The first shelter was almost finished when nightfall began to threaten. Thistle stared uncertainly at the painted sky. Pink was usually careful to always go back to her dam when it got this late.

"Just a little more." Pink muttered, holding her hoof down for another hooffull of thatch. It had to be dipped in a basket of mud before being applied to the roof. Pink claimed it would help shed off rain and make the roof stronger.

"Pink Peach! What in the name of the Mother Earth is keeping you?" Thistle nearly jumped out of her skin. She whirled around on the spot to see a towering mare fast on the approach, accompanied by a colt.

This was Cardinal, Pink's dam. A bright red mare who was every bit as vibrant and bold as the bird she was named for.

Cardinal recognized Thistle at the same time Thistle recognized Cardinal. If the mare was a bird she would have smoothed out her feathers. She had a winning smile and a spring to her step that honestly befuddled her. A moment ago she'd sounded mad enough to shake the tree tops.

"Oh, Pink dear, I didn't know you were still with your friend!" She continued, much sweeter if not softer. "Won't you introduce us, dear?"

"Uh, yes Dam." Pink judged the distance between herself and the ground. It wasn't that far. Still, Thistle flinched when she jumped.

"Dam, this is my friend Thistle Burr." Pink's smile looked as if somepony had carved it there. "Thistle Burr, this is my dam, Cardinal."

"Oh, it's simply delightful to finally meet you, Thistle Burr!" Cardinal giggled. "Why, my Pink Peach has told me so much about you I feel as if I know you already!"

"It's a pleasure to meet you." The lie tasted foul on her tongue. Thistle sternly told herself to be polite. This was her friend's dam.

"And so polite!" Cardinal waved her hoof flatteringly. "Your dam must have taught you well. I only wish I could've done as well. Pink dear, you forgot to introduce your brother, Woodpecker!"

She shoved the colt forward. He was almost a stallion, with a red mane that matched his mother's coat. His white coat was the cleanest Thistle had ever seen. He must've washed in the lake recently.

"Hello there," His smile was smoother than his dam's. Thistle found herself smiling back without really knowing why. "If I had a friend like you I'd stay out late too."

"Oh, t-thank you?" She stepped back. The reminder helped rally her.

"I apologize for keeping Pink Peach so late, we were really hoping to finish the first shelter today." Her cheeks were flushing.

"The first shelter, you say?" Cardinal's eyes tracked over it, taking in every detail. It was a round edifice, as tall as two ponies and large enough to fit six inside comfortably. The only opening was wide enough for a pony to step through. They hadn't really come up with any way to block the opening to keep predators out yet.

"My, this is rather impressive, isn't it? Well, Pink dear, don't let me distract you! Your friend is counting on you after all!" Cardinal's smile held too many teeth.

"Yes, Dam." Only Thistle saw the way Pink rolled her eyes. "Marsh Steps, could you help me get back on the roof, please?"

"Sure thing." Once back in place, Pink began weaving more thatch in.

"Thistle, do you mind if I call you that? Thistle," She continued without waiting for an answer. "Do tell me about yourself, dear? You have so many responsibilities for the herd, don't you?"

"A fair few." She answered humbly. "I speak to the Lead Mare most every day, and I tend to the ill and wounded. Lately my concerns have been in ensuring we have enough food and shelter for winter."

"Cursed Shadows, that seems like a lot." Woodpecker tutted sympathetically. "Is my sister much help?"

"Yes, I've started relying on her more and more since we first made baskets by the calm river." She looked up to see if Pink was listening. Her ears were turned towards them but her hooves were moving at a steady pace.

"She's the one who thought of shelters made of rocks." She pointed out. "And I thought her water proof basket was amazing."

"I'm so proud of her," Cardinal held her hoof up to her heart. "Such a busy little bee, always willing to help her friends."

Something about this felt wrong. She just couldn't forget how angry Cardinal had sounded when she first approached. She couldn't forget how Cardinal had advocated leaving Morning and Mountain behind either.

But she had to be polite. Cardinal was her friend's dam. She had to be polite.

"Thistle," Woodpecker sat down beside her. Close beside her. She shifted a little so they weren't so close to touching anymore. "How old are you, if you don't mind my asking?"

"Ten," She answered promptly. "Eleven this spring."

"Wow, and you've already done so much. One wonders what you'll manage to do when you're finally a mare." He laughed, inviting her to join in on the joke.

"I haven't exactly planned out that far." She looked at the ground between her hooves. "I've still got a few years yet before I can be called a mare."

"They'll pass quick," He assured her. "Sun and Moon know I've been impatiently waiting the day when I can be called a stallion. This spring I'll be turning fourteen."

"Are you nervous?" Mares had it easy compared to stallions. Once their first heat arrived they were mares. It was different for stallions. When they turned fourteen their sire challenged them to a fight. The colt had to prove themselves to the herd.

Rarely were the fights serious. A few charges, some exchanges of hooves. Last spring Thistle had watched one colt get knocked down five times but he'd come away with only a few bruises.

"Not at all," He cockily shook out his mane. "I've been spending more time with my sire lately, learning all I need to know to be a stallion."

"Who is your sire, if you don't mind my asking?" It wasn't Peach Fuzz. Enduring said he'd only sired three foals so far. Well, four now with Firefly being born at the river.

"Tree Stump, he's white with an orange mane." He described. "I'm more interested in your sire. Your dam was Water Lily, right?"

"Yes," She checked Pink's progress again. Was she speeding up? "My sire is Oak Leaf."

"Ah," He nodded to himself. "I imagine he must be proud to have fathered such a fine filly."

A flash, gone so quickly she almost thought she imagined it. Once it registered though, she was on her hooves, looking upwards.

Pink had just finished. She'd barely laid the last bit of thatch down before the Light-That-Wasn't had appeared. Now she was frozen. Thistle couldn't tell from this angle, but she was positive the light had come from her.

"Well, don't that beat all?" Marsh laughed, hoisting the filly down.

"Pink," Thistle gasped. "You have a magic mark!" She wrapped her hooves around her cousin's neck. It took a moment for the shock to fade, but once it did Pink returned the embrace just as tightly.

"I did it! I did it! I did it! I did it!" She cheered, untangling herself so she could see the new mark. It was three stones piled on top of each other to make a triangle. She danced this way and that to take the mark in fully. "Building things! That's--That's my purpose!"

"Oh, Pink dear! I'm so proud of you!" Cardinal swept her up into a hug.

Pink's smile turned a little more frigid, but no less genuine.

__________________________________________________________________________________

That made five ponies with magic marks. Thistle, Mountain, Pucker, Light, and Pink. Five out of a herd of sixty one. If this kept up how much longer would it be before everypony had a magic mark?

It wouldn't be special then, if everypony had one. The thought made her sigh. Ponies treated her so strangely now, but if they all got marks there would be no reason to single out those Magic-Touched.

"Sighing over that Woodpecker colt, Healer Burr?" Marsh's voice reminded her she wasn't alone.

"Woodpecker, what about him?" She raised one brow.

"I'm not sure I approve of him." Holly's brows were furrowed. "She's not anywhere close to being a mare yet and he was already bringing up family lines."

"Some ponies like to start searching early," Marsh didn't look convinced by her own argument. "Though usually it's the mare that does the searching."

"Wait, what?" Thistle couldn't believe her ears.

Both mares froze comically. Summer Showers looked equally confused. They exchanged a series of looks, holding an entire conversation without a single word being said.

"Marsh, Holly, are you...? You don't think Woodpecker was...flirting with me, do you?" She laughed nervously. She was ten. She was a filly.

"He pretty obviously was." Marsh scratched her neck in discomfort. "I mean, he sat down close enough to touch, he kept trying to make eye contact, he talked about being a stallion, and he brought up family lines. That's about as obvious as you can get without swishing your tail."

"But...But I'm ten." Too young for a stallion.

"Some ponies start searching early," Marsh repeated her earlier argument. "Still, I always knew Cardinal was a bit of a Carrot-Chaser, but her colt? Guess the apple doesn't fall far from the tree."

Cardinal wanted to get ahead in the herd? It was a good place to be, Thistle admitted now that she'd been living in it for a few months.

"I still don't understand," She shook her head. "If Cardinal is a Carrot-Chaser, why would Woodpecker flirt with me?"

They exchanged several more looks. Thistle exchanged her own frustrated look with Summer Showers.

"Healer Burr, you're a very important pony." Holly began. "And, someday when you're old enough, any stallion who convinces you to follow him is going to get a huge boost in status."

"Woodpecker wants to be that stallion, so he's flirting with you." Marsh nodded sagely. "If he gets you interested now, then he'll have an easier time convincing you to follow him."

"Oh," She shrunk inwards. She'd thought he was weird, but she wasn't sure what to think of his intentions now. She wasn't ready to think about stallions. She wouldn't be ready for years!

"Well," She scrambled for something to say. "I'm not looking for a stallion any time soon, so he's plum out of luck."

__________________________________________________________________________________

"Wow, oh wow!" Morning was laughing so hard she couldn't breathe. "Our little Thistle is all grown up now!"

"Pffahahahahahaaa!" Mountain rolled around, flinging her legs with wild abandon.

"It's not funny!" Thistle stamped her hooves. "What part of this is funny?"

"If it makes you feel better, I don't get the joke either." Light assured her.

"Bah, dey just foolin' round cuz dey season is coming on." Enduring sniffed.

"Haaa, wait, what? You can tell?" Mountain wiped her eyes.

"Eeyup, been around long enough to know da signs. Yew two been sneakin' off fer privacy more often lately." Enduring nodded.

"Wait," Thistle's eyes widened. "Mountain and Morning are going into heat?"

"Yeah, I can feel it." Morning groaned, scowling at her flank. "Mother Nature is screaming at me to get a move on."

"...Are you two following a stallion?" She didn't recall them mentioning it if they were.

"Nooooo," Mountain whistled. "We haven't really looked, ya know?"

"Best decide if dat's somethin' one or both of yew want now." Enduring warned them. "Not too late to get some o' dose preventative herbs if it's not."

They looked at Camellia, who was already out cold after another busy day.

"We sorta already got a foal." Mountain muttered. "Morning, what do you think?"

"Uh, I don't know?" She studied the filly pressed against her side. "I mean, I do want foals. We're at a pretty good place, lots of food and water and we're planning to stay. And Camellia's six, is that a good gap?"

"Neither of us actually foaled her, try to remember that." Mountain rolled her eyes. "And we're in a big group, so it's not like we've got to worry about taking care of an extra foal."

"A family." Thistle blurted suddenly.

"What was dat?" Enduring squinted curiously. She took a deep breath.

"A-A family! I just...we're more than just a group, you know. Groups just sort of walk together, but...we take care of each other." Her cheeks burned.

"Thistle and I have decided we're sisters." Light supported her.

"Well now," Enduring smiled softly. "Been a long while since eh had a family. Got me two good grandfoals."

"Gee, what does that make us?" Mountain scoffed, but her smile was strained from nerves.

"Cousins," Thistle answered swiftly. "You and Morning are kind of like cousins, and that makes Camellia a second cousin?" She looked questioningly at Enduring.

"First cousin once removed, Burr. Guess dat means I've got four grandfoals and a great-grandfoal. Woohee!" Enduring slapped her knee.

"So, family?" Morning was tearing up. "We're really a...not just a group?"

"Groups walk together, family takes care of each other." Thistle reiterated.

"Heh, one weird family we've got here. Not a one of us related by blood." Mountain nuzzled Morning. "And not a single stallion to boot!"

"Not unless little Thistle here brings in Woodpecker." Morning smirked, setting them both off again.

"It's not that funny!" She groaned.

Author's Note

A Carrot-Chaser is like the pony equivalent to being called a Brown-Noser. A Kiss-Up. Suck-Up. You get the picture?