Keyed to look for it, they could see the mayor had the back end of a pony, with two hooves, not two talons. It was easy to miss with her usually seated at her desk. But when they returned with their news, Mayor Black came around to hug the both of them. "I had a feeling. It was a distant one, but nobody's gotten badly off by showing an Equestrian a little faith."

Spring giggled and hugged right back. Kit blushed at the idea and let the mayor hug him. "Thank you, ma'am. I'm happy we helped."

She nodded. "Helped is putting it mildly." She grabbed a bit of paper off her cluttered desk and showed it to them, a densely scrawled list of things. "This is what you brought back, and so close? I can see why. Most scouts just don't bother trying to upset an ash spirit if they know it's there. You just walk in and take it all without a problem? Ha, that's made my day."

"I wanted to help." Spring looked at the list with a broad smile. "We found some other stuff. We didn't bring it because we weren't sure if you wanted it. It's not on this list of things."

Kit gestured downwards as if pressing something towards the floor. "They were also heavy. We took what we could carry."

Black waved it off. "You brought plenty. Taking too much is just another way to die in the ash, and I'd rather you get back so you can try again later. You fight anything out there, or just walk in, grabbed it, and got out?"

"There was a nice ghost." Spring sat, her tail swishing. "He helped us, showed us where to find some of that stuff. We found other stuff that we took. We didn't get hurt, or fight anything, but there were other scary things that live there." Spring raised a hoof to her chin. "Do you think he could come here, the nice ghost?"

Black stiffened. "That." She prodded Spring in the chest. "Isn't happening. They were nice to you, little otherworldly thing. They wouldn't be so 'gracious' with the rest of us." Her voice was flat, eyes steady. "Ash spirits are nothing to toy with. You didn't come home wrong. Some creatures have. They come home wrong, they can never be made right again, and they're put down like feral beasts. If they even get home at all." She looked to Kit. "You seem the one with more sense of the two, that strike you as a good idea?"

"No." Kit shook his head firmly, looking Black in the eye. "I don't want that anywhere near us. If I had my way, we wouldn't have spoken to him at all."

Spring scowled at Kit. "How can you even say that?" She turned away, rearing up just so she could fold her arms. "He was very nice to us."

"And that's how you get in trouble." Black shook her head. "A little honey gets the fly to the web." She shrugged. "That's life in the ash for you. Better to live and let whatever is happening out there stay there than bring it here and ruin everything." With a muted clopping, she returned to her spot behind her desk. "You two did good. Take the rest of the day off. Tomorrow, I'll have a new target for you, so be ready for that."

Kit nodded, but Spring's scowl softened into something sadder. "He was so nice."

"Maybe he thought he was being nice." The mayor sat heavily in her seat, hands clasped before her on the desk. "But the anger of the Ash isn't something the ashen creatures can put down. All we can do is suffer it." She waved the two away with shooing motions.

Kit and Spring left the town hall, walking back into the streets. He glanced sidelong at her as they went. "You're taking that so hard." He patted her on the shoulder. "We can't fix everything."

"That doesn't mean we shouldn't try to fix something." Her eyes were on everything but the road ahead of them. "I smell something good."

"Food is food here." He perked his ears up, nose twitching. "I think it's that way."

Neither objected to their silent agreement, hurrying over to what seemed like a cart with a buzzard behind it. The buzzard wore a gas mask, obfuscating his voice. "Welcome, newcomers. Don't remember seeing you before. Hungry? Everything here is free for good members of the community."

Her mood brightened immediately. "I'm always hungry!" She leaned in close to look at what was cooking. "Oh, that smells so good!"

"I'll take what you're making," Kit added as he moved up alongside her.

"Great answers both." He took out two buns, long ones, and put a sausage of something in each one, then various toppings on each of them with a little humming as he went. "Two everything's, made with that little extra." He held out the two, one in either hand.

Kit took his and took a bite. His ears shot up and he smiled brightly at the taste. "That's an everything, all right."

She took hers, then took a big bite of it, almost half. "Oh! Woah." She sank to her haunches, trying to process what she was still chewing. "Woah. What is that?" She swallowed it all down. "It's amazing! My tongue's still tingling."

The buzzard grinned under the mask. "Our secret spice blend, keeps your mouth happy and your belly busy with all sorts of things." He waved the spatula he held. "Food for everyone, because everyone has to eat." He put the spatula-wielding hand against his hip. "I'm no daring scout, like you two, but I do my part to keep this place working."

The two nodded in unison before tearing back into their hotdogs with vigor. Kit swallowed his bite down before replying, "This is fantastic! Thank you!"

The buzzard nodded, turning back to his cart with a smile. "If you're hungry and you see me, ask for another. No, you can't take one for later."

"I didn't ask." Spring wriggled her nose, though empty of any food in her magic. "Thank you!"

"Thank you!" Kit waved and turned away with a smile.

The two went on their way, heading towards the shelter they were sharing. "That was a nice meal." She bumped into Kit's side lightly as they walked. "Thank you for coming here. It would be scary alone." She hugged him close for a moment.

Kit warmed with a little giggle. "You're fun to help. Maybe tomorrow the clouds will open enough for your spell."

"That'd be nice," she said with a smile, tail swishing. "At least it's not raining ash right now. But I like being here with you."

He smiled. "That's good, because it's going to be a little longer." The two stepped into their shelter together and he gave a soft sigh. "We did make the place better though, and they appreciated it." He gestured around at the other people around. "This isn't a soft place. Let's find a room for ourselves. Maybe the one we used yesterday is open?"

The room wasn't densely populated, most of them out, doing their various jobs. Spring walked to the small room in back where they had slept. "Oh, good." The cot was still there, but it looked better. New sheets, a thicker mattress, even an extra pillow and blanket. "Somecreature went and freshened it all up."

Kit pointed just to the left of the door. "Look." There, a sign. It read clearly, 'Scouts.' "I think they gave this room to us, or any other scout, I guess." He smiled at her. "That's nice of them."

Spring's tail flicked gently. "It is, and that's good." She walked over to the bed and flopped down on her belly, eyes on Kit. "Come inside."

"Right!" He scurried in, closed the door, and engaged the cumbersome lock that kept it closed. "There." With that handled, he sank onto the other cot, rump first. "So, we're scouts. How does that make you feel?"

"Scared." Spring's ears flattened. "The ashes, whole thing. It's a little much." Her eyes were on the door. "I want this whole building to be a place that keeps out the scary things, but I don't think it's very safe."

Kit made a nervous noise at that. "I don't think anywhere here, right now, is as safe as you'd be back home. That's why I'm here until you get there, home that is." He gestured with a paw in her direction. "You can count on me."

She smiled warmly. "That's good." She leaned back against her pillow and blanket nest, eyes flicking to Kit. "You're a nice creature, even if I never saw another like you before." She waved a hoof between his two halves. "Fox, pony, fox, pony. The griffons here are half pony a lot of the time."

"Ah, well, that's just me." He rubbed the back of his head. "I'm pretty unique."

She nodded, then sighed gently. "I really like your help. I don't think I'd like being here alone, and I don't know what we're going to get into, but I'm happy to be getting into it with you next to me." She giggled as she burrowed under her blanket. "Gonna take a nap. You rest too."

"I will," agreed Kit as he curled up into his own bed. "Good night, Spring."

"Night!" She yawned softly into her pillow. "We can figure everything out later, I guess."

Kit was slower to go, watching her in the quiet with only someone's muted coughing or a sneeze reaching them through the wall. He was about to fade himself when a loud banging reached him. "Raiders!" came the muffled cry. "All hands, defense!"

"Oh no." Kit leaped to his hooves and patted Spring on the back. "Spring? We have trouble."

"Huh?" She looked at him through sleepy eyes. "Trouble?" She shook herself from head back to her tail. "What happened? How long was I out?"

"A minute or two." He hurried for the door, unlocking it with the heavy lever. "They're being attacked by other people."

"Oh." Spring took a step forward, but then hesitated. "That's awful, but what are we supposed to do about that? I've never fought anycreature before. I can't do that."

Kit hesitated with her. "If they fight and win, they'll come and hurt us next. That wouldn't be good." He didn't outright tell her to fight.

"Oh no, that's true!" She got to her hooves and followed him outside. "I guess we should help." The two moved together through the shelter's main area.

The place was entirely empty, the rest clearly having run towards, or away, from the loud banging and calls for defenders. The two stepped outside, looking around as the other residents gathered near the gates, which rattled with each impact. Kit's ears flicked towards Spring. "We should get ready to run if this goes badly."

"Run where?" Her horn glowed with preparing power. "Back into the ashes, with nowhere to go? I don't think that's a good place to be." She gestured towards the others. "Let's try and help, maybe we can do something."

"Right!" Kit walked towards the others, his tail lashing anxiously.

As they approached the gate, the loud snapping pops of firearms could be heart. Above, they were firing down at something they couldn't see. One of the defenders squawked, falling backwards right off the wall. Fortunately for them, they were caught by some of the other citizens by the base of that wall.

"It's the raiders!" someone shouted, pointing as something crawled over the wall, only to have its head blown apart by the defenders. "They're coming over the walls!" People screamed and scrambled around, trying to organize themselves. Like magic, they armed themselves. Some with things that could be weapons, others with whatever they could get their hands on or teeth on, if they didn't have hands available.

Kit glanced to see if Spring had panicked, but she was too busy breathing hard, bits of flame rising through her pelt as her tail lashed behind her.

Author's Note

Don't wake a kirin from a deserved nap, or they may go reverse on you.

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