Standing the Heat

Twilight soared through the sky, her heart beating a mile a minute, tears stinging her eyes. Circling the town Twilight located her target and plummeted to the ground, skidding to a halt just in front of Richards front gate. Taking a deep breath to compose herself, Twilight tucked the scroll under her wing and opened the gate.

The place seemed eerily quiet as she walked up the garden path. On her past visits, as infrequent as they were, there were always small noises around the house, the creak of a pipe, or the hiss of a kettle, but now it was silent. It made her shiver.

Reaching the front door, Twilight knocked with a shaking hoof, desperately trying to work out what to say as she waited for the inevitable difficult discussion. Seconds pass and with no answer, Twilight knocks again. With no response, she wondered what to do next.

"Someone must have seen him," Twilight muttered, "but who?"

As if in answer, a prismatic blur past overhead, rapidly clearly clouds from the sky above.

"Hey Rainbow!" Twilight yelled, the blur quickly coming to a halt to scan the streets below her. "Over here," Twilight yelled again, waving a hoof to draw Rainbow's attention. It took a couple of seconds, but eventually Rainbow spotted her, and after only a moment, was hovering above Twilight.

"Hey, Twi, whats up?" asked Rainbow, frowning slightly as she spotted the tear stained makeup on Twi's face. "Why are you upset?"

"It's..." Twilight paused as she worked out exactly how much to tell Rainbow. "It's nothing. Have you seen Richard today at all?"

"Richard?" Rainbow eyed Twilight suspiciously, "not today. Why? Was he the one who upset you?" Twilight shook her head.

"Nopony upset me, Rainbow, I just need to find him."

"And I take it you're not going to tell me why?"

"I'm sorry, Rainbow. It's kind of private."

"Like, something to do with the bet, private?" asked Rainbow curious.

"No," said Twilight, frustrated. "Something that I really wished you'd stop asking about, private."

"Okay, Twilight, chill." Said Rainbow with a roll of her eyes. "Curiosity never hurt anyone."

Twilight opened her mouth, ready to correct Rainbow with the tale of 'Faulty Spark, the Curious,' when Rainbow interrupted her.

"Well, If you need to find Richard, word on the street is he had a 'run in' with Applejack this morning. Some even say it involved rope, though I never thought Richard was that kinky, so who knows what to believe?"

At Rainbows suggestion of Richard and Applejack being involved somehow, she felt a mild pang of an emotion she'd never felt before, and had no idea how to process.

"Thank you, Rainbow," she said, shaking her head to clear it. "Have a good afternoon."

"Will do." Rainbow grinned cheekily before her face becoming more serious. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yes," said Twilight gratefully. "But thank you for asking."

"Okay," nodded Rainbow, "But if Richard does hurt you, let me know and I'll kick his flank for you."

"Rainbow..." Twilight groaned

"Oh, and you might want to look for Applejack over near the stalls." Rainbow interrupted before beating a hasty retreat.

Twilight watched as Rainbow flew off, and let out a frustrated huff of air before turning away from Richard's house and back towards the market.

The walk to the market was short but cramped, the town filled with ponies filling their day-to-day shopping needs. Making her way through the crowd of ponies, she eventually reached the stalls selling various fruits and vegetables and there, as promised, was Applejack standing next to a wagon proudly displaying a series of glass bottles; a moderate queue of ponies in front of it waiting to be served.

Twilight paused, uncertainly if she should approach Applejack directly or wait in the queue herself. Fortunately, her questioned was answered as Applejack thanked a customer and spotted Twilight out of the corner of her eye, waving her hoof in greeting.

Blushing, and apologizing bashfully, Twilight skipped the queue and approached Applejack, the cowpony's smile quickly fading as she noticed the state of her friend.

"Twilight, are y'all okay?"

"I'm fine," said Twilight, brushing off the question with a move of her hoof.

"Hmm," Applejack hummed, unconvinced. "So what can ah do for ya?"

"A little birdie told me you might know where Richard is."

"Really?" asked Applejack, "Well ah'm afraid ah can't help ya."

"Oh," Twilight looked down at the ground gloomily. "So you don't know where he is?"

"Ah didn't say that, sugarcube. Ah just said ah couldn't help ya."

Twilight looked up.

"So you know where he is?"

"Ah do," replied Applejack. "But ah can't tell ya."

"Wait," Twilight looked hurt. "Why can't you? I really need to find him."

"Ah don't think it would be right, I imagine he'd rather ah kept it private." said Applejack.

"Do you know when he'll be back at least?" asked Twilight.

Applejack raised her hoof to her muzzle, doing her best to work out the times and distances involved.

"Ah'm not quite sure," she said after a few moments of silence. "Ah'd expect sometime today, probably late. Or maybe very early tomorrow morning."

"Are you sure?" asked Twilight, her voice strained.

"As sure as ah can be." A look of concern appeared on Applejack's face. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm fine," replied Twilight, a little too quickly. "I just need to get an important message to Richard."

"Message?" Applejack was curious. "What kind of message?"

"I... I can't tell you," Twilight stuttered. "Sorry."

"But something serious ah imagine?" Applejack asked understandingly. Twilight simply nodded in response.

"Alright, ah'll make sure to keep an eye out for him and point him in your direction if ah do." said Applejack, causing Twilight to smile gratefully.

"Thanks, Applejack. And I'll make sure to put a note through his door telling him to come to the castle as soon as he can. Between the two of us, we should catch him I guess."

Twilight turned to leave, but was stopped by a hoof on her shoulder. Turning back, slightly confused, she was quickly embraced in a hug.

"Ah know the news can't be good if it's gotten you this bothered, but ah'm sure Richard will appreciate the news coming from you."

Stepping onto the platform, a ticket clutched in his hands Richard couldn't help but admire the dark blue train in front of him. He'd seen the regular train several times, but this is the first time he'd seen the sleeper train. A recent addition, or so he'd heard from the ticket officer as he'd bought his ticket moments ago, part of the new investments from Luna's own funds.

The sleeper train was the colour of Luna's mane, the steel it was crafted from specked with small shards of a silver substance that shone like the stars in the night sky. It was a beautiful machine.

Approaching the train, he saw the guard do a double take as he passed. He couldn't blame her, he was surprised when he first saw a Thestral, and he was no less alien to her as she was to him. Richard smiled and went over towards her.

"Busy night?" he asked as casually as he could.

"No sir," she replied, her professionalism impressing him. "Just two others on the train right now, and I doubt we'll have another passenger tonight."

Richard nodded, he would prefer a ride not being gawked at right now, along with a stiff drink, which prompted another question before turning to board the train.

"Is there a bar on board?"

"Certainly sir," the guard answered with a proud smile. "The 'Lunar Express' is equipped to provide for all manner of night time services and entertainment options, including alcohol. You'll find the bar in coach B, behind the first class cabin." She indicated the correct cabin with her hoof.

"Thank you very much," Richard bowed his head slightly, "hope you have a pleasant night."

"You too sir."

Richard stepped away from the guard, and following the directions she'd given him, boarded the train. The cabin he entered was large and luxurious. The walls were draped with heavy dark blue curtains, and the room was filled with sturdy ebony tables. He noticed two ponies sitting at a table in the middle of the space, obviously in the middle of a heated discussion about something.

One of the ponies had a bright white coat with a vivid electric blue mane and a pair of glasses covering her eyes despite darkened surroundings. The other pony by comparison looked far more composed, with a grey coat, a black mane combed back behind her ears and a pink bow tied around her neck. They were an odd pair but Richard did his best to avoid meeting their gaze as he made his way over to the bar.

The bar was crafted from the most beautiful granite he'd ever seen, it was so dark it seemed to darken the round around him and it fitted his mood perfectly. He sat down on a stool, and within moments a Thestral appeared as if from nowhere, a broad smile across her face.

"Vhat can I get for you?" she asked with a thick accent he'd never heard before.

"A glass of neat scotch," he said gloomily, "If you have any?"

"Certainly, sir, it will be coming right up." The Thestral knelt under the bar, and after a moments of chinking glasses she came back up with a glass bottle of amber liquid clamped in her mouth, and a glass balancing on one of her leathery wings.

With a flick of her wing, the glass slid expertly onto the bar and she set about making his drink. Richard watched her as she pulled the stopper out of the scotch bottle and carefully used her front hooves to pour the drink into the glass. The amber fluid was thick and settled quickly within the container, not a single drop wasted due to splashing. Once the glass was full, she placed the bottle back on the counter and replaced the stopper, before pushing the glass over to him.

"Zhat vill be 6 bits if you would be pleased."

"Thanks," said Richard as he reached into his pocket, pulled out his coin purse and sorted through the change until he found 2 silver coins and slid them over the counter towards her. "Keep the change."

"Zhanks you mister, please be enjoying your drink." The bartender swept the coins with a happy hum and moved to busy herself at the other end of the bar.

Richard picked up the glass and swirled the liquid around, watching a small whirlpool form in the liquid, a question forming on the tip of his tongue.

"Excuse me?" he called the bartender back, as he placed the drink back on the granite top.

"Yes?" the bartender asked as she returned. "Is zher being something wrong vith your drink?"

"No, nothing like that," Richard shook his head. "I was just curious, about something."

"Vhat?"

"You have a lovely accent," he complimented her, causing a slight blush to form on her cheeks. "I was just curious where you're from?"

"Oh zhat?" The bartender smiled. "I am being from zhe country of Letyucha."

"Letyucha?" Richard asked, curious about its pronunciation.

"You have not been hearing of it?"

"There is a lot I haven't heard of if I'm being honest, not in Equestira anyway."

"Ahh," she nodded knowingly. "I take it you are also not being, how do zhey say it... from around here?"

"You could say that."

"So, where is it you being from?" she asked. "If I can be asking?"

"I'm from somewhere called Earth."

"Like zhe dirt? It be sounding like a very dirty country."

He shook his head. "It's not a country. I'm from a different world."

"Wait, you're the human?!" shouted a voice from behind him.

"Vinyl, could you please be quiet, can't you see he's in the middle of a conversation."

Richard groaned and turned around on his stool to see the white mare standing on her chair, one forehoof on the table and the other pointed at him.

"What?" The white mare, who was obviously 'vinyl' asked. "I was only asking him a question."

"You didn't just ask..." The other mare shook her head and stood up. "You know what, Vinyl, I'm not having this conversation again." Turning her back on her friend, she made her way over to Richard and stopped in front of him offering her hoof in greeting.

"I'm very sorry for my friend, she definitely should know better by now" she said, her voice filled with disappointment. "Anyway, I'm Octavia, Octavia Melody."

"Wait," Richard gave her a second look over as he reached for her hoof. "Not the Octavia Melody?"

"Oh, you've heard of me?" Octavia blushed. "I wouldn't have expected someone of your 'status' to be interested in Equestrian music. No offense."

"None taken," he smiled. "I admit I'm not a huge classical fan, but I came to love your music the first few days I was in Equestria?"

"First few days?" she asked herself with a tone of surprise. "I didn't expect to be considered good enough to be the first of our wide array of musical talent for you to be exposed to."

Richard rocked his head from side to side. "It wasn't really intentional. I spent my first couple of days recovering in Fluttershy's cottage while they decided what to do with me. She said classical music helped her animals relax and recover, so she hoped it would help me too."

"And did it?" asked Octavia curiously.

"Well," Richard smiled. "It was either that or the pills."

Octavia giggled. "You know, if you're travelling alone, you should join us."

"Are you sure?" Richard looked unsure. "What about your friend?"

"Oh Vinyl?" Octavia pointed back at her friend. "She's a nice mare really, she just gets a bit rowdy when drinking. But don't worry she doesn't bite." Octavia started walking towards the table, before pausing and looking back at him and winking. "But I might, if you're lucky."

Richard felt suddenly uncomfortable as the tickling heat inside him became an inferno.

'Is she flirting with me?'

Taking deep breath and wiping the sweat from his brow he made his way over to their table to join them. As he pulled up a chair, the half lidded smile Octavia fixed him with made him shivered.

"Vinyl, this is..." Octavia trailed her hoof through the air.

"Richard," he said, finishing her sentence for her. "Nice to meet you lovely ladies."

"Dude," Vinyl lifted her glasses to fix him with a pair of red eyes. "Sorry about, ya know, before. I may or may not have done some pre drinking earlier."

"Ah, you girls on a night out then?"

"Nah, but every night is drinking night, which means during the day is pre drinking." Vinyl smiled. "Speaking of drinks... Barkeeper, another round for me and my friends here. You like vodka right?" she asked Richard.

"So, what do you?" Vinyl burped, slamming a shot glass onto the table in front of her.

"Vinyl!" Octavia exclaimed, scrunching her muzzle.

"What?" asked Vinyl.

"Manners..." Richard couldn't help but smile as Octavia fixed him with a 'See what I have to deal with?' look.

"Not everyone is as refined and cultured as you are, Octyl."

"I don't know if I should be insulted by that," muttered Richard, looking down at his own empty, blinking a bead of sweat out of his eye.

"Nah," smirked Vinyl. "If I was going to insult you, I would comment on how you've visibly sweating more than I do at the gym."

"Only because you don't actually do anything at the gym, Vinyl." said Octavia.

"I do plenty at the gym." growled Vinyl.

"Fucking your personal trainer does not count as exercise." Octavia rolled her eyes.

"You only say that because the last time you got fucked was when Fluttershy's birds were chosen to play for Celestia instead of you."

Silence filled the cabin and Richard felt his heat suddenly drained away by a sudden intense dislike of Vinyl.

"That..." Octavia sniffed. Her ears pinned back and tears welling in her eyes, she suddenly looked like a completely different pony than the one moments ago.

Richard sat silently, watching as Octavia opened her mouth to complete her sentence but seconds later she gave up as she burst into tears and ran from the train car.

"Octyl wait," Vinyl tried in vain to stop her. "I'm sorry."

Shame etched onto her features, she looked at Richard imploringly for some amount of support but he simply shook his head and wordlessly left to follow Octavia out of the car.

Walking down the car, Richard felt numb and barely noticed the plush interior of the first class cabin. He had no idea why he was chasing after a pony he barely knew, he was just following some feeling that told him that it was the thing he should be doing.

Following the sounds of sobs, he found himself standing outside a stained mahogany wood door. The sounds of muffled crying echoed out of the room, and Richard raised his hand to the door. For a moment he hesitated, his hand hovering over the wood as a moment of doubt ran through his mind, then it passed and he knocked on the door three times.

"Go away Vinyl," Octaiva muttered. "Haven't you done enough?"

Richard coughed.

"Actually, it's not Vinyl."

Richard heard a the sound of a snort as the crying stopped, followed by the sound of muffled hoof steps and finally the scrape of the lock before the door opened before him.

"Richard? W-what are you doing?" she asked.

"I'm not really sure," Richard shrugged. "I know we only just met, but it seemed you could use some support. So, I'm here if you need me."

Octavia smiled weakly, "Thanks, but you don't need to do this. Like you said, we've only just met and the train journey is only a couple of hours. I'll be fine."

"Okay," said Richard. "I guess I'll go to the bar and try and avoid Vinyl."

At the mention of Vinyl's name, Octaiva's ears pinned back and she started dancing on her hooves as she chewed the inside of her cheek in thought. Richard had only gone a couple of meters back down the corridor when Octavia jumped out of the cabin and called out to him.

"On second thoughts, you better come in." Octavia stepped aside and held the door open for him. "I couldn't in good consciousness force you to spend any more time in that nags company."

"Are you sure? I don't want to be an imposition if you'd rather be by yourself."

"I'm absolutely sure, and it wont be an imposition. As long as you don't mind me asking questions about yourself?"

Richard paused a beat as he crossed the threshold of the cabin, the plus velvet lined interior felt far more welcoming than the bar and he struggled to resist its allure.

"I don't mind," Richard smiled as Octavia closed and locked the door behind him. "Just nothing too personal please."

"You have my word as a lady. As little as that may count to you after hearing Vinyl." Octavia, placed a hoof on hear heart before pointing to a sofa that ran the length of one wall of the cabin. "Please take a seat." She said as she took her own place in a comfortable looking arm chair.

"So...?" asked Richard as he took his seat. "What would you like to know?"

"Hmm," Octavia hummed, "How about family? I presume you have family back home, wherever home is?"

Richard frowned slightly at that question, an icy chill descending down his spine as thoughts of his family flitted through his mind.

"I'm sorry," Octavia frowned noticing him shivering. "I shouldn't have asked..."

"It's okay," Richard interrupted, "It's just hard, you know, being so far away from them." he took a deep breath to collect himself.

"I have my parents, obviously, both still alive and together when I last saw them. My father was a church minister, which wont really mean anything to anyone here I suppose and my mother was a stay at home parent. Though she moved into door to door sales once me and my brother got older."

"I also have the one brother, he'd recently started his first year of university studying music. Not really sure what he plans to do to be honest."

"Interesting, and how do you feel about your family?"

"What do you mean?" asked Richard.

"Do you like them?"

"I guess," Richard shrugged. "I mean I loved them, but that's just family isn't it? What about you? Tell me about your family?"

"Mom and dad, like you said, obviously. Both of them were musicians which I guess isn't a surprise given my profession. No siblings, I was an only child. Which has its ups and downs. Plenty of parental supervision, but meant I couldn't party as hard as my school friends. Though I guess that helped me get to where I am today."

"And did you like them?"

"Yes," Octavia nodded. "In fact, I'd go as far as to say that they were my idols. They always made sure I had everything I needed, and were both eager for me to pursue my own path. They didn't even complain when I chose the cello over their own preferred instrument; the piano."

"Sounds lovely."

"It was," Octavia, starting to smile. "So, moving on from your family, what about you? What were you doing before you ended up here?"

"Not much, sadly. I had spent most of the last year before coming here unemployed. I had graduated from university with a 'BEng' in mechanical engineering the year before but while the jobs were there, I didn't have the experience companies wanted."

"Okay, and what do you do now that you're here?"

"Handy man, I do odd jobs around Ponyville."

"Wait?!" Octavia shouted. "You're a qualified engineer and you do odd jobs for a living?" Richard nodded sheepishly. "Why?"

"It's a bit hard to explain."

"Try me, I'm not as dumb as Vinyl claims I am."

"That's not the issue," Richard sighed. "I can't imagine anyone in your position being dumb."

"You should see the chair of Royal Canterlot Philharmonic then," Octavia giggled, causing Richard to smile. "So what's the issue."

"Well, there are several reasons but the big one is I'm trying to avoid large connections to Equestria."

"Why would you want to do that?" asked Octavia.

"Because, one of these day's I'm going to get a letter from Celestia saying that she's found a way for me to return home. When that happens, I don't want my sudden absence to cause any problems here."

"So, you would definitely leave if you had the chance? I thought you liked Equestria?"

"I do, but I had a life back home. Not much of one at the time, I admit, but I had family and friends who no doubt miss me. That said, I'm also worried about going home."

"How so?" Octavia as she leaned forward intently, fixing Richard with her piercing purple eyes.

"How do I explain this?" he asked, waving his hands all around him. "How do I explain that I was missing for three months in a land filled with cute talking equine and magic? I'd be thought off as a madman. But if I don't explain where I be, there would be constant questions and suspicions."

"That would be difficult I suppose," said Octavia, raising a hoof to muzzle in thought. "Perhaps you could lie to everyone?"

"And say what? Sorry I disappeared everyone, but it's okay, I was living in a forest to try and find myself?"

"Well, when you put it like that, anything will sound silly." huffed Octavia, though Richard noticed she still had a small smile.

"So, what more is their to tell about you, Richard? Got a special sweetheart back home?"

For a fleeting moment, an image of Twilight, sat where Octavia was sitting and reading one of her favorite novels, one he'd seen her read many times, it's cover worn and faded to a dull brown though he suspected it had once been bright read, appeared into his head. Then he shook it out, she had asked about 'back home', not Equestria.

"Not back home, no." answered Richard, Octavia's eyes going wide as she noticed the nugget he'd given.

"Ooh, so someone in Equestria then?" She asked. "How scandalous, and you said you didn't want any ties a moment ago."

Richard blushed slightly, the heat beginning to return.

"We're not dating," he whispered. "I only really found out how I felt about her today, it's actually why I was visiting the Crystal Empire."

"Oh, a Crystal Pony has your eye?" Richard shook his head in response.

"Not a Crystal Pony, I was up here to speak with Princess Cadance to see if she could help me understand my feelings for a pony."

"I see," hummed Octavia. "And did she?"

Richard's face turned completely red.

"Did she ever..."

"Ahh," she exclaimed knowingly. "That might explain the constant sweating and blushing."

"Ahh, yes, that would explain it." Richard nodded.

"She must be a spectacular mare," Octavia looked down at her hooves. "To capture your mind like that."

"I'd be lying if I said she wasn't."

"And you have no plan to woo this fair maiden?"

"Like I said, I can't afford to many connections to Equestria." Richard sighed. "Not that she'd like me anyway."

Octavia looked back up at him and studied him carefully.

"Why do you say that?"

"Because I'm hardly a prize catch, I'm not even a pony for crying out loud."

"I dunno," she said thoughtfully, rotating one forehoof in a gentle circle on the arm of her chair. "I can imagine some ponies wouldn't mind that. In fact some ponies I know prefer non pony partners."

"Really?" Richard was curious.

"Yes," she whispered. "Not that the pony you like will be Xenophile, but she may not be put off by that fact."

"That... that bears some thinking about."

"Not that you want a connection to Equestria."

"No..." Richards eyes wondered the room, and spotted a large case which he could only assume was her cello case, sparking an idea.

"I'm sorry, and please feel free to say no, but I just spotted your cello case and I wonder if there is a chance I could hear you play?"

Octavia smiled craftily, "You know tickets for my shows go for literally dozens of bits, don't you?"

"I have bits if you want payment."

"Payment for a private show? What do you think I am, some common harlot?" She got up from her chair and headed over to her cello case. "I actually have a much better offer. Come work for me."

"Sorry?" Richard looked at her confused as she bent down to undo the cases latches. "Work for you?"

"Yes, as a qualified engineer you deserve a much better job than doing odd things around the town. Ponyville Academy of Music, which I happen to be owner of, is in need of a manager."

"But I have no musical talent." Richard protested.

"Not a problem, I handle most of the musical stuff, I just need someone more academically minded to run some of the business side of things, organizing the place, that kind of thing." Octavia was practically beaming as she bent down to pick up her cello and bow.

"Besides, the role will involve a lot of time with me, so I can teach you anything musical you'd need. Frankly I think with those fingers of yours you'd make a great pianist. Especially after I trained you. And I wont hear anything about creating ties to Equestria, if the need to return home comes up, you'd have my blessings to leave."

"I don't know," Richard scratched his head.

"Just promise me you'll think about it, that's all I ask."

"Okay then, I'll think about it."

Octavia smiled brightly. "Thank you. Now, is there any song in particular you'd like to hear?"

"I'm not sure," Richard shrugged. "I don't have a particular favorite, I love listening to all your music."

"Oh you flatterer. You know exactly what a lady wants to hear." Octavia hefted her cello upwards, lifting herself up onto her hind legs, using the instrument to support herself. "How about something new from my upcoming album?"

"Certainly," Richard sat back and got himself comfortable as the music began to play.

Richard smiled as he stepped off the train at Ponyville station, turning around, he offered his hand to help Octavia down behind him.

"Ohh, what a gentleman," she giggled.

"I do try sometimes."

She gently took his hand with her left hoof and made the small leap down to the platform, landing next to him.

"Thank you," she leaned up on her hind legs and hugged him around his neck, her bulk causing him to lean down slightly. "I'm so glad I met you tonight."

Octavia hung there for a second, her rear hooves stretched as far as she could manage, then she jumped slightly and kissed him on the cheek, causing him to turn bright red and have to hold his hand back as the heat pumping through his system made him momentarily forget where he was.

"You're welcome," he replied as she let go and he placed a hand on his cheek where her lips had been a moment before.

"Promise me you'll think about my offer?"

"Cross my heart and hope to fly," he said placing his hand on his heart, copying a move he'd seen Pinkie perform several times, causing Octavia to giggle which in turn caused him to blush harder.

"That's good enough for me," Octavia said as she turned and left to go and collect her luggage from where it was being unloaded by a couple of tired looking train company staff. "Have a good night."

"You too," Richard wished her well and turned towards the exit of the train station, the dark and silent town greeting him ahead.

Making his way back to his house took longer than he expected it to. He hadn't been to the station many times before and returning from that part of town in darkness of night left him lost several times, forcing him to gain his bearings again before continuing.

After close to 20 minutes, Richard finally got home, closing the door behind him. Flicking the light on, and turning to lock the door behind him, he notice a roll of parchment lying on the welcome mat below the letter box. Ordinarily he would have ignored the letter until the morning, but a small purple seal marked it as a letter from Twilight.

'Curious,' he thought to himself. 'What is she writing to me for?'

Picking up the scroll and breaking the seal, he opened the letter and was shocked. Where there would normally be the eloquent sentences of a pony who had literally read a thesaurus, or the carefully written words of Spike, there was a hastily written note splattered with ink and what appeared to water stains.

'Richard.

Come to castle as soon as possible.

It's urgent.

Twilight'

As Richard read and reread the note, he felt a chill run down his spine. What had happened while he had been away? Gulping nervously, Richard rolled up the note and put it into his pocket and opening the door, stepped back into the night.

Half jogging and half running, Richard made his way as quickly as possible to the castle and before long, he was standing panting outside the great crystal door. From the front the castle looked dead and shut up tight and for a second he doubted whether or not he should knock, then he remembered how unusual the hasty writing of the note was and knocked three times, each knock seeming to echo into the night around him before trailing off into fresh silence.

Several seconds passed as Richard stood listening to the silent night, and just as he was wondering if he should go home and come back in the morning, there was a pop of displaced air. This was followed by a grinding as the door was unlocked and opened to reveal a tired Twilight who peered out from behind her hoof that was rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

"Huh, Richard?" she muttered. "What are you doing here?"

"I, um, got the note you sent me." he replied sheepishly, put off by the fact he'd clearly woken her up.

"Note? What note?" She yawned. Richard went to retrieve the note in response and as he pulled it out a sudden transformation came over Twilight, her sleepiness disappearing almost instantly to be replaced with severe concerned expression.

"Oh that note," she exclaimed, fear clear in her voice. "You better come in."

She stepped aside to let him in, and quickly closed the door behind him.

"Follow me, I think it would be easier to discuss this over a drink."

Filled with a mix of equal parts worry and curiosity, Richard followed Twilight through the dark castle; their footsteps echoing around the corridors as her horn lit the way. The route was familiar to Richard, having traveled this route only a couple of nights previously. After a couple of minutes, Twilight stopped before a simple door and led him into same cosy room from their recent poker game.

"Please, take a seat." Instructed Twilight as she flipped rooms light switch, and made her way over to the fireplace to start the fire going.

"Anything I can do?"

"No. Ah, it's okay, I've got it covered." Twilight said as she sparked a fire with her horn, and placed some fresh wood onto the flames to feed it. "Anything in particular you'd like to drink?"

"Ahh, hot chocolate would be fine, please."

"Coming right up."

Richard spent the next couple of minutes quietly watching Twilight as she prepared them both a drink, doing his best to avoid staring at her flank as it wiggled while she worked. It wasn't until Twilight had sat down and placed his drink before him that either one of them spoke.

"So," said Twilight breaking the uneasy silence. "I suppose you're wondering why I left that note for you."

"Yes, although all of this," Richard motioned to the room they were sitting in and the drink before him, "has me worried. Though I'm probably just being paranoid."

"Actually," Twilight gulped nervously, "you're not being completely paranoid. I have something to show you."

"Show me what?" asked Richard, taking a sip of the hot chocolate.

"This," Twilight scrunched her face up in concentration and with a flash of magic a loose scroll appeared on the table before her. Richard could see several lines of text written on it, along with more water stains, however before he could read any of it, Twilight flipped it over.

"What is that?" Richard pointed at the note before her.

"That..." Twilight paused to take a quick drink of her own hot chocolate to settle her nerves. Richard growing increasingly worried as he noticed a slight tremor in her hoof clutching the drink, and tears forming at the edges of her eye.

"That, is a letter I received earlier today, well technically yesterday I guess now, from Princess Celestia."

"Okay," Richard said warily. "How does this concern me?"

"Well," Twilight sniffed and wiped the newly formed tears from her eyes. "You know how when you first came here Celestia set up a research project to find a way to get you home?" Richard nodded. "Well, she sent an update and..." Twilight's voice broke and she shook her head unable to speak as she started sobbing.

"I can't..." she gasped between sobs, pushing the letter towards him. "Read."

Richard took the letter, his own hands shaking nervously after seeing Twilight's response. It was as he turned it over to read it that he realized the water stains were caused by tears and he gulped.

'Dear Twilight', the letter began.

'I am writing to you today regarding your friend, the human Richard.

As you are well aware, once informed of his arrival and the situations surrounding it, I formed a research group here in Canterlot who took the information you had gathered from Richard himself to try and establish a route back to his home world so that he may return to his own life.

Not that I was adverse to his staying in Equestria, especially given its necessity, however it is beyond question that he would likely flourish back on his own world surrounded by his own kind. Your own foray into 'Canterlot High', while not his world of origin, should have shown you that humans; despite their similarities to us; have many differences. I can only imagine these differences are exaggerated when these 'humans' are no longer 'mirror images' of ponies present in Equestria. But this is neither here nor there.

Today I received a new update from this team regarding the project and it is with a heavy heart I must write that it is not good news. Not good at all. Though not exactly certain why; and I have been presented with many hypothesis regarding the issue, I can assure you; the project has failed in locating Richards world. It goes without saying that without locating his world, it will be impossible to return Richard home.

I'm very sorry, my former student, but due to your unique position with Richard I must ask you to inform him that; at least for foreseeable future; he is bound to our realm and stuck in Equestria. I know this will not be an easy task, but it is the nature of leadership that sometimes our roles will involve challenge of hardship. However, please know this, I have every confidence in your ability to pass this information along though if you would indulge me; I have a word of advice to impart.

This will be a challenging time for Richard. In my experience he will need his friends more than a Princess. Having read your many letters on the subject of friendship I'm certain you will pass this next test presented before you.

Finally, I know Richard will have many questions about his place in Equestria, how he fits in and what will happen to him with this revelation. I would like to reaffirm, despite what I have previously stated about the best place for him being his own world, that he will be more than welcome to remain in our fair land should he wish. I would also like to affirm that should that be his wish, the crown will eagerly support; and given the circumstance - expedite; any application made for Equestrian citizenship.

Know that I am always just a quick message away should you need any advice and support in this matter.

Your friend and former mentor.

Princess Celestia.'

Placing the letter down on the table when finished, Richard's world shattered and tears started to stream down his face as he began to openly cry. He was filled with several emotions, fear; confusion; anger; doubt; and most of all - despair. He wanted to scream and shout. He was so confused and he didn't even know he had stood up and left the room until he felt the chill of night surround him and heard the slam as the castle door closed behind him.

Twilight was struggling not to cry. She had tried to catch Richard as he fled the room but had been too slow, her own sadness paralyzing her as tears began to pour from his eyes and he'd risen from his chair. Now she sat alone in the small room, the only noise was the crackle of the fire and her repeated sniffing. She was a hairs width away from breaking down in tears herself but she knew she had to do her best to resist. Richard needed her right now and she'd be no good to him if she just sat here crying.

Taking several deep gulps of breath to compose herself, Twilight wiped the tears from her eyes again and stood up. Moving over to the fire, she quickly banished the flames with a gust of magically conjured wind and left the room, turning off the light behind her.

She started down the corridor and knew from the silence of the castle around her that he had left.

"Should have locked the door," she muttered to herself as she started her pursuit of her friend.

Leaving the castle, she paused only to lock the door behind her and launched herself into the sky. As she reached the zenith of her arch she span in a circle and scanned the area below her. Frowning, she quickly knew this would be a useless exercise. Despite the moon being up, the land below was too dark for her to have any chance of spotting Richard. Fortunately, a lack of light was a problem she could easily solve.

Focusing on her regulating her breathing, she settled herself into a pattern of Inhale, flap, exhale and began to charge her magic. Despite her current mental state, she couldn't help but feel a little excited as she felt the magical energy build at the base of her horn, filling her head a pleasurable tingle she'd never felt from anything else.

After several moments and she felt the energy build to a suitable level, she closed her eyes and released the energy in a wave of pure white light. Quickly she opened here eyes and scanned town below her while it was briefly illuminated. There, a flash of movement over near edge of town heading towards Whitetail Wood. Entering into a graceful dive, she chased after him even as the light began to fade leaving her with only a faint memory of the direction she thought he'd been heading.

Night flying was something Rainbow Dash never recommended, so she made sure to keep to safe measured pace to avoid any possible collisions with nocturnal creatures as best as possible. Because of this, it was nearly ten minutes before she landed at edge of Whitetail Wood and proceeded in on hoof.

Sticking to the main path that run through the wood, as she hope Richard had done also, she headed deeper into the trees. Despite the chill in the air she was thankful it was early spring. It meant the moon was clearly visible through the foliage providing just enough light to safely see the outlines of any obstacles and avoid any accidents.

For twenty minutes she walked through the silent forest. Despite the situation she couldn't help but admire the quiet beauty of the place as the moon reflected off of the white bark of the tree's. For a moment it appeared as if winter had returned, she could even swear she could hear the sound of Hearth's Warming singing as her ears flicked at the imaginary noise.

A couple more minutes of walking and she realized that the sound wasn't imaginary, there was somepony singing in the wood. Though she couldn't clearly make out any words it was unmistakably a masculine voice and the song sounded so sad.

'Richard!' her thoughts screamed to herself. 'It must be Richard singing.'

Increasing her speed and changing direction towards the sound, she dashed through the tree line as quickly as she dared, the sound of singing increasing with each second. Soon she found she could make out the words being sung, it spoke of loneliness and a desire to go home. While she doubted his singing would win any awards, she couldn't help but but be captivated by the honesty and emotion the song carried. She was so enraptured that when she came out of the trees into a clearing by a small lake with a shadowy figure that could only be Richard slumped next to a rock at the edge of water, she didn't dare interrupt.

Standing there, she closed her eyes and let the words of the song wash over her.

When it came to an end, she heard Richard mutter, "Mum. Dad. Steve. I miss you," before he lapsed into silence

"Richard," her call cut through the air and she saw him physically tense up at her words. "It's me."

"Twilight?" he asked. "What are you doing here? How did you find me?"

Twilight took a cautious step forward, followed by another when Richard didn't immediately bolt.

"I heard you singing and followed it," she whispered. "It was... it was beautiful."

"Hah," Richard hiccoughed sarcastically. "I'm a terrible singer."

"No you're not," she said soothingly. "Besides, it was the emotion of it. It was really moving."

"Hmmm," Richard hummed disapprovingly.

"It's true," Twilight insisted, risking another couple of steps forward. "I'm sure your family would be touched by how you miss them."

"I doubt it," Richard sniffed. "They probably think I'm dead by now."

Twilight nodded, after three months disappearance with no evidence as to why, he was likely right. But she knew confirming it was a terrible idea.

"I couldn't possibly say." Twilight took another step. "But if saw how you were doing here, I'm sure they'd be proud."

"Proud of what?" Richard asked rhetorically. "A son who's sitting here crying? A son so emotionally unstable he had to go to the Crystal Empire and speak to Princess Cadance to find out how he felt about a pony?"

'He went to speak to Cadance about a pony?' Twilight was shocked. He couldn't have possibly intended to say that, especially given how private Applejack had been about the issue earlier. 'He probably doesn't even realize he said it.'

"No," said Twilight forcefully, now only a couple of steps away. "The son who's managed to make a new life on an alien world. The son who has managed to learn to adjust to a completely new culture. And the son who has six friends who care deeply about him."

"I don't know," Richard sobbed.

"Well I do," insisted Twilight, now only one step away. "And I'm sure the others will agree with me. You've done an amazing job to adjust to such a drastic change in such little time. Plenty of others would have gone crazy in your hooves, er feet."

"That's because I always expected to be going home someday," Richard looked up at her and the sight of him there, an empty shell of the person who had been even only a day before broke her heart. "What do I do now?"

"I don't know," Twilight replied honestly, taking the final step forward. "But you're not going to be doing it alone."

Twilight lowered herself down onto the ground next to Richard and placed her hooves onto his shoulders to draw him into a hug. He flinched as her hooves made contact, and for a moment she was worried she'd crossed a line, but he quickly relaxed and let her draw him towards her. As their bodies made contact, she could feel him shivering in the evening cold so she rolled her body over slightly to free her wings and wrap them around him.

"I miss them so much," Richard cried, burying his head into her shoulder and wrapping his arms around her neck.

"I know," soothed Twilight. "But I'm here for you."