embarrassing or something.” The last book fell with a deep thunk, perched on the smallest of the stacks. Twilight looked out at the still-shrinking clouds, glowing like some fiery smoke on the horizon. It had taken her the last half of the day and she was still no closer to understanding the essential why of the Everfree Forest weather. Perhaps if she took a trip to Canterlot University … A loud draconic sigh from the doorway drew her attention back from her thoughts.

“Twilight, it's done. Dusted sorted and stacked. The library is, officially, clean.” Spike's voice croaked as he tottered in the doorway. For a moment he seemed tired and little else but then he collapsed with a huff. A miniscule cloud of dust escaped from him and the now well-used duster in his hand at the impact. Twilight flicked her ear, smiling at her very productive – and very theatrical – assistant.

“Thank you Spike. These books are the last for tonight. Now I'll need to -” She was interrupted by her stomach's sudden interjection, a growl that almost sounded bestial. She looked down, blushing slightly at the noise. Spike tilted his head and looked at her, one of his eyebrow ridges cocked. Twilight sheepishly grinned at him “Heh, maybe I need to eat first.”

“You said it Twi. I'm starving.” His melodramatic collapse forgotten, the dusty dragon nearly leapt back to his feet. “Can we go to the Sugar Cube Corner? We haven't been there in ages.” Twilight giggled at his youthful enthusiasm. Still thinking about sweets, the young dragon.

“Maybe for desert. We need something more substantial for our actual dinner, Spike.”

What was wrong with, well, everything? The young filly stood at the base of a tree, staring with angry eyes upwards through the branches at the seemingly ever-present clouds. Her mind told her that trees were safe for resting in hostile environments. She glanced down momentarily before returning her annoyed gaze upwards. How the hay was she supposed to climb with hooves?

Cautiously, she placed her front hooves on the tree, scooting forward until she was parallel with its trunk. Thumping rhythmically on the wood, she stood in thought. A jump, perhaps? She had wings, though the wind was still violent enough she was hesitant to try them. She gave a little hop. No way she'd be able to make the height to grab those lower limbs. Which brought another annoying question forward; how was she supposed to grasp anything? In her mind's eye, she could somehow see tools in front of her – showing their use – but she didn't seem to be holding them. Something else was.

Hands, a word she knew. Front appendages designed for grasping and manipulating with dexterous outgrowths called fingers. She looked at her hooves. She didn't have those. And what's more, it wasn't always the same set of hands that were using the tools. Sometimes they were smooth pink things with stubby fingers, other times it was a scaled and clawed thing with delicate scales. Most of the time, the hands manipulated things in a strange otherworldly void, like the details were lost to time. Other times, it was a perfect memory, complete with confusing and alien sounds. And smells.

Giving a resigned sigh, she lowered herself back to her four hooves. The young filly had given up on trying to figure out how she knew the things she did. Some were very strange, such as hunting and butchering techniques. Others were, well, arcane. How she knew what a las rifle was and how to field strip it and maintain it was beyond her. Then there was the frankly bizarre. Things no youthful mind should know about genders that only vaguely resembled her own and what she guessed were males.

With a huff, she extended her wings out as far as they would go, giving them a small flap. They were too small, there was no way they good provide enough lift to get her weight skyward. At least that's what her mind told her from what little she – no, not her, her mind – knew of aerodynamics. It wouldn't hurt to try though. Scrunching her eyes shut, she began to flap her wings. Her muscles whined in protest, reminding her of the previous struggle for control in the windstorm. Faster and faster she pushed them until tears ran down her face at the pain.

But for all her struggles, she remained on the ground. She didn't even feel herself lift a centimeter. After mere minutes she stopped. Her body shuddered at the strain and tears flowed down her face unheeded. Useless. Well, no, not useless. She reminded herself of the help they provided just hours ago. Regardless, they were of no help here. Looking up forlornly at the swaying tree – and the safety it represented – one last time, the young filly turned to find some other place to rest for the quickly approaching night.

“...and then she said 'But Spike, that's Applejack's bridle.' Can you believe it?!” Spike nearly fell over laughing after his joke was finished. Twilight would have been mortified at the story but there was nopony else to hear it. Except, of course, their gracious hostess.

“Oh Spike, Applebloom and you always get into the most fun trouble.” Pinkie Pie – her face forever in a half-manic grin – giggled into her drink, some sort of massive sweet fizzy concoction from Celestia-knows-where. 'Sarsaparilla' or something like that.

They sat at one of the few true tables in the gingerbread house inspired shop, the darkness of the night outside banished by festive and well-cared for candles. Though almost every other shop would have looked spooky in such light, Twilight and Spike had been to Sugarcube Corner after hours often enough that it was almost homey. The Cakes, owners and proprietors of the business, had retreated from the friendly threesome into their home, trusting fully in their pink employee and boarder. It nearly amazed Twilight that they put so much faith in Pinkie Pie but she had proven her worth time and again. As absentminded as she could act, Pinkie Pie was still a good friend and a good pony.

“No Pinkie, just plain old trouble.” Twilight returned to the conversation at hand, poking at her hay-and-oatmeal cupcake. Her hunger was satisfied from their recent dinner and she just could not find the hunger for the desert in front of her. “Besides, he hasn't said the 'price' he had to pay after that debacle.” Spike stuck his tongue out at Twilight. “Come on Spike, a week of laundry duty isn't that bad. It's not like Applejack wears that many clothes.”

“It wasn't Applejack's laundry I was doing, it was Granny Smith's. And she likes her bridles 'spic and span, young whippersnapper.' Ugh.” Twilight and Pinkie blinked in unison at Spike and then glanced at each other. “What?”

At first, they managed to contain themselves, allowing only spurts of giggles to escape from quivering lips. But it could not last. Unable to contain it, both mares burst into guffaws of laughter. Pinkie Pie actually managed to fall completely off her stool, stunning both herself and her guests. Yet the ridiculousness of that caused her to erupt into another fit, eliciting some from both Twilight and Spike.

“Ah, Spike, you let those fillies get you into so much trouble.” Twilight shook her head with a sigh. Pinkie Pie, still fighting giggles, clambered back upright and into her stool.

“Hey Twilight! Where have you been all day, anyway? Usually you come around for lunch or something. Were you scared by those spoooky black clouds from Everfree?” Pinkie Pie waved her hooves in the air theatrically while Twilight rolled her eyes.

“No, though they did inspire me to a fresh batch of research. Did you know that no one has ever done a study on the weather of Everfree? I mean, no one! Not even a simple survey of the area. I can find all sorts of information on ground-level phenomenon, like the unique flora and fauna but …” Twilight began to ramble on, drawing out a long groan from Spike. Pinkie Pie sat, enraptured, her head nodding energetically though it was anypony's guess as to whether she understood any of what her study-conscious friend was telling her.

“… and I'm just at wits end for what to do. I don't have the resources to start my own study, though I suppose a long term study might be feasible. I was thinking of contacting Canterlot U or the Royal Survey Department for -” A loud snore from Spike cut Twilight off, the young dragon's head laying peacefully on his still crumb-covered plate.

“Aww, the poor widdle dwagon is tired.” Pinkie Pie rubbed Spike's head gently. It didn't seem to evoke any response from the very sleepy youngling except a snort. “Maybe it's time for you guys to head back home.”

Twilight chuckled. “Yes, he is still a baby dragon. It sometimes slips my mind.” Pinkie nodded sagely.

“Maybe you should ask Rainbow Dash.”

“Rainbow Dash? My memory isn't that bad.” Twilight furrowed her brow, trying to recall if Rainbow Dash, her fast and, well, dashing friend was known for having a great memory. Not that she was aware of but maybe …. Pinkie's laugh interrupted Twilight's train of thought.

“No silly, about that weather thingy. The Weather Patrol around here might have some books or something about what weather comes out of Everfree. Oh, they might even have some microfiche in the basement!” Pinkie crouched down, a fake grimace of determination splattered on her face. “A dark, spooky basement with flickering lights and dusty bookcases and grimy monsters and-”

“Some what-now?” Twilight cut her friend off with a quizzical look. Pinkie opened her mouth to answer when Spike snorted a jet of flame that toasted Twilight's cupcake. The two mares stared at the slowly burning cupcake surprised. “Uh, maybe you can explain later, I've got to get this one to bed.”

“Okey-dokey-lokey!” Pinkie nodded as Twilight levitated Spike onto her back. Twilight made a mental note to find Rainbow Dash tomorrow. Surely the premier Weather Patrol pegasus would have some information. She hoped.

The young filly huddled against the rough and cold bark of a tree, the bushes at its base providing some form of protection from the wind. As well as from the sight of any predators that may wander nearby, though she had little defense against things which hunted by smell. Still, it was better than nothing and she was so very tired. Tomorrow she would start her search for, well, anything. Something. Laying her head on her hooves, the little filly lost herself to fitful dreams while her aching body tried to repair itself from a very eventful day.

AUTHORS NOTES: This is not my first piece of writing, though by no means am I a professional. As if that weren't obvious to everyone. In fact, I began this, goodness, almost a year ago now I think. The reception was … not enthusiastic. Still, a few things caused me to pick this back up. 'Displaced' was the primary one, actually. It begins similarly, though the villain is different, and the reception of that caused me to reconsider my oath 'never to write again.' Yeah, the reception was that … lackluster. I do love me my ellipses. And commas. And dashes. I'm not a professional writer by any means. Anyway, not to take anything from 'Displaced' (it's a good story, you should read it) I felt that my idea was worth some merit. Again, 'Displaced.' It inspired me to try and try again.

Oh, and if there are any issues with this, please OH GODS PLEASE tell me! I write not to just satisfy my own over-blown ego but to become a better writer and I cannot do that if I don't know what needs fixing. Also, uhm … it helps keep me intent on trying. sorry. i'll stop. comment, critique. if you wouldn't mind, i mean. if there's enough interest, i might try to finish this but i don't have a ton of time these days. sorry.

Dreams of the Past

My Little Ponies and all associated trademarks are owned by Hasbro. My Little Ponies: Friendship is Magic was developed for television by Lauren Faust.

Castle of the Royal Sisters
568 RSR (Royal Sisters Reign, 12 years prior to the War of Moon and Sun and 37 years prior to the beginning of Celestia's Reign)

"I FORBID IT!" The shout echoed through the halls and corridors of the castle, reverberating through the very stone itself. Servants and guards stopped what they were doing to stare towards the source of the noise, their mouths agape with wonder and fear. Though they had become used to raised voices, this was something altogether different.

It had been a tense decade. Ever since the fall of the last stronghold of Discord and the end of his chaotic reign over ponykind, ponies everywhere began to hear whispers of discontent and disharmony The celebrations of victory and peace had a dark shadow cast over them regardless of their frivolity. The royal sisters were seen to argue more than agree and it was rare that Princess Luna was seen outside the castle grounds. Some spoke of Princess Celestia becoming more and more tyrannical, enforcing her will through domination and subjugation. Others argued it was Princess Luna who was the cause of the disturbances, her 'black' magic controlling the minds of those around her. Some even suggested that the formation of the Royal Line itself was an error and that the three tribes were better off with disparate rulers as in times of old. Regardless of the rumors, the source of the shouting was clear to any on the castle grounds.

"I do not care what thou forbids or what thou wouldst have flourish!" Though her voice was raised, Luna kept it out of the traditional commanding volume her sister had tried to use on her. She was no pony noble to be brow beaten by sheer volume nor a commoner to be dazzled by her throne. She slammed a hoof into the ground hard, cracking the granite stone beneath her. "Are we not to be equals? What power placed thou over I?"

"The power of being thy elder! You shall do as I command!" Celestia, lit from behind by the power of her sun, sat on her golden and marble monstrosity of a throne. The sun framed her entire body in light and had Luna not been imbued with her power, she would undoubtedly be squinting into it. Despite the fact both sisters had equal throne rooms, most ponies saw Celestia's throne as the seat of power having never had cause to see Luna's. Celestia had become used to being obeyed from her throne and the fact somepony dared to say no, despite all the trappings and pomp, surely irked her. Luna sneered at her sister, anger boiling beyond logic.

"Elder be damned, We are thy equal! I will not bow to you, sister!" In some corner of each alicorn's mind, they knew this was not the proper way to do this. Raised voices and heated words left hurts that took time and understanding to heal. Yet all ponies were prey to emotions and, despite everything, they were both still very much ponies. They stared at each other for a long moment, each unwilling to bend. Luna was the first to break the stare, turning on her hooves towards the grand double doors. "I am leaving until thou anger has cooled enough to cease its boil."

"We did not dismiss thee, sister!" Luna ignored her sister's command, holding her head high as she marched out of the throne room. None of the guards dared approach, they could only watch and shiver in trepidation. Celestia's face broke from anger into confusion. And then fear. "We said to stay! Princess! Luna! Luna! Sister!"

The slamming of the giant double doors signaled Luna's departure from her throne room.

"Oh no, sister! Luna come back!" Celestia scrambled to her hooves, galloping to the doors. With one swift kick she burst them open in time to see the small shape of her sister disappearing quickly in the distance. "Oh Loo-loo, what have We done? We're sorry, Loo-loo. Please, don't leave us."

She sank to the stones beneath her, eyes squeezed tight against the tears that threatened to burst forth. Her voice lowered to a whisper as guards, once struck motionless at the escalating fight, rushed to her side.

"Please don't leave me …"

UNKNOWN LOCATION
UNKNOWN DATE

The mortar shell hit somewhere behind him, making him clutch his helmet instinctively. It was a bad habit, a tiny little voice told him in the back of his head. Sometimes even trained fighters slip up, he replied, though he knew that tiny voice was right. The racket of the team's SAW was drowned out by the explosion, leaving only a vague ringing sound behind. Even the falling chunks of masonry were silent. It was very surreal, the sound of battle suddenly dying. Almost as if he was only watching it instead of experiencing it.

The morning sun had barely peeked above the horizon but already the heat was stifling in his body armor. Other than the light breeze from the shell strike, the air felt cloying, the smell of smoke and spent casings filling it and clinging to his throat. He peeked up over the half-wall he was crouched behind for a moment. The sandy road was strewn with debris, some of it still smoking. A severed arm smoked amid red bricks and the smashed remains of a television. A radio lay nearby, unharmed from the explosion save for a severed cord. The whims of fate against the wills of mice and men.

A few of the braver insurgents were using the time to run into new cover, one of them still stumbling from the concussion of the blast. It would have been comical any other time. As he was about to shout a warning, something caught his eye. A glint, strange against the bright sky, as the sniper he hadn't seen lined up the shot. He stared at him, struck dumb for the briefest of seconds. As the tiny voice in his mind began to laugh manically there was a sudden brightness . Then a sudden darkness and the tiny voice's laugh ceased.

UNKNOWN LOCATION
UNKNOWN DATE

Space combat was always tricky. She knew this from her training in the creche but actually being out in the deep dark was an experience she thought she would never have. The gear required to fight in space was too expensive and her debt never left her the chance. She had focused on ground combat and, without a firm planet below her, she found she could easily spin out of control. Her exo-suit was well made but it didn't completely even things out. Of course, it didn't matter much now.

It had taken her longer than anticipated to make it to the stable zone, the third point of an equilateral triangle made of the planet and its moon. Fighting the exo-suit the entire way had left her sore and exhausted and she had almost missed her chance to settle all her debts. That would have left a great debt for her hatchlings to pay. But now, all was as it should have been.

Gripping her launcher, she lined up her sights on the starboard nacelle of the ship directly in front of her. One soldier could get to where an entire fleet could not, she had been told. And they had been right The enemy's debt would be paid and with it, her own. Her hatchlings would be raised above her lowly station for her sacrifice. This they had promised her and she knew that their debt to her would be paid in full. There was always debt to pay, always oaths to fulfill. This would be her last oath, her last debt.

Silently, the rocket flared to life, flying away from her in a lazy arc toward her target as her exo-suit's jets kicked in to compensate for the sudden shift in momentum. She let them ease her about. A lazy spin as she caught glimpses of the rocket getting nearer and nearer to her target. The ship-killer rocket – very expensive – traced a lazy line of light toward the ship as its target tried to shift course. They had made no concessions for such an action, had given themselves no leeway in their approach. Their folly and her gain.

Now they knew where she was but it didn't matter. The point defense turrets wouldn't be able to destroy the rocket in time. As they spun toward her position instead – some form of misplaced revenge – she gave thanks to her instructors for their time. It always paid to be polite to those you owed so much to. A sudden pain flared along her side as the silent flechettes ripped through her armor, designed as it was to ward against smaller projectiles. The sound of wind graced her ears once before silence returned. Her last thought was to wonder at what her hatchlings even looked like.

UNKNOWN LOCATION
UNKNOWN DATE

The screams of the dying and wounded filled his head as the sounds of gunfire rattled around him. Clutching the tattered banner of his lord and over-father, he leapt atop the embankment and looked down at the mongrels who huddled below. Wet, tired, filthy. From every class, from every Family, from every walk of life they came. A few of the braver ones had propped their guns on the trench walls, firing near-blind at the distant enemy. One of them caught a bullet for his trouble, falling to the mud clutching at the orange blood spraying out of his throat. At the order of their over-father they fought and died. To lead is not to order. To lead is to do and to inspire those behind to do as well.

"Across this scarred wasteland, the traitors squat on stolen lands. They use stolen powderguns, they fight with stolen time and they strike down the honest for their gain. Will they live to steal another day? Would you leave them to their plunder?" A round whistled by his ear, tumbling in its flight. He ignored it, his attention fixed on those who looked up at him with tired and hopeless eyes. "Today, we defend our home from villains. Today we defend our honor from the honorless. Today, we fight. Today we win!"

He did not notice that none came above with him as he turned to charge the enemy. Too focused on victory, on the righteousness of his cause. In his mind, he saw the scoundrels before him scatter at the rising tide of honor. He pictured himself leading, as his over-father had and as his over-father's father had. In his mind, he was a hero to his people,

He barely made it a dozen steps. A single bullet pierced his central circulatory vein, spilling his blood across the green muck at his feet. He stumbled, trying to hold his over-father's banner high against the storm of change and anger. He was righteous. He was brave, despite the growing weakness in his limbs. He faltered. He fell, still clutching the banner of his over-father. One more body in the cold and soggy ground.

Everfree Forest/Ponyville
1005 CR

The pegasus filly woke with a yell as her orange eyes popped open. She shoved herself backwards. For a moment, she didn't see what truly was there. Instead, images of … things flashed before them. Wars, battles, pain. And death. So much death. Panting and gasping, she thrashed her forehooves out as if to physically ward off the sights.

"No, no!" Her back hit the rough bark of the shattered trunk she had slept beneath. She closed her eyes tight as the confusing images and the real world fought one another for dominance. They're just dreams, she told herself, willing her stomach to calm from all the carnage. Just dreams. After a moment, her breathing subsided and she opened her eyes once more.

"They're just dreams," she whispered to herself, repeating her thoughts out loud as if to give them more force. "Only dreams." Shakily, she reached out and parted the bush that had hidden her from anything that might have wandered by in the night. It had been dark by the time she had found a place to bed down, a place well enough protected that few things would find her yet open enough that she could still have a chance to escape should it come to that. This was the first time she had truly seen this forest without worrying about being swept into a maelstrom or hoping no night-hunters had picked up her trail. Her eyes went wide at the sight.

Daylight filtered through the thick green foliage above, spilling out in pools and small wavy light-streams. From what she could see of the sky, it appeared to be completely empty of clouds. A bright a glorious blue unmarred from the grey or black of a storm. A light breeze played joyfully in the leaves above while the sounds of song birds began again, interrupted as they were by her yell. It was a cool early morning and, despite the storm of the previous day, there was a distinct lack of mugginess in the air. She blinked away her wonder. She had more immediate needs.

It's a fairly nice day at least. Must have been a compact storm front, there's barely a cloud in the sky. The filly licked her dry and cracked lips, feeling the effects of dehydration. Time to go find some water. I hope.

She looked around hesitatingly before stepping out of her hiding spot and heading out to search of a drink, sniffing the air for both the tell-tale smell of a river or pond as well as the musky scent of a predator. It always paid to be cautious in the wild.

Twilight groaned as she cracked one tired eye open - only to shut it again with a yell.

"Argh, stupid sun! Er, I mean," she rubbed her now partially blinded eye as she rolled over, carefully opening her other one, "stupid windows being placed in the stupid path of the first rays of the sun, that is. Sorry Princess." She whispered that last bit to herself mostly out of habit. There was never any proof Princess Celestia could hear and see wherever the sun's rays struck but no sense taking unnecessary chances with her mentor.

Looking around her still cluttered room, she hefted a sigh of annoyance. Piles of books surrounded her bed and wax from her desktop candles she had accidentally left lit last night had pooled on a stack of papers she had left out. The light from the windows really picks out the clutter very well, she dryly thought to herself. Other than her books and papers, however, there was little else out of place. She was a meticulously organized young mare. Days like this were days she was glad for that fact.

Glancing around to the foot of her bed, she noted with a raised eyebrow that Spike's basket was both empty and unmade. She sighed and hopped out of bed, her hooves clopping noisily on the wooden floor. At least it smelled like he was cooking breakfast. With a flick of her head and a small glow from her horn she quickly yanked her and Spike's beds into order. Looking around at the mess, she decided to put off organizing those piles. She headed downstairs for breakfast instead, following her nose and her noisy tummy.

"Mornin' Twi." Spike called out from the kitchen as she entered the library proper. She sniffed at the air. Haycakes, her favorite.

"Morning Spike. Haycakes for breakfast? What's the occasion?" Twilight nudged the kitchen door shut behind her and smiled at her assistant. He looked so adorable in that white and pink apron. Ever since he returned from that 'quest' of his, he had taken to wearing it more often for his cooking chores. While his apron and the kitchen were still mostly clean, the young dragon had managed to make quite the mess of the counter tops. Though why he needed two bowls of batter for just the two of them Twilight couldn't immediately imagine. With barely a glance over his shoulder, Spike flipped a haycake over his head, sending it onto an already-prepared plate.

"No reason, just felt like making hayca-" he turned to look at her, his words dying on his lips. The bowl of batter he was pouring tipped back to prevent overfilling the sizzling pan. Even with his silly theatrics, her assistant was mindful of his messes. Twilight blinked at him in response with a half smile. Now what? "Whoa. Nice bed-head Twi."

"Huh?" Twilight put a hoof on her head, feeling the tangled mass of hair. "Oh Celestia, I forgot to brush my mane." She grinned at Spike's back as he went back to his cooking. "I suppose I was too busy making someone's bed that it slipped my mind."

"Yeah, yeah. I was going to do it after breakfast." With another deft flip, a second haycake plopped onto a second plate This one glittered in the early morning light, red and blue crystals poking out from the flat surface. Twilight giggled. That explained the two bowls of batter she noticed. Always with his gems.

"I'm going to go fix my mane, ok Spike? Be down in a half minute." She turned to go back upstairs, stopping only to give his back a flat look. "Don't burn down the library."

"Sure thing, Ms. Morning." Twilight rolled her eyes as she left.

The river was a glad sight to the tired, sore and oh-so-very thirsty filly. She trotted as quickly as she could to the river's edge as her head swiveled back and forth on a scan for danger. Testing the water with a hoof, she found it cool but not cold. That told her strange volumes. It was likely mid to late summer and not spring. She could see mountains close by that had very small snow caps but fresh snow melt would be colder unless the river passed through a volcanic area or came from a bog. The bog idea was almost out as the water smelled clean and did not feel slimy. Of course, it could be a distant bog or marshlands that let the foulness sink or pool at the edges further upstream but that would still leave an unpleasantness about the water that this river lacked.

Finding this river is the best thing that has happened so far, she thought as she smelled at the air. Rivers meant clean water for drinking and bathing, fish for, well, she didn't eat meat so that was out. But above all, if you followed a river downstream, it was almost guaranteed that you'd find some form of civilization. If there is a civilization to find, she mentally remarked, looking down at her hooves. For some reason, she couldn't conceive of any civilization growing from a hooved species.

Dipping her head, she tried lapping up the water with her tongue before rolling her eyes at her own foolishness and sucking at the water. Somehow neither felt quite right but at least she was getting fluids. After she drank her fill, she gingerly tested the water further in. Feeling her way along the bottom cautiously, she walked out until the water just touched her underbelly. Her scraps and cuts still stung but it was a sharp pain. Dull and throbbing would mean infection and that would be difficult to handle without antibiotics and …

"Alright, that's enough," she whispered. These thoughts and memories, these strange images. Those dreams. There were still so many unanswered questions. I don't have the time for this mental-inventory right now.

Dipping herself into the steady flow of the river, she rubbed at her short pelt with her hooves, trying to keep at least three on the riverbed at all times. She paid close attention to her … knees, she supposed. The skin had been scraped bloody yesterday and while it stung, she wanted as much of the dirt out of her wounds as she could manage. As she washed, she began to unintentionally filter through her mind, calling up random bits of information. Ambush patterns, suppress-and-maneuver, deck breaching, pincer attack. Most of it was very violent, though now that she was awake the images didn't disturb as much as before. Strange though. Most of it was of war …

A sudden growl from her abdomen reminded her she still had a few things to deal with before any deeply insightful conversations with herself. "I said I don't have the time to wonder at you, head. It's time for breakfast."

"Yes, Spike, you make the best haycakes." Twilight giggled at the puffed-up dragon as he stood proudly in the center of the library. With barely a thought, she floated her saddlebags onto her flanks and began to fill them with some of the various books she and Spike had carried down from her bedroom. She frowned slightly at how few she was taking and at how little ponykind really knew about the world outside their borders. With a smile, she turned back to Spike. "Now quit preening. I have to go see if I can find Rainbow Dash. Are you going to be ok here all by yourself?"

"Really Twilight?" Spike raised an eyebrow at her, crossing his arms in that strange dragon way. "Who took care of Fluttershy's little beasts when you and the girls went running off after that dragon? I still don't know why you couldn't take me that time."

Twilight sighed and patted Spike's head, much to his annoyance. She drew back her hoof as he swatted at the air around him.

"We didn't know if it was going to be dangerous, Spike, and I couldn't stand the thought of you getting hurt. You are still just a baby dragon, after all." Shifting her weight underneath her bags, she smiled at her young assistant. He grumbled under his breath and Twilight giggled at his slight discomfort before walking out the library door. "Be careful Spike. I'll be back in a few hours!"

Twilight headed down the road leading out of Ponyville. Rainbow's cloud house was situated a distance away, just inside the town's borders. It would be some time until Twilight arrived but it was a marvelous day and Twilight didn't mind the walk. She happily hummed as she trotted on her way, enjoying the warm sun and the cool breeze. It was going to be an amazing day, she could just feel it.

The filly lightly sniffed at the grass and eyed it from different angles. It seemed like normal, everyday grass ... except she didn't even know what that was really like. She had memories, true, but they didn't seem like hers. And none of them showed the consumption of grass. But when she had started to pass this grassy grove in the dense forest, the smell … oh that smell. She vaguely thought that grass should smell sharp and bitter but here it smelled sweet. So sweet. Her mouth was watering just thinking about it.

With a look of determination, the filly bent down and that taste! It tasted sweet, yes, but it was also tart. It almost seemed like citrus but it was a different tart. Like qualplagh only not so rancid or meaty. It was …

"Delicious." If every field was a feast like this one, she never need worry about food again. She fought the urge to stuff herself silly, eating slowly and cautiously. If this grass did not sit right with her, she would hate to have to vomit an entire stomach full up. In fact, she should probably sta-

Her thoughts were interrupted by the sounds of something approaching. Something big and heavy. As she lifted her head in surprise, a loud crash split the peace of the forest. She cursed her own hunger for clouding her mind. The birds has been silent for enough time she should have noticed. What's worse, she was upwind of whatever it was and it sounded like it was approaching fast.

Twilight stared up at Rainbow Dash's house, a large neoclassical structure made entirely out of clouds, and stomped her hoof with an irritated grunt. How could she forget something so mind-numbingly obvious? Rainbow Dash lived in a house made of clouds. A house only pegasi could get to. How was she supposed to get up there? Her cloud walk spell wasn't useful to get to the clouds and she didn't want to try to give herself wings. That had drained her dry when she had tried it on her unicorn friend Rarity.

"Rainbow! RAINBOW! Rainbow Dash, wake up!" Twilight shouted, stamping her hooves in frustration. "Rainbow! Uagh.

"Well buck." She sat with a huff. She knew it wasn't Rainbow's fault. She should have brought her hot air balloon or something but had forgotten it in her rush to get here. Still, it helped sometimes to just yell.

"Let's think things through, Twilight. I need to get up to Rainbow Dash's house," she motioned up at the now-imposing cloud building with one hoof, "but I can't fly. So I need to find SOMEONE who can fly but that I can get to. Someone like ..." Twilight's face lit up and she smacked her head with a hoof.

"Of course! Fluttershy!" With another irritated look at Rainbow's hard-to-reach house, Twilight turned tail and began to canter towards Fluttershy's cottage.

The filly crouched low – hidden as she was under a bush – and shivered. She had skirted the grove and positioned herself downwind of the fearsome beast only to have it burst from the forest dangerously close to where she had hastily hidden herself. Luckily, its entrance was loud enough to cover her scramble to her current hiding spot. She thanked whatever beings might exist in this world for small favors and then turned her attention to the prowling beast now stalking the grassy field she had been so happy to find. The filly had to fight a sudden urge to panic and flee at the sight.

An eight foot tall cat-predator with bat wings and a massive barbed tail stood in the middle of the grove sniffing where she had been but moments earlier. A lion of sorts some distant part of her mind recalled, drawing up a few images of lions in various situations. Most of them rather bloody. Not helping, she chided herself, willing away the thoughts and trying to turn a more sane eye to the situation.

Fangs longer than her hooves, claws to catch and tear, powerful forelegs with surprisingly weak-looking hind legs. She assumed it was an ambush predator but assuming anything about a creature that was hunting you was a terrible idea. Especially with the loud entrance it had made For now it seemed intent on the ground but it was only a matter of time before it picked up her scent trail. She needed to move.

Slowly and carefully, the filly eased herself back towards the forest. She had circled carefully, trying to keep the river at her back. She had wished to use the running waters to mask her scent trail. She could only hope that such a plan would work. If not, she might still put enough distance between her and the creature to find some sort of weapon to defend herse–

Snap.

An errant twig caused the filly to stop all movement. With the noise, the beast's head shot up towards her, a snarl growing on it's face. It was looking right at her, it was looking right at her, it was looking right at her.

All thought, all logic, all sense left her mind as instinct took over. No thoughts of switch backs, no thoughts of cover, no thoughts of fire-hardened spears of even basic clubs filled her mind. Only one thought. The thought to flee. Turning on her hooves, the filly bolted towards the river, a high pitched scream following her. The crash of the beast following was depressingly close.

"… and of course, Spike didn't want me to shake the dust out of my mane for some ca-razy reason, heh." Twilight levitated the cup of tea to her lips, blowing slightly before taking a sip. It wasn't hot, of course, but she didn't want to take any chances. She smiled across the table at her hostess.

"Oh, oh, uhm, yes. Yes, I'm sure he had his reasons." Fluttershy, the meek and caring butter-yellow pegasus – and one of Twilight's close friends – toyed slightly with her own tea cup. "But, well, I still don't see how I can help. I only get called in to help with some of the less, uhm, scary weather jobs and, uhm, that storm was just so frightening." The pegasus shivered at the thought of such violence and chaos, hugging herself for comfort. The lightening, the thunder. While she loved her cottage home and how close it was to her animal friends' homes in the Everfree, every so often something would happen to remind her of how dangerously near the wild forest really was. Twilight's giggle brought her out of her thoughts.

"Oh no, Fluttershy, I know you're not a weather pony. I was going to ask Dash but I, uhm," Twilight grinned sheepishly, "I kinda forgot my hot air balloon and, well, Dash's house is a cloud home …"

"Oh! Oh, yes, I can get her for you! I'm sorry, Twilight. Here I am wasting your time with tea." Twilight reached across the table and squeezed her friend's hoof.

"No, Fluttershy. There's nothing to be sorry for. You know I love spending time with all my friends and I can take a bit of time off from study to –" A sudden piercing scream echoed from the Everfree causing both mares to jump. For a moment, they simply stared at the monolithic wall of trees that separated the orderly and natural Equestria from the chaotic and unnatural forest. Another scream and the following roar brought them both back to their senses and sank their hearts at the same time.

"That was a filly!"

"And a manticore!"

With hardly a glance at each other, both mares leapt to their feet and galloped into the forest.

Branches snapped, tore through fur and flesh. Leaves whipped passed her face. She had stopped screaming, her breath too short for noise. She gasped at the air, gulping it down like a creature finding water after days in the desert. Her sight was blinded by tears of fear and hurt. No thought but the thought to run, to escape. She couldn't even think of what was behind her, what was chasing her. What was getting slowly closer.

She leapt a log, stumbling slightly on her landing before continuing on. She felt a wind at her back, like some massive thing had swiped passed her side. It missed but her stumble had cost her dearly in distance. There was a light, bright and blinding. The forest was ending. She was almost free.

Pain.

A sharp, ripping pain along her flank. She gasped and floundered. Something wet and warm was pouring out of her side and every step she hobbled hurt. It burned. Another stab, the other flank. This time, she pitched onto her side and slid across the forest floor with a scream, much sharper and more filled with pain than those she had let loose before. She tried to scramble to her hooves but another smack sent her careening into the trunk of a tree. She distinctly felt ribs breaking as she bounced off the rough surface.

She landed heavily, rolling onto her stomach. She almost retched as her bones ground against one another. Panting and sobbing, she looked up into the eyes of the beast that was poised to kill her, backing away as best she could on her two unwounded hooves. Her eyes dilated in absolute terror. She screamed again, for the last time that day. The beast roared in response and charged.

Authors note: So a few people seemed interested. Let's see where this takes me. I have no real set plans, though I do have a vague sort of idea where things will eventually end up. I'm hoping my lack of foresight won't come back to bite me in any sensitive area. I also apologize to any English majors who may read this fic, I know I'm not using Middle English correctly but I can't see the point in doing too much research when getting it close suffices. Sorry.

Also, author's notes on both ends of the chapters is a little much so I'm going to be only doing one, kind of an 'after-chapter wrap-up' thing, I guess. Where to start … well, the split-view of Filly-Twilight might be going away slightly. There's a reason it's not going to go away entirely, though, if I can get it to work. Maybe. Still trying to figure that part out. And the pre-present Luna/Celestia thing is going to wrap up soon as well, though that might just end up morphing into a present Celestia/Luna thing. It ties in, it's not just window dressing. Character tags/story tags might change as well. And someone mentioned this seemed like a retake on Past Sins. And looking at the title and how it starts, ffffffffffffffffffffffffff

I did not mean to be like that. Damn, now I wish I had come up with a better name. I was really scratching my head at what to call this and that seemed like the best one I had gotten. Argh. Spoilers: The filly is NOT Nightmare Moon.

Deep Wounds

My Little Ponies and all associated trademarks are owned by Hasbro. My Little Ponies: Friendship is Magic was developed for television by Lauren Faust.

Castle of the Royal Sisters
579 RSR (Royal Sisters Reign, 1 year prior to the War of Moon and Sun and 34 years prior to the beginning of Celestia's Reign)

"Face me you coward!"

Her voice echoed off the bare stone walls that surrounded her. For a moment, she could hear only her shout bouncing off the rocks. Soon it faded into nothingness and left her in the darkness, alone. Alone. With a bestial cry, she lashed out with her hooves, striking an unseen barrier that sparked brilliantly in the darkness. She hissed in pain and shielded her eyes from the glare. The runes carved into the living stone glowed gently, a pulsing yellow glow that hurt almost as much as the radiance of before. The glow faded slowly into the stones.

She growled. A low and predatory sound that became a scream of frustration and anger. She pounded the barrier heedless of the flashing lights or the heat from her strikes. Her attacks useless against the powerful magics that trapped her, she turned her attention to the floor. She struck again and again, pounding into the unyielding stone. Where once she would have cracked flagstone and earth, her hooves left no mark. Infuriated, she doubled her efforts. She screamed and struck at everything that surrounded her. She raged.

Eventually her screams subsided and she collapsed, panting against the hot stone floor. For what seemed like years she lay there, her sides heaving with the effort of breathing. Eventually, her panting coalesced into a short sob of despair. The pulsing of the runes and barrier began to slow, though their light never fading fully from her eyes..

"Feeling better, sister?" Her voice. Her voice. Quickly scrambling to her hooves, the exhausted and wretched allicorn stood and faced the source of her misery and target of her hatred.

"Let me out of this prison and face me you bitch!" From the darkness, her sister's pristine white form appeared flanked by two of her pegasus guards. The guards sneered at Luna's disheveled form, her panting and sweating sides. She swore she saw more than distaste in those sneers but did not deign to return them. Instead, she focused on the one that had begun this foul treachery. Her sister exuded an air of control and near disinterest but while her face was a stern mask of calm, Luna swore she saw a slight smirk marring Celestia's otherwise impeccable features.

"Oh sister mine, no need to resort to vulgarities. Thy prison suits thee if that be thy manner of speech." Celestia nodded slightly to her guards. They exchanged looks, slight though they were, and retreated into the darkness once more. Luna caught one of them leering at her as he left. She felt tainted by it and returned his lust with a glare of sheer hatred. Celestia continued on, ignoring the exchange. "There we are, alone at last sister."

"Don't call me that. Never call me that, you harlot. I am no sister of yours." Luna shook her head and returned her attention to her jailor, watching as Celestia began to circle her prison. She kept pace with the movements, turning in place to always face her un-sister. As she circled, Celestia smiled. A false smile and any foal would see straight through.

"Luna, I am thy friend. Thy sister, for now and ever." Her voice was sickeningly sweet as it wormed it's way into Luna's head. It brought forth memories of moonlit nights of rest and joy as well as the noon sun with two sisters at play. For a brief moment, Luna almost believed her. She wanted to believe her so badly. Then she heard the condescending tone that lay just under the surface. The betrayal, the angry flight from their castle and the horrifying fight that followed. She would not be fooled again, never again. "Let me help thee. Let me cleanse thee of this taint and we can rejoin and rejoice once more."

"You will never take her from me!" Enraged once more, Luna slammed her forehooves on the barrier, sending a shower of sparks into the air. Celestia ignored them as they passed harmlessly through her shining coat. Her brow creased slightly at the display. Luna continued, emboldened by the cracks that were appearing in her sister's supposedly regal mask. "She is more a sister than you shall ever be!"

"So ye would abandon my ponies for this creature, this thing of magic and night? Ye would leave us for some unthinking beast? Ye would forsake thy duty and thy calling for this friend?" Celestia snorted, her mouth twisted into a sneer. "Thy duty is all that matters to this world. Be thee happy or not, it matters little. You shall preform, little pony."

"Get out! Get out!" Luna slammed her side into the barrier, ignoring the pain as it burned her ever so slightly. "Get out, you monster! Just leave me alone!"

Celestia backed into the darkness, her face no longer holding anything but contempt and hatred for the alicorn that seethed in front of her.

"You shall be broken, un-sister. And thy will or thy powers shall be mine."

Luna screamed after her, slamming her hooves on the barrier. She continued long after Celestia had left, her voice slowly slurring into wordless howls of rage and hurt, anger and sorrow. Even after her breath left her gasping and soundless, she still banged her bleeding hooves on the golden wall that separated her from freedom.

In a room not far from where Luna frothed and raged, Celestia gazed into a crystal ball, her tear-streaked face a battlefield of emotion. She had watched the entire display, each scream from her sister tearing at her heart in ways she had never dreamed possible. When it became obvious the form the unseen demon-thing that plagued her sister had taken, Celestia could only choke out a slight sob and lower her head in misery.

After a short while of silent tears, she raised it once more and regarded the ponies she had assembled. The most powerful archmagisters, physicians and thaumatologists she could find inside her principality or out. While the scrying had torn at her heart, it had been necessary. The honored ones needed to see what had been kept hidden ever since that fateful day her sister had been dragged back to the palace screaming and foaming.

"Is there naught we can do? She rages and screams at things none can see. Surely there is some known form of this malady?" Celestia looked up, desperately searching the faces of those around her for any shred of hope.

"My Lady, we've never seen such a thing as this before." One of the braver mages stepped forward, his traditional pointed hat slumping in the dim light of the scrying chamber. He appeared disheveled and one of his hooves pawed nervously at the floor. His voice, however, remained strong. "It was all we could do to fashion thee a prison to contain her. Thy sister is beyond all our ken. Indeed, until this eve none knew one such as you," Celestia winced at those words that set her so far apart from her beloved subjects, "or thy sister could ever become mindsick."

Celestia's eyes suddenly flared at his words and she slammed her hooves into the table, causing all the assembled to jump and whinny in fear. The once-brave magister before her crouched low, prostate before his Princess and her sudden wrath, his ears laid back against his skull in terror.

"My sister be not mindsick!" Celestia scowled down at the quivering form before her. For a moment, there was naught but silence. None dared to even breath lest her anger be turned on them. Everypony present feared for the one that lay before their ruler but none wished to draw her wrath instead. Time itself held it's breath. Then, as suddenly as she had been enraged, Celestia slumped back into her cushions. She heaved a great sigh. "I apologize, good stallion. I did not mean to make thee fearful." She raised her head, her sorrowful gaze regarding the still shaking form that lay before her. "Be at ease, We shall not harm thee."

"But We must do whatever be in Our power to return the Moon Goddess to her rightful place at Our side. We charge thee, make haste. Find a cure for this foul curse. Our treasury shall be open to ye for all ye require and every tome that was ever writ by pony mouth or magic shall be at thy disposal." Celestia wavered at saying more but, after no more words came to her, simply waved a hoof at the gathered ponies. Slowly, they trickled out one by one until she was alone once more. With a tired eye, she gazed into her scrying ball, watching as an exhausted Luna lay in fitful sleep on the hard stone floor of her prison.

"Anything within Our power, dear sister. Or without." Gently, the Sun Goddess stroked the scrying ball where the sleeping image of her sister was.

Border of the Everfree Forest and Ponyville
1005 CR

Crashing through the forest, Twilight and Fluttershy raced as fast as their legs could carry them. The filly had screamed only twice but the snarls of the manticore drew them onward. Each yowl drove an ice pick of fear into their hearts and pushed them to eke out ever more strength from their tired limbs. Though their pace left them with no breath for speech, they both silently hoped that they were not too late. It took them only a few minutes to find the source of the angry roars but it felt as though they were losing precious time. Hurdling over the last of the underbrush that separated them from their goal, they landed - gasping for air - directly opposite a crouched manticore.

At his feet was a small, huddled form. It wasn't moving. The blood ...

"How dare you." Fluttershy's voice was almost a whisper, slipping out between heaving breaths. Caring for creatures was her special talent, her life. She cared for them when they could not. Fed them, bandaged their wounds, gave them all she could. They lived as they had to and she had never felt anything but joy in them. And yet here, as the manticore snarled at the two intruders to his foal-feast, she felt something she had never thought she would feel again. Anger. And hatred.

"How dare you!?" With a shout, Fluttershy charged forward, heedless of the danger. She did not notice her eyes tearing or her snarl of anger. She did not notice her friend reach to stop her, unable to speak for lack of air. All she saw was the foal and the beast that attacked it. And yet, it wasn't a dusty colored purple foal that lay there. In her mind's eye, it was a butter yellow pegasus surrounded by other angry and taunting foals.

The manticore, confused at the sudden appearance of the mares and the aggression of the Forest Keeper, tried to swipe at the charging pegasus. He struck nothing save for a few of her tail hairs as she leapt into the air above him. She spread her wings to give herself more control and twisted in her flight to land next to him, interposing herself between the manitcore and his meal. As he began to turn to face this unexpected opponent, she bucked, aiming for his exposed side.

He howled. The mare was deceptively strong. Fueled by adrenaline and her anger, her kick snapped ribs and shoved the giant beast over onto his side with a loud crash. He slid slightly across the leaves and dirt of the forest floor with a snarl but not far enough to escape Fluttershy's wrath. Wasting no time, she turned and scrambled on top of him, dodging his lashing scorpion tail with an odd practice. With hoof and mouth, she climbed over his now-thrashing form, easily dodging his weak and confused attacks. He tried to claw her off but with her on his wounded side, his flailing limbs were not as useful as they might have been. Growling and snarling, he could only twist ineffectively as the angry mare climbed up his side and towards his head. With a yank, she brought him around to face her, unleashing the angriest Stare she could muster. The beast stopped moving, stopped flailing as the full force of her rage was forced into his mind.

"How dare you hurt that poor, innocent foal!? You big dumb meanie, he's only a little thing! He's not even a proper snack!" The beast whimpered under the intensity of the mare's power. He couldn't close his eyes, he couldn't move his head. All he could do was stare back, deep into those turquoise wells of anger. "You are going to limp to my cottage, you are going to lay down in the back and you are not going to move another inch until I say so, is that clear?"

The manticore, whimpering from the pain and the angry eyes that seemed to bore a hole into his soul, nodded quickly. He could not break her gaze no matter how fast his head moved. Fluttershy continued to stare at him as she backed off of his side, content with his answer. Yelping - and with more speed than he thought possible with broken ribs - the manticore stumbled to his feet and dashed off, his scorpion tail dragging between his legs as he fled towards the cottage of the Forest Keeper.

Huffing with exertion and anger, Fluttershy stared after the manticore for a moment until a gasp from Twilight brought her mind back to the present. She whipped her head around to find her friend crouched over the prone foal - a filly Fluttershy noticed - her horn glowing as she tried to stifle the depressingly slow bleeding of her wounds. Sweat beaded Twilight's brow and Fluttershy had to squint into the glare from her horn.

"Fluttershy, I need your help!" At Twilight's shout, Fluttershy scrambled over to the small form, her earlier anger forgotten. "She's lost a lot of blood and I think one of her lungs is punctured. She's broken, oh Celestia, at least four ribs and probably a lot more."

Fluttershy glanced down at the sad figure, her mind racing. Ponyville General would be able to help but they're on the other side of town. Oh Celestia, please stay with us. A quieter part hoped she hadn't been too rough with the manticore but it was drowned out by the inferno of anger that seethed whenever she thought of the creature that had done this, this horrible thing.

"Twilight? Can you teleport her to Ponyville General?"

"It's too far." Twilight risked a squinting glance at her friend as the butter yellow pegasus felt for a pulse. Fluttershy sighed with relief. The filly had a pulse. It was weak but there. She was also breathing, though even from a distance you could hear the wet bubbling sound of blood in her lungs. It seemed odd, though. Jerky and unnatural.

Her friend's spell wasn't just holding some wounds closed, Fluttershy realized. With every breath the filly took, Twilight's horn glowed brighter. Twilight was breathing for the filly by sheer magical strength. Fluttershy gasped in surprise. She didn't think such a thing possible.

"Fluttershy, If I stop concentrating, she'll drown in her own blood. Can you fly to Rainbow's house and get her? She could-" Twilight's friend shook her head. Looking at the small form, Fluttershy hadn't felt so helpless in such a long time. Not since Junior Flight Camp.

"I, I don't think I can." Fluttershy's ears pressed down against her head. Images of fillies and colts laughing at her as she tried desperately to fly filled her mind. Clutzershy, Clutzershy ... The small form at her hooves gave a wet cough, blood splattering the ground beneath her muzzle. Fluttershy gasped as she was shocked out of her memories. The filly writhed and groaned, a low and tortured sound. "Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh ..."

"Fluttershy! Ugh," Twilight groaned as her horn began to spark, "I can't hold on forever. You have to be strong. You have to at least try."

Taking one last look at the sad form, Fluttershy took a deep and calming breath. Screwing her eyes tightly shut, she forcibly willed the images that swam through her mind away.

"You're right." Fluttershy spread her wings and jumped into the air, flapping hard. "I'll be back as soon as I can, Twilight." She banked in the air as she cleared the tangled branches that made the Everfree such a dangerous place for pegasi. Glancing down one last time to make sure she could still see the shine of Twilight's horn and confident she could describe the place once more with that marker, Fluttershy flew off towards Rainbow Dash's house. She strained every muscle, fighting against the ever present images of teenage trauma, and hoped against hope that she would be fast enough. Just this once.

Pain.

She was lost on a sea of pain, her mind caught between consciousness and unconsciousness. Each breath hurt, a burning pain in her chest. She had tried to stop but something was forcing her lungs to move. Something warm and uncomfortable. Sounds, barely heard above the pounding of blood through her head, told her that the attack was over. They sounded like voices but the words and meaning were lost. She wondered if this was why the beast had stopped before she was its meal. She tried to speak but only managed to cough, the taste of iron - blood - was her reward.

Time passed and the sounds returned. They sounded ... comforting. But underneath was an edge of fear and exhaustion. The warm feeling continued but it was getting weaker. It was as if a hand gripped her diaphragm and was moving it around, filling her lungs for her. Every movement hurt and she tried to stop it but it kept moving and it hurt and she tasted blood and why did she hurt momma? Why couldn't she go to sleep momma?

Suddenly, she was lifted harshly. She cried out, a wordless sound of pain. She felt spit and blood dribbling out of her mouth. Voices again, louder and harsh. She whimpered slightly through the blood that seemed to fill her chest. The movements slowed and she was hefted onto something warm. Warm and with a soft pelt. Something that was wet with the sweat of exertion. that breathed heavily. For a moment, she was not there. She was in the arms of something that had no pelt, that cradled her and made soothing sounds. She was in the arms of something that had scales, that stroked her cranial fins and cooed. She was safe.

As the wind and the sense of speed began, she finally slipped into unconsciousness. Her mind rejected the pain of the waking world and instead filled with the warm embrace of 'mother.'

Dr. Horse had been a pediatrician for a long time. He had treated everything from broken wings to upset tummies. He loved his job and wouldn't trade it for anything in the world. To see the smiles of the foals as they got better and to know he had a hoof in their recovery, it always made the long hours and low pay worth it. Yet times like these ...

"Damn it, where is that catheter?!" Nurse Red Heart barreled passed him as the small filly began to thrash slightly in her unconsciousness. She held the filly's head still with her hooves and adjusted the tracheal tube with her mouth, the tiny thing's strength ebbing away by the moment. While the medical profession frowned on using the mouth for any type of use, needs must as the Nightmare drives. Vigilance, one of their security stallions, held one of her twitching hooves down as Nurse Tender Heart maneuvered an IV into her arm. "And can we get another orderly in here?!"

The sound of staccato beeping caused his head to jerk up. The heart monitor. Her heart was beating too fast. Given the amount of blood she had lost, it was a wonder it beat at all. That pegasus that delivered her had told them of her friend actually using magic to force the poor thing to breathe. If it had been any other time, he would have some choice words for such an irresponsible action but it probably saved her life. He just hoped that the trauma to the organs was slight and there was no magical burn. That would complicate things.

"I need a drip of, uh, morphine. No, hydromorphone. 5 cc's to start." Nurse Tender Heart looked at him, confused. "We need to get her heart rate down and her pain down and her breathing down ... we'll get some nerve blocks going once we can roll her onto her side without killing her and then we'll stop the narcotics. Damn it, nurse where's that catheter!?" The clop of hooves on tile told him that something had arrived. A quick look showed him it was the catheter he had asked for minutes ago. "About time! Shave her chest, we need to drain the air that's trapped."

"Doctor?! We don't know her parents yet and..." Nurse Cold Heart withered under his quick glare.

"Emergency life-saving procedures. This is flail chest and I will NOT loose this filly. Now get her shaved and we'll get that damn intercostal catheter in!" As his team leapt to obey, he gave himself a quick moment to breathe. Once they removed that air pocket and stitched those ... lacerations closed, she'd be in better shape. "We need plasma, a laceration kit and ..."

He hesitated. He was no surgeon but any first year student knew there was little you could do with rib fractures. He needed magical support.

"Get me Doctor Stable. We'll prep her for magi-surgery." Needs must as the Nightmare drives indeed.

Fluttershy gasped for breath as she galloped into the Emergency Room waiting area. After Rainbow Dash had taken off, she had made a beeline for the hospital and still had been the last to arrive. She shuddered with exertion and barely repressed fear. If she had been the only one to find that filly ...

"Fluttershy!"

"Rarity?" Fluttershy looked up, confused at the sound. In one of the brightly lit corners of the waiting room, Rainbow Dash, Rarity and Twilight all waved her over. As she cantered over, questions began to spill out in between gasps for air. "Oh my goodness, is she alright? Is she awake? Is she -" Rarity put a hoof on her mouth and drew her into a strong hug. For a moment, Fluttershy just stood there, her mind still trying to sort through what was happening. Then, as if that one hug had burst a damn inside her, she began to sob. Gently, her friends pulled her over to one of the plush benches.

"Bruising of the diaphragm, bruising of the spleen, one of her kidney's is pretty toasted ... how is she still alive?" Dr. Stable shook his head at the tiny covered form in front of him. The steady rhythm of the heart rate monitor and the mechanical sound of the positive pressure respirator almost drowned out the soft and pitiful moaning coming from the far-too-young filly. Returning his attention to the magi-ray sheet in front of him with a huff, he continued. "Ahh, let's see. Three detached ribs - one of them puncturing the right lung - and her blood oxygen levels are extremely low. And that's not counting blood loss and other lacerations due to ... animal attack?"

Dr. Horse nodded and sighed, removing his glasses and rubbing his muzzle bridge with his fetlock. "Everfree." Both doctors frowned. Animal attacks were very rare in Equestria but with the town being so close to the wild forest, they were not unheard of here. It had been decades since the last attack, however, and the number of wounds on this filly were a strange occurrence. "We need to manually remove the - what was it, the 5th rib - from the lung and try to reattach them all to her abdominal cavity. I think you'll agree that we can do little for the rest of it."

"You had her on hydromorphone?" Dr. Stable frowned, the patient sheet joining the magi-ray sheet in the air. "That's not good for a lung injury."

"I know, I needed to get her heart rate down and pain management was the quickest way. She's not on it now, we gave her a steroid nerve block. We couldn't get to her intercostal nerves until we could move her without collapsing her entire chest cavity." Dr. Horse blushed slightly and flattened his ears at the raised eyebrow his fellow presented to him. "Sorry, I'm being defensive. I usually don't see these types of injuries on my patients and it was all I could think of at the time."

"Well, she's still breathing and it wasn't that long until you got in the nerve block. I would have left the heart rate a little high myself but ... " Dr. Stable sat heavily, still floating the magi-ray sheet in front of him. His eyes were closed, however, and a deep frowned stayed planted on his muzzle. He did not mention the fact his fellow doctor probably couldn't stand to see such a young foal in pain. "I concur with your assessment here, Doctor. We need to operate or she'll die. I'm putting her in surgical suite four in ten minutes. I'd like you to join me."

She heard voices.

The filly moaned slightly and twisted in pain. She hurt still. A deep hurt, all over her chest. She wanted it to stop, she wanted it to go away and let her sleep in peace. Something wouldn't let her, something tugging at the faint strands of consciousness that remained.

Suddenly, the voices rose in intensity. A hundred, a thousand, a million voices all screaming and roaring. A million languages, all babbling. Pain and war, death and destruction. Noble causes and the most vile of atrocities. Memories that were not hers echoed in her mind, thoughts that were not hers clamored for attention. She grunted the ceaseless roar grew until it drowned out even her own terrified whimpering.

These aren't mine! These aren't mine! Make it stop! Stop it, stop it, stop it! She tried to thrash, tried to clutch at her skull as waves of pounding thoughts threatened to overwhelm her but her limbs were dead weights, twitching spasmodically no matter how hard she tried to get them to move.

Be still. A thought-that-was-not filled her mind from some distant place. It was a sensation without form, a feeling without words. A pulse of forceful calming that brooked no argument. And as it went the voices calmed, the thoughts subsided. The filly was left alone, blessedly alone.

Who are you? The filly, her mind suddenly quite, struggled against the need for rest.

A feeling of cold affection filled her - like some watchmaker looking at his latest creation - as the thought-that-was-not answered. Mother.

Fluttershy's eyes hurt. It had been almost four hours since Rainbow Dash had brought the tiny filly in and they had heard no word as to her fate. She had been crying on and off for that entire time, her friends Rarity and Twilight holding her as needed. Even Rainbow Dash on occasion. She felt so helpless, so weak. As much as it felt somehow wrong with that small filly in agony, she felt better knowing her friends were there for her. Rarity had even taken the rest of the day off from her designs once she had seen Twilight rush into the hospital covered in mud and blood.

The brightly lit and painted waiting room almost seemed to be trying to cheer her up but Fluttershy's heart didn't want empty comfort. She wanted to know hat young filly was alright, she wanted to know she had done the right thing. She wanted to know everything really was going to be okay. But bright paint and large windows for sunlight just couldn't tell her that.

The long-suffering receptionist had assured them she would tell them everything she knew once the doctors had finished their work. Occasionally, she would offer them tea or refreshments but Fluttershy barely heard her. The only thing in her mind was that still form laying in a pool of blood with a hulking cat-beast towering over it and the poor sounds of whimpering as they had lifted the small foal onto Rainbow's back.

Despite the receptionist's assurances, Rainbow kept charging up to the desk every ten minutes to ask another round of questions. These rarely strayed from demands to know how the filly was or what the doctors were doing. She was currently giving the receptionist a sour look after undoubtedly being told for the thirteenth time that they would be the first to know if anything changed. With an irritated flap, she almost launched into the air after receiving the same answers to her hurried questions again. A stern look from the receptionist kept her grounded, however, and she trotted angrily across the cherry room to where her friends were sitting.

"Stupid no-flying rule." Fluttershy reached out and gripped Rainbow's shoulder with a fetlock, smiling reassuringly. She received a half-smile in return before her pegasus friend began pacing again. Rarity rolled her eyes at her 'energetic' friend. Suddenly, Rainbow sat with a groan, running her hooves across her face in an exagerated display of irritation. "Argh, I hate waiting! I want to do something, I need to do something. Are you sure I can't kick that manticore's flank?" Rainbow turned hopefully to Fluttershy.

"He's learning his lesson right now, Rainbow. Actually, maybe I should go check up on him. Oh, I can't believe I kicked that poor," stupid, mean, nasty, "manticore." Fluttershy went to stand, shaking her head to clear those awful thoughts, but was pulled back down by both Twilight and Rarity.

"He just has a cracked rib and there's little you can do about that, dear." Rarity stroked her worried friend's mane. "The brute needs to be taught not to attack defenseless fillies and that small pain will do more than anything you could say to him I think."

"Well, we don't all need to stay," Twilight sheepishly grinned as both Rainbow Dash and Rarity glared at her, "b-but I think you need to see she's alright."

Fluttershy sighed. She hated to think of even that poor awful manticore in pain but what he did ... she hated to think of what she would have done if that poor filly died. Would she chase him away? Would she hurt him more? Soon, fresh tears began to flow down her face and she felt three sets of hooves hold her shaking withers. For a moment, the only sounds in the waiting room were the soft sobs of a heart broken pegasus and the quiet ticking of a wall-mounted clock.

"Rainbow Dash and friends?" The receptionist stood nearby with a tired smile on her face. "The doctor is ready to see you."

"We can't divulge many details to non-relatives, you understand. The filly deserves her privacy." The three mares in front of him nodded, eager to hear anything about the fate of that foal they had brought in. Dr. Horse smiled back. They sat in the middle of his cramped office, the few chairs heaped as they were with paperwork. He almost grimaced when they had entered, his 'spring cleaning day' of three years ago having barely touched the stacks of paper spread out across every available surface. But their minds were on other, more important things and they didn't seem to mind his clutter.

He put a hoof to his chin as a vague sort of memory surfaced. He recognized them, some story about heroism and the like. Seems like the stories were true and he was glad they had been nearby when that animal had attacked. He shook his head to clear the competing thoughts. There were more important things to think about.

"But we can say she's alive and recovering fairly well, for what she's been through." All three mares almost collapsed in relief. Dr. Horse let them relax for a moment. Before he could continue, however, Fluttershy stepped forward delicately.

"Uhm, I'm sorry if this is improper, but, well..." The pediatrician leaned closer almost on instinct, the butter yellow pegasus' voice almost too low to hear. She raised her head, giving him the most soul-wrenching look he thought possible. "I-is she awake?"

"Oh, uhm, well ... no. No, she's sleeping off the effects of -" Dr. Horse stopped, mentally chiding himself for almost breaching confidence. With a reassuring smile, he tried again. "Well, she's sleeping. Actually, is that mare who used magic on her present?" The purple unicorn, Twilight he believed her name was, blushed and lowered her face.

"I know, doctor. I shouldn't have used magic on her. I'm sorry, it was all I could think of after she ... she stopped breathing." Twilight absentmindedly began pawing at the floor with her hoof. Dr. Horse sighed, grimacing at the crestfallen mare.

"Normally, I would agree with you. It was very irresponsible and there was some magic damage because of it." Twilight squeezed her eyes shut, tears brimming at her eyelids and berating herself under her breath for even trying something so risky. Rainbow Dash stared at him in shock, his words taking a moment to sink in. As soon as they did, she almost leapt to her hooves and the defense of her friend. Before she could, however, Rarity put a hoof on her shoulder. She shook her head slightly.

Ignoring the mini-drama behind the dejected purple mare, Dr. Horse lifted Twilight's face to his, now smiling. "But! It probably did save that filly's life. There wasn't nearly as much damage as if some barely-trained and panicked parent had tried to do the same. Just don't make a habit of it, hmm?"

With a smile, she nodded. Her relief was almost palpable.

"Now, does anypony here know her parents?"