Saturday 6 of August 983

After yesterday's class I had a good feeling, I've made a... New acquaintance, the one who I expected would mess with me during all the remaining years of highschool, Flaming Rose, I had suspected she wasn't as bad as she was before, and getting to know her could be interesting.

I wonder what changed? Maybe she realized that whatever she had been told about me was wrong, or whoever had taught her had changed her mind, maybe Celestia talking to them did have an impact on their way of thinking.

I yawned and stretched in bed, blinking away a few sleepy tears that helped clean my eyes, I felt so cozy in bed I didn't really want to get up just yet.
I kept pondering what I would do about her.

I know there's more to her than trashy filly with anger issues, she definitively had anger issues, but she seemed more mellow since getting turned into an earth pony, maybe magic did play a part in pony behavior, perhaps it was more unstable because of the lack of use, or maybe that fluctuations I felt from her were really messing with her.

When I first met her, I had a feeling I couldn't quite place, like something was wrong with her, I didn't understand fully what I was feeling or seeing with my spell, until after she came back without her horn the next day.

It was her magic, the day she attacked us, her magic was completely out of whack, instead of her core being a calm, serene sea, it was like a raging hurricane, I didn't exactly know what this meant until Celestia explained to me it was a condition similar to a magical outburst.

After her transformation into an earth pony, she felt stable, like a serene sea, her magic of course still flowed but instead of flowing wildly around her brain, it flowed down to her hooves and dissipated into the ground harmlessly. I made sure to monitor her magical energies every day, just in case now, using 'detect magic' was a sure way of seeing the flows of mana around the body, of course it required some understanding of magic, something I was quite good at, with my 'borrowed' knowledge.

Because the magic core resides in the brain, it makes sense that magic and emotions are tightly linked, after all emotions come from the brain, and not the hearth, even tho the hearth has a large amount of nerves, it's not a second brain.

So knowing all of this facts, I was willing to give her a second chance, because I know that violent attack was not entirely her fault.

But maybe not a third chance, her fault or not, I wouldn't just let it slide if she tried hurting my friends again.

I should maybe read up on some pony books on pony psychology and behavior, maybe that will give me some perspective, because clearly they don't think exactly like me, but not too different either, not to the point that I can't understand what they are feeling, sometimes it can be just a little confusing.

Suddenly I was shaken from my thoughts by mom opening my room's door and entering without knocking, an old instinct took over and I looked around for something to cover myself with for a small instant, then realized I was normally naked anyways and shrugged.

"Onyx, have you forgotten? We had to wake up early today and go pick up the metal ingots you wanted so much, I already delivered the permits to that Black Hammer gentleman as soon as you got them, now, ready to go out and pick this up with me?" My eyes widen and I look at the clock, it's 10am! We were suppose to wake up at 8 and go to the blacksmith.

"Drat! Just give me a few minutes, Ill use the bathroom and get cleaned and run, we can have breakfast later when we are back!" I spoke urgently, and mom nodded with a relaxed smile.

"I already had breakfast honey, and so did everyone else, you're... Sleeping in more than before, that's good, actually I'm glad you are having more sleep, well, see you at the door, don't take too long!" Her smile was contagious, she approached and gave me a small lick on the side of the face and then she left, I ran to the bathroom and prepared for the day.

Once I was ready I met mom at the door where she waited for me like she said, at least now we could teleport to the shop directly without further delay.

"I'm going to get us there right away, we are late as it is, let's hope there isn't too many ponies around, wouldn't want to startle them with my magic, now... Let me remember for a minute, I need to make a mental image of the shop and try my best to remember even the last detail or I may get us to the wrong place." I explained and then closed my eyes, mom didn't really say anything, but she didn't say no, so...

I thought about it, the forge at the back, the waiting area, the decorations, the floor pattern and the black and white theme of all the building, reminiscing of the owner of the store, Black Hammer.

And there. "Ready, getting us there in five seconds." I prepared the spell, now having the location clear in my mind.

Mother placed her snout on my neck, breathing steadily, a sign of trust and affection, I smiled at this and triggered the spell.

In an instant, we shifted locations, a small crack of thunder resonated in the inside of the shop, and a few panicked shouts too, I blinked, looking at the ponies around, some had jumped back in fright and surprise, thankfully they didn't start running around in a panic, and some relaxed a lot when they saw mom, for some reason.

"Ahh! You really startled us! Where did you come from...?!" A guardmare exclaimed, then she looking at mom and then slowly moving to look at me, I just waved and gave her and the other ponies around an apologetic smile.

She was... Somehow I felt like I've seen her and talked to her before somewhere...

Every other pony stared at us and there was a certain tension in the air, as if everypony was waiting for something to happen, for someone to say something.

I scratched my head, this... Blue unicorn mare, didn't I see her before? She was wearing armor at the time, but it was some other armor, not royal guard. Yet now she was naked, her beautiful blue colors on full view, she looked to be in her late thirties, yet still in perfect shape physically.

"I have the distinct feeling that I know you, lady? I'm Onyx, what's your name?" I ask to break the silence, she regards me with curiosity and then her curiosity turns into a wide smile, Sylf seems lost but it's like a lightbulb goes on in her head and she approaches the unicorn with a smile.

"Wait, A-Azure Spark?! Is... Is that really you? Goodness, it's been over ten years! I know we barely knew each other but... We're here thanks to you and miss Soft Hoof, you and all of those scientists brought us here, how have you been?" Mom adds to my words, then my eyes widen slightly as she connects the dots for me, so this was that unicorn who was guarding those ponies, when they came across us? Amazing, she must be pretty good at her job.

"Commander, you've been busy since you moved here haven't you? Climbing the ranks and becoming a bit of a legend amongst the guards." Azure gives her a smirk of her own, standing at attention and giving her a respectful salute.

"And your son, he's grown so much! Little one now talks really respectful, I would confuse him for a noble if I didn't see it was him." She giggles and looks at me now, looking over all of me.

"Onyx, like your mother says I'm Azure Spark, the guard of the expedition that found both of you and brought you here to Canterlot, you may not remember very much at that age, but I still remember both of you well." She approaches further and places a hoof on my head, patting me softly, I cant help but smile at that, the mare was older than I remember, its been over a decade after all, it makes sense, but she still looks really capable, her body is still very much fit and in shape, she's still a Royal Guard.

"M-miss Spark! I do remember you, I remember you were with the other ponies as a guard, you... and a bunch of other ponies, there was this pegasus stallion too, right? And this very kind mare who approached us too, Soft Hoof I think, I remember something, there were other scientists too, but I didn't interact much with them." I answer, trying my best to remember their names, It was a long time ago, and while I did remember, it was a very faint memory.

"Whoa! you do remember so early on? Incredible... Ponies don't usually start forming memories until they are about three years old. That stallion's name is Stormchaser, he's stationed on the southern border of Equestria with the forbidden jungle, his love of adventure really drives him, not something common for stallions. As for Doctor Soft Hoof, she's also on another nation, near the area where we found you both, in fact." She chuckles to herself, looking between the two of us. "She went as a representative researcher of Equestria, part of a diplomatic mission to further relationships with Sylf's kind and other sapient creatures of the area, I think she will be there for a few years at this rate, there is so much to discover and see, that's what the last letter I got said." She paused, looking at us intently instead for a few seconds, as if considering something.

"Glad to see both of you again, seriously, although I'm confused about something, how in Equestria did you get here so suddenly if I may ask? I've only seen two ponies do that before, and they were the Archmage and the Princess." Oh fudge! Usually when we teleported there was no one around, or at least no one was looking at us when we appeared, this time however, seems like I jumped the gun a little bit by teleporting directly inside the shop, probably I also interrupted the line, and cut in, no wonder some of the ponies seemed apprehensive.

Now what can I say to explain it? "We... ran in very fast?" I answered lamely, Azure just rolled her eyes, snorting out in disbelief.

"Yeah sure, and I'm Princess Celestia's marefriend! Hahah. Wouldn't that be a dream come true?" She chuckled to herself, I felt increasingly uncomfortable, it seems there was no way out of this, unlike others who didn't know a lot about magic or cared, this mare knew, and she cared enough to question me. "You clearly teleported, and from what I've felt and seen, you used the sixth tier spell, Teleport."

"I do believe that the Teleport spell is available for the public, I don't see the problem on using it, if I'm honest, there is no law against it, is there?" I answered with a slight defensive tone of voice while walking away from her, not feeling like being in touching distance from this mare, feeling a bit anxious that knowing or having used this spell may have some negative consequences for me, and a bit upset for being questioned over my magic. "I don't need to explain myself to you, miss Spark, you're not my mother." I huffed out some frosty air out of my nose and turned away.

"As much as I'm glad to see you again, Azure Spark, I'm afraid I don't think its appropriate to question my son and I must say, I agree with him, the spell was on a book I bought from the library, its a completely legal spell available to the public. Also... I'm afraid I don't know your rank as of now." Mom's tone gained a defensive edge, I approached her side and caressed her back to reassure her and calm her down.

"Oh sorry! Didn't meant to imply It was a problem at all! My bad... We both know it's completely legal, there is no issue really, I was just curious which of you was the one who used the spell, I mean if that's okay for me to know? Oh and I'm now a Second Lieutenant, I've been assigned for a special unit that I can't really talk about." The blue unicorn mare asked with a far less assertive tone, trying to not upset us again, mom looker doubtfully at me for a few seconds.

'No point in hiding it, I'm studying in the most prestigious magic school in Equestria, so it makes sense I can use powerful magic.' I explain to her and she nods, seeing no problem with me telling the truth.

"I study in the School of Magic and I'm very good at magic, unlike you ponies, I am not dependent on an a silly cutie mark, you may see cutie marks as a blessing, but most of the time I see them as a limiting factor, but what do I know? I don't have one." I comment while giving the lieutenant a confident smirk, she has a look of slight indignation, the white circle and blue lightning bolt cutie mark on her flank clearly somehow related to her talent. "After all, you have a mark on either electricity spells, maybe stunning or incapacitating spells, don't you? Can you cast magic of another element that is unrelated to your talent? I mean of the same tier as the strongest spell you can muster by using your talent." Now it was my turn to question her, I smirked and she frowned at my question.

"I disagree with you, little dragon, but I can't deny you're right about me, I can't cast strong spells that are unrelated to my cutie mark, but its not that my cutie mark limits me somehow, Its the other way around really, I am too weak to use anything over fourth tier, but my cutie mark allows me to cast a single powerful electric spell of the sixth tier, understand? That's why cutie marks are amazing, they make up for our failings, they don't limit us... But this is not the time to discuss this topics, let me tell you something." She pauses and looks at me with a serious and encouraging look, seemingly done with the topic of cutie marks.

"You must be incredibly talented to be able to cast that spell, now... I will talk with the Archmage and tell her that she's not so special now that there's a foal on her level, and it's not even a pony foal, she's gonna lose it! Hehh~ She may even pay you a visit to get to know you. Now it was nice talking to you, but I have somepony to talk to, I guess my armor can wait for some other day, it's not going anywhere after all." Azure grew excited and spoke quickly, but I caught her words and swallowed nervously, I should stop her, shouldn't I? I don't think anypony else really realized I could teleport around until now, maybe not all of them know the significance of it, the skill needed to pull it off, but Azure knew for sure, and so would this Archmage very soon.

"Lieutenant Azure! Wait please, don't get my son in trouble, please?" Momma was kind enough to speak up for me, given the look of worry and fear I had on my face, and that gave the unicorn mare pause, she stopped and turned towards us, walking back into talking distance.

"I'm not going to give you any trouble, I promise! But this may give your son an extremely amazing opportunity that many mages can only dream of, the possibility to have a talk with the chief magic researcher in the nation, don't worry she's not a bad pony, she's actually a sweetheart and a big nerd when it comes to magic theory, trust me on this, okay? You'll be thanking me once you get to know her Onyx, I promise! She's also my marefriend, so trust me, okay?" She spoke with excitement and shot me a wink, I still felt nervous but nodded, it's not like I could go and physically stop her from going to tell her, and I always could say no to this Archmage if I didn't want something, I was just worried this would bring unneeded attention to my family, brother and sister were still pretty much defenseless babies, and while Thunder takes care of them and protects them... Wait did she say marefriend?! I shook my head, laughing nervously but feeling a bit less worried from that last comment. At least Azure knew her personally.

"I'll trust you." I give her a small hopeful smile. "Have a lovely day, miss Spark, and tell your marefriend I can see her tomorrow, byyyye!" I waved as she gave mom a small salute and left out the door, the other ponies around us were obviously paying attention to our little conversation, but they didn't intrude and kept to themselves thankfully.

Then we just waited in a somewhat unconfortable silence, while ponies whispered among each other around us.

'Are all of them also guards? They seem to know you.' I decide to ask the obvious question, feeling a bit uncomfortable being stared at like this.

'Most of them are, you can tell by the way they stand, they're all somewhat at attention, knowing there's a higher ranking officer in the room, but they don't salute me or anything because we are off work hours, I start work a bit later, around 3pm today.'

'Ah, so that's why they all look kind of tense and stand like that... Well can't you say anything to help them calm down? Maybe they'll like you more... Or they'll take offense, I see why you don't now, nevermind!' I shook my head and snorted in amusement, then just stayed silent.

'Exactly dear, now let's just wait for Hammer and get our stuff, you'll take it home because I have some other things I need to go buy, okay?' My answer was a simple nod, and then we waited in silence.

Half an hour later, everyone had already gotten their orders and left, at least those ahead of us in the line, it was our turn now.

"Good to see you both, I've checked the papers you delivered earlier this week, miss Sylf and they are fully legitimate and legally valid, so you deserve an apology, I'm sorry for giving you trouble." The large minotaur bowed his head towards mom, then smiled.

"Good morning, mister Black Hammer, it's quite alright, you were just trying to protect your business, and as a guard, I want you to follow the law, I'm glad you do, now please be polite too Onyx." She greeted and gave me a pointed look.

"H-hi there sir Black Hammer, I'm here help mum get this stuff back home, is everything okay?" I asked shyly, feeling intimidated by the minotaur's large size, he was taller than mom and very muscular and strong, definitively an intimidating person.

"Hello little one, it's good to see you, everything is order, I have for you both something quite incredible, the ore you brought to me was of the highest quality, extremely pure, of the 193 kilograms you gave me, I got 180 kilograms of pure Mithrill, that amount of this metal... You can make four full sets of heavy plate armor, and a variety of weapons, its however not a material you can easily enchant, in fact I don't think it's possible to enchant this metal because of its effect on magic, causing disruption on whatever spell comes into contact with it." He got a thoughtful look about him, pondering for a while, his voice was surprisingly kind and friendly, despite his appearance.

"I suppose it could be combined with a different material in certain areas, ah, a minute, let me get my drawing tools here for I have an idea, I'll be right back!" The minotaur exclaimed excitedly, getting a nod from Sylf and running to the closed off section of his store, then returning after a few minutes with a bunch of parchment and a writing set.

He started to draw on the paper, I had to stand on my hind legs to be able to see, placing my front paws on the front desk, feeling extremely curious about this idea he has.

He started drawing the shape of a wolf, clearly mom in this case, a very simple silhouette, or outline, then he drew over that, a piece of armor that covered the front half, the back and chest, or whatever they were called on a wolf, showing he meant to draw a cuirass, then on the side of that he started drawing the armor by itself, showing it was separated in layers, first a padded under armor, then the harness that held the armor in place, and then a light armor that only covered a few vital areas and not even very well, it was clearly meant to hold a few gemstones.

"What about a layered armor? The first layer is padding, the second would be enchanted for whatever purpose it would be used for, like for example producing a shield when it receives an impact and pushing whatever attacked away, or protecting against fire or ice, or even an enchantment to keep the wearer cool or warm in extreme temperatures, something like that, you get me?" He's in the zone, reminds me of myself when I'm enchanting things, if I had someone to geek over it with that, I can't help but smile at that.

"This seems very interesting and amazing! But wouldn't the Mithrill disrupt whatever magic comes into contact with it directly?" Dear mom asked the right question.

"Oh, yes it would, but we are talking direct contact, here's where the rest of the armor comes in, so... In case you want to use an enchantment inside, you would have no issue since once past the outer Mithrill layer, magic would work just fine, so you could have a spell to cool down or warm up applied directly to the padded armor, then if you want to project a spell on the outside, there could be micro holes in the armor that would hold a focusing gemstone, small enough to not let any attack through, yet big enough to allow a pinhead sized point of exit for a spell, that's my idea at least, I'm not an expert in enchantment but this should be possible in theory." He explained, drawing several small holes in the armor, one in the middle of the chest, one on the back, and two on each side.

I don't see why this wouldn't work, no active spell would be directly in contact with the metal, and a shield would be basically projected out like the image from a projector, making it possible to have a completely shielded and magically disrupting set of heavy armor, strong enough to shrug off most conventional weapons, and of course able to stop most spells too without being destroyed, on top of that being lighter than steel.

This armor would be ideal for mom, even without all the fancy inner armor, as she uses her maw to channel spells, she would only need an armor that can open when she opens her jaws.

For dad it would work too, he could simply have guard for his horn in a way it doesn't touch the organ but it still protects it from all sides.

Lastly for me, I could have the same system as mom's armor a simple joint that opens when I open my mouth, that way I can both use my breath weapon and my magic, and for the hands I suppose there could be a hole on the middle of my paw or my finger toes, or claws could simply be unarmored. Or even just not have gloves at all, that would work too.

After all there is always a weak point in any armor type, no matter how heavy and strong it is, no armor is perfect.

"What permits would I need if I want a few sets of armor done? I need two sets, one for a pegasus mare and another for an unicorn stallion, both my family members." Sylf spoke when I was thinking to myself, making me pay attention again.

"You're Commander Sylf, am I right? Being such a high ranking officer, you only need to bring the ponies here so I can get their measurements, I have an assistant who specializes in padded under armor, while I work with all that is metal, and only metal. Please tell me what do you want done, and then I could get working, If you need help with designs, I'm your bull too!" He gave her and me a big smile, giving us a thumbs up, which I returned with a giggle, mom smirked too, nodding.

"I want armor for my husband, something that protects him completely and can take a lot of punishment, and for my herd mate, a pegasus mare, I want armor that protects her well without limiting her ability to fly too much, maybe something partial, like royal guards use, just... I don't want her to look like one, and... maybe something for myself too, a full set, fully protective yet flexible on the limbs and that allows me to move my head around mostly unimpeded, I will need my armor to have a way to open the muzzle part when I open my maw, because my maw is where my magic comes from, I need to be able to have a clear path out so I can use it." Ah, exactly what I was thinking!

"Oh my, quite a large order that you have in mind hm? I will be glad to get some designs drawn up, any particular preference for style? Do you prefer a more... resplendent look? Perhaps even regal? or would you prefer something a bit more intimidating and aggressive, something that screams danger to those who look upon your armored form?" I wanted to make a few suggestions, but it wasn't my place, well... I did find and mined the ore myself so maybe it was my place.

'I think for dad, a very beautiful and resplendent armor would suit him, he's our healer and he represents harmony after all, for Thunder I think something regal would fit, something that has themes of feathers, maybe eagles or other bird stylized somewhere, and for you mom, the most intimidating and awesome of them all, do you agree? What kind of things do you think you would like? If you disagree you can say what you prefer, after all, there's no shame in looking good and having preferences.' I offered, but also hopeful that she would have a different idea that I had not taken into consideration.

'Your ideas are wonderful, I don't see the issue, I may not want anything too intimidating in my armor, but since i'm the one whos going to be fighting on the frontline, I cant deny that a set of armor that draws more attention and gives the enemy pause is a wonderful idea, I just... let me explain to him, I'm sure he will understand.'

"So.... You've both been quiet for a few minutes, everything okay? I could swear you look like you're holding a conversation just by the looks you are giving each other, Hahah! From what that other mare said earlier, it wouldn't surprise me, so Commander, any thoughts?" He speaks up after a few more seconds, I facepalm a bit, I forget that talking to eachother using telepathy can look a bit weird from the outside.

"I think I know what I want, for my husband, an armor that looks resplendent, that looks beautiful and enticing, that makes him approachable while offering the best protection available, I want others to look at him and swoon~ Oh I can already picture it, he's going to look beautiful in it! Well, moving on to my herdmate, my pegasus darling, she's also been in a military force before, just from another nation, well for her I want something... between imposing and regal, something that she can wear in public without scaring anypony away, but that would make anypony think twice before trying to mess with her, I think designs with feathers, or some majestic bird, maybe a phoenix or eagle? She needs to be able to fly fairly well with the armor on, don't forget that sir, her preferred weapons are also wingblades, so there needs to be zero restriction to her wings." The minotaur nodded as she explained, writing down notes, carefully listening to her every word.

"And for myself, I want something that looks somewhat intimidating, but I want it to be silver in color and have intricate patterns of vines, flowers and leaves, I want the armor to look feminine too, if slightly, so maybe others can tell I'm a female under all of that, if anyone cared, that is." She sighed dramatically, then chuckled to herself, then smiled up at the minotaur, giving him a slightly seductive look.

"What do you say big guy? You think I would look good in something like that?~" Oh no, what are you doing mom?! Not agaaain!

"Oh, of course you would Commander, I will make an armor that you can wear with pride and that will turn eyes of stallions and mares alike, I will have a few concepts and ideas drawn for you in a few days, and then you can tell me if you wish to commission me this sets, okay?" He asked with a polite and respectful tone, but it was clear by the way he ignored her advances that he was not interested, I let out a small sigh of relief.

I had enough siblings in my opinion. 'I don't think it would be a good idea to get armor for myself, I may outgrow it in a few years, and then what? I'd need to get new armor.' I commented mentally with a shrug.

'So what if you have to get it remade? You would rather die a horribly painful death that could have been avoided by wearing armor then?! You may be resistant to some magic, but you know how much good thar was against high tier combat spells, huh? And sure, your scales are as good as steel to deflect slashes, but what if someone stabs you with enough force to pierce right in? Having armor would at least keep that hit from piercing deeper, it would be twice as hard or more to get under your scales if you had what functionally is a few extra layer of scales.' Sylf's angry voice rattled my mind with its intensity, she wasn't shouting but the seriousness in her tone and her intense stare made me shrink and immediately lower my ears, I stepped back, nodding slowly.

She is right, I didn't know when I would need to go into another dungeon again, I didn't know when things would turn into a nightmare that I may not survive, why was I worrying about spending money when my very life was on the line? I knew the answer, I didn't want to feel like a burden.

I didn't want mom to waste hers either, but... She has a point.

'Im sorry, I just... I'm wasn't thinking, I promise I'll pay you back, okay? Let me at least... Let me pay back when I can.' I begged her, and she could tell I wouldn't be happy if she didn't accept this condition.

'If you want to, I won't stop you, just... Please don't be afraid of spending money on things that improve our odds of surviving, money is useless to the dead, and without you, I don't think any of us would last inside one of those horrifying places, don't forget that. Now tell Black Hammer what kind of armor you want so I can go buy groceries, I don't have all morning my sweet pup, I'm not angry, so please stop looking so miserable, lift that chin up, I love you Onyx.' She reassured me with such kindness and so gently that I couldn't help but rush forward and climb on her back, hugging her tightly around the neck while laying on her, taking up most of her back and nuzzling her like she may just suddenly vanish.

"I want another set too, one for my son here, please Onyx, explain him what you want, don't leave out any details, okay?"

"How curious, for the hatchling? You want armor, little one? I've only ever made a set of this size for a few of the nobles who want their foals to learn how to wield a sword, it's not a common interest of most foals, and yet I have no issue making you a very good set, little dragon." The large minotaur speaks surprisingly softly to me, treating me with kindness that not even most ponies show.

"Yes I do want something done, I want a set of armor that covers my entire body except my front paws, I also want the jaws to open when I open my maw, I want to be able to easily open and cast spells, I use my front paws and my maw, that is why I want them uncovered, to keep the metal from touching my mana pathways where I release the spell." I explain with a serious expression.

"Because I will be having to refit the armor in the near future, most likely when I hit my growth spurt, I want the armor to be as simple as possible while remaining as protective as the others, no decorations, nothing, at least not until I have grown a bit more, only thing I want is the armor to be painted completely black, that's all I'm asking for." He looks at me with a bit of doubt, but nods.

"If you want it that way, I'll have it done that way, yes it's common for armor to be resized and expanded as you grow, you shouldn't worry about that so much, it's cheaper than you may think, it's not gonna cost you anywhere as much as getting a whole new set of armor done, still I understand not wanting to spend too much, is that everything?" Mom and I nod at that, he smiles and turns around.

"Let me give you that metal back on its chest, come back in a few days or a week, I'll have sketches and designs planned out for all of your armor, then if you like them, you can give me the metal I'll need and pay for me armor, or not, I promise I won't be upset at all if you decide to not go through with it." He goes to the back of the store, then we hear him lift something heavy with a small grunt of effort, and walk back in here.

And there it is, the chest, I nodded and grasped it with my magic, slowly holding it up until he realized it wasn't needed to hold it anymore and he lets go of it. "I've got it, now thanks, I'll take it home, you can go to the market if you want to mom, just give me they keys first." I comment while casually levitating the almost 200 kg of wooden chest, as levitating the metal by itself would be next to impossible, I wasn't sure teleporting the metal would work, good thing levitating something didn't really affect the object within directly, as the chest was holding the metal up, not my magic. Teleporting however was a different matter altogether.

Mom rummaged through her saddlebags meanwhile, before pulling two stacks of bits tied with red string. "I got this at the bank earlier, this are special thousand bit coins, I figured for this it would be easier than counting a hundred coins of a hundred bits each." She spoke with a smile, placing the money on the table in front of the minotaur, who's smile widened at the sight of his money.

"What a polite and kind lady you are, miss Sylf, for a moment I thought I would have to remind you! Hahaha oh goodness, it's been a pleasure to have both of you in my store, the most interesting clients I've had in a long time that's for sure, have a wonderful evening Commander, little guy!" He cheerfully spoke and said goodbye to us, as our business was concluded, while mom handed me the keys and we walked off, giving the big minotaur a greeting of our own.

"Hope you have a successful day!" I gave him a small wave. "Later big guy!" Mom didn't seem as enthusiastic as earlier but she still showed some politeness.

As we walked off, she smiled at me, and approached, giving me a small nuzzle on my back. "I'm glad you got armor done too, don't ever worry again about money when it comes to your personal safety and health, okay? Your safety is more important than all the bits in the world, and so is everyone in our family, there's no place I wouldn't go to protect you all, I've got more than enough bits for all of us combined."

"Old habits are hard to forget, also what was that back there, were you trying to flirt with him?" I ask to change the topic, smirking and giggling as she quickly starts to turn red on the snout.

"N-no, I was just... Being polite, that's all I promise, it's not like he cared in the first place, I suppose he already has an eye in someone, or is married, who knows? Maybe minotaur are more monogamous than ponies, I don't know." She added, but she didn't seem even slightly upset by this.

"You're married too, you know? Well I suppose that yours is more of an open relationship, a herd and such, do you think dad would like having another male in your herd? At that point it won't be a herd anymore, it would be more of a...I-I don't even know, not that I would mind, but you should ask him." I speak feeling unsure, I don't know how things like this work.

"I see your point son, but think about it this way, if we have another mare now because he took a liking to her and so did I, why wouldn't it be okay for me to add a male to our herd? As long as he likes that male? I'm not sure if he swings that way but... You never know until you try, that's how it was for me too." She smirked while imagining something I probably was better off not knowing.

"If anything that sounds pretty fair, I hadn't thought about it."

"Well it's getting a bit late, I'll see you at home once I get all the food we will need, can you make lunch for everyone in case I get there late? There should be more than enough for two salads and pork chops for all of us omnivores, make some nice sauce too if that's not too much problem." After sharing one small hug, we parted ways, she left me with an important task, I had to walk home, while hauling behind me a chest full of metal ingots, I walked at a relaxed pace, making sure that nopony ran into the wooden chest held hovering behind me.

It was an uneventful walk back, in a way it felt nice to exercise my telekinesis, I could feel the weight and strain of holding weight for this long.

Most ponies were confused when they saw me, after all unicorns are the only ones supposed to be able to use telekinesis. I couldn't really deny that, I'm pretty sure the fact that I could use telekinesis was just thanks to the deal I had with a certain entity when I came to be in here.

This... It makes me realize something, I need to actually exercise my telekinesis, and from today on that's what I'll start doing. No reason to only exercise my body every day and not my magic.

The walk was enlightening indeed, I held the key in my field and inserted it in the keyhole, then twisted it and opened, waving to the old mare who was just coming out of her house on the right, on that side there were a few elderly ponies who lived together, possibly a herd, and on the other there was a lonely middle aged mare who seemed to prefer keeping to herself, although rarely she would come out, she was most likely an introvert, what was for sure was that sometimes family would come over and visit.

I never bothered to learn them, their names, because I just didn't see a point in doing so, I don't interact with them.

They were nice, at least the old herd, but I just didn't have time for them, all in all my life was fairly busy here, either with studies, my hobbies, eating and going out with friends or something else, I had to put aside days to do something like today to go pick up this chest.

Speaking of which, I went in and came face to face with Thunder, who smiled warmly at me upon seeing me arrive. "Helloo love! I see you got the goods on you, mind if I take a peek? I've always wanted to see how this metal looks in it's pure form." She spoke in a cheerful and excited tone, on her back there was Wander, smiling at me too and hugging Thunder's neck.

I nodded with a smile and placed the chest slowly and gently in front of her, careful to not make much noise, Lightning must be sleeping nearby. "Good morning to you as well mom, feel free to! Here, let me open it for you." I greet her back and open the chest with my magic, approaching Thunder and going bipedal, so I could grab my sister with my front paws, I made sure first wig a quick prestidigitation that they are clean and dirt free.

"And who do we have here, hmm? Is that my adorable little sister?" My smile widens as I approach and boop the filly with my snout, making her giggle and reach out with pawed hooves, they were like hooves in shape but had paw pads at the end, it was charming, she grabbed onto my snout and squeezed and pulled at the sides of my maw, then nuzzled her little head to my own.

Before I could succumb to the overdose of cuteness, I grabbed her from the sides and lifted her up, sitting in my haunches and hugging the little filly. "You missed me sis?" I asked in a whisper, she nodded, surprising me.

"I wub you, big brother! Want...Play?" She added the last part in a really adorable hopeful tone, and while I was too close to see her eyes, I'm sure the look she was giving me would be disarming enough to agree, I don't see a reason not to... I'm sure Sylf would understand.

"Wander, you're just wonderful, you know? I love you too, and your brother, I love you both a lot, and yes I will play with you, what do you want to play?" I ended the hug, and held placed her gently on the ground, she stood on her four legs and wagged her tail before pointing up with her paw, gesturing around.

"I want... hide and see, you hide and I see?" She jumps around excitedly, wagging her tail quickly, before coming closer and nosing my belly while I sit down.

"Sure sis, we will play hide and seek, Thunder? Can you make lunch for me? Mom told me there's porkchops and veggies, make a salad, porkchops and mushroom sauce, I'm gonna entertain Wander for a while, is that okay? I'll put that chest away later or some other day, it's not like it's dangerous." I tell Thunder who seemed to be fascinated by a mithril ingot, she turns to me and gives me a playful wing salute and nods.

"Aye aye captain, I'll have lunch ready in an hour, but... How do I prepare porkchops? I never made them before." She asked unsure, but left the ingot in the chest and closed it back up then walked towards the kitchen.

"Get a pan very hot, salt the pork chop on both sides well, then add a small splash of oil to the pan and add the porkchops slowly and making sure they face away from you when you place them, sear three minutes then flip the meat over, sear another five and take them off and let them rest for ten minutes, then add pepper and a bit of chili flakes on top to spice them up, that's how I make them myself. Make them last, because they're super quick to cook, make the salad and the sauce first, it's more or less the same you do to cook fish, don't you pegasi eat fish?" I ask her the last question with genuine curiosity, I wasn't trying to be rude.

"Thanks, that sounds simple enough, and yes we do eat fish sometimes, but I don't usually cook fish, my sire was the one who did that most of the time, I helped with the other dishes but I think I understand you, go have fun with your sister, I'll get cooking. Oh by the way, your little brother is napping on his crib, don't be surprised if he wakes up and wants to play too."

I gave her a nod as she walked past, then focused back on the small filly. "So... Do you want me to hide around the house? You must count to ten, very slowly, can you do that for me?" I asked her, lowering my head to her level by laying down in front of her.

"I-i don't know, I wait, then I go look, yeah?" It made sense she wouldn't know the numbers, she's not three yet, in fact, their second birthday is this month, what day was it? I needed to check with mom.

"Okay Wander, close your eyes and wait, when you feel a moment has passed you can start looking, I'm ready, please don't peek." I gave her head a few headpats, making her wag her little tail again.

"Yaay! yyes big brotheeer, I'll staaart... Now!" She giggled and closed her eyes, I hurried off and ran in search of a hiding place, I decided on a whim to hide behind the curtains to the window on the front of the house, I wasn't trying to win after all.

"Ready or not, imma look!" She cheerfully stated and opened her eyes and started to look around. Not seeing me at first, her little nose started to twitch, she stared sniffing the air.

She started walking around. "Brooother, where are you? I find you big brother!" She spoke up so I could hear her whenever I was, she is such an adorable baby.

She sniffed again, then turned in my direction, immediately seeing my hind paws, she giggled and trotted over to me, I remained still as a statue. "You smell like soap big brother. Found youuu!" She approached and gently bit my paw, she wasn't trying to hurt me or anything, and her small fangs weren't sharp or large enough to hurt, and she wasn't trying to.

She was just nibbling me, growling adorably like a puppy, she was trying to get me to admit defeat.

"Oh no, I've been captured by Wander, the strongest and smartest filly in the world!" I compliment her and then come out of hiding, laying down to be at the same level as her, she let go of my paw as soon as I came out, then stepping back and coming to lay next to me as I rolled onto my back, she climbed on top of me eventually and stayed there for a bit.

"I showed and use scented soap, yeah." We both relaxed together, she got cozy over my cool body, stretching over me, it was still summertime after all.

"We should play more often, Wander, maybe we could play some table games sometime." I spoke softly, closing my eyes.

"What table games? Don't know brother."

"Oh it's a game you play while sitting on the table, there's a few I like, but I don't know if they have them here, maybe you could like card games! Perhaps chess, when you're a bit older." We relax on the ground, the cool tile floor feeling quite refreshing and cozy, the house was pristine clean thanks to Thunder.

Ah, today I had a meeting at the castle, Cadence was hosting this time, and I would get to see her aunt again, that mare was a bit reserved the last time we met, but she was polite.

"Show me?" Wander asked after a few minutes of just sitting in silence, I nodded right away, then gently got up, holding her close then placing her on the ground, where she moved aside for me to roll over and get up.

I went to the chest of games, where we kept our table games, cards and other toys, and pulled out a few games to show her. We may not really play any, but I could show her what they looked like and maybe get her excited to learn how to count or read, this game had a lot of things that would need her to understand both basic math and reading.

The rest of the morning was spent showing her, she was specially fascinated by the chess pieces, trying to guess what they were, but unable to form most of the words, the particular set I had represented each different piece with am everyday object, it was a bit weird as they weren't called the same, nor did they look the same, yet it was quite intuitive to tell which piece was what, having the Canterlot theme, they were all from Royal Guard, to a tower, to some odd conical shape that represents the trees they grow here, to even lamp posts being the bishops, all in all, it was an unique and curious set, this was dad's, his father gave it to as a gift, some sort of family heirloom or something.

Wander was nibbling on the wooden pieces without me realizing, leaving several of them with tiny bite marks. "Wander, no, this is dad's chess set, don't want to make daddy sad, do you? This set means a lot to him sis, now give me that, okay?" I reached out and she reluctantly released the 'tree' on my paw.

I started putting all the pieces back, she entertained herself with something else in the meantime. using her maw to grab things and look at them with some difficulty. Ah, how stupid of me, I forget she still doesn't know how to use her hooves to grab things, turns out ponies aren't born with magnets in their hooves, they have to train themselves to be able to hold objects, her having paws didn't change the fact that she needed to learn.

I heard the door opening, as I had left it unlocked, then a few seconds later mom walked in, balancing a few boxes and bags on her back and holding them with the ghost hand spell, handy for this sort of stuff as it was easy to cast and used almost no magic, for her basically nothing.

"Good to see you back, got what you wanted?" I asked feeling happy to see her. My little sis shared the sentiment, carefully jumping down from her chair and running over to her, tail wagging like a blur.

"Hey son, yes I did, food for the whole week for all of us! Now it seems a little one really missed her momma, give me a second darling to put down the bags!" The little puppy and her mother shared a small tender moment then Sylf headed into the kitchen to restock the pantry.

At the same time Thunder came out carrying the cooked food, seems like she knew Sylf would come back because there was an extra plate, and knowing dad was away on his goddess given missions to heal ponies in secret, there were five plates of food. A tiny plate for Wander and another tiny plate for Lightning.

"Ah, done, now come here and sit with momma my little Wander." Sylf offered as she came and sat on the chair next to Thunder, the filly nodded got on the space she had left, having her head above the table level just barely, and looking up at the rest of us, she could reach the plate just barely if she stood on her hind legs, but she was still a bit too small too do that, and mom carefully held her close with the hand spell. "Can you go get your brother and bring him to eat with us? hold him like i'm holding her, so he can also eat at the table with us.

It had been only recently that the two babies had started sharing our table, before they had their own tiny table where they ate together, and before that they just drank their mother's milk, they still do, just not as often.

"Yes ma'am! Ill be right back." I announced, giving them a small salute before vanishing in a flash of indigo light.

I appeared outside and enter my sibling's rooms, recently they had been upgraded from a crib to a small bed for each, and their room was remodeled with a separator, and painted on different themes, one was all about the sky and the other was more of a jungle, even a few ancient ruins depicted on the background. I go into my bro's section, opening the door and on his bed was the little wolf, sleeping peacefully. His back was to the bed, on a position that clearly indicated he felt really safe here, too bad I have to wake him up.

I approach quietly and then I gently grab him by the middle with my paw, then gently shake him. "Lightniiing, are you there? Rise and shine bro, lunch is ready." He grumbles softly and tries to lay on his side away from the sound of my voice. "Food, fooood brother, there is porkchoooooops~" I sing song the words, slowly opens his eyes after I mention food, then he starts sniffing my paw and me.

"Yess okay! Stop!" He exclaims slightly annoyed, then yawns and stretches his legs, he slowly gets up on the bed and walks over to me. "Big brother! C-can you help? I want flyeing" I was confused for a second, help him fly when I can't fly myself? Oh wait, he means levitation...

"Sure, but you must flap your wings too, try to fly on your own, I'll just help you to be steady, okay? don't stop flapping them!" He was happy by the possibility and started to flap his wing quite fast, surprisingly he jumped and hovered in the air for a few seconds, before slowly losing altitude and reaching the ground, landing on all four hooves perfectly.

"Wow, Lightning? Do you know that you could already pretty much fly around with a tiny bit more training? You just need to strengthen your wings a bit, and you'll be able to hover without my help, that was... very impressive!" I spoke with genuine amazement, he could pretty much do what I have wanted to for years now.

"R-Really? You thiink? I fly soon?" He asked hopefully, his wings flapping a bit in excitement. "I try more, but... you help?" He asked softly, shooting me a hopeful and trusting smile. I could not let him down!

"I'm ready to catch you." He nodded and started flapping again, then made a little sprint and a hop, jumping as high as he could, then flapped much more intensely, managing to stay in the air, this time not losing altitude, at least at first.

"I fly! Yess! Look big brother!" He cheers and keeps flapping got a while longer, happily giggling.

"You are, you're awesome! You should get Thunder to train you, and you'll be flying in no time, I promise."

After about a minute, his face twists with effort, as he starts getting tired, then lets a tired whine, and I hold him up in my telekinesis, he sighs and relaxes, letting the wings splayed to the sides. "T-thank big brother, food now?" I chuckle and carry him on my aura, he starts flapping his wings again after a break, and I walk down the stairs back to the table, he cheers all the way while I carry him hovering.

I sat down and placed my brother in from of me on the table, we ate in silence after, I helped him reach the food, the portions for the twins were cut into small chunks so they could bite them and chew them easier. "Mmmhh meafff" Lightning spoke while chewing on a mouthful of pork chop pieces and veggies, thankfully his wolf like teeth made it easy to eat meat and even veggies.

"Lightning, don't speak with your mouth full, please don't eat so much at once either, okay?" Thunder scolded him, making his ears lower, he did as told thankfullly, chewing and eating smaller bites, I reinforced that good behavior by giving him a back and head massage.

"Yesh mama." He spoke after finishing what he was chewing, then closing his eyes and smiling slightly as I pet him.

"Ah, you see? Doing what mama tells you feels good, doesn't it? Do what she says and you will be happy, she wants what is best for you, we all love you two, and want you to eat healthy and grow strong so you can fly, remember, chew your food very well, and don't eat too much at once, take your time, food is not going anywhere." I speak softly and keep patting him a while longer, then we resume eating together, as a family.

Wish dad was here with us, but I haven't heard from him in a while, he may be out of Jade's range.
'Jade, how long does the range of notifications and information of a party member is?' Better to just ask and get a straight answer, than worry unnecessarily.

'At your current level, the range is approximately up to 50km from you. The range can be increased artificially by as of yet unknown means.' The System, Jade answers in a monotone voice, so it gave me a hint, but it didn't give me the answer.

Perhaps in the future I could research this too, as if I hadn't already a ton work to do, I just needed to know more and have more resources.

Author's Note

Sort of a family downtime chapter, more coming soon! (Or all in one go if I decide to release them like that)