A Renewed Ending

Friday, December 31, 1007 A.L., Gryphonia

The door closed behind Gregory, Amira, and Silica, creating its normal booming sound as it did so. Reaching down to his belt, he removed the sword he had strapped to his belt at the last minute. He then walked over to his assigned chair, but then pulled the two on either side of the middle chairs out. Silica and Amira both sat down in their usual places, then it was the human’s turn to sit. He looked at Cadance and Shining. He could see now why Shining Armor fell in love with her. As ponies came, she was definitely quite the attractive catch. Slender, but with some curves that would likely drive any stallion wild, at least if a few discussions with Trixie of all ponies were any indication of how ponies thought of beauty. He hung his sword on the back of his chair as he sat down. He was smiling as he said, “I take it from the shocked looks on your faces that you didn’t expect to see another human aside from Jason Wright again?”

The looks of shock on the royal faces intensified, indicating to him that he was right. It was Cadance who was the first to speak. “Please forgive our shock,” she said, “but it’s just that we didn’t think another human existed.”

That told Gregory that the Crystal Empire wasn’t spying on them like the Changeling Empire was. Or if not, then it said that Cadance was a brilliant actor. Shining, not so much. He recovered a few moments after his wife spoke, letting his emotions show on his sleeve as he narrowed his eyes at Gregory with some suspicion. “If you knew about Jason, why are you here?”

“Whoa there,” Gregory said, raising his hands placatingly, “We’re not here to yell at you about the actions of others.”

“The offer we as a Convocation made to the Crystal Empire is a genuine one,” Ambassador Geoffrey added. “We wish nothing more than to create trade agreements between our governing bodies that will be mutually beneficial.”

Cadance put a wing on her husband’s back. “Shiny, relax.” She then turned back to the rest of the Convocation. “I’m afraid you have us at a disadvantage. We as a nation can likely offer little to you.”

“That’s where you’re wrong, Princess,” Geoffrey said. “You have something that we could utilize.”

“What is that?” Cadance asked.

“Magic crystals and knowledge of said crystals.” With that, Geoffrey brought out a large piece of élanite and set it on the table.

Cadance’s eyes widened until they were as big as saucers. Sure, Gregory knew that there was a lot of other things that the Crystal Empire could offer, like food, ancient nonrestricted knowledge, and potential trade routes to, say, Yakyakistan to the west of the Empire, but knowledge on crystals was definitely one thing that they could put to good use. Cadance looked over at Geoffrey, then pointed at the élanite. “May I?”

“Of course,” Geoffrey said.

Cadance reached down with her wing and picked it up, something that didn’t go unnoticed by Gregory. Sunset and Starlight had told him one that they found it difficult to lift up any élanite. Not because it was too heavy, but because it was so full of raw magic that it could affect them in ways they couldn’t predict. Trixie could pick one up thanks in part to her magical abilities being slightly less than her friends, but it still had some kind of affect on her. It made her magic more powerful, and she had been using a tiny piece of the crystal to boost her magic so she could entertain the children, something she absolutely found perfect joy in. Sunset and Starlight could pick up élanite with their hooves, of course.

“This is…some of the purest élanite I’ve ever seen,” she said as she held it in her wing, examining it closely. “There’s so much magic here. Where did you get this? I thought that Gryphonia had less magic than either my empire or Equestria.”

“It does,” Gwendolyn said, “but we have struck a deal with the Dragon Lord and with Ambassador Silica here. She has a cave full of this ore.”

Cadance’s jaw almost dropped, but Gregory saw her royal reserve appear once more and she nodded in understanding. “Interesting. I had heard rumors that the Dragon Lands held élanite reserves, but since nopony visited those lands, it couldn’t be confirmed.”

“I can definitely confirm it,” Gael said. “I’ve visited Ambassador Silica’s cave, and it’s full of this mineral. It actually seems to grow.”

“Correct,” Cadance said before anyone else could speak. Looking up at the Convocation, she put the élanite down and began to explain. “Élanite is like other crystals in that it grows fast underground. The thing is, though, from what I’ve been told by my experts, it grows anywhere, not just in certain areas like other gems grow.” She turned to Silica. “Ambassador Silica, was it? Tell me, do you know what gem cores are?”

The dragon’s eyes widened and Gregory saw her begin to salivate. He knew what Cadance was talking about. Gems in this world formed quite differently than on Earth. It took weeks or sometimes months for gems to grow instead of centuries. “Cores are the most delicious delicacy we have,” she said with a shudder. “Sadly, though, we can’t eat an entire core.”

“Correct,” Cadance said. She then turned to Gregory. “In case you didn’t know, a gem core is where a vein of gemstones come from.”

“Silica explained it to me some time ago, but thank you,” Gregory said. “She did say that dragons never ate the entire core and instead would put the remnant back in the ground to regrow fully.”

“Wise precaution,” Cadance said, nodding in approval at Silica. “Ambassador, have you found any élanite cores?”

“Those are pretty common in our lands,” Silica explained. “We don’t eat élanite because to us it has a foul taste. I have a chest full of élanite cores that I got in a trade years ago. It’s just collecting dust in my cave.”

Cadance nodded. “Hmm, I see.” Gregory thought he could see the wheels in her head begin to turn. She then looked around the room. “In good faith, I want to share some information with you all. Élanite can be grown underground, and it can also increase the magic around the world thanks to its latent properties. It exists everywhere in the world, but in varying quantities. If I had to guess, there is less élanite here than in places such as my Empire or in Equestria. Still, the quality of this élanite here is much higher than anywhere else. Ambassador Silica, who gave you these cores? Was it a fellow dragon?”

“Well, yes,” the light aquamarine dragon replied with a confused nod.

“Did they get these cores in the Dragon Lands?” Cadance asked.

“That’s what he said,” Silica said.

“Hmm…if your vein of élanite is any indication, then that could be the norm for how pure the élanite in the Dragon Lands is.”

“All of the élanite I’ve seen looks identical to the stuff Ambassador Silica traded,” Gael explained. “Still, I’m not a big gem expert.”

“If your Dragon Lord will allow it, I can have some experts travel down to the Dragon Lands to assess the gems there, and not just élanite,” Cadance said. “I’ve actually read that in older eras of the empire, we purchased gems from the Dragon Lands in exchange for the unique foods we could grow. Of course, that was long before my time and happened during Empress Amore’s rule.”

So that comic character is canon, Gregory thought as everyone exchanged looks. He decided to speak up. “Food, you say? Could you elaborate on that?”

Cadance nodded. “Our nation has some unique agricultural exports. As it so happens, with the trade embargo we’ve placed on Equestria, we are producing more food than we can consume.” She smiled, and Gregory saw it was the smile of a ruler who was looking for ways to better the lives of her people. “I believe we can strike some sort of trade agreement here, and not just with the Dragon Lands, but with all three nations represented here. With all of the recent turmoil in Equestria, international trade has been disrupted heavily. National mistrust has grown, and not just with Equestria.”

“Very astute observation,” Geoffrey said with a chuckle. “I see you’ve taken those royalty lessons to heart.”

Gregory saw her relax and smile at the gryphon ambassador. “I was taught well, but your lessons stick better than most.” She turned back to the Convocation. “I am more than willing to listen to your proposals.”

“Mr. Graystone, please wait up!”

Cadance, after the meeting had concluded some two hours later, rushed out after the human member of the Convocation. While Geoffrey had taken the lead during a good deal of the discussions, it was clear to her that Gregory was the type to think about things before he spoke, at least in the meeting. Not to mention, him being this Idol Bearer was intriguing.

Gregory paused and turned to face her. From behind, Cadance could hear her entourage following close behind. She might have been a princess, but there were times when she abandoned royal decorum. “Empress Mi Amore Cadenza, Emperor Consort Shining Armor,” he said, putting a hand over his heart and inclining his head politely before bringing it up. “What can I do for you?”

Cadance simply smiled at him as she paused in front of him. Silica and Amira were walking on either side of him. “Please, call me Cadance,” she said, “and I was hoping to speak with you about something.”

“About Jason Wright?” Gregory asked. Cadance paused. In fact, she had wanted to discuss something regarding him with Gregory. The human chuckled softly, as if he had read her mind. “What would you like to talk with me about him? Until I came to this land, I didn’t know he existed.”

“Well, I was hoping to gain some insight into humanity,” Cadance said.

Before Gregory could reply, a familiar filly flew up in front of him. Cadance saw Silica and Amira tense up beside him, but Gregory held up his hand to stop them. He took a step back, but the young filly pressed forward. “You’re a weird looking minotaur,” Flurry Heart said.

Cadance looked past her daughter and saw a look of surprise on Gregory’s face. He looked at her daughter, then smiled. Reaching out, Cadance watched in surprise as he patted Flurry’s head, scratching her behind her ears. “That’s because I’m not a minotaur, your Highness,” he said with some amusement. “I’m a human being.”

“Hyu…hyu…hooman?” Flurry tried to say the word before she began to lose altitude. Gregory wrapped his arms around the young foal, continuing to scratch behind her ears as she closed her eyes in contentment as he cradled her in an almost instinctive manner. “Mmmm…that feels nice, mister hooman,” she said.

“My name is Gregory, your Highness,” Gregory replied with a wide smile of his own as he stroked her mane gently. He rocked her back and forth while continuing to stroke her purple and blue mane. One hand was holding her head securely while his other arm was crossed to hold her body securely. He looked up at the group from the Crystal Empire, who were frozen in shock at what they were seeing. “Your daughter is quite cute, your Majesties,” he said. “You must be very happy to be her parents.”

Cadance recovered first and smiled as she watched her daughter press her head into Gregory’s hand. “I am so sorry about our daughter’s precocious behavior,” she apologized, “she’s still learning proper decorum.”

“No need to apologize,” he said as Silica came up beside him to look at the young foal with a smile of her own. “Children everywhere are the same. Innocent.”

“She is quite the lovely filly,” Amira agreed as she came up and looked at the nearly asleep Flurry. “She reminds me of a cousin of mine back in Saddle Arabia. So curious.”

Cadance felt her husband stepped forward beside her. Looking at him, she saw a look of suspicion on his face as he gently lifted Flurry out of Gregory’s arms. “Come along, Flurry,” he said, “you should take a nap-”

Flurry’s piercing scream shot out of the filly instantly. Gregory put his hands over his ears to block out the sound as everyone else did similarly. Amira put some feathers in her ears, Silica put her claws over her own ears, and the other ponies flattened their ears. Gregory could hear Flurry whining and begging for more head scratches. Cadance swiftly grabbed Flurry and moved her back over to Gregory, quickly realizing why she was crying. Nodding, he gently grasped her and resumed what he had been doing. This immediately calmed Flurry down and she relaxed.

“So…that just happened,” Silica said with a nervous look at the filly. “I’ve never heard anyone scream that loud before. Not even when my half-sister was a young hatchling did she ever scream that loud.”

“Yeah…we can hear her cries across our palace sometimes,” Cadance explained as she watched Gregory continue to scratch Flurry’s mane. “I’ve never seen this side of her, though.”

“Look at that,” Silica said with a wide grin, “she’s already asleep.”

Cadance took a peak, and sure enough the young princess was fast asleep. She’d never seen her daughter this relaxed, but was distracted from those thoughts when Gregory began humming a lullaby for her, and this only seemed to relax her even more. He smiled and began to sing what he was humming.

“Once there was a maiden, so beautiful and kind.
“She was the smallest maiden fair that you could ever find.
“She was sweet, and she was gentle, and she loved the simple way.
“At night, she slept in a walnut shell; she sailed on a flower all day.”

“Tiny Thumbelina, you could fit into my hand.
“I hope you find a happy place in a sunny fairyland.”

“Somewhere there's a tiny prince, he's handsome, good and kind.
“He's just the prince that Thumbelina wants to find.
“He's strong, and he is gentle, and he loves the simple way.
“He and Thumbelina will be happy all their days.”

“Tiny Thumbelina, you could fit into my hand.
“I hope you find a happy place in a sunny fairyland.
“Yes, I hope you find a happy place in a sunny fairyland.”

When he finished, he gently moved her over to Cadance, who took the sleeping princess in her magic. Thankfully, this time she didn’t wake up. Instead, Cadance took her daughter into her magic and nuzzled her gently before kissing her. “Thank you, Mr. Graystone,” she whispered before turning to the nurse who she had assigned to take care of Flurry when either parent couldn’t. The maid, Fauna Spirit, was a crystal pony who had been working in the palace ever since King Sombra’s tyrannical rule. She was aquamarine in color with a dark slim auburn mane and tail. In fact, she was the Head Maid. “Fauna, would you please take Flurry and put her to bed?” Cadance said. “My husband and I have something to do.”

“At your command, my Empress,” Fauna said as she gently took the sleeping filly into the crook of her foreleg before turning away and instantly being flanked by two of the crystal guards who in turn followed two of gryphons who led them away, presumably to their room in this ancient palace.

Cadance watched them go, then turned to Gregory. “Thank you for singing her that lullaby,” she said gratefully. “It takes us a while to get her to sleep.”

Gregory waved a hand. “Please, it was no problem. I’m sure she was just extra tired from the trip here, that’s all.”

Shining looked at him with a raised eyebrow, then a half smile formed on his lips. “I have to say, Mr. Graystone, you’re unlike the other human I’ve heard about.”

Gregory’s smile faded as he faced the Emperor Consort. “If Jason’s reason for coming to this land is anything like mine, then he and I were more similar than you might think. At least, he was probably similar before what happened to him at the hooves of your sister and her friends.”

And just like that, the tension mounted once more. Cadance could feel it rising, and spoke quickly to try and keep things from getting too out of hoof. “Would you like to speak of this over lunch? I can pay for it, of course.”

Gregory looked back at his two companions, who both gave him subtle nods before he turned back. “Sure, that’s perfectly fine. Just FYI, since this is Gryphonstone, almost every restaurant opened will serve meat of some kind, and I am an omnivore. Will that be an issue?”

Cadance shook her head. “Not at all. I’m an Empress, and I’ve hosted delegates from other nation in my Empire who ate meat. I’m no stranger to that.”

“Good, then follow me, please.” With that, Gregory turned, his cloak fluttering slightly. The procession continued down the stairs in silence until they reached the exit.

When they reached the entry gates, Amira spoke. “Gregory, where are you planning on going?”

“Hmm…” he stroked his chin briefly before he smiled. “The Green Dragon. I know they have vegetarian dishes.”

She then lowered herself. “Would you like me to fly you there?”

“Are you sure?” he asked.

“I am,” she said warmly.

“Lady Amira, what are you planning?” Cadance asked curiously. She did remember Amira saying something earlier about Gregory being carried by Amira to the meeting, but had no idea what that meant or how she’d done it.

Amira turned back to the alicorn, then chuckled. “Watch and see.”

Cadance watched in surprise as Gregory hoisted himself onto Amira’s back, legs hanging down on either side of her midsection. He lowered himself forward, reaching down to grasp her mane while he locked his legs against her midsection. Cadance watched all of this with eyes wide, and she could tell that Shining and the others looked similar. “Okay, I’m ready,” Gregory said. “Now then…giddy-up.”

Amira snorted, spread her large wings and launched herself into the air. “Hey, wait for me!” Silica shouted as she flew up after the two, flying just beside the two.

Without saying a word, Cadance spread her own wings to join them. Behind him, Shining called out, “Hey! Don’t do that!”

“Follow me!” Cadance shouted back before shooting up faster towards the group. Gregory was saying, “…getting the hang of this.”

“I have only seen somecreature riding on the back of a pony once,” Cadance’s commanded above the wind. The other three turned to face her, but her focus was on Amira. “Are you two really okay?”

“No need to worry, Empress,” Amira said, “I’m doing alright. This feels strangely natural to me, if I’m honest.”

That’s what she said earlier, Cadance thought with confusion. I wonder why it feels natural? I wonder…

“Is something on your mind?” Gregory asked as they took a turn towards a busier section of the town.

“Just thinking about something,” Cadance said, waving a hoof to dismiss the issue.

“If you say so,” Gregory said before turning back and looking down at the city.

Cadance looked as well. She hadn’t yet gotten an aerial view of the city. She would have normally, but with the lack of trust between Equestrians and the Crystalians, almost every Equestrian had left the Empire, including some of the Royal Guards on loan from Celestia, so whenever she went anywhere, she had to walk. “Gryphonstone has grown even more beautiful since the last time I was here,” she said, trying to placate the human.

To her surprise, Gregory laughed. “Please, the last time you were here, it was likely a pigsty,” he said with mirth, “but yes, Gryphonstone has grown cleaner and more beautiful in these past several months. Ah, there’s our destination right there.”

Cadance looked at where he was pointing to see the same tavern that they had passed on their way to the Eyrie. She knew it had sounded familiar but couldn’t place it. The group descended and soon landed on the snow-covered road.

Cadance watched as Gregory dismounted from Amira’s back after they landed. He landed expertly on his feet. As Silica and Cadance landed beside them, Shining Armor and the Crystal Guards rushed up. “Candy!” Shining called out as the other guards ran towards them. “You shouldn’t have done that! We could have followed them!”

“I needed to spread my wings, Shiny,” Cadance said as she smiled and hugged her husband.

She felt her husband relax at her hug, and she immediately felt a bit bad about flying away. “Please don’t do it again,” he whispered.

“I won’t,” she promised as she broke the hug then turned to look up at the building they had landed next to. Now that she got a closer look, she saw that the sign actually said Green Dragon Inn but she could also hear the sound of creatures having a good time inside. Unlike other buildings around this street, this one looked like it was made of dragon scales, but upon closer inspection it was revealed that the scales were just carved into the wood of the inn itself.

“Gregory, if I may, I believe I will head home for today,” Amira said. “There are things I want to do for our Haynukkah tonight.”

“Of course,” Gregory said, “I’ll see you later.”

Amira smiled, then bowed politely to Cadance before spreading her wings and flying away. Silica stepped closer to Gregory. “Hope you don’t mind if I stay,” she said.

“It’s alright with me, but what about you, Empress?” Gregory asked, turning to Cadance. “Silica here is what you might call human-obsessed. She’s been studying human myths here for her whole life.”

Silica seemed to take some playful offense to that. “It’s not an obsess-oh, who am I kidding?” She threw up her claws and rolled her eyes in resignation.

Cadance tittered behind a wing before nodding. “I’m alright with her joining,” she said before looking up at the exterior of the tavern. “Mr. Graystone, is this inn dragon themed on the inside as well?”

Gregory chuckled, then walked over and opened the door. “Why don’t you head inside and find out?” he asked.

Cadance, having never gone into a tavern or bar in her life, steeled herself for what she might find inside, then took her first step into a tavern. Instantly, the cold was replaced with the warmth of the fire in a hearth. Looking around, she saw that the place was well lit with candles and said fire along with some oil lamps on the walls. The ruddy glow was rather homey in her opinion.

And the place was packed. Not just with gryphons, but with dragons and even a few ponies. Each and every one of them were interacting with one another, eating, drinking, and talking with one another. She even heard the sound of a lute playing, and she turned to see a dragon sitting near the fire plucking away.

There did seem to be a certain design to the interior, but it wasn’t like a cave which was what Cadance expected. The floor was made of well fitted stones held together with some kind of mortar. The walls and ceiling were made of thick dark wood which explained the wood smell coming from everywhere, which itself was mixed with the smell of the fire and a hint of alcohol. In her mind, it had a cozy feeling to it. She made a note to visit a tavern back in Crystalia to see if there was any difference there.

“Well, well, well, look what the cat dragged in!” a male voice said. Cadance looked over and saw a young crimson red dragon standing behind a bar wiping a mug with a rag. Next to him was a younger yellow dragon female. Both were looking at Gregory with smirks on their faces. “Let me guess, you just got back from the Adventurer’s Guild and are looking to blow your earnings on your latest quest on some ale?”

“Hah!” Gregory strode over and leaned against the bar, looking at the dragon with a grin of his own. “That dungeon was a breeze! Those monster drops were nothing to laugh at, either!”

The younger female dragon chuckled at that. “You two are so weird.”

“We are not!” Gregory and the dragon replied at the same time.

“I rest my case,” the female dragon said as she grabbed a serving tray with several mugs on it. “Garble, I’m taking this out, then I’ll work on adding some more ingredients to the stew.”

“Got it, sis.” Garble then turned to Gregory. “So, did you bring up my idea to the Convocation?”

“I don’t think establishing a real Adventurer’s Guild is high on the list of our priorities at the moment,” Gregory chuckled, “although I’d love to see it. I keep telling you, if you really want that, then you should convince other people to do it. Or start one yourself.”

“I just opened this place, so I can’t do that,” Garble complained, “but did you mention it?”

Gregory sighed, then looked up at Garble. “I didn’t mention it yet, but I can mention it later. There’s a meeting later this week, so I’ll bring it up then.”

Garble grinned. “Good!”

Cadance watched this interaction with extreme interest. There was a level of familiarity there that she hadn’t expected. She approached, smiling up at this Garble. “Hello, there,” she said with a friendly done.

Garble finally noticed them and paused, raising an eyebrow. “Well, this isn’t what I expected today. An alicorn in our establishment.”

“Be nice to her, little bro,” Silica said with a sisterly warning tone, “she’s part of a diplomatic group from the Crystal Empire.”

Garble’s eyes widened at this, then he chuckled. “Well then, welcome to the Green Dragon Inn!” he announced loudly. “Are you here for a room, or for a meal and some alcohol?”

“Ah, a meal, but no alcohol for me, please,” Cadance said.

“Fine with me,” Garble said before turning to the younger dragon who had just returned. “Smolder, show this party to one of the rooms in the back.”

Before the now named Smolder could reply, Cadance heard a few of the patrons calling out Gregory’s name and greeting him. He turned and greeted them all back with a wide smile on his face. Cadance was beginning to see what kind of member of the government he was. He seemed to be the type who wanted to spend his time among the citizens.

“Idol Bearer! You gonna sing for us today?” one of them called out, which caused a group of others to call out for the same thing.

“Hell yeah, you should sing!” Silica said, laughing while she patted Gregory on the back encouragingly.

Gregory raised a hand with an apologetic smile. “I am a bit busy, so-”

“Something short, then!” that same voice called out, much to the agreement of the others around him.

Gregory sighed, then turned to Cadance. “Sorry about this,” he said.

“No worries,” Cadance said as she watched him reach up to remove his cloak, which Silica took from him.

He cleared his throat, then stomped the ground in a beat. A few others began to do the same before he began to sing.

“Oh, you can search far and wide!
“You can drink the whole town dry!
“But you’ll never find a beer so brown (but you’ll never find a beer so brown)
“as the one we drink in our hometown,
“as the one we drink in our hometown!”

“You can drink your fancy ales!
“You can drink ‘em by the flagon!
“But the only brew for the brave and true…
“comes from The Green Dragon!”

The crowd cheered as Gregory took a bow, laughing along with the crowd as he took his cloak back and slung it over his arm before turning back to Smolder. “I believe we’ll take that room your brother promised.”

Smolder nodded, leaped expertly over the bar and said, “Follow me, everyone,” before walking further into the tavern.

As they walked, Cadance turned to the rest of her entourage who remained. “This conversation is going to be private,” she said, “so you’re all to remain outside. Order whatever you want.” To her relief, the guards saluted and acknowledged the order. Shining looked like he wanted to object himself, but caught himself, apparently thinking better of it, and nodded.
As they walked, Cadance saw Gregory briefly pause, but it was very brief. “Is something wrong, Mr. Graystone?” Cadance asked.

“Just heard the wind outside pick up,” he replied. “I wonder if that means a Nor’wester’s coming.”

“I see,” Cadance said as they continued walking.

The room that Smolder led them to was larger than Cadance expected. It had its own fireplace, which Smolder lit with her fire breath. It was a bit cooler in the room, but the fire would warm it up fast. She also lit several oil lamps in the room along with a few candles. The room itself looked like a large private dining area with several large chairs at a wooden table. Some light came in from a window, but since it was cloudy and snowing outside, the light wasn’t much. Smolder turned to the group when she was done. “There’s menus on the table for every type of creature,” she said, “but our menu isn’t that big yet. We’re still expanding. Although that honey bread you mentioned is something we just started, Gregory,” she added, looking at the human with a smirk. “It’s a big hit.”

“Good to know,” he said. “For now, could we get a pitcher of water and bliss while we look everything over?”

“Gotcha covered,” Smolder said as she flew out of the room, shutting the door behind her.

Gregory looked at the others in the room after that. “Why don’t we all take a seat and look at the menu? Then, we can talk about things, huh?”

Cadance nodded, taking a seat in the surprisingly cushioned chair before picking up a menu. Today was just turning out to be incredibly interesting.

As Smolder walked out of the back room, she didn’t pay any mind to the two newcomers who sat in a small booth, each looking at their own menus. However, both were only pretending to look at their menu as a pair of arctic blue eyes and a pair of gold eyes watching the dragon go back to the kitchen.

Lyra lowered her menu and leaned against her hoof, looking at it with a false bored expression. “That was close,” she said. “Do you think that human saw us?”

“If he did, we’d only look like two new pony refugees,” Sweetie Drops, who also put her menu down with an equally fake bored and tired look on her face, replied.

“One of those dragons looked and sounded a lot like me,” Lyra muttered. “Is that something you’ll need?”

Sweetie Drops reached over and took a sip of her water. “No, not really,” she said, “but at least now we have confirmation. There's a second human on Equus.”