Anon walked through the vast halls of the castle, with Azrael walking beside him, still in her human form. The human took another bite from the breakfast wrap he held loosely in his hand. "I hate this place, I'm already shit with directions, I don't need to navigate a maze every time I want food." Anon griped.

"Speaking of, where we heading to anyway?" Azrael questioned.

"I wanna ask Twilight when I can actually leave this godforsaken castle." The human replied, his mouth still half full of food.

Not long after did they begin to hear faint voices from down the hall. As they approached, the voices become clearer. It was Twilight and someone else mid-conversation. They rounded one last corner before seeing light pouring out from one of the open doors along the hallway. Once they got closer, they were able to hear conversation. They stopped just beside the door as Anon lent against the wall, listening carefully.

"Even with the kind words and stories from the elements. Ponies are still quite wary and even afraid of Anon." The unknown creature stated, her tone one of frustration but understanding. Anon's eyebrows raised slightly at the mention of him.

"And I can't imagine the situation at the hospital helped." Twilight said sadly. "Do you have any suggestions?" She added, her voice perking up slightly in hope.

"Well." The creature started. "While I like to think I run the town well, one of the many things I can't control are people's opinions. Unless we can do something to change how they feel about him. Not much is going to happen. Also, I may be overstepping here, but I don't think keeping him here is good for anypony. I fear it's just going to confirm their fears of him." The creature suggested, her voice one of respect.

Anon's eyes widened for a brief moment as the dots connected. Twilight was telling him about a Mayor Mare when she had him locked up.

"What about a public announcement?" Mayor Mare proposed. "We can use the small wooden stage in the middle of ponyville. You can address the ponies and explain Anon's situation and how the collar you made for him will help subdue his emotional outbursts." She added, more confident in her idea by the second.

Anon sighed as he pushed himself away from the wall before walking into the room, Azrael close behind. "The only issues with that is I hate crowds." Anon stated in a monotone voice.

Both ponies snapped their head towards the new voice. Mayor mare adjusted her yellow rimmed glasses with a forehoof before clearing her throat. "Oh, you startled me." She stated softly. "I was not aware there were two humans Ms. Twilight."

Twilight sighed before turning to the Mayor. "I was hoping to ease you into this but…" Twilight started. "Anon is human, but Azrael here is a demon from Tartarus. Twilight explained, a worried expression clinging to her as she gauged the Mayors reaction.

"While I appreciate the seriousness of this situation, I don't believe joking around will aid us Ms. Twilight." Mayor Mare stated with a sigh as she returned twilight's gaze with a lifted brow.

The princess gave a slight nod in acknowledgment, then gestured from Anon to Azrael who immediately took the hint.

"Azrael, shape-shift real quick would ya?" Anon asked.

The demon gave the human a confused look. "Um, Ok sir. How much do you want like out of ten?"

"Eh, maybe like a five" Anon suggested.

"Ok." The demon said simply as she held out her hand towards Mayor Mare, her palm facing the earth pony. After a few seconds, the muffled sound of bone cracking and flesh tearing could be heard from the outstretched hand, as the flesh of the palm began to twist and shift. The horrific noises finally ceased as a seam began to appear across the palm before it split open, revealing an array of sharp teeth that grinned wildly.

"Hi, it is a pleasure to meet you." The palm spoke with a deep raspy voice. "My name is Azrael, and I am a mímos." It added, ending with another grin that threatened to tear more flesh.

Mayor Mare's eyes widened as they stared at Azraels grinning palm. She swallowed hard before tearing her eyes away to look at Twilight, clearing her throat. "I see. I apologise for not believing you." She stated nervously.

Anon turned to Azrael as her palm returned to normal. "That's only a five?" The human questioned.

Azrael shrugged. "Pretty much.” She answered simply.

Twilight cleared her throat, getting everyone’s attention. “Well Anon, and Azrael. Since you are both here, why don’t you join us. As you may have heard, Mayor Mare has kindly offered to help me in getting Ponyville to be less afraid of you.” Twilight explained.

Azrael and Anon both joined around the small coffee table, while Anon was sat in a larger chair, Azrael stood beside him with her hands crossed at her waist.

“Ok, so just to recap, I have briefed Mayor Mare about you Anon. Including your personality, magical abilities and a few of the incidents.” Twilight said as she flipped a few pages in her notebook.

The mayor nodded as Twilight spoke, flipping a few pages of her own notebook as she took a few nervous glances at Azrael who did not seem to notice.

“But you said before that you are not good with crowds. Is it some form of anxiety?” The mayor asked curiously as she picked up a quill with her mouth, poised to write.

“I guess.” Anon replied. “Just in my line of work, crowds are usually a bad idea, so It quickly became a habit to avoid them, I suppose the sight of them puts me off.” The human explained.

The mayor finished writing before placing the quill back into the ink pot. “And what was your line of work if you don’t mind me asking?” She questioned.

Anon glanced at Twilight who simply nodded. “Basically, I’m not a good person. I work for a gang, doing terrible things, so my family can live. Interrogation, Intimidation, bodyguarding, debt collecting etc.” Anon explained.

The mayor wore a concerned look during Anon’s explanation but returned to a friendly resting face as he finished. “I see, so these emotional outbursts bring out this combative nature of yours?” She asked.
Anon shrugged slightly as he scratched his chin. “Bingo.” He stated in a mock cheerfulness.

“Anon, if we cannot find a better way, would you be ok with this stage idea? Just in case.” Twilight asked softly.

Anon let out a long grunt as he looked up at the ceiling before resting his eyes on Twilight. “Fine.”

Author's Note

Hey all. Finally back after a month-long hiatus. I'm refreshed and ready to get back in the saddle. Thank you all for being so patient.

As always, please yell at me for any spelling or grammar mistakes.

Peace