There was silence save the wind and the faint scrape of hooves against the ground. She and her opponent faced each other across the field through the gloom of dawn, staffs held up tall, shields nestled against their sides.
Then there was a crack, and they charged, and the field raced beneath her.
One, two, three...
A jab with her staff, a clang on their shield, but they stayed in the saddle.
They reached the end of the strand and wheeled about, taking up her old position while she took up their's. Then they took the path she'd charged, she took the one they had, one, two, three, she jabbed with her staff again-
A hammerblow tore her out of her saddle, throwing her to the dirt. She didn't fight the throw, she rolled with it, and when her opponent came over to her they found her on her feet.
"You overextended," Soarin said from atop his mount. "and you repeated yourself. The jab's not the only thing you can use."
"I know," AJ replied, brushing herself off. "It just seemed to work pretty well 'gainst you the first time."
"Because it surprised me," Soarin explained as he dismounted. "It's good that you noticed that, but don't think that a surprise is going to work multiple times. Only expect a shock to work once."
AJ nodded, then sighed as she looked around the training field. There were only a half-dozen other Men out training with her, Platinum, and Fluttershy, and most of those were Soarin's soldiers: only two people from Windy Hill proper had joined them, and both of them seemed more bored than determined.
They'd all spent the last few days training, in AJ's case very basic training. She could ride a horse well enough, but fighting while mounted was a whole new level of difficulty, one that the continuing gloom overhead did nothing to help. She and the Cloudsdalers had spent most of her time during training teaching her the rudiments of mounted combat; her first day had been almost completely devoted to learning how not to get knocked off her horse, or how to recover if she did find herself forcibly dismounted. She'd made use of that last bit a lot.
After that first day, she and the others had been forced through countless combat drills, endless charges across the training grounds ending with the crash of staff on shield or armor and the thud of a dismounted rider. Aiming, striking, defense, maneuvering all blended together in a long, dim haze. New muscles throbbed under her skin, while the old ones pulsed with new memories. She could probably saddle and mount Jordskred blindfolded now, and it never took her longer than a second to recover from a fall. She was still learning to fight, as Soarin had just shown her, but she was learning.
Thunder rumbled overhead.
"But not fast enough," she muttered to herself. The clouds overhead had threatened invasion for days without following through, but nobody knew how long they would hold back. She needed to be ready when that time came, not struggling to hit a target.
Of course, it would also help if they had more than a handful of soldiers, but Wind Rider refused to call the state to arms despite multiple pleas from Soarin, Clear Sky, even Fluttershy. He hadn't stopped them from training or barred them from fighting when the invasion struck, but neither had he done anything to help them. It was like he didn't care about what happened to Cloudsdale anymore, or even that he didn't want them to win against the invaders.
As much as AJ wanted to believe that, though, wanted there to be a villain that she could fight and overcome, she couldn't really accept that the governor had betrayed his home like that. For all his refusal to help, he never directly hindered them, and his inaction seemed to be due more to despair than malice. He was just a scared old man, clinging like a drowned rat to what little he had left.
The sound of cheering drew her out of her thoughts, Clear Sky and her daughter sitting on the sidelines of the training ground and clapping. It had taken a fair bit of work to convince Wind Sprint not to join them (or try to sneak into their ranks), and she'd made it clear that, whether she was training with them or not, they wouldn't be able to keep her from watching even if they dropped her in the Whispering Marsh with both hands tied behind her back.
"She's just like Bloom," AJ chuckled to herself. "Always want'n' to do the grown-up stuff, even if she ain't ready."
"That's true of everyone, isn't it?" Soarin mused, overhearing her. "Everyone wants to be a grown-up, or at least more of one than they already are. They think things just get better and better, then they grow up and they learn they're not better, just different. Bedtimes and 'We'll tell you when you're older' turn into taxes and things you'd rather not have learned. The grass turns out to be just as green on the other side of the fence, and you realize just how much you sacrificed to see that. But the people who look up to you don't see that, they just see you on the other side of the fence, and they want to be there with you, want to be just like you. They want to know what you've learned, and you want them to stay innocent of it for as long as they can. But the more you try to warn them, the harder they try to follow you, to prove themselves to be just as grown up as you. They think you're trying to keep growing up and its rewards for yourself, when you're really trying to help them keep the rewards of where they are for as long as they can. You're not a usurper or conqueror, you're a scout, trying to warn them about the dangers ahead." His face fell. "But they don't listen. They think your reporting back is talking down to them, and they charge in all the more eagerly."
AJ looked at him sympathetically. "Do you wanna talk about it?"
"It's in the past, now," Soarin shook his head. "I just hope Rapid learned from it. I won't be there to protect him forever, after all. Especially now that I won't return to Skyspear. For a while," he hastily corrected himself. "for a while, I mean, I won't be able to return until all this is over. I'll still head back, just... a bit later."
AJ nodded; Soarin would see his brother again, even if she had to tear every one of the invaders in half with her bare hands.
"But talking won't make that day come any closer," Soarin sighed. "or leave us any better prepared for when it does come. Mount up again, we'll keep training accuracy. And remember, the jab's not the only move you can use."
She was sprawled in the dirt again when the embassy arrived.
Six dark-armored Men on horseback, coming in two rows of three from the southeast, indigo banners barely visible against the storming sky. She craned her neck up to look at them, and saw a flash of gold on one of the banners, a gold and orange lightning bolt. She frowned; she'd seen that symbol before, but she couldn't remember where.
"D'you know who they are?" she asked Soarin as she climbed back to her feet.
"Yes," he frowned. "though I don't know why they're here. Hopefully it's to help us, but I doubt that; if Gale was coming to help, he'd have brought more with him than five."
"Gale?" AJ raised a brow as she dusted herself off.
"Lord Gale Zap," Soarin explained. "Lord of Storm Valley, head of House Zap. He's a good man: trustworthy, determined, and he's put his past support of Cinch well behind him."
"Sounds like just the kinda guy that would wanna help us," AJ smiled.
"He would," Soarin sighed. "if Wind Rider didn't tell him not to. Contrary to popular belief, Gale respects authority a lot, more than most of his critics. He doesn't like disobeying orders, so as long as Wind Rider refuses to mobilize, he won't move."
"Maybe he's comin' to talk some sense into'm," AJ offered. "show the governor that even he thinks Cloudsdale should stand up."
"I doubt it," Soarin shook his head. "I'm not sure how much he knows about the situation, he may think Wind Rider's right not to move out against what he thinks are scouts. And even if he did know, he's not the kind of person to talk back to authority like you're suggesting." He glowered. "He wasn't much of one to start with, even before Cinch's training."
"What are you talkin' 'bout?" AJ asked. "What trainin'?"
Soarin took a deep breath. "I won't darken the day anymore by mentioning her crimes," he replied. "Suffice it to say that Gale understands the situation Cinch put Wind Rider in. That was what really convinced him..."
He fell silent, then nodded at Clear Sky, walking across the field towards the approaching embassy. "Come on," he said. "let's go with her, find out why they're here." Before AJ could reply, Soarin gently flicked his steed's reins and began trotting over. She quickly followed, frowning at his evasiveness.
They arrived just as Clear Sky rose from a gentle bow, saying, "Welcome, Lord Zap. Your presence here does us honor."
"As your reception does us," Lord Zap nodded back. Then, turning to Soarin, he raised a hand and rumbled, "Hilsen, Lord Skies."
"Hilsen, Lord Zap," Soarin replied, mirroring the gesture.
Gale gently nodded, then turned to look down at AJ. His bright eyes looked her over, the brows over them rising in curiosity, before eventually he turned back to Soarin and said, "I didn't know you'd looked south for soldiers. If you'd told me, I might've been able to recommend a few."
"She's not my soldier," Soarin shook his head. "She's a messenger from the princess."
"A messenger in Cloudsdale kit?" Gale raised a brow.
"If I could explain," AJ cleared her throat, drawing the two lords' attention. "I got the gear after I arrived here, after the governor told us why you've been so quiet lately."
Some of the embassy's mounts startled at that. "How did he find out?" one of them asked anxiously. "We've done everything possible to keep it secret."
"Guess Thunderlane didn't get the notice, then," AJ sighed. "He managed to kill one'f'm an' bring it back here as proof."
"We would have seen him," Gale protested. "He wouldn't have been able to sneak something as cumbersome as that past us."
"He was nowhere near you," Soarin frowned. "He was in House Thunder territory when he slew the enemy."
"It's spreading?" one of the emissaries squeaked. "We thought it was just confined to the White-tail."
"Nope," AJ shook her head. "The governor said they've been poppin' up pretty much all over the state."
"Is he certain?" Gale barked. "Is he certain that it's spreading?"
Soarin nodded.
"We haven't come soon enough, it seems," Gale snarled, flicking his mount's reins. "Take us to Lord Rider as quickly as you can, we need to speak with him urgently."
"Huh," AJ chuckled. "Looks like you were wrong, Soarin, they did come to help us with those grey things."
Gale snapped his head around to look at her. "Grey?" he echoed.
"Well," she shrugged. "at least the one Thunderlane brought in was. The others might be different colors."
"Hold a heartbeat," Gale raised a hand. "What did this 'thing' Thunderlane killed look like?"
"It looked almost like a cross between a frog and a Man," Soarin replied. "and it matches the descriptions of the 'watchers in the rain' that've been coming in lately. Judging by Thunderlane's story, they're one and the same."
"And neither of them's what we came to speak with Lord Rider about," Gale muttered.
"Huh?" AJ blinked.
"Clear Sky," Gale continued. "we must speak with Lord Rider as soon as possible. We are not too late yet, but we cannot risk anymore delay."
"What are you talking about?" Soarin frowned.
"I don't have time to tell you," Gale shook his head. "I must see Lord Rider immediately."
"You don't have time to tell him," one of Gale's companions spoke up. "I do."
AJ frowned. She recognized that voice, but from where? Maybe from where she'd seen the symbol on their banners before, but where had that been? Where had she heard that voice and seen that-
"You don't need me in the room when you meet Lord Rider, dad," Indigo Zap said, her mount stepping forward. "I can stay out here and let Lord Skies know what's going on."
Gale turned to look at her, a frown on his face, one which she met with a look of iron determination. A silent conversation passed between them, one that ended with Gale sighing in defeat and nodding. "Tell Lord Skies and his guests what they need to know," he said. "I'll return as soon as I can. Then..." His face fell. "... Then, I think we'll need to talk."
Indigo nodded, and Gale sighed again before turning back to Clear Sky and following her back to Windy Hill proper, the rest of the embassy trailing after him and staring at his unmoving daughter as they went.
After they vanished from sight, Indigo sighed, then turned back to her curious audience, doing a double-take at the sight of Applejack. "Whoa," she murmured. "Weird seeing you without your hat."
While AJ self-consciously patted her hair, Soarin asked, "What brings your father here, Lady Zap? What has him so scared?"
"The Nameless Ones," Indigo bluntly replied.
"Those're the things those Wolf-Men worshipped, right?" AJ asked, shivering with disgust. "Platinum told me 'bout them, 'bout the things the Wolf-Men did for'm. I don' like killin', but I'm glad Zap managed to... to stop'm."
"We're proud of what Zap did, too," Indigo smiled. "All of us in House Zap have tried to do what he did, crush the evildoer wherever we are, ever since he established us. But, lately," her face fell. "it's been looking like he only managed to stop the Wolf-Men, not the things they worshipped."
"The Nameless Ones are real, too?" Soarin groaned. "The Toad-Men, the Nameless Ones, are there any other legends that want to stand up and walk out of the stories?"
"Toad-Men?" Indigo asked. "The 'watchers in the rain' are Toad-Men?"
"The thing Thunderlane slew certainly looks like a Toad-Man, at least," Soarin replied, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "and, going by his story, it definitely sounds like they're the 'watchers in the rain.'"
"Sprint called'm Trogs the other day," AJ added. "Said it was a modernization of what the old stories called'm, torrogs."
"And they're only showing up now, when the Nameless Ones are coming back," Indigo muttered. "That can't be a coincidence."
"You think the Nameless Ones and the Trogs are working together?" Soarin frowned.
"What other explanation is there?" Indigo replied. "Either they're working together, one of them's working for the other, or both of them are working for someone else. The odds of them just happening to come back at the same time are a million to one."
"Then what do we do?" AJ asked. "Do we stay here an' wait for the Trogs to come or go help you with those Nameless things?"
"If Lord Rider called his spears, I'd want you and the other magical girls to come with us, see how the Nameless Ones like magic," Indigo said. "By the look of things, though, the people out here are the only fighters Cloudsdale has, and Storm Valley can't stand alone if Cloudsdale falls. We either need you to stay here or Wind Rider to get his rear in gear and call the spears."
"Clear Sky's managed to build a garrison of six dozen at Storm's Deep," Soarin replied. "but you're right, that's not enough. Our only hope is that your father manages to talk some sense into Lord Rider."
Indigo looked down at the ground. "Dad is gonna try to talk Lord Rider into mustering and marching," she said, her voice regretful. "but the wrong way. He came up here to ask for backup fighting the Nameless Ones, not the Trogs."
AJ swallowed. "Well," she nervously replied. "better hope the governor stays stubborn, then, huh?"
Indigo snorted, smiling. "We're in no trouble there. Lord Rider's one of the most stubborn people I know. Storm's Deep will fall before dad manages to change his mind."
Storm's Deep fell in half an hour.
Clear Sky, Gale, and the others returned with the governor, a scroll clutched tightly in Gale's gloved hand. He was smiling, Clear Sky was frowning, and the governor had a sick, serene smile on his face. They rode, walked, or wobbled over to AJ, Soarin, and Indigo, the latter two staring intently at the scroll. Gale offered it to his daughter who eagerly took it and read, eyes widening as they traveled down it.
While she read and his other companions trotted a respectful distance away, Gale turned back to the governor and bowed his head, saying, "You have Storm Valley's thanks, Lord Rider. Your generosity is greater even than I hoped."
"Generosity?" AJ asked, tensing.
"According to this," Indigo waved the scroll, still wide-eyed. "Lord Rider gave dad the authority to draft any eligible person he finds into the Reserve Guard, unless they can give a really good reason why he shouldn't."
"Readearh?" Soarin coughed. "Your lordship, I must protest."
"Why?" the governor raised a brow. "Readearh is for use in emergencies, isn't it? Did Lord Zap's daughter fail to tell you what he told me, or did she tell you and you thought what she described wasn't an emergency?"
"I agree that the situation in Storm Valley is an emergency," Soarin reassured him. "I just think that mustering Cloudsdale to help with Storm Valley but not with the Toad-Men risks leaving us unprepared when they attack."
"How do you know they won't attack Storm Valley?" the governor shrugged. "How do you know raising the cry will help us prepare for when they attack? How do you know they'll attack at all?"
"What Thunderlane said they did," AJ retorted. "di'n't seem like the kinda thing someone who's peaceful would do."
A spasm of anger flashed across the governor's face, but it faded away as Gale gently waved his hand in a calming gesture. "I understand your concerns, Lord Skies," he said reassuringly. "I will draft no more than I feel necessary, and none from this side of the Snowfall. I would send those I find on the west bank to Windy Hill to help you, but Lord Rider's edict is only for the response to the Nameless Ones."
"Thank you for the thought," Soarin muttered, looking warily at the governor.
"Would you have us return to military rule?" Wind Rider snarled under his stare. "Would you have families broken up so that the houses, great and small, could settle their differences on the field? Would you have justice become a matter of swords rather than scales? Whatever your answer, I would not, and I will not take even the first step down the road that leads to it. Readearh will call Cloudsdale to Storm Valley to fight the Nameless Ones, nowhere else and for nothing else."
"Why're you so set against Cloudsdale fightin'?" AJ snapped. "Why don' you want'm to stand up to the Trogs?"
"I'm not against Cloudsdale fighting," the governor snapped back. "I'm against them dying!"
AJ pointed accusingly at the scroll in Indigo's hands. "An' they won't fightin' the Nameless Ones?"
"Even if some still die, at least the state won't!" the governor screamed. "Interlopers like you might not appreciate it, but not everyone lives in a war! Some sacrifices have to be made! Some staffs must be exchanged for swords! Some must die so that others can live!"
"I get that," AJ replied, crossing her arms angrily. "I'm not sure you do, though. If some people die fightin' off the Trogs, that's no different'n'm dyin' fightin' the Nameless Ones; they die so others can live."
Wind Rider's face darkened and reddened. "Do not think to lecture me about war," he warned in a seething voice. "War has been my business since before you were born. I cut down Guto the Usurper in the Gull Raids and gave those of my comrades who'd died to let me reach him funerals befitting of their courage. I know more of death and sacrifice than you can ever hope to, Jacqueline. I am through humoring you and your fellow fools; I gave you hospitality, more than you deserved, and you spat upon me. I will not suffer you or your comrades under my roof anymore. Lord Zap," he turned to the stunned Gale. "take Jacqueline, Platinum Brilliance, and Fluttershy with you. See what they think of war after they taste it. Taking them away from me will settle Storm Valley's debt to me, if not leave me-"
"No."
Silence fell, all eyes turning on the speaker, defiant-faced Soarin. Wind Rider's jaw moved up and down several times, no sound coming out until he managed to choke, "No?"
"No," Soarin nodded.
"I think," Clear Sky hesitantly said. "what Lord Rider means, Lord Skies, is, what do you mean by 'No?'"
"I mean what I said," Soarin coolly replied. "No. Applejack and her friends aren't going anywhere, especially not away to die."
"See here, Lord Skies," Wind Rider hissed. "They are my guests, and as their host I am-"
"They might be your guests," Soarin cut him off. "but they're members of my retinue. You're free to expel them, yes, but you don't have the right to order where they go afterwards. I am their commander, not you."
"Then I command you to send them away!" Wind Rider barked. "And send your backstabbing self with them!"
Clear Sky and AJ gasped, and turned to watch Soarin's reaction. His face, blank and stony, turned to look at Gale's anxiety-covered one, and he quietly asked, "Do you want our help, Lord Zap?"
AJ's gaze snapped to stare at the sweating Gale, teeth clenched under the searching light of Soarin's question. Her heart pounded as she remembered how Soarin had described him, and realized just how much danger they were in; if Gale agreed to the governor's demands, as his character seemed to indicate he would, Cloudsdale would be left virtually defenseless against the Trogs. The state's future was in his hands.
His hands that, as he slowly shook his head, were revealed to be sturdy ones.
Soarin dipped his head to Gale, then turned back to Wind Rider and said, "I'm sorry, governor, but I can't do that."
"You think this is the place for political theater, boy?" Wind Rider snarled. "You think that now's the time to 'stand up to the corrupt system,' as your stories so lovelily put it?"
"I think that sending Applejack and her friends away would do more harm than good," Soarin evenly replied. "I think that ordering Lord Zap to accept help he neither wants or needs would do the same. And most of all," he glared at the governor. "I know that your posturing's empty. You have no power over me, governor; you speak in Cloudsdale's name to the other states, not to me."
"You dare defy my authority?!" Wind Rider spat.
"There's none to defy," Soarin retorted. "You know the state constitution as well as I do, the governor serves as an advisor to the great houses, not a commander."
"Then as lord of House Rider," Wind Rider bellowed. "heir of Hurricane the Great, Commander of Cloudsdale, I order you to-"
"You're not the Commander and never have been," Soarin snapped, cutting him off. "We've been treating you like you are to soothe your drunken pride, trying to avoid a fight, but not anymore. I won't lie so that you can feel better about yourself. Once, you might've been worthy of what you called yourself, back when I was younger; like you said, you were a hero in the Gull Raids, and mom and dad had nothing but praise for you back when they were still around. You were acting like a true heir of Hurricane, strong, wise, and brave; you loved, and were fierce in defense of that love; you were leading Cloudsdale into a bright new future through hard work, charisma, and sheer will, turning a figurehead position into one fit for a commander.
"But then Cinch came knocking, and it all fell apart, and you've spent the last three years stumbling around in its ruins. You've squandered whatever gifts you had, drowning them in flattery, regret, and wine. You've forced us to act like everything's fine, tell you how great you are even while the state falls apart around us. You've lost whatever skill, drive, or respect you ever had, and told us not to say that. I'm done. I'm not going to try to soothe you with soft words anymore. You are an inept, bitter old man who refuses to face reality and throws a fit whenever someone tries to make you. You've lost whatever authority or respect you might've had, so you try to control us through fear and shame instead, trying to cow us with threats of conflict, military or only conversational, or trying to make us pity you by playing the old, wistful father. I won't play your games anymore. I obey the Commander, the princess, not you. House Skies will prepare for war against the Trogs, no matter what groundless orders you give. I'm done humoring you, Lord Rider; I'm not playing this game of your's any longer."
Soarin took a deep, shaky breath. "I hate to say it," he eventually continued. "but I'm kinda glad that your daughter disappeared, in a way. I wish she was still around, of course, along with her mother, but at the same time, I'm glad that she's not here right now." He glared at Wind Rider. "I'm glad that she's not here to see what a spiteful, cowardly, backwards-looking tyrant her father, her hero, has become."
The governor doubled over like Soarin had punched him in the gut, heaving raspy breaths in the face of his stern, almost cruel, words. Everyone stared at Soarin in shock, occasionally throwing nervous glances the governor's way to see how he reacted. Even Clear Sky backed away from him a step, clearly expecting him to reply as fiercely as Soarin had spoken.
That reply never came; instead, the governor croaked, "Clear Sky, I... I must return to my chambers. I'm... I'm weary, now." Then, hunched over almost as if his back was broken, he began shuffling back the way he'd come, head bowed.
"Hang on," AJ called after him. "Ain't'cha got anythin' to say to Soarin?"
Wind Rider paused, sighed, then turned back, glaring balefully at her. "There is nothing that I can say," he answered curtly. "Lord Skies spoke the truth, the only authority I hold over him is from the respect he has for me, and he made it clear that that is little and less. Bother me about the Trogs no more; Soarin holds the reins now. Speak to him if you want to die on the field; otherwise, go to whatever shelter you can find and wait for your death there."
"You're just givin' up?" AJ gaped. "Just like that?"
"Giving up implies that I had hope to begin with," Wind Rider sharply replied. "Soarin did not convince me to give up, Applejack, he pushed a corpse out of its chair. He is welcome to it, for however long he can hold out. Meanwhile, I will wait for decay to set in, and die in what peace I can."
She stared at him, slack-jawed in shock, as he walked away on trembling feet. Clear Sky quickly followed him, offering him her arm, and the man who'd seemed so fierce and angry mere moments ago held onto it like an old man to a cane.
"What," she whispered. "what just happened?"
"Lord Skies hit him where he was most vulnerable," Gale grumbled, glaring at the downward-looking Soarin. "Used his daughter against him."
"I tried to soften the blow," Soarin sighed. "but I agree that it might have been better not to strike it at all. I had to make him see what was happening, though, I had to show him the truth."
"You don't use a man's daughter against him to show him truth," Gale snorted. "You use them to show him pain. Someone's family isn't a teaching tool, Lord Skies."
"Then maybe Lord Rider shouldn't have threatened his," Indigo mumbled, AJ's ear twitching as it barely caught the sound.
"Both of us made mistakes here," Soarin said hastily. "I'll apologize to Lord Rider for mine later, but I hope that they'll be able to help him. I may not be treating him exactly the way he wants now, but I still pity him. I want him better, not just out of the way."
"Poisoned tools bear poisoned fruit," Gale grumbled.
"I could've chosen my words better," Soarin admitted. "but I can't change the past. I can only hope that they bear good fruit as well as bad."
Silence fell, shortly broken by Soarin flicking his reins. "I'd prefer to apologize sooner rather than later," he murmured. "AJ, take a rest, I'll be back to train again soon."
She nodded as he began heading after the governor at a brisk trot. She sighed as he left, then shook her head and gave Gale and Indigo a weak smile. "Best of luck 'gainst those nameless things," she said. "We'll come help you as soon as we can."
"I understand," Gale mumbled, looking her over carefully. "Where do you come from, if I may ask?"
"Sweet Apple Acres," she replied. "right outside Crystal City."
"How big is it?" Indigo asked.
AJ shifted nervously. "'Bout 160," she mumbled.
Gale raised a brow at her. "Lord Rider called you Jacqueline, then Applejack. I'm guessing the latter's a nickname?"
AJ nodded, inwardly frowning; how had the governor learned her real name, anyway? She'd only told Platinum about it.
"Jacqueline Apple," Indigo furrowed her brow. "inhabitant of 160 acres, student at CHS, messenger of the princess... Any relation to House Gardener of Grandwood?"
"Distant at best," AJ frowned. "Why'd'a ask?"
"We're trying to figure out why Lord Skies treats you different," Indigo replied. "And not just ambassador different, I mean; he's polite to ambassadors, and he does get protective of them when he needs to, but he doesn't train them, he doesn't go with them so far from Skyspear, he certainly doesn't argue so fiercely with their opponents. What's so special about you and your friends? Is it your magic?"
"I don' think so," AJ furrowed her brow. "Maybe? I don' rightly know-I don' even know if you're right, really. Maybe Soarin's just bein' nice?"
"Perhaps," Gale shrugged. "Indigo's right, though; he doesn't do what he's done for you for everyone. You saw him, when Lord Rider proposed to marshal Cloudsdale to Storm Valley he debated, when he threatened you he fought. That isn't 'just being nice.' But why? Why is he so..." His voice trailed off as his eyes glazed over in thought.
"Shame he left before you gave Jack the once-over," Indigo chuckled. "We might've been able to figure it out if he'd stayed."
The glaze left Gale's eyes as he raised a brow at his daughter. "What do you mean?"
"I mean," Indigo smirked. "if Lord Skies is treating her well because he likes her, he probably would've done something when he saw you staring at her."
Indigo cackled as AJ's face caught fire, while her father bellowed, "He would've been able to tell what I was doing, ungebweor!" Flicking his reins, he pulled up alongside his daughter, wrapped his arm around her, then rapidly began rubbing his armored knuckles into her hair.
"Dad!" she protested, still laughing. She tried to break out of his grip, but he'd pinned her arms, forcing her to resort to weak flailing in an attempt to escape.
"Just be glad you're wearing that armor, cubufeon!" Gale cackled as he continued his friendly torture. "I still remember how sensitive that belly of your's is underneath it!"
"Dad!" Indigo squeaked, face turning as red as AJ's. "Not in public!"
"Then maybe think before insinuating things like that about me in public next time," he snorted, giving her one last ruffle before releasing her. Shortly after he did, though, she grabbed him and returned the favor, furiously grinding her hand in his hair. He hissed, and she released him, but quickly revealed that to be a feint, pulling him back in and smirking, "Two for flinching," before ruffling his hair again. Finally, she released him for real, and they smiled warmly at each other, a father and daughter celebrating their friendship.
"Ha," Gale barked. "Looks like you still have a thing or two to teach me, Indigo." His smile shrank. "Just like I still have a thing or two to teach you."
Indigo swallowed, then flashed a glance at AJ. "We can talk about this on the way home," she said. "For now, let's try not to embarrass ourselves in public anymore than you already have."
Gale's eyes softened, and he nodded. Then, a twinkle of humor returning to his gaze, he snorted, "More than I have? Remind me, who was it that decided that a dinner with Lady Mist was the best place to-"
"ANYWAY," Indigo cut him off, throwing AJ a too-big smile. "we should probably get going; the sooner we can get ready for the Nameless Ones, the better. Good luck with the Trogs, Jack, and good luck with Lords Rider and Skies. Oh, and give them our regards."
AJ, still recovering from her blush, nodded, and croaked, "Good luck with the Nameless Ones, an'-an' whatever you two need to talk about."
Indigo's shoulders slumped at that, but she nodded, then waved farewell as she and her father began trotting away.
AJ waved after them as they joined the rest of their embassy, her hand slowly dropping back to her side as they galloped out of sight. She sighed as they left, mumbling, "Trogs, nameless things, them sayin' Soarin's bein' too nice; what's next?"
A chill wind blew overhead, and AJ could've sworn she heard it laughing.