Straggler

by Anansi

Rating: teen
Tags: Princess Luna, Original Character, Adventure, Princess Celestia, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Main 6
Length: 15150

Time can be cruel and unforgiving, leaving those unable to keep pace behind in it's wake and quickly overtaking those that try to speed ahead. If one can manage to keep pace, then they may seek paradise at the other end of the storm.

Who suffers more? The Warrior who gets left behind? Or those that are left to wonder?

A long time has passed since the last war for control of Equestria and the denizens have used that time to embrace and care for their peaceful lives. The Princesses rule with benevolence and trust, content that all they need to worry about is the odd storm that occasionally blows through.

For a Lone Wolf, however, he finds his usefulness at an end after a long slumber and reluctantly slinks away into the shadows, satisfied that he has given his all for the few he truly cared for. But fate has other plans. Will the wolf be able to weather the oncoming Storm, or will the past, present, and future see him and all of Equestria broken

Published 2014-06-29 09:30:05 UTC
Last updated 2014-08-02 08:28:35 UTC

Prologue: Displaced

Straggler

Prologue: Displaced

‘Where am I?’ Deep in a forest nestled near the center of Equestria, a lone quadruped stirred from his slumber. The creature rose from his side, his black cloak falling off of his back, and revealing the quadruped to be a two meter tall Wolf, fur as black as a starless night during a New Moon, with dreadlocks up to fifty centimeters long hanging off his skull. The left side of his face had a three pronged scar over his eye, a permanent reminder of a past encounter with a fearsome creature.

Platinum hued streaks of fur ran along his sides like wild lightning that formed to the shape of an ethereal wing, devoid of feathers, reminiscent of tribal markings. His fore legs bore two pluming clouds of fur, one standing at a meter long on the upper back of his foreleg, forming to an elegant point with shades of sapphire lining the edge and coating the tip. His ankles bore smaller plumes of fur standing at ten centimeters in length and sporting the same blue lining as the larger plume.

The Wolf tried to examine his surroundings, struggling to clear the fog in his head as he blinked away the haze that hindered his vision only to find a surprising, though not unexpected, discovery. ‘So my vision has left me again, huh?’ He opened his eyes to reveal a platinum iris, the mark of a creature that had been blinded since its birth. ‘Okay... What happened to cause this?’ He lay back down on his stomach, letting his body feel for the earth around him and take the time to check for any unforeseen ailments. ‘My Mortal Sight is inactive, and I can’t gather enough energy to activate my Aura Sight either. The only thing I can think of is...a battle? I have no idea of knowing which one it could be though.’ The Wolf’s body began to arc with strong electrical currents of obsidian black with a sapphire hued outline, breaking at their peak as they rose off the fibers of his fur.

The sounds of the forest sang into his perked ears, the same blue fur adorning the tips. The birds chirped away as they called for their families and would-be mates. The rustling of the bushes could be heard as predators and scavengers searched for their next meal. Wherever this forest was nestled, it was not a hospitable environment.

The Wolf readjusted his eyes and felt the flash of electricity across his iris, his iris starting to glow and shimmer like a borealis veil in the night sky. ‘There we go.’ He thought as he found his powers slowly returning to him. ‘I should be able to reactivate my sight.’ The Wolf closed his eyes. ‘Aura Gaze should allow me to get a better view of the situation.’ The Wolf reopened his eyes and his iris continued to glow even brighter as he took in his surroundings for the first time. He released a satisfied sigh and allowed a smile to crease his lips as he looked upon the trees. ‘Reminds me of Home…’ His smile faltered when he thought of his home, the word itself repeating in his head as his mind finally seemed to clear, the glow in his iris dissipating from his eyes.

‘Home… Home… Home… Home!’ He suddenly sprung up to his feet as the memories resurfaced in his head. The sight of crimson stained fur and large scaly husks littered the once harmonious field and died the pristine lake from a glistening silver to a blood red. One particular husk made the Wolf tense and fall to the ground in a hopeless stupor. ‘Niwa…’

The Wolf wanted to curl up and die as the sight of his most cherished companion lay on the ground in a lifeless pile. The sight of his greatest failure burned its way into his memory as he looked to the sky to see the fiercest of dragons looking down on him with a look of twisted satisfaction as he leered high in the sky. The Wolf could only stare with blind hatred as he released a mighty howl and charged at the menace. He could not remember what happened during the exchange, only that he had finished his fight and limped away with what little life he had left, the only remnant of the Dragon’s life was its name echoing in the Wolf’s head as he struggled to answer one final question. ‘Sanguis… How could you betray us like that…?’

The Wolf lay on the ground for a few more moments, lamenting his past mistake. He saw no point in continuing to indulge in his bitter thoughts as they only seemed to reopen old wounds and remind him of his actions prior to his awakening. He was on the verge of giving up when a youthful voice rang in his ears.The sound of laughter resounding in his mind, giving him peace and a smile.

‘Those little pups.’ He continued to reminisce on his memories, laughing and playing with two young fillies. Tending to them as if they were his own. In his mind, he watched them grow older and older maturing into fine mares of renown. Until his mind returned to another image, the Wolf shooting back to his feet as he suddenly remembered why he had lost consciousness in the first place. A chaotic amalgamation of creatures had formed together to create a being of pure mischief and destruction as he twisted the land to his own liking, a conniving smile shown vividly across his face as a single sharp fang peered out of his maw.

“Discord!” The Wolf roared as he quickly retrieved his cloak and bolted through the forest at incredible speeds, the platinum trimming along the edges gleaming as the few patches of sunlight reflected off its surface, showing lightning bolts embroidered into the design. ‘I remember now! That bastard threw me into some kind of portal! It must have sent me to Everfree. That’s why the trees look so similar to my home.’ He continued through the dense foliage, leaping over large trunks and fallen branches. ‘We were trying to stop that psychopathic Draconequus before he tore Equestria apart!’ Soon after, the Wolf found himself staring into a bright light at the edge of the forest. ‘His throne should be somewhere around her-’ His thoughts were interrupted when the light vanished and his eyes were greeted, not by Chaos, but by Harmony.

As he stood at the edge of Everfree, he eyed a rustic settlement that had once been the throne of the Master of Chaos himself. ‘What in the…?’ He noticed several Ponies and Stallions walking through the street with a jaunty step and wide smiles across their faces. The Wolf couldn’t help but fall on his haunches in a shocked stupor. ‘It can’t be. Discord had the three of us dead to rights and yet…’ He looked up to see two pure white Pegasus stallions draped in golden armor pulling an equally golden chariot into the center of the town, an annoyed looking purple pony resting her head on the side of the golden chariot. ‘Everything seems so peaceful. Did we…did we win? Did those little pups actually best Discord?’ As the relief set into his mind, it suddenly flashed with one final thought. The Wolf released an amused hmph as he looked up towards a mountain city he did not recall from his memories. He smiled weakly at the thought as a stray bittersweet tear ran down his cheek. He slowly rose to his feet and turned back into the forest. “They don’t need me anymore.”

Author's Note

Thank you to WolfTheWyvern for his assistance in editing and proof reading.

Chapter I: My Name Is...

Straggler

Chapter I: My Name Is…

The sun was high in the sky as many Equines walked about, some enjoying the day while others went about their daily routine. Three mares of particular were enjoying their company as they made their way through the market, acquiring materials and food. A yellow pegasus with a flowing pink mane and matching tail, three pink butterflies on her flank as her cutie mark. A white unicorn with a curly mane and tail with light blue eye shadow and three sparkling gems as her cutie mark. The last was a violet Alicorn with a dark purple mane and tail with a single lavender highlight in each, a single sparkling star as her cutie Mark.

“Thanks again for helping me get things for the castle, girls.” The alicorn spoke to her friends.

“Think nothing of it, darling.” The unicorn replied with a wave of her hoof. “Fluttershy and I are more than happy to help you settle in to your new home.”

“Of course.” The pegasus replied with a warm smile. “I needed to get some food for my animals; and I’m sure Rarity needed some materials for her dresses.”

“Which I happened to snag a few pieces of fabric for my latest fashion line.” Rarity replied as she motioned to her stylish saddle bag. “I also managed to get some fabric for your décor, Twilight.”

“Thanks, Rarity.” The Alicorn Princess replied. “I could use some curtains to block the light when it gets hot.”

“You’d think a castle grown from a magic box would have more furniture than a few thrones and windows.” Rarity scoffed, when she saw how empty the freshly grown castle actually was, she was overwhelmed with disappointment.

“At least I’m only decorating for me and Spike. I don’t think I could handle furnishing every room right now.” Twilight rolled her eyes in annoyance, knowing that she would inevitably have to find a way to decorate the guest rooms in a unique and appealing way. And she knew that she would need Rarity’s help when the time came.

“On the upside, you have plenty of room for your books.” Fluttershy commented as the three stopped by a vendor to grab some fruit and vegetables.

“That’s an understatement.” Twilight replied with a chuckle.

“I don’t think the Library in the Crystal Empire had as many shelves as just one floor of your castle!” Rarity added, making no attempt to hide her amazement. “I feel especially bad for Spike. He’s the one who has to organize the whole thing.”

“I wouldn’t make Spike organize it all by himself.” Twilight rebuked. “Especially given my tendency to throw all the books on the floor to reorganize them. Though I will be looking into getting some help for Spike, preferably someone with a love and understanding of literature like me.”

“Good luck with that, dear.” Rarity commented as Twilight paid the vendor her bits and continued toward the center of the town, satisfied that their excursion had been fruitful.

As they made their way into town they came across a familiar pink ball of energy with two blue and a yellow balloons for a cutie mark. “Hiya guys!” The pink mare beamed at the sight of her friends. “What ‘cha doin’?”

“Just getting some things together for Twilight’s castle.” Rarity replied with a smile.

“Cool! Can I help?”

“No thanks, Pinkie. We got everything I need for the week.” Twilight apologetically replied.

“Oh…” Pinkie replied, her ears dejectedly folding down momentarily before shooting back up with renewed excitement, quickly dismissing her previous sorrow in favor of a more upbeat mood. “That’s alright! I’ll help next time!” Pinkie then looked to Fluttershy, maintaining her wide goofy grin, causing Fluttershy to lean back uncomfortably with a worried expression. “Fluttershy~?”

“Yes, Pinkie Pie?” The timid pegasus asked.

“Is Discord around?”

The three puzzled mares looked at each other with matching expressions that showed their confusion at the query. “Why do you need to see Discord?” Fluttershy asked the bubbly mare.

“I’m throwing a HUGE party to celebrate Twilight’s new castle and I need Discord’s help to make it off the rails!” Pinkie hopped in place at the thought of the jubilee her planning would bring.

“Unfortunately…” Fluttershy began with uncertainty in her voice. “Discord was sent away by Princess Celestia on a diplomatic assignment.” Once again the pink mare frowned at the disappointing news. “But we’ll throw an extra big party when he gets back.” Fluttershy hurriedly added, trying to lift the pink mare’s spirits, only to be hit with a rather unexpected reaction.

“Ah, phooey!” Pinkie pouted with a playful tone. “Ah, well. I’ll just use this time to make the party bigger and better.” The pink mare bounced with glee. “It’ll be AMAZING!”

The other three mares just chucked in amusement at the party pony’s enthusiasm. “I’m sure I’ll enjoy whatever you throw together Pinkie.” With a compliment from the alicorn, Pinkie bounced off into the distance, eager to plan her next grand party.

“That pony certainly loves her parties.” Rarity commented.

They kept moving towards the center of town on their way to the edge of town. On their way they passed by a strand of yellow tape surrounding what remains of the oak library. A pang of loss shot through Twilight’s chest at the sight of her former home and grimaced from the memory, a look that did not go unnoticed by her friends.

“You miss it, don’t you Twilight?” It was more a statement than a question from Fluttershy, Twilight just nodded in return. “It’s hard to let go of something, especially if it is abruptly taken away.”

“Yeah…” Twilight solemnly replied. “Had a lot of good memories tied to that tree.”

“You still have them, Twilight.” Fluttershy reassured. “The library may be gone, but your memories are still there.”

“And you’ll make even more in your new home!” Rarity beamed. “The tree will eventually be removed, so you won’t need to be reminded about what was lost anymore.”

Twilight lifted her head at the encouragement, knowing her friends were trying to lift her spirits. “Thanks, girls. I’ll get past this soon.”

“In the meantime,” Rarity commented. “Let’s get back to the castle and fix up your room-”

“WATCH OUT!” Rarity was cut off by the slightly cracking voice of her younger sister falling from the sky with her friends in tow.

“Sweetie Belle!” Rarity and Twilight used their collective magic to catch the three falling fillies, horns glowing lavender and lapis blue as they reacted.

The fillies tumbled to the ground, screaming frantically as they fell with a scooter and wagon tumbling in the mix, threatening to land atop the small ponies as soon as they returned to the earth. They suddenly stopped mere inches from the ground, a suspended scooter and wagon captured in coronas of lavender and lapis.

Applebloom was the first to open her eyes and take note of how they had not collided with the dirt. She examined her surroundings and took note of the lavender overtone that coated her vision of the world and saw the three mares approaching them with concerned and questioning looks.

“Whoa…” Scootaloo commented once she opened her eyes, a scooter mere centimeters from her face.

“What were you doing this time?” Twilight asked the three rambunctious fillies, setting the orange and yellow fillies down while Rarity lowered her sister and the make-shift trolley.

“We were on our way to Sweet Apple Acres to help Applejack and Big Mac harvest apples.” Scootaloo replied as she touched the ground again.

“We’re hoping to get our catcher cutie mark.” Sweetie Belle replied with an energetic bounce. The three older mares just smiled at the fillies attempt to earn the marks in life.

“But there was a crowd in the way, so Scootaloo thought it would be a good idea to go over a ramp to avoid it.” Applebloom continued, giving an annoyed glare at the orange mare.

“Why not just go around?” Twilight asked with a raised brow.

“You wouldn’t get hurt that way.” Fluttershy added.

“We were running late,” Scootaloo commented, getting her scooter and the wagon right side up and realigning it, the three fillies hopping back on the make-shift trolley. “So I thought we’d take a short cut.”

“Through the air?” Rarity questioned with evident concern in her voice as she watch her sister step into the red wagon.

“Less friction that way.” The young pegasus replied.

“She does have a point.” Twilight agreed.

“We gotta go now or Sis will start to get worried.” The Yellow Earth Pony interjected.

“Be careful, okay.” Rarity reluctantly commented.

“No promises!” The fillies shouted as they took off toward Sweet Apple Acres, leaving a dust cloud as Scootaloo’s wings flapped at a rapid pace and propelled the trio forward fast enough to make Sweetie Belle and Applebloom jerk back and grip the side of the wagon to prevent themselves from falling out.

The three older mares just stared in worry as they watched the energetic fillies zoom off into the distance. “I worry for those girls.” Fluttershy commented with a grimace.

“You and me both, Fluttershy.” Rarity added.

Twilight just chuckled at the two mares. “I doubt anything will happen if Applejack is watching them.” She continued towards the newly grown castle and prepared herself to decorate her new home. “Come on, Spike is waiting for us.”

Passing by the white picket fence lined path towards Sweet Apple Acres is always a sight to behold for the residents of Ponyville and passers-by. The large healthy apple trees and the multiple colors of juicy spheres that hung from their strong welcoming branches. To the fillies that were speeding towards the Apple Farm, however, it was just a pathway towards their intended destination.

As Scootaloo rounded a corner, drifting into the entrance to Sweet Apple Acres, the wagon tilted onto two wheels before being pulled taut and slamming back onto all four wheels and zooming towards the large red barn, passing a large field with a red Stallion with orange hair and a green apple with a single slice taken from it as his cutie mark, a single strand of hay in his mouth as he plowed the field.

“Hello, Big Mac!” Sweetie Belle called to the working stallion who just smiled and waved as he continued to pull the metal plow.

The three fillies eventually reached the entrance to the barn to find the orange mare rolling a small barrel out of the barn. “Hiya, Sis!” Applebloom called as they skid to a halt next to the orange mare.

Applejack tilted her brown Stetson back, leaning an elbow on the barrel and striking an amused pose at the three fillies. “And where have you three been?” AJ teased the fillies who simply paid it no mind.

“We kinda got caught in rush hour.” Scootaloo responded.

Applejack chuckled at the pegasus’ reply and rolled the barrel to the wagon. “Whatever the reason, I need you three to deliver this batch of apples to Zecora’s. She’ll be giving you three a package to bring back to the farm.”

“What’s it for?” The yellow filly asked as she eased the barrel into the wagon with her sister.

“A little gift for Twilight’s Castle. You’ll have to make the delivery if you want to find out.”

“You can count on the CMC! Let’s go girls!” Scootaloo beamed as her wings spurted to life.

“Hurry on back so you can help with the harvestin’!” Applejack called as the three fillies shot off toward Everfree.

The orange mare stood at the entrance of the barn, a worried expression on her face. Big Mac had finished plowing the field and had made his way back to the barn to get ready for his next chore. “You think they’ll be okay?”

“Eeyup.” Big Mac replied.

“Maybe I’m worryin’ too much.”

“Nope.” He continued into the barn, leaving a still frowning Applejack to stare at the entrance for another few moments before entering into the barn herself.

On their way to the town entrance they were greeted by a pink filly with a platinum tiara and a grey filly with blue glasses. “Well if it isn’t the Blank Flank Brigade.” The pink filly stated in a condescending tone. “Still trying to get your cutie marks? It’s never going to happen for a bunch of talentless fillies.”

“If anything they’ll get an Ugly Mark for being completely useless.” The Grey toned filly commented, her voice less condescending, but still carried the same belittling edge as her associate.

“Out of the way Diamond Tiara.” Applebloom demanded, ignoring the fillies’ previous comments. “We’re trying to make a delivery.”

The pink filly just smirked in amusement. “Delivery ponies, huh? Maybe you can pick up my new tiara.” The two fillies laughed at the insult, only to have dust kicked in their face as the CMC sped off towards Everfree.

“She really gets on my nerves.” Scootaloo called over her shoulder as she neared the entrance to Everfree.

They entered the forest, slowing their pace due to the winding path and protruding branches that littered the dirt road. “Keep to this path, Scootaloo.” Applebloom told the pegasus. “It’s the safest way to Zecora’s.”

“Okay!”

“I thought Everfree was dangerous no matter where you went?” Sweetie Belle commented.

“It’s usually safer near the forest’s edge, but Zecora told me to always use this path because most of the creature’s territories are scattered deeper in the forest.” The yellow Earth Pony replied.

Sweetie Belle stared into the cloaked depths of the surrounding forests. “What if they decide to…expand?” She asked, the concern evident in her tone.

“Don’t be so scared, Sweetie Belle.” Scootaloo called over her shoulder.

“The only way they would come here, is if there was something to hunt. And there’s never anything to hunt in this part of the forest!”

AWOOOOOOOOOOOOOO~

The fillies stopped when they heard the tell-tale call of danger. “D-did you hear t-that?” Scootaloo stammered out.

“Unfortunately…” Applebloom and Sweetie Belle said at the same time, their voices coated in fear as they clung to each other.

“I was hoping it was in my head.” Scootaloo added.

“M-maybe we should t-turn around…?” Sweetie Belle suggested.

Scootaloo nodded in agreement and prepared to turn back to Ponyville only to be met with glowing green eyes and teeth of sharpened oak, vile drool, and toxic breath skulking out of the bushes behind the young fillies. The CMC were petrified when they saw four Timber Wolves step into the light, bodies of oak and fur of ivy bristling in the subtle wind, their heads held low and their gaze hungry as they moved towards the girls.

“SCOOTALOO!” Applebloom’s scream was enough to send the pegasus’ wings into a fear induced frenzy and speed off away from the hungry wolves.

The wolves took chase after the CMC, three more piling in behind the initial four to join the hunt. “There’re more of them!” Sweetie Belle shouted. They continued to speed deeper into the woods, unsure of where they would escape to, their only concern was getting away from the dangerous pack.

“Faster, Scootaloo! Faster!” Applebloom shouted as the wolves started to close the gap between them.

“I’m going as fast as I can!” Scootaloo shouted back. The pegasus was abruptly cut off when another, much larger Timber Wolf, jumped out in front of her. “AH!” She veered off to the left and into the forest as they continued to be chased by the wolves.

Scootaloo dodged and weaved under and through protruding branches, turning sharp corners to avoid trees and puddles of water. The Timber Wolves had no such qualms as they barreled through trees, uprooting some of the smaller shrubs, and splashing through puddles in pursuit of their prey.

The chase lasted for twenty minutes, the fillies dodging and evading the occasional lunge from the trailing wolves. “They’re still after us!” Sweetie Belle shouted.

“Hang on!” Scootaloo shouted as she approached a wide opened gorge, the Castle of the Two Sisters in sight. She charged towards a raised rock, increasing the pace at which her wings fluttered as much she was able, and shot off the rock. They soared through the air momentarily before landing on the other side. As the landed, one of the wagon’s rear wheels barely touched the ledge, snagging momentarily before they continued to run, the rear wheel warping from the rough landing. The Timber Wolves ran across the ancient rope bridge, their claws thumping and scraping against the wood planks of the suspended path.

“Why won’t they just give up?!” Applebloom commented, holding onto the side of the barrel and wagon.

“I don’t…know…” Scootaloo commented, fatigue creeping into her voice. “But…I wish they would…take…the hint!” Scootaloo swerved around a fallen stone block as she preceded deeper into Everfree, deeper than any pony has dared to venture.

The CMC continued to swerve around large trees and boulders in an attempt to lose the persistent predators as they leapt over and smashed through the obstacles to no avail. After five more minutes of running, the sun now lowering in the sky, the CMC ran into a small, vertical overhang, too steep for the filly pegasus to climb over with the added weight.

Scootaloo tried to swerve around the overhang only to have the rear wagon wheel wobble and snap off once they hit a deep sink hole, making the wagon drop to the ground with a violent shake. The drop caused the barrel along with Applebloom, to fall out of the wagon. The wagon itself swerved out of control and fishtailed into the overhang as Scootaloo tried to turn, causing her and Sweetie Belle to collide violently into the dirt wall.

Applebloom tried to get up to run, but found that she had twisted her front left leg and badly scarred her hind right leg. She looked to see Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle clinging tightly to each other and staring with wide eyed fear in her direction and dreaded to look behind her. She could hear the low growl of the wolf behind her and feel the rumble in her bones, a testament to the ferocity of the creature lurking just behind her.

Every fiber of the young Earth Pony’s being told her to run, but fear gripped her heart so strongly that she could not so much as shake. She wanted to blink, but found her eyes unable to peel away from her quivering friends.

AWOOOOO~ RARGH!

The fillies tensed when they heard the call of another wolf not far off. ‘Is this it?’ Applebloom frantically thought in her head. ‘Am I gonna become wolf chow?!’ She gave one last look to her frightened friends before she swallowed her fears and dared her muscles to look behind her. She had resigned herself to the deathly stare of the ravenous wooden wolf. But what she faced, she did not expect. The largest of the wolves did not leer at her out of hunger, instead it was staring off to into the forest with its teeth and ambitions bared.

The filly was confused to say the least, her fear slowly subsiding at the revelation. ‘What are they growling…?’ She did not need to question for long as she saw a figure in a black cloak standing off to the side, its hood covering its head, but Applebloom could tell it was some kind of canine by the way it carried itself. The cloaked canine was slightly bigger than the lead Timber Wolf, but it seemed to stand calmly as opposed to the Timber Wolves. The pack leered at the newcomer with a feral growl. ‘Not another one!’

Grrragh! Grragh! Rrragh!’ The Lead Timber Wolf barked at the cloaked figure, who just stood its ground, unfazed by the hostile wolves. Instead, the cloaked canine took a challenging step forward, one that caught the rest of the Timber Pack off guard and made some of them take a tentative step back. Rargh! The Lead Wolf barked at the pack, stopping their subconscious retreat.

Applebloom could see the cloaked figure smirk under its hood. “Still a bunch of pups.” She heard the figure speak in a low, amused tone, noticing the voice was distinctly male. He hunched low and bared his black claws, gleaming in the small rays of light with a distinct crystalline shine, and shot towards the pack at lightning speeds that the fillies’ eyes could not track by themselves.

What happened next was a maelstrom of savage movement as cloak canine bit at the neck of one of the smaller Timber Wolves, capturing the wood wolf in his jaws and squeezing down with enough pressure to break and splinter before twisting his head and snapping the Timber Wolf’s neck. Before the rest of the Pack could react, the cloaked canine had already pounced on another Timber Wolf, knocking it on its back and started to claw at the Timber Wolf’s exposed belly, tearing away layer after layer of wood until the Timber Wolf lay lifeless on the forest floor.

By now the Timber Wolves had recovered enough to encircle and rush at the cloaked canine. The first Timber Wolf that charged the cloaked canine lunged at him from the side with its teeth and claws, ready to tear the cloaked figure to shreds. When the wolf’s claws connected with the fabric of the cloak, it found…nothing. The wolf slid on the dirt, its claws covered in the fabric, but found that cloak was devoid of a wearer. The wolf only had a moment to process the revelation before it found itself pinned to nearby tree and just as suddenly decapitated.

The Timber Wolves stared at the now exposed newcomer, revealing him to be a Black Wolf with markings of platinum and blue tipped fur, with dreadlocks covering his head and a three pronged scar on the left side of his face. The wolf turned to face the rest of the pack, dull platinum eyes glowing in the shadows of the Everfree.

The fillies sat in a mixture fear and awe as they watched the newly revealed wolf leer at the stunned pack. The Lead Timber Wolf was only dazed for a moment before it regained its senses and growled at the Black Wolf in an attempt to establish its dominance, the remaining five Timber Wolves surrounding the Black Wolf.

“Insulant mutts!” The Midnight Wolf boomed as he raised onto his hind legs, his body coursing with black-blue arcs of lightning before slamming down onto the ground discharging the energy directly at all but the Lead Timber Wolf, igniting their wood skin and setting them ablaze. The flaming wolves howled and yelp as they continued to burn and darted off into the forest, two of them collapsing before they made it out of sight, the flames of their burning remains blazing harmlessly in the forest.

The Lead Timber Wolf growled at the Midnight Wolf again, visibly displeased with the stunt, but refusing to back down. The Midnight Wolf just smirked in response. “You’re not from this deep in the forest, are you? Most Timber Wolves continue to fight, despite being engulfed in flame.” The Timer Wolf charged the Black Wolf, lunging at him with its full size and strength. The Black Wolf leapt to the left, avoiding the large Timber Wolf’s clumsy charge. “Not much for conversation, eh?” The Timber Wolf clawed at the Black Wolf, swiping up a large cloud of dirt as he missed the agile wolf. “I’ll take that as a no.”

The Black Wolf dodged a downward swipe from the large Timber Wolf, landing on the trunk of a nearby tree before lounging towards the Wooden Wolf with claws extended and brimming with black electrical energy. The Timber Wolf reared up on its hind legs, raising its claw high into the air, eager to bring it down on the Black Wolf’s head. The wolves soon crossed each other, each striking for the killing blow. As the Black Wolf passed and landed behind the Timber Wolf, a single black-blue spark surged up the Timber Wolf’s body before it landed. The Timber Wolf soon erupted into a wild show of lightning before bursting into a violent flame.

AWOOOOOO~… The Timber Wolf released one last pained howl before it collapsed to the ground with a yelp. The Black Wolf stood tall with a tired sigh, as his head faced the ground. He looked up to see the three fillies still frozen in place.

‘They must think I’m going to kill them.’ He went to retrieve his cloak, scooping it off the ground in his sharpened teeth and using his electrical powers to clasp the platinum chain of the cloak together, opting to leave his hood off. ‘No need to scare them more than they already are.’ He took note of the yellow filly lying on the ground with a pink bow in her red mane. The wolf noticed that the yellow filly had a swollen front leg and a small crimson blotch on her hind leg. ‘That cut needs to be treated.’

The wolf slowly approached Applebloom, the yellow filly trembling at the sight of the large approaching wolf. ‘What now?’ Before she could try to move, her sight was obscured by purple and violet hair.

“S-stay back!” Sweetie Belle shouted at the wolf, causing him to stop and raise an angled brow.

“D-don’t come any closer!” Scootaloo added. The wolf stood still for a moment, before continuing towards the fillies. “I-I’m warning you!” The wolf now stood over the fillies, the ponies barely coming up to his knee. “Please?” Scootaloo squeaked out, earning an amused smirk as he passed between them stopping next to the injured filly.

The wolf lay down on his stomach leaning in to examine the filly’s injuries. “You’re ankle is twisted.” He told the yellow filly. “You’ll be fine as long as you don’t walk on it for a while. That cut on the other hand,” He motioned to the crimson blotch on her hind leg. “We’d better get it patched up before it gets infected.” He looked around and noticed an odd growing plant. “You there, pegasus. You mind getting that plant for your friend? It will help heal her injury.”

Scootaloo took a second before replying to the request. “Uh…sure?” With uncertainty in her mind, she hurried to the plant and plucked it. ‘He seems nice. He didn’t attack us after all.’ She plucked the strange vibrant green grass and made her way back to her friends. ‘I’ve never see a plant like this before.’

“Thank you.” The wolf replied as Scootaloo placed the plant on the ground next to him. “I assume you ponies don’t know what this is.” The three of them nodded in unison. “That’s what I thought.” He reached out and pulled on Applebloom's hind leg, his body arcing with electricity again. The bolts grabbed hold of the plant and levitated it to Applebloom’s leg, holding it just above the cut. “This may sting a bit.” He placed the leaf to the cut, which caused Applebloom to inhale sharply when she felt a sting in her leg. “Just bear with it for a moment. This plant will clean any bacteria that might have seeped in.”

After a few moments of stinging pain in Applebloom’s leg, the yellow filly opened her clenched eyes as it slowly subsided into a soothing warmth. She looked to see that the wolf had withdrawn a white bandage from a pocket inside his cloak and began to wrap it around her leg. “Did Scootaloo need to get that weird plant if you had bandages the whole time?” Sweetie Belle asked the wolf as he finished wrapping Applebloom’s leg and tore the wrapping, placing it back into his cloak.

“I only have the bandages. I don’t any disinfectants.” The wolf replied, rising to his full height. “You should be fine now. Can you walk?”

“I think so.” The uncertainty in the filly’s voice was evident, but the wolf kept patient while he waited for the filly to rise. Applebloom placed her hooves firmly on the ground, only to feel a sharp pain shoot through her front leg as soon as she tried to rise and fell with a squeak.

“Hmmm.” The wolf mused as he looked at the swollen ankle on the filly’s front leg.

“Are you okay, Applebloom?” Sweetie Belle asked her friend as she and Scootaloo rushed to Applebloom’s side.

“It’s my leg.” She raised the swollen limb for the other fillies to see, the reddening area a worrying sight to them.

“It must have happened when you fell out of the wagon.” Scootaloo commented. “The wagon!” The pegasus took off toward the wagon and her scooter.

“You’re not going to be walking on that anytime soon.” The wolf commented and moved to join the pegasus by the toppled wagon and scooter.

“Aww.” Scootaloo said in a disappointed tone. “The wagons missing a wheel.”

The wolf examined his surroundings, and found the separated part. “I’m guessing you can’t move that thing without the fourth wheel.”

“Yeah, and we still need to make a delivery.” Her ears folded back as she spoke, unaware of Sweetie Belle, with Applebloom over her shoulder, approaching from behind.

“Not to mention we can’t get Applebloom back without hurting her hoof even more.”

“What are we gonna do? We’re too far into Everfree for somepony to find us.”

“Not to mention Sis and everypony are probably worried about us.” Applebloom noted the slowly setting sun.

“Then we had best get this wagon fixed.” The wolf commented as he dipped down and took the severed wheel in his mouth. He returned to the wagon, charging his body and the wheel with black-blue energy and levitated it to the warped and broken bar. The sparks soon intensified until the metal began to heat and meld before the energy slowed, rapidly cooling the metal and binding it together.

“Whoa.” The fillies commented.

“That’s so cool!” Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo commented.

The wolf simply smirked. “I think you mean, shocking.” He turned the wagon over, noting the slight lean in the wagon’s balance. “I don’t think this wagon will support you and your cargo.” He motioned to the turned over barrel.

“Applejack won’t be happy about this.” Applebloom commented and the CMC cast their gaze downward in response.

The wolf stood over them, not sure of how to react. ‘Is this Applejack someone of importance? It’s been a few years since I left the forest. I don’t know how Equestria works now.’ He spared one last glance at the toppled barrel before he made a decision. He moved in front of the three fillies and lay on his stomach before looking at Applebloom. “Hop on.” He said simply. The fillies simply looked at him with a questioning glance. “You can carry the barrel in your wagon if I carry you on my back.”

Applebloom looked at her friends for a moment, unsure of how to respond to the request. After a moment she took a staggered step forward, easing off of her swollen hoof, but still unsteady on her injured hind leg.

“Are you sure?” Applebloom asked once more.

“This will not be the first time I’ve had to carry a filly on my back.” The wolf replied simply. That was all the encouragement that the filly needed before she tried to hop onto the large Wolf’s back, she had slight difficulty accomplishing this feat due to how big the wolf was, but thanks to her friends she managed to climb onto his back and settle into a comfortable position, finding the cloak to be deceptively smooth. He rose with a slight stagger and turned to see that Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo had rolled the barrel into the wagon and were ready to leave with the wolf. “Stay close.” He warned, turning and examining their surroundings as he did. “This part of the forest is especially dangerous.”

They had made their way back through Everfree, hiding behind bushes and avoiding the various creatures that prowled about. They eventually made their way back to the Castle of Two Sisters. The fillies admired the structure as they passed around the half restored monument, not having to worry about Timber Wolves to chase them this time around.

“Rarity says we can visit the castle when they are finished restoring it.” Sweetie Belle told them.

“I wonder what it’s like inside.” Scootaloo commented.

“It’s must be huge!” Applebloom added.

The wolf just chuckled at the comments, his thoughts drifting to two young mares that stood in awe when they first set eyes upon this very castle. ‘It’s been a few years since I woke up in Everfree.’ He thought as the fillies continued to chat amongst themselves. ‘Things have changed so much. The castle in the mountains, the pony settlement where Discord’s throne had once been. Even this old castle was destroyed when I stumbled upon it. I’m not certain I can even function in this new Equestria with how much they have done.’

“Hey, Mister?” The wolf was jarred from his thoughts when he heard Sweetie Belle’s voice.

“Hmm, what is it?” He replied to the pale unicorn.

“Have you been to the Castle of the Two Sisters before? You do live in the forest.”

The wolf took a moment before responding to the query. “I have.”

“What’s it like?” Scootaloo was the next to question the wolf.

“Big. Divine. A fantastic work of art. At least it was at one point.” The wolf’s tone held a twinge of solemnity to it, a detail that did not go unnoticed by Sweetie Belle.

“How would you know?” The unicorn questioned the wolf with a raised brow. “The Castle has been destroyed for over a thousand years. Only Princess Celestia and Luna have lived that long.”

The wolf tensed at the response, not expecting the filly to call him on his words. He quickly thought of a reply that he hoped would satiate the fillies’ suspicions. “Artist’s sense. They can rebuild most things in their heads. I’m sure you know at least somepony with a similar sense?”

“Hmmm.” The unicorn pondered the question for a moment. The wolf hoped his bluff would be enough to deter further inquiries from the fillies, and luck was on his side as a certain white unicorn came to the filly’s mind. “Rarity is good at restoring ancient fabric. So I guess that makes sense.”

“Yeah, she fixed the tapestries for the castle after all.” Scootaloo added.

The wolf silently breathed a sigh of relief when the fillies began to chatter about the, seemingly, shared acquaintance. But a more pressing issue tugged at his mind in that moment. ‘One thousand years?!’ If he had spoken, one could hear the blatant shock of disbelief in his voice. ‘That can’t be right! How could Discord manage to fling me a thousand years into the future? No single creature has that kind of power. None! It’s hard enough to send oneself back through established events, let alone events that have yet to even occur. So...how?’

“Look!” The wolf was jarred once again as Applebloom stirred on his back and pointed into the air. The wolf took note of a streak of rainbow cutting through the sky. The wolf suddenly became aware of the fact that they had exited the forest and was halfway towards their destination from the forest’s edge.

“It’s Rainbow Dash!” Scootaloo beamed at the sight of her idol soaring through the sky.

“You think she might be looking for us?!” Sweetie Belle asked, matching her friends’ excitement.

“Hey~! Over here~!” Scootaloo called.

The wolf stood still for a moment, uncertain of if he should stay and finish escorting the fillies to town, or leave and let the search party handle the situation. He noticed that the Cyan pegasus had looked down at them and made an immediate b-line towards them before the wolf could ultimately make a decision.

Rainbow Dash landed hard in front of them, a look of relief on her face as she approached Scootaloo. “Where have you three been?” She immediately questioned the fillies. “We’ve been looking for you for over an hour!” The fillies turned their gazes to the ground again, upset at having made the town worry for them. Rainbow Dash held her gaze for a moment, but relented with a sigh. “As long as you three are safe, that’s all that matters.” The fillies gave a thankful smile at the comment and earned a smirk from the prism mane pony. “We’re almost back to Ponyville. I’ll fly ahead and let everypony know you’re safe.”

“Thanks, Rainbow!” The fillies replied in unison.

Rainbow spared a glance to the dreadlocked wolf, glancing up slightly to make eye contact. “I don’t know who you are, but thanks for looking after these three.”

“You’re welcome.” The wolf replied simply. He noticed that Rainbow Dash was still eyeing him, not out of caution, but more out of concern. “Is there something on my face?”

Rainbow just raised a brow at the question before shaking her head. “It’s nothing.” She began flapping her wings, lifting slightly off the ground and kicking up small clouds of dirt. “See you back in town.” She shot off towards the sky, leaving the group to travel the rest of the way.

“She’s. So. AWESOME!” Scootaloo stated.

“She is certainly interesting.” The wolf concluded. “Come on, pups. Let’s get you home.”

As Rainbow Dash continued towards Ponyville, her mind raced with thoughts of the Black Wolf. ‘Was that a wolf? I’ve never seen a wolf that big that wasn’t made out of twigs and grass.’ Ponyville came into view as the ponies searched around town for the missing fillies. ‘He seemed to be having a hard time standing, the color in his eyes, despite the dull gray of his iris, suggests exhaustion…not to mention the fact that there is a trail of crimson behind him. I’d better get a doctor while I’m delivering the news.’

When the CMC returned to the entrance of Ponyville, they were met with a number of concerned ponies. “Applebloom!” Applejack called when she saw her sister riding on the back of the Black Wolf, she and Big Mac running to meet them.

“Sweetie Belle!” Rarity called as she ran to meet the group as well. “Thank Celestia you’re safe!”

“What happened to you?” Applejack questioned with poorly hidden concern when she saw the state of her little sister’s legs.

“We got ambushed by Timber Wolves.” Applebloom replied as she was lifted onto her Brother’s back.

“They chased us past the Castle of the Two Sisters.” Sweetie Belle added as she was squeezed by her own elder sibling.

“A surprising feat, just so Timber Wolves could eat.” The familiar exotic tone of Zecora spoke as the Zebra approached the fillies. “It fills me with dismay to know that they stray. One must fear for possible danger drawing near.”

The ponies began to mumble amongst themselves at the prospect of danger from the Everfree. “I would not worry about that.” The wolf spoke up, catching the town’s attention.

Twilight approached the newcomer with a raised brow, but quickly put on a welcoming smile along with a beige mare in reading glasses and white mane with Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie following behind. “You’re the wolf that escorted the girls back to town.” The beige mare commented. “On behalf of Ponyville, I would like to extend our thanks. I am Mayor Mare.”

“And I am Twilight Sparkle, the Princess of Friendship.” The wolf stared at Twilight with a raised brow, causing the alicorn to fidget uncomfortably. “Um, is everything alright?”

“…I must have been in that forest longer than I thought.” The wolf commented. “I was not aware of another alicorn.”

“Really?” Twilight commented.

“What, have you been living under a rock or something?” Rainbow Dash added.

“Depends, do you consider a mountain a really big rock?” The wolf replied, earning a questioning look from the ponies, by now the crowd had dispersed and returned to their daily routines, leaving only friends, family, the Mayor, and a random medical pony.

“That explains it.” The Cyan Pegasus deadpanned.

“At any rate. It is a pleasure to meet you Mayor. Princess Twilight.” The wolf replied with a nod of his head.

Twilight took note of how the wolf struggled to raise his head back up, but dismissed it for the moment. “So, can you tell us your name?”

The wolf opened his mouth to respond, but found it increasingly difficult to do so as he staggered back for a moment. ‘That damned Timber Wolf did more damage than I thought...’

“Are you okay?” Fluttershy asked the wolf.

“Y-yeah. I’m fine. Just had a rough time with those wolves.”

“Maybe you should rest.” The Pegasus persisted, finally noticing a long trail of crimson behind the wolf. “Is that…?” Fluttershy squeaked at the sight.

“He’s been bleeding for the past while.” Rainbow Dash confirmed. “I’d say he did more than just escort them here.”

“Yeah, he actually fought off all eight Timber Wolves, including the leader, by himself.” Scootaloo replied.

“He even helped fix the wagon and my leg.” Applebloom added.

“How come we didn’t notice he was bleeding?” Sweetie Belle added.

“Probably because we never bothered to look behind us.”

“Either way, you need to get treated before you lose too much blood.” The Mayor stated as she motioned for the medical pony to come examine the wolf.

“That will not be…neces…sary…” The wolf collapsed to the ground, breathing heavily as he did.

“I beg to disagree.” The Mayor added with a concerned tone. “Get him to the hospital, immediately!”

“I’ll handle it.” Twilight stated. “He looks too heavy for any normal pony.” Her horn glowed with her lavender aura and encased the limp and panting wolf in her magical aura. She took to the sky, using her wings to move faster toward the hospital. “I know it’s not the best time, but can you tell me your name? So help the doctors give proper care.”

The wolf felt his vision leaving him again, his consciousness fading into blackness. Twilight’s voice was little more than a muffled roaring in his ear, but he could still make out the question. ‘Name...What was it again...? It's been so long since I've last heard it. Uh~... what was my name?’

As the wolf tried to remember recall his thoughts, Twilight had landed at the hospital entrance, the medical staff had already wheeled out a stretcher and she gently eased him onto it. “He’s lost a lot of blood.” Twilight explained.

“We’ll do what we can.” One of the doctors replied.

Before they could wheel the wolf through the door, he suddenly spoke. “Da…Ji…Ha…da…ri…”

“What?” Twilight asked as she followed the doctors to an operating room.

“Call…me…Daji…Hadari.”

Chapter II: Decisions, Decisions

Straggler

Chapter II: Decisions, Decisions

“You’ll die here today, along with the rest of your mongrel breed, Hadari!” The large dragon roared in the sky. Glaring down with golden eyes.

The dragon was a quadruped with rugged wine red scales and gold runic markings spread across his body, easily the size of three-two story houses lined up together with a sixty-four meter wing span. His skull was composed of a five meter long snout had five golden horns curved back along his head, four on the sides and one at the top, each horn was crooked as it came to a point and reached various lengths. The two horns jutting out of the back of his lower jaw reached a length of two meters, the horns on the back of his cheek bones reached a length of four meters, and the horn atop his head reached a length of seven meters. The webbing of its wings were snow white and had small holes near the bottom. The claws and spikes running along the dragon’s spine and jutting out of the carpus and phalanges were an equal glimmering gold. The spade on the end of the dragon’s spine was shaped like a golden single edge blade, sharp enough to cleave through steel with little effort.

“After I drag you into Hell, Sanguis!” The wolf howled as he charged forth, his body encased by black-blue sparks.

The Dragon smirked before he roared with a raging flame inside his mouth as he dived for the black wolf before him.

In the waking realm, Twilight watched from the side of the bed as the black wolf cringed in his sleep, white bandages wrapped around his torso and left hind leg. “How is he?” Twilight asked the stallion doctor in the clean white coat and red tie.

“The Wolf’s condition is stable.” The doctor told the Alicorn princess as he continued to look over the clipboard in front of him. "Though I must wonder how he survived in the Everfree as long as he did.”

“What do ya mean?” Applejack asked in turn, she was accompanied by the CMC and the rest of her friends.

“We found a number of scars under his fur. A lot of them were old, probably older than many of the elders in town. Aside from
the large gash from the Timber Wolves, we found an infection along his stomach that was little more than a few days old.”

“Maybe he got hit by one of Tirek’s attacks.” Rainbow commented.

“He did fire a number of them into Everfree. Maybe he struck where Hadari was staying.” Twilight concluded.

“Regardless of how he acquired the infection, he will need several days rest before the infection clears up.” The Doctor finally looked up from the clipboard to eye the visitors. “I must admit that I have never seen a creature with this kind of physiology.”

“What do you mean, doctor?” Fluttershy asked.

“For starters, he has two hearts in his cardiovascular system. If that wasn’t enough, the X-rays showed that his skeleton is lined with crystals.”

“A creature made of crystal?! I thought the ponies of the Crystal Empire had that distinction.” Rarity commented with a surprised expression on her face. “How is that even possible?”

“Not made of crystal, to be exact. While the Crystal Ponies have crystal coats, Hadari’s skeleton has crystal deposits in eighty-two percent of his skeleton along with the normal calcium bone. What kind of crystal forms this unique structure is a type I’m not familiar with.”

Rarity placed a hoof on her chin as she pondered the implications of the new information. “I wonder if it’s a naturally occurring mineral. Maybe from Hadari’s homeland.”

“Whatever it is, it exudes a large amount of electrical energy. Enough to overload a number of our monitoring equipment.” The Doctor rubbed his temple, dreading the cost to replace all the equipment that was destroyed. “I’m not sure why that much energy exists in Hadari, but it does not seem a health hazard.” The Doctor then moved to leave the room. “We will run more tests to see if there are any more anomalies we may need to look out for.” The slowly fading sounds of his clopping hoof steps could be heard as, presumably, he headed for another examination room.

Twilight approached the sleeping wolf and looked at him quizzically. “A wolf with a crystalline skeleton and two hearts.” The small purple drake commented as he moved next to the Alicorn. “Sounds like something out of one of your fantasy novels.”

“If it is, I’ve never read it, Spike.” Twilight replied.

“Looks like he’s having a nightmare.” Fluttershy commented.

“Not sure what would scare him if he faced down a pack of Timber Wolves and came out with only a scratch.” Applejack added. She looked to her sister who was still perched upon her back, the make shift ankle wrap now replaced with a proper bandage.

“I’m fine, Sis.” Apple Bloom replied before her sister could ask the question in her head.

“Do you think those crystals are the source of Hadari’s power?” Sweetie Belle asked the room.

Twilight mused as she leaned in to examine the slumbering wolf. “If what you three told us is true, then it is entirely plausible. But I’m not sensing any kind of magic from Hadari. Whatever power he has, it’s not magical. How odd…”

“Speaking of odd.” Rainbow Dash cut in. “What kind of a name is Daji Hadari?”

“OH! OH!” Pinkie Pie bounced in the room, garnering the attention of all around her. “Maybe it’s another language! Or maybe a secret code! Or-Or- I know!”

“Easy there Pinkie.” Applejack moved and placed a hoof on the bouncing pink mare. “I think we get the idea.”

“Have you ever heard of any language like this, Zecora?” Twilight asked the well-traveled Zebra.

“In my travels, I have ventured high and low. But this language, I do not know.” Zecora replied with equal confusion as the others.

“I wonder…”

“You can wonder all you like, I promise you’ve never heard of it.” The room whipped around upon hearing the Wolf’s voice and saw that he was awake and sitting up as best he could. “You gonna just sit there and stare at me, or are you gonna tell me where I am?”

“Uh, you’re in the Ponyville Hospital.” Fluttershy replied to the question. “You passed out at the entrance and Twilight carried you here.”

Hadari eyed the violet princess for a second, examining the Alicorn with unhindered vision for the first time. “It seems I owe you my thanks, Princess.”

“Oh, it was nothing.” Twilight shook her hoof in an attempt to pass the act off as nothing.

Hadari attempted to rise and jump off the Hospital bed, only to feel a stern hoof on his chest. “Hold on there, Daji.” Applejack cut in. “The Doctor still needs to examine you before you’re well enough to leave.”

“I’m quite I can tell when I’m well enough to leave on my own.” Hadari growled out at the farm mare.

“I must agree with Applejack on this one.” Rarity stepped forward next to the orange mare. “You need to rest until that infection of yours has cleared. I shan't have my Sister’s savior die in the forest from some infection. It is most unbecoming of a hero.”

Hadari simply scoffed at the comment. “Heroes are for the weak. I’m just a Wolf who wants to be left a-ARGH!” He yelped when he felt a pressure on his side and looked to a retracting cyan hoof and glared at the prismatic Pegasus to which it was attached.

“Doesn’t seem that way to me.” Rainbow Dash commented with a skeptical look on her features.

“Rainbow!” Fluttershy chastised the cyan Pegasus.

“Relax, Fluttershy.” Rainbow waved off the chastising immediately. “I just tapped him to prove a point.”

“If a tap made you wince that bad, moving around is definitely out of the question.” Rarity commented, giving Rainbow an equally disapproving stare. “I would recommend that we reframe from agitating the patients injuries in order to prove a point next time.”

“Be that as it may, I do not plan to dawdle here.”

“Do not be so brash, you’re condition is no simple rash.” Zecora calmly stepped forward and placed a hoof to the Wolf’s forehead, slowly pushing on him. The Wolf went wide-eyed at the strength the Zebra possessed as she effortless pushed him back into a laying position on the Hospital bed. “If you hasten for release, you will find yourself quite deceased. Everypony here think it best, that you stay in bed to rest.”

“I can rest when I return to the forest.” Haradi tried again to move, only to find pain in his side, making him wince and abandon his attempt to leave.

“You’re more stubborn than Rainbow at a Daring Do signing event.” Applejack commented.

“Mr. Haradi?” Daji looked in the direction of the high pitched vice that called his name to see the pale white Unicorn staring up at him from beside her porcelain white elder sister. “You shouldn’t move around too much.”

Haradi raised a curious brow at the purple and pink haired filly. “Am I to be coddled by a pup now?”

“Sweetie is just concerned, like the rest of us.” Rarity replied. “For somepony that went out of his way to save three fillies, you’re being quite unreasonable.”

“First off: I’m not a pony, I’m a wolf. Second: I don’t like being at the mercy of another.”

“He’s starting to sound like Granny.” Apple Bloom whispered in her Sister’s ear.

Applejack placed a hoof to her mouth as she mulled over the comparison. ‘That gives me an idea.’

“You’re not being held at anypony’s mercy, Hadari.” Rainbow stated impatiently. “You’re just gonna be in the Hospital for a few days and then you’re out. It’s not that bad.”

“I’m leaving and that’s final!” Hadari growled again.

“I say let him leave.” Applejack suddenly commented and moved toward the exit.

“Applejack?!” A collective shout resounded through the room.

“We can’t just let an injured creature back into the wild before he has a chance to properly heal.” Fluttershy objected to the orange mare’s sentiment, moving in between the Earth Pony and the door.

“If he’s going to be overtly rude to fillies who just want to see him get better, then I say let him.” Applejack gave the yellow Pegasus a sly wink that went unnoticed to the other mares in the room.

Fluttershy blinked at the gesture. It took a moment to process what the farm mare was conveying that moment. It did not take the Pegasus long to understand as her expression briefly flashed with enlightenment and she gave a meek smile to acknowledge her friend’s motive.

“You’re right, Applejack.” Fluttershy commented, playing along with what Applejack had in mind. “If Hadari is going to be rude to Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle, then maybe we should let him leave.”

“Fluttershy!” Rarity gasped at the sudden paradigm shift of the kind Pegasus.

“I’m just saying, Rarity, there’s no need to help him if he’s just going to be rude.”

“I’m not being rude.” Hadari firmly denied.

“Could’ve fool us.” Rainbow replied with a roll of her eyes.

“I’m not!” The Wolf denied again. “I just don’t like being labeled as some sick creature in need of care. I haven’t survived all these years just to be treated like an invalid.”

“And there it is.” Applejack commented, turning to face the Wolf again. “I figured there was a reason for all this. Granny acts the same way when it’s time for her checkup.”

“You have great pride.” Zecora added with an understanding nod. “But you must put it aside.”

“YEAH!” Pinkie boomed again. “The quickest way to get out of the hospital, is to stay and rest. That way, you can get out quicker and we can start having fun!”

“Fun?” The wolf eyed the pink mare with a dumbfounded look.

“Well DUH!” Pinkie replied matter-of-factly. “We need to hold a party for our new friend.”

“…” Arashi raised an extremely confused brow at the statement. His mind whirling with thoughts that he could not interpret. ‘This mare isn’t making any sense. A party? For a complete stranger she only just met? Either she’s oblivious, or really optimistic. Either way she’s illogical.’

“Don’t mind Pinkie Pie.” Twilight commented, noting the confusion on the wolf’s face. “That’s just how she expresses herself.”

“…” The wolf spared another glance at the cheery, wide-eyed mare. The look she gave him made him uneasy, but at the same time amused. She was a strange mare indeed. “I’ll bare that in mind.”

“I see the patient is awake.” They turned to see the doctor walking toward Hadari. “How are you feeling?”

“Besides a throbbing pain in my side, I’m just peachy.” Hadari sarcastically replied.

“You seemed pretty grumpy just now.” Pinkie interjected.

“He was being sarcastic, Pinkie.” Rainbow bluntly cut in.

“Really?” The pink mare commented with wide, fluttering eyes and a slack jaw.

The Doctor glanced down at his clipboard, lifting a piece of paper with his mouth and reading another piece that was underneath. “I have the results of the test. Aside from the infection, I see no reason to hold you any longer.”

“Thank goodness.” Hadari breathed a sigh of relief at the news.

“But you must take it easy for the next couple of days.” The Doctor placed the clipboard on his side and retrieved a bottle of antibiotics from his coat pocket. “Take these once a day for the next week then come back and see us for a final checkup.”

The wolf watched as the bottle was placed next to him. He leaned in and examined the contents through the misty orange plastic tube, noting several red and white pills packed into the small container.

“We’ll see to it that he takes the medicine Doctor.” Twilight reassured the medical professional while Hadari continued to eye the bottle.

“Thank you, Princess.” The Doctor turned around and exited the room once again.

“Well, that settles that.” Applejack commented again.

“Where do you stay, Hadari?” Fluttershy asked the blue trimmed wolf, who was still scrutinizing the orange bottle. “Daji?” Fluttershy asked again.

“Huh?” Hadari looked up when Fluttershy trotted closer to him.

“Do you stay close to Ponyville?” Fluttershy asked again.

“If by close, you mean the deepest part of Everfree, then yes.”

“That just won’t do.” Rarity commented.

“Everfree gets extremely dangerous once you’re past the Castle of the Two Sisters.” Rainbow added. “Sometimes a stray cloud wanders into to town and it takes the whole of the weather service just to stop it from moving, let alone throw it back.”

“Yes, and that’s why I live there. No sensible creature would venture there. Allows me to keep to myself.” Hadari hopped down from the hospital bed and moved over to a lone chair that housed his black cloak. He took the cloak in his teeth and wrapped it around himself. He made his way toward the room exit when he felt a tugging on his cloak and turned to see Spike holding the orange bottle in a clawed hand.

“Aren’t you forgetting something?” The drake said with mock sarcasm.

The wolf grumbled and took the bottle in his jaws, placing it in a pocket on the inside of the cloak. “I know you’re probably going to object,” Twilight began skeptically as she moved next to her assistant. “But I recommend that you stay in the Ponyville until your infection clears up.”

“I don’t have a home in Everfree anymore.”

“What happened?” Fluttershy asked.

“A stray blast hit the cave I was staying in a few days ago. Barely got out of there before it collapsed. Now that I think about it, that may be where I got the infection from. A stray rock hit me in the side, same spot I’m hurting right now.” He motioned to the bandage wrap. “I landed in some plants immediately afterwards and looked up to see an extremely large centaur fighting an Alicorn.”

“That would be Tirek.” Twilight mentioned.

“Either way, you don’t have a place to stay.” Rarity added.

The wolf just released an exasperated sigh. “Are you going to guilt trip me again if I refuse?” Applejack just whistled at the comment, earning another sigh from the wolf as he rubbed his temple. “Fine. I’ll stay.” He turned to leave the room with the ponies in tow.

They wandered through Ponyville, many of the inhabitants stopping to stare at the strange wolf as he passed by with the ponies following close. They eventually stopped at Sugar Cube Corner after walking for twenty minutes where Hadari promptly decided to stop and sit at one of the outside tables, his side starting to ache from prolonged walking.

‘My side is killing me.’ Hadari thought as he rubbed around the infected area to avoid irritating the wound further. ‘There’s no way I can make it back to the forest if I have to stop every twenty minutes.’

“Still think you can make it back to Everfree?” Rarity asked the Wolf, taking a seat with her sister at the same table.

“I’m thinking about it.” Hadari half-jokingly replied.

Rarity and Applejack gave the wolf an incredulous look. “Be serious here.” Applejack told the wolf.

“Uh~…I don’t think so.” The wolf commented. “This infection is starting to grate on my patience.”

“And you wanted to walk back into Everfree?” Applejack asked.

“I’m building a hut right now. Nothing too extravagant, but at least I got the walls up.” Hadari rubbed his head at the memory of scrounging together enough materials to build the house. “It’s closer to the edge of Everfree, but I still need to stay in the forest depts. in order obtain sturdy materials.”

“Why not come to town for materials?” Pinkie asked the wolf.

“I don’t have any money, and I’d rather not scare any of the ponies here.”

“Fair point.” Applejack added.

“That will make it difficult to get a room at the inn.” Fluttershy commented.

“Which is why I was opposed to staying.” Hadari released an annoyed breath thinking back to the conversation they had moments ago. “Though heading back now would be difficult.”

“Which means you’ll have to stay with one of us.” Twilight replied.

“I’d be willing to do it.” Fluttershy replied. “There’s plenty of space and I’m sure the other animals won’t mind.”

“That would not be wise.” Hadari immediately shot the idea down. “I don’t get along with other animals. They would feel threatened just by me being around.”

“Oh I don’t think that will be an issue.” Fluttershy tried to reassure the wolf.

“I scarred off a Manticorn just by walking past it.”

“Oh…”

“I don’t think we have much room on the farm.” Applejack commented.

“And I wouldn’t have time to look after another pony with my work load.” Rarity added.

“And unless Hadar can walk on clouds, then that makes it impossible for me.”

“And the Cakes already have the twins to look after.” Pinkie added as well.

“Then it looks like I’m heading back into the forest.”

“Not necessarily…” Twilight commented.

“Let Daji stay in the castle? Are you sure, darling?” The unsure look on Rarity’s face let the young Alicorn Princess know that she was unsure of the decision.

Twilight quickly tried to quell her friends concerns. “I can handle having a guest in the castle, Rarity.”

“I’m sure you can handle it, Twilight, but I’m more concerned with you having a guest in an unfurnished castle.”

“We don’t exactly have a guest room set up.” Spike commented.

“Wouldn’t want to overload Spikey-Wikey on such short notice.”

“I've slept in a cave for the last few years. I think I can handle a floor.” Arashi commented with a matter-of-fact tone and a raised brow.

“Well, we do have a spare bed, it’s just…” Twilight petered at the end, looking for the proper word to describe the state of the only other partially furnished room in her new home.

“It doesn’t have anything other a bed in it.” Spike quickly finished his friend’s sentence.

“And I repeat, I’ve lived in a cave for the last few years. Plain walls aren’t that big of a deal.” The rest of the mares looked to each other again, the once concerned looks turned to ones of contentment.

“Well if there is nothing else, I need to get back to the farm. This one needs to rest her ankle.” The farm mare motioned to the filly who had taken a seat next to her. “Come on, Apple Bloom. It’s getting late.” She motioned to the slowly setting sun.

“Okay, Sis.” The yellow filly hopped on her sister’s back and turned to wave to her friends. “I’ll see you guys tomorrow.”

“Take care, Apple Bloom.” The two remaining fillies replied.

“I do believe, that it is time for me to leave.” Zecora rhymed as she trotted off to Everfree, but not before giving one last piece of advice to the wolf. “You may not be filled with glee, but to do try be at ease, Hadari. Do not try to flee, to the forest Everfree. You will find your error huge, should you try and seek refuge.”

“Thank you for the warning.” Hadari replied with a slight hint of sarcasm that did not go unnoticed to the zebra. Zecora chose to ignore the comment and simply continued on her way to her home.

“We’d better get back to the castle and get you settled in.” Twilight hopped down from her seat and motioned for the wolf to follow.

“You had best get home, squirt.” Rainbow told her young fan. “Wouldn’t want to be late for dinner.”

“But I’m not-” GRRRRRRR~ as if to emphasize Rainbow’s point, Scootaloo’s stomach let out a loud roar that made the young Pegasus tense, her tiny wings shooting out in surprise, and her cheeks flame red.

“You were saying?” Rainbow replied with a playfully smug look on her face.

“Ahahahahaa~…”

“Run along now, I don’t think our ‘lone hero’ is going anywhere in his condition.”

“You know I’m still here right?” Hadari commented as he got off his seat and moved to follow the purple Alicorn.

“Okay, Rainbow.”

“Come on, Sweetie. Let’s get you cleaned up and ready for school tomorrow.” Rarity commented as she left for her boutique.

“Okay.”

Each pony left for their respective homes, Fluttershy preparing to feed her many animal friends before turning in for the night. Pinkie Stood at the outside table, watching her friends trot off into the distance.

“Hey! How come I didn’t get to talk?!”

Just outside of Ponyville, Twilight, Spike, and Hadari were close to entering the newly formed castle. “So…Hadari,” Twilight began, her curiosity beginning to eat at her. “What does your name mean?” Hadari gave the mare an incredulous look at the question. “Well it’s just that I’ve never seen a wolf as large as you that wasn’t trying make a meal out of me, and your name isn’t any known language that I have read about.”

“A book worm, eh?” Hadari commented.

“Kinda.” Twilight replied with a light blush.

“That’s putting it mildly.” Spike commented. “You read through, like, seven books a day.”

“There’s nothing wrong with reading, Spike.” The Alicorn reprimanded her scaly assistant. She knew she read more than others, but she never thought it to be problem. She delighted in the knowledge that could be gained from pages of text both new and old.

“Reading is fun to mental.” The wolf commented off handed.

The Alicorn heard the wolf, but his words registered differently in her ears, losing their meaning as she formulated her reply. “Exactly! It’s the most basic of skills. I don’t see why reading a book is cause to jeer at a pony.” The wolf simply laughed at the Alicorn, earning a raised brow from her and her drake assistant. “What’s so funny?” She opened the front door to her castle, awaiting a reply from the wolf.

“Do not misunderstand me, pup. I agree with you completely.” The wolf entered the castle, taking in the crystal and bark like foyer that greeted his eyes. “But it seems that you have missed my meaning.”

“I don’t see how.” Spike commented as he hopped off of Twilight’s back. “You said reading was fundamental. So I don’t see how Twi’s response was wrong.”

“What I said was play on words. Yes, reading is fundamental, but the enjoyment is derived reading being fun to mental.” Hadari pointed his paw at his head, tapping on his skull to emphasize his point.

The two librarians stood dumbfounded at the wordplay. Spike was torn between face palming at the comment or shaking his head and walking away to make dinner. He looked to Twilight as she started to giggle uncontrollably before falling to the floor on her side in a fit of laughter. “‘Reading is fun to mental’?!” She continued to laugh at the wordplay. “I-I have got to remember that one!”

Spike face palmed and dragged his hand down in embarrassment. “Come on, Twi, it wasn’t that funny.”

“I-I know!” Twilight replied, finally managing to quell her giggle fit. “But I just can’t help but laugh.”

“Glad to see I still have my sense of humor.” Hadari commented.

“Well if you two are done, I’m going to make dinner.” Spike turned on his heel and walked off to the second floor where the kitchen and dining area was located.

They watched the drake make his way to the top of the first set of stairs before turning right and disappearing behind the corner. “I guess that leaves me to show you to your room.” Twilight started for the opposite stairs, no particular reason to her choice. “I hope you’re up for a climb. The rooms are on the fourth floor.”

“Joy.” Hadari stated simply as he ascended up the stairs behind the Alicorn.

They ascended past the second floor where Hadari reasoned was the dining kitchen and dining rooms. The second floor was a large library with vast and empty book shelves. The third floor was a throne room, housing six thrones with various marks atop the head rest. The fourth and final floor held many a room for guests that stayed at the castle for their visit. Hadari was led down a long hall passing a total of three rooms on either side of the hall.

“Here we are.” Twilight called as she stopped at the fifth door on the hall. “We picked a room at random and started working on it.” She opened the door to reveal a modest sized bed, big enough to set two ponies comfortably with just enough wiggle room for the occasional thrasher to toss and turn in their sleep. The room itself had little in the way of furnishing, two tables being the only visible furnishings the wolf could make out. One table was set off in the corner, next to one of the two windows in the room, and had a single potted plant atop its small surface. The second table was a simple coffee table placed in the center of the room.

“Cozy.” Hadari commented as he began to walk around the room with a rehearsed patterned that did not go unnoticed by the Alicorn Princess.

‘He’s examining the room like he’s trying to find a vantage point.’ Twilight thought to herself while Hadari peered through the windows, void of any curtains, and took in the amber sun. ‘Is it because he lived in Everfree?’ As she pondered her thoughts, she noted that a peculiar smell was making its way to her nostrils and she winced when she finally took note.

Hadari approached the bed and noted the simple blue blanket that covered the bed and let out and amused smile. “I see you went with simple for the bed linen.” He looked to the purple Alicorn and noticed her wobbly legs. “Something the matter, pup?”

“Y-yeah.” Twilight registered the bad smell as coming from Hadari and immediately made for one of the doors on the right hand wall and opened it, revealing a shower, tub, and toilet. “No offense, but you could use a shower.”

Hadari jolted his head back in surprise and then went to sniff his side. He winced from the smell and gave the Alicorn an equally displeased look. “I think you’re right.” He moved to the shower and felt his cloak get lifted off his back. He turned to see Twilight holding the cloak in her lavender magic field.

“I’ll get this washed for you. You just worry about washing up for dinner.” She turned and left out of the room, headed for the laundry room on the second floor. As Twilight made her way down the stairs, she noticed a delicious smell wafting through the corridor. ‘Spike must be making daisy sandwiches. They smell divine.’ She eventually reached the laundry room and placed the dirt covered cloak into a separate basket, she notice a long dark red splotch along the side of the black lining. ‘That must be Hadari’s blood. We’ll have to clean this separately from the other laundry so it doesn’t stain our clothes.’ She grabbed a note and quill, scribbling a warning for Spike, and made her way to the kitchen.

In the kitchen, she found her assistant steady cooking their evening meal. The room itself was large enough to be mistaken for a professional five star restaurant, with long ovens and overhangs for various kitchen ware. “That smells wonderful, Spike.” Twilight commented.

Spike peered over his shoulder and gave a toothy grin to the Princess. “Thanks.” He hopped off the stepping stool he used to put him at level with the burner and carried a tray of three items past the Alicorn. “I just threw something together with what we had on hand.” He walked across the hall, passing through the foyer, and entered through the opposite door in a large room with a simple circular table in the center, making the room much larger than it already was, the sunset coating the room in soothing ambiance. The table had no extra cloth to cover its oak surface. Spike placed the tray in the center and set the three items of note at separate spots for their respective consumers. One was a bowl of soup with several different jewels strewn about its bubbly surface, not doubt intended for the young drake.

Twilight went towards one side of the table where a daisy sandwich awaited her, just as her nose had told her. “You did well, just like always.” She pulled out the chair and seated herself.

“What about our guest?” Spike placed another bowl, filled with various fruit, in the final spot and three glasses of water before seating himself.

“Hadari is taking a bath right now.” Twilight replied, taking a bite of her sandwich. “He smelled like he hasn’t had a bath in days.”

“Took you this long to notice, huh?” Spike replied, taking a spoon full of his soup.

“Hey, the other girls covered it up and we were always upwind from him.”

“Either way, I hope he likes fruit.” Spike placed a ruby in his mouth and crushed it as if it were candy. “That’s all we had left after I prepared everything.”

Twilight grimaced at the news and looked down at her meal. “Time for another trip to the market. And I had just bought fresh supplies today.”

“It can’t be helped, Twi. Ever since Tirek destroyed Golden Oaks, we’ve had to scrape by with what we could salvage from the wreckage.”

The Alicorn released a heavy sigh at the memory. “That blast of his destroyed our safe. It’s a miracle we had enough for a bed and some covers. We barely had enough for food to last the rest of the week.”

Spike gulped down another spoon full of soup before replying. “That wolf had better appreciate his meal or else.” The drake shoveled another spoon full of his gem soup into his mouth.

“Or else what?” Spike almost choked on his meal when he heard Hadari’s voice emanate from behind him. After a series of gags, and a strong pat on the back from Twilight, Spike manage to swallow the food. They turned to see Hadari walking towards them, his mostly dry fur, but still damp in various places on his back. When he passed by them, they noticed a distinct smell, Twilight knew it was the scented soap that she had, but it smelled nothing of it.

‘I thought I bought lavender for the guest room yet,’ She continued to process the scent, the image a grand forest and a pristine waterfall nestled in the center, a basin filled to the brim with its cooling waters. ‘It’s like having a picnic in a forest…minus the grime.’

Hadari sat at the last set seat and eyed the bowl full of fruit. “Fruit, huh?” He reached out a paw and pinched an apple slice between two sharpened claws. “This will help me heal faster.”

“Really?” The Alicorn halted her meal, eager to hear more about the wolf.

“Yeah.” He stuffed an orange slice in mouth, his sharpened fangs tearing the soft membrane between his teeth. “The nutrients aren’t quite as plentiful as the fruits back home, but they can still be used.”

“Speaking of which,” Spike asked, stuffing an emerald into his mouth, crushing it and swallowing the shards with ease. “You never did answer Twilight’s question.”

The wolf raised a brow at the comment. “What do you mean?” He lifted two more slices of apple into his mouth, mixing it with grapes and pear slices.

“Twi asked you what your name actually means. Then you made a pun and, as always tends to happen with puns, we got completely derailed.”

“Oh~…” Hadari placed another apple slice into his mouth. “My name means Wild Storm. It is…was, my name a long time ago. Back when I lived in peace on my island.” Hadari began to spark with black-blue bolts, eyeing the glass of water in front of him, the sparks extending from his body towards the glass. Like an ethereal hand, the glass was gripped and lifted toward the wolf’s mouth.

Twilight watched in awe at the sight before her. ‘That is clearly not magic. There’s no glow, mana, no residue. Is this a result of his crystalline skeleton?’

Hadari set the cup down with a dull thump. “Things were simpler then.”

Spike gave Twi a skeptical look, neither one knew how to take the comment. The drake decided to pry “So…what brought you to Equestria?”

“I’d rather not talk about it.” Hadari stuffed a melon slice in his mouth upon the deadpan rebuttal.

“O-okay?” Twilight gave Spike a questioning look. Spike just motioned for Twilight to leave the subject alone.

“So tell me, Princess,” Hadari asked, a slight tease in his tone, leaning his head forward and resting his chin on the back of his paws. “How long have you ruled over this small town? Last I checked, there wasn’t a castle here.”

“Oh! That... well~…” Twilight felt unnerved by the question for some reason. In her mind, she had come to terms with her newfound status, she is the Princess of Friendship after all. It was something about the way Hadari asked her. The teasing tone was a good façade, but it felt as though he were prodding her, trying to see how much she knew…or how much she didn’t know. “I’ve only had the castle for a few days, and I’ve only been an Alicorn for a year.”

Arashi raised a brow and rose slightly off his paws. “Wait, you weren’t always an Alicorn?”

“Well, I used to be a regular Unicorn. Princess Celestia ascended me after my years of study under her as her personal student.” Hadari settled back on his haunches upon hearing the reply. “Daji?”

“I’ve never heard of another pony becoming an Alicorn.” Hadari held his gaze squarely on the Alicorn, taking in her horn and wings with growing skepticism. “Last time I checked there were only two Alicorns in the world.”

“Your information is a little out of date.” Spike commented, finishing his gem soup and glass of water. “Including Twilight, there are four Alicorns now.” He hopped off from his seat and preceded to collect the now empty dishes onto the tray.

“Four?!”

“Well, yeah.”

“…I must have been gone longer than I thought.” Hadari placed a paw to his forehead, rubbing at the side with an expression of disbelief slapped across his features. “Two other Alicorns.” The wolf started chuckling to himself. “I guess it’s to be expected. Living in a cave tends to put one out of touch.” Hadari rose from his sitting position, deciding to leave the room.

“Are you okay, Daji?” Twilight asked the wolf.

“Y-yeah, yeah. I just…need a moment to comprehend all this.” Hadari turned around and gave a short bow to his hosts. “Pleasant dreams.”

As Twilight and Spike listened to the slowing dissipating sound of Hadari’s claws clicking against the wood floors, the young drake could not help but wonder. “Hadari seemed surprised.”

Twilight hopped off her chair and moved to stand next to her assistant. “Learning about new Alicorns and the ability to evolve into one can be shocking.”

“No. I mean,” Spike paused to ponder his next words. Trying to understand what even he, himself, was about to imply. “He seemed surprised at the thought of just two more Alicorns in the world. Not three.”

“What are you getting at, Spike?” Twilight asked, an increasing amount of concern festering at the young drake’s words.

“When Luna first returned, we believed her to be just Nightmare Moon, not the younger sister of Princess Celestia.” Spike began walking toward the kitchen to place the dirty dishes in the sink, with a very weary Twilight trotting behind him. “Only Discord and Sombra had any inkling that the two were related and each time, they were the enemies of the royal siblings. Now what do those two have in common?”

The question was simple, holding no challenge to the well learned Princess. “They each posed a threat over a thousand years ago, Spike.”

“And~?” Spike gave Twilight a serious look, urging to think more outside the box.

“They each were cruel and manipulative tyrants whose abilities were dark and…twisted.” Twilight found herself ground to halt at her own words.

“See?” They had reached the kitchen during their talk and Spike was placing the dishes into the sink. “What about Hadari? Sure he saved the CMC, but does that actually mean he’s on our side?”

“I see what you’re saying Spike, but we can’t just assume the worst in Hadari based on two prior examples. And besides that, you forgot one very important thing.”

“What’s that?”

“In every instance, a tyrant has returned and immediately caused trouble to all of pony kind. Hadari has been living in the forest since, probably, before we arrived on the night of Nightmare Moon’s return.” Twilight began making her way back toward her room. “And he made it very clear at the Hospital that just wanted to be left alone.”

“Hmmm, I guess.” Spike conceded. “But we should still keep an eye out. Just in case.”

Twilight released a sigh, drained from the search for the CMC and using her magic to tend to the injured wolf. “Alright, Spike, we’ll deal with it in the morning.” She released a tired yawn, the events of the day catching up to her. “Right now, I can’t think on what to do when I’m tired.”

Spike found himself yawning as well. “Okay, Twi.” The two tired librarians entered into their room and readied for the morning, unaware of the entity watching them.

“Make…me…whole…”