The delivery room stank of medication, blood, and ash. The single bed in the middle of the white room was surrounded by large medical equipment and machinery, with many carrying a display whose purpose laid unknown to the common pony. The doctor and nurses felt like the lights were going out and the world was tightening around them. They could only stare in awe and horror. A baby's cry and a cooing mother were the only sounds currently going through the air.
The doctor, wrapped in his white gown and with both a facial mask and mane-net, took his nurses away from the exhausted mare on her bed and to the light of an x-ray scan display. They mumbled among each other for tens of minutes while another nurse took care of the needs of the child and the mother. The staff realized that two hours of discussions had passed when the doctor was satisfied with the discussions.
The doctor walked up to the side of the bed and looked at the mare apprehensively. "M'am," he started. "As is my duty as a doctor, I will keep this confidential, but..."
"What?" the mare heaved. It took her a colossal effort just to say one word.
The doctor pointed at the infant and frowned behind his mask. "That child should never be shown to the public. I won't hold any grudges against him as he did not choose this outcome, but if other ponies discover that you somehow mated with a dragon..." He scratched his head. "How, even? There have been reported actions like this in the past, but they've never given birth to a hybrid. The two species shouldn't be able to mingle genetically!"
"So...What do I do?"
"Keep the child hidden until you've left the city. It's the only thing you can really do."
"But I don't....I don't have the bits for it."
The doctor put a hoof on the weary mother's shoulder. "Then I suggest you keep him hidden from everypony around. These parts aren't safe for hybrids."
The mother raised a brow and cradled her newborn in her forelegs. "So why are you helping?"
"Like I said: I hold no grudges against a newborn who has done nothing. And while I can't say I condone interspecies 'mingling', I am not one to judge about the love that forms between the most unlikely of partners..." He looked to the side and shrugged. "To an extent."
Much to her dismay and disappointment, the mare conceded to the facts and did just that: Kept her child hidden until the day she could free him from the chains of judgment. Thanks to some clever maneuvering by the doctor and witness staff, the foal was successfully removed from the premises along with his mother. Said mare waved the doctor and nurses goodbye and walked down the cobblestone pathway away from the hospital, the smell of freshly cut grass reinvigorating her nostrils. She noticed the statue standing in front of the building and huffed at it.
"Modern art. Pfff."
While she couldn't truly make out its shape, her child, sporting a cap to hide his horns, noticed the statue from his carrier. His fumbling stopped and he stared; Enamored at the form. One large curve on a side with two succeeding each other on the other side. It was a bizarre display, and the foal's mother was confused by his infatuation. The foal laughed and attempted to grab whatever he could see with his hooves, then showed intrigue and waved his hoof.
"Are you saying goodbye to somepony?" the mother asked.
Several minutes of walking and taking in the sights around after being stuck in a hospital for so long, the mare arrived at her house. It was a quaint cottage with white wood placed in between brown slabs of wood covering clay bricks. It had only one floor and a roof covered in moss. A single wooden door, slightly eaten by the elements, protected the interior from outside intruders. Only one window could be seen to the side of the door, but the cottage had many more, leading to plenty of sunlight inside.
The door opened with a creak, and the child was led inside. The living room was fitted with multiple couches with cotton cushions, carved tables, and several paintings and small sculptures along the walls. Said walls were parts of logs that had been poorly glued to the bricks, as much of the white glue seeped out from between them and leaked all over the walls. A carpet had been placed on the floor to prevent hooves from being in permanent contact with cold tiles, although the fireplace opposite the entrance had no carpet around it for obvious reasons.
"This is your home." The mother leaned down and nudged her son's muzzle. "I hope you'll enjoy it here." She looked up and heaved a joyful sigh. "I bet you'll do great things in the future when everypony relaxes their way of thinking."
It took two years for the foal's eyesight to allow him to fully view his mother and the details of her face. She was a lilac pony with a mane and tail of dark violet. Her mane, however, had a large scarlet streak going through it vertically. The streak in question took much of the mane around with it into a curl in front of the pony's forehead. Her eyes were a shade of spring green, but her cutie mark was elusive to the young pony. Try as he might, he could never connect with the form on her hind legs, and so it would never enter his memory despite knowing it was there.
Curled up next to his mom, the horned foal listened to the mare tell a tale of times long past, turned into a fairy tale. He enjoyed every moment of it.
"Our travels to Equestria took us to a land unkempt by all." She flipped a page of the book, and a dark, spikey group of monsters leapt out at the child, scaring him. The mother chuckled. "Try as we might, we could not live here, and because we couldn't turn back, we did what we could. Farms were torn by yawning trees. Houses were destroyed by stretching beasts, and those put on the watch of the tribes would soon see blame grow again. The old feuds that had been cured, were now festering within everypony." She turned the pages to show a minimalist rendition of the alicorn sisters back-to-back. Both were engulfed in a blue or white light. "The princesses came from the shadows they hid within, watching all of us from afar. They only came to us when the time was dire. The two alicorn sisters, as they were known back then.
The blue of the moon cast away the vicious storms overhead, bringing the still and soothing darkness of the night back to all. She cleaned the moon and polished it to guide all those in the blinking starlight, and the stars themselves were rearranged into grand forms. With her power, beasts slept in a calm they never experienced before." On the left page, drawings and other popups were painted to depict these acts, whilst the right showed events in the same manner. "The yellow rays of the sun broke after-hours and brought life anew to the lands. The forests were straightened and cured of disease, and the warmth melted the ice and snow, giving much needed drink to the plants and animals. with their help, we turned Equestria into a lively land."
She turned to face her child who seemed intrigued by what he was seeing. "And they still watch us to this day." She looked to one of the windows and frowned. "That's why we must remain hidden for now." She booped the foal on his muzzle. "They wouldn't understand. Nopony would."
Another day in the foal's life led him to waddle about while his mother wasn't home, and want to see outside. Try as he might, he couldn't jump up high enough or climb the walls to reach the windows and look outside. The little hybrid formulated a plan by pushing some boxes against the wall and piling books on it. It took some time, and some creativity to get books down their homes, but the little pony managed the task. With his stubby legs, he climbed the mighty mountain and longed to see the source of the sunlight, but when he looked outside, he was blinded by the brightness and fell over. He had been crying for quite some time when his mother returned to her home.
The mare swooped him up in her forelegs and hugged him close to her while he sniffled his dried out nose. "Oooh, don't you cry. I'm here. We need you to be a tough little pony when you get older, so don't cry when you get hurt." She pushed him away briefly and smiled. "Okay?"
At four years of age, the little hybrid found his curiosity of the world growing steadily after breaking a wooden shelf in his mother's room cramped by a bed too big and wooden desk too wide. Several books almost knocked the foal out, but his potential cries were stifled by the colors and forms shown to him. Wooden tribal masks of the Zebricans worn during ritual ceremonies. Colorful garbs meticulously crafted by hoof and worn by only the most prestigious of nobles in Pan-Ziar far to the east. Pictures and drawings of forests and cities using architecture completely alien to the hybrid. Where there were solid, squarish buildings where he was, in this place they had spiral columns built into the corners of the buildings. In another, they lived above the ground in titanic trees, surveying all from above and below.
When his mother returned, he showed her all the books he had found and all the parts he thought stood out the most. "Look, mom!" he pointed eagerly to an image. "Can we go there?"
His mother gave a soft smile and patted him on the head. "Not yet. I uh..." She looked around whilst trying to create a proper excuse. "I don't have the bits for that yet." When she saw her child slump down and look at the book longingly, she felt sorrow. "I can't let him just have everything, especially when..." Her thoughts were interrupted by her child's ears flopping against his head. "Ooooh! I can't stand the droopy ears!" The mare leaned next to her child and pushed his head up from the book. "Let's see, if you study the hard and succeed at the tests I've been giving you, I'll reward you with more of these books. Okay?"
The hybrid nodded enthusiastically and thanked his mother with a big hug. Now motivated, he rushed towards his room to grab every school book she had recovered for him and rushed through everything. His mother would often help him out with his problems and would reward him with books at several moments of success. This, in turn, caused the foal's collection of four books at age four to seventy-eight by the time he turned eight. He couldn't wait to see everypony outside, but a thought did occur to him:
"Why can't I go outside?"
No matter how much he tried to understand, it didn't make sense. The next time his mother returned, he would ask her that question. She might get upset, but that was a risk he was willing to take. His mother seemed a little more weary than usual when she returned at night, but the hybrid asked her anyways, unaware of what might occur.
"Mom?" he started. "Why can't I go outside?"
"You can go outside." The mare dropped her saddlebags onto the floor, making a loud thump.
"But that's the back yard."
The mare sighed. "I don't want you going into the city. When I've gathered enough money, we'll move to Central Equestria." The hybrid tilted his head to the side and frowned sadly. "I know it's hard to understand, but there's no other way. I want you safe, so you have to stay hidden." The mother put a hoof to her child's chin and raised it to see each other eye-to-eye. "In due time, I'll explain it to you." She gave him a big hug. "I love you a lot, my unique little stallion."
The years went by, with the hybrid learning more and more of the outside world, and growing more and more impatient with needing to stay inside. Eventually, his mother had a wooden fence built into the back, allowing free movement outside without prying eyes to stare and judge, and yet...
"It's not enough," the hybrid grumbled to himself. He paced back on forth upon the grass of his yard, eating away the green and exposing the tough ground beneath. "I'm twelve years old!" he whisper-yelled to himself.
He had grown taller, with his fur becoming more frizzled and rough and claws having pierced through his hooves, causing minor discomfort. His horn had grown longer as well, but curved slightly to the side before pointing forward. The hybrid looked down to his hooves and frowned further.
"Even my hooves are wretched mutations." He dragged one across his face. "I still don't know what I am...and mom won't tell me!" He continued pacing, feeling a knot forming in his stomach. "I want to ask her, but what if she gets angry? What if she says no?" He dropped onto his back and rolled around in the grass, taking in the smells. "I'll never know unless I ask her, but she won't be back for another..." The stallion craned his neck back to see the few small trees growing in the yard at uneven distances. and observed the shadows. "few hours," he groaned.
The sound of a door grinding against the floor as it opened rang in the hybrid's ears, and the child perked up immediately. "Already? I'm going to ask here!" he shouted.
Adrenaline rushed through his body as he rushed towards his home and threw the back door open, letting it bounce against the outside wall and slowly move backwards. His hopes were dashed when he saw a group of unknown ponies, and stares were shared for a very long, very silent moment. The ponies were wearing brown cloaks and wielding shackles and poles with collars at their ends.
"H-hello?" the hybrid stuttered quietly. "Are you friends of my mom?"
"The nurse was right!" a stallion stated. "The mare DID have a child with a dragon."
Another looked at his companion. "I never thought it was possible. What do we do now?"
A mare stepped back from the entrance to the living room to the right and frowned. "I thought we were just going to banish her, but now we should have her and this...abomination executed."
The hybrid tilted his head. "Executed? What does that mean?"
"GET HIM!" the mare shouted.
The child did not register the aggressiveness of the ponies and watched as they locked the collar around his neck. They were extremely violent, however, forcibly pulling and jolting the stallion around. The hybrid started to fight back, managing to overpower four of the ponies hanging onto the pole.
"What are you doing?! Leave me alone!" He shouted after freeing himself by smashing his collar against the wall.
"Get the dragon hybrid! " the mare ordered. "Don't let him run to the Badlands. I'll get another group and cut him off!"
The stallion found himself get pinned to the ground by a bulkier stallion who plowed through the ponies to get to his target. Unable to free his limbs, the hybrid bared his sharp teeth and chomped down hard on the pony's arm, reaching to the bone. A loud scream preceded the bulky pony's jumping back and writhing in agony, leaving the foal to reach his back yard and stare at the fence for a few seconds. To him, it felt like hours, and the pressure weighing on him didn't help.
"I've never gone outside of here...should I...? Mom isn't here, and these ponies are being very aggressive...I have no choice."
He used his claws to get a good grip on the fences and climb over them, landing with a painful thud onto his belly. He rushed away, taking several looks back to his home. He stopped for a moment and watched the ponies slide in front of the wall, looking around until they spotted him. He started crying at the loss of his home and rushed away through the starts whilst the hateful ponies remained hot on his trail. Several passer-bys or people simply standing around talking noticed the hybrid and took interest in him, but nary a few saw the mob shortly afterwards and joined them, much to the confusion of the regular ponies.
The hybrid had to curve around streets and alleyways and hide in large trash cans before he could even reach the outskirts of the city and get through the gates. A large contingent of town guards noticed the mob and rushed to stop them while a few others noticed the hybrid and rushed after him whilst their comrades held back and pacified the angry mobs. The child never knew he could run so fast in his life, easily outpacing the guards who slowly stopped and watched him run away.
The sun was starting to set, and the child was left alone in the dark, ashy badlands with no water and a growling stomach. He put a hoof to his belly and frowned.
"I'm hungry!" he cried. "Where's mom?! I want food!" He looked around, flapping his tail nervously, and sniffled when he noticed nobody was coming. He never had to worry about food before. "Hello?"
Loud thumps came to his ears, thumps that became louder than they already were. Behind one of the steep cliffs, a large, horned, orange head grew taller and taller, eventually becoming accompanied by a body, and large hands with massive claws.
"Is that the thing making so much noise?!" she shouted. "I'm trying to sleep here!"
The hybrid pushed themselves backwards along the ground, gradually coming to their hooves and turning tail, only to be met with their head slamming painfully against another's leg.
"Ow! Its horn hurt my leg!" the blue dragon shouted.
The hybrid screamed in fear before being lifted from his tail by the first dragoness to appear. She turned him around and narrowed her eyes whilst poking at the foal. "What creature is this? I thought it was a pony."
The blue dragon hissed quietly whilst rubbing his leg and hopped over to have a better look. "You know what it looks like?" he said whilst pointing at 'it'. "It looks like a dragon."
"No, it looks like a pony."
"Dragon."
"Pony," the dragoness responded with an increasingly aggressive tone.
"Hey wait, he's a hybrid!" the dragon realized.
"A hybrid?" the dragoness looked back at the foal she was holding. "You don't think?"
Both of them erupted in laughter, letting the foal flop onto the ground. "Ow!"
"Ha ha ha!" the orange dragoness crouched down and pointed at the little hybrid. "I didn't think there could possibly have been a crossbreed."
"I guess he was successful, eh?"
The child painfully stood back onto their wobbling legs and looked up. "Who is 'he'?" he asked.
"Your father of course!" The orange dragoness yelled so loudly that the foal was pushed back a few inches. "We heard that he had actually found interest in a pony."
The blue dragon pounced the dragoness hard in the shoulder. "We didn't think he had actually had a child with her though."
"I have a dad?" The hybrid pondered the new information. "Where is he?"
The dragoness got her 'friend' in a headlock and started to squeeze hard. "Pfff. I don't know." She rolled her eyes. "Probably rotting somewhere."
The blue dragon struggled to speak. "Used to be a strong one...But he showed weakness, so we offed him when we tried to take his place."
The hybrid tilted his head. Noticing his confusion, the dragoness flipped her victim back-first onto the ground.
"You don't know anything, do you?" she chuckled. "We killed him..." Her smile slowly faded away, and she put a finger to her lips. "Uhhh...I think he killed about fifty-three of us before we managed." She shrugged. "It was probably a bad idea to kill him, but it's too late now. At l--"
The dragoness was interrupted by a stone slab smashing against the back of her skull, throwing her over the hybrid. "What she wanted to say, was that at least it was fun, which I agree with." He looked down at the pony. "And you're part dragon." His smiled turned into a frown. "But you're also part pony, meaning you don't belong here." The dragon waved the back of his hand at the the hybrid. "So shoo. Go back to the ponies."
"But they chased me away, and I don't know where my mom is," the child cried.
The dragon wiped his eyes, mocking the foal. "Oh, boo hoo. You lost your mommy, and being chased away by ponies." He shook his head and clicked his tongue. "I really would suggest you get out of here, or the others will attack you in a bid to chase you away from here."
"But...I'm part dragon..."
The dragon raised a claw and smirked. " 'Part'," he emphasized. "We won't attack you because you're too small, and attacking the weak is not...interesting. Not sure about the others, though." He snorted. "Scurry away little rat, before this ship takes you away while it sinks."
"B-but..."
The hybrid teared up and cried whilst galloping away from the two dragons. He was exhausted, but the premise mentioned to him made no sense. Spotting some slightly smaller dragons sleeping, the hybrid pushed against the shoulder of one, waking them up.
"Excuse me," he started. "Do you know where I can get food?"
The pupils of the dragon eventually readjusted and narrowed to a slit. "A hybrid?!" he shouted. "Incredible. Let's fight first!"
"Wh-what?"
"Come on! It'll be fun!"
The dragon hopped onto his legs and tail swiped the hybrid far away into the distance, internally gasping at the sight. "Whoops. I was so excited I didn't pay attention to how he really was." He shrugged and yawned. "Oh well. Back to sleep."
The stallion was battered and covered in scratches. Despite his age, he still wished his mother was there to make him feel better. If that's how all the dragons were, the hybrid did not want to stay there, so he ran even further away, towards a large row of mountains on the horizon. Just staring at the white range froze the hybrid to his bones, but the word 'hybrid' being shouted as loud as possible caught the attention of many other dragons slumbers under the dim night sky. Several rushed in after scouting the area and rushed towards the hybrid, several of them attacking him either through disgust or intrigue. This caused a large, internal battle to form, caused by the envy of a unique creature to serve as a trophy or a good fight.
It was extremely difficult for the young foal to get out of the pile, and harder still to climb the sharp, mountainous terrain, eventually reaching the mountains in the span of days. He could only eat the snow for sustenance, but he knew that it was only water.
"At least it fills me...a bit..." he sighed. He covered his face from a freezing gale that battered him. "I hope they won't chase me here, though. I'm far away from them all now..." He sniffled. "I want my mom..."
Trucking on, the exhausted hybrid continued to climb the mountain ranges, his hooves dropping deep into the snow with every difficult step, until he eventually slipped on a build-up of ice and collapsed into the snow. This caused a miniature avalanche to bury the hybrid and drag him down the mountain side where he remained. Between being chased by angry ponies, strangely aggressive dragons, and wild animals in the wilderness, and going on starvation for three days, the stallion could do nothing but fall asleep for several hours in the embrace of the snow. His awakening, however, was not a pleasant one. He thrashed about in a panic, burying himself further in the dust. The panic led him through the snow and into the opening of a dark cave.
"Wh-what?" the foal stuttered. "A cave?" He gulped audibly and kept his back to the snow. "What's in here?" he wondered. "I hope there aren't anymore monsters," the hybrid squeaked.
The cave was dark, yet strangely dry. There was little-to-no humidity present at all, although the child's weary state did not permit him to notice such things. Ready to collapse again, something titillated the stallion's nostrils. It was a tangy smell. Freshly cooked aromas wafting through the air, and be it a trap or not, the child did not know, nor did he have a choice. The further he went in, the stronger the smell and brighter the cave. The hypnosis was interrupted by the sound of crunching and stepping on even blocks of stone upon the ground.
"What's this?" the child wondered. He flipped one over to see a bit of white and green in a round corner. "It's all over the floor." He looked further away, at a strange, black cage-like structure built into the cave wall. "What's this thiIIIIIIIII!"
The stallion fell down a deep incline smoothed by the water that dripped down from the ceiling, directing him to crash against a giant statue placed within a depression in the wall. Or, at least, part of a statue. Rubbing his head and focusing, the hybrid looked up to see that, what would be a sitting dragon, had been sliced, leaving only the upper left shoulder intact. Hungry, the stallion did not linger and followed the smell to a room left of the statue. There was a lumpy wooden table sitting against an uneven stone wall. It had a plate and bowl of freshly cooked foods waiting on it, and everything was illuminated by torches resting in sconces upon the walls. Thinking nothing of it, the hybrid rushed to the table and started devouring the food without wait, leaving almost no time to breathe.
Sated, he looked around to see that there were many rusted bits of metal jutting out of the round ceiling, and a broken mosaic upon the ceiling, the image it portrayed having been lost long ago and its tiles having been shattered to pieces upon the hard ground. It left only a few colors and a clawed hand, although whom it belonged to was a true mystery.
"What is this?" a male voice spoke. "A visitor, after so long? And he ate my food."
"I-I'm sorry! I was just so hungry!" the stallion cried. "I haven't eaten in days!"
"In DAYS?! That's absurd! Where are your parents?" the voice echoed.
The hybrid opened his mouth mouth and closed it several times, letting the voice huff angrily.
"I see. And your wounds?"
"I..." The hybrid dropped his head.
"Mhmmm. You don't want to talk about it, then." The voice audibly shrugged. "Very well. Another time, then."
"I...I can leave if you want."
A large black shadow flowed over the floor, covering the hybrid, the table, and the many chunks of metal strewn about. It stopped on the uneven wall, depicting a draconic form with hollow eyes and an open mouth. "What for? You've been through some rough events. I see no reason for you to leave." He smiled more when he saw the hybrid pat himself in a panic. "Mmmm," he hummed. "What manner of creature are you? You appear pony and dragon...Have the equines evolved that much since I was last outside?"
"N...No. I learned that...I'm a hybrid."
The shadow frowned and flew around the child. "Between a dragon and a pony?" he asked.
"Yes." The child followed the figure spinning around him. "Are you going to attack me now?"
"What for?" the shadow asked angrily. "Do you take me for some form of uneducated beast? Hybrids aren't uncommon...but usually of the same genus." A giant clawed hand grew out of the shadow and pried at the hybrid's horn before jolting back into its 2d plane. "Ponies and dragons do not share such a thing. You're a marvel of biology, my child."
The hybrid perked up a bit. "R-really?"
"Of course!" He wisped around as though a light were spinning around a pole. "Since your family did not want you, you may stay here if you wish." He snorted. "You're trapped here anyways until the snow melts come summer."
"But...what about food?"
The shadow's mouth opened wide and its hollow eyes squinted, created a disconcerting image. "I steal food from the dragons and take plants from the nearby flora." He wiped his hands clean, creating three-dimensional crumbs to gather upon the floor. "I cook to entertain myself and remember what it felt like to be alive. Having someone enjoy that cooking is a first in quite a long time."
"Th-thank you very much, sir!" the hybrid bowed his head several times. "But who are you?"
"Well..." The shadow brought a claw to his hollow eyes and scratched around. "That's something...particular. Just to let you know, I was alive many, many centuries ago. Perhaps millennia! Then something happened; and I was sealed here." He presented his whole 'home' with wide arms. "For a time I tried to get out, but I realized that I would lose what little I have left. To go so high and crash down so hard..." He shrunk in size. "I can't leave this place, but I can extend my reach to a portion of the dragon lands." He looked towards the hybrid. "I could get you what you need and teach you what you want to know if it aligns with my knowledge." He and massaged his throat. "Pardon. No need to stifle your growth because you were chased here."
"Then...can you get books? Parchments?"
The shadow remained silent for a moment. "What is a 'book'?" he asked.
"It's like a hard, square parchment. It has words on its cover."
The shadow shrugged. "I will have to scour the pony caravans that travel through the dragon lands, but it is feasible." He became much more serious in expression and tone afterwards. "I supposed that I will make a few mistakes at first, but that should be easy to learn. As for you, what is your name?"
"Well, my name is N--"
The shadow waved a hand. "Never mind such a thing. I believe a new name befits you. Why not 'Red Sun'? It matches your fur and the light within you."
The child thought about it, then nodded enthusiastically. "That sounds really cool! I'll take it!"
" 'Cool', huh? A bizarre expression. I like it."
"What do I do now?" Red asked.
"You can sleep for now. I have nothing for the 'solid' so you will have to make do."
"Oh..." Red sounded disappointed. "Can we look for my mom afterwards?"
"Tut tut. I'll look for her. I have a great reach when it comes to magic, so you needn't mind that. In time, I'll teach you how to use magic, and your innate draconic abilities." He hummed with interest. "Both sides could empower each other...possibly," he slurred.
"You'd teach me that? Really?" Sun asked excitedly.
The shadow nodded. "Is that is your wish."
"It is!"
"Then sleep now. Your wish will be fulfilled." He raised a finger. "In steps."
The child dropped his head to the floor. "Good night," Red said. He fell asleep almost instantly afterwards.
The shadow, however, slammed his hands together, creating a cloud of white mist in the air. Red energy was taken from the slumbering hybrid and mixed into the center of the circle, gradually creating a moving image expanding to the outer edges. A mare unknown to the shadow was shown completely burnt and maw agape whilst other ponies stood around the sizzling pyre, cheering for their actions.
"His mother? Why would the ponies hate the dragons to this extent. An interesting concept of destabiliz--"
A bright white light came from the night sky, falling down upon the ponies. A giant one with multicolored hair had made its presence known to them, but while the ponies had a cheerful demeanor, the white one looked livid. Its horn became enveloped in a magic aura that grew to ten times the size of said item, and the spell dulled.
"Hm. I will tell him about his mother tomorrow. Delaying it could cause problems in the future." The shadow shook his head. "Ah, the 'Lovie Dovies'. They could have helped." He laughed internally.
