Dust Valley was a decently sized region far to the south of Equestria, protected by dragons, and isolated from the rest of the world. Its inhabitants were sheltered by the dragons, and were cared for by them.
Many of the moths were content with their lives in Dust Valley, never curious of the outside world, never wanting anything more than their humble, small community.
Except for one moth-pony.
His name was Little Light. He was always an excitable sort of pony. With a curious smile, a silly disposition, and a penchant for adventure, he always got up to something in the villages within Dust Valley. Whether it was pulling pranks on unsuspecting moth-ponies, or crafting elaborate traps to snare his friends, he was always getting into trouble.
"Little Light!" A voice screeched at him as he looked out of his bedroom window, gazing out into the rain-ridden world. Dust Valley was a lush land, full of exotic fauna and flora. Little Light didn't much care for the rain, so he decided to stay indoors for once. Unfortunately for his mother, he couldn't stop with his need for activity, even for a single day.
"Yes, mom?" He shouted back, turning away from the window and hopping from his bed.
"Would you care to explain why there is a jar of fire-honey with a nectar lid on it?"
Little Light shrugged and kicked an empty nectar jar under his bed as his mother entered his room.
"No idea, mom. Maybe Squeak did it?"
His mother scrunched her face up and glared at him.
"You always blame your sister. Anyway, I need you to go out and get more nectar."
"But it's raining."
"I don't care, Little Light. You should've thought about that before sneaking nectar before dinner," she growls as she glances past her son, toward his bed. "Do a better job of hiding the jars if you're going to do that."
Little Light's cheeks burned with guilt.
"Sorry."
"You should be. Now, go get the nectar. There's money on the counter."
"Fine," Little Light grumbled as he trots past his mother. Passing through the kitchen, he picked up his saddlebags and grabbed a small bag of coins off of the counter.
"Hurry back, sweetie," called his mother as he left the house.
"Can't tell me what to do," he muttered under his breath as he ducked away from the rain. "I'll take as long as I want! Maybe I'll go see the dragons up north."
Of course, when Little Light got an idea in his mind, he always ran with it. This idea was no exception.
On his way north, he stopped at a small shop just near the edge of Dust Valley's center village. He gave the shopkeeper enough bits for a jar of nectar and asked if she could take it to his house. The shopkeeper agreed, and Little Light continued on his journey.
He was running away from home, not leaving his mother and sister to starve. They needed that nectar for dinner.
"Hey, kid! Where y'goin'?" A voice called after him as he trotted out onto the path leading to the north village.
"Oh! Mister Virgo. I'm going to the north town."
"Why's that?"
"We're out of nectar?"
Virgo hopped down from the trees onto the trail in front of Little Light. A smug smirk teased across his muzzle.
"Kid. I gotta protect this town. I know what comes and goes, and I know we've got plenty of nectar in town."
"Fine! I want to see the dragons. Can I go?"
"Yeah, sure. Just don't get into trouble, and don't piss them off. Can you handle that?"
Little Light rolled his eyes and trotted past Virgo.
"I think I can manage that."
"Oh, hey! What's your mom cooking for dinner?"
"I don't know? Go ask!" Little Light sneered as he continued up the trail. Virgo just shrugged and trotted back toward the village.
The young colt continued on his way, to the north village. With the roars of dragons over head, he started to run faster, excited to see them.
Nearly two hours of running later, Little Light arrived at the village. A village consisting of a single small hut.
"Alright, just gotta sneak past here, and I'll be home free."
As Little Light pressed himself as close to the ground as he could, the door of the hut slammed open.
"And just what do you think you're doing, young moth?" A terrifying, booming voice shouted as its owner stomped out into the open air.
"N-nothing."
"You were going to see the dragons, weren't you?"
"N-no. I w-was coming to ask if y-you had any nectar?"
"Oh! Hmph, well. Yes, I suppose I do. Wait here for just a second." The gruff, old stallion retreated into his hut.
Little Light took this as an opportunity to rush past the hut, and toward the open northern territory.
He trotted for a long time, almost reaching the marshland that led into the northern lands that no moth-pony had ever been, until he was stopped by the loud, terrifying screeches and roars of a dragon.
It landed in front of him, cutting him off.
"What brings you this far north, little moth?" Its horrifying voice caused Little Light to shake out of fear.
"I-I'm looking for nectar."
"No you are not. You came with another purpose."
"I-I came to see the dragons."
"For what reason!"
"I want to go on an adventure, to the north."
"No, you do not. It is a wasteland out there, filled with terrible things. Turn around and return to your village, young moth."
Little Light stared up at the dragon. It stared down at him.
They stared at one another in silence for a few moments, neither moving nor blinking.
"Okay," Little Light said as he turned from the dragon and trotted back toward Dust Valley's central village.
"Simple creatures, these moth-ponies. They would not survive a single night out in that wasteland that was Equestria."
The dragon took flight to return to its watch over Dust Valley.
Dust Valley would remain peaceful and isolated for the rest of the world's days, vigilantly guarded by the dragons, keeping the moth-ponies in, and the danger out.
