I’ll be honest: I haven’t haven’t had to cross the ocean in a steamship in a while… not for a lack of trying, of course. The air was salty enough to season your dinner with, there wasn’t a lick of shade on the deck, and we’d have to persevere for a week. But below deck?

Part of the cargo bay was walled off and turned into what looked like a large hotel room for our own purposes; it was then further walled off, so Sinan would essentially have his own room. It had a bed, desk, dresser, writing utensils, and a radio. The main room had separate beds for me and Anastasia, with a couch and shared bathroom consisting of a basic stall shower. Bringing Emmie along was no issue- he wouldn’t mind crashing on the couch.

So, why all the subterfuge? Why was I drunkenly stumbling down to the docks at 10 PM? Well, secrecy. If Equestria finds out I’m going on a diplomatic mission down to the Zebra Territories, they’ll wanna know why. Nosy pricks.

For now, Sinan and I were re-reviewing the map, sprawled out on a folding table in the middle of our room.

The Zebra Territories lie directly south of Equestria, going all the way to the Equator. The territories to the farther south are uninhabitable by equines, so it became known as the Dead Zone. But anyways, when the continents crashed together billions of years ago, it created the diagonal mountain ranges where Zebra culture was divided enough to form a noticeable schism. Thun, or The Wall, stretches from the northwest, to all the way down the southeast; the main passthrough of which lies in the centre and most importantly, in complete control of the chucklefuck I was going to meet. That’s where, eventually, the oil pipeline will go through.

Further complicating geography, the other side of the mountain is total desert. The reason for this is because the mountain range is so high, that winds from the Ocean carry lots of rain and moisture to the jungle side, but it cannot pass over the mountains. The result is a dry, dune-kissed desert, where the only saving grace is the two great rivers that pass through as a result of seasonal flooding in the jungle, allowing for irrigation techniques. From what Sinan believes, it’s only by sheer chance that those mountain basins have drainage paths down to the desert side.

Most of those drainage basins look towards the jungle, and that’s where the evident ‘haves’ separate from the ‘have-nots.’

In the jungle territories, there is a sort of agreed-upon stability based on the principle of ‘if we’re fighting each other, we’re not making money.’ And thus, the Hippotigrian King in charge of the single commerce-viable passthrough essentially has a monopoly on trade goods. You had Hippotigria in the middle, and on each side of it is an incredibly wide, near-impassable river. If their neighbours want to trade, they go through Hippotigria; essentially it’s the bondage of Feudalism keeping the jungle safe.

Exotic fruits, luxury furs and meats, rare medicines and herbs, silks, rubber, wood, and all sorts of unique goods are grown and produced in the jungle. There’s few reasons I could think of as to why the ancient Zebra’s might have decided to move into the desert… so why?

“So wait, what drove zebra’s to migrate past the mountains?” I asked, and Sinan shrugged… at just the right time.

“I’m baaaaaack!” Emmie yelled as he burst through the door.

“Ayy!” I pulled him in for a casual hug, Anastasia jumping up and doing the same afterwards. “Perfect timing! Why do zebras live in the desert?” I asked in a joking manner, and he cocked an eyebrow.

“Yeah! Uncle Em, why do zebras live in the desert?” Anastasia enthused, making Emmie shrug.

“Pull up a chair and gather ‘round, everyone!” STORY TIME! I genuinely loved hearing his stories, and this was no exception. That’s part of why we became such fast friends, is because he’s… well, you’ll see.

“Eh, why not?” Sinan said, joining the rest of us around the map table.

Emmie’s horn lit up blue, orbs of light jumping off and changing form. They looked like small ponies and zebras, situated on the table below the map.

“SO! A long, long, stupid long time ago, and far, far, stupid far to the south lies a nice bit of land!” It was like a glowing hologram, with simple rolling plains and cartoony trees decorating the table. The horses hopped around like little porcelain dolls. “Ponies and zebras lived together, maybe even in harmony! Presumably, they built cities and monuments and farmed and probably practised rudimentary magic… but who can remember?” He said with a shrug, decorative ziggurats and wheat fields dotting the imagined landscape.

“Then… this happened!” All of a sudden, large black obelisks of light rose out of the illusionary rendition, causing the equines to start running around in a panic. “Something called mananite, of which there is lots towards the south pole, forced them all north! The crystals drained their energy and made them sick otherwise.” Slowly they started making their journey north, with the little sprites occasionally falling over dramatically, ‘exhausted’ from the journey.

A glance over at Anastasia showed a look of utter wonder in her eyes, and I couldn’t help but smile. That was kind of the point of this trip, after all; showing her a world beyond the borders of Griffonia. It’s more than she’d learn by chasing her tail all summer, after all.

“Then, it was a miracle! Fields of craggy black mananite gave way to dense jungle, full of food, water, and… cats!” A few more orbs populated the map, representing large jungle trees… but these weren’t normal cats; in fact, my heart almost skipped a beat when what at first appeared to be common tigers… stood up. In so many words, it looked human in overall shape and form, with a lithe feline body accented with protruding ears and tail. “They go by different names, depending on who you ask. They’d call themselves Abyssinians, if they were still around. The zebras called them the Hu-Na’an… or as the ponies spelled it, Human.” He said… eerily looking right at me as he said it.

“Wait, do they have fur?” I interjected, and he gave me a knowing smirk.

“Nope! But they did wear clothes to protect themselves, meaning that they likely migrated from the deserts and northern jungles untold millennia ago, signified by the occasional ruin. But back to the zebra and pony tribes-” He said, creating more zebras and ponies. “At this point, these loose tribes of wanderers had two options: Either fight, or sneak through the jungle and escape north. At this point in their journey, many were tired of not having a proper homeland anymore. The jungle had everything they’d need there, they’d just have to deal with the bronze-age carnivores inhabiting it.

“One group of refugees were tired of moving, and ready to fight for whatever piece of jungle mud they could claim for their own. The others were crafty, slowly enduring the mountains until they found a proper passthrough. The jungle zebras fought hard, and the Abyssinians fell off the historic record not long after. It was never a contest; the zebras had magic and alchemy on their side.

“Meanwhile in the north, zebras used that magic and alchemy to dig canals and irrigation paths through the wide desert, divided by the great flooding rivers. The Abyssinians were basically wiped out, and Zebra civilization underwent a sort of renaissance as they were finally able to settle. They picked up the pieces, built infrastructure, and enslaved the ponies- Zebras had been the status quo for thousands of years, perhaps being ancient enemies of ponies. Maybe a great pony civilization and a competing zebra civilization co-existed; if the pony kingdom suffered a terrible enough downfall, the scraps of zebra civilization could force the landless masses to work for them…

“But, that’s some speculation on my part!” He said with a shrug, allowing the illusionary show to fade away. “Anyways… due to various socioeconomic and political reasons, as well as succession crisis’ and compounded with the heavy monsoon season left the zebras weak overall. Meanwhile in the north, loose bands of tribal ponies were working together to escape their chains… these ponies would go on to form the Equestrian Republic, which preceded Celestia!” Then with a final deep breath, he flopped onto the couch.

“Any questions?” He asked with a smirk, Sinan slowly nodding his approval at the lesson.

“YEAH! How come-!” Anastasia spoke up before I could.

“Hold that thought.” I said firmly, Annie’s question trailing off. I turned to Emmie. “You got a minute?”

—

Nearby, the sounds of birds chirping made themselves known. The scent of a smoky grill wafted across the field of verdant grass, and the distant sounds of cars were muffled by a wall of trees and hedges.

Middlefield Park was a quiet refuge within the bustling metropolis of Featherworth; a city with a skyline so wide, Starlight reckoned an artist would need a barn door sized canvas to fit any detail in! In such a large city, it’s easy to lose a face in a crowd; A wide bonnet, sunglasses, and purple spring dress were enough to hide Starlight’s identity amongst the jovial park goers.

The bench she rested on was wide and deep- a conscious decision, according to Leona, to accommodate the homeless… Or as she so crassly put it, “I mean, shit happens. It’s bad enough to get kicked out on the friggin street, let alone not have a place to sleep. At least this way, an officer can get them in contact with a social worker or rehab if they need it.”

“That shouldn’t be a hot take.” She muttered aloud with a sigh.

“Starlight?” An exceptionally soft voice spoke up nearby, and the familiarity made her heart skip a beat.

“F-Flutter-! Oh…” Fin, one of Leona’s friends. Starlight just gave her a sheepish grin. “Sorry, you just sound a lot like a friend of mine.” Fin sat oddly, too- when stopped, she’d sit on her flanks and have her hands idly hovering over the black vest and shirt she wore.

Starlight scooted over, making room on the bench. Fin accepted, one arm leaning against the side and the other held in that mid-body position.

“What brings you out here?” Fin asked casually, peeling foil off a sub sandwich.

“Well, I wanted to fly a kite…” She muttered, the wood and canvas toy leaning on the benchside. “But there’s no wind. So, here I am.” With a shrug, she leaned back.

“Is there no spell to make it windy?” she half-whispered, once again conjuring memories of Fluttershy.

“Eh, it’s not the same.” She almost scoffed, and Fin chuckled innocently. “I take no shame in my hobby.” Having misinterpreted Fin’s chuckle, Starlight was a little offended- but Fin held a hand up.

“I’m not poking fun. Kites are cool.” She said, a nostalgic smile on her beak as she watched the trees barely swaying, almost forgetting about the sandwich she held. “When we were little, Jos and I made our own kites out of sticks and bedsheets… we’d take them out and fly them all afternoon, the other kids would flap their wings for a current… until the orderlies noticed a bunch of sheets missing!” Fin laughed a very soft laugh, gently slapping Starlight on the back with a wing.

Starlight couldn’t help but chuckle- but as Fin chomped down on the toasted bread, she felt a little awkward; and from where she was sitting, the aromatic scent of red wine vinegar, oregano, and capicola made her nose upturn. Compounded with the awkward silence, she fiddled her hooves and asked-

“So… how come you hold your hands in front of you?” Smoooooooooth.

Fin turned and looked at her with a sly grin.

“In prison, you have to be ready for anything, especially during Confederacy days. It’s a habit I never felt necessary to break.” Starlight looked off to the side and cringed, wondering if that question was a bit too… personal.

“Goodness, I didn’t-” But Fin just held a hand up with a smirk.

“Hey!” She said, “Don’t worry ‘bout it! I’ll even admit- I only joined the army for a pardon.” With a shrug, Starlight giggled in relief.

“You uh… gotta do what ya gotta do, right?” Glimmer suggested, parroting Leona’s own personal mantra with a sheepish grin.

“There you go.” Fin said, taking a bite of her sandwich and checking her pocket watch. “Tell you what; I gotta finish my lunch and get going soon.” Starlight looked at her with an apprehensive grin.

“Well, it’s been fun talking to you!” She responded casually, and Fin shrugged.

“Hey, who say’s it’s gotta end?” She asked playfully, “I’m gonna be seeing a movie later this evening if you want to join! I got an extra ticket since Jos couldn’t come.” And of course always happy to make more friends, Starlight agreed.

“Sounds fun! When and where?” She asked with a casual hoof-fist bump… unbeknownst to her at the time, this innocent gesture would be just the first signature on a long blood contract.

—

CREEEEEAK! SLAM!

“It’ll be a minute!” I yelled, locking the shower room door for privacy. I wiped the benches off with fresh towels and left them on as covers. “Take a seat.” I said to Emmie, gesturing towards the other row of benches.

Not the best place to have a sit-down, but whatever.

“What do you know?” I asked plainly, looking him in the eye. But he just looked at me with his typical smug grin.

“Look, I can either explain to you my theories based off circumstantial evidence, vague hints from your wife, and whatever other bits I could scrawl from the stars… Or, you could just tell me.” I just blinked, once again tasked with figuring out how the fuck to explain this… “My line of work encourages me to seek out unbelievable yet fundamental truths to our universe. There are powers out there with means and machinations far beyond what our own sanity could handle.”

“Yeah, but this is-” I started, but he interrupted again.

“Do you ever wonder why I can spend hours staring at the sky, giggling at what unseen things make up the pure air and the blue sky? Or perhaps you’ve seen me shiver uncontrollably upon feeling a draught of cool air? Or what happens when I spend an entire day locked in my room, screaming for help in a language utterly alien to any known by us?” He ranted calmly, utterly devoid of any symptoms that could be chalked up to insanity. “So do not think for a second that there’s anything left for me to be shocked and repulsed at.”

He crossed his arms and huffed… and I couldn’t help but giggle.

“Fine. Point taken.” I said, swapping benches and wrapping a wing around his back. “Long story short, I lived a good fifty-ish years as a human before coming here. I worked for organised crime, killed some people, and spent my last twenty years in prison, reading being my main entertainment.” Emmie had that same smile on his face, not even twitching as I regaled the story.

“I take it that’s where you got your inventions from?” He asked, and I nodded.

“Yeah, though I can’t take all the credit, except for guns. Everything else was built by personally overseeing the development sectors to take a lot of the trial-and-error out.” I explained, “Like, cars. I can’t build an engine, but I know you shouldn’t put it on the roof of a car. I can’t just make a transmission, but I knew that higher gears meant fuel efficiency. But by laying out guidelines and creating concepts for advanced models took a lot of trial and error out.” I then shrugged.

“But, yeah. That’s the gist of it. I’ve been here so long I can’t even remember what my face looked like… but fuck ‘em.” Emmie held my hand with a hoof, and I couldn’t help but smile. “And the best part? Without this Louse, I wouldn’t have nearly the clarity of memory I do otherwise. Maybe it’s selective in what it remembers?” I suggested, and Emmie giggled.

“It never saw you as a human. Maybe it forgot, too?” Fuck if I know.

“Maybe… It’s weird, really. I’ll be looking for a recipe, for example… but a few moments in, I get a burst of realisation! Vanilla extract, duh! It’s odd.” Emmie hummed, scratching his chin. “Hell, I don’t even actively use it anymore, on account of the seizures.” I think I burned it out defeating the diamond dogs, to be honest.

“I think what baffles me the most, is the fact that it actively allowed you to relapse back into drinking.” He admitted, and I rolled my eyes. “Perhaps… it’s a psychological thing that made it throw the flask that one time. Still reeling from the previous trauma, perhaps your subconscious made the decision for you and was bolstered by the louse?” Finally, he shrugged. “Eh, I got nothing.”

I had to laugh at that. “So what do you know?” I asked sarcastically, and he snorted.

“I told you! My work is about finding truth, not answers! Truth is truth, it is what it is- but asking why leads one down a rabbit hole of an intense variety, and whoever climbs back out is rarely the same after.” He then smirked- “Why do you think the occult has a bad rep?”

“Because of the prevalence of cosmic horror in fiction?” I deadpanned, and he rolled his eye.

“Over there, in that corner. Do you see that?” He pointed at some corner, staring directly at… nothing. “Of course you don’t. It’s an observer.” He explained… and as I was writing this entry, I couldn’t help but get the sense that Emmie was staring at me through the very page. “It does nothing. It affects nothing. It observes. It is what it is.” He concluded with a shrug… and oddly, I felt his gaze turn away, despite him not even being in the same room anymore.

“I… I think I get it.” I said, and he sighed.

“I was naive, a long time ago. I’ll be honest, we never may get the why about the louse… and now, I’m mature enough to realise that’s not a bad thing…” He shuddered, and I decided to not push the matter any further.

“I understand. It is what it is.”

—

A lone griffon wearing a black duster and sporting a shiny revolver walked through the old, sandy quarry. He also wore a black hat, like a cowboy.

“DON’T MOVE!” He heard a yell from the banks of a pond of rainwater, built up in the abandoned quarry. Another griffon, far more dishevelled, held a small child and a gun; the kid was a hostage, and the cowboy stopped immediately. “DROP THE GUN!” He pressed the gun to the kids temple, and his pleading was silenced by covering his mouth with a hand.

Slowly, he moved the gun off to the side to surrender. The criminal smiled… a little too early.

Wi-poiiing!

The sound of on-screen gunfire rang out in the theatre’s speakers, causing Starlight to jump! The cowboy, nicknamed Filthy Sal, was quick on the draw- the criminal took a bullet to the shoulder as the hostage ran off.

“Well, well, well, partner.” He spoke with genuine hatred and venom in his voice. “You may be wondering- did I shoot five, or six rounds before I got here? Truthfully, I lost count myself.” He explained, the perp trying to reach for his derringer before he was deterred by the revolver. “But this- is a .455 calibre Galante top-break… the most powerful handgun in the world. Strong enough to knock your head off, I reckon.”

The criminal’s smile grew as he realised his chance would soon arrive.

“I gotta ask- ya’ feel lucky, prick?” The killer reached for the gun and-

Wi-poiiing!

Was knocked back into the water. The body floated daintily on the water’s surface, and with one final look- Filthy Sal removed his sheriff's badge and chucked it in the water.

The curtains were drawn, and the crowd gave a standing ovation for the film!

“Come on- let’s get out of here before everyone else does!” Fin whispered excitedly, and Starlight nodded. They made their way out of the theatre giggling like fillies as they walked down the sidewalk.

“Wanna get some drinks and wind down a bit?” Fin suggested… and Glimmer thought, why not? She’s been having fun so far, so why not keep going? “There’s this bar down the street that makes fresh fried mozzarella sticks.”

“Well, shit, that’s all you had to say!” she quipped as they both hoof-fist bumped again.

Soon, the two were munching on fried cheese over gin and tonics in the booth of a bar in the city.

“So, in that last scene, I counted his shots…” Glimmer whispered, leaning in- “He did only shoot four times before!” Fin snorted and playfully rolled her eyes.

“I was a little preoccupied with everything else in the scene, truth be told. But that’s good attention to detail.” She admitted, feeling impressed.

“Eh, it’d bother me immensely if that wasn’t the case. Especially since it was established early on, the fact that it was six shots.” She spoke frankly, taking a sip of her gin.

“Speaking of shots…” Fin muttered, turning towards the passing waitress. “Uhm… can we get two shots of absinthe, please?” She spoke sheepishly, and the woman nodded with a smile.

“Absinthe?” Glimmer asked curiously, and Fin just gave her a knowing smirk.

The waitress was back quick- with two shot glasses and a bottle of absinthe.

“To new friends?” Fin raised her glass sheepishly, and Glimmer clinked hers against the other.

“To new friends!” She said, the confident look on her face being replaced with one of regret as she shot back the absinthe.

“ACH! Ah, what the-!” She sputtered, the effects of the strong liquor taking effect mid sentence. She took a deep breath and turned towards the waitress with a cocky grin. “Another, please!”

—

Over the years, I’ve gotten well used to getting woken up; whether it’s my morning alarm screaming at me or a light morning drizzle waking me from a dirt-nap, getting woken up rarely phases me… unless it’s another night-terror, but that’s a given. But there is one situation where getting woken up will bring a genuine smile to my face.

“Mamma?” I heard a faint whisper, followed by a few gentle nudges to my side. “Mamma, are you still awake?” She asked guiltily, and I smiled.

“Yeah, I was. What’s wrong?” I was actually having a pleasant dream before this… but this was better.

“I had a bad dream… Can I sleep with you?” She asked shyly, and I smiled. Rolling onto my belly, I set one of my wings down to let her climb up. She nestled on my back between the crook of my wings, letting her hands dangle to her side as she used my feathers as a pillow.

“Thanks, Mamma…” She muttered, eyes gently closing with a deep breath.

“Anytime, baby. Anytime.” I whispered, my wings covering her like a blanket as we both drifted off to sleep.

I wrote this entry the minute I woke up this morning. Other than that, I ain’t got much to say.

Here’s to a week on this fucking boat.

—

“Awright, sweetie… I’ll talk tuh ya later! Luv ya!” Glimmer slurred into the phone, sloppily clacking it back into the receiver next to the couch. She swivelled back to her host with a drunken smirk, saying- “Ah fuckin’ luv my wife, Fin.” She snorted and giggled, her host following suit.

They both had red blushes on their faces, swirling and tilting around on the couch after their night of drinking. They didn’t expect to get completely trashed- so rather than trying to drive Glimmer all the way back to Leona’s compound, the two just braved the short drive to Fin’s home in the city.

“She’s a beautiful mare, Glim.” Fin agreed softly with a giggle. Then with a sly grin, she leaned in and threw a wing around Glimmer’s back. “Spill iiiiit! How’d you two meet?”

Glimmer just giggled sheepishly. “I-It’s a long story. We were both outcasts, no-po… one! No-one wanted us.” She then blushed, looking off to the side. “But… we found each-other. I was in the middle of making amends with Twilight over… eh… but, I convinced her to make amends as well.” She shrugged, but an odd, almost haunting look was in her eyes. It looked… familiar.

“What, Twilight?” She said, snorting out laughter. “How bad could it’ve been? Fucking with Twilight is practically a pass-time for Leona!” Her giggles died down when she saw Glimmer looking off to the side. “Hey! I’m not exactly an ivory tower… Ah, fuck, said it wrong.” Despite the somber look in her eye, Glimmer had to chuckle.

“Point is, I don’t judge.” Fin muttered to herself, looking off to the side. “Goodness knows I don’t have room to.”

Glimmer shook her head; Fin grabbed her arm. “Look. That picture frame, hanging on the wall.” She pointed, and Glimmer used her telekinesis to bring it over.

Johnny Carlino, former medical tycoon, found shot!

“With a crossbow, not a gun.” Fin added with a chuckle.

Further down the article, however: Fin Carlino taken in for questioning and/or sentencing following her arrest that same evening.

“Jos never would’ve tried. She was afraid of jail. I wasn’t.” Fin concluded with a shrug. The telekinetic field put the frame perfectly back where it belonged. “Then when Ulysses asked me if I could kill or not, I told him that’s why I was there in the first place.” After a few seconds of awkward silence… Glimmer giggled.

Then she burst into full-on laughter at whatever popped into her mind.

“I was… fucking with time travel- the how-to of which has been forcibly erased from my mind.” She slurred, staring at the coffee table. “I was… in a bad way. I’d lost everything; my village, my respect, my easy life… all vanished! So I… I…” She whispered, almost ashamed to admit aloud.

“Notta soul hears about this… I figured, if… if Twilight… wasn’t born…” Fin nodded in understanding. “But… but I couldn’t get the timeline right. If any one of her friends were removed from the equation, then… Ah, no good.” She muttered to herself… “Killing them did nothing.”

It was… a weight off her chest, at the very least. She breathed out a heavy sigh upon realising her friend wasn’t judging her.

“I didn’t think you had it in you…” Fin spoke, “Then again, you never know who’s capable of what.” Glimmer looked at her with a faint smirk and nodded.

“Not a soul. Trixie doesn’t even know that… what happened. Twilight… Gosh, I don’t even wanna think what she’d say!” Glimmer was quite clear on that, but Fin wasn’t a rat, either.

“Of course.” Fin said plainly, letting the silence return again.

…

“Honestly, it… it wasn’t hard.” Glimmer muttered, staring off into the distance. “Just… pinch the nose, hold the mouth.” Fin… wasn’t sure if she wanted to hear more. Occasionally, the glassy eyes of the dead dog pups… they haunted her, more than she cared to admit. “Eh, but, they’re all still around… Even Pinkie, despite the heart attack.”

Fin just nodded along with her rambling; she already got the gist of what she wanted to know.

“I mean, Fluttershy’s only a year older than her! It’s terrible!” She continued her rant, “Did I ever tell you about Flutter-”

“Hey!” Fin interrupted with a sly grin, and Glimmer cocked an eyebrow. “Ya feel lucky?” She asked while pointing a talon, and the two started laughing at their private joke… until Fin gasped. “Wait! I just remembered!”

Glimmer just looked at her innocently, cocking an eyebrow.

“I already own a model of the gun from the movie!” Fin suggested with an eyebrow wiggle.

“You do!?” She asked excitedly- “Showwwww!”

“Show?” Fin asked sarcastically, “Why not shoot?” With wide grins, the two ran off to Fin’s underground shooting range to partake in a national Syndicate pass-time; getting drunk and shooting guns late at night. It’s up there with drag-racing some guy you made eye contact with at a red-light, raiding the 24-hour Mini-Bargain’s with your friends, or doing skids while leaving the drive-thru.

It’s enough to bring a tear to the eye.

—

The sound of seagulls combined with the crashing of waves to make a beautiful sound; for that sound meant that land was finally close by. We were far enough that I could barely make out the treeline from the deck, but I was still quite happy to see the light in the tunnel.

I was leaning off the bow of the ship, smoking a cigarette with a wide grin.

“Excuse me!” I jumped, hearing an unfamiliar voice speak out next to me. “You have a second?” Clutching my chest, I turned slowly… to see a fish, enveloped in blue-glowy-magic-bullshit. It was floating unreasonably close, and I reeled my whole head back to avoid my beak touching it.

“May I please have a water?” Its mouth moved as it asked dumbly, and I growled in annoyance before backhanding it off the deck and out of my face. “PLEASE!” the voice echoed from the fish, revealing Emmie and my lovely daughter laughing at my expense.

Finally, I rolled my eyes and giggled.

“Alright, you two got me.” I muttered, leaning back over the bow and lighting another cigarette.

“Love you, Mamma!” My absolute gremlin of a daughter yelled as she ran up to my side. I ruffled her feathers and smirked.

“Love you too, sweetie.” I said to her… before turning back to Emmie with a middle finger raised. “You can go fuck yourself!”

He laughed, leaning next to me on the bow.

The flap of wings could be heard behind us, and a heavy thud told us that Sinan was joining. He took his place next to Anastasia, leaving her sandwiched between us.

“Do they have sandwiches there?” Anastasia asked innocently. I just shrugged.

“Maybe.” Was my only response, with Annie gasping adorably.

“Awesome.” Like me, it doesn’t take much to get her impressed. “What if the Zebras don’t want us to buy their oil?” She asked, and I patted her on the back.

“We’re gonna make ‘em an offer they can’t refuse.”

Author's Note

I have a discord server for this fic out now!! It'd be real cool if u joined :333

Real

As always, thanks so much for reading! Likes and comments are greatly appreciated :3