Watcher cleared his throat as he stood up. "Thank you for your hospitality and the food, but we really must be going."

Lulu got up with Twi in her arms. She didn't get more than a few feet before stopping. "It's dark, it's dangerous, and that was a sudden change." She squeezed Twibright gently. "Is this about her? I wouldn't turn in a nice cutie."

"No," Watcher said. "I'd rather we be on our way."

Twibright coughed into a hoof, wriggling in Lulu's grip. "Did you have something in mind we have to do in the middle of the night?"

Watcher paused, his claws clenched. "A spell has been cast. We need to break it, but I am not sure where to find it, and we mustn't let it break the world before I do."

Lulu raised a brow high. "There's more magic than her's then?" She tickled Twibright under the chin. "I think I can handle whatever hexes this witch has ready for me. Be gentle."

Twibright gave a snort and squeak. "I promise!"

Watcher watched them with his head tilted to one side. "Are you two...?"

"Going to be busy for a while?" Lulu tossed her hair. "I wish, but she puts out the vibes of a child. She just wants to be squeezed and loved, and I'm alright with that too."

Twibright squeaked as the hug intensified, then she was suddenly released. Standing on her own hooves once more, she turned to give Lulu a proper hug. The skunk giggled, returning it with a squeeze of her own. Twibright sank to her hooves gently. "It's been nice meeting you, Lulu. Watcher is right, we want to stop your world from being more hurt than it already is."

Lulu twirled a finger at them. "You can't just say that and expect me not to ask questions. You two are going to save the world?"

Watcher sighed, rubbing at his eyes with a hand. "We can hardly do otherwise." He reached down for Twibright and helped her up. "Come along, my dear horse, we have some trouble to make."

As they moved to leave, Lulu trailed after them, only pausing to lock her door. "This is dangerous, to start. Day's bad, night's worse. If you're gonna go out and be heroes or something like that, I am coming with."

Watcher gave her an exasperated look, but she stood firm in front of him with her arms folded under her chest. "Very well, perhaps you can be of assistance." He leaned forward towards her. "I do not think your king is the source. They are likely a very clear symptom of the problem."

Twibright flicked an ear up. "I thought we were going to stop that king?"

Lulu shook her head gently. "Not possible. Not a thing you can do, unless you mean killing her. Even if you do, they have a daughter that's even worse."

Watcher pointed at Twibright. "This world had that king before, and it will have people like them afterwards. That is not what we're here to fix. We must—"

Lulu grabbed him mid-sentence. "Stop talking about things I don't know like they don't involve me! This is my world, blast it all. Tell me what you're doing and maybe I can help, or maybe I can cut open both your bellies and save everyone a lot of time."

Watcher opened his mouth to reply, but she was having none of that. She jabbed a finger against his chest. "No, this is the part where you talk." She turned a firm eye towards Twi as well. "Looks to me like you're keeping her just about as confused, so tell us both." She patted Twi on the head. "Forgive me, I wouldn't hurt you."

Twibright blinked in confusion. "But, it sounds like the king is hurting people. If we can stop that, then..." Her voice trailed off.

Watcher patted Twi gently on the back. "That sounds like an excellent job for someone local to take up." He fixed eyes with Lulu. "Are you up for it? You'd make a lovely spokes-skunk for the job."

Lulu gave him a suspicious look, then returned her eyes to Twibright. "You think you can handle yourself out there without me? Sounds like a big task, and I know this world." She held up a hand at Watcher without looking at him. "I owe this world not one shake of this lustrous tail." She shook her tail for emphasis. "If I can make the world, as a whole, a little less terrible for the next lot that comes through, great, but I ain't dying to make a point for this specific little kingdom, thanks."

Twibright nodded slowly. "You should help whoever wins, once we stop what's making your world sick."

Watcher nodded with that as he moved ahead. "If we don't find the source of this illness, you won't have a city left to save." He spread his hands, tail stiff. "Or a world beyond it."

"Great." Lulu clapped her hands firmly together. "So my interests are way better off with saving the world and forgetting the kingdom. We agree. So, where do we start?"

Twibright blinked. "I'm not sure. Watcher? Where do we start?"

Watcher hummed softly as he examined the sky above them. He frowned at it. "Something, in that direction, is wrong." He inclined his head towards the castle. "Not the king, but something inside there. Like a bad smell, spreading."

Lulu nodded firmly. "Yeah, I know the way. Let's go make sure we have a future worth seeing, shall we?" She set off down a street at a brisk pace, letting the others fall in behind her or beside her. "Should have just taken me in the first place, woulda been easier."

Watcher let her get ahead, instead lingering at Twibright's side as they followed. "My home is not a haven. She is making moves, like a lost cat. She intends to adopt us."

Twibright gave him a confused look, her eyes widening. "You mean she doesn't want us to leave?"

Lulu's voice was a whip crack from ahead. "Hey, you two are so slow."

Both hurried to just behind her. "Lulu, you're an adult. Let me ask you plainly. If we resolve this problem, what is it you hope to do?"

She looked back at them with a grin. "Well, I have a few ideas in that direction, if you want to hear. We could have a nice long life here. I've been saving up, you know. She gently batted Watcher with her considerable tail. As skunks tended, she had a powerful scent, but it wasn't as sharp as one might expect, more like she shampooed thoroughly. "But I get the feeling you two are going to run away as soon as you can."

Watcher nodded slowly. "That is our nature, yes."

Lulu's eyes narrowed, then her hands went to the small of her hips as she leaned towards them. "You want to see what my nature is?"

Twibright coughed at that. "Ma'am, you seem very nice, cordial, but also wanton and forward in your relationships. I appreciate your openness to friendships, but you are advancing quickly enough to make me feel rushed. You remind me of an old friend that way."

Lulu snorted at Twibright, giving a laugh. "I do apologize for that. It's just been so long since anyone has been nice to me." She leaned down to offer Twibright a friendly pat. "Also I don't see four-leggers that often, and one that'll talk to me even less often. You, on the other paw, came right up, chatted, and even let me pet you." She gave Twi a little pat. "It's easy to get the wrong ideas." She looked up at Watcher, eyes hardening a moment. "At least for those that have a heartbeat. You're a cold one. How do you keep her as a friend?"

Watcher's tail swished gently. "We are not friends, we are—" he stopped, thinking. "—travel companions. And I do not understand."

Lulu sighed, shaking her head.

Twibright advanced on Watcher's side as they walked through the gloom of night. "What she means is that you are sometimes a little emotionally unavailable. I can't argue on this point. I feel certain you have emotions, but you don't share them easily beyond a drive to combat threats to a world."

"I am here to save each world." Watcher swept his arm out in a grand gesture. "I care deeply about this one. It needs to tell its stories, each of its own unique tales and histories. Why, there is a group of thugs that will ambush us and tear us to pieces. Surely a riveting part of the—"

They happened on a group of four creatures, armed, all female, and wearing very revealing outfits, as if it were part of some code to leave their armor open enough to reveal belly, legs, and cleavage. A rat with a dagger stepped forward. "Well, ladies. It looks like dinner's on tonight." She wagged that dagger from Watcher to Lulu. "Two mewling whelps and they brought a horse along to take too."

Twibright backed up a step. "Um, ladies? You have me mistaken for a beast. I am not one of those kinds of ponies."

The rat rolled her eyes as she advanced. "Damn. We'll have to sell her into slavery then."

Another, a slender weasel, thudded a heavy mace on the ground as she advanced. "You can get to sprinkling money on the ground and it may make this easier."

Lulu backed a step, just to thud against another form. Large male hands wrapped around her from behind and squeezed her. "Don't hurt this one. I bet she'll be a lot of fun."

She snarled, slamming the heel of her foot onto his toes, sending him hopping backwards in pain as she twisted free of his grip. Watcher stepped up behind her, only for a large set of hands to wrap around his head and toss him into a nearby wall with a hard thud only matched by the unexpected bright flash of Twibright's magic catching one by the belly and sending them sailing backwards.

"Shit, that one has magic!" The rat screamed out, then charged forward. She let her dagger clatter to the ground in order to get a better grip, but her eyes were fixed on Twibright's horn. "Get the four-legs."

Watcher was beside her, hand on her mouth. "Shh. Quiet. Your stories won't end tonight."

"Wha—" was all she got out, sleep overcoming her rapidly as her eyes fell closed.

The weasel raised her mace, charging at Twibright with her tail straight back for balance and a roar of effort. Twi leapt backwards, only to scream as another woman with a dagger lashed out across her side.

Pain flared along her flank as she pulled away. Blood dribbled from the cut, staining her fur and mane. With a panicked whinny, she blasted the that one back, a bubble appearing around her an instant later as she heaved for breath. "They cut me! They cut me!"

Lulu punched the woman she had been tussling with in the gut as he tried to grapple with her again. Her tail lashed, sending a spray of mist into the air that sent him scrambling backwards. As warm as her smell had been a moment before, the attack of a skunk proved to still be potent. The male fell backwards, gagging and choking.

The weasel advanced again, only for Watcher to come up behind her with the rat under his arm. His hand clapped over her mouth. "Shh."

Twibright was shaking, her legs trembling and eyes wide in alarm. The fight was winding down, but she looked dazed.

Lulu tapped on the magic bubble. "Little horse. Twibright, let me in. All the bad people are gone." She smiled as she tried to reassure. "I've seen blood too."

Slowly the bubble faded away, revealing a terrified equine. "I got hurt, Lulu." Twibright held her front hooves up to her chest. "That never happened before, not like that. They cut me! They were trying to kill me, to just, just, kill me, like that!" She shivered, then sank down to her belly. "I'm not ready for this."

Watcher set his two sleeping beauties down and came over. "Twibright, are you able to continue?"

Lulu rolled her eyes. "She just said no." She gathered Twibright closer carefully. "Let's have a look at that. Watcher, you know any medicine?"

Watcher shook his head.

"No, of course not." Lulu ripped some cloth from one of the fallen, causing Watcher to turn away from her nudity. She used it as a makeshift bandage, binding the wound. "You won't die from that, little thing. I promise." She kissed Twilight next to her horn. "A Lulu promise is a big deal."

Twibright sniffled against Lulu, then nodded slowly. "I don't want to fight again, please?"

Lulu gave her another squeeze. "We'll be safe. Come on, let's go." With one long stroke, she ran her hand from Twibright's head down to her tail. "Are you ready to stand, sweet thing?"

Twibright slowly stood up, letting Lulu get to her feet as well. Watcher pointed to the castle ahead of them. "We have been distracted from our goal. Let's find the source, so this world may begin to heal."

Twibright didn't look at him, her eyes were still wide, her legs still shook, and her fur was stained with her own blood.

Lulu gave Watcher a look. "You really can be cold, can't you?" She elbowed him on the way past. "Show some care for your 'travel companion'. I swear, I know she'd be all over you if you got hurt."

"I do not believe that." Watcher followed along behind them. He kept his eyes peeled, but there were no signs of other trouble. "I think it is very unlikely that we would have such a bond."

Twibright's shock turned to confusion quickly. "Why wouldn't we? I would be very upset if you got hurt, Watcher."

Watcher's fingers worked unspoken math. "Oh, yes. You are from a caring world. Such bonds are quick to form." He glanced aside at Lulu. "Have you also formed such a—"

Lulu slapped him right across the face. "You are making it hard for 'such a bond' to form, Mister. Her, I love her." She thrust a finger at Twibright. "I'd fight for her, wouldn't even think twice. You, eh, we're working on that."

Watcher rubbed his cheek gently. "Yes, of course." He pointed. "The castle."

Lulu stopped, her tail twitching back and forth in alarm. "Speaking of that, you know we can't just march in the front, right? We're not nobles, and we have no business with the king."

Watcher raised a hand. "Why couldn't we? Oh." He turned to Lulu. "What is the fashion that is currently legal? We should partake before we go."

Lulu snorted and rolled her eyes. "Fashion doesn't matter, because we look like peasants. Peasants don't get into the castle."

Watcher waved that aside. "I can fix that, if you'll tell me what is the legal fashion. Do you know?"

She grunted as she rolled her eyes again. "No, not really."

Twibright pricked her ears. "Is it there?" She trotted over to a signpost that had a very long letter with dense writing. "On this?"

"Yes!" Lulu grabbed her in another tight hug, then planted a big kiss on her cheek. "That's exactly what that is." She patted Twibright on her shoulder. "Don't worry your little mane about it." She grabbed the paper off the pole. "This is the most recent list of all her bloody rules, most of them more insane than the last. But since you asked, here."

Watcher accepted the paper Lulu was offering. "Mmm, alright." They simply were dressed, all three of then in bright golds and blues with far more frills than was required for any of them. "We are now legal. Let's see a king."

Lulu looked down at herself. Her outfit had changed from the usual work dress to something she'd expect to see in the court. "What in the—" She spun to Watcher, then Twibright, both of which were equally fancy. "I'm not even going to bother asking, you wouldn't tell me." She crossed her arms and marched towards the castle. "Working with a bunch of literal god servants here. I'll save the world, or die in an interesting way."

Twilight looked over herself as they walked. "You did this before, but how?" She gave a swish of her tail. "How did you change us like that? How do you keep doing things like that?" She rolled an ear back. "I understand you changing yourself. You don't take your borrowed body very personally, but I do mine! And I feel certain Lulu is fond of her body as well."

Watcher nodded at Twibright. "It is more difficult to alter another than myself. My power doesn't have the same authority to act on you. It will wear off by morning. Does that make you feel better?"

Twibright considered that with a raised hoof. "Actually, yes. Sorry for the overstep, Lulu. You'll get back your clothing later. Please don't be mad."

Lulu wheezed as she grabbed Twibright into a hug. "How can I even start to get mad at you, sweet little one? Are you feeling any better?"

Twibright nodded, then winced in pain as she touched the bandaged wound. "I'm fine. Thank you, both."

Watcher gave a gentle nod. "You are welcome."

Lulu sighed. "Not that you did much to earn it." She moved behind Watcher. "Now, look. You're acting like you have a grand idea. I'll be behind you, taking notes on how you get past the guards without being given a new exit hole."

Author's Note

Lulu refuses to leave this story so easily, thank you kindly. She's also a brony, clearly.

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