Celestia's POV:

Celestia gazed out at the horizon from her balcony. The events of the past day......................they were not ones she would get over. Joey had been presumed dead by the royal court, and ever since, she hadn't been the same. He HAD to be alive.

The thing was, all proof was against her. It wasn't healthy for her to stay in her room and cry, but she did it anyway. All afternoon.

Luna and the Elements had tried to cheer her up multiple times, but the situation was very hard to take for them as well. As soon as they mentioned his name, everypony had started to shed tears. Even Rainbow Dash. They eventually left as well, and Twilight was dragging a very sad Spike out of her bedroom door.

Celestia's tears started to run rampant again. It was no use to have hope when there was none. It was hopeless. Joey was gone.

Blueblood had received his punishment already; he had been thrown in the dungeon. Luna refrained Celestia from sentencing him to death. Besides, the Royal Court decided that Blueblood would not be Prince. If he was ever released, he would be under a criminal record.

Celestia hadn't given up. She had guards searching overtime all over the Everfree, and she had put up a big reward for whoever found him and brought him back safe.

She had almost given up hope. Almost.

Joey's POV:

Muck squished underfoot as Joey cut his way through the Everfree Forest. Joey grunted with effort in each swipe of his sword. He was slowly wearing down. He had lost all hope of finding his way back. He had watched his own mother in his chariot flying overhead, and he screamed her name over and over, but it was no use. It was obvious she was looking for him, but how did she not hear him with those alicorn ears?

Joey sliced his way through a crowd of thick vines, cursing his luck. Why did Blueblood have to go so far? Why had he actually tried to take him away from his new home? Because of hate, of course.

Right then and there, Joey vowed he would put Blueblood at the mercy of his blade next time they met.

Cadence's POV:

Cadance was in a cheerful mood until she got the letter.

She had just finished her morning routine stretch, and she was on her way to breakfast. She smiled at the guards on the way. She thought absolutely nothing could go wrong today. That is how most bad things begin.

She sashayed into the kitchen, where plates of food were waiting. Unlike Celestia, Cadance ate a healthy breakfast. She sat next to her husband, Shining Armor, and pulled up a plate with her magic. Right before she took a bite, the letter appeared.

As she read it, her pupils shrank into the size of peas. Her heart felt like it had been pierced with a knife.

She lept to her hoofs, and sprinted out of the room in a panic. "NO NO NO NO NO NO NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!" Shining cried, "Cadance WAIT!!!" But she was already out of the room. His gaze landed on the letter.

As he skimmed the note, his face fell into a grave look. He quickly followed Cadance out the door.

Joey's POV:

As Joey still cut through the forest, he realized how much he hurt. His feet felt like stepping on broken glass with every step. Every breath was shaky, and it felt like inhaling a bunch of knives. His stomach growled at him like a tiger. Hope those weren't in these woods.

Suddenly, howling came from behind him.

Timberwolves.

And by the volume of it, they were close. VERY close. There was also the sound of rustling leaves - Like they were hunting something, moving quickly through the bushes. And they were, obviously. Him.

Joey started to run. The pain was worse then ever before, but he didn't care. If he had to survive, this is what he would do. The howling grew more intense and determined as he ran. Joey was also determined to live. He wanted to see is mom again. No, he WOULD see his mom again.

He glanced over his shoulder. Holy mother of lesbians, there were a LOT of wolves!!!!! He ran even faster.

Joey quickly turned and ran down a slope, leading to a small, thin crevice maybe ten feet tall. As he ran in, he thought he lost them. He slowed to a jog. Right as he slowed, he heard them streaming in behind him, howling with all their might.

Well, fuck-nuggets.

Joey quickly sped up again, reaching the end of the crevice. He was really determined to lose them now.

On this side, though, there was a stony opening surrounded by rock walls in a U shape, and in the where the walls ended, there was a HUGE cliff. At the bottom there was a roaring river. Joey cursed his luck. A snarl startled him again, and he whirled around, unsheathing his sword just in time to smack away a timberwolf that pounced at him. The wolf sailed off the cliff, whimpering and snarling as if to say Help! Stop this! I'm scared! I'll rip you limb from limb in the afterlife, my pretty!

The other wolves poured into clearing, keeping just out of Joey's striking distance. That was an unexpectedly smart move.

Joey kept his blade pointed toward ones that would draw near. Then there was a lone howl, a howl that sent shivers down Joey's spine. The wolves in front of him parted to reveal one that was twice the size of the others. It stood nose to nose with Joey. The alpha, presumably.

Was it just him, or was this one.......smirking? It seemed kind of smug, as if to say Oopsie! You're out of room, hooman.

Then it howled a thunderous howl, and all the others replied. Then they all charged except the leader, from every side. There were too many to fight. One of them slashed at Joey's face, one of its claws making a cut mark from Joey's eye all the way to his upper lip. He cried out in pain and surprise, taking a step back. There was no more ground where his foot went, and he tumbled over the edge. The alpha howled in defeat, and the others replied again. Then they all retreated back into the forest.

Terror flooded through Joey as he fell like a wave of electricity running through him. He straightened out so that he was faced toward the sky. He looked at the moon, which was slowly rising from the horizon. He cried, "Aunt Luna, if you can hear me........I'm sorry." Then his back hit the water, and his vision went dark.

Author's Note

A Freshman's Tale Part II is in your future!!!!! You all have been great!!!

P.S. Don't ask me if Joey is alive, because I won't tell you. Spoilers.

Again, you all have been great! Writing this was so much fun!! Thank you!! The link for the next story will be posted on the summary for this story.