"What are you doing?" Daring Do questioned the alien, who was currently carving some form of marking on his front door; it was in the shape of a diamond, yet it vaguely resembled a dragon. The human glanced over his broad shoulder, at the sound of her voice.

"Oh, this?" Ren chuckled. "This is just something to keep the hands busy." He resumes his carving, but didn't intend to ignore his guest. "Sorry Daring, I didn't hear you approach." He continues to hammer at his carving utensil, cutting away any unwanted wood. What everthe mark represented, it must hold some significant meaning for him to chisle it as a center piece.

"Its fine, Ren." Daring said. She observed him for some time, until he was finished. Taking a step back to admire his craft, he turned around to face her, and stared at her with his hazel colored eyes. Clearing his throat, he inquired of her recent voyage into the Everfree Forest.

5 months after his arrival, the strange bipedal creature - a human named Ren - has started to show the signs for a very stressful existance; his frustration lead him to lash out at the smallest of problems, and his lack of control of his emotions only seem to increase with time. Lately, he has been complaining about a lack of sleep, and has been rather slow in most of his activities, and has been having trouble maintaining focus. Everypony could see it; it was in the way that he moved, the way that he would speak. . . This increase of tension has caused him to be sent back to the hospital in the last couple of months. The doctors did their best for him, but with no knowledge of his kind, the best they could do was to take a guess as to what could help him relieve his tension, and to set him in a way that would be best for him in the future. They believe that the main cause behind his stress is related to his self-appointed quest to locate the rogue wizards that fled from his world, and bring them back; though the human never denied the fact that he has been exploring the forest for days, another factor in this matter could be because he hasn't had the time to get adjusted to life in Ponyville.

Princess Twilight called for a meeting with her friends, and asked if they could help him to adjust, but she also asked Daring Do if perhaps she could assist with his search. Ren would be permitted to go on these expeditions only once a month, so as to eliminate any built up tension, and to help him on his journy. since then, the counsil of friendship, as well as Twilight's pupil - Starlight Glimmer - have done their best to ensure that he was relaxing, while Daring was off exploring. On the occasions that he could join, the two of them would work well together, and throughout their voyage, the duo had discovered many hidden caves that dot the landscape of the dence forest - as well as signs of their previous occupants; the wizards were clearly here - the alchemy tables, enchanting tables, and other wizardy items that were left behind were proof to that. But they were no longer using the caves. And in all the caverns that the duo had explored, they found some fragments of some kind of crystal; possibly the same kind that Ren claimed to have seen from the first mage he had encountered. While the function of the crystals are unknown, Princess Twilight asked for their recovery - believing that she could reforge the shards into a new crystal, and that with one of them, she could not only discover their functions, but also find a way to locate the fleeing wizards.

Yet, every time that they discorvered an unoccupied cavern, the human's mood would change drastically; upon returning home, he would spend several hours going over his maps, charts, and a wide assortment of books, in a vein attempt to uncover another cave, or a subterranean labyrinth that they had mislooked. He would carry on with this task late into the night, until sleep finally overcame him. All the while, the counsil of friendship would keep watch over him.

This has to stop, Daring thought.

Clearing her throat, the pegasi adventurer stated, "Same findings as usual, and even mo-" Before she could finish her statement, Ren rolled his eyes in frustration, and muttered something incoherently to himself. He then stormed off to a nearby tree, shaking his head all the way there. "Hey, where are you going?" He didn't answer.

"They're not making this easy," He spoke aloud. Upon reaching the tree, Daring noticed that haning on a sturdy branch was a bucking bag, and stationed on a nearby bench were a pair of what the human called 'MMA gloves', and 'hand wraps'. "Mind if I get a little workout in to 'relieve stress'?" He made qoutations using his fingers, while making a mocking voice of Nurse Redheart. The adventuring mare didn't respond. "Gonna take your silence as a 'yes' then." He proceeded to bind his hands with the hand wraps - weaving the fabric around his fingers, and continued to cover up the rest of his hands and wrist, until he was satisfied. Dawning his gloves, he was about to begin his workouts, when Daring stepped forward.

"Ren, there are other ways to relieve stress."

"I know," he grunted, not wanting to hear what she has to say. "But this is the way that I know how to best handle it." He finished with a heavy sigh, and took on a fighting stance; bringing this closed fists up to his face and standing sideways. She took notice that in this stance, he didn't leave himself open. But why were his feet moving so quickly? And for that matter, why was he bobbing up and down, like he was avoiding an attacker?

In a moment, he struck the heavy bag with a flurry of blows; every so often, he would use his legs to strike the inanimated object at various points - almost like he was seeing somepony in place of the bag. What Daring had taken notice of the most, however, was the amount of force that he was putting into this strikes. Each blow had the perfect blend of speed, strength, and precision - even his 'footwork' seemed to be just as quick, for he moved in circles around the bag like it were alive; like he was actually fighting somepony. She also noticed that he was keeping his distance for the most part, rather than being up close to the bag. When the bag would swing at him, he would dodge off to the side of it, and unleash a rapid barrage of punches on the lower parts of the bag, and finished with one last shot to the top. Had he fought in such a matter before? It was now fully apparent to her: she doesn't really know much about him.

Perhaps I sho-

Before Daring Do could finish her train of thought, a loud noise entered her ears that sounded as if there was apony screaming. Tilting her head, she focused on the noise. . . Yep. It was somepony screaming, alright. It sounded. . . like it was abover her?

"INCOMING!"

Within the blink of an eye, something had crashed into the adventuring pony, with the force of a hurricane. The last visual image to grace the mare's rosey colored eyes was a fluff of a multi colored stripped mane. . . its colors were simular to that of a rainbow. Darkness shrouded her. . .

The campfire illuminated the Shadows that envelop the campsite. The pair of adventurers had agreed that at first light they would pack up, and explore as much of the forest as possible, until dusk. While the duo has succeeded in discovering and exploring a vast number of caverns, they were unsuccessful in tracking the mages. Though it was clear that they were using the caves, because several wizardry items including some gem fragments, were left behind - almost as if they were hurried for whatever the reason.

After several hours, they returned to the campsite - as per usual. Except this time, the human exerted himself; he complained about having soreness all over his back, and his voice sounded very discomforting.

"Are you alright?" Daring inquired, after hearing a rather painful sounding grunt coming from Ren, as he took a seat on a log. Yet, despite trying to play it cool, Daring could see that he wasn't. "What happened?"

Whenever they encountered a cave with multiple tunnels, the duo would split up to cover more ground, and rendezvous near the entrance, once their search was over. With the way that he was complaining about back pain, she guess that he slept wrong, or he didn't do his stretches after exploring the caverns, AND his workouts. Either that, or he had an accident while he was exploring, and probably fell.

"It's nothing, just. . ." He released a painful Grunt, and try to stretch his back. Even with the shirt on, Daring took notice of his withers. . . Images of what could possibly be underneath his clothings and begun to enter her thoughts. Would it be wrong to find out? Another painful filled grunt woke her up from her lewd thoughts.

"Here, lay down on your stomach." She instructed. When he hesitated, she declared that she would give him a massage. The alien's expression was difficult to read; did he not want one, or was he trying to do things on his own again? He continue to stare blankly at her. His stubbornness nearly reminded her of herself - that is until a certain multi-colored maned pegasus showed her what it's like when you let others help you.

"Ren please," Daring pleaded. "Let me help you. I may not be all that good at massages, but I can-"

"Okay," Ren sighed. He proceeded to roll out his sleeping bag, and lay on top of it. However, to Darring's disapproval, he kept his shirt on.

Celestia dammit, she sweated mentally. It's okay, there will be other times. . . maybe. She shrugged her shoulders, and trotted over to him. All she could think of is what he looks like without his shirt on. And for that matter, what about the rest of him? Sure, she could always ask him to remove his clothes, but he demands to be clothed at all times, no matter how hot the summertime's would get. And besides, thinking of what he looks like was a bit of fun for the bold adventure; she merely thought of this as another mystery, one that she could enjoy and-

Whoa, okay. Let's back up here. She stopped her perverse thoughts of seeing him without his- I mean, come on! It's not like I'm attracted to him. Besides, I'm just helping him relieve tension. She would have convinced herself that she was just merely helping him - IF she wasn't currently eyeballing him from top to bottom, and stealing occasional -or rather mulitple - glances at his flank.

"Come on," came a faint voice that sounded strangely familiar. Choosing to ignore it, however, the now blushing Daring Do place a single hoof on his back, just above is flank, and wow. . . Strangely, even with a shirt on, she could feel the muscles that lay beneath it. Applying a bit more pressure, Ren grunted a bit; is whole back must be really tense, Daring thought, and knew that by climbing onto him, it would do more harm than good.

Instead, she flapped her wings and hovered above him. Being very careful so as to not cause him any more discomfort than what he was already experiencing, she descended ever so softly on his back - starting with his shoulders. In her eyes, she was merely helping a fellow adventurers ease the tension around his very very VERY broad shoulders, and then work our way down to the rest of his back. In reality, though, she wanted to know how his flank would feel.

Oh yeah, Daring grinned. I bet its nice and firm. Wouldn't mind laying my head on that. It looked so squishy, yet firm at the same time. It took all the will that she could muster to not reach a hoof down to his flank, and molded to her heart's content. Turning her attention back to his shoulders, she began to-

"Come on, come on, come on!" The familiar voice beckoned her. It was a bit raspy, and sounded very much like-

The tan furred pegasi felt like some pony was shaking her awake; rather frantically, too. Her eyes remained closed, those she could hear the same raspy voice that had interrupted her lustful dream, and she could already tell who the owner was. But why was Rainbow Dash here? And why does it feel like she was laying in a bed? Daring moaned out in discomfort, feeling as if she had just finished with a workout. . . Wait, a workout; she remembered that Ren was doing a workout, after Daring had delivered some bad news. Then she heard the screams of a pony, and a very distinctive rainbow mane. She moaned again, as she tried to move.

"Ah think that she is waking up, y'all." A voice that sounded very much like a farmer entered her ears.

"Ohmygoshohmygoshohmygosh," Rainbow Dash sounded very paniced. "Isshealright? Renpleasetellmetha-!" She spoke incredibly fast, but was silenced by something covering her mouth. Opening her eyes, albeit slowly to reduce light exposure, Daring saw that she was now indoors. Standing next to her was an orange coat mare wearing a Stetson hat; rainbow at introduced all of her friends before, and her descriptions of this earth pony made it rather easy to identify. Applejack - the element of honesty. She smiled at Daring, and called for Rainbow and Ren to come over.

Ren was holding Rainbows jaws shut, saying that everything will be okay. He said that the spill he had cast would dull the pain a bit. Using her front hooves to position herself up, Daring grunted from the soreness that her body was now feeling.

Rainbow must have hit me harder than I thought, Daring thought. She rubbed the back of her head with her hoof.

"Easy there, sugarcube." Applejack offered her concern for the adventuring pony. "Yer a little rough around the edges."

Rainbow Dash crept up to the edge of the bed, her eyes all watery from the tears of what she had done. "Daring, I am so so so sorry, please forgive me!" The cyan blue Pegasus attempted to embrace her idol, and friend, but a hand on her chest held her in place.

"Dash, give her some time to recover." Ren declared. "The spell I used -"

"Wait," Daring spoke up. She took the time to observe her surroundings, and was completely confused. Who's room was she currently in? It didn't look like any hospital room that she was familiar with. Looking down on the bed she was currently laying on, it clearly wasn't meant for a single pony; it was massive! And surprisingly very soft. "Where am I?" She inquired. There was something that seemed a little off about this room. Everything just felt so. . . roomy. Like she was inside somepony's home.

"You're in my room." Ren stated. Daring's eyes widened. His room? Daring had never been in his room before; the living room was all that she would see whenever the two of them would go over there maps, and charts, and plan out their next course of action.

"How are you feelin' sugarcube?" Applejack questioned. "Y'all don't have any broken bones, do ya?"

"Umm. . ." Sensing the rising concern in the atmosphere, Daring Do took some time to examine yourself. Stretching out her wings, she entered a soundless "thank Celestia" under her breath, that they weren't broken. Going a few days without flying is an experience best avoided - even experiencing it once was enough. Nothing else seemed to be hurting, besides her head.

Well, now that that's out of the way, she mentally said to herself. Lets see what we got here. Her eyes started to drift across the room. Her examination of this new and unfamiliar surroundings ended, when Ren had taken notice of her actions.

"Daring, is something wrong?"

"O-oh, umm. . ." Daring begin, but her mind came to a grinding halt, upon finding something unusual. In the far back corner of the room student door. The door was closed, but what was really unusual about it were the engraving upon it. Etched into the wooden surface for small runes of an unknown origin. In all of her years in studying archaeology - be it at her old University in Manehattan, or on the field - and years of adventuring, never once had she come across something as arcane as this. Could it be some kind of human written language? She squinted her eyes - trying to focus on the etching - when a familiar grunt coming from Ren caught her attention.

"It's the bathroom, Daring." He stated firmly. "Help yourself. As for me," he walked over to the door that leads out into the hallway. "I'm going to get a drink." Ren let out a heavy sigh. Daring watched him, as he crossed the threshold.

"Ren, wait." She called out to him. Daring half expected him to keep walking, but instead he remained at the doorway, and looked back at her, with heavy unblinking eyes. "Outside, you said that your workouts were the best way for you to manage your stress. Why?" Again, she expected for him not to answer. . .but. . .

"Not just my workouts. Fighting helps me too." He reluctantly replied. "But since I can't fight anyone here, I turn to my workouts." He pinched the spot between his eyes, and groaned. "Although, I do admit that some mead every now and then is harmless." He declared with a witty smile.

"Do you have any cider?" Rainbow Dash inquired.

"RD!" Applejack snapped. "This ain't the time fer silly questions. Besides, ah reckon that he-"

"Actually," the human began, interrupting the farm pony. "I do have some hard cider. And I wouldn't mind the company." He smiled, and beckoned for the two mares to join him, if they so wished. "Daring needs her rest anyway, so-"

"Oh, like hay you're leaving me out of this!" The brash adventuring pony said in defiance. With a careful leap, and using her wings to glide down from the massive bed, she landed gracefully onto the floor to join in the festivities.

"So, what brought you two out here?" Ren asked, taking a sip of his drink; Griffonstone Rum, his choice of 'poison' that he imported from the Griffon kingdom. It was an acquired taste, but very delicious to those that could appreciate it - with that perfect mixture of almond milk blended with cinnamon, coconut, and spiced rum. It was as sweet as the nonalcoholic apple cider, and had enough of a kick to put a dragon on its rump. Yet, astonishingly, Ren was drinking it, and was completely fine. Late into the afternoon, the four of them were drinking, and discussing various topics.

"Ah was just passin' by, on my way to see how y'all were doin', when ah saw Rainbow performin' 'em fancy moves, again." Applejack declared sternly. Glancing next to her, she nudged the pony in question, and asked, "What were y'all tryin' to do THIS time, RD?" The farm pony took a swig from her mug of cider. The alcoholic variety.

"Its for an upcoming show the Wonderbolts will be hosting next month in Las Pegasus." Rainbow says enthusiastically. "Spitfire wants me to get ready for it. But," she paused before continuing. "I botched up the maneuver, and lost control." Rubbing the back of her head with her hoof, she cast an apologetic glance to Daring, whom sat herself next to Ren. Just before the Wonderbolt newbie could utter a word, Daring held aloft her hoof to stop her.

"You've already said that you're sorry. There's no need to keep saying it." She smiled. Rainbow smiled back at her, sheepishly. Turning her attention over to Ren, Daring asked, "You know, you never really did explain how you're able to live so comfortably." She finished, raising an eye brow. The human was in the middle of drinking his rum - straight from the bottle, when he stopped mid-chug.

The human gently placed the bottle back down on the coffee table, where it made a solid 'thunk' upon making contact with the table's surface. Using the back of his hand to wipe away any rum that was left on his lips, he turned to her, and answered. "You do know that this house is a gift, right?"

"Yes, I know." Daring do nodded, then took a large gulp of her hard cider. "What I mean is, how do you live day by day? Do you have a job, here?"

"Oh," he replied. "No, I don't have a job. Cel-"

"No job!?"Applejack shouted, spitting out some of her cider in the process. "But where do y'all get yer food from?" Using his magic, Ren levitated a cloth from the kitchen, and proceeded to wipe the table clean. He then offered the rag to the two Pegasis, who declined it.

"Well, I was about to say that Princess Celestia provided me with some food, and enough gold to last me for a month."

So, Daring thought. That's why he has been pushing himself to find the mages as soon as possible. The money will run out eventually. Did he really come to Equestria with nothing more than just the clothes on his back, and a couple of weapons?

"Well, if y'all need work, Ah can offer you some good an' honest work around the farm." The farm pony offered.

"Well, thanks AJ. But as soon as I find them, I'll be returning to Skyrim."

Okay, I think its pretty clear that this colt doesn't know how to relax. The adventuring mare thought. Than again, I'm not one to talk. The room got quiet real quick, with the exception of the human lightly taping his strange digests against the table.

"Have you read the rest of the 'Daring Do' series yet?" The rainbow maned Pegasus questioned Ren. Its weird; when he was at the castle, the alien was introduced to the series of books, and chose to read about her adventures and exploits, rather than ask-

Hey, wait a minute. Daring thought, completely drowning out the conversation being currently held. I could ask him about this own exploits. I mean, he IS a soldier, or whatever a Legionnaire is. . . Maybe he has a tale or few. Daring smirked to herself, and tuned back into the conversation, just in time to hear a very enthusiastic RD describe the time that she and her friends helped Daring stop Ahuizotl. Heh, good times.

"- and the best part is that we became such awesome friends, that she included me in her latest issue!" Ren whistled in amusement, seemingly adding fuel to her ego. The Wonderbolt newbie puffed out her chest in pride.

"That's just like Rainbow," the orange farmer pony declared, rolling her eyes in annoyance. "Always hoggin' the glory. Y'all do remember that you didn't help Daring Do all by yerself, right?" Rainbow shrugged, and merely took a gulp of her cider, smirking the entire time.

Clearing her throat, Daring looked over to Rainbow, "Yeah, those were pretty good times back then." Rainbow nodded. "Even if it took, at the time, an obnoxious fan girl, AND all of her friends to help." The prideful pony frowned, whilst the others chuckled at her. Daring winked at the mare, as a way to let Rainbow know that it was all in good fun. And of course, she had in fact included all of the cyan Pegasus's friends in her latest book based on that particular event, so there wasn't any need to steal the spotlight. Besides, the important thing is that the battle had been won; the bad guy sent packing, to lick his wounds, and a new story was made from the experience. Daring turned her attention to Ren, and grinned. "Speaking of adventures," the archaeologist spoke aloud. Almost as if on cue, the alien gently placed his bottle of rum back on to the table.

"I take it that you want to hear my tales of 'adventure', am I right?" Ren deadpanned, and making more of those finger quotations again. Daring thought that perhaps he wasn't about to share a tale; why? Was it too much to ask for? It only seem fair that he regale his guest with stories of his own adventures, especially since he had taken the time to read about hers. The Pegasus - and the other two mares, she had guessed - watched, as the human ran a hand through his shorten dark mane. He looked at the trio, their eyes unblinking; then, just when daring's ears folded back, he smiled. "Okay. I'll do it." The trio of ponies cheered, but their cheers were cut short, when the human declared that should there be a tale that he didn't wish to share, then they should respect his wishes. They agreed. "So, what do you want to know?"

Okaaaay; was not expecting that. Daring thought. The trio's eyes widened, and their jaws agape upon hearing of a rather. . . fortuitous event: Ren's arrival to Skyrim. He left no details out - how he was taken as a prisoner, and was carted off to a town called Helgan, and that he would have been executed were it not for the arrival of a dragon. There are dragons where he comes from? How do they defend themselves? Ren continued with his story. He had just finished saying how he and his friend, Hadvar, survived several giant spiders, and snuck passed a bear.

"Once we were outside, we hid until the dragon flew overhead. Hadvar suggested that I go to Riverwood, and speak with his uncle - Alvar, the blacksmith. And that was just day one." He finished by taking another swig of his drink.

"Whoa nelly," Applejack uttered. "That must've been terrifyin' fer y'all. Did. . .did anypony survive, aside you an' yer friend?"

"Only a few of us. I doubt that I would have made it out, were it not for Hadvar. He suggested that if I wanted to help, I should join up with the Legion. And that's how I came to be one of them." After a bit, Ren stood up, and stretched his aching limbs. "Excuse me girls, but I'm going to take a shower." He excused himself from the table, and headed up stairs. As he walked away, Daring's eyes instinctively locked onto his well rounded rump.

As she continued to stare longingly, her sultry eyes gazing upon him, she thought of what it would be like to see him without those pesky clothes on. This also meant that she wasn't paying attention enough to see a cyan hoof waving about in front of her.

"Helloooooo!" Rainbow called out to her idol, frantically waving her hoof around. "Equestria to Daring. Are you in there?" Upon realizing that somepony was trying to gain her attention, the adventuring mare shook herself from her sultry haze.

"Wha-what?" Daring's face blushed, as she turned to face Rainbow Dash. "S-s-sorry Dash, I was. . . uh. . ." She struggled with her words. This never happened. NEVER. In all of her years of archaeological expeditions, death defying adventures, and escapes from certain doom, Daring had considered herself to be completely fearless, fully confident that she could overcome any obstacle that life would throw her way. But. . . why was she chocking on her own words? And why has she been having such lewd thoughts of the human? Also, why does it feel like somepony placed a hoof on her withers?

"Sugarcube," the apple farmer spoke up. "What's on yer mind?' Daring glanced over to the farm pony. Was she offering concern? Another thought entered the forefronts of Daring's mind: would it be safe to tell them of her perverse thoughts of the alien?

Before she could even speak, however, she noticed an odd sound, coming from upstairs. I thought that he was going to take a shower, Daring thought. The others must have picked up on the sound as well, because their ears were twitching, and much like Daring, their gazes were directed towards the source of the unknown noise.

"Huh," Rainbow jested. "What do you think is going on?"

"It. . . it sounds like he's. . . prayin'." Applejack stated. Tilting her ear closer to the source of the sound, Daring payed close attention to the sound; the farm pony was right. But why? And for that matter, what language is he speaking? It was difficult to describe what she was hearing; an entirely different language that she - Equestria's greatest archaeologist - had never heard spoken before? This was worth investigating.

As Daring proceeded towards the stairway, Applejack called out to her, "Whoa there, sugarcube. Where do y'all think yer goin'?" The apple farmer raised a curious eyebrow.

"Sorry girls, this is something that I need to know." The adventuring Pegasus declared, and continued to march up the stairs. From her current position, she could see that the door to Ren's room was not completely closed. Taking one step up the stairs, she was stopped by a flash of cyan blue. Rainbow halted her progress.

"Uh, Daring. Don't you think that you're invading his privacy?"

"RD, he is speaking in some unknown language, he has some kind of weird arcane writing on one of his doors. There's very little that we know about him - other than that he can somehow use magic, and that magic doesn't seem to work on him." Daring listed all that was known of the alien, all the while keeping her perverse thoughts of him to herself. Just then, the strange chanting stopped, but it resumed a few seconds later. The longer that she stood in place, listening to this unknown chanting, the more anxious she became; if she didn't uncover the mystery behind this soon, she'll be driven up the wall. An idea came to the adventurer's mind; perhaps since they also spend time with him, maybe Rainbow and Applejack know something more of him. It was worth a try.

"Besides, aren't you a little curious about him? Or has he told you something about himself?" She inquired. In an instant, Rainbow's eyes widened. She then turned to glance over to Applejack, whom was currently rubbing her right forehoof with her left, and was facing up towards the slightly opened door; almost like she were in deep thought.

"Well," Applejack said. "It ain't like he hasn't told us anythin'."

"Except not of himself," Rainbow added. "He only told us of his adventures. So. . ." Rainbow put a hoof to her chin. This was all the proof that Daring Do needed.

"Yeah, that's what I thought." She smirked. Flapping her wings, she took to the air, and flew pass Rainbow on her way over towards the door. The faint sound of a certain farmer cursing to herself, as well as lightly placed hoofsteps, indicated that Applejack was coming up the stairs. The next audible sound to grace her ears were the sound of another pair of wings flapping close by; Rainbow was catching up to her. Daring continued to smirk.

Heh, I knew that they would come around, Daring thought. However, something came to mind; what if he wasn't wearing his clothes? Would they try to jump him, or would they turn around and walk away? Or would they stop her should she try anything? None of these scenarios set well with her. Over the last few months, she has asked herself what he looks like under those clothes, and why does he need them. Then those thoughts became more perverse the longer she lingered on the subject. How would he measure up? Would he be as big as a stallion or would he be bigger? She blushed intensely, and silently prayed to the Royal Sisters that she could find out.

But while Daring still wished to see if the alien - Ren - could live up to her expectations, for now, she'll have to play it cool and keep herself in check. She was having very little luck. Her wings began to stiffen, as she continued to think of him. How he would look like without his clothes, how he would measure up, how it would feel to be rutted by him. . . But then she remembered that she wasn't alone, and she shouldn't be thinking of such perversion. Doing some deep breathing, she cooled herself down. Which she believes is something that Ren needs to do. . . And the more that she thought about it, the more Daring couldn't help but wonder if the real reason behind his increase of stress may be related to a certain. . . urge that he could be having.

Hmmm. . . Maybe that's it. If that's the case, then perhaps I could help him.

Of course, there was still the matter of Rainbow Dash and Applejack. . . she hummed to herself, trying to figure out what she could possibly do. An idea came to mind, causing Daring to chuckle quietly to herself. It was a devious, evil plan; but it could be very enjoyable, if it all works out.

Creeping ever so quietly upon the opened door, the trio peered into Ren's room. He had his back facing them; his shirtless back. His well toned, shirtless, and very scared up back. Daring felt her wings stiffen again, at the thought of her own lewdness. Then she began to sniff the air, for there was a scent that was new to her. It wasn't sweat, that much she could tell; he didn't workout that long before Rainbow crashed into her. It smells a bit bitter, yet clean with a brush of something spicy underneath. This new scent, she guessed, was his own musk. It tickled her nostrils.

Whoosh Daring Do's wings flared outwards, and a small blush appeared across her cheeks. . . But she wasn't the only one to have a problem with a wingboner; looking back at her biggest fan, Daring could see that Rainbow was just as shocked as she was. From the corner of her eyes, she could see that Applejack had a blush as red as the apples on her Cutie Mark stretched across her face as well. Perhaps they also picked up his scent? Taking her eyes off of her 'partners in crime' as it were, the adventuring mare glanced back at her prize, and proceeded to observe him.

Why is he kneeling in front of the bathroom door? Why is he not wearing his shirt? I mean, not that I'm complaining; damn, he looks good. She grinned. But there was something else that she noticed. Resting within his hands was his weapon - his sword. Why was he holding it? The alien was looking down at his blade, but then cast his gaze to the door. Daring figured that he was looking at the etchings; What language was that, and what does it mean? he began to speak up.

"Nau Dii Zin, Zu''u Dreh Vaat Viir Mid Wah Fin Jun! Ahrk Sindogahvon Thaarn Wah Fin Kendovs Do Ok Lot Junaar!" It was that language; that same language that the trio overheard earlier. . . But what was he saying?

"Ah think he's speakin' some kind of fancy." Applejack whispered.

"I've never heard any of the Canterlot ponies speak like that before." Rainbow Added. Daring hummed and tuned out all other noises. Going throught her mental list of all the recorded societies and spoken languages in Equestria's history, she tried to determine if there was one that like what he was speaking, but none of them were like this. She paid close attention to Ren's chanting. He seemed to be struggling a bit. Like he couldn't find the words for that unknown language that could be transverse from Ponish - or whatever language that he could speak that everypony could understand.

"Aal Daar. . . above judge? Ugh! Fuck it. May those above judge me, and those below take me, if I fail in my duty!" It seemed that he gave up on that chanting.

Probably because there aren't that many words in Ponish that could be translated to that language? She thought. Or it could be because its difficult to speak. Sure sounds like it. Just then, Ren unsheathed his sword, and helit it aloft - its tip pointing upwards.

"Long live the Emperor! Long live the Empire!" Then sheathing the blade once more, he remained in his kneeled position for a time. Then he chuckled. "You needn't linger by my door, girls."

Wait, he knew we were here the whole time?! Daring thought in complete shock. But how?! He wasn't paying any attention to us the whole time he was doing that weird chant!

Applejack was the first to speak up, "How did you know that we were here, sugarcube? She was a bit flabbergasted herself.

"The wings," he pointed out. "I heard them flare out, and I also heard your hoofsteps, AJ". The farm pony lowered her Stetson hat in an apologetic matter.

"We didn't mean to bother ya none." Ren still had his back facing them. Taking the time to examine the scars on his back, Daring noticed a multitude of different kinds - but the most noticeable ones were four large gashes around his right shoulder; scratches from a large cat, maybe. They seem to fit the descriptions of one. . . possibly a tiger. Another one was a large burnt mark, just below the area of his tiger wound. Perhaps he got that when the dragon attacked? If so, then its a miracle that he survived. On his other shoulder, there was what looks like a bite mark; continual examination revealed it to be from a species of bear. How is it that he could have all of these wounds and still keep going? All the wounds seem to have been treated, but it was unknown if he did it himself or not. Most likely he treated himself.

He stood up to his feet, and turned to face his guests. There were two more 'tattoos' upon his chest, but it seems that one was burned along with some of his flesh. From what little of the image remained, Daring could just barely perceive a bluish purple rose, and a heart. Must have been for somepony he really cared for? Well, whatever the case, the scorched flesh around it made it impossible to determine what the original image was.

The other depicted a pair of 'hands' that were clasped together, with some kind of pedant dangling between them. A bird of some kind was near the hands; both the bird and the hands were in the clouds. she guessed that this could be a tribute to somepony he knew. And if she needed any further proof, she need only to look below the hands. A date of birth. . . and death. . . but who-

"Its alright, girls." Ren spoke up, breaking her focus. Rainbow stepped forward.

"So. . . umm. . . w-what language was that?" The human gave a smile as for his first response, and provided an answer.

"Dovahish - the tongue of the Dragons."

"Wait wait wait," Daring quickly getting into the conversation. "Dragons have their own -" She stopped herself. There could be more time for that later. "Nevermind, so what were you chanting earlier?" Ren walked over to a mantle and placed his sword on it. Then, speaking in a calmly matter, he answered.

"Well first off, yes - dragons in Skyrim have their own language, and as for my 'chant', its actually the oath that we all take when we join the Legion."

Rainbow zipped over to him, and was currently at eye level with him. "An oath? That sounds so cool!" She could no longer contain her excitement. "So, what's the oath? Oh, is it something awesome like, 'I vow to slay 100 dragons, just to prove how awesome and badass I am'?" The brash Pegasus held a hoof over her chest, mocking the human. Ren deadpanned, and cleared his throat, as he recited his oath once more.

"Upon my honor, I do swear undying loyalty to the Emperor! And unwavering obedience to the officers of His Great Empire! May those above judge me, and those below take me, if I fail in my duty! Long live the Emperor! Long live the Empire!" The human spoke loudly, and puffed his chest a little. He finished by pounding a clinched fist to his chest, and stood in attention, proud of his service to the Legion.

But as his bravado begins to die down, he let out a heartfelt sigh, and lowered his gaze. Now staring at the floor, he seem to be. . . upset; saddened. Why?

"Umm, sugarcube?" Applejack stepped forward. "Why were you reciting yer oath?" He sat on the edge of his massive bed, resting his arms on his lap, still looking down.

"The oath. . . I recite it to remind myself of my duties, but to also. . ." He paused, briefly. Then looking at the trio, he asked if they could keep this a secret. When they agreed, he resumed. "The oath helps calm me down. Lately, I've been plagued with these. . ." He groaned in defeat, not wanting to say what was on his mind out loud.

Daring sensed that something was amiss, and started to think of nearly every possibility. In the end, she thought about him possibly having a certain urge plaguing him, but didn't want to assume without any proof to back up this theory. She beckoned the other mares to follow her out to the hallway. They complied.

"What is it, Daring?" Rainbow questioned.

"What have you all done to help him relax?" Daring raised a curious eyebrow. Her own urges could wait - this was more important.

"Well," Applejack began, rubbing her chin. "Ah can't speak fer the others, but Ah've been offerin' him help with his garden." The duo looked onto Rainbow Dash, and waited for her response.

"I've been helping him stay in shape, and being awesome - like me!" Rainbow held a dramatic pose, causing the others to roll their eyes. These were not the answers that Daring was looking for. She glanced back at the human again, and saw that he placed his hands on his face; he was depressed about something, and Daring believed that she was right on the mark.

Choosing to whisper to the others, Daring informed them of her suspicions, and how was the best way to help relieve him of his tensions. The shocked expressions that she was greated with meant that neither of them were sure about this, and that there had to be another way.

"Daring," said Rainbow. "A-are you sure that there's no other way to. . . relieve him of his stress?" Her face turned red from her blushing, and her wings were stiff.

"Listen, RD" Daring began to explain herself. "From what I understand, nothing else that has been done is working for him. Even his own methods of stress relieve isn't working for him." She remained silent, until the others looked down in shame. "Besides, he probably hasn't had any sort of action since he came here."

That caught their attention. She had a good point - he mainly focused on his physical maintenance, his magical prowess, and his mission. Applejack mentioned that there were times, when he was in the market, that a mare or two would eyeball him and genuinely show an interest, but he refused and would have a 'mighty strong blush', as the farmer had said, across his face.

"Okay, that make sense." Hummed Applejack. "Now, for the big question; why get us involved?"

Daring wasn't expecting that; she didn't even come up with a good enough of a reason why she wanted them both to be involved - other then the fact that it could be hot. She began to contemplate on an answer. . .

He is pretty big - height wise, anyway. Maybe. . . I can use their own characteristic traits to persuade them? Worth a try. Daring searched her memories for anything that she knew about Applejack and Rainbow Dash. The farm pony likes to help everypony when they need it, while the wonderbolt newbie was always willing to help her friends, too.

That could work, Daring's grin grew more wolfish.

"Well, truth be told, I don't think that I can help ease his tension all by myself. I mean, just look at the size of him." The duo glanced over at their human friend, and nodded in agreement. "It would be easier, if I had help. Plus this would help him to adjust to life in Equeatria, wouldn't you say so?"

Both Applejack and Rainbow Dash argued amongst themselves, while keeping their voices down. Daring waited in silence for what felt like a few minutes, until finally one of them responded.

"Okay," Rainbow spoke. "So how do we go about this?" It seems that they were agreeing to go along with Daring's plan.

"Leave that to me, girls. And this will work out for all of us." Daring gave a sultry grin as she finished her statement. The trio crossed the threshold back into his room.

"So. . ." Daring cleared her throat. She had to choose her words correctly, and carefully - in case he were to refuse. But she also figured that this would be another good opportunity to get to know him better. "Ren, do you mind if I ask you something?" Ren was in the middle of placing his sword on the wall mounted rack, and removing his handwraps.

"What is it?" He sounded very tired, and he had his back facing towards her and the others.

"Well, with the way that you be been talking about the Legion, me and the girls were just curious; how do Legionnaires prepare for a high risk mission?"

That got his attention. The room fell eerily quiet, to the point that one would be driven mad.

"Odd," he stated. Turning around, he stared at his guests and raised a curious eyebrow. "Why do you want to know about that?"

"What?" Daring advanced forwards, with the others in tow. She hoped and prayed that neither of them were smirking, or acting suspicious. "We just want to get to know you better, and hear some of your adventures with the Legion. Is there a problem with that, colt?" She studied his facial expressions for a bit, trying to determine if he was catching on; or at the very least try to see if he would share a tale of his time with the Imperial Legion. Yet, he remained motionless and expressionless. He wasn't making this easy for her.

Come on, just take the bait already! Daring wanted to scream aloud for him to say something - anything!

"With violence," the stubborn human finally let out an answer, and what a surprise - the answer was 'violence'. How predictable.

Oh well, it's better than nothing. Daring mentally told herself. Granted, his answer was rather predictable.

"There has to be more to it than that, sugarcube." Said Applejack.

"Nope, that's pretty much it." Ren smiled a bit before adding, "Our commanders run us tight, and they know that we need to blow off steam. Each of our garrison forts have stations for weapons training, smithing, battle scenarios - or simulations if we have a powerful illusionist, exercises, and even full contact sparing. Whatever helps everyone to relieve tension."

Daring had notice that the small smile was beginning to widen. This was a good start, and everything that he was saying was pretty interesting. Now she has something to work with. Still, one thing stuck out to her; they fight each other before fighting enemy forces? Why would they do such a thing?

"Wait a minute," RD spoke. "So you're saying that the Legion encourages it's own soldiers to fight each other before going into a high risk mission?"

Ren held his hands in front of him, in a way that resembled how one would attempt to calm somepony down, or to insure that everything was alright. "The fights are always supervised - with healing potions on standby, and we only use kendo sticks for weapons and leather shields for defense. Nobody is going to risk a serious injury that'll jeopardize the mission, and it's a great way to settle grudges amicably."

The tone in his voice portrayed his gleefullness. Ren must of had some experience with these sparing sessions; or perhaps he was reliving the events of a certain memory? Daring did not have to wait very long to hear an answer. He started pacing back and forth between his bed and the 'bathroom' door, recalling an event from his time in Skyrim, speaking with nostalgia. His happy smirk never left his face.

"I remember right before I joined the Legion; Legate Rikke had sent me, and one other new recruit, to clear our the bandits at Fort Hraggstad. Very dangerous." He stopped his pacing, and stood in place. "This other recruit - an Orc, from one of those strongholds. . . She and I were at each other's throats. She constantly boasted about how she's the 'strongest warrior in all of Skyrim', and how nobody could defeat her."

Rainbow Dash huffed in annoyance. "Can't say I blame you. I hate it when some ponies try and show off." Applejack and Daring Do both deadpanned upon hearing that remark.

"Oh hi Kettle, name's Pot. Have we met?" Ren beamed. However, this statement only seem to further perplex the cyan pegasi. "Forget it, Rainbow." He chuckled, which caused the others to chuckle, as well. "Anyway, this Orc lady kept on boasting, and I told her to put her money where her mouth is. Legate Rikke agreed with me, and suggested that we settle it out in the courtyard."

So there was a fight before he joined, just to prove who was the better fighter, huh? Daring pondered. But who won? She tried painting a mental picture of the fight, and visualized a sweaty human. . . his muscles glistening in th- damnit Daring, stop thinking about that! You'll blow this chance! The audible of a farm pony clearing her throat, meant that it was time to tune back in.

"So Ah'm guessing that ya took her down easily?" Asked Applejack.

Ren shook his head in response, and he was rewarded with a faint gasp from the trio. "Actually, she was indeed one of the best warriors that I've ever spared with - if not the best. We were practically evenly matched - despite our difference in fighting style. She put my endurance to the test." The human went on to explain that the 'Orc' lady he fought was more of a slugger, while he is more of an out-boxer - relying on his quickness and longer range punches to wear down his opponents. He continued to explain what it meant to be an out-boxer, and all the advantages and disadvantages there are in this fighting style. How his punches aren't nearly as strong as most others with different styles, but instead, he traded raw power for more nimbleness, for faster blows. All the dodging, ducking and weaving to avoid being hit took a lot of constant endurance workout, and often he would get winded very easily. But so would his oppenents.

Resuming his pacing, he continued regaling his tale. "Two short weeks in Skyrim, and I can honestly say that she could back her words. After 9 rounds, the General declared us evenly matched - a draw. Needless to say, there were a lot of unhappy bidders that day in the courtyard." He lowered his gaze, and smiled. . . he was full of joy, reliving his story. "And we had a new found respect for one another." He concluded. But there must be more to it than that.

"So what happened next?" Daring questioned, almost sounding like a school filly who so badly wanted to know the ending of a sappy romance novel.

"Well, we teamed up; and together, we cleared out the bandits." He announced, saying that they made a contest out of their initiation; whoever 'downed' the most bandits would be the victor. It also ended in a draw. "Once the Fort was secured, we celebrated by helping ourselves to the ale and mead they had stored away. . . We. . . ended up holding a tie breaker, later that evening in the barracks."

Rising his head, he fixed his gaze unto his guests, and stated with a sheepish smile, "That was the second time my endurance was put to the test, that day." He finished with a subtle chuckle.

And in that moment, Daring's grin grew wider. And now that she knows that he is already accustomed to what she has in stores for him, all she has to do is make a subtle suggestion and BAM! Glancing at her 'partners in crime', she noticed that their expressions were the same as her own. They were ready. Daring made her move.

"It sounds like you're still carrying some tension. Maybe we can help you get rid of it." She said in a sultry voice.

"I. . .uh. . .didn't think you'd feel like sparring." Ren's sounded shocked. Maybe he knew what they were intending to do.
Then, as one, they made their move, and advances on him.

"How about we skip to the the breaker?" Asked Rainbow Dash, mimicking her fellow pegasus with a sultry voice. She positioned herself to his left side, as the farm pony made her way to his right.

"We can put yer endurance 'to the test', sugarcube." Applejack declared with as much sultry as Daring and Rainbow. The light gold coated pegasus could see with her bedroom eyes that the human was blushing really, really, REALLY hard.

"O-oh! I-I-I. . . I didn't. . . hmmm." Ren stood in attention for what felt like a few minutes. Like he was contemplating whether if it would be okay to proceed with. . . this. "No strings attached? This would just be a fling?" He asked.

"Hehe," Daring chuckled at his response. "Sure, no strings. No repercussions. Just the four of us, having some fun." At this cue, Rainbow and Applejack brushed up against his sides, causing him to tense up and his blush to become a deeper shade of crimson. He shift his gaze from one ponybto the other, still humming to himsielf. Daring approached ever closer so as to embrace him in a gentle hug. She lift her good to his face, and marveled at how soft his face us. "Just replace colt."

Ren nodded, like he was agreeing to this. "Alright, I'll do it." He finished with a devilsih smirk. "On one condition."

"Name it, big guy." Rainbow muttered, while slowly dragging him over to the bed. AJ aligned herself to be in front, and raised up on her hind legs, giving him a gentle shove. He flopped down on the mattress, still bearing that smirk.

"This stays between us, alright?"

"Ah think we can handle rhat, lover boy." Applejack declared.

"Actually," Daring spoke up, and hovers over him. "I have a condition for you. One that I'm sure you'll agree to." She returned his devious smirk.

"Name it."

"We do this twice a month." Surprisingly, Ren accepted the term. "Good boy. . . now, get undressed." Daring's smirk never left her face, as she landed on his chest, claiming her prize.

Dawn of the next day

The sun shines brightly across the landscape, bringing life to the dismmle forest, and to that of Ponyville. At a lone quant shack on the edge of the Everfree forest, the front door opened.

"Whoa-nelly, that was amazin' partner." Applejack chimed. She exited the structure with a sultry expression, and a bit of a limp in her step. "Ah sure ain't gonna be apple buckin' fer a while."

"Yeah," Rainbow added, leaningagainst her new buck buddy for support, but mostly because he felt really nice and warm. "And I don't think I'll be flying straight for a couple of days."

"Hehe, glad you girls enjoyed yourselves." Ren laughed. He seem to be more relaxed, as well. From behind him, a pair of light golden hooves wrapped around his chest. Daring hummed in bliss, from last nights extravaganza.

"Now remember, colt. We do this twice a month." Daring cooed into his ear, and she finished her reminder with a lick up his cheek, and one final pur to his ear, "Doctor Daring's orders. . ." He chuckled and thanked them all for an awesome night, and they thanked him for letting them stay for the night. Daring nuzzled him one last time before departing; she gave him bedroom eyes, saying that they'll see each other again in two weeks time. And indeed, they did. Two weeks after their first night, they met up - as they agreed; he became more and more relaxed, and became more socialble with the townsfolks. Every other day, Ren would go and hangout with RD and AJ, while the rest of the week he would spend time with Daring Do at his home. They would swap stories of their past adventures, and kept each other company. The weekends were dedicated to finding the wizards, and of course he would exercise daily; though not as extreme like he use to do. But as long as he was more relaxed than what he has been in the past few months, that is all that matters.

After all, its a mare's job to take care of her stallion. . .

Whoa, wait a minute. MY stallion? Daring thought. Sure, he was amazing and they seem to share the same interests and passions, but to have sappy feelings for him? No Daring, you're not in love with him - only his body. He's an alien, Celestia damnit. . . Still, nopony is going to get between me and my treasure.

About a month later, Daring soared across the sky, on her way to see her favorite human. . . Okay, so Ren is the only human that she's ever met - but still, if she had met another human, Ren would still be her favorite one.

Images of their first night flashed through her mind; the way that he just kept going, while needing only a couple of minutes to rest up was impressive. Its too bad that RD and AJ couldn't join in on the last time, nor could they join her this time. Rainbow was off performing with the Wonderbolts, and Applejack was busy with chores at Sweet Apple Achers.

Its alright, just means more for me, Daring sniggered.

As she drew nearer to his house, Daring haltered her advancement when she noticed something. Somepony was currently standing at the front door. Squinting her eyes, she saw that it was a light violet coated mare, with a perple main and tail, both sportting an aquamarine highlight.

Wait, She pondered. Why is Starlight here? Is she trying to get a piece of MY action?!

Dashing towards a nearby cloud, she peered over its edge, looking down at the unsuspecting mare with great intent. a couple of minutes roll by, and nothing happens. That is, until the door opens, revealing a tired looking human. He must have gotten back to his long night research, again. That stupid, sexy colt. There would diffenitly be a hard lecture about this, once he gets rid of that other ma-

"Sorry about the mess," Ren's tiresome voice reached her ears. What is going on? Why hasn't he told her to buck off yet? was there something going on between them? If that's the case, then perhaps it would be best to leave. Or, perhaps Starlight was just delivering a message to him from Princess Twilight? Hang on, why is he letting her inside the house? Daring wanted to fly down there, and demand to know what was going on, but restrained herself; otherwise, such actions would not only hurt her image, it might also mean that he would back out of their agreement. So she decided it would be best to wait on the cloud, for the time being. She squeezed her hind legs together to prevent any liquids from dropping, while patiently waiting for something to happen.

As she continue to wait for Ren to throw that damn mare out, Daring thought of all the possible reasons that could explain why Starlight would show up at his doorstep. When no answer came to her, she groaned in frustration and discomfort. The aching from her nether region was starting to become unbearable. She NEEDED him.

Suddenly the door opened. coming outside, Starlight was trotting next to Ren, and the duo proceeded to head back to Ponyville.

Oh, come on! Daring sneered mentally. Looking down at them, she noticed that Starlight was looking up, either at him or at the sky. It was kind of hard to tell. Being as stealthy as a cat when its on the hunt, the adventurous mare followed them - determined to see wherethis bucking mare was taking her prize.

Three hours. Three hours of watching them. In that time, Daring had followed them back into town, over to the 'Carousel Boutique', where they had tea with Rarity, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and. . . Princess Twilight? A while after they started dringking their tea, Rarity and Starlight - Bitch, as daring would call her, went upstairs. But they weren't the only ones to go upstairs either. Ponyville's resident party pony was already in the room - masquerading as one of those mannequins, and was completely unnoticed by either of them. A few minutes later, she emerged from her hidding place, startling the two unicorns, while screaming something about Starlight having a crush on 'Renny'. Did. . . she mean. . . Ren? Daring thought that would be competely ridiculous. Oh sure, he is quite arguably the best buck anypony could ever ask for, but to be in love? With an alien?

Even though he is rather easy on the eyes, and. . . is also a fellow adventure, who constantly gets into danger, which only adds to his charms. And yes, there is the fact that he is a very passionate lover.

Okay, I guess I can see the appeal in that, Daring thought. I mean, he is pretty awesome, and damn, he's got some nice features, too. Those withers, that well toned bod. . . that nice, firm flank. His face. . . those eyes. . . hmmm, maybe. . . wait- why am I thinking about this? He is only going to be here for a while, so its best to just be buck buddies.

Observing through another window, Daring noticed that Ren was creeping up on the door to the room that the trio of mares were currently in. was he spying on them? After a couple of minutes, she returned her attention to the trio, and was just in time to see the pink terror put a filing cabinet into her mane, and Starlight holding a rolled up scroll. Probably a spell or something to use on the human.

Speaking of whom, She pondered. Let's see if I - huh? When she returned her gaze back to where she had last seen him, he was gone. where the buck did he go? She eventually found him, seating back down with Fluttershy and Twilight, like he was always there. How the buck did he move so quick?

After the tea party, Ren and Star-Bitch-light went to the park, and Daring watched as he did his workouts in public. Do all humans workout in broad daylight? She wondered. She continued to watch them from afar, when she noticed that the unicorn was having trouble talking to him. What were they talking about? If only she could move in closer, without being seen. But she could smell her own musk, and if she could then so could Starlight - and probably Ren too, if his noes is sensitive. So being up in the clouds would be the best course of action for her, for the time being.

Her continual observation of them went on, with no dramatic changes. Sweet Celestia, just watching him with somepony else frustrated her to no end; as much as she wanted to fly down and give them both a piece of her mind, she had to maintain her composure. Besides, it would only be a matter of time before he gives in to his urges, and returns to his home. But suddenly, and without warning, Starlight was on him. She. . . kissed him?! And he wasn't shoving her away?!

Okay, screw this! she mentally barked, and dashed down to the shrubbery near where they were. Peaking through the bush, she watched them both - glaring at them. True, there was the chance that Bitchlight or Ren could pick up her scent, but it didn't matter. Right now, she needed to know what was going on. After a few seconds, the unicorn moved away from him, but didn't go away. It seems that Ren was holding her in place; perhaps to yell at her.

Heh, bitch deserves it too.

"What the hell was that?!" He broke the silence.

Aaaaaannnnnd here we go, Daring cheered to herself. All she needed was some popcorn and the show would be much more enjoyable. Starlight's stuttered words were so muffled, it was hard to pick up what she was trying to say, except for the ever-so pathetic, "I'm sorry. . . I should go. . ." In a way, Daring almost felt sorry for her. But , then again, bitch shouldn't have stolen her treasure. So now it was just a matter of time befo-

"Why. . . why are you still. . . holding me?" She heard Starlight speak up, on the verge of crying. Why was he still holding her?

"I. . . I don't know. Why did you kiss me?" Ren asked. Strangely, there was no hint of anger within his voice; why wasn't there? Starlight muttered something that neither she, nor the human, could pick up. Starlight tried to break free from him, but he wouldn't let go. Instead, he lifted her chin up when she looked down dejectedly; now they were looking directly into each others eyes.

"Star. . . what's going on?" Was he showing concern for her? "I know that you wouldn't simply do something irrational for no reason."

Starlight flared up, "FINE! I LIKE YOU, OKAY?!" Daring was startled by this sudden outburst. The thief just admitted her feelings to what was suppose to be HER buck buddy. Not Starlight's - HERS!

She tuned out, and genially ignored all of the sappy crap, and waited for him to leave. But that never happened. Why? Was he actually considering on being with her?

But what about me? Daring whimpered. Doesn't he want to keep on being buck buddies? I mean, come on! At least I didn't steal the cutie marks from hundreds of ponies, and tried to end all of existence, just because some friend abandoned me! I'm a national hero! I'm a well known celebrity, and a multi-best selling author, for Celestia's sakes! She vented. Eventually though, her anger subsided, thanks to some breathing techniques. Relax, Daring. There's still the chance that he could reject her. It would be for the best, anyway, since he would end up leaving. It would spa-

"Just roll with it?" Ren chuckled. "I didn't. . . hmmm. . . I never knew that you had a thing for tattooed, renegade freaks." The human's words entered Daring's ears, forcing her to tune back into their conversation.

Wait, what all did I miss?

"You being different doesn't really matter to me." Starlight continued to mention something about Rarity and somepony named Spike. Not really important. What was important is that he puts her down, and heads home, so that Daring ca-

"Well. . . Why the hell?" Daring heard the human speak aloud. What is he doing? "I mean, there are few other ponies that I respect more than you."

Daring's jaw unhinged. IS HE ACTUALLY DOING THIS?!

"And. . . if this is what you really want, and we can figure out how to make it work, then. . . Yeah. Definitely."

As she watched the two of them lock lips, Daring's world came undone. Her buck buddy, her human, her tattooed, renegade freak. . . was taken away. She knew better than to get in between a relationship. Disturbed, and surprisingly broken hearted, Daring flew dejectedly into the air, leaving behind what was once her treasure. . .

Author's Note

And so the chapter is complete, and the next one will be uploaded. . . as soon as I have the time and energy for it. And yes, it will be the clop chapter - and it'll take place between this chapter and the one from before. Sorry for the huge delay in uploading chapters, I've been rather busy, and kind of drained, and decided to take time reading up on some other great fics - either ones I've read before and really enjoy or something new. I do hope you all enjoy this and that you all had a Merry Christmas; this is my late Christmas present from me, to all of you.

Oh, and here's a funny side note, my gf hated how this chapter ended. Why? Because she believes that Ren should have talked to Daring first, since she was with him before Starlight. But she never mentioned anything about Rainbow Dash or Applejack. Also, I've been taking the time to read the rough drafts to her first and she hates it when I leave it on a cliffhanger lol.

Anyway, hang in there, there will be more on the way. Spoiler warning though, the chapter after the clop will be rather lengthy and kind of sad and dark. You'll see what I mean.