Bound by Harmony

Amelia raised her hands up in a defensive stance as the angry blue energy washed over her, burning fur and flesh. She bit back a cry as the attack came again and again. It was no longer a wide stream of energy but now it was a whip, slashing through the air and striking Amelia's arms. With each violent lashing Reina let out an enraged shriek, becoming blind in her fury.

Having been roused from their sleep the rest of the group came stumbling out from the house to where the source of the disturbance came from, to see Reina lashing out at Amelia.

"Reina! What're you doing?!?", cried Twilight.

The pale weaver paid them no mind and continued her assault, switching from a whip to bringing down a heavy hit of magic like a fist. She was putting everything into her offensive magic, intensifying its output until it singed her nails. She was not holding back at all.

"Are you mad?! Amelia, get her to stop already! What're you-"

Amelia cut of Raine's words with a hard glare and a strong voice.

"Leave her be!"

They all gave her a curious stare at her words.

As the attack continued they could see the burns on Amelia's arms growing in size, the woman wincing with each blow that landed. They all knew she had within her the power to stop this senseless fight, she could even win if she so desired. She could easily retaliate and overpower the madwoman in a fluttering of a hummingbird's wing beat. And yet...she stayed her hand.

Tears were still falling from Reina's eyes, her teeth grit in fury as she flung her magic at Amelia. She stopped long enough to charge her magics, concentrating all of it into her palm until it crackled wildly on her finger tips. Her hair danced with the currents of energy spiraling around and her jewelry clinked noisily.

With a cry of effort Reina released the gathered powers and hurled the ray at Amelia, her eyes wide with unbridled rage as her voice screamed for Amelia to die.

Time seemed to slow down as Amelia waited for the attack to come. She put her arms down and rolled her head over her shoulders, cracking her joints and groaning in annoyance.

'Ah hate this part.....', she thought to herself.

Taking in a deep breath she opened her mouth wide and took the hit directly, devouring the huge burst of magic as it came. Everyone watched in frozen horror as they witnessed Amelia swallow Reina's attack. Even Reina herself gave pause to her madness as she saw what the mare had done.

As it neared its end Amelia craned her head in order to fully take in the power. The enormity of the blast lit up the night sky as if it were a small supernova. Amelia stood there with full cheeks as everyone looked on. With effort, she swallowed it down, grimacing as if she were drinking cod liver oil. The arch of her throat bobbed when she swallowed, letting out a Smokey belch as she patted her chest.

"Gugh! Awful stuff, that."

The entire lot stared on with their mouths gaping open and wide, disbelieving eyes.

"How did-", Twilight sputtered.

Before she could explain, Reina tackled Amelia to the ground. The two tumbled over each other until they stopped back out in the clearing. Reina had Amelia pinned beneath her and had her hands at her throat, breathing heavily through clenched teeth.

"I hate you! I hate you! I HATE YOU!!!!", she screamed.

With a grunt of frustration Reina tore the choker from her neck and brought it up for Amelia to see, nearly striking her square on the nose in the process.

"Do you still not remember? Does nothing come to mind? Does it?!?"

She let the simple accessory fall from her hand and reared her arm back.

Amelia never flinched, didn't even brace herself for the blow that came down onto her face from the weaver's small fist. She just let it happen, blow after blow after infuriated blow.

"Fight, damn you! Strike back! Stop playing 'coward' and fight back, you BEAST!!!"

After one last blow Reina leaned over Amelia's battered face, bracing her weight on her arms with each of her hands near the sides of Amelia's face. Her tears stopped for the time being, a slim sheen of sweat forming on her brow. Her long violet tresses fell over the sides of her face and formed a curtain, narrowing her line of sight like blinders.

Amelia stared straight into Reina's eyes, ignoring the throbbing in her cheek. A thought comes to her mind and she reaches out a tentative hand towards the disgruntled weaver still straddling her. Reina flinches but does not back down from the approaching appendage. Instead of settling over a pale cheek Amelia brought her hand up to Reina's forehead and with her index finger, she pressed the tip of the mare's horn inward as if pressing a switch. Her ears flicked as Reina let out a sneeze.

The farmer's eyes widen in realization, seeing as how she just proved her theory.

"I-It's you....the wee lass Ah took from that marauder!"

Seeing the realization in the farmers' eyes, Reina let out a shaky breath as her lower lip quivered. Twilight and everyone hung onto the scene unfurling in front of them as Reina broke down in tears again, wailing as she fell over Amelia and latched her arms around her neck. She cried harder as a patient hand caressed her hair.

"You....left me! You left me all alone! Why?! Why did you leave me?! You promised me, damn you Amelia!"

She sobbed into the farmer's chest as she clung to her. Amelia's ears drooped at hearing the painful words that came from her mouth, the sting of such raw honesty making her heart quiver in pain. She closed her eyes and encircled her arms around the slim woman on top of her, running one hand down her back in stroking motions as her other hand held Reina to her bosom. Everyone and everything was still for a time until Amelia decided they had been out too long. She'd have to return here later, right now all she wanted was a few pints of ale and a good nap. Seeing how things were, however, she'd have to have a talk with everyone first.

"Come on then, back to the house we go. And as soon as you lot get yer jaws back up from the ground, Ah'll explain this all in its entirety."

As she tried to get up on her arms a small squeak of protest held her back, making her groan out and fall back down.

"If'n Ah'm allowed to get up that is."

Fauna flinched audibly as she wrapped the bandage around one of Amelia's burnt arms. While the balm served to calm the irritation it didn't stop the huge blisters from forming, nor did it stop them from bursting as she tried to work around them. Reina stood on the other side of Amelia's seat and worked on the other arm, her ears drooped and her eyes hidden with her mane in shame. Amelia had a thick branch clenched between her teeth as the two mares worked on her wounds. With each touch and each burst of a blister she let out a hissing growl and bit down a swear.

"Well....That was dramatic.", Twilight said as she cleaned off her glasses.

Raine and Diana were playing a game of poker on the table as the others shuffled about tending to Amelia.

"It explains why the priss was hell-bent on coming with us. Gimme three."

Diana took the discarded pile and dealt three over to Raine.

"That was uber scary! I don't think I've ever seen Reina THAT angry before, not counting the time an arrow messed up her hair! Flush!"

Diana spread her cards out onto the table and revealed a full hand of clovers. Raine swore and slapped her cards down as the pink haired girl giggled and gathered the cards.

Twilight brought her chair around and addressed both Amelia and Reina, with a relieved Fauna cleaning up the mess made by binding her arms.

"So....what happened all that time ago between the two of you?"

Amelia ran a tired hand through her blonde hair and looked towards the pale skinned weaver sitting beside her. She was clutching the leather choker to her chest dearly and looking away like a scolded child. Without needing further bidding Amelia spoke.

"It was about eight years ago that we met. I was but lass of fifteen then......"

Lightning cracked loudly across the skies and thunder boomed overhead as a heavy rainfall fell over the land. Whether it was day or if it was night was hard to tell. Deep in the confines of an underground cellar soft crying could be heard in the shadows, with only a single torch to light the damp area. Inside the cellar an older stallion was appraising his latest catch while putting a wooden chest down among his stored parcels; it was a small weaver child with a white horn and azure gems glistening on her right hip curled against a pile of straw, chained at the ankle to the wall. He left the chest forgotten and approached her trembling frame, scratching his chest as he bent down in front of her.

He lifted her chin up with a harsh jerk and looked over her features. She was fighting back a dry heave as he breathed on her, reeking of ale and sweat. He grinned a rotten smile and laughed.

"Oh-ho-ho-hooo! I caught me a rare one, I did! Wonder what the goin' price is fer a beauty like you, mah dear."

The girl whimpered and twisted her face away from his snout, feeling sick and suffocated. He loomed over her until he pinned her to the stone cold wall of the cellar. Nothing but the rain dripping in and the girls whimpers could be heard.

"Puh....p-please let m-me go...."

She was silenced with a cruel back hand across her cheek from the male, the force from it splitting her lip and making her cry out.

"SHUT YER 'OLE!!! I say what happens to ya, hear me?!"

He shook her roughly by the collar of her dress as he yelled. She nodded her head obediently and kept her face turned away. Though she could not see his face, the young girl felt his hands tug at her front. She snapped her eyes open as he tugged her collar lower, looking into the top of her dress.

"So it's true, girls do grow faster then boys. And from the looks of it, dearie, you're growin' a little too fast. Ooh, I bet I'll fetch a fine price from Sombra. He's been needin' a new flower to......."

With a fierce pull he tore her top apart, making the fabric hiss violently in his hands as the girl screamed a pleading wail. He licked his lips crudely and grinned again.

".....pluck."

The girl began to squirm and beg, crying out for her mama and papa as she kicked fruitlessly against the bigger male. He pinned her down with both her wrists in his one hand as the other went to unbuckle his belt.

"Nothin' wrong with samplin' a bit o' honey, eh dearie?"

As his drawers came down, so did a wooden chest over his head. The thing broke into splinters as it came down once, twice four times more before the shrouded assailant stopped long enough to notice he was out. For good.

The girl looked up from where she was left, hearing hoofs crunch against the floor of the cellar, and saw the second person step into the little bit of light.

It was a mare with tanned skin and long blonde hair, clad in nothing more then a farming tunic, slacks and a dirty brown mantle standing there, a disgusted scowl on her freckled face as she stood over the stallion's body. The chest she used to fell him cracked the skin on her knuckles and fingers, leaving red scrapes in their wake.

"Next time you decide to pilfer a chest from another's cart, make sure there be no one inside, ya ass!"

She kicked at the body and spat at it, her snout scrunched up in disgust. Her ear twitched and her green eyes fell on the little girl still cowering against the stone wall. Carefully the mare made her way over to the girl, holding out her hands and whispering to her.

"Easy there now, lass. Ah ain't gonna hurt ya none. Ah'm jus' gonna get that chain off yer leg."

She came to kneel in front of the frightened child. Their eyes were locked as she reached down with steady hands to the anchor fastening the chain to the stone floor. Never letting her eyes leave the weaver child the blonde mare broke the chain and let it fall away from the pale leg it was once holding.

"Do ya have a name, sugarcube?", she spoke softly.

The girl spoke out a shaky whisper, "R-Reina."

"T'is a fine name fer ya, lass. I'm Amelia. My older brother and younger sister call me Ames fer short, so you can too if'n ya like."

Amelia smiled gently at her then and reached out to her with a careful hand.

"Come on then, help me spruce this place up a bit so that we can weather this rain storm."

Reina looked at her in uncertainty, but she still reached out with a trembling hand and took hold of Amelia's warm and rough hand.

"We spent the next five years traveling together after that fateful night.....until she decided to abandon me, that is! Repairing your gladius, my left flank!"

Amelia groaned for the thousandth time and turned to a sulking Reina.

"I did not abandon ya, woman! I left ya in the care of Mac and granny! Sure as if ah stayed there and took care o' ya myself."

"You promised to stay with me! That you wouldn't leave me."

"Hey uh, Ames?", chimed Raine.

"Um, Amelia.", Twilight spoke up then.

"Hm?"

Twilight scratched the back of her head as she tried to use the right words for what she had to ask.

"Not that it's any of my concern but are you and Rei-"

"Did you rut her like a bucking bronco?", Raine blurted out.

There was soul shattering silence as the question hung in the air. A muscle twitched in Amelia's cheek as Reina stood aghast. In no time at all both Reina and Amelia pounced onto Raine and gave her quite a rough up, shouting out and chastising her as she hooted and hollered in boisterous laughter.

Twilight slumped in her chair and rubbed her temples, trying to stave off an on-coming headache.

"Celeste help me.....", she groaned out.

-End