The Misfortune of Clover the Clever

"Sound to me like you really did your research," said Azalea after Clover shared what he'd learned in the library that morning.

"Yeah," admitted Clover. "But I'm not going to pretend I understood all of it. Especially that passage about the one who embraced chaos. I mean, what kind of world would we even have without ponies governing it?"

"Ah," said Azalea as her eyes lit up. "You're talking about Hecate the Mad. She was a bit of a weird one. Genius, but weird. She actually played a key part in designing the gates that lead in and out of the city."

"That was her?!" Clover seemed utterly astonished. "But I thought that was..."

Azalea shook her head. "You have to dig into some of the more obscure and restricted parts of the library, but if you can find Hecate's biography, it mentions that she changed her name quite frequently before her research finally drove her insane."

"Huh," Clover mused as he laid back on the grass and soaked in the mid-afternoon sun. It was hard to admit, even to himself, but he had missed this warmth. The now crystalline parts of his body also seemed to soak in the warm rays, even if its hard surface couldn't feel much else.

He was so lost in the good feeling that he almost hadn't noticed the shadow that passed overhead. He sat up in confusion, thinking it was a cloud for a moment. However, it had passed too quickly to be a cloud. He looked over to Azalea, who had apparently noticed it as well, evidenced by the way she was now searching the sky for something. Clover followed her gaze, now noticing that there wasn't a single cloud in the sky that could've possibly cast that shadow.

"They're early," said Azalea as she started looking worried. "They're not supposed to be here for a couple days yet."

"Who is?" Clover asked as Azalea started pulling him along.

"Come on," she said as she started running. "We need to go."

Clover chased after her, still confused as they ran through the city streets. He had no idea where they were even going, that was until he saw the other ponies that had gathered in a large circle, and what was standing in the middle of it.

Three ponies stood there, all clad in lustrous golden armor. They were all tall and muscular... very muscular. It was almost as if a sculptor had gotten carried away with the amount of muscle a normal pony should have. They might've even been mistaken for statues if it wasn't for the way the wind danced through their feathers. Feathers? Clover had to do a doubletake, unable to fully trust his own eyes, but there they were, plain as day. All three ponies stood there with large wings adorning their backs.

"Ah told yu we should've just waited outside," said the large yellow one. A mare, if Clover had to guess. It was hard to tell since she was by far the largest of the three. He wasn't sure how anything that big could possibly fly. "These ponies look a might bit skittish, like they might bolt if I so much as look at them funny."

"Have you tried looking in a mirror," said the stallion with a whitish coat. Even though he wasn't anywhere near her size, he seemed just as chiseled. "You scare ponies just by being in the same room. Even many of our bravest warriors get nervous with you around."

"Aye," she said as she rubbed at the back of her head. "That they do. Maybe if one of them finally grew some balls, ah wouldn't be stuck still tryin to find me a mate. Ah mean, who wouldn't want a piece of this," she said as she struck a most impressive pose, complete with her wings stretched to their full length.

"Anypony who wants to live," he retorted without even looking. "You do have a bit of a reputation, you know."

"Not even a minute on the ground and the two of you are already gabbing like a bunch of housewives," the third one of their group grumbled under his breath so low that only a few could've possibly heard him. He appeared quite a bit older than the other two. Old enough that only trace bits of color remained in his mane, leaving it mostly a bleach white that stood out against his dark coat. That was the only clear sign of his advanced age because the rest of him was just as built as the other two. "Aten-Shun!!" He suddenly commanded.

"Sir!" The first two snapped to attention, instantly cutting off their banter. Whoever this other pony was, he was clearly in charge.

The crowd continued to grow throughout the exchange, including a very nervous-looking city guard. Confused and concerned chatter spread among the crowd, creating a nervous tension in the air that continued to grow the longer it went on. It was like everyone was waiting for something to happen, but didn't want to be the one who did something.

"Commander Thunderhead!" A voice split the crowd, causing a series of gasps to cascade through the crowd. Instinctually, everyone began backing away from the source of the unexpected sound, including Clover, whose eyes widened even further with shock when he realized that it was Azalea who had just stolen the crowd's attention.

Commander Thunderhead, for that was his name, it seems, only raised an eyebrow as the young mare purposely made her way forward, parting the crowd with her stride. Shocked as they were, not one pony made a move to try and stop her. Even the guard stepped aside to let her through, for reasons that left Clover completely baffled.

"Commander Thunderhead," Azalea said again once she had broken free of the crowd. She didn't shout like she had before, but her voice could now easily be heard over the deafening silence. "You're early. We weren't expecting the pegasi delegates for a few more days."

The pegasus in question only gave a brief smile. "Circumstances would not allow me to wait until the appropriate time. I would say more, but this isn't the place. If you don't mind me asking, who do I have the pleasure of addressing?"

"My name is Azalea, daughter of Elder Dahlia," she said without a moment's hesitation. Her pronouncement seemed to have desired effect as the eyes of all three pegasi widened and the large mare in the back even tilted her head slightly in curiosity. "My mother would be here to receive you herself, but she's been a bit under the weather as of late."

"Nothing too serious, I hope," said Thunderhead. "She always seemed so full of fire during previous summits."

Azalea responded with a sly grin, like she had just won some sort of prize. "Even fire cannot burn without the proper fuel. Even if all that is needed is a moment's reprieve. Fear not," she said. "She's only exhausted herself from overwork and should be better after some rest."

"Ha!" The commander guffawed. "That, I can believe. Very well, Lady Azalea. I entrust us to your care."

What... had just happened? The question had been plaguing Clover over the last several hours ever since his marefriend's brief exchange with the pegasus diplomat. Azalea had taken charge of the situation, evidenced by the city guard following her direction, and most of the onlookers dispersed as they looked for anywhere else to be. Clover had made to follow behind her, but Azalea had stolen a discreet glance in his direction before shaking her head ever so slightly. Whatever it was she was doing, she didn't want him following her for reasons he could only guess. He trusted her. They'd been through enough at this point that it'd be foolish not to, but an inquisitive mind is seldom satisfied with simple answers.

This led to Clover's return to the library being even less fruitful than it had been only a few hours prior. It was hard to focus on research when his mind was elsewhere, and he still had no idea what he should focus his efforts on. He was no stranger to burnout, even though he wasn't completely sure that's what this was, but on a number of occasions it had fallen to his best friend to help him get his head back in order. And even though Pyrus was no longer here, he knew what the fool would have been telling him to do.

Close the book, sit your flank down, and have a drink.

That said, he was still a bit hesitant to step hoof back in wine hall after his scuffle with Elder Dahlia, but he needn't have worried. No one even bothered to look in his direction, and as he found his way to a seat, he overheard several unicorns talking about the sudden appearance of the pegasi. Azalea had been right, it hadn't taken long before ponies moved onto the next source of gossip.

Speaking of Azalea, Clover was barely seated for a minute before the elusive mare reappeared beside him.

"Ugh," she groaned. "I'm exhausted."

"Azalea! You're back," said Clover, surprised to see her again so soon. "Where have you been?"

"Short answer... Politics," she said as she scooped his cup up in a flickering pink aura. Without hesitation, she threw the glass back and downed half the contents before slamming it back down. Afterwards, she leaned in and snuggled into his side, the scent of fermented fruit fresh on her breath. "It's complicated," she said. "I really don't wanna think about what happened back there."

"What did happen back there?" Clover raised an eyebrow at her response. "I wouldn't have expect that from you. It was impressive, though.."

This had the added effect of the tips of Azalea's ears turning a deeper peach than they normally were. She tried burying her face in his side before the color spread to the rest of her face. However she wasn't quite fast enough to keep him from noticing, and she knew it.

"Thanks..." she said, all flustered. "I just... I needed to do something before somepony panicked. None of the elders were there, and none of the guard were taking charge of the situation." She seemed to poke at an invisible dot on the table. "It's the kind of thing my mother would've done if she was there..."

Clover's face fell a bit at the mention of Azalea's mother, Elder Dahlia. "How is she, by the way?" He asked, a little embarrassed. "I didn't hurt her, did I?"

Azalea paused for a moment, seeming to take a little longer than usual coming up with an answer. "I think she's alright. I wasn't kidding earlier when I said she was a bit under the weather. I think her pride's hurt more than anything, though. Ever since your duel with her."

Now it was Clover's turn to feel nervous. He was still unsure of everything that happened. He had never been the aggressive type, and he never would have stood up to someone like that before. Certainly not an elder.

Their conversation was cut short, along with most of the sound in the room, even as Azalea tensed up by Clover's side. It didn't take long to see what had brought about the sudden change, as all anyone had to do was follow their gazes to the two pegasi standing just inside the front door. They blended in a little better without their armor, but even though they were now dressed similarly to the rest of the ponies in the room, neither of them made any effort to hide their wings. Even with that, the chances were good that wasn't what everyone was really staring at. It was most likely the mare who stood a good head and shoulders taller than everyone in the room.

"Oi!" Shouted the amazoness as her gaze fell clearly on Clover and Azalea. "Ere's where yu ran off to!"

The pegasus lumbered across the room, forcing others to quickly make way for her considerable bulk. She didn't seem to notice or care about the way they were looking at her, even if her companion looked embarrassed enough for both of them as he struggled to keep up.

"Lieutenant Dandelion?!" Exclaimed Azalea. "What are you doing herrrr...." Azalea squeaked out as that same pegasus scooped her up into a, quite possibly literal, bone crushing hug.

"Why am 'ere to see yu? Ye little rascal," said the aforementioned pegasus in something that only vaguely resembled normal speech. "Ye didn't even say hello. It's like yu forgot who ah was."

Azalea hurried to collect herself, which was difficult even without half the common room listening in on their conversation. "I was busy," she said in an agitated tone. "In case you hadn't noticed, you all showed up way too early. No one was ready to receive you."

"Aye, that we did," said Dandelion. "We 'ave our reasons, though. But when did yu get so tense. Wat happened to the little filly that used to climb my legs like she was sum kinda monkey."

Azalea sighed. "That was a long time ago," she said. "That little filly grew up."

"Aye, that ye did. Ye become a right charming young lady," she said before turning her gaze on Clover, who had no idea how to respond to a pony who looked like she'd easily break him in half. "So this be yer stallion then," she said as she looked him up and down. "Gotta say, he's a mite bit scrawny."

Azalea grabbed a hold of Clover while staring daggers at the newcomer. She started squeezing him so tight that he had trouble breathing for a moment. That moment didn't last long as someone else entered the place, once again disturbing the peace.

A red earth pony mare and a blue stallion stood there and were even now casing out the place. Unlike their present company, these two came in somewhat more normal sizes and nothing seemed too unusual about them. However, that didn't stop a look of disgust from finding its way onto Dandelion's face. "Crimey," she spat. "Ah was kinda hoping they woulda sent somepony else this time." She turned to her companion, who had remained silent throughout the whole exchange. "Run interference for me, would ya, Storm Caller. Ah ain't dealin' with ol' Roll any sooner than ah have to."

"Wait... What?" The smaller pegasus looked up over the rim of the glass he had picked up at some point during the exchange. He apparently hadn't been paying much attention, but when he noticed what she was talking about, he immediately mimicked her expression. When he made to protest, he found his companion had already vacated to the far side of the room, where she had promptly sat herself down among a whole group of now nervous looking stallions who clearly hadn't seen their night going in this direction.

Storm Caller quickly tucked himself into his seat and held his wings close to his sides. He seemed like he was making an effort to make himself seem as small as possible. Whatever he was doing, it didn't seem to help. The earth pony mare seemed to home on in his position as she made a bee line for their table, intent clear on her face. The stallion beside her didn't seem to care as much, if the vacant look on his face was anything to go by, but he still followed alongside his companion. Unlike the two pegasi, both earth ponies were wearing cloaks similar to what Clover wore now, but unlike Clover, both of their outfits seemed worn and dirty like they had just walked a hundred miles in them.

"Storm Caller," said the mare, making the pegasus flinch at the use of his name. "I see you and the brute are still alive. I should've expected to find the two of you slacking after such a short trip."

His shoulders dropped for a moment, before turning to face the newcomers with a very forced smile on his face. "Hello, Roll," he said through his teeth. "Pleasure to see you again."

"Likewise," she said as she pulled a roll of parchment seemingly out of nowhere like it was a frequently practiced movement. "So, about the state of affairs, which would crops would you say the pegasi are making the best use of?"

The pegasus dropped his facade and he rolled his eyes. "Seriously, Roll," he said. "It hasn't even been half a minute and you're already grilling me."

"It never hurts to be prepared," she said, not even seeming to notice his discomfort. "Time waits for no pony and now that all three tribes are present, the summit will begin on the morrow."

"Yes," Storm said, clearly annoyed. "And I'm off duty till the morrow."

"Work is work," said the earth pony stallion beside her. There was something about the slow way he talked that made Clover raise an eyebrow. He had heard others say that earth ponies were a bit slow, but something about the way this one talked made him wonder if there was more to it than that.

"Thank you Rock," said Roll with a quick nod. "My brother is right. It takes our caravan a whole five days to get here, leaving me with little to do on the road except walk and think. Now that we're here, I don't want to waste a single moment, even if our chancellor would rather just rest until the summit itself. We can't afford to waste a single moment, unlike the pegasi, who I'm sure didn't take more than a half a day to get here."

"You know, Roll," said Storm Caller as he set his glass back down again. "You can find out how the other tribes are doing without asking direct questions." He padded the empty seat next to him. "Like sitting down and having a drink at the local pub."

Roll eyed the open seat suspiciously for a moment, narrowing her eyes like she had just been asked to do something vile, before turning away in disgust. "Come, Rock," she said as she tucked the scroll back into her cloak. "We're clearly not going to get anything done by staying here."

Rock didn't look happy, or disappointed, or anything for that matter. He just nodded along with his sister and followed behind her as she left the building in a huff.

"Pleasure as always, Roll," Storm Caller called after her. "Good talk."

Clover had remained silent through the other pony's exchange, but now he couldn't help but ask. "Has she..." He started as he sat back down.

"Always been like that?" Storm finished for him. "Yeah, she has. She always comes to me first, too. Like she's hoping this year will be any different." He let out a light laugh. "I keep wondering if she has a thing for me, but the one time I tried to make a move on her, she only wanted to talk business."

"But," said Azalea as she joined the conversation. "Doesn't that violate the rules surrounding the summit?"

"Well, yeah," he said as he started his third glass. "But if I followed all the rules to a T, I wouldn't be hanging out here at all. The commander knows how much stress we've been under. Especially over these last two weeks."

"Is the griffon war really going that badly?" Asked Azalea, making Clover raise an eyebrow at the question.

This evoked a weak laugh from the lieutenant. "I guess I shouldn't be too surprised you know about that, being the daughter of a politician and all." He took a long drink from his cup before setting it back down. "I can't say too much or my commanding officer would have my hide, but yeah, it's been rough lately. Rougher than usual. Especially for her," he gestured to the far side of the room, where even now, Dandelion had a stack of empty mugs beside her. Two of her present company looked like they had already passed out, while the rest were cheering her on in what was probably a very one-sided drinking game.

"A couple of griffons bout had her number a few days ago," he said. "She tries to play it off like nothing happened, but it was a close call." He let out a small laugh, "she's got no talent as a storm wing, but her size more than makes up for it."

"Two weeks..." Clover mused, having been stuck on that part of the conversation. "It couldn't be a coincidence, could it?"

The pegasus' eyes narrowed and his ears perked up at Clover's mumblings. He slowly set his glass down next to the other three he had already emptied. Many a unicorn would already have been passed out under the table from drinking so much, but clearly wasn't the case for the pegasus lieutenant. "Something happened here as well, didn't it?" He asked. "Two weeks ago?"

Clover swallowed hard, the stony expression on Storm Caller's face was making him nervous. Fortunately he was saved having to say anything more as Azalea jumped up from her seat in a panic and began pushing him out of his. "I can't believe I forgot," she said quickly. "I have that assignment due tomorrow and haven't started, yet."

"Assignment?" Clover raised an eyebrow. "What assign..." Only to be cut off as Azalea jabbed him in the ribs.

"You said you were going to help me. Right, Clover?" Azalea glared daggers at him. "Like right now."

"Oh, right..." he said quickly. Something didn't feel right, like he had missed something. Whatever it was, it had Azalea wanting to get him out of there in a hurry. She had picked up on something, something she didn't want to say here.

He looked over his shoulder one last time as she pushed him out the door. Storm Caller wasn't even blinking as he watched them leave.

It wasn't until the building was well out of sight that Azalea finally started to relax. She released a long breath that she must've been holding since they were still at their table. "I think..." she said between gasps. "I think we just messed up."

"Huh?" Clover still didn't have any idea why they had left in such a hurry. "What do you mean? What happened just now?"

"I didn't catch on until just now," she said. "But he was pressing us for information. He was just being a lot more subtle than Roll was."

"But..." Clover raised an eyebrow. "But why? What could he possibly learn from us?"

"I'm not completely sure," she said. "But based on what he said, I don't think the fire was the only thing that went wrong two weeks ago."