Oh look, Equestria

**Oh look, Equestria

Chapter 13 - To the Falls!**

After finishing my morning routine as well as filling my belly, I gathered my saddlebags and headed for the door. I walked through the market with a silent snarl on my face and a heavy step. Ponies around me exchanged confused glances with their friends, stepping out of my way

Why was I angry? I was late. I was ten minutes late, and I was in a rush to get to me and Silverwind's meeting place outside town hall. You may be thinking to yourself, 'But it's only ten minutes, what's so bad about that?' Though I'd normally agree, it doesn't help when the train we were meant to be catching was due two minutes ago, the next one not being for another seventeen. And if there was one thing that stayed true about Equestria, it was that the trains were on time, every time. They never stayed in the station for more than a minute before departing again

I took the last corner I needed, instantly setting my gaze on the town hall. I let out a sigh of relief, thankful that I was finally there. 'Right, now where is she...?' I squinted, looking around the various buildings for any sign of Silverwind. She was nowhere to be seen. Scowling, I made my way over to the town hall and turned to gaze the way I came from. There was still no sign of her

"Agh, maybe she isn't here yet..." I muttered to myself, sitting down and committing myself to waiting

"Maybe who isn't here yet?" A familiar voice sounded from above me

"Motherfucker!" I jumped out of my skin, devolving into a coughing fit. Silverwind was lazily hovering in the air, a confused and concerned expression adorning her face. She had her own set of saddlebags on, as well as a pair of sunglasses adorning her face

"Hmm..." She tapped her chin before shrugging. "Sorry, I don't think I know any 'motherfucker'." I chuckled

"Hey, Silverwind. Sorry I'm late." Silverwind smiled, landing in front of me and folding her wings

"It's fine. Had a bit of a weird morning I take it?"

"Not so much weird. Just hectic, I suppose." I sighed, rolling my eyes. She nodded sagely, a knowing look on her face.

"Believe me, considering the stuff I've heard about the elements, I'm not that shocked. Anyways, how are you?"

"All things considered, I think I'm alright," I sighed wistfully. "So, when's the next train due?" Silverwind's eyes shot open wide.

"Oh crap! The train!" She whirled around in the direction of the train station, taking to the air. "Come on, let's get a move on!" She shouted to me before shooting off, leaving a slightly perturbed me behind.

"Uh... Sure, I'm right behind you!" I shouted after her, laughing to myself. Without further adieu, I got up and walked towards the station.

I met up with Silverwind just as she was buying her ticket. She noticed me and stepped off to the side, allowing the ticket master to address me, looking to me with a smile.

"Rainbow Falls sir?" I nodded. "Okay, one shroud car ticket comin' right up! That'll be 10 bits." I gave the girl at the counter the relevant money, grabbing my ticket with a wing. "Have a lovely trip sir!" I gave her a smile, walking back over to Silverwind. I got into the range of normal conversation before speaking up.

"Got my ticket, but what's a shroud car?" Silverwind just winked suspiciously at me.

"You'll see..." She muttered quietly before climbing aboard. 'The hell is that supposed to mean?' I mused, shrugging internally and following suit.

As soon as I shut the door behind me, I was met with complete darkness. I strained my eyes but failed to see even an inch in front of me. 'It's no use, I can't see shit...' With a thought, I changed my eyes back to what was normal for a Thestral. I once again gaining my night vision capabilities and allowing me to get a good look at the train car.

The walls were a simple purple felt, with dark wood trim, tinted black windows and bereft of any lights. The seats were made of the same wood, though they looked to be more like benches than anything. The cushions were a deep red colour, matching the carpet. I let out a low whistle as I walked towards Silverwind, admiring the admittedly very nice set up.

We weren't the only ones in the train car and for the first time since coming here, I saw more Thestrals. Oddly enough, they reminded me a lot of humans.

Their coats were different to one of a Pony. While Ponies sported every different colour of the rainbow, these guys were limited to different shades of brown and grey. Not that I had any problem with that, I was a Human after all. I came from a place where skin tones were far and few between. The nostalgia was nice, enough that it brought a smile to my face.

Silverwind got my attention with a sharp clearing of her throat, causing my head to whirl around in her direction. She was now bereft of sunglasses and instead sporting a deadpan look. I gave her a sheepish smile.

"Sorry, was just admiring the decor... Did you say something?" She rolled her eyes and repeated herself.

"I said, how were you able to walk around in the day time without melting your brain?"

"Oh, I just change my eyes if I'm up in the day time. Only draw back is that I've gotta change them back at night, otherwise I can't see a thing." Silverwind grumbled to herself at this, crossing her forelegs and muttering something about me being lucky under her breath. I couldn't help but chuckle. "So, what's so special about this car apart from it being dark as sin?" Silverwind perked up, pointing to the bench opposite her.

"Sit your plot down and I'll tell you."

"...My what?"

"Your butt."

"Oh." I climbed up with care and laid my 'plot' down on the plush and comfortable bench cushion. I shifted around a little, trying to find a comfortable position. I winced as I rested on a sore spot.

"These carts are designed with the more... Sensitive species of Equestria in mind. Ergo, Thestrals. The walls are sound proofed to protect our ears. Mainly from the train whistle more than anything, and as you can plainly tell it's dark in here to help with our eyes." I gave a slow nod.

"Well, it's good to know that the train companies are looking out for others." I then heard the train whistle blow and felt the telltale pull of a train starting its journey, slowly chugging along the tracks. Silverwind smiled at me.

"Rainbow Falls, here we come!" Her happy expression suddenly disappeared, replaced with a soft frown. "Princess Luna told me about your little party with the alpha, what in Night's name were you thinking?!" 'Crap. Time to be honest.'

"I don't know... Silverwind, I'm an angry person as it stands, and everything that's happened hasn't made that any better. On top of that, when the alpha showed up everything just hit the fan so fast..." I stamped a hoof into the cushion, grinding it in anger. "I lost control of the situation." Silverwind gave me a concerned look, not really wanting to delve deeper into the subject in a public place. She leaned forward to lay a foreleg on the table.

"I understand, just remember that I'm here if you want to talk, okay? Just... Be more careful." She offered me a weak smile, one which I returned "How are your ribs doing, by the way?" I was thankful for the change in topic.

"Not as bad as yesterday, surprisingly. Still hurt like hell though. I get the occasional pain when walking or moving too quickly, but it's only momentary." Silverwind nodded, leaning back and flaring her wings, I raised a brow at this.

"Have you tried flexing your wing muscles?" I shook my head, causing her to sigh and roll her eyes. "Of course you haven't... Give it a try. Just unfurl them slowly, you don't want to do it too fast in case of bruising." I took that advice in mind, slowly extending my wings to their full extent. "Give them a few test flaps, not too hard." I did as she instructed, garnering a few jolts of dull throbbing now and again.

"There's a little pain." I then slowly increased the power of my flaps, the pain growing as I went. I soon had to stop, closing my wings with a hiss. I sighed, shaking my head dejectedly. "Looks like I'm not flying anywhere anytime soon." Silverwind's frown deepened slightly as she jumped from her bench seat, trotting over to me. She gave me a few taps on the side, gesturing me to move my ass before climbing up next to me.

"Extend your wings. Slowly." I did so with a raised brow.

"What are you doing?" Silverwind lightly held my wing with her foreleg.

"Basic medical training in The Lunar Guard. Princess Luna has an expectation of her guards to be capable of patching themselves up." She brought her free hoof up, poking and prodding at various points on my side. "Tell me if you feel any discomfort at all." I winced as Silverwind touched a sore spot, grunting and making various incomprehensible sounds.

"Right there." She nodded, bringing her hoof just under the base of my wing, poking it lightly. My eyes widened as a sharp lance of pain shot through me, causing me to take a sharp inhale of air. "Oof... That's unpleasant..." Silver withdrew her hooves quickly.

"Sorry. You have pretty bad bruising around the base of your wing, that's where all the important flight muscles are. Stay out of the air for a while and the bruising should go down quickly. Just make sure to leave it alone." I nodded, returning my wings to my sides.

"Don't worry about it. Thanks for checking." Silverwind smiled.

"You're welcome." She hopped off the bench to return to her own seat. "The falls are absolutely gorgeous! You're going to love it." I chuckled at her enthusiasm.

"It's going to be an experience, that's for sure."

Two hours later we felt the train grinding to a halt. The passengers around us all folded up their news papers, downed their drinks and started their departure with me and Silverwind not far behind. Silverwind slipped her glasses on as we were walking towards the exit, shoving second a pair onto my muzzle. I gave the glasses a quizzical glance. "Not that I don't appreciate it, but what are these for?" I asked. She shrugged, giving me a lopsided smile.

"It'll save you messing with your eyes again," she explained. 'Eyes of the Tiger over here.'

"Risin' up, back on the street... Did my time, took my chances..." I sang quietly to myself, completely aware that my compadre would hear me. Silverwind's ear flicked, a confused expression on her face.

"Huh?"

"Human song." Silverwind rolled her eyes.

"Why do I get the feeling that's going to be happening a lot?"

"I'll make sure to keep my alien references on the low, but I must warn you; I'm into my music." I gave her a smirk.

Upon entering the outside world once more, one thing became very apparent. I quickly learnt why the place was dubbed 'Rainbow Falls'. Almost instantly my gaze was fixed to the sky, my jaw dropped at the sight. High above were huge wispy clouds, liquid rainbows pouring down from them. The falls flowed all the way down to the floor and accumulating in large ponds, mixing with the water to create a wild, psychedelic looking mixture. We were on the the outskirts of what appeared to be a small colourful town, a guard outpost was situated directly to our left, with various gift shops and diners a few hundred yards in front of us. Lots of ponies were milling about, going about their days with content smiles on their faces. Silverwind breathed in the fresh air, sighing in content.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" I was lost for words. This place was amazing! I wouldn't even know that we were on a mountain if it weren't for the sheer drops surrounding us. Grass grew in abundance, birds were singing and chirping away and the air was crisp and cool.

"Equestria once again doesn't cease to amaze me... So, where to first?" Silverwind gestured to a path on our left, leading to a higher point of the falls.

"We're going up there. First thing's first though, let's go into town and pick up some food and drinks." We entered the town proper, weaving past ponies big and small. "Hey, Tom?" Silver asked as we entered a clearing. I smiled at her use of my real name as I usually only hear it around Twilight and Spike.

"What's up?"

"I'm gonna go get us some sandwiches, can you get some stuff from down the street there?"

"Sure, what do you need me to pick up?"

"We'll need some sunblock and towels. You can pick them up from Ponysentials, the big two story building with a purple roof." Her eyes sparkled and her mouth watered. "Oh! Can you go to the baker's and get two caramel cream surprises, please?" She reached back into her saddlebags, pulling out a small sack of money. I waved her off, laughing softly.

"Don't worry about it, I've got it covered." Silverwind's ears splayed back..

"But you forked out 500 bits last time..." Her voice was slightly muffled through the burlap.

"Yeah, but that was my own prerogative to give the barman that much. Seriously, I don't mind." Eventually Silverwind relented, placing the bag back in her saddlebags. "Meet back here in 10?" She nodded, giving me a small smile in return and disappearing to collect our supplies. I walked the opposite way, getting a feel for my surroundings. Despite the amount of ponies around, it was nice and quiet

I opted to go to this 'Ponysentials' first, saving the bakery for last. I entered the store, instantly my senses were bombarded by the smell of perfumes and air fresheners. Taking a glance around, my worries were confirmed. What met my eyes was pure horror, pink frilly things lined the walls wherever I looked, ladies serving samples to each other on every aisle.

I was in a girly shop.

I hated girly shops.

Sighing, I resigned to my fate. Putting on a brave face and approaching a staff member. She was petite earth pony, sporting a cream coat and lavender mane and tail, filled with care products and tied back with a matching head band. Her eyes were blue, highlighted by similar eyeliner to that of Rarity's, and her cutie mark was a lavender flower. The mare smiled as I approached.

"Why hello sir! My name is Vera. May I be of assistance?"

"Yes please, can you point me in the direction of your sunblock and towels? Oh, and do you have any anti-inflammatory cream?" I rubbed the back of my head in slight embarrassment. "I'm sorry, Ms. Vera, but I can't read pony script..." Vera gave me a knowing look.

"Of course, it would be my pleasure. Me and my sisters, Aloe and Lotus were also foreign to Equestria. Mr?" 'Aloe and Lotus, I've heard those names before... Come to think of it, she looks familiar.' I discarded my train of thought and gave Vera a relieved smile.

"Thank you very much. Just Sharpshooter is fine, Ms. Vera."

"Very well, Sharpshooter. Please, follow me."

A few minutes later and I had what I needed. My saddlebags were loaded with the supplies, as well as a little something for myself. I also picked up a couple bottles of water just to be on the safe side. Meeting the bakery's owner was an experience in itself, he was a Gryphon! They weren't exactly what I was expecting them to be, nothing like Earth's mythology. Even so, a Gryphon! His name was apparently 'Gustav', and he spoke in a pompous French accent. Needless to say, I got fed up with him rather quickly. Not that I had anything against French people, just pompous assholes.

Walking back through the marketplace, I found Silverwind rather quickly. She gave me a broad smile as I approached, her saddlebags noticeably larger and a picnic basket at her hooves.

"Welcome back. You find your way around alright?"

"Yeah, I had to stop someone on the way though. Oh, you'll never guess what just happened!" She cocked her head in curiosity. "I met a Gryphon! A freaking Gryphon!" Silverwind tutted, shaking her head in amusement.

"You mean Gustav? He's nothing special. A bit of a grouch, come to think of it."

"Hmph!" I stuck my nose up in the air. "I'll have you know that Gryphons are very prominent in human subculture and mythology. T'was truly a spectacle for me to gaze upon such a magnificent beast." My brows then furrowed. "Wait, does that sound gay? I'm not too sure... Gryphons were said to be nothing more than animals in mythology." Silverwind giggled.

"A little. Are you ready to go?" I nodded. "Alright then, off we go."

We walked out of town, ascending a trail that lead higher up the mountain. As we walked the winding path I took time to appreciate the atmosphere. Wildlife of all shapes and sizes milled about, chirping and mewling happily to one another. A curious squirrel approached us, gazing up at me with its tiny eyes and sniffing the air attentively. I smirked down at the little guy.

"Sorry buddy, I know what you're after, and it's not gonna happen." I knew talking to animals was absurd in its own right but everyone's done it before. What I didn't plan on was the squirrel to actually pout angrily, crossing his tiny arms and stomping away. My eyes widened as I stared at the retreating animal in sheer disbelief. 'That... That fucking squirrel... It just...'

"You big meanie!" Silverwind exclaimed, reaching into my saddlebags to remove one of her caramel cream treats. "Mr. Squirrel! Here, you can have some of mine!" The squirrel whirled around on a dime, beaming a winning smile and running back over. Quicker than I could even blink, the Squirrel had snatched up the treat and shoved it down his throat in one bite. It made for a comical effect, his throat stretched perfectly around the over sized food item. He then blew a raspberry at me before hugging Silver's leg and scampering off up a tree, disappearing from view.

My sanity eroded as I looked on, my jaw hanging open comically. I managed to shake it off enough to form a coherent response.

"No. So much no that it's not even funny." I shook my head in denial, walking up the slope at a brusque pace. Silverwind had to increase her pace in response, giving me a confused look.

"What's wrong? It was just a Squirrel." I kept my eyes firm, my will unwavering.

"Squirrels don't understand people. It just doesn't happen. Animals don't act like that. Sure, they pout and act cute unknowingly, but that little... Demon, acted like a thinking creature."

"You seem to forget that this isn't your world. Things obviously work differently between the two. In fact, it's rather odd that we're extremely similar in the first place," she informed me factually. I sighed explosively.

"You're telling me." Suddenly my ears perked up to something off in the distance, the sound was odd. It was like static from a TV, mixed with the sound of battle drums. I mused on what could have been making such a racket as we turned the last corner to our destination.

For the second time today, I was blown away by what stood before me. We entered a huge grove, plants of almost every colour littered the ground with animals frolicking in the underbrush. We were totally enclosed by trees on either side, with a large circular clearing in the middle. I spared but a glance to these, opting to instead stare at the monstrous waterfall in front of me. The cliff face must have been at least 80 ft tall, pouring its contents into medium sized, deep lake. The sun reflected off the spray of the falls as it crashed from the rocks, creating a permanent rainbow over the lake.

"My god..."

"Uh huh. I was like that the first time I saw this place too." I mumbled something incoherently, my jaw flapping like a fish out of water. Silverwind laughed, coming up behind me and pushing me to the water's edge, gesturing to my saddlebags. "Do you mind if I get the stuff?"

"Uh... Yeah sure, go right ahead..." I nodded dumbly, transfixed on the grove. I eventually came down from my high, giving my attention back to my friend. Silverwind had the towels all set up a few feet from the water's edge, as well as a parasol over head. She squirted some sunblock onto a hoof.

I took the towel next to her, picking up my own bottle and getting to lathering myself up. 'Does this stuff even work with fur?' I laughed internally as I finished coating my forelegs and face. I squirted some more sunblock onto a hoof, reaching around to do my back. Sadly, my forelegs were incapable of reaching. I looked to Silverwind and noticed she was encountering the same problem. She was grunting in annoyance, contorting her body every which way to try and smear the sunblock on her back. When she noticed my bemused look her face flushed red in embarrassment.

"Don't look at me like that! It's harder that it looks you know!"

"Need a little help?" A chuckle escaped my lips as she once again tried to reach her back, succeeding only in losing her balance and face planting into the towel. Silverwind's blush intensified as she groaned into her towel, nodding her head in defeat. I scooted over to her, starting to rub the sunblock in as she hissed in pain, causing me to recoil my hooves quickly.

"Ow! Not so hard!" Silver barked, shuffling uncomfortably.

"Sorry, I'm not used to using these things for anything like this-" A light bulb went off above me, sparking an ingenious idea. "Hang on... If I just..." I concentrated my magic, picturing the perfect tools for a time like this. It was a moment later and I had accomplished my goal. I looked to my new appendages, taking in their splendor. I had hands again. They were furry and gray, but all awesome. I smiled. "That's much better."

"Wha- Oh... That is much better..." Silverwind groaned in content as I massaged the sunblock into her coat, making sure to get every last spot. Didn't want an angry Thestral after me over a sunburn, after all. Silverwind looked to be enjoying her borderline massage, humming happily to herself. I finished up, pulling my hands away despite Silverwind's protests. "Aw, did you have to stop?" I laughed to myself.

"All done, sorry to disappoint." I brought my hands ups, wiggling my fingers. "Fingers, baby!" Silverwind looked up, her brow furrowing.

"That's just creepy." She picked herself up, rotating towards me. "Turn around and sit down." I chuckled as she got to work on me, rubbing the cold liquid into my coat. It was oddly refreshing, having such a dark coat made you a magnet for the sun. "So, I was wondering..."

"Hmm?" I raised a brow.

"How are you holding up with all this?"

"Surprisingly, pretty good." I let out a sigh as Silverwind finished, nodding to her in thanks. "Twilight can be a little grating at times, and frankly her friends down right annoy me to no end." She cocked her head.

"Why?"

"Their personalities, their quirks, they're just not the people I can get along with. They're always trying to rope me into this and that. Although saying that, the blue one, Rainbow Dash, she isn't that bad. A bit childish, but I can tell she's got a good heart."

"Oh come on, aren't you being a little harsh? They haven't don't anything wrong to you."

"No, they haven't. And you're right, I should stop giving them a hard time" I mused, Silverwind nodding in approval.

"How about day to day? How are you adjusting?"

"Not well. It's difficult, you know?" She nodded, motioning me to continue. "It's just... Every day I'm trying to adapt, change to a new way of life. The culture shock isn't as bad as I first thought it'd be, but it's still there. I find interacting with ponies the hardest. Just yesterday I got a slap from Twilight."

"What for?"

"I was bored, so I had a little fun on her expense in the form of poking her relentlessly, that soon went south as I touched a certain spot on her wing. Turns out it's a 'no no' zone. Of course I had no idea and that earned me a red cheek. I don't blame her though, I understand where she's coming from." Silverwind burst into laughter, slapping a hoof on the floor.

"You didn't!" I laughed along with her, seeing the humor in it.

"I sure did. Crap like that happens to me almost every day. The social awkwardness that just grates on somebody's nerves to no end. On top of that, I've got my own morals bearing down on me, screaming at me to get my shit together already. All the while my stress and anger are just building. It's getting tougher to keep my lid on." I shook my head. "I'm gonna be honest, I don't want to ruin the mood talking about my problems." Silverwind let out a sigh, looking to me with determination in her eyes.

"Okay, but will you promise me something?"

"I don't make promises I can't keep, Silver."

"Me neither. Just promise me you'll tell me what's really bothering you eventually, please?"

"You're really caring, you know that?" I smiled sadly. Silverwind looked like I had just offended her.

"Of course I am! Listen, after everything that happened in my life there was one thing I was always missing. That was a real friend, somepony I could talk to, somepony who would listen to me. Princess Luna helped me through some of my problems when she returned, but she was always more of a royal figure than a friend to me. Then that night when me and you shared our stories, I felt like we bonded. You're one of the few, er... Individuals, I've been able to call a true friend. I know what it's like to keep your emotions bottled up, and it worries me knowing that you have a problem but you're not willing to talk about it. You may be dealing with it fine on your own now, but it'll only get worse the longer you put it off." I stared into Silverwind's eyes for a while, completely dumbfounded.

"I... I don't know what to say..." Silverwind looked away in embarrassment.

"Too much?" I shook my head vigorously.

"No, no! It's just, I had no idea you felt so strongly. Thank you Silverwind, that really touched me." I gave her a warm smile. "And I promise, I'll tell you." Silverwind looked back to me, smiling faintly.

"Okay, good."

A silence fell over us as we both gazed at the falls, mesmerized by the torrents of water crashing against the rocks. I decided to speak up, breaking the relative silence.

"You know, I felt the same way about you. Like we connected."

"I'm glad." Her smile grew as she brushed her hair to the side, speaking in a soft voice.

"So how are things for you? How's the day to day life of Silverwind?"

"Things are good, though kinda hectic at the moment. There's a big mission we're going on soon, me and a few others have been selected for it." Silverwind sighed. "So much paperwork! Dossiers, briefings, the whole shebang. As for my day to day? There's not much to tell. I get home, make myself a hot chocolate and just relax." It was my turn to be concerned.

"Don't you talk to anyone? It must get boring just sitting at home every day." Silverwind rolled her eyes.

"Don't be silly! Of course I talk to ponies, in fact I visit Ms. Lyra and Bon Bon quite frequently for tea. They're nice ponies, always willing to help out and listen." 'Well, that was stupid of me to assume she's a loner'.

"It's good to know you have others to call friend too." I smiled warmly, walking to the lake's edge and staring contently into the crystal depths. I dipped an experimental hoof into the water, the temperature drop sent a shiver through me, it was perfect. I didn't even notice the dark figure stalking up from behind me. "Hey, Silver, fancy a swi-AHH!"

*SPLASH*

I broke the surface of the water with a gasp, moving the obstructing mane from my vision with a deft flick of the head. Silverwind was still on shore, laughing her ass off at me. I joined in the laughter, pointing an accusing hoof at her.

"You pushed me!" Silverwind gasped in mock surprise, holding a hoof to her chest.

"Moi? It was only a nudge, you just embellished it. Oh, and Tom? Cannon ball!" My eyes widened as I scrabbled fruitlessly to get away. Silverwind jumped, rolling up into a ball and splashing down right next to me, sending a large wave of water crashing down onto me. She broke the water not a second later, clearing her vision and smirking at me.

"I'll get you..." My eyes narrowed

"You'll have to catch me first!" She smirked playfully, giggling madly and swimming away.

I lost track of time of how long we swam, messing around and splashing each other. Silverwind would sometimes fly a ways up the falls, dive bombing me from a rock high above. It took me a while to get the hang of swimming with hooves, and even then I stood no chance at catching her. Eventually Silverwind had to drag me back on shore, the pain in my chest making it near impossible to swim back myself. After drying ourselves off, Silverwind checked the time. Her eyes widened in shock.

"Holy smokes, it's 6 o clock!" I gazed up at Silverwind in confusion as I applied some anti-inflammatory cream to my chest.

"So? What's the problem?"

"The last train to Ponyville leaves in ten minutes!" My eyes widened slightly at the prospect, we'd have to hurry. 'Although it wouldn't be so bad to be stuck here.'

"Alright, just calm down. We'll pack up now and make our way back to the station. It shouldn't take too long." Silverwind nodded, rushing into action and haphazardly cramming everything back into our bags.

The next few minutes flew by in a blur, Silverwind was apparently not pleased with my speed and opted to fly me there herself, grabbing me around the midsection like she was hugging a barrel. We touched down at the station not a moment too soon, giving our tickets to the conductor and being ushered on board just as the doors were closing. The train ride passed in silence, Silverwind had fallen asleep not long after we took our seats, I was content with not bothering her. Upon our arrival to Ponyville I nudged my friend awake.

"Hey, Silver, up and at 'em, this is our stop." She grumbled in response, reluctantly getting to her hooves and following me off the train. Looking around the streets of Ponyville I saw a few ponies dotted around, packing away their wares for the day and heading off home. We stopped outside the inn where Silverwind was staying, she turned to address me.

"Thanks for coming today, I really needed that"

"You and me both, I enjoyed it." Silverwind chuckled, giving me a warm smile.

"Any time! I'd love to stay and chat but I'm on patrol duty tomorrow, and I want to try and get as much sleep in as possible." I waved her off.

"Don't worry about it, I'll see you later" Silverwind nodded, returning the gesture and slipping into the inn, closing the door behind her. I sighed to myself, a part of me dreading going back to the library.

I had to pull my finger out already, I needed to get my Equestrian life on track. 'Aren't you being a little harsh?' Silverwind's words echoed in my ears. The truth was, now that I thought about it; I was. I've been acting quite dickish towards Twilight and her friends, it was time I made up for it. I nodded to myself, smiling. With new-found fervor, striding towards the library, another day in Pony-hell over.