How my Little Brother Became an Alicorn

Chapters

Denial
The Truth?
Questions
Mistakes
Doubts
Horror
The Jump
Bluff
Before Royalty
Shattered Wall
Snowball
Mock Princes
Good Times
Sentence
Reminiscence
Balance
Adaptation
Research
Dinner
Introspection
Dealing with Bad Colts
Festive
Shame
Past Life
Dignity
Quietly
Casual
Motherly
Loss
Family
Indignation
Comfort
Deportation
New Day
Unspoken things
Loss of Control
Two Brothers
Empathy
Rupture
The Coming Storm Clouds
Eve of War
The Realm of Beasts
Of Ice and Darkness
Downtime
Words of Advice
Half-truths and Half-lies
Shredded Deceptions
Self-actualization
Clash of Alicorns
The Last Mask
The Nameless
Epilogue
Disappearance
Reunion
Liar
Rumours
Escapism
Guilt
The Breaking of Chains

Denial

On the podium, there was this foal, at most a bit taller than the Cutie Mark Crusaders. His coat was marine blue… his mane was black… Coincidence…

The mayor looked shocked out of her mind, yet she had made no move to relocate the unruly kid. There seemed to be a subconscious command in the ponies mind not to, as no pony at all tried to get the foal to behave.

That had to be because he was an alicorn.

“My name is Blade Darkblaze and I’m here to buck asses and eat cupcakes, and I’m not out of either of those things!”

Oh God… I just wanted to hit my forehead on my desk repeatedly. How the heck did the editors let that line slide?

The ponies, having no clue as to what that stupid shout-out was supposed to mean, glanced at each other with frowns.

Of course, Gary Stu did not take the hint and went on with his tirade, somehow getting more and more spazz-tastic and lost in a speech about his awesomeness with each passing moment. Aside from the voice being exactly the same, well…

“What are you doing, Tom?”

“Hey Sam, I’ve just invented a new game! You have to take the characters from this side of the map all the way over to the king’s palace, then into the dungeons and that’s where the dragons are and you have to steal their gold to give back to the king so you can raise an army and buy lots and lots of soldiers to defend against the undead hordes-”

A chill went down my spine. T-that was just completely nuts. To even think of that was just proof I needed to rest badly. Who could ever think that with a straight face?

Yet, despite the creeping illness slowly gaining on me as I watched the new character rant on and on about how incredible his stay was going to be, my hands refused to move. I could not force myself to close that tab and forget I ever thought that for one measly little second.

I had to watch.

My eyes took in every detail; every single little quirks and varying intonation were recorded and registered. The foal had a habit of saying “Duh” whenever a pony asked him a clarification.

“Wait, you have to punch the princess in the face?”

“DUH!”

His mouth twisted and his eyes shifted to the right when Rainbow Dash finally called him out on his lies.

“You finished your homework before, right?”

“Of course, Mom.”

“Tom, you’re grounded.”

“No fair!”

Haha, wow, that was a bit creepy…

Now the cyan mare was hovering above the colt, making him back away a few steps.

For a second, I felt a bit of hope emblaze my spirit. There’d be no way this would fly by if that colt was actually a wish fulfilling character.

“I’M NOT LYING!” he screeched, which was much too familiar of a sound for me to be comfortable. “JUST ASK MY-” He abruptly cut himself off.

“Tom, that movie’s too violent for you. Go play in your room.”

“No way! I’m old enough, Dad! Right, Sam?”

My heart accelerated.

Those coincidences were piling up…

It seemed as if I was nailed to my chair, pushed down by an invisible force, an overwhelming pressure. My legs refused to move, my arms were as still as stone.

And the episode just went on, with Fluttershy trying to come up to the foal’s defense and him slowly integrating himself in the group, though more as a bratty addition than any real friend, thank Faust for that.

Then it got to the part with the manticores.

I could not believe my eyes. For no good reasons, a group of manticores waltzed into town, roaring and screaming bloody murder.

Before the panic even set in though, nothing less than five huge chunks of rock flew through the air, right toward the monsters. Under the astonished eyes of a crowd of ponies and no doubt thousands of viewers, the boulders collided with the manticores before anyone could react.

“Buck yeah!” Blade jumped, pumping his hoof. “Boom, headshot!”

“Holy crap…” I muttered. “I never thought I’d feel sorry for manticores.”

On the screen though, it became evident that I was not the only one. Poor Fluttershy looked about ready to faint. Even her yellow coat had paled.

Ignoring the little alicorn, Dash flew over to her friend’s side, supporting her with her hooves. The glare she shot at the kid was enough to send shivers down my spine. Please, don’t hurt him!

My blood turned to ice. T-that had been entirely a reflex. I had mentally begged Rainbow Dash not to hurt T… him…

Twilight stepped forward, starting a lecture on responsibility in using powerful magic, but, call it an intuition, that one flew right over his head. Sam, you’re starting to give credit to that idea…

As I had predicted, T-…Blade gave her a flat look.

“BOOOOOORING!” he shouted, before spreading his wings and taking off.

The ponies stared at his silhouette shrinking in the distance. A few words were whispered, but too quietly to be picked up. One mare though had no such reservations.

“What in tarnation was that all about!?”

“I don’t know, Applejack,” Twilight replied, locking gaze with her friend still in the crowd. “Princess Celestia never told me about… another alicorn…” Her brows furrowed together.

“No way that brat is related to the princess!” Rainbow Dash almost snarled, stopped only by her close proximity with her more timid friend.

“That’s not what I said. I’m just wondering where he came from.”

“Doesn’t matter to me, so long as he goes back there pronto!” the pegasus argued, patting Fluttershy’s back.

The shy mare’s eyes flickered open. “Oh, Rainbow Dash, I just had a terrible nightmare. Those poor manticores were-”

“Huh, yeah, that happened, Shy,” Dash cut her off, opting for a prompt dose of honesty.

It got her knocked off her feet. In a flurry of yellow and pink, Fluttershy took off toward the injured beasts. Her ears plopped down as soon as she caught sight of the extent of their injuries.

The camera went for a close-up of her face at that exact moment. It was as if someone took a rusty knife and stabbed my chest with it.

“I… I’m going to need a bit more bandages…” She squeaked sadly, before steeling herself. That look… it was the same she had whenever she made up her mind about a bit danger.

The screen briefly turned black and I tuned out the announcements being made about the Hub. I was glad for the commercial, right there. It gave me time to digest.

This is just the nerves talking. If anything, I’ve fallen asleep on my chair and dreaming about Tom’s location.

That was a sobering thought. For a moment, every shred of worry and fear crashed down on me.

I was being ridiculous. How could I be speculating on him being stuck in a cartoon while he could very well be lying on a cold floor, praying that he’d be found out soon?

Oh God…

The temperature drastically dropped. It was as if a coffin of ice was encased around my heart, so painful I just wished for it to end, for any end at all.

It remained with me throughout the episode. I barely listened, every time the alicorn foal spoke, every time I thought I heard Tom’s voice, was pure torture.

I… I never felt such hatred. I hated the show for daring to impersonate my missing brother. How could they do that?! They were taking one of my favorite things and spinning it on its head until it was tearing me apart!

When finally the credits started playing, I felt such a relief I was almost guilty. I just couldn’t help but be glad for that reprieve. Was I wrong in my wish not to be so painfully reminded of the little brother that counted on me when I was so powerless to help him!?

“I can’t believe that just happened…”

The episode was actually as bad as most people had depicted. Blade just paraded around Ponyville doing whatever he wanted, because he could. It even ended up with him outwitting the girls with a sort of cliché trick. That was going to cause grief to many.

The idea of introducing a really powerful but ultimately irresponsible character wasn’t bad, per say, except the writing was sub-par. Not to mention that he got away with it and was hinted to come back in a later episode.

As if a curse had been lifted, the stillness that afflicted me had gone with the last few notes.

Even then, it took me a moment to calm down my heart and dull the pain in my chest.

“T-to bed I go…” I muttered, out of habit.

A habit I had gained to put five year-old Tom to bed when I was forced to babysit him.

I stripped down to my underwear, tossing aside the clothes I had picked in such a hurry this morning. Halfheartedly, I pushed them toward a corner of my room, where I wouldn’t trip on them in the morning…

With a sigh, I turned off the light and slipped into bed.

My eyes remained wide open. H-how could I close them? I’d see Tom’s face and I would… I would…

“Where are you?” I whispered, praying to every star under the sky that I’d get the answer.

The police, and us, were at a complete loss. No sign of breaking in, which we would have heard. T-they had said he might have tried to… to run away…

To a kinder world?

…Insane as that was, I could not shake off a terrible sense of foreboding. The resemblances were plain uncanny, even when they were just silly. Anyone could suddenly start referencing the same show Tom always referenced when he was beating people at their own games.

Anyone can allude to being angry with their family and start getting defensive when questioned about it, even if that was such a Tom thing to do.

The doubts grew. Just by being left alone with my thoughts without distraction, I kept noticing more things about that new character.

Could... could he really…?

NO! That’s a bad JOKE! I’m hallucinating! That’s it. I just had a really, really horrible day and I mistook a young boy’s voice for Tom’s. THAT’S ALL!

Silence.

I was staring at the ceiling, a pale light filtering through my window’s blind. It… added to the eeriness of my room. This wasn’t what I usually felt like, but with this big of a failure hanging over my head, with such worries burdening me, a moment of silence stretched over nothing but my shortcomings.

Wherever Tom was, it was my fault.

It was quiet, much too quiet for a midsummer night in the Everfree Forest. Gone were the bug of slime crickets and the chirping of firebirds. Only nothingness and void surrounded Zecora’s hut.

The herbalist’s brows were furrowed, all thoughts of sleeping already fleeing her mind. From a terrible nightmare she had woken up, vivid images of a time now lost had danced before her eyes to torment her. But her inner demons were nothing but ghosts. Harm her, they could not. Of that she was confident.

A single lamp offering its light, the hut was dark and her neighbors, as familiar as they had gotten with the years, would have been afraid by the shadows that danced with each flickering of the flame.

Zecora stood close to her window, though a stronger caution than usual stopped her from peeking beyond a meager opening.

“Not a sound in the Everfree; pray tell me, what is this folly?” she whispered, eying the shades of the trees and the unmoving bushes.

For a long time she tried to detect and identify a possible cause for that unnatural silence. All life seemed to have disappeared from the woods.

When finally she had convinced herself no clue could be found at such a tardive time, the zebra closed the door completely and spared no effort in putting the lock in place.

“How has my fear gotten so strong?” she muttered, blowing the candle. “Clearly, to sleep I long.”

Irritable, with the nagging feeling of something big going on, Zecora let herself be taken away by sleep again, though this time, her rest was light and alert.

Yet, it seemed to prove pointless. Minutes after the zebra had started to peacefully snore, a small bout of sniffing broke out from under her window, followed by a mute growl.

No living soul witnessed the dark blur that disappeared through the woods seconds later.

Searing screeches pierced right through my dreams, filled with unicorns and dragons, and earned a grunt from me.

“Hurrrrrr…” My hand smashed down on my alarm clock, through practiced ease. “W-what time is it? It’s Sunday, right?”

Ah, to be buried under a warm blanket early in the morning, that was probably the one feeling I loved the most. Unfortunately, I never really got to enjoy it. There was a conspiracy against nice mornings. I could swear.

I didn’t. I just shot a tired glance at the numbers displayed. It was a bit late to tell the truth…

Curious, I got out of bed, stretching my arms wide and letting out a powerful yawn.

Mind foggy with sleep, I got out of my room, rubbing my eyes, but unable to shake off that desire to go back to my bed and lie there. I stumbled into the dining room, where both Mom and Dad were sitting, faces grave.

“G’morning,” I mumbled, only now taking their horrible looks. “Wow, not looking good there. Where’s To-”

It hit me like a ton of bricks.

They turned to glare, but even that lacked any bite to it.

With a weak “sorry”, I ran out of the kitchen. The bathroom was the first place with a lock I could find. I couldn’t remember locking it, but at some point, I had found myself staring at the ghostly pale guy in the mirror. Good job, you idiot. You just reopened everyone’s wound. All at once. Like a boss, Sam. Like a boss.

I had managed to forget, for even a few minutes, that my little brother was missing. The ‘asshole of the year’ award was coming for me at the speed of light.

“Are you proud of yourself?” I asked the Sam in the mirror.

He gave me a pitiful look in return.

T-they had to find him! I had a million things I wanted to teach Tom, so many things I could have done better that needed rectifying. We couldn’t lose him! He wasn’t even ten!

Defeated, I let go and just sat down, eyes to the floor, trying to outwait the pain and distress.

I was often playing suckers’ games like that.

I waited, a cheesy song playing in my ear. On a better day, I’d say that was quite catchy and mock myself endlessly for liking it. At the moment, I wished it would cease to exist. As long as it continued, I could not speak to the one I needed to. I’d get to the bottom of this.

When, finally, the song cut off, I was greeted by a feminine and professional voice.

“Hello, my name is Caroline, department of customer’s service, how may I help you?”

The Truth?

My tone left no place for debate.

“I want to speak with the voice actor for the new character in your My Little Pony show.”

There was a pregnant pause, as if that was not what she had expected. “Sir, we are not allowed to divulge the coordinates of our employees over the phone, or through any other means of communication for that matters.”

“I don’t care!” I threw an arm in the air, gritting my teeth together in anger. “Hook me up with him yourself, WHATEVER, but I have to speak to him!”

“Sir, please calm down,” she asked, sounding as professional as before. Clearly, she had been doing this for a while now.

“I don’t need to calm down, MA’AM.” I started pacing around the living room, stealing glances at the news on the TV. Through some cruel irony, they had chosen to display a couple of pictures of Tom, with a few of them showing how kidnappers could have altered his appearance.

I had been getting calls all day now, from my friends, from my extended family, heck even one of my teacher left a message for me on Facebook! The sentiment might have been appreciated, if I didn’t feel so goddamn irresponsible!

The most recent one had convinced me to put my beliefs to the test. For the love of crap, Hasbro couldn’t have kidnapped Tom, right? That was just beyond ridiculous. Still…

Better than nothing, right?

“Sir, with all due respect, you need to calm down.”

I could admire the kind of rock solid conviction she embodied at the moment. So, I took a deep breath and made a conscious effort not to scream in her face.

“…O-okay…” I mumbled, massaging my forehead. “I… Madam, I really need to speak to that kid.”

“The voice actors are usually credited at the end of the show. If you try to find him through social networks, like some of our other employees like to use, then perhaps-”

“No.” I cut her off, but I was not rude about it. I sounded more defeated than anything else. “I… I tried. He’s nowhere on any of them.”

“…Then I’m afraid I cann-”

“NO! PLEASE!” I shouted, frantically glancing around, as if that would help me find the right words to convince her. “My little brother went missing yesterday!”

For the first time, I could hear her composure shatter. “Oh my God…” she whispered. It was followed by a sharp intake of air. “I’m sorry, Sir. I hope they will find him soon, but I don’t understand wh-”

“IT’S HIS VOICE!” I threw myself on the couch, hiding my face into the cushion. I couldn’t... why was this happening to us? “I’d recognize it anywhere!”

There was a moment of silence. To me, it seemed to stretch on and on, but I could tell it was my anxiety and my fear amplifying it up to frightening levels.

“What is your name, Sir?” she asked, subdue.

“Samuel Miller, my little brother’s name is Tom. Check the news…” I gave a small derisive and bitter laugh. “It’s all over the place.”

“…Please, give me a moment.”

Anything, Ma’am, if you’ll help me get Tom back! “S-sure…”

The phone at my ear remained silent for a moment, instead of dishing out cheesy elevator music. Not that it mattered. I could barely hear anything over the sound of my own heartbeat.

Please, work. I just need to know he’s fine. I have to find him.

Still nothing.

I was alone. Waiting. Dad was still scouting the town, leading the searches for Tom. Mom… she had locked herself in their bedroom. I could hear her speaking to people over her phone when I passed it by.

I stayed behind because I could not look at them after this morning’s blunder. This was incredibly selfish. It made me feel worse.

That unfortunately did not mean I had the strength to do the right thing. So, here I was, grasping at straws and making up the most ridiculous stuff just to put my mind at ease.

There was still a big knot tying up my throat. NO! No angst! Focus on the task at hands, Sam!

Just as my thoughts ended, I heard some rustling and shuffling noises at the end of the lines, followed by a long sigh. Caroline was back.

Oh please, please, please!

“Mr. Miller?” She called, voice heavy and strangely rasped.

Ignoring the sudden fear gripping my insides, I replied with little enthusiasm.

“I just talked to my superiors…” She trailed off, with such a deep sadness in her tone that I needed not hear her next words. No… “I am afraid they forbid me from giving out this information.”

“NO!” I shouted, jumping to my feet and gripping my phone so hard my hands hurt. “Y-YOU CAN’T! PLEASE! I MUST KNOW IF IT’S REALLY HIM!”

I heard a sob, and it took me a moment to realize it hadn’t come from me. As monstrous as that was, it made my heart flare with hope. She understood... if I could just press her harder then she might…

“We don’t have it…”

The words cut right through my veil of delusions.

“W-what…?” I muttered, dumbstruck. What kind of sick joke was th-?

“We cannot explain how the episode that was recorded and programmed to air has been replaced.”

My blood turned to ice.

“There is no voice actor.”

That was precisely the moment I dropped my phone.

Tom…

“Unreal, unreal, unreal!” I repeated, holding my head within my palms. That just couldn’t be true!

And yet what if it was? There were so many freaky hints pointing toward that mad conclusion. Regardless of the clusterfuck that was the inexplicable answer I had gotten from the company that aired the show, there were still some truly creepy coincidences.

Like Blade Darkblaze character design. I knew I had seen it before, drawing aside, Tom had shown it to me, real proud of his work.

For the shortest of seconds, a smile was brought to my lips by the memory.

“SAM! I DID IT!” He ran up to me, waving a sheet of paper wildly, in my face.

It was only mildly endearing at the time, because I was in the middle of playing a racing game. And fell off a cliff.

“Did what?” I asked, only halfway concentrated on my little brother.

“Design the perfect character!” He crossed his arms, after putting on sunglasses.

Okay, I’ll admit I laughed. That was rather epic.

“So, what’s his name then?”

“Blade Darkblaze,” I whispered. “He’s like a super nephew of Princess Celestia and can do this really cool magic with big boulders and he’s really great at handling monsters. Kinda like Fluttershy but a lot more badass!”

I buried my head into my pillow and let out a scream. This was madness! H-how could it have possibly happened?!

I slowly lifted my head from the comfortable thing. It was no use. I could not deny it any longer, I actually believed my little brother was in Equestria. And he was an alicorn.

So far, he had only earned the ire of about sixty percent of the fandom, the remaining forty percent split between those that thought he wasn’t so bad and those that just wanted to forget that mess ever happened.

“So much for perfect design, Tom…” I whispered dejectedly.

What now? Do I tell Mom and Dad? Right, that will go swimmingly. ‘Hey, remember how we all thought Tom was kidnapped? Well, apparently, he was magicked into a kid’s show and is currently doing stuff like the resident god-empress.’ Can anyone say asylum?

No, of course not. I could not tell my parents. Great. I would only slowly go mad seeing them search for him everywhere when he was right under our nose. And in a completely different dimension.

What could I do about this? WHAT?!

No answer came to me. I just rolled over and looked at the ceiling of my room.

“-and as such, I would like to inquire about this new alicorn. Respectfully, your faithful student, Princess Twilight Sparkle.”

For a second, one could only hear the scribbling and scratching of a quill against a scroll, then a fine pressure.

“Done,” Spike declared. “Do you want me to send it right away?”

“Yes, please, Spike.” Twilight nodded, pacing around the library. She did not flinch when a brief green light illuminated the room. “This is simply too strange. Princess Celestia would have told me if there were more alicorns around. Or is this a test?”

“Hu oh.” The little dragon grimaced.

“Oh gosh! If this is a test and I was supposed to find out by myself… Spike! Take the letter back!”

“W-what?” He tilted his head to the side. “I can’t do that.”

“Oh noooo…” the lavender alicorn moaned, accelerating. “She said I would learn in different ways, she told me about this. How could I have been so blind?”

“Come on, Twilight. Princess Celestia wouldn’t fail you on a test you didn’t know you were taking.”

“Would she?” Twilight got up to her assistant’s face, eyes wide and iris shrunken.

“No,” he said with absolute sincerity.

The reply was enough to get her to pause.

“I…” She blinked. “You’re right.”

“You’re becoming reasonable with age, Twi.” Spike chuckled, obviously amused by her reaction.

“And you, very wise, Spike,” she responded by nuzzling his head.

“Aww, Twilight! That’s embarrassing.” The little dragon tried to push her off, but without success. Not that he was trying very hard.

Though he found out it might have been better he had, as he soon belched up green flames, right into his big sister’s shoulder.

“Sorry!” he yelled, jumping on her back and batting the flames away.

“Oh, no, that’s okay, Spike. I should have seen it coming.” She rolled her eyes and levitated the letter they had been sent. With a magical pull, the seal was undone and the scroll unrolled. “My dear Twilight, I am most trouble by your reports of events…”

“Sam…” The voice of my father brought my out of my reverie.

“Dad?” I asked, cracking under his gaze.

“I wanted to check up on you. You’ve been quite a bit…” He paused, looking away, as if uncomfortable. “Out of it, tonight.”

“Haven’t we all?!” I lashed out, bringing myself into a sitting position. “Mom’s locked herself in and we haven’t been able to coax her out at all!”

This was hard on him too. Likely more than it was on me. Why was I doing that to him?

“Your mother’s taking it very hard… I know that…” He sighed, looking every bit as lost as a man whose youngest son had disappeared, whose family was starting to unravel.

I felt a pang of guilt pierced through this blank state of mine. If I convinced them…

“She refused to speak to me…” Dad continued. “She wants to remain alone.”

So did I, but this…

I stood up, walked to him and gave him a hug. It stunned him. We hadn’t hugged since I was twelve, which made this all the more significant.

I-it felt good. I sunk into his embrace, leaning against him more than he did with me. We both needed this.

“I… I’ll make it right, Dad. I’ll find Tom,” I whispered.

Instantly, his arms closed harder against me. That had been a blow to the heart. I could tell.

“Just stay with us, Sam…”

“I’m not going anywhere, Dad.”

He let go and, albeit small, his smile was genuine. He left my room without another word. There wasn’t much need for some anyway.

His departure did not leave a void. For the time being, part of the hole in my heart had been patched. It wasn’t much, but it made me feel a lot better.

I shot a glance at my laptop. Some of my anxiety returned at the idea of what I could see on it, but it ultimately did not matter, I had a better idea.

With a glance, I confirmed my father had left for the living room, allowing me free reign toward the one place I wanted to go: Tom’s room.

“Knock knock,” I whispered, pushing the door open.

No answer, no surprise there.

The room was just as messy as before. No one really wanted to clean it up. That, at least, was not a jump from before. Good. I needed it as close to before as possible.

There had to be a clue in here. There HAD to be.

I just did not know where to start. It was not like Tom had placed a big leather-bound tome of evil magic on his bed, the place was exactly as normal as it ever was. Nothing conspicuous. No lead.

I scanned the room, looking for at least one element out of place. I found one. …Where’s his drawing? I could have sworn I had left it in here.

Following an intuition, I started looking around the tablets and the drawers for that sheet of paper which might hold some proof of my crazy theory. To my growing distress, I could not find it. It was not in sight and I could not remember where I had put it the last time I came here. The panicked, crazed exit helped.

Come on. I know you’re in here somewhere… I sat on the bed, heart heavy with my lack of results. This was the last place we knew he had been. It had to count for something, right?

With a sigh, I let my arms fall to the side of my body. My hand brushed Tom’s pillow and the familiar contact jolted something inside me. The drawing had been in his pillow sheath!

With a frantic shake, I threw the pillows off the bed, sparing a glance to the emptied spot they had occupied. Nothing. But no matter, I was focused on more important things.

I kneeled on the ground, picking up the two objects delicately, as if they were fragile and precious. To me, they were. They might be one of the key elements to getting my brother back.

Methodically, I picked them apart, examined them under every angle and probing them for anything. Slowly though, my hands started searching more roughly, as little results were obtained.

In the end, they were just pillows.

T-that shouldn’t feel like being punched in the guts. The fact that there was nothing weird about pillows should not hit me so goddamn hard!

I swallowed back my tears. Come on, I just need something to work with here! I just want to get my little brother back!

I punched them as hard as I could. This wasn’t fair! Everything was turning this into a dead end! What chances did I have to save Tom?!

I hit them, again and again, to the point my knuckles were feeling numb. This offered me no relief, but, breathing heavily, I let myself fall face first into them.

So… all that hype for nothing? I just wouldn’t be able to help. What now? Would I be forced to watch as my little brother goes on a power trip as a little brat and becomes hated by the rest of the fandom? With my parents fanatically looking for him, yet having no idea they would never get the chance to see him again? Was that what the future looked like?

Prey to a crushing despair, I turned my head around, at least avoiding to smother myself in that useless pillow. That’d be the last straw…

Though, from the corner of my eyes, I caught glimpse of a pale object under Tom’s bed.

Curiosity overtaking me, I slid down closer, the object, seemingly a bundle of paper, now in reach. I stretched my arm, but to my surprise, my hand first closed on a conic object. The thing was moist and fragile enough to give out under my grasp, with a quiet crunching noise.

A (thankfully) unused ice cream cone.

“Seriously?” I grumbled, shaking the crumps off my palm. “Tom, it’s winter!”

Annoyed, I grabbed the bloc of paper in a hurry and sat against the wall. Flipping the cover page, the one with a big "SECRET” written on top, I gave the whole thing a look. Let’s see…

My eyes widened in shock.

“S-stuff to try to… ‘Go to Equestria’?!”

Questions

This was it! This had to be IT!

Febrile, I started reading the notes and scribbles Tom had written all over that pile of paper. Okay, the fact that it included things like “Throw a penny in a fountain” or “Learn lucid dreaming” had a sobering effect, but even that was not enough to douse my enthusiasm completely.

For the first time, there actually was a possible solution to this disaster! If I could find how he got there, then maybe I could find the way to get him back! Then this nightmare would be over!

Alright, alright, I had to organize myself. First of all, I should establish a list of the methods described here, then separate the ones that could have likely been used by Tom two days ago. In the evening. Probably from his room.

“Hum… not this one… not thi- wait!” I looked up from the document, staring blankly into the empty air. “Can some of these be a delayed reaction? Like a wish being granted retroactively or something?”

I… I had no answer to this.

I sighed. “I should just focus on the ones I realistically think could be used and then adjust if it’s not that.”

That compromise made, I went back to my reading, delving deeper into my little brother’s mind. Some of these… well, were creative, to say the least.

After cleaning up the list, I had gotten about a dozen methods that could have been put into place by Tom during the timeframe of his disappearance. It gave me a bit of hope, to have established something like a concrete plan of action, but there was one item on that list I was praying wasn’t the right way.

Wish on a shooting star… if that’s it…

Then Tom was gone, perhaps forever. There was no telling if I’d ever get to see one myself, even if I spent all my nights staring at the sky. Heck, the weather would have to be perfect too. A few clouds to hide might be more than enough to screw away the opportunity of a lifetime.

The idea that this was the solution made me nauseous.

I shook my head, willing the unease and the fear to disappear. “Time to go read up on lucid dreams… I guess.”

She could not sleep. Oh, her bed was very comfortable and she had no intentions at all to complain to the manufacturers of her bedframe. She was certain they had done the best they could for the satisfaction of their customers and that was all that mattered to her.

No, Fluttershy could not sleep because she was worried about the manticores. The monsters were resting in her backyard, nicely sharing the space with her other animal friends. With a little bit of persuasion, everyone had reached a compromise.

Yet something was tugging at her conscience. The manticores had been frightened, of her, HER! Not just a kneejerk reaction either, which would have been perfectly understandable after that foal had grossly exaggerated his means of subduing the poor monsters, but a full blown panic attack. They had been terrified of her, cowering at the sight of her shadow.

From the start, the animal caretaker could not understand why the beasts would willingly leave their natural habitats to angrily roam through a settlement if they were so afraid of a single pony like her.

There was something fishy about this. It tugged at her mind. She could not figure out what.

And so, Fluttershy spent the night at her window, observing the manticores, who, under all their bandages, slept peacefully. From times to times, she glanced at the forest beyond her backyard.

What could be so terrible in the Everfree Forest that they’d leave in such a hurry?

She had no answer.

I woke up as normal. I didn’t get a single dream, even if I had spent the better part of my evening reading all about it. Usually, my dreams are quite unpleasant. Now, I was disappointed not to have any.

There was an irony somewhere here…

Like how the world hadn’t stop going on its merry way, when I felt like mine had crashed down. Namely, I had school today.

My parents had had a heated discussion on that. Some screaming had been involved. Dad insisted I took the day off to help him search around town; Mom wanted me back in school, so I did not screw up my incoming finals. They had argued back and forth, to the point their arguments had been exchanged.

It was just messed up.

I had taken the decision out of their hands. I went up to them and told them I would be going back to school, but I would use that time to ask my friends around for sighting of Tom or anything suspicious.

Truth was I didn’t feel like doing either. I had the conviction it would all be for naught. Some part of me simply told me to go around as if I was mostly fine, as if my vision of reality had not been shattered to pieces.

Really, my little brother, sucked in a cartoon? It was ridiculous, but I could not find it in me to deny any longer.

I was probably just clinging to a mad hope.

And so, I left the house late, after Mom and Dad had both gone their respective way. The drive to school was done in a strangely mechanical manner. I could have been a robot for all that mattered.

My friends commented on it pretty early, at least those that had not listened to the news. The joking tones and the jabs died out in a blink once Cassandra had snapped at them. Then it was like a funeral. Very awkward, very sad, with no one knowing what to tell me to make me feel better.

In a way, it ought to be aggravating, but I preferred it like that, to be honest. Empty words and promises would have gotten me mad. What use would they be to me? To Tom?

“You… huh…” It was Eric. We weren’t longtime friends, just pals that met in this class. Eric, just shut up, please. “You watched the latest ‘My Little Pony’ episode?”

My body became as still as a statue.

Of all things he could have asked me about, he chose that topic?! Of course, the one guy about my friend that was a brony had to ask me about this!

Slowly, I looked up from my meal, the muscles of my face frozen in place.

Eric flinched at the look I sent his way and twisted his hands nervously. “N-no, forget it, stupid question,” he whispered.

“I did.” That was all I said, fighting with all my heart not to throw up, not to scream, not to go mad.

“Oh.” His eyes widened a bit at that. If you were expecting me to say ‘no’, why did you ask? “Then, huh, what did you think of it?”

I stayed silent. I really had no word for this. Besides, if I opened my mouth, I might throw up.

“…Yeah…” Eric’s speech devolved into rambling. A twinge of sympathy pierced through this veil of disgust surrounding my heart, but it was crushed quickly. “I-it was not really up to par, you know? What’s with that plot?”

If you’re going where I think you are, stop. Seriously. Unfortunately, Eric was no telepath, so he kept going on about it. Cassandra would have bet it were the nerves. The morning had been much too awkward between us.

“Oh and the background ponies weren’t very in-character, you know? Come on, why would all those foals suddenly start cheering that little alicorn?!”

I clenched my knuckles so hard they turned white. My whole body literally screamed of hostility. “Eric…” I said with a warning tone.

He missed it by a mile.

“And don’t even get me started on that guy! Blade Darkblaze?! If that is not a bad OC Gary Stu, then I-”

His ranting was cut short when my fist collided with his face.

“Spike?” Twilight called, letting her magic flicker out of existence and dropping the bags and books she carried around. “Did you send that letter to Princess Celestia like I asked you to?”

The little dragon huffed and frowned. “What do you think, Twilight? What kind of assistant would I be if I hadn’t?”

“I know…” The purple alicorn bit her lips. “I’m just getting worried. I would have thought this kind of event would have warranted a faster response. You’re sure she hasn’t sent her reply already and you forgot to give it to me?”

Spike threw his arms in the air. “For the seventh time, YES! I think I would have noticed if my stomach had been used as a mean of communication, again.”

“Sorry, Spike, but this just isn’t making any sense!”

With no update from her mentor, Twilight could not tell what to make of this newcomer. He had come and gone thrice already, each time causing trouble like any other foal – or at least like three little fillies... Unfortunately, this particular foal happened to be an alicorn and his magical prowess implied that it was not simply an unusual genetic lottery result.

Then, why in the name of Starswirl the Bearded was there no mention of such a pony in any of her books?!

“What were you thinking?!” Mom screeched. “Were you trying to get in trouble?!”

My eyes were locked on the ground. I felt as small as a mouse. Eric’s a nice guy. He didn’t deserve that.

‘That’ being a black eye and a broken tooth. That was all I had gotten in before Cassandra and two other guys pulled me off him. I would have kept going.

For a moment, there had been nothing but the desire to hurt, focused entirely on him. The objectives had been clear, the means too, I had simply dove headfirst into an opportunity to let out a bit of the pent up stress. It was disgusting.

“Human,” the principal had told me. Then he suspended me for three days.

Rules are rules.

“Do you honestly believe this is the time for you to exhibit such stupid behaviors?!”

No. “No, Mom. It isn’t.”

“Then what were you thinking?! We have enough problems as it is! Now they demand you see a psychologist?!”

They had mentioned that, but I hadn’t really paid attention at that part. The idea of actually seeing a psychologist… it made fear grip my heart. Could I hide my thoughts? If I didn’t, what would he or she do with me?

I… I couldn’t let them know the truth! If they put me in a nut house, I would not be able to help Tom! I was the only one that knew!

I’ll save you, Tom. I’ll bring you back!

Though… it might be good for me. Perhaps... perhaps talking about the whole thing, about the general state of affair would clear my thoughts, give me more focus. Yes, it could help, I nodded. And not just me.

“I… I will, Mom, but…” I looked away, heat rushing to my face from the shame and the uneasiness.

“What?” She spat, mouth twisted into a stern snarl.

“D-don’t you think that would be good for you and Dad too?”

A different kind of heat spread from my cheek, one that stung, one that hurt, from the spot she had slapped. My strength left my body. I was left unable to move, stunned. I could not even turn my head back, to look at my mother.
It had been the first time she ever laid a hand on me. It struck a chord inside.

I heard the sound of something being ripped apart.

I still don’t know what it was.

I was standing alone; the waiting room was empty. My arm slid off my sides, slowly regaining a more natural position after those three knocks on the door. It wasn’t a big one, by any means, but I felt so small in front of it. All because of three small words…

Mrs. Thompson, Psychologist.

A brown-haired woman opened the door with a smile and motioned for me to come inside. “Hello, Mr. Miller. I was waiting for you.”

“Sorry about the time…” I mumbled, though not feeling very sorry. “I overslept…”

“Oh, I understand, it is not that important.” She nodded, though I saw a small change in her expression. Her eyes had narrowed slightly and she gave me a vibe of… concern?

My feet carried me to the chair waiting in front of her desk. On my far right, there was a couch and another chair. My eyes narrowed at these. It felt a bit too much like clichés.

“Don’t worry, we will never use them until you feel comfortable with that form of counseling,” Mrs. Thompson assured me quickly, making her way around the desk and sitting in her chair.

That made me blink. Whoa, she’s good. Or everyone reacts the same way…

“I don’t think I will ever feel quite that comfortable.” I grimaced, resolutely avoiding that couch with my eyes.

For a second, her lips formed a sly smile. Now I knew this was a recurring situation… and I could guess how they ended up based on her reactions too.

“I certainly hope we will reach an adequate level of trust, Mr. Miller.”

I cringed. “Then, please, just call me Sam. I’m expecting to hear my father answer you every time you say ‘Mr. Miller’.”

“Very well, and I invite you to use an appellation for me that makes you feel more comfortable, as long as you stay away from more indecent nicknames.” Her eyes flashed with a severe light at that, as if expecting me to try. The way her lips pinched, I could tell this would not be a smart move.

“Got it, Mrs. Thompson.” I nodded.

“Great,” she exclaimed, deliberately putting her notepad and her pen down.

Okay, I’ll bite. “You’re… not going to take note?”

“No, Sam.” Her smile remained engaging, though it held a bit of a… rehearsed quality that had me on my guards. “Today, we will simply talk.”

“About what?”

“Anything you feel like telling me. Today, we’re learning a bit about each other.” She folded her hands.

“I don’t want to talk.” I crossed my arms. This was much too sudden. This was too fast and I did not like it.

“Then, perhaps I should tell you more about myself,” she offered patiently.

For a moment, I did not move, then…

“Okay…”

Mrs. Thompson instantly took the hint and started weaving a nice, casual conversation. She talked about such insignificant things… but her words were light and her eyes were free of any judgment. I did not realized how much I craved for it until the wave of relief crashed down on me.

I had to fight back some tears right as she started recalling an anecdote about her cat.

T-this was pathetic, but I so, SO needed some release.

The hour went by much too fast and the world became heavy before I could appreciate the lack of weight on my shoulders. I spent my first time with a psychologist saying no more than a few sentences.

I did not feel nearly as bad as I could be.

“Place a coin under your pillow and make a wish…” I whispered, dropping the small piece of metal and pulling my arm out from underneath the item.

Tom, please come back.

My eyelids dropped down soon after and I fell asleep.

Mistakes

I stared intently into my bowl of cereals, my favorites even. I wanted to think of this terrible situation with at least some sort of positive attitude to give me the strength to go on. It’s the small things that matter.

But those were also Tom’s favorite cereals.

I was getting so sick of this. At every turn, around every corner, there was something that existed to remind me of Tom.

No, not sick of it, just… saddened. I could not despise the reminders of my little brother. I could not. They grounded me in this reality…

Ah, what was I saying? I had somehow convinced myself that my little brother had been magicked into a TV show. How could I be remotely grounded in reality?

Not that much, I thought while crossing a fifth item on the list.

It had been three days now, since I had first tried Tom’s methods of getting into Equestria. None had borne any result and every line across that list was a stab at my heart. Every failure was one step closer to losing Tom indefinitely.

Today, however, my unease was only partially due to my failures. Saturday. That meant a new episode.

I had no idea what would happen, but my guts were twisted by pure dread. It could not be anything good. W-with any luck,

Tom would be there, but nowhere near the main plot. Just a background character.

The second worse scenario would be a complete and extremely nauseating plot where he would steal the whole show and basically make all the Mane Six completely irrelevant.

That would probably take the fandom by storm and unleash hell.

However, there was one thing that I know would kill me if it happened.

No presence at all. The character, absent from every angle, no matter how you look at it. If it came to that, not knowing if he was safe, not knowing if he was still alive when I had been given a chance at seeing him…

I’d break down. I knew I would. Just because the possibility he’d… he’d…

It was too horrible to consider…

Mom and Dad were both home, which was a rather rare sight these days. They weren’t talking much, which was unfortunately a lot less rare. Nobody really had the heart for conversations nowadays. We just shared a house; we weren’t a real family anymore.

H-heck, I couldn’t look Mom straight in the eyes anymore, mostly because one of us would look away too quickly. With each new occasion to apologize we missed, we grew apart a bit more. Soon, I wouldn’t be able to remain in the same room as her. Shame and anger would keep me from trying. I would hazard it would be the same with Mom.

Ignoring the tasteless cereals in my mouth, I finished the whole bowl mechanically, like a robot whose commands insisted he eat.

I couldn’t be bothered to try and talk to them this morning. I just went ahead and locked myself in my bedroom.

Once inside, my eyes fell on my alarm clock. It won’t be too long now…

With a disheartened sigh, I sat down and prepared myself to watch the newest episode.

The chats were frantic. I had tried visiting them, but whenever the discussion turned toward Tom, I… I just closed it down faster than they could start arguing.

It was painful, like a blow to the guts, to witness all this hatred directed at my little brother. Part of me screamed, demanded, that I remained and argue all day long if need be, but, deep down, I knew this would be pointless.

If I was going to waste my energy, it could at least be about trying methods from Tom’s list. So far, the Tooth Fairy had given very little result. It seemed like punching a tooth off my mouth was not good enough for that damn fairy. Astral projections? Not worth talking about.

I had however managed my first lucid dream last night.

… I… I’d never try that method again. Never.

Simply thinking back on it was physically painful. The real-life equivalent of that would have been a kick to the groin.
I had gotten to see Tom.

It had been him, his face, his mannerism, his… his voice and his tics. Everything was exactly like I had remembered. That was why it had been so hard.

It had been a dream and it had all vanished in the morning.

Waking up had never felt this heartbreaking before.

Yet I could not do anything else than forge ahead and try something else. I had a job to do and I would; nothing would stop me from achieving my goal. That was what it meant to be a big brother.

Tom, you’re getting the chewing out of a lifetime once we are done hugging the life out of you. I can’t guarantee you won’t be getting both at once!

In Ponyville, the habitants were rather worried. For days now, the self-proclaimed most awesome colt in Equestria had roamed through the streets, doing anything and mostly everything he wanted. Some officers had tried to get him to behave, but once he had started calling the authority of the Princess of the Sun herself, they had not insisted very hard.

If rumors were to be believed, the colt was Celestia’s secret student… or… a relative. While these conclusions were uncertain at the moment, they both reinforce the idea that the young alicorn’s behavior was, at least, justified.

Princess Twilight Sparkle had simply asked the citizens of Ponyville to indulge him until a decree had been issued from Canterlot. If she was to be believed, it would arrive within the next few days.

So, merchants gritted their teeth together when Blade Darkblaze helped himself to some of their products and the passerby listened patiently whenever he recounted extraordinary adventures they doubted were real. Though the magical power he displayed was sufficient for them to hold onto their skepticism. Just in case.

The sun of their blessed princess shining strongly over their head, the ponies simply hoped it would not be one of those days, when the bearers of the Elements of Harmony would somehow wind up getting in trouble.

They hoped.

~ I used to wonder what friendship could be. ~

I took a deep breath. The theme song was playing, filling my room with its cheesy and catchy melody. Contrarily to my habits, I did not hum or whistle. No, really, who’d expect me to? Mom would probably slap me again for the sin of making a happy sound.

…The thought left a bitter taste in my mouth. Perhaps I was just putting too much importance in this. I-I just…

With a sigh, I shook my head and resolved not to think about this anymore. Besides, the episode was starting. According to the material leaked a month ago, this one should focus on Pinkie Pie. However, what seemed to be more worrying was the fact that all these info had been taken down… following last week’s episode.

Oh Tom, even in another world, you wreck everything by being you. And cruel as that thought was, it remained the truth. He was a little timed-bomb, waiting for the moment to go off on a hyperactive tangent. Woe was the one that had no patience and triggered him.

Anyway… episode.

The opening sequence had been about Pinkie running out of supplies for a party. Simple, clean, efficient. One or two great visual gags in a short amount of time. So far, so good.

Now, the pink mare was running down the streets, or zipping them down, as her shape remained at most a blur. This went on for a few seconds, enough to leave an impression on the background ponies. Speaking of which… Derpy sighted, take out the champagne. She was here to stay.

The enthusiasm died down rather quickly. Why do I bother?

“Rarity! You have to help me!” Pinkie popped out of her friend’s gem chest.

“GAH!” Her voice dropped down an octave or two, as she usually did when truly angry and dramatic. “WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!”

“I’m sorry, Rarity! I was just doing a party for Gummy and he bit down on a cupcake and I told him it was no big deal, but then I realized I was out of cupcakes and streamers AND balloons, which brought the party to an end prematurely, which is REALLY bad, and I went to Pokey’s shop and he’s out of supplies too, so I don’t know what I’m going to do!”

“Well, calming down would do you good, dear,” Rarity deadpanned, pushing her friend off of her.

“But I can’t!” Pinkie threw her front legs upward. “What if somepony needs a party and I can’t give them because I’m out of my party goodies?!”

For a second, Rarity certainly did not look very impressed, but, as I expected and hoped, she simply sighed and placed a hoof on her shoulder.

“It’s that bad?”

Pinkie vigorously nodded. “Can you help me, please, please, please?”

“Well, the answer to that is obvious, isn’t it?” The prim and proper unicorn smirked. “Sweetie Belle?” she called loudly.

P-please, no siblings dynamics… just… please…

“Sis?” A cute little filly ran down the stairs, her face smudged with colored paint.

“Oh my, wash your face this instant!” Rarity said with disgust.

“What? How could you have known?!” Sweetie gaped in disbelief.

“It matters not! Clean your face and then I will let you watch over the Boutique until my return.”

“For real?” The filly jumped up and down, shaking with excitement.

“Yes.” Her big sister smiled at the endearing antics. “We should not be gone too long, but I expect you to stay in the boutique and watch for customers. If anypony wants to make an order, just take a note in my book. You do remember how?”

“Of course!” Sweetie grinned.

“Then I believe we are set, Pinkie.”

“Oh, thanks Rarity! I really needed your help!”

“Think nothing of it, darling.” The unicorn gave her mane a small shake, with a discreet smile lingering on her lips.

You could always tell that Rarity loves giving, even if only her help, to others.

With that, the two friends left Carousel Boutique.

“Had you made any plans? A party that is already scheduled, maybe?”

“Oh, I had Big Mac’s birthday party coming in three days, but since there will be a few Apples there, I’ll need a lot more stuff than usual. Luckily, with you here, nothing bad can happen.”

Just then, as they were walking away, a very loud crash was heard and Rarity’s shop actually distorted in the way only cartoony buildings can. What followed were an indignant scream and a cat’s hissing.

Both mares stopped dead in their track, eyes wide. Then, Rarity crouched slightly and her eyes narrowed on Pinkie, who had suddenly started giving her friend her biggest and shiniest sheepish smile.

“Sorry?”

“Let’s us not waste time.”

He was flying. Of all the awesome things that he could do now, this was really really on his top three. It was so much fun, he could dive and loop and do all these crazy stunts he had seen on TV whenever he watched Dad’s shows.

Scootaloo hated him because, as she put it, he was a show-off, which was totally untrue! He was NOT a show-off! He was just really really great at flying and magic! What was wrong with that?!

Not submitting to his desire to pout (so uncool!), the little alicorn flapped his wings harder, accelerating. In just a few seconds, he was outside the skirts of Ponyville, or, more accurately, at the very edge of the town.

There, two mares standing on the deck of the train station caught his attention. Since one of his favorites was part of the duo, Blade Darkblaze chose to dive, not noticing the faint glow given off by his cape.

In a matter of seconds, he had landed right next to two bearers of the Elements of Harmony.

“Hey girls! Whatcha doing?!” he asked, excitedly, because, for once, something fun might happen. In his mind, Ponyville had never been so… boring. Nothing ever happened.

“Oh, hi Bladey!” Pinkie greeted him with a cheer.

“Hello, Blade.” Rarity nodded, though her smile seemed quite stiff. It puzzled him and made his heart ache a little. Sam often wore that kind of expression when he talked about ponies with him.

But, hey, if Sam would always play with him and listen and be nice whenever he smiled like that, it had to mean Rarity would be nice too, right? Eh, perhaps she wasn’t so bad after all, even if she was too froo-frooey.

“We were about to make a small trip to Canterlot to get party supplies. You know, so I can throw a party in case of emergencies!” Pinkie continued.

“Oh, that’s so cool!” He bounced, eyes shining with stars. “Can I come with you?”

Being on the receiving of such a gaze so often, Rarity found it easy to resist. “I’m afraid we cannot afford to look after you all day, Blade.”

“Oh, but I’ll make myself super tiny, you won’t even notice.”

At that, the unicorn had to fight very hard not to roll her eyes. She knew an empty promise when she heard one. That would be about as likely as Sweetie Belle not disintegrating food to make dinner.

“We simply cannot accept this kind of responsibility.” She shook her head.

“Awwwww!” The colt hung his head low, ears drooping.

Unfortunately, while Rarity had learned to fight the charms of small and cute creatures, Pinkie Pie on the other hand was vulnerable to his plea.

“Oooooh, are you sure sure sure we could not use another hoof in Canterlot?” she asked her friend, pressing her hooves together as if praying.

Moved by an instinct all little kids had, Blade zipped to her side and imitated her posture. Now Rarity was faced by two sets of adorable puppy eyes.

For a second, her heart faltered. Then…

“No.”

“WHAT? NO FAIR!”

“Frankly, Blade, we are very thankful for your generous offer,” she acknowledged with a nod. “But I very much doubt our searches for supplies will end faster if you follow us.”

“Hey! I can do plenty to help!” The little alicorn boasted, puffing his chest arrogantly. “In fact, I can even end the problem right now!”

Somewhere, in another universe, one could hear an older brother banging his head against a wall. Words were muttered, but the gist resembled ‘Of all the way to phrase it…’.

While Pinkie Pie looked positively excited at such a prospect – except for the part of her that was aching for a road trip –, her friend had much bigger reserves.

“I-I’m sure you could-”

“I CAN!” Blade jumped, glaring at the unicorn. “In fact, I’ll show you! Sam always says it’s the best way to shut someone up!”

“Sam?” Pinkie Pie tilted her head. “Who’s that? Is that a friend? Ooooh, should I prepare a welcoming party? But I don’t have anything to throw a party with! Which is why-”

“Darling?” Rarity cleared her throat, stopping her friend’s babbling at an early stage. “He’s not listening.”

Indeed, the colt’s eyes were closed and his mouth moved silently.

“Ooooh, magic.” Pinkie turned around, twisting only her neck.

The little alicorn’s horn briefly glowed a deep blue, before the mares were both blinded by a cloud of smoke. A second later, he could hear them both coughing, which was followed by a small comment about special effects.

When the smoke dissipated, Pinkie’s eyes fell on a mountain of colorful objects of all forms. Her lips stretched and stretched upwards, even as she started shaking in excitement.

Jumping from behind the obstacle, Blade landed right in front of Rarity. With an arrogant grin, he stood on his hind legs and leaned on a piñata. “Told you I could.”

“Wooohooo! You’re the best!” Pinkie yelled, diving headfirst into what appeared to be a bunch of streamers.

“Alright, I will admit that this is a rather impressive display,” Rarity conceded, looking at the towering party supplies with apprehension. “Just a question though…”

“Shoot!” The colt waved a hoof, as if telling her ‘bring it’.

“Are all alicorns able to create objects out of thin air?”

“Huh…” He blinked, unsure of both the question’s goal and what his answer should be.

“Correct me if I’m wrong, but creation magic has never been seen in a millennia.”

“H-how should I know?! And what’s your point?!” He stumbled, with his more aggressive gesture making him lose balance. Now embarrassed, the colt was more defensive than ever. “That what’s Pinkie wanted! And if you don’t like it, t-then… well, Pinkie should not share them with you!”

“Oh dear, this is not what I mean.” The fashionista rolled her eyes. “The reason I asked is simple. If this is not creation magic, then where did you get those items?!”

His eyes widened almost comically and his fur could not hide a luminescent blush. He looked very much like a deer caught in headlights.

“Huh… I... I…”

To his stammering words, Rarity replied only with a sigh. “Pinkie, dear?”

“Yes?” she asked, popping out of a cake.

“It appears we will need to make the trip after all, if only to pay for all these stolen goods.” She waved at the mountain Pinkie was part of.

“HEY!”

“Stolen?” the party pony repeated, her mane deflating. The heartbroken look she sent her little friend’s way made him shrink on himself. No arrogance could be found in his body language anymore.

One could almost feel sorry for him, if he wasn’t responsible for the whole mess in the first place.

“Can you at least tell us of their provenance?” Rarity insisted, looking quite irritated.

“T-they’re… I dunno…”

“Oh perfect, we also need to go hunt for any store that suddenly lost party material. Now this trip is definitely going to take long enough for Sweetie Belle to destroy my boutique.”

“I… I could go help her?” The foal proposed half-heartedly.

“…No.” Rarity shook her head, with an air of finality.

“B-but…”

“No,” she repeated. “You have done enough.”

“I… I…” The colt’s eyes started to fill with tears. “FINE!” he yelled, startling the two mares with his outburst. “SEE IF I CARE!”

Without losing a beat, Blade took off in a blast of air, leaving a trail of blue behind him.

Rarity sighed. “Foals…”

Fifteen minutes later, and I could still not believe my eyes.

Eh, of course I could. Wow, that had been one painful episode to watch.

Had I made the comment to Eric, he would have agreed, saying that Blade’s intervention had derailed an otherwise sound plot into a forced and shoehorned appearance that had other characters left with his messes to clean up. Frankly? I would have to agree. If so much hadn’t been at stake, I would have rather watched what looked like a promising episode.

Instead, I had been stabbed inches away from my heart with a rusty carving knife.

Sam always says it’s the best way to shut someone up! Sam always says it’s the best… Sam always says… Sam…

SAM!

It was Tom! IT WAS HIM!

All my doubts were gone. Every fiber of my being had screamed and begged for me to reach into the screen and pull Tom out. My hand had gone to the window separating us... and my heart almost stopped beating when all I felt was a cold and smooth surface.

“No…” I had whispered. “P-please!”

This was too hard.

“PLEASE!”

I pushed.

I pushed again, I tried to reach, I stood up and forced a hand against the screen, harder, I poked and tried and tried and tried, as if I could just pick him up and get him back.

Pointless… So pointless…

The sadness reached my heart and I let out a sob. Then… another… My vision started to blur… My breathing became shallow…

This was too HARD! I… I could not last much longer like this.

“Tom…” I whispered, reeling back and staring.

I could not care less about whatever program was playing now. I could not care less.

The colors were so bright, so cheerful. It was sickening. It was a mockery of my tragedy, a… a-an insult!

The frustration that had been building for so long suddenly exploded. Without even realizing it, I leaned toward the ground, my eyes never leaving the target of my anger. My hands fell and closed onto the first object they could. Without a second thought, listening purely to that beast inside, my arm made a circular motion and I flung a shoe at my own TV.

It made a resounding breaking noise, which doubtlessly traveled through the house. Surely enough, steps could be heard in the next few seconds, and my door started shaking under repeated bangs.

“Sammy! Sammy, open up!” My dad asked, voice shaking with fear. “I heard something break! Are you alright? SAMMY!”

No… not alright.

Doubts

“Do you understand why you are here?”

Yeah, but really, I’d rather not be. “Maybe,” I said, crossing my arms, eyes narrowed and daring her to call me out.

“Do you believe you should not be here?” Mrs. Thompson asked simply, fingers intertwined and serving as a support for her chin. Her gaze was piercing. It made me... uneasy. It dared me to lie in her face.

I looked away. “I don’t want to be here.”

“I see…” she whispered, becoming pensive for a split moment. “Would you like to lie down for the rest of our meeting? You show classical signs of lack of sleep. A little rest would help you feel more confident.”

Not if I dream about Tom again. “I’d rather not, Mrs. Thompson.”

“As you wish,” she replied, but I barely heard her.

My mind was forcing me to remember. The cocky grins and the boasts, the unending energy and some of the worship I knew he held me in, that pouty lip when he didn’t get his way, the proud yelling when he did, him through and through. My eyes were completely unfocused, as I saw her figure and nodded when she paused, but images of my little brother were all I registered.

“Sam?”

The call of my name brought me back, left me blinking. “Y-yes?”

“Do you have any idea of what I just asked you?”

She got me here.

“…No.”

Surprisingly, her expression did not change. It remained engaging, indulgent, though her eyes were sparking with amusement now. “I wanted to know if you wanted to talk, if you felt the need to.”

Normally, I would have brushed her off without a thought. It wasn’t something I could tell her. It wasn’t something I could tell anyone. And I wouldn’t, of course not… but my brain easily provided me with the sensation I longed so much.

A few hours of peace…

The last time I had visited her, I had left with a lighter heart than ever since Tom’s disappearance. The thoughts that plagued me following the episode had a nauseating quality to them. They were sick… heavy… dark…

“T-there is something…”

Quickly, but at a pace that had me doubting she had been waiting to pounce for her notes, she picked up her pen and gave me an encouraging nod.

“Yes?”

Problem was, I didn’t actually know… “I… huh… it’s…”

“Would it help if I told you to take your time?” She smirked, still not judging me.

That made me chuckle. Of all the cliché lines, that had to be the one I had expected the most. Even as I looked up, her easygoing smile created a simple, relaxed atmosphere. It helped. It really helped.

“Maybe. Are you going to be polite about it?” A small grin crept on my lips.

“Then, Sam, please take your time.” She nodded exaggeratedly, seemingly looking for confirmation.

“Eh, that’ll do.” I shrugged, eyes going to the plain white ceiling. What do I tell her?

Just like that, my good mood evaporated. With that sobering thought, my head was back to being a place swimming with uncertainties and anxiety.

“I…”

The room grew colder. I did not like this. I hated it, but it mattered not. It was something I ought to do, if only to be able to keep going and get a chance to save Tom.

“I’m guilty,” I admitted so quietly Mrs. Thompson had to lean forward and strain her hearing.

“About Tom’s disappearance?”

“O-of course,” I laughed lifelessly. “He came to see me the evening before. He wanted to spend some time with me.”

“Saaaaam, come on, play with me!”

“Tom! I’m in the middle of a raid!”

“What? That’s so awesome! I’m going to join with my assassin!”

“No way! That’s my guild, Tom. They won’t let you join in the middle of the boss fight so you can aggro the whole room and sink us down!”

“No fair!”

“It was about eight o’clock. His bedtime was coming soon so I tried to coax him to come back in half an hour, so my parents would stop him and tell him it was bedtime. Something like that.”

“I don’t do that!”

“Yes, you do, squirt! Just leave me alone and go play with your console!”

“I don’t wanna! Come on! I’m bored. Saaaaaaaaam!”

“Not until I’m done!”

“Of course, being a little brother feeling bratty, he started throwing a tantrum because he was not getting what he wanted. Dad quickly came in to get us both to shut up, a command I was very happy to oblige, so long as I could get on with my game.”

“Will you two keep it down?! The whole neighborhood can hear you!”

“Daaaaaaad! Sam won’t play with me!”

“Tom, it’s almost time for you to go to bed. You will not play with your brother. It gets you riled up and you won’t get a good night of sleep.”

“Not true!”

“My father ended up taking my side of things. Why would I speak up then? In Tom’s eyes though, that was the worst of betrayals…”

“I hate you! I wish I didn’t have to see you ever again!”

“He started shouting things, which got me annoyed enough to shout back. He left my room in tears, muttering curses under his breath. I think he got punished for that too…”

Mrs. Thompson was pensive. Still she didn’t speak up, try to chide in a good word or a bad one. She simply listened to me with interest. It gave me the courage to go on.

“Don’t be mistaken… I love my little brother. It was just a bad night…” My eyes fell on the ground, going to the swirling red motif on the rug.

My breath hitched.

“It... it… My parents had left the weekend before for a ‘second honeymoon’, leaving me with the task of babysitting Tom. I took the job seriously seriously, because in the end, I care about the little squirt and I want to deserve the hero-worship he puts me through. ”

With images of that weekend flashing before my eyes, I found myself struggling to speak more and more. My throat had gotten tighter. It felt as if no air would pass through.

“We spent the whole weekend together. Literally. We were constantly with one another, even when it was time for me to revise for my exams. Eh,” I snorted, amused by the memory. Looking up, I saw she was too. “I guess it helped that I could sit him in front of a TV and put on his favorite movie with popcorn, big brother watching him over from the sofa included.”

She smiled at the picture I depicted. I did too.

“We had a great time, no denying it, but it still demanded a lot of energy from me. After that, I felt like getting a bit of time for myself, but Tom wouldn’t take the hint all week long…”

“So you had a fight,” Mrs. Thompson said as if it was the simplest statement in the world.

It cut my chest open. So that’s what they say when they talk about ‘the last word we exchanged’.

“Sam…” Strangely, her voice appeared a little uncertain to me. “It was a normal occurrence. Siblings do fight and I am in a position to understand that notion very well myself. So, forgive me for asking, but… Why do you feel so guilty?”

I snorted in annoyance. “Isn’t it obvious?”

“Humor me,” she asked firmly, with such a tone that I found myself questioning the notion that had been so self-demonstrating over the last week.

I found the words harder to articulate then they ought to be. “Because I pushed him away! B-because I was not there to prevent it from happening!”

Mrs. Thompson’s next question left me baffled.

“If that is so… then do you blame your parents for your brother’s disappearance?”

I froze, completely. Despite the part of me that had instantly screamed in denial, the trust we had spent so little building up was already pushing me to put these thoughts on the examination table.

Do I? Do I blame them? Dad certainly did help getting Tom mad in the first place; Mom didn’t do much at all… Is that why I have been avoiding them all week? Is it less my cowardice than my resentment?

I pictured myself, yelling at Mom and Dad that it was their faults, that Tom wouldn’t be missing if they had bothered to spend the night with him. I saw them blanch with horror, redden with indignation, and the idea struck me at the heart.

I could not do that to them, nor did I felt the desire or need to.

“No.” My answer came vibrant and clear, without any doubt.

A weight disappeared in my chest.

“Then why, Sam?” She went on, forcing me to take a look at my thoughts from the outside and be truthful about them. “Why do you believe that you are responsible for Tom going missing?”

Because it IS my fault. “He wouldn’t have gone missing if not for me!”

Sad, but true. I knew it was the undeniable truth.

Mrs. Thompson shook her head, a slight frown starting to appear in her features. “You cannot know that.”

I’m pretty sure I do, actually, I thought. Outwardly however, I simply averted my gaze.

“Why are you so convinced you are the only one that can save your little brother?”

Because no one else knows where he is. No one else would be willing to believe this ridiculous story. “I didn’t say that.”

“Sam.” She looked at me from over her glasses, clearly not impressed with my attempt at dodging her question. “You are crippled with guilt from an event you have little control over, but cannot find it in you to condemn your parents for the exact same reasons. I don’t believe I am mistaken in thinking the actual reason for this disparity is your belief that you have some level of control over the situation and are unable to affirm it.”

For a moment, I could only stare, stunned. That one had hit too close to home, not to mention how logical it seemed to my own ears. Is that it? Is it because I might be able to help him that I can’t shake off my guilt?

“I… that is…”

“Sam, why do you believe you must be the one to find Tom?”

I have to, he’s my little brother! That’s all! “I…” I couldn’t say it outright. A part of me refused.

“What happened is terrible, but you are not to blame!” She insisted, pressing me with words that I couldn’t block, with a question I couldn’t ask myself. The simple thought had me shaking. “Why do you believe yourself to be the cause of all this? What is the real reason?”

Why?

“Sam!”

Why...? WHY?!

I knew the answer to that. It dawned on me so easily when I dared put words on the emotions and labels on the events.

The words flew out of my mouth.

“IF I HADN’T SHOWED HIM THAT ‘MY LITTLE PONY’ EPISODE, HE WOULDN’T BE GONE NOW!”

For the very first time, I caught a glimpse of Mrs. Thompson’s composure being shaken… or at least I thought it had… I… could not tell. Her eyebrows had furrowed further, I think...

“I… beg you pardon?” she asked, unable to quite proceed the importance of my words.

“It’s… it’s a TV show…” Why am I talking? “A cartoon, actually.” Stop, Sam. Don’t go there. “It’s… huh… not quite aimed at grown men… or boys in general…”

A bitter laugh escaped my lips, but the psychologist in front of me was too busy trying to connect the non-existing dots to truly care.

“I really like it. I’m… what you call a brony. Funny thing is, so is Tom. We’re bros and bronies. It always made us laugh.”

“How is that… relevant?”

For a twisted second, I contemplated telling her the whole truth. It would be so liberating, it would take away this unbearable isolation, tear down the wall I had to build around myself to help Tom. A terrible longing ripped my reserves in half, only to be shown back together by the rational part of my brain. I can’t do that.

“He’s trapped in the show. As a pony.”

My blood turned to ice in my veins.

It had slipped. My desire to speak had overwritten the impulse of common sense and I had confessed to thinking my little brother had gone dimension hopping!

I saw it. Her eyes flickered to my right for a second, betraying a hesitation and an unwillingness to maintain my gaze. A vein twitched in her neck and a small sigh left her mouth. Quickly, however, all traces of unease faded, as she regained composure at a speed that left me wondering if I hadn’t imagined it outright.

Her body language let nothing filter, though I could see beneath the mask. There had to be some ill-conceived pity aimed at me. I was that guy that couldn’t protect his kid brother, that came up with a ridiculous fantasy. It had to be so pathetic!

My heart started beating faster and I spoke quickly, almost desperately. “I know I heard his voice. I know it’s him! ...Y-you must think I’m crazy.”

“No, I do not,” she said with a soothing tone. “In situations of such emotional distress, it is not that uncommon for the immediate family of a missing person to latch unto emotional reminders of their loved ones. For you, it happens to be a children’s show you and your brother both loved, combined with the voice of a boy you find very similar.”

“But I know, in my guts.” My arms wrapped themselves around my torso. Subconsciously, I leaned closer, even as my mind screamed to put some distance between us. “It’s him! It’s his voice! His attitude! His own character!”

“Mister Miller, have you ever mistaken someone’s voice over the phone? In a crowd, maybe?”

I opened my mouth to protest, to say that it wasn’t the point, but the words got stuck in my throat.

“How is your brother like? Would you describe him as energetic, brash, confident, outgoing?”

Yes, on all accounts. I kept my mouth shut.

“You tell me about his personality, yet I find it quite similar to those of many boys I have personally known.”

“But there are too many coincidences to ignore! Things like that just don’t happen!”

“Do they?” she asked with a disturbing calm. Her words had been strong, unshakable. “Thousand to one coincidences happen all over the world every day.”

She doesn’t believe me. She thinks I must be lying. Or worse! “I’m not crazy!”

Still serene, Mrs. Thompson shook her head. “This is not what I’m saying. It is not wrong of you to look for reminders of your little brother, but you must not forget what is real and what isn’t.”

W-what is real? She’s making so much sense… Am I the one in the wrong? For Tom to actually be in Equestria…

“This fantasy of yours is just a coping mechanism, but, ultimately, it isn’t real. When your little brother returns, you must remember that what he went through and what you think he did will be very different.” Her hand fell on mine, its warmth seeping through the contact. It reminded me of Mom… before… “He will need you. He will need his family, united.”

T-this wasn’t just a wild fantasy… right?

Why had I gone see Mrs. Thompson? Why?

This is not helping.

On the ride home, I had been unable to focus on anything. Her words kept replaying in my head. I had no control over them. Their echoes would not die.

Was I wrong? Had I been a complete fool and a naïve idiot that could not distinguish the real world from that of fantasies?

It… it can’t be the truth. It’s Tom, I know it’s Tom. But every time I repeated those words, they lost in conviction and gained in fragility. S-soon, Mrs. Thompson’s reasonable explanation would shatter my conceptions and throw me back into this hell of incertitude.

Tom would be unaccounted for again and that thought ravaged my mind.

Gone…

Was it all a fantasy? All just a make-believe story to appease my fears? Tom in Equestria was devastating, but… it also implied the knowledge of his well-being. Heck, if Tom was Blade Darkblaze, then he was having the time of his life, mistakes not accounted for.

Which is it? The dreadful reality or the comforting dream? Which one is the truth?

I had no answer.

I was devoid of emotion when I finally stepped back in the house, all but drained from my inner turmoil. My feet carried me away to my room due to a force of habit alone. I had no desire to actually do so now. Still, I found myself sitting at my desk, my laptop staring back at my lifeless eyes.

It was still opened on that website. Bright colors and crafted characters adorned my browser. The irony of the situation couldn’t touch me anymore.

Following a well-established routine, I let my gaze wander around the screen, taking in the details of each piece of work that was added to the fandom’s archives. It wasn’t very demanding; I could have allowed my mind to wander off to this sight, but… my eyes fell on the thing that could shock me out of this almost catatonic state.

It was a little one-shot, a few thousand words at most. The title was simple enough: “Cupcakes and Blue Wings”. It was classified mature… it had a warning for gore.

The only characters were Pinkie Pie and… B-B-Blade Darkblaze…

I stared at the screen, my whole body frozen with horror. I should not look at this. I already know what this will be.

Why was my hand moving the mouse toward the link? Don’t! I... I could not look away…

The screen displayed the story.

Horror

“Sam?” The voice of my parents, along with the few knocks on the bathroom’s door...

Any possible answer was drowned out in the following moments, as my abdomen retched upward, a burning sensation going up my throat. Acidic liquid filled my mouth, gagging reflex forcing my head forward, into the toilet.

Too horrible. This is monstrous.

Rancid vapors filled my nostrils. I was going to be sick. More than I already was. It was all so simple…

On the plus side, my doubts had all but vanished. My imagination had rendered every detail with dreadful precision, every image had been perfectly about Tom. And now… I could not stop seeing it in my mind. Torture. Again and again, escalating in depravity with each passing sentence. It echoed in my mind!

“And we twist the wings now!”

Retching. Barfing. Puking my guts out.

“Stabbity stab in the leg!”

My head was spinning, horrifyingly vivid images dancing before my eyes.

“You won’t need that horn now, will you?”

“Oh God…” A spasm ran through my body, almost throwing my hands off the toilet seat and sprawling on the floor.

“Come on! It’s not fun if you don’t scream along, Bladey!”

“Stop…” I begged, conjuring the mental image of Pinkie Pie. “You’re one of his f-favorite!”

Sick. Unwell. Nauseous.

“Cool story, Bro. I really liked how you showed that little Stu we don’t take kindly to his kind here. Instant fav.”

Vision blurring, I tried to stand up, pushing on my elbows. I only managed a halfway position, my knees staying firmly on the ground. Still, at that height, I could easily see my reflection staring back at me.

Some were applauding the author of that demented THING! They were asking him for more! This… how could they?

The worst of it all had to be the most casual comment.

“Damn right, brother! That little Gary Stu just needs to go! Look at my petition.”

I choked. And coughed. My body seemed to violently express my disgust, my anger and my fear.

This was an abomination. Inhuman.

Long minutes passed before a semblance of health filtered through my breathing and the strength in my limbs. Rising my head from the sink, I stared at the blonde guy in the mirror.

Pale, with a labored breathing, a chin shining and a mouth hanging on open, I was a classic picture of illness. Beneath my blonde bangs, blue eyes were cutting through the fog of my mind. There was something at the front, for all to see.

A monster. Not the poor chap that just couldn’t find the solution to all his problems. No, not him, not anymore! That story had pulled at a hidden part of me; it had awakened a darker side of me that I had forgotten existed.

Shining through the clear blue of my eyes, there was but one thing: hatred. My whole self was burning with pure unaltered hatred. Toward the monster that wrote a story about my little brother being tortured to death by his favorite character… Toward the growing majority of bronies that hated him or believed him unnecessary… Toward whatever thing had taken Tom in the first place.

I HATED.

My grip became as strong as steel. In a matter of seconds, my knuckles had become pure white. How dare they? How can they wish death on my little brother?!

A different urge filtered through this burning darkness, pure and focused into the destruction of such a monstrosity.

Kill. Kill them all.

As if a veil of blindness had been lifted, my senses returned to normal. The illness simply faded away. Exhaling deeply, I found myself able to stand, head light and arms heavy. Eyelids drooping halfway over my eyes, I let a wave of coldness wash away my mind. Everything appeared crystal clear and everything was painful to the touch.

Ignoring the burning sensation spreading through my hands, I stumbled to the door and unlocked it.

Behind it, Mom and Dad were both standing, worry stretching their faces. “Sam?” my mother asked, tentatively.

“I’m fine,” I muttered through gritted teeth.

They didn’t buy it.

“Sammy…” Dad placed a hand on my shoulder.

“I said I’M FINE!” I slapped off the offending appendage, pushing my way through them.

Stomping, I made my way to my bedroom, locking the door behind me. At my desk, my laptop was still waiting.

I unleashed all my pent-up aggression into that keyboard.

It took all her years of training not to sigh and openly massage her forehead in front of her class. Not that this would have been a problem, seeing as her students were all staring outside through the window.

“Now, now, I know his tricks can be quite impressive, but we have a lesson to finish… Class?”

She sighed outright. Teaching had started to become a headache as of late. Something, somehow, had particularly annoyed Ponyville’s newest alicorn. As she now knew was the case whenever he got angry, Blade Darkblaze was flying around and accomplishing tricks that would easily make a professional flyer look amateurish. And, of course, he did it all just over Ponyville for the whole town to see.

How was she supposed to retain the attention of her students in those conditions?

“He’s so dreamy!” Diamond Tiara sighed longingly, imitated by her friend. Both had a smile on their face.

“What a show-off!” A certain filly dismissed the show with a wave of a hoof. However, one did not need to be very perceptive to notice the moisture in her eyes as she said it. “Rainbow Dash is a thousand times better.”

“At least he can fly.” Cheerilie cringed the second she heard it. Her legs carried her toward the filly who had uttered those mean words to her classmate.

“Diamond Tiara! You will apologize right now.”

“What?” The pink filly sneered. “It’s not my fault Scootaloo can’t fly.”

“Okay, that’s it! You’re going to get it!” Scootaloo roared, turning an orange blur as she jumped on the bully and started hitting her with her bare hooves.

It did not take long for Diamond Tiara to start fighting back. Soon, the two were rolling on the floor, using anything and everything they had to make the other feel pain.

“Girls, you will stop right this instant!”

Why was this colt causing so much trouble?

I sat with a small smile. Beyond the edge of that murderous fury that I kept close to my heart, there was content. Pride even, perhaps.

My parents did not take notice, or if they did, they didn’t want to bring up my apparent good mood. I figured they had been off put by the bouts of yelling I had let out earlier.

That was fine with me. I did not wish to engage in trivial conversations anymore. I had a single goal in mind and I intended to keep going until it had been accomplished. No distraction, no self-pity, only the quest for my brother’s return.

And shitstorms, I shouldn’t forget that either.

With that thought, my grin widened, growing to the point of being fully visible, even from the corner of one’s eye. Beaming positively at the thought of my previous actions, I cut into my steak with good appetite.

It was wrong, but oh so satisfying.

Basically, I had provoked the mother of all shitstorms in that story’s comments, then trolled the fuck out of the readers, then hacked into the author’s account, destroyed his story and reputation, got banned for it, created three new accounts, spewed my venom all over the Blade hate groups (ignoring the twisted cold in my guts at the acknowledgment of their existence), got banned again and finally just went on an argument spray over four different brony forums.

It was probably the single most disproportionate and petty reaction of my life, but there truly was no part of me that even remotely cared about it. If I could do it again, I would try my hardest to make it a lot worse. I’d have looked for their coordinates and send hate mail to them.

The monster in me had just roared in triumph for the duration of my vengeance. It demanded a bigger, more physical revenge, but I had no way of fulfilling that need. It would have to do.

“Sammy?” My father’s voice brought me out of my reverie.

“Yeah?” I asked, not looking up.

“How was the meeting with your therapist?”

Oh. That? My expression hardened, my grin slipping and muscles relaxing. “I didn’t like it. I don’t want to go back.”

Dad frowned. “That badly?”

“Worse.” Lying bitch! Trying to make me give up on Tom!

“What happened?”

I almost sneered, instead focusing my anger into the movement of my knife. Viciously, I stabbed the slice of meat in front of me. “She said a bunch of things, I don’t really care to remember. It had to do with delusions.”

While they thought I couldn’t see them, my parents exchanged a glance. It said a lot of things, I supposed, if only by the way my father shifted in his seat.

When he spoke, it was with utter serious. It was enough to get my full attention at least. “Sammy, why did she say that?”

I paused, contemplating telling them the truth. Right! As if! “…Something about being unfair to myself or some crap like that.”

“And how did she believe you were unfair to yourself?” Dad pressed on, leaning forward with a frown on his face.

For a moment, I hated that honest gaze of him. Stern and true, it always pierced through any veil of lies and secrets I could create. It held a fatherly quality that simply made me unable to run away from myself.

That didn’t mean I had to be happy about it. “She thought I wasn’t responsible for his disappearance,” I grumbled.

“You aren’t!” His cry of indignation flew out of his mouth faster than even he could proceed. “That’s ridiculous, Sammy!”

My lips had clenched together, forming a thin line. My gaze was all but impressed. Just because people repeated a lie to me, it didn’t mean I would start to believe it. I’d put my trust in facts and the fact remained that if I hadn’t introduced him to the fandom, there would be no way for him to be in Equestria.

However, my father wasn’t done berating the stupidity of that concept.

“What could make you think that this is in any way your fault?!”

In the face of this honest indignation, it became harder to remain coldly detached. “…Our fight the day before, Dad,” I reminded him with a quiet voice.

“That…” He appeared pained by my answer. “Sammy, that wasn’t your fault...”

I opened my mouth to reply, to argue my guilt, but I was cut off by another set of words. They were spoken through a stupor, a complete disbelief echoing through each sound.

“T-that fight?” Mom muttered, eyes widening with the realization.

Her gaze fell on me and I felt as if my heart had been burned.

I would recognize that look anywhere. I knew what she was directing at me.

Accusation. She blamed me.

The ground threatened to swallow me. The fire in her eyes reached at the core of my being and threatened to break it. And I realized that she hadn’t known.

Mom thought it was my fault. She believed I had pushed Tom away and he had made himself vulnerable as a result. She believed it was my fault. And now that it was being pushed on me, I felt myself unable to cope. Though my thoughts had always pushed me toward shouldering that responsibility, though I had been annoyed when others failed to recognize that truth, I found myself shattering under the weight of my mother’s judging eyes.

“I… I…” I staggered, throwing my chair to the ground just by standing so quickly.

I had to leave. I had to leave this room!

“Sammy!” My father reached forward, trying to ground me into the room, but I jolted backward as if he had been flames.

Stumbling, I ran off.

“Is there such a thing as rock bottom?” I asked thin air in the hopes no answer would come back. I’d be afraid to hear the answer, whichever it would turn out to be.

On my back, I could barely feel the pressure of the back of my chair on my shoulders. Slouched over it, I was staring blankly at the ceiling.

So… Mom hates me then? Should have seen that coming. There was a core of sadness in the midst of my chest. I could not ignore it, it was eating away at me. It could only be so long until someone did. And who better than Mom? Dad should get on with it too, once the realization hits him…

It was so easy, such a small stretch of my imagination, to see their faces, cold and uncaring, their anger directed at me. Every detail was burned into my brain so easily. I knew I would see this image in my nightmares from now on.

They’d rant and rant about how they thought I was a disappointment, how I had never done a thing right and how they would have preferred Tom to be an only child. They’d talk my ears off how hard it was to pretend to love me all these years…

My vision blurred, obscured by some liquid. Burning and stinging, tears trailed down my face.

“I just… I… I… I don’t even know anymore…”

There was this hatred, festering at the back of my mind, while an overwhelming powerlessness just made it all meaningless.

You’re nothing! They screamed at me. A disappointment!

“Thanks…” I whispered, throwing myself off my chair. “At least I’m doing something for Tom… what have you guys done? I mean, how could you not realize where he is?”

Lethargic, I moved more slowly than usual, going to my closet to fish out the list.

Seeing the scribbled notes on it reached inside me, like a proverbial slap in the face. Just like getting one, it whipped me back into a more… productive state of mind.

“You… Useless… Thing…” I spat, hands shaking so hard the paper was almost ripped in half. And we can’t have that, right? Oh, you’re so useful!

Seeing another outlet for my anger, I tore away the first page off, looking at the words, remembering how they had promised me so much and delivered nothing!

Suddenly, I couldn’t be on that thing fast enough. My nails clawed at the soft structure, my fingers closed on its edges, gripping it so strongly that they started to numb with pain. I glared at the list. I wanted nothing more than to destroy it.

I shouldn’t do that…

And I wanted to… I wanted so much.

But this was my only lead…

With a sigh, I slumped down.

I felt defeated, empty. What more could I do? I’d just continue to try, over and over again, until I found the right way. I could not honestly think of anything else I could do.

Let’s get on with it then… I sighed and reached for the list, fallen from my grip when I had sit down. Which one was I supposed to try next?

Silently, my eyes went from the crossed lines to the first few words still intact. They fell on something rather weird. Well, not that weird to be perfectly honest. A better word for it would be childish. Reading it the first time had me slightly puzzled, but then again, it was Tom.

‘Portal opening 101’ brought to you by yours truly, Monsieur Ten Ropes.

I blinked.

Whoa, that sounds like either a creepy magician or a guy with a BIG bondage fetish… and I’m going to follow his advices… Suddenly, I found myself wishing that Tom had not tried this particular method. Alas, even if he hadn’t, I would. Nothing would be left to chance…

“Alright, what’s with this stuff?” I mumbled, flipping the notes over toward this new method.

The first thing I recognized was the pentagram. Lines traced with minute precision I knew Tom was incapable of. Not with the attention span he had. Nonetheless, I forced myself to push away the healthy skepticism to the back of my mind, where it could be ignored. At the point I was, nothing short of the human sacrifice would make me hesitate more than a few moments.

If it came to that, well… I had a few ideas of whom I’d choose.

I shook my head, forcing myself into a more rational state of mind with a well-earned slap to the face. Fuck… what am I turning into?

“F-focus, Sam…” I whispered, locking my gaze onto the lines. “Read out the incantation… drop the ritualistic focuses… enjoy.”

I grimaced. This felt like such a waste of time…

“Ritualistic focuses…” Doesn’t mean I won’t give it a shot. “Objects of power to mold the universe to your will... Well, damn, now I want them. I’m just not a big fan of the Temple of Doom. Because of course, that’s where I need to go to find the stuff, right?” I said to no one in particular. It just made me feel a little better to voice my bitterness like this.

To prove my point, I made a show of reading the exact requirement for that… ritual.

To say I was shocked was an understatement. “The three required objects are a cone, earth and wings. Any object vaguely resembling these will do.”

My brain would not process the information. It had come to a halt. To be more exact, before my eyes, all I could see was one thing, so out of place, under Tom’s bed. I remembered the sickening sensation of a piece of food cracking under my fingers.

Eyes wide open, a burst of mad hope flared through my chest and spread like wildfire.

I jumped to my feet so fast I flung myself headfirst into my bed stand. The pain briefly dissolved into my forehead before being reduced to nothingness by my excitement. Not caring in the slightest, I dashed outside for the pantry. If Tom had gotten it here…

My heartbeat got staggeringly powerful when I caught sight of a blue box, with a picture of ice cream cones on one side. The world started to spin as it caught up to me that this might be it! This could be what I was looking for all along!

Blazing hope still coursing through my vein, I grabbed the whole thing with me and turned around to get to the front door. The list echoed in my mind. Conic object… earth… wings…

Vaguely, I knew what this was meant to be. I had an inkling of the true meaning of those objects and a part of me was opposed to it. The rest however violently put those thoughts to rest. I would not allow myself to pass up on this chance.

The lack of response to my mad stomping all around the house raised some suspicions, it made me wonder... until…

“You’re a disappointment!”

No. I shook my head. No distractions were allowed. Not when I was so close…

With a rough yanking motion, I lifted one of my dirty shoes from the rug and went back into my room. The clicking noise of my lock could be heard the next second.

In my manic state of mind, I surprisingly found the restraint to put the items down delicately, with the care of a parent cradling his newborn child. In a way, the comparison was not quite unrealistic. Those had resurrected my hope, right as it was becoming but a shadow and a luxury I would not dare look for.

The last thing I needed was already in my room; all I had to do was reach out for it.

My hands closed down on a soft plushy.

For a brief second, my lips twitched upward. I had quite a few fond memories surrounding it. All of them involved a convention I had had the luck of attending when it had been hosted in the next town.

Succumbing to a small bout of nostalgia, I let my hand ran through the plushy’s yellow fur and its pink mane. The softness of the touch had me truly smiling.

It was going to be okay…

I grabbed a marker. The hardest part was coming right now. I had to copy what appeared like runes and geometrical figures. Memories of my previous attempts at drawing such a complex symbol flashed in my mind, having my guts tied up in a knot. It wasn’t a very comforting thought.

Cracking my knuckles, I took a long time to stare and memorize every detail of the drawing. Then, I got down on my knees, cleaned up the floor and bit the cap off my marker.

The first line came off as shaky and improper. One furious stroke later and the line was twice as thick, but much more straight. Good, that was precisely what I had to do in this point.

Slowly, sneaking glances at the reference in the notes every so often, I worked on the symbols and the forms needed to perform that ritual.

The muscles of my face had started to hurt a while ago, stiff and rigid with extraordinary focus. I could not mess this up, I had to do it right. With every line I was making though, I ran the risk of ruining everything. After a certain amount of time, I noticed I had drastically slowed down into the creation of this piece of art.

Beads of sweat pearled in the far corner of my eyes and an uncomfortable numbness paralyzed my legs from my knees down. My fingers were black with ink at this point.

“Next comes a parallel line…” I muttered, staring at the intricate drawing on the floor. If by some terrible play of fate this wasn’t the right solution, then this would be a real pain to clean up. “Aaaaand… done.”

The final dot of ink had been put into the right place.

My eyes alternating between the notes and the lines on the floor, I did not notice a single dissimilarity.

I almost collapsed in relief. This had been hard... Draining too.

“All I’ve got to do now is sing some ominous lyrics…” I whispered, feeling light-headed.

Almost there.

Clumsily, I went through the three ‘ritualistic focuses’, reading the instructions one more time. They were rather explicit about it. It had to be only a horn, a pair of wing or earth. For the ice cream cone, that was easy as pie. I did not blink either at the prospect of scrapping the dried up mud under my shoes.

I felt a small pang of dismay at the idea of destroying my Fluttershy figure.

Are you serious, Sam?! That plushy means nothing! I chastised myself.

Closing my hands around it, I held the shoulders securely, with a firm grip. Nonetheless, to destroy all the stitches at once was harder than I expected. Think of it as if that was the author of that story.

The wings came off in an instant, a terrible ripping sound accompanying the deed.

And that was the end of that.

More violently than I should have, I shoved the wings into their own circles. A death glare was sent their way, even as I turned back toward the instructions once more. The words would not leave my mind. I could see Tom suffering at Pinkie Pie’s hooves.

What is next? I read over the chanting. That much would need me to read it. There was no way I could pronounce those words without constantly having them under my eyes.

Steeling my resolve, I took one last deep breath and started chanting.

It wasn’t mystical. Disappointing as it was, no sudden sense of enlightenment was offered to me. The words just flew out of my mouth while I put my whole soul into this.

More than half the incantation had been uttered out loud by now and no discernible event had happened. No signs of magic or mysticism to alleviate this growing pit of despair in my stomach.

Let this be real… Grant me this favor, whoever is listening.

Things had fallen apart. What we had was no more, but it could be salvaged. Our family might recover from this hardship, but not without him… and if it could, I wouldn’t want to be part of it.

T-Tom... I just want to see you again… I miss you.

The fear grew stronger, as I felt the last few words roll off my tongue. So many memories came flooding back into my head, times I just had fun with Tom, times when I gave him those small advices big brothers are meant to, times when we never saw eye-to-eye, times when we shared a wink while Mom and Dad wondered how we managed to replace every piece of furniture in the living room without tipping them off.

Wet spots started to appear on the scroll. It had to work, it had to!

The last syllable echoed in the air.

Frozen, I was staring wildly at the lines on the ground, hoping to get a glimpse of it… of anything…

Nothing. Everything remained the same.

No…

No, no, no, no, NO!

This couldn’t be true, this couldn’t have been just another FALSE LEAD!

I lost my balance, overwhelmed by a crushing despair.

The world started darkening. It grew cold.

It had been pointless! It hadn’t worked!

I hid my head into my knees, shoulders shaking and sobs escaping my mouth. I had been so sure… I knew it had to be the right one! WHY?!

I only wanted to sink into the ground.

I did.

At first, I thought I had just messed up what little coordination I had left, but the second I glanced at my legs, I realized they were halfway through the wooden planks. N-nothing had been broken, my feet were simply going through the floor as if it had been mud.

Under me, the ground seemed to shake, moved by an invisible shockwave. I could not move anymore.

And I was swallowed into the pentagram.

The Jump

Never before had I experienced anything like this.

Not in a good way…

The world had gone mad. It was beyond even Discord’s bizarre version of Equestria. At least then, there had been space. Yet something was still pulling me down. I was falling through nothingness.

Bright colors spiraled around me, a kaleidoscope of orange, yellow, pink and white. It gave me vertigo to stare at it too long, but I could not close my eyes. My body did not respond. I could not even tell if I still had one. I barely felt anything. I simply… observed as logic flew out of the window.

I found myself wondering why I could not even feel panic. Nothing. It was as if I had been stripped bare of any emotion… except a burning desire to leave this place behind me.

Abstract forms danced, circling white jumped over orange squares, pink triangles span and span, endlessly, yellow tendrils stretched in all directions. Soon, there was nothing in my mind but this all-compassing madness.

The colors spread. It seemed to chase me, as I was falling and not falling. I could see it all.

Yellow.

“Twilight!” The small dragon’s voice echoed in the library. “Twilight, it’s finally here!”

“What is, Spike?” The alicorn asked, eyes shifting from the cover of one book to another.

Her nose had been into her researches all morning long. She literally hadn’t seen the light of the day yet.

“Princess Celestia’s letter!”

Twilight’s head snapped toward her number one assistant, somehow managing to drop every one of her books delicately while staring very intently at the scroll between Spike’s claws. Quickly, she made her way over to him and nodded.

Clearing his throat, Spike broke the seal and started to read. “My dear Twilight, I have decided on the appropriate course of action toward Ponyville’s newest resident…”

Shapes and colors, so few, so scarce… but what little there was forced itself together. A thousand variant of the same color, endlessly reforming the same silhouette.

Yet, I had no idea what it was meant to be. The image ticked off my memories, but it was not enough to gain recognition.

What was I looking at?

It looked a little like a dragon… a little like a pony…

What is it?

I had no idea, but it never stayed the same. It became something else the instant I could get a better look at it. So far, it had change twelve times. That was the number I had come up with, but then again, I could not really back up my claim.

It just changed, changed and changed.

It kept changing.

On and on.

He was feeling a little down today. H-he hadn’t cried! No way! He wasn’t a baby!

But it did hurt when Rarity had looked at him like that. He had just tried to help…

Okay, he screwed it up really badly… Still, Sam wouldn’t have left him all alone with this big knot of guilt in his throat, right?

The little colt curled up on himself, his own wings serving as his blankets. It was a bit cold outside today. The breeze kept brushing on his fur, which was a funny tickling sensation, really, but it also made him shivered more often. He didn’t like it. Plus, having fur was a bit disappointing. He wouldn’t get to learn how to shave like Dad, would he? Sam promised he’d show him how to!

Okay, Sam had had that little grin that infuriated him back then, like he was too small to understand, but still, a Pinkie Promise!

Reminded of one of his favorites, the colt turned his head around, looking over the edge of the town hall’s balcony, perhaps in the hope of seeing that pink pony he liked so much. S-she had been a little mad at him too…

Luckily though, the streets of Ponyville were not buzzing with their usual activity. They were… hopelessly deserted…

The weather might be the reason for it too. Nopony truly appreciated getting their coat wet. They’d much rather stay inside with their families and share a nice hot meal.

Tom felt his heart skip a beat. All of a sudden, he really didn’t want to go out and have fun today. He missed Sam and Mom and Dad.

Not crying… he was not crying…

He was just a little lonely.

How long had this gone on? How long had I fallen through the endless abyss of this place? There was nothing here, but the weirdest freak color show I had ever been given the chance to contemplate. I was trapped inside this loop.

I wanted to be freed. I had so much more important things to do than decipher the form of shape shifting colors.

I just wish I could get to Tom already!

Because it had to have worked, it had to have been the right way. How could this be possible otherwise? Even a hallucination would have move onto something else by now. Can I just get to Equestria now?!

Something changed. I felt it in the air… the atmosphere grew… restless.

The ever changing colors moved faster, becoming blurry lines rather than forms, expending in diversity other than just a sickeningly bright combination. Green and blue joined the palette, others appeared as well, in a progressively more complex way. Lines were becoming more defined now… more clean-cut.

And those lines were creating a landscape, of grassy fields and trees.

I was in Equestria.

This had actually happened.

Holy fuck… I could barely wrap my head around it. Even after wishing for this for what felt like an eternity now, I still had trouble believing this was really happening.

I did not recognize the exact location I was in, but the way the world was remained unmistakable. This was definitely 'My Little Pony'.

Then, as if reminded of their existences, I was assaulted by a plethora of sensations, from all five of my senses. What I had lost in that transition had come back with a vengeance.

The first thing I felt was an overwhelming impression of wrongness. I was not how I should be.

Having finally control over my eyes, I could look down at the arms I knew were sprayed across the grass. They were golden yellow horse legs.

For a moment, my mind came to a halt.

I knew it was coming or rather I had strongly suspected it would, but this was still spreading numb cold throughout my whole being.

I was not human anymore. Not in body.

Not human… not freaking human…

A powerful curse escaped my lips. Even then, it had an uncanny dissimilarity to what it should have been. Some of my thoughts were… censored? It felt as if some of them were being transformed before they had fully formed and it resulted in… friendlier… terms than I would have used.

It wasn’t the worst though. Everything about myself was wrong, in new and strange ways. Heck, I had a tail! Pony, but still, WHY?! I was getting feelings of cold and touch from places I never had before. Case in point, my shoulder blade were linked to two new limbs.

“This is weird…” I muttered, turning my head to stare at the golden wings adorning my back. “Am I…?”

My hoof went to my head, where I had been getting a small impression of unbalanced weight. It seemed just a little… well, like my forehead was harder than it ought to be.

I touched my horn with a flat round hoof and got freaked out from the response that came both ways.

“Urgh… I am just as Sueish as Tom. Great…” My eyes twitched, though it stopped when a thought hit me. “Well, this does make it easier to explain that I’m his big brother.”

Belatedly, I wondered how far from Ponyville I was at the moment. How would I get there? I certainly wasn’t going to try flying. I wasn’t even sure I could walk.

…I really ought to have put more thought into this.

With a grunt, I folded my legs under me, planting them all firmly into the ground. Then, with a push, I stood up. This success made me smile.

“Why does it feel like I’ve accomplished something?” I sighed, rolling my eyes.

Again, I focused my attention entirely on my legs, ignoring the inherent weirdness of standing on all four so naturally. I had to figure out how to walk, I just went from two legs to four.

Hesitantly, I moved one hoof. After that though… I was stuck. One leg stretched forward, three firmly vertical and me leaning forward like an idiot, I was freaking stuck. I had no idea which leg to move next. I tried to picture the ponies in the show, but my memory chose that moment to fail me completely. Finally, I gave it a shot, randomly.

Tangling my own legs, I fell face first against the ground.

How the hell did Tom manage to get the hang of this so quickly?! I really wasn’t giving him enough credit if he figured it out on his own so fast. Tch, whatever, I’ll just stand up and walk.

On its own, my body moved and took a few steps.

My jaw dropped.

“T-the hay?!” I looked at my hooves like they were on fire. “How did I…?”

I had simply thought of walking and…

A few steps.

I blinked. This is… disturbing…

S-somewhere, in my brain, the influx had been redirected the right way, even if I hadn’t done it correctly myself. I could think what I wanted to do and it would work, I couldn’t do it myself…

The feeling of alienation I was experiencing grew ten times worse. Wrong… wrong… wrong…

“ARGH! I can’t stop to think about this crap! I’m in Equestria, so I gotta find Tom!” I shouted, before scanning my surroundings more attentively.

I did not recognize this place. If it was in the show, then I had missed it or forgotten it altogether. What now?

Nothing beats being well-prepared, eh? At least that’s what I tell Tom when we go camping. I grunted, annoyed at my own thoughts.

Truth to be told, I had been acting on instinct for a while now. I had been constantly put on the defensive, forced to react to every event that made my hopes crash down and burn. Was it any wonder I had started to lash out?

I could not find it in myself to care all that much. All I could focus now was on finding a way to get to Tom and getting him out of here.

Moved by yet another new instinct, my eyes went to the sky, observing the endless blue space. It was… like being called by name. Simple, yet it instantly grabs one’s attention. Whispers reached my ears, so many voices that echoed aimlessly.

I found myself understanding weather patterns and the movement of winds, with just a glance.

Gary Stu status is mine. I grimaced, but not for long. I’ll take it. I’d rather not have to learn all this stuff just to get out of here. Still, I have to find Tom before anything can happen.

With a sigh, I started walking.

There were a fair bit of storm clouds in that direction, but by the time I got there, it would already be over.

I just knew.

A shiver went down my spine.

I’ll find you, Tom. I’m coming.

--
He had been slowly drifting to sleep when the voices first pulled him out of his daydreaming. They were filled with urgency, but more importantly, they were calling his name. Well, his name here, because he couldn’t be just Tom here. He was the super cool alicorn Blade Darkblaze!

Anyway, he knew who was calling him and he would not answer. Rarity had been mean about his mistake and he wasn’t in the mood to get a lecture by Twilight!

Gosh, she was so annoying! She kept lecturing him every time they met!

“You should not use your power so irresponsibly, Blade. Your control over your magic is rudimentary, I can help you be more collected about it. Just because you can doesn’t mean you should.”

That last one had been said by Sam once before, but he never remembered the context around it.

Still, not important. Twilight just kept bugging him! Why couldn’t she leave him alone?

“Blade! Please come on out!” Her voice rang through the street.

The colt scooted closer to the barrier, crouching to make sure she wouldn’t see him anyway. Luckily, at this height, she would have trouble seeing him even if she looked directly in his direction. And that was even a stretch.

The lavender alicorn was running down the streets, her eyes wide with panic.

“Blade? I need to talk to you.” She called again.

Eh, fat chance of me telling you where I am. The little colt smirked.

He’d sooner let her get soak in the rain than reply. Unfortunately, the sky had apparently gotten much clearer since he had taken that little nap.

“Twilight!” Another mare appeared, coming from around the corner of a street.

This time, the orange and blonde colors made him grin. Applejack was here. He hadn’t seen much of her since his first day. It was a bit weird that she was ever around though and he didn’t like it much. With Rainbow Dash not speaking to him and Pinkie being Pinkie, Tom hadn’t gotten much of a chance to spend time with his best ponies.

He was almost tempted to get down just to get down to say “hi”, but the prospect of a lecture held him firmly nailed to the ground. Besides, they had walked close enough for him to hear them anyway.

“Applejack! Have you seen him?”

“That lil’ fella’s nowhere to be seen. Ah asked around, but nopony saw him today. Real weird, if ye ask me.” The cowpony shook her head.

At the words, Tom could not hold in a chuckle.

That was a bit of a mistake.

“Oh I cannot believe he was hiding under our muzzles all this time,” Twilight muttered, bringing a hoof to her face.

Her friend’s reaction, on the other hand, was much more… proactive.

“Rainbow Dash, get him!” Applejack screamed.

As if that had been an universal cue, the cyan pegasus flew out of nowhere to the other two mares’ position. With just a nod and a pointed hoof, she was redirected toward the colt hiding on top of the town hall. “You got it, AJ.”

“Ho-oh…” Tom said, seeing Rainbow Dash fly straight toward him.

Scrambling to his hooves, the little alicorn opened his wings to take off, but a sudden gust of blue wind made him flinch backward.

“Gotcha!” Rainbow Dash said triumphantly, landing on the rails and crossing her hooves in a “cool” pose.

However, simply telling the colt he had been caught was far from enough to clench the frustration and the rebellion built up in that small body. In fact, Tom grimaced and sent a venomous glare at his idol.

“You don’t have me!” He yelled and charged.

With a jolt, Rainbow Dash jumped to the side, unfortunately leaving a clear path for the kid.

Had he been less blinded by his anger, he might have noticed how she had bitten her bottom lips just as he had started moving. As it stood, Tom simply took off.

“Nice going, Rainbow!” Her friend’s voice came from below. The tone was… less than friendly. “We said we had to make him come see the Princess with us!”

“Hey, I didn’t want to hurt the kid, okay? I’ve seen the look on his face enough to know!” She turned to the blue shape in the sky, with a grin. “Besides, he didn’t get away from me yet.”

On the ground, Twilight and Applejack barely had the time to blink before a blur and a rainbow trail painted a line straight toward the fleeing colt.

“Oh no… the guards will arrive soon and we still haven’t gotten to explaining it to him.” The poor alicorn whispered, biting her hoof. Her eyes started shifting around. “Oh no, oh no, oh no!”

A warm contact on her shoulder got her attention. “Calm down, Twi. The kid’s stubborn as a mule – no offense.” She turned out of habit, but was confounded when no mule had been there to reply.

This was enough to get a laugh out of her friend. “Yes, you’re right, Applejack. If we explain it calmly, I’m sure he’ll come to his sense.”

The earth pony blinked. “But Ah didn’t… ah, forget it. Let’s go help Rainbow.”

“Yes, let’s help her!” Pinkie Pie agreed.

“Pinkie?! When did ye-” Applejack jumped, before cutting her question short. The answer might be worse than the mystery. You never knew with Pinkie Pie.

“What are we doing exactly?” She tilted her head, eyes wide and brimming with innocence.

“I received a letter from the Princess asking me to prepare for a trip to Canterlot,” Twilight explained. “She wants a private audience with us and Blade, but he won’t listen.”

“Okey dokey loki!” Pinkie giggled. “I’m going to get Fluttershy and Rarity. The more, the merrier, and the better the party!”

“Pinkie…” Applejack frowned.

“I know.” The pink mare nodded. “This is serious. But it never hurts to be prepared for a surprise ‘We’re-back-from-Canterlot Party’!” She shook with excitement, before shooting off like a rocket in the distance.

“Eh, go figures.”

“Yeah, but let’s get on with the chase, shall we? I’d be more at ease if we were actively trying to solve this problem.”

“You got it, Twi. Don’t worry.” Applejack nodded.

They both started running, following the clear path lead out by the multicolored trail in the sky. With it, giving Blade the chase turned from a frustrating exercise to a rather simple one.

However, simple did not mean short.

The colt clearly had no intention of making this easy and while Rainbow Dash was much faster than him, she could not quite catch him without risking sending them both quarreling. Not a big deal for her, but she would rather not have a kid’s injuries on her conscience.

“Come on, kiddo! You can’t actually outspeed me.” She yelled after him, getting annoyed at his antics. “Can’t you just come with us quietly?”

“No way!” Tom replied instantly, shouting over his shoulder.

With a roll of her eyes and a sigh, the pegasus accelerated. “Okay, but remember, you asked for it.”

The colt didn’t have the time to reply. Coming out of nowhere, the mare had slipped in front of him, forcing him to drastically turn to his left. Into an alley, between two rooftops.

“Surprise!”

“Whoa!” He yelped, tumbling into a pink inflatable thing.

Tom lost control of his flight completely, ramming into the wall of the object. To his surprise though, he simply harmlessly bounced off its edge, straight into a bunch of streamers and sticky ropes.

With a loud noise, the thing crashed into the ground, as did the colt inside.

Thankfully, he hadn’t been injured, but all these sudden jolts had gotten him dizzy. His eyes were spinning and he could barely make out the shapes and voices around him.

“Hum… is he okay?” Fluttershy stepped out of her hiding place, a concern look on her face.

“Yeah, don’t worry! My special Pinkie cage is one hundred percent harmless. It’s full of fluff and balloon.”

“Yes… remind us, darling, why you had this… cage lying around behind the spa?” Rarity raised a delicate eyebrow at her friend.

Twilight, Applejack and Rainbow Dash all seemed to secretly agree, but knew better than to ask.

“You never know when you might need it.” She shrugged, before reaching into the cage and pulling out a now recovered alicorn.
Struggling against the grip, he only managed to entangle himself more.

“Hey! What gives?!” The colt protested loudly, fighting the elastic restraints as best as he could.

For a second, Rainbow Dash wondered why watching him squirm was not more satisfying. After the annoyance that had been giving him chase, she had expected a least a little joy at being done, but no, this was not really fun. If anything, it reminded her of Scootaloo when the filly decided to be difficult.

She couldn’t decide if that was a bad influence or a good one.

But it mattered not, as Twilight took the opportunity to step up and finally get a chance to talk to the kid.

“Alright, now that we have your attention, Blade, can we please talk? The royal guards will be here soon and-”

She was interrupted by a loud crack of thunder.

Surprised, the ponies all exchanged a glance and tried to spot who could have triggered a storm cloud for no reason. However, their endeavors were cut short by a much louder sound, of a volume they had learned to associate with a certain royal pony of the night. The tone used left no doubt about the intention behind them either.

“LET HIM GO!”

Bluff

At first, James had simply called his name. He had not gotten any answer with this method and thus, had been tempted to simply let his son blow off some steam. After all, he had seen the look on his face when Linda had made that remark.

It had been a look of pure pain, of the emotional variety.

That he had holed himself up wasn’t all that surprising. Tom would have done the same and, despite the protests from one or the other of his sons, they were quite similar.

“Sammy?” He asked again, knocking gently.

There had been a bit of muttering, muffled by the locked door. Thus, James hadn’t been able to make out his son’s words, but there was a certain rhythm to them.

Sam was probably listening to a bit of music. If so, then the chances of his words being heard were slim.

“Please Sammy, can we talk? I really think we should.” He had sounded hopeful, even timid if one would be willing to believe.

His eldest son had remained unresponsive. With a sigh and a bit of disappointment running through his mind, James had left him alone for the rest of the evening. If he wasn’t willing to try, then little could be done to convince Sam to open up.

Perhaps a good night of rest would defuse him somewhat.

Shoulders slumping, the father had decided to go to bed early, not having the heart to stay awake much longer.

Linda was already asleep too.

Ever since Tom’s… Tom’s… d-disappearance… their household had lost all its energy and liveliness. It seemed as if everyone of them had broken off their bonds with one another. Linda had appeared to be the taking it the worst… at first. Now he couldn’t tell which one of his remaining family members would break.

Sleep did not come easily. It was a fleeting thing these days. Too long to come, too quick to leave, and sometimes showing him images too horrible to think upon once awake.

Tonight was no exception and he woke up with a hazed mind. His morning routine went on slowly, lacking any innovation that would require enough concentration to make him gather his wits.

It was only when he walked passed his son’s still locked door that he regained his senses.

“Sammy?” He asked, slowly turning the handle around.

It barely moved.

Worry gripping at his heart, James knocked more strongly against the wooden door, hoping to annoy his son out of bed. Without any answer of some sort, the fear grew and soon, he found himself struggling against the handle frantically. It would not give out, but he forced his grip to tighten, becoming painful to maintain. Calling for him more loudly, James finally attempted to kick the door down.

He succeeded and was presented to a sight he wished was nothing but a nightmare.

Sam’s room was devoid of human presence. There wasn’t even a sign that the bed had been occupied for the night.

And so, without even the need to make a few calls to confirm it, the father knew that one more son was lost.

James’s bitter chuckle filled the room, as he thought to himself that, for once, he would have liked for his children to be a bit more different.

“Now, now, where is she?” The entity muttered, taking out a giant watch out of a bushel of fruits. “I believe it is tea time.”

With a hit of his claw, he forced the locked door of the cottage open, enjoying the horrified realization on his rival’s face.

Scowling like no other before him, Angel threw the first object to fall in its paw, namely a carrot.

That made him chuckle. “Oh oh, I believe, my dear Angel, that it has been at least seven thousand years since I was last assaulted with veggies. And even then, there had been no killing intent behind it.”

Shrugging aside the insignificant pet, the visitor set foot into the cottage, intent on finding Fluttershy. Oh, he could have simply flashed right by her side, but that tended to get an irritated squeak of shock every time. Normally, that would have been reason enough to do it again, but this was his friend. He supposed there had to been downsides to friendship.

However, when he could not find her in her own home, he began to grow impatient.

And as such, he closed his eyes to feel the veins of magic. Those current of natural energy that ran through the fabric of their universe always helped channel energy and, as luck would have it, every type of pony left their signatures into these currents.

Discord did not predict what he would see.

“Well… isn’t that interesting?”

The search had taken the better part of the afternoon. Applejack had been the one to find him, holed up in the ground somewhere outside Ponyville. It was lucky she had, Tom might not have followed another pony. He seemed pretty mad at Rainbow Dash about a chase, if I understood Twilight’s explanation right, and Pinkie Pie… well… he was probably still ashamed of what had happened.

When I saw him on her back, red lines coursing in his eyes from his own sadness, my mouth dried up and words of relief could not be pronounced. I was trying, and failing, to see eye to eye with him.

He turned around when Applejack got closer. At this, Rarity winced, looking pained for me. Why? I don’t deserve that.

“Well,” she said, gathering the attention of us all, “I believe the guards are waiting in front of the town hall. It would be best not to let any further delay derail our task, wouldn’t you say?”

The other mares nodded in agreement, even if Pinkie seemed to narrow her eyes at me.

“Agreed.” Twilight took the lead, taking the direction of the center of Ponyville.

I walked at the back of the herd, hardly able to keep up my head hung high enough to see in front of me. A gnawing shame was feasting inside my heart and I could not make it shrink.

I… those words… they had been true. I wouldn’t have lied to scold him of all things, but really, did that matter? I had sworn to protect him, yet I had been the one to hurt him the most.

Argh! Distractions! I need distractions! I really did not want to think about this anymore.

For a second, I thought about making small talk with the girls, but that required me to be a little less nauseous. The idea slipped out of my mind quickly anyway. A simple examination of my surroundings managed to do it for me.

This… this place is amazing… The show did not translate half of the atmosphere of Ponyville. Now that the small storm had passed, the sun had started to shine again on the town. To add to the experience, with the remnants of the rain, everything seemed to take on a new light.

Vibrant, so vibrant with life was the town of the heroines. Many ponies were still barricaded inside, waiting for the rain to subside, but as it stood, there were already quite a few making late errands and greeting the Mane Six as they passed us by.

A few glanced Tom’s ways, curious as to the little colt’s apparent lack of energy, for once, but a lot more were sending inquisitive looks in my direction.

Pushed by some weird impulse at the back of my mind, I acknowledged each one of those with a gracious nod and smile. Why? I seriously had no idea…

I kept these thoughts to myself however, as Rarity had finally broken the awkward silence we had been bathing in. Inaudibly, I breathed a sigh of relief at the diminishing tension.

The subject discussed had little importance to me – fashion, what else? –, but anything was a nice break from the constant accusations thrown at me.

A few times, I caught the glance Twilight sent my way. The first two times it happened, she averted her gaze quickly enough. So much that I could not gather much from just these fleeting scarce seconds. The third time however…

Our eyes met. They truly did. For a brief moment, the rest of the world stopped existing, as there were just the two of us, seeing each other. Nothing but her own judgment of me and I was struggling to keep up, as fear had started to freeze my legs. Surely, this would end up in one more disaster.

Unaware of my internal dilemma, she kept it up for just a smidgen longer. Then, her lips formed a small smile and through it, she managed to carry a simple, yet comforting message: “Everything will be fine”.

To say I was shocked was an understatement. Only through an extreme exercise of will did I manage not to stare with my mouth hanging.

Her attention returned to her friends quickly, but it left a lasting impression.

A small flame of hope had been lifted in my chest, spreading a little warmth to the rest of my body. It even allowed me to look up at things with a slightly less pessimistic nature. All too naturally, my gaze went from the mares to my brother.

Just wait, Tom. I promise things will get better between us again.

We stepped into the town square at about that moment. That, in itself, was fine, as was suddenly finding myself in a much more open space than the narrow alleys we had gotten ourselves out of, following Tom’s locating. No, what disturbed me was the sight of four chariots attached to eight winged ponies. Each one of them were wearing golden armors, leaving little doubt as to their allegiances.

My guts twisted with newly born anxiety. They were going to take Tom and me in front of Celestia. How would she react?

Rainbow Dash sprinted forward, making the first contact between the stallions and the mare being part of our escort. “’Sup, dudes?”

Typical Rainbow Dash.

To my amusement though, I caught sight of Applejack rolling her eyes as well.

“Greetings, Miss Dash. Are you and your friends ready for departure?” A stallion whose left cheek was decorated by a scar spoke with a calm and very firm voice. No doubt the captain of that small group of soldiers.

“Yeah, we’re good.” Dash nodded. “We just had to catch the little guy first.”

“Very good, then we will depart immediately. Take a seat ins-” He stopped.

Looking straight at me. With his eyes struggling not to flicker toward either my forehead or my back. That’s my cue.

Clearing my throat, I stepped forward, doing my best to put on a show of regality. “Pleased to meet you. My name is Ventus Vinco and I am the older brother of the colt the Princess requested the presence of. Princess Twilight Sparkle thought it judicious that I accompany them, as my presence could solve mysteries that would otherwise plague that meeting.”

Well, that was the most pompous I could manage. I just hope that’s enough.

“I… see…” He said slowly, narrowing his gaze at my alicorn attributes. If he hadn’t connected the dots, then I was a dog. “Then, as I was saying, please take place in a chariot, in groups of two.”

Obediently, the mares all moved as one toward the vehicles, with me following Applejack closely. My eyes were transfixed on Tom, who had taken to sulking in silence. It was one of those rare occurrences.

Not good… I gulped down nervously, mind filled with terrible scenarios.

Nonetheless, I made my way to the nearest chariot. Obviously, I wanted to sit in the one that Tom was going to be in.

Not… everypony saw it that way.

“What?! No way! He’s not sitting with him.” I turned, recognizing Pinkie’s voice. She was talking to Twilight… vehemently. “He said all those mean things to Bladey!”

My ears drooped down. I’m aware, yes.

“Pinkie, this is truly not the right moment for this.” Her friend sighed in annoyance. “And really, as far as we’re concerned, he is Calx’s legal guardian.”

“Blade…” Tom mumbled, proving he, at least, was hearing some of this. That he did not protest on anything else was just a little disheartening.

“Ah dunno, gals. Aren’t you afraid the kid’ll try to fly away ‘soon as he gets the chance?” Applejack looked between Tom and me, trying to gauge each of our reactions.

Good luck, I’m putting on as much of a poker face I can and Tom is sulking.

“I… must object as well.” Fluttershy took a step toward Twilight and Pinkie. “T-that scolding just wasn’t right.”

That one was a blow to my guts. Again.

“Oh darling…” Rarity sighed in the most overly dramatic fashion. “We do not even know context and they were clearly overjoyed to see each other the first time. No, I believe we are blowing this issue out of proportions.”

I almost chuckled at that. To hear that from a drama queen must really put things into perspective. Also… Whoa… girls fighting over me. I just wish there was more jello. Even though I did think that, I was all but amused OR casual about it. None of the mares were backing down.

“Ladies.” The older of the guardspony stepped forward. “We must go back to the Princess’ castle as soon as possible. There is no time for disputes on riding partners. If he is the colt’s guardian, then they will ride together.”

And, just as Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie opened their mouths to protest, he added: “No backtalking allowed.”

“Alright, Pinkie Promise not to scream like that again!” She bounced back to me, eyes narrowed.

Something about that really pissed me off. Yes, I had screwed up, but she was starting to make it sound like I had enjoyed it. If she kept it up, the only thing I would be enjoying was giving her a black eye.

My tone was unnaturally cold when I answered. “I made a vow to protect and help my brother to the best of my abilities the moment he was born. Do not imply I am only waiting that your backs are turned to reduce him to tears!”

Though the others flinched, Pinkie kept up her glare. Neither of us were backing down. In the end, Applejack had to step in and direct Pinkie to a carriage she would share with her.

This settled that. My heart was still boiling with fury, but I forced my face to show little resentment and a great deal more calm than I felt.

Carefully, as if it was natural, I lifted Tom with my magic and gently put him into the chariot.

The fact that I was apparently an expert at this unsettled me. Specifically, it felt as if my body controlled my brain and not the opposite. Impulses felt as if they had been born into my horn rather than my brain. Really, that was exactly like me picking up a guitar and pulling off the hardest song I could think of, with the impression that a ghostly force was moving my hands. Creepy…

Shivers running down my spine, I took a few steps and sat down, finally letting the whole gravity of our predicament crash down on me. I barely noticed the yank that went through me as the guards took off.

We were stuck in another world. A whole new world. We weren’t humans anymore, not in the physical sense, maybe not even in the mental sense if all those weird rewiring were any indication…

Heck, Tom was a blue foal sulking on the bottom of a carriage pulled by two sentient pegasus. The only two words that made sense together in that sentence were “Tom” and “sulking”.

A little chuckle escaped my mouth, reminded of times when an ice cream cone would make me his best friend forever again instantly. Of course, he had been about five at the time, so the tactics weren’t quite the same as today.

Case in point, Tom sent me a glare for that. I could see that he thought I was mocking him.

The second I opened my mouth, he turned away, preferring to look at the other carriages transporting the girls. I was left at a lost. I didn’t know how to mend that. I never screwed up so badly with him before…

Silence passed and stretched between us. By now, we were well over the clouds. At this altitude, the wind was completely stroking our fur. The sensation was surprisingly pleasant, like the gentle touch of a mother comforting her child.

Mom… My heart constricted. I… I had abandoned her, hadn’t I? Her and Dad, they were back home… and they had no idea where we were…

A powerful urge pushed at me, willing us to just go back already. The impulse reached at the core of my being, I felt it course through my veins, this desire to be reunited with my whole family…

And it led to nothing, except more heartache. We couldn’t just disappear like this, I doubted I would have the time to perform the ritual with them looking for us. I had no idea what could go wrong with that thing if it was interrupted. No… we had to do our best to fit in until the right moment to leave presented itself.

Until then, I had to keep our family from falling apart, starting with the one and only little brother I had.

“Tom?” I nudged him, hoping to get him to stop sulking already.

As I took a better look at his face though, I was shocked to realize his traits expressed more sorrow than petulant anger.

He turned to me, shaky on his hooves and looking up hesitantly. When he opened his mouth to speak, his voice came out as weaker and much quieter than usual.

“I-is it true that Mom and Dad are really sad because of me?”

For a moment, my own voice failed me, stuck in my throat. I did not want to make him feel this sort of guilt. It wasn’t my role. I was supposed to help him.

But maybe this was the kind of help he needed at the moment.

Nonetheless, a weight pushed down on my mind when I nodded.

His lips started to quiver and he took a step away from me.

“I-I’m sorry,” he squeaked with a tiny voice.

The way he twisted and squirmed on his hooves, I could tell he was terribly ashamed. He even refused to meet my gaze, which triggered something inside me. Obeying my first instinct, I pulled him closer, into a hug.

A part of me died when he flinched, exactly like he would if he had been burned.

I did my best not to let it filter through my voice. “It’s okay, Tom.”

I held him, in silence, hoping that this small reprise would not end so badly. Alas, my little brother had other insecurities.

“D-do you really think I’m selfish?” Had I not been so close, straining my ears to catch any sign of trouble, I wouldn’t have heard him at all.

Tom truly feared he had been just as I had told him: a selfish brat.

“I think…” I bit my lower lips in my hesitation. “You didn’t think ahead, not long enough…”

He understood it as the admittance it was. His hooves squeezed me harder and he showed no desire to break out of my hug at any time soon. So I let him, I made myself a rock for him to rest against, to absorb his tears and his fears, to allow him a chance to grow. Whispering some comforting words in his ears, I closed my eyes and folded my wings over him.

“I love you, Tom. I promise I’ll never leave you.”

“I’m sorry,” he said again, sobbing.

“Shhh.” I patted his back and nuzzled him a bit more, chest warming up with the strong feelings of love coursing in my veins. “Don’t worry. It’s already forgiven.”

This moment would forever be engraved into my mind as perfect.

We were together, truly, for the first time since this had started.

It felt right.

Things weren’t quite right.

“Dear, are you feeling fine?” Rarity’s voice came to her ears.

“Oh, it’s… nothing, Rarity. Really.” Even to herself that sounded very unconvincing, so to her perceptive friend…

“It’s about Ventus and his little brother, right?” Dead on.

Twilight sighed, knowing she could not put off this conversation much longer. Besides, perhaps it would ease her worries to share her thoughts with her friend.

“Yes. I find them… intriguing, Ventus especially.”

To her surprise, the white unicorn smiled coyly. “Well, he certainly isn’t a bad looking stallion, with his lustrous white flowing mane or his turquoise eyes. Oh, and don’t get me started on his mu-”

“No, it’s not like that!” Twilight quickly interrupted that sentence, before her cheeks could start coloring with embarrassment.

“Is that so?” Rarity gave her a knowing look, and the way she had pronounced her words managed to worm itself through her barriers.

Well, she thought, he isn’t bad looking, fine, but that is really not the point!

“Yes. My interest has nothing to do with attraction,” the lavender alicorn said, perhaps with a little bit too much conviction to be truly believable. She had to ignore her friend’s expression of skepticism to continue. “There are a few details I could not explain.”

Rarity rolled her eyes, almost scoffing. “A few? He knew us by name without introductions, though that could be explained if he had heard us interact, I have never heard of nicknames such as Tom or Sam, his tone of voice is off whenever he speaks like royalty, I noticed him stumbling on thin air once or twice already and he sometimes hesitate before replying with a vague and non-committing answer.”

The complete list made Twilight’s jaw drop and she stumbled upon her words, in a mix of indignation and shock. “B-but… you…”

“I was simply teasing you, darling.” The unicorn placed a hoof on her friend’s shoulder.

“Oh.” Twilight breathed a sigh of relief, but before she could continue, Rarity laughed quietly.

“The fact that it let me express my opinion of this handsome alicorn was simply an added bonus.”

Author's Note

Fuel for the brony ire added. I really have no idea how the fandom would react if a character such as Sam were to appear. What do you think? Something like...:
"Conflicted feelings about the episode. On one hand, obvious Author's Saving Throw, another alicorn out of nowhere, and Pinkie defending mini-Stu number one. On the other, mini-stu is verbally bitch-slapped times five, cute moment, and Princess Celestia soon."

But seriously, no idea as to what that would look like.

Before Royalty

I felt a shiver, sudden and obviously not attributable to the wind. It felt as if I was being watched… with six mares having nothing better to do than kill time, it was a very real possibility that one of them had decided to stare a hole into my head.

With a feeling of foreboding, I did my best to ignore it, instead turning to Tom.

That hug had lasted a certain number of minutes, sure, but after a while, it had started to grow awkward. Now we were talking about his experience in Equestria so far.

“Are you serious?! You saw?!” The big ass grin on his face told me this was really just a rhetorical question.

“We sure did,” I said, ruffling his mane. “We saw that time you got outside the town hall to say loud and clear that you are the stuff. So it was rather hard not to notice.”

“AWESOME!” He shouted, jumping in the air and flapping his wings. “I’M PART OF THE SH-”

My hoof covered his mouth.

“Mfow?” He tilted his head, looking at me with big eyes. My grin had frozen on my face a bit and not only because he had almost doomed us all.

Case in point, wet liquid spreading all over my hoof. Lovely.

“Let’s not talk about this while we’re here, okay?”

Slowly, he nodded, though his little body was still shaking with excitement. Even as I slid my hoof out of his mouth, I had to hold him down with my wings.

“Relax.” I chuckled. “We’re not arriving anytime soon and you don’t want to get too excited in a flying carriage, do you? We don’t have that much space to play.”

Tom snorted, looking at me with a cheeky, cocky grin. I certainly hadn’t expected him to react this way to reasonable advice.

“Yeah, just the whole SKY!” He ran up to the side of the cart, extending his wings wide.

At the sight, my heart skipped a beat. The irrational part of me sent electrifying impulses throughout my entire body, pumping blood through my arteries with enough force for me to feel its rhythmic strength.

To my unending relief though, he did not jump, just looked at the sky with a bit of a goofy grin. The fact that he wanted to soar through the air… it made me acutely aware of the distance between us and the ground.

Oh crap… we’re really flying. Over the cloud. In a small chariot. Without seatbelts. My face froze with fear. Do not want.

I was never really good with heights, really.

So, logically, I grabbed and pulled him away from the edge of that chariot. “Let’s not cause trouble for the girls and the guards, okay?”

“Huh, yeah, sure.” He shrugged, clearly not caring much about that.

I held in a sigh. That much told me how much work I had cut out for me. Let’s work on that empathy, ‘kay Tom-tom?

“Right, why don’t we talk about your visit some more?” My voice sounded strained. He picked it up instantly. “I… huh… I saw that time with Rarity and Pinkie.”

“Oh…” His ears drooped and he crouched down, almost going flat against the floor.

“I…” My words got stuck in my throat. Was he… afraid of me? “Tom…”

Lowering myself to his level, I gave a small smile. At that, my little brother’s muscles relaxed and his figure quickly started to look less tense. “I-it wasn’t on purpose, promise!”

Part of me almost wanted to be angry for his recklessness, but, really, I couldn’t. Instead of boiling, my heart was calm and light. I just wanted to chuckle.

“It’s fine, Tom,” I said, ruffling a hoof through his mane. “I think you’ve learned your lesson already.”

The poor kid’s eyes were wide with surprise. Likewise, I could taste the disbelief in his words next. “You’re not mad at all?”

“A little disappointed, maybe…” I grimaced, looking away, though not quickly enough to miss the wince he had in response. “I know you tried to apologize. That’s already a good thing.”

“Yeah…”

Cue the awkwardness again. Good job, Sam. I had to mentally applaud myself for that one.

“Hey, it’s fine. Come here and tell me more. I’m sure you’ve had some awesome adventures while your big bro was left in the dust.”

He took my self-derision in stride, instantly going from humble to smug. He was almost parading like a little peacock. “Well, duh!”

I chuckled. That was the little brother I had been missing.

The wind slapped her cheek again. It wasn’t very painful, but the sensation was unpleasant.

At altitudes like this one, her flowing pink mane had more disadvantages than advantages. Oh, she liked it that way, very much, and wouldn’t dream of insulting Mister Sharp Cut by changing it. Still, there were a few times it was a bit annoying.

Fluttershy never craved flight like most pegasi. It had added to her… inadequate technique, early on, the laughs, the scolding a-and… the bullying.

It had put her on edge, to hear that booming voice, the same tone of anger…

Why couldn’t you do it?! It was such a simple exercise and you blew it! Do you not realize how badly that reflects on your father’s career?!

The poor mare suppressed a shudder, instead keeping her eyes focused on Rainbow Dash. Or, at least she tried to, but soon enough, a strange thing distracted Fluttershy.

Foalish chuckles rang to her ears.

She… knew that voice… but, wasn’t he…?

In her surprise, she could not help but turn her head toward the carriage in the middle of their formation. The sudden cries from her friend were ignored in her hurry. Her whole attention was focused toward the scene presented to her eyes.

The golden alicorn was holding a hoof toward the guards pulling their chariot, pretending to be completely overpowered by his little brother. The effect was particularly ruined by the lack of serious and acting talent from every party involved, but that mattered very little.

Something healed up in her chest. It felt like a bit of heat had spread from her chest to the rest of her body. It was… nice.

A soft smile took place on her lips. Perhaps Twilight had been right. Everything would be just fine.

The rest of the trip to Canterlot ended up taking the better time of the day. The twilight of the day’s end was tainting the sky orange and red by the time our carriage landed. Princess Celestia was probably about to retire for the night and let Luna take care of stuff…

“Get down immediately, so you can be escorted to the throne room.”

Or not.

“Sure!” Tom replied, jumping off our carriage as soon as he had heard the order. “I can’t wait to meet Celestia! I bet she’s even cooler in person!”

“Hold on there, Sugarcube.” Applejack called, bemused.

“Huh?” He stopped in mid-run, turning over to her, and, by proxy, the rest of the Mane Six who were all putting their own hooves onto the firm ground.

“Didn’t you say you were her secret apprentice an’ all? How come you never met her before, then?”

The words having punched a hole in his claims with all the brutality of a manticore, Tom stared at her with wide eyes and an open mouth. He really looked like a deer caught in a heads light.

“I believe you know the answer to that question, Applejack,” I said lightly, taking pity on my poor baby brother.

“Yah, figures…” The mare rolled her eyes, a tiny smile on her face.

With a chuckle, I tapped Tom’s side gently and brought his attention back to the guards who were waiting impassively, body as still as stone statues.

My eyes fell onto their highest ranked officer and I barely perceived the slight nod he offered me before leading the way to Celestia’s throne room.

The architecture itself was… oppressive. From a purely objective point of view, it seemed rather simple and truly only remarkable in the expert craftsmanship decorating the way to the throne room. However, I, for one, had never been in such a place in my entire life.

Paintings of incredible battles, of days and nights, of festive events and sober moments, superb in their detailed nature, breathed a life onto the otherwise grey walls. The eyes of one such character seemed to briefly meet my gaze, for but the briefest of moments.

I had to wonder if I was not the fake.

Absolutely everything about this castle was so much beyond anything I had ever dreamed of that I felt miserably out of place. My insecurities were brought to the front of my mind, while I had naught but them to contemplate.

At my side, Tom seemed equally taken by the scenery, though his wide innocent eyes held none of the misery I felt. Good. Keep up the spirit, Tom.

Behind us, the Mane Six were still engaging in some quiet conversations. Well, Fluttershy and Twilight seemed to exchange some words, the nature of which was lost onto me, but the two mares were left smiling.

Satisfied with my assessment of the situation, I tried to avert my gaze from them, but Pinkie Pie’s intense stare stopped me.

Her eyes were fixated on me, creepily so. I had rarely been gazed upon with such intensity and certainly not by what was essentially a stranger.

Shaking my head, I chased off the off-putting thoughts, rather trying to focus on the problem at hands here.

We were going to meet Celestia, in person.

How the hay are we going to get out of that one?

My guts twisted with fear at the mental admission, I was trying very hard not to pale or generally appear nauseous. What kind of suspicions would that arise? Oh yeah, the new alicorn that came out of nowhere doesn’t want to meet our benevolent ruler or her sister for reasons he refuses to explain. THAT’s not suspicious.

I could not help grimacing at the predicament in front of us. Truly, I had not the slightest idea how to spin this into an acceptable tale.

I really started to sweat when we turned around the corner and I noticed two guards standing beside an enormous ornamented door. Our guide was walking straight toward it, confirming what I had suspected.

We were arriving. The last few seconds of freedom for us if I screwed this up.

A quick greeting between the stallions in front of us was all they needed to let us enter. Protocol however dictated that the girls entered first, as known acquaintance of the Princess.

Stepping aside, both Tom and I watched all six mares make their way inside the throne room.

“Her Majesty’s guests, Princess Twilight Sparkle and the Elements of Harmony, heroines of Equestria,” a page announced loudly.

Quite at ease, the girls walked up to the throne calmly, no emotions betrayed by their movements whatsoever. Not the slightest flinch, nor the faintest hesitation; they simply made their way to their princess without trouble. They knew they were welcome.

I didn’t. Still, I couldn’t delay it further when the page then announced our own presence.

My body refused to move, an invisible pressure making my limbs too heavy to succeed. My eyes were fixated on the throne and the white figure that was waiting for us.

A tug at my leg made me look down. Tom was looking at me with a frown. “Come on, Sam! They called for us.”

Silently, I nodded and motioned toward the room.

Heart maddened, my pulse beating against the side of my head, I started to walk.

The red carpet brushed off softly against my hooves. The light shone onto my fur through the stained glasses. The air entered my lungs softly, through an immense effort of will.

Dozens of eyes were falling on us. Nobles, dignitaries, servants, journalists and royalty; so many ponies, so many judgmental gaze to gauge our reactions, our attitudes. Already, whispers were spreading at our appearances, but so few seemed receptive. At best, they were puzzled… At worst…

It was almost tempting for me to spread my wings, simply for the sake of showing them off.

They would eat their words. Yet the thought, so tempting, was pushed aside almost instantly. Too much was at stake for me to nurse my ego. Besides, Tom didn’t seem to care much, walking to the throne with a shake in his limbs and a grin on his face.

“The alicorn known as Blade Darkblaze and…” The servant stopped abruptly, unaware of my addition to the group.

Apparently, nopony had thought to send a pony ahead… Just perfect. As if it wasn’t hard enough as it was.

Dozens of emotions ran wild in my head, from the most abject of fear to the purest of awe, and keeping an outwardly strong composure had never been so hard.

The throne was just a few meters away from our position. I was looking up, to the being that had requested my brother’s presence, and for whom I had had to delay our return to our universe.

For the first time in my life, I met Royalty, the god-like ruler of Equestria, monarch through divine right. Not arisen from her throne, Princess Celestia awaited visitors, lone figure in the immense gallery.

But what a figure it was. For a moment, the stallion I had become felt his mouth dry out at the sight of her incredibly well-sculpted body. White coat purer than the fresh snow, lustrous mane of the many sacred colors of the sky and slender form of grace, Princess Celestia was the most beautiful mare I had ever seen in my life.

My heart skipped a beat.

Then restarted as we got closer to see the one feature I had instantly started daydreaming about. My breath was cut short when my wish was granted and I got to see them…

Her eyes… they were the eyes of someone very old. They carried the weight of millennia of suffering and restless efforts, of love stolen away and friendship lost through time. That same weight fell on me, with its full intensity bearing a hole into my skull.

My hind legs gave out under me, bringing me into sitting position. It was as if my whole body had gotten heavier to a point I couldn’t support it.

I looked up to Princess Celestia, my heart overwhelmed by contradicting sentiments. I had been humbled by the sight of her alone.

I bowed my head respectfully.

“Princess.” My voice was hoarse, thick with emotion.

“Hey, Celestia! How are you doing?”

A wave of indignation rippled through me and the rest of the crowd. For freak’s sake, TOM!

Before I had the time to snap at him though, a motherly chuckle filled the air.

“My, what a bold foal,” Princess Celestia said with an indulgent smile. “I am feeling quite well, thank you.”

Tom puffed his chest at her words. It was positively adorable. And cringe worthy. “You’re welcome!”

Luckily, it seemed as if the crowd had taken it as an endearing scene, rather than a blatant offense toward their ruler. Celestia’s reaction probably accounted for that.

“So you are the mysterious colt I have heard so much about all week long?”

“Yup!” He neighed, his wings flaring into extended position. “That was me! And that’s my big bro, Sam!”

Princess Celestia almost seemed sorry when she spoke next.

“I am afraid I have never heard of either of you before.”

Silence fell.

The admittance of their princess’ ignorance had shocked any and all whispering amongst the crowd, as well as within the ranks of the Mane Six. Most of all, Twilight’s jaw had dropped and her eyes had widened, to an almost comical extent.

Rarity’s gaze seemed almost inquisitive, silently asking questions I could not hear, while Applejack, Pinkie and Rainbow Dash were all wearing puzzled frowns.

Fluttershy’s mask was unreadable.

The stares were heavy, a few downright hostile. Breathing seemed plain difficult with such pressure on us.

I looked up to her. “May I speak, Princess?”

“You may,” she said, graciously lowering her gaze on me.

Exhaling deeply, I stood up on my hooves, ignoring the growing knot in my throat threatening to suffocate me.

“My name is Ventus Vinco and this is my little brother, Calx Iugum.” I heard a scoff from Tom at that. I could not refrain from rolling my eyes and sighing. “…Whom you may also refer as Blade Darkblaze, if you wish.”

“Hay yeah!” Tom pumped a hoof, which brought a small laugh out of me.

The rest were a bit scandalized by this lack of decorum. It was worrying me quite a bit too… I made sure to lay it on thick with the formal attitude and tone of voice.

“We are the Alicorn of Wind and the Alicorn of Earth, away from our loved ones, but honored to meet one of the two Royal Pony Sisters.”

“Okay, hold on a minute!” A brash voice cut in my explanation, causing a shocked whisper to spread amongst the nobles.

“Yes, Rainbow Dash?” The princess turned to the cyan pegasus, as if she hadn’t grossly interjected into a formal event.

But Rainbow Dash had either not noticed or she didn’t care. Her eyes were all on me and they translated a great deal of annoyance. “You’re telling me there are even more alicorns out there?! I thought you guys were supposed to be super rare!”

Fear gripped my heart.

That was an echo of a rant I could read all too often in the fandom, whenever a new alicorn had been revealed. For a moment, the images of the daredevil was replaced by an entire fandom, breathing down my neck and asking for my disappearance.

…And that of Tom.

My veins filled with ice and a desire to snap her neck. I would not let that happen.

But my revitalized anger provided me with no courage to speak up. The slightest of slip-up might earn us a trip to the recycle bin, retconned out of existence and though a monster had a grip on my heart, it still desired continued existence...

Hesitating, I looked up to Celestia, whose only gesture was to nod. The exact same she had given me when I had asked permission to talk.

She was giving me the task to explain it all.

We’re doomed… Sorry Tom.

“We…” My guts twisted under an icy grip. “We are astral alicorns.”

“What?” Rainbow Dash blinked.

‘What?’ Indeed, RD. I have no idea what I’m saying. “There are other realms of existence beyond this one, Rainbow Dash. One such realm is the one where the forces of guidance, alicorns, are born. Such occurrences, rare as they may be, have allowed Harmony to persist into your world.”

Before continuing my speech, I shot a glance at Tom, who seemed completely lost. He probably assumed I would say we were humans. I simply thanked every lucky star I could think of that he was either shocked silent or smart enough not to interrupt.

“Your Princess and her sister have both come from this realm into your world in order to guide ponykind into a golden age of peace and prosperity.”

“Alright, I can buy that, but why are you two here, then?” Applejack gave us an annoyed glare, reacting to what I assumed was an implied insult against either their ability to sustain themselves or that of their princesses to guide them.

“Thank my little brother for that.” I scowled, glaring at him.

It had enough of an effect to make him shrink on himself, offering a sheepish smile. “Sorry?”

“Calx had decided to visit this world, whom he had heard had the most love and friendship of them all. Unfortunately, he did so without permission. Else he would have been told that there are good reasons why astral alicorns keep to themselves.”

“Is that so?” Rarity joined in on the fray, clearly curious.

“Yes. As I mentioned, alicorns are creature of guidance, but Harmony requires more than that. For there to be balance, there needs an opposing force to the order an alicorn brings.”

I saw comprehension dawn on her face, as it did on some others.

A part of me was glad they bought my story, but… Someone will call me out. There has to be at least one historian or something here. All my knowledge of their world comes from a children’s show. And if they do buy it thoroughly… well, I think I just made us bringer of disaster. Great job, Sam.

“I apologize on behalf of our elders, who did not foresee the possibility of my brother breaking the veil between our world and creating a portal here. Such a task should have proven beyond his capacities, but our father’s Cape of Ancient Power went missing the same day.” I finished my explanation through gritted teeth.

If possible, Tom looked even more sheepish, innocent and angel-like. It was nice to see someone had taken his acting lessons to heart. At least, my advices and techniques had not been lost through the ages.

“In fact, I believe that for an inconvenience such as that one, the safeguarding of that artifact should befall your hooves, Princess.”

Finally looking back at her, I realized that her silence had been suspiciously saving our butts in more ways than one. A word from her could have destroyed each and every one of my lies.

On her throne, the white alicorn had not moved.

Why aren’t you saying anything? I’m lying out of my ass here! You can’t not know that! Why aren’t you saying anything?

Her eyes were on me; they betrayed nothing.They reflected the barest amount of light. It… almost made me think they were… glassy.

W-what game are you playing, Celestia?

Shattered Wall

“Of course, Princess Luna and I will take great care of this artifact, until the Elders judge it better to recover.” She rose from her throne and took a few steps toward us.

Each step was punctuated by a clang of metal, between the armor she was wearing and the stony stairs before us. Each step resonated with one of my heartbeat.

I did my best to appear regal. I did not think I really succeeded. Not next to her.

She was taller than me, by at least one head. On even ground, I still had to look up to her. At this distance though, my senses were assaulted by a wide variety of new information. The flow of her mane created the slightest of breeze, comfortably warm. Sparkles flew out of the multicolor hair, adding to the ethereal aspect of her being. Her scent was reminiscent of a nice day of summer where everyone simply wanted to tan.

Heat nested in my chest and in my cheeks, making me quite squirmy, so close to her.

…I am checking out a pony princess... This is actually happening… again. Darn those are nice flanks!

Status update: disturbed.

She then proceeded to lean toward Tom, which… gave me… a nice… errh… view. She is definitely trolling me. “Then, Sir Blade, will you hand me over that cape?”

Wow, Princess Celestia was good. Asked so nicely, by one of his favorite ponies no less, the demand was that much harder for him to deny.

“Do I have to?” He pouted, his tone turning a bit whiny and pitiful.

It hit a chord in me, but I suspected Celestia had more than enough experience in dealing with children.

“Yes, it would be much safer with me. You would not want ill-events happening to your father’s cape, would you?”

“No…” Tom trailed off, looking away not to see the calm encouragement in her eyes. If he did not see her, then he would not feel guilty for not handing it over.

“Well then?” Celestia pressed again, still as patient and serene as ever.

“…Fine…” He pouted, sighed and slumped, all in one swift motion.

With a sad bite, he untied the knot keeping the cape on his back. The piece of fabric slid off his back, to his great regret.

Then something strange happened.

Just as the cape was about to hit the ground, an impulse went through my body, to reach forward, to take the item for myself. Magic seemed to radiate off from it in waves, an invisible temptation that rippled through the air and grabbed my attention.

Want.

“Oooh, shiny!” somepony cut me off, snatching the cape before I could make a move for it.

“Pinkie, what are you doing?!” Twilight hissed, eyes narrowed at her friend’s antics.

“Hey girls, try to guess who I am!” the pink mare joked, putting on the cape and posing. “Ah’m gonna get mah Cutie Mark!”

I let out a nervous snort at that and a few ponies turned toward me in response. “ My apologies,” I quickly added.

“Pinkie, that’s not a toy!”

But her friend did not seem very focused on what she was saying. Rather, Pinkie’s eyes seemed lost, staring into empty space with a blank expression. “Oh, what is that door?”

Twilight reached for the cape, intent on taking it off her friend’s back, but to the shock of most, me included, Pinkie… vanished into thin air…

W-what? I blinked.

The whole court seemed to just freeze in time. Nopony had the slightest idea of what had happened, I would bet my tail on it.

Almost everypony.

Next to me, a thundering stomp sent my eardrums on the verge of ripping. Pain literally threatened to split my head in two.

In a blinding flash of light, Pinkie had reappeared next to Twilight, eyes woozy and going off in opposite directions in circular motions.

“Oh girls, it was so strange. There was this wall, beyond the fabric of time and space and it-”

“Pinkamina Diane Pie.” Princess Celestia’s voice filled the court room, even as she spoke much quieter than the Royal Canterlot Voice. “Please refrain from behaving in such ways in the future.”

The mare was quick to offer a sheepish smile as an apology. “Okey dokey, your Majesty.”

With a very small sigh, the princess called upon her magic, making her horn glow a golden light and enveloping the cape in the same aura. The artifact imploded with a small, ridiculous ‘pop’. Had I not been convinced that had to be a teleporting spell, I would have stared with wide eyes.

“Now that this small problem has been taken care of…” The white alicorn turned back to us again.

I had to fight with everything I had not to cower in shame for lying in her face. She knows. She’s just playing along. She has to.

“Would you please expand on your reasons for coming here, Ventus?”

Repressing yet another urge to show my guilt, this time by gulping loudly, I made a show of careful formality. “As you wish, Princess.”

She acknowledged my statement with the faintest of nod, before returning to her throne.

“I descended into Equestria in an attempt to retrieve my brother from your country before his stay had unintended consequences. However, due to the nature of his little trip, I had been unaware of his arrival in Equestria before recently. As such, I have yet to spend a complete day in your kingdom, while I believe a week has passed since Calx made it here.”

“My faithful student?” the princess called, her tone slightly inquisitive.

“His statement matches with our own side of the events,” Twilight replied instantly, glancing between us and her teacher.

“I see…” Celestia’s eyes fell on Tom, intense, more so than before.

Whether dense, oblivious or just that confident, my little brother didn’t even flinch. A rush of newfound respect for him was born at that point. Now, I had to resist the desire to ruffle his unruly mane and put him in a glorious brotherly headlock.

“In that case, I would like to ask you one more question.”

Go ahead. I’m certainly not going to interrupt when you’re the only reason we’re not in a dungeon or a limbo between life and death.

“How is my dear cousin Magnus?”

I was shocked silent.

“I… beg you pardon?” What the hell are you talking about? Who is-?

“Your father,” she explained, staring intensively at me. “I would recognize that jaw anywhere.”

Images of a tall and bulky red alicorn flashed in my mind. What the…?

“I…”

“Not to mention the magic in that cape is without a doubt that of the Alicorn of Strength.” Her crystalline chuckle reached my ears. “Yes, you two are definitely his sons.”

I saw that same crimson alicorn, talking softly and comforting a smaller me. He nuzzled me, telling me everything was going to be fine. For a second, my heart flickered with joy, before horror started to crash down on me. The hell? The HELL?!

“You have guessed well, Princess.” I bowed respectfully, as much as a show of respect than an attempt to hide my quivering lips. “Magnus is indeed our father.”

My teeth were grinding together, beyond my control. A binding pain was circling my head, as more images flooded my mind. Suddenly, it was as if that alicorn had always been part of my life. Heck, I could remember in great detail the first father and son bonding activity I had with him AND Tom, but whereas the memories were heartwarming, I was all but at ease.

I was scared shitless. Something was very wrong with my brain. Fake memories? Dad wasn’t an alicorn, what the hell? Besides, that cape was invented by Tom. It couldn’t have a legacy or be recognizable either!

“Saaaaam…”

My head snapped to the right, recognizing that whiny cry of pain anywhere. My worries were blown away from that very second, instead replaced by a very real fear for Tom’s health.

I was by his side, wings lifting his chin toward me. His eyes were crunched close and his mouth was little more than a tight line at this point. “What’s wrong, buddy?”

“My head hurts… real bad, Sam…” Tears started to gather in the corner of his eyes.

Sirens and alarms started going off in my head. I was no doctor, but bad headaches could be very bad signs.

“Princess!” I turned to her, unable to hide my distress. “Please, let us adjourn this meeting so my little brother may receive medical attention!”

To my growing dismay, Princess Celestia closed her eyes mutely. She seemed to be mulling it over, debating whether or not this was important enough to delay her precious interrogation. Don’t you dare…!

“Twilight Sparkle?”

“Yes, Princess?” the lavender alicorn asked, eager to please.

“Have you and your friends bring Calx Iugum to the infirmary, immediately.”

“Yes, Princess!” Rainbow Dash saluted, half-way grinning at the idea of serving her leader’s instructions.

A flurry of colors flew inches away from my form, creating just enough wind to brush my fur. A light of recognition lit up in my brain, telling me of such occurrences when I had been that same wind, a playful and free spirit tickling airborne creatures, teasing the earthbound ones with a rather cruel streak.

I don’t understand… I don’t get it…

“Don’t worry.” I heard a gentle and quiet voice, just as its owner ran past me. Yellow and pink. “We’ll take good care of you.”

My neck twisted, so my eyes could follow her track. All six heroines were standing around my little brother. Compared to them, he looked so small, so vulnerable when he was not so boasting.

The urge to protect him rose.

Just as he was being carefully lifted by Twilight magic’s, Tom’s gaze met mine, his carrying pain intense enough to cloud it. It made me flinch. That usually lively face of his was crunched; muscles contracted less under his control than he’d like us to believe. Heck, if it had been anyone but me, I doubt he would have allowed them to see. To me, though, the words he could not say were crystal clear.

“Stay with me, Sam.”

There was no need for me to nod or even acknowledge them. It went without question that I would be with him.

A certain princess thought otherwise however and made her opinion rather clear.

“Ventus.” The word bore an urgent note to it, combined with a powerful order. “I need you to stay. There are still questions that must be asked.”

Two of my hooves still suspended in midair, halfway through the motion needed for me to start following the mares and my little brother, I reluctantly halted my progression. My eyes were on Celestia, with nothing in them but a demand I knew she could hear.

Her gaze never hardened, nor became more intense, as it already held the quality necessary for anypony to understand. I felt her compassion at my situation, as a small bout of warmth in my heart, but it was too little to help.

Chiseled…. Cracking sounds started grated my ears. Their provenance was unknown, but their echoes were not. Nails on a chalkboard, aluminum under your teeth, an incessant ringing… The more I thought about Celestia’s order, the stronger they became.

I was needed here, apparently. Great. I had to stay and entertain decadent nobility while Tom wanted me by his side. This is so pointless. Why don’t they just roll over and die while I go see Tom? It wouldn’t be so troublesome. I’d get to do what is truly important.

“Ventus,” Celestia said, with a hint of steel behind her tone.

Her gaze had hardened this time, with her delicate brows lowered and her expression stone-like. In a shadow looming over her head, I saw hellish flames and a harsh light, burning and searing straight through evil. It was aimed at me. And for her to be so guarded so suddenly… there could only be one cause.

Can you read my mind, Celestia? If you do… then really, just send us back home. It’s all I want from you and your little ponies… This is turning into a disaster… Just… help us…

“I will do as you say, Princess.” I bowed, biting back the urge to scream my anguish and my guilt to the world.

Right as I had finished talking though, an invisible pressure was lifted from my shoulders. I understood quickly when my fellow alicorn spoke, this time with a peaceful voice. “I thank you for your understanding. This is simply too important of an issue to let go unresolved.”

Yes, of course. Rarely had I felt this venomous about obeying authority before. Still, I couldn’t let this be more transparent. “Yes, of course.”

Princess Celestia glanced to her left, where a pale blue pony held a quill in his mouth, over a scroll. I saw the glint of acknowledgment in the scribe’s eyes. So did that mare.

She turned back to me, stared straight at me and solemnly opened her mouth to speak. For some troubling precious seconds though, I could have sworn she had almost choked on her words. “Please, tell me. How old are you?”

The question made me blink. I had to admit, that wasn’t the kind of thing I thought I would be questioned on, unless I wanted to visit a bar.

Random number under a thousand… “I will turn four-hundred and twenty-six on the day of the next solar eclipse, Princess.”

My vision blurred.

A mare. I could see a mare. Not that mind-blowingly sexy Celestia, but a simple, tomboyish mare with a straw hanging on her lower lips.

I thought she was pretty, with a crescent moon Cutie Mark and a cream colored coat. It… suited her. Remarkably, she had this aura… this part of her that grabbed the gaze and held it on her.

No, I was wrong. It was not a mare, but the image of a mare, seen through a cloud of dust that changed shape and form. An endless void, whose only goal seemed to swallow the light of the stars, surrounded the cloud, made a blanket of magic over my shoulders.

I still had hooves, wings and a horn. I was alone though. Alone with just a few glimpse of a possible friend for sole company.

Suns moved in the dark sky, moons turned red then blue and winds brushed against the face of endless planets. The passing of time had lost meaning. It could not be defined anymore, but I knew I wished it to end, to change… oh so many times.

The void outside was a great reflection of what was inside me.

But I was also wrong, in that I thought it was just one mare. Dozens of ponies, of all sizes and colors, flashed before my eyes, each more unique than the next, each close to my heart just through timid observation.

They called to the winds, look at the sky with tenderness and asked for a little favor. Always granted, for they saw the sky as a great place. Each thought was a little fragment of kindness to rub on that gaping wound in my being. A little more loved, a little less lonely.

Was it cheating? Yes, but what my parents hadn’t known wouldn’t shame them. I suspected Mother knew of my meddling even then, but kept quiet. Besides, though forbidden, I was simply helping ponies with their lives. What did it matter that I granted a few some extras for the duration of their short lives?

Every single one of them died of old age, years before my descent into Equestria.

Oh Elders, I was going to start tearing up. Why did I have to think of th-?

THE HELL?!

“I… see… and your brother?”

The question flew right over my head. I could not process it. The world was spinning around me, too big and too small, oppressive and free, unstable and unmoving... What was going on? What was happening to me?

What is the meaning of this? I’m… what’s my REAL name? Which one is it? It’s… huh… Sam Miller…right? RIGHT?! “Sixty-three.”

Something lit up in her gaze, something tragic. Princess Celestia seemed… distressed. I barely caught her words, as my attention was almost entirely on my own troubles, but I caught them nonetheless. “That long?”

“Yes.” And I knew what to say next, through some exercise of magic or an incredibly subtle intuition I had never known to possess before. “I apologize, but the Elders had voted an intervention irrelevant to your reign.”

For the first time, perhaps in a pony’s lifetime, the mask of the immortal goddess slipped, showing a deep pain I was also starting to understand, yet could not discern the reason behind.

A shadow passed over her frame. Literally.

My eyes shot up to the sky, toward this dark silhouette, indistinct while in front of the setting sun. Wings extended, it glided in our directions. Aristocrats and citizens of all kinds were all turned toward the balcony, as I was, trying to catch a glimpse of the newcomer’s nature. Some did, as small smirks and smile found their ways on their faces.

Her hooves hit the ground silently, one last extension of her wings slowly down her landing to a slow and graceful exercise. More regal than I could ever manage to be, her dark fur and mane eclipsed nearly everything else.

Recognition hit me like a speeding bullet.

My knees almost buckled. I could not help it. I had been prepared before seeing Celestia, I was not prepared for this.

“It is nearly time, Sister,” Luna spoke clearly, with the slightest of disappointment in her voice.

“I know…” The older alicorn took a deep breath, hardening her resolve.

“I have observed… and I believe this one speaks the truth, Tia. The veil has been disrupted and all signs point to it being two alicorns’ doing. We must prepare for what will inevitably come next.”

I sucked in a terrified breath, halfway acting. “Princess Luna…” I said with a bow. “Have our actions…?”

“Yes, with two new forces of guidance amongst our midst, we must be ready for the appearance of a new power of disruption.”

W-why is she also supporting my story? T-that can’t be right. She… wait… did she even hear it? She wasn’t even close to us! Heck, I doubt even the guards at the door were close enough.

I stared at the Princess of the Night. This wasn’t making sense.

I… have I managed to get SO lucky as to guess PRECISELY how this world works? No way… that’s just wishful thinking. But why didn’t Celestia call me out? She has nothing to gain by protecting a liar like me. Honestly, without her implicit support, bronies would be screaming bullshit at their… screen…

It dawned on me.

The show…

“It is unknown to me what the punishment for those two will be, Tia, but I doubt the Elders would punish them in a way dangerous for our kingdom as well.”

My heart squeezed in fear, even as my brain roared in triumph.

I… I get it. I wasn’t lying… Since this is the show… I’m as good a source as any to reveal the backstory behind other alicorns… I’m a credible source enough as it is… So it’s real. Bronies will accept it as real, so suddenly Celestia always knew that… I made myself older by more than four hundred years… and Tom’s now more than half a dozen time his real age.

I’m a moron.

For someone that had understood the deeper physics behind the world, I was somehow not ridiculously panicking. In fact, my heart had slowed down to a snail’s pace. Calm had washed away everything, making it… eerie. Everything was so slow… would never make even the slightest bit of progress... just one throne room filled with unmoving dolls.

What I say goes, unless someone’s more likely to be right. Basically, I can shove my headcanons down other peoples’ throats. Wow… I feel like a fanfic writer.

The world felt… damp, too old and distant to be real. With an unfocused gaze, I shot a look at the assembled ponies. All of them were transfixed. All of them were all so pointless.

Well, it’s only canon so long as it’s accepted by the larger fanbase… I think? Maybe? Who decides what goes and what doesn’t?

Dolls. Puppets for the amusement.

What of the fanfics? Do they count? This is obviously the show… right? So whatever monstrosity some write, it won’t reflect back on here… it can’t.

Breaking the Fourth Wall is a thing. I could get Pinkie to shatter it and then, there goes the idiots. Not a problem anymore.

But… what of Retcons?

“Please, Ventus, step forward,” Princess Celestia asked with an imperative tone.

My hooves moved without my accord, not that I cared much. I had other things to think about. My survival and Tom’s depended on my ability to think straight.

And so, I obeyed her order mechanically, in the same matter of robots and livings dolls I had mocked those foolish cartoon characters for being. I heard her words, her explanations and her excuses for doing this, but her message was entirely lost on me. Her voice was just a muddled background noise to me.

I nodded, to whatever she had asked, face betraying a suitable amount of anxiety.

“How courageous of this one,” Luna remarked in passing.

The Alicorn of the Night placed herself behind me and I heard the sound of wings being opened. In front of me, Celestia was towering over me in all her glory, betraying nothing of her nervousness.

On the ground, searing red lights flared so suddenly I had to divert my gaze in pain. It had happened distressingly quickly, forcing my eyes closed, of course, but also making me realize I was trapped in a circle of glowing symbols and runes.

My hooves were glued to the floor. A slight pressure circling my ankles told me all I need to know. I was being restrained.

“This is a spell designed to reveal one’s true form, Ventus,” a princess -- which one I did not know -- tried to tell me, over the ethereal melody of the runes on the ground. “If you are what you claim to be, then no harm will come to you. If not…”

Crystal clear.

Despite my mental protests, I could do nothing more than nod and gulp down, eyes shifting quickly between Princess Celestia and the few ponies at the edge of my vision. Luna was out of my sight, which might be fortunate as that was one less pony to see how terrified I was of the procedure.

My cover story was slowly crumbling apart, but I could not fight the knowledge that I would be unmasked in a few seconds. Then the true shitstorm would begin.

I almost squeaked when Celestia’s horn lit up a beautiful golden color.

Luna yelled something, in an ancient language long forgotten of ponies and all equines alike… but this one struck a chord inside. It… resonated with instincts I never had before, found a goal in my mind I was starting to forget and inflated the things I knew were right about me.

Then, the magical circle completely engulfed me. Suddenly, it wasn’t about being in Equestria anymore. Things were more complex and more simple than that. I was, then I wasn’t.

Only a blinding light within. Only an enlightening darkness outside. No limbs nor wings, no horns and hooves, no fake alicorn, just Sam.

That was who I was, Sam. Big Brother, occasional jerk, brony, geek, Sam. Me.

I had no body, no material attachment anymore. I had… transcended

“Ventus Vinco.” Ethereal noises echoed in the void and the frozen time.

“Who?” I replied, vaguely confused.

“You.”

“But that’s not me.”

“It is.”

I was in the throne room.

“The spell is done,” a motherly, tired voice said, letting out a sigh of relief.

I was still a pony.

“One’s true form… is as it should be.” Princess Celestia closed her eyes, letting a bit of her mask slip again, shaking off the last of a tiredness brought by the magical revelation.

You’re… joking! Y-you… you INCOMPETENT IDIOTS! How could you fail so badly?! How dare you even imply I’m NOT HUMAN, BITCHES?!

I suppressed a sob of pure despair. Oh God… I’m not human… W-what about Tom? I-is it just me or are we both…?

One should not have to show such a stoic and polite attitude when they are so crushed. My façade remained the same. I kept up the mask.

“That one is definitely no changeling, Sister.”

“Yes… that is a great relief.” The white alicorn smiled, though it felt fake to me. “A visit from our family is always a source of rejoicing.”

My head was spinning. Haha… ha… ahhh… I’m thinking of something else. NOW!

I blinked. Princess Luna had somehow sneaked up in front of me without me noticing. Her eyes seemed halfdropped, but her smile had a charming quality to it that caught me off guard.

What she did next baffled me.

She bowed. “I welcome you to our kingdom, little cousin.”

My brain caught on fire.

I am both the luckiest brony alive and quickly becoming the one to be the target of the most insane amount of jealousy ever.

“I… Princess Luna!” I shouted, too shocked to control the volume of my voice. “It is I that should be bowing at your hooves! I am naught but a youngster and an inexperienced foal in comparison to you and your sister!”

The Princess of the Night chuckled and she patted me like one would a foal. “That may be so, but we have learned that a little respect and appreciation is a most precious gift.”

T-that… hit way too close to home. Thinking of something else now.

“…Thank you, Princess Luna.” I bowed in return, doing my best to sound profoundly humbled. “Such feelings from you are priceless. I hope to prove myself worthy of them.”

Great. I’m becoming friend with Luna. The chords of my Suedom have started echoing in every corner of the Internet.

Vaguely, I noted the sun setting against the horizon. The day was almost over and soon, it would be Luna’s turn to rule.

As such, the sisters swapped places, Luna getting onto the throne while Celestia remained at the feet of the stairs, much closer to my level.

My mind however, was miles away from such details.

Plan A: I’m getting the hell out of the castle with Tom before I’m also labeled a complete Stu by the fanbase and prompt them to petition Hasbro to remove us from the timeline. Plan B: we hope for the best.

It really wasn’t that complicated.

All I had to do was avoid the worst clichés and I would avoid the brunt of the hatred. Of course, since Tom and I were both alicorns already, we were already in the red. Next, we should avoid the spotlight…

Right, so, all I have to do is slowly eclipse myself, take Tom with me and stop gathering attention. Laying low, no meddling, no nothing, just be an average John Doe that lives in a forgotten old town in the middle of nowhere. Also, I am never speaking out loud again, for fear I accidentally create a pantheon or a devil or reveal that Celestia used to like tea or some crap like that. There, a solid plan that would limit the collateral damage.

Unfortunately… Princess Celestia had other plans.

I saw it coming, just by the way she placed her focus on her scribe, by the subtle change in her posture when she opened her mouth to speak, but the realization shocked me into silence at the crucial moment. I could not think of any way to prevent this.

“In the face of evidence of our guests’ shared lineage with us, we wish to extend an offer of hospitality to our young cousins, so they may share our roof and our food, until their duties call them elsewhere. It is decreed in my name, Princess Celestia, Co-Ruler of Equestria and Alicorn of the Day.”

…Well... fuck.

Snowball

The few next minutes went by in a haze. Nothing could be defined quite clearly. I knew that, at some point, I had been led out of the throne room, as court was adjourned and some nobleponies retired for the night. A significantly smaller number of them arrived specifically for the beginning of the night court.

I walked past them without a care in the world, if only a vague recognition that they existed. I was much too deep into my thoughts and my fears.

What can I say now? Can I just run away and pretend that ‘The Wind is Free’ or some crap like that if they catch up? They’ll call me irresponsible. That I hate the pressure? They’ll tell me I’m as whiny as Tom, which, to be fair, is both true and sad. That I’m not worthy? No, it will make others shill my character and that’s just one more quick trip to the Stu bin.

“Excuse me, good sirs.” I asked two guards patrolling, distantly noticing their surprise at being addressed by an unknown alicorn. “Could you point the direction of the infirmary to me, please?”

The biggest of the two, a bright orange stallion, turned to the other with a small hesitation. Obviously, neither were thrilled with my interruptions, but that was their jobs, right? The small light brown stallion – a pegasus – seemingly mulled it over, biting his lips.

They had a silent exchange of glances and meaningful tics, none I could make out well, the orange one turned back to me. “It is a little complicated, Sir.”

I’m getting used to that sort of thing, now, please. For sole response, I nodded and tried to look politely eager.

I somehow pulled that off. “My little brother has just been taken there, I would like to see him as soon as possible, gentlecolts.”

The guard relented. “Look, Storm Lance, I can show him the way, just go talk to the captain by yourself.”

At the suggestion, the bigger stallion darkened. Visibly, it was an unwelcomed solution, but one nonetheless. He agreed, grumbling and mumbling quite a bit. My gaze followed the orange stallion as he left us both alone.

“So, huh…” The second guard hesitated, not very good at keeping the surprise out of his face at the sight of me. “You want to go to the infirmary, Sir?”

Oh for freak’s sake… Did I stutter, you idiot? “Yes, please.”

“This way,” he said, trotting toward a stone staircase.

With a small insincere and annoyed thanks, I let my legs carry me in the same direction.

He was… disheartened. Not just… schoolyard breakup or dashed expectations about book disheartened…

There was a giant hole in his chest.

They had made the official announcement in class the day before. The school had received a notification from the police and the teacher had said it.

Cassandra had broken into tears on the spot. He had gone into denial.

That… that’s not real… Sam’s… missing?

Unfortunately, it was dreadfully real and, according to some, likely. There were whispers to be shared, that he had gone crazy after his brother had disappeared. He was seeing a psychologist after all…

Some had even wondered if Sam himself had not been responsible outright, then ran off at the first occasion.

A pair of girls who had dared say that out loud around Cassandra had been slapped so hard one of them had lost a tooth. He had cheered mentally, even as he had run up to her to restrain her.

It did not end well. Now Cassandra had been suspended too. There were rumors that her parents had decided to move away, seeing as this couldn’t be a healthy environment for her to study. So Eric had been left alone. All alone, sitting at their usual table, without a soul daring to approach him, as if he carried some sort of curse.

Words were said around him now, most objectives or even compassionates though, as he was slowly losing his friends one by one.

Between Sam and Cassandra, he had yet to spend more than a few hours without a black eye. Both for the same triggers too. Both had just lost someone extremely important to them and he had done something to piss them off. He wasn’t quite sure what in both case too…

Sitting at home, he had started moving in a slow daze. His life had started to head into a downward spiral.

Forces of habit oblige, he had gone into the right folders to check out on pony news. He had looked over the standard issues quickly, skimming contents he would have usually read avidly. Not anymore.

It felt pointless.

Somehow that didn’t stop him from logging into his pony roleplaying chat. Two other members of their groups were already in heated discussion about today’s episode. He had yet to see it. Hadn’t had the heart. Hadn’t felt the usual excited spark.

Being punched in the face by your best friend for bringing it up at the wrong time had left a truly bitter taste in his mouth. Now that Sam was gone too… it had started to make him vaguely ill.

“-istening to yourself? No seriously, Dude. That rant hardly makes him less than a quick attempt by the writers to ‘fix’ their previous blunder. He’s another alicorn out of nowhere!”

That made Eric blink. So there were still new alicorns being suddenly introduced? Gee, the writers could really use a new twist…

“He didn’t come out of nowhere! He came running after a member of his family that had gone missing! Any intelligent person would have realized that a little kid showing out of nowhere without anyone to accompany him would have a guardian not far away.”

“Still an asspull!”

“No, he’s not! He was mentioned by mini-stu in the previous episode! (Oh, and hi NightServant!)”

Eric was tempted to just ignore the greetings and closed the tabs… but he decided against it. He could use some company, even if it was about… well, it was about My Little Pony. He hadn’t felt very comfortable logging back in about.

“Hi guys.” He typed, sighing. “I take it you’re talking about the show.”

“(So, how are you doing? Oh, and is ScatteredWind okay? You said he was acting weird last time?) Yeah, and I was telling LoveCupcakes that this is all a load of crap!”

For a moment, Eric truly was at a loss as to what to answer. Sam had really not acted like himself.

“(You’re lucky you weren’t there… man, he was nuts. It was something about his family, right? Tell me it’s gotten better. If he blows a casket like that last one at me again, I might try to hack his writer’s account and troll him…) Come on, Dude! He even explained that mini-stu was boosted. Now he won’t be able to show up the Mane Six out of nowhere!”

Somehow, a conversation that should have been at the front of his mind at the present moment had been relegated to completely stupid and pointless rambling. He didn’t want to think about Sam anymore. Just thinking about it made his eye hurt.

“(I… think he’s fine).”

“(Good) I like that part! It’s just that I hate they had to use a new freaking ALICORN to do it! Why not just bring him to Celestia and have her do that herself! Heck, she mostly did it already!”

“Oh come on! That new guy helps explain the backstory behind the Princess! You can’t tell me you don’t want that! You always complain about the lack of it.”

“He’s got a point, BestDerp.” Eric jumped in, momentarily taken by the argument. “Wait, they did that?”

“Yes.”

“Sorta.”

He stared at his computer screen.

“Hu-uh…”

“Okay, here’s the thing. I didn’t want someone telling me about Celestia’s backstory, I wanted them to SHOW US!”

There was a moment during which the log didn’t update. Eric held the conviction his penpal had been baffled by the point. Finally, after a few minutes of waiting, LoveCupcakes replied.

“…Touché.”

“What about you, NightServant? Tell me you’re part of the enlightened one and you know what kind of franchise killing crap this is, right?”

He had told something like that to Sam… then…

The pain in his eye seemed to intensify.

“I have no clue. I don’t even know who you’re talking about.”

“Wait, you haven’t seen it yet?”

Without much conviction, he still typed out an answer.

“Judging by your description… yeah, I don’t think I’ll be watching an episode soon.”

I pushed the door open, relieved to finally be here.

That other guard… had been one tedious companion. He had tried to be helpful, obviously, but there was no way I would not notice the dozens of looks he sent my way in wonder. I could understand the sentiment. Heck, if the equivalent of a previously unheard of pony angel just asked me directions out of nowhere, I would be rather curious as to his origins and such too.

But really, I had other things on my mind and the staring had gotten old fast. Still, I had tried projecting the image of a reasonable figure before and I could not break character now. Who knew who could be watching my… every… move…?

I suppressed a shiver.

Knowing that this world was part of a TV show made it all so much worse. Heck, I already had to watch my every word just not to alter reality. And while each episode only lasted about twenty minutes, it still could cover the most crucial moments.

No rest, no time to let go of this mask. I had to slip it on and glue it to my face.

It did not slip when I put a hoof into the infirmary, glancing around and trying to spot my little brother. That much was frustratingly hard to do, as the room seemed filled with beds and curtains, for privacy’s sake, no doubt. Well, at least, it might come in handy when I would need to draw those symbols again.

For the sake of my sanity and your safety, Tom, I sure hope we can do this.

I pressed forward, walking between the beds, peeking through the curtains a few times with the hope of seeing Tom. So far, my researches had ended with a boot to the face by an indignant mare and a few gasps at my indiscretion.

Clearly, I was going at this the wrong way.

Shaking my head, I went for the sensible solution. Where’s the nurse?

“Sir?” A curious and definitely female voice took me by surprise, making me flinch.

It was a mare alright and not a bad looking one at that. Her coat was a softer shade of pink than the Element of Laugher, but her mane was a very fiery red. The soft curves of her face made her expression kind, while the bright blue of her eyes added an alluring quality to her gaze. And man, those were nice flanks, I’d-

SHUT UP, HORMONES!

“Madam?” I replied, already putting that sudden spike of adrenaline behind me.

“May I help you?” She asked, frowning slightly at my earlier behavior.

“Yes. The Elements of Harmony were ordered to carry my little brother here. I would like to see him now, if you would.” You better…

“Of course.” She nodded instantly. “Who is your brother?”

Urgh, right. “His coat is of the darkest blue while his body carries the strengths of all three pony tribes.” Was that too sueish? Or just a simple truth?

I gritted my teeth. This was so complicated. Where did I draw a line in all this? WHERE?!

“Ah, yes, I remember him. We gave him sleeping medicine almost right away. It should both make him comfortable for the night and allow his body to fight off the illness without him noticing.”

That sounded like a nice change of pace, for once, though the words jogged up some memories…

“Ah, I see.” The corners of my lips twisted into a pained grimace. “He wasn’t too difficult about it, was he?”

Instantly, as soon as the words had flown through the air and reached her ears, the mare had diverted her gaze, refusing to make eye contact. “Well…”

The urge to hit my face with my own hoof grew within me. “Typical…” I muttered.

“I’ll show him to you right away,” the mare said, using a delicate tone to pander up to me. It wasn’t working, but the thought could be appreciated for once.

She was even quick and efficient about her task. Now we were getting somewhere.

“If there is anything you need, you can simply call me,” she declared, walking away.

“Thank you.” I nodded and looked back to the curtain.

They had been drawn close, offering some privacy to Tom, not that he cared much about that. Usually, he was the kind of kid to just go somewhere to drop down and sleep. Even more suspicious, the curtains were stretched slightly on one side of the bed, by a form I doubted no belonged to another pony.

I felt the need to rush inside, and my hooves moved faster than my brain could register.

The pieces of silk slapped my face, then my shoulders and my wings. Quickly, my eyes registered a yellow pegasus, standing close, and a blue foal resting under the bed sheet.

Said pegasus jumped a few feet in the air at my sudden entrance. Her wings spread protectively over my little brother, only for her eyes to widen in recognition.

“Oh, I… I thought it might be… hum…” She lowered her head, looking miserable. “Sorry…”

“It’s fine.” I shrugged, squashing the dark thoughts that had been born when she had tried to place herself between me and him. “How is he?”

“He just fell asleep… he was calling for you…”

My heart almost exploded. Why couldn’t have I gone with him in the first place?! All it did was make the whole situation completely unbearable! Damn it…

Fighting the urge to growl and scream, I forced my mouth into a thin line. Silently, I stalked closer to him, eyes stuck on his peaceful body. His breathing lifted the sheets periodically, a reassuring sight to me.

My hind legs folded as I sat down, beaten by the emotional rollercoaster this world had unleashed on me. I hadn’t been here for a day, yet it seemed like a year already.

I reached forward, placing my muzzle against the side of his head. Subconsciously, he leaned into it. The gentle contact almost broke a dam in me.

It was getting harder and harder to keep that mask on my face. I didn’t want to be that strong. I just wanted to go back and be carefree again. Just me and Tom, back home, so we could go back to our lives before all went to hell.

“I… ” The word was so quiet I almost missed it.

Eyes shifting back to my unexpected companion, I gave her a very tired look.

“Yes?” My voice was hoarse, raspy even.

I could not keep up for long. Not for long…

“I’m sorry…” Her gaze avoided mine. Her pink mane fell over her face. “I shouldn’t have said that earlier…”

“It’s… fine… I understand.”

“I… I’ll leave you two alone now…” The poor mare almost fled, eyes filling with tears.

Of what? I couldn’t tell. Yet, as I watched her leave, I wondered… why?

Giving forgiveness should have been a blessing, right? Why did nothing change then? Why wasn’t I able to give a damn about her apologies? There was still this burning fury in me, this lack of sympathy, a black pitch darkness… That wasn’t me…

I heard a groan and my attention changed focused so quickly I gave myself whiplash.

His eyes were clenched shut, but Tom was stirring in his sleep. The rustling of the sheets were like screams in my ears.

I leaned over the edge of the bed, spreading my wings and my feather into a blanket, one that would hopefully reach out to him. They covered him, forming a shield for him to rest under.

We were close. Close enough for me to feel the warmth of his body, the rebellious knots in his unkempt fur, the pain in his tensed muscles, wet trails that started form on his face…

“I’m here, Tom…” I whispered into his ears.

“Mom…”

“Shhhh, it’s gonna be okay. We’ll see her soon.” Please, let that be the truth. “I promise.”

At first, he hadn’t been able to formulate what had possessed him to get out of bed at this ungodly time of the day. Darkness still covered the land like a cool blanket and one pony could not pierce through that same darkness with his eyes alone.

Normally.

Tonight, he could.

He didn’t say a thing. He rarely did.

But tonight Big Macintosh was worried about those flickering lights dancing amongst the trees of his family’s farm.

Morning would soon make itself visible in the night sky, signaling the end of her hours of reign.

It was with a sigh of relief that she would welcome the moment she’d be freed of her duties for one more day. Ruling a kingdom was an endeavor that one could not simply be half-assed about and gaining her subjects’ admiration had proven to be a fight of every day. At times, Luna was almost jealous of her sister, but she knew better now.

Celestia had had a thousand years of devotion and fair ruling to gain the near universal love of her subjects. For her darker, formerly bad, little sister to believe she could catch up to her so quickly would be a naivety without equal.

Yet, every night, she could count a few more ponies willing to look at her with for something other than political power.

The door of her office creaked open and inside entered a well-known figure in her life.

“Tia, how good it is to see you.” Luna jumped to her hooves, smiling. “The Grapes’ family vendetta with the Prunes are slowly driving me back to madness!”

Her sister chuckled at the complaints. “I see you still do not appreciate the subtlety of solving everypony’s problems for them everywhere all the time.”

Luna stared at her flatly. “I am serious, Tia. I’ve been trying to figure out a way for the better part of an hour now and I still do not have a hint of an idea on how to begin this.”

“Let me see.” Celestia moved, stepping next to her younger sister, peaking at the papers lying across the wooden desk.

Gladly, Luna allowed her full access to the papers, with the hope she could finally be freed from this dilemma. Sometimes, being a princess wasn’t all that glamorous.

For starters, she had yet to get the opportunity to visit her friend Pip in person again. Oh, she had seen him in his dreams many times already, but… she couldn’t neglect her duty, even for her favorite little colt.

An endless, eternal supply of hard work and dedication, that had been her sister’s lot for more than a thousand years. It was a wonder she was still so loving and warm to their subjects. At some point, Luna knew she would have grown bitter.

How? How had Celestia managed to rule for so long, without ever breaking?

With a subdued feeling of admiration, Luna had to fight her eyes’ desire to stare at her sister. Very few were the moments Celestia had ever let go of her mask. With the exception of her students, Luna had not doubt she was the only pony her sister would voluntarily allow to see the sadness behind.

You are much too stubborn, Tia. Just like me… The Princess of the Night thought.

“You know how the Elders are,” she said, in passing.

The careful composure of the supreme ruler of Equestria shattered at those casual words.

For a grand total of a fraction of second.

The emotionally devastated expression had not lingered on Celestia’s face, immediately replied by a careful hesitation and a skeptical frown. “I’m afraid I do not understand your words, Luna.”

But it was far too late. The younger alicorn had had the confirmation she needed.

“Tia, the Elders are generally much too duty driven to care about silly things like our feelings as individuals.” Luna rolled her eyes, failing to keep her tone light with her sarcasm. There had been too much dripping venom in the words.

Luckily, they still brought a chuckle to her sister.

“Ah yes, how did our Aunt go about it again? There is no greater honor…”

“…Than devoting your whole soul into the well-being of others.” Luna completed the saying.

The Royal Pony Sisters shared a biased, somewhat amused look. They could not quite smile at this typical behavior, but sometime ago, they had both accepted the… strong convictions of the Elders.

“Our dear Auntie Lexia, Alicorn of Law and Devotion. It is lucky she has apparently not gotten her hooves on that little colt yet.”

“Which one are we talking about here?” The younger sister shot back, waving her eyebrows with a mocking grin.

“Oh Luna, that poor Ventus obviously has to put up with a lot of her teachings already. He forces himself so much to be official when he’s so skittish and dying to just loosen up. Have you heard him talk? There is no way that is not rehearsed.”

“I was more concerned about his incredible fear at being submitted to a spell of Truth, Tia.” The Princess of the Night noted with a frown. All traces of humor left her voice then. “They are hiding something. At the very least, the older one is.”

Celestia didn’t respond to the words this time, only closing her eyes, remembering an ancient pain.

“I understand your hesitation, Sister, but do not let the past cloud your judgment.”

Oh, she knew of her own foolishness. Her leniency might have been misplaced, but truly, she had not expected this sudden development.

No, to refer to that as sudden would be inadequate. The bitter thought crossed her mind. It had been waiting to be revealed to her for more than four hundred years apparently. A simple notice would have been nice.

After all, that young stallion was likely nothing less than the reincarnation of the previous Lord of Windigos, who was also, as very few beings knew, her past lover.

Author's Note

Yup, I went there. Buuuut, there's no romance tag. Just saying. And pointing out. And making sure you all know that.

Mock Princes

My mind was lost in the haze of an early morning wake-up call. Even with my eyes closed, I could tell the sun was only slightly above the horizon.

I was aching all over. My muscles were stiff and the slightest of stirs sent pain signals through my body. It made me groan.

What kind of messed up position had I ended up sleeping in? Well, my head had sunk into comfortable fabric if that was any indication, but my body was sprayed all over.

My body…

Wait… something’s wrong.

Am I… naked? … it’s all… my forehead’s sorta… why is my back… what’s that over my… M-my hands are… MY HANDS! My eyes shot open, toward my arms.

My fingers were gone. There were just two golden yellow furry blobs instead.

I let out a bloodcurdling scream and recoiled so violently I fell into some sort of curtains, who could not hold me up more than a few seconds before their bonds were torn apart. They engulfed me in a tornado of pale beige fabric.

The impact against the ground hit hard, as it seemed to be stone, but worse even, the pain spread from appendages on my back. I had grown something on my back.

To make matters worse, voices started to join a chorus of panicked questions and at least one child let out a panic call for help. And I knew that child.

“T-Tom?” Wait, wasn’t he…

“WHAT’S GOING ON HERE?!” A male’s voice boomed into the room, rendering us all silent.

Things were coming back to me.

Four limbs batting away useless at the curtain I had entangled myself in, I tried to throw it off me. Useless. Luckily, something suddenly lifted them,

Pony. Cartoon pony. This one was wearing a doctor’s outfit and seemed pretty pissed.

Aw… bucking buck… That’s right. I managed to get here yesterday… “M-my… my most sincere apologies…” I muttered, feeling so ill I would throw up any second now. “I was the prey of a truly terrible nightmare and I disturbed everypony else…”

“That you did,” the stallion said, voice so cold it made me shiver. His death glare was impressive too. “You are still doing it too.”

Time for me to break out the nervous awkward laugh. One, two, thr-

“Holy Buck, Sam!” A blue colt popped out from under his pillow, eyes narrowed. “What’s wrong with you?”

I blinked.

About a dozen ponies gasped in shock.

I blinked again.

Then, snorted.

“Oh, little brother, you mustn’t use such bad words.” I grinned, unable to hold back. Unfortunately, my tone carried little if any reprobation at all, something most ponies in the room picked up.

“You use them all the time!” Tom harrumphed, his whole expression falling flat.

Now the adults in the room were collectively glaring at me, and, if I was reading their severe expressions correctly, probably thinking that I was an irresponsible bum. Heck, by the way that vein budged on the doctor’s neck, a lecture was coming.

Under the curtains, I extended my wings, very clearly making it known that I was, perhaps, not just another John Doe. I am, but hey, they don’t need to know that.

It worked, somewhat. The stallion paused in his movement, an uncertain light glistening in his eyes for a moment. It gave me an opportunity I gladly used.

Stretching and cracking the stiffened muscles and tendons, I stood up.

“You have my most sincere apologies, Sir.” Keep up the act. Remember the right way to talk… “I will of course leave as quietly as possible to allow your patients to rest properly. Is my brother allowed to leave with me?”

At that, Tom’s attitude did a 180. He jumped off the bed, landing at the doctor’s hooves, an hilariously over-the-top cute expression on his face.

“Can I go too, pleaaaaaaaaaaase?” His voice turned grating very quickly, hurting everypony else’s sensitive ears.

That worked in our favor. The stallion had flinched, mouth twisting into a pained grimace. “Yes, yes, fine! Just leave quietly!”

“Sure will!” Tom shouted, too happy to get out of a place he had to be quiet and peaceful in.

Of course, his reaction earned him one too many glares and he offered his most apologetic smile, in an attempt to soothe them.

The doctor’s eyes narrowed at me. “Go.”

Well, I was not going to wait any longer. Neither was Tom.

I barely had the time to notice that a blue blur was already bolting out of the infirmary.

“Brother! Don’t run in the castle!” I shouted after him, again, with too little conviction to be convincing.

Someone cleared his throat next to me. The sound was enough to get my attention and I turned around, only to find myself face to face with a very annoyed doctor.

My cheeks started to feel hot, embarrassment starting to get to me.

I did not manage to keep up the appearances this time. Swift urgency washed up over my careful mask and forced me to run as well.

I dashed through the door, glancing at the stony arch overhead… The feeling of insignificance returned rather quickly, as this was the least impressive feature I had been given the chance to see yet. For example, at my right, the sun was shining through a painted glass, projecting an expertly crafted image onto the very ground I walked.

I shook my head, trying to chase away this impression. I did not have the luxury to just stop and admire windows. I had a hyper kid to chase after.

W-where was he?

…The hallway was desperately empty. Stone walls as far as the eye could see. No colt whatsoever anywhere in sight.

My chest tightened painfully.

“TOM?” I shouted, voice cracking with the irrational panic taking me over.

Oh, I did not just lose him. I just got him back. Tch, why don’t I just hang on my big brother plaque and pick up my medal of the worst legal guardian in history? Come on, Tom. Tell me you’re ju-

“Huh… Sam?” His voice came out very hesitant, from around a corner.

Again, my legs moved beyond my control. My goal started growing into the distance, with each stomping of my hooves against the stone floor. When I got within reaching range, I turned so violently I almost crashed into the wall.

I fell head over heels, literally, when I saw why he had been out of my sight. Abruptly stopping from the combined relief and incredulity did that to someone’s balance, unfortunately.

Dangling by his tail, lifted by a cloud of green magic, Tom was pitifully squirming and trying to get free. The unicorn in the golden armor holding him did not look pleased. “Is this colt yours?”

Tom flashed me a million watt smile, every bit as awkward as that of Applejack when she was trying to say a convincing lie. Oh, he was in trouble and he knew it.

My eyes narrowed in an echo of my displeasure. “In the way that he is my little brother, yes.”

“Then keep a better eye on him…” Just then, he seemed to realize Celestia herself had made us her guests and he quickly added a “Sir” to his speech.

“I will…” I muttered, willing my magic to pick him up, which it did, to my surprise.

Well, not my surprise, as that was little in the face of the much bigger reveals I had faced yesterday. No, of course, Ventus Vinco was an alicorn, centuries old even… so magic was probably just a second nature to him. Me.

A golden aura surrounded Tom, as per my will, and placed him on my back.

“Don’t run off by yourself like that again.” My tone grew icy. “Understood?”

My little brother quickly nodded.

Satisfied that he would behave for a least a little while, I allowed my attention to focus on the guard. He still hadn’t loosened up in the slightest.

I held back a sigh.

“Thank you, good sir. You have been a tremendous help.” I bowed my head graciously, hoping this would appease the stallion a little.

A quick glance to his face revealed wide eyes and a mouth halfway opened.

Wait… what’s so surprising here? I just thanked you, man… oh dear, that’s either disturbing or worrying.

“Yeah, thanks,” Tom chipped in, every bit as sincere as I had been.

“Hum… you’re welcome… I’m only doing my job, Sir.” The guard fumbled a bit, until he just gave a salute.

“I am grateful nonetheless.” I smirked, almost snorting at his obvious unease now. “Now, far from me the idea of distracting you from your duty, but I am new to the castle, would you please tell us where we could go to eat?”

“Oh, right, huh, t-the dining hall with all the nobles is in the west wing.” I bit back the desire to further my interrogations about the way he spat the word ‘nobles’. I had an inkling of an idea as to why that may be so. One white unicorn stallion came to mind… “You just have to follow this corridor, then turn left again. There’s one room for the maids. One of them will have to leave for the hall soon, so you could just follow her.”

“Thank you.” I smiled, if only to see him getting uneasy again.

It got even worse when Tom joined in on the thanking.

Stiffly, the guard nodded, hurrying back to his post.

Following his form with my eyes, I felt a sickness grow in my guts. They’re that bad, huh? …Well, no use worrying about them now. Better just go with the flow for now…

I walked in silence for a moment, trying to keep in mind the directions of the unicorn guard.

“Hey… Sam?” Tom shifted on my back, much more subdue than his usual self.

“Yeah?”

“Why’d you scream earlier?” I turned my head at that, meeting his inquisitive eyes head on. He seemed genuinely curious about that.

“I woke up in Equestria, Tom.” I rolled my eyes.

“Me too,” he countered distressingly quickly.

“You’ve been here for a week, you can already expect it at least. This was literally the first time in my life I woke up as something other than…” I did not say ‘human’. In the back of my mind, there was this paranoid fear that pronouncing the word would suddenly make the universe implode and we’d be gone. Ironic as it may be, I knew our status as alicorn was infinitely less damaging for the show than the reveal we’re actually human. “…Anyway, I just had the scare of my life.”

“You’ll get used to it. It’s really cool!”

Oh how I wish I could appreciate it like you do. To me, this is nothing but one long awkward moment where I try not to think that I have a tail, or that less than twenty percent of the girls I see wear clothes, or that I might bump into flying people, or that my mouth is now the equivalent of a hand or…

Well, it’s weird as hell and I’ll leave it at that.

I bit back a grimace, hoping to forget the bitter taste filling my mouth.

Home, I wanted to go home. To walk on two legs instead of four. To open my laptop and type on my keyboard. To climb up the tree in our backyard and show Tom the secret carving I had made there. To take off this mask and return to being just Sam. To look at Mom in the eyes and apologize, to close my arms around Dad and give him the hug he deserved for putting up with us.

The memories just kept flooding. Sam. I was Sam and I wanted out.

The desire to just find Celestia and beg her to send us back violently took over my mind.

My footsteps became more quick-paced. If I could just find her now, before the day started…

I would be able to tell her… I’d admit to have lied. A lie… about a life that I had memories of, that she knew of.

The spell did not reveal my true form…

I came to a halt, so suddenly that pain erupted in the back of my head, where Tom had collided with me.

“Sam?” He asked, the questions in his voice all too clear.

What would happen? Somehow… the canon of the show is that I’m an alicorn from space that followed his lil’ bro here. I have the memories to prove it. If I tell her the opposite… do I get my mind wiped? Do they disappear? What if they don’t?

Would I develop a second personality? A Ventus Vinco, who was the alicorn that was meant to be, sharing a body with the alien Sam?

I felt cold.

Something else, something else! Anything at all will do! …Got it!

“Hey… how did you know I was lying back in the infirmary?”

That seemed to put him at ease. It distracted him long enough for him to forget about his previous question, at least.

“Easy. You don’t have bad dreams.” He grinned. “You’re too cool for that.”

My heart exploded.

“…That…” I could not find the words. I fell silent.

I ruffled his mane with my right hoof. “You’re not that bad either, squirt.”

He giggled. Music to my ears.

How cheesy that a little laugh was all it took to make me feel better. Just a few seconds of joy and my day suddenly got brighter? Ah, I was such a snugglebear inside.

A strangely hollow sensation attacked my stomach though. A hungry snugglebear it is.

“Come on.” I laughed, adjusting his position on my back with my wings. “Let’s put some hay in that body.”

“Hay yeah!”

Even if he tried, I wouldn’t be able not to cringe. Oh boy, that’s a painful one, Tom. Nevertheless, I gave a goodhearted chuckle.

All to my newfound happiness, I turned a corner a bit too quickly, too absentmindedly.

A bump into something. A flurry of clothes. A basket that flew through the air, thrown away by a sudden impact.

I barely had the time to register what was happening, already imagining the disaster that was unfolding in front of me. Eh, I’d probably be forced to clean it all up myself. Crap…

Everything froze in place, held by an aura of magic.

“Gotcha!” Tom grinned, horn glowing blue.

Hell yeah, squirt! I rose a leg, to which he responded by launching his hoof into mine. Brohoof!

“Hum… excuse me…” A timid, almost ill quiet voice interrupted us.

Surprised, I turned in direction of the noise and blinked. A pink poor mare was stuck in midair, with her hooves in the air, right under the frozen clothes. Oops.

“Oh Elders, I am so sorry, madam,” I muttered as quickly as I could, pushing the articles of clothing away and rushing to her side. “Tom, get down.”

One hop from him later and I was burden free, able to place myself behind her, with a hoof ready to support her fall.

“Are you ready?” I asked, locking my gaze with hers.

The mare stood still, flabbergasted. Complete shock was written all over her face. Well, except for her cheeks, those were just colored with a slightly darker pink.

“Madam?” I pressed, trying to snap her out of her daze.

That did the trick. She blinked once, then quickly nodded with a little squeak.

Still looking at her, I called out to the one maintaining the sparkling magic. “Alright, Tom, release her gently.”

The maid closed her eyes in anticipation. I tensed, ready to catch her falling body. I waited, for the one moment gravity would remember it existed…

I waited…

“Tom?” I frowned, returning into a more natural position.

My eyes scanned the room, between the multiple still floating blankets and such objects among other places. Quickly enough, they fell on him.

My brain sent an emergency signal when it registered the mischievous smile on his face. Everything fell into place when his horn’s light flickered and fizzled.

Panicked, I barely had the time to turn around that a pink coat hit me square in the face.

Pain erupted in the following places, in order: my muzzle, my forehead, my right front leg (unbalanced fall), my wings, my chin and my tail (because of course, that poor mare had to crush it under a lost limb)…

Yeah… We became an entangled mess of limbs, bed sheets and clothes.

A cool sense of detachment washed over me, even as I failed to hold in a groan. I had to, otherwise having a mare sprayed halfway over me would either send me into a sputtering rage, a worried mess or an incoherent idiocy.

“That was so uncool.” The colt stuck out his tongue at me, reveling in the success of his prank.

“What?” I growled playfully, feeling my spirit fill with mock malice. “I am cool and I have the hooves to prove it.”

“Nu-uh!” He protested.

“Come here, you little squirt! I’ll show you the consequences of dissing your big brother!” I shot to my hooves, completely forgetting where I was, why and how. My mind was focused on showing up who was the boss.

Tom saw the danger, too late, for I had already reached him.

With more dexterity than I thought I had as a quadruped, I dropped on one side, keeping his head stuck in a headlock with one front leg. With the other, I mercilessly started rubbing a hoof on top of his head. The result was instantaneous.

“AAAAAAAAAAH! HELP! SAM’S TORTURING ME AGAIN!”

“Surrender!” I demanded, with the voice of an evil overlord. “Submit to my coolness!”

“NO WAY!” Tom shouted, kicking empty air in the hopes of hitting a vital organ.

“You asked for it. Here comes the wet willy.”

“NO! NO, NO, NO!” His struggle became increasingly frantic as I moved the wet hoof closer to his face. As an added bonus, I took it on myself to reproduce the Jaw soundtrack.

In any other context, seeing his pupil dilate with fear would have sent me over the edge, but darn this was just too funny not to go on with.

“UNCLE!” Tom finally relented. “YOU’RE COOL! YOU’RE COOL! NOW GET THAT HOOF OUTTA MY FACE!”

Well, that was almost too easy. I had to gloat. “Have you learned to respect your elders now?”

“YES! LEMME GO, SAM!” He squirmed a lot harder and even managed to land in a hit. Not painful, just noticeable.

With a chuckle, I loosened my grip, which he used instantly to worm his way out and run behind the pink maid.

Oh… I did forget about her… And it showed… Her mouth had dropped and her fur seemed paler around her cheeks. Well, that’s one mystery solved. Cartoons biology allow fur to pale to imitate human expression.

A nervous laugh bubbled up my throat. “Ah, that was… improper. I apologize for letting you see that.”

For a moment, she seemed unable to think of the right way to reply, as if I had grown a second head. She settled for something safe. “You need not apologize.”

Alright, I’ll take it. I got up on my hooves, scratching the back of my head. “We wanted to get to the dining hall for some breakfast. Could you please show us the way?”

“Of course,” she replied with a small bow.

“Thank you!” I breathed a sigh of relief. “I am surprisingly dumb when it comes to directions…”

“He’s terrible, Ma’am. He got us lost in an amusement park once! Mom got really mad at him!”

“Oh no, I hope she wasn’t too hard on him,” the mare said, hiding a smile behind her hoof.

“Eh, could have been worse.” Tom shrugged, ridiculously trying to look aloof and, of course, failing spectacularly. “You should have seen how she reacted when I tried to use my parent’s bed for my trampoline circus act!”

“You fell through the window, Tom…” My eyes went to the ceiling, annoyed.

The mare however, did not appear to have heard me, as she decided that he was an adorable little colt and therefore could never be wrong, at most misguided. She had apparently forgotten he had just pranked her.

I’m torn… why is my young padawan so talented? Yet he uses his power for evil…

I had to facehoof at my own stupidity. Wow, this place was not good for my brain.

Just great, he’s got her in the bag. Now I have to make sure he doesn’t smuggle candy in his bed before going to sleep…

I sighed. This was a little too much.

But hey, at least we had a guide to lead us to the dining hall.

His aunt had created a lovely morning, once more, but much too early, again. Cruel sunrays had illuminated his room and his bed, signaling the beginning of another day of tireless slaving on his desk. Alas, his job was an ingrate one, but a noble had to do it and who better than the one and only Prince Blueblood.

Viper tongues would hiss and spit their poison by pretending his work was all cut out for him, but of course, they were the vilest of jealous ponies.

And so, the white stallion had made his way to the dining hall in a rather foul mood. Things did not get much better when sat down at his personal seat amongst his pear. The servants had taken much too long to serve him. He was the Prince! Couldn’t they have put a hold on their ridiculously narrowed minded perspective and look at the bigger picture? He was starving.

Unacceptable.

Feeling incredibly gracious, the prince managed not to sigh at their unsightly oversight. Oh Celestia’s Mane, details like this were a great reminder of the distinction between commoners and ponies like him.

“Your Prench crêpes and homemade whipped cream sorbet, Prince Blueblood.”

He dismissed him with a wave of a hoof, not interested in anymore of that incompetence. At least, they had gotten the order right. Had they dared serve him the imported Bitalian tea with fresh pastry first again…

The unicorn promptly levitated a bite from his plate, cutting himself from expressing his displeasure in public. That would be rather mortifying of him to behave so commoner-like.

The meal was… adequate, he supposed. The wait spoiled his delicate taste buds.

More than ever ticked off by the actions of the servants, Blueblood instead focused his attention onto the local newspaper, folded nicely and waiting for him to pick it up. As was his routine, the unicorn wasted no time in opening it, finding the gathered information enjoyable in general.

Such was not the case this morning. Good gracious, was there a conspiracy against him? Nothing would go right for more than a few instants, it seemed.

On the paper he had decided to snob, one could read the title on the front page, probably the most eye-catching since the editor’s first day of work.

‘World exclusive! The princesses' long lost relatives! All about the lost princes!’

Tch, sometimes, Auntie’s charity can get so annoying. Not that he resented her quick recognition of their shared bloodlines. He was above that. Of course.

But the idea of two new princes to be added to their family, not very long after the ascension of that Sparkle mare, seemed ridiculously premature. Had they even proven themselves able to represent the aristocracy their kingdom was built on? Certainly not yet. The colt in particular had ghastly manners.

Blueblood would rather not have his name associated with such uncouth ponies, be they alicorns.

His inner rambling got cut short, however, as was that of many of his fellow nobles at the tables by offensively loud noises.

A pair of unknown voices could be heard through the great doors, though they were muffled and incomprehensible. One detail sticking out however was how they could be qualified.

One definitely belonged to a stallion, while the other had to be that of a foal.

The Prince barely hid a scowl when the doors were opened over two alicorns.

Author's Note

Well, that was just fluffy, wasn't it? It just overtook the plot for a while. Worry not though, it's coming as scheduled next chapter.

Good Times

The maid had been thanked, we had excused ourselves for being so inept with directions, she had assured us it was no problem, mostly to Tom, so I could go on at ease. On that part, I didn’t have to keep up my guard as high as I did before. Heck, I had been relaxed enough to get a few good jabs against Tom, and vice versa.

Just that had been like a breath of fresh air, to pierce my head through the surface of a lake after being submerged for so long. Like any reasonable person, I gulped the sensation greedily, demanding more of it…

That, however, changed spectacularly when the doors opened themselves, onto an extravagant ballroom, the middle of which was occupied by a long wooden table.

I barely had the time to swallow my anxiety. And underwater we dive!

Stick the mask to your face. Wouldn’t want them to have doubts… Act like you’re nobility… what a joke. Why’d I default to that again? A: Because I’m a moron. B: Because I want to make things so much harder for myself.

There was a tug against my leg, which made me blink and glance down at Tom. “Yes?”

“C’mon! I’m hungry!” The little colt urged me, skitty and eager to take his place at that table.

Oh, I so wasn’t looking forward to sitting down with the rest of those tuxedo wearing sharks. I already knew what was going to happen. They’d make thinly veiled comment, I’d have no choice but to lie to cover up for it and then…

The memories…

I shuddered. “Alright, let’s find a place and then we can ask a cook for some food, okay?”

He jumped in place, ready to agree loudly, but I cut him off. “And don’t run, yell, be rude, talk back, mock ponies and all that stuff that makes Mom swear we’ll never go to a restaurant again.”

Off put, Tom settled down a little. “’Kay… Can we get food now?”

I struggled not to chuckle. “Sure. Follow me, we’ll find ourselves some good seats.”

Calmly, making my way to the table, with a foal in my tow, I scanned the room for reactions. Few if not any had decided to ignore us in favor of their breakfast. Frankly, I might have been offended if some had.

Great, now I’m getting an ego. What’s the next step? Talking the monster to death with my pure heart alone? The insolent thoughts brought images of me in a woman’s sailor outfit with me. Luckily, my brain shut down at the atrocity before it burned itself into my mind.

Anyway! Amongst the nobles, none had expressions of approval or disapproval while we made our way from one side of the room to the other. Mostly, they seemed intrigued, or confused.

Was there even an etiquette for where you have to sit down?

Who am I kidding? Of course there is… I guess we’re supposed to sit at the end? I eyed the few free seats, looking for a pair of adjacent places.

There were only two…

A white stallion was intently redirecting his gaze every few seconds, as to avoid giving the impression he was staring. That… was not working well… Besides, I would have been hoping to find another place at any given chance, but there simply wasn’t any two free places except at that spot.

If we were expected to dine here, then that had to be…

I repressed a sigh and motioned for Tom to take a seat.

Quickly, my little brother went to sit on the right of an old stallion, whose coat was gray as my grandpa’s hair. The wrinkle on that face were rather reminiscent of him too…

With Tom seated, that left me with no choice than to take my place, next to… Prince Blueblood…

My inner Rarity fan screamed at me to buck him in the face. The rest of my being was telling it to SHUT THE HELL UP, because apparently the idea of being incoherent and badly written was a big enough fear to rein myself in.

With a very faint sigh, I let my legs give out and plumped down into the cushion. I barely had time to look up from that that a pony came out of nowhere, holding a plate. “Hay bread pastries, Sir?”

The loaf of bread was letting out an aroma that made my mouth water. My eyes almost got glassy just from me imagining how that had to taste like.

“Yes, please.” I nodded, smiling faintly.

From the corner of my eyes, I could see Tom shaking with excitement, nodding enthusiastically at the cook’s suggestion.

Both of us got served in record times, as the ponies responsible for breakfast had prepared a few of those in advance. Even then though, the loaf radiated warmth and freshness. Just taking in the smell of it was a delight.

I had to restrain myself not to dig in right away. I felt too many eyes on me.

Moving my eyes upward, I got sight of a dozen ponies glancing at me, continuously. Those that didn’t were aiming their interest toward Tom.

Speaking of which, said little guy had already started munching on his bread, without much care for protocol and etiquette. Silently, some whispered indignant words under their breath. At this point though, I could hardly do a thing. I simply had to hope that Tom’s age would be a good enough justification. Realistically, it would be.

But that only made other ponies look at me more intensively, as if to see if Tom’s manners were the results of my influence. They totally are. I shouldn’t have engaged him in so many chicken wings eating contests…

Why had the waiter laid down four different forks? That was just one loaf of bread…

Oh man, I was totally staring at silverware like I had no idea what to do… Was it a surprise that a boorish voice came from my right?

“You seem confused, my good sir,” the prince said with an amused tone. “Surely you know basic table manners.”

Hahaha… buck you, Blueblood. We both know I don’t. And we both keep those rigid little fake smiles on our faces to pretend otherwise.

“Ah, I must admit to the customs of your court eluding me,” I replied with a kind smile. “Table manners seem to have greatly evolved since the last time I had been given the opportunity to learn them.”

“Then, please, allow me to show you the proper way.” Oh freak… that sounded so condescending. Is that blood I taste at the idea of considering his offer?

“If you would?” I gave a nod of acknowledgement, biting my cheeks to stop myself from screaming.

“Of course.” He nodded, but… Wow, even when trying to be helpful, he gave the aura of an utterly self-centered idiot. Urgh… this is a mistake. “Simply use the hay fork.”

…

There are four pieces of silverware in front of me, each more glittery than the next, each more detailed than the next, with carvings that could tell a tale all by itself. Shame there isn’t one with ‘Hay’ written all over it?

“Surely…” That grating voice came again, with a note of disbelief. “You know which one I’m talking about?”

My cheeks started to heat up. Long and thin? Small and large? Four spikes or just two? I had no idea…

Somepony coughed, but not in a natural way. It was that kind of cough I pretended to have whenever I had let out a snort or a chuckle. A quick glance told me an increasing number of ponies were staring at me, with Blueblood’s question gathering attention. In his eyes, I saw a desire to gloat.

“Is this my destiny? To look at you and never more?” A voice echoed in my mind. It was… weird… I had no idea where it came from.

“Huh? There’s a fork just for hay?” I heard Tom ask his neighbor.

Salvation!

“Yes, young colt.” The older stallion replied patiently, apparently used to dealing with kids. “One must use the right silverware for the right dish.”

“Oh.” He seemed stumped. “That’s cool. I was just wondering, ‘cause I never ate hay before.”

YES! I love you, Tom!

A stunned silence followed his declaration. Somepony even dropped their drinks, eyes wide. That particular noble was quick to insult the servants for not cleaning up his cup better and for not cleaning up his mess faster.

Cold contempt, rising.

“You have ne-” The older stallion started, intrigued.

“No. He hasn’t.” I jumped in the opportunity of a lifetime. I already knew where to take this. Still, I affected a humble façade and waited for the million dollar question.

Quite a few ponies seemed ready to do just that, including a middle-aged mare munching on a piece of straw, but none had the guts to step forward and ask.

“How is that possible?” Blueblood? …Is that just me or is he slightly more daring than the average stuffy noble? I had to take a second to digest that information.

My voice came out uncertain, almost ashamed. It made my ego soar with pride. “No astral alicorn ever eats hay…”

“But… why?” Another asked, emboldened by their prince’s question.

I looked thoroughly embarrassed. “In our world, it is considered inedible and below us. No member of my family ever got to know its taste before today…”

“But what do you eat then?”

“All our food is thoroughly transformed and refined.” With plenty of growth hormones, preservatives and whatnot… and why is my brain still intact? Is it because I’m telling the truth? “It is the first time I see hay bread. Back home, my people would not dream of serving that.”

Okay, laying it thick. Maybe I should n-

“Oh no, your Majesty!” A panicked maid ran to my side, having heard the whole thing. “We are so sorry! We wouldn’t have dreamed of serving such low quality food had we known. We will make something more appropriate to your standings right away.”

The poor girl scrambled to reach for the bread, her muscles shaking with fear at the horrified realization. A high pitched panicked squeak escaped her mouth when she felt my hoof against her shoulder.

“It is perfectly fine, miss.” I gently pushed her away, smiling kindly. “As your guests, we would not dream on refusing food you have worked hard on to bake. Besides, as you can clearly see, my brother seemed to have appreciated.”

Her eyes moved on to Tom, who was munching on the last quarter of his loaf. He was staring at us, crumbs all around his mouth.

“Yeah, I like it. Can I get another one?”

“I… I…” The maid stuttered, jaw hanging from shock.

The tip of my wing pressed against her back, tying her down in place. “Please, there is no need for you to fret so much. If there is no bread left, that is no matter for concern. He shall have something else and it will also be fine.”

…She looked about to roll over and faint. She had the biggest expression of incomprehension ever. “I… I will go see the chefs!” She ran.

Gee…

“As for you, little brother.” I frowned, picking up a napkin with a spell. “Show a little bit more restraint. There are crumbs of bread all over your face.”

“Saaaam, you sound like Mom.” The colt squirmed, batted it away with a hit from a hoof and turned his face away from the piece of tissue. “Stop that. I can clean myself.”

“Then, do it,” I ordered, waving the napkin in his face.

Now grumbling, Tom wiped his face clean.

I tried returning to my own meal now, but I stopped when I saw the faces of the ponies around me. A few had been whispering, the tone of which reminded me of old gossiping hens.

“That was… unusual, Prince Ventus.” Blueblood frowned.

“Oh, but my father always said that a pony’s character is measured in how he treats his inf- Wait, what did you call me?” You did NOT...

“I called you Prince Ventus. The title is appropriate, considering your bloodline,” he said through gritted teeth. Pronouncing those words seemed to be the equivalent of ripping his heart from his chest for the guy. “After all, you ARE closely related to the princesses.”

Fffffff-! Now we’re off the charts in terms of sueness! How did I not see that coming?! Long lost relative was one thing, that was rather hard to avoid, but suddenly being made princes! We’re doomed!

…Screw it, we finish breakfast and then, we cast the spell to go back home. That was already the plan, but now it’s even more imperative we do.

“Hey, does that mean I’m a prince too?”

I rolled my eyes. Leave it to him to catch only that part.

“Technically, yes.”

“Sweet! Bro, we’re princes! That’s awesome!”

We’re going to die. We’ll be retconned. It’s over, I thought grimly. There was nothing else to do than hope this had not aired yet so we’d have enough time to work on that ritual. Disheartened, I picked up a fork, the right one according to Blueblood, and put a piece of hay bread in my mouth.

Heaven. That bread was like heaven. It tasted so good. Even cooled off, the thing was miles away from its closest competitor in terms of quality. It took all my willpower not to start gushing over it, especially in the face of my previous explanation in terms of food…

Working against my stomach, I ate slowly, making a show of appreciating it, but not overly so. Hopefully, that would work.

“You are drinking from the wrong side,” Blueblood remarked as I sipped a few drops of herbal tea. He was shooting a few glances around, the recipients of which had strangely dismayed expression.

“I beg you pardon?” Come on, that can’t possibly be right! Who can be that stuck-up? Oh, right!

“Your cup,” the unicorn helpfully pointed out. “The crest on it must be facing the opposite way, as to show your allegiance to the ponies in front of you.”

After that, it was apparently my posture, my wings not being folded enough. So I had to clasp them against my sides, making it all the more hotter in the room for me.

At least nopony was nagging on Tom, judging it to be my job, I supposed. That was good, even if the little squirt’s eyes sparkles whenever I was told to correct myself on something. It went on.

And on.

All breakfast long.

I was getting progressively less patient, more likely to snap. My voice had long since gone dry, wits, razor sharp and my body language, tense. Heck, I was in a conversation with Blueblood, as the stallion had gotten progressively bolder with each mistake he had corrected.

“Now, now, Prince Ventus. A royal figure cannot simply hand over their plates once they are done. It would be unsightly to do so.” Great, now I was imagining creating a tornado up his ass just to see how full of shit he was. That condescending… ARGH!

“How peculiar. I have never heard of that before.” At this point, the mask had all but slipped away from my face. I was scowling.

The bastard raised his nose a little, looking as smug as they come. “Is there no such concept of royalty amongst your midst, Prince Ventus?” The ‘how appropriate’ went unsaid.

Haha, just go die in a hole, Blueblood.

The happy thought gave me the strength to show an incredibly fake smile. “No, we indeed do not function in accord to a system of nobility. We find it to be an oppressive and primitive way to govern.”

At the end of the table, a young stallion, at most my age, had spat out his coffee in a spray. It made it very hard for me not to start laughing when somepony had done a spit take.

Tom, of course, found that to be uproariously funny. To the point he started to roll over on the floor, tears rolling down his cheeks. Chill out, buddy.

Props had to be given to Blueblood though. Even though I had just insulted his way of living and that of his country – Crap, that was really moronic of me… –, the only hint of his mortally offended pride was a slight twitch of his ears.

His voice was so cold it almost gave me shivers. “Oh, then please forgive us for not being as enlightened as you, Prince Ventus.”

That sounded like ‘Buck you’… That actually sounded like a big fat ‘Buck you, you ignorant sin against ponykind’… To an alicorn. Wow, I might actually start to develop some respect for the pompous bastard. Heck, he’s the only one calling me out amongst the rest, even if all of them seem just as insulted.

“If you wished it so, I might consider teaching you. That way you may come to be – how did you put it? – enlightened.” Oh, it was so hard to fight a grin at using his own condescending ways against him.

I was surprised Blueblood could speak with his teeth grinding so hard against one another. “Oh, I am rather satisfied with my lifestyle, even if not as intellectually perfect as yours seem to be.”

A sledgehammer hit the sides of my head. It almost knocked me over.

Images flashed before my eyes.

A pony that chokes on a promise he can’t make. A burning desire that leads to a greatly ingenious invention. Wings you can strap on, powered by a little unicorn magic…

It hurt so much…

My tone was not really friendly when I got control of my body again. “No doubt. The idle life of a useless thing like you must be nice. Not a damn effort ever made for the food or roof you get, with all the privilege of bossing ponies around as you like.”

In response, somepony started choking.

Oh, I have to keep scores on how many ponies lose their drink by spitting it all over. That’s like three so far. Two for me, one for Blueblood.

“Useless?! How dare you?!” He turned red. “What would a stranger like you know about our hardship?”

“Well, tell me, ‘Prince’ Blueblood. What do you have to your name other than a pretty seal on your birth certificate?” I felt the temperature drop. I might or might not be responsible for it.

“I have my duties and I perform them, as I have been trained since birth to do so.” He huffed his chest, as if proud.

“So you were groomed into the position?” I wanted to sneer. “What makes you so much greater than another pony that would have followed the same path, growing up?”

“Any pony who would have followed the path that I have taken would have been of noble blood!” He responded with passion, as if he had stated the cold unchanging truth.

It only made me roll my eyes. “And you fail to see how self-serving that logic is?”

While a few seemed to ponder my words, Blueblood himself thoroughly refused to.

“It is a fact! Nobility is the only defense Equestria has against anarchy!” If possible, he looked more arrogant than ever.

Now that is just bullcrap. “Oh, what about the guards? Are they all nobles too?”

“They come from families with great histories in the military, but they are no nobles! We are an elite! Somepony like you wouldn’t understand.”

“Funny, I was under the impression ponies thought my brother and I are nobles, if only because we are alicorns related to Celestia.”

“YOU’RE NOT A NOBLE!” Blueblood stood up, stomping a hoof against the table and shaking it in an outburst of rage.

Three to four, I guess your friends aren’t used to seeing you forego protocol.

“Yet, we are one generation away from Celestia herself. We are cousins. That’s what? One generation? Compared to your fifty generations, I know we must be intimidating but frankly, you need not bother. I cannot register you as anything but a pain in the neck, nothing more, nothing less.”

Sputtering, the stallion struggled to stay coherent.

“Our blood is pure. We have kept it that way for generations!”

“So you’re inbred?” I deadpanned, smirking when I heard the sound of coughing around the table.

Six to four, advantage: mine.

“This is an outrage!”

“Or simple logic, my ‘Prince’. Princess Platinum had a single child before her death.” Another flash. An alicorn teaching me about Equestria’s history. “For your blood to be so pure, there aren’t that many ways.”

“Why, I never heard su-”

“There is very little evidence that a bloodline as old as yours kept any of the qualities that made your ancestors so great, Blueblood. They were pioneers, grand inventor, servants of the Solar Crown. You barely qualify as one of the three.”

“I am much more than that!”

“Then tell me, what is your biggest dream?”

“T-that is none of your bu-”

“No, don’t bother. You’re right. It is irrelevant. It is quite unlikely that you will ever succeed in achieving it, whatever it might be.”

Flashes. Images. Words.

W-what? Not this again!

I got a better look at the pony. He had a white coat. A blond mane… No… that’s a joke, right?

It was him, albeit younger by a few years. Blueblood was the pony from those fake memories! H-he had wanted to fly away! To leave the life of a prince behind and soar through the sky, to see the world and explore. It was his voice I had heard in prayers.

He had given up on all that.

Anger. I was burning with so much… anger… The edge of my vision seemed to blur with barely concealed fury.

The atmosphere had dropped from its previous liveliness. The sky, although clear of any clouds just like it was earlier, had grown hostile. One would not dare open their wings at this moment. My voice darkened the very air between us. “I believe it is time somepony drill the truth into your head. You will grow old, sick if you’re unlucky, but that is a simple fact, Blueblood. That time, you will have to look back on your life and see what you have accomplished. What great things did you do? What good things did you do? The bitter truth is as simple as they come, Prince, you will grow old and die. All that will be left of you will be a name!”

He closed his mouth, swallowing a little saliva with some difficulties.

I did not pause. “Someday… Someday, ponies will read your name in a book and wonder what you did in your life that got you into their history, because that much is a certainty.”

He had the gall to look smug, the glorious idiot.

“Yes, even if it is as a little footnote on the bottom of a page, you will at least be mentioned and remembered. You like the idea, don’t you? Have you ever stopped to think what will ponies hear about?”

The hall was so silent. No movement, no words. Nothing but me and my hatred. I had nothing else, but a growing cold, a hole in my chest that could not be filled. Emptiness.

“That day, the day your name will be in a book, will they read all about how you had the luck of being born to the right parents? Will that be the sole reason for Leon Polaris Blueblood’s inclusion in the world’s history? It is all I can possibly imagine you would be written about for! You are nothing more than a spoiled brat!”

I pressed on, almost bumping into the stallion, locking my gaze into his so he would see and hear me out. He recoiled at the touch, looking at me with iris shrunken by fear.

“But you’re not dead yet! You can still change! Maybe they will they read about a pony that treated everypony as equal? That went on and did more with his life than just the role he had been given when he was five? That tried to better himself his whole life without being a condescending flankhole about it? That brought some of the greatest changes in the history of Equestria? That went on and drew a map of the whole world?!” He could not look at me, not anymore. His eyes had fallen to the ground. Heart still beating with anger, I pushed my hoof against his chest, forcing him to back away from me. “Which one will they read about, ‘Prince’ Blueblood?! TELL ME! WHAT WILL THEY REMEMBER YOU FOR?!”

Complete silence followed my angry rant.

The stallion’s head hung low, ears drooped down and no boorish speech to grate the ears. He had gone silent. I must have dreamt the hitch of his shoulders or the sharp intake of breath that followed.

Just vanish, you useless waste of a life… just jump out of a window… do us all the favor.

“Perhaps one day I will read that book and see for myself. Right now, I already know which Blueblood I would read about.” I stood up, ready to leave. Tom was looking at me with wide eyes. “And really, that's kind of sad.”

I started walking away. And Tom followed me outside, speechless.

The nobles I left gaping in my wake would not recover completely for the better part of the morning. I had no idea how long it would take for Blueblood to just brush me off completely and go on with his life of being a royal pain to every pony he meets.

We trotted past a servant carrying a tray of food. The pony in question stopped right in his track. “Sirs? Are you done with your meal?”

I’m feeling a bit nauseous to tell the truth. A weird pressure had built up at the back of my eyes, pulsing through my eyesight. It made everything a little blurry. I wanted it to end. I wanted more clarity, cold precision would be good at this point.

“Hay no! I’m still hungry! What d’you have?”

Poor guy, Tom’s manners completely screwed his composure over. Were all nobles that much rigid with etiquette? Surely there had to be exceptions?

“How does a bowl of fresh fruits with Prench cream and chocolate fondue sound, young sir?”

I had to hide a grin. That sounded good to me. So, with him…

“HAY YEAH!” He jumped in excitement, just before grabbing the tray with his magic.

“Thank you very much, Sir.” I gave a bow of my head as acknowledgment, which seem more than those guys were receiving these days.

He left us quickly, thinking to himself. We were left alone, in the middle of a hallway, with a tray full of food.

Obvious solution is obvious. I laughed, taking the tray away from Tom, who loudly protested, until I sat down against the wall and placed the tray on the ground. Getting the hint, he dashed toward me, settling down as well.

We shared the moment, it was lighthearted… Just spending a few more minutes enjoying simple things before we’d get to work about going back.

My head was feeling light when I got hit by a ridiculous thought. Aw bucking hay… I totally did a redemption speech to an antagonist. Great, now I’m getting traits of a Mary Sue classic too. That’s disturbing…

“Hey, Sam?” My little brother asked, between two bites.

“Yes?”

“Are we doing something special today?”

Buck yes, we are. Going home. Special enough for you, Tom-tom? “Yeah, why?”

“I’m just saying, can it wait just a little? ‘Cause I want to go see that hissy guy’s room.”

That shocked me beyond words. Tom, of all people, wanted to talk to a pompous fool like Blueblood, after I had made it abundantly clear how much I loathed him? “H-hu-huuuh… w-why?”

His grin was anything but nice. “I teleported a cake over his door. I wanna see his face when it happens.”

And the winner is Calx Iugum, aka Blade Darkblaze, aka Tom, my favorite little brother, ever!

Sentence

What did he stand for?

He knew he had forgotten. Or he had chosen not to think about it. Whichever was less painful.

It was shameful, unprincely even! Such a poisonous, heretical thought would have never wormed itself into his glorious mind before, but they were nothing, oh nothing at all, in the face of words of that damned alicorn.

The most infuriating part had been his lack of wit, the shock of being addressed that way responsible of course. He had completely been unable to reply to those ridiculous claims.

Ridiculous…

Y-yes, they were ridiculous! How could the next generations not see what he had done for the good of his country?!

What he had done? …Give the authorization to build a new road between Fillydelphia and Clopenagh? Put his seal of approval on a revision of the Everfree Forest’s borders?

He knew those were important tasks, Celestia damn it! Why was he still bothered by that ruffian’s words?!

“What is your biggest dream?” He had asked. As if he had any right to question his motives!

Blueblood squashed the floating image of his airship, knowing the remembrance would just bring out painful memories. Memories of his beloved “Sky King” were best left untouched.

Not that he wanted to use it, to feel the wind brush against his fur and look at the earth below, as if the whole world had suddenly become accessible to him in ways he could never dream of. As if it belonged to him, like the sky itself.

No, of course not. He was a prince, he knew what his duty was… Mother had always made that clear enough.

Phantom pain ran through his flanks, but he ignored it.

Duty, duty, all that mattered remained his status. He was a prince, nothing could change that. It just meant certain… restrictions were inevitable. But he alone could do it.

Why did the thought suddenly turn so bitter then? Why was he left with nothing but the taste of ash in his mouth?

The stallion had no answer to his interrogations, nor was he in the company of any pony that might have. Blueblood was alone, slowly making his way back to his room.

The hallways were deserted, save for the occasional pony cleaning up the castle or the guard making his patrol. Blueblood made a show to ignore them.

“Oh, but my father always said that a pony’s character is measured in how he treats his inf-”His inferior? Ah, what a laughable sentiment.

What did it matter if a servant’s feelings were hurt? They weren’t paid to feel.

Ashes. Only ashes in his mouth.

“You can still change!”

Why would he? He was perfect as he was. Anypony with a lick of common sense would agree.

“The only thing royal about you is that you’re a royal PAIN!”

He cringed at the memory of that fury, who he later realized was one of the heroines that had saved the world. It had been… awkward to find that out.

With a sigh, the prince pushed open the door to his suite. He slowly walked through the doorframe. Perhaps he was wrong, perhaps he ought to change his ways…

SPLOTCH!

The whole castle heard his screams.

It was hard not to break into cheers when we heard of Tom’s successful prank, oh so hard, but alas there were witnesses around. We wouldn’t want to antagonize the princesses by publicly revealing we had pranked (or allowed another to, in my case) their nephew.

There was no chance in hell they would not guess accurately it was our fault, especially after this morning’s encounter, but we might as well pretend to be innocent.

“Oh no, that is terrible,” I deadpanned.

Well, crap, that was weaksauce times twenty.

“Yes… absolutely terrible… The castle won’t be the same without his magnificent presence bearing down on all of us…” The maid replied, with just as much emotion.

Alright, maybe our cover wasn’t blown yet. If it had, we knew at least one more pony that would go down with us.

Thing was, we didn’t get to see Blueblood as he got splattered with cake. We missed it by a couple of minutes apparently. From that point on, nopony had gotten any update about the prince. He had holed himself in his room and would not come out. None of his usual staff had been allowed inside either.

Nevertheless, that had deserved a brohoof with Tom. And a big congratulation.

“Now, I believe you were supposed to escort us to our own suite, am I correct?” I gave her an encouraging smile.

“You are, my prince.” She bowed.

The title made me cringe. The deference did not help either.

“Y-yes, if you would please…?”

She got the hint and started walking.

“Do you know why you’re here?” The woman with the glasses asked him.

“I guess it’s because I’m avoided like the plague?” He replied bitterly.

She could not stay completely stoic at that. She had to show a little compassion. Her hands found his. “Eric, there is nothing wrong with you.”

“Then why are all my friends gone now?”

Mrs. Thompson had to stop and forget her own failures. She had given herself the task to help Sam. She had failed him spectacularly. Now, she had to face one of his friends.

This was hard, but the psychologist could hardly imagine herself in the shoes of Sam’s parents. It was a fate she would not wish on anyone.

She had been contacted by her colleague, Dr. Lachance, for a small discussion concerning Sam’s perception of his parents. He had said a few words about their general states, but, of course, hadn’t delved into their states of mind more deeply.

Professionalism aside, they weren’t such nice things to look into anymore…

“Eric, this is not a fault on your part. It is a terrible, terrible thing, but none of it can be blamed on you. You must understand that.”

The teenager’s eyes would not focus back on her. They were onto a memory he had tried to forget, because every remembrance came with a throbbing sensation around his eye. Always the same thing.

He was talking, trying to make a lighter conversation. Then, there’s a fist.

He was holding her back, making sure she wouldn’t go too far. Then, there’s another fist.

And, like that, they’re both gone.

He couldn’t not think about how he had played a role in this. His mind just kept telling him he had done something wrong to deserve this. Right?

“I can’t,” he whispered. “I want, but I can’t.”

“Hum… Sam? What are we doing?” Tom asked, thoroughly confused.

“We’re going to redo the whole ritual that brought us here, of course.” My horn glowed bright and most of the furnitures was moved out of the way, creating a clear, wide area for us to work on.

“Oh.” He looked down. Well, that didn’t sound thrilled. Don’t start talking about how you want to stay, ‘cause I’ll drag your ass back to Mom and Dad anyway, except I’ll be a lot angrier about it.

“What’s wrong?” I frowned, absentmindedly levitating lumps of coal from our chimney. “You don’t look like you’re happy.”

The pieces of dark material snapped in half.

…I had to work on my control better…

“Come to think of it, Tom, why didn’t you come back by yourself?”

“I… got a little scared,” he admitted with a tiny voice. His cheeks had darkened. “I thought you might… not be happy to see me again…”

“Oh come on, squirt.” I nuzzled him, sharing some warmth and comfort with him. “That’s nonsense and you know it.”

“Hu-uh…” He shrugged noncommittally.

Tom broke the contact himself. He had foregone most if not all of his boastful attitude. At the moment, he was little more than a kid, lost and confused.

“Plus, I had sorta forgotten the way to draw the big circle…” He looked down, ashamed, in more ways than one. He seemed on the verge of tears now.

I brought him into a hug. “Shhh, it’s fine, buddy. I’ll take care of everything, promise.”

Tom blinked, shocked. “Huh? You know how to?”

“Of course I do, I studied the spell intensively before coming here.” I smiled, though I was mentally bracing myself for the worst. “I memorize it in its entirety.”

The sudden onslaught of memories did not catch me off-guard. I had physically steadied myself. I had seen it coming. I had hoped to.

Now, a series of extremely complicated and precise alignment of magical runes were freshly imprinted in my mind. The incantation was just as easily remembered as well.

It made me shake in anticipation. It would be so easy to make it work. I already knew the spell would be perfect.

“Let’s get down to it, shall we?” I grinned, releasing my hold on my little brother.

Then I started pressing the coal against the stone floor.

“Now where is that beaver?” A fabulous voice echoed on the shores of the river. “He promised to meet up here for the issue of his dam.”

Exquisite purple scales shimmered in the sun, so rarely shining in his neighborhood. The Everfree Forest was not often that sunny in the middle of the day… or anytime of the year really. It was just a lucky break for him.

After all, the light brought out the orange of his mustache.

The sea serpent scanned his surroundings. Nothing.

His claws scratched his chin, a frown on his face. “I could have sworn this was the right place.” He glanced at the orb of fire moved around by the alicorn princess. “And this is the right time too. Ah, where is that beaver? He’s not late, is he? That is so unsightly.”

Steve Magnet did not notice the fog conquering the woods. He really ought to have…

He just felt terribly cold all of a sudden.

I-it was complete. I had finished drawing all the runes, each symbol was in its place. Nothing would ruin this.

My eyes darted around the room, my heart skipping a beat when I realized I had tempted fate. But that cold-hearted bitch seemed to have decided not to screw us over this time. The room was empty, save for us and those pentagrams.

I was so excited I could throw up. “R-ready, squirt?”

He quickly nodded. He clearly was just as thrilled as I was.

“Stay close to me,” I said, pulling closer with one wing. “And repeat everything I say. We wouldn’t want just one of us going through, right?”

“Okay, Sam.”

I started talking. And he started repeating, everything, dutifully, just like I asked. For a moment, I allowed myself to hope. It would work. It had to. We were doing everything the way it should be done. Heck, the strange reality warping that was plaguing my mind had even made sure I knew exactly what to do.

We said the words. All of them. Without hesitation. Without missing a beat. Everything was perfect.

But this time, the runes lit up during the spell casting. I wasn’t facing an inanimate circle this time, but a maddeningly bright writing that had me hoping… that had me thinking to myself that it wasn’t a bad sign, that it wasn’t a hint that it wasn’t working right, that this definitely did not meant anything other than the spell was working. That alone and nothing else.

The last syllable left my mouth, and it seemed to echo with another voice.

And then, nothing.

Again.

The moment the spell was over, it was as if nothing would happen, nothing would ever happen to bring us out of this hell away from the people that matter to us. But I wasn’t truly worried yet. It had done this before. Is this it? Or is this the part where the nightmare becomes a reality?

My eyes had gone to the ground. The last time, I had sunk through the ground. That had been how I had travelled here. Now, my heart was beating so strongly my vision kept jumping as I stared at a lifeless stone floor.

I was trying to will us to go through it. My hooves remained despairingly solid.

The seconds ticked away. Each one was a needle piercing my skin. Each one added to a growing fear, until there were naught but deafening screams in my mind. They were all I could hear, even as my heartbeat grew wilder.

What is that? The question crossed my mind.

I saw red. Literally. Something red was floating about, formless. It seemed ominous… it had filled the air. If I could describe it, I would call it a mist. Droplets of something crimson, an infinite number of it that covered the room from head to toes. Each one of them was calling to me like the song of a siren. They… reminded me of something…

Home…

Then, it gathered, took on the shape of a vaguely horse-like creature. The figure seemed alien at first, but as more of its essence was returned to its original shape. Into the center of the runes I had drawn, a new creature had taken form.

I was looking at the ghostly figure of an alicorn. One whose traits were filled with warmth, who was so familiar my heart ached with longing. I… I couldn’t… For a second… I wished I could simply go back to him… to return to being under his watchful golden eyes… to just… rely on him… the strongest and the most reliable of all…

“Hey Dad!”

My heart stopped. It froze in my chest, suddenly turning a lifeless husk and driveling into nothingness.

Cold ice seeped through my veins and made the world spin madly.

No… That’s… a lie…

“Started to miss you, y’know?” Tom grinned, boastful. “Well, not that much, ‘cause I’m not a baby, but maybe a little.”

The alicorn smiled in that faint way fathers do when they’re humoring their children. YOU HAVE NO RIGHT, YOU BASTARD! I’LL KI-

“Please tell me you haven’t disrupted the fabric of time and space yet?”

HAHA, I WOULD HAVE LAUGHED, AND MADE THAT EXACT SAME JOKE, BUT YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO SAY THAT!

I couldn’t see clearly. I was blinded by my rage. “Why are you here?!”

The alicorn stammered, clearly taken by surprise by my vindictive tone. “T-they asked me to be the messenger this once. It is a responsibility I would not give to anypony else.”

“What message?! What responsibility?!” Did Tom flinch? Why?

“Something from Mom?” He asked, eagerly looking up at the strong fatherly figure.

I was this close to snarling, to foaming and just attacking that thing. How dare he?! How could he pretend to…?!

“No, Calx…” He spoke softly, as if that made up for anything at all! “Not from your mother…”

“From whom then?!”

“The Elders.” I was shocked silent.

W-who were they? I had some knowledge of them, as all alicorns would, since, you know, I had gro- LIES!

They were unforeseen consequences of a botched up reality warping magic. Nothing more.

Yet my chest tightened with dread at how solemn Magnus had been. Ho-how do I even know he’s Magnus?

Because he is. He’s the one from my memories, the alicorn that kept me warm at night, that gave me a hug when nopony else would. My father.

My head was killing me. A growing pressure was encircling my head, a prison of pain that would not give out.

“W-what did they say?” I didn’t truly want to know that. Just why we were still in Equestria. Why weren’t we going through a swirl of color and on our way to our beds, waiting for the reality to crash on us and share a laugh, then a hug with Mom?

I could already imagine how warm her hug would be, how strongly she’d crush my bones in her embrace. But I didn’t have it yet.

The world was becoming cold around us. My fur was not enough to keep it at bay anymore.

“You have broken the rules… You know what it means.” No, no, no, no, no! “They decreed that the passage will not be opened until your mistake is atoned for. Innocents may be in peril from your infractions…”

Lies. A bunch of lies. He’s a changeling. Not an alicorn. He’s a liar. A liar. A liar that lies. This isn’t real. A nightmare. Time for me to wake up. Just a bad dream. A lie. Magnus is not my father. He must be thinking of other alicorn kids. Just a case of mistaken identity. And a joke. A bad one, but a joke. It just isn’t real.

“The princesses will educate you… and you shall watch for abnormal comportments from them.”

“B-but Dad…” Tom protested, his expression that of absolute dismay.

Why was this happening? My fault. Wasn’t it like that? A lie that snowballs into the most monstrous of truth? THEN NO MORE LIES!

"YOU'RE NOT MY FATHER!" And I saw, the absolute hurt in his face. That alicorn... it did not understand why a son had rejected him. I... I wasn't so sure why I had...

"Son..." Oh God! He sounds just like Dad! This isn't real! "I... I'm sorry. I don't want this."

I saw him, I saw Magnus as my father, the one that comforted me when I was just a little colt. I saw that tall alicorn stand proud and show me how to fly amongst the stars. I remembered the glee. I remembered the love...

I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry... Bitter tears rolled down my cheeks. I DON’T KNOW ANYMORE! "You can't... you c-can't force us to stay here..."

“T-this is how…” He sounded as if he was ripping his own heart into pieces. “The Elders have willed it to be…”

I could not see him clearly anymore. Hot. Wet. From my eyes. It just blurred and cleared up, with every blink of my eyes. And my throat was tightening closer and closer.

"Yo-you h-h-have to let us g-g-g-go home!” My breathing accelerated. This was too much. TOO MUCH. “I BEG OF YOU!"

H-he… he looked away, avoiding my gaze! I could not register anything from him but the same desperate plea, though one for forgiveness. His pity struck me at the heart. I knew. It was all over.

I could no longer stay standing.

I collapsed, the worst of fear a reality. My vision turned dark.

We’re stuck here…

Sounds had been muted. There was but a deafening silence, loud enough to eclipse even the panicked screams of my little brother and my father. Nothing but nothingness.

I heard the bell toll.

My mind crashed.

Reminiscence

I realized it before my senses were back. I was a pony. Still a pony…

Still a pony… it’s not a bad dream… ha… haha… hahahaha…

PONY!

Wings folded over me, heat radiating from my chest, weight added by a couple bed sheets. My eyes were closed, letting filtering nothing but darkness. A bitter laugh built up in my throat.

Listen to me… I’m living the brony dream. I’m an alicorn, a prince, on somewhat friendly terms with the Mane Six and the Princesses. And I want nothing more than to throw it all away… Hey, that’s not a bad idea… trade place with someone? How? Anyone interested?

Slowly, I lifted my eyelids, fighting a fatigue that dragged my limbs down. My teeth were grinded together, jaw clenched. A numbness born from pain had taken a hold of my face’s muscles.

“S-Sam?” Well, I’d recognize that voice anywhere…

I forced my eyes open. It allowed me to see the face of a young colt, inches away from me. His own eyes were red and puffy.

“Hey, Buddy…” I whispered, voice raspy.

His eyebrows lowered, a grimace on his mouth. Next thing I knew, a hoof in my chest cut my breath. “You big idiot!”

I could not help it. I just chuckled. “Sorry, Tom.”

“Don’t laugh!” He scowled, very nearly pouting. His eyes held unshed tears.

“Aw, don’t be like that.” I sighed. “Come here.”

I lifted one hoof in the air, enough to make some space for him to occupy. With a dash, he did just that, jumping over me and almost strangling me with his legs.

I had to strain my ears to hear his next words… they were so small… they made him seem so… vulnerable. “You scared me…”

You never admit that stuff, Tom. The realization just made my weakness weight heavily against my heart. It sickened me that I could be so fragile as to worry him. So much for strong big bro…

“I’m sorry for that, Squirt,” I muttered, stroking his mane.

He only squeezed me harder, not willing to forgive me yet. He’d done that a few times before, rarely. Nothing to do in times like this, water under the bridge, that was pretty much the only way to get him to forgive me on that.

I let the silence take its rightful place. It had a… calming quality.

Listening to my brother’s quiet breathing, I took the opportunity to glance at the room we were in. Certainly, the place lacked modesty. Fitting for one dubbed a prince for no reason.

The room was… decadent. It just instantly brought Blueblood to mind, which was an unpleasant thought in itself. Too many richly decorated pieces of furniture, too many silky curtains, too much ‘froufrou-ey’ stuff... it just made me feel vaguely uneasy.

Still, that was nothing. With nothing but the reassuring presence of Tom at my side, my mind was free to wander. And wander it did.

Stuck here… The thought made my mouth dry out. It was just too much to take at once. What next? What am I supposed to do? It might not be long until I just forget what I am. Wouldn’t be surprising after getting a dozen brainsplosion due to unwanted memories…

My eyes widened as I was struck by a dangerous thought.

“Hey Dad!” That’s what Tom said…

That… I could not leave that alone. I had to… to get to the bottom of it.

Taking a deep breath to call back what I had left of my courage, I distanced myself from my little brother, making sure I could see his face. He looked a little surprised to be honest.

“D-do you remember home?”

“What d’you mean?” He tilted his head, not understanding.

“Do you remember what it’s like back home?” I locked my gaze with his. “Don’t you remember Mom and Dad?”

“I…” A slight frown started to appear on his face. “Yeah, I do. Why’d you ask?”

“Tell me about them… please…” I was pleading. I knew I was. Even if I did my best not to sound vulnerable, t-that… I couldn’t fake about.

His eyes flared up, as if indignant that I could imply he would forget them. Except…

“Started to miss you, y’know?” You said those words, Tom. To an alicorn…

My heartbeat picked up the pace when Tom suddenly froze. “They’re… hum…”

I stopped breathing. Dread was clawing away at my brain. I couldn’t think anymore…

“Huh…” Tom looked away, biting his lips. His whole body screamed of uncertainty. “Sam… I’m not… sure…”

I fought the urge to be sick. “H-how come, Buddy?”

How my tone was still kind and calming, I’d never know.

“It’s weird…” Tom stood on his hind legs, his front legs resting on my shoulders. “I… it’s like I remember more than one dad… and more than one mom…”

Hesitantly, I gave a little nod. T-that… that’s good…. Still salvageable… Not too late… Maybe if I ask something else… to trigger something…?

“What was your room like, back home?”

“Hum… it was messy,” Tom said very seriously, which made it all the more hard for me.

I stared.

Then started laughing.

“HEY!” He shouted, indignant. “Don’t laugh at me!”

“N-no, don’t worry…” Oh dear, it was not easy to speak between snorts. “It’s… just t-the nerves…” And the incredible amount of truth in your words. Man, you make a mess of your things.

He harrumphed, glaring. It seemed like I had thoroughly failed to be convincing.

“Now, just listen, okay, Tom?”

He turned away, a little pout on his face. “I don’t want to.”

“Come on,” I urged, grabbing him close with my wings. “I was just surprised. It wasn’t at you, promise.”

“Pinkie Promise.” He freed himself from my grip, still frowning.

“Cross my heart, hope to fly, stuck a cupcake in my eye.” With the eye closed, thank you, Twilight.

“Hum… okay…” My little colt of a brother seemed mollified by the gesture. Slightly.

“But really, Tom, you’ve got to try a bit harder.” Come on, bro. I really don’t think I can take that kind of crap from you too… We’re NOT ponies. “Don’t you remember how Mom and Dad look?”

“Dad’s like you… Mom’s like me. Sorta.” He scratched the back of his head, eyes narrowed as if he was trying to remember and couldn’t quite…

“Yes, they are.” I nodded, encouraging him to go on with a little smile.

“And huh… we’ve got a… really big piano in the living room, Mom’s always playing it…” A wave of relief came crashing down on me. “The backyard’s too small to play baseball… we tried… there’s a… ticket for your… favorite band’s concert, on top of my drawer…”

I blinked. “Wait, what?”

“I… huh…” Did the little squirt shift his gaze to avoid meeting mine? “It’s really hard…” He looked up at me, his mouth twisted into a grimace, a small quiver going through his lips.

“I know…” I sighed, forcing him into a stronger hug. “It’s okay. We’ll try again later.”

It was just lucky he couldn’t see my face in the position I had forced him into. I was fairly sure I was the picture of tormented. My eyes stung and I felt my mane was being messy, spiky and all around epic bed hair.

Something doesn’t want us to leave. Whoever those Elders bastards are, they will pay for that. Of course, reality would crash down on me soon enough. Except I have no idea how to do any of that, again.

It's the disappearance all over again. It was enough to get another sigh out of me. Just then though, a small hit to the wings surprised me. Tom had hit them with his owns, for reasons I could not quite discern.

I got signals about my fur being brushed, repeatedly, up and down…

He was sobbing, shaking like a leaf in the wind.

When he spoke, his voice was even quieter than before. “We’re not going back, are we?”

I felt my mask crack. His words had struck me right past my white lies and into my heart. It made my throat tighten painfully.

“I…” For fuck’s sake, Sam! Just lie! Say it! It’s not that hard and it’s what he needs to hear! “I don’t know…”

He just buried his head deeper into my chest. Without a word, he just hugged the last remnant of his old life. I had no comforting lie for him.

It felt as if my bones had turned into solid ice. It stole away all the heat within my body, leaving me feeling like a empty husk, a failure of a brother and a pathetic thing… How I loathed myself for this.

I hung my head low, mane obscuring my eyes. I wanted this to end.

Somewhere beyond the borders of Equestria, at an altitude rarely reached by even the most intrepid of griffons and the mightiest dragons, something stirred.

The celestial body of the pony princess shone over the snow, that white blanket covering the highest of mountains, but never melted it away.

It never did. The cold cloak of the rocky formation would remain frozen, a reminder of the darker times most civilizations had started to forget.

And, over the sound of the devastating winds slamming into the mountainside, at the height of the highest of them all echoed an ethereal neigh.

Her sleep was tormented with the past. Had she been awake and conscious, she might have rolled her eyes at the irony. As it stood however, the dark mare’s expression remained that of a troubled pony.

Blood chilling cold. Shrieks of horrors from those that got close enough to witness the events. The shining light of the sun in the sky, bloated out by dark clouds. The smell of blood, its taste in her mouth. Shadows that hide nothing and everything in an endless blizzard. Howling in the wood.

The images flashed in her mind, before coming to a standstill.

There, encased in ice, a white mare with a pink mane. Mere inches away, a dark figure, clad in golden clothing.

A small moan of sadness escaped the sleeping figure’s lips. If one had observed her at the moment, they would have seen the trail of tears going down her cheeks.

“Ah, my dark love,” he said with a chuckle. His voice, usually so suave, had a strange hollow tone to it. “It is good to see you.” Why was her heart still beating fast at the sight of his smile? “I was hoping you would come to your senses. Can’t you see how unworthy they are?” Her hooves seemed stuck to the ground. “War, again. They are preparing for it. Again!”

She became agitated. Her subconscious knew what would happen next. No matter how many time she tried to forget, she couldn’t. Her mind wouldn’t let her forget.

Completely vulnerable. Chains weighting down on her. Cold wind brushing against her fur every so often. His words echoing again and again in that icy cave.

Ethereal creatures, parody of her fellow brethren, floated up to her. Every time they got closer, her heart seemed to grow cold as their touch. The chains had grown bigger with time. They covered her almost entirely. Her horn, frozen as were her wings, could not produce even a spark to save her.

He loomed over her, enjoying what little he could get out of her. At some point, she knew, her own life had been turned into nothing more than a trophy to him, nothing more than a possession. That twisted sentiment made her sick, every single time it seeped through his voice. “Almost done. Almost… then it’s only us, my love.”

The mare’s body jolted back to consciousness, shocked out of her dreams by his voice whispering to her.

Her chest inflating and deflating rapidly, she stood shocked, eyes wide, staring at empty space while her dream still remained fresh in her mind. After a few seconds however, her panic faded away and she took notice of her real situation. She was in her room. It seemed as if her bed sheet were damp and heavy with sweat. The darkness surrounding her, usually so inviting and proper for her sleep now only made otherworldly voices ring in her ears.

With a yank of her magic, her curtains were drawn open, revealing the midday sun.

“Ugh, it is too early for me to be awake…” The mare sighed, trotting calmly to her boudoir. She needed to freshen up, for the night promised to be long with so little sleep in her body.

But she could not be quite at ease with their guest staying in the castle. Not when her instincts were screaming at her that something was amiss with the young alicorn.

Luna’s eyes narrowed at the reflection in her mirror. This time, she would not allow it. This time, there would be no Lord of Windigos.

Her mirror cracked.

We… eventually, we left the suite. We had to. A servant had come by to check up on us – me – apparently. The news of my… fainting had spread like wildfire in the castle, if the brown stallion had to be believed.

Which was why he was carrying a fruit basket and a get-well card.

No, not kidding. He was. Said something to the effect of a well-deserved reward for putting a certain somepony in his place.

…Not going to complain here.

But anyway, this was not important. What was important was the fact that the princesses had asked for news of my recovery. They had been scared for my health and ashamed not to have noticed anything sooner.

…Haha, yeah, total Stu. The thought had crossed my mind. Then I decided to hell with that and just play along.

Still, that meant we had to make a public appearance of sort to squash any rumors that might leave the castle’s ground. What-freaking-ever.

Beside me, Tom walked without any energy. He was moving slowly, the zest of life gone from his usually cheerful demeanor.

God, I just wanted to slump down and tell him it would be FINE, that we’d be back in no time and all that… but… the lie just wouldn’t roll off my tongue. It just gripped at my insides and refused to move. I just didn’t have it in me to lie to him on that…

This doesn’t look good. Seriously, what can I do to ju-?

“Excuse me,” a feminine voice cut my train of thoughts.

I glanced at my left, where the voice had originated from.

There were two mares, one pink and the other lavender.

I seriously hadn’t expected this. It probably showed really easily on my face. I just blinked without understanding. “H-how did you…?”

“Oh, that was me, silly.” Of course.

“I… see…” I replied, pretending to be confused.

Twilight sent me a compassionate look. I could imagine the memories of her trying to understand her eccentric friend were still fresh enough in her memory.

“We came because I got a chill followed by three sneeze and that usually means someone really needs cheering up.”

My gaze went to the blue little form at my side.

"Sounds like somepony really could use one of your parties, Pinkie." Twilight remarked with a slight cringe.

“Oh, that’s a great idea, we shou-” She abruptly stopped, deciding to look at me all of a sudden. “Did you apologize?”

“I’m sorry?” My eyebrows furrowed.

So did hers. “For yelling at him like that! It was mean!”

I felt a sting of pain, as if an old wound had been reopened. I sounded a bit defeated when I replied. “Yes…”

“Great!” She piped up, looking very happy with this development. “Then everything is fine. Oh, except for this.”

Before I had the time to say anything, she popped out from behind me, head respectively lowered.

“I’m really sorry I yelled at you. The others have explained to me about it and I get that you weren’t trying to be mean about it. Do you forgive me?”

That’s… that actually felt nice. I grinned, warmth spreading in my chest. “It would not be very gracious of me to refuse an apology from such a nice mare.”

“Yes!” Her body rippled, stretching into the air in an amazingly disturbing motion, before turning back to normal.

Color me nauseous. A body should not twist that way. My eye twitched.

She did not notice, instead, Pinkie took one look at Tom and appeared next to him. Holy crap teleportation without magic was a heck of a pain in the neck. I’ll have to watch out for whiplash around her…

“I’m willing to bet you were the cause for my Pinkie Sense going off!”

“I dunno… Maybe…” Tom said quietly, not feeling up to it.

“Come on, Bladey! We have to turn that frown upside down!” The pink mare picked his front hooves in hers and tried to get him to look my way.

He sent me a pleading look. Clearly, he had no intention of humoring his best pony. I, on the other hand…hoof… whatever, thought letting her have her way with my little brother seemed a good idea. I certainly wasn’t in the state of mind needed to cheer him up, but her…

I made a little motion with my head, pushing him to accept.

At that, he pouted, not impressed. Nonetheless, Tom let his shoulder slouch, no longer fighting her.

“Hum… ‘kay, Pinkie…” He muttered, letting himself be carried away by Pinkie.

Losing no time, she brought out the big guns, in the form of a couple of streamers and a song. Amazingly though, it seemed to cheer him up just a little, with him repeating a few words from the lyrics.

Longingly, I let my eyes trailed after the two of them. If she could bring some smile back so easily, then I wanted to know her secret. Or hire her as a babysitter. Eh, I’d prepare a couple of bags of flour, just in case. Won’t work, but, damn, it would be hilarious if Tom came back completely white.

From the corner of my eyes, I noticed that Twilight was still by my side, her gaze also turned toward the two shrinking figures in the hallway.

“Intriguing, isn’t she?” She said, apparently holding back a desire to laugh, if her slight trembling was any indication. “That’s our Pinkie Pie.”

I know, Twi. I know. “I haven’t met anypony quite… like her…”

She took the polite assessment at face value, or so I thought. Her lips were curled into a little smile.

A pleasant silence took place between us. It did not stop my thoughts from running wild with the proximity of the show’s debatable main character.

I wanted a distraction… I got it… Eh, what the hell? Why not? It can only get worse… At least, I won’t have to think about it much… Let’s see how easily the mask slips on… Clearing my throat, I summoned the voice of a restrained, calm, regal-like stallion. “I suppose you have many questions, Princess Sparkle.”

Apparently, pretty damn well easy.

“W-what makes you say that?” The lavender alicorn blinked, a bit taken aback.

I chuckled, tilting my head toward the quill and scroll sticking out of her saddlebag. “Just an intuition.”

“Oh.” Twilight blushed, telekinetically pushing the two items back into her bag. “That was just something I… well, I had planned to ask you a few clarifications about you story and your culture, but after hearing you had fainted earlier today, I had decided to just check up on you.”

My lips quirked upward. Typical Twilight. “You need not be ashamed, Princess Sparkle. Curiosity is only natural, especially coming from an ascended pony. Frankly, I would have expected you to have asked your teacher, however.”

“I did,” she replied, as if that had been a stupid question.

“Is that so?” I asked, feeling my interest flaring. That could be an… opportunity. “Was your wish to compare notes? Or different points of view, perhaps?”

She bit her lips. “Would you? I know this might feel very intrusive, but the documented knowledge of alicorns is so very scarce. Princess Celestia told me it is because of the rarity of your ki-”

“Our,” I corrected gently.

The poor mare stopped her movements. Pausing and looking slightly confused, Twilight shifted on her hooves with unease. Her eyes went to her back and her wings twitched a few times.

A brief surge of compassion went through me, as I waited for her to focus her attention back to me. Sounds like I’m not the only one being hit by the species change… Happy thoughts!

“Yes, ‘our’ kind… but now that you and your brother are here, that’s six alicorns in Equestria at the same time! More than has ever been reported in our history.”

The question flared in my mind, but I squashed it, knowing I – Ventus Vinco – should have known the answer myself.

“And you wish to exchange information?” I guessed.

She nodded.

“I do not object, Princess Sparkle, but I might require your assistance myself for a… different dilemma.” My heart was beating really fast. I was fighting not to blurt out a plea for her to help us do some dimensional travel. “Should I tell you everything you want to know, will you aid me in a quest I must accomplish?”

“What… kind of quest?” Twilight frowned, looking more than a little cautious.

“My own knowledge of it is limited, though I doubt it could be dangerous.” That’s a nice lie. Why did I even bother with it? She’s a heroine, she already risked her life a few times now.

“I… well, I do have duties as a princess now, but if I can help you, then I will gladly do so! Besides, I think you’re worth helping!” She smiled.

I wanted to, I already had the reply on my lips. Just a humble ‘thank you’ to show how grateful I was. Instead, what came out was what I knew to be true. “I am not that good of a stallion, Princess.”

My answer seemed to startle her. “You seemed like a nice stallion to me… temper aside.” She finished awkwardly.

I let that one slide. Instead, I tried to focus on a way to steer the conversation in a way that would either benefit me outright or at least provided me with enough excuse to be coherent. This moment was key.

“What knowledge do you have of astral alicorns?”

My heart skipped a beat. No matter how much I tried, I could not control my gaze and avoid staring at her eyes. They were a little unfocused, not looking at me, as if a mist made a veil over them. That can’t be a coincidence!

“Oh, well, our knowledge of astral alicorns is very limited. Frankly, I was not aware of them before your arrival. I had heard a rumor that the Princesses had first been sighted as fully grown adults already. I had thought nothing of it then, but now I have a feeling I know where they were before.”

“A sound theory.” I nodded. And conveniently confirming everything I said…

“They weren’t the first though,” she added as an afterthought.

My ears perked up. Hopefully, she hadn’t noticed. I couldn’t quite tell however, Twilight went on with her train of thoughts without looking anymore confused or intrigued. “The very first mention of an alicorn in our history books date back to before the uniting of the three tribes. His name was Caelum Ourobos.”

A sensation of horror started crawling under my skin. And I had no idea why.

“W-what do they mention about… him…?”My voice had started shaking, beyond my control. A cold shiver was running down my spine.

“He had taken the title of Alicorn of the Sky.” She glanced at me. There was something in her gaze that I couldn’t identify…“They say his time in our world was short, for one of his species, culminating at twenty-six years. He had appeared in times of conflict, when the three tribes were just starting to show true tension. His efforts unfortunately failed and, the year preceding the apparition of the windigos, he vanished.”

I had long since been lost in memories beyond her words.

Alicorns, a few more than usual, maybe a dozen or so of them, all looking at me with varied and slightly terrifying expression. I was small. It was a long time ago. My wings were not even fully developed.

“Will he be just like him?” They asked.

I remember being a little scared, but my father was there so I would be okay. I knew it.

“No, he will not!” Magnus replied. “Ventus Vinco will not-”

A lavender hoof was waved in front of my face. “Prince Ventus?”

“O-oh, my apologies, Princess Sparkle.” I shrank back, then went on with a very uneasy tone. “You’ve… brought back memories, dare I say.”

Luckily, she read the atmosphere and did not inquire further on that.

“Oh… well… after that, the Princesses came, to purge the windigos with the help of the three tribes newborn unity. The struggle took a little time, but in the end, pony races were united into what is now Equestria, with the Princesses taking their role as our ruler. This was the last time an alicorn was heard from outside of them, until Cadence’s arrival a few decades ago. No other alicorn ever visited…”

“HE CANNOT BE ALLOWED IN THE PONY’S WORLD!”

I stumbled forward, breath suddenly cut short. Agony ripped through my mind, flames burning at my memories and hundred years of isolation suddenly crashing searing through what was left of my happiness.

She was stunningly beautiful, with the most delicate shade of blue coloring her coat, a calming snow white ripple going through her silver mane.

Mom just held me close, telling me nothing was wrong with me.

My breathing was strenuous. This sudden set of memories had assaulted me more strongly than any other before.

A cranky old mare screamed my ears off about proper decorum. I certainly wouldn’t be going anywhere with manners this atrocious.

The mask suddenly dissolved over my face. It wasn’t quite one anymore, just a shade that went over my traits. It was more natural to act princely and aloof than casual, at least with mortal ponies around.

Not that any of the ponies surrounding me were quite mortal at the moment.

A human, I knew it was a human. He was calling me. The word just blurred before it reached my ears.

Twilight was almost right in my face, concern written all over her features, but it was hard for me to process anything she said. My mind was succumbing to a terrible panic. Quickly, it became evident I had forgotten something.

Something horribly important.

WHAT’S MY NAME?!

Balance

My mind was drawing a blank.

What is my name?

Everything seemed to spin around me. Who am I? I’m not a pony… I know that… I just don’t remember what’s my name… There’s got to be somepo-someone that knows!

I glanced around, purposely avoiding Princess Sparkle. I just wanted to see the right po- person, but all I could see were the high arcs of rock and the darker stained glass. The castle had rarely felt this unwelcoming.

Calx would know! My whole body seemed to tense with the realization, followed by the other one, that of him being with Pinkie Pie.

Princess Sparkle looked on the verge of calling for help.

I did not need to see a doctor or whoever that would lead me to. I knew exactly which pony I had to look for right now. My little brother.

And hope his head was clearer than mine.

“I… I am fine, Princess Sparkle,” I said with some difficulties.

“Did you even look at yourself?! It looked as if you had an aneurysm!” Her ears twitched.

I would have liked the aneurysm better! “I apologize for frightening you, but I can assure you that I am not in need of medical attention.”

The look she gave me was so flat that the monitor of a patient in cardiac arrest would seem off the chart in comparison.

“Look, Prince Ventus, I am not interested in that bridge to the Crystal Empire you want to sell me too.”

Ouch. “I’d give you a discount?” I tried a shy smile.

She did not look amused. “Prince Ventus! This is serious.”

“So am I, Princess Sparkle.” I straightened out, fighting the overpowering vertigo tilting my balance sideways. “I do not need medical attention.”

“You know I could still call out the guards and ask them to escort you to the infirmary, right?” The lavender alicorn looked definitely unimpressed.

I met her gaze head on, not moved. “I cannot help notice the lack of cries for help on your part at this moment.”

“Don’t hold your breath.” She warned, tensing a little, enough to be clearly noticeable.

Ah come on, I already know what’s wrong. And I want nothing more than to find the one possible cure and it won’t come from a pony doctor… Gotta step up my game or Twilight will not let me go. I sighed dramatically. “I suppose the truth can wait a couple of years, when you are more experienced with your new responsibilities.”

Her whole body froze. With a startle, she came to a screeching halt, eyes widening and iris shrinking together. “A-a couple of years?”

“Well, obviously I will not be able to talk to you if I go see a doctor right now and my brother really doesn’t know all that much about the knowledge you are asking for.”

“B-but why years?” Wait… Was she pouting?

“Well, I intend to return to our home as quickly as possible.”

She took a step backward, ears drooping. Clearly, that one had taken her by surprise. Her voice was rather quiet after that. “W-what? Why?”

The tone alone was enough to make me cringe in shame. I hadn’t intended to hurt her or offend her or anything. A sigh escaped my mouth. “Understand, Princess Sparkle, that my brother was believed to be missing for about a week. I haven’t been able to contact our parents at all and had it not been for the Sun Mare’s convocation, we would already be gone.”

“T-that’s… wow…” Twilight glanced to her left. “I hadn’t thought of it this way…”

I looked down, feeling my ears drooped at the same time. “Yes, but our continued absence must be wearing them both down and we cannot afford to stay much longer.” Lest they… they decide to…

Oh Elders, I was going to be sick.

A warm touch rose my chin up. I was forced to look into Twilight’s eyes. They shone with compassion.

“I understand.” She gave me a gentle smile. “There’s no need to explain further.”

A small spark of fire lit up in my chest, flickering out almost instantly, but the gesture itself had had an effect on me. I was touched that she tried to empathize with me like this. It probably justified that skip in my heartbeat.

Slightly relieved, I glanced in the direction Pinkie had gone with Tom, biting my lips.

“Do you want to go see if Pinkie managed to cheer up your little brother?” She read my mind.

“Y-yes, I would like that…”

With just a nod of acknowledgment, I started trotting toward the place my little brother had disappeared to.

A few moments passed in silence, during which at most, one could hear the echoes of our hooves against the ground.

I did not hate that. Just getting a chance to clear up my head before having to make up another lie on the spot, that was nice too. But… Wait, what lies? That’s how everything’s always been, right?

A pit of unease settled down in my stomach. Part of me knew something was wrong with my mind and the other insisted that I was growing paranoid.

I shook my head, mentally chastising myself. Gee, Ventus, get a grip.

“I-if you don’t mind me asking…” Princess Sparkle’s voice grabbed my attention, making me glance her way. “What was wrong with him? He seemed so… different from usual. So… depressed.”

“I…” The weight of it was just too much. My shoulders slumped and my head hung low. It was beyond my strength to carry on for that much longer. “There is a rather depressing reason behind it.”

Why would Father… it… it just wasn’t right… The rules were a bit severe, that I always knew, but… Eh, did Great-Auntie Lexia blow a casket again? She really needs to -The hell am I thinking?

I felt my breath brutally come to a halt, my eyes widening greatly. The next second though, I clenched my teeth, closing my eyes again, a grunt of irritation building up in my throat.

My head hurt, badly. It was a slow build-up that, I knew, wouldn’t stop anytime soon.

“Prince Ventus?” Princess S- …Twilight asked, her wings almost brushing against my sides.

“I… It is nothing,” I lied.

“Are we doing this again?” She deadpanned.

That elicited a chuckle from me. “No, I apologize. We will not be having that exchange again.” Pretending to be fine, I straightened my posture again and cleared my throat. “The reason for my little’s brother depression is the fact that we are being punished by not being granted access to our home again, until an unspecified date later.”

Her jaw dropped. “W-wha-?!”

My mouth moved faster than my brain could register – and try to stop the phenomenon, to no avail. “Yes, the Elders have decided that it would be a fitting punishment for throwing Equestria out of balance.”

“I-” She blinked.

I wanted to stop, but I… at the same time, I didn’t want to. Celestia’s beard! It was so freaking liberating to be truthful! Every word of explanation felt like a shackle being broken, even if it was on such a minimal lie. “One could call it fair, considering that our succeeding arrivals might have tipped the universal balance enough to allow an abomination into this world.”

She was immobile.

Oh crap… did I break Twilight? Tentatively, I waved a hoof in front of her face, trying not to stare too hard at the popped blood vessels in her eyes. That was rather creepy.

Finally, with one last eye twitch, her brain seemed to have settled on one detail.

She placed her full attention on me and, growling, she pushed me back with a hoof. “Y-you tricked me!”

Well, that wasn’t what I expected… “Did I?” I tilted my head.

“YES!” She almost shouted, her indignation making her frown darkly. “You said that you would be leaving as quickly as possible, maybe quickly enough so that we may not have that conversation! You lied to me!”

“I also told you that I didn’t need to go see the doctor. As you can see, I am still standing.”

For a second, she simply glared at me.

“Fine… I’ll let it slide one last time, but if you get another one of those episodes, I can promise you you will find yourself strapped to an hospital’s bed faster than you can say ‘Apologies, Princess Sparkle’ with that sweet suave voice of yours.”

…

We both seemed to realize exactly what she had said at the exact same moment. My face felt like it exploded with warmth, just as Twilight’s cheeks took on a much darker shade and her eyes started drifting away in every possible direction.

Half amused, half horrified, I could not resist a little dig at her. “You… think my voice is suave?”

“No!” She yelled, suddenly skittish as a squirrel. “I-I mean, yes! Well, no offense, it’s just a nice voice, not a super suave, pleasant-for-the-ears, ‘I would love to hear that reciting the periodic table in my ears’, famous actor-like, voice, you know what I mean?!”

I stifled a snort. Wow, that was surprisingly cute.

“I believe I d-”

She cut me off brutally. “What was that about you not being authorized to come visit Equestria on account of some mysterious balance thingy?!”

The bubbles of carefree joy all popped out at once. That’s sobering.

“Beings like me are not allowed to interfere, not under normal circumstances.” I averted my gaze, feeling more heat spread to my cheeks. My next words were a whisper, but not the kind Twilight had confessed to fantasizing about. “There are things greater than an individual’s feelings…”

I had broken the rules. It was shameful, but true. I had let my emotions guide my actions and jumped right in after Calx, whose disappearance had caused too much inner turmoil already. The fact that our father had discovered one of his most powerful artifacts missing the same day… well, I could remember the look on his face at the moment of the discovery.

“There were moments in your history when hope seemed lost, when the horizon showed nothing but promises of bitter tears, and still, we weren’t able to come down to help you.” A lemon yellow mare, her smiling image superposing itself with that of her face broken by tears of fear. Then, a blade that falls down and an arc of red. “Otherwise, greater disruption could have been born. The world follows a strict rule, enforced by the spirit of Harmony itself. No interference, lest you give your opposite the right to act as well…”

Her body almost jerked forward, a ripple of indignation seemed to go through her. “Y-you were watching? And you did nothing?!”

“The balance mustn’t be upset,” I confirmed with a firm, yet pained voice.

“But this is… it feels…” She looked down, a look of confusion, anger and pain on her face.

A part of me moved my hooves before I could think of stopping them and I lifted her chin gently.

“Heartless?” I supplied the word, but regretted it when she flinched. Her constant dorkiness had just up and vanished… “I’m afraid you misunderstand me.”

“H-how?”

“The Harmony I speak of is not an equal balance. There isn’t an act of evil committed for every act of good, nor is there a death for each birth. That would be heartless.” The impulse to make her happier, to comfort her, sent a lightning bolt through me and my horn glowed with magic in response.

The curtains in front of the nearest window were pushed aside by a breeze that was generated from nowhere. We were allowed a clean view of the azure sky and the multiple clouds above. “What I speak of…”

I lead her to the window, toward the outside world, where the sun touched the gardens of Canterlot Castle. The sight, as it had always been I imagined, was breathtaking. Everything was a delicate yet complex structure of life, plants over stone, ponies amongst the statues.

“…Is Harmony, between Order and Chaos.”

“I’m… not sure I understand. What you speak of sounds nice on paper, but I can’t help think that maybe, j-just may-” My hoof on her shoulder silenced her.

“Do you see these flowers, Twilight?”

She almost jumped at the sudden use of her name.

“I-I do… Ventus…” She squeaked my name timidly, trying to get better used to that level of familiarity. That’s actually kind of cute.

“Those flowers… they are ponies. Just like you and your friends, Twilight.” I saw her gaze lock onto a tall flower, one who was as tall as a pony, with red petals and an orange center. “Alicorns are forces of guidance, of Law, just like that gardener over there. With a little tending to, they grow strong and beautiful.”

Aw crap… that really sounded like I’m flirting with her. Sure enough, a slight blush now occupied Twilight’s cheeks.

“Thank you…” She whispered in her embarrassment, focusing her gaze on the flower.

Face heating up, I cleared up my throat, trying to get my panic under control. “Too much intervention however… and you have a lawn. Practical, but certainly not awe-inspiring or simply as beautiful.” I tilted my head away from the ground, then toward the stone walls and the climbing vines. They were a real mess… “Not enough and everything grows out of control.”

I saw her eyes lit up. I knew she was starting to truly understand.

“Harmony is that state of balance when the guidance is not enough for mortals to grow complacent and when the disruption is just enough to keep them fighting for more out of life. It is not a matter of arbitrary balance, nor of an equal number of good and evil. If twenty alicorns are needed to allow mortals to live good lives, then it will be so. If none are needed, then that is how it shall be. The same… goes for the forces of disruption…”

“B-but then…”

“Princess Celestia is an extraordinary ruler. She has maintained a state of Harmony over her kingdom for a thousand years without major disruption. Even when the events started to move again, she kept the upper hoof until the end. Now, she has made the single most decisive act that will ensure a much greater harmony for her subjects.”

“W-what is that, Ventus?”

My eyes found hers. They were filled with curiosity. I had grown terrified of what wise words I would spout out of nowhere. “She released Discord.”

Her expression was that of pure shock. Suddenly, it was as if dozens of connections were made in her head. I could see the impulses travel behind those eyes. “S-she… you mean…”

“Yes, by converting and convincing the Spirit of Chaos to settle down as much as he did, while still free in your world, Celestia has almost completely ensured that another alicorn could exist within Equestria without creating any conflict.”

She frowned, slowly processing what I had revealed to her. “Then, the ways she wanted him ‘to put his powers to good use’ was so I could…”

Was she mad? Crap! Had I made her mad at her mentor? Great! Now I’m sure cousin Celly will be rea- …cousin Celly? What the buck? Urgh… let’s just hope I didn’t repay kindness with driving a wedge between the two.

“It was so you could fulfill your destiny on better terms.”

“All that… for me?” Her wings clasped harder against her body, just as she subconsciously shrank down on herself.

“I believe my dear cousin finds you most precious to her heart.”

It seemed as if I had stunned her, with just that simple truth. Seriously? Anypony could see it.

For a moment, I just stayed in place, unable to decide if I should try to get her out of her reverie. It didn’t seem like a bad place for her mind to wander to; at most, her eyebrows were slightly furrowed together, as if she was pensive.

So, yeah, on all four, wings retracted, tail twitching, I was sort of waiting for her to snap out of it.

This is just uncomfortable…

The sound of laugher and giggles reached my ears. Instinctively, I perked up, trying to locate its source. I knew it very well too.

It was coming from the very same gardens we had been staring at.

“Come on, Bladey! You can’t catch me!”

Breathe hitching, I almost jumped forward, sticking my head out of the window with my front legs resting on the border. Hearing his nickname being called had pulled my complete attention to the gardens below.

Ignoring the wind that was making my mane whip in my face, I looked down, trying to spot them both.

Green… green… My eyes went from one corner to another. Green… grey… green… AH PINK!

I stifled the cry of triumph, a remnant of decorum somehow still implanted in my brain. Clearing my throat, I summoned the more regal voice I started using in this place, with a nagging part of my brain insisting that Twilight would approve.

“Miss Pie!” I called, a hint of light from my horn ensuring the words were carried away to her.

The effect was instantaneous.

Below, the pink shape of a mare came to a screeching halt, quickly enough to give any observer whiplash. Her mane even stretched like a rubber band, almost zooming past her head.

Eh, at this point, I had given up on the mechanisms of Pinkie.

She turned her head sideways, before a light bulb lit up over her and she looked up. “Hey Ventus! Wanna come down and play?”

Before I had the time to reply though, a little blue form barreled into her. Wincing, I did not need to stretch my hearing to hear the resounding “Gotcha!” my little brother shouted.

“Ooooh, that had to hurt.”

I nearly jumped out of my skin. T-Twilight? When did she…?

She chuckled, oblivious to my small heart attack. “Your little brother really likes to play rough, doesn’t he?”

I grinned, only slightly mirked by the comment, but mollified by the fond light in her eyes.

“Should we take Pinkie on her offer? I heard water balloon fights are quite refreshing.” Even as she said it, she couldn’t help glance at her mentor’s sun.

“Ah.” I stifled back a laugh. “I believe this might be quite refreshing indeed, Princess Sparkle. However, I would simply like to ask you if you know who you are up against.”

James Miller stared at the billboard in his workplace’s restroom.

He couldn’t explain his need to do it. He just did.

It had been the exact same thing for as far back as he could remember, since the first day he had started working there.

Every day, he had looked at the faces of children and teenagers, sometimes aged up by some computer program and he had felt his guts twist inside with sympathy. At the back of his mind, there had been a cold dread, a healthy sense of paranoia that had made him imagine the worst.

“Dun dun…”

Wait…

“Dun dun…”

Baffled, I glanced around rapidly, trying to identify the source of that soundtrack. Well, I was fairly sure it was Pinkie, judging by the high-pitched noise, but still, what the heck?

“Geronimo!”

I barely span fast enough to see it coming. Crap, I was going to get hit!

Psych! I grinned, letting the item hit my wind barrier.

With a wet pop, the balloon exploded from the pressure exerted by its wielder’s hooves and its content splashed all over the mare.

“Oh noooooooooo!” She screamed melodramatically, flailing as she let herself hit the ground limply.

Darn, that was pretty funny. I let out a very undignified snort. “It isn’t about timing, Miss Pie.”

“And…” She gasped, spasm running through her body. “I was so…” Her voice turned into a pained wheeze. “Sure…”

Pinkie’s head fell to the ground, her expression frozen, her eyes now glassy and empty of life. Internally, I couldn’t help but be impressed.

Score: Twilight, Calx and Pinkie: 0, Me: 4. Oh yeah… Still got it.

So far, I was a complete beast. With the exception of a close call from one of Pinkie’s off-screen teleport and a montage, I had been able to deflect each and every assault with a solid wall of air.

To be entirely fair though, Twilight’s anti-magic fields were seriously becoming quite problematic. I had almost gotten hit the first time she used them. Only great reflexes had saved me from an improvised shower.

The memory brought a smug smirk to my lips. Oh, my reply had been great too. “I am afraid I will not be defeated by this kind of – what is the term? – ‘egghead’s trick’?”

My playful banter had shocked her long enough for Calx to snipe her from above. The little squirt had a surprisingly dangerous airborne strategy. Well, dangerous for anyone that didn’t have control over air.

Careful, Ventus, you might burn someone with all the hot air going out of your mouth, I chastised myself… weakly. I was just having way too much fun.

“You’re wide open!” A shout made me jump.

Eyes widening, I swirled around.

Tartarus no! I’m not losing after all that mental bragging! With a snarl, I magically yanked a statue out of its pedestal and forced it into the balloon’s path. However, instead of exploding against the solid stone like logic dictated, purple light suddenly flashed from behind the statue and the next thing I saw was a speeding balloon aimed at my head.

I recoiled backward. I have to-!

Red plastic zoomed right in front of my muzzle, tickling it with its magical aura.

I let out a sigh of relief.

Water splashed all over my face.

For a brief second, I could not breath, liquid going up my muzzle and down my mouth. The impact had been rather impressive.

Soaking wet, sputtering and spitting to get that water out of my face, I turned around wildly, trying to catch sight of the one responsible for that. Most likely Pinkie, if only due to the way it had come out of nowhere!

But no, Pinkie was still lying on the ground, faithful to her role as a fallen enemy until a new game.

“H-how?” I stuttered, blinking and trying to spot Twilight.

“Starswirl’s third principle of spell traces combined with his second theory of restoration.” My heart almost squeezed. One should not be so nerdy when being so smug. “Any and all spell leaves a lingering trace for a duration proportional to the amount of magic put into it. One can use lingering magic to replicate a spell 30% faster than it could otherwise be casted.”

I was torn between indignation and admiration, to be honest. I could admit to having been made to eat my words.

“Impressive, Princess Sparkle,” I complimented, shaking my head to dry it a little. “You certainly are a dangerous opponent with this anti-magic aura of yours.”

“Well, I am the Alicorn of Friendship, after all.” She lifted her nose slightly, quite proud of herself. “Magic is second nature to me.”

“Winning is mine,” I shot back, levitating a hoofful of balloons with just the surrounding breezes.

“We’ll see about that,” she countered, arming herself with some ammunition.

A self-conscious part of our brains brought our attention to our situations. Us, both royal alicorns, threatening one another with water balloons, myself having to move some sticky strand of white hair away from my eyes to see.

Not that Twilight fared much better. Her careful, squarely cut mane was just as dripping wet, but after bumping into a statue, she had decided to tie it up on the side. It was a little cute too.

The staring intensified. If some guard decided to walk in at this precise moment, he’d probably be drowned on reflexes alone.

Neither of us backing down, yet neither stepping up, our gazes locked into the other’s, we waited for a sign of weakness. I almost perked up when I realized the corner of Twilight’s mouth were quirking up. Unfortunately, so did mine. An uncontrollable hilarity was bubbling up in my chest.

Finally, the hilarity of the situation got the best of us, making us topple and fall into the grass, my legs wrapped around my ribs. It didn’t even hurt, nor did the impact registered in our minds, as we were all prey to the delightful numbness of laugher.

I almost fell faint from the lack of air and that irony was enough to prolong my suffering by a few moments. Imagine that: the Alicorn of the Winds suffocate.

Fortunately, I was spared from the ultimate irony when a shadow briefly blotted out the sun for me.

“For Asguard!”

Unable to reign in my hilarity in time, I really could not do anything against Calx’s surprise attack.

Plastic exploded against my horn – great aim there, Bro – and once more, my face became soaking wet.

“YES! I GOT YOU!”

“Does that mean I’m no longer dead, guys?” Pinkie jumped to her feet, shaking with so much excitement none of us had the heart to deny her.

“Come here, you little squirt!” I snarled, mockingly angry and rising to my hooves very quickly.

“Never! The word shall fear the terrible Blade Darkblaze!” He took off, laughing loudly.

I had half a mind to snatch him back with telekinesis, but alas, I was too nice.

“Do spare our champion, Prince Ventus.”

“Yeah! He’s a crucial part of Team Alicorn!” Pinkie chimed in, happily disappearing with a couple of balloons.

It was just me and Twilight in the gardens now.

Our gazes met.

We both smiled, fondly thinking about our respective loved ones being quite into the game. It was almost strange, to be so at peace here. I just really liked it.

However, to my surprise, I caught sight of an intriguing phenomenon from one window looming over the gardens.

A small flash.

And for spending the afternoon with dozens of those going off, I could tell it wasn’t magic this time.

Adaptation

Eric walked through the living room, ignoring his mother on the couch looking at her favorite cooking show. He had had a terrible day, with that annoying hollow feeling gnawing at his guts whenever he sat next to two empty chairs.

It had been two weeks already and he just couldn’t get over it! Ah… he should, right? Everyone told him to…

A feminine voice cut through his angry thoughts. “Had a nice day at school, Eric?”

Surprised, he almost stopped dead in his track. He hadn’t expected her to notice, or care all that much, really.

“Not that bad,” he replied without conviction. Luckily, his mom was too focused on her show to notice.

Phew, that was closer to normalcy. Eric just shrugged it off as a fluke.

The teen was midway through when the strange event repeated itself, though this time with a much closer note of familiarity.

“And that meeting with your therapist?” She wondered out loud, without any concern so to speak.

He didn’t answer that one.

He let his feet carry him out of the living room and that surreal scene.

It was much calmer in his family’s computer room. Sure, it had always been cozy, what’s with the green walls, the fan, the small fridge in the corner and the big windows filtering plenty of natural light in, but lately, since every environment had started to become hostile, this place had turned into a haven.

Eric might have been slowly adopting the lifestyle of a hermit and a recluse.

Not that he cared much, not without anyone to actually care in return.

With a disheartened sigh, Eric sat down in front of the screen and started browsing, mostly about pony stuff. He… hadn’t managed to ignore the force of habit. He had steered clear of the new episodes, but he had caught a few glimpse of the new alicorns through the fandom’s art.

The opinions were… mixed to say the least.

Eric’s eyes dodged the pictures as soon as he noticed dark blue and red in the same frame. The phantom image of his friend looking at him… the burning anger in Sam’s eyes were daring him, double daring him even, to just peek at these and appreciate them.

His face hurt just to think about the kind of violence that would be behind the fist it promised.

Perhaps hurriedly, he opened his pony roleplay chat. It was empty, save for a single user. Eric felt a surge of relief when he recognized which of his online pal that was.

“Greetings, LoveCupackes.” He typed.

The answer came within seconds, flashing onto his screen.

“Hey NightServant, how’s it going?”

“It’s…” His fingers hovered over the keyboard. What should he write? Should he just up and confess his troubles over the Internet? Nah, not quite that desperate… yet… “I’m fine. Got into a bit of trouble at school, but what’s new. You?”

Again, Eric barely had the time to blink before another reply came.

“Always a ray of sunshine for my pals, you know that.”

He had to fight the urge to grin at that. It made him feel a weird, as if a ball of warmth was dancing all over his organs and making it harder to be gloomy. Well, at least someone cares.

For a moment, he simply didn’t know what to type next, for fear he’d go on a weird tangent, he kept silent.

Finally, it was LoveCupcakes that started the conversation again.

“Still boycotting the show?”

He could not tell if there was any bitterness in those words. LoveCupcakes was usually… well… screwing over with everyone.

“Yeah, but not because of that alicorn debacle. I just can’t get into it these days.”

It was entirely true too. He wasn’t particularly excited about the show nowadays. Who cared about this stuff when your friend went missing?

“Well, you’re missing out on some nice stuff. The plot is getting really… like… intriguing, far from the light-hearted thing from before. Well, I mean sure, they went into lighthearted topics too and it was rather fun seeing Rarity dragging Applejack and Rainbow Dash all around Canterlot to teach them shopping, but there are those background events with the two new guys… it’s weird.”

Even if he had promised himself not to get into another debate about ‘My Little Pony’, he just couldn’t resist a comment.

“Oh, so the new alicorns are being pushed into the background, again?” Why add them then? “I thought something big would happen…”

Well, he wasn’t really sad he had stopped watching the show if that was the kind of writing he would have to deal with.

“Come on, it looks like they’re building up for some epic stuff! There was some sort of implied threat in Ventus’ words! He was all ‘We were forbidden from coming… we may have awakened something terrible’! You can’t say that doesn’t sound big, like ‘Return of Harmony’ big.”

Eric felt his indignation flare. “Oh, you did not go there…”

“I did, suck it. Plus, they’re male alicorns! Come on, you can’t say you didn’t want to see some of these!”

He almost regretted his deadpan expression could not be translated so easily through his written reply. “Not really, I was fine with just two, so reaching six is actually getting on my nerves.”

“Come on. It makes for a nice story.”

His face turned into a perfectly neutral mask, eyes half-drooped with a clear feeling of being unimpressed to the utmost power. “I’m not buying it, Love.”

“For the last time, stop abridging my username to ‘Love’, it makes you sound like we’re a couple.”

“Puh-leaze, that’s nothing you. I mean, that’s what Scat-.” ScatteredWind used to do…

He froze.

His chest ached.

It had been a while since the last time he had thought about fun memories of Sam, rather than the burst of rage and the pain. It… it made him long for that simple reality that had slipped away so abruptly. The feeling of loss weighted heavily on his shoulders, making him slump on his chair.

He… did not want to think about this anymore. Not of Sam, not of Cassandra, just as he did not want to ponder on the isolation plaguing his life.

The young man’s stare at the computer screen seemed lifeless, easily belonging to an image rather than a person. Still, Eric caught sight of his fellow bronies’ question.

“Dude, are you still there?”

Eric did not move.

“Dude?”

Twilight let out a content sigh. This had gone better than she had expected, but there was nothing quite like an afternoon spent with Pinkie Pie to drain the energy out of a pony. For once though, none of her articulations ached with overexertion, so that was a small victory for the side of eggheads everywhere.

Without a thought, the young alicorn took off her tiara, letting it levitate to its placeholder on a table close to her window. The piece of jewelry, the Element of Magic, no less, was slowly getting less uncomfortable to wear.

Royalty and its functions were progressively becoming less of a mystery to her… even if there were some exceptions.

Golden fur came to mind.

Twilight’s eyes went to the ground instantly, admonishing herself for her moment of weakness. But her mental berating had little effect on her accelerating heartbeat.

Why is he so… so casual? He’s so different from Princess Celestia and Princess Luna… He doesn’t act anything like them in private. With Princess Celestia, there’s always that majesty and grace to her, even when sometimes overshadowed by a mischievous streak.

If anything, he reminded her of Cadence. The Alicorn of Love certainly was flexible on decorum when need be, especially whenever her kindness shone through her royal attitude.

“He’s nothing new then, so why is he bothering me so much?” She whispered, thinking back to his cocky grin after he had managed to nail all three of them down with a well-times trap.

It… It just didn’t make sense!

“Who?” Somepony asked quietly.

However quiet that had been, to the overthinking alicorn, it had been like an impossibly loud explosion. As such, she jumped ten feet of air in shock.

“Oh, Twilight, I’m sorry I took you by surprise like that.” The voice owner’s stepped forward, lowering her head in an apology, pink mane hiding her face.

“O-oh, no! that’s nothing!” Twilight quickly replied, waving a hoof before her. “I just didn't hear you enter our suite.”

“I… was here the entire time.”

Twilight felt her cheeks flush a nice dark purple color. Thank Celestia that was the only one of her thoughts that had been vocalized!

“O-oh…” She exclaimed, wincing with embarrassment. “I was a bit out of it. Sorry.”

“Oh no!” Fluttershy instantly backed away. “It was my fault for not making myself more easily detected right away!”

Twilight frowned. “What? No, it was my fault. I was thinking and I didn’t think to check if you were back.”

Admittedly, both mares decided to drop the issues, even if not quite satisfied with this turn of event.

“O-okay then…” Fluttershy looked away. “W-who were you thinking about? I-if you don’t mind me asking…”

Even more than before, the alicorn’s body was animated by a cringe. “N-nopony!”

In response, the pegasus mare simply looked away, a slight pain hidden behind her bangs. She was neither naïve nor stupid. And, Celestia forgive her, she was a little disappointed her friend hadn’t come out clear with it right away.

Seeing all that passing on her friend’s face, Twilight felt a pang of guilt still her heart in her chest. Biting her lips, she looked away as well, holding out an internal debate.

“L-look, Fluttershy…” The mare’s head turned to her, seemingly as peaceful as before. “This is all very complicated and I’m not exactly sure what to make of it yet, but…”

She swallowed loudly, and with it, her pride went down the drain. “I was talking about Prince Ventus.”

“Oh.” Fluttershy’s eyes lit up with recognition. “Him.”

Then, curiously, the yellow mare let out a disheartened sigh.

“Fluttershy?”

“I haven’t been very nice to him, have I?” She hung her head low.

“Didn’t you apologize for that?” Twilight’s eyebrow furrowed.

“Y-yes, but I still don’t feel-”

A pair of purple hooves pressed on her shoulders. Looking up, she saw the kind, reassuring expression of her friend.

“It will be fine,” Twilight promised. “From what my researches tell me, Prince Ventus seems to be a rather forgiving stallion. He’ll understand what happened and won’t hold it against you. He already did so with Pinkie.”

“R-really?” The mare looked up hopefully.

“Of course! He even spent the afternoon playing with Pinkie, Calx and me.”

The second her friend looked at Twilight in confusion, then blinked, she realized what she had said.

“You spent the aftern-”

“SO? WHAT DID YOU DO TODAY?!” The poor alicorn shouted, suddenly quite nervous.

Luckily, her friend didn't so much as flinch at her strong reaction.

“I met up Discord at a café in downtown Canterlot today. It was…” Her hesitant smile turned into a scowl. “Special.”

“I can imagine.” Twilight nodded, an incredibly forced smile slapped on her face.

“Oh, the food was nice and that waiter was so brave to keep up with Discord’s antics even when he was shaking like a leaf. The poor dear just seemed to have lost ten years of health to the experience.”

“Fluttershy! Was Discord bullying the staff?” She asked, scandalized at the idea of her sweet friend being so indifferent to this kind of fear.

“Of course not.” Fluttershy’s eyes narrowed into a glare. “He was showing me his new inventions like the Horn-“slash”-trumpet-cake tree and the puddinghead first edition exclusive historical figurines. Nothing. More!”

Twilight’s wings clasped close to her sides at the accusatory tone. Oops, that had been a blunder.

“Right, sorry, Fluttershy. I did not mean it like that.”

“It’s… fine,” she sighed. “Lots of ponies are very suspicious of Discord and he is not always making it easy for them to believe he turned a new leaf.”

“It’s rather hard to forget what he did to Equestria the last time he was freed,” Twilight muttered bitterly, feeling a remnant of hatred fester in her heart.

“Yes…” The pegasus looked down, feeling somewhat overwhelmed by her role in all this. “He is trying though. It was quite nice at some points. We just talked about a lot of things over sandwiches.”

Small talk with the Spirit of Chaos and Disharmony… that’s a bit hard to imagine. “Oh… well, I’m glad it wasn’t all bad. What did you talk about?”

“Oh, we breached a variety of topics, from my little angels to the weather pattern in Fillydelphia to the rumors in Canterlot.” She paused, apparently unsure on whether or not she should continue.

“Fluttershy?” Twilight asked, worried by this sudden silence.

“He also asked what I thought of Prince Ventus and Prince Calx. He seemed quite interested.”

The alicorn barely hid her shock.

D-Discord… is showing interest? In those two? But… why?

Ah! She knew she had a perfectly good reason to be intrigued by Ventus and his brother. Perfect! Further studies were indeed needed.

She pointedly ignored the part of her that berated her voluntary blindness.

I pounced on my prey, showing my teeth in a triumphant grin. It stretched even further as my hooves closed on their targets.

“I got you!” I laughed, crushing him under my weight and using my free hoof to rub it in on the side of his face.

“I’m not…” He squirmed under me, trying to lift me and mostly failing. “Done yet!”

Something yanked the tip of my tail, sending a small signal of pain in my rump and making me yelp.

Indignant, I turned around, only to see a blue aura surrounding my tail. Oh horseapple…

Faster than I could smack his horn and disrupt his concentration, Calx put his all into his spell and threw me off him. My chin painfully hit the stone floor, resonating all throughout my jaw and my teeth.

“Ah, I won!”

Snorting, I could only say. “Yeah, you sure did.”

“Duh, not like there was any doubt,” he gloated, his wings fluttering and his head held high.

Why must you be such an adorable little squirt? Eh, makes me wonder how bad you will be when you grow up. But my thoughts were cut short by the image of a drawing. It was… rather simple… quite childish too, but the one holding was out of my sight. Curiously enough, no magic seemed to be holding it up in the air, only somepony’s grasp.

I… did not recognize the memory. This was an old one, to be sure.

Wait… memories? …There was something I meant to ask Calx, right? Slowly, the mental conversation came back to me and it prompted me to look at Calx directly in the eyes. “H-hey… is it fine if I ask you something?”

Blinking, clearly not expecting this, the little colt nodded.

“It’s… huh… really important that you answer me honestly, ‘kay, Buddy?”

“Sure.” He shrugged, not seeing the bigger picture.

To be honest, I didn’t see all that much more myself.

“Do you remember those names we call each other, so the other don’t know…”

“Ventus and Calx?”

Nicknames? No, that isn’t quite right. Those are our names, aren’t they?

“No, the other ones.” I made a small circular motion with my hoof. I wanted him to go on. This had stirred up an old memory, I just knew. That thing about nicknames…

Nicknames…

Wait! It is right! They’re just nicknames! Codes! I couldn’t help but smile with satisfaction. “Yes! Those aren’t the real deal, aren’t they?”

Ca-Tom just looked more off put. “You’re being weird, Sam…”

That… that’s it… I know that’s the right name. I’m a human named Sam! I waited, bracing myself for a mental impact, as there was bound to be one. A bit nervous, I even closed my eyes, trying to put myself at ease before the inevitable breakdown or whatever I would be put through.

Except… it didn’t happen.

My heart jumped up in my throat, almost making me gag. Why aren’t I suddenly feeling the weight of my memories crushing down my mind and giving me the worst headache of my life?

“Sam?” Tom tilted his head, frowning at me.

Somehow, I simply remembered being Sam… and Ventus. And, in my mind, things just clicked, making sense for once.

“I’m fine, Tom.” No, I’m not.

I had both the memories of myself back on Earth and those of the astral planes, whatever their names were. I didn’t feel… different all that much. Just like I had remembered something I had forgotten before.

Insignificant. The revelation was crushing. I looked at my brother, at his muzzle and his horn, at his wings and his hooves. I saw his big crimson red eyes, shining with incomprehension and worry, and… for the first time… I didn’t have the image of a human boy reflecting through those traits.

Calx Iugum… Tom… The only difference was the amount of memories I had of each.

The same thing could be said of myself.

I hadn’t been disappearing. My memories weren’t being erased, but the amount of it changed.

Seventeen years… I imagined a balance, tilting on both sides shakily. Four hundred and twenty six… One scale hit the ground so hard it left an impact.

That was just it. I was Sam, without a doubt, but I had been Ventus for more than twenty times the same amount of time. How could I pretend that I was only Sam in that context? Heck, me not remembering everything made sense too.

Who could remember so easily all the details of a period of time that didn’t encompass more than a few percent of their actual life experience? I couldn’t. And with the life I had now, seventeen years weren’t all that much, not to mention early childhood… that part didn’t even register. So that was what? A little more than a decade. In comparison to forty-two.

There, rational, non-mystical and mysterious explanation to my current predicament, ain’t that dandy? I bit my bottom lips with some bitter anger. Why couldn’t I care MORE?! Damn it!

“You just retreated in your head, right?” Twin hooves pushed against my chest, a little, annoyed glare directed at my face. “You always do that when there’s something you don’t like.”

“I know… I was thinking.” I rubbed his head softly, without putting enough strength in it to be uncomfortable.

There was a little passion in there, but, appropriately, I felt mostly… peaceful.

Really, I tried to summon my indignation, that sentiment of bitter injustice. The anger, the hatred, the loathing; none of that could find a place in my heart anymore. At most, there was a rational understanding that it would be very sad for us to be stuck as ponies, to have lost… less than two decades of existence in favor of these new lives… Sad… right?

No fire…

Was this how Celestia felt after all those years? Pushing on not because it was important, but because every tragedy would just fade in the background when you had lived past a certain number of years?

No flames of determination burning in my chest. Even if being human eventually became nothing more than a fleeting memory, I wouldn’t care.

Not on a gut level.

Not anymore.

D-damn it!

I couldn’t even mourn my own death sincerely!

“I… I think it’s time for you to go to bed.”

Calx let out a spectacular whine at that.

At least, that never changed no matter the life or dimension.

--
She walked down the path wearily, hooves heavy and horn lowered. Ironical as it may be, her fate was to ensure others’ peaceful rest, regardless of how troubled her own dreams were. Her years lost in the darkness that was her mad alter ego had not been quite lost, as Nightmare Moon had sometimes invaded the populace’s mind, although more as her folkloric rendition as a pony-eater than an all-beloved queen.

Still, alone she remained on the starry path into the dreams of others.

Her nightly patrols had been important before, though perhaps more as a mean for her to regain her subjects trust, especially that of foals. Recently, however, it seemed as if these patrols were a scouting device.

Nightmares had multiplied. Such occurrences were not unheard of, far from it, but, curiously, they showed a certain resistance to her powers, as if they weren’t born only of the mind of sleeping Equestrians.

It was worrying and, more remarkably, exhausting.

Sighing, Luna straightened her posture, steeling her resolve and her mind. The land of dreams were hers and no Princess she would be if she appeared so weak in front of her subjects.

Without hesitation, she stepped into a swirling black light and appeared elsewhere.

Far away, under the starry sky, winds blew stronger over the eternal ice of a certain mountain.

Winds cold enough to freeze one’s heart.

Luna’s eyes scanned her new surroundings.

Her eyes narrowed. “Something… isn’t quite right here.”

Illusionary wind brushed her fur, pushing pale blue clouds away from the coast, toward the ever darker ocean. Singing, ethereal, otherworldly, echoed through the air, tainting it purple and casting a painting not unlike that of a madpony.

Sand gritted against her horseshoes, friable – too friable? – under her weight. Water would splashed inches away from her, yet gave off a vibe. The liquid seemed to stretch just a little too much, just out of the way it should, to reach her, as if trying to drag her underwater.

“What is the meaning of this?” She asked herself, taking in the twisted scenery.

However, time to ponder was not given to her as a bloodcurdling scream reached her ears.

Instantly on guard, Luna jolted around, in time for a most baffling sight.

Water up to their knees, five ponies were kneeling in the bay.

They were holding struggling ponies underneath the surface.

It was a nightmare, she knew. Drowning, the fear of it, was particularly strong amongst her citizens, seeing as most had some troubles swimming. For a coastal city like the one she visited, the fear seemed logical enough.

However, the Princess of the Night certainly hadn’t expected their nightmares to be about drowning somepony else.

The dream selves – the identity of the ponies dreaming – were akin to stars in the night to her. Easily distinguishable amongst all other beings. There was no mistake. Some of her citizens were having dreams about killing others.

The lunar princess’ heart burned with anger. Reeling on her back legs, she stomped her hooves against the beach, sending a shockwave through the whole dreamscape. “Enough of this travesty!”

Stunned, the ponies collectively lost their grips on their victims, who vanished within the second. What remained of that mad frenzy was but a hoofful of ponies, slowly coming to their senses, slowly realizing what their dreams had been about.

One such pony stepped forward, toward her monarch.

“P-Princess Luna?” A pale blue mare muttered, struck by horror. “W-what happened? I was dreaming of a nice stroll on the beach with my husband when…”

Suddenly, the mare paused, eyes widening and iris shrinking. Face paling, she let out a squeak of pure agony, suddenly looking at her hooves like they were dirtied.

Luna had an inkling of an idea as to what kind of things might dirty that mare’s hooves.

“You need not feel guilty, young lady.” The alicorn’s voice came out strongly. “This is no mere nightmare, nor a desire of your heart. Not even those of your fellow ponies,” she added toward the few mortified mares and stallions surrounding her.

Her eyes, however, were toward the darkened horizon.

From within the depth of the ocean, something stirred.

The ponies flinched as their leader’s expression became furious. They had heard of their co-monarch’s features, spoken of with great references, but none of them had ever imagined them deformed by such powerful rage.

Baring her teeth, the Alicorn of the Night stood tall in front of a mass of seething evil, whose form changed and crawled over toward preys it could corrupt. Its ends became sharp, a mimicry of claws, even as its center folded and separated with thin openings. Its head, if one could qualify it as that, had stretched forward, into their directions, dripping shadows falling off what seemed to be fangs.

The creature oozed a malice Luna hadn’t seen in a pony in a long time. Quite obviously, such monstrosity was the reason behind those disturbing nightmares her subjects had had. Creatures of fear had a way to destroy ponies.

Memories of a red horn and a shadowy mane flashed before her eyes, flickering into oblivion soon afterward.

The nightmares plaguing the citizens of Colthasset weren’t purely mundane monsters.

They stemmed from an external magical source. And that, amongst other things, was the purest form of her duties as Princess of the Night.

Growling, Luna released her restraints over her power. That storm of magic, her energy, the imitation of gods within her was let loose.

Her subjects’ stares intensified as the princess’ rose over them, glowing of a mystical light. Shadows hesitated and the world became still as the princess demonstrated her birthright and her standings as the master of all dreams.

With her voice, it seemed as if the heavens themselves would shake. With the flap of her wings, storms would explode. With the heat of her stare, her enemies would be reduced to ashes.

“Hear me, nightmares of Colthasset! I am Princess Luna, Maiden of the Night, Oneiric Lady and Shield against the Impure Darkness! Skies darken in my presence and my presence eclipses the sun. Ancient dragons weep in my wake for the honor of seeing my image. The creatures of Tartarus bowed before me, lest they be destroyed on a whim. I command the land of dreams and my words you will heed! Return to the void you were created from or face my wrath!”

They left.

I woke up, for the first time, completely peacefully, without any sensation of alienation in being a pony upon my awakening.

That is sad, I thought, but did not feel.

By my side, there was a small bundle of bed sheets and pillows, lifting itself to the rhythm of a peaceful breathing.

The sight tugged at some corners of my mind, though in a way that reminded me of more… appreciable occurrences.

Before my eyes flashed the images of a much smaller colt, curled up against our mother’s side. My curiosity had been almost childish then, despite the centuries of age behind me

This was a new life and the spectacle, not new in itself, had that distinct quality to it in that we shared the same blood, the same origin. For an alicorn as lonely as I had been, well, it had almost blown me away to feel this link to another outside my parents.

However, I was not the only one doing the observing, as two round crimson eyes looked at me with a blank lack of understanding. In effect, it simply meant the foal lifted one small chubby hoof toward me and made a sound.

At that point, a push had forced me closer to Calx, delivered by a grinning Magnus, who couldn’t seem prouder than at this moment.

Vows to protect him had been sworn. Here and there, back home and in that other world.

Some things about me never changed either.

With a grin, I stretched my wings, getting to my hooves slowly, letting the fog of sleep fade by itself. There was no use to fighting off this comfortable warmth so soon.

On the other side of the bed, Calx started to stir.

“Rise and shine, little brother.” I nudged him softly, stroking his head with my feathers.

He answered with a growl.

“Our cousin’s sun has already risen over the horizon.” A spark went through my horn and Calx’s started levitating. “It is high time for us to descend into the dining hall and make an appearance.”

Dangling, Calx still didn’t wake up, curling up further at the sudden exposure to the rest of the world, away from our comfortable mattress. At that point though, I had my doubts. Especially when his face crunched up and his mouth moved enough for another grumble to escape.

“Last chance, little squirt. You either stop pretending to be asleep or you face my wrath.”

In the air, he turned around, showing me his rear end. Fairly eloquent as far as silent replies go.

You asked for it, I thought grimly, all the while a part of my mind focused on hardening air around a handle in the room adjacent to ours. I quickly had the satisfaction of hearing a sound akin to a stream of liquid.

Eying the blue foal floating in the air, I grinned. “Remember, I gave you a chance.”

With a yank of my magic, he disappeared through the next door.

When his breathing form was in the right position, I dropped him.

His screams of confused panic were a delight to my ears. As were the splashing and the promises of payback.

It build up in my throat, but it truly exploded when my little brother came out of the bathroom, soaking wet, with a glare to kill a timberwolf. Really, how else could I have reacted?

I broke into a laughing fit.

Nopony dared questioned our wet appearances when we entered the dining hall. It simply wasn’t one of those questions a noble could ask, I would later realize.

At the moment though, the trails of water left in our wake led to no questioning whatsoever and I could appreciate that fact.

“Good morning, everypony,” I said with a polite bow of my head.

Most ponies bothered with a reply, amongst them Celestia and Blueblood. The rest, I suspected had done so due to my apparent rank, Blueblood especially. Still, eyes stayed on us longer than I would have liked. Their strange insistence was rather discountenancing. Had I done some sort of royal faux-pas?

Feeling a little self-conscious, I led Calx to our seats, which unfortunately, were still besides a certain arrogant foal.

“Hello, Prince Ventus,” he greeted me, with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “Are you doing well in this fine morning?”

Swallowing the scowl and the biting reply I wanted to throw in his face, I sat down warily. “When my dear cousin does such a good job of it, it is rather hard not to.”

The reminder of our status seemed enough chastising for most, but as I started digging into the delicious meal placed before us, I felt the gaze of others trailing my every move with a certain intensity. Adding to my discomfort was the realization that eyes were more on myself than on my brother. In which case… well, it probably wouldn’t concern manners and should reasonably be assumed to be a bigger problem.

“Prince Blueblood?” I called my neighbor of seat.

Many raised their heads from their meal and their whispered conversations at the sound of my voice, addressing the same pony I had completely tore into.

“Y-yes?” The stallion replied, with a little tremor in his own voice. The strain was barely noticeable, but it could heard, though the look in his eyes contradicted it. “May I help you somehow?”

“I seem to be a center of attention at the moment.” A wave of unease spread through the impolite nobles as they heard me. My attention, however, remained on the white stallion. “Is there something I should be made aware of?”

“Have you…” He cleared his throat. “Perhaps… read the morning press?”

“Not as such, no…” I narrowed my eyes at the papers spread in front of some ponies.

“Not even ‘The Dusk News’?” He pressed, smirking slightly.

Again, I shook my head and denied.

Silently, the prince shoved a copy of said newspaper toward me, his own, I hazarded.

“Is there something our Princess should be made aware of?” The flankhole asked ironically, as I took a closer look.

My eyes fell onto the image at the front page. To be perfectly honest, I had no idea why this could be worthy of getting that many glances. Blueblood’s gaze in particular looked singularly smug.

The photography itself hardly seemed fussing over. Golden fur and wet white locks, a perfect depiction of my face, smiling fondly toward Twilight.

I might have made my opinion known, had my eyes not caught sight of the title accompanying it.

Exclusive! The new royal couple! Celestia’s cousin, Prince Ventus, in love with new Princess Twilight Sparkle!

Oh you bunch of stupid shippers. I groaned. Could they not see completely platonic way friends played together? I mean, mostly, we did that because Calx and Pinkie wanted to.

A part of my mind knew this was a lie.

Right?

Internally, I sighed. Knowing Celestia’s character from my observations and my knowledge as both an alicorn and a human, this would be the source of an endless stream of teasing. ‘Trollestia’ indeed…

I glanced her way, already preparing a resonant “She is not my marefriend!” answer and thus destroy all plausible deniability. As an added bonus, the simple thought would make me blush and further cement my new relationship status in everypony’s mind.

Elders was I wrong about this. My estimation of Celestia’s reaction was monstrously off.

The expected playfulness was nowhere to be found. If anything, I detected a slight sense of wariness in her reserved expression. It became worse when our gazes met.

“Young love is always such a beautiful thing,” Celestia remarked casually, skimming through the newspaper while holding a cup of tea to her lips. “Though I would hope you two are not moving so quickly.”

In the corner of my eyes however, I caught sight of Blueblood’s passing display of surprise. As a noble though, he managed to hide it quickly enough. I couldn’t tell if anypony else had noticed.

I hid an urge to frown.

What was going on here?

Research

The sound of her friends arguing was starting to grate on Twilight’s nerves, just a little.

“Oh, none of you girls know about true passionate romance. It’s not just about settling down in some cozy home and share a blanket by the fireplace.” The actual consideration in her friends’ eyes made Rarity pause mid tirade. “Though that might be a nice image, there is MORE to pure love than just a nice moment of shared camaraderie and confidence.”

“Sounds plenty to me.” Applejack deadpanned.

It had been going on in a similar fashion for a while now. The only difference was the fact that they were now walking down in the gardens, looking for Pinkie and Calx to inform them of today’s plans.

So far, the worst part had been, well, Rarity and Applejack going back and forth. Every time Rarity managed to invoke a sumptuously romantic image, something about candlelight and the watchful sunset…

“Oh no! It is MUCH bigger! Romance is a passionate, burning wild flame that stampedes all over your preconception and sets you ablaze with desire!” Rarity would say. “Your head will spin and your heart will soar!”

Golden hooves on her…

“Hon, if you feel that way, you ain’t lovesick, yer just sick!”

Her sneezing in his face.

And her bubble would pop so hard she would feel the backlash in her brain. This had gone on for almost an hour! She was sick of it!

“You will see!” The fashionista declared confidently. “If Prince Ventus truly loves her, then he will surprise her! He will barge in suddenly and whisk her away to carry her toward the sunset, to flee from all responsibilities and exist only for one another till the days grow old and the moon shines blue!”

Twilight pointedly looked away, ignoring Fluttershy’s attempts at making eye contact. Her face would flush so hard if any of them manage to capture her gaze for more than a few seconds. Rarity’s speeches were definitely setting her brain on fire, as the poor alicorn could not stop her imagination from switching the faces of those unknown ponies with herself and… perhaps Prince Ventus.

“That’s… that’s pure nonsense!” Rainbow Dash shouted, holding her hooves in front of her face, indignation clear in her voice.

Now she was definitely blushing.

“Twilight?”

She didn’t hear that! She really didn’t! Pinkie Pro-… alright, maybe not Pinkie Promise…

“Ah have to agree with Rainbow on that one, Rarity. That sounds like a load of horseapple.” The cowpony rolled her eyes.

“Yeah, AJ’s right. Come on, Rare!” The pegasus laughed, flipping in the air. “Whisking Twilight away? Like that? So suddenly Twilight wouldn’t get the time to react and plan the whole thing in excruciating details?”

The white unicorn winced, sensing a grain of truth tainting her vision of a perfect romance.

“Why, I never-” She cut herself off when Twilight came to an abrupt stop. “Darling?”

The lavender alicorn seemed to be staring into place, though her eyes were actually shifting slightly every few seconds. Her expression remained troubled however, her eyebrows furrowed together.

Before she could speak up, however, a violent burst of wind almost threw them off their hooves. Out of nowhere, a figure appeared with the burst, though one might be forgiven for not discerning his traits so easily with the barrier between them.

“Princess Sparkle!” Oh dear, she would recognize that voice anywhere. “You must come with me!” The stallion lunged at her, too quickly for her to react. A small part of her actively wondered if she wanted to react, though in the end, she pondered too long for the choice to remain hers.

Ventus’ hoof touched hers.

And with that, the two of them disappeared with a gust of wind.

Rarity savored her moment of triumph for a few seconds, before deciding to be reasonable and close her friend’s mouths, all wide opened with utter disbelief.

Not so far away, out of sight and out of pony earring range, a beige coated stallion grinned to himself, eying the perfect picture he had taken. Princess Twilight Sparkle’s shocked and secretly pleased expression was centerfold, with the Prince’s face obscured.

Only quick reflexes and pure instinct had allowed him to miss the desperate plea from the stallion.

“Colt, you are making my life so much easier…” He chuckled.

His thanks given, the stallion hurried off the castle ground, knowing his money could only buy so much time off the guards’ patrol schedule.

The winds died down as quickly as I had brought them up, fading away with the magic I had forced into my horn. It all dissipated harmlessly into the suite I shared with Tom, barely even shaking a flowerpot by the window.

Some warmth climbed up my hooves, even while my limbs started to feel less… ghostly again. A neat trick I had come up with three hundred years ago… or never, depending on which part of me one asked. Our bodies both became solid soon enough, the last lingering effect of my “pony-to-air” spell completely fading away.

“W-what was that?! This wasn’t a teleportation! There was no tunneling effect, nor a magical backlash! D-did you just use a completely new and exclusive method of travel to get me here?!”

“Yes,” I answered honestly, bluntly too to tell the truth.

Luckily, my reply seemed to have been enough for her to gather her mind, or perhaps it was simply picking up on my voice and the overall feeling of urgency that overflowed from my general person.

“Prince Ventus?” She eyed me with a frown, her breathing still more rapid and deeper than I would have expected at this point. “What is going on? Why did you bring me here like this?”

I remained externally calm, but inside my inner turmoil was reaching a peak. What I wanted was extremely risky, but it seemed like the best course of action, considering the urgency of the situation.

Still, my heart was beating so strongly it seemed Twilight’s words were overshadowed.

“I do apologize for my… unusual behavior, but I fear there is no time to lose.” My voice faltered, as screams of my human self almost deafened me. The propos however were neither mindless nor useless. A cold dread washed over me. “This is meant for your ears alone!”

For some reason though, Twilight took a step back, eyes shrinking and face paling. W-was she… no, she wouldn’t outright refused because of me whisking her away from her friends so suddenly, r-right?!

I felt my heart sink.

“Please, I need you.” I stumbled forward, reaching for her with one hoof.

“Whoa, whoa, whooooooa, this is way too fast for me! I’m not ready to leave my life behind me, my friends, my family, my whole career! In fact, I don’t get that!” Her expression seemed to become more frazzled, verging slightly toward hysteria. “Why should I do that? Why would I want to do that?!”

I blinked. Good question… what the hell are you going on about, Twi?

“Princess Sparkle,” I said with a calm, but firm and regal tone. It made her flinch. “I have yet to disclose the nature of my request. What are you talking about?”

For a moment, she remained still, unmoving, completely frozen with the exception of her staring eyes that were slowly widening with each passing second. Something of a blush seemed to visit her cheeks.

“Nothing.” Her tone was so mechanical I cringed.

“We both know that it is a lie.” I was almost sad for the poor gal. That was Applejack’s levels of bad lying.

A string of words left her lips, too quickly for me to make sense of them. Eventually though, as she started to run out of air, I presumed, she seemed to realize she was going about it way too fast and sunk down to her knees, squeaking in embarrassment.

She was so… freaking… cute…

The thought fled my mind almost immediately. I had much more pressing business than hitting on a mare. And one of them was regaining enough of myself to make that concept disturbing again.

Slowly, I made my way to her crouching form, being as gentle as I could.

“Princess Sparkle, I need your help.” I had no trouble putting the pain I experienced into my voice. She instantly caught up on it as well. “You’re the only one I trust enough to confide on this.”

For a moment, the poor alicorn seemed completely lost, so unsure… Her gaze would not meet mine. It seemed as if her wings were not closing simply over her sides, but rather over her own heart, hugging her for comfort.

My heart skipped a beat. She looked hurt, though also… flattered, ashamed, concerned, touched? I… I couldn’t tell…

“Yes?”

The word was so quiet I almost failed to hear it.

Upon taking this implicit acceptance, I sucked in my breath, feeling one last bout of hesitation before I could truly speak to her. “D-do you remember what I told you about the balance of Harmony?”

She nodded, but said nothing else. Her eyes were fixated on me and I doubted they could seem more piercing. I had her full attention.

“Do you also remember the part where I told you Celestia had managed to instate Harmony by releasing Discord while you ascended to alicorn status?”

Her silence was telling.

I sighed, feeling the corners of my lips slip downward into a grimace. My ears drooped down. “We weren’t supposed to come. We shouldn’t have been able to.”

“B-but then…” Her voice trailed off. She seemed unable to vocalize the rest of her thoughts.

No more words were necessary anyway.

“The spell I used to follow my brother…” I averted my gaze, preferring to focus on the window and the outside world it gave access to. “It was a forbidden one. Magic… of unknown origin…”

I didn’t have any other choice, not a significant one, not so quickly. And I was out of time already! The books I read from pages to pages had been of no help. While a true expert in the art of weather manipulation, my education was… lacking in subjects such as dimensional travel. It had been deemed unnecessary when I was studying under Magister.

Bitterness had literally permeated my body to the bones, to find myself so over my head whenever it was important. If I had learned anything at all from the last few days, it was that I could only make things worse.

Turning toward a well-versed magician and the personal student of Celestia herself was a logical choice second only to the Alicorn of the Day herself. Why not her then? Well, I suspected Twilight was more likely to do it for the sake of science and thus, ask fewer ethical question to me.

Flimsy, but it was that reason, alone. No other reason. Twilight could help me.

“W-what kind of spell did you use?” Said mare finally stuttered.

I steeled my heart to get the courage to say it. Even then, the words came out as hesitant.

“The kind that can alter reality.”

Dead silence.

A perfect environment for one’s fears to grow and his imagination to run wild, as mine did.

…Please. I know this is hard, but I’ve already wasted so much time… I can’t… I can’t afford to just… Just give us your help...

Twilight blinked, but remained otherwise stunningly silent.

I could not blame her, this was something big. It would be hard to process and digest the sheer scale of our actions. Parts of me were trying and failing to imagine it so, while I had two sets of memories to draw from.

“Wow… this is…” Twilight looked around, everywhere but at me. “Wow…”

“T-Twilight…”

“I…” She suddenly chuckled. “I just don’t know what to say…”

My voice got stuck in my throat.

“Has it… you know, altered anything?”

…

“I… ” Oh crap… what do I say to that? Do I tell her? Then what? Would she figure it out? We’ve – well, mostly me – already created discrepancies with this world’s history. Or at least about how threats arise, which is precisely what is supposed to be happening right now…

Her traits became slightly more precise, bigger, allowing me to see in perfect detail the more minute details like that small twitch beneath her lips she maintained in a firm line or the fact that her fur had started standing on its ends. Subconsciously, Twilight was leaning toward me.

“You see… it’s…” Something like Chrysalis might waltz in and try to take over, possibly causing the death of many of your fellow ponies.

The moment the thought had crossed my mind, I knew what I would do. There was simply no other option for me. Otherwise, Twilight’s cooperation might be lost forever.

Instantly, a cool… no, cold detachment erased all signs of hesitation from my mind. Though externally I projected the image of an unsure alicorn, my mind was an ocean of ice. Vaguely however, my conscience was screaming bloody murder.

“I don’t think it did…” Liar. “But who knows when and how it might start?” Liar, liar, hooves on fire… “We need to pinpoint the origin of the spell, perhaps reproduce it, to stop its effects and reverse them?” Hung by his wings with barbed wire… “The balance would be restored.”

She stared, the cogs of her mind turning so visibly I could hear them.

The corners of her lips twitched and suddenly it was my turn to lean closer, too fixated by the other to realize what I was doing. I needed help so badly! I needed her help so badly! Come on, Twilight!

Upward. A smile. She was smiling.

Immediately, I released a sigh of relief I hadn’t known I was holding in.

I knew I had won.

“Alright. I will try to help you to the best of my abilities.”

There was a monster in his chest. A strange crawling thing that had him uneasy, uncomfortable… on the verge of throwing up all over his keyboard.

Through some sort of strange miracle however, he managed to force his fingers down, enough to type a message, but without his eyes ever trailing off the screen.

“F-for real…? That’s their names?” No way, that’s just… how… why would they give alicorns those names?

“Well, nicknames actually, NightServant, but you get the idea. And the fandom pretty much universally agrees that this is really out of place and weird and no one knows why the writers went with that.”

He just stared at the screen.

That had to be a weird coincidence. Come on, those two new characters… one of them being an annoying mini-stu?

Phantom pain in his eye.

His heart jumped in his throat, threatening to up and outright leave his body. There was, in his mind, the memories of his friend glaring at him, so strongly for speaking like that.

Too strongly. It’s just a TV show’s…

“Tom and Sam, really?”

I didn’t want to squirm and get skittish, but I kept so nonetheless. Truly though, my situation was rather… peculiar, one might say.

“A-are you entirely certain it is necessary I strike a pose while you run your tests?” Not that I mind puffing my chest and extending my wings, looking all proud, Twi, but I can’t help feeling something is amiss here...

The mare, her nose in her readings, barely seemed to have registered my words. The blush her glasses couldn’t hide was the only concrete proof I had that she wasn’t as detached as she pretended to. “Oh, yes, of course, it… huh… helps the circulation of your magical aura and then I can… see if you’re ”

Even when not looking at me, she gave a ‘I’m-really-not-lying-I-promise’ smile. Even worse, my ears picked up some unusual words when she turned around. Perhaps I should try to inform her that as Alicorn of the Wind, I could pretty much hear anypony I wanted to, so long as we weren’t separated by solid matter.

“Be bold, Twilight, she said… ooooh, I’m so bad at this…” She whispered.

The strange phrase did not quite translate in my brain. Distantly, a part of me knew precisely what she was talking about. In itself, it would have been quite distracting, but…

Well, the dozens wires attached to my wings and the rest of my person made it a little hard to concentrate on much.

After I had made my request, Twilight had lead us to the castle’s laboratory. Strange as it had first appeared to me to have a lab, a place where one would experiment with magic, in the Princesses residence, this was Twilight Sparkle, student extraordinaire.

“T-this is all fascinating!” She exclaimed, tone breaking and pitched too high. “I’ve never seen anything like it before!”

“Yes, as I told you…” A sense of shame stirred in my guts. “Yes, as I already explained, the source of this spell is unknown…”

Her head turned toward me, yet she still didn’t look at me. Her gaze was fixated on the beeping equipment surrounding my body and the wires hooked up on me. Slowly though, awed discovery seemed to be replaced by perplexity.

Twilight quickly ran to my figure, making my heartbeat accelerated with paranoia.

“This should not happen,” she muttered, making a bunch of readings float toward her, glancing alternatively between each of them, inches away from me.

Less than her words, it was the frown darkening her features that had me worried.

“Twilight?” I called.

She did not answer, too immersed in her examinations of the strange colored lines displayed on the machine behind me. It did not change when she moved toward me again.

Without even a hint of her previous skittishness, the Alicorn of Magic honestly started to examine me from up close. I could feel her breath on my fur at this distance.

My tail twitched.

T-there was something… dehumanizing about being put on a pedestal and being turned into an object of observation and study. That I had made the request diminished the sentiment, but only very slightly.

Instruments were levitating around her head and she mouthed many things silently, to my dismay, as reading on lips was not a skill I had. Her train of thoughts was simply lost on me, even while the direction of her experiments became more and more evident.

A full blown glare at numbers stayed telling no matter the dimension.

“No, this HAS to be wrong! Magic doesn’t work like that!” She almost snarled at her scrolls, obviously displeased with the results she was getting. If anything, she looked about ready to…

Hit them… throw them across the room.

“I-I HATE YOU!”

I still don’t know… which one… which one said it? It’s all falling apart.

A muffled, hitting noise.

I can’t match a face with the voice.

“HAVE YOU GONE MAD?!”

Have you? Are you both still sane? Was that a fluke? Or just...

The sound of deep breathing, not unlike that of a yoga master, brought me back to my senses.

“Alright, Twilight, you can do this,” she told herself.

Completely to her thought process, the alicorn blatantly ignored the intrigued look I directed her way. Instead, she turned her head back to her desk and, before I had the time to ask anything, a black blur flew toward her at lightning speed.

My warning died in my throat when it flashed itself into Twilight’s hooves and revealed itself as tongs. Besides, my voice was extinguished the next second. A nice, warm, gentle touch registered in my brain.

However, Twilight still didn’t seem happy, brushing my leg like that.

“What is it?”

A sharp bout of pain in my hind leg made me bite my lips, to hold in the yelp that threatened to echo in the lab otherwise. D-did Twilight just pluck out a piece of me?!

She didn’t notice. Her eyes were entirely on her sample. “That’s… weird.”

“W-what is?” I asked, chest burning up with sudden fright.

“This,” Twilight said, carefully holding up the piece of me she had pulled out with her levitating tongs. “It’s all over you… and…”

There was nothing. Not even some golden fur.

Staring intently, something hit me as wrong, but I couldn’t put my finger on it. In the first place, I was no expert on such matters. Air was distorted around it, I could tell – of course I could –, but what I didn’t know was the reason for this distortion. I had some theories, but they were probably total crap.

Frowning, Twilight closed her eyes, making her horn glow much more intensively.

It did not take long. Whatever was in Twilight’s grip changed, slowly expanding, stretching into a thin line. That in itself was not notable, admittedly, but, as it turned into a white rift inside an empty space, it seemed to have an effect on me I could not explain.

From the rift, a pulse seemed to echo and, as soon as it reached me, I heard an ethereal neigh at the back of my mind.

Twilight started to speak, completely unaffected. “The further I move it away from you, from the caster and his reserves of magic.” She took a step back, ONE!

The string of light faded away.

“W-what does that mean?” I asked, mouth going dry.

“I…” Her eyes were wide open. “I think the spell is starting to... to run out…”

Dinner

I had always figured that, snootiness aside, Canterlot didn’t have much to offer. Boy was I wrong…

We had done more than I could have imagined possible in the town. Perhaps my opinion of it was too shallow.

“Well, this is awkward,” I said, alternatively looking at Tom, Pinkie and the various food stalls.

“I can’t believe you would forget to take bits with you, Sam!” The little squirt sneered, angry that his stomach kept rumbling with no way to satisfy it.

Like I would let that fly.

“I apologize, Tom, but it did not occur to me that we would spend so much time in the park, that we might see the Wonderbolt’s open-air show, that there would be a free visit of the Museum of Equestrian History – which, by the way, I can’t believe you asked to visit –, that we would ultimately end up so far away from the castle and that you would get hungry before we got back. I can’t make bits appear out of nowhere and you will not try to summon money the way you tried to summon party supplies. You will have to wait until we return to the castle and that’s final.”

“Or you could go whoosh!” Her mane flailed as if it was shaken by a particularly strong breeze. “And ask Princess Celestia if she could lend you the bits!”

…Smart.

“Oh pleaaaaaaaase!” Tom instantly jumped on the idea. “I don’t wanna wait till we get back!”

Okay, this is him being a brat and indulging him now is truly a bad idea. On the other hand though, I’d rather not deal with him whining on the way back for half an hour. Plus, I’m still supposed to make sure he has a nice day.

Still, I had some apprehensions. “…What are the chances you will not spend the whole time conspiring against me?”

“Preeeeeetty good.” Tom flashed me his best angelic smile, which answered that.

I’ll wish I had an unfortunate and unexpected sudden explosion accident on the way back, got it.

She tensed before I even announced my presence. I barely had the time to slip through the space between her window’s frame that her perfect slender body had already shown signs of her vigilance. Slowly, as if to show her lack of concern, Celestia looked up from her paperwork and aimed her gaze directly at my form – or lack thereof.

Her voice appeared carefully controlled, yet still gave off a certain… warmth. “To what do I owe this visit, Ventus?”

“Color me impressed, Princess.” A chill went down my spine as my body took a solid shape once more. My front legs folded as I bowed, humbled. “You detected me instantly, even if you did not know I knew this spell.”

“I have quite a bit of experience with magic,” she said, with a heavy tone, somewhat playful nonetheless.

I could not hold back a grin when I looked up. “I can imagine.”

She raised one eyebrow at that. The sass overflowing from her general person was enough to bring one stallion to his knees. “Was that a jab at my age?”

“Oh no!” I snorted, holding my hooves in front of me. “I wouldn’t dream of that.”

She was so convinced I was sincere she rolled her eyes. “If that is how you talk to mares, young stallion, then color me puzzled as to your apparent success with my faithful student.”

Now, that was just asking for it. “My incredible looks must account for quite a bit. Mainly though, I simply do not talk about age, because chances are the burn will be much more powerful if turned back on me.” My grin widened. “With a few select exceptions.”

“That is honestly something I would have expected Blueblood to say.”

My smile disappeared at the speed of lightning, being replaced by a spectacular scowl. Heck, being compared to him had made all my organs rebel and I was now seconds away from illness.

“You seem an awful lot chipper than usual, my little pony.” How ironic. “You, who have always been so guarded around others, are exchanging quips with me.” She settled down on her seat, her gaze suddenly greedy for information. “What brought this sudden change of heart?”

“I… I guess today has been… nice…” For a moment, my eyes turned to the shelves around us, detailing the covers of a few books, as I tried to put my thoughts into order. When I looked back to her, Celestia’s whole focus was on me alone. “I spent a lot of time today, having fun with my family and a friend. It felt… good to just shed away this mask of cool and stoic attitude to just be… me.” Whoever that is.

Something flashed in the princess’ eyes.

“What I’m trying to say… well… I want to be the real me with my family and, well, you’re a part of that, Celly.”

I don’t know what I’m saying! …But it still feels right.

The mare behind the mask of absolute ruler took a deep breath, as if her breathing had been cut short by the words.

“I am touched, Ventus,” she admitted with a beautiful smile.

Bashful, I could only offer her one in return.

Her eyelids flickered once and her gaze momentarily went to the window, who allowed only the sunset to be seen over the city of nobles. In this light, she looked at peace, radiant in her own glory, as the wave of her mane reflected the colors of the red sun. Yet… I could only focus on the sadness inside her eyes.

Her voice seemed… shaking, almost regretful, when she spoke next. “Now then, not that your presence is not a delightful, albeit unexpected, surprise but the job of a Princess includes a lot of paperwork. Now, understand me when I say that I do not want to return to the absolutely fascinating legal disputes and administration puzzles that make my kingdom, but…”

The moment had passed.

“I understand, Princess.” I nodded, ignoring the small pang of disappointment that suddenly flared in my chest. “And I am grateful you did not throw me out on sight for disturbing your work.”

The image made her snort. “I can only imagine what me trying to throw a stallion like you out would look like to my guards.”

That does sound rather silly. I had to fight a bubbling feeling in my chest soon. It was hard, but necessary. The longer I stayed here, the more justifications Calx and Pinkie could dish out to explain why Canterlot was now a smoking crater.

“Oh, I suppose the guards might be worried you’d be telling empty space to leave you alone.” Her eyes shone with amusement and, for a moment, I was convinced she wanted to try. To stop this dangerous course of action from being attempted, I cleared my throat and affected a much more serious tone of voice. “Moving on… I would like to humbly request an…”

“Yes?” She asked, her delicate brows furrowed in the slightest.

I gulped down and swallowed my pride.

“An… allowance…” I said, biting my cheeks in a vain attempt not to feel the burning shame all over my face. “Of… some sort…”

“My, Ventus, do elaborate, my little pony.”

And suddenly, I’m ten in front of Mom again.

“W-well… honestly, I would not bother you with this, seeing as you are housing my brother and I so graciously, but…” I glanced aside, trying and failing to get my ears up again. My shame was just too strong at this point. “After Pinkie’s repeated help at taking care of Calx, I thought appropriate the idea of inviting for supper in a high class restaurant here.”

“I suppose it must be quite difficult to find one such establishment offering free meals.” Celestia’s lips twitched upward.

I took the statement as graciously as I could. “This lack of foresight on my part means a disaster is currently brewing in downtown Canterlot as an excitable little alicorn with the potential to wreck this place is currently alone with Pinkie Pie, while they are both hungry.”

“Oh my, that is indeed quite serious.” She chuckled. “I am glad you came directly to me for this question of national security.”

Her head turned to a cabinet behind her, all of polished carved wood, with a few symbols I felt were familiar.

“Here, take these.” A small bag levitated out of her drawer, making my eyes widen when I realized she was giving me bits from her personal funds.

I actually hesitated, growing a little self-conscious in the face of this obviously big gift. With a little bit of urging however, Celestia managed to push me to take it and observed its content.

Platinum bits. Lots of them.

“C-Celestia!” I protested, my tail and my wings flickering once with excitement even as I tried to appear scandalized.

She gave me a knowing look, the kind a mother had in front of a child badly trying to cover up something. “I suggest going to The Royal Crown. The food there is absolutely exquisite and they have a table specifically reserved for royalty at all times.”

“I…”

“Don’t worry about the amount. Use it wisely to make a beautiful gift to your friend.” She stood up, walking up to me with what I knew was a furious desire to laugh. “It seems appropriate for a pony that babysat a prince, wouldn’t you agree?”

Gently, her horn pushing against the side of my shoulders, she forced me to turn toward the same window I had phased in between. I was not quite mentally prepared to resist her commands yet.

“Go. Enjoy your evening, my little pony.”

A bit mechanically, I forced my hooves to move. Grabbing the bag of bits with my mouth, I focused on the sensation of turning into air, of becoming one with my own sense of concept.

My consciousness started to spread, ready to leave my cousin and not-cousin behind to her work.

It seemed, however, that she was unable to resist one last jab.

“I do hope your double-timing adventures will not blow up in your face, little cousin.”

Thanks to that, I finally found my voice.

“I will not even dignify that with a reply.” I raised my muzzle high in the air, refusing to even look at her.

As I disappeared into the evening sky, all I could hear was her light-hearted chuckles.

The waiter did not ask question when I stepped into the restaurant, flanked by two hyperactive ponies. If anything, he looked ready to answer them all if one dared bother us. Either that guy was nervous or he was used to being visited by royalty and ‘royalty’ in this case would probably translate with Blueblood most of the time.

Now he would have to deal with a hungry Tom and a hungry Pinkie Pie…

That poor stallion. Leaving a great tip for him was in order.

Quickly putting on a stoic and servile façade, the waiter guided us inside.

The first thing we noticed was the music. Part of the background itself, the notes were soothing and obviously reminiscent of great classical authors. It felt as if they floated between the conversations, slipping past a net and forming completely intact by my ears. I was impressed.

The restaurant was high-class. It was no exaggeration. Neither lives I had had been inclined that much toward luxury and I was as much of a stranger to this than, say, Applejack.

The floor was covered by this incandescent red carpet that left a fleeting, ghostly impression of softness under our hooves. Its appearance alone seemed to invoke the idea of nobility, as it stretched through the restaurant all over, to meet up with the pristine marble walls. Those were covered in crystalline chandelier, bearing lit candles that projected an orange glow, so reminiscent of the evening sun and the fading day.

Ponies and other creatures everywhere were sitting with an air of refinement to themselves at tables covered with the most incredible pieces of silverware I had been given the chance to see.

Blueblood could come in here and not have legitimate beef with the décor.

E-everything was on a whole new level. We were being lead directly in the center of it all, toward what seemed to be a plateau of some sort, in the middle of the room, seemingly like an ivory tower amongst the elite of the populace.

My heart skipped a beat at the idea of actually belonging to this world, to this level of aristocracy. It was unbelievably flattering and exciting.

“Your table, sirs and madam.”

I blinked, just now realizing we had reached our destination. All to my thoughts I hadn’t even realized we had walked up the stairs.

“Thank you kindly, Sir.” I nodded, taking place on one of the silky cushion surrounding the table.

Tom and Pinkie both dove into their places, seemingly as psyched out as I was to be in this kind of restaurant.

“Calm down, Buddy,” I said to my little brother as he started bouncing in his seat, even though I felt kind of exactly the same way.

Chastised, he stopped… for like three seconds. That was obviously as good as I was going to get.

“Just don’t make too much of a mess tonight, ‘kay?” I whispered, which, I’ll admit, was a little bit of teasing.

“I’m not twenty-two, you know!” He rolled his eyes, making a show of his wings and puffing out his chest.

The smile on my lips froze around the edge.

“W-what about you, Miss Pie?”

“What about me, Sammy?” The mare tilted her head to the side, making me realized that neither of us had actually an idea of what we were meant to make small talk over.

Swiftly, I scanned the room for a topic of conversation, as would have been smart to do beforehand. Logically though, the first thing that really caught my attention, in a restaurant, was the food.

“Have you ever had the chance to eat in a place such as this one before?”

“Nope!” She cheerfully replied.

Another waiter, this time a stallion with a red coat and a slick mane, seemed to appear out of nowhere with some menus. The next instant, the poor guy glanced at me, the only one not having jumped on them like a starving timberwolf.

To his carefully guarded expression, I answered with a sympathetic shrug of my shoulders and listened while he listed the specialties of the chef and the recommended dishes.

“Ooooooh, what am I going to choose? Everything sounds so fun and yummy!”

Scratch that, she was listening, in her own way.

“Man, I dunno… there’s so much stuff there…” Calx said, his gaze transfixed by the menu.

Quickly, his head turned to me, shining with curiosity. “Ventus, what’s a ratatouille?”

I came up with a blank. I had heard of the dish, but never tried it. “...Dozens of veggies cooked in a pan?”

For a second, Calx’s face contorted into a disgusted grimace.

My heart skipped a beat. Is he…?

It wouldn’t make sense, right? For a pony to hate them with such passion?

My brain was running at the highest speed, trying to figure out if that had even a remotely, vagued, badly established, link to his human memories.

“Oh, yuck!” Pinkie exclaimed, making a face as well. “You’re right about that, Bladey!”

A flame waned inside me, quietly, without fanfare. It just disappeared and the room lost a little light to me. Not unusual, eh? Just a sign of being a kid… not necessarily a human kid…

It took nearly all my self-control to keep my ears from drooping and my eyes not to shine with tears. This one had been like another kick to the guts.

Struggling, I knew I had to focus on something else. Anything else, really.

Briefly, I took the waiter’s ear aside to talk about the currency I was holding, fearing that my companions had stomach bigger than Celestia’s gift could satisfy. One look inside the bag had the stallion’s eyes widening so much that the fear got pushed back to the back of my mind instantly.

“I assure you, Sir, that this is more than enough for any combination of items on our menu.” He eyed me with some sort of shocked respect.

Slightly embarrassed by all this and certainly not craving attention at the moment, I scratched the back of my head sheepishly, hoping he would take the hint. Fortunately, he quickly assured us our food would be ready soon and left.

After that, I just let myself calm down. Things weren’t complicated. I couldn’t overthink them, it was less painful. Just… no preoccupations. No, really, we just made small talk, sometimes a bit more explosively from Pinkie and, yes, it got a few aside glances, but apparently nopony had the guts to call her out when she was with us.

It felt relaxing to just join in on their antics. More so, it felt natural, something I would do, not this mask of royalty I was expected to wear, nor this slowly unraveling mess of anxiety I had turned into.

Even the arrival of a waiter with our ordered meals did little to disturb my inner peace. I felt like this would be a great evening.

My zen-like attitude was drastically shaken though, when a chump of mashed potato squashed itself against my face.

Feeling my temper flare, I fought a furious desire to chew out the one responsible, as I calmly wiped myself clean. Had somepony seriously thrown mashed potato at me? Who does that?

Calx snorted, obviously amused, but the lack of guilt or fear of retribution in the way he carried himself protected him. Besides, he didn’t have mashed potatoes. He hates that.

No, the one that I had to blame for that was the truly obvious culprit and I felt like smacking myself in the face for not seeing it coming. Of course.

Pinkie’s body was halfway spread across the table, her traits not visible with her face smashed against her meal. She was making those… noises… of satisfaction, which had my cheeks burning up in embarrassment and… you know…

Heck, a wave of whispers spread through the ponies below, with a few pairs of eyes falling on us. They were watching, making an opinion of Pinkie, of me… of Tom. They’d judge and spread the words.

Like a certain fanbase… I thought venomously.

Now I just wanted to buck someone’s head off. Great.

I made a conscious effort to breathe deeply and not snap at anypony. Okay, Ventus, you can do this. Pinkie’s a real sweetheart with the most innocent joy ever as her sole motivation, but this needs to stop. This is actually on par with pigs.

“M-Miss Pie…” I called softly, grimacing.

“Yes, Sammy?” She looked up, pieces of her food sticking on her cheeks… for a few seconds anyway. Then they fell to the floor with a wet sound.

I cringed.

“Forgive me if you consider this insensitive, but would it be possible for you to reign yourself a bit? I fear your… manners… are making some ponies in the restaurant uncomfortable.”

“Huh?” She tilted her head in the cutest possible manner.

I almost gave up on the spot. Then, I heard a mother scolding her child after he had imitated her while giggling. The mare in question glared our way as she took her foal to the bathroom to clean him up.

“…Pinkie, you’re ruining some ponies' evening.”

“W-what?” Her voice died midword, with her expression falling.

Cautiously, biting my lips, I looked for the right way to fix this. There had to be-

“It’s kinda gross,” Tom muttered, making me blink.

“But this is so good! And I was so looking forward to it!” She looked at us with distress in her eyes… well, behind all the layers of food…

“I understand.” I nodded, wishing I could just skip over this awkward moment. “However, this makes others' experience much less satisfying, not to mention that it produces a bad model for foals to imitate.”

“But…” She looked down.

This is just sad, in some horrifying ways…

“Now, don’t look so sad…” I did my best to sound comforting, though I figured it probably sounded as awkward as this whole thing was. “This is not a rebuke. I’m simply concerned the rest of the world will not get the chance to admire your beauty under all this gravy.”

She giggled and snorted again, her whole body perking up. Tom, on the other hand, made a gagging motion and coughed something that sounded suspiciously like ‘gross’.

Ignoring him and the voice in my head that said I was flirting, I lifted up a table cloth with a spell, holding it up to her level. She took the hint remarkably quickly, leaning almost instantly toward the levitating object.

Softly, I moved the cloth across her visage, wiping it clean of all the food she had virtually slammed it against. In just a few movements though, her pink fur looked as clean as it ever was.

“There.” I smiled, locking my gaze into hers. “Much better.”

Eying the disastrous mess on our table, I held back a sigh and made my magic surround her fork.

“Why don’t you just let me give you just a bite?” I tilted my head, hoping to come across as bashful and a little shy. “Open up.”

Pinkie’s eyes lit up, figuring out the game this was and playfully opened her mouth widely.

“Not as wide…” I smirked, this time feeling a bit of amusement at what was clearly teasing.

Gently, with finesse, she closed her lips on the fork I was holding up, letting out a small hum of appreciation, then looked back at me with hopeful eyes.

“Was that still good, Miss Pie?”

“Yeah…” She admitted shyly, her smile screaming ‘sheepish’. “It’s just so hard to resist…”

“But this way you can enjoy it longer and other ponies are more comfortable.”

It was enough to convince her.

“I’ll do my best so everypony can enjoy their meal, Pinkie Promise.” She solemnly did the gesture, making me sigh with relief.

Crisis… averted…

I had rarely been as wrong before.

“Blade Darkblaze?” called a juvenile voice, one that was strangely familiar.

All three of us turned simultaneously toward the source of this voice, only to discover two young fillies: Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon.

My jaw dropped.

Tom, on the other hand…

“What?” His expression darkened, no doubt recognizing the fillies. He loathed them.

A part of me urged me to nip this one in the bud before it degenerated, but I was too dumbstruck to act.

Why are those two…? I stared dumbly, unable to quite process and rationalize their presence. Sure, they were probably rich and able to afford this place, but why would they come seek Tom out?

“R-right…” The filly stumbled at the vehemence in his voice, but still catching herself quickly. “You don’t have to hang out with Pinkie Pie. W-would you like to come with us instead, Blade?” She asked, with the kind of tone a grown woman would say to a man she hoped to seduce.

Holy. Buck!

Mind. Blown.

Tom’s reply was instantaneous and straight to the point. “No way!”

“B-but…” Her eyes were screaming how much this couldn’t be happening.

I could imagine why too. Not used to not getting your way, eh, brat?

“Nopony likes a bully!” He sneered, refusing to look at them.

“Bladey?” Pinkie called, thoroughly confused.

“W-we’re n-not bullies!” Diamond Tiara yelled, yet managing to sound uncertain and vulnerable. This might have been the first time in her life somepony she respected had called her out.

“Oh yeah?” Tom jumped on his hooves and I knew this one was going to hurt for real.

He marched toward them, head slightly lowered and glaring at them viciously. Seeing that, the two fillies backed away, eyes widening with something akin to fear.

It was Silver Spoon that found the strength to speak, but even then, she was shaking in her boots. “Y-yeah…”

At this point, Tom’s face wasn’t visible to me anymore. Nonetheless, it wasn’t hard to imagine it.

To my surprise, instead of the screeching I had expected, I simply heard a loud coughing noise and that of somepony clearing his throat.

When his voice came out, it was whinier, of a higher pitch and all around, girlier. On the spot, probably every patron in the restaurant that could hear us understood whose voice that was supposed to be.

“Blank flanks, blank flanks!” He topped it off with a cruelly accurate snide laugh, an imitation of their own.

They looked like deer caught in the headlight.

“Look, those fillies don’t have their cutie marks yet, Diamond Tiara.” He pointed to an empty spot, his head turned as if talking to another foal. Then, he turned his head the other side and changed the intonation slightly. “You’re right, Silver Spoon. Let’s go be jerkfaces and rub it in their face, like MEAN BULLIES THAT NOPONY LIKES!”

The whole room had fallen into shocked silence. Even the musicians had stopped to stare in horror at all the drama.

As for me… well, I had to be an absolutely horrible person all around, but my only thought at those two being rolled over like that by my little brother was among the lines of… well… BURN!

My inner bastard wasn’t even moved when their eyes started watering. There was something horribly wrong with me. No, really, this was two young children, being brought to tears by my little brother, and I felt nothing. No empathy at all…

They ran off crying. I still didn’t find myself compelled to chastise Tom.

What is wrong with me? They’re bullies, yes, but… that was brutal! Why can’t I…?

I felt… broken, incomplete…

At my side, Calx sat down again, glaring at his meal as if it had started insulting him.

“Bladey…” Her tone of voice had my stomach churn. Worse even, her mane was straight and devoid of liveliness. “That was… really… really… mean…”

“They’re mean,” he grumbled sullenly, picking at his food with his fork. Each stab was stronger than the previous one. Each stab seemed angrier.

He really was the only one moving. Everypony else was still looking up to us with the kind of scandalized expression that translated as a morbid curiosity. You wouldn’t find a soul refusing to suck the scene dry of all drama, even when it seemed to be over. They still watched, just in case.

Their prayers were answered.

“Young colt!” A stallion thundered, making my head snap toward him.

I grimaced. Oh buck… Filthy Rich…

The earth pony was barreling through the restaurant, ignorant the staff that seemed completely overwhelmed by this turn of event. Really though, who would blame them? It probably wasn’t often that such an occurrence happened from their usual clientele.

Filthy Rich reached the stairs with minimal interferences, while a few waiters seemed to be whispering amongst themselves for their next course of action. If I had to guess, I’d say the Royal Guard was about to show up…

Still, the moment Mr. Rich stepped on the plateau, I stood up, very intently, and placed myself in front of Tom. The little squirt wasn’t even afraid; he was glaring daggers at Diamond Tiara’s pops. Fearing what could happen next if such an attitude was witness by the stallion, I extended my wings to hide as much as Tom’s form as possible.

It worked. Mr. Rich’s attention was entirely focused on me. His attention was expressed through the usage of loud swearing, outraged words and spit in my face. I could understand the sentiment.

With every passing word from the indignant father though, I felt my heart grow more detached. In his anger, as justifiable as it was, he was still insulting and screaming at Tom. Every one of my instincts was taking it as a declaration of war.

“Sir, with all respect, kindly shut up.”

The earth pony stallion stopped dead in his track, probably too shocked to speak in the face of my audacity…

“Yes, his behavior was out of line.” Tom sneered at that, glaring at me now. When I glared back, he seemed rather shaken. “However, his words were nothing but an echo of the bullying your daughter and her friend perpetrates each day. They intruded and even acted disrespectful toward his friend. He had every right to reject their invitation.”

“T-this is an outrage!”

Cold, cold, cold. A mist was making my thoughts hazy. JUST SHUT UP! “Your parenting is an outrage, Sir, if you allowed your daughter to become an entitled brat that bullies her classmates.”

Distantly, I was amazed I sounded even remotely rational in my current mental state. Mr. Rich certainly didn’t. He was still burning with the fury of an angered father.

“How dare you accuse my little princess like that when this… this colt of yours just made her cry! He’s a ruffian with no manners and you should be ashamed of yourself for letting him off the bat, sir!”

I narrowed my eyes, an array of words already lining up in my head, hateful words, as naught but my darker emotions remained. You pushed one too many buttons.

“How many fillies have returned home in tears because of her? How many of her teacher’s reports did you ignore and pat her on the back, saying you didn’t believe those horrible lies about her, that she was still your precious princess? Do you like it, the feeling of seeing your foal heartbroken by another while the stallion that could stop it does nothing, FILTHY?!”

It did the trick. The words, aimed at him with heartless precision, just cut right through his outrage and he deflated. Stuttering, he struggled with his words, his cheeks now coloring themselves red. There was no way the crowd had missed my words, nor his guilty reaction.

He ran.

Feeling heavy with mental fatigue now, I turned back to Tom and Pinkie, but they both held the same expression.

None of us really had the heart to enjoy the night anymore.

“I am sorry for the ruckus,” I said, sighing sadly. “I hope you can still enjoy the rest of your meals, everypony…”

This will be a nightmare to deal with tomorrow… and I have no one to blame but myself…

Quietly, we stood up, paid for our meals and went back to the castle, heads swimming with the events of the night. Pinkie was the worst of. Her cheeks were darkened by a trail of wet fur and her steps were punctuated by the sound of droplets hitting the ground.

You wondered ‘what could go wrong’, eh? Everything. ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING! Does that answer your question, Pinkie?

Introspection

The shadows were all-encompassing. Beneath me, above me, surrounding me from all sizes, they were in the air I breathed, the space I stared into, the sound I heard…

Darkness that comes from within.

I knew this place. I had the feeling I did, but I could not see it. Beyond the veil of shadows, there were… furniture… people… laughter? But it was beyond my reach. It was on the other side of the darkness, I could not pierce through it.

My horn did nothing, my wings refused to lift me, my hooves were too unsteady for them to allow any charge. I was as powerless as a foal, then suddenly I was a foal, small and too weak to get out of this trap.

The creatures sliding in the shadows made me want to scream, but my hooves were steadily keeping my lips sealed, for fear they would decide I was tasty. My heart was beating faster than ever, much too fast. My head was already spinning and threatening to crack under the pressure.

But it didn’t. Instead, my ears picked up the strangest of noises.

A chime of diamond rang echoes in the distance, producing a sound with a strangely ethereal quality, almost… otherworldly.

It was gentle though. Its lightness made the note sound much purer than those of another instrument, perhaps, and it certainly was a great amelioration over the creepy shadow creatures.

I found myself drawn to the chime. It was kinda pretty. Lot less scary than the monsters. A lot more familiar than the darkness.

I picked up the pace. The sound got louder and the closer I got, the more clearly I could hear it. It was a longing plea for help!

I couldn’t let them die! Not because they were born different!

Cold wind slapped my cheeks, harshly, and I stumbled, disorientated. The pain I expected from falling on my face never came, leaving me with naught but a dull sensation of numbness.

Confused, I tried shaking my head a few times, but all I accomplished was getting the world to spin even more.

“Still your steps!”

There was a being, taller than the others, darker than the others and with an aura of power that sent them all to their knees. She, for the creature was without a doubt a mare, glared at our surroundings, her mouth slowly twisting into a scowl.

She spoke with disgust.

But I didn’t hear her words.

My body arched violently, catapulting me out of the world of dreams and back into that of harsh reality. Or cartoons. Whichever, I thought, muscles relaxing back into a lying position.

To my surprise, I woke up to a cold, unwelcoming void in my bed where Calx should have been. It did not surprise me much, after the disastrous ending of yesterday’s dinner at The Royal Crown. He had been acting sullen for the remainder of the evening, right up to the time to go to sleep.

He had pressed himself against me harder than ever, whispering some words about our parents. It left my cheeks burning with shame that I hadn’t been able to summon the right images at the words “Mom” and “Dad”. My mind had become wearier, even as I had clasped my hooves on Tom’s shoulders and held him closer.

Nonetheless, regardless of the events of last night, this morning, I was alone in the room. The stone walls were sanctuary to nopony but myself. At least, as far as I could tell...

Wings shrugging off the covers with a mint of regret, I rolled off the mattress. My landing was less than graceful, leftover fog of sleep oblige.

“Tom?” I called, voice breaking from the emotional rollercoasting and a newly born worry.

My chest contracted to produce a sigh of pure relief when the air carried the sound of little hooves hitting the floor of our bathroom.

“Yeah?” His head peeked out of the door, looking blissfully normal and not traumatized.

Then again, his mood had gone rotten mostly because he had been really annoyed by the two fillies intervention. Guilt was a lot more long lasting than disappointment over a dinner.

“You didn’t wake me up,” I stated, trying to sound mildly annoyed, but unable to summon those emotions.

“Have you tried waking yourself up?!” He threw his front hooves in the air, half pouting, half glaring. “T’was like talking to a brick. And you were half squishing me like a big bag of potatoes!”

My eyes twitched. Well, there you go. Plenty of annoyance to start the day!

Lime Line caught herself sneezing a few times, gathering the attention of her mother, who beckoned her to wear some clothes, just this once.

The adolescent filly frowned, shivering under her layer of clothing. Why was it so cold all of a sudden? S-sure, the wind blowing down from the mountains was generally freezing, but it didn’t happen at this time of the year. It was supposed to be summer from Celestia’s sake.

She shivered and went on with her business for the day.

The whispers were significantly louder when we entered the dining hall this morning.

Eyes trailed off after us, that much was a given, if one considered the insane amount of gossiping hens amongst the nobility. It was both sad and rather funny when I think about it.

Nonetheless, this morning, I certainly did not crave the extra attention. Every shushed whisper in my presence made images of last night flash before my eyes. More precisely, the brief glint of panic in their gazes when they saw I noticed them talk about me was telling, as were the sighs of relief when I went past them without a moment of hesitation.

Great, I’ve got a reputation now. I sighed. Well, there’s nothing I can do about it right now. We should just eat something and think about it after that.

Carefully dodging the gaze of everypony assembled, I lead my little brother to our usual seats, bottling up my unease and my annoyance.

“Hi old guy!” Tom cheerfully greeted the aging stallion still sitting next to him.

“Hello, Prince Calx,” he replied with his usual tolerance, though I detected a hint of disappointment beneath the smile.

Their exchange barely got the chance to expand that a few servants came up to our levels with plates of food. It smelled exquisite.

While Tom dug right in, there was something I needed to see first.

“Excuse me, madam?” I called the closest maid, ignoring the painfully obvious flinch of her body when she heard me.

“Yes, Prince Ventus?” She turned around and lowered her head slightly.

“Would you be so kind as to bring me this morning’s newspapers?”

As expected of her, she did so with quick efficiency. I sorta wished I had bits to give her as a tip or something…

When my eyes fell on the paper though, my newly born good mood evaporated.

On the front page of the morning news, there were pictures – two pictures, to be precise –, one of me feeding Pinkie while she had that playful glee to her eyes and one of Tom screaming at Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, whose faces were brimming with tears already.

The title truly said it all.

‘World exclusive! The Unprincely Princes’

“Yesterday evening was not a good night for The Royal Crown’s staff, as unforeseen events centered around Princess Celestia’s young male relatives brought the evening to an early stop. After some shameless flirting toward one of the Elements of Harmony-”

I wanted to crawl under a rock and forget everything. Why had everything gone so wrong? In retrospect, I could see that it really was just the end of the night that had been bad and we had thoroughly enjoyed the rest, but that carried too little weight to stop us from being down.

There was this tight knot of guilt in my throat that made it hard to breath and this tingling horror that clawed its way into my brain just as soon as I knew why. My feeling of guilt, or responsibility, was sorely centered about the fact that my actions could have made the night a lot more satisfying for Tom.

The rest… I didn’t actually care.

A shiver went down my spine at my own train of thoughts. This… uncaring… blatant emptiness where there used to be something. How can I… what’s…?

I remembered a pair of eyes, mine, but different from how they were today, smaller, of a different color, blue instead of this soft shade of green. Those differences, though, they were trivial.

No, all I could remember were the things behind the physical appearance, mainly because I knew what was there. It was only a memory of a small bathroom and a dozen scenes of highly sadistic torture, approved by a number of fans.

Hatred. Revenge. Apathy.

I looked down, somehow managing to feel ashamed of myself, heat spreading all the way up to my head from the depth of my chest. The flicker of enthusiasm at experiencing this emotion was quickly squashed however as my gaze fell into my reflection.

In a silver plate, I could see those eyes, staring back. They were colder, uncaring as always. What I could have realistically passed off as being a carefully guarded and measured approach just screamed of a darker truth now. Those weren’t the eyes of a simple pony, nor those of a human. I could see it.

Monster.

The realization had bubbles of panic suddenly crash into my mind. No, it’s wrong! I’m not like that! It was just anger! I found him! I found Tom!

I was praying I was not sorely mistaken, that it was not just denial.

So why does my chest feel so heavy?

Suddenly, the idea of eating anything else repulsed me. Any hunger I might have had was long gone, my head spinning with dark, murderous thoughts, each scarier than the next.

It was just a spiral of red and red, screams and screams, tears of pain and of terror.

A movement to my side caught my attention, as the pony in question had to shuffle into his seat, uncharacteristically late. Oh joy, the prince has arrived.

Though beneath the sarcasm, there was a deeply rooted fear of what might happen if we clashed again. Was I really any better than him?

The answer was not one I had the time to ponder however, as one look at his newspaper had the white stallion snort with derision.

“And you consider yourself above me,” Blueblood sneered, sounding oddly triumphant and sad.

“I see you still like putting other ponies down,” I replied, staring blankly at my breakfast. “Does that make you feel better about yourself?”

From the corner of my eyes, I could notice a slight trembling in his legs and his hooves, which contrasted with the air of superiority he was adopting. “You mean the way it does for you?”

…Is he… on to something? Is that why I get so angry? Puzzled, I tried to look inward, to see if those cutting words could actually be turned against their holder.

They could.

I mouthed at him, acutely aware of the little colt not even a meter away from me, a simple “Yes.” His expression froze into one of shock, his mouth hanging open rather ridiculously.

Silence fell.

“Huh?” Calx looked up from his meal, noticing the sudden lack of conversations all around the table. His gaze went from one pony to another. Clearly though, nopony had the guts to say anything, so he turned to me. “What’s wrong, Sam?”

My expression morphed instantly, into one with a bashful grin and the least care in the word. If only for a split second, I felt rather good. “Nothing. The others just wanted to spend some time in silence to think.”

It took so much not to burst out laughing when Tom’s scowled, obviously disgusted.

“Boring,” he said.

I shrugged. “It’s an adult thing.”

“You’re not an adult!”

The shout had Blueblood snickering.

“I’m old enough to be one.” I rolled my eyes, thinking back on the few centuries already behind me. “I literally saw Blueblood’s ancestor trip on a garbage can and fall on his future wife. They met that way.”

I shared a knowing smirk with Tom, while the prince behind me had to fight an aneurysm. By the look on my brother’s neighbor's face, it was pretty bad.

“Anyway, the silence is just a time for ponies to relax. Don’t worry about it and use it to plan your day, ‘kay, lil’ bro?” A few nobles gasped at the slip-up in language.

“Sure! Sounds good to me.” He agreed, grinning before going back to his food.

Feeling one disaster had been averted, I returned to Blueblood. “You were saying?”

“Well, that’s two-faced if I ever saw it.” His eyes shifted from me to his meal, his body unusually still. “Nevermind.”

He sounded… bitter. Somehow…

Could he be…?

“If you need to search adamantly for a better role model… and think it is so difficult… then clearly you haven’t given it much thought.” I looked beyond him, toward a certain pony.

Confused, the white unicorn turned around, following my gaze and looked straight at Princess Celestia.

A strange light flashed in Blueblood’s eyes. His superior smug smirk had all but vanished.

I wouldn’t know what I expected of him, but clearly, my imagination was lacking. Or overachieving. The perfectly groomed stallion’s mask of royalty was cracking. The twitch of his brows, the imperceptible shift in his stature, the way his eyes focused on anything BUT Celestia…

What was going through his mind?

I, unfortunately, did not get further chance to speculate, as Princess Celestia had other plans.

“Ventus,” she called, instantly getting my full attention.

Ears perked up all around the dining hall, with it growing dreadfully silent again. Well, not completely silent… Calx did mutter something about boring adults and what’s not…

I would have loved to laugh at his behavior, but parts of me were too preoccupied with keeping my stomach in check. To be perfectly honest, I had been dreading the possibility of Celestia demanding an explanation all breakfast long. There was no way she could let the events of yesterday night slide without even an explanation.

“Yes, Princess?” I asked, lowering my head ever so slightly.

“I would like to speak to you alone.” She rose from her seat, causing a series of shocked looks from the nobility all around her. “Please, follow me.”

“Of course,” I whispered, scrambling to get to my hooves and go wherever she wanted me to.

I’d do a lot not to have those vultures’ eyes scrutinizing my every move. This was stretching it a little though…

I did my best to stop my tail from twitching and showing my nervousness, even as I followed Celestia’s painfully slow pace. She wasn’t in a hurry – why would she be? –, but I would rather not break character here and there…

I eyed the wooden door she lead me to with caution, not quite sure on what it might open. No torture chamber, please… I thought, passing below the doorframe, which closed itself behind me.

We were alone in some sort of… antechamber… and the look she was giving me was not quite as joyful as yesterday’s.

“We must speak of your behavior.”

Oh Elders, it’s like Mom’s in front of me… “P-Princess!”

“Believe me, Ventus, when I say that my student’s love life is her own business and hers alone. Just as is yours. On this topic, I do not have the right to judge you, especially with the experience I have of some journalists.”

I stayed silent. Her words implied too much unspoken things for me to feel even remotely at ease…. But a cowardly part of my mind let out a sigh of relief anyway.

“However, this morning, I received a troubling letter from none other than a certain Mr. Silver Ware. This convocation is for us to discuss its troubling content, which seems to coincide precisely with the points described in that gossip column.”

My mouth twisted with displeasure. In a corner of my mind, flames of a darker kind seemed to be burning with hatred toward those paparazzi that wouldn’t very well leave us alone and stop giving so much bashing fuel to others.

It must have shown eloquently on my face, because the white alicorn’s frowned as well.

“I won’t insult your intelligence by pretending neither of us know the content of this letter. While I do believe Mr. Ware has exaggerated some aspects of this tale, I also know he was not quite wrong with his assessment of you.”

Said letter slipped out from a desk in the corner and levitated to the level of her eyes. They skipped over what seemed to be half of its content before falling on the appropriate line.

With the tone of a storyteller, she read. “My daughter would not stop crying all night and, understand that it is with a heavy heart that I write this to you, but I believe your cousins are awful ponies if they could do that to an innocent filly that wanted to share some time with them.”

The words made my insides go cold. W-why…

“What I have trouble understanding is your reasons for letting it happen…” She did not look at me, she seemed pensive. “Mr. Rich and Mr. Ware are both rich ponies, but they have yet to leave an impact on the Canterlot scene, preferring more… earthly cities to develop their companies. Their daughters were nothing but fillies that wished to approach Calx Iugum, if I read this letter correctly.”

At least, I know that one is a lie. “Calx said everything you need to know. They are bullies in Ponyville and he doesn’t like bullies.”

“And how did he know that?”

“He…” I looked away, hoping not to reveal a hint of my sudden panic. Crap, how do I get out of that one?! “He… well, the ancient practices of the alicorns have not changed much, Princess.”

Her interest in me seemed greater than before, but she still did not speak, instead urging me to go ahead.

“Divination spells are incredibly common, to evaluate the numerous dangers that could befall any realm, of course, but many alicorns, including Calx and I, used them as a way of entertainment. It so happened that those two crossed path with the siblings of the Elements of Harmony many times before.”

“Is that also the reason you did not stop him?” She asked calmly.

…It was not. I just couldn’t be bothered. Even to me, that sounded cold. The sad part was that it was true.

My lack of answer seemed to be enough for her to make a judgment, as Celestia took a few steps around the room, eyes toward the ceiling.

“I am torn, Ventus. You have shown yourself to be usually reasonable, with perhaps one exception I was willing to overlook in regards to the intent I felt behind it. However, I can also see something very…” She turned to me. “…strange about you.”

“S-strange, Princess?” My wings fluttered a bit.

Her gaze was soul piercing. “Your actions… they do not strike me as the normal course of action from a stallion as polite and soft-spoken as you.”

My stomach churned, as a cold fear started to creep out on me. “I-I am not perfectly stoic, Celestia… Is it so hard to believe that I do have a temper under that… benevolence?”

“No, it is not so hard…” Her voice trailed off, momentarily at least. Her focus turned back on me with such intent though I doubt she had truly bought it for more than a few seconds. “However, Ventus, there is too much cruelty in your words when you express that anger. And it seems to focus with too much clarity to be spontaneous. You had thought of those same things a while ago, long before you met them in person, didn’t you? Your words and your personality seem to clash too badly and too often for it to be an anomaly. It is much closer to the real ‘you’ than what you would like them to believe. What you show to this world is not just a ‘mask of royalty’, Ventus, it is also a ‘mask of kindness’.”

So that’s what it’s like to get a taste of your own medicine? Damn… No room for me to hide, no lie for me to use in my defense. Cold hard logic that could not be reasonably argued against. The truth was a magnifying lens suspended over my head.

And just like me, Celestia did not relent so easily either.

Her eyebrows furrowed ever so slightly, as if concerned about my well-being despite figuring out the darker side of my inner self. “You will need to forgive me for this, but I cannot allow such events to be doomed to repetition out of negligence. For it to be overlooked… no, it is not a possibility, I must know.”

“Know what?”

She knew what she wanted. “Nopony was allowed to see it yet… the answer to that question.”

My voice came out uncertain. “What question?”

“Who are you?”

The words cut straight through any façade I could have built. I could only repeat them in my mind.

…Who am I?

It shook me to the core. I… I didn’t know. I had lost the knowledge a while ago now. All I could do was look at myself and decide…

Who am I?

Forced to look at the state of things, it seemed ridiculously unfair that I had been stripped of the answer and forced to carry on anyway, lest my life be forfeit to some alien power that was only looking for entertainment.

I couldn’t summon the strength to lie right away. For a moment, the thought of admitting everything was sweet, dancing at the edge of my consciousness and tempting me to grab the opportunity. Yet, to admit my culpability was much too dangerous. There was a whole fandom behind an impenetrable veil, sometimes watching and sometimes not, for the sake of their amusement. I could not simply prove her right. Their reaction was unfathomable to me. I could not tell how they’d react.

“You are wrong, Celestia.” I shook my head, carrying myself with an air of disappointment and a bit of sadness. “This mask you see exists only in your mind. I’m sorry I gave you that impression, but what you saw is nothing more than a poorly worded confrontation between two stallions defending their respective family. Would you not do your worst for the sake of your own, Celestia?”

Let’s hope that does the trick.

If the white alicorn had bought it, she gave no indication of such a thing. She was too good at keeping her true thoughts in check.

Her silence stretched, with nothing to keep me on my guard other than the weight of her gaze against mine. We stared honestly at the other’s eyes, each showing a very obvious façade, both hiding the rest in our minds.

Finally, her voice came out, resigned and colder than I could remember her using.

“I see…” Her eyes narrowed. “I fear contact between you and the external world might have been premature. You might not be ready to face Equestria as it is.”

I blinked. “What are you saying…?”

“I will ask that you remain in the castle at all times now and instruct your brother to do the same.” She did not seem faze by my sudden disappointment. “This is non-negotiable and effective immediately.”

But if I can’t look for a way home… “I… understand.”

Strangely, I truly did. I even felt grateful for it on some level. In a way, she was taking back the highly public and attention-grabbing title she had given us so freely and, while the display of caution stung, I would rather be able to lay low until most of the backlash faded. With a little luck, we could simply be integrated into the background without much fuss and the threat of retcon would be but a bad memory.

A colder part of me sneered. As if… as if a fandom that could produce the horror of a Cupcake spin-off STARRING TOM WOULD EVER-

“Ventus!” Celestia voice snapped me out of my thought.

Her image was that of a serious, severe… stern, pony-goddess of the sun. The radiant glow of her being had grown harsher, less warm than boiling.

“Yes?” I asked, already allowing my fury to quietly hide itself in a corner of my mind.

Celestia’s eyes stared straight into my soul.

For an instant, she spoke no word, displayed nothing but overwhelming authority and power. Her sole presence made the room feel heavier, uncomfortable and simply scary. At the moment, the thought crossed my mind that she might simply kill me.

If she could read minds, I would already be nothing more than a pile of ash on the ground though. Or, you know, imprisoned in the moon, a statue or the ice of the Crystal Empire. Whichever fits me better.

“I still need your attention. I am not quite done with this decree.”

To my dismay, I could not stop myself from crouching a little in fear.

If she noticed, she made no show of it. Her figure was as regal and stoic as it would ever be.

“Perhaps a tutor would be the best way to alleviate your brother’s constant need for newer things to explore. I have already contacted a trusted mare from the Canterlot’s school system and she accepted the charge of teaching him.”

I might later blame the nerves or the sudden lack of tension or the incredibly unexpected nature of her request, but, after a second of incredulous staring, I started laughing my rump off. The thought of Calx being forced to study again. Earning his two masters had been Tartarus for him.

Sometimes, I regret saying those numbers… but this time…

“He’ll have an aneurysm!” I shouted, rolling on the floor.

“Ventus, this is extremely serious,” Celestia said, though with a strain in her tone that I could not clearly attribute to a dying patience. Something told me there was amusement being held back as well.

“A-alright…” I snorted, raising to my hooves, still fighting some snickering. “C-Celly... I’ll… calm down, but he really… he really studied a lot under Magister.”

“Understood, but I believe it would be a nice way for him to occupy his time while he develops emotionally. Although he might have knowledge, he lacks any restraints, which might be attributable to you, Ventus.”

“I deny anything of the sort, Celly,” I deflected her accusation with ease. Heck, it was not even a lie. Tom really was that hyper all the time. “My little brother has always been more enthusiastic than the statistically average foal, Equestria simply had the chance to see him at his most normal.”

She nodded, probably expecting a reply of the sort.

A bizarre desire sparked in my heart at the sight of her calm figure. However…

“Princess.” My tone was solemn. “I request that you inform him of this yourself.”

One of her eyebrow shot up. “Might I inquire as to the reason for this request?”

“I am not willing to lose his admiration over this.” I was slightly shocked at how bitter my tone came out. “It is only fair that the one who made the decision faces its consequences, is it not?”

I saw her hesitate. In the depth of her gaze, there was something nondescript, an echo of pain, but not actual pain. Strange.

“I suppose it is.” Celestia admitted reluctantly, glancing in the direction of the dining hall we had left, then back to me. The touch of steel in her stance left very little doubt of her current opinion of me.

My hooves shook slightly against the ground, making me acutely aware of my own fear at this sudden disposition. Twitches ran along my body, from my ears to my tail. They betrayed my mask and Celestia knew it.

“This exchange is over,” she said, and the exchange was over.

Grateful through my bitterness, I managed a polite bow before turning around, eager to leave this all behind me. Just when my horn lit up with magic, she spoke up one last time.

“You did not answer me, Ventus.”

I looked down. I know.

It came in a whisper, one that I had wished I could have missed. “I still don’t know who you are.”

Neither do I.

The white alicorn stood still for a moment, staring at the door behind which the – relatively – young stallion had disappeared. Her eyes, normally tinkling with benevolence and kindness, seemed to be abnormally empty.

“Y-your Highness?” came an uncertain voice from her sides.

Celestia looked down, forcing a bit more softness in her gaze as it fell on a dark grey stallion.

“You can always speak your mind with me, Steel Rampart. It is part of your job as the new Captain of the Royal Guard.”

He gulped down loudly, not very willing to speak up against his ruler’s decision. “I-is that not… a little severe a punishment for an argument between stallions?”

“You may believe what you wish, Steel Rampart, but I think it is necessary for the time being.” Seeing the stallion’s horror struck face, she let out a small chuckle. “Do not worry about this, my little pony. My judgments should and must remain questioned to keep me grounded. The consequences of me losing sight of my subjects would be too dire for us to consider…”

He couldn’t help it, it was a knee-jerk reaction born from a lifetime of adoration.

“Y-your Highness!” The grey stallion stuttered in protest. “Your rule has been perfect in every way anypony could think of! There is no way you could ever cause tragedies like what you speak of!”

The princess’ thousand years old gaze slowly turned to him, heavy and ancient, carrying the weight of a rule that seemed never ending.

The guard’s leg grew weaker, forcing him to steel his resolve, but still leaving him unable to face the eyes of his beloved princess. It seemed as if her voice had grown faint, but it couldn’t be the truth. He knew that! It had to be the incredibly loud heartbeat hammering down each side of his head.

Subconsciously, the stallion leaned forward.

“…Are you so sure about that, Steel Rampart?” His chest felt empty, as the intonation skipped a beat, lacking either the benevolent authority or the playful teasing qualities it so usually exhibited. No, Celestia’s words were carried with a heavy air of fatality. “The last time I ignored an alicorn’s troubling behavior, I lost my sister for a thousand years.”

Author's Note

Oh, ironic title. And epic foreshadowing. Bwahahahahahaha! Then, it'll turn out to be a lie! I'm so evil!

Dealing with Bad Colts

The sound of her peaceful breathing was, at first, the only noise in the white room. Though one certainly wouldn’t call it appropriate for a napping place, it essentially served that purpose at the present moment in time.

Far away from the instruments, the wires and the central pedestal, her head resting awkwardly against a dark wooden desk, a purple alicorn rested, eyes closed and face hidden against her front legs. She was alone, voluntarily making that choice the day before, but, forgot to lock the door behind her research partner, allowing a few ponies to intrude.

The mare’s sleep was thus soon interrupted by the shaking of her body by some familiar hooves.

Her consciousness was slowly pulled away from the land of dreams, though the fog it made of the real world chose to fade at an equally agonizing rate. Warmth and comfort wouldn’t leave her. Her body subconsciously clenched to her place of rest, if only to keep that sensation vivid for a few more instants.

“-light… ” The voices said. She couldn’t make sense out of them yet… they were so… distant… “Twilight!”

Her eyes shot open and she instantly regretted it, as a bout of pain hit the front of her mind at this sudden irruption of colors and light.

“W-what?” The poor alicorn jolted awake, jumping away from… a desk? “Where am-?” She stifled a yawn.

Twilight blinked, staring at the sheets of paper previously spread under her face.

…I fell asleep on it, didn’t I? Oooooh, I need to get rid of that bad habit so bad!

Applejack, Rarity and Rainbow Dash were surrounding her, the unicorn frowning at her disheveled look, the other two seemingly more concerned outright exasperated.

“Did ya just fall asleep doing your fancy sciency stuff?” Applejack asked with disbelief. “Again?”

Shyly, Twilight looked away. That served as confirmation of what they had feared.

“Frankly, darling,” Rarity chipped in. “It is not the first time you’ve let your research get the better of you… What was so fascinating that it couldn’t wait until tomorrow… well… today as it now stands?”

Having heard that, Rainbow Dash’s interest was piqued and proceeded to fly over to her desk to grab one of her report cards. “Yeah, what was so interesting that you skipped breakfast with us?”

“Oh, that was just some work about…” She let her words trail off, suddenly hit by an onslaught of memories.

She remembered the trust he had put in her. She remembered the terrible uncertainty in his eyes and the silent plea for help. She remembered feeling flattered, impossibly so that he would ask her rather than any other, but also disappointed that it was all he asked of her.

“You’re the only one I trust enough to confide on this.” His voice resonated in her mind, calm, but strangely void of that usual strength he put into it.

She heard her mind snap back with whiplash.

“Nothing!” Twilight lunged forward, grabbing the papers away from her curious friend.

“Hey!” Said pegasus protested. “I was reading that!”

“A-and there’s nothing to see here!” The corners of her mouth inched upward in a very convincing “I’m-not-lying-I-swear” smile, which nonetheless failed to serve its purpose.

“Seriously?” The orange mare deadpanned. “We’re supposed to believe ya spent yer night studyin' nothing?”

“YES!” The alicorn wildly agreed, sending magic coursing through her horn and using it to hide her first observations and theories. “T-this is just mindless babbling and stuff and that I just got caught up doing it in the end…”

The three remaining mares exchanged skeptical looks, thoroughly convinced that their friend had chosen to hide something from them, possibly something embarrassing if they were to judge the dark purple coloration of her cheeks. More importantly, her face was pleading for them to believe her lies.

“Well, Twilight,” Rarity started. “Regardless of whatever magical conundrum you studied yesterday, we thought it would be nice if we could spend the day together. With things in Canterlot the way they are, the time for us to return home might be closer than you’d think.”

“Yeah!” Rainbow Dash landed next to her friend, placing a hoof around her neck. “So we figured, ‘why not take our egghead friend with us to have some real fun and leave some books for the actual worms?’”

“Rainbow…” Applejack said with a tone of warning.

“Oh, sure, I would like that. I’m beat anyway and I don’t think I can make much more progress without taking some time to myself first. ”

“Attagirl, Twi, that’s the spirit.” The earth pony mare cheered.

“Yeah, I’ve heard there will be an exclusive reading of the first chapter of the new Daring Do at the House of Litterature today. Interested?”

“Hay yeah!” The cyan pegasus pumped her hoof, before realizing her friends were all smirking at her.

Applejack in particular had this smugness to her demeanor that rubbed Rainbow Dash just the wrong way. “Sure ya don’t want to spend some time here with the bookworms, Sugarcube?”

“Oh ha ha!” The daredevil crossed her legs, acting unaffected and mostly being unaffected. Only acute eyes would notice her cringing. “No thanks, I’d rather spend time with my friends.”

The others seemed to pause, any teasing dying in their throats the moment it was formed in their brain. Finally, it was Rarity who spoke, smiling warmly at her friend.

“We all do.”

Twilight felt something flutter in her chest, but it couldn’t be compared with those she felt near the golden stallion. Whereas his presence had her mind racing with anxiety, it was just right to be with these ponies, to be with her friends.

“W-we should go get Pinkie and Fluttershy,” she said, stumbling at first.

“Excellent idea, Twilight,” Rarity approved. “This way, we can all spend the day together.”

‘So you won’t be alone when you hear about your crush’s interest in your best friend…’ went unspoken between Applejack, Rarity and Rainbow Dash.

“Where are those two?” Applejack asked, suddenly frowning. “Ah don’t recall hearin’ much about them this morning.”

“I think they took a stroll in the gardens before you arrived.”

“Alright, let’s go, girls!” Twilight took the lead, heading out of the laboratory with her friends in tow.

She winced when her wings’ muscles pulled at her shoulders. Without a doubt, there was an urgent need for her to discover a good sleeping position when doing researches. Her body was sore all over… Great.

Her hoof rattled weakly against the ground, moving a few pebbles and making a strange drawing in the dirt. With her rump on the ground and her mane half as poofy as usual, Pinkie Pie didn’t seem to live up to her Element all that much. Her face was crunched up with a rather scary amount of focus.

She was mumbling under her breath. At high speed. With a high-pitched voice.

Was it any wonder that the pegasus behind her could not quite understand the dilemma?

“P-Pinkie?” Fluttershy asked tentatively.

Her voice, so quiet and hard to carry on any distance, made the other made snap her neck toward her. For a second, she shrunk back under the incredibly intense look Pinkie was sending her way.

“Hi, Fluttershy!” Pinkie said cheerfully, somehow keeping up her intensively intense stare while being her normal self.

“H-hello,” the pegasus whispered.

“So, Fluttershy, what did you want to ask me? I’m only asking because you have this weird tic where you look away when you talk to somepony and you need to ask something.”

“Hum…” She looked unsure. “I always do that when talking to other ponies…”

“Which proves my point!” Pinkie nodded, crossing her front legs over her chest in a picture of self-confidence. “Because you are looking away when you're asking somepony something.”

“I don’t think it works like that, Pinkie…” Fluttershy said with an apologetic tone.

All of a sudden, the pink mare slumped down, letting out what she would herself qualify as a “BIG-low-on-sugar-and-that’s-terrible” sigh.

“W-what’s wrong?” The pegasus moved closer, surprised by this apparent mood swing. Strong and spontaneous reactions were expected of her friend, but generally, those involved more party canons and less depressed faces. “What happened yesterday?”

“Oh, we had…” Pinkie rolled her shoulders, looking sideway. “…Fun. Yeah, lots of fun! In fact, it was really really fun! Like one of the funniest day I’ve had in Canterlot yet, not quite the best, but pretty up there nonetheless!”

As she had spoken, Pinkie’s color had indeed returned, getting more vibrant

Fluttershy’s heart ached when her friend’s mane deflated again.

“But then… then Bladey acted really mean!” She vehemently waved her legs in the air, eyes widened almost comically, but with an edge of distress that made Fluttershy step closer. “Like grade-A mean and I didn’t even think he could do that! Next thing I knew, Sammy does the same with Filthy Rich and BAM! The night of fun is all over a-and I...”

A pair of yellow hooves encased her, forcing her into the embrace of the Element of Kindness. In this particular instance, if Fluttershy had worn the necklace, it would have shone like a thousand of Celestia’s sun. “I’m sure this was just a bad decision on their parts. Lots of ponies and other people do that when they get mad. The best thing you can do is wait until everypony’s cooled down and ready to talk nicely.”

Eating up every word, Pinkie sniffed loudly a few times, blowing her nose into a box of tissues that seemed to have materialized out of nowhere.

“D-do you know what this calls for?” She turned her attention to her friend again, voice shaking with some form of anticipation.

“Hum… no?” Fluttershy replied meekly, forgetting her own advices just to make sure she would not contradict whatever idea had hit her hyperactive friend.

“Well, me neither!” Pinkie almost shouted, grabbing on her friend for support, a hint of insanity glistening in those sparkling blue eyes of hers. “My plan involves parties, like all good plans, but I don’t think it’s going to work this time!”

“Why not?” Fluttershy blinked in surprise. It was not that she believed the idea of parties as redeeming forces to be inherently great, but rather that Pinkie doubted it.

“It’s Gilda all over again!” The pegasus flinched at the mention of the griffon. “Actually, this is not even like that time with Gilda. I mean, yes, I tried to be her friend at first and then she showed herself that she was just a jerk and I can try not to think about it – even if I sometimes feel like I wished Dashie had gone back and tried to make things right between them so we were all friends –, but it’s different now! Bladey is already my friend, but he acted mean anyway. And I’m not sure I understand why!”

The pegasus mare had to distance herself a little in order to see the distraught expression on the party pony’s face. “D-did you ask him?”

“Yes! He said they were mean bullies that deserved it! But when I said he had been mean, he sulked and said I was lying! I don’t lie to my friends like that!” Her gaze had started getting misty, as her mind seemed to be going in all directions.

“It’s okay, Pinkie.” Fluttershy patted her back, her every instinct screaming at her to comfort her friend as best as she could, as quickly as possible too… “I know that. All of us know that. And it wasn’t your fault for the Gilda thing. We’re all very glad you tried to help her with your party anyway.”

“Ah, you’re so incredible, Fluttershy! I feel much better talking to you!” She smiled widely, gratitude transparent through her every gesture. “Oh my gosh! I can do this! I must! I MUST!” She threw herself backward, in an impressive imitation of her more fashioned inclined unicorn pal.

“D-do what?” Fluttershy asked, part of her fearing the answer.

“A party!” Pinkie jumped to her hooves, shining with rebuilt confidence. “We’re going to throw these boys the best party EVER and then they’ll have no choice but to be nice to everypony! It’s foolproof!”

S-she was glad that Pinkie’s energetic self had returned, Pinkie Promise! However… she might have preferred not being forcibly enlisted as the one to recruit partygoers.

“C-can you repeat that?” Eric stuttered in disbelief.

That had not been what he had expected… though he wasn’t sure why the conviction had been so strong in his mind to begin with. It was such a silly idea… to put so much faith in a scenario straight out of a fanfic…

“Again, sir, if you wish to speak to our voice actors, you may do so by contacting them on other public accounts. Many of our employees can be found via social networks, including the ones making the recorded voice of the new alicorn characters, Calx Iugum and Ventus Vinco.”

His grasp on his phone became so strong a dull pain started to radiate from his palm. It doesn’t make sense!

He didn’t know what he was thinking anymore…

It happened so quickly… they were almost shocked by how obvious their plan’s flaw had been. Some pony had simply walked up to Twilight and expressed their compassion to her situation.

“Huh? What do you mean?” The clueless alicorn asked, a kind but confused smile on her lips.

Thinking fast, Applejack’s hooves covered the intruder’s mouth. “Oh, ya know, Twi, all this princess-y stuff ya have to do all the time.”

“Yeah!” Rainbow Dash flew to her side, wearing a painfully large smile and dropping so suddenly by her side that Twilight jumped. “So this pony is showing their appreciation of your efforts!”

“Well,” she said, her heart beating too quickly in her chest. “That’s very kind of you, ma’am. And you really should move your hoof off her, Applejack.”

Nopony could have said she hadn’t tried to be patient and understanding, not jumping to any conclusions or something, but she’d have to be blind not to see how little Applejack wanted to allow the now struggling pony to speak.

“Applejack.”

“W-what is it, Twi?”

“Let her go.” Her tone left no ambiguity or room for protest.

Still, Applejack shot a quick glance at Rarity, who nodded gravely, knowing there was nothing else they could do to delay the inevitable. As soon as the grip had loosened, Applejack winced, preparing herself for a bad moment…

“Are you hiding it from her?!” The pony’s voice came out in a disbelieving and actually scary hiss.

“Hiding what?” Twilight’s eyebrow rose.

“How Prince Ventus went, behind your back, on a date with the Element of Laugher! It says so in the Sunrise News!”

“Oh, that’s all?” The alicorn tilted her head, unflappable.

The assembled ponies blinked dumbly, sending blank stares at the serene reaction from the Princess of Magic.

“Well, that one is just so ridiculous, it’s not even credible.” She giggled softly. “Pinkie wouldn’t do this to me and I seriously doubt that Prince Ventus would pursue a relationship in his current situation.”

The mare’s eyes widened almost comically. “But... but there was a picture of them together!”

“So?” Twilight shrugged, not particularly impressed. “I bet plenty of ponies could take plenty of pictures of me and my friends, but that wouldn’t imply that we’re dating, right? Besides, they were already wrong about their previous headlines. They already lost most of their credibility with me anyway.”

Her friends had long since lost the capacity for words.

“In any case, thank you very much for your compassion. It really warms my heart to know that you cared enough about me to give me your best wishes. Thank you.” With a bow, she proceeded to stun every and any pony in sight.

Amongst them though, Rarity, Applejack and Rainbow Dash tried hard to squash their guilt at putting so little faith in their friend’s strength. An apology was due.

I had seen it coming, with perfect clarity. The scenario had all played out in my head before Celestia had even started talking.

She never raised her voice, not even once, to stop his tantrum. His screaming had carried all throughout the dinner hall, rendering the few remaining nobles utterly silent.

It was a combination, I guessed, that made them so pale and dumbstruck at the scene happening in the antechamber. The nerves, of course, of screaming at the most prominent ruling authority of the land, but also the few insults that had started to slip in his dialogue, must have been the most appalling thing ever for any Equestrian.

I, personally, could not find it in me to show strong disapproval toward this. It hadn’t been a lie that Tom had already done a lot of studying. How could he not have in more than sixty years of life. Even at a slower learning rate, he had earned his knowledge and, though he might not flaunt it, his lack of maturity could not hamper the fact that he was a master on the subjects of geology and agriculture.

I might have laughed in the heat of the moment, but, in the end, I wanted to side with my little brother on this issue. Frankly, it wasn’t even being bratty; from his point of view, this was like having finished school and being told you had to go back because they didn’t like your attitude, completely disregarding everything you might have known.

In other words, Celestia brought this on herself.

In the end though, it did not matter. Her mind could not be swayed, certainly not by a child throwing a tantrum about it. With a hint of steel, she ended the discussion with the details of his first lesson, which was to happen tomorrow.

At that, Tom’s face probably crunched up in the most rage filled display possible. “I HATE YOU! YOU’RE NOT MY FAVORITE PRINCESS ANYMORE!”

My guts twisted at the painful remembrance brought on by the words. They had once been aimed at me, with the same kind of childish coldness. Their weights had been so hard to carry back then anyway. And then…

A wave of cold dread crashed over me, as my imagination ran wild over what he might do. For the first time since Celestia had called him, I bolted out of my seat, toward the door leading to the antechamber.

All I saw was a blur of wooden brown and a blow of wind hitting my face, to punctuate how close to being hit I had been.

In my shock, I stopped dead in my track, in time to have a small colt ran straight into me. A mild bout of pain struck me, in the spot his horn had rammed into, but already, I pushed it aside in favor of the foal groaning on the ground.

“Little brother,” I said quietly, half of an apology transmitted through my tone alone.

“Y-you knew!” He sniffed, eyes shining with tears of anger.

With a pained grimace, I grabbed him, lifted him, but he stayed mostly limp, sullenly refusing to share one more word with me. Frankly, his frustration seemed to pale with the rapidly fading flame of his happiness. Heck, he hadn’t struggled or fought his way out of my grip yet.

In spite of any control I tried to exercise, I came to resent her nonetheless, for hurting him so.

Right wing stretched in front of us as a shield, I shot a look at the white alicorn still standing in the room. Of my anger, I let as little as possible filter, instead trying to show only my disappointment and a hint of rejection.

A twisted part of me enjoyed the fact that she would doubtlessly pick up on it.

Before letting myself fade into a gust of wind and taking Tom with me, I kept up this mask for a few more seconds, taking in her reaction. She was immobile. Her face was an especially stoic mask. Princess Celestia’s soul piercing glare was the last thing I saw of her today.

As soon as we reached our room, I let go of my hold on him. He lost no time getting back to his hooves and glaring at me. His traits held an accusation and an anger I did not like to see in him. It made my heart clench with fear.

“You let her do that!” He shouted, his wings flaring into extension.

“I didn’t want to,” I said softly. “It was out of my power to stop her.”

But he did not want to hear it.

“Why didn’t you try?!” He looked at me with the eyes of someone that had been stabbed in the back on their birthday. “IT’S NOT FAIR!”

On that, he ran to our bed, hiding under the covers to hide both his tears and the rest of his shattered pride.

With a sigh, I decided to let him nurse those wounds himself, at least for a little while. When he had calmed down a bit, I’d try to talk to him again. Perhaps he would feel more receptive then.

As such, I decided to sit down next to our window, gazing outside, beyond the city and toward the sky. In Equestria, it seemed to always be a perfect shade of blue, set with a manageable number of clouds and wind that seemed to pulse in resonance with my own heartbeat. So easily, I felt my consciousness slip toward this greater ocean above.

It was my heart’s desire, to unshackle myself from this self of mortal flesh and be the wind.

More disturbingly, the thought made me serene.

As much as I tried to, I could not summon the appropriate horrified response this thought process should have called for. In a way, my true nature seemed to be attuned outside of myself.

For a long time, I stared at this part of myself, unsuccessfully trying to orient my mind toward more pressing issues such as our return to Earth and the safety of my human parents.

I could hear ethereal neighs through the song of the wind.

“H-hum… hello?” The voice was so soft it almost failed to pull me out of my reverie. However, my hearing was particularly sharp at times.

I turned around with a peaceful expression, already deducing who had gently peeked through the door by her tone alone. As such, I replied as calmly as I could.

“Miss Fluttershy, to what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?”

The poor mare started stuttering, blushing beneath her mane and desperately trying to avoid my gaze. Her voice weakened to a meek, incomprehensible squeak.

“Miss Fluttershy,” I repeated, taking her chin with my wing, doing my best to ignore her shaking. I forced my voice to be as soothing as I could dish out. “I assure you that whatever it is you want to tell me, I will not judge you, get angry at you or make you uncomfortable. I promise.”

With the kind of delicate movement that came so naturally to her, she shook off the tip of my wing and steeled her resolve, looking about as confident as a slightly shy pony.

“P-Pinkie decided to throw a party… and put me in charge of the invitations…” I winced, feeling a bit of compassion for the introverted mare and her predicament. “I-if you’d like to come… in the western ballroom… t-this evening…”

We were both startled though, when a booming noise erupted in the room.

“AWESOME!” Tom barreled into view, grinning from one ear to another. Someone’s feeling better… “I didn’t even get to go to more than one of her parties!”

Glancing at the bed, I saw the sheets still flying in the air, thrown with too much force for it not to have been magical in origin.

“Wait, you had a party for you organized by Pinkie Pie?” I turned to him, slightly shocked at the pang of jealousy I felt.

“Oh, hum, well, that’s just something Pinkie does…” Fluttershy explained, misunderstanding my question.

I’m certainly not going to correct you though.

“How kind.” I offered her a gentle smile, hoping to put her in a more relaxed mood. “Do not worry. You can tell her we will attend without fail.”

“BUCK YEAH!” Tom screamed, earning a mortified look from the shy pegasus.

I could only offer her a sheepish grin in guise of apology. She unsurprisingly accepted it, but seemed uneasy nonetheless.

Somepony had gone overboard with the decorations in this place. Streamers, balloons, confetti, cakes, all of those were hanging from the ceiling, covering tables, sticking on the windows, creating the most cake frosting PINK ballroom I had ever seen in my entire life.

It could have hurt all kinds of sensitivities and the Sam side of me was in utter shock that it hadn’t. Somehow, it worked. Barely. But it worked.

A few ponies had already arrived, forming a crowd spread throughout the whole room. Most of them were grown-ups, of course, but, in a corner, a bunch of foals had gathered around Pinkie Pie. Her curly mane bouncing with her jumps, she seemed to be singing along with them, playing entertainer for the whole dozen of them.

By my side, my brother’s eyes lit up with pure joy. Judging exclusively by the amount of shaking, I had a few seconds left.

“Don’t get into fights and if you do, call for me.” I grinned, ruffling his mane before letting him run off.

I felt a bit better after seeing his own wide grin at the idea of joining the other kids. Eh, with Pinkie Pie around, he’d have no trouble integrating with the rest. Following his progress for a few more minutes, I saw his blue form met the group of foals and him rapidly taking place in the circle, being just one of the kids.

A bit of weight disappeared from my shoulders, making me sigh in relief. With that bit of peace at the front of my mind, I decided to just take a first look at the room. Walking between ponies, I distantly heard the exchanges, most if not all of them goodhearted exchanges. I greeted a few of them, having an easy time looking the part of the charming prince.

Quickly though, I caught sight of an interesting gathering.

Not far from table of refreshments, Rarity, Applejack and Rainbow Dash were discussing some topic with varying expressions of approval or disagreement. With a little focus, it became easy to make out their words far before I made my way up to them.

“Can’t say Ah’m really mad the little troublemakers got told off. Celestia knows Ah’ve been aching for somepony to beat some decency into those heads of theirs.”

“Yes, I understand, Applejack. Half the time Sweetie Belle comes home in tears, those two horrible fillies are the one to blame,” she said, momentarily angered. Quickly, however, the emotion faded, leaving her staring blankly into space, pensive. “Still, I heard it was a scandalizing event…”

I felt as if fatigue was catching up with me, making me so tired of this and wishing the whole night had gone differently. For a moment, I contemplated changing my course of action, just to avoid dealing with this crap again.

“And just where d’ya ‘hear’ that, Rare?” The cowpony’s eyes narrowed in suspicion. “Have ya been readin’ that magazine again?”

“No…” She whispered, her gaze flickering toward Pinkie for a split second.

Ultimately, it was her behavior that pushed me to get moving again.

The embarrassed and quick deflection I had expected did not come. In fact, had it not been for her half-hearted answer, I would have believed Rarity hadn’t heard her friend at all. Instead, she was looking straight at me, worriedly, as if suddenly discovering something unexpected. For the first time, her gaze was not dreamy, wistful and filled with the fantasies of knights in shining armor she fashioned me to be. For the first time, they held an unspoken fear.

She was seeing something unexpected in me and she did not like it.

The others followed her gaze and finally noticed me just stepping next to them.

“Oh, hey there, prince. Didn’t see ya before.” Applejack said, lifting her hat to me. After a nod from me, she turned back to her friend, halfway whispering. “Ya could have told us he was here, Rare.”

“So you wouldn’t have continued talking about my actions?” I asked, feeling amused at this turn of event.

Rainbow Dash shrugged, clearly not guilty. “We were just saying we aren’t completely disappointed in lil’ Calx for snapping at the two fillies.”

She got a hoof to the shoulder for her trouble. “What? It’s true.”

“Ah wasn’t saying that!”

“Oh, it is quite alright.” I waved a hoof dismissively, faking a smile. “Everypony is entitled to their opinions.” But can they please not be about us?!

As I expected, the mares just nodded, seeing as this was practically self-evident, especially in Equestria. Thus, I opened my mouth to steer the conversation away from that topic, when I was saved the trouble by a sudden weight on my back making my knees flinch.

“Hey, Sammy! How do you like the party?” Pink face in my face. “Does it make you feel better? Nicer?”

Wow, that is so incredibly subtle… Despite that though, I was not exactly annoyed. My feelings on this were… confused. With the context she didn’t know I had access to, I could easily piece out that this was the same kind of party she had thrown for Gilda, hoping to make her a better person. For her to turn it around and give me one… well… it was both insulting and touching.

It got me… pensive. Did I really come off as such a bad stallion?

What was it about those parties that supposedly help ponies be better? The cake? The music? The dancing? Tch, now I just wanted to scoff in derision…

Or it’s the other ponies that act like friends that care about you?

Ignoring the inquisitive look from Pinkie Pie, I looked down, contemplating a thousand incomplete, fleeting, comforting thoughts. I-it was nice… when others treated us as friends… w-when Pinkie spent the afternoon with us… w-when T-Twilight… when we played with waterballoons or… or when she accepted to help us study the spell that sent us here…

The image of yet another pony flashed before my eyes.

“A-actually, if I can make a suggestion, Miss Pie…” I looked up.

That got her unaltered attention.

“Yes, Sammy Goody?”

For the love of Celestia, never use that nickname again! I thought indignantly. Fortunately, all that came out of my mouth was inconspicuous. “Can you invite Prince Blueblood here? I believe he might find the event… eye opening, perhaps.”

Pinkie’s lips broke into a really sly smile, the kind that made my mind think of creatures like dragons and manticores rather than pastel ponies. With a bounce, she appeared right next to me, teleporting during the slight interval necessary for me to blink in shock.

“That’s all good, but I already invited him, of course!”

“…What?”

“Yeah, him, a bunch of other nobles and even Princess Luna! They’re all coming!”

A strange uneasiness visited me at the mention of the Princess of the Night. I… I hadn’t given her much thought these last few days, but… well, somehow, I didn’t want to think of her. There was something about her… Come to think of it, have I actually talked to her yet?

The only thing I could think of her at the present moment had been a passing glance she had given me after casting the spell of Truth with Celestia… it hadn’t been downright hostile, but…

“Speaking of the timberwolf, there he is!” Pinkie turned my head around, forcing me out of my head and making me witness the scene of a few more ponies entering the ballroom, one particular stallion scanning the crowd with his blue eyes. “I think he wants to talk with you too! Let me go get him.”

And before I could shout a very definitive “NO THANKS!”, she had already teleported away.

My eye twitched.

“Oh, for the love of my parents!” I groaned, a very distinct pang of pain running through my veins at the thought. Suddenly, my next thought was extremely appropriate. “Tell me this punch contains plenty of alcohol…”

None of them truly impaired my trip to the buffet table, toward the gigantic bowl full of pink juice. Normally, I’d stay clear of this in Equestria, but clearly, it was an emergency. Not to mention that I was slowly growing sick of this charade.

The most they did was follow, one pegasus flying a little over me.

“Alicorns can get drunk?” Rainbow Dash asked, looking suspicious and… a little devious too.

“I certainly hope so…” I muttered, levitating a cup of punch and downing it.

I breathed a sigh of relief at the burning sensation that went down my throat. At least one mystery was solved. Now… for the other one’s elucidation… for science, of course…

I grabbed another cup.

“Whoa, easy there, partner. Wouldn’t want to make a show of yerself t’night, right?”

The “again” was only heavily implied.

“I am contemplating my options,” I grumbled, my mood darkening with each passing moment. If Blueblood came to me, speaking all about his superiority and rubbing any of my mistakes in my face, I might explode.

Thus, when I turned around and came face-to-face with him, it took most of my self-control not to snarl. Taking this moment of hesitation as an invitation to open his stupid mouth, Blueblood spoke with a surprisingly trembling voice.

“I… I would like to…” The stallion shifted on his hooves. “To respectfully request some of your time… to talk.”

A moment of stunned silence followed his declaration. My eyes and mouth were wide open, staring with incomprehension at the nervous prince before me.

W-well… it seemed like I got my answer. An alicorn CAN indeed get drunk, out of their minds, to the point of hallucinating.

Author's Note

Round 2. FIGHT!

Festive

This was awkward.

We were sitting by the punch table, mostly because I had insisted I had something – anything – to drink to get through this. He had put on a token protest, to which I had miraculously managed to be polite and told him that no, we weren’t leaving for a more private place, like next to a window.

So far, we had talked about exactly nothing. We were both just… waiting for the other to say something. On one hoof, I really wished to just tell him to buck off and leave me alone, but since he hadn’t done anything truly jerkish yet, the small decent part of me refused to do so.

Unfortunately, that was about the extent of my willingness to do this. I certainly didn’t want to initiate this conversation.

Another cup of liquid went down my throat, the number of which had quietly started to accumulate.

“Not a very dignified attitude, Prince Ventus.” Blueblood chuckled, apparently amused by this.

The narrowing of my eyes told him exactly how long he had to correct himself.

For a split second, he seemed to be the prey to a little panic attack, his eyes darting around the room for a hint, but his stance quickly relaxed. “I’m… I’m… s-s…”

Oh dear Elders… is he actually…? This one was a bit of a shocker.

“Let’s not make this even more awkward, Prince Blueblood,” I said swiftly, unsure of the reason behind this fear taking a hold of my mind. “It’s alright…”

“I am grateful for that…” The stallion breathed a small sigh of relief, glancing at the few ponies around us.

None of them appeared to care, but we both knew a front could be so easy to create. Plus, this was two princes apparently exchanging courtesies and, maybe, just freaking maybe, put aside their differences. What were the odds they weren’t listening?

“Would you care to go straight to business?” I asked, a little angry at the attitude of the ponies close by.

“R-right…” He stumbled on his words, showing so little confidence and arrogance that I was starting to doubt his identity. Surely, this couldn’t be the stallion I had talked to just a few days ago, right? A changeling, maybe? “U-understand that this is not… e-easy for me… to say, but it is about your words to me the other day.”

What else? I fought the urge to roll my eyes.

“Do you want an apology for that?” Don’t expect it to be very sincere though…

“Quite frankly, yes, but I don’t expect you to.” The white stallion scoffed. “It has become quite evident that you are about as self-centered as I am.”

“Am I?” I asked carefully.

“Yes.”

It stung. I hadn’t expected it to, but, somehow, to hear him say it, not as an insult or a thoughtless remark, but with absolute conviction like that…

A phantom pain went through my chest, spreading from horn to hooves quickly, then seemingly fading. It didn’t hurt less – no, not even close –, a strange numbness just dulled it away, pulled the focus of my attention on everything else.

The image of two blue, human, eyes, flashed in my mind. They were staring coldly.

I downed another cup of punch. I levitated another, ready for use.

“You wanted to pick me as a role model, didn’t you?” I said, hoping to divert the topic at least a little. I really didn’t want to delve on the cold, the wind that carries the rot and the plague through the bloody battlefield, hatred, hatred, hatred.

One less cup of punch at the table.

Regardless of my thoughts, he had answered, so quickly it had to have been rehearsed, not to mention the spite and disdain in his tone was much closer to the usual Blueblood.

“Don’t flatter yourself,” he sneered, grimacing, but because he hadn’t meant to say it or because he was disgusted with me, I could not tell.

I was too focused on keeping the conversation going… on making sure my own eyes wouldn’t haunt my mind…

“You certainly seemed… disappointed when you read the newspaper this morning.”

“Princess Sparkle has most obviously developed a certain infatuation with you. As a prince and a member of the royal family, it is only normal I care for her.”

I blinked. And stared. Of all the excuses he could have used to deny it, this certainly wasn’t one I had expected. Worse still, some part of me grew uneasy, as I could tell that however surprising it might be, it nonetheless had some sincerity to it.

However, I was no fool. He had protested way too much. “We both know a pony can have more than one reason for his actions. For example, if you only wanted to apologize, you wouldn’t be insulting me so quickly as well.”

His whole body went backward for a split second, as if my words had punched him in the face. Seemingly, Blueblood thought that way, as he sent an impressive glare in my direction.

“When the pony you were hoping to follow the example of reveals himself as quite the two-timing flankhole, I believe you are allowed some snide remarks for him.”

And I would like to cut off your tongue, Blueblood. Shame we don’t all operate on beliefs, right? “I could make you eat your words in so many different ways…” My voice trailed off, the implied meaning quite a good deal stronger than the rest. “But that might actually prove you right. Rather, I’ll just ask you why not do the sensible thing. Why not Celestia?”

“Is it not OBVIOUS?!” He shouted, looking well and truly aggravated, eyes narrowed at me as if I was some kind of thing not worthy of his presence. That’s the Blueblood we know and hate. “I’ve already based my mannerism on my aunt’s!”

It took me a minute to wrap my head around the idea. Then…

“…Are you blind?!” The volume of my voice rose, but I quickly forced it back into a hushed whisper. “She acts nothing like you! Or rather, you act nothing like her!”

“I never really thought of it that way before… well, before you came along…” The stallion shook his head, a bitter smile finding its way on his face. “I simply acted as a noble should, thinking it was enough to be… to be a little closer to her… But then, you tore me apart.”

Hearing him like that, with this vibrant note of bitterness and sadness piercing through the veil of arrogance, I… I felt a little bad for him.

“L-listen, Blueblood…” My eyes darted off to the checker style floor. “As much as I felt you deserved some sense beaten into your head, it probably was too much.”

“What? ‘Probably’?” He scoffed, an ironic smile finding its way on his lips.

“Has your aunt not tried to talk to you about your attitude before?” My words froze him in place. “On your treatment of others? I cannot imagine she didn’t try at least once. If I had to guess, I would say she tried a few inquisitions about your behavior once or twice, but you brushed off her. Probably not in a direct way, but in your justification.” The jolt he had had when I mentioned going against her died down, but his fur seemed to grow greener with horrorstruck illness. “After that, she might have attempted to make you reflect on it, but seeing as she hadn’t been firm enough, you only pondered it superficially.”

His eyes were unfocused, gazing into empty space. I could tell the memories were flashing in his mind at this point. The way the corner of his mouth twisted downward became the confirmation of my guess.

“Am I wrong?” It was purely rhetorical.

I waited. Blueblood seemed in no hurry to reply, casting his attention downward, onto his own hooves.

“No…” It was nothing more than a weak whisper, but from him, I had expected denial.

I truly believed he would explode in another rant on how he couldn’t have been blind and that I had been right about his behavior. Yet… he hadn’t.

Slowly, the amount of growth I started getting glimpses of softened any reminder of the icy edge I had had in regards to him. “I think I understand… why not her, but not why me. Haven’t you had your fill of these insights I give on your person? I cannot fathom you would still wish to base the evolution of your character on me.” It certainly would be easier to avoid me, Blueblood.

There was this impulse coursing through me though… it asked I give him a choice and a chance, lest I proved myself an even worse stallion than I thought.

His eyes almost lit up with amusement… not quite… “Well, you certainly talk about things as if you were a great pony to imitate. Haven’t you realized that by now?”

It was my turn to pause. Articulating my next thoughts was a bit more difficult.

“I do not believe the strength of the words should rely on their speaker, lest one valuable truth be lost to misconceptions and prejudices, but… I guess… I did… give off that impression, didn’t I?”

He nodded stiffly, as if the admittance cost him greatly. “As much as I hate to admit it, you did not do much to gather disapproval.” But I’ve certainly thought enough to disgust you, Blueblood. Trust me on that.

Blissfully unaware of my train of thoughts, he went on, looking straight ahead of him, anywhere but at me, I suspected. “To be quite honest, I am a little surprised at my aunt’s reaction.”

Between the crowd of ponies and the two of us, there should have been plenty of noises to fill the holes in our conversation, but as soon as he was done speaking, a bubble of silence seemed to have surrounded us.

Busted. I rolled my eyes at the surrounding ponies obviously eavesdropping on us. Still, that changed very little, as I would not have given Blueblood any more fuel to feed his suspicions anyway.

“There’s something more to it, I’m fairly sure,” he remarked, as if it was some great deduction.

Well, bucking good time for you to grow a brain. My mental sighs could surely be heard by somepony by now… Of all the crappy things I had to do today, explaining everything to Blueblood would be really annoying at this point.

Thankfully, two mares in particular moved right in front of us, one showing us her slender, well-toned body, while the other had an impressive sway in her hips.

…For a second, we… kind of lost our focus. Independently of my will, my neck strained to follow their track, this being even harder to ignore as we both recognized the two mares. Even with reddened cheeks and a hint of unbalance in their steps, they walked with complete confidence.

My eyes followed the white unicorn and the cyan pegasus, distantly making out the words of their conversation. A more timid part of me wish I hadn’t, as the subjects made the party’s atmosphere suddenly a lot warmer.

“-And I tell you, I’m way better than you! I’m always the best!”

“Oh please, Rainbow, dear.” Rarity rolled her eyes, oscillating between amusement and annoyance. “You’ve barely dated one or two stallions in your life. You aren’t that experienced.”

“Like you have any room to talk!” She stuttered, grinding her teeth together. “Or was all that talk about a proper lady investing herself in each relationship just empty air?”

Rarity’s expression also turned sour, glaring at her friend, who certainly wasn’t shy about returning the favor. Discreetly, I inched myself away from the impending catfight I smelled in the air.

“Granted,” the unicorn admitted with a death glare. “But I certainly studied the topic in extensive details. I’ll have you know there’s many ways to learn about romance, most of which don’t involve bragging about the Wonderbolts all the time!”

Oh boy… this is going to get ugly soon. Grimacing, I shot a quick glance at our surroundings, hoping to catch sight of their friends and, with a little luck, convince them to intervene before it came to blows. Unfortunately, in the small crowd surrounding us, they were undetectable.

“You did not just go there!” She butted head with Rarity, miraculously not hurting herself against her friend’s horn.

Rarity responded in kind, pushing just as hard. “Oh, I think I did. I’m simply better at this. It comes with having more experience.”

“Oh yeah?! Well, here’s something you never did!” Her wings flared open, a show of bravado.

The rest happened in a multicolored blur.

She tackled Blueblood against the wall, the poor guy barely having the time to do more than let out a yelp before she smashed her lips against his. His eyes widened to the size of plates, as did mine and Rarity and… well, pretty much everypony in sight.

My brain had a short-circuit, my every thoughts coming to a halt abruptly. Heat spreading in my chest and my wings becoming stiff, I could only stare blankly. Holy buck!

That’s when Rarity snarled, after a second of incoherent babbling and high-pitched whining. With a startling speed, she pounced Rainbow Dash, pushing her away from the prince.

Naively, I thought this would be the end of that, but then, the fashionista turned around to the flabbergasted Blueblood and trapped him in yet another kiss. Obviously aroused and far from stoic, the stallion responded in kind, eliciting a muffled moan from his kissing partner.

This time, it was the jawdrops. Everywhere. Heck, Rainbow Dash’s daze seemed to have evaporated at the sight, her own mouth open so wide I could make out the entirety of her dentition without any trouble whatsoever.

“What in tarnation?!” Somepony spoke our collective minds, with a distinctively southern accent.

Turning my head, I got sight of one of the mares I had hoped to see earlier, too little too late, unfortunately. Then again, having reliable Applejack around could not hurt.

“I-I believe…” I started, finding it harder to speak clearly with the alcohol finally having an effect on me, not to mention how dry my mouth felt. “…That your friends were arguing about being the better… kisser. I-if I’m… not… mistaken.”

“Ah sure hope you ain’t!” The earth pony pointed a hoof, her eyes twitching at the now growing indecent show. “Rarity’s tasting his lungs by now.”

“I’m sure they’ll run out of air soon,” some noblepony commented offhandedly.

“Y-yeah, shouldn’t be too long now…” I muttered, looking down. “Unless they voluntarily choose to pass out…”

As it turned out, this wasn’t the logical conclusion of what went on, but it could be inferred from their extremely passionate making out session that stopping was not their choice. However, nopony could be drunk enough to choose to ignore the dramatic entrance punctuated by strikes of lightning and booming thunder.

“GREETINGS, PONIES OF CANTERLOT!” echoed the impossibly loud voice of one unmistakable amongst all.

To my own surprise, my wings clasped harder against my sides and my tail twitched again. Some unknown pressure was shortening my breathing as the Princess of the Night’s figure slowly descended from the dark sky. The closer she was, the worse this sensation got. With my mind feeling hazy from the alcohol, I clearly couldn’t hide my reactions as well as before.

Worse still, green eyes trailed on me, a frown obscuring them slightly. The contact lasted for a brief instant, but left a lasting impression on me. I knew Applejack had noticed.

Don’t think about it…

With a subtle clink of silver against the floor, she landed a few meters away from us, as we stood not too far away from the passage leading to the Royal Gardens.

I just had to insist on being close to the refreshment tables, didn’t I? Oh Elders… I’m somewhat drunk and she might see me. This will blow up in my face. So hard.

One could hear a pin drop in the deafening silence that fell over the ballroom. Nopony dared speak first, not when their princess had arrived in such a grandiose manner. Luna herself had quietly started to move forward, but stopped when she heard a familiar voice.

“Princess Luna!” Twilight shouted almost excitedly, running through the crowd, with a few extremely soft ‘sorry’ seemingly punctuating her progression.

Well, it wasn’t hard to guess who was trailing behind the young alicorn.

“Twilight Sparkle!” The dark alicorn replied, a pleasant smile appearing on her face. “Or rather, Princess Sparkle. It would be unbecoming of me not to recognize your title, would it not?”

“There is no need for that, Princess Luna.” Twilight dismissed it with a casual wave.

“Yet you insist on using mine.” She teased her, nudging her with a hoof. “My, this is quite unfair. I almost feel slighted.”

The good-naturedness of their exchange seem to spread to the rest of the guests. Quite a few chuckled at their princesses little banter. For my part, I fought a nervous laugh that would have given me away on a good day…

“So many ponies have been gathered so quickly. We must praise the pony responsible for this.”

Unbeknownst to Luna, Fluttershy had shrunk on herself, a luminescent blush spreading across her cheeks. She whispered something, most likely a ‘thank you’, but nopony could have possibly heard her.

Instead, the dark alicorn had diverted her gaze to the ponies assembled, which, unfortunately, also included me. The thought to disappear in a gust of wind only hit me after we had made eye contact, by which point it was too late.

Stupid punch…

“Hello Prince Ventus.” Her tone was more formal than anything else she had used so far.

Crystal clear… With that kind of reaction, absolute respect seemed like the only appropriate response. So, my right knee folded under me, sending the world spinning.

“Princess Luna,” I said, gaze firmly set toward the ground as I desperately tried not to let the drunken dizziness trip me.

However, even like that, I could feel the weight of her stare on my back. Luckily, it didn’t last long. She skimmed over my kneeling body, barely giving me any attention before looking to the next pony. Was it wrong that all I could feel was vibrant relief?

Nonetheless, the Princess of the Night went on with the greetings, as many ponies, most of them in reality wanted a few seconds to exchange at least names with one of their rulers. Most imitated my bow, with polite greetings, but I was savagely thrilled to hear Blueblood receive a very stiff reply too.

It was only when this little commotion had died down that Twilight got the chance to speak again.

“We’re glad you could come to the party, Princess.”

“W-we hope it is to your liking,” Fluttershy added, a bold move for the timid mare.

Twilight seemed to share my shock, glancing with widening eyes at her friend before composing herself. “We weren’t sure if you could make it, as we know your duties are crucial, but Pinkie really wanted you to share some quality time with us.”

“Unfortunately, it is impossible for us to stay!” She dramatically rose her hoof skyward, making more than a few ponies glance up.

Those that didn’t gasp in shock, that is.

With an air of royalty, she ignored both group and puffed her chest.

“Not so long ago,” her voice carried through the air with ease, spread to the entirety of the room. Her tone was that of a story-teller and the effect was to immediately capture each and every pony’s attention. “Yes, not so long ago, W-… I visited Ponyville on Nightmare Night!”

At my side, I heard a grumble, coming from a certain cyan pegasus.

“It was the first true contact I would have with my citizens on a casual occasion. It was also the first celebration I had ever heard revolving around my own art as a princess.”

I shared a pained wince with Applejack, as we both remembered the events of that particular Nightmare Night and how close to a disaster it had been.

“Shock was mine when I realized the object of celebration itself was toward my darker side, reduced to a foal’s tale. At first, I was offended, unable to understand why love was not given to me rather than a parody.”

A noticeable unease seemed to hit ponies in wave. Ashamed glances were exchanged, even from those that could not reasonably be expected to have participated in the events of that night.

“Princess…” Twilight whispered sadly.

“But I digress!” Luna said much more strongly. “Nightmare Night was just a moment for ponies to gather and share innocent ‘fun’ together. It was foolishness on my part before not to see it; after a thousand years, my nights have finally become an occasion of celebration! Nothing could make me happier than for my subjects to enjoy them more and though my visit must remain short, do not let my absence stop you from enjoying a most enjoyable party.”

Just like that, the heavy, saddened atmosphere created by her retelling had been lifted, leaving only a growing affection for the lunar alicorn. She stood at the center of the attention, yet her gaze was clearly toward her subjects, decorated with a beautiful smile.

“That you wished to share them with me only makes my heart soar with joy. Thank you, thank you all, my little ponies.” With a mighty flap of her wings, she was gone, already disappearing into the darkness outside. “May the night be good to you all!”

For a moment, the vast majority of the nobles assembled seemed to share my feeling, namely, lots of confusion.

Things had happened quickly, perhaps a little too quickly. She’s got her duties to fulfill, right? Move the moon around… and protect her citizens from their nightmares…

At the back of my mind, a wall cracked, letting filter a fragment of my anxieties. Nightmares were of course a natural occurrence and nothing to be concerned with… in the human world that is. Here, in Equestria, there were magical sources of influence that could affect a pony’s dreams.

The magic of fear, to name the most obvious. Black, sickening dark magic, with an aura that oozed and slithered through shadows and unseen places.

And with that moment of realization came more terror.

It’s coming. Chaos is coming. My blood was frozen in my veins. As an alicorn, such a concept was monstrously alien to me. It was repulsive for me to imagine a world flooded with chaos and disorder. It made me panic to imagine Calx being forced to live in such a terrible place.

Brotherly instincts taking over, I turned around, toward the corner I last remembered the foals to have been playing in. In lieu of them though, the first thing that I managed to see was another alicorn, Twilight. She was looking straight at me.

Our gazes met. Hers was unsteady, full of hesitations and questions, of doubts and uncertainties. The emotions already running wild in my mind truly started to dictate my every thought as I tried to imagine what the light in her purple eyes meant.

It was a miracle I didn’t shout when she reduced the distance between us to a leg’s length.

“C-can we speak?”

Fighting a bout of nausea, either fear or alcohol induced, I gave a simple nod and followed her outside when she turned around silently.

As expected, outside of the ballroom, the castle’s atmosphere seemed definitely subdued, colder and far less welcoming. Twilight’s wings closed against her body, confirming the fleeting thoughts I had about how cold she must be.

“Are you alright?” I asked, making a gesture to move closer.

To my surprise, she stepped forward, into the space I had left empty. Even worse, her expression held a bit of smugness at seeing me dumbstruck so. “Don’t worry, Ventus. You clearly had a lot more punch than I did.”

The playfulness got to me, even if I was very close to throwing up from the strain on my nerves alone. Casual as it was, I could not forget how important this meeting with her was. “You, on the other hoof, seem to be a great deal more lucid than most of the remaining ponies in this party.”

“I generally don’t drink much at this kind of events.” She shrugged. “On a few special occasions, I do, but other than that…”

Well, that’s a lot more reasonable than me. Heck, I’m having a little trouble standing straight at the moment.

“T-Twilight,” I stumbled on my words, more nervous than I wanted to admit. “Before anything else, I must ask.”

“Yes?”

“Have you found anything about the spell? Anything at all?”

It was impossible to ignore the way her breath hitched and her eyes wavered with the beginning of new tears. For a moment, her strength appeared to have left her. Her shoulders slumped ever so slightly and she quickly averted her gaze.

My thought process so impaired by the night’s previous events, it came up with a blank as to the reason of her distress.

Coward, my own voice echoed in my mind.

“Twilight…” I whispered, lifting her chin with my hoof. Even then, she would not look back. “You must tell me. It is not the first time my words seem to hurt you. What is the reason behind this?”

Other words itched at the hedge of my lips, confirmation of her feelings for me, but I dare not. I dare not speak for fear I was right. I did so, with a cold sensation running down my spine at the idea she might actually…

As if I didn’t know already. I am such a bucking coward… I could see her hurt and it pulled at my heartstrings. Still, I dared not broach the subject. If she confirmed it… If she confirmed that she… that she loved me…

I…

I wouldn’t know what to tell her! I didn’t know if I felt something like that toward her!

“It… Ventus, I…” The words begged to leave her lips, but they wouldn’t. Nothing, not even air, would leave her mouth. She seemed so torn it was almost comical, if one had a twisted sense of humor.

But as I stared at her lips, a part of me wondered what they felt like… what they tasted like…

The thought pierced through my drunken stupor.

Everything about that lavender mare seemed painfully omnipresent in my mind now. So many sensations, so many details about her, would just assault my senses and refuse to be ignored. It made the cool night warm.

“I did find out something.” Twilight finally said, with a mechanical tone that almost saddened me. “Something out of place.”

Chastising myself for my distraction, I turned my entire focus entirely on her words.

“When the others came to pick me up this morning, they asked me what my researches were about.”

My heart missed a beat with a sudden burst of fear. This had to be kept a secret!

“D-did you…?” I whispered.

She shook her head. “No. But while I didn’t mention what they were, I did say I needed time to figure out some things…”

All I could do was nod, hoping it would encourage her to elaborate further.

“The spell’s matrices… the source of its power… it is outside of our world.”

It was like being hit by lightning. A painful shock seemed to expand into every nerve of my body. Miraculously, I still had the use of my tongue. “W-who? Who powers that spell?”

Tell me who is responsible for this.

“I couldn’t trace that far back!” She hung her head in shame. “It had already decayed too much.”

My anger popped like a bubble. It literally broke down into fine pieces, grinded powder and blown away by the wind. It was replaced by a growing, numbing despair.

“Is it… t-t-too… late?”

“I’m not sure.” She looked at me, frowning deeper than before, but with the shame of her failure piercing through her voice, it only made her pitiful… “I… I think that… white line… it wasn’t a piece of our reality… ”

I sucked in a sharp breath. It could only be…

“The spell itself…” She continued. “…Shattered a barrier and sucked everything in until the hole was sealed with enough… reality… I could not probe that far ahead through space, but… but I did get the feeling that it needed barely more than one living entity.”

Surprisingly, a light was made in my mind. I knew what that piece of reality had had to be.

“The… the runes!” I spoke, voice shaking with excitement. “After Calx disappeared, I discovered the spell he utilized, but the runes were long gone by that time!”

“W-wait! That would mean you are literally covered in the spell itself! Not just its effect or its source of power, but the actual structure of the spell!”

As Sam, I would have been lost right away. As Ventus, the magical theories were engraved in my brain. At least the most prominent ones were.

“Y-you could study and reverse-engineer it!” I think my heart just about exploded with joy.

Her voice became excessively quiet. “No…”

“W-what?!” My eyes were like saucers. “W-what are you talking about?!”

“The degradation is too far ahead for me to recreate the spell. We’d have better luck tracking down the source of the magic and work from there… It… it’s a big gamble, but there’s nothing else we can do…”

I felt lightheaded. My ears could barely pick up sounds anymore.

“T-there’s something else I had to tell you.”

Naively, I had figured out that there was a limit to the amount of sheer terror one could feel from words alone, but it kept getting worse!

“I’m afraid I cannot keep this a secret, Ventus. This is so… this is beyond what one pony should have to shoulder. I want to go speak to the Princess about this.”

My head was spinning.

N-no… no… if they get to hear about the spell… about its consequences... What will they do?! They’ll find out the anomalies! Will they realize what I’ve done? W-what Tom and I are?! T-then, then there will be no time! It will be too late! They’ll never accept that!

“I…” Her voice brought me out of my panicking daze. “My friends and I… we’ll be leaving for Ponyville soon. We already spent a lot here…”

At this point, I lost it. Honest to Elders LOST it. My mind was already nothing but a maelstrom of confused emotions misted by the fog of alcohol and tampered by my fear. There had to be something…

Without thinking, I threw myself forward, doing the first thing that came to mind, using the only halfway rational idea I had.

Completely shocked by my sudden reaction, Twilight didn’t have the time to bat away my hoof when it rested on the back of her neck. She didn’t get the chance to push me away before I crashed my lips against hers.

My fear was pushing me too much. I was too forceful. My body was pressed too strongly against hers. The kiss was bestial, calling forth primal instincts buried beneath too many masks. It stripped away my inhibitions for a split second and I pushed forward, finding myself wanting this, craving for more.

She was so timid, so inexperienced… It made a possessive side of me wish for her to be mine and mine alone. Almost hungrily, I deepened the kiss, earning a whimpering moan from her.

Warm. It was all I could think of. This contact with her made fire blaze inside my heart and spread to the rest of my body. I could not wish for this to stop. Just then, just as things wouldn’t get more confusing, she started kissing back.

I… I couldn’t think… I just wanted… more… more! She was mine and I wanted more!

But she broke it. All too quickly, hooves painfully shoved into my chest pushed me back.

Breathless, she stared at me, eyes so wide I felt they might pop out of her skull. If she was anything like me, then her own heartbeat would be maddeningly loud, pulsing against the side of her vision, spreading an unbearable heat through her whole body.

The poor mare stayed completely silent, unable to process what had happened, whether it be her own sentiment in regards to the kiss or simply the fact that I had done so.

It was my only chance, maybe my last.

“Y-you can’t leave…” I said in a lusty, desperate whisper, making her shiver. The emotion behind it… I could not actually tell if it was real or not. My mind was hazy from the alcohol and actual desire. Her scent flew right through my nostrils as I breathed in, inches away from her again. “Celestia requested that Tom and I stay in the castle for the time being. We will not be able to follow you, should you return…”

I saw her still, a slight twitch in her tail notwithstanding. She listened with a mute horror, strangely combined with some form of… relief?

“A-ask her… to stay…” The words were too difficult to pronounce. My brain refused to work properly, as if… manipulating her… as if that was a line I hesitated to cross. “Convince her that…. That you would like to spend a bit more time with your family here in Canterlot… or that you’d like to study a bit more before going back… a-anything… so we’re not separated.” I can’t afford to lose the one pony willing to do this secretly.

Especially not with the threat looming over the horizon.

Just say you’ll stay. I need somepony’s help, Twilight… your help…

You. I need you.

But Twilight did not answer. She kept looking at me, unable to process anything, or hiding it so well I could not see it. Her stance was completely stiff, as if she dared not move and trigger another reaction from me, whatever it might turn out to be. She… stayed silent.

And every passing second made my apprehensions grow.

I nearly jolted in shock when she finally spoke.

“W-w-we should go back to the party,” she said, eyes wide and cheeks colored. “I think I just heard Pinkie break the party canon.”

I could not hide it when my heart sunk in my chest. A part of it felt as if it had been torn off.

“I… I think I will do just that…” I walked past her, doing my best not to look at her.

In shame. In sadness.

I had no idea what I was doing anymore.

Shame

The sound of my hooves against the floor was the only one in the dark hallway. It was a soft noise, but with the majority of Canterlot already fast asleep, it echoed throughout the castle. Or so it felt to me… and I had a rather good sense for things on this matter.

On my back, the weight shifted, which was followed by a quiet groan. At this, I stretched my wings, just in case Calx decided to roll over in his sleep. The evening had taken its toll on him and being so tired made him a surprisingly restless sleeper. I had tried for years to understand his subconscious’ logic on that particular stance, but without success of any kind.

In any case, after Twilight’s return to the party and mine, things escalated a few steps further, alcohol flowing a bit more freely, with most of the foals shortly thereafter escorted back to bed by their guardians, Calx being one of the few exceptions.

There had been a few disapproving glances from some of the older ponies, but I didn’t care much about that. Plus, I could not see them very well when I was rolling on the floor, pretending to be in total agony, acting a scene straight out of my little brother’s imagination. The fact that the three colts dancing on my corpse all had glimmering wings of air probably alleviated the disapproval. The utter glee on those little faces melted any bouts of true resistance I could have been met with.

Sure, I was almost choking to death laughing at their over-the-top acting, but nothing could be perfect. Besides, who was I to complain when I had miraculously managed to create three pairs of artificial wings and stuck them on a few kids? I was freaking drunk, for goodness’ sake. If I had been only sloshed before, it was a thing of the past.

When these little guys left, they said something to the effect that I was the best prince ever.

All in all, despite the utter awkwardness and confusion that was my talk with Twilight, the party had been… refreshing. With so many ponies out of it because of the spiked punch, I was doubtful they’d remember much of my attitude tomorrow. And since this was a drunken party by the end, I had inkling that this one would not be featured in the show. All in all, a great occasion to relax completely and let loose.

Perhaps it was understandable then, that I only resigned myself to leaving when Calx started yawning so badly he might dislocate his jaw. With minimal protest, I levitated him and placed him on my back, against which he curled up and relaxed, soon falling asleep despite protest against doing so.

Just as we had left the ballroom though, I had caught sight of Twilight staring at me, a thousand questions in her eyes. The weight of that gaze pressed against the back of my mind, making me restless and quite a bit more aware of our situations.

I sent her a look just as curious and uncertain as hers, truly having no idea what could or should happen between us.

Even now, with the alcohol receding away from my brain and the silence allowing me to think, I couldn’t decide what I wanted in the first place. If I needed her help so badly, was that not just a simple way to ensure she would? Unless she was so in love she couldn’t bear to let me go…

…What am I going to do?

I sighed. Nothing could be so simple.

The entrance to our shared room was in sight now, the wooden door firmly closed and the shadow of a night guard not too far ahead in the hallway. By the time I made my way to the door, the grey stallion was almost by me and I greeted him with a polite nod. He reciprocated quickly, showing proper respect for a guest, or something like that…

Gently, my magic seized the handle and twisted, pushing the door open. The whole operation went quietly, precisely how I wanted it to be. The room I shared with Calx remained dark, unlit candles resting on the bedside table, curtains drawn over so even the glow of the moon could not shine on my path.

Even so, navigating around the obstacles was quite easy and I could do it with my eyes close anyway. However, rather than get ready to slip into bed, I stilled a few meters away from it.

There was another pony in the room. I could feel their breathing in the air.

Brain flooded with ideas, theories and questions, I shot a glance in the direction of that breathing, quiet and calm. Hopefully, the gesture would go unnoticed and whoever that was wouldn’t launch an attack or something.

An extreme wave of dread ran through my whole body when I managed to get a better look at the intruder. It was not so much the intimidation than the fact that I was wholly unprepared for this kind of crap.

“Hello, Prince Ventus,” the mare said with a sultry voice, sending me a look that told me everything.

I could feel the groan of exasperation building up in my throat, even as my heart treacherously fluttered with excitement. Oh, you have GOT to be kidding me.

“State your name and your business here,” I said in a hushed whisper, hoping not to wake Tom up. He had a long day of work ahead of him tomorrow and the party was already one drain on his energy. I’d rather not add another. It would be Tartarus here if he woke up grumpy…

“My.” She stood up, causing the bed to squeak a few times, her fur evenly brushing against the silky sheets. The tiny smile she sent me, with a hint of lewdness, was accompanied with a sensual voice that had my blood running strong in my veins. “How straightforward. So… direct…”

With a twitch of my eyes, I realized how much noise she was making. So, she could not take a hint. Oh, I was just going to kick something, preferably a face.

“You are not welcomed here, not at this late hour.” My face hardened, becoming a stony mask of flesh. “State your business now or leave our room.”

It did not deter her. On the contrary, it seemed that my harshness was leaving her feeling bolder. In the dark, her silhouette grew slightly bigger and her traits, more defined. She was… pretty, not classically so in the way Celestia was, but in that little kick-inducing, head-turning way that some mares just used to make your blood boil.

“That is such an authoritative tone you used…” She swiped her tail against my neck. “I like that in a stallion.”

I bit back the desire to move closer, to take in her scent and make it mine. My breath was shorter, tickling sensations running down my neck where her fur had made contact with it. It made it harder to think.

My mouth had gone dry again.

Luckily, something brought me back to my senses. It was a simple noise, soft and not particularly meaningful, just a groan coming out from a little colt’s mouth.

My eyes widened slightly. Bad timing.

Ignoring a pang of panic, I let my magic flow into my horn, focusing my mind on the air in the room. My consciousness stretched with it, reaching out, further than I could feel and see. With a growing feeling of longing, my mind turned to the wind, to the free spirit that rode away, unseen and unheard.

The moment the spell was complete, I was back and I wished I hadn’t…

My limbs felt muddy… heavy… unclean… shackles that grounded me. For a second, my emotions, my senses, both had become blurry, unclear and all-around weak. On some reflective surfaces, I could see that my eyes were unfocused, that my gaze had blurred toward empty space.

The first thing that came back to me was a gentle pressure against my shoulders and a tingling sensation in my loin.

W-what?

My heart jumped in my chest when I shook back the haziness and realized the mare had started feeling me up. She took advantage of the moment I had deafened noises around Tom to stroke my shoulders and my wings!

“So formal… so stiff…” Her smile turned smug, pleased with how I appeared to be reacting. “Look at the tension in those muscles…”

“Remove your hooves from my person immediately,” I said with enough coldness to stop a windigo dead in its track.

For a brief moment, her composure shattered. The glare I was sending her way alone threatened to make her combust spontaneously.

With a startle, she stepped back. For a second, she looked the part of the deer caught in a headlight, with her eyes widened so much and her gobsmacked expression. I could have started dancing on my hind legs and I probably wouldn’t have gotten a reaction this strong.

“N-now, my prince, don’t be this way…” She whispered, with a slight tremor in her voice that denied her otherwise confident demeanor. “There’s no need to be so cold.”

Her smile was starting to make my blood boil. “Didn’t I ask you to leave?”

“Oh, y-your mouth might say that, but your body says otherwise.” At that, she twisted her neck around, tilting her head to get a view underneath me.

I knew what she was referring to. The simple knowledge of her being right left a bitter taste in my mouth.

My cheeks started burning with the humiliation, the flame of which went straight at my heart. It grew hotter with rage and the desire to strike down that arrogant mare pulsed in my vein. I wanted her to just quietly choke down and stop bothering us already.

It would be pretty easy… just take back the air she is breathing…

“Don’t worry, I won’t tell a soul.” She leaned closer to me, bolder than ever. She smelled like flowers and vanilla, but her scent made me want to gag anyway. “Especially not Princess Sparkle. It’ll be our little secret.”

You certainly won’t get the chance to tell a soul about what I will do to you if you don’t shut up, dear.

However, the darker thoughts were strangely eclipsed by echoes of concerns and of Twilight’s image. They looked at me with such uncertainty, such restrained hopes... I knew exactly what her expression would turn to.

Horror. Disgust. Hatred.

In an instant, the expression spread. Soon, not a single being I knew was exempt from this glaring at my naked soul. They were all there; they all were ashamed to have once shared a link with me.

Three cut so much worse than the others. And one of them was sleeping on my back at this very moment.

Suddenly, the weight increased, too big for me to carry much longer, too precious for me to touch and taint! My mind was washed away by a wave of panic. I dared not stay a second longer in the company of that infuriating mare, for fear of what might happen.

Running away… I always do that, don’t I?

“Just go home, you poor filly,” I said in a shaky tone, not able to keep the regal, noble like façade any longer. With the amount of spite I put into it, she would have to be a brick not to get the message.

Not that I stayed behind to see it. With the searing gaze of my loved ones still staring a hole in my skull, I wanted to spend as little time in her presence, lest I became a slave to my darker impulses.

The cool night air embraced me like an old lover. How I wanted nothing more than to hug back the darkness of the outside world, but a certain little colt made his disagreement known by shifting on me and groaning at this sudden discomfort. That little show of impatience and caprice brought a fond smile to my lips. It was just so… him.

Gently, I levitated him off my back and deposited him on the garden’s lawn. Contact with the earth seemed to soothe him, in some ways at least. I understood him on that, at least.

With a sigh, I settled down on the grass, next to him, and extended my wing over him. This improvised blanket was welcomed with a smile and a nuzzle, though only through the unconscious state of sleep.

That small contact alone made me feel warm, a little loved. At least Tom would never… wouldn’t just stop loving me, just like I would always, always put him before anything else.

My wing brought him closer to me. I could feel his chest move with his breath, slowly and steadily. Our fur brushed off against each other and it was one of those little things that told me I wasn’t alone yet, that I still had people… ponies… worth fighting for.

I wasn’t a monster yet.

Eyes half closed, I glanced up, toward the night sky. Parts of me were just hoping to calm this sea of unease beneath my skin. The sight of a peaceful night could at least help me relax. Thinking of home – which one? – had my stomach churn.

And so, I looked at the mass of darkness above, for the first time with simple intent to see, and see I did.

Although she was an interesting flawed character, there were aspects of Luna that always flew right over my head. Sometimes… sometimes I never got why Luna had fallen so far when she realized her people did not appreciate her hard work, or so she thought. It had never struck me as being worth the corruption and ensuing fall out.

Tonight probably would be the last time I would ever feel this way.

Alicorns have strange needs.

Magnus had once confessed the need to be strong, not just as a character trait but as an integral part of his being and in all his interactions. Atonie Negata had explained to me that it wasn’t wrong to wish for more wind to blow through the empty space of the Astral Planes and convinced me by showing what kind of impulse could go through her brain as a result.

Thus, I could wonder what kind of needs Celestia and Luna had, being concepts of astral bodies and of a period of time. With a little lesson in Equestrian history, I could make an educated guess. With but a glance at the night sky, I understood.

All the myriad ways. So many stars, the closest thing to an infinite number in this world, and she was the one arranging them every night for the sake of her subjects.

She was an artist and the sky itself was her canvas. To compare it to the sky on Earth would be an insult, even from a purely objective point of view. The stars were brighter, the darkness contrasted more strongly, the arrangements were reminiscent of detailed paintings; it melted together into a vibrant, living painting of the things beyond this world. Before my eyes flashed the auroras and the meteor showers, the greatness of the celestial realms and a deafening cry for remembrance, for the home both sisters had long lost to their duties.

Finally, the right words dawned on me, echoes of my years of learning under Magister, Alicorn of Knowledge and teacher to all.

The Sacred Darkness.

The holy side of all things dark. The concept of good through the night and the shade. The encompassing shadow that made light easier to see. The contrast that made life worthwhile.

“Princess Luna…” I whispered, trying to imagine ponies ignoring her, ignoring her work for so long and my mind became blank.

The night was breathtaking.

…Breathtaking… breath taking… breath… breathtaking…

“Can’t breathe…” They said, in their last moment. Oh so many had said that, and so many times before had I wished for the right to give them those precious few gulps of air they needed. But this time... She would have said so with me reveling in her anguish.

Away from the annoyance itself, away from what made me angry and with nothing but my thoughts for sole companion, I could put myself under the magnifying glass.

I had trouble breathing, my chest moving too quickly, allowing only shallow breathes that left my body greedily reclaiming more. The recent events played again in my mind. I saw them, all of them.

“She would have had… had I stayed…” It was as if something was crawling around my guts. “And she’s not the only one…”

Rainbow mane…

Snap.

Snobby stallion…

Snap.

Unknown pony with a camera…

SNAP!

I held out my hooves in front of my face, as if it was the first time I saw them.

It keeps happening. I just think my world would be better off without those ponies. And I don’t actually care that they would be dead! I only care because of the repercussions it would have for me! It isn’t because it’s wrong!

My hooves started shaking.

I forced myself on Twilight tonight. I can blame the alcohol or whatever, it still doesn’t change the fact that I kissed her against her will.

Celestia’s stern words started echoing in my ears, over and over, less intelligible than the intent and the emotions behind them. She had felt worry, anger, disgust. Her voice rang loudly in my mind, almost deafening. She already knew. She probably knew before I did.

I could not keep away from her imaginary gaze, staring straight through my barriers and my masks, to see the breaking stallion with a twisted mind. It could expose this side of me. She was already aware of it.

It must make her sick to even keep me under her roof… I went limp, my strength deserting me.

T-this self-loathing was emotionally draining. It simply couldn’t be kept up for so long.

With a grunt, I buried my face into the grass, hard. My muzzle uncomfortably pressed against a solid surface, I rubbed in the frustration, but mostly the fear, that my internal evaluation was correct and had been for quite some time now…

I’m a bucking psychopath! An actual, I-lack-empathy-for-others-so-I-can-kill-without-remorse, psycho!

A loud snore interrupted my train of thoughts rather abruptly. Unaffected by all my rumbling and my shifting, my little brother had kept sleeping on like nothing else in the world mattered.

I consider it a miracle that you sleep like a brick, Tom, but even my annoyed thought did not reflect on my face, as an amused smile just threatened to take over.

Knowing there was nothing else better for me to do at the moment (beating myself up had never proved productive), I tried to imitate him.

And pretty much succeeded quickly, on account of this being a long day. However, what awaited me was not a merciful lack of dreams, as I would crave for, or even the ultimately harmless nightmares I had started getting over time. No, in contrast with all these, I simply heard an authoritative voice grab my consciousness away.

“Come with me, Alicorn of the Wind.”

The tone Luna used had me fear for my continued safety.

“There’s … in Canterlot, with Rarity and Rainbow Dash, which was actually one of the writer’s best this season. They have like, one minute of speaking role…”

His pencil scratching against the paper sheet is the only noise that could be heard at this late hour. His parents would throw a fit if they knew how late he stayed up, to make ‘My Little Pony’ theories of all things. They’d look for a better psychiatrist if they knew he thought it had a link with his missing best friend.

“Then, there’s that scene when Ventus kidnaps her in the opening sequence of the episode… they still haven’t showed us what it was all about,” he mumbled, his eyebrows slowly descending to form a frown.

He didn’t get it, that scene didn’t make sense. Not without additional information, as the least incendiary parts of the fandom had managed to freeze frame on the alicorn’s face and deduce it wasn’t a romantic set-up at all. Thank goodness for that.

Those two were already hated enough as it stood. Most of the initial good impression left by Ventus putting his brother in his place had evaporated by the time it was evident the two were there to stay. Mane Six romance would take it to the next step and unleash hell.

Still, the following episode had held no answers whatsoever. There were implications of a date gone wrong or something with Pinkie, but nothing specific. Stranger, a random pony’s newspaper had been shown with a picture of the two being very happy together.

He could feel his thoughts meshing into a big fat nothing at this. A train wreck, Eric felt like his deductions would only lead to a complete train wreck. Things weren’t working out.

One more appearance… he had to piece it all together. He just knew there was more to the characters of Ventus and Calx than met the eyes. Still, he could not figure out what had gone through the writers’ heads to create such unbalanced characters. And why did they have human nicknames?!

“W-where are we?”

My voice carried on, echoing through this strangely empty space. I had never witnessed such a thing in all my years as an alicorn or as a human. Well, perhaps as a human I had seen this… like… in a videogame… but being in a show was already a truckload of bull, so I would rather not think about it.

Luna was in front of me, walking with a strong hoof and so fluidly that nopony could think she wasn’t at home here. Of her figure, I could hardly see more than that flowing starry mane so characteristic of the alicorn.

“I believe it is high time you witness the consequence of your actions,” she said, no inflexion betraying her emotions.

It did not escape me that she had not answered my inquiry, of course not, but the direction this was going had me reel back in fear. At least, mentally. To make such a show of my guilty conscience might be the exact proof she needed to condemn me.

“My actions?” I asked, hints of true puzzlement filtering through my voice.

I wasn’t acting either. I had no idea what she could be referring to. H-had I dreamed about some… unsavory course of actions I had wished to take?

“By following your brother here, you have thrown Equestria out of balance.” She elaborated, though this time, she turned around and I could see one of her eyebrow had shot up in incredulity. “Or perhaps tho-… you have forgotten this small detail in favor of your apparent lover struggle with my sister’s apprentice?”

Right… CHAOS! Because I opened my big mouth and caused some reality warping to make that rule. Am I a walking disaster or what?

“No,” I said, looking at her straight in the eyes, without hesitation or fear. “I had not, but I had been kept unaware of actual consequences being detected so far. It is in fact a wish of mine that my fault could be atoned for in any way I can.”

Unfortunately, my heartfelt speech fell in deaf ears… or at least ones that were perfectly willing to ignore me.

“We shall see about that, Ventus.” She turned once more toward a path only she could see, guiding me through the void.

What it was I didn’t know for certain. Every alicorn in the astral plains had some knowledge of one another’s abilities. Dream walking was not quite exclusive to Luna, but it was no secret she had taken its uses as one more of her duties. For her to bring me into one could mean a number of things I dared not contemplate. Not yet.

At some point though, while I had been speculating, the scenery had started to change.

I honestly would have liked it better if the void had stayed empty.

Whereas there had been emptiness now stood flags and the crest of some faction unknown to me. Whereas there had been but white nothingness now turned into a stagnant flow of red.

Red… flowing red and screams of agony… flowing red and clanks of metal against metal…

War cries abound and bolts of magic deafening them.

I was witness to yet another war.

“This…” Her head went from one side of the plains to another. “…Is a foal’s dream.”

I suddenly felt stupid at my slowness.

“A-a dream…?” Of course, it’s a dream. I-it couldn’t be anything else.

“So you understand…” She whispered, a note of suspicion arising in her tone.

That much alone had me questioning my understanding of the situation. I could not afford to cause or follow a misunderstanding due to poor communication skills.

“W-what do you mean, Cousin Luna?” I asked, feeling my breathing accelerated as the tension grew between us.

“This is a dream. Not a nightmare.”

N-not a nightmare…

A bloodied battlefield, covered in weapons serving as sole marker for a pony’s grave, a feast for scavengers and a true horror show for a creature as peaceful as an Equestrian pony…

Not a nightmare, but a dream?

I felt a shiver go down all the way to my soul.

Past Life

I felt sick.

“For his Majesty’s glory!” A stallion screamed.

Without thinking, I turned around, toward this more distinct noise. It was a mistake, as I would have rather not witness a pony being impaled viciously on a lance.

More red.

Gritting my teeth together, I forced myself to focus on Luna.

The dark blue alicorn seemed remarkably calm, her face betraying nothing of her emotion if not a small sentiment of severity. Her eyes, half-closed, flickered to the scene unfolding around us once, before truly falling on me.

“What is going on?” I asked, flinching at the sound of ponies falling to the ground. “Why are you saying this is a foal’s dream?”

“Have I not made that clear?” She gave a dismissive sneer. “This place is a foal’s dream as it unfolds.”

I tried to understand, to see more clearly what was going on, but my vision was clouded by this darkening atmosphere spreading around the battlefield. Wild bouts of nausea assaulted my senses for every twisted detail I did manage to make out. “D-does that child wish for war? Is this what you wanted to tell me?”

“Wish?” She repeated, a little incredulity piercing her otherwise stoic features. “No, it is not a wish, but this is a place he can be content. He doesn’t understand why, but he’s not unpleased with this turn of events.”

I opened my mouth, but no words came out. Now, I just plain don’t know.

“It is deeply disturbing, however, that a colt that had never heard of this before would have dreams of bloody conquest,” she said, walking past me. “Unfortunately, this phenomenon is starting to multiply amongst our subjects.”

With a single stomp of her hooves, the world changed, as a single ripple through the air washed away the battlefield and replaced it with something… otherworldly.

The sky was silver, but so was the ground. The line of the horizon had disappeared in a strange lack of contrast, even if it obviously existed far beyond my eyesight.

Princess Luna was, of course, unaffected. Why would she be? Thus, her legs carried her on even as I stared with unease at the plane of existence she had transported me to. Quickly enough, it became evident she would not wait for me should I stay immobile.

My instincts told me to fear this strange place and what might happen, should I be reckless, but I had little choice. Against my flanks, the force of my wings pressed strongly. For a second, the thought of flight was tempting, but, ultimately, was rejected. Slowly, I put a hoof to the inert reflective surface.

I felt a jolt of magic go up my leg where contact had been made. The ground itself rippled, as would a water surface that we’d walk over. Each wave painted the sky a different color.

Though fascinating, this couldn’t keep me distracted for too long. “How many ponies, Luna!?”

“Would you be happy hearing the numbers?” She paused, giving me a chance to catch up. I wished I hadn’t, as the look she gave me was icy cold. “Are there any you would consider ‘low enough’?”

I looked away, forcing my ears to droop. Maybe.

“Far too many, Ventus Vinco.” Her gaze turned to the horizon, but she did not look at it. Her mind was elsewhere. “I have witnessed too many of these dreams recently. Those I stop end up making the dreamer more agitated during the day. Some ponies reported to have assaulted others, I recognized with ease. Disturbing as it may be, these dreams seem to evacuate the worse of our subjects’ aggression.”

I felt something unlock in my chest, but, in my head, some ideas were still floating around. “They are… a defense mechanism?”

The look she gave me was heavy with meaning, as was the judgment I perceived. “Yes. Dreams are an expression of a pony’s daily experience. Sometimes.” Her lips curved into a small, fond, smile. “They are rather unpredictable.”

“And nonsensical,” I added, recalling a few experiences with balloon bowling and bike sellers in a spa.

“Yes,” she agreed, though the fondness melted away in seconds. “Our citizens are dreaming of violence and payback. Sometimes, for offenses so small I was baffled. Death because one had been annoying?!”

I felt the strong and completely absurd urge to whistle loudly while looking away. Such a desire was squashed mercilessly. If I ever act that dumb, I deserve a kick to the groin.

“This is indeed surreal.” I nodded, tone grave and suspicious. “What folly is responsible for this?”

Her tone grew colder still. “You.”

I took a step back, mouth suddenly drying in the face of a clearly angry alicorn a few hundred years my elder. Eyes wide open with apprehension and my whole body tensing, I stared and searched for signs of menace.

“I… do not understand…” And truly, to the extent of my knowledge and education, there was nothing on how my powers could cause such a thing. As for which force of Chaos could, I was not overly fond of the possibilities.

“Do you not?” She asked, and it sounded to me as if she was surprised. “Or do you refuse to think about it?” Or skeptical.

I looked down, not meeting her gaze and the silent challenge it issued.

“Your impromptu descent into our kingdom has triggered events nopony could contain, not even my sister and me. Once the balance has tilted, more players will come and try to push it in their favors.”

“Which ones?” was all I dared say.

Once more, Luna turned around, looking in the distance, more likely in her memories than in that reflective surface. Slowly, she started trotting away, and I followed her. “The winds of hatred have started blowing over Equestria. Ponies from certain settlements have started growing more unruly… Public order is harder to maintain as many petty conflicts arise every day.”

Images flash before my eyes in an almost familiar manner, when one takes into account the reality warping that had plagued my first few days here. However, this time, it wasn’t so much remembering as being shown. And the scenes definitely left an impression.

A landscape of snow and ice, buried by an unending blizzard, where naught but a few imprints in the ground remained and even those would soon disappear. Hoofprints that led to a cave, blocked by a wall of ice. Amazingly, bickering could be heard through the air. It… was about a rock.

Somepony’s got an insane sense of priority.

Luna was by my side, her mane’s starry end almost brushing against my fur. These abrupt transition having started to get common, I managed to keep a straight face, even as she looked down on me.

“You know the answer, Ventus Vinco.” A dangerous light flashed in her eyes. “You, of all ponies, cannot possibly ignore the answer to this puzzle.”

And truly, I did know. Sam knew. At least.

“The windigoes…” I muttered, a familiar ethereal neigh echoing in my mind.

“They are coming back.” The line of her jaw seemed to have straightened and hardened. “Of all the forces you could have summoned, it had to be them.”

Ghost-like, pony-shaped abominations, that feed off hatred and spread cold, until the world was but a frozen wasteland and a cemetery for all races. The chaos that I had called forth.

Yeah, I’m pretty much a walking disaster. No freaking doubt about this. Still…

“But the windigoes were banished before, were they not?” I said, observing her expression for noticeable tics. “And the bearers of the Elements of Harmony are alive and well. Could they not be used to put a stop to this madness?”

“No.” She shook her head, closing her eyes. “The windigoes are a spreading plague. They multiply through the misery and the cold they create. Eliminating them is not so easy a process that you can simply aim a weapon at them and hope for the best. While anypony might have the power to banish them, the simple fact remains that the windigoes’ powers themselves will make it a miracle, should it happen.”

W-why? I thought, properly horrified at the sudden burst of emotion in my chest. Why did that thought just make me happy?!

A twitch on my tail remained the only external sign I gave of this struggle. Princess Luna’s presence alone was suffocating, too big to be shouldered on by a single pony, in a way so drastically dissimilar to Princess Celestia. The white alicorn was like a stern mother, whom you failed and suffered shame at disappointing her. Rarely should a pony truly fear for their life in Celestia’s presence.

But with Luna… I could see the impulse dance under her skin, a twitch of muscles that ran over the muscles of her neck and her shoulders and a clench in her jaw, both signs that faded out quickly, even if they left me with the lingering impression that she had stopped herself from spinning around and staring me down.

And those were only the physical changes. My horn was tickling and heating with the changes in the ambient flow of magic around us.

Mastering the shaking in my hooves, I tried to swallow the fear of being alone with Luna, even as it seemed she fought herself not to kill me on the spot. Without knowing my true impressions so far. Her getting access to my thoughts and feelings would have left me a smoking corpse.

“…Your sister knows of this, doesn’t she?” I spoke, though my voice broke mid-sentence.

“Of course.” Luna straightened. “I informed her of our predicament as soon as I detected its effects on our citizens.”

“I… I heard nothing of it.” It left me with a strangely hollow feeling in my chest, somehow. It hurt… why?

“My sister was always a very impressive chess player. And I heard she has taken up card games as a hobby too. One game in particular…” She bit her lips in irritation. “Ah, the name escapes me.”

“Poker?” I guessed, grimacing.

“Yes, that sounds fitting. Poker…” She let the word roll off her tongue. “But this is irrelevant. Our sister was discreet and sent a few more soldiers to investigate those occurrences when I reported them. So far, no real fight has broken out, but we refuse to consider ourselves so lucky that it will continue so without our intervention.”

Another question came to me, though I couldn’t quite tell what its origin was. “And the citizens? Do they know?”

Somehow, I believed it only right that they be informed of the danger they were in. Again, I did not know why.

Luna seemed downcast as the words soaked in.

“No, they do not. Not yet, at least.”

“B-but…”

“It must be nice…” She cut me off. “For one’s worry consisting of tabloids’ opinion of them.”

This one… felt like a jab at me, but there was also… there was something else there, in the tone of her voice and the wishful gaze she casted on the silver sky.

It didn’t work though, because in the end, I couldn’t care less about those, but heck… she didn’t need to know that. So I affected an ashamed, humble voice and lowered my head.

“You’re trying to make me feel small, aren’t you?”

“No. I am trying to make you realize you should be bigger than you are now.” S-something about her voice… she looked almost surprised. “You’ve talked about doing your best to atone for that mistake, but I have yet to witness you trying.”

I shifted on my hooves, tail twitching nervously and wings fluttering. “T-that’s…”

“But this is also an exaggeration, Ventus Vinco. My words were but an observation, one that could make you reflect on your statement. This purpose obviously failed, my attitude toward you being faulty and not very suitable for a mentor’s relationship.”

Well, I had no idea how to respond to that.

“It appears my sister’s experience still trumps my inspiration. Practice make perfect, they say. I shall practice more then.”

I blinked. “You are interested in taking an apprentice?”

“Yes, but that will be subject for another discussion. We are not done yet, Ventus. What I hoped to communicate to you was that our citizens remain so far blissfully ignorant of the danger over their head. Their hearts are light without the fear of windigoes hovering so close to their heads.”

“The danger is still there, isn’t it?” I frowned. Why was this bothering me so much?

“If possible, my sister and I would rather allow our little ponies to remain as innocent as they can be. Their purity does make them happier beings.” She shot me an inquisitive look, equally curious as it seemed cautious. “Do you not shield your brother so?”

My jaw clenched, to the point of hurting.

“I see…” The Princess of the Night muttered, before deciding this had gone on long enough.

Her horn lit up with its blue glow, causing ripples upon ripples through the air and the ground. I awaited, readying my body for the smallest sign of a threat.

Abruptly, everything stopped.

No sound, no movement, no magic… The world had become still beyond my own sense of self. My breathing seemed to be impossibly loud in this silence. It racked on my nerves and boomed in my ears, and there was nothing else. Nothing. Luna’s form still existed, but it seemed to me that she might as well be an image, least of all a living being.

It made an invisible pressure fall on me, as my eyes scanned the silent world for the sign of something… anything at all!

My heart nearly exploded in my chest when I did find one. There was a figure in the distance; a stallion, I could tell, but something about him…

I was dumbstruck when it blinked into existence, a few hooves away from us. Its appearance was…

H-he seemed to be… me. The difference between us were in the details, in the most insignificant manner. His general appearance was so reminiscent of mine it couldn’t be a coincidence. If somepony put Magnus and him next to me, they would undoubtedly assume this stallion was my father instead. His coat was as golden as mine, his mane was as pale as mine… h-hi-his… eyes…

To properly describe how disturbing it was, I had to… to express… The way that stallion carried himself, the way he held himself, the way he smiled, I was naturally inclined to believe and trust this guy. My first impulse, seeing him, had been to go and greet him.

Then, I had the chance to see his eyes.

They were mine, at my darkest. And I understood. I understood who that was, what he was.

The air became colder, losing its own welcoming quality. I was not in control. The clarity of this dreamlike land started to lessen, turning into a dark void. And still, he appeared to be just a pleasant fellow, if… i-if not for the…

Psychopaths usually have superficial charms, don’t they?

…Eh, I would know that, right?

Luna’s voice made me jump out of my skin. “This is Caelum Ourobos, First of the Fallen, as I recall him to be.”

“As you…” I felt my head become lighter. “You knew him? A-as in…?”

Oh crap, oh crap, oh crap! Please tell me she doesn’t know Caelum to have been a complete psycho as well!

“Intimately.” BUCK! Also, what?! “As you may know, he was the first alicorn to be tasked in coming to Equestria, before it was even known by that name, to tamper the war brewing between the three tribes. The task proving too difficult for him alone, he requested assistance, which was the moment my sister and I were deemed fit to leave the Astral Planes.”

Slowly, I nodded, trying to fit this new information with what I had been taught.

“We failed.” Her lips trembled, out of fear and regrets. “And the worst happened.”

It wasn’t bitterness. It was anger.

I dared not ask toward whom she directed it.

“He did something terrible. My sister and I were the first to be neutralized. He did not want the interference.” The anger faded away, her traits relaxing, but not enough. She seemed haunted by her past. “He went after my sister first… she had seen through his façade… I… I didn’t… I only intervened far too late.”

Luna then closed her eyes, controlling her breathing. Her pain was so obvious that I couldn’t simply ignore it.

I would have rested a hoof on her shoulder, had I not caught sight of Caelum, tilting his head slightly at Luna, amused. His expression was pleasant, as always, but storms brewed behind those soulless eyes. It made my blood curdle.

Slowly, Luna seemed to recover, a hint of steel flashing through her tone when her gaze met Caelum’s. “Amongst his titles, there is one he is least well-known for in these days and age: Lord of the Windigoes.”

I froze.

“Shocking as it may seem to you, it is only logical. He is their creator, after all.”

I could not articulate my thoughts anymore. “He… what? H-how?”

“Caelum did not plan for it to happen… or at least… I still hold to the hope that he hadn’t, not at first.”

No sound would escape my mouth, not for a lack of trying.

“During his first few years of negotiation with each tribe’s leaders, he grew frustrated with their stubbornness and their refusal to cooperate. No amount of his pleading would suffice and nothing short of military might would make them fold, which was precisely the solution to crept over the horizon. With time, he grew to hate them and their hard heads.”

A sense of foreboding visited me, heavier than before, and like that, I knew that Caelum’s gaze had fallen on me.

“He could not bear it, to try to save those he hated.” For once, Luna’s expression softened. She pitied him. “Duty, orders, those are things inscribed in an alicorn’s very mind. For the sake of his mission, he did something unthinkable.”

Carried by a strange instinct, I turned my head, glancing toward the living memory.

He was smiling at me, fondly, a father observing his child taking his first steps.

I fought back the desire to scream.

“He tore apart his soul.”

My front leg gave out under me. I-I hadn’t been able to stomach this one and I stumbled, breathing more strongly as dread started to crawl under my skin.

“H-he did what?!”

“Every time he felt the hatred become too strong, he tore away the fragment that held his hatred and casted it away from his soul. Alicorns are strange beings, less similar to ponies than they would like to believe. Caelum obviously believed his own nature would allow him to continue such reckless practice. And, for a while, it did work. His behavior became… less emotional, more paused and patient. Things… things didn’t affect him as strongly as before.”

It’s coming. I know the bad part is coming!

“It was not to last. It took more time, but his hatred returned as the conflict escalated. Caelum continued to mutilate his own soul in an attempt to maintain a semblance of order. Our support proved too small in the face of failure. With each fragment he threw away however, the less restraint he seemed to retain. Heated words were met head on with viciousness and physical assaults ended in tragedies.”

Ponies choking on the ground… writhing on the ground in agony… a stoic stallion watching…

“Celestia tried to stop him. It was too late. He had already gained unexpected allies that proved too dangerous of a trump card for her to best.”

Allies? I thought, puzzled. Didn’t he antagonize a lot of ponies by that point?

“The fragments he had thrown away had taken on a life of their own. Knowing only hatred, they sought to acquire more of it, as if it had been their most important duty, as if they wanted to maintain a form of order.”

Eternal night, anypony?

“And their hearts grew colder still, until their freezing aura spread to the land and its dwellers. Their unending blizzards nearly destroyed Equestria, while Caelum stood on the sidelines and watched. It is a miracle Life as a whole didn’t end during that period of time. The Fire of Friendship was channeled through some of the surviving ponies and it banished some windigoes away.”

I clenched my teeth together.

“It wasn’t enough. My sister and I were freed. We lead a crusade to banish them all.”

Harder.

“Caelum disappeared. With so many fragments of himself destroyed or sealed away, he could not sustain his mortal form any longer. He simply… vanished.”

I forced myself to stare at the Caelum standing so close to us. This image was remarkably lively. It wasn’t a mere painting; it held its own presence. That was the problem though. This reflection seemed… hollow. Had I tried touching him, which I wouldn’t, my hoof would have gone through him. Slowly, I inched closer to the alicorn’s image.

Luna followed my movement with her eyes, but instead turned her back to me.

“All alicorns have the potential to become a twisted image of their former selves.” Caelum blinked out of existence. “Every single one of them.”

The ghost of a mare as black as the darkest night lingered over Luna’s form, but it faded before I could confirm its identity.

With a strangely rustic noise, the world started to change, shifting from one form to another. The uniformity that had plagued this realm shattered, reorganizing itself as the vast greatness of the cosmos.

We stood, on nothingness, between a starry field and a towering moon. Here, in this place, Luna seemed to be more than a pony, of so much more.

“Do you understand why I showed you this?” She asked, the full strength of her authority fully apparent.

“I believe I do… but before that… tell me… t-the truth…” How I longed not to be right. “Why were we so… similar?”

“Do you not know already?” She raised a delicate eyebrow. “The Alicorn of the Sky, a mane of silver and a coat of gold, piercing turquoise eyes and a mask so convincing no living pony could see the monster behind. Do those traits not feel familiar to you, Alicorn of the Wind?”

“Not… all of them, Princess,” I said, after a short pause.

Air, Wind, Sky… what is the difference? One’s existence depends on the others, but enables them also. Easily, one can see the differences blur until they can no longer detect them. They’re all the same.

“In all likeliness, Ventus, you are his reincarnation. You are the alicorn born to replace Caelum.”

“And you want to make sure I will not turn out as bad as him, that I will devote myself to the ponies rather than become a harbinger of their demise. I-is that it?”

The thought made my heart beat more strongly in my chest. It grew heated, spreading it to the rest of my being. Affecting a cool and relaxed mask became harder. This will be hard to do when I already know I’m a sick pony. And they both knew, right away.

“My sister made you a prince.” As if that wasn’t a veiled attempt at keeping me close to her, where she could react quickly to any ‘misconduct’. “Act like it.”

This one, more than the rest, more than any other remark, left a bitter taste in my mouth. From me, for the crime of being born and reborn into this body, they expected duty bound and honor? From the one they made a prince against his will, from the one they bound to their castle and their realm, they expected obedience and self-sacrifice?

…Right.

Dignity

My head was against the most comfortable pillow in the universe. Its fluffiness would be forever registered as unequaled and I might one day dedicate a poem to it. Elders, this was a comfortable place for my head to rest.

“Sam… wake up!” Not yet. Strange voice, just let me rest. Luna’s visit just drained me. “Saaaaam!”

Well, there was no mistaking that kind of whining.

“Yeah, yeah, waking up, squirt,” I grunted, batting a hoof in the air and not moving an inch.

“You just said you’d-” He cut himself short, probably in indignation. My theory proved itself more likely when two hooves started pushing against my shoulders. “Stand up!”

I was too comfortable to be pushed away, so my body mostly went through a forward-backward movement with each push.

“Come on, you big dummy! It’s morning already.”

“I’m not feeling up to it, Tom,” I muttered again, which was followed by a yawn I couldn’t keep in. “Just… come back later.”

“We’re gonna miss breakfast! Celestia said my lessons were supposed to start right after it was over!”

Surprised, I crept open one eye… My brain exploded with pain from the bright sunny weather. Hastily, I blinked and flinched, which Tom took as a good sign and had him sit down. He was still a little blurry to me though. “Did you just say you wanted to go to a lesson?”

“Buck no!” He protested with a disdainful sneer.

Regretfully, my heart lingering to that patch of grass that had made my morning so divine, I finally got around to sitting up. That, however, did not mean that my mind was fully operational at the moment. Things were a little hazy.

“Right, so what’s the big emergency this morning?” I asked, halfway focused on our little exchange here. Another alicorn’s words were very much at the front of my mind.

“Oh come on!” Tom looked about ready to sulk now. “I just said we’re gonna miss breakfast if we don’t hurry up!”

Okay, small normal issues. I can deal with that… My expression slipped toward the usual mask, alarmingly easily. “Right, let’s go then.”

My words being the only cue, I forced myself to stand on my hooves and just accompany him to the dining hall where any number of nobles might try to get my head for my attitude at the party yesterday. It certainly wasn’t a situation I was looking forward to, but I didn’t have much of a choice. We’d be there soon enough.

Except Tom wasn’t following me. Not understanding this moodswing, I turned around and came face to face with him. I… wasn’t ready for this…

His crimson irises were focused on me, and they shone with worry. “What’s wrong?”

“H-huh…” I hadn’t expected him to notice anything. Clearly, I wasn’t putting enough effort into this. “Nothing’s wrong, bro.”

“You have that face. You keep making it here and you always look really unhappy!”

My face…? L-like me trying to just look calm and happy? Granted, this wasn’t even close to how I acted back on Earth… or even in the Astral Planes themselves, but for Tom to notice and realize what it meant…

Alright, I’ll admit it. I just underestimated you, bro.

“I… I’m not, Tom. Promise.” I tried a reassuring smile, the kind that usually worked with him.

But he was surprisingly tenacious on top of being perceptive this morning. He just narrowed his eyes at me and pressed on. “Pinkie Promise?”

“Err…” I certainly don’t want to risk that. I don’t need any angry mare breathing down my neck at the moment.

Unfortunately, my hesitation had been revealing.

“Sam!” Tom shouted. “What’s wrong?! Tell me!”

“H-hum… I…” What do I say? I can’t tell him about how grim things look for us! Nor that I don’t believe there’s a way for us to get back home!

My thoughts stopped. The buzzing activity caused by my panic had ceased, when the fear I had buried was brought into light. I don’t believe we’ll make it to Earth again…

A twitch put a dent in my mask.

“Sam!” He was flying to my eye level, his wings flapping quickly to maintain him in place. “You always tell me it’s okay to say when I don’t feel okay, so tell me why you’re not okay!”

I looked away.

“It’s complicated…”

Tiny hooves stomped the ground angrily, childish frustration fueling them. “Explain it then! I’m not twenty anymore, I can understand!”

“Do you not shield your brother so?” Luna said…

She asked me the same question I asked of her. A-and… Tom’s right… He at least has the right to know I’m trying to get us back on Earth… Even if he might figure out from my mood…

I closed my eyes for a second, needing a moment to build up the courage, a moment away from the steel resolve behind the crimson irises. The sea beneath the surface just moved in violent torrent. I-it was so… hard… to just tell the truth…

But for him, I could.

“I’ve been trying to find a way back home…”

Tom quietly sat down, looking down, causing a pang of painful guilt to sear through my chest. “I knew that…”

My eyes opened wide. …W-w-what?

“That’s just like you, Sam,” he explained slowly, with a kind of maturity I wasn’t expecting of him. “When I have a problem, you always do your best to solve it, right?”

There were a couple of occurrences floating in my mind in how I had such things on a semi-regular basis. It was the truth, of course, but I had never done something on such a base before. T-this one might be beyond me.

“Yeah…” I sighed.

But my little brother certainly didn’t share my weariness. In lieu of a grimace, he offered me a shining grin. “That’s why you’re awesome, Sam.”

“T-Tom…” Don’t you dare say that! You don’t know what I’ve been thinking about!

“What?” He stood, insolent and bashful, knowing the kind of stuff I wanted to tell him, and daring me to go ahead and contradict him. It would forever follow me; to deny my own awesomeness would subject me to years of stupid taunting. “Come on, I wanna get breakfast for real now.”

Breakfast. Oh dear, everything would go wrong, right?

I was wrong.

Nothing worth noting happened. A scroll had been left at my intention, but beyond that…

Well, nopony had much of a heart to make game-changing talk when the Princess of the Sun herself had been absent all morning. Her seat had been shockingly empty when we had entered and a quick glance at the nobles gathered the table had all but confirmed she had not simply left early.

Thus, we could eat in peace, without the pressure of her gaze on me, judging silently. It made it easier for me to relax. Cherry on top, the princess wasn’t even the only missing figure of importance, if one had a loose definition of importance.

Blueblood was nowhere to be seen. The most popular theory was that he was nursing his bruised ego, his hangover or yet another dispute on whether or not he fathered a child.

Strangely though, I had a feeling it wasn’t even close to the actual truth… Still, there was nothing I really wanted to do about it at the given moment. Perhaps later, if the mood struck me…

The instructions left by Celestia were opened just after we finished our meals, or rather, I had finished mine and Tom was still asking for seconds.

Let’s see… she gave me… two assignments today? For real? It did irk me that she would do that, but I wasn’t about to defy her will, certainly not again and definitely not after Luna had bothered reaching me in my dreams about it. Alright, first off… the archives of Equestria laws...? Now that is just blunt, Cousin.

Then again, it was nothing compared to the rest.

Wait, she wants Tom and I to go talk to the Mane Six before they… oh buck… OH BUCK!

Sunlight would not pierce through the cover of the leaves. The density of the forest was much too great, sometimes too erratic, for the light of Celestia’s sun to shine over the cold and unwelcoming atmosphere of the Everfree. Shadows cast by the trees were bigger than they had the right to be, in many visitors’ mind.

As the day signaled its beginning with the dawn and the song of roosters however, a seasoned and perceptive being might have noticed, before an untimely demise, that the shadows were also far too numerous.

It wouldn’t be inaccurate to say that we crashed into the Elements of Harmony’s private dining room in a panicked blur. At least, from my point of view it wasn’t. After a very unprincely and ungracious stumble that had me splayed against the cold hard floor, I could accept that description. I didn’t have much going in the way of sensation.

My heart was beating like a maniac in my chest and created that deafening pulse in my ears. My vision jumped with every beat. Disheveled, I had to put away my mane from my eyes to see them.

“Hey Bladey. Hey Sammy!” A flashy pink mare jumped from her seat, being the first to greet me – and thus the first to help me up. “Did you like the party? Are you feeling better? Or maybe even a better stallion? Hint, hint!”

I blinked. Well, at least, she’s not trying to be subtle.

“I… I do feel as if the party helped me sorted some repressed feelings,” I said slowly, glancing at Twilight.

My chest contracted painfully when she averted her gaze immediately. The signs are multiplying.

“Great! I’m really happy it helped you then!” Pinkie cheered, taking my hoof into her own and shaking it up and down.

“Likewise…” I ignored the numbness spreading in that leg, up to my shoulder, making the comment a little robotic-like. “It was a nice party…”

Fortunately, a pony or two in this room were not that great at reading the mood.

“You can bet it was! We played so many games!” Calx jumped in between us, wearing a wide grin and shaking with excitement. “Rising Gold was so jealous of me! He kept saying he wanted a big brother now!”

Adorableness levels, increasing… increasing… critical level reached.

“Aw, ain’t ya lucky ya do have one, eh?” Applejack chuckled, joined in her laugher by Fluttershy and Twilight.

Tom puffed his chest and spread his wings proudly. “Duh! My big brother is the best one there is!”

Had I wanted to be stoic, I would have failed miserably. My gaze was directed toward him and I could not look away. I-I just… Elders, it felt like I was going to cry. After having it beaten in my head that I was a bad stallion, it felt really nice to have at least one pony on my side.

A loud crash had us all jolt in shock. As one pony, we turned around, violently to cause enough whiplash to anypony BUT Pinkie Pie. The scene we were treated in for was strangely worth the pain…

Two easily recognizable mares had ran into each other, trying to enter the room unnoticed. No, that wasn’t quite true. Two usually recognizable mares had collided and sent a ridiculously pompous vase to its demise. Then again, Rainbow Dash and Rarity probably envied that untimely destruction the inanimate had been subject to, if only by the blush spreading to their whole heads.

Rainbow Dash’s was strategically hidden by a royal guard’s helmet that had tainted her coat and mane a darker shade of blue, which was quite trendy to be honest.

Striking me as the oddest detail had to be the attire Rarity was covered in though. It was just so… so tastelessly overwhelming. From her horn to her hooves, she seemed to have used every piece of fabric possible to cover herself. Fashionable giant hat, epic sunglasses, silky scarf, hips-covering coat… one would be hard pressed to recognize the unicorn under all those clo-

The reason flashed in my mind, making me fight a snort. Somepony doesn’t want to be seen this morning. Not after yesterday night… Yes, she had been somewhat lucid after her session of mouth sucking with Blueblood, so that’s to be expected. Oh, I do not want to be in her horseshoes right now.

Thank the Elders my conversation with Twilight had gone on unnoticed outside the ballroom.

For a brief moment, nopony really said anything, preferring to stare at the two strangely behaving mares that had pretty much intruded into our cutesy moment. For once, neither of them could summon their self-confidence and their sense of worth, probably still reeling from last night’s party.

“Soooo…” Twilight said awkwardly, looking away from her dreadfully embarrassed friends. “W-what brings you here so early?”

Aw crap, I hadn’t thought of that. Last night was probably safe, but this is sure to be an episode scene or something! The whole Mane Six is leaving Canterlot! T-th-they probably haven’t caught up on the shipping yet…

The idea of a void to be trapped in forever made my blood freeze.

“W-well…” I coughed, fighting a nervous laugh. “Cousin Celly told me you wished to speak to me before taking part in any task I had in mind. Might I ask what you wanted of me this morning?”

They seemed surprised at my question. It probably wasn’t the right thing to say…

Nonetheless, eyes slightly wider than usual, Twilight was the one to step forward.

Good… if she was still willing to talk to me, then things weren’t lost yet.

“We… hum… wanted to talk to you before we left. According to the princesses, we’re not needed at the moment, so it’s best if we go back to Ponyville.”

“You’re leaving!?” Calx shouted, lips threatening to form a pout. “Awwww, come on!”

“I’m very sorry, Calx…” Fluttershy took a step forward, hiding halfway behind her mane. “Most… of us had to take an impromptu break from our jobs a-and…”

“Eh, that was fine by me.”

“Oh, I’m sure Rainbow, dear, but some of us have a reputation of hard work and diligence to maintain.” She gave a pointed glare to her airborne friend, sliding the sunglasses on her muzzle so the emotion could be appropriately conveyed. It was an impressive display of resentment and anger. “I can only pull the ‘Celestia needed me’ card for so long before some of my clients look for another designer!”

Dash’ eyes narrowed. “Hey! I do have a reputation too. It’s awesome, if you didn’t know.”

Yeah… you do have a reputation, especially ‘cause of your mane, Rainbow… and unjustified if I judge by last night’s events.

“Knock it off, y’all.” Applejack walked in between them. “This ain’t the time for yer lil’ cat fights. Y’all been bickering all night and morning. We’re just sick of it now!”

“R-right…” Twilight spoke up again, sending uneasy looks between her friends. They exchanged glares and silent threats of fashionable or unfashionable horrors. “A-as I was saying… w-we’ll be… taking the train back to Ponyville today…”

In the corner of my eyes, I saw Tom’s ears droop with disappointment and I had to painfully fight my first instinct not to do the same. Through some effort, I affected a hesitant, quiet voice.

“So that’s what you choose?” It came out as a whisper, forcing most ponies in the room to strain their hearing to get it.

This isn’t good! There’s got to be something…

Softly, I leaned forward and nuzzled her neck. Warmth crept up to my cheeks and hers, especially with so many witnesses, but I couldn’t risk not doing anything. So I took another step forward and extended a wing to enlace her.

Wordless gasps came out from the mares surrounding us, while one little colt snorted in amusement and pretended to gag. However, Twilight’s reaction was the strongest, at least in terms on impact on me.

She squeaked, freezing at the sudden contact. She seriously had no idea how to react to romance. This was just painful to do.

“I-I’m sorry…” I whispered under my breath. “What I did last night was not appropriate… b-but it did… it did mean something important to me…”

Did it?

“I… I need you here.” My embrace involuntarily strengthened, the emotion starting to mess with my restraint. “Will you not stay with me at least a little longer?”

There was a flash of light and suddenly I wasn’t hugging anypony. Just a meter away from me, the purple of her fur was like a beacon, gathering my attention after she had made herself deliberately inaccessible.

Seeing her apprehensions, I felt fear crawling at the back of my head. “Twilight…”

“This is not… this is too fast, Ventus. I need time to think!”

My mouth twisted into a pained grimace. I wasn’t faking that, at least. I truly was pleading for her to stay. “You know that’s not something I can give you…”

“Whoa there, lovercolt, ya might want to give Twi space for her to breath.”

To my own surprise, my heart squeezed in my chest when the cowpony pushed us further away from each other. It got worse when Twilight let out a sigh of relief.

“Yes… of course…” I said, trying to sound regal again, but my heart just wasn’t up to it.

I had been so blatant – so freaking moronic and impulsive –, that an uncomfortable silence had installed itself between us. Nopony really said anything, nor dared to try. I did shoot a few glances at Twilight, hoping to get her to react, but she pointedly avoided my gaze. The only pony in the room that didn't look like he wanted to leave was because he only felt vaguely concerned by this turn of events.

Yes, Calx was just waiting, examining his hooves impatiently with the hopes that somepony would just step up already.

Applejack did.

“So, huh… we’ll... take our leave. Lots of work to do. See ya, princes.”

And like that, they hurried out of the room, on the verge of running to get their own baggages for the trip back to Ponyville.

Six mares were boarding the train from Canterlot to Ponyville that morning. Of them, two were simply taking naps, being confident in the stability of their lives, especially when they were going back home.

Three others were thinking ahead on the workload they had doubtlessly accumulated over the passing days. The very notion of such a thing left one mare guilty at leaving her tasks to the rest of her family, but a princess’ summoning wasn’t something anypony could refuse like that.

And one very much hangover unicorn felt her face burn up every time she repeated the prince’s words in her mind. ‘What I did last night was not appropriate…’ Something not appropriate…?! With Twilight?!

Where did it all go to Tartarus so quickly? One minute it seemed like… like maybe there was something between us… at least coming from HER! S-she did not seem to be resenting me, but she… she just left. Like that! There was so little ceremony in a princess like her leaving the capital of Equestria that it HAD to have been on purpose.

I was giving myself a headache trying to figure out how to properly woo Twilight and convince her to come back, help me and Calx and keep it a secret, preferably without getting flamed to death by either a certain fandom or another, the second being a group of ponies that didn’t like their Element of Magic being screwed over.

Of course, since I was trying to focus, Tom being a little brat meant there was this brotherly tradition he couldn’t ignore at the moment. Thus, he was jumping up and down, chanting.

“Sam’s got a crush on Twilight, Sam’s got a crush on Twi-”

The nerve destroying sound abruptly disappeared. Noticing that, he stopped, staring at his muzzle with shock, trying to speak but with nothing coming out. With a glare in my direction, he got to know the source of that strange event.

My horn was glowing. “Ah, there’s nothing quite like abusing the laws of nature to shut you up in the morning, squirt.”

His expression turned into a sour pout. It was the typical kind that showed up whenever he didn’t feel like doing something or he was denied what he wanted to be doing. That little pout had zero effect on me. It didn’t tug at my heartstrings.

Good, or else I would really feel bad about my next words.

“Time for you to go to class…”

In retrospect, the silencing spell was even more of a genius idea that I first figured. None of his whining and groaning reached my ears. Oh glorious magic, how I love your usefulness.

“Look, I think I got it. This season does have a big plot twist.”

His jaw closed down on the snack and spicy flavors filled his mouth. The sensation was nice and comforting, after yet another day that just didn’t work out for him. He appreciated the simple fun of having a taste of his favorite chips. The only downside was the fine film of seasoning sticking to his fingers. He couldn’t use his keyboard like that.

Oh well, he wasn’t actively typing anyway. Plus, he’d be crazy to jump in between those two when they were arguing about ponies.

“Oh, get off it, Love. The writers just screwed it up, the whole season.”

There we go again. Those two were literally on opposite side of the 'mlp' spectrum, though LoveCupcake was on the much scarcely spread side of the fandom.

BestDerp, on the other hand, was vehemently calling every new episode with prominent focus on any of the new characters complete garbage. He wasn’t the only one either. Eric was hard pressed to fight that opinion. ‘My Little Pony’ wasn’t actually that bad, just… not up to its usual level of quality.

“Season four is officially non-existent, except for the real episodes.”

“Oh, BestDerp, {obligatory comment about that river in Egypt}!”

That one brought a smile to Eric’s lips. It was so predictable, but, for some reason, he still found it funny. The same couldn’t be said of his fellow brony.

“Whatever, Love, it didn’t capture the usual feeling of MLP at all! It’s like one big train wreck and we’re forced to watch.”

Some of the young man’s chips seemed to form a ball in his throat. He had had the same impression BestDerp had described, but not toward the show. No, it was aimed more closely toward his relationship with… well, everyone…

His psychiatrist had deemed him fit for the cessation of their weekly meetings. The last one had left him feeling somewhat adequate. He had worked through his guilt complex, understanding that no, he wasn’t responsible for his friends’ departures, Sam even less so. Bad luck, she had said.

Still, her encouragements had been nice.

It was only after his friends had mostly left his life that he noticed how empty it was. It wasn’t the first time he lost some friends, but he would have preferred it never happened nonetheless.

Being alone sucks. Though n-not as much as… He thought back on Mr. and Mrs. Miller. His attempt at participating in the searches had turned sour rapidly, when the two parents had started arguing just as he approached them.

Eric had judged wise to slip away unnoticed at that moment, but the image was burned in his brain.

With a sigh, he swallowed again, hoping to make the uncomfortable sensation go down and fade away.

On the screen, the conversation had gone on, culminating on some virtual screaming. Caps lock had been thrown, bold fonts and even one or two memes.

“I’m telling you, Derp! You’re not looking at the signs from the right perspective!”

“It’s just bad writing!”

“No, it’s not! They’ve planted plenty of hints throughout the season! Heck, Rarity herself made notes of inconsistencies in their behavior. It’s not a fault, the conflicting information are just the sign of a conflict within the show! You were the one to say they give a different vibe from the rest of the ponies. Heck, they even use nicknames appropriate for their true nature!”

The angry came fast and angry, in the middle of Love’s explanation. “DON’T YOU DARE HINT THAT!”

“They’re humans in Equestria!”

Breaking noises echoed in the small room, deafening, as the cup of coffee slipped between Eric’s fingers and fell to the ground. The furious succession of alerts from his chatroom’s browser flew right over his head.

The brony was staring blankly at his screen.

Equestrian laws could be extraordinarily weird. A few hours of reading dull enough to make me fall asleep had at least thought me that. While a few seemed to be remnants of an ancient time, some sounded foreign to the Sam part of me.

For example, shunning somepony was held a more severe offense than physically assault them. Opposing that was this ancient text saying that any insult to honor of one’s family could be legally retaliated by one such assault of equal weight, though this only applied to noble recipients.

THAT explained so much, yet so little… For starters, my previous onslaught against a certain white stallion daintily taunted me. Not fear, but puzzlement grew within me, a taint of shame also breaking through at the implications.

If BLUEBLOOD was legally entitled to revenge against me, why hadn’t he done anything yet?

Quietly

The only sound was silence.

Well, that was not quite true. On the wall on my left, there was a small wooden clock, punctuating each second with an obnoxious ‘toc’.

Again and again. Just that one dull sound. It racked on the nerves and the brain like nothing else, preventing one from achieving good focus by making that same noise at the exact wrong moment.

I could have had true silence. A flicker of my horn and no sound would reach me, should I so much express the desire. But I couldn’t bring myself to. S-sometimes… I was worried I might forget.

Not forget this task, but forget why I cared. At times, it was harder to pretend these hooves hid human flesh… from time to time, I just stared at my muzzle or at my wings and pretended to see what I was like underneath…

I couldn’t recall every detail… not every generality either…

Well, that might not mean much…

The subjects contained within those scrolls were fascinating… oh so fascinating… no time to ponder on other stuff.

Okay, to be fair, this could be quite interesting. Ignoring the message in Celestia sending me to study Equestrian laws, the reasoning between the ponies’ rules and regulations, in addition to the sanctions inflicted each time, well… it’s kind of neat.

My eyes were slowly skimming over the forbidden practice, in exercise or in study, unless they were heavily supervised. The phrasing was refreshingly direct too.

Evil magic, which constitutes an offense worthy of horn removal, is the practice of magic with eroding effect on the empathy center of the brain. Torture of any pony or other citizen through the use of magic will be considered ‘Evil’. DUH.

A unicorn king, with an ashen grey coat hidden by a red cape and a horn curved and bloody, made his way to the center of my mind. There was no doubt possible on whether he had been an adept.

More intriguing though was the aforementioned effect on the empathy of the being that used evil magic. It seemed worth my attention…

Further down the page though, another line blew my mind.

Chaos magic is considered outlawed, by virtue of it altering the laws of the world and thus endangering every living being.

Oh, it wasn’t about how chaos magic was outlawed. After Discord, anything less would be moronic. No, rather, my focus was on the weight of what had been reminded to me.

Altering the laws of… A shiver went down my spine, all the way to my core.

Chaos, this concept that had alicorns of all ages grimace in disgust at the sheer mention of its name… t-this impossibility that we are not allowed to think of.

It altered the laws of the world and alicorns are laws. To alter the laws… would be the same as…altering alicorns... or...

Reality warping.

Countless moments of horror came back to me, as I tried to remember how often… how badly my world had shattered and had been replaced by another. So many times had my history changed… had others’ history changed.

I already knew it was reality warping. I knew about balance, in how one side of the spectrum is all about following a certain Order, while the other is about breaking it.

Things hadn’t changed. This didn’t change anything…

Chaos is reality warping. D-does that mean…?

To imagine an alicorn wrapped in it, in Chaos, like a cocoon or a costume, should have been inconceivable, simply alien and out-of-this-world to me. Yet… well, I was here, wasn’t I?

Yes. I was.

And Celestia had wanted me to read this… It could only mean one thing. Seriously.

She knows. Buck… she knows… Chaos is forbidden by law… lest they destroy themselves, right? So the punishment for its practice…

Words just failed me to express my dismay.

I wanted to panic. It felt like the appropriate response to somepony as powerful as her having deduced things such as illegal magic use by us, but I could also see that for her to send me here had to have significance. If this was her method to announce that she knew exactly what had transpired before, what had happened… then it also meant she was not going to punish us just yet. Not openly, at the very least…

Why bother doing it this way otherwise? There was no need to hide. What? Would the scandal of another alicorn turning out to be evil too dangerous to the Royal Pony Sisters’ rule? Or was it just the fact that nobility as a whole seemed quite petty?

I’m really turning up the self-loathing, ain’t I?

Speak of the devil…

Prince Blueblood entered the library, his mane not nearly as well-groomed as it usually was, falling into his eyes and given him a generally disheveled and uncaring appearance. He was not dressed either, a first for him since I had met him.

Not that I wanted to know more about the pompous idiot, but it was… well… intriguing to say the least. The laws about him being entitled to revenge did float in my head for a few seconds, before deciding that, as bad as he could be, he was still trying to better himself.

Which a lot more than what I can say about me.

“Prince Ventus,” he whispered in passing, acknowledging me with a nod before stiffly making his way to a shelf nearby.

His whole body screamed of tension, his muscles seemingly locked when he stood tall. The outlines of his neck stretching to spot the right title, the princely stallion did want to appear nervous, but his self-control was lacking.

Strange. He had generally seemed to have a decent poker face before. Perhaps it was just being in my presence that unnerved him. I could get why…

With shaky control over his magic, he missed his first levitation spell, which caused the book to fall off the shelf entirely. In a library, the sound had the impact of a thunderclap. Had I not been staring before, I would have let out a whinny of fright, like that janitor three shelves away.

Thank buck I didn’t. That would have been humiliating.

A snarl briefly appearing on his face, Blueblood took a deep breath and picked up the book again, this time with a steady flow of magic. With a sigh, he placed it into his saddlebag and turned to leave.

It seemed as if that unexpected meeting would end up quite innocuous, when…

“We never did finish that conversation from last night,” I thought out loud.

My own eyes almost flew out of their orbits. Why did I just say that?!

He had stopped dead in his track and slowly turned around to face me. His lack of words betrayed his confusion.

“Oh, perhaps you don’t remember, what’s with the alcohol and all…” Even if I clearly remember what I did last night… “I recall you being somewhat surprised at the newest assignments Celestia has given my brother and myself. Something about ‘being more to it than that’. Have you drawn any conclusion so far?”

He bit his lips, doubtlessly regretting making that observation now. Nonetheless, he answered, with conviction.

“I might not pretend to know your own schedule, Ventus, but I would rather not accumulate work for later for the sake of your curiosity. What I can do now, I will.”

I was a little surprised, not gonna lie. Oh, so you have a work ethic now? …Actually, I don’t really know if you had one before or not…

“Is it only for my sake, though?” I asked, then answered mentally. Eh, probably.

His lips pressed into a thin line. He obviously didn’t want to spend that much more time here and might even have an actual workload, but I could bet that, at the moment, there was a little voice whispering in his ear about how this might be something he would need.

With a resigned “fine”, Blueblood sat down at my table. Ignoring the pit of anxiety in my stomach, I tossed aside my readings. His presence, usually so nerve grating, had yet to put me on edge in that brief exchange.

It was better than nothing…

This is a bit of a test… will I lose my cool or not? And if I do…

“How is your quest of becoming a decent stallion turning out for you?” I asked, not willing to allow uncomfortable silence.

With a derisive snort, he gave a bitter mocking bow. “Why, I am doing well. How about yours, kettle?”

I would appreciate if you were a little more of an empty-headed idiot, for starters.

The most infuriating about this was that time was giving Blueblood a much better standing ground against me than the opposite.

“I am trying to understand the laws of this kingdom.” I shrugged. “It is quite interesting.”

“Oh?” His smile was joyless. “How barbaric and primitive are they to you?”

I walked right into this one.

“They aren’t.” I sighed, feeling a little on the down low, what’s with examples of my stupidity or my short-temper flaring into evidence. Closing my eyes, I willed myself not to mess this one up again. “I do apologize for that. It was thoroughly insulting to you and to every citizen of Equestria. In a show of anger, I went much further than I should have.”

A few seconds went by without anything happening, so I let light filter between my eyelids again.

Blueblood was eying me with wide eyes and a hanging jaw. He looked absolutely stunned.

“Y-you…” He opened his mouth, but no further sound came out. He closed it quickly, not knowing what to say.

His reaction stung a bit. Still, I managed to keep those emotions in check too.

“Anyway, the point of this was that I read about an old law, one that I figured you might have heard of. Noble ponies can, if their pride or honor are gravely attacked, retaliate in equal measure. My actions certainly would have allowed this to stand in court, would it not? Yet… yet you did nothing against me afterward. Was that another sign of the good pony you are underneath the mask?”

To my surprise, Blueblood looked away, showing nothing of the arrogance I had thought he would use to justify his lack.

“I-it wasn’t… being the better stallion…” He said so quietly another pony would not have heard it. “You’re an alicorn! I did not want to show myself as stupid as to aggravate matters between us.”

I blinked. Okay, that was a lot to digest. Not only was he denying a compliment made to him, he was also putting his mistakes at the front.

…Parts of me were really impressed.

Obviously though, Blueblood himself wasn’t. His head hung low, he seemed a little pitiful…

“A lifetime of work, that’s what you burdened me with.”

Cry me a river… I wanted to scream. Sure, his situation wasn’t particularly pleasant, but hell if I did not have my own problems to deal with…

I held in a sigh.

“I think you’re doing a good job, Blueblood.”

“W-what? Do you not listen? I just admitted how bad of a po-” He cut himself off in a panic. “I mean… how different…”

I nodded, feeling quite serene. “Not provoking a dangerous foe over a slight is a good thing. Fearing for your safety certainly isn’t a fault. Knowing that cowardice could be one such fault and acknowledging your own is quite the accomplishment, Prince, even if not quite in context...”

I wasn’t angry. I wasn’t bitter. Heck, I wasn’t even lying.

It was pretty cool that even a sleaze like him could see the errors of his way and try to change. And I had to try to be less of an unpleasant psycho. Enough ponies were on my back for my lack of action already. What kind of guilt tripping bandwagon would we be talking about if they saw the images in my head?

“You’re not done, but it’s a nice way to start. There are still some things you need to address.”

My remark made him shift on his hooves, or rather, squirm in place, as his rump was still very much against a cushion on the ground. He leaned slightly forward, as if to say something, but leaned back at the last moment.

Taking that as permission to go on, I paused to search for the right way to phrase my next grief with him.

“Treating mares the way you do…” Now, I’m just projecting… “Quite frankly, that is enough to earn you a good kick in the face.”

He looked exactly as if I had given him one.

“T-those mares throw themselves at me as if I were nothing but a pretty statue for them to show off!” Blueblood stood up, fire in his eyes. “Gold diggers are simply a plague upon any rich pony’s existence, but it gets to a whole new level when it comes to the nobility!”

I blinked, certainly not expecting justification like this. My mental image of Blueblood needed to be updated, quickly if possible.

“All my life I have had to deal with those insufferable vultures! You’ll excuse me for not treating them like actual living beings with feelings. I just thought I would return the favor!”

“W-well… perhaps some of them wa-”

“Have you not met at least a few mares that wished to share your bed!?” His outraged demeanor slipped a little, as the corner of his lips itched upward and the volume of his voice dropped. “No need to lie either, Prince Ventus. This is all strictly stallion conversation.”

Don’t go bro on me, Blueblood. Don’t you dare! My brain recoiled in horror, while my inner crazy wanted to smirk back to the idiot stallion. Damn my teenager mind. Four hundreds, perhaps, but still a teenager's mind, damn.

“There was one, just last night.” I wanted to gag. “She even decided to feel me up when I didn’t reply… Thank my parents my brother didn’t wake up then!”

“So quickly?” He blinked, before giving a silent chuckle. His eyes lit up with amusement. “Well, perhaps it was more one of the adventurous kind, the ones that like the bragging rights of sleeping with royalty.”

His smug tone pretty much confirmed my suspicions. I was not that naïve.

“Why do I have the feeling you don’t hate those nearly enough?”

“You wound me,” Blueblood said, putting a hoof over his chest, which he puffed out proudly. “As if I would take advantage of quick consensual and mostly attachment-free encounters between two rational beings.”

Real subtle, you lucky bastard.

“Still, those aren’t the worst. Oh no, those sweet flanks aren’t the worst. Nor are these soft fluffy wings. Nor those exotic black and white stripes.”

I rolled my eyes. Give him an acting medal, somepony!

“I was mysteriously under that impression as well, Blueblood. They probably aren’t the worst if you both know what is actually happening, I guess.”

Strangely though, his smug lewdness mostly vanished in the place of a sober, saddened grimace. “The sweet and naïve type, that’s what you must be looking out for the most.”

My stomach churned. Oh buck…

“T-they will not leave…” His eyes obscured a bit. “N-not without having their hearts broken… s-some more harshly than others…”

He fell silent after that.

I could imagine. Strangely, I could imagine precisely what being Blueblood would be like at that moment.

You are at the summit of the world and you know it, you’re royalty in the nation lead by two alicorns. You are above mere peasants and peons. So often, they are wooed by your charms… or your title and your money.

So many of them that you start to just hate those vapid, headless mares and just want them to leave you alone. Some aren’t even nobles!

Some seem like decent mares, if only they didn’t have such a foalish dream… They want to marry a prince and have beautiful foals? Well, there is only one prince and that’s you. So they will take you, not because you’re you, but because you’re a prince. Oh well, they can settle for a stallion they never met before. He’s handsome and rich.

It starts to grate on your nerves. So you lash back.

It feels good to see them leave you alone. It feels bad to see the tears glittering as they fall on the ground when they do leave.

And now, you question yourself. Were you right to hurt them?

“Trying to become a better pony is not easy. It means to take a look at yourself and point out that which you know is ugly. That is, without a doubt, a courageous thing to do. It’s what makes it so extraordinary, Blueblood.”

A non-committing grunt came from his general direction, of the variety that made one laugh with triumph. Words of wisdom swayed him not, but darn if it wasn’t fun to give.

“Well, then, you cannot become anything without starting somewhere. All you need to do is find the appropriate course of action, the one a truly noble pony would choose, and take small steps on that path. Don’t pretend you’re not feeling at least guilty about some of those rejections you had to dish out.” I let the stallion stew on it for a second, using to pretend I didn’t have a plan. “Have you ever apologized to Miss Rarity?”

His jaw dropping in horror made me grin savagely on the inside. On the outside, I affected an innocent demeanor.

He wasn’t fooled.

“Now you are just trying to torture me! You cannot ignore the way she treated me at the end of the night! I even tried not to be as hard on her as the others.”

That was you holding back? Holy buck, you’re a flankhole.

“So… you won’t apologize?”

“I refuse! She saw me as nothing than a pretty dream and didn’t bother to look at me. Would you go out with mares that are only after the title, even if they are dignified about it!? And then have the gall to insult you on top of everything?!”

“No.” I shook my head and hardened my gaze. “I would not. That is not what love is about.”

Nor is emotional manipulation, but I sure am trying my hooves at it…

“But neither is being good. It… isn’t about determining who is worth not being treated like dirt. There… shouldn’t… BE a standard for that…” I replied, slow and hesitant. It would not do to rush things to their conclusion, not when dealing with a pony as prideful as Blueblood. “The Element of Generosity wasn’t very generous that night. I will freely admit that. However, that does not negate your part in it. You crushed her dreams and expectations as surely as she crushed yours.”

He sucked in air quickly, his breath hitching with an unnamed expectation. Or perhaps it was disappointment that I had not seen eye-to-eye with his point of view.

His muscles weren’t tensed anymore, but the look of silent anticipation on his face was telling. It appeared as if he wanted to relax, but knew better. Smart stallion.

“If I had to say one more thing about your night together though… well, she didn’t mean to hurt you. You wanted her to pay for her lack of consideration. You aimed to drive her away and it worked quite well. You both hurt one another, so you are both to blame, not blameless.”

He visibly cringed at that. If I was less insensitive, I might have stopped there.

“Besides, if you want to become a better pony, you will have to face your previous mistakes and attempt to fix them in earnest. Being a flankhole to so many ponies is one imperative fault you must learn to deal with. You might as well start with an obvious target.”

His eye twitched. “I… suppose you might have a point.”

Now, this should be fun.

“But if she tries to kiss me again, you can be sure your name will be crossed off my list of ponies that may offer some wisdom.”

Oh yeah, this WILL be fun.

However, while I listened to him ramble about how I was terrible at giving advices, a thought occurred to me. It wasn’t incredulity, annoyance, nor anger. It was simple confusion.

Why am I even doing this?

The only sound was silence.

It was quite natural however, as the only pony in the chamber was a maid, Silent Praise being her name. Her years of experience and loyal service had earned her a privileged position amongst the castle staff. With a few others, she was given a mostly free access to her princesses’ private chambers for cleaning and maintenance. She had earned that trust and never tested it.

As such, the thought of reading the scroll that appeared in a puff of green smoke didn’t even cross her mind. Without a fuss, Silent Praise simply put it on her ruler’s bedside table, where it would be easily seen and noticed.

The only sound was silence.

The borders of Equestria itself, when correctly referred to as the country, ended at their northern limits by a series of mountains taller than the height the bravest pegasus could fly up to. At the summit of the world, in that place, where it seemed as if the earth was reaching for the sky, stood the city of the first griffon king.

It was as much of a beautiful place as it was a harsh one, an appropriate allegory to the nature of a griffon’s lifestyle. Brutish and even barbaric to some, but not incapable of magnificence by any means. All of stone carved right out of the mountainside, the fortress watched over the rest of the world, its stone walls less of an actual protection than a show of the power held by beings that could and did stand at the top of their world.

‘Let the lesser races weep in fear of the death from above’ had been the most famous words from King Airian, before declaring war on Equestria.

Great had been his arrogance and his pride and joy remained standing, an ominous presence that waited for its chance to flood the lower levels of existence with the primal fear of the hunt.

Thus, Galepeck Castle was and would continue to be.

Any mortal would have compared it to a sand castle had they been given the chance to lay their eyes on the Greater Tribunal.

Beyond the words, beyond the ideas that were, there were those creatures whose existence acted as part of the cosmic balance. Lesser spirits were immature and their ages could still be imagined by mortals, albeit in a roundabout way and never understood for the abyss in time it represented.

Greater beings had the mortals’ mind crack.

The Elders however could not be perceived, less they allow it… Otherwise… Lights and noises, a collection of sensorial signals that translated to nothing, beings that were and were not.

The only sound was silence.

Nothing else could be expected when the Trinity stood united, calling for their presences. Events such as this one were a rarity, a once in a century occurrence, for the alicorns gathered solely to reestablish the natural order of worlds.

All were assembled at that point in time, amongst the stars and the void; their hooves, their wings and their horns took form and consciousness came. The few missing had duties that could not be forsaken. It had been their mission before, it remained so.

It was more than a simple mission that made them so wary however. Lesser spirits were uneasy and that same sentiment could at least be echoed in the actions of greater ones. Unrest was spreading amongst them…

A decree would be issued today. Order would be restored.

It was the innate purpose of the one hundred and one alicorns of the Greater Tribunal.

Overseeing all would be the Trinity, the Elders of Order.

Three beings that even alicorns did not fully understand, with a scope of power and existence beyond all but themselves and their fellow Elders.

But they knew of them and they knew of their own place in the scheme of Eternity.

Incipiens Linea, the very first being, older than Harmony itself. Incipiens Linea had come into existence and made it the natural order of things.

As was proper, she was always the first to convey her thoughts.

Words and images flashed in the assembled alicorns’ mind, translating to the will of the first. They saw of two of their own, immature spirits and lesser concepts. They saw the defiance of the law and the disturbance of order. They were made to know of the consequences, of the impending future of one world turning into a frozen wasteland.

A shiver went through the assembly, as they could not fathom actions so alien as to go against Order.

And two worried parents felt their heart shrivel weakly.

Not images this time, but different emotions spread to them all, as Vitam Mortem was not facts and words. It was the beating heart and the still body. Fear – ancient fear and shame – of their own child and their own failure. Heads hung lower, but not without anger or troubled hearts.

Difference. The two children were different, despite the obvious nature of their relationship. One hadn’t fallen. Yet.

It was a possibility, though one that elicited a cry of indignation from the crimson red stallion and his mate.

The act was improper, against the rules of the Greater Tribunal. One could not speak outside their bounds, lest they allow chaos to slip into their ranks. And that would be unforgiveable.

Magnus and Atonie stood defiant and tall despite the weight of the gazes turned toward them. To back down now would be an implicit support to the accusations; that they would never allow.

Silence stretched.

Tension increased.

Finally, pleasant perfumes from worlds beyond mortals’ imagination filled the minds and hearts.

A gesture of peace.

An offering of one’s self had been made, as was proper and orderly when wishing for consideration. The action calmed down more heated spirits, while Magnus smiled in gratitude at some old friends. When the initial surprise had subdued, his mate reacted the same way, especially when her gaze fell on them.

Dominus Ferus and Saltus Cogere had no children to call their own, but they had expressed fondness toward the two alicorns brothers. Their opinion was now registered and noted; they wished not for this trial to go on much longer.

Few agreed. They could not let themselves be swayed by sentimentality.

A stomp of a hoof resonated in vibrations through the room, but still the silence was not broken. The last of the Trinity had called for order.

Judicium Frigus.

Born in opposition to Chaos, the sworn arch-enemy of Discord, if there was such a thing in the draconequus’ twisted mind.

Justice and Retribution.

Innocents might suffer. That was all they needed to know to take action.

The second that truth had been shared with them, the assembly nodded collectively, even those opposed to its goal in the first place. Justice would prevail.

The culprits would be punished. It was just.

One more opposed, with the knowledge of previous tasks given to the transgressors.

Hope flaring in their chests, Magnus and Atonie turned, showing gratitude in their own offerings toward the being. It nodded softly and offered a story of peaceful nights, parents and children reunited.

Three beings could see the light of distrust that appeared in Judicium’s gaze. One of them simply wanted to smirk, but refused to be disrespectful to him.

Renascentia Ignis. Not Elder, but Outer, as her origins were unknown, but her being was undeniable. She took the form of a mare, simple and elegant. One could not deny her a sense of dignity beneath that playfulness she was known for.

Fiery red bangs hiding so little of her knowing blue eyes that all could see the note of knowledge beyond the simple ideal of Order, a coat of a startling white and devotion to her work that had some ashamed.

She was The Writer. The one that changed the stories for the better, until they fit the vision that would be appropriately shared. Her existence seemed dictated by the changes she brought. Rumors spoke of her as a shaper of worlds; rumors spoke on how she had earned the respect of Incipiens Linea.

That one, some suspected, understood far more than any other alicorn. Her goals differed from them all, but witnesses could not condemn her, for her talent made worlds just.

An impression of anger ensnarled the alicorns’ hearts, righteous fury set them ablaze. One hundred alicorns glared as one toward the arrogant outsider.

Renascentia held not the power to oppose the Tribunal, Judicium made them understand. They agreed. Already, her daughters had shown themselves corruptible, one being taken over by evil magic, the other consorting with Chaos.

But tales of growth and beauty started chanting through their minds in response to the barren rage of the Elder being. They were strings of words and meanings woven into a great tapestry. It was a thing of beauty, of ideas they represented, of ideals they were meant to be.

For a moment, they wavered, some more strongly than others, a few not needing Renascentia’s arguments to side with her.

The impression disappeared, blown away by an angry flash of an incandescent wing. A few lesser spirits wept at the glimpse of the Elder.

It was decreed shortly afterward, to the dismay of two parents, silently hoping for a mercy they were not certain would be given. Had they been beings of flesh and blood, their stomachs might have churned with fear and despair.

Already, one of the Trinity had disappeared from the Greater Tribunal. He was now headed toward one mortal realm, with the intention to deliver proper judgment and restore the true state of things.

Not a word had been exchanged. None would be. Not until this was fixed. Not in the face of a crisis as dire as this one.

The realm of Order, dimension of the Primordial Law and the home of the alicorns, had cracked.

Casual

Somehow, after him finally managing to write a letter to Rarity, we had started making small talk.

How?! How in the seven circles of Tartarus did we get to this point?

“The invention is a booming revolution. It’s opening up the skies to all races of ponies and non-ponies now, not just pegasi and griffins. Granted, hot air balloons were already doing that, but the level of control on airships takes the experience to a much higher level.”

Even more disturbing was the fact that this was actually a captivating conversation. For real!

Okay, it had a lot to do with flight and the sky itself, so maybe that was a biological compulsion in me, but still, what the hay?

“How widespread are those airships?” I asked, fighting a flutter in my wings. More ponies to like the sky…

That question seemed to have quite the effect on the prince. His growing confidence and general happiness faded rapidly, leaving him with a blush across his cheeks.

“N-not all that far…” He coughed. “Nobility is notably not keen on taking part in adventurous trips, even less so with prototypes.”

My own enthusiasm deflated at his words. I can imagine.

“I don’t suppose you’re amongst them?” I said casually, purposefully avoiding his gaze.

“Of course not!” He shouted. “My personal airship was already christened! It’s flying marvelously, but since there aren’t many ponies both interested and rich enough, the projects are stalling in development.”

His heartbreak was palpable, which brought some curious thoughts to the front of my mind.

“Forgive my confusion, Blueblood, but would it not have been easy to just… use your status and hasten that process?”

For a moment, he averted his gaze and fell into silence. His expression was pained, but its meaning seemed hidden quite well. It could have meant a number of thing, some as simple as him not being able to as interesting as him not wanting to.

However, I did remember him, alone on his balcony one night, looking at the sky longingly and cursing his own station. There had been desire and despair in the then adolescent pony’s eyes.

Now fully grown and considered the number one most eligible bachelor in Canterlot, Blueblood seemed ridiculously similar.

“No,” he whispered.

“Why? I could understand that you do not wish for this now, but before…” My voice trailed off.

Actually, I did understand, or rather, foresaw what it implied about him that he hadn’t abused his power or his connections to push forward a project he liked. But that still left me with some questions. If he already had that kind of character depths previously, what made it so hard for him to change for the better?

I was hesitant to ask, especially when he was already having such troubles finding the right path for him. The timing just wasn’t right for this.

Besides, my questioning seemed to have set him off, as he eyed me cautiously. The beginning of a frown had formed at the edge of his eyebrows. Easily, interrogations flew through the air between us, most of them coming directly from him.

“Do you know what this stands for?” He asked, turning around to give me a view of his flanks.

I made the most logical and less nauseating guess by default.

“Isn’t that the compass rose?” My eyes focused exclusively on the picture adorning his flanks.

Quickly enough, the absurd train of thought was cut off short as I tried to make sense of where he meant to go with this.

“Indeed. My cutie mark means I am exceptional when it comes to finding my way.” He could not help but puff his chest proudly. Some things… “However, I really prefer thinking about it being a sign of me being a good navigator.”

“I suppose that makes sense from a certain point of view.” I nodded. “While I’m not quite certain on how this link back to my previous question, it certainly is better for ponies to choose rather tha-”

The loud banging noise made me jolt.

“You don’t cheat about your cutie mark!” He yelled, his hooves firmly set against the table between us.

“I see…” I muttered, while internally feeling that no, I wasn’t seeing it. At all.

Huh… why does this surprise me so much? I’m knowledgeable, but pony mentalities certainly isn’t my area of expertise. If they value it so much more, then so be it. I’m not going to let myself be shackled by a pretty picture.

Subconsciously, my eyes darted to the mark magically tattooed on my butt. I hadn’t ever really taken time to think about this. My concerns hadn’t really been about my ‘destiny’, but the very concrete need to leave this place forever.

Still, warmth did spread in my chest at the sight of the waving symbols of wind.

Blueblood interrupted my thoughts softly.

“I… I… huh… don’t suppose you… would like to t-try boarding one of them?”

I need to think ahead. That’s too many times he’s said something I really didn’t see coming.

“I… I understand the… perhaps you could call it hypocrisy… of refusing to ask my aunts… for help, but then turn around and ask you…” He bit his lips harshly, searching for the correct way to express himself. There was a nervousness to his movement that had me believe he feared my reaction. “I am not asking you to back me up, but I would like to see what you do think of them. Perhaps a bit of sailing this evening w-would .”

Well, now I’m a little stuck. Flying is… it i-isn’t…

“Y-you see…” I said, unable to prevent my ears from drooping. “T-the thing is…”

Picking up on it, the prince’s own dismay showed in his grimace. Dejectedly, he only let out a very bitter “Oh…”

Something inside me pushed me to at least elaborate. “You see, I am not very fond of the idea of flying…”

Quickly, Blueblood blinked, trying to process the admittance. Then, he scoffed, completely disbelieving what I had just admitted. “Now, that is a weak lie, Prince Ventus. The Alicorn of Wind does not like flying?”

I remained silent, which only served to aggravate him further.

“Next thing you’ll tell me, your brother doesn’t like to keep his hooves… on the… ground…” His voice trailed off, just as memories started to hit him.

My eyes were still on him, with just the level of intensity that begged him to keep thinking. The cogs of his mind were indeed turning behind his face. It was easy to see how he straightened out and how the derision faded from his features.

“Celestia’s beard, you’re not kidding,” he whispered, the shock still making his voice vibrate.

“I’m afraid not, Blueblood.” My tail twitched, even as my gaze went to the nearest window.

I don’t want to fly in the sky… Parts of my brain couldn’t even wrap themselves around the idea. Those wings of mine… they actually felt a little superfluous…

“H-how?!” The prince demanded. “This makes no sense!”

“Really?” I asked, legitimately surprised by his surprise. “I suppose it might be easier to illustrate it somewhat…”

“It might, yes,” the white stallion repeated derisively.

I paused, trying to articulate the right way to picture it for a normal pony. Blueblood, unfortunately, wasn’t feeling very patient as his frown deepened. “…Did Celestia – or Luna – ever explain to you what an alicorn is?”

Instantly, his head shook from right to left, though the movement also betrayed a rolling of eyes at my idiotic inquiry.

“Your aunt is physically the sun. It’s an integral part of her, just like the moon is part of Luna… or the air being part of me.”

His breath hitched and I felt a tug at the back of my mind in response. His voice came out weak, almost faint. “W-wait…”

“Would you feel comfortable taking a bath in your own blood? This is probably the best analogy I can use when somepony asks me to fly. It’s a part of me, why would I want to single myself out in myself and… Listen, this isn’t a pleasant sensation for me and that should be enough for you to understand.”

Slowly, he nodded, even if his grimace had deepened. “A-and what we’re breathing…”

“Yeah…”

Prince Blueblood could not suppress a shiver. Worse still, his eyes seemed a little unfocused, as if unable to quite accept the idea just yet.

“Calx certainly loves to fly. His presence is so easy for me to detect then, perhaps he knows that…” His assaults from above had been repeatedly foiled, but also relentless, as if he hadn’t needed to search for me. “I’d rather not make my visit more unpleasant and alien than it already feels like for me… so, yes, I do keep my hooves on the ground as much as possible.”

Even stone constructions, albeit hard on the hooves, were preferable to that unease that came from the idea of flying as a separate entity from my concept. It was easier to focus my mind on things as trivial as sound traveling the distance between ponies or the movement caused by a twitch of a muscle.

It could help detect unease, stress and restlessness. There was no doubt these adjectives applied to the prince in my presence.

“I… understand…” Blueblood whispered, regrets and sadness obvious in his tone. “I… would an apology be appropriate? I thought you wanted to… that perhaps it was just another ploy to undermine me.”

…The sad part is that it’s not completely untrue. However, I can’t let him know that…

With a chuckle, I offered him an encouraging smile. “Well, it would be the right thing to do, Prince Blueblood.”

Folding of one knee, he bowed, which had my eyes wide as saucers. Luckily, the stallion had lowered his head, ashamed.“T-then, you… you have my most sincere apology.”

My mind was a little blank at the stunt he had just pulled. I could only say, weakly, the first thing that came to mind. “I… I will board on one of these if you believe it could help…”

Crap… after I had just gotten out of it too!

Surprised, he stared at me for a second. “Didn’t you just say…?”

Too late for that now…

Hopefully not bitterly, I managed an indulgent snort, as if he had asked a grade-school level question. “Yes, I did say it was not something I would like to do, but you have come asking for my help, humbly might I add, and it is within my power to do so. Albeit not particularly pleasant for me, I will do what I can to help. Remember that doing what you know is the better choice might also be the hardest, Blueblood. You really ought to prepare yourself for this.”

For a moment, the stallion opened his mouth, but no sound would come out. A few hesitant steps backward and he really seemed to think he ought to stop now. His eyes almost screamed a plea that it wasn’t actually how he was supposed to act. Easily, I could imagine him thinking about bathing in his own blood.

“N-no…” My jaw tightened, pain erupting in mad signals from the muscles in my cheeks. I was letting too much of my anger filter. “It isn’t so easy.”

I felt my mask slip. It had been an impulse, I knew, but a glimpse of my true feelings was visible at that moment. And Blueblood was staring right at me, with slightly wider eyes and perhaps a hint of fear again.

“Don’t expect to mean it at first. Make the idea ingrained in your mind before. Let time transform a forced action into a habit, and hopefully into something you will sincerely do.”

It’s like lying. You get used to it really quickly.

“Luckily, the end result is the same: you’ll have helped somepony even at the cost of yourself. With that, I can guarantee, lots of ponies will know you are good afterward.”

Or believe you are.

Her quill hovered shakily over the piece of parchment. Drops of ink almost glittered with the purple taint of her magic.

“Do I?” She asked, inching the quill closer.

“Or do I not?!” She threw herself away from it, droplets of black liquid staining the paper and her desk.

Princess Twilight Sparkle could feel the weight of her decision on her mind.

“I mean, he is attractive, physically, and for the love of Celestia, his voice!” The alicorn’s voice became raspy with the dilemma. “But there must be more to it than that! It’s not just physical! Otherwise I’d be on Big Mac like ink on a-”

Her scream startled Owlowicious off his perks, who proceeded to fly off a few feet away from his mistress. Few good things happened to the owl whenever Twilight Sparkle was screaming her frustration away or, incidentally, when she was so frantically quiet that her expression turned manic and deranged.

So far, the lavender alicorn had simply paced in the library crazily, trying and spectacularly failing to make a new checklist. The title at the top of the parchment, elegantly written, seemed perfectly inconspicuous to anypony but her. It read : ‘Do I like like Prince Ventus or not?’. So far, it remained perfectly blank.

“Just thinking about him makes me really, really nervous!” Twilight stared at her opened copy of ‘Love for the Neophytes’, regretting it now that her every interactions with him was coming back to her. Her cheeks were flushed a pleasant dark purple.

Her lips felt even hotter. Timidly, she brought a hoof to them, delicately stroking the bottom one and trying to summon that one moment where her world had turned upside down.

“And it felt really really good when he first kissed me! But it happened so quickly! I couldn’t place a word! It was too fast! W-what if he wants commitment?!” Breaking that dam with words had sent her brain into overdrive and had it assault her with a series of vivid images. “Marriage?! Foals?! I’M NOT READY TO HAVE FOALS! I’M STILL A VIRGIN!”

To make matters much worse for the distraught mare, she heard a juvenile boy’s voice behind her. “You’re still a what, Twilight?”

If there had been a spell in her arsenal that allowed her to disappear forever, she would have casted it.

As it unfortunately stood, Twilight had no such spell at her disposal and she was left staring madly into blank space, dots dancing in her vision. Completely immobile, her mind split in half and any possible rational explanation flew right out of the window.

“AAAAAH! SPIKE! WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?!” She shouted, standing on her hind legs.

Used to these outbursts, the small dragon only flinched and jumped back a few inches, before getting his cool back.

“…I’m working; I’m your number one assistant. Didn’t you want me to clean the kitchen?” He raised the feather duster he was holding in his paw as proof. “I was going to sort the returned books now. But you still haven’t told me what’s a vir-”

“WELL, I can see you did a fantastic job, Spike!” She pointed out at the mess of books and scrolls he barely had the time to start picking up. “It’s marvelous as it is, you can go outside play with your friends!”

Blinking, Spike glanced at the incredibly messy amount of books before looking at her in confusion. “B-but, Twilight…”

“Tatatata! Owlowicious can do your share of chores today!” She smiled brightly, completely ignoring the cry of outrage from her pet bird. “It will do you a lot of good to just take some time for yourself, Spike!”

Without even waiting for an answer, she lit up her horn and engulfed him in a purple aura. Effortlessly, she escorted him out of the library. There, she gently dropped him in the grass and dashed inside muttering about ‘tooyoungtooyoungtooyoung!’. With a slam, the library was closed to the general public.

His jaw hanging in disbelief, the little dragon stared incredulously at the wooden door. Rapidly, he got to his feet and went to knock strongly against the obstacle between him and his big sister.

“Twilight, what’s wrong with you?!” His frown deepened. “Is this another deadline thing?”

“N-not at all, Spike!” Her voice trembled. “I just think you deserve a day off for doing such good work all the time! Go talk to the other foals your age. I’m sure your friends will be happy to play with you.”

The little dragon heart fell as he looked at the library.

“B-but I don’t have…”

The ground shook strongly, almost knocking her off balance.

“Discord?” She asked, half shocked, half groaning internally. “W-what are you doing?”

“Oh my, hello Fluttershy. Nice seeing you,” the draconequus greeted her, taking off his horns in lieu of a hat.

“Likewise…” The pegasus said quietly.

Hesitantly, her legs carried her closer to the scene, ignoring the beret and full body armor Discord had suddenly started wearing.

“If you don’t mind me asking, what is… this?”

“This, my dear, is a message.” He bragged, extending his arms wide as if to present the fruit of his seconds of labor.

“A message?” Fluttershy repeated, confused by the strange floral arrangement. “What kind of message? A-and for whom?”

“Oh, but it’s really easy to read, Fluttershy. Look.”

A blinding flash of light momentarily stunned the poor mare. Dots dancing before her eyes, she had to blink several time before regaining her sight.

She let out a squeak when she did.

The clouds floating lazily around her had told her everything she needed to know. In fright, her wings had closed against her body, but, luckily, her body did not obey the laws of gravity, instead being supported by her trickster friend.

“Please, Fluttershy, open your eyes or this was really all pointless.”

“S-sorry, this was just too sudden.” She sent a weak glare to him.

“Just look down,” he asked, rolling his eyes.

Obeying him, though not without suspicion, Fluttershy sent her gaze downward and immediately felt her eyes widen with surprise.

The field had been turned into a gigantic mosaic of dashing colors, through flowers of so many species she could not identify them all, even if she had had more time and been closer to the ground.

“You see, I have this old friend of mine and I wanted to communicate with him, but he lives a bit far away. I had to make it grand enough for him to see.”

The kind pegasus frowned. “The flowers here make a picture of your butt, with ‘bite this’ and an arrow next to it.”

“The poor dear doesn’t know what eating is like and I’ve been trying to get him to get more healthy. Since my body is perfection, I figured this might just do the trick.”

Her frown deepening, Fluttershy pointed at another flower patch with her hoof. “This one says ‘oh, it is good to be free to make the world a bit more chaotic’.”

“Well, he hasn’t gone out in eons!” The draconequus threw his arms upwards, dramatic lightning striking the ground below them, as his friend miraculously stayed afloat without anyone to hold her. “He needs to get on with the news and Celestia wanted me to use my powers for good, right?”

“…Right,” she said quietly, looking away.

Her gaze fell on the third message, though this one was strangely written with various appliances, including a toaster that spat out green fume.

“Take that stick out of your rump?” She quoted, her eyes narrowing threateningly at her eccentric friend. “Discord. That is not very nice!”

“Now, now, I believe it is my duty to inform you that that guy is a total bore. He can only go on and on about one thing! It’s just not healthy!”

Following his falsely exasperated tirade, she didn’t make a comment right away, her thoughts instead drifting toward her fellow Elements of Harmony and how this could easily apply to some of them…

“Take me, for example.” Discord’s tail whipped out, grabbing a big fat load of nothing and putting it in front of him. “Just now, you expected it to explode into a couple of streamers and then a human would pop out and say ‘Surprise’! and then-”

Fluttershy timidly rose her hoof to interrupt him. “A-actually, I thought you would mold it like cake mix and it would become a train.”

Yellow eyes blinked.

“Well, well, well,” he chuckled. “I am glad to see we are a good influence on one another. And glad to see I still got it.”

With a snap of his claws, he created a flash that displaced them from their peaking spot in the sky. The sudden change almost made the poor pegasus fall off her hooves.

“Now then, what did you want to ask me?” Discord said, while sitting down on a red and blue sofa, unfolding a parasol and drinking from an empty glass.

Unfazed, Fluttershy took a few small steps toward him and, full of defiance, deflated at the last second.

“W-well… it’s Mother’s Day tomorrow a-and… and I thought, if you’re not busy, and I’m sorry for assuming, that you’d like to spend it with somepony.”

The sofa flew away, taking with it any and all accessories Discord had on his person. Said ageless being proceeded to stare, making his friend shrink on herself.

“N-not, you know, all alone…”

Chirping crickets broke the silence, but the draconequus finally smiled.

“I would love to, my dear Fluttershy.”

Motherly

The letter had arrived in the morning, early. When she had seen the seal and whom it had come from, her first action had been to keep the scroll away from her, but, within minutes of diverting her gaze, it had started naturally turning back to it.

In the end, she hadn’t resisted.

Dear Twilight,

It is unfortunate that this must be the second time I must present an apology to you, but I cannot simply silence this. My actions have made you uncomfortable and this is a fault I mustn’t repeat. I am afraid my self-control failed me in your presence. If I could promise you perfect control, I would, but I am afraid my attraction to you might be stronger.

Until we can both be certain of our sentiment for one another, if there is such a thing, I would nonetheless hope we could continue communicating via these letters. I have heard from my cousin that you have a remarkably fast way of keeping contact with her. Perhaps this could allow us to learn more from each other without… internal influences.

With hopes that you will reply to this letter,

Prince Ventus.

Her magic keeping the message afloat, Twilight bit her lips, pensive. What was she supposed to think? Her sentiments toward the whole situation and the stallion himself were still muddied by uncertainty and, today, she would like things to be simple. As such, Twilight telekinetically grabbed her two train tickets and her number one sleeping assistant, departing for the station.

Visiting the Crystal Empire with her parents would be quite nice, she decided, especially when they had inside ponies to give them support should it be needed. Sometimes, it paid off to be related to so many royals.

The song of roosters had long since echoed in the orchards of the Apple family. With each sunrise, the three earth pony siblings would rise from their slumbers and prepare for their daily chores with various degrees of acceptance.

Youngest and most energetic of them all, Applebloom had made a habit of putting a token protest at wasting her time with chores every day. Unsettled as of the moment for a future she knew nothing of, the filly certainly could not focus long on mundane tasks when there were crusade to be had.

The Apples’ kitchen remained stunningly calm and undisturbed, with the exception of a few dishes being handled.

Similarly, the bulky hooves of the eldest sibling carried him not in the fields, but upstairs, carrying a very special something in his mouth. Despite his weight, none of the wooden planks creaked and his little trip upstairs went on in peaceful silence. Unfamiliar witnesses might have believed he was going to wake his little sisters for the day, but both were busy cooking downstairs. It was not before his room that he stopped either.

Gently, Big Mac grabbed the handle of the door and pushed it open, careful not to make any noise. Only darkness would have welcomed him beyond the slimmer of light he brought in, had it not been for a few words mumbled by a cranky old voice.

After putting his gift on her bedside table, the red stallion softly brought her up from the land of dreams. “Morning, Gran.”

Blinking and muttering, Granny Smith’s first reflex was to grab for the first thing she could, which happened to be her curtains.

Hurriedly, breaking from his unperturbed stride, Big Mac almost ran to catch up his grandmother before she threw herself down the bed and broke her hips. It, unfortunately, wouldn’t be the first time.

“Lil’ Macky?” The elderly mare called in confusion from his front legs, her wrinkle face crunched up while she tried to identify her grandchild.

“Eeyup.” He nodded, and picked up the bouquet he had brought with him. “AJ, Bloom and I got ya this.”

Giving the flowers a tentative lick and sniff, Granny Smith turned her focus entirely on the little folded piece of cardboard rather than the enticing snack.

“Aw, you big doofus,” she said as she picked the card up, though her tone implied playfulness. “Ah can’t read s’mething so small without mah glasses.”

“’s okay, Granny.” His mouth curled up in a smile. “Ain’t the words that’s important.”

No, indeed they were not.

In other parts of town, a few more ponies stirred away from their sleep, some of them mothers receiving the pleasant surprise of a breakfast in bed cooked by enthusiastic foals. The results, sometimes quite spectacular in more ways than one, always felt special to those lucky mares.

How else could a mother react to a token of her family’s affection? The love was palpable, even in the craziest displays and shows of appreciation.

Mrs. Cake was visited by an escalating sense of foreboding before it all went to Tartarus.

I had not welcomed the rising sun this morning. Its light had caused pounding against the sides of my head. The sensation had not been unrelated to a bad hangover, though I was certain that I hadn’t drunk on the airship.

Mostly certain…

My memories of the day before were… hazy. I did remember the essential, namely Calx owning the local poker game and the windigo, but after that…? I wasn’t quite sure.

Caelum had been whispering in my ears. Or at least, what I assumed to be his voice, but then again, it sounded ridiculously similar to mine. The differences were mostly in the tone and the inflexions.

It made for a blurry recollection, leaving the airship a little later and going back to our shared room, laughing at the stories told. A mist covered most of these images.

The guards… the servants… the nobles… Calx… their faces are there… but I can’t hear them. Like others wouldn’t listen to me.

A pulsing flame heated the depth of my chest, trying to spread a boiling anger to the rest of my being, but it remained… muted, muffled. It remained, a fragment of hatred that would neither fade nor take over.

Doing my best to ignore it, I tried to relocate my attention elsewhere, but the other scene available to me at the moment was just as heart wrenching, though with sorrow rather than hatred.

Calx looked a lot less confident and boastful than usual. His demeanor was eerily calm, with his wings placated against his sides rather than flaring up at every opportunity, with his gaze dull and unfocused. At first, I couldn’t tell the reason behind this sudden change of personality and it struck a chord in me.

At first. My own nature worked against me today.

I was hearing the voices of the Equestrian. It wasn’t new. What had changed however was that I could not tune them all out so easily, not with the event of the previous day still so vivid. My mind felt out of balance and, as such, so did my magic. To be completely honest though, even perfect control over my magic could not have stopped me from hearing it. The words exchanged were simply too attention grabbing.

“Happy Mother’s Day!” They said, all around Equestria.

My heart contracted painfully enough to send shockwaves through the rest of my being. So suddenly, the metaphorical blade had cut straight through my chest and emptied it.

Less than longing, perhaps more, there was a craving in me for even a small morsel of motherly love today. I just wanted… I wanted them to know how much I loved them…

Which ones? I asked myself, but the answer came out surprisingly easily. All of them, of course.

Likewise, my little brother certainly had thoughts of the same type. His hooves seemed to be too heavy, grating the stone with each step, for it to be another reason.

“Come on,” I whispered, lifting Calx up with a twist of my magic. “Let’s try to have some fun today, okay?”

“…’Kay…” He muttered, crestfallen.

I hoped the emptiness in his voice was only temporary.

It would be blatantly unfair to say that she did not understand the spirit of the holiday; it would be even worse to say that her own mannerism was proof of her lack of respect for her parents. No, Rarity did understand how important it was to honor one’s parents and make it apparent.

Still, would it have killed her mom to choose clothing that wasn’t draining the fabulous from the air simply by existing? It was true, however, that in comparison to her last outing, Miss Pearl’s fashion sense had improved drastically. That peculiar occasion had made Hoity Toity faint. Luckily, his recollection of the events fortunately left out Rarity. Nowadays, Miss Pearl’s clothing habits simply had the fashionista internally die each second she spent in sight of that outfit.

Her whole family had gathered at a small restaurant near the edge of town, reputed to serve nice quaint little breakfasts, light and healthy. It was delicious. That, however, was a double-edged sword, as a fair number of ponies had chosen the location for an early family reunion.

“And then, there was that time when I stayed at Rarity’s house and the girls came for a mini-sleepover!” Her sweet little sister shouted, gathering more attention and thus causing Rarity to die more on the inside. Again. “We stayed up all night!”

“Y-yeah…” The fashionista gave a faint chuckle, her eyes darting around to “It was so nice to take care of you and your friends all night after you destroyed my supply of perfume.”

Sweetie Belle had the good grace to look guilty.

Their mother would have made a comment, which, judging from her expression and dismissing wave of hoof, would have been along the lines of “Aw, cut your sister some slack, Rarity. I’m sure her and her little friends didn’t mean to.”

However, before any remark could be made, the small family heard a syrupy voice.

“My, Rarity, what a pleasant surprise!” They turned toward a beige pegasus speaking with such sweetness that flies would soon be attracted to her person. “I didn’t think I would see you today.”

“Fine Stitch, the shock is absolutely mutual.” Rarity assured her icily.

Her parents and her sister glanced at the mare, before turning back to the fashionista. “Who is that, my little bumpkin?”

“This is Fine Stitch,” Rarity said mechanically, remarkably neutral sounding. “She is a semi-professional mannequin that just recently moved here.”

“Why, then, it’s a pleasure meeting you, Miss Stitch. Pretty fancy clothes you’re wearing there, darling.” Pearl gave an approving nod, which her husband replicated.

“Yes, yes they are. I love to follow the latest fashion trends. This scarf here is a Calves Klein. Isn’t it lovely?”

“Sure is, Miss Stitch.” Sweetie Belle giggled, then, to the horror of her big sister, added a little something. “Do you want to have lunch with us?”

Celestia suddenly found herself being silently prayed to about how, in the name of all that is fashionable and drop dead gorgeous, she should lead that pain in the rump Stitch away from them forever. The Alicorn of the Sun unfortunately had no time to share for this triviality.

Thus, the sapphire blue mare sent a look to the table they were sharing. The food served in particular gathered her attention.

“Hay Fries and Salad?” The haughty mare remarked in mock shock, eying the meals they were sharing with a convincing concern. “Dear, isn’t that a little… plain?”

At that point, even cute innocent Sweetie Belle had stopped smiling. However, her sister had not. It was a smile too large, too big and frankly, too insincere to resemble anything but a snarl.

“Then again, I could understand you not wanting to ruin that…” The mare’s eyes fell on Pearl’s clothes, causing the edges of her mouth to curl upward with smug superiority. “...That outstanding ensemble.”

Confused as to whether she should be happy with the compliment toward her mother, Sweetie Belle settled for finding out the source of that blood chilling scrapping noise that had started saturating the air. She shrunk back in her seat when she realized it came from her sister grinding her teeth together.

“Oh, it. Is. ON!” The white unicorn stood up, eye twitching. “I challenge you to a duel to the fashion death!”

“My poor Rarity, you were always too pre-”

“The game is hoofball!” Rarity slammed her hooves into the table, making her father grin like Heart’s Warming Eve had come early. “First mare to score fifty points wins, loser has to wear last week’s fashionable ensemble!”

Suddenly, Fine Stitch spontaneously realized that she had gotten herself in a whole leap of trouble. And that last week’s fashionable ensemble did not fit with her mane at all!

The staff on hoof had been minimal, serving only a few nobles in the dining hall in contrast to the overwhelmingly large room. With so many empty seats around us, it was quite awkward to eat breakfast. No recognizable faces to exchange vapid pleasantries with, no, just a silent introspection and a terrible aching for our parents.

Still, I made an effort to be polite and gentle with the maids stuck serving us on what appeared to be a national holiday. It might have echoed empty and my smile might have appeared hollow, but the look in their eyes conveyed understanding, at least.

Nopony made any comment when we decided to leave early, though one green mare seemed to hesitate, looking at Calx sadly.

The hallways of Canterlot Castle gave the impression of being void of life. We would be hard pressed to run into one servant or guard. The holiday’s importance seemed to be just as big as I had evaluated. It made it impossible for us to think of anything but them.

At this point, I just felt like the Universe was rubbing salt in my wounds purely for the sake of it.

Mechanically, my little brother led the way to his tutor’s room in the castle. It was in an isolated part of the western section. On my own, I wouldn’t have bothered visit the place.

The door to the living room seemed to have been unlocked, as he pushed on it without even bothering to knock, instead making his way in like it was his second home.

Honestly, the environment was cozy enough for me to accept it without even a mental fight. Drapes and cushions were placed strategically, creating an impression of intimacy that could be quite welcomed in a learning studio. In the middle of the room, in front of a chalkboard, a simple student desk awaited him.

“Hi Mrs. Catch Crop,” Calx dully recited, showing little to no energy. In my mind, the only images that came to me were seriously disturbing pictures of pony zombies.

“Hello, Mr. Iugum.” A familiar alto voice came from the adjacent room, growing slightly louder as she appeared in the doorframe. “Have you completed your homework on the second Equestrian conflict with the diamond dogs?”

I didn’t know who I expected, but it certainly wasn’t HER. The difference between the mare was in the lighting. This time, we weren’t almost alone in the dark, but Calx was still an unknowing witness.

My first assessment back then hadn’t been wrong, she was sexy, with the right curves to her red hips and that little kick in her movement, but darn it if I didn’t hate her face. Especially when her gaze fell on me and switched from normal to predatory.

“Hello Prince Ventus.” Okay, the Tartarus? How’d she make a simple hello sound like an invitation to her bedroom?! “I am very glad to see you. You left so abruptly the last time. It was so lonely to wait alone in that big empty bed.”

If you didn’t get the message after I run the buck away from you, you’re a moron!

“Didn’t I tell you last time to-”

"Hey, Miss Catch!” Calx suddenly cut me off, a grin appearing on his face. “Is it okay if I go fetch my homework and leave you alone with my brother?"

We both turned to him with wide eyes.

"Like... for two or three hours?” He asked innocently, though I knew better. “Would that be enough?"

Sometimes, the fact that he could read me like an open book was a curse. Seriously, he knew exactly how much this pissed me off, which made it that much more hilarious for him.

Watch your back, you little squirt! You’re going to get it later.

Catch Crop’s smile turned downright saucy. “Perfect, Calx. You also get a bonus point on your assignment.”

I watched in astonishment as my little brother ran snickering, toward his freedom and leaving me with this skank.

Wait, is he really selling my body for his grades in school? Nah, it’s to get a vacation. Twilight Zone… and not the cute librarian type either. “Tell me I’m dreaming.”

“Oh, it is a dream,” she said, stroking my chin with her tail. “And it’s about to get even better.”

I didn’t know what pissed me off the most: the fact that she had groped me or that she was just so utterly unashamed of having done it. Also, I was SO going to practice my wrestling moves on Calx once this was over.

“Have you no shame?” I hissed. “You courted me, despite my protests, in front of him! TWICE!”

She truly seemed unflappable. “If the issue was the place, you could always just knock at my door tonight.”

My face unfortunately exploded with heat. The knowing light in her grin was enough to accentuate the humiliation.

Through gritted teeth, I let out a frustrated growl. “Don’t wait up, you might get to experience another ‘lonely night in that big empty bed’ of yours, which I suppose is quite often for such a bitch!”

Oh, this time, she certainly didn’t shrug it off. In a flash, her expression went from confident seductress to that of righteous fury. With a snarl, she threw herself forward, an impulse going down her right front leg as she raised it to strike.

My rational mind went down the drain. For a split second, something animalistic, primal, took control of my limbs, blinding me to everything but the all-compassing hatred of that idiot mare that dared move to hurt me. In a blur of colors, I stood on my hind legs and stomped.

As quickly as it had started, that outburst died, with one of her leg firmly stuck against the ground. Catch Crop had fallen on her side, the momentum of her attack throwing her off balance when I had pushed over that very same leg.

I loomed over her, seeing her through a filter of blood thirst and anger. Both our breathing was heavy; but while mine was pants of anger, hers resembled a series of panicked whimpers. Her pupils, shrunk to dots, were hard to see through a small film of tears.

My body felt cold, my wings were fully extended and stretching, each one of my exhalation brought a small could of icy air; I could hear the song of the blizzard’s wind. Shrilled ringing was threatening to split my head open.

Briefly, I lost sight of the thing under me, my vision turning white.

Beneath me wasn’t a castle of stone and an impudent mare, but the wide open space of the sky. The land stretched for miles beyond what my eyes could see.

My body wasn’t solid. It was air.

Cold air.

The land was warm. It was covered in green. It needed to be white.

“P-please… let go…” The terrified whisper broke through my trance.

Trembling was communicated to one of my hoof, but I wasn’t the source. It was her. The fleeting thought of making her realize that I wasn’t playing hard to get was sweet.

I shouldn’t… this is already dangerous waters to thread by…

Slowly, I lowered the pressure applied on her hoof, then stepped back. The fur in that spot was ruffled and the shape of my own hoof was imprinted there. It looked bad.

Darn it. I put too much strength in it…

“This will leave a bruise.” A silky thread flew by us, cooled by an icy breeze, then enlaced her hurting limb. “Try not to put too much weight on it.”

The care I tried to put in my voice rang hollow, even to myself, but I had to try. I had to keep trying to put on the right mask, even when it felt much too late. It mattered not in the end. Out of shock or fear, she did not call me out on it.

She’s more likely to avoid me like the plague now…

Feeling the weight of my action starting to wear on my shoulders, I turned toward the door swiftly. Trying to keep the nausea at bay, I focused my gaze onto the painted windows outside the room, in the hallways. Feeling her eyes still on me, I saw an opportunity.

“Calx is not coming here anymore. It matters not what Celestia has to say about it, he’s not keeping you for a teacher.”

She did not say a thing.

Breathing in… breathing out… It was her respiration. Not mine. No, everything she breathes IS mine, I should-

I shook my head, trying to chase the idea before it led to a fatal consequence.

This isn’t working… Sooner or later, I’ll end up killing somepony… And then things will become really dire.

Without realizing it, I put more strength in my legs, pushing harder against the ground and moving faster. My mind was still toward the hyperventilation and the breaking that came from Catch Crop’s room. I was too close, I could still feel everything about her and it made disgust crawl over my skin.

I had to get away, quickly! My hooves created a thundering sound hitting the floor, again and again. I didn’t even think to become immaterial, all that mattered was to escape this slithering malice clawing at my heart.

It was this desperation and mindless impulse that guided me straight into the pony walking around the corner, the impact of our collision having pain flash in my face and making me bounce backward. Unceremoniously, I fell off on my rump, forcing me to, appropriately, look up to the one I had ran into.

“Cousin Celly?” I asked, blinking.

The image of the white alicorn, radiant, shedding light over me had the darkness recede, if only out of fear. Her benevolent smile barely affected me, though I did let out an inner sigh of relief.

“Why, hello Ventus.” She offered a hoof to help me stand up, which I accepted gratefully. “Are you alright?”

“I… yes. I apologize for this…” Heat crept up to my cheeks, as my ears drooped with the embarrassment. “I had too much on my mind.” Thoughts of murder and horrific pain, mostly.

“Well, we can call this a lucky accident then.” Celestia turned around, flexing her wing forward as an invitation to walk next to her. “I was looking for you.”

“Looking for me?” I repeated, hesitantly making my way up to her side.

As was becoming a recurring occurrence for her, the lightness of her interaction decreased, reaching a polite but distant tone. “I have heard of your escapade yesterday evening.”

The weight of her words had me sweating. Uneasy, I fought a grimace, looking away from a split second before giving a curt nod. I didn’t trust my voice to remain calm or strong enough.

“So you consciously disobeyed my orders and left the castle’s premise?”

Buck, I can’t believe that didn’t even cross my mind before!

“…Yes.” The sound came out almost raspy. “I did.”

Her gaze hardened, but not overly so. Disappointment rolled off of her in waves.

Keeping up a calm exterior, I waited for her to go on. Truthfully, I was kicking myself for not planning ahead for this conversation. There had to be a skillfully fabricated motivation I could use to justify that, but being put on the spot didn’t help my concentration, especially not with the words whispered in my ears.

She sounded surprisingly calm when she addressed me. “Would you care to justify your actions?”

Admittedly, I spent a small moment silent, figuring out what to say. That I had felt the impulse of our race? That Tom wanted a bit of fresh air and it was the best available option? That I was considering buying one such airship?

…When did lying become my first course of action? Oh right, since I decided to hide the truth of our origin, whatever it is now… If I were to start that moment over, would I change anything?

And thinking back on Blueblood, who was making progresses, I realized that, at the very least, I didn’t want that to be lost. This time, the truth really seemed a much more elegant and simple option.

“It had been requested of me.”

“By our nephew?” She guessed accurately.

“Yes, he wanted… my opinion of his airship.”

The way her lips formed a tight line, I guessed that she had understood with just those words. Still, my guts were telling me not to under evaluate what my actions were about.

“I felt it more important to support Prince Blueblood in his soul searching than to obey your command on that one occasion. What is happening to him is a grand and powerful change, that I dare not stifle, as it may be his last chance at a greater life. If he stops now, there is no guarantee he will not snob his next chance. I chose what I believed would be for the best.”

Celestia looked at me silently for a long time.

Finally, she spoke without a single trace of emotion. “The goal of staying in the castle was to minimize the possible impacts your presence and that of your brother would have in Equestria. Was there any incident worth noting during this little excursion?”

“A windigo.”

It was funny, truly, to see the carefully guarded princess blink in surprise. The sight made it harder for me to keep a grin off my lips.

“I took care of it,” I said simply. “It’s gone.”

Throwing her off her game with the absolute truth. Just to give the impression that she can at least trust me when the horseshoes are off.

“Gone?” She repeated slowly.

“The one we met will never bother you again, this much is a certainty.”

Contrarily to my expectations, Celestia simply closed her eyes. “If that is the end of it… so be it.”

Now, I was surprised. “Are you not going to punish me for defying your orders?” Is it not how alicorns act?

As she turned to me, her eyes opened, showing leniency and perhaps even worry. “No. I believe I understand your reasons and this time, I am willing to overlook your actions.”

“T-then…?” I was so confused. Why would she insist I follow her if not to inflict some other form of punishment on me?

Her lips curled up in a small smile at my own surprise, but I could also detect… pity at my reaction. “Equestria is not so cruel a world, Ventus.”

“Tia!” Another alicorn’s voice rang through the corridor.

Hearing this call, Celestia turned quickly, as did I, toward Princess Luna.

For a second, my mind became a blank. From the impression I had first been given, she lived through a nocturnal cycle most of the time, accompanied by her guards and any pony that wished to deal with Luna rather than Celestia. The other impression of her that I had concerned cold contempt for me and age olds question about the very essence of my soul.

So yeah, daytime meeting with Luna, not what I expected.

But my gaze didn’t remain on the Alicorn of the Night for long. I was much preoccupied by the blue colt following her halfheartedly.

It was a far cry from his earlier impishness around his tutor… but rather close to his behavior beforehand. His head hung low, scrapping the ground with every step and refusing to make eye contact. A bad presentiment visited me, but the desire to protect him was stronger than even my fear.

“Hey.” I kneeled down to his level, opening a wing for him to hide under. “What’s up, lil’ brother? You look sad.”

“There was this…” His voice broke and he fought a sob, quickly hiding his face in my shoulder. “This filly, she was calling for her mother…”

I heard this sound of breaking, caused by the schism that jumped in my chest and slowly pushed two sides apart. My heart sank, broken, leaving only an emptiness that made it hard to breath. I could only try to fight my own aching for our parents.

“It’s okay,” I whispered, closing my wing over his body. “We’re going to see them soon.”

His grip hardened. “I miss them…”

Closing my eyes, I nuzzled him with the hope to transmit even a little of the sentiment he craved for. “I know.”

To my shock though, twins sets of wings pressed on my own back, gently spreading a comfortable warmth to my whole being. For a second, my consciousness went to my past, toward the Astral Planes and the numerous alicorns. Father and Mother had held me so, most of the times at my demand. I could see their faces… I could see their love…

Opening my eyes was a torture at this point, for I knew the reality would quickly replace the fantasy. Regretfully, I allowed my eyelids to part and let the light filter my surroundings again. My gaze was on Calx, only on him, as I did not think I could face either Celestia or Luna at the moment.

I couldn’t summon up the strength to be annoyed at them! Even if I only wanted us to be left alone, the delicate and comforting touch was slowly melting away my reluctance. The two royal sisters were acting… motherly. And Elders, Calx and I needed that so badly.

“Now that we are all gathered, it feels appropriate for us to speak of our idea,” Luna started, a small tender smile directed at us.

Continuing, Celestia also smiled, alternatively looking at each alicorn in the hallway. “This is a delicate topic, we know, but we also understand the longing for a mother long lost.”

…W-what?

“Would you accompany us today in our endeavors, young ones? It would please us greatly to share our agenda with you.”

I had no words.

The loud whistle rang through the train station, bringing a wince to the few ponies that got off. Their ensuing glares at the train driver made him smile sheepishly and amicably wave their way.

There were a few that hadn’t been bothered by the loud and shrill noise, as they had just been reunited with an important part of their family.

“It’s good to see you, B.B.B.F.F.,” Twilight stepped forward, passing a front leg around his leg and squeezing.

“Same here, lil’ sis, same here.” Shining Armor replied, patting her back a few times, before breaking the hug. “So, how’s the trip been? Peaceful I hope?”

“Oh, it was really nice.” The young mare nodded, lifting her luggage and her assistant’s with her magic. “Spike slept almost through the whole thing, so I had plenty of time to dive into the latest book in Miss. Sleeping Heart’s novel. Of course, before that, Pinkie had to give us a small farewe-”

“Shining Armor!” A childish voice abruptly cut her off, as did the purple blur that ran straight into said stallion.

“Whoa there, little guy.” The eldest sibling looked down to his leg and the baby dragon attached to it. “Missed me?”

“You think?” Spike groaned. “It’s just girls stuff all over. All the time. Save me!”

“I wouldn’t be much of a royal guard if I didn’t help my fellow males to escape the domination of the evil, yucky mares, would I?” The white stallion chuckled and lifted his little brother on his back.

Next to them, Twilight rolled her eyes, muttering something to the effect of “Colts…” However, she straightened up when, after noticing her reaction, both boys had started snickering and looking for other ways to annoy her.

“Where’s Cadence?” She swiftly asked, preempting any of their attempts.

“Oh, back at the castle, Twiley. Somepony had to stay and show off our inner gymnasium to our parents. It just so happens that Cadence lost a bet recently.”

The young alicorn’s eyes widened in surprise. “You mean everypony’s already here?”

“Yeah, Mom and Dad arrived yesterday night.” Shining Armor mentioned offhandedly.

“Wow, I didn’t think they’d already be here.” Blinking, Twilight brought an unfolded scroll

“Sounds like you’re the last one to arrive. One could say that you’re…” He broke into a teasing grin, waggling his eyebrows at them. “Tardy.”

Spike’s claws abruptly covered his mouth, snorting loudly, while Twilight’s cheek colored a deep purple.

“Hush!” She flicked her tail at her brother’s face. “Come on, let’s get going. With the others already here, my whole schedule is messed up. No time to lose.”

Nodding, the other two members of the Sparkle family exchanged a look and agreed to follow. Seeing as Twilight was getting ahead of them, Shining Armor used the opportunity to ask a certain question. “You’re sure you're doing fine in Ponyville?”

“Well… I don’t get a chance to hang out with a lot of guys back there, you know?” The little dragon said after a short hesitation, grimacing.

“I get where you’re coming from, Spike, but if it was male bonding you wanted to experience today… well, it’s Mother’s Day. Today’s all about honoring Mom.”

With a sigh, Spike dragged himself away from Shining Armor, hoping to catch up on Twilight.

Neither him or his alicorn big sister heard the white stallion mutter under his breath. Had their senses been more attuned Shining Armor, they might have lost their mind, for he had said: “And next year, Cadence too.”

Loss

We had been walking down the streets of downtown Canterlot at the time. The slightly less immaculate part of the capital of Equestria had quickly started buzzing with activities when the residents had realized who was coming for a visit. Both princesses at once had to be a rare occurrence.

Slowly, some of the streets filled with excited ponies looking to catch a sight of their rulers together. Heads turned on the terraces and whispers floated in the air. At those that dared address even a single word of welcome or good will to us, Celestia responded in kind with her owns and a nod of acknowledgment.

So, while the atmosphere grew more excited and febrile, our little group made its way through the stony walls with the practiced ease of a regular visitor. Not once was there even a need to pause at an intersection or before eclipsing ourselves under a bridge. That small tidbit casted a light of suspicion upon my eldest cousin.

Not that Calx cared. He was literally buzzing with excitement, shaking at the idea of spending a whole day with his favorite princess. I would have thought he’d be at least a little put off by the part about being forced to study again, but then again, To- Calx had a pretty big forgiving streak.

“They’re here!” Somepony shouted, and instantly, we were surrounded.

It had been a great naivety on my part not to have expected it, but, as I stood blinded by a few dozens of flashes of cameras, I had to admit that the press eating up one of our first public appearance outside the castle was a dreadfully unpleasant experience.

Leave us alone, seriously. Right now is not the time you put me through the grinder, I thought, partially covering my eyes with one hoof. This way, at least, the pain each flash sent barreling through my brain was considerably lessened.

Heck, with a glance to my left, I could see Celestia’s figure standing a few feet away. While she had her own reporters to deal with, I had the gnawing impression her attention was actually focused on me.

As such, I did my absolute best not to react when a mike was shoved in my face, literally. “Sorry, Prince Ventus. What is your stance on the upcoming demolition of the old opera?”

Oh damn it… politics.

I could consider myself lucky, as for the most part, I hadn’t had direct contact with the incessant questioning. Considering the spell covering my being and possibly Calx’s, this had been a very good thing. Politics were a timberwolves’ den and I wanted nothing less than to avoid it entirely.

Still, now that I was face-to-face with it, I didn’t have that much choice. And this was a political question, no doubt about it. Problem was, knowing what was political and what wasn’t didn’t mean a lot when trying to come up with the right answer.

However, to my bafflement, Blueblood’s image flashed in my mind, retelling the events of a long opening ceremony during which he had been ambushed by paparazzi. At the time, I had smiled and rolled my eyes at his evasion technique. Now seemed like an appropriate moment for me to try my hooves at it.

“Eh, maybe my brother could answer you better than me,” I said quickly, snatching him away and putting him on my back. Quickly though, I felt his weight shift, with only two hooves pressing on my back, the remaining two pushing against the back of my head.

“Huh?” He exclaimed, tugging at my mane a little too strongly without realizing it. “On what?”

The multiple ponies stared silently for a moment, mouth opened widely and faces crunching up in an effort to think of the best way to approach this. It almost seemed like I had succeeded before a brave one took a step forward and prepared her quill and notebook.

“Prince Calx, the old Opera’s main building is decrepit!” She called with a bleeding heart. “Experts are formal: the only possible solution is well-organized demolition. Otherwise it will collapse and possibly injure innocent ponies!”

“Oh, duh, yeah, that’s bad. Just put it down.”

Excited, the journalist, a beige pegasus mare, started scribbling down his answer. What she hadn’t realized was how fake the indifference in my gaze truly was. My guts told me to be very wary of these ponies.

Still, seeing as one royal figure, albeit the least influencing one, had declared an opinion he hadn’t approved of, one much older stallion nearly pushed the mare over to talk to Calx. “But the old Opera is a remnant of our past and our culture! The institution remained standing for nearly three centuries! Our knowledge and practices of old cannot be lost to time so easily!”

If there was one thing he mustn’t have been expecting in response to his passionate declaration, it was that hissing noise so characteristic of uncontrollable snickering.

“W-what is so funny?”

“‘Three centuries’?” Calx quoted, failing to suppress some more snickering. “My brother’s older than that.”

Instantly, every pony stopped talking, looking quite a bit uncomfortable. Some were staring, the old stallion that had talked was squirming on his hooves and at least three ponies were trying to muffle their reactions by coughing loudly.

Unbelievably, I couldn’t stop myself from scowling at them, an eye twitching into a death glare. There was just this kneejerk reaction in me, like a kick to the guts, at having my age mocked. My cheeks were burning hot at that point.

Worse still, in the corner of my eye, I could see that Celestia was greatly amused, to the point even Luna realized it and sent her sister a curious look. How this managed to escape the attention of the journalists, I would never know…

“Oh, yes, you see, my little ponies,” the ruler of Equestria went on peacefully, as if she hadn’t followed our own interview word by word, “the idea of alicorns being able to visit us at any given time is unfortunately false. There are great balancing powers at play, involving the consequences of some of our actions, sometimes being thrown back at us.”

What goes around comes around, I translated in my head, finding it harder and harder to fight a snarl. I can’t believe she just managed to secretly taunt me in public!

Luckily, I had a little colt on my head ready to gather the attention and hold it forever.

“Okay, here’s what I would do. You take out the pricey stuff, put it in a museum and then you demolish the very old thing.” He crossed his forelegs over his chest and nodded, looking quite proud. “Problem solved.”

I wanted to laugh so badly at the disgruntled look the journalists shared, especially since, you know, Calx was probably screwing with them anyway.

With but that simple act, he had washed away my irritation and replaced it with a good natured desire to troll. So, not to be outdone by my little brother, I channeled some power through my horn and made us disappear with a breeze.

His little filly walked down the stairs with a bit of haze to her steps, but even then, he could not stop himself from feeling a great sensation of relief. At long last, she was willing to leave her room and stop crying her eyes out.

Alas, he had expected it would happen one day, but still, the heartache of a rejected love was a painful ordeal he had wished his precious daughter would never have to face.

“Come here, my little princess, let’s give your mother her gift,” he said, with an inviting hoof.

Wearing her signature tiara covered in diamonds, the pink filly accepted her father’s hoof and followed him to the kitchen, so she could give her mom her present. She even gave him a small smile.

It made him feel as if Father’s Day had come early. She would be okay.

Unfortunately, short of using my powers seriously, I couldn’t shrug off a bunch of super persistent journalists. Once past their initial shock, they had dispersed toward every single direction they could think of, including the sky itself.

Their frantic determination had something… disturbing to it. Such a powerful focus, toward just a few beings… eh, wasn’t it a bit excessive? Ah. Takes one to know one.

Cautiously, taking the time to examine my surroundings thoroughly beforehand, I had us rematerialize in a small alley.

“As I once discovered, Ventus, one does not simply escape paparazzi,” the Sun Princess said lightheartedly. I nearly jumped out of my horseshoes in shock at the sound. Even Calx had yelped. Not that our reaction affected Celestia’s serene features. “They are a persistent and tenacious breed.”

As if it had been a signal, and considering who I was talking to, it might have been one, dozens of voices started calling for us. With a quick scan of the air, I could tell they were also converging in our direction.

“You have got to be clopping me…” I grumbled under my breath.

“What was that?” My cousin’s voice instantly rang to my ears, in a very dire warning tone

“Nothing!” I said quickly, flashing an angelic smile at her.

Calx rolling on the floor while holding his sides ruined the effect nonetheless. As such, I felt quite justified when my right hind leg shot up and gave him a retaliatory kick. Not a big one, but hey, it got him to stop laughing.

“Quick!” Luna’s voice came from another corner, causing me to twist around to catch a glimpse of her disappearing in another darkened alley.

Before I could blink, a blue blur passed me by, flapping his wings at high speed. For a second, I stood, shocked, until I felt a light tap on my shoulder. With a glance, I took in the form of the white feather resting against my body and looked up to its owner.

With a simple movement of her head, she asked me to follow course. Since I did not want to face a horde of ranting journalists or leave my brother alone, the command was quite easy to accept.

However, a lot of muscle power had to be used to keep my mouth closed when I noticed Celestia also running by my side. There was just something… bizarre about the sight of Celestia not going at a brisk and calm pace. “Isn’t this exciting, my dear little Ventus?”

My eye twitched. I want to gouge somepony’s eyes out now.

As usual, I forced myself to let nothing of my thoughts surface, though I did let some of my annoyance filter. It seemed appropriate and in synch with my previous slip-up.

Thus, I was frowning when I managed to make it to the corner Luna disappeared behind. My expression did not change when I took my first step in the new street it crossed.

Luna and Calx were standing next to each other, in front of an opened barrier.

“Ah, it seems we have made it in one piece after all,” Celestia joked, pointing to a pony with a camera near the end of the street. “Though not for long.”

A shrilled cry of astonishment pierced my eardrums the very next moment. Strangely, the source of the cringe worthy ringing in my ears had come from above, nowhere near the journalist.

In fact, looking up revealed a female pegasus flying overhead.

A teenage filly, pointing at me with starry eyes.

Fangirls…? I’m going to torture something now…

“My, shouldn’t we wave at this nice filly?” Now the mask of serene perfection was cracking up, letting me see her grin.

I felt the bile rising in my throat, painfully burning everything in its path and almost rendering me unable to speak, but not to think. Slowly. With acid. It will also involve dismemberment.

Before I could enact any form of retribution however, a soft pat against my back got my attention. Her head turned toward the end of the street, Celestia diverted my attention toward the journalists that were bound to have heard that supersonic cry.

“Let us make haste, Ventus,” she declared simply.

For once, I was not tempted to insult her under my breath. It was a reasonable, sensible, workable idea with a clear goal that didn’t involve me embarrassing myself in front of others.

Getting closer to Calx and Luna, I caught sight of a sign, hanging loosely by a pair of old ropes to the gateway.

The Star Covent? I pondered, repeating the words and their meaning in my head.

My eyes darted from one side of the building to another, taking in the wooden exterior from this three stories high… house. What is this place?

Neither princess proved helpful when I shot them a curious glance. Both just… smiled mysteriously, as if I was about to make some kind of grand discovery and be let in on some precious secret. Without even stopping her strides, Celestia opened the door and entered, followed closely by all of us.

A swift slam of the door later and only the four of us had managed to enter, a series of insistent knocking quickly starting to shake the door. Soon, it was followed by muffled voices that could barely be heard, except, you know, by me.

“Please, just a few more questions!” was pretty much the standard.

For a second, we stared collectively at the one obstacle between us and the crowd of journalists.

“Sheesh, they’re pretty clingy, huh?” Calx mused it over, hesitating between a grin and a grimace.

“I do love my little ponies, but even I can find this quite tiring.” She sighed.

A thousand years of this? It’s a miracle she hasn’t snapped yet. I thought, fighting a grimace and averting my gaze from the source of all this commotion. Rather than them, I would rather focus my attention on the new environment I had been given the opportunity to visit.

The interior reflected the exterior. Adequately cleaned, with not a speck of dust to be seen, but barren of furniture and paintings, this place had a strange atmosphere to it… The wooden walls and the stone floor gave a rustic charm, without chasing away the impression of poverty that reeked out of the entire building.

If anypony else was affected by this, they didn’t show it. Instead, the two princesses lead us to the end of the hallway, past a staircase that I noticed in the corner of my eye and in front of an open door.

Placing ourselves behind Luna, Calx and I were at the right angle to see into the small room it opened to. There, at a humble desk, a gray mare past her prime was reading papers after papers, her gaze filtering the information through old glasses.

“Miss Soft Center?” Celestia said softly.

The mare in the office stood up quickly at the call of her name, adjusting her glasses on her nose and the bun on her head. A glint of recognition had flashed in her eyes at Celestia’s voice and she left her desk behind her swiftly. Her expression lighting up with each step, she crossed the distance between us in the time it would have taken me to flap my wings.

To my surprise, she seemed quite at ease in the presence of her rulers. “Princesses! We were hoping you could join us once again.”

“You and your residents know that we wouldn’t miss this occasion for anything,” Celestia replied with a kind smile.

“Indeed.” Luna nodded in approval of her sister’s declaration. “Have the supplies arrived? We were worried that they might be spoiled if our visit was delayed by some… individuals, so we had them delivered this morning.”

Supplies? I repeated mentally, eyes now darting toward every corner of the room to catch a glimpse of a ton of… ammunition, food, survival blankets? It mattered not though, as there was nothing in the hallway or in the office. Okay, what the Tartarus?

“Of course, Princess Luna. The foals were just so excited when they saw the carriage arrive.” Miss Soft Center nodded too, chuckling to herself.

However, Calx interjected, not willing to stay in the dark any longer. “What supplies?”

For a moment, the mare seemed confused, as if something didn’t click in her mind, before she caught a glimpse of my brother just next to Luna. Her body noticeably straightened, especially when her eyes quickly went to me, then to Celestia. “Oh, are they…?”

“Yes, my sister and I believed it would be beneficial for everypony if they could participate in our yearly ritual. We hope it is not a problem for you.”

“Oh,” Miss Soft Center whispered, taken aback, eyes wide. “Oh! It is no problem. I simply never imagined there would be more nobles willing t-to…”

To my growing frustration, she stopped there, right before telling us. Willing to WHAT exactly?

“Can anypony tell me what’s going on?!” Calx reared, looking at the three mares sullenly.

“You will know soon enough, little prince,” Luna said mildly, eyes half-closed. “There is no need to be so impatient.”

Ouch, that’s a typical ‘you’re too young to know’ reply. Now he’s going to get real pissed.

Surely enough, not a second had passed since the Alicorn of the Night had turned her back to us that Calx stuck out his tongue. His gaze was a death glare but it softened as he turned pleadingly to me, begging for answers with puppy eyes to melt one’s heart, to which I could only shrug helplessly.

“We’ll find out together,” I whispered and winked, hoping to mollify him.

“I guess…” He scratched the ground with his hoof, not quite pleased but at least a little less angry.

“Go on,” I said, giving him a little push that got him moving, though not without a whine.

None of the adults paid much attention to the scene, seeing as, per my estimates, they met plenty of kids in their lifetimes. Celestia and Luna hoofsteps echoed Miss Soft Center’s owns as the old mare lead her rulers to a door on our left.

Strangely, there was a little more furniture in this corridor, though the bulk of it was simply hanging on the walls in cheap frames. Curiosity made my eyes gravitated to them. And I regretted it.

The pictures were old, their corners gnawed upon by time and insects and the images broken down in shades of brown and white. From one image to the next, I could sense a pattern, a rather simple one, all things considered. It was this place, or at least its front facade, where a hoofful of ponies and a few dozens of foals stood or sat. Amongst them, I spotted a few whose eyes would not meet the camera, instead being fixated on the ground or refused to smile.

A few thoughts flew through my mind, each of them a possible answer, most I dismissed on the spot. This isn’t a school… There’s nothing reminiscent of-

I stopped, blinded by a flash of inspiration. Foals, a good number of them, some looking depressed out of their minds, with no adults but the same aging mare supervising them.

An orphanage?

A burst of phantom pain struck me at the heart, so suddenly that my breathing hitched.

Those kids… those poor kids… what I feared and so desperately tried to avert beyond all… they had all faced it.

Quite suddenly, I felt the contact of dry paper against my body. To my own surprise, my hoof had gone to the closest picture subconsciously, covering half the foals depicted.

It was hard… too hard… to pretend I hadn’t seen that, that this place was home for some truly unlucky little guys and gals. They were young, yet so few of them had kept this childish air to them.

It was easy… oh so bucking easy to replace any of those faces with Calx’s. In the blink of an eye, his traits danced over the heads of a colt, who simply seemed emptied of… o-of everything!

Quickly, I diverted my gaze, feeling the corners of my vision heat up. The pictures were unbearable to look at.

But the images did not fade from my mind. What if I hadn’t been able to come in Equestria? Would this be the place they’d had left Calx at? N-no… he was an alicorn, surely they’d… they’d…

My brain refused to fool itself. Hard and cold, scarily so, my own voice hammered down the brutal truth for me. He was just a kid, all alone, without any known family… and I have no idea if the spell ever worked for him…

“Are they here?” Somepony whispered, before being instantly shushed.

Perking up, I shot a glance at the staircase now well behind us, recognizing the juvenile undertones. With a small smirk, I said, without making a sound: “Yeah, they’re here.”

While they hadn’t noticed the cries earlier, with the shriek of surprise coming from upstairs and the sudden stampede going down the stairs, all four of my fellow companions turned around in surprise.

Yup, even Celestia.

The way her eyes narrowed on me was the closest thing to a dirty look she ever sent my way. As soon as Miss Center caught on to her ruler’s behavior, she joined in on the hate group. Judging by how these things were going, it wouldn’t be long until Luna decided she wanted to be part of the herd too.

For some reason, this sent bubbling desire to laugh my butt off to my brain and screw all conventions.

My little brother saved me, simply by jumping in the space between us and the residents of the orphanage, as proud and boastful as ever. “Hey guys! What’s up?”

Thank the Elders for the distraction. With that, I could turn to see the young foals I had impishly riled up with a little trick.

Fourteen adorable little things, ranging from taller than Calx to half his height, and colored from flashier than my coat to darker than Luna’s, all of them had gone down to the ground floor when they had heard my voice.

By the way they were looking at my brother and myself with such confusion, I could guess that we had been an unknown variable to those foals. They probably didn’t have access to news all that often…

Suddenly feeling my stomach twist, I opened up my mouth to say something, but Luna beat me to the punch.

“Children of Star Covent! How grand it is to see you all so lively and lovely today!”

Cries of delight made their response. And I saw, Luna’s heart melted on the spot. Shadows of tears danced in her eyes for a split second, before she was all smiles and warmth.

“You make my heart soar with joys, my little ponies!” She said once more, putting a hoof over her chest. “Come, for we have prepared a surprise for you.”

The promise of a present unsurprisingly gave them all springs for legs, as I had to sidestep to avoid being trampled. Curiosity over me was already fading in favor of swarming over Princess Luna. In the corner of my eyes, I saw Celestia and Soft Center, both observing the scene with a fond smile.

To tell the truth, so was I.

Hay, Calx, the little social bug, had already taken advantage of the confusion to get into an intense conversation with two colts his age, an earth pony and a unicorn.

Bemused, I just shook my head. Every single time…

“Now then,” Luna called. “Would you care to follow me into your kitchen?”

Fifteen little heads nodded in unison, wishing nothing more than to do just that. At that age, it was pretty much anything for a present or a treat. Coming from the princesses ruling the kingdom, it would have to include the most stupidly healthy food to make them even pause.

Luna lead them proudly, head held high as Celestia, Soft Center and I walked at the end of the pack. Turning just around the corner, her horn lit up with blue light and I heard the click of doors opening.

Surely enough, when I made it to their levels, I got a look at the orphanage’s dining hall. It was rather sober, without extravagancy, but for the first time, I got a sensation of homeliness. The place radiated welcoming heat and simple acceptance.

My mouth formed a grin.

Then, my eyes caught sight of the command the princesses had brought with them, at the very end of the hall, near a couple of stoves.

Ingredients, in enormous quantities. But they lacked a certain… diversity, hinting at their true purpose.

Eggs, flour, baking powder, milk, fresh fruits…

The realization once again hit me with the strength of a rampaging minotaur, though this time, it was sorely because of how unreal and surreal the idea inherently was. For a moment, my mind struggled to keep the shattered images of my cousin in place, before miserably surrendering when the cover of a recipe book was made known to me.

Princess Celestia and Princess Luna… were going to bake a cake?!

He had only the sound of tinkling glass for a companion, but Blueblood didn’t mind terribly. Rarely so often did nobles like them have a moment to reflect in silence and enjoy each other’s company.

His gift to her, a splendid ornamented diadem, her favorite jewelry, laid unpacked in the table between them. Every so often, her eyes would drift to it and she would giggle, sending a loving look to her son.

Every time, the prince would allow himself a rare show of bashfulness and playfulness.

Un-princely, he knew, but it mattered little when both were alone in their private mansion. There, they were free to act with a bit less restraint than normally.

“I have heard your airship has left its anchors, yesterday,” Silk Sculpture said with a very slight hint of disapproval.

Suddenly apprehensive, Blueblood pondered for a second the best way to answer.

“Yes,” he replied slowly, with what appeared to be a lack of heavy investment in the subject. “I used it to invite Prince Ventus and Prince Calx for some time... away from the rest of the nobility.”

Those were the right ponies to mention for his mother to forget her initial inquiry.

“Humph, I have heard strange rumors on this one, of a disdain for nobility. Some even try to avoid the older one for that.” Her nose crunched up, as if the idea evoked in her the taste of a bitter fruit. “But it is nonsense. An alicorn directly related to the Princesses themselves? Only a fool wouldn’t try to approach them. It was very smart of you, my son, to enter his good graces.”

Oh, a lovely disconnected lady you are, Mother… The prince thought, taking another sip of wine from his cup to hide any smirk he could have had. To anypony with two eyes and a brain, it should have been obvious that Ventus Vinco wasn’t in Celestia’s good graces.

“Thank you,” he quickly muttered before taking another sip.

“Ah!” The mare laughed. “Seize the opportunity and the connections those lower born idiots won’t take. Let them show their inherent lack of insight when you’ll stand so high above them.”

How strange, that he actively wished for her to remain oblivious. Had she heard of his behavior while on board… her fragile heart might not have survived. For all her phlegmatic manners, Silk Sculpture had quite the blood pressure. And temperament that matched.

Briefly, he wondered if it wasn’t a mistake, to risk angering her so badly, for the sake of another’s words. Would it not be so simple to simply pretend it had never happened?

But the faces of the ponies he had encountered could not be dissolved and destroyed at will. His mind had been opened to the possibility that they were indeed just as worthy of respect as himself, just as real and emotional beings as him. And he could not forget.

Suddenly, the smile of the alicorn seemed quite devious, rather than kind. To hear of words so similar to his owns – and how appropriate that they came from his own mother –, it left him with only the strange twist in his guts and the taste of ash in his mouth.

Swallowing more wine appeared difficult, if not outright unpleasant, so he let his magic carry it to a nearby table. With a little effort, he made himself seem relaxed and content, lying across the absurdly delicate cushions of his mother’s living room.

Luckily, his bluff turned out effective and his mother only gave a nod of approval.

“This wine is the reward of your station, my son.” Silk Sculpture rose her glass, letting the rays of Celestia’s sun hit it and spread a tinted red light. “Is it not the most sumptuous your lips were given to touch yet?”

“Delightful, Mother…” He said, faking a smile. “Yes… delightful.”

In the immortal words of a certain pegasus… I just don’t know what went wrong…

“Your creation now stands taller than one of our royal guard, Tia.” Luna’s voice echoed with warning and wariness.

In all honesty, she had excellent reasons to be. Even at the distance I observed the scene, right next to Miss Soft Center and far from the counter on which they were working, the endings of my coat were tingling with anticipation of danger.

“Now, I do not understand why the cake is rising so much, Lulu.” The glorious leader of Equestria muttered, her sparkling mane dancing on her shoulder as she read from the scroll. “We’ve rigorously followed the instructions.”

The cake, if it could be called that, emitted a strange hissing noise, causing the Alicorn of the Night to stare at it with a twitching eye. “Perhaps your sources were erroneous, but this monstrosity is still rising and growing more threatening by the second.”

The remark was met with snorts and giggles from the orphans sitting at the tables. Judging by the lack of worry or surprise in any of their cute faces, this might not have been quite new to them.

“I do not see what it could be...” Celestia’s head turned toward the counter and the empty bags of ingredients. From the angle we stood at, it seemed as if she was looking at… Oh dear. “...Lulu, put the frosting on top of it.”

“W-what?” Luna stuttered, too shocked for proper elocution. With shaking movement, she wildly pointed at the menacing pastry with her hoof. “Your… your cooking attempt is slowly overtaking the room. It is no time to decorate it!”

Wise words to live by, Cousin Lulu. I nodded in approval.

“The cake is still hot and must be reacting with the baking powder. The frosting is cool and will stop the reaction.”

“This is a foolish endeavor, Tia...” Yet, with such a resigned tone, it was obvious she would indulge her older sister.

Indeed, her magical aura lifted up a spatula and a bowl of frosting. Determination gleaming in her eyes, she gave the cake a hard stare before first splattering one side of the cake.

Unable to keep myself from noticing more signs, and the curiosity devouring me, I momentarily looked away from the disaster scene to turn to Miss. Soft Center. “Please, be honest, Ma’am. Do they do that every year? The whole ‘failing at baking’ thing?”

“Yes,” she admitted, torn between laughing and fearing for her establishment. “Though it is the first time the cake has done that. Usually, it is something a little less spectacular.”

The foals around us had no such restrictions and were openly giggling and whispering excited words between each other. Their eyes would not leave the baking princesses.

On their side of the hall, the cake had risen well over even Celestia’s full height, though it was now decorated exquisitely with some of the most delicious looking frosting I had ever seen. It sparkled, unctuous and smooth, easily malleable and given off a fresh aroma of vanilla and cream. The light contrast between its perfectly white color and the beige coating of the sponge cake created a simple but effective appearance.

Luna stood right by her sister side, her face locked into a deadpan poker face.

“Pardon my protests, sister. Though still rising and now looming over the both of us like Discord before it, I cannot deny how splendid the cake appears with the frosting adorning its sides.” She nodded to herself, giving the rearing frosting alicorn on top of it a last nudge.

It almost crushed my heart to see such a beautiful sculpture tremble and oscillated with the movement of the thing’s expansion.

Probably just as devastated, Luna spoke with a tone that was downright venomous. “Now, if only your cake would pause in its quest to bloat out the sun and stop stretching my work of art, it might become edible.”

Unfortunately, it was no exaggeration. It was casting an ominous shadow over the rest of us.

“...This makes no sense...” The Princess of the Sun whispered, bewildered.

Grimacing, she quickly glanced between her cook book and the fruit of her hardwork.

“Fine. The easy way didn’t work. We’ll try the hard way.” She shot the growing monstrosity a terrifying glare. “Lulu, compress it with your magic.”

Not even Luna could keep a straight face now. “WHAT?!”

As for the rest of us, we wisely stepped back, making ourselves as small as possible. With one wing, I covered up Calx protectively.

“It is the only solution we have left, short of the Elements of Harmony,” Celestia insisted, dead serious.

“T-this is folly, sister.” Luna stepped back, eyes wide. “I shall not accompany you to the depth of Tartarus!”

“If you refuse, I will do so myself.”

With that ominous statement, she lit up her horn and enclosed in a magical field of a golden color. Not content with that small victory however, the Princess of the Sun contracted the field until the cake had no choice but to decrease in size.

The reactive sound it made had my blood freeze.

Unable to curb my instincts any longer, I threw myself to the ground, simultaneously tackling Miss Soft Center and Calx out of harm’s way. “DIVE!”

Luckily, my panicked shout got results, as a bunch of screams came out before a sound akin to a bursting balloon created a small shockwave. The sight making our jaws slack with disbelief, Miss Soft Center’ and I witnessed a wave of pressurized pastry fly overhead, to harmlessly collide into the walls and make an impressive mess of the previously clean dining hall.

Silence reigned.

For a few seconds.

Before it was destroyed with a series of slow strikes of hooves against the ground.

One needed not see Luna to imagine her absolutely deadpan expression. “Magnificent, now the whole room tasted our creation without the need to move. Congratulations.”

Slowly, we inched out of her cowering position. Enough to see what was happening at least.

“Then I suppose we can say the original purpose was fulfilled, albeit in a roundabout way,” the white alicorn declared with great dignity for someone covered in frosting.

Not that her situation was an isolated one. The high pressure volley of cake had simply covered more than its share of the hall and its occupants. We had been spared only by a fortunate angle and obstacle. Quite a few foals were laughing at their friends and themselves, looking positively ridiculous with their coats and mane all sticky like this.

This was stupid. Potentially hazardous. Worth a smack to the back of my head. But I had to know what had caused the cake to react that way.

So I scooped a hoofful of the pulverized pastry and, after giving it a tentative sniff, slipped a piece into my mouth.

“…T-this…”My whole body threw itself upward and I barely suppress the desire to throw up. The pastry was rancid, an abomination that would surely surpass Applejack’s famous Baked Bads. “This is bitter to the point of… oh you are jousting the hay out of me… Celly!”

Both alicorns instantly turned to me, Celestia in particular appearing very curious and attentive to my indignation.

“You inverted the flour to baking powder ratio! There’s barely any flour in this! We’re lucky it exploded!”

One sister gave the other a look. After all, Celestia’s role in this had only been to read out loud and help with the mixing of the enormous bowl of ingredients.

“Oops?” The contrast was sharp, between Luna’s previous attitude of deadpan exasperation and this sorry smile and blush. At least, until she suddenly straightened and spoke with force. “This accident barely bares mark of our intervention, sister! Labels were incorrectly placed and the resemblance is too great for untrained… it is entirely our fault.”

Miss Soft Center had heard more than enough. By the time I had realized she wasn’t by my side anymore, the mare was standing in front of both alicorns.

“Now that this show is over, your Majesty…” She said with a stern voice. “May I ask that you do not destroy my kitchen, again?”

Amazingly, the little old mare had managed to make both rulers of Equestria look incredibly sheepish, even if Celestia’s attitude seemed tainted by her obvious amusement. They were both avoiding her steely gaze and scraping the ground with their front hooves.

“Worry not, oh mare of great heart, our guards will come and clean every trace of corruption. Not to mention any nutriment lost today will be sent to you ten folds.”

I doubted there was enough place to stock ten times the ingredients put in that cake.

“Thank you…” Soft Center nodded. “You should go talk to the foals now, they were very excited to have you come here. I shall handle their lunch.”

With a nod, Celestia and Luna accepted and made their ways up to us, the foals looking quite happy.

“Hello, my little ponies,” Celestia greeted them, before sitting to the ground and waiting patiently as they threw themselves in front of her.

They wasted no time in returning the favor, almost saluting her, all at the same time.

“Calm, calm,” Luna gently reminded them of a more peaceful state of mind. When they had, mostly, settled down, she spoke again. “Now, what would you like to talk about first?”

“Who are they?” One of the older foals pointed at me and my brother, a little suspicious.

“These two alicorns here are our young cousins, Prince Ventus and Prince Calx.”

A little more than a dozen pair of innocent eyes looked at me with fascination.

Thank the Elders for my experience with children. It didn't actually make me nervous. I just flashed them my best grin. “Hi.”

“Yeah, that,” my little brother added.

Again, the foals reciprocated in spades. Except for the colt that had first spoken.

“Yeah, right! Everypony knows there’s only four alicorns!”

I sorta… just blinked. Four is an acceptable number…?

“Now then, Ventus, why don’t you do something to prove your affiliation with us?”

…She wants me to do something only an alicorn could do? …She can’t seriously mean that. But seeing the eager faces of the kids all around me offered me a better insight. Oh, do something a child would believe only an alicorn could do.

That would be either much easier or thrice as hard. No middle ground.

Eh, there was always one trick, it worked well with non-pegasus…

Five minutes later, the room was filled to the brim with foals flying with the use of glittering wings of air. Laughter echoed even when a slight hint of horror passed by Miss Soft Center’s expression. Hay, even the little pegasi, who hadn’t gained much from the spell, appeared well and truly delighted with so many new comrades of flight.

I noticed, however, that not everypony was flying. Some were making plans first.

“Okay, guys, I’ve got it!” Calx’s eyes widened and grinned, as if hit by a brilliant idea. “We’re the Alicorn Rangers! And I’m the captain.”

His friends certainly wouldn’t take it lying down. The green unicorn spoke first. “What? No way! I wanna be captain.”

“Nu-uh, I want to be captain.” The red earth pony waved at him dismissively. “Just be a colonel!”

“Colonels are bigger than captains, you dummy!” Green colt stuck out his tongue.

“What? No, they’re not!” The little red guy butted head with his pal.

“Guys!” Calx stepped in, trying to push them apart. “I’m the captain, ‘cause we’re the Alicorn Ranger and I’m an alicorn!”

The two remaining colts looked at him with indignation and would have surely protested, if not for an unexpected snag in their plans of superheroing.

“Oh, Alicorn Rangers, you’re so naïve.” I said, making my voice echo all around them. At that, the three colts didn’t seem nearly as confident as before. “You spent so much time focusing about positions that you forgot about your greatest enemy, the vile wind dragon!”

All three turned just in time to come face to face with a glowing mouth full of fangs and a roar. Their eyes shrunk to tiny dots and their ears flattened against their skull. However, beyond that, they… didn’t react quite as expected.

They freaking jumped my magical construct, war cries and all. As one pony, the three arguing kids started beating up the moving image of a dragon with tons of battle codes that made no sense whatsoever.

Twice, they called different names for exactly the same thing.

The sight made me smile, having me chuckle at this display of simple childishness. It almost turned into full blown laughter when Celestia stopped to turn at the troubling display of brutality.

Better, the remaining colts and fillies noticed the commotion, stopped flying and started to cheer on the ‘Alicorn Rangers’. The domino effect started, spreading the energy from one foal to another, until every resident of the orphanage was chanting for their victory.

Well, let’s make them work for it. I grinned, not quite without malice.

Drafts of air started to gather around the construct, making my brother and his new friends struggle to even stand. But they held strong.

Bits of cake and frosting started to fly around the room, an howl ringing to ears of the occupants. Suddenly, a stronger draft of air, that, of course, I hadn't conjured up myself, threw the would-be heroes off the vile wind dragon.

Another roar from the beast, and the chanting had ceased, instead replaced by wide eyes fascination and pure admiring silence. Making sure none of the foals were looking at me, I deepened my voice as much as possible and projected it from every angle. “You will never defeat me, foals!”

For a second, they hesitated, looking well and truly scared. Did I overdo it?

Glaring, Calx stomped, shouting loudly. “We won’t give up, Vile Wind Dragon!”

“Yeah!” His two companions jumped forward, snarling. “You don’t scare us!”

“We’re the Alicorn Rangers!” They screamed. “And we fear nothing!”

As one, the three colts charged.

Stomping, roaring, they ran wildly into the construct, three small bodies about to collide with a solid wall of air. Or not.

On impact, the figure bent, the image twisting for a second, before I stopped channeling magic into it. With a loud ‘pop’, it faded away under the assault of the ‘Alicorn Rangers’, who all fell to the ground inelegantly.

The crowd erupted into wild cheers.

Staggeringly getting back on their hooves, the ‘Alicorn Rangers’ shook their heads, trying to chase away the momentarily confusion. Quickly enough, they realized they had won and reacted appropriately. Puffing their chests, grinning smugly, they posed and exchanged a brohoof.

Laughter bubbled up in my chest. For the love of… those colts were just awesome.

I… I could not believe it, but damn, I was really, really glad to have come here. In what probably had to be the most depressing place I could visit in Equestria. And what had been the most amazing part was just giving a few foals the time of their lives.

T-that… that’s almost normal…

The idea sounded almost foreign to me. That hit me hard. For a split second, I had to just… just look away from those innocents, not when I knew how much of a broken monster I was. The movement itself made me realize something though.

One filly wasn’t taking part in the games of her comrades, discreetly eclipsing herself from the rest. In fact, her transparent wings lied flatly against her body. Her head was hung low and her eyes expressed nothing but an empty, downtrodden lack of… everything.

W-why was I so drawn toward that little filly? I didn’t even know her name! B-but, I couldn’t… I couldn’t just ignore her, right?

Ignoring the sick feeling settling down in my chest, I let myself fall on my rump, just next to her. “Hey, are you feeling alright?”

“O-oh, Mr. Ventus…” She jolted, surprised, before trying to wipe away her tears and the trails they had left in her cyan fur. “T-thank you very much for the wings! They are… lots of… fun.”

Well, darn, if I wanted somepony to deliver a weaker line, I’d have to look in a cemetery.

A bit strongly, I extended my right wing, then closed it around her. Surprised, she looked at me with wide eyes… reddened eyes…

I put up the kindest smile I could muster. “What’s your name, kid?”

Her voice squeaked, even as she looked away. “…V-Violet Petal…”

“Well, Violet, I just saw you looking sad, here all alone. Do you want to share your reasons with me?”

“I… It's... I only arrived here last week…” Please, don't tell me... “I-I thought… Mom and D-D-Dad would… would be… with me f-forever, b-b-b-but…”

She could not finish her sentence. Miserably, she curled up and started sobbing again.

My heart sank. The horrified realization that her words had brought in started tainting my perception of this whole experience. How could I have let myself forget?! How did I, for one measly second, forget that the kids here all carried their personal tragedies?!

I could not help, but find myself a repulsive being.

Blood pumping powerfully in my veins, I felt each heartbeat against my temples, pulsing… Again and again… Cold and hatred… the blood of windigoes, they said… Lack of empathy…

Uneasy, I felt my chest itch, but I resisted the urge to squash it. I… could try to comfort the filly. It wouldn’t bring me anything, but… w-why not?

Gently, I brushed my feathers against her back, tracing soothing circles in her back. Probably subconsciously, she leaned into the touch, pushing herself against that small source of comfort.

I moved a little closer to her.

“I… I know… that feeling,” I said, my mouth going dry.

“You do?” She asked, sniffing.

Sadly, I nodded, memories coming back and weighting down on me. It made it so easy to express the same emotions as hers.

Then, I said the words that she needed to hear, but wouldn’t heed. Not yet. “It will get better.”

“B-but how, Mr. Ventus...” Her eyes glittered with a hint of anger, and her voice rose. “How could it ever…?! It... it's so painful...”

Just like that, the outburst died… and she lowered her head even further, shaking with every sob.

“W-well, sometimes, it's because there's no other choice, but to move on. T-they'll live on with you, forever, that will never change.”

Just then, she let out a louder wail than before, and cold claws gripped my heart. Something about her distress was reaching into me, deeply enough to unearth things I had thought lost for anypony beside my brother.

Breathing more heavily, I made a shield of my wings for her. At the very least, she would have this moment to herself.

“But sometimes...” I went on, quietly… without much strength. “You can let other ponies in too... you can love again. The wound... it will scar... become a bit less sensitive... until you can look back and remember the love before the hurt.”

“I…” Her voice wavered, too much pain still present for her to accept it. “I want to, but…”

“You can do it...” I swallowed dry air, before putting just a little too much emphasis on my next word. “You, you're strong enough.”

I knew she never felt as weak as in that moment. I knew that. There was nothing to stop her tears… only time could make the pain fade.

So I let her hold onto me, let myself become nothing but the anchor for her to grip to. The little filly wanted nothing more than that, but needed more.

Finally, she managed enough control over her sobs to let words out, albeit tainted with despair. “I don’t want to forget them!”

Something started to form in my throat, an obstruction, that had me unable to breathe properly. Keeping this mask had never felt harder.

“You won’t.” I placed my hoof against her chest, right over her beating heart. “It’s not their faces or their voices you will remember, it’s how much they loved you. Do you remember the warmth of their embrace?”

She hesitated!

My front legs moved by themselves, carried by an impulse I couldn’t rein in.

“It’s like this,” I whispered softly, stroking her head. “You’re not alone. Even when it seems to get darker and darker, there are other ponies around you. If you open your eyes, you will see…”

After a slight hesitation, I gently turned her around, toward the other foals – still playing for the most part – and the few adults. While none had truly noticed her distress yet, some, including Celestia, had sent encouraging nods our way.

“You will see two kind rulers that want you to feel loved, on the day that would be the most painful. You will see a nice mare that wants you to have a home and friends. You will see… so many other foals that are just like you… and do want you.”

Suddenly, she turned around and hid her face in my shoulder, her tears damping my fur. “I… I don’t know, Mr. Ventus! It just hurts so much! Even when I’m happy, the world just turns grey so soon! It never lasts! I just want to cry all the time!”

“Then cry, confide to others to help them heal you.” My voice broke. This was hitting too close to home, I couldn’t… no, I had to. I had to show her a strong face, if only to give her some hope! “They’ll be there for you! And if it ever gets too hard, if… if you need somepony to listen, t-to help… pray to the wind. I will listen to every word. I swear.”

Author's Note

I'm pretty sure no one saw that coming.

Family

At some point, things had gone oh so horribly wrong for him. It had been a normal, if slightly boring Mother’s Day for him at that point. Usually, they just went to a restaurant at noon, then he took his mother shopping. Not exceptionally fancy, but it was just about spending time with one another.

So, how in Tartarus had he come to be recruited to play in a game of hoofball out of nowhere? He barely knew either of those mares, though, of course, everypony in Ponyville knew Rarity by sight, national hero and darn hot mare.

Hay, of the two, he would have been more logically playing for her rather than that Fine Stitch. Alas, Caramel had had no choice in the matter and had been recruited to face Rarity’s team.

Which somehow included Big Mac and Applejack.

Cold sweat had gone down his spine at the realization. Both were dangerous foes, the eldest sibling being a veritable juggernaut and the younger being able to regularly wrestle with bulls and cows in rodeos.

Yet, as the game had progressed, the poor stallion had also been made to see that, for all their strength, they paled in comparison to the absolutely vicious ferocity of their frailer unicorn friend.

She was a beast. Literally and metaphorically.

Fine Stitch’s team of misfits had had no chance. Still, this was hoofball and, traumatized as he may be, Caramel still had enough of a competitive streak to do his best to win.

“Pass it!” He shouted to Doctor Whooves, the second random pony to have been brought into this.

The brown earth pony asked no question and simply threw the ball to his teammate, under the cheers of his friend, a well-know mailpony.

Caramel jumped, dodging the intimidating charge from an orange mare, and placed his front hooves onto her back. With another powerful push, he used her as a springboard and caught his prize in his mouth.

Yes! He thought. This isn’t over ye-

His world started spinning, pain suddenly filling his entire left side. In a single moment of distraction and hope, he had been viciously tackled into the ground, with the force of a thousand parasprites. His vision blurred momentarily, letting him only see a white form running in the opposite direction, a hoofball in her mouth.

“That’s my daughter!” Magnum cheered loudly, clapping and jumping in his seat.

Rarity swiftly dodged her rival’s desperate attempt at stopping her, but the fashionista was not one to be denied victory. Pushing forward savagely, she threw herself forward, scoring the victory for her team and sealing the deal over Fine Stitch’s fashion death.

She roared, making the nearby ponies out of the loop cower at the sudden eruption of what appeared to be a predator’s voice. “Victory is MINE!”

“Forgetting somepony, SugarCube?” Applejack interjected, walking up to her with her brother in tow, looking slightly incredulous.

The voice of reason snapped Rarity out of her bloodthirsty trance, rendering her aware that she was standing on her hind legs in the middle of a playing field, surrounded by various ponies eying her with various levels of fear and amusement.

“T-that is to say, a lady never loses,” she chuckled meekly, trying to ignore the burning heat running across her face.

Perhaps with a bit of panic putting springs in her legs, the unicorn quickly ran to her family standing on the side.

“Yay! You did it, Rarity!” Sweetie Belle exclaimed, jumping up and down with excitement and admiration.

By her side, their mother chuckled at her elder daughter’s behavior. It was always quite funny to witness her prim’s side be overshadowed by the brutal playing style Rarity had inherited from her father.

A bashful smile graced the fashionista’s features. “Your honor is safe, Mother.”

--
Usually, some of her animal friends would grace her tea parties with their ballads and their melodies. However, even if Celestia’s sun was high in the sky and shining upon them a bright and cheerful day devoid of any lingering darkness, even if this day seemed similar in all points with every other day, the hill her picnicking towel had been spread on remained eerily silent.

The reason for this oddity was simple, and currently sitting on a washing machine.

“Delicious,” Discord said, sipping some of his tea on top of the magically powered appliance. “I especially like the artificial dragon scale flavor.”

Meekly, she looked away. “Hum… that’s your doing…”

The draconequus only gave a little nod of acknowledgment, the corner of his lips inching upward ever so slightly. “I do have a taste for great tea, don’t I?”

“You do…” She paid no real attention to the flying glove that patted him in the back, adding to the smug image. Such small events were actually easy to ignore once their meetings had grown in numbers. No, truthfully, Fluttershy only had interest in her friend’s well-being.

He had been surprised, very surprised, at her invitation. That wasn’t something common. The being of Chaos had always done his best to appear unflappable, which she had speculated could have been an armor of some sort against what had been a friendless world for him. Yet…

It had caused a little pinch in her chest to see Discord shocked by a simple display of compassion. To her shame, it had also created curiosity within her mind. The best behavior would have been to offer a quiet support and listen if he wanted to reveal it to her.

Sometimes, Fluttershy feared that she was a horrible pony.

“Y-you know... I didn't mean to imply anything when I invited you... I just... didn't know if you had...” She stopped, letting out a high pitched squeal of pure shyness as her cheeks colored red.

“Oh, no, that is quite alright Fluttershy. As it turns out, I do not have a mother. Hence my surprise at your proposition.” The draconequus drank more tea from his cup, which had the result to fill the teacup with more steaming purple liquid. His friend’s nose picked up the scent as somewhat bitter, but with a touch of spice. Coffee, perhaps? “But I do have an older sister.”

“O-oh?” She perked up, interested in that surprisingly direct confession.

“Yes, an older sister. Older, by a measure of time so vast you cannot process it…” For a frightful moment, she feared that he would stop at this part of his explanation. Quickly though, his yellow eyes fell on her, and the way his smirk grew gave her the impression he had seen through her. “Her name is Pandora, at the moment, at least.”

“That’s a nice name.” She nodded, happy that her kind words were genuine.

“Yes, my dear, and quite ironic when one knows of multiple realities. For example, in one culture, that very same name defines the one being that unleashed all the evils in their world.”

“That’s terrible…”

“Well,” he sighed, shrugging and rolling his eyes. “I suppose some of it can be true, as, from your point of view, Fluttershy, my sister is the Elder being of Emotions.”

The quiet pegasus almost gasped, honestly not expecting this revelation from her peculiar friend.

“Every little tear you have shed, every fear that grounded you, every bit of anger that made you think horrible things…” Discord listed off, with a strange tone, devoid of any mischief or playfulness. “Shame, awkwardness, inadequate…”

Her chest felt heavy and she looked down. She didn’t want to be reminded of that. It had made her so… helpless. There had been no fighting back at the time, only more soul crushing experiences after the others.

It wasn’t like that anymore however. She had friends, incredibly good friends that offered their hooves and the sweat of their brows whenever she needed it. She knew that.

Suddenly, the weight disappeared, and it became so easy to look back at Discord with a simple, satisfied expression.

“Every smile I gave, no matter how small, every laugh, every compassionate gesture, everything about my friends…” And as her tone grew stronger, so did her confidence, in herself and in the good of Pandora.

The draconequus nodded with approval and perhaps a bit of a smirk.

“Congratulation, my dear. You have proven yourself smarter than at least one stick in the mud eons old.”

Eons? Fluttershy thought. It’s a unit of time, right? Twilight said it was very, very, very long…

Her expression fell, as much as she tried to keep it neutral, her inner sadness prevailed. It must be lonely to be that old…

“Is she your only sibling?” She asked quietly.

“Oh, there are a few others that could be called that, but it doesn't matter much anyway. There are also my older half siblings, but they think I butt in too often. Then, there's that little brat, Harmony.”

The way his claws ensnarled the teacup suggested many things about his opinion of the being. In fact, the delicate porcelain emitted a mute sound, before cracking up from top to bottom.

Such an event could not escape the pegasus’ notice.

“That’s not a very nice thing to say, Discord,” Fluttershy chastised him, frowning slightly.

“Oh, but it is the honest truth. The youngest of the Old Ones and yet it gets to call all the shots. I would say that’s parental favoritism by some senile parents, but there’s no one older than us anyway.”

At this, her mind felt torn, as if trying to follow too many focuses at once. Part of her heart shattered at the revelation of his entire lack of parent, while her conscience wanted to scold him for the obvious disdain he showed toward a younger being.

As such, her mouth pronounced words she had not expected. “Wait… you were there before there was Harmony?”

“Of course, my dear.” Discord took her question in stride. “Chaos is what disrupts the balance first. What happens afterward is an attempt to fix it and bring things back to Order or Harmony.”

“T-then th-”

“Hey, Fluttershy!” A familiar voice called, coming from above.

The poor pegasus mare jumped, taken completely by surprise. Oh… oh please, please, please, Dashie… I love you, b-but now is not the ideal time for…

Unfortunately, if any cosmic power heard her pleas, they didn’t bother to answer. With the strong push of a gust of wind, Rainbow Dash landed a few pony lengths away from Fluttershy, almost sending her to the ground.

“’Sup?” She asked, deliberately not looking at anypony or anyone else that might or might not have been in the vicinity. “I was wondering what you were doing today. Nopony had seen you, so I figured I’d look around, see if you’re alright.”

Had she been a slightly less introverted pony, Fluttershy might have winced at the thinly veiled accusation. Her brash friend certainly had strong opinions that she never hesitated to communicate…

Rearranging her mane quickly, moving all that pink away from her face, the mare rapidly got back on her hooves. Boldly, she reduced the distance between herself and Rainbow Dash, then spoke, her soft voice coming out slightly louder than a whisper. “Y-yes, I am quite fine.”

Lowering her head and leaning closer, Rainbow Dash sent a very unsubtle look toward the still sitting draconequus. “You sure?”

“Yes,” Fluttershy said, and a little spark of pride ignited in her chest at how certain it had come out.

Eyes widening in the slightest, the cyan pegasus seemed a little taken aback by that very same certitude. “Oh, okay then.”

“So, how is… y-your day going so far?” Fluttershy asked bashfully, slowly feeling her natural timidity return.

“Oh, you know, flew over Ponyville, had a good daisy sandwich for lunch, saw Rares play hoofball, did a Sonic Rainboom, tri-”

“W-wait…” The shier mare cut in, surprisingly, blinking in shock. “What was that?”

“Come on, Fluttershy! A Sonic Rainboom!” Rainbow Dash’s wings fluttered with disbelief. “My signature move.”

“N-no, not that. I meant befo-”

And once more, she was cut off by somepony she knew quite well.

Another blue pegasus with a rainbow mane landed abruptly, though his color scheme had a slightly darker shade. However, his landing was also punctuated by him striking an athletic pose and rolling his muscles.

“Hey there!” He trotted over to them, grinning. “What a lucky stallion I am. My two favorite mares, in one place.”

“Urgh, Dad!” Rainbow Dash groaned, facehoofing.

“Mr. Spectrum.” Her friend nodded and smiled shyly, feeling herself blushing at the compliment. It became a burning sensation as his strong legs enlaced her neck in a hug.

“Oh, Fluttershy, young mare, you have grown leaps and bound since I last saw you.” He smiled, stroking her mane gently, like a father would. “I still remember the first time my little Dashie brought you home.”

“M-me too…” She admitted quietly.

To her left, she could hear loud coughs, accompanied by frogs chirping. Turning, she saw the draconequus, standing and sending an unimpressed look to Rainbow Dash’s father.

“Oh, yes. Mister Spectrum, this is my friend Discord.”

“We’ve met before,” the stallion said icily. “I still have flashbacks of the diaper and the heart-like bow.”

Recognition flashed in the spirit of Chaos’s gaze. Quickly, his expression turned amused. “Oh, yes, Mister Spectrum Blitz, I do remember you. I loved that part where you screamed after random ponies to get them to love each other. It was quite frankly very funny to watch.”

“Glad to know my messy break-up could entertain somepony…” Spectrum’s grimace intensified, and that was to say nothing of the growing snarl on Rainbow Dash’s face.

The blue mare seemed about ready to come to blows with him.

For a second, the idea of the bearer of the Element of Loyalty fighting him crudely seemed quite entertaining. Petty, perhaps, but he was not one to appreciate suspicions and threats of petrification. In fact, he prepared a scathing reply disguised under a light filter of civility, but caught sight of Fluttershy in the corner of his eye.

She was Staring. In itself, that had no effect on him, but the simple thought she was that disappointed in his behavior did sting a bit. Oh, Pandora, I liked it better when you didn’t sneak up on me like this. Why did you have to make me care?

“Ah, yes, in retrospect, perhaps an apology is warranted?”

“You think?” Father and daughter replied in unison.

--
“And that is why Mom’s the best!” The little dragon’s proudly finished reading his homage to Twilight Velvet.

“Aw, thank you, Spike.” Said mare lifted her adopted son to put him into a hug, under the sound of hooves hitting the ground and agreements. “That was so nice of you.”

Normally, public displays of affection embarrassed him to no end, something he had inherited from his older brother, but on this day, Spike decided to make an exception when she kissed him on the cheek.

Still, he did blush at being showered with praises over his poem. His father, his sister, his brother and his sister-in-law all had acclaimed his work and placed their own supplementary comments about Twilight Velvet. Feeling a little overwhelmed by the attention, Spike quickly jumped down from his spot on the table and sat down on his cushion, next to his big sis.

Stealing a glance her way, the little dragon quickly saw how relaxed and happy she seemed to be, which had, unfortunately, become something of a rarity ever since her ascension into alicornhood.

Not even the grandeur of the Crystal Empire’s dining hall, glistening and shimmering with opulence like nothing else but the treasure room of Canterlot Castle, its vault stretching higher than the eye could see, not even this supreme display of royalty could make her happiness dim. Not on this special day, not with her family all gathered.

“I think it’s time for the shower of praises to calm down a little, I might get an inflated ego from this.” Their mother joked, waving a hoof next to her eyes, with the hopes of avoiding to shed tears.

“Oh, Honey, I’m sure that will never happen to you.” Orion stepped closer, nuzzling her neck. “You’re much too modest to let this get to your head.”

“What did I just tell you?!” Twilight Velvet shouted and snorted, laughing at her husband’s silliness while fighting the urge to punch his shoulder.

Shining Armor and Spike chuckled at their parents’ ‘quarrel’, amused and comforted by the love obviously still present between the two older ponies.

With most of the attention diverted from them, Cadence inconspicuously leaned closer to Twilight. Their respective duties keeping them away from each other, the Alicorn of Love had been devoured by curiosity.

Coyly, the pink mare looked away, before asking, out of the blue: “Do you think he’s cute?”

“W-what?” Twilight turned around and blinked, startled. “Who is?”

“Now, now, don’t be shy, Twilight.” Cadence waved her hoof in front of her sister-in-law, smiling smugly. “Even here we get newspaper, you know? Is he a good kisser?”

The poor new princess let out a moan of squeaky despair. “Can we not talk about him? My friends wouldn’t let me hear the end of it back in Ponyville.”

“Why?” Cadence’s innocent demeanor certainly didn’t fool Twilight. The smile she was wearing would have looked appropriate in the mouth of a timberwolf. “Did something happen while you guys were alone?”

Feeling herself blush at the implication, the younger mare was almost glad to be interrupted by her big brother’s voice. “What are you two whispering about over there?”

“Nothing!” Twilight was quick to shout.

Her family exchanged skeptical glances between each other, which was immediately noticed by the poor princess trying to calm her beating heart and cool her burning cheeks. For a few seconds, nopony said a thing, instead opting to prolong the silent torture of Twilight Sparkle.

Then, Shining Armor turned to his wife. “Cadence?”

“Oh, we were talking about her love life.”

Instantly, new life was brought into the discussion, to the ever growing dismay of the poor mare put into the grinder. She couldn’t understand why everypony was so interested in her maybe, perhaps, not even certain, possible crush on Prince Ventus.

“C-can we please not talk about this?”

“Ah, as if!” Shining Armor chuckled. “My little sister, the very same one that always used to say that interponies relationships were a loss of time in comparison to her studies, is apparently falling for a stallion I don’t even know. It’s my job to be very curious about it and possibly hurt him.”

“Now, now, Shining, just because Twilight has a very strong history of ignoring every sign members of the opposite sex send her way doesn’t mean…” Cadence’s words slowly trailed off, as the alicorn failed to justify her point through more than a gut feeling. “Well… maybe it does…”

“Okay, now that’s unfair. I’ve changed since that time.” She frowned, her wings fluttering in response. “I wouldn’t be a princess if I hadn’t discarded that perspective a while ago.”

“Eh.” He shrugged. “Still worried about you.”

At that, Cadence nodded, then added, with a small hint of concern in her voice. “And I’m still very interested in hearing this from you rather than from second-hoofed gossips.”

“Likewise,” her parents said simultaneously.

All heads turned to Spike, who had remained quite silent since the unexpected turn in the conversation. Put on the spot, the little dragon’s eyes widened and he nervously fiddled with his own scales. “Huh… well, I don’t really care much about romance, you know? That’s stuff a little gross…”

For the shortest of moment, Twilight’s facial muscles all twitched with the incredibly strong urge to form a very indignant scowl that included every bit of incredulity at his guts. As if he wasn’t fawning over Rarity at every possible occasion!

But he was still a child, and prone to some myopia about certain issues. She managed to let it slide. For the most part. That line he dared pronounced would be used by her at some unspecified time in the near or late future against him.

Plus, a nudging pink hoof was demanding her attention. “Well?”

Momentarily, she forgot everything Spike had said in favor of quickly scanning the room for expectations.

Every eye were on her, everypony wanted to know and… well, she was a little afraid of disappointing her mother if she was so hardheaded about this…

“I might like-like him…”

Her family quietly stared at her admittance, halfway between stunned shock and pleasantly surprised.

It was her big brother that broke the silence first. Looking deadly serious, he uttered some words that had her look at him with a slackened jaw. “So… want me to punch him in the face, Twiley?”

“Shining!” Both alicorns stood up at the same time, with the exact same look of indignation on their faces and the exact same tone of warning dripping from their voices.

“Can I help?” Spike chipped in eagerly, but shrank down when the mares turned their synchronized disapproval in his direction.

For his part, Orion’s only reaction to this was to snort behind his hoof, earning a glare from his wife.

“What?” The white unicorn looked suspiciously innocent. “Would you prefer I buck his teeth in? Or maybe a magic blast to the face? I’m not picky about which way to protect my little sister.”

“You’re not going to try to hurt him!”

“Why not? Afraid I’ll mess up his pretty face?” He grinned, chuckling in silence.

“Because he’s Princess Celestia’s cousin!” It seemed as if mentioning her idol had revived some more preachy habits in the purple mare. “You could get in serious trouble if you touched him!”

“Hey, I’m a prince too, you know? That has got to count for something!”

At his reply, Twilight started to grind her teeth against each other, simply unable to pronounce words in her state of mind. To even suggest a heresy like that against anything remotely relating to her idol, mentor, beloved teacher, certainly had her on edge.

Worse yet, her rage was quite visible for everypony else, causing them to exchange hesitating and awkward glances. The relaxed and peaceful atmosphere had evaporated with the way the teasing had evolved; now, they were trying to find a solution on how to defuse this.

“Okay, now, children, this has been fun and games, but I think it’s high time we change the subject,” Twilight Velvet declared solemnly, and wasn’t opposed.

“Sure thing, Honey, but what should we discuss about then?” Orion asked.

“W-well, we… we could always tell them about…” Shining Armor leaned closer to his wife, his voice barely above a whisper and his eyes going down to her belly. “Y-you know…”

“W-what?” Cadence squeaked in surprise, obviously not prepared for his suggestion. “Y-you mean, now?”

His expression set in stone and giving the impression that he wished for anything but that, Shining Armor nodded swiftly.

Now prey to the same anxiety as her soul mate, Cadence bit on her lips before alternatively looking at him and at the rest of his family. “Alright…” She whispered.

“Mom, Dad, Twiley, Spike…” The young stallion took a deep breath, steeling his nerves. “We have something very important to tell you…”

“Shining Armor and I wanted to tell you that… ” She paused, seemingly to steady herself as well, before smiling tenderly at her husband. “I am pregnant.”

Jaw dropped. Eyes almost flew out of their eye sockets.

And only then did the excited cheers and questions start pouring in! How wonderful that there would be a new child in their family!

Observing the scene with a strange sense of otherworldliness, as her parents were congratulating Cadence and celebrating this great news, Twilight couldn’t help but question herself. Was this what she wanted? For someday to be sitting in that chair with her family and announce to them that she was expecting a foal, a handsome alicorn stallion by her side, just like her old foalsitter was doing?

Everypony was treating her possible crush as such a big deal that it was hard not to wonder. Was it something she wanted?

She… she didn’t know. At all.

Maybe… M-maybe… not.

We stayed until the twilight had come over the horizon and Luna had to perform her royal duties. Only then did most of the foals start to show signs of exhaustion. Their day had been a most exciting one, and parts of me had rejoiced when my cousin had shown not even a trace of resentment or sadness at them going to bed instead of enjoying her nights.

Somepony else did complain at lengths about it, though.

“Saaaaaam,” Calx whined. “I don’t wanna leave yet.”

“Come on, bro.” I tried to nudge him. “They’re going to bed anyway.”

“But it was so fun! I want to stay longer!”

My brain was slow to make connections at the moment and my limbs had started to drag about, so heavy to carry. I had been the one to put Violet to bed. It had been her request and, while I couldn’t find it in me to deny her that small comfort, it became harder and harder to speak as I read the tales of a foal’s storybook. A few others had inched closer, while my little brother had sat directly in my lap, perhaps with a bit of possessiveness.

When most had succumbed to their desire to sleep, I had lifted Calx up and brought him downstairs, into the entrance of the orphanage. Despite his lack of energy and his falling eyelids, the little colt still desired more games.

I didn’t have it in me to go on like this much longer.

“Please… don’t be difficult tonight…” I whispered, almost as a plea.

My tone shocked him, making me instantly regret my weakness. His eyes had widened and his mouth had opened, without a sound coming out, as if he couldn’t believe it.

Quietly, he settled down, a strange look passing over his gaze and he accepted to leave without another protest.

That hurdle overcome much faster than I anticipated, we gathered just before the gate of the orphanage. “All that is left for us is to go back to the castle, Ventus. Are you ready to face Canterlot once more?”

Wise to my cousins’ games now, I offered them a devious smile. “I think I have a better idea.”

After a gust of wind, we had left the orphanage. The sensation of becoming weightless shocked my mind out of its lethargy, perhaps with this closer contact with my concept of existence. It… gave me at least some more time to go on without collapsing.

It was slightly harder than usual to let go of the wind and become solid again. After a second of hesitation however, all four of us had reappeared within the Castle’s gardens.

The cool air of the evening hit us first.

“This is not our suite…” I muttered, closing my eyes in frustration. “And here I just wanted to drop down in bed…”

“Oh, a little pride would do us good.” Celestia joked, earning a baffled grimace from me. “Alicorns should be the strongest of ponykind. A few minutes of trotting shall not kill us.”

My legs are saying otherwise…

Now was not the time to protest though, so I complied.

After a few seconds of silent walking, Luna started speaking, to my annoyance. Couldn’t she just…? No?

“We must say, Prince Ventus, that we were most proud of your behavior today. It showed the makings of a great prince.”

Though a part of me was ticked by her words, it still didn’t stop my face from burning with pleased modesty. Without thinking, I just scratched the back of my head shyly. “I… you shouldn’t say that. I’m really not that good of a stallion.”

“Nonsense!” Luna replied strongly. “We have seen your attitude and your words with that filly!”

“I just did what… what came naturally.” If it had been Calx, I wo- no, it wasn’t and it will NEVER be!

“You helped her.” Celestia added, seemingly very pleased with the results of our little visit to the orphanage. “No matter how many years pass, there are always foals that need support. And I knew, Ventus, that you could give it to them.”

Her words made me blink. Huh, she… she trusted me?

“I… well, this… wasn’t something I had ever noticed before…” I couldn’t phrase my thoughts properly, this wasn’t… ARGH! Just the first thing that comes to mind! “You really do this every year?”

“As regularly as possible. There are a few other orphanages through our kingdom and it would be a great relief to see their number dwindle, but until it has been reduced to nothingness...”

“D-doesn’t it hurt?” The Elders knew how much this one torn my heart in half.

At that, Celestia’s eyes went to the ground. All of a sudden, she wasn’t a kind and strong ruler for her people, but just another mare, who had had a long life. “It does. Every time, it opens old wounds and new ones.”

Dark blue wings fell on her back, making a gentle and empathic touch. The Princess of the Sun reacted in little way, other than straightening up a bit. Her sister, on the other hand, seemed to avoid looking at anypony at all cost, her gaze suddenly shifty.

“But it is the right thing to do,” Celestia said softly, slowly looking up to me. “It is what Mother taught us. A good ruler should be just. A great ruler can afford to be kind.”

And a certain somepony we had pegged down as drifting into the world of dreams interrupted.

“Who’s your mom?” Calx asked, shifting on my back and rubbing his eyes.

“Our mother, young colt,” Luna said, a certain flair for the dramatic in her tone, “is Renascentia Ignis, the World-Shaper.”

“The last time we saw her was over a thousand years ago, hours before we departed the Astral Planes for our mission in Equestria.” The white alicorn’s eyes became distant, looking past us and into reminiscences of times long gone. “Since then… I heard nothing of her, though words reached my ears about her whereabouts. Perhaps you have met her?”

“Renascentia?” I whispered, summoning a memory over three hundred years old.

She was tall, at least as much as Celestia. Perhaps slightly taller, but I could not tell for sure. I had been only a little older at the time than Calx was now.

I grinned, feeling a flicker of joy at the images brought back. “Yes, I do remember her.”

“Well, I don’t!” Calx pouted, unpleased at being out of the loop.

“She is rarely seen, even amongst our kind, little brother. Renascentia’s goals and motivations are unknown to most. I have only seen her thrice in all my life, and even then, only once did she talk to me.”

Now, as I spoke, my own gaze lost focus of my surroundings, rather turning toward the memories that started to play before me.

The first time had been… strange. It had only been a glimpse of her essence amongst so many others. Yet, in the mind of the colt I had been, it seared a few impressions in me. Warmth. Peaceful light. The smell of ink. The roughness of wooden planks under my hooves. Notes on a harp intertwining with a soothing voice reciting verses.

My parents had had to call for me multiple times afterward. They told me I had started staring into empty space and simply wouldn’t respond to them.

The third time was almost insignificant, as it had been but a fleeting moment during which our gazes had met over a crowd of alicorns.

Our second meeting had been much more interesting.

“I had been feeling a little down, after some disappointing matters, the exact nature of which I cannot seem to recall clearly.” Lies…

It was so easy to remember tasting the salt in my own tears. And the innocent curiosity at this peculiar alicorn towering over me. Had she been like… others… I might have been scared, but her face held nothing but benevolence.

There had been words, though exchanged differently. For her, it was not a matter of air as it was for mortals… it had been a few chapters of a nice story.

“She spoke something of a comforting tales for young foals, as this was the form I had back then.” The weight on my back moved slightly and I could tell, just from the way he stilled, that he was fascinated. He was naturally a curious kid, but this little story invoked the impossible image of an older figure in one’s life being just a kid once too. “It was quite simple, really. Her wings were blazing feathers with an ethereal softness, almost cool to the touch. With a mighty flare, they sprung into life and made a blanket to shield me from the world. When I asked why help me, when she didn’t even know me, well, she just said she could never stand to hear a foal crying.”

There was a flash of recognition in the Princesses' eyes. They understood the parallel.

I went on, speaking slowly, with a deep voice and a rhythm that translated impressions and emotions. Like a storyteller. There was no other way to speak of Her. “Then, she told me more, revealed old secrets from ancients civilizations, just to keep my mind off painful memories. But it came to an end… and I apologized to her, that I must have been really annoying and made her lose so much time.”

They all inched closer to me, captivated by my story. They seemed to be eating my every word, which had me quite thrilled and made me wear quite the smug grin. What she had said…

“After a moment of silence, Renascentia leaned forward and confessed that she missed even the sound of your childish whining, Princess Luna.”

“Whining?!” Said alicorn stood up, blinking with indignation. “I was never whining! I was complaining!”

Tom started chuckling and Celestia hid her smile behind her hoof. In response to that, the Princess of the Night huffed and puffed, rather childishly if I could comment on it. She looked, alternatively, between all three of us, trying to find support or, Tartarus forbid, opposition.

Luckily for the sake of our ears, and especially mine, Luna faced no such reactions, only welcoming smiles and quiet sighs of relief, once their laughter had faded away.

Slowly, however, the relaxed atmosphere started to fade and the weight of this day still couldn’t be completely overshadowed.

“I… I miss her, Tia.”

Sadness seeping through her usually regal mask, the elder sister gently hugged the younger. “I miss her too, Lulu.”

A small shaking hoof gripped my shoulder. “…Sam…”

“I know, Tom,” I whispered with some difficulty. “I know…”

He buried his head into my shoulders, in silence, but I could feel him fighting some shaking.

“It’s okay, buddy.” My heart was rapidly sinking in my chest. “We’ll see them soon…”

The silence of the night naturally claimed its right over us. Through the echoes of our steps and the darkness covering the halls, there was only the reflection of our thoughts.

We barely noticed that we had reached our destination already. To me, it had felt as if time had not moved since our arrival in the castle. The searing pain in my legs protested otherwise though…

With a depressed foal to take care of, the goodbyes were quick, especially since Luna’s duties were only starting at this point. After some encouragement and wishes of good will, she left, taking off into the sky.

Right then, it was only Celestia and me, Calx having finally succumbed to his fatigue.

“Good night, Ventus,” the princess said.

Then, to my shock, she moved forward to nuzzle me, offering me a bit of affection. I was almost ashamed of how much I gobbled every drop of it. “Good night, Celly.”

Before it ended however, I… heard something.

Just a click. Not especially memorable either, but… this one stirred something from my memory. Granted, it was all over the place at the moment, but still!

Celestia, neither blind nor insensitive, detected my tension in an instant. Her brows furrowed as she detached herself from me. “Is something wrong, Ventus?”

“N-no… I don’t think so…”

I had a bad feeling about this.

Only the barest light filtered in the otherwise dark room. Long after the sun had disappeared under the horizon, he still had stayed up, relying on nothing but the artificial light coming from his screen to keep him up. It had been a few days already, but the words would not leave his mind.

“They’re Humans in Equestria.” That’s a joke! E-even if some of the coincidences – because that’s all they were, coincidences – could, maybe, hint at that, t-there is no WAY in HELL that the two new alicorn bros are Sam and Tom!

EXCEPT THEY’RE ALSO CALLED SAM AND TOM!

Eric almost screamed out in frustration. Only the barest of consideration for his sleeping mother had stopped him. His current posture might have muffled it out a little, but not perfectly.

His face was hidden in his hands, feeling burning to the touch, against his forehead whom he could only admit was the façade concealing too many conflicting emotions. H-he couldn’t just… How was he supposed to accept that?! His friend and his little brother had jumped dimension?! That was just beyond unreal!

I mean, even if the theory turned out to be real and that those two were really humans in Equestria, that would mean nothing about Sam and Tom. That would still be two very fictional characters. NOT missing people!

Slowly, his hands slid off his face, letting the cool air of his fan hit him square in the face. He didn’t hate the feeling. Besides, he couldn’t just stop looking forever…

On his computer’s screen, there were some more images, and a paused video.

Ventus’ voice is way too deep to be Sam’s anyway. And they don’t act alike.

For a moment, Eric allowed himself a small smile, coming to terms with the rational and solid facts. The names were a coincidence. What mattered was the personalities and the interactions, right? And Ventus didn’t act the way Sam did.

Except on how they interact with their younger siblings.

That one had been a complete bull’s eye. Granted, their relationship was a pretty healthy and not uncommon one, but it had resonated with a fiber in Eric’s body.

Why? He thought furiously. Why is it that every single little detail burns into my mind and sways me so easily?! The rational thing is just so much simpler!

The most obvious example was the very concept. Ever since he had read about the theory from LoveCupcakes, he hadn’t been able to shake off that stupid thought. It just gnawed at his mind, even when there were solutions that made infinitely more sense.

He just couldn’t stop himself from clinging at the hope he had indeed found his friend…

Perhaps, it was time to do something he hadn’t had the courage to do since Sam had disappeared: browse through the anti-Blade Darkblaze group, the very same his friend had apparently took over with a massive shitstorm…

The forums were all pretty active at the moment, as there had been a certain amount of alicorn in the last few episodes. He knew that much at least.

You’ll have to look at them sooner or later, Eric told himself, but it was useless. He couldn’t gather the courage to do that so easily.

He really felt like a coward when he hastily clicked on the first thread he could see. “Alright, let’s… look at this one.”

His heart almost stopped beating when he read the opening statement. It was a Cupcake reprise’s promotion thread, with the target of the Internet monster being none other than the titular alicorn colt.

Quickly scrolling past down the few posts of approval, Eric felt the unsettling fear shaking his guts. It got worse when he recognized one username.

ScatteredWinds? That’s… that’s his…

Then, he started reading the comment.

“Haha, good one. You’ve shattered my faith in humanity. Great recreation of a fucking character assassination for the sake of torturing A CHILD, YOU MOTHERF-”

He felt himself become… nauseous. The words were just flowing through his mind, barely registering as one long sick nightmare.

“-WILL FIND YOU, FIND WHERE YOU LIVE AND CUT YOUR THROAT IN YOUR SLEEP, THEN FILL IT WITH ACID AND DRAG YOUR BODY OUTSIDE TO FEED THE CROWS! I’LL BASH YOUR HEAD IN WITH A SHOVEL AND-”

His blood was cold as ice in his veins. It was not simply bafflement, or even horror, he felt. It was fear. He could see his friend’s expression, the murderous intent glistening in the blue eyes when he had spoken up against the mini-Stu, but… but this couldn’t be real. This was a joke, right?

The death threat continued for at least half a page. Literally half a page.

The members of the forum weren’t treating it like a simple troll or a flamer. At first they had, but with the degeneration of the posts… Well, one could easily infer that they were very cautious about their replies, the few that did have the guts to make themselves a target.

The words were repulsive and the malice in them was making him shake in his seat.

W-wait… He looked closer.

Midway through the conversation, the speaker had changed, but he hadn’t noticed right away. It had been the exact same tone. Until the story’s writer had been called out on it, then there had been a reply to chill his bones.

“Eh, that’s right, bitches. It’s meeeee, ScatteredWinds. I’ve hacked his account, looked up his personal info. Don’t believe me? Here they are.”

As the numbers and words appeared on the screen, Eric’s visage progressively lost all colors. In a matter of seconds, he was pale as a corpse and his head felt so heavy he was off-balanced.

It just didn’t seem possible that one of his friends could react like… like a psychopath. It felt like reading about a murderer stalking his victims!

Realization hit him like a bolt of lightning.

…It is… possible. It occurred to him that his friend had started seeing a psychiatrist not long before this event had transpired.

N-no, he had gone seen the very same professional and he wasn’t going to kill anyone either. More importantly, what could possibly motivate him to act this way?! It was just a character from ‘My Little Pony’ in a bad fanfic! It wasn’t even a very likeable character to boot. Heck, he was surprised Sam cared at all, seeing as the kind of overhyped character Calx Iugum was usually rubbed him the wrong way!

It just wasn’t possible for him to care so much about a fictional character to send serious DEATH THREATS!

But if he had believed this was endorsing torture of Tom…

“Sam…” The name felt wrong, rolling off his tongue. He hadn’t known that guy, not the one that he saw today. This was wrong.

“You’ve shattered my faith in humanity.” It wasn’t one of those jokes or those angsty statements nobody could take seriously. T-this one resonated with him; he felt it in his guts.

Sam was sick. Very sick. He needed help! And fast!

Before it was too late.

Eric rarely felt such sentiment of urgency before, but he knew why. The responsibility had never fallen on his shoulders, not such an important one at least. Lives were at stakes here.

--
I knew before I even woke up. How could I not? So many voices called for my attention, involuntarily for the most part, for had they known I could hear them all, their words wouldn’t have been so blunt. Or perhaps the smarter ones would have communicated with written messages rather than spoken words.

The flow of blood in my veins started to create a strangely pulsing sensation in my mind. I could hear every one of them, as the Alicorn of Wind… of air and sky… I could hear everything.

I didn’t wake Tom up. It didn’t feel appropriate for me to do it, not with what I feared loomed over us. And really, the honest side of me knew that I was afraid of what side of me I might show him in the event I was right.

Without a word or sound, my body dissolved into thin air, sending my consciousness away, only for it to rematerialize right behind my seat in the dining hall. Predictably, most nobles were back, with a few scarce exceptions, such as Celestia herself.

Without the opening of the great doors, which I had slowly realized was noisy for the sole purpose of allowing ponies to hear newcomers, very few noticed me right away. It was that same fact that caused a minor incident.

As I took a few steps forward, still shaking with apprehension and rage, I didn’t notice the maid carrying a tray of pastries and fruits. I only felt a bump against my side and a cry of distress.

Following my reflexes alone, I span, only to see half a dozen meals falling to the ground. As naturally as breathing, I allowed my magic to glow through my horn and it shot up, grabbing each items before they hit the stone marbles.

One, two, three, four, five… six. That’s everything, I thought, levitating the tray onto a nearby spot on the table. With that done, I could hopefully get the answer I needed.

Unfortunately, my actions had brought attention to my presence.

The hall immediately fell silent. So many ponies were frozen with the expression of somepony caught like a deer in headlight. There was guilt written all over their faces.

Instantly, there were dark thoughts pushing me to violence, to retribution. They were so unbelievably naïve! I already know, you idiots!

“P-prince Ventus! I am s-s-s-so SORRY!” The green mare looked at me with fearful, teary eyes. “I didn’t see you a-and, that t-that was completely involuntary! I deeply apologize!”

As the maid dropped to the ground, I could only blink. My mind was so far off from this thing… I just didn’t…

The mask, just remember the mask.

“No, stand up, please.” The tip of my wing gently raised her head up. “It was only an accident. I understand. I shouldn’t have appeared so suddenly in your path.”

“I… I…”

Even though my throat had started burning with loathing, I managed a benevolent chuckle. “If anything, I must apologize. You almost had to run back to the kitchen to grab another tray.”

“I… thank you, my prince,” she stuttered before hurriedly running off.

Now the center of the attention, I sighed, trying to reign in more destructive urges before they could explode in my face. Slowly, I made it to my seat, next to the same old unicorn.

“Blueblood,” I said, with a semblance of civility.

He nodded in return, a weary look in his eyes. There was… fear, yes, it was the appropriate word for the slight shaking in his hooves and the twitches at the corner of his mouth.

“May I see this morning’s journal?”

I didn’t even need to look at him. The ponies around us basically reflected his own thoughts. Some flinched, some winced and others looked in a hurry to leave.

“Prince Ventus,” Blueblood said weakly. “T-this… you shouldn’t look at this.”

My telekinesis yanked the newspaper out of his grip without more than token protest. In the times we had indeed spent together, he had come to understand certain things about me. I could not tell how far he had seen behind the mask, but some things, he had indeed caught a glimpse of.

He just went quiet when I dropped the paper open, widespread in front of me.

The title grabbed the attention quite quickly, but the pictures emblazed one’s imagination. Four royals were sitting together in the castle’s garden, each of them sporting wings and horn, the younger ones leaning slightly against their elders, who had them held in a maternal embrace.

‘World exclusive! The Princess’ dirtiest secret revealed! The fruits of her forbidden love!’

I didn’t need to read further, but I could not simply look away. I already knew, I had known before I was even aware there had been yet another article related to me. It had been said enough for me to pick it up. This was just confirmation.

‘The two bastard sons.’ T-the…

It cut right through my composure, like a burning blade into flesh. The pain it left seemed comparable too. T-this was just so ridiculously offensive… It made my head spin. And their whispers of contempt would just not STOP!

Something inside me snapped.

In my ears, there was a howl. Of Darkness. Of Cold. Of Hate.

The windigoes were calling for me, as I was, for them.

I looked down, searching for a name, and I found one. Despite the ice spreading into my veins, a part of me wanted to smile. The kind of smile a hydra showed its prey.

I had a target.

Author's Note

Now I'm just screwing with you all, aren't I?

Oh, and also, since there was some sort of discussion on this back with some pals, I got curious. What kind of Stu do you think Sam/Ventus/Samtus is? And no, it's not a coincidence I ask you now.

Indignation

Very swiftly, I had affected a bothered, slightly angry demeanor. Showing a blank face or exuding calm would simply be unrealistic for them and bring more suspicions on me. Besides, it was easier to show only a little of what I was feeling rather than hiding it completely.

There were too many risks that I would slip up for me to stay to eat though. In my current state of mind, any slip-up would be dramatic in consequences.

“Miss Tea Leaves?” My hoof gently stopped a maid in her track.

Showing admirable composure, especially if she had any idea about the nature of the article I had read, the pale purple mare gave a quick respectful bow before looking at me calmly. “Yes, Prince Ventus?”

“I will not be eating in the hall this morning. Will it be possible to bring breakfast to my suite for my brother and myself?”

“Of course, my prince. I will inform the kitchen immediately,” she said, being as neutral as possible. I appreciated that.

“Thank you.” I gave an appreciative nod, actually feeling some gratitude at not being judged silently or under a breath.

As soon as I had left the hall, I felt their collective sighs of relief rippling through me.

I usually had the good sense to tune their voices out, to forget their conversations and give them that bit of privacy. But not today. I couldn’t. What they were discussing was striking me at the center of my chest, again and again and again!

It… it actually stung! It felt as if the world was rejecting us, looking down on us both for the sake of their petty gossip! Mocking tones and faked shock run abound, but in their hearts there was only joy and twisted satisfaction.

Moreover, the emotion that shone the most was righteous indignation. I was ridiculously offended by this! They were using… they were using my own self to convey their disgust with me? To insult my family?! I felt personally betrayed by their actions.

Thoughts went through my mind, of how to give those bastards their just desserts. How would they like it, if I suddenly refused them right to communicate verbally, all of them?! What would they DO, once they realized they had been rendered mute?! Maybe THEN, they’d think twice about what they were saying!

My own laughter echoed in my mind, unhappy, rather bitter and cynical. It was such naivety! When did a populace, in a frantic panic no less, ever turned out toward itself for the cause of its misery?

No, there’d be a witch’s hunt and hooves pointing. Toward me, obviously, how could anypony with half a brain not realize who would be behind it.

It left an awfully bitter taste in my mouth.

How could I ever think there was a place for us in Equestria?! In that veil of anger, there was an imperfection; a sudden wave of dread that hit me at the heart. And it was my own thoughts that brought it about. Y-yeah… how did I come to? I… I was trying to find a way to go back home, wasn’t I?

My heart seemed to be moved only by inner turmoil. T-there had been time when going back had been… had been even less than an afterthought.

What am I doing? WHAT AM I DOING?! AM I EVEN TRYING ANYMORE?!

The ground seemed to have gotten unsteady beneath my limbs. My balance was shot… Slowly, the stone walls and the painted windows started spinning around me.

“Prince Ventus?” A hoof pressed gently against my shoulder.

Taken aback, I blinked, before glancing toward the owner of that limb.

Her coat was a strong orange color, very eye grabbing. Perhaps my own fur had a similar effect, but I probably wouldn’t know simply from an encounter with this mare. She was looking at me with wide eyes, a slight frown lowering her brows into a concerned expression.

“Are you not feeling well?” She asked.

Her voice was soft, but lower than that of an average mare. It had a certain charm on its own, but more importantly, I was not familiar with it. Not from this morning, nor before.

“…Sunlight, is that right?”

If she was surprised by my words, she did not show it. Remarkably composed, the mare only nodded and waited patiently for me to go on.

“Have you read this morning’s newspaper?” My voice was shaking; there were screams in my ears, some much more violent than the average pony could tolerate. “…I think it was in the Canterlot Daily. That alone should tell you how I am feeling.”

For the longest time, the maid’s face remained a completely neutral mask. There had been nothing, not even a twitch of a facial muscle, while she gathered her thought, or so I suspected. And then, she asked the most unexpected question. “Is it true?”

It baffled me that she even bothered with asking for my words on the matter. Bitterly, I bit back the acidic remark on how it seemed she was the first to do so.

My answer came out more dry and threatening than I would have liked. “No.”

“Then I think that neither you nor your brother are Princess Celestia’s sons,” she said simply, seemingly unaffected by my tone.

“…Why?” I truly wanted to know that.

“S-somehow, I do not think you would lie so easily.” I almost scoffed in her face. Me? Lying, well, there certainly aren’t any examples of that happening since we arrived in Equestria. “You… you are kind to those of lower stations, Prince Ventus.”

I wanted to scream at her! My kindness is all a lie! How much would you love me if I told you that?!

But I kept my mouth shut and let her leave, after but a brief exchange of formality and an empty word of gratitude. Perhaps in other circumstances, I would have appreciated it, but it was too little, too late. Besides, every passing second was an occasion for me to hear another lovely conversation about ‘how unbelievable’ and ‘shocking’ and ‘scandalous’ and ‘those two surely were defective ponies’ and I WAS GOING TO KILL THEM!

She had noticed the silence right away. There had been no sound after they had reached a certain distance, which had been really freaky. Even without the occasional roar or howl, there were chirping of birds or buzzing of bugs, but…
Silence.

It made the shadows longer, projected from above their heads. Branches elongated and twisted, in an effort to reach them, in an effort to trap them into this unnatural state of stillness. Every branch they stepped onto cracked and produced a sound so loud in these dark woods.

Applebloom was thanking her lucky star that her brother had insisted on coming with her in the Everfree Forest. Had she been alone, perhaps she would have run back home before ever reaching her friend’s house.

It was an immense relief for her to catch sight of the one tree that housed the stripped potion-maker. Finally forgetting her unease at the silence amongst the Everfree, the filly dashed toward Zecora’s house, quickly followed by the sound of Big Mac's thundering hoofsteps.

So excited and relieved she was, that she didn’t knock and simply threw the door open.

The basket full of apple treats fell to the ground, no longer held by a youthful mouth.

Two apples rolled on the uneven floor, sole things moving at all in the house. They continued to roll for an interminable minute, as they met no resistance but the wall opposite to the siblings.

Zecora’s hut was empty. Completely.

The remainder of the morning had seemed to fly right by me. Between my little brother who woke up curious and very savvy about my inner turmoil, those continuous whispers and the measures I had taken to clench at least some of my thirst for revenge, I was well and completely spent. Not even breakfast in bed had been respite, as I had to use Calx’s distraction to eclipse myself briefly and strike my target. Though rewarding in that it allowed me to keep him in the dark about the ugly side of the media coverage, it was one more drain on me.

Thus, the corners of my mouth fought hard with my brain to turn downward into a scowl at the sight of a servant at our door. This was going to be even more of a bother, I just knew it.

“Yes?” I asked dryly, feeling quite exasperated.

The pony, a white coated teenager in a black tuxedo, stumbled a bit at my tone, but quickly regained his composure after coughing once or twice.

“The Princess has requested your presence in the audience room, your Highness...” His words died out as he inclined his head in a polite nod, his body shaking slightly. “She wishes for you and your brother to witness the Court’s proceeding this afternoon.”

A groan almost came out of my throat, held back only at the last second. Called it…

Before I could answer, a certain somepony pushed himself between us, forcing my front legs together to get enough space in the doorframe.

“So what’s the deal?” Calx asked, tone dripping with typical childlike curiosity.

“Our cousin wants us to assist to the audiences,” I replied, halfway between a sigh and a roll of my eyes.

“Sounds pretty cool.” He shrugged, looking up to the ceiling with a bit of a lost gaze. His thoughts weren’t really on either me or the servant. “D’you think Celestia will do a big trial thingy?”

Other than on me, you mean?

“Maybe if you really start to whine…” I laughed under my breath, poking him teasingly.

“HEY!”

“I will leave you to your preparations then.” The teenager bowed quickly, then added, with his best comforting tone: “I hope your day will get better.”

His smile, albeit I strongly doubted it was meant to, almost had me grimacing. Really. It had almost triggered a knee-jerk reaction of shocked recoil. Through some more efforts however, I kept it under control.

“Thank you,” I said warmly. “And please forgive my irritability today. I am… quite torn by the… opinion on my family being spread around Equestria.”

“I do not mind, Prince Ventus.” He waved a hoof in front of himself, smiling bashfully, almost as if embarrassed. “I know that a positive attitude is difficult retain while your family is being insulted so. Besides, most of the staff trusts you and knows you’re a good pony.”

No, I’m not. A strange feeling was tying up a knot in my throat.

It had come again, something akin to bitterness, yet far removed as well.

I… didn’t appreciate their gratitude, not toward fake acts of respect. Truly, I hadn’t cared before; it was just a façade and an easy one to maintain to boot. However, the more I heard the castle’s staff react with kindness and understanding to my anger, the more annoyed I grew.

They claimed to know me, yet had no idea how little I cared for… for their opinions… for their feelings… I-I did not deserve…

The voices coming out from the kitchen felt distant to him. They formed something of a blur, words mashed together with nothing recognizable but their owners. One of them was his wife’s, still filled with pain, but also fainter. The second, bless her, was his sister Diana, visiting to offer some measure of support after the terrible news.

It had been no secret… In fact, once Sam had been reported missing as well, no one could get enough of this strange story, of both siblings disappearing one after the other. Rampant speculations, the most painful ones being the accusation aimed at them and the idea that it had been planned by their eldest son.

It had taken all his self-control not to ensure the one that had told him that went back home in an ambulance. The nerves!

But the viper tongues really were a trivial pinch in their sides. What did it matter what others had to say about it?

They were not getting their sons back.

James’ hands gripped against the sink with crushing strength. His knuckles turning white, his grip turning painful quickly, all the father could feel was the same vertigo that assaulted him every time, oh every time, the reality of his missing children hit him.

If he had been honest with himself, the father would have admitted that he wasn’t certain he might make it through this in the end. There just wasn’t… He couldn’t imagine his life without his sons.

Yet the Universe had promptly decided he needed not imagine. All he had to do was watch, powerless to do anything but search fruitlessly and try to ignore both his guilt and his wife’s slow descent into depression.

Slowly, his fingers traced the healing cut across his cheek. The flesh underneath had gone from a bloody red to a soft pink, and the borders of the injury made a small bump against his hand. It was healing decently, but it wasn’t gone yet…

His sister had given him an odd look when she had first seen it. From the way her eyebrows had gone down, it was almost as if-

A high pitched noise brought him out of his contemplation.

The doorbell.

“You want me to go?” Diana asked from the kitchen.

“No, it’s alright! I’ll get it.” He shouted back, rationalizing that he probably needed the distraction anyway.

Anything to distract him from this perpetual grief they were stuck in…

Quickly enough, he had reached the door and he opened it wide.

James stared for a few seconds at the young man trying to appear bashful, feeling that the connection was there but eluded him.

“Mr. Miller?” He asked politely, but with a note of uncertainty.

The question made him shake his head, trying to gather his thoughts a bit more efficiently. “Yes?” And it came back to him, the owner of that face. “…Eric?”

As I fought a very powerful urge to yawn, I wondered if, perhaps, Celestia hadn’t already realized what I had done. This kind of boredom, mind-blowingly deep boredom, couldn’t be wished upon somepony else without at least a good reason for revenge. Hay, this would have been a rather exotic way for me to get even with him.

More amazingly, except for a select few, foals included, most of the nobility assembled around the court room appeared interested in the situations presented to them. For example, a couple of superbly clothed ponies, both barely in their adulthood, had constantly focused on the complainants that had come before Celestia.

Not that every time a noble whispered to the ears of a companion, the comment had been respectful, or even on topic. The worst were the ones followed by smug smirks and glances. Some had been aimed toward my form or Calx’s, bored out of his mind and standing on my back.

For those, a death glare was more than enough to make them realize their mistake. Often, their pupils shrunk to tiny dots and they desperately tried to avoid eye contact for the rest of the audience.

Aside from these minor distractions, the whole thing was so boring I could have fallen asleep right there. I had sat through Magister’s lectures, with blood and sweat, and for pity’s sake, this was a close second.

It did not help that most of the problems were very mundane. A fair share of the ponies came straight from Canterlot, and those tended to have the least interesting problems, as they did not have to waste much time coming to the Castle.

From around Fillydelphia, it was a legal dispute between three parties that had degenerated. Now, only the wisdom of the Princess would do.

And more often than not, Celestia did have an answer for them. Not always pleasant for everypony involved, but undoubtedly fair and well thought-out.

Meaning, no drama to capture one’s attention, only meaningless talking. And talking. And talking.

However, things were soon about to change. From outside the court room, beyond the walls and the painted windows, another pony had just informed the guards outside of his predicament, and for the first time since this had started, I managed a discreet grin.

This is going to be fun.

Right as I thought those words, the massive doors opening into the Royal Pony Sisters’ throne room produced an unnerving rattling noise, two ponies pushing each side to widen the entrance.

Under the eyes of a curious court, a single stallion, dressed from head to hooves in a golden armor, entered. His gaze was solely on the Princess, his stance suggesting nothing toward the attention he was bathed in at the moment.

When he was close enough to talk to Celly without screaming, the guard bowed. “Your Highness, a Canterlot citizen has requested an emergency audience. Their claims include an unbreakable curse.”

The Royal Guard was full of stoic brick walls, no doubt about it. How unusual it was for the gray one speaking to his ruler to have sounded almost amused.

Celestia noted the anomaly as well, if a slight raise in her left eyebrow was any indication.

“The Court will receive them,” she said with a nod, with a hint of caution in her tone. “Bring that pony before me.”

Quickly, the guard bowed and turned around to go back to the door. Protocol dictated that only the biggest emergencies warranted more than a brisk pace. While certainly no faster than a trot, the guard didn’t walk nearly as mechanically as he could have.

Not like the pony that entered the room next.

His coat was beige and his mane, grey. On his rump, there was a quill in front of a camera. It was the first time I had seen the pony in person… in the flesh, one might say. I certainly had paid him a visit in a more… invisible form.

I fought a smirk, feeling a savage satisfaction at the stallion’s discomfort. Obviously, there hadn’t been a way to deal with his new problem in private. Why else would he be here otherwise?

From the way he advanced, each step painstakingly slow and causing a ripple of unease through his whole being, some nobles began to whisper. The guard had spoken of a curse, but truly the pony seemed in no hurry to get it removed.

In the center of it all, Celestia appeared unfazed, patiently waiting for her subject to reach an acceptable distance with an inscrutable expression on her face.

Another alicorn though had no such patience.

Blue hooves shifted on my back and against the back of my head, as his voice dropped down to an almost undetectable level, hiding a lot of frustration. “Sam?”

“Just look, little brother,” I whispered with a grin. “You’re going to love this.”

Looking back to the paparazzi, I saw that he was at the base of the stairs leading to my cousin’s throne.

“Speak, my little pony,” she said gently, in a tone not unlike a mother’s. “How may I be of assistance to you?”

For a second, it seemed as if the stallion did not know what to do with himself, looking around at the ponies surrounding him with apprehension. Flashes of recognition danced in his gaze as it fell upon the members of the court. And from the widening eyes on the face of so many nobles, the identification had been mutual.

Now there was a buzzing source of excitement in my chest making my wings flutter. The set-up was almost perfect!

Sensing my good mood, Calx shifted again, to get a better view of the scene, in time for him to see Celestia give the bastard an encouraging nod.

His cheeks growing redder, he sat down, breathing more deeply and closing his eyes. Then, his lips moved and a sound came out, but… not of his mouth.

Incredulous whispers spread to the crowd assembled in the throne room as it slowly dawned upon them what this stallion’s predicament was.

Her expression never wavering, Celestia imperceptibly leaned forward, her eyes never leaving that poor pony. By my estimation, she was fascinated by the elaborate spell he was under. I was fairly certain she had never seen or heard anything like this before.

“Please…” She hesitated, pausing for a few seconds, glancing at her scribe and shaking her head when the mare put her quill against the scroll again. Instantly, the grey unicorn lowered her scroll and stopped transcribing.

Almost with regret, Celestia continued. “You must state your name and occupation before the audience can proceed as planned.”

The stallion squirmed uncomfortably, a look of incredible embarrassment painted all over his traits, but he obeyed.

The sound came out muffled, again. From underneath him.

“…Stand up, please.” Celestia asked, her expression slowly morphing into one of incredulity.

“Yes, Princess Celestia,” he said dutifully as he scramble to stand up on all four. And this time, there was no doubt.

Appropriately, that darn paparazzi was literally speaking out of his ass. How do you like them apples!

In a silence shattering thunder, the crowd erupted with laugher. It had taken less than a few seconds, but the hilarity had spread to everypony like wildfire.

“S-stop!” He had yelled, making his tail swing back and forth.

Oh, it’s really the details that count, I thought, before a thud next to me caused me to jump.

Tom had fallen off my back, rolling on the floor in tears, the situation all too funny to a young colt like him. The sight had me grinning, pushing me to give him a few pokes in the ribs just to rile him up even more.

From a foal, it was understandable. Hay, the good ol’ childish jokes still worked on him with proper timing. From adult ponies, the reaction was much more… vindictive… vengeful.

Contempt. All I could feel toward those laughing ponies… Just cold contempt. How refined that they laugh so easily at the misfortune of another. I eyed them, taking in their features and their barely hidden snickers. How very much like I had anticipated.

A little flame ignited in my chest, though twisted and far from warm. I was… I was almost proud of how well I had read them.

This court… it wished to see those beneath them packed in good obedient locations and never question their divine blood. To see this paparazzi, one who could always attack their image so easily, this one pony, humiliated so badly; it was a primal revenge for them. They probably didn’t even find the irony all that funny, they just wanted a bit of payback.

And they were getting it.

The stallion held his head low, his tail curling up under him as he tried to disappear out of view, his whole face red with shame. He gave the impression of wishing to disappear, to sink into the ground and never come out again.

I was the first to hear choked sobs. Bitter tears of humiliation started rolling down his cheeks.

The sight of something so… pathetic actually ignited sparks of guilt in my chest.

I tried to squash them… unsuccessfully.

H-he DESERVES it! I thought with indignation toward my apparent empathy. Humiliated as he humiliated us! He gets what he threw around…

Feeble excuses. They didn’t do a damn thing to loosen this tightness around my throat.

Why?! Why couldn’t I even enjoy payback against somepony that had just destroyed our reputations for no reason?!

It made me angrier, focusing this new feeling onto the paparazzi. It was his fault! I hated him for that! This was supposed to help, not make me feel hollow.

To my complete shock, a white unicorn tried to push forward, out of the crowd and toward the victim of my spell. Blueblood was moving upfront, a stern look on his face. He wasn’t laughing. Not even close.

But it was not him that intervened.

“ENOUGH!”

The shout stopped everything dead in its track. It rang loud, it rang strong, and more importantly, it rang of anger.

For the first time in my life, I got to see Princess Celestia truly angry. Laws of statistics be damned, it might have been the first time it had happened to everypony else in the room as well.

It was difficult to take in the sight, as her throne seemed to have gotten brighter. Rays of light shone through the throne room, illuminating it to an almost painful degree. Heat rolled off her in waves, causing me to step back and shield my brother as best as I could. Tom had gone completely silent.

“FOALS! ALL OF YOU!” Some ponies around us whimpered, and parts of me understood for the Royal Canterlot Voice seemed a pale comparison to this.

Celestia’s anger was burned into her words, as her voice boomed in what could only evoke fiery explosions. “IS THE MOCKING OF A PONY CURSED SO TRIVIAL OF A THING FOR YOU?!”

An old mare to my right fainted.

“I AM DISAPPOINTED IN ALL OF YOU! THIS SESSION OF THE DAY COURT IS OVER.” Quickly, she raised one hoof, then brought it down with enough force to shake the ground. The shockwave vibrated into my bones, clattering my teeth together. “LEAVE, SO I MIGHT HELP THIS POOR STALLION!”

Rapidly, I threw my magic around my little brother to lift him up. Curling on himself, he buried his face into my back, which then started to feel damp…

Nopony questioned Celestia’s order. As one, the nobles started leaving the room, heads hung low in shame, ears flattened against their skulls. Some were even fighting their tears, quietly sniffing and wiping their eyes. For the most part, they tried to make themselves forgettable enough that their ruler’s anger wouldn’t fall onto them.

I alone dared glance back toward Celestia and the paparazzi.

At first, her focus was too much on the cursed stallion to notice. As I was about to pass by the guards at the door however, she turned toward the fleeing elite of Canterlot, her purple irises scanning the crowd.

Alarms setting off in my mind, I ducked my head not to make eye contact. Brief as that occurrence had been, nothing could disperse the impression of a fire burning against the back of my head.

In our room, there was the slightest scent of sulfur lingering. The odor was strong enough that Calx momentarily forgot his lack of energy to investigate. With one jump and a few revolutions of his wings, he made it to the center of our suite.

Glancing everywhere, nostrils flaring a few times, it didn’t take him long to find the source of the scent. “Ooooooooooh, got it!”

“What is it?” I asked, trying to peek a look at the thing he was holding.

“You got a letter.” He grinned, trying to look both smug and innocent, which he strangely succeeded at. “From Twiiiiiiiiiilight.”

A letter? This could be the key to our return home!

Acting like his usual self, my little brother gave the scroll a tentative sniff, only to appear wounded the next second.

“It’s not perfumed, but I’m sure she sent most sincere sentiments in it!” At that, he dropped on the bed, making fake smooching sounds and snickering under his breath.

“Give me that, you little squirt!” I yelled, grabbing him by his tail with my mouth and throwing him off the bed.

“Whoa!” He yelped, before colliding with the ground and finding himself splayed, with me looming over him.

Instantly, his smugness vanished, replaced by the most adorable, sheepish, innocent pair of puppy eyes. As always though, I was completely immune to his way of weaseling himself out of a bad situation. I taught him that, after all.

“Give me the letter.” He handed it to me without a fuss. “Now go read your school books or something.”

“But-!”

“Calx…” I said with a warning tone.

He scrammed, not grabbing a book as I told him, but nonetheless going on the balcony. With so much on my mind, I let it slide, instead choosing to break the wax seal on Twilight’s scroll.

Dear Prince Ventus,

I have received your letter and chosen a course of action concerning any possible relationship between us. I believe that your suggestion is an intelligent one and do express the desire to keep communicating with you.

If I may… I would like to start this with a question of my own. Have you ever… felt overwhelmed by the idea of being royalty? I do not know if you have ever encountered this problem, you always seem so composed and sure of yourself, but I do not know… if this status is really something I deserve, or even if I desire it. Princess Celestia believes it – which was made even more apparent by some of the information you have revealed to me – and I have always believed in her wisdom…

I… please do not repeat this to anypony… but I am scared Princess Celestia made the wrong choice when she helped me become an alicorn!

N-no, please forget I ever wrote that!! If my friends knew-!

…I’m sorry. There was always an inherent pressure to being her personal student. Other ponies would always look at me with some expectations. They were always scrutinizing my every actions, my every words, as if they were trying to find a flaw somewhere! And it’s gotten worse with my new princesshood! I…

Sometimes… I feel their eyes on me, judging me, as if it was natural. That’s an acute sign of paranoia, I think I should get diagnosed. Sometimes, I hate them. You must think I’m a horrible pony…

…I am sorry if this was so sudden. I do not know what come over me. If this has weirded you away from me, I would understand.

Perhaps I should scrap this letter and start over!

Sincerely, Twilight Sparkle.

I… I didn’t know what to do with that letter.

Strangely, the ink started to botch up in spots, darkening the paper and dampening it. Realizing this, I quickly shoved the letter into a drawer and wiped out my eyes. I… I really was acting insane.

Obviously, Twilight had shared a part of herself with me that she had hid from the others. But… why? Why had she felt comfortable, even with some self-censoring going on, to write to me about these things? Was she… was she hoping that I would relate?

My heart went to her, as I could see her. I just felt like I could and did understand some of what she was going through. She was a frightened mare, hoping to live up to the standards everyone had of her, lest she be abandoned by them. Standards, might I add, that existed only because of something outside her own control.

As caught up in my thoughts as I was, I failed to notice the knocks on our door until my brother decided to dart through the room to answer it. With his usual level of subtlety and language.

“Yeah? What’s up?”

That’s my brother alright. I rolled my eyes.

My mind going to Twilight again, perhaps evoking her curves with more vivacity than necessary, I only noticed the exchange was over when the door was slammed close.

Shifting from one hoof to another, Calx was still sending glances in the direction the pony had left. His mouth opened, but no sound coming out, it seemed as if he was trying to formulate the right interpretation of whatever he heard. He was clearly confused, perhaps a bit worried too.

“Calx?” I asked, getting worried. “Who was at the door?”

“Some maid…” He frowned, looking up to me with curiosity. “Princess Celestia wants to see you, said it was urgent.”

Comfort

As was becoming a familiar scenario, I stood in Celestia’s office, patiently waiting for her to acknowledge me. It would be a lie to say I wasn’t nervous; I was probably sweating bullets, acutely aware that the timing of her summon most likely meant that things were going to take a turn for the worse. With but the sound of Celestia’s quill against a scroll filling the room, my thoughts were evolving at a frantic rate.

The foremost of which revolved around the smell of burning ash. My nose could not help but pick up on that light aroma of death and immolation lingering near my cousin at this point in time.

She was truly and utterly pissed.

In one swift motion, the quill screeched against the paper, before snapping in half. Sighing, the white alicorn holding the instrument closed her eyes, presumably to calm down, completely ignoring my wince.

“I trust you know without a doubt the reason of your presence here,” Celestia said, her tone scorching with restrained anger.

Even then, her gaze wasn’t on me. In fact, to my relief, she seemed to be avoiding looking at me. Unfortunately, my guess on the matter was that she was trying to remain calm enough to have a civil discussion with me.

That really didn’t help me relax.

“Perhaps…” I answered in a gruff whisper.

Her eyes finally found me, narrowed and flaring. “…Do not test me, Ventus. You know what you did.”

I had my pride too. As idiotic as it was, the ego I had tried so hard to restrain was resurfacing. In the face of sanctimonious behavior, the mask cracked on my face.

“I’ve created a web of air around his body that redirected every noise as if coming out of his rear end.” I folded my right front leg, leaning forward in a fake bow. “Is that detailed enough for you?”

“You forgot to mention that it was unnecessary, disproportionate and puerile.” She hammered each word with emphasis, her voice starting to strain.

A ripple of indignation went through my body at her words. Barely, I bit back a scathing remark. The only outward sign of my reaction was a bitter scoff.

“Yes, obviously, I reacted in a terrible manner.” I resisted the urge to roll my eyes, muscles tensing. “I have shown once again that I have a strong temper.”

“This is no small problem, Ventus!” She brought her hoof down, making me flinch. “This morning, I was talking to Catch Crop, your brother’s private tutor.”

For a second, I blinked, taken aback by the sudden angle of approach she was taking. And the image of the mare appearing in my mind did nothing to appease my growing anger. Of course, she heard about this!

“She told me, dismayed, that you had decided she would not be teaching Calx anymore.” Celestia went on, looking stern. “Is that correct?”

“Yes, it is!” I clenched my teeth together. “Did she bother telling you why?!”

My question had more effect than I thought it would, as she seemed to pause, briefly. Her wings and her legs tensed, before slowly returning to their normal state.

“No, I can freely admit that she didn’t. At the time, she seemed afraid of your reaction and refused to speak up.” Her last words rang of accusation.

For my part, it flew over my head, as I struggled and failed to keep my temper in check. “Oh, now she takes my feelings into consideration?! About time!”

“Ventus, if you start ranting and snarking like a young teenager, we will get nowhere fast.” She had reached a level of dryness that would destroy lakes whole. “Elaborate on this.”

“She felt me up!” I snarled, my wings extending in a flash. “After she tried to seduce me and coerce me into having sex with her in front of Calx, I ran away. Hay, I had mostly forgotten about this until I met her again and she decided to keep flirting!”

To my satisfaction, Celestia leaned backward slightly, her gaze visited by a light of unease. It only riled me up more.

“I do not take kindly to mares that wish to use me like that, especially not when things are so complicated between Twilight and me! But what’s worse is that she let my brother bribe her with the promise of leaving me alone with her and giving him an extra credit. How can I trust her to teach him anything after that?!”

By the time I was done yelling, my chest was heaving strongly, more from the emotion than any shortage of air. My eyes were fixated on my cousin, however, scrutinizing her white face for search of emotions.

Her anger with me seemed to have dimmed, at least in part, as she looked down on me with more sadness than disappointment.

“I will admit that my choice of tutor was poor. Her behavior was indeed inappropriate,” she conceded, wearily. “However, this does not explain her outright fear of you.”

It was my turn to deflate, as a shiver went down my spine, memories flashing into my mind. My hooves, the tip of my wings and my tail seemed to be dipped into cold water.

At the edge of my consciousness, there were images of ghostly pony-like creatures, flying through the sky of Equestria.

Lowering my head, I started explaining, with a mixture of resentment and shame. “We had an argument, but when it degenerated, she tried to hit me. I did not allow her. When she raised her hoof, I overpowered her and pinned her to the ground.”

Celestia stared.

“I see…” With a sigh, she massaged her forehead. “And what of Mr. Blotted Ink?”

It took most of my self-control not to act completely dismissive of it. “Same story, different scale.”

Her gaze became stern again. “You’re not feeling guilty.”

“It wasn’t illegal! He dragged our name through the mud and I inflicted the same on him!”

Her frown clearly indicated how little she thought of my reply. “Hiding yourself behind an old law, Ventus? With your age, I expected you to know better.”

For some reason though, her words stroke me as… treacherous. Impressions eternity olds lingered somewhere in my memories.

“W-what are you talking about? …It’s the law, h-how would that…” With a gasp, I stopped talking. Without so much as a warning, my head had started to hurt. My right hoof went to my temples, in an attempt to massage away the sensitive region. “I-it’s like you’re talking about defying…”

All to my sudden pain, eyes half-closed, I failed to notice right away that Celestia had fallen silent. For a minute, nothing happened in the office, as I tried to shake off the pain blurring my perception. Ideas were in shamble, and, as I noticed with a distant sentiment of dread, some rebellious thoughts started to fade.

Violently, I threw the air particles in the room at my body as a multitude of small arrows, making me yelp loudly. Though not causing any injury, that spell had sent a shockwave of pain to counteract my growing migraine.

It worked… somewhat. I could focus my attention toward Celestia again, albeit with some difficulties.

“This is not about defying the law, Ventus.” How strange… She sounded cautious, reluctant… “You have humiliated that poor stallion in front of the whole day court. Worse, you are not even feeling apologetic for it.”

As her words started to sink in, I felt the last remnants of this strange episode rescind away into nothingness. With a new clarity to my thoughts, the pulsing heat in my chest returned, boiling away the blood in my veins.

“Why do you single me out on this? Have you forgotten? Nopony in that court was any better. They weren’t moved by his tears of shame, they just laughed louder! That? That wasn’t a crime, that was justice, taken directly from your own laws!”

A pit of unease formed at the bottom of my stomach, at my use of the word ‘justice’. Something about the term was just… chilling my blood.

If Celestia noticed, she made no show of it. Rather, the white alicorn appeared to be trying to control her own voice.

“Justice that is too old becomes oppression. Sentient beings adjust their levels of happiness, their standards, in function of the world around them. One can live a life of misery and still find some silver lining to it when being shoved in the same position would have another spiraling into despair in a matter of days. What is considered revolutionary one day is called retrograde a century later. We both know this, we’ve both seen it, Ventus.”

Foals growing up in a city under siege… still able to find something to smile at…

“Yet you refused to acknowledge this, for the sake of a petty vengeance.”

“PETTY?!” My eyes almost flew out of their orbits with sheer indignation. “Of course it was petty! He deserved worse!”

Now her voice was gaining in volume as well. “That poor stallion was humiliated in front of his peers and some of his most fervent readership! His reputation is ruined!”

“He insulted YOU! He ruined YOUR reputation! How can you defend him?!”

I just didn’t get it! That article had literally called her an incestuous deadbeat mother!

“I see you still lack perspective, Ventus,” she sighed, though her voice had started to turn sour. “Very well, if I need to spoon fed the facts to you, I will.”

The insult had my nostrils flaring, and I barely kept quiet long enough for Celestia to go on.

“It is a sad thing, but Cutie Marks hold a great deal of power over a pony’s mind,” she explained slowly, as if talking to a child. As she spoke however, I noticed that her tone grew less vindictive and took on a sadder note. “It is quite easy to confuse their meanings as an obligation or the only pursuit of happiness possible. Some ponies drive themselves mad trying to live up to it, some fall into depression trying to live their ‘destiny’.”

T-there were ponies I remembered, from human or alicorn perspectives, that indeed fit that mental image. A few of those breakdowns into madness had greatly saddened the young colt I was back then.

“You were not completely wrong. Nopony deserves to be put through this.” She briefly looked at a conspicuous copy of this morning’s newspaper. “But in the case it must happen, then, yes, I will allow my subject to do this to me, so their happiness is preserved.”

Briefly, my heart went to her, to the struggle it must have been, to love her subjects so much that she would let them attack her name with so much impunity. I knew I would never have the strength to do the same.

“But unlike him, we will outlive those rumors and it will become nothing more than a forgotten piece of gossip with time. Time erases everything, Ventus, even the worst of slanders, but only If there is enough, which might not be the case for that reporter. I’ve already taken measure to hide his new identity, or else his career would be in complete shambles because of you!”

Her words reverberated in the air, going through my whole being and striking into my core. I almost thought I would start bleeding, for this backstabbing blade had hurt, but it was not so.

For a moment, I remained perfectly silent, though this was attributable to a lack of ability rather than a desire to speak. Oh yes, I had dozens of things to say, but my jaw was sending painful signals to my brain, as I clenched my teeth together harder and harder. The taste of metal started to fill my mouth. She… she hadn’t cared!

“How dare you betray our trust like this?!” I finally shouted, my feathers rustled, as I fought an angry heaving. I… I could not believe her! “You invited us in your home, then confined us to it to avoid conflicts no less, yet you were willing to let them do THAT?! Who are YOU to decide the value of our names for us?! Bastards? Degenerates? MISTAKES?! It’s fine if they call us that, isn’t it, Celly?”

Quickly, her eyes widened, as if the weight of what she had said hit her. A brief flash of horror lit up her gaze, as she started speaking with a pained voice. “This is not what I m-”

“He literally insulted every member of my immediate family with this joke of an article! You, your sister, my mother, my father, my brother, myself; this accusation touches all of us! He has tainted the image of my parents and our own, for the sake of sensationalism! And you’re telling me you let them do this!?” Somewhere nearby, a blast of lightning hit the ground, but not of the will of any weather pony. Clouds were gathering in the sky; dark, stormy clouds. “You think this is a small price to pay for the sake of a pony’s mental health?! I’ve heard whispering between every pony in this castle and beyond, I can still hear them, at this very moment! They don’t stop. Their voices, I hear them all! What of my mental health?! YOU THINK THIS IS ANY GOOD FOR IT!?”

The wind was blowing harder outside, infiltrating houses from the tiniest of openings, letting out an ominous whistle that promised a dire future. High-pitched, with an otherworldly echo, it held a beauty, calling me like the song of the most sensual mare.

White branches spread onto windows and toward the insolent warmth of life. Some noticed, squealing in fright.

My hooves were cold, as were the tips of my wings. In response, my mind outright split in half, panic spreading through the corners of my mind as this was unnatural. But this side of me held so little power over my conscious reaction. It only felt right that I distance myself as much as possible from the ponies that rejected my brother and me.

“Ventus!” A voice called, its owner stepping closer to me.

There was a white body, taller than me, radiating heat. T-too much heat… It seared my fur, my flesh, my bones, reaching into the depths of my soul, searching. It found those cores of ice, those virulent, twisting storms of hate, it found them.

With a gasp of shock, I stumbled forward, barely registering the body my horn rested against. One by one, the whispers died out, destroyed by the scorching warmth of another alicorn. Each core at a time, I was stripped of them all.

I was left with nothing but a deep fatigue that blurred my mind. Voices were a distant echo I could not hear. Slowly, I looked up toward my cousin, who seemed startled and a little tired. It was the first time I had ever seen her out of breath.

“Has it always been this way for you?” Celestia asked quietly. “Have you always been unable to ignore their voices?”

My reaction was a split second too late, and she noticed. “Yes.”

“Since when?” She asked, completely ignoring my lie. “What brought this change?”

There was something to say… I knew there was. But the answer escaped me, fleeing as soon as the slightest hints became a possibility in my brain. “The windigo.”

There was no surprise in her traits and my instinct told me she already knew. “What did you do?”

“I got rid of it.” So mechanical… so artificial and stiff that nopony could ever believe that.

“How?” She pressed me for answers.

I wanted this to stop… my head was heavy, almost rolling off the sides of my shoulders. “I claimed what was mine.”

For a long moment, she said nothing, and I almost thought our conversation was over. All I could feel of her were the feathers of her wings supporting my torso, as I struggled to keep standing. Eyes closed, I could already feel my consciousness slipping away, when she refused me this respite.

“Do you hear me, Ventus?”

The sheer ridicule of her inquiry brought some of my wits back.

I scoffed, an aggressive sneer almost on my muzzle. “Are you really asking me that question?”

“Please, listen to my voice.” She shifted, a note of desperation starting to pierce through her voice.

“I hear you…” I grumbled, still leaning against her.

It started as a low frequency, deep, almost too deep for Celestia, but slowly, I started to feel it resonate into me. With an unorthodox note, it rose in pitch, forming the first words of the melody.

Let go of your fear, little oooooooone…
Let go of the shadow in the forest,
Of the growl in the darkness.

And, as the song progressed, with each line sung, I noticed the peace washing over me.

There was only one voice. There was only her voice, a shining beacon to a lost soul like myself.

It refused to let me fall into this comforting darkness. A hoof of light was outstretched toward me, and I took it, letting the mare place herself between myself and the blizzard.

I was as a foal in front of these demons, small, insignificant and desperately clinging to the one that could protect me. Each note rippled through me, a golden chord that vibrated with a comforting beauty until I heard nothing of the contempt and the scorn.

Finally, to my regret, Celestia’s voice died down.

The silence was deafening. After the horror that had been the publication of the smearing article and the bliss that had been her song, this absurd emptiness scared me.

However, for the Alicorn of the Wind, silence was never but a fleeting ghost.

“HEY! Don’t say that about Prince Ventus!”

I know that voice…

V-Violet?

But already the impression had passed, leaving only a lingering echo and an ache in my heart for the young filly.

“You’ll excuse me if I find it more logical to put my faith in the words of one of the few nobles that doesn’t make my job at the castle a living hell, rather than some trashy tabloid!”

All was not lost. There were still ponies that weren’t swayed by such stupid lies.

The warmth of Celestia’s touch left me, having me fight the impulse to step closer to her to find it once more. I… I couldn’t…

My cousin had straightened, growing a little less familiar and a little more regal.

“I sincerely apologize for my poorly worded explanation. I gave you the impression I didn’t…” Her voice trailed off, seemingly as she had lacked the strength to complete her thoughts. “Do you feel better?”

Lie. Lie, you moron. You’ve got a GREAT excuse to chart it up on mild insanity or what’s not, just lie and take advantage of this!

One more lie wouldn’t be much on my conscience, right? …Right?

But the weight was too much. S-she had just… she’d just show one more time that she cared for me on some deep level… I couldn’t do it. “N-no…”

Her face fell, her lips parting and her eyes widening with dismay. Shock was painted all over her traits. I saw a hope die in her gaze.

“It… it doesn’t change the truth…” My voice wavered, sadness and fatigue washing over me. “They still destroy what little reputation we have left… They’re still… saying those things…”

But soon enough, hatred started pumping through my veins again. It was scary to see how smoothly the transition from one to the other went.

“They use ME to insult MY family and this is only because YOU enable them!? If I had gone with my first impulse, that reporter would be DEAD! And now I’m asking myself why I didn’t?!”

Had glares hold the power to combust one into flame, I would have stood amidst a blazing inferno. But so would have a few thousand ponies...

“It’s not even my conscience that held me back!” I went on, my voice building up stronger with renewing anger. “It’s just the simple fact that you would have found out eventually and punished me. If that had happened, any chances of us going back would have been lost, our family would have been severed permanently and Calx would have had to grow up alone!”

Celestia looked as if I had slapped her. Her eyes were slowly growing with horror, as her mouth fell. It seemed likely that I had finally taken her by surprise. B-but there was more than shock in her façade… pain seeped through her being. I had hurt her.

I didn’t expect it to give me even a pause, but my anger started to dissipate quickly. Words filled with fury and indignant rants could not go past my lips. They were blocked every time by a gnawing feeling eating at my conscience.

Her voice was barely above a whisper, but it seemed so loud my eardrums could have burst. Each word came out broken, choked out… “So this is what you think of me…”

I went fully silent. There were images… memories, flashing before my eyes. They were of her, of my cousin and her smile, whether sad or warm, but it was there.

She tried. Oh Elders all mighty, she had tried so hard to help everypony, me included. S-she… she just saved me from insanity!

And I was burning every bridge she had set to build.

The anger left. It broke, from top to bottom, by the strike of an overwhelming guilt. I felt weakened without that boiling energy to carry me forward, without that wind beneath my wings…

I wanted to scream, to trash, to yell to the world how much of a moron I was. But there was no strength in my limbs. I couldn’t even bear to look at her in the eyes, I didn’t deserve to stand in her presence.

My voice trembled, coming out as nothing more than a saddened, self-loathing whisper. “I… I’m sorry… T-there’s a monster growing inside me, Celestia. You’ve seen it! There’s just so much hatred in me that I can’t…”

I took a step forward, pleading, but she did not interrupt.

“Stop me…” My throat tightened. “This will end horribly, I just know it…”

“Ventus…”

“I-I just want to leave Equestria forever, to go back to my kin and forget this nightmare ever happened. I never wanted to cause all this! I never wanted to be THIS!” I cried out in shame, lowering my head, shrinking on myself.

Silence.

She was still. Her gaze was locked onto me, but I had already lowered my head in shame.

“I-if I can’t even have that… why must I be subject to this travesty?! Why let them drag the last few things I have into the mud…?” My breath hitched. There was no fighting it anymore. “Must I lose everything before they are satisfied?”

“Stop,” she said weakly, and the impulse to obey her orders came. But I ignored it.

“S-send us back…” I whispered, through sobs and tears; I gripped at her body and couldn’t let go. “I BEG OF YOU, CELESTIA! SEND US BOTH BACK HOME!”

He wasn’t quite certain if it was still a good idea… N-no, he knew it wasn’t a good idea, because frankly, he had no plan coming here. In his heart, he certainly understood that any attempt at fixing things would start at their house.

But now that he stood in front of Sam’s father, who looked worse than he had ever seen him before – not that this was saying much –, Eric found out that his mouth had gone dry. It did not help things that there had been an uncertain pause before Mr. Miller could call him by name, and even then, it had been tainted with doubt.

Still, for his friend’s sake, he had to give it a shot.

“M-may I enter, please?” He asked politely, after taking a deep calming breath.

Wordlessly, the man, taller than him or Sam, moved to the side, fixing him with a tired stare.

Feeling as if his heart would burst, Eric quickly entered the living room, almost jumping when James closed the door behind him.

“Would you like something to drink?” He asked with a hollow tone.

There was no hostility in his voice, but no true warmth either. His friend’s father moved about as if he had no choice other than go on, no hope or strength left in him.

The proposition, albeit an obvious icebreaker, had merit though. With his heartbeat so ridiculously fast, with such trouble simply swallowing his own saliva, the thought of getting a glass of water and a few minutes to calm down was unbelievably tempting.

“Y-yes, if it’s not too much trouble…” Eric finally agreed.

Again, with as few words as he needed to, James led his visitor into the kitchen. It was only after a short moment of hesitation that Eric followed him, however as soon as he came in sight of the people inhabiting it, he second guessed his decision.

A pit of cold started weighting down on his stomach.

Oh God, this was a terrible idea. He should leave. He should leave now and bury himself in a hole and never come out.

There were two middle-aged women, sitting at the dinner table. One he had never seen before, one he wished to have never seen in the state she was.

Mrs. Miller was… honestly… a mess. Her appearance screamed of unkempt. Her hair remained uncared for, knots and wild strands could easily be spotted from where he was standing, and it was only the tip of the iceberg. The longer he stared, the more details jumped to him. There had been a slip-up with her lipstick, smearing the corner of her lips; her clothes were wrinkled, badly matched, as if thrown together for appearance’s sake, but changed her mind halfway. In her hands, a cup of coffee shook lightly, overflowing with droplets of hot black liquid, which had smeared her wrists and remained undisturbed.

All of this, absolutely every detail, paled in comparison to what her eyes appeared to be.

Dead. They were lifeless, hollow, reflecting nothing and going over nothing.

Eric now knew what depression did to a person. Whenever he tried to summon the previous image of this woman, the misery in her current appearance only seemed to worsen. She was a shell of her former self.

“Would you like some soda?” He tensed at being brought out of his reverie. “Or some water?”

“W-water…” With his luck, soft drinks would make him belch, which was far from the kind of stupidity and rudeness needed in his situation.

Feeling as if he was acting on autopilot, Eric mechanically picked up the glass extended in front of him.

“Here you go,” James said. “Now, why don’t you tell me what you wanted to talk about?”

The water felt cool against his palate and his throat, a fact he was thankful for. It lessened, if only slightly, the sensation of his vocal chords being damaged by so much stress. Thus, perhaps a bit obnoxiously, the young man took his time to gulp it down and hazarded another look at Mrs. Miller.

Unlike the other woman in the room, she was inattentive, clearly not paying him any mind.

“I… huh…” This was horrible. His face was on fire and he could barely hear himself over his own maddened heart. “As a friend of Sam, I wanted to… you know… offer my support and… that stuff…”

To his lame explanation, he was amazed to feel Mr. Miller’s hand fall on his shoulder.

“Thank you…” The whisper was so quiet he was convinced he had imagined it.

Yet Sam’s mother seemed to have glanced his way.

“We do appreciate your kindness, Eric…” James said with a bit more warmth than before. “It must be hard on you too… on us all… If there is something we can do to help you…”

Being offered the chance on a silver platter, Eric could not help but feel incredibly guilty about doing this. These people were on the brink of collapse, everything about them seemed to scream this at him. His meddling would be just another unnecessary worry to pile on top of the rest.

It was a terrible idea. He should just… just say something to Mrs. Miller, try to cheer her up and leave. H-he had no r-right…

“Is it okay if I… if I enter their rooms?”

The room fell into complete silence.

The stallion had fallen asleep in her hooves. He had clung to her as if his life depended on it.

Rarely before had Celestia been taken by surprise, but it had been one of those few occasions where her foresight had proven itself to be less than perfect. Still, she had managed to sooth his mind for at least a few more hours, a maternal instinct guiding her words and her every gesture.

With some determination, he had slowly calmed himself, though not let go of her. There had been something incredibly… foal-like to the gesture, so vulnerable about it… She had not objected.

Alone with Ventus, the stallion’s long since asleep, she was free to observe and draw conclusions from the events of the day.

There was, without a doubt, more than a single influencing force pressing against his mind. His admission to assimilating the windigo he had met had her fearing for his sanity. Caelum had been monstrous and the resemblances between the two had grown bigger with time. However, when listening to her, he had muttered something about the Law and defiance, visibly troubled and pained… The complete opposite of how he seemed to be now.

So peaceful, she thought. He made a better show of his innocence in his sleep that he liked to pretend while awake. He would have looked so young, barely out of colthood if one asked her. But, as ancient as she was, she knew that this alicorn had already lived longer than any mortal in her world.

One certainly did not need to be a few thousand years old to see through the façade of ‘Prince’ Ventus. The young stallion had certainly tried, but if even her nephew Blueblood could quickly notice the discrepancies, then the attempt was doomed from the start.

Her gaze fell on the sleeping pony once more, taking in his form as his chest lifted up and down with each breathe. For a troubling moment, she could not stop herself from narrowing her eyes.

No! I cannot let the past influence me now! With ease brought by practice, Celestia summoned the memories of her young cousins, recalling at least one specific occurrence.

Sam, was it? With that nickname, she could easily see the smiles he gave to ‘Tom’, the most genuine – the only ones? – he had given since his arrival. All guards were dropped when it came to the little alicorn colt. The older brother was only shown giving off the vibe of a living being when in presence of the younger one.

Yes, that name showed a much closer aspect of his true self, she decided.

Yet…

Not quite either.

Beyond both the Prince and the Brother, there was at least one more part of him. It had been neither of those facets that had laughed today, but it was the other two that had cried.

Empty eyes, glancing at a stallion embarrassed to the point of tears. Savage satisfaction, manifested by an almost unnoticeable smirk. Flippant, almost bashful tone to being told his actions were wrong. An insane glint of glee at cold spreading.

Yes, Ventus’s reaction had been far from innocent. More disturbingly, it hadn’t been the first time either.

She could only imagine the reasons.

It gave the Solar Princess a very uncharacteristically cold chill to delve on it, but she could not stop doing so. The young stallion sleeping against her chest kept gathering her attention with but the most simple of reactions, be they stir or groans.

Princess Celestia could not forget whose features he was so uncannily wearing.

She remembered the cold, the radiant blackness that had stemmed from the pure golden coat, from the silvered streaks in that snow white mane and from the greenish blue of his eyes. Too easily, though, she had found herself tricked. A grin, almost too young and pure to be his, had been the last she had seen in a few years, with the knowledge of her isolation as sole company.

Caelum…

The Sky Alicorn, the First of the Fallen. Her sister’s past lover and the very pony that had been reincarnated into this troubled stallion. Him. It was his colors and his voice, all over again.

But that much was of no consequence. Celestia had long since learned of where one’s sin lied and it certainly wasn’t within one’s descendant or reincarnation. That, she could look past.

However, the darkness in Ventus’ eyes had too much of HIS insanity for her to ignore! Every time the young alicorn had looked dissatisfied, it had reminded her of ice and blizzards. Every time, the desire to strike him down had grown.

She shook her head. What was she thinking? Perish the thought!

How unbecoming. She truly had to compose herself and regain some peace of mind. Her little ponies would be so appalled had they known of her moments of weakness. What would they think of her?

Perhaps subconsciously, she refused to notice how her wings were trembling. A monster growing inside him…? If only she could forget those words. If she could brush it off… if she could ignore the festering hatred inside him…

It had been a hot-blooded reaction to yet another unpleasant contact with the darker side of the press, nothing more. There was no reason to believe it stemmed from deeper issues…

She could pretend to believe that for the few hours of nighttime she had left… for the few hours of peace and camaraderie his sleeping form offered. It was so painful to see another member of her family fall…

Her mind drifted away, to times slightly less troubled. There was the thought of the inevitable measures that would need to be taken to deal with him, of yet another way to restrain the unstable alicorn. But she would rather not delve on these much longer, there were other memories she would prefer to focus on. At the front of it all, her faithful student stood, nervous and naïve, but oh so talented. She had cherished every success, suffered at every failure, sharing the trials and tribulations of her student through their times together.

The thought of an attraction between Twilight Sparkle and Ventus Vinco had her uncharacteristically nervous. Trust wasn’t the issue. Her student had a good head on her shoulders and many friends on whom she could count to help her. Her young cousin, however, exhibited a disturbing behavior on occasion, but, simultaneously, the purity of his feelings for his loved ones had her impressed. His devotion to them was second to none. If he loved her student, then he would do everything possible to bring her happiness. ‘If’ he lo-

A small knock on her door took her completely by surprise. Celestia certainly didn’t expect to have her thoughts interrupted by anypony at this hour of the night. Not one visitor in a single night, but two?! Her, who was so used to distance and nervousness from her beloved subjects, getting popular so quickly? What was happening here?

Her magical grip on the handle seemed to waver for a small moment, before her control reasserted itself. She was not a mare to be so easily shaken!

As soon as it was opened, a little colt peeked in, crimson eyes showing uncertainty rather than the boastful bravado they so frequently displayed. Some hint of a grudge flashed in his stare, but it disappeared quickly as well.

“S-Sam wasn’t coming back, so I was wondering...” His sentence ended there, for the foal saw his brother’s sleeping body by her sides and froze. Instantly, the uncertainty was replaced by longing.

A motherly smile – perhaps the first truly genuine one of this emotional night – found its way onto her lips. With just a few tap of her wingtips, she invited the colt to join them.

The invitation did not need to be repeated. Bolting, Calx Iugum dashed forward with an excited smile at the idea of sleeping next to two of his idols.

For a second, the princess feared he might collide with them and wake up Ventus, but the foal showed surprising control and slowed down when he was close enough. Delicately, he climbed over his brother’s body, who barely stirred, and settled down right next to his wings.

“G’night Celestia…” He whispered, already closing his eyes, an adoring smile gracing his features and carrying him to sleep.

“A good night to you too, my little pony.”

Author's Note

I rewrote this conversation so many times, it was horrible, was absolute crap at first, then changed to the point I couldn't recognize it, and I'm not sure if it is that good of a thing. Never again.

Deportation

In some corners of my mind, I had come to understand that the morning had arrived hours ago. Beneath my eyelids, there still was a powerful white light hammered into my brain, a sure sign of abundant sunlight in a world such as Equestria. This understanding, however, did not mean I was keen on moving out of this perfectly good sleeping position.

Yet, events conspired to make sure my goal was not to pass, it seemed. The very first thing to have brought me back from the depths of the realm of dreams had been a simple sound, of brushing, of fur against fur. The pillow I was using had started moving. Instinctively, I craned up my neck to try and reach that fleeting, oh so comfortable, warmth.

But, my eyes closed, I did not see the soft, yet strong hoof that pushed down against my shoulder.

“You should stay asleep, Ventus.” A kind voice rang to my ears.

With a half-hearted shrug, I leaned back against the comfortable surface I was on, subconsciously closing a wing over the little bundle of blue fur at my sides. The fog of slumber blurred any and all desire to fight back, as it made the option of letting go so much more tempting.

Eh? Who was I to protest? I thought, and turned around, letting the bliss of sleep take me again.

Distantly, in an echo of words unsaid, I heard faint ‘… find… Luna’.

The sun was already high in the sky when her number one assistant was suddenly the prey of an intense bout of nausea. A second and a flaming belch later, a letter, marked by Princess Celestia’s seal, had started rolling on the floor of the library. So far, Spike had considered himself lucky that his stomach had not been turned into a speed dial for talkative alicorns.

Although another member of the royal family had kept up the correspondence with her through very mundane means…
She had read his latest letter so many times she could recite it entirely from memory.

Dear Twilight,

First of all, I must tell you that I am in no way turned off, repulsed, scared and/or hesitant over your revelations. If anything, I was greatly moved that you confided this to me.

More than anything however, I wanted to tell you that I greatly relate to you. Royalty is a concept considered archaic at the very least by my our kind. This experience is actually alien to me, and, as you may have heard from the media coverage, I am not above reacting badly to the same scrutiny you have confessed being victim of. The story in question was an abject lie trying to depict a relationship between my father and his cousin, your mentor, that had resulted in two sons. I was… terribly upset by this.

I believe I understand some of your tribulations, and above all wish that you will grow more comfortable in your role as a princess. Pardon my biased opinion, but I currently think of you as a rather flawless member of the high nobility.

However, there is something that troubles me greatly. Have you talked to your friends about what you told me? It would most likely be highly beneficial to your state of mind to rely on somepony close to you as a source of strength in your times of need. If you fear their reactions… I can only ask you to have faith in them. I have witnessed some of your interactions and know true friendship when I see it.

But… if you still feel unable to do so, I promise you an attentive ear and a complete lack of judgment.

With hopes to hear more from you,

Prince Ventus.

Without fail, every time she thought back on those words, her chest lit up with warmth. She felt accepted, even in the face of her self-doubts. After making sure she was alone, the young alicorn could freely look back to the words that she imagined pronounced with that suave voice that made her smile so much!

Chastising herself, Twilight shook her head. No, she could not let herself be distracted!

It was no time for frivolities. Not excluding Princess Celestia’s own letter, there were other problems in Ponyville that also required her attention. Applebloom, the poor filly, had come back from the Everfree Forest crying, as her friend Zecora had apparently left without saying goodbye. With a note of disbelief in her voice, Applebloom had related how her expedition with her brother had ended with a completely empty hut in the woods.

The poor sweetheart had been on the verge of tears for every speaking moment of her speech, and as soon as it had ended, she had quietly lowered her head, shaking from head to hooves.

However, something about that story felt off to her. After the ponies in town had finally overcome the barrier between themselves and the zebra, she had revealed herself a skilled orator and certainly not one that would disappear without even a word of appreciation for her friends.

But if everything was gone… if the house had been emptied of its cauldron and its herbs, of its oils and its potions, what else could be the cause of her disappearance? Had she been foalnapped? She couldn't have left in a hurry, or else her hut would not have been just an empty carved tree...

Her eyes fell on the letter again. S-she hadn’t meant to, but it commanded her attention so easily. This time though, the memories that came to her weren’t very pleasant.

His gaze was on her, but pleading and hesitant. He had looked uneasy, torn by a choice he dared not make, then he had told her… told her the effect of the spell.

Twilight felt her fur stand on its ends.

“The kind that can alter reality.”

I awoke with a strange mixture of loss and freedom. Oh, through no nagging from Tom could I be made to feel like this. Albeit it struck me as uncharacteristic of him to wait ‘patiently’ that I extirpate myself from my own dreams, that was what he seemed had done.

“G‘morning, Tom.” I yawned, slowly pushing myself on my hooves. Stretching my wings and legs, satisfying cracking sounds soon resonated into the… bedroom…?

“Good morning, Sam!” The aforementioned colt shouted, crumbles of food flying through the air. He was sitting on a cushion I didn’t recognize, near a desk I could have sworn was much taller than it should be, and bathing in light colored by painted windows we definitely didn’t have in our suite.

To give further credence to this little deduction, by glancing downward, I discovered I had been lying on a highly decorated rug, of golden and crimson red threads intricately woven into an orb of fire.

“Wait, wasn’t I…?” I started to say, fumbling on my thoughts, until the memory of my previous conversation with Celestia hit me.

It was akin to a punch in the guts. For a short moment, my breath was cut short as I saw Celestia over, saw her light rain down on me, saw the disappearance of a twisted corruption.

I could have collapsed with sheer relief.

Even more shamefully perhaps, I could not be mad at myself, at my weakness. All I felt was this almost untamed bliss. I could breathe more freely, as some of my shackles had fallen down. I should be thinking about the repercussions, the inevitable shoe that would drop and drag us into a dark hole in the ground, but…

No… it didn’t come…

I… I was just honestly relieved!

“You okay?” A little hoof brushed against my right front leg. “Y-you look about ready to cry.”

Breathing deeply, I noticed the slight blur of my vision, and beyond that the worried face Tom showed me. So, with an exaggerated sniff, I blinked back my tears.

“Allergies.” I chuckled.

At that, oh dear, his deadpan face was flatter than my feathers. “Alicorns don’t get allergies!”

“I’m special.” My grin widened, turning absolutely lopsided with smugness. “It’s the smell of your shampoo, squirt. Look at how sick it’s making me.”

And I made a show of coughing very loudly. On the top of his head, because I could.

“Ew!” He instantly shouted with indignation, springing away from me. “Sam!”

With a death glare like that, there was only one possible follow-up to this.

“I’m gonna get you back for this!” He snarled. “Blood for the blood god!”

“Careful, there, Tom-Tom,” I said with an ominous tone, extending my wings to make myself more imposing. “I might answer your prayers!”

The next moment, Calx barreled into me at his highest flying speed. A surprising amount of pain spread from the impact point. I certainly had a tendancy to forget he was an alicorn too… and the one of Earth no less.

Toppling over, my hooves still closed down on him and forced him into an unbreakable embrace.

Control over the wind had its advantages, such as being able to tickle somepony mercilessly.

“W-whaha… s-stop, Sam… this isn’t…” And the rest was lost.

Oh, he tried to fight it, even tickled me back, which admittedly, loosened my physical grip on him. Unfortunately for my brother, by that point, he was already laughing for real. Every hit he tried on me lacked any strength and just made me laugh louder.

Soon, we were both lost causes. Caring for nothing but the two of us, we just let this happiness last as long as it could. It felt great, to finally let go of every worry for even a couple of minutes.

Almost too quickly, we regained a semblance of self-control, as one last sigh escaped our lips, almost in synch.

My back firmly set against the rug, with Tom half collapsed across my chest, I almost found the situation comical enough to start laughing again. In the end though, I simply allowed my thoughts to wander off while Tom wrestled, telekinetically, with the remaining food.

“What did you two talk about anyway?” He grabbed a red fruit, holding it just in front of his mouth, before looking up at me curiously. “You were there for a loooooong time, Sam.”

“A few things. Cousin Celly wasn’t very happy with me, you know, ‘cause of the itsy bitsy curse I put on that other stallion.”

“So what? She gave you a good scolding?” He snickered under his breath.

“Something like that, yes,” I replied vaguely, rolling my eyes at his smugness.

As sole answer, he viciously closed his mouth around the apple, sending droplets of liquid to damp my fur. Now there would be sticky spots across my coat.

Darn it!

“Where did you find this? Did you leave to get food for your favorite big brother, best friend forever?” I asked, giving him my very own version of the Miller’s trademark puppy eyes.

It didn’t affect him, the brat.

He snickered a little under his breath, before taking another bite out of the juicy fruit. “Nah, somepony just dropped it there a little while ago. Said it was for our breakfast.”

Breakfast? My eyes went to the silver plate. I could appreciate that, but room service was usually only given on a personal request. There were a few things I could infer from that, but, as was unfortunately a bad habit these days, I could only give credit to the least positive one.

…Celestia didn’t want us interacting with other ponies. Not right away.

However, a squeaky, nerves grating noise then made us turn around, toward the door, in time for us to see a mare in a maid outfit enter.

“Oh, my princes, forgive me!” She hastily bowed. “I had not known you were here. Usually, the office is deserted at this hour.”

To my surprise, a crooked, spectral paw gripped my chest.

It bothered me, I understood. It bothered me a great deal to still hear those hushed, fearful whispers from the mouth of servants that were only doing their jobs. Worse still, my mouth filled with a bitter taste at the thought that even the smallest offense might bruise some egos enough for that fear to be justified. The things I could sometimes hear from the nobles around Canterlot…

No… I didn’t want to be the source of this… this flash of dread that appeared sometimes in their gaze. I didn’t want to be that. Innocent, good ponies like this maid certainly didn’t need more stress in her life.

However, a nagging, mocking voice at the back of my head had something to add to this noble decision. But anypony that hurts me is fair deal, huh?

My throat tightened again.

“There is no need to apologize. It appears there was a small lack of communication somewhere down the lines.” With a gesture of my head, I instructed Tom to follow me outside, which he did with a complete lack of argument. “We will simply take our leave and allow you to work.”

Far outside the territory of Canterlot, beyond what even the capital of Equestria could see from the mountainside, a town by the name of Colthasset experienced its first warmth breeze since the beginning of the summer. Ponies breathed a sigh of relief when they noticed how much more comfortable their town was without that whistling wind blowing over every street.

Even the shadows in the skies seemed a little less daring… Even the shades in the snow of the neighboring mountains seemed less numerous.

If there was one thing I hadn’t expected to see in our suite, in the middle of the day, it was our dear cousin Celestia. Her body was resting onto the couch, relaxed and showing no signs of hostility. However, her eyes quickly flickered to the table next to it and the scroll sealed with an emblem unknown to me.

“Good morning, Ventus, Calx.” She nodded serenely in our directions.

“Hey Celestia!” My brother greeted her, grinning. “How’s it going?”

“I am feeling well, my dear little cousin, even better than yesterday.”

Ah, that shouldn’t be too hard… I mentally snickered, remembering the incredibly pissed off look she had worn.

“And what about you?” She continued easily. “Have you slept well?”

“Yeah! T’was nice, sweet dreams and all.” Calx nodded, then added a bit suspiciously. “Not like I ever have nightmares or anything.”

At that, Celestia and I exchanged a knowing look.

“Your rug is more comfortable than it has a right to be,” I said bashfully, as if we hadn’t decided to indulge his little colt’s fantasies of perfect toughness.

“It was a gift from a wise and grumpy old mare I have had the pleasure of working with six hundred years ago.” Her eyes lost a bit focus, as she looked back into the past. “Her negativity was matched only by her skills in crochet. I cannot tell you the number of compliments I have received on my rug in all my years as a ruler.”

Her conspiring, good-natured tone allowed us to share a few chuckles at the anecdote, before Calx asked the million bits question.

“So, why are you in our room?” He tilted his head. “I thought you had stuff to do during the day, being princess an’ all.”

At that, our cousin rose to her hooves, losing a touch of warmth to show a more royal side of her. “My royal duties are exceptionally being fulfilled by Luna at the moment, as we devised a solution to a certain recurring problem.”

She had my full attention.

“Together, we have come to a consensus and written the following decree. Effective as of today, you two will leave Canterlot castle under new identities and establish yourselves in a location we arranged specifically for your needs.”

I could hear a pin drop. Tom and I were completely silent, eyes wide enough to fly out of their orbits.

She’s… deporting us? I thought, disbelief piercing through my thoughts. T-there was a mute pain at this, as I could not help but think of it as a rejection. Even after what she had done for me. For us.

“I will place an illusion over the both of you. Your physiology will appear slightly altered, as will your coats and manes. Most importantly, the spell will mask either your wings or your horn, in addition to your cutie marks.” Her tone had grown more formal, as if she refused to acknowledge her own emotions in the matter. “For all intent and purpose, you two will seem exactly like any regular pony.”

If somepony had told Calx that Heart’s Warming Eve had been cancelled, then that his homework load had been doubled, THEN served him ratatouille and forced him to eat it all, it still wouldn’t have been enough to summon his expression of disarray at this exact moment.

Silently, I placed one of my wings over him; he almost sank to the ground.

“T-there’s no other way?” I asked, my voice breaking around the edges.

One meaningful look from Celestia told me everything. But… it was hard to agree with… with something that would make my little brother so miserable.

Hay, I actually liked that idea. We wouldn’t be the center of the attention, we wouldn’t be at risk of accidentally displeasing a large number of people and I could get out of this stupidly sticky façade of a prince.

At the moment though, my heart was up in my throat from the sheer disappointment Calx showed. It then made another jump upward as I realized that Celestia’s decision stemmed from my actions. Essentially, it was my fault he felt like this.

My irresponsible behaviors threatened to make me sick. There was this loud scream building up at the back of my throat, that I could not let out no matter how much I wanted to. Suddenly, the tip of my feathers touching my brother became scorching hot.

I was not… what kind of… what kind of brother was I?!

Impassive, Celestia went on. “You two will need to be careful. While the spell will blur the sense of touch of those that bump into you, the hidden parts could still be felt if you’re careless.”

The image of an amputated limb flashed in my mind, accompanied by testimonies of poor lads speaking on how they could feel their limbs as if it still existed.

“And if we use them?” I asked, glancing at Calx, in whom I had… hum… faith in his ability not to use his horn except when it would be really convenient.

Her gaze followed mine, falling on the subdued foal at my sides. “The spell will try to keep up the illusion, but the more glaring the action, the more likely others will get a glimpse at your true self.”

By this point, I had trouble putting my focus in her words. Every glance at my brother was torturing me. “Calx?”

To my growing despair, he did not respond.

Celestia’s voice seemed strangely restrained, to my ears at least, almost as if her self-control was threatening to slip. A hint of sadness started filter through. “You will stay stationed, in the guise of two ordinary citizens, in Ponyville, near my student and her friends.”

Instantly, my mind made the connection with the last situation that warranted such an approach. Against my better judgment, I could not help but be annoyed. Ah, like Discord then? Keeping the bearers of the Elements close, just in case...

“Not quite,” she said, as if she had read my mind, sending my heart into a frenzy. “I will inform my prized pupil of the secret of your arrival, but nopony else will be informed. It will be entirely up to you two to keep your true selves hidden. Do you understand?”

Although Calx nodded halfheartedly, I was almost too shocked to imitate him. Now I really didn’t have an idea what she was thinking.

And then… THEN it registered in my brother’s mind exactly where we would be going.

“We’re going to live in Ponyville?!” He asked, with a sudden one eighty in attitude and enthusiasm.

Now it was as if Dad had promised to give him an ancient artifact of power for Heart’s Warming Eve.

“Yes, that is the location we had in mind for you two.” The white alicorn nodded with a visible relief, the very same I felt rippled through my whole being.

“Sweet!” He started to shake from sheer excitement. “When are we leaving?”

“Haste moving our hooves, my sister and I managed to accelerate the paperwork enough for the two of you to move in tonight.” Her horn started to glow, enveloping the scroll of paper in her magic and lifting it beneath our eyes. “While acting under the pretense of this new decree, your names will be, respectively, Cloud Circle and Feather Dust, sons of the late weather experts, Sky Pattern and Wind Tunnel.”

Cloud Circle and Feather Dust, got it. I nodded

“Ventus, you will be given a royal pension to take care of your daily needs, which will be explained to others as an inheritance you are using to keep the two of you afloat. However, to maintain and integrate your places in Ponyville, you will be given a letter of recommendation and of employment to give to your new superior on the weather patrol.”

I blinked. She wanted me to be a weather pony? Huh…

Appropriate enough.

Still, I had to ask. “How long?”

She brought the full strength of her millennia old gaze on me. Even with a few centuries behind me, I felt like a foal, an inexperienced fool. But… but her eyes spoke not of my foolishness or a random jab at me… It held a kind reassurance.

“Until the time has come we can give you what you two truly need.”

My legs almost buckled from sheer shock. T-the implications of that… the promise in her tone… It was nearly too much for me to take.

Leaping forward, I closed my legs over her shoulders into a bone crushing hug.

“Thank you…” The words seemed stuck in my throat. “Thank you so much!”

For a second, Celestia didn’t react. Then, warm hooves stroke my back soothingly.

We didn’t break apart right away however. A childish part of me clung to her with all its might and she let it do so. With just that little gesture of acceptance, another dam broke.

I would miss her. Dearly. And I suddenly feared she might feel the same way. Toward Calx at the very least.

I knew she heard me say ‘I’m sorry’ under my breath before I finally let go.

They had agreed. Oh sweet Luna, they had allowed him to look into Sam’s room.

He was struggling to keep himself from going into hysterics. By her starry mane, it was downright silly, but he knew the answer had to be here somewhere.

Placing a hand in front of his mouth, Eric leaned closer to the desk left untouched. On it, Sam’s computer lied there, a film layer of dust covering it and the rest of the room. No one had had the courage to clean it up once its occupant had gone missing.

With a shiver, he fought the vibes of graves and tombs escaping the empty, lifeless, barren mess of a bedroom this was supposed to be. The light didn’t give off a warm impression; to him, it was too white, too bright, while at the same time, flickering on and off in a depressing reproduction of some public facilities’ lighting. With the sheets on the bed a quarter turned over, the torn plushie lined up with the wall and that marker, most likely dried up, that seemed to be peeking out from under the bed, the room had precisely that amount of little details that indicated it had been used before.

The police had come, checking for hints or traces of struggle, or honestly anything at all that could have helped them resolve this unsolvable case. They had left, without results. It had already been a while ago.

So, quite frankly, more parts of his brain were repeating that it was a useless, self-gratifying endeavor that was doomed from the start. If their officers hadn’t found anything worthwhile, then how could he hope to do better?

Then again, his working theory involved either magic or alien technology that resulted in dimensional travel. Most likely, that angle hadn’t been looked into by the police.

Stepping forward, Eric started examining his friend’s stuff. He smiled at some of the familiar merchandise, some from the show, some from completely different fandoms. On a few occasion, he had been present when those collector items had been purchased.

Fondly, the young man thought back on a memorable convention where he had gotten a chance to speak with his favorite voice actor. At first, he had stood in line, almost paralyzed by the excitement. Stiff as a metal pole, only the presence of his fellow bronies, amongst which Sam, had really allowed him to go through with it.

A nice warmth seemed to seep into his back, on the spot Sam had pushed him when it became evident he didn’t have the guts to go through it, not by his own volition. Her face at that moment was burned into his brain, a small smile, though also concern as he had bumped into the table, and the slightest frown which he guess had come from being startled.

Shaking his head, he tore his eyes off the merchandise, trying to get the nostalgia out of him and focus. He could admit it to himself. He was certain that the two brothers had been somehow transported to Equestria, but the chances of a plushie being responsible were exceedingly low in his book.

Though… what would have a chance of being responsible for their disappearance then?

“T-there isn’t anything truly out of place…”

How naïve of him, to think that there would be a glaring, blatant sign IF you knew what you were looking for. But that was the thing! He was supposed to have this unique perspective into the situation that no one else had! Yet…

Things were just a little out of place and the furniture had started to gather dust. That was it. There wasn’t a big floating sign that he could uncover.

His exploration slowed down, as he felt a heavy weight start to push down on his shoulders. Soon, it became difficult to stay standing with his discouragement shackling him down and he sat down on the bed.

Desperation gaining upon him, he buried his face into his open hands.

Head hung low, Eric couldn’t find the courage to look up right away. He didn’t want to give up, not on his friend, not on these people who certainly didn’t deserve that kind of tragedy in their lives… but… there was nothing he could do. He wanted to do so much more! He knew in his heart that he was right, that it wasn’t a delusion and he was the only one that knew! Was there truly nothing he could do?!

As the minutes passed and the crushing defeat rescinded into his mind, Eric slowly let his hand slip away from his face. In doing so, his eyes naturally, following the movement of his arms, fell on something inconspicuous.

The marker, left without a cap, had been reduced to uselessness, completely unable to accomplish its primary function. He had known that the moment his eyes fell on the object, so why…. Why was his attention so ensnarled by it? It was… useless… right?

Moved by an intuition, Eric kneeled and brought his face to floor level, sending a look underneath his friend’s bed.

Surely enough, blending with the background, beneath one edge of the marker, was a brown notebook.

N-nothing extraordinary there, but… it didn’t resemble Sam’s school material and his mental image of Sam dared him to even consider the possibility of a diary. If anything, the size of it reminded him more of a child’s thing…

“Is that Tom’s?” He wondered out loud, slowly reaching for it. There was something a-almost… profane with picking up the things that had belonged to a missing child.

A jolt of electricity went up his arm the second he touched it. Letting out a yelp, Eric reflexively let go, only for him to stare back at the curious object that was growing stranger by the seconds. How did something made out of paper shock him? How was that even possible?

With so many signs piling up, the young man’s conviction calcified in his mind and he made a grab for it. This time, no shock or pain accompanied the gesture, and his breathing slowed down to a pace.

Try as he might, there was no calming him down. His hands shook, making the small scribbled words difficult to read. Fortunately though, the title of that small notebook had been written in a much bigger format, with a childish handwriting that was so easy to understand.

How much more explicit could you get than ‘Stuff to try to go to Equestria’’!? How much more!?

And a list, written by a familiar hand, had been crammed into the notebook’s margin. It enumerated the methods, or that was what he could make out of it, under the crossed words and the furious stroke of ink.

There were about of dozens of names crossed, the later ones in a surprisingly savage way. Until… until it all stopped at one name. Not even the last one, just two words, about three fourth of the way down the sheet of paper.

Magic ritual.

His heartbeat had accelerated, which he had found ridiculous. A childish excitement had washed over his mind, with the simple consideration that there had been a magic that could send people to Equestria, that magic was real.

Then the images of his friend and his family appeared in his mind, sobering him up in an instant. A cold hand gripped at his chest, for he had rarely felt so ashamed of himself. How had his first thoughts about a possible solution to this tragedy been this? He wanted to punch himself square in the eye.

T-this… this had to be the solution!

It seemed unbelievable how many boxes of stuff we had to pack, especially considering the fact that we came into this world with absolutely nothing but our bodies and an ancient artifact of pure power. Yet, Calx could comfortably play hide and seek in the antechamber of our suite. And I would have trouble finding him too…

“You okay in there?” I asked to the general pile of brown boxes blocking my vision.

“Yeah! I’m looking at the book collections!” He shouted back, from where I believed was the middle of the antechamber.

“Oh dear!” I yelled dramatically. “Is it the End-of-the-World-as-We-Know-It already?”

To that impressive performance, Tom only offered a dry laugh. Or at least, that was his initial intent. The door opening behind him revised his plan. “Guess who’s here?”

“Huh…” That breathing pattern was familiar and the twitch of their muscles reminded me of many nervous ponies… I could not quite narrow it down.

My brother jumped out of behind a box, with the widest mocking smile possible. “Your bestest friend in the whole wide world!”

“Ah, Blueblood?” I said, taken aback.

“Yes, Blueblood. What? Is it so surprising that I would come here?” A certain stallion also came out of behind those boxes… carrying a tray with a teapot within a blue aura.

“You brought us tea?” I asked, feeling the corners of my mouth rise in disbelief. “Really?”

Not that I like either the flavor or the smell; neither did Calx it seemed, as he decided not to stay in the white stallion’s presence any longer and go back to the antechamber. I could not, however, deny that this small gift had something disturbing to it.

“Why is this subject to an inquiry with you, Prince Ventus?” Blueblood rolled his eyes, carrying the tea cups flawlessly onto the nearest table. “Is it so hard for you to believe I would?”

I stayed innocently silent, letting him deposit the tea on the table near our couch, while taking a seat myself. It did not take long for him to spill the beans.

“Alright, fine, a maid in the western wing suggested it,” he grumbled, his back losing its straightened quality.

Now that’s more like it! I chuckled.

Scowling, he shot me a glare, very obviously annoyed. His hesitant, good-ish mood had apparently not lasted long. “I’m sorry I did not know the exact courtesy of these meetings. After all, it’s not like a business meeting between nobles and rich businessponies.”

Quietly, I started chuckling. The idea seemed so ridiculous at this point. “No, it is certainly not.”

A silence came between us, but not an uncomfortable one. There were little words we needed to exchange at the moment.

“What will happen to you?” He asked suddenly, refusing to look at me.

Somehow, he had come to know of our situation. Or perhaps he had guessed, showing his usual level of insight in political matters. Either way, I knew what he had meant by that.

The idea to lie to him did not even cross my mind. I just felt as if I owed him at least this.

“We’re going to leave Canterlot in disguises for a while.”

It was a succinct explanation, but I was not even allowed to say more. That much, I expected him to deduce anyway. Just like what he would say next.

“You’re the one that cursed that stallion, aren’t you?” Blueblood’s narrowed eyes were focused entirely on me.

“And you’re the one that tried to step in before Celestia had to,” I replied easily, fighting a small smile.

Alas, he didn’t seem to wish to congratulate himself on that. No, his traits had simply hardened at my admission, staring intently at me. Slowly, I resigned myself to a whispered statement.

“I told you before that I was not a good pony.”

The muscles around his jaw tightened, and a small vein on his neck bulged. His gaze, albeit directed at empty air, held a potent fury. When he spoke, his voice trembled. “You did.”

“Nopony seems to believe me when I say that.” I sighed, feeling a pinch of exasperation. What? Did they really all think I was self-deprecating?

“…Was everything a lie?” His bitterness had my stomach churn. His accusatory glare was by far the most difficult of his gaze to face on. “Was it just an entertaining circus with me as the main clown?!”

And as his last words faded away harmlessly through the air, I pondered. I pondered what to tell him. I hadn’t expected this. Quite honestly, my interactions with Blueblood had been one long series of little surprises and blown expectations. Often, I had fantasized about hurting him, to give him the magical spanking he deserved for being so damn nerves grating.

Rarely had I expected such overreaching guilt to course through me as it happened unintentionally. Furthermore, I would rather not add to his pain or his anger with the true reason I had done it.

No, I told myself, and thus, found the cryptic answer he needed to hear.

“Was it?” I asked.

His eyes widened to the size of saucers. It made me smirk to see that, and it made him seethe that I reacted this way.

“It’s always this horseapple with you, Ventus!” He rose to his hooves, gritting his teeth. On the table, the tea had been spilled.

Letting my inspiration and my gleaned knowledge of his character guide me through this, I affected a pensive, mostly neutral expression as I steadily observe each drop of hot liquid fall to the ground.

Six… seven… eight…

I got to twenty before he slumped down against the couch, his anger spent.

“It was not, CELESTIA DAMN IT!”

In the other room, I caught an echo of a childish snicker. Quickly though, I refocused my attention on him.

“Why did you have to do this?” I could not tell which event he referred to. “I can’t go back. I can’t! But how am I ever going to manage without anypony to help?!”

“You’re going to be fine, Blueblood.” My eyes briefly went to the ground, before I spoke a truth I had never imagined discovering in my very long existence. “I have faith in this new you.”

The prince’s jaw dropped, with him almost reeling. He spoke, with such a tone of incredulity, that I felt a spark of pity for him. “Y-you… you mean that?”

“Of course I do.” My lips stretched into a grin, and a sincere one at that. “Besides, you should talk to your aunts. They will help you too, better than I could ever hope to. I have a feeling nothing would make Celestia happier than seeing this new Blueblood with her own eyes. There’s nothing you ought to fear. You’ve opened your eyes and your ears, all by yourself.”

Away from the castle walls, further than sounds could reach, a bell rang, marking the end of the afternoon and the beginning of our journey.

“It’s time to go…” I muttered slowly, feeling both relieved and anxious. Albeit a place I had faced many grief, Canterlot had… it had been a home to us too.

Thus, I almost didn’t fight it when the pull of a magic aura gripped one of my legs. Turning my head, I saw the proud prince of the unicorns, head hung low and more humble than he had ever appeared before me.

“Thank you,” he said.

“I’m bucking sorry…” I whispered. “I… Goodbye, Blueblood.”

Author's Note

There you go. Third part of the story, the Canterlot Arc is over! Whoot, that took longer than I thought it would, but it really became better than I thought it would be. Anyway, you guys should look forward to the 'final' arc, Ponyville.

Oh, and just because I want to know and this seems appropriate, what is your personal headcanon regarding alicorns?

New Day

Traditionally, weather patrols were stationed in cloud cities, as meteorological changes were much easier to detect from up high in the sky. However, due to the proximity of the Everfree Forest and its wild weather patterns in combination with the continued elections of earth ponies as mayors and the nature of the sponsors it sometimes needed to accommodate, Ponyville was unique in that its weather patrol’s headquarters were located in the middle of the town, firmly set on the ground.

Its canteen, as usual, was filled to the brim with winged ponies, about half of the staff spending some time together before the beginning of one more difficult day at work. An air of casualty floated between the pegasi who were joking, laughing and exchanging so many stories over hay breads and bowls of cereals.

Unseen by the majority, an orange unicorn stallion hesitantly trotted inside, glancing around with a mix of anxiety and curiosity. His frazzled yellow mane obscured his blue eyes, giving them a much darker tone than they actually were, but, at the same time, gave him such a juvenile appearance.

His steps were timid, slow and unsteady. From the way he carried himself, it was easy to understand that he was both a newcomer and not sure he had a right to be there. As it would be, such behavior attracted the attention of others much more quickly than a confident attitude would have.

“Hey! What are you doing here? This place is for employees only!” A brash pegasus interrupted her breakfast to call out the intruder, causing him to jump lightly, obviously startled.

All around them, the workers in the room rapidly went silent, observing the poor unicorn with a mix of curiosity and deterrence. Being made the center of attention only had the young stallion shrinking on himself.

“Oh, huh… well, I came for the ad in the newspaper,” he said quickly, searching through his saddle. “It said somepony was being transferred and I figured I should try it out... I had this letter to give the manager.”

“Well, he ain’t here.” The mare got out of her seat, eyes half closed in an unimpressed glance to the stallion. Nonetheless, she extended her hoof, hinting at him to give her the letter. “But I’m assistant-manager, so I take care of this stuff while he’s outside of town.”

“You’re Rainbow Dash, right?” He levitated the scroll of paper to her level, looking at her recognizable multi-colored mane.

“Fastest flyer in all of Equestria, Wonderbolt in training and hero on my off days, that’s me alright.” Dash flexed her wing muscles, posing advantageously in front of an imaginary camera. “Guess I’m finally getting the recognition I deserve, eh?”

A couple of exasperated groans rose from the table behind her, some of her colleagues more than a little sick of hearing the pegasus bragging about her exploits.

Saying nothing, the applicant resolutely refused to smile at the pegasi’s antics, simply waiting patiently for them to be finished. Fortunately for him, neither the arrogant mare nor the weather ponies at the nearby table let it degenerate in a conflict. Quickly, Rainbow Dash had broken the seal with her mouth and started reading.

A few seconds in, and she raised her head to look at him with a raised eyebrow. “Wait, you want to be a field worker?”

“Hum… yes.” The stallion pointed at the scroll with his hoof, looking a little bold for a second. “That’s what the letter says… alongside the recommendations of the Canterlot Weather Institute.”

A few seconds of silence followed this declaration, as the ponies nearby stared at him in confusion.

Finally, it was the aspiring wonderbolt that broke the silence, although with a rather self-contained statement. “…You’re a unicorn, aren’t you?”

“Yes, I graduated from Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns.” The young adult scratched the back of his head sheepishly, with a faint blush adoring his cheeks. For a short moment, Rainbow Dash could have believed he was almost embarrassed to have enrolled in a school for true eggheads. “My specialty is weather magic.”

Hearing this, the pegasi at the table grew even more attentive and, to the discomfort of the shy unicorn, slightly warier, it seemed.

“Oh really, chump?” Rainbow Dash’s raspy voice echoed in the dining hall, with a trace of annoyance to boot. “Care to put your bits where your mouth is?”

“Huh…” He looked around, his tail twitching under the hard gaze of the employees of the weather patrol. “S-sure, if that’s what you want. What should I do?”

A light of competitiveness seemingly appeared alongside the predatory nature of her smile. Her would-be employee fought the urge to step back as she herself stepped forward with extended wings.

“Show you can pull your weight like any other pegasus. Show me how you handle the weather!”

Eyes widening, seemingly dumbstruck, the stallion glanced outside to confirm what he had previously noticed. “It’s… a clear sky?”

“Well, yeah, right now it is.” The mare rolled her eyes, before grinning evilly. “But we do have a small training ground outside, to make sure our employees can handle the job, if you catch my drift.”

Oh yes, the poor stallion certainly was catching the arrogant mare’s drift. “I… huh… believe I do…”

“Good.” She nodded, without appearing any friendlier. “Come outside and show us you can pull your weight then.”

About half a dozen pegasi eagerly got out of their seats, following Rainbow Dash outside. A cloud of exalted chatter seemed to surround them, creating an aura the soon-to-be-tested applicant swore he could see. However, he dutifully walked after them, ears and tail twitching.

Words were exchanged between the weather ponies, as this would, at the very least, be quite the show. Had one of his future colleagues taken a long hard look at him though, they might have been uneasy. Beyond the few tics and the apparent shaking in his hooves, the unicorn didn’t seem all that worried.

“Attention, class.” Her sweet voice went over the usual commotion her little foals always made coming back from the morning recess. “I have a great announcement to make. Our class will count a new student as of today.”

Instantly, the whole class erupted in questions, the little ponies looking at each other and at their teachers with eyes wide. They asked everything from the identity of this new comrade, to their gender, to their reason for coming here, to big questions as to the nature of the school system itself.

That last one got Cheerilee blinking in a bit of surprise at the yellow unicorn colt responsible for such an elaborate question. Fortunately, the mare quickly shook her head and called for order in her classroom once more.

“Please, calm down. You will get a chance to ask your new classmate all the questions you want,” she said, making a lowering gesture with her right front hoof.

Understandably, it took the foals a minute to get back control over their emotions in the face of such life changing news. Some of them might get a new friend! …Or bully…

“Alright,” Cheerilee declared, before turning to the door. “You can come in now.”

A dozen pair of eyes avidly followed the new form in the doorstep, trying to catch a better glimpse of this new pony they would soon share their daily classes with. Even under this strong pressure however, the newcomer, a burnt orange pegasus colt with a dark brown mane, proudly trotted inside.

There were a couple of groans from a few fillies, grunting about another source of cooties now in the room with them. Those received harsh glares from their teacher.

Then, once the colt had walked up to the chalkboard where she had indicated him to, she pointed to the rest of the class.

“Would you please present yourself to your new classmates?”

“Hey, name’s Feather Dust.” The colt reared on his hind legs, flapping his wings a few times for balance. Then, with an arrogant grin, he tilted his head to the side. “How’s it going?”

Just like how it went with his teacher before him, Feather Dust found himself completely overwhelmed by questions asked. Unfortunately, the rarity of the event had excited the students and the competing voices soon pushed the bolder ones to shout to be heard first. Even then, the pegasus colt at the front was not to be undone as he tried to answer anything he heard with an equally loud reply. Everything quickly became frantic.

A strong stomp shook all the desks. “STOP!”

The whole group of foals stared at the one mare in the room in complete silence.

“Now, we will try this again,” she said with a small sigh. “But in an orderly fashion, with you all raising your hooves and waiting your turn.”

Timidly, a white hoof rose into the air, soon followed by a few others of varying colors.

Feather Dust’s eyes widened briefly, with recognition – Cheerilee could have sworn –, at the sweet young filly with the purple and pink mane. “Where do you come from?”

“Oh, Gallopfrey.” He shrugged, as if that wasn’t a particularly interesting detail. “That’s where our parents worked.”

And with that, the question session started, sanely, for once.

To the heart melting amusement of Miss Cheerilee, a certain pink filly seemed to be blushing heavily at the sight of her new comrade. Hiding her face behind her books, she was the only one not shooting questions after questions at Feather Dust.

Another filly though, whose gaze had briefly turned into a glare, had no hesitation in asking her question, loud and clear. “Why did you come here?”

The hint of resentment in Scootaloo’s tone made Cheerilee’s ear twitched. Worried, she sent a glance at the pegasus filly and made a mental note to talk to her in private later.

Seemingly oblivious, the colt simply blinked before answering ‘honestly’. “Huh… I moved to Ponyville with my brother ‘cause of his work.”

“What’s he doing?” The filly asked quickly, foregoing the turn system in favor of her curiosity… and less than noble sentiments.

“He’s a weather pony.” He shrugged.

“So he’s a pegasus.” Now, Scootaloo seemed to have completely disregarded her teacher’s instructions.

Not that the foals in the class seemed to care much, least of all, Feather Dust. “Nah, he’s a unicorn.”

For a short moment, Scootaloo fell silent, her jaw dropping, as did the few pegasi in the class, while their classmates took a few minutes to get the implications.

Quickly, the filly expression mutated into something vindictive. “That’s stupid, everypony knows only pegasi can be weather ponies!”

“It’s not stupid!” The colt shouted, eyes flaring with anger.

“Hu-uh!” Scootaloo leaned fiercely over her desk, meeting his glare head on.

“Nu-uh!”

“HU-UH!”

“NU-UH!”

It was more than time for their teacher to intervene. She stepped forward, placing herself between the two and sending them a very disappointed look.

“Stop it, you two,” Cheerilee said sternly.

Reluctantly, they both looked away, albeit the fury in Feather Dust’s eyes was far from extinguished. Scootaloo’s scowl was no underachiever either.

Nonetheless, Cheerilee decided to go on, knowing from experiences that their grudges would decrease with time, at least enough for her to get them to apologize later. “Well, it seems that enough questions about you have been answered. It is high time that we get on with our lessons.”

Of course, her words prompted a collective groans from the foals, which earned them a gentle reprimand. Their sheepish expressions earned them a quick forgiveness, fortunately.

“Now then, you can go sit behind Rumble, at the back of the class.” She helpfully pointed to a pale gray colt, who seemed a little surprised at being singled out.

“’Kay thanks.” Feather Dust nodded, before quickly making his way to his newly designated seat. In his haste, he certainly didn’t notice the little gasp of shock that Diamond Tiara had let out at his proximity.

What he did notice, however, once he had been firmly seated, was that the equations written on the board were easy. Dreadfully so. This stuff… he had learned all this stuff ages ago! And far from having faded from his memory, it was all so ridiculously easy that it couldn’t have been forgotten.

After the first three sentences, his mind had already started drifting. The ladybug on the window chill was cute… her black dots made for a fun pattern. He wondered how it would look like if he looked at it upside down. Or sideways… Or in a mirror… Or in the reflective surface of a puddle rippling from a hoof disturbing the calm water…

CELESTIA, HE WAS SO BORED!

Slouching, the little colt let his head slid against the desk, resting his cheek against the hard wooden surface and looking with mind numbing boredom at the uniform ceiling. Maybe this was death. Or Tartarus. He had heard a lot about that place, but wasn’t quite sure what it did…

Then, a voice called him back into the world of the living.

“Feather Dust!” He blinked, slowly going back into awareness and glancing upward to a frowning Miss Cheerilee. “Have you been paying attention?”

Straightening up into a less incriminating posture, the colt gave her his best winning smile. “Yes, Miss Cheerilee.”

Eyes half closed, mouth set into a straight line, she certainly didn’t seem convinced. With a meter, she indicated the chalkboard. “Then what is the answer to this equation?”

Rapidly, not wishing to be punished or scolded for his lack of attention, Feather Dust glanced at the front of the class, ignoring the looks he was getting from his classmates, that ranged from the amused to the compassionate. When he saw the ‘difficult’ problem he was asked to solve, he felt momentarily stunned.

Two times three.

“Huh…”

This was a joke, right? He didn’t really need to study all that all over again? He really wanted his big brother to come down and save him from this crap!

Taking his silence as an admission of ignorance, the purple mare started making her way back to the chalkboard, a frown on her face. “See? You would have known the answer if you were listening to my expla-”

“Six.” The colt said over her voice, sounding supremely bored and annoyed.

A heavy silence fell on the room. From everypony, there were only incredulous gazes and jaw drops.

“How did you know that?!” A certain filly shouted in indignation. “Miss Cheerilee wasn’t even finished!”

Said teacher sent a warning look at the misbehaving foal, before turning back toward the problematic colt. “Feather… Have you already covered multiplications in your old school?”

“Yeah, and division, exponents, tables, graphs and a whole bunch of other stuff,” he listed off nonchalantly, leaning into his desk with a look of utter boredom.

Now, the mare’s body language screamed of hesitation. Feather Dust’s tale seemed a little too unbelievable for her taste, but she had also been certain that her class was ahead of the official scholarly schedule for their age group. Had she been too lenient with her management of time?

“Hum... Class, complete the following exercises while I go look for some more materials in my office.” She picked up the chalk with her mouth, scrambling a few equations for them to solve before speaking up again. “Don’t be turbulent in my absence.”

Yet, while her efforts were noble, that attempt at digging up more appropriate material for her new student would soon prove itself fruitless, as he solved it all without much effort, under the absolutely gobsmacked eyes of his classmates.

Feeling out of her depth, the poor mare resolved to ask him to be calm and quiet in his corner until she managed to contact his guardian, which he agreed to unenthusiastically. By the end of the first hour, the colt was firmly in the land of dream and drooling over his desk.

They had brought me into a small garden outside the building, surrounded by plain, two-ponies-high, fences. Nothing fancy, but enough to ward off the naturally docile citizens of Ponyville. Not that anypony would be really foolish enough to enter a training ground for the weather patrol. Who would appreciate being hit by a bolt of lightning?

So the storm cloud floating right between Rainbow Dash and myself held a slightly ominous quality. It had taken two pegasi to bring it down safely down here. In essence, the finesse needed for such a task had been a show of their skills.

Not to be outdone, Cloud Kicker and Thunderlane had brought a much bigger bundle of clouds, albeit plain white ones. This result satisfying the multicolored-maned mare, those two had flown off to the side, with the rest of the pegasi. All of them were on my left though, as two big red “X” had been painted on the ground to my far right.

It was just me and her down here.

“Alright, chump,” she started, her tone midway between annoyance and simple neutrality. “It says on your resume that you can do the same thing as any pegasus, except fly. So, yeah, why don’t you elaborate on that?”

Everything you can do, except fly… is it that hard to understand?

Still, it would not do to use sarcasm during a job interview. So, I showed a bit of timidity, scratching the ground with my right front hoof. “Hum… I’m able to move clouds around, create them, disperse them, trigger rain, snow, hail or thunderstorm with them, and I’ve got some measure of control over wind patterns.”

Understatement of the century, mares and gentlecolts! I am the wind patterns.

“Oh?” Rainbow Dash exclaimed simply, still not quite convinced. “Well, then, you won’t mind if I time you while you move the storm cloud over there, trigger the lightning on both targets simultaneously, then disperse it harmlessly, right?”

“N-no, I won’t…” I said with a weak smile.

Her expression turned so absolutely deadpan that I wondered if she didn’t actually find this mousy façade annoying. She had a history of not appreciating weakness in a pony’s character. Unfortunately for me, appearing as meek and, more importantly, as different from my ‘princely’ mask as possible was a priority Celly had drilled into my head.

“On my mark…” Rainbow Dash said, rolling her eyes and thus provoking snickering amongst our audience. “Go!”

Wasting no time, I made my horn glow and seized control of the darker cloud. No aura of magic surrounded it, to the obvious surprise of a few, but it nonetheless shot up like a cannonball toward my right and stopped right over the red lines. With another flash, two charred spots had appeared on the designated targets and the cloud was no more.

The operation hadn’t lasted more than a couple of seconds, I knew that.

“Not bad.” Rainbow’s brash voice rang to my ears, while she checked on my recorded time. The cyan mare didn’t look very impressed, but I could have sworn the corner of her lips had twitched upward. “Let’s see how you fare up with cloud cutting. You’ve got just enough material in there for six identical clouds in there.”

At her words, a few pegasi moved the cloud to the middle of the training ground. Then, they quickly flew back to the sidelines. The way they hurried though… well, combined with Rainbow Dash’s expression wasn’t all that reassuring.

“On your mark…” She paused, looking at my apparent nervousness slyly. “Begin!”

This time, I seized control of the air surrounding the cloud and created a grid. With just a squeeze, six fluffy clouds popped into existence while their parent died via implosion.

“Not bad,” Rainbow Dash admitted, although her tone had grown a bit less certain.

The pegasi observing the scene on the other hand had started whispering amongst themselves. Most sounded surprised. Oh, who was I kidding? I knew exactly what they were saying and it meant that this interview was going swimmingly.

Apparently, the assistant-manager, Dash, was also aware of that fact, as she sent silencing looks toward the crowd. After only a glare, the noise had abruptly stopped, as her message had been quite clear.

‘Do not let your impressions hinder this test,’ it said. ‘Somepony’s job is at stakes here.’

Then, her gaze snapped back to me. Her eyes narrowed, Rainbow Dash was gauging me from horn to hooves.

“Well, then, seems like you can do what you said within acceptable delays. There is only one task left for you to accomplish. And it is the hardest!” She jumped, spreading her wings to their full length in an admittedly intimidating form.

Under the spell, I felt my feathers flicker and sent a panicked glance to the pegasi observing us. If even one of them thought they had seen…

“The ultimate test!” Rainbow Dash loudly proclaimed, gaining everypony’s attention, with the kind of intensity that made me believe she would start her own soundtrack. “What shows you can pull your weight when it really counts!”

And it worked. My heartbeat had accelerated with trepidation and perhaps even excitement. The parts of me under this new mask were thrilled with the chance to show off. Imperceptibly, my neck stretched forward as I waited for her to name this ultimate test.

“You, Cloud Circle, will have to singledhoofedly stop what we will have created. And by that, I mean you will have to stop a tornado!”

“A tornado?” I repeated, desperately trying not to let the deadpan leak in my voice. "As in a big column of wind?"

“What’s wrong?” She asked cockily, flying closer to me. “Can’t do it?”

Intimidated, I stepped backward in the face of her savage grin. For good measure, my tail flickered and my ears twitched. “I… I will certainly try…”

“Yeah, we’ll see how well you fare.” The cyan mare rolled her eyes, holding the chronometer in her hooves and looking on the verge of starting this ‘ultimate test’.

Inwardly, I was laughing so hard.

At first, nothing had seemed like the day would be so earth shattering for the nobility on the Canterlot scene. The sun had risen as scheduled, the tabloids reporters were feasting on one scandalous event or another, and most continued to expand their networks of acquaintances and favors, for the day it would become useful. Yes, all in all, nothing seemed to have predisposed this day to shake the very foundation of Equestria’s capital.

What would later be retraced as the source of all these troubles happened in the great laundry’s room, unofficially dubbed as the maid’s meeting room. Mares of all ages and races would periodically gather to attend to one of their main task in the princesses’ castle. An amicable chatter floated around the air amidst the floating soap bubbles and the clouds of steam. Even the high level of heats in the room could not stop such gatherings.

As the day had barely started, a good number of the ponies on staff were currently attending to the nobles in the dining hall – or in their private quarters –, leaving the laundry room quieter than it usually was. This, amongst other things, contributed to the disaster waiting to happen since Miss Glass Slippers’ entrance was far from unnoticed.

Perking up from her basin of steaming water, her friend Frilled Dress tossed some strands of her mane away from her eyes the moment she caught a glimpse of her pale green fur. However, the smile that had started to appear on her face slipped away as soon as she took in the wide eyes and the shock painted all over her dear Glass Slippers’ face.

“Slippers?” She called, momentarily abandoning her laundry in favor of more important things. “Are you okay?”

Blinking, the poor mare seemed surprised of her surrounding, as if she had walked up to this room without realizing it. “I… I just finished cleaning up Prince Blueblood’s suite.”

“What did he do?” The grey mare quickly grabbed her shoulder and looked in her eyes. “Did that pig hurt you, Slippers?! I swear on Celestia’s name that if he so much touched a ha-”

“No,” the still dazed maid cut her off. “He… thanked me…”

A heavy silence fell onto the room. Baffled expressions of disbelief were exchanged between the few ponies still able to move at all.

“T-then… he apologized for being so demanding…” Glass Slippers continued, as if moving for the proverbial kill on the few that were hoping to salvage their perception of the world as a whole.

Amongst those ponies sent spiraling into denial was, in fact, Green Blossom, who looked to be shaking even while her pupils had shrunken to small dots. “N-now, Slippers, I heard that he spent s-some time around Prince V-V-V-Ventus. P-perhaps, he-”

But the shocked maid would simply not let her friend keep her illusions. It was almost with a vindictive regret that she then shouted: “And he gave me a tip!”.

The world was ending. Or Discord was back to his old game.

Either options warranted full and total panic.

--
As soon as the door was closed behind be, my knees trembled enough for me to almost buckle. None of them had recognized me. They were all convinced I was a shy and nerdy unicorn that just happened to know how to deal with the weather. Despite my best effort, a sigh of relief escaped my lips.

After a minute of calm or so, I felt well enough to start walking away from the office. My hooves being seemingly light, I proceeded to make my way back home, though still affecting a certain timidity whenever another pony sent a curious look my way.

Not bad, I thought with a smile, as one precisely decided that I was nopony important and went on their merry way.

So far so good. Nopony really suspected a thing, or else, there would have been a stampeded or something at another member of the royal family visiting Ponyville. With a little luck, we’d be able to completely disappear from the public’s eye and look for a solution in private, away from the curious ones. Twilight might have been feeling hesitant about it, but she had also confessed something immensely private to me. I-it wasn’t a lost cause… She had cared, I was sure of it.

I… I didn’t really want to let her down…

But…

There was this hesitation growing inside me. According to Celestia, her student had been informed of our coming… And the train station had been depressingly empty when we had finally arrived in Ponyville. T-there had been a word to describe the emptiness that had filled my chest at that moment, but I did not want to truly ponder it.

Not seeing her then… my more emotional side had associated it with previous experiences, albeit human ones. Sometimes I had inflicted it on them, sometimes they had inflicted it on me. Both ways were painful. She had avoided me, again…

O-or maybe she was just busy. She does have a job, after all.

With another sigh, I shook my head. Right now, I should focus on making our new house habitable. Because apparently, there were no such things as apartments in a small backwater town like Ponyville, we had needed to buy a house. Or rent an inn room for weeks and blow all our bits on that endeavor.

Thank the Elders Celestia had created a special bank account for us.

A pulsing guilt laid beneath my skin at the thought… I hadn’t done anything to deserve this… I’d just pretend... be an alicorn… and those things were ours on a silver platter.

A searing pain erupted on the left side of my face, though it took me a second to realize it had come from my own slap.

“Get a grip…” I muttered.

I had better things to do than mope about how privileged we were. For starters, the house hadn’t come with any furniture. Camping in the living room with a couple of blankets would only work so long before the lack of comfort made either of us irritable.

Alright, I’ll go back to the house to drop these forms off, then I’ll look for the stuff we need. IF there is time, I’ll go see Twilight’s library and-

My thoughts came to an abrupt halt at the same time my legs did. All to my inner musing, I hadn’t realized our new home had come into sight until my eyes had fallen on the pony waiting for me at the door. Already, a thousand scenarios flew through my head, each one more apocalyptic than the last three, with all of these somehow involving Calx provoking a nuclear fallout.

“Hello,” she said pleasantly, expression only slightly troubled. “You must be Feather Dust’s older brother, Cloud Circle?”

“Hum… yes, that’s me…” I replied shyly. “And you would be…?”

I knew her, of course, but since there had been no formal introductions yet...

“Miss Cheerilee. I’m the local school teacher.” She offered a hoof and I quickly shook it. “Can we talk for a few minutes?”

Playing the part of the slightly overwhelmed guardian wasn’t hard. In fact, it was more difficult for me to tell if I was playing at all…

“Oh, huh… yeah… sure… But we’ve just moved, so it’s fine if we talk outside?” To that, I was relieved to see her nod. “So what’s the problem? He didn’t get in trouble, did he?”

Because for real, squirt, that would be impressive even for you.

As it turned out, however, Cheerilee’s concerns were of a completely different nature.

“No, no…” The teacher shook her head slowly. “In fact, this visit is more concerning his school knowledge…”

I blinked. Well, that was unexpected. School in Ponyville should be an absolute breeze for him.

“I’ve tested him this morning and he already knew this morning’s lesson. To be sure, I gave him some of next week’s lesson as well…”

“And…?” I asked, feeling uncharacteristically nervous on such a mundane topic.

“I don’t know what to do with him. I’ve tried giving him my advanced material, but he completed it all without even trying.” She looked up to me with a distressed expression. “Has he taken an IQ test? It may be warranted seeing the brilliance he has displayed.”

It took, literally, all of my willpower stretched to its extremes, for me not to start laughing hysterically.

Calx, a genius?

Don’t laugh. Don’t laugh. Don’t laugh. Don’t laugh. Don’t laugh. Don’t laugh. Don’t laugh.

“Mister Cloud Circle?” Her worried tone allowed me to get back some serious. “Would it be possible for your brother to get a higher level of education here? If the funds are a problem, perhaps you could apply him for the Luna’s Grant for the Gifted Youth?”

The thought of such a course of action had a very sobering effect on me.

Deep breath. Don’t mess this up. It could have serious consequences to our covers if Calx was labeled a child genius.

With a sad shake of my head, I looked down. “He tried before and failed miserably.”

Cheerilee stepped forward, frowning. I was not sure she was convinced. “But…”

“Can you not just keep him in your class? Just give him essays to write or something.”

“I don’t know if I’m qualified to properly correct the kind of essays he would send back…” She looked away, her mouth twisting into a grimace for the first time.

Her tone had been slightly bitter as well, hinting at some things I could not accurately guess.

“From the results I gathered in a measly afternoon, your brother could truly shatter some well-held records.”

Which was exactly the opposite of what we were trying to accomplish here. Our backstories were solid, but the whole point of hiding was to stay under the radar long enough to let the medias calm down about me. Having that same scrutiny directed at us in Ponyville of all places… it might be enough to have me snap.

“Miss Cheerilee, I’m working full-time during the day just to make ends meet,” I whispered, as if I was ashamed of the state of things. With a small effort of will, I sheepishly flattened my ears against my head and scrapped the ground with a hoof. My voice had started shaking. “I had to move here just to find a job that I could do. I’ve graduated from a great school, but I’ve got no experience and I’m a unicorn in the weather management business! We can’t afford a private tutor and there’s no other school in Ponyville. We’ll have to move again, but I can’t drop off like this. I’ll never get another job on a weather patrol if I do. I have to look after him and provide for him! I… isn’t it fine if he just has independent work or something?”

Cheerilee looked like she wanted to kick herself for her, apparent, insensibility. If I had to guess, I would say she was angry with herself for trying to make things more complicated for a poor young adult trying to provide for his only remaining family.

To be fair, that’s what I was aiming for… and the finishing blow to make sure she would keep her muzzle out of it…

“Princess Sparkle lives in this town, right?” I asked, with a rather convincing note of uncertainty.

Cheerilee bought it, as she nodded slowly, not really getting what I wanted to highlight with my observation.

“I-it may be really presumptuous of me, but…” I faked a bit of stuttering, looking away and shrinking on myself a little. “S-she lives in a library, right? A-and she’s very knowledgeable. Some of her essays are used by the teachers back in Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns…”

Her eyes lit up with understanding and, as soon as they did, she quickly shook her head. “N-no, I couldn’t ask Twi- Princess Sparkle. I wouldn’t dare bring up something so…”

“I’ll try to ask her if she would be willing to give him a few essays to do.” I felt my voice grow raspier, as some true emotion was starting to slip into my tone. “I… I’ll convince her, you’ll see! Keeping my brother in your class won’t cause you trouble, I promise!”

Cheerilee’s eyes drifted to the floor, even as her face crunched up in an expression of frustration. I… I could understand somewhat… Teaching was her special talent, wasn’t it?

“If you can make sure your brother will be provided with an adequate challenge to his knowledge…” Her voice trailed off, uneasy but unwilling to meet up my gaze head on.

“Thank you!” I said with a smile and just enough gratitude to make her uncomfortable.

She almost ran off after that. With a few whispered words full of sympathy, my brother's teacher promised she'd do what she could to help and left.

As I looked after her shrinking form in the distance, I knew I had triumphed over this obstacle. Most likely, Cheerilee wouldn’t try to bring this up with me again.

Go me! I was still good enough to guilt-trip an innocent mare into doing what I wanted in the end…

Urgh, even here I couldn’t rid myself of this.

Canterlot was probably much better off without us to cause all these troubles.

I wonder how Celestia is doing now…

The flavor of her tea was simply divine. After generations of work, some of her subjects had elevated the art of brewing tea leagues above any other. Each aroma elevating from her cup had her relaxing with pleasant thoughts filling her mind. Smiling widely, Celestia took another sip from her delicate porcelain cup.

Ah, it seemed that nothing could make this day less than perfect. No trouble whatsoever seemed to be building up in the horizon. The only thing she needed for confirmation was her faithful student’s report on how her cousins were adjusting to Ponyville. It had yet to come, but with such a beautiful afternoon building up in front of her, the princess allowed herself to feel optimistic.

“Your Majesty!” A young guard shouted, entering her office with what appeared to be a mixture of panic and hopelessness.

Instantly, his attitude triggered a complete reversal in the alicorn’s mental state, who left the realms of complete serenity for an almost military stature.

“Speak now, my little pony,” she ordered him sternly.

“There is a rumor that Prince Blueblood has fallen gravely ill, is delirious and is highly contagious! The nobles are trying to escape the castle, while Captain Steel Rampart has declared quarantine, and the staff on hooves has gone completely hysterical! Also, the Canterlot Daily has filed a complaint about being assaulted with balls of mud thrown by a bunch of foals and the Wonderbolts had reported the sky being noticeably less blue than usual!”

As if triggered by his words, distant shouts started to fill the hallways leading to her office.

Well played, Ventus, well played.

Unspoken things

The air felt stale.

It was by far my biggest complaint about the house we had been given by Celestia. The rest were minor details unworthy of mention. This one just made my skin crawl. The house hadn’t been aerated enough for a long period of time; and it gave me shivers to think about it.

Closing the door behind me, a pang of regret surging through my chest, I let out a sigh. If it wasn’t so necessary to be careful about our identities, I might have let the door open. But I could not help fear that I would be taken by surprise and exposed if I did. Thus, the muscles of my face twisting into a grimace, I shot another glance at the house that had become ours after all that craziness in Canterlot.

The emptiness of the house was depressing. It was truly bare of any kind of furniture whatsoever. The previous owners obviously hadn’t used the house before. Underneath a thin layer of dust, the floor lacked even the smallest scratch. Nothing had been placed on that floor until Calx and I had created our makeshift camping circle of blankets, pillows and lamp.

It had worked for the first night, but the sooner we each got a comfortable bed to sleep in, the more collateral damage would be spared. Cranky alicorns in the morning made for the strangest messes.

Beds, mattresses, couches, bedside tables… I started listing in my head.

Almost mechanically, I directed my internal magic toward my horn and focused it in a levitation spell. The magical field appeared without trouble, but the quill and paper I wanted were completely absent from this place. Right, let’s add quills and scrolls to the list.

Continuing my round, I glanced into the empty room meant to be the kitchen. New items were added to my mental list. Silverware, fridge, oven, dishwater if that even exists, cooking pots, food…

Each item seemed to make this even more real. I was alone to take care of Calx. Deep down, I knew I could do it, and there was no question that I would do it without even a second of hesitation. It was simply a heavier responsibility.

This time, there might not be anypony above me to salvage my screwing up. We would bear the brunt of the consequences of our actions. Sure, Celestia wouldn’t leave us hanging, if not me then Calx at the very least, but she was in another city...

With a bit of slowness to my movements, I made my way to the bedrooms, of the number of two. Light easily filtered through the spotted windows from the living room and the small kitchen.

A low grunting noise echoed to my ears, and it took me a moment to realize it had come from my own throat. That door was resisting me!

Snorting in annoyance, I rolled my shoulders and was rewarded with a satisfying cracking noise. Then, shifting my weight backward, I stood on my hind legs and slammed my front hooves into the door.

Gray.

Before I could realize what was happening, my head was covered by a cloud of dust, making my yelp quickly devolve into a coughing fit. Elders, this was starting to piss me off. It seemed to take an hour for the burning and aching in my throat to recede. And it was not over yet.

A tingling sensation reached my nose. Snorting, I shook my head, trying to shake off the dust gathering against my coat. Each contact between myself and those particles was irritating, enough to have me shivering. Thus, my mouth twisting in a scowl, I eyed the empty room unhappy at its state of uncleanliness.

“Not hard to figure out how long it’s been on sales…” I grumbled, knowing that the cleaning would invariably fall on my shoulders.

For the most part. There was no way a certain colt would get out of some chores around here.

Still quite unhappy with the coming prospects, I turned around to leave, more items carefully added to my list, when I sensed a call rippling through me.

There had been a voice and, unlike most of the voices, this one was very familiar.

“Ventus, I hate you so much…” Somepony grumbled, with an exasperated sigh.

Instantly, my heart felt lighter, as a furious desire to laugh came over me.

“Why, Blueblood, you wound me,” I said playfully to the empty space, directing my voice much beyond the walls of this house. “I am certain that I am innocent of whatever you blame me of.”

For a couple of seconds, his voice failed to reach me again. No words came from him.

“Y-you… you can hear me?” He used such a shaken tone.

“You and everyone in this world.” I gave a little laugh, as light as I felt. “I usually have the good sense not to pay attention to any of the conversations rippling through my body, but… from times to times, I do notice somepony.”

Again, his reply took some time to come, as I suspected he was effectively trying to digest this revelation… and mentally reviewing everything he had said negative about me. Which gave me an evil idea.

“Yeah, I know about that one, Blueblood,” I said sternly, in complete contradiction to the grin stretching my face.

Instantly, a gasp echoed to my ears, followed by a quick and desperate “Celestia’s flanks!”. A great deal of willpower was necessary not to burst out laughing at that.

“Hum…” He stuttered, as I imagined him sweating and shooting nervous glances around to find a way to get out of that. “T-that was…”

“Forgiven.” I rolled my eyes, putting a stop to this unfair game. “IF you tell me what I’ve done recently to make you hate me.”

Okay… Almost done playing… I told myself, suppressing yet another giggle.

A sigh came from him again. “It’s because of your teaching. This morning, the maid cleaning my room was one I remembered being spectacularly bratty toward in my previous dealings with her.”

“Yes?” I nodded, waiting for him to elaborate.

“Well, I thought I would apologize to her for my past misdeeds.”

It gave me a pause. For a second, I just wanted to appreciate his progress… and ignore that stupid relief dancing up my throat at the lack of relapses. Strangely, however, he did not interrupt my train of thoughts. Rather, once I was done contemplating his words, I realized he had remained silent the whole time.

My brows furrowed together, I felt my voice rumble at a lower tone than usual, in strong contrast with before. “And?”

“I just finished a visit to the Castle’s infirmary after a complete medical check-up to confirm that no, I am not sick, physically or mentally.” From his reply alone, I could visualize his scowl with perfect accuracy.

My frown slipped off my face entirely.

He was just feeding a troll at this point. My chest heaving, I was struggling to keep a straight face and those bubbles of hilarity popping in my brain under control. “Now, now, I get that your maid was grateful, but there was no need to offer you a free medical examination to reaffirm that you are in great sh-”

“THE WHOLE CASTLE WAS SHUT DOWN!” He screamed, loudly enough to even overwhelm my own uproarious laughter.

“It goes to show how concerned they are for you.” I examined my right front hoof nonchalantly, wearing a lazy smile. “What’s an incredibly awkward examination or two in comparison to that?”

“You should be imprisoned.”

“Being related to the co-rulers of this kingdom apparently has some advantages.” I bit my lips desperately, holding back an incredibly smug laugh.

There was more stuttering on his side, and a martyr-like groan.

“How am I ever going to change with you as a mentor?”

“Baby steps, Blueblood. Baby steps…” I replied quickly, turning around to leave the dusty room. “Ponies will warm up to the idea that you want to be a better stallion, eventually. Give or take a few months.”

His voice came again, in a harsh whisper he probably didn’t intend me to hear. “Bucking alicorn…”

Now he was just taunting me. “Oh, and just so you know, I don’t care much for volume. I still hear it and I can even redirect words I heard before to another pony. Voices are such an easy thing to recreate.”

“You’re the most evil thing since Discord,” he deadpanned.

Sad, but true. If one did not consider Sombra. I would like to think I still hadn’t fallen to that level of depravity, yet. Alright, time to stop the teasing. Clearing my throat, I focused on keeping the amusement out of my voice as much as possible.

“Don’t give up hope, Blueblood. Nopony’s going to buy the change you underwent right away, but they will eventually.” I grabbed my saddlebag, one of the many gifts from my royal cousin and strapped it on. “Someday, you’ll tell this anecdote to somepony else and laugh even louder than I did. Until then… keep trying.”

And it was to the sound of his atrocious swearing that I trotted outside, toward the Ponyville market. The stallion had a fouler mouth than I would have thought.

Blueblood looked away in displeasure, scowling intently at the wall. That infuriating laugh still echoed in his ears. But worse even than having to sit through his “teacher’s” taunts was his anger at himself. How could he have not thought about that? After the kind of secrets Ventus had revealed to him about the nature of alicorns, he had not even guessed about that ability? It was unacceptable that a noble of his stature hadn’t realized how foolish he had been in voicing his opinion. Dreadful day or not.

Speaking of which, he had certainly not expected to feel so angry at other ponies now that his perspective had started to change. Mentally ill? Could they be more insulting if they had tried?!

“My, Nephew, news of your critical condition seems to have been greatly exaggerated. Unless, of course, you are glaring out of pain, in which case I retract my previous statement.”

Startled out of his indignation, Blueblood swiftly turned around, coming face to face with Princess Celestia herself. S-she was there with him, in that small, uncomfortable examination room that belonged to the castle’s nurse. The lack of space even worked against him, as his aunt’s impressive stature seemed magnified in such an environment.

So abruptly placed in the presence of his ruler, the stallion suddenly found himself unable to decide whether he ought to bow or not. A lifetime of etiquette ingrained into his brain told him there was no question, while the seeds of doubt planted by the treacherous bastard left him uncertain. Pressed for a reaction, or so he figured from the delicate eyebrow the princess had raised at his strange behavior, Blueblood settled for a half motion, nodding curtly, ignoring quite a bit of protocol with that simple gesture.

“Princess,” he said, realizing with not just a little fear that the alicorn was looking at him with a light of curiosity in her gaze.

“At ease, Nephew.” She moved one hoof downward and he allowed himself to relax. “I have simply come to inquire about the state of your health.”

His mouth acting faster than his brain, he grumbled a few unhappy thoughts.

Rapidly approaching a full blown scowl again, Blueblood almost convinced himself that he could hear Prince Ventus’ snickering floating in the air.

“Now then, I can see you are clearly healthy despite ‘falsified evidence’ saying that you are. I believe this will necessitate a few words with Captain Steel Rampart, but that is nothing you need to concern yourself with, Nephew.” Was it just him, or there had been a small note of disappointment in her voice? N-now that he thought about it, i-it seemed incredibly likely. “Since the castle is nonetheless in a complete state of panic, how about you tell me how this all started?”

Ignoring the guilt tying his guts at causing such a debacle for his princess, Blueblood started narrating, how he had recognized the maid and thought he owed her an apology, how he had even pushed himself to give her a tip, which, as he pointed out, was a dying practice amongst the sweet and elite, and finally how he had quickly been escorted to the infirmary by a bunch of royal guards who enjoyed it way too much.

“Oh, my poor Blueblood…” The alicorn shook her head, her left wing softly patting him in the back.

“It’s all Ventus’ fault!” He said through gritted teeth.

At his remark, Princess Celestia placed one hoof over her mouth, trying to hide a simple chuckle. It puzzled her nephew that she did so. He thought it was a beautiful sound.

“Well, since it appears everything is going well, I will take my leave and let you rest,” she said graciously, shifting slightly to her left to turn around.

“P-Princess Celestia?” He called, feeling the pulse of his blood ensnarling his head. Already, his vision had become blurry with spots and dots of light.

“Yes?”

Gulping down, he opened his mouth to speak, only to find himself unable to enunciate. W-what if made a fool of himself? Worse, what if he offended her?!

‘Nothing would make Celestia happier’… “I was going to visit downtown Canterlot tomorrow evening and I wanted to know if you wished to accompany me!” He blurted out.

For a second, the white alicorn remained frozen, her eyebrows raised so high strands of her mane could hide them. Then, slowly, her expression softened, until a smile had stretched her lips and her eyes had become misted.

“I would love to, Nephew.”

Ponyville was brimming with surprising life, for the middle of the day, in the beginning of the week no less. Quite a few ponies, mares and stallions alike, were walking around the streets and the shops, most of them unknown to me. The impression was apparently mutual however, as more than a few sent intrigued looks my way.

Those, I offered a friendly smile and a wave of my hoof. Without doubt, it either startled them out of it or they sent an equally friendly gesture back. I could not deny liking this.

Even occurrences I had come to resent had a different meaning here. The familiar passage of sounds through my being held many warm and loud voices, as opposed to the colder, self-important ones I had been accustomed to. There were even shouts and claims of possessing the best product you could have ever seen, produced by as many ponies as there were carts. I could hear them clearly, not because of my nature, but simply because they were loud enough to echo throughout the streets.

“It’s probably my best bet to get the supplies we need…” I muttered, eyes lingering in the direction of the town’s square.

After a moment of deliberation, my hooves started carrying me toward the market. Mentally revising what I thought would be needed, I went over my list, naming a few products that would make Calx happy. After what Cheerilee had said, no doubt he would be restless this evening.

Thus, once a few minutes of trotting had passed, I stepped into the market. And paused to take in the scenery. I couldn’t quite say it was that big, as I had spent enough time in Canterlot to see what big meant. Still, the mayor’s office, that big arrow-like building, served as the anchor and the landmark in small afflux of citizens. Surrounding them all were the salesponies, attempting to make the most profit.

There was a lot of stuff here. Fragrances of all kinds floated up to me, carried by the wind. Fruits, veggies, flowers, perfumes, dirt, sweat, animals…

I should be able to find something for him here, I thought with a small smile, trotting into the marketplace.

Calmly, I browsed around the town’s square, observing the goods and denying a few enthusiastic offers with a shake of my head. So far, nothing had really captured my attention. But then, my ears twitched, having caught a hint of a familiar farmer’s voice.

“Fresh apples! Straight from the orchards!” She yelled over the ambient noise. “Who wants delicious apples from the Apple family? Grown with all our hard work and love!”

Apples from Sweet Apples Acres? That should work…

“Howdy, stranger,” Applejack greeted me with a smile, her tone denying any negative connotation her words could have. “Nice day, right?”

“Yes, it seems the winds have pushed the clouds away from the market.” I replied, fighting the urge to grin smugly.

Glancing at the sky, she held her right hoof up. Her mouth twisting in a corner, she brought her hoof down and shrugged. “Really? How’d yeh know that?”

“Oh.” Great going… “My special talent relates to the weather, so…”

“Really? First time I hear that from a unicorn.”

“Yeah…” I looked down, pretending to be embarrassed, curling my tail over my cutie mark. “I get that a lot.”

“Aw, don’t get like that. Ah was just surprised, s’all. So, how can Ah help yeh?”

“How much for two of these?” I asked, shyly pointing to a box of appealing red apples.

“That’ll be two bits, SugarCube.”

A fair price as far as I could tell. I lacked a bit of knowledge about Equestrian economy. It came from being sheltered, a lot. In two worlds. Or three, more accurately.

So without hesitation, I levitated the money out of my saddlebags, paid Applejack and took the two most appealing fruits I saw in that box. A rumble going through my stomach, I glanced at Applejack with drooped ears and a blush on my cheeks.

For sole reply, she rolled her eyes playfully, before raising her head just enough to show her approval. That was all the encouragement I needed.

Hungrily, my teeth sank in the flesh of the fruit. Its flavor exploded into my mouth.

I-it was… it was…

Good. Fresh and juicy, not too sour or acidic, but not a big candy either. The flesh itself tasted sweet and the texture wasn’t grainy. All in all, it was a good apple. To my likings.

…Yeah, that was it. Somehow, I had been expecting to be blown away from a regular apple, fall on my back ranting that there was a god – more than one, to tell the truth –, because Applejack and fanboyism. Urgh, that was stupid. And disappointing. Perhaps the Zap Apple Jam was a whole new experience, but regular apples were just that, regular apples.

Worse… this was the second or third thing I ate in Equestria that wasn’t a five star dish prepared by the most refined cook. So it might even fall below my new standards a bit.

And thus, a horrible truth dawned upon me.

Tartarus… I’m just as spoiled as Blueblood!

I froze, coming to a total halt.

“You okay there, pal?” Applejack leaned forward, frowning slightly.

“Y-yeah, I just had a weird thought, that’s all,” I said, waving my hoof, hoping that she would not see past my fake smile to the frantic ideas dancing in my brain.

Okay, let’s calm down. There is no way I’m as spoiled as him when it hasn’t even been that long since our arrival in Equestria. Before that, we weren’t treated as royalty, far from it.

“A-anyway, I’d best get going…” I turned around, glancing at the clock tower. It wasn’t late, but I still had a certain number of things to do, including going to see Twilight before the school day was over. “Have a nice day!”

“Will do!” She waved back, before turning to serve another customer.

With her attention no longer on me, I was back to being a simple face in the crowd. Somepony might observe me, but not too closely… It would be quite impolite to stare, after all. Still, I did my best not to delve too deeply on my recent self-actualization.

Every single muscle of my body shook, in the most shudder inducing realization in the history of my life.

I’m a snob!

“No, you’re not!”

It took most of my self-control not to jump out of my skin at the sudden pair of blue eyes appearing right in my face. I still yelped without dignity though.

“Pinkie!” I shouted, stepping back a meter or so, clamping my wings against my body so they wouldn’t ruin the illusion.

“Ooooooooooh, you knew my name!” The hyperactive pink pony leaned forward, to the point her muzzle almost touched mine.

Perhaps in fascination, I broke character. Shyness would have dictated I back away, but I sort of… stared instead. “Yes, I do…”

“That’s interesting. I don’t know your name yet, but you already know mine? How did you know that? That kinda reminds me of a time when I was babysitting the C-”

“You’re a national hero!” I forced one of my hoof in her mouth, before falling prey to what I knew would be without a doubt a long rant that I would not be able to follow for the life of me. “That’s why!”

Instantly, of course, she started talking again, tickling the tip of my hoof with her breath as she tried to make a coherent sound. Seeing no use in fighting the inevitable, I closed my eyes and pulled my hoof back. “Wow, that’s funny, you’re like the first pony we meet ever that remembers that.”

Despite my best efforts, the shy smile I was showing her started slipping into an uneasy grimace. How come Pinkie threw me off my game so much? It wasn’t the first time I talked to her either, but for some reason, on her home turf, I was stumbling over every detail.

It was just lucky Pinkie had chosen to look in the direction I assumed was Sugar Cube Corner. A look of determination had fallen onto her face and I was fighting the urge to flicker my wings. The stress was sending itching sensations all over my body.

“I guess I can’t exactly throw you the regular party,” she finally mumbled, taking me by surprise.

“W-why?”

Moron… I thought, fighting the urge to facehoof.

“Well, I already gave one of you a ‘welcome-to-Ponyville’ party, so it wouldn’t really fair if we made them both at the same time, but it wouldn’t be better if we had them happen out of order because then one of you won’t get his party right away.”

“W-what?” I blinked, struggling to digest her words… and their implied meaning.

“So I thought I would just throw a ‘welcome-back-to-Ponyville’ party instead. That way you can both enjoy your cupcakes and your music at the same time. Smart, eh?” She smiled, jumping up and down, her mane bouncing exaggeratedly every time.

“Miss Pie…” I said, deepening my voice back to its usual tone.

“Oh!” Pinkie froze in midair, comprehension dawning upon her.

All of a sudden, she fell to the ground, solidly on her hooves, and stretched, allowing her to loudly whisper directly into my ears. “No party, right?”

“Thanks.”

Well, that didn’t last long… We’re already starting to make waves again, aren’t we?

The impossible had happened.

He just couldn’t believe it was so, but school could be even more boring than it already was. He was looking forward to sleeping of all things.

So… not… awesome…

And some of the fillies in the class just wouldn’t stop sending him weird looks…

“And here I thought nopony would ever buy both quills and sofas at once, but I have been proven wrong.” I said out loud, my horn glowing while I fished for the bits in my saddle bag. “By my own hooves, no less.”

“And that, sir, is why I am still in business.”

“How does one extinguish a tornado alone?!” A brown coated pegasus shouted, reading a job interview report with total incredulity.

My tail twitched.

It was a stupid tic, and all too horse like to my liking, but my tail was the part of my body on which I could exercise the least control in these situations, namely trying to fight this knot in my throat.

It should not be so. I should not be so nervous, simply for being done with my shopping and being a few meters away from the library.

Earlier, while I was talking to Cheerilee, the idea had seemed simple, almost elegant. Two birds with one stone and all that. Now, standing here with Calx looking just about ready to bolt for the door, I realized that this was a terrible idea.

The little guy had spent the day sleeping or pretending to sleep out of sheer boredom. He was going to explode in a spray of volatile gases or something soon. And I would be caught up in the explosion, along with half of Equestria.

So I really didn’t have a choice. No pause, no slowing down, or else he would shot up like a cannonball and demolish the door itself. His patience was spent.

He reached the door first, and knocked before I could say anything.

“Hello?” The small dragon looked at us with a bit of hesitation. His claws remained gripped on the doorknob.

“Hey Spike!” Calx replied completely without shame, forgetting that they had never met not only in disguise, but out of it as well. “How’s it going?”

“Huh… good, but…” His emerald eyes narrowed slightly and his frown deepened. “Do I know you guys?”

For a second, my little brother’s mouth slackened and I thought he would panic, but was surprised to see him snort. “Oh, right, Feather Dust and that’s my big brother, Cloud Circle.”

Well, at least he got the names right…

“We wanted to see Princess Sparkle.” I stepped forward, trying to gather Twilight’s number one assistant’s attention before he started grilling Calx. “Is she here?”

“Oh, yeah, sure…” He moved aside, apparently mollified, even if he still followed our progression with his eyes.

Because of Calx’s stumble, he probably wouldn’t leave us alone for some innocent browsing. He probably would end up knowing the truth soon enough anyway, but I felt some reluctance to give that secret to a child. It would be hard enough to keep as it currently stood…

“Oh, Spike?” I called back, making sure my voice was unsteady. “I heard there’s a nice c-collection of foals’ books in here.”

“Yeah, Spike, where’s that stuff?!” Calx turned, stretching his wings and jumping a few times. “Rumble said you had some really good ones and Luna’s rump, I need to read something fun!”

Biting the interior of my mouth not to burst out in laughter at his swearing, I watched as my brother shot up in the air and loomed over Twilight’s assistant, unintentionally intimidating him into submission.

He would have followed him right away, finally finding an answer to his boredom, but I had to nip that one in the bud. While he was flying behind Spike, a breeze passed them by and smacked him lightly on the flanks.

One indignant yelp later and he was staring resentfully in my direction.

The look I gave him was neither timid nor hesitant. It was the same kind of look he received from Mom and Dad when he screwed up badly, or gave all the indications he would.

“Behave,” I mouthed off silently, before turning back toward the opposite side of the library.

Walking down the stairs, unaware of the predicament her surrogate little brother was in, Twilight had appeared, wings folded and horn glowing, carrying half a dozen books behind her. Though her mouth was moving, she was not muttering. It seemed as if she was trying to mentally recite a formula, with her lips escaping her conscious attention.

Feeling a shiver run through me, I decided not to focus on her lips! That was just going to make an awkward situation worse. Mentally, I went through the reason for my visit. Gotta get Calx a good tutor, also, dodging the public’s eye would be nice.

This resolve cooling off my less than pure thoughts, I risked moving closer to her. , taking me by surprise. “Oh, hello. I didn’t realize there was somepony else in the room.”

“P-princess Sparkle?” I stuttered, less as part of my role than as the result of my fear. “Your assistant let us in, t-that’s fine, right?”

“Sure. This is a public library, you know?” She said, stepping aside to let me in. However, her expression was graced with a frown. “I don’t know why ponies always feel the need to knock before they enter…”

“Politeness?” I ‘guessed’, offering her a smile.

“Well, maybe you’re right. You are one of those same ponies, after all.” She chuckled, placing her things on a nearby desk and focusing her attention back on me. “Though I don’t know you personally. I’m Twilight Sparkle. You are…?”

“Cloud Circle,” I whispered, feeling my cheeks heat up at her innocent look.

As soon as she noticed my embarrassment though, something clicked in her head and her own face reddened. Now she seemed to find the library surprisingly small and suffocating. She was just so cute in that sweet, nerdy way…

The sound of stomping hooves brought me back down on earth, just in time for me to turn and see one excited little colt.

“Sa-… bro! You have got to see the comics they have here!” He yelled, as soon as he had spat the book on the ground.

I nearly cringed, both because of how he treated the thing and how he had nearly blown our cover in his excitement. Calx definitely wasn’t fit for long spanning deceptions.

Quickly, I levitated the book to my eyelevel, opening it up at a random page. To my surprise though, the drawings felt familiar. They reminded me of something, what I could not tell, but the pages sent waves of nostalgia through my brain.

“Hey, this looks pretty cool,” I said, putting the book back in his hooves. “Tell you what, go choose a few books with Spike and we’ll read them together tonight. Sounds good?”

“Sounds awesome!” He grinned, rearing with excitement.

“Good, now go. I need to talk to Princess Sparkle.” I gave him a gentle push, keeping my voice friendly but firm.

“Yeaaaaaaaah.” He wiggled eyebrows at us, his tone more than a little cheeky. “Talk. With Twilight.”

“Hush.” I snorted, giving him a more forceful push, that may or may not sent him stumbling forward. It mattered not, as he just shrugged it off and left snickering.

Others… had not taken this little interlude as well as he did. Calx’s remark had made Twilight blush from horn to hooves.

“P-perhaps we could speak calmly away from those two?” I asked, scratching the back of my head sheepishly.

“Oh, yes, we could…” Is she shaking? “Spike! We’re going to be talking downstairs! You’re in charge!”

“Okay!” The little dragon shouted back.

“If you’ll follow me,” she said, turning toward a closed door on her left.

Vaguely, Tom and Spike’s voices became more indistinct as we walked down the stairs, the last understandable words being “So, what do you do for fun around here?” and Spike’s surprised stutter in return. The rest was lost on Twilight.

She settled down in the middle of the room, motioning to a cushion identical to the one she had just sat down onto. “Well?”

“Hum…” I said, very obviously looking at the ray of light filtering through the door upstairs.

Following my gaze, a quick frown appeared on her face, then disappeared the next second as she shook her head. I couldn’t even place a word before her horn had started glowing and the heavy slam of a door being shut was heard.

“Now then, the library is being taken care of, we’re in the basement and the door is closed. I think we’re good to go.” “To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?”

“Oh, well, the first thing I really needed to ask you was if you could tutor my little brother. Miss Cheerilee came to see me today and said that she doesn’t feel she can give him a proper education while also taking care of her class.”

“Hum…” She pinched her lips, looking at the ground and tapping the ground with her right front hoof. “I do not know if I’m qualified either, nor if I can reschedule accordingly. I’ve personally tutored a few classmates with difficulties, but… I don’t know. What kind of education are we talking about here?”

“University,” I said casually.

Twilight reacted predictably.

“UNIVERSITY!” She shrieked. “H-how c-ca-can that be possible?! He’s just a foal!”

“I…” I shrank down on myself, playing the part of the scared good citizen while she worked on that breathing technique Cadence had taught her. “I’m sorry… Princess…”

After a few more seconds, the poor mare had calmed down enough to speak again, although her mane appeared out of place, giving her an altogether frazzled look. “O-okay, come again?”

That had been fun, but the time for teasing was over. Perhaps a less succinct approach would help her deal with the problem. “My brother knows so much of the school material that he spends his days sleeping on his desk.”

“Oh gosh… A-alright, I’ll think of something for him to do and speak with Miss Cheerilee about it.” She paused, obviously giving it more thoughts, while her breathing steadily returned to normal. “What was the second reason you wanted to speak with me?”

My wings twitched, and although I knew she could not see them, I could have sworn her eyes flickered to the sides of my body. In a flash, it felted as if my mouth had gone dry.

“T-the second reason…?” I asked, albeit not while expecting an answer. What should I…? I-I couldn’t quite… Tartarus with it! Breaking character, I looked away, feeling my shoulders slack despite my best efforts. “Well, you’ve… kind of given me the cold shoulder a few times already…”

Her mouth opened in incomprehension, forming a few silent words, as she looked down and thought back. “I… I don’t understand… We’ve met before?”

It was tempting. It was sorely tempting to pretend to be Cloud Circle, mousy geeky unicorn, and start anew with her. I had the opportunity to deceive her. She hadn’t been there at the train station; she wouldn’t know. But she’d never forgive that kind of deception. Or… at least, I wasn’t willing to take the chance she would.

My lips formed a playful grin, so out of place on this fake personality. “And kissed, if that helps?”

“Prince Ventus?” She gasped, recoiling away in shock. “Oh my gosh! T-that’s you?”

Oh dear, did I break her brain? Again?

“Yes, that’s me.” I nodded patiently, waiting for the gears to stop turning behind her eyes.

Seeing as she had leaned forward and a notebook had flown out of her desk, it might take a while.

“T-this is amazing!” Sparkles danced in her eyes. “I-is this an illusion?”

Without the kind of vocabulary she had access to, I unfolded my wings to their full extent, causing the spell to ripple in alternating waves of gold and orange all over my fur. Another blur of color shuffled before me, albeit a purple one.

Comfortable warmth seeped onto the edges of my right wings, with a soft pressure running through its full length in fascination. Jolts of electricity travelled through my right shoulder and furthermore.

“T-Twilight…” I gasped.

My voice broke through her scientific trance, causing her to shake her head briefly. Just then, her exact position and her previous actions very clearly appeared to her.

“It was the spell! I swear!” She squeaked in prey of a total panic.

Frantically, Twilight scurried away, a fact I was grateful for, if only to give me a chance to settle down as well. On my body, the spell was slowly retaking its rightful place, hiding away my wings and my true appearance under the guise of a timid orange unicorn.

For a moment there, I was glad to have this illusion put some distance between us. A few instants passed in silence, while we both avoided the others’ eyes.

My desire to get things cleared up was the thing that finally pushed me strongly enough.

I coughed awkwardly. “So, yes, it’s an illusion that Celestia casted over my brother and me.”

“W-well made…” She chimed in, with a hint of genuine admiration, but even that wasn’t enough to get the conversation into gear again.

No more avoiding it then…

“I didn’t see you when we arrived in Ponyville…” I tried, really, I tried, but I could not keep the disappointment and the accusation out of my tone.

“Y-yes, there were a few other things I had to do.”

I fought hard not to let my deception snarled around my heart. “Other things?”

Almost too quickly, she nodded, but she clamped up even more strongly.

A few drops of blood pearled on her bottom lips. Her eyebrows furrowed together, as the rest of her traits hardened. She looked frustrated, but there was nopony for her to direct it at.

“I-it’s ridiculous. I don’t even know why…” She whispered, stomping one hoof against the solid wood of the floor.

I waited patiently, while the mare in front of me worked up the courage to elaborate. Seconds quickly became minutes, but she didn’t say anything else. Her gaze would move between some of her furniture, almost questioningly. She had her hesitations on this matter, but it didn’t seem the kind of things one needed to think alone on to develop.

Finally, I made another step toward her, leaning until our faces were inches apart. I took great care to soften up my tone, until there was nothing but concern for her in it. “What is it, Twilight?”

Startled, she flinched, but didn’t move back. A second of hesitation passed, until she decided to spill her heart out. “Applebloom, Applejack’s little sister, she told me Zecora’s hut had been emptied completely.”

The Everfree Forest? I thought, feeling a strange sensation flow through my veins. It wasn’t unease… I couldn’t identify it.

Twilight didn’t notice; her attention was on her memories and the images only she could see. “So I packed my saddlebags, told Spike to call for my friends if I didn’t return before the end of the day and…”

Her voice trailed off again, and I thought she wouldn’t reveal anything more, but then, her head tilted downward and her legs started trembling.

“I was at the entrance, Ventus!” Her cry stabbed me in the heart. Tears were gathering in the corner of her eyes. “The trees were mere meters away from me! I could feel the difference in atmosphere on my coat. I was so close! But… my legs wouldn’t move. They refused and not an ounce of my brain could fight against it. I stood alone for hours…”

“Oh, that’s… understandable…” I said softly.

“But I’ve already been there many times!” She buried her head into my shoulder roughly, hitting my chest with one hoof in frustration and making me wince at the unexpected pain. “And something might have happened to Zecora! I can’t just avoid going in the forest because I’m feeling scared! She’s a friend, I have to make sure she’s alright!”

“No… I meant… the Everfree Forest is a place alicorns would naturally avoid.”

“W-what?” She muttered, astonished.

Since when do I figure…? The answer was simply one I knew. I hadn’t even needed to think about it. “Well, think about what I told you about the coming of creatures of Order or Chaos… then try to figure out why a forest grew over the remains of a royal castle governed by the sisters alicorn of Order.”

“What do you mean?” Her shaking had stopped, but her voice retained hints of bitterness.

“What kind of place can it be, if the plants grow out of control, if the animals are monsters, and if the weather patterns are downright bizarre…? What kind of place is it?”

A soft gasp reached my ears.

“I… I can’t believe I didn’t figure it out…” Her voice was raspy and she still wouldn’t look up. “And here I should have been trying to find a solution to that instead of just bea-”

My hoof rested against her mouth. The contact was gentle, enough to completely shock her out of her spiral of self-loathing. Slowly, I moved my hoof away from her lips, the lingering feeling tickling my skin, only to raise her chin to meet her gaze again.

“It is alright, Twilight. There’s no need to chastise yourself over this.” My wings brushed off against her shoulders. Without thinking, I started stroking her back soothingly. “You went through a life-changing experience, in every sense of the term, when you became a princess and an alicorn. You’re a strong pony, an extraordinary mare, but nopony can be infallible.”

Our gazes were locked together, and I noticed once more how much of an effect she had on me. I just couldn’t help love the shade of her fur, or the few rebel strands of pink in her mane that just wouldn’t sit with the rest. Those were such simple things that made my heartbeat accelerated.

It was so strange… I had just taken an opportunity when I had noticed her attraction, but it had simply built on itself so easily until the truth felt like a weight on my mind.

I don’t want this to be fake.

Twilight’s expression had softened, her wings were relaxed against her, her chest was taking in air at a reasonable pace. But she still hadn’t spoken. I would have expected her to at least say she was alright.

“Twilight?”

There were untold questions in her eyes.

I… I can’t. I mustn’t!

“Twilight?” I asked again, a few bells starting to ring in my mind at the mare’s strange behavior. “W-wha-”

She crashed her lips into mine.

Loss of Control

I drew a blank.

There were things for me to say, for me to do. Back away, break contact, try a muffled protest or high skies forbid I kiss back in kind.

Her body was against me, with only the slightest, most fleeting, most electrifying touch running on my skin. Twilight was giving herself into that simple act. She was inexperienced, obviously, and the illusion had fooled her, having her first kiss the top of my mouth alone.

But… Oh Elders… if my blood wasn’t boiling in my veins. My eyes, wide opened with surprise, had already lost focus while instincts screamed for me to respond. I couldn’t organize my thoughts.

I… I’m n-not… I s-should…

Just then, building up from deep inside her, a low, guttural moan rose in her throat, tingling at my ears. It was a sound of pure desire and lust.

My defenses fell.

Throwing myself forward, I took control, making her gasp in surprise.

Forcing her lips open, I pushed my tongue in her mouth. After but a second of hesitation, Twilight responded in kind, sending small waves of pleasure through our minds and bodies. My thoughts were hazy.

One of my hooves slid off her shoulder, brushing off against the tip of her wing. Normally, that would have produced a flinch and maybe even a recoil. It didn’t come. Soon, a light touch encased the responsible limb, a feathery touch.

On my flanks, the muscles in my wings were tingling, answering to that call. Heat was traveling all the way down to my groin. If I had any resistance left, it vanished.

I wanted her, just her. To be mine to take, to possess entirely. I wanted her to feel it, reaching all the way to her core.

Just then though, Twilight’s body hiccupped and our mouth broke apart. As soon as that had happened, I heard her gasp, gulping air greedily, with her eyes close.

The spell had been broken… somewhat. Slowly, we broke out from our embrace, a thin trail of saliva lingering between our mouths. My blood was pulsing against my temples. It… it had been…

“I…” Twilight’s chest was raising quickly, the experience having left her short of breath.

Not that I was any better.

“Whoa…” I whispered, my heart fluttering in my chest. I was trying, without great success, to cool off this burning desire.

My previous cautions were already harder to remember. Intellectually, it was so easy to reason that getting into a relationship with a mare you previously wanted to manipulate into bailing you out of one dimension was spectacularly stupid. Not to mention that it sounded pretty horrible when I thought about it that way. But then, she looked at me with those eyes. With her cheeks darkened, her mane a little out of place and a light of naivety in her gaze that was just damn cute. The smart, reasonable thoughts came back, albeit dampened by the lust hammering against my brain.

The room just got hotter again.

“Was… was I any good?”

Heart attack approaching in three… two… one…

“Well, it is like anything else,” I said with a tender smile, leaning forward. “It takes plenty of practice. And preferably a willing teacher.”

Her breath hitched, her blush growing darker, but it was not embarrassment. Twitches ran through her wings and her tail, the sound of heart beating against her chest was strong enough for me to pick it up. But she stood still, her gaze completely transfixed by mine.

“I promise you,” she said in a shaking flirty tone. “I’m a good student.”

Of course, the library had to start shaking like a leaf at that precise moment. Hello, moodkiller.

“What’s going on?!” Twilight immediately shouted, her head snapping toward the ceiling. She had almost started walking up the stairs when it all stopped.

And though I could be ashamed of it later, I felt a familiar twitch of annoyance at the all too common occurrence of Tom cockblocking me. Even when he wasn’t in the room.

“It’s my brother,” I grunted, easily catching up what had been said previously.

Surprisingly, what I heard made me feel pretty proud. The brave little squirt. Under my breath, I said a few words to tell him precisely what he should expect once we get back for his intervention just now.

Or at least that’s what I’ll let him think. It couldn’t hurt to keep him a bit paranoid about surveillance, that should curb in some of his worst outbursts.

All for your own good, I cackled mentally. Being a big brother was awesome sometimes.

“T-that was him?!” Twilight finally digested the news.

“Sure was,” I said with a resigned tone.

For a second, she kept staring at me expectantly, then with a growing insistence as I remained immobile. “Shouldn’t we go check up on them?”

Slowly, I rose a hoof and pointed at my ears. “No need for that.”

It only took her a few seconds to take that in, surprisingly. “Y-you can hear them?”

“All the way up to…” I crunched up my muzzle in frustration. “Ah, the name evades me…”

“C-Canterlot?” She asked, with what I thought was a hint of hope.

For some reason, I really wanted to show off now. “I’m afraid that’s not the one I’m looking for. It’s a bit farther than that.”

Silence hung between us after this little bombshell. Twilight’s eyes were as wide as saucers, and her mouth was silently articulating ‘farther’.

“I… see…” She looked away awkwardly. “T-then… how are those two faring together?”

I shrugged with both wings nonchalantly, feeling a gentler warmth seeping through my chest. “It’s going well. They’re becoming friends over some common grounds.”

“O-oh, that’s good.” Then, she added more sincerely, enthusiastically. “Great actually! I was thinking that Spike was not seeing any of his friends enough these days!”

“Tom’s a terrible influence on Spike though,” I added mischievously.

Her brows furrowed together. “I’m not sure I want to know what you mean by that.”

At that, I could not hold in a chuckle. “Oh, trust me, you don’t.”

And added nothing, leaving her hanging on my lips.

Now, that’s not a bad idea…

“Don’t do that!” She pouted, punching me lightly on the shoulder. “Now I really want to go check up on them.”

Apparently, working up the courage to kiss me had left her bolder than ever. I certainly liked that new aspect of Twilight. It had its appeal, especially if it meant more action. Speaking of which…

“Can I safely bet that you would like me as your coltfriend?” I asked, letting a bit of hope filter through.

As if voicing it had suddenly beaten the bold out of her, Twilight froze. To her credit, it only lasted a second. “Yes… I guess you could say that. That is… if you feel the same way…” Her last words had felt weaker than the rest, but she held on.

To that, I offered a proud grin, melting away her fear. She returned the smile, albeit a little less strongly.

Then, reality caught up with me. I felt, ironically, as if the wind had been sailed out of me. “But I do not doubt that a princess suddenly dating a unicorn that came out of nowhere, while a few alicorns vanish from the public’s eye, no less, will bring about the wrong kind of attention again.”

Her ears drooped down, as did her gaze. “Yeah…”

“There is always the possibility of simply teleporting directly into each other’s home, but I do not think you would appreciate that system for long,” I said, voicing my immediate thoughts.

“N-no, of course not,” she said faintly, with a slightly distant look in her eyes. Had she been imagining something?

“The disguise is good enough to fool anypony, that’s not the problem…”

“I guess I could try to visit you.” Already, the gears were shifting behind her eyes. “I did say I was not opposed to being your brother’s tutor.”

For a split second, I was tempted to accept, but I forced myself to perish the thought.

“That time really ought to be dedicated to Calx. I… I’m not going to steal some time he could use.”

“O-oh. Yes, of course.” She bit her lips, frowning sadly.

“That’s not to say you didn’t have the right idea.” I gave her a quick nuzzle to cheer her up. “Isn’t it a good thing that I am currently posing as an intellectual? Probably eager to learn all he can learn from books or even the Princess of Magic herself?”

Slowly, her frown morphed into a sly smile. Her tone became smooth and teasing. “I’ll go prepare your library card, Ventus.”

“Remember to make it for ‘Cloud Circle’!” I chuckled, dodging the flick of her tail aimed at my face for that comment. It kinda tickled.

Muttering about paperwork, remembering the forms by name, Twilight eagerly went to the stairs leading to the library where we had left the boys.

My mood had sobered a lot. I knew deep down that this would not end well. I could not get into a relationship, not in my current state of mind being a veritable ticking bomb, not with me still clinging to the hope Celestia would find the way to send us home. T-this was more of an attraction to her than a real desire for love…

And I had an inkling of an idea as to what had made her attracted to me. Unfortunately, that also brought some previous words exchanged to her to my mind.

It would kill her good mood, to the upmost, and parts of me really weren’t thrilled about it either, but I felt like I had a responsibility as a good coltfriend to help her in any way I could. And that involved not dropping an issue that had her so close to tears before.

“Twilight!” I called after her, putting enough urgency in my tone to stop dead in her track.

“What’s wrong?” She called back, frowning with worry.

Closing my eyes for a second, I fought the sudden impulse to pretend it was nothing, just not to break that fragile equilibrium we had established. It would have been quite logical, right? Just a few days ago, that was what I would have done, I knew it.

Something had changed. I would have to think about it further later.

I looked up, straight in her eyes, and spoke gently. “You should talk to Celestia.”

“A-about our…?” Oh dear, the poor girl couldn’t even voice it. “N-no, no, no. I-I cou-”

“No.” I shook my head, a little knot of guilt forming in my throat. “I meant about the Everfree.”

She went very still. In her gaze now, there was something I hadn’t seen previously.

Dread.

She was honestly afraid of admitting any failure on her part to her teacher, perhaps to the point of doing her best to hide any of her insecurity from her. And in the back of my mind, I wondered how much that would hurt Celestia. The few glimpses of her I had seen at least shown me that she cared very much for every one of her ponies and did not wish to be cut off from them. Yet, the closest mare to her was voluntarily putting barriers between them. If it was me…

The image of Calx refusing to speak to me, turning his head and going away struck me at the heart. It made it unbearable for me to drop this. I had to help both Twilight and Celestia on this.

“I can’t imagine Celly staying mad at you.” I placed a leg around her neck, bringing our forehead together in a calming touch. “Especially for something outside your control like this.”

“B-but I told her I would investigate and I couldn’t… I… I failed.” I saw the fur on her neck contract with her muscles. She was fighting a sob already. “She’ll probably be so disappointed in me! If I can’t gather my strength to help a friend, how can I deserve to be the Princess of Magic?”

“Don’t say that.” I lifted my wings, shattering the illusion again, and encasing her in a gentle embrace. “Everyone can fall prey to a moment of weakness, Twilight. No one is immune to fear, no one is perfect, not even the Elders. Weakness is not evil.”

At least until it leads on the path of cold, unyielding shadows of hatred.

“And you’re much more than that, Twilight,” I said, gritting my teeth to bite back the darker images starting to come back to me. “You’re strong. You’ve faced beings I would choose to run against. D-Discord… scares the crap out of me.”

“R-really?” She asked, seemingly surprised by my confession.

“Of course he does! He is a timeless concept of discordance and chaos, a being so old that not even he knows the numbers anymore, with enough power to alter the very laws of this universe.”

It was only after I was done with my tirade that I realized Twilight had looked to me

“When you put it like that…”

“You’re even more impressive for defeating him, right?” I grinned, hoping to net a smile from her.

My heart lifted when I was rewarded by a little laugh. It sounded quite musical if you asked me.

“This flattery is going to be a recurring thing with you, isn’t it?”

I stretched my neck and nuzzled her, enjoying the warmth and softness of the contact. “Only if it makes you happier”

When the two brothers in disguise had left the library, there had been a moment of silence. Neither Spike nor Twilight was quite sure what to say, instead focusing on the shrinking figures in the distance.

The little dragon was the first to get his mind back in order. Looking up, he saw that his big sister wasn’t quite back yet though. Her eyes were still trailing after the orange unicorn, with but a hint of longing.

Quite honestly, he wasn’t exactly sure how he felt about that. Deep inside him, an ugly thing had shown the tip of its claws, scratching away at his good will. It wanted to lash him, he understood, to growl and hiss at that big pony trying to take somepony away from him.

But Spike didn’t like that thing inside him. It reminded him all too well of a certain birthday. And he was pretty sure Twilight would be pissed if he followed his baser instincts. Understanding, maybe, but still disappointed and unhappy with him.

Urgh, it was better not to think too much about that!

It wasn’t like the younger colt hadn’t surprised him either. F-far from it, in fact. The conversation he had had just wouldn’t leave his head.

It had been innocent enough at the beginning. Feather Dust had been chuckling to himself about the comic book he was reading, even snorting when he got to a particularly good moment. But then, the colt had looked up at him, still grinning.

“Hey, Spike, d’you think you could introduce me to your pals? I kinda didn’t have time for that at school t’day.”

Not that question, he had thought. It had been the one thing he hadn’t wanted to answer when he had met Shining Armor. Sure, he had relented in the end, but that hadn’t made it sting any less.

But with that guy asking that so innocently, way too close for him to pretend he hadn’t heard the question, he wasn’t sure what to do.

“Huh, Spike?” The colt had tilted his orange head to the side, blinking at the lack of answer.

Bracing himself, he had looked down and spoken with a defeated voice. “I… I… don’t really have friends outside Twilight and her friends…”

“Huh? How come?” Feather Dust had sounded so surprised. He even had stood away from his book and took a few steps toward him.

“The other foals say I act too old… that I’m no fun…” He had whispered, his eyes stinging with tears.

“Pffff!” The pegasus colt had rolled his eyes, amused. “You’re not old.”

“I’m sixteen!”

Instantly, he had regretted it. He had not been able to hold it in. Obviously, Feather Dust would be amazed, at first. They always were. Then, after they got over the initial shock, they’d say something how incredible that was or ask how it felt to be so old, only to start getting bored around him.

He just didn’t get their games sometimes… So they always stopped coming…

To this moment still, he had trouble digesting what the other foal had said.

“So what? I’m sixty.” The colt had rolled his eyes.

For just a second, he hadn’t been able to articulate a thought. The nonchalance of it all, h-he wasn’t bothered? Then, what he had actually said caught up with him.

“D-don’t make fun of me!”

“I’m not making fun of you!” Feather Dust had shouted back, seemingly outraged at such a suggestion. Fortunately, the fiery temper had subsided almost instantly, making him appear quite nonchalant. “I’m really over sixty.”

“Yeah, right.” Fumes of green flames had erupted from his nose. “And I’m secretly an alicorn.”

He really hadn’t expected Feather Dust’s eyes to widen comically, almost in panic, before he had started laughing so hard he fell on the ground.

“H-hum…?” No words had come to him.

“Check this out.” The colt had boasted, and then crunched up his face with concentration.

“W-what are you doing?” If he hadn’t known any better, he would have thought it resembled Twilight’s own expression when she focused on a particularly difficult spell.

Out of nowhere, a light had flashed over his forehead, j-just like… somepony’s… magical aura…

“W-wha-?” He had yelped, only to be thrown off his feet by a sudden rumble in the ground.

Before he had had the chance to react, he was on his back, standing next to a shelf that seemed to be shaking a little precariously. Some of the books were on the verge of falling down.

Gritting his fangs, he’d have unleashed a verbal smack down to Feather Dust for such a stupid thing to do, whatever it had been, but he had stopped dead in his track, eyes wide.

There wasn’t a Feather Dust anymore. No, in the place of an orange pegasus, there was an infamous blue alicorn,

“Believe me now?” Calx Iugum had asked smugly.

“Huh…” The sound had been the only thing to come out of his mouth.

“Gee, I’m sorry ‘bout the shockwave thingy, but I wanted to be sure you’d believe me. So, now that that’s outta the way, wanna hang out?”

“You’re THAT guy?!”

“Yeah.” Calx had shrugged, not noticing or caring about the indignation in his voice. Then, the mask of arrogance had slipped a little, as the little alicorn had looked left and right worriedly. “Just don’t tell Sam I told you. Okay?”

And around them had echoed a voice he had never heard, but that his new friend obviously knew. “Too late, Tom.”

“Buck!” Calx had cursed, before looking back toward him with a grin.

“Spike?” Twilight’s voice brought him out of his reverie.

“Oh, huh, sorry, Twilight.” He scratched the back of his head sheepishly. “I was just… thinking.”

“Yeah, me too.” Her eyes darted away, while he could swear her cheeks were a shade darker than usual. “It was… quite the visit. Did you two have fun while we were talking?”

“Yup,” Spike agreed, nodding quickly and puffing his chest proudly. “He was like really interested in dragon stuff.”

Seeing his newfound confidence, Twilight chuckled gently, before inviting him back inside. Levitating a quill, she started making annotations in her schedule, whispering about cute little friends or something.

But for once, it didn’t bother the little dragon to be referred as such. Instead, thinking further on her comment made him even a little giddily. He could be friend with Calx Iugum.

“How is your homework going, princess?” Her father asked, peaking his head through her door.

“A-almost done, Dad!” She replied quickly, giving him her best smile, wishing she had her signature tiara on her head. The luster of the jewelry seemed to elevate her pink fur.

“Good, continue the great work.” His expression softened, and she felt a small pang of guilt in her chest. “And don’t hesitate to call us if you need help.”

“I will!”

She hadn’t meant to lie to her dad. I-it had just came out before she could stop it. He’d always been a little strict, something about work ethic, he said, but he was always very nice. He probably wouldn’t have punished her if he’d seen what she had been… errr… working on

On her precious mahogany desk, the notebook containing Mrs. Cheerilee’s exercises for tomorrow remained distressingly blank. Not a single stroke of her quill had braced the paper itself. The problems were a little bit more difficult than usual, as if their teacher had been worried their education was not up to speed.

Ah! It was not like she couldn’t solve the problems! She was smart, after all! It was just… well, sometimes her mind wandered a bit. If she had asked Feather Dust, would he have come over to her desk to explain how to do it?

She liked to think he would, that he totally would just come over her place and help her do this stuff. T-they could talk, know each other a bit better.

Obviously, Feather Dust wouldn’t… he wouldn’t act… act like Prince Calx had done. When that feather brain had called him a liar, he hadn’t just blindly say that handicapped pegasus was better than her. He’d yelled right back at her, like Scootaloo deserved!

Yes, Feather Dust wouldn’t break her heart like that. O-on such ridiculous grounds too!

“I’m not a meanie bully,” she whispered, her expression morphing into a scowl. “T-they’re just blank flanks! Who cares about them?!”

The next morning seemed to pass in a blur, really. Without the advantages of being freeloading princes, the night seemed so much shorter than before. Neither Calx nor myself were morning ponies, so that made for quite the glorious disaster scenario. Amazingly, no one died.

The bitter taste of coffee helped wonders in keeping me awake. And by that, I do mean the horribly bitter, dark-as-the-fur-on-Luna’s-rump liquid, and its horrid taste had my whole being awake for a whole three seconds. However, judging by how lacking I found the result of drinking a couple of cups of the stuff, I might have made the amazing discovery that alicorns had a natural resistance against excitants like caffeine.

Simply. Marvelous.

Anyway, breakfast was dull, lunches were packed quickly and Ditzy Doo delivered my letter of acceptation for the job about ten minutes before I was scheduled to start working. No stress.

Allowing Calx to fly to school by himself so he wouldn’t be late was still eating at me, but I really had no choice if I was to make a good impression at work. All the way I had run to the headquarters I had diverted some of my attention to ‘feel’ where he was and make sure he wasn’t running into trouble.

So THAT explained why I had showed up late, disheveled and slightly out of breath. Not that I would say all that to the mare that had asked.

“You’re pretty short on time, newbie!” Cloudchaser laughed, “I sure hope that’s not a common thing for you. The boss will eat you alive if you do.”

Well, considering I’m already in his lungs and his digestive tracks, I don’t think I’ll be able to tell the difference anyway, I thought, feeling my smile grow more wooden by the second.

“T-that sounds very inconvenient…” I forced my tail to twitch, as I shot a few ‘nervous’ glances around.

The employee room was far less occupied than yesterday. I could count on two hands the number of ponies in the room at the moment. Only three of them were background ponies I knew: Cloudchaser, Flitter and Thunderlane. The others, I could not tell who they were for the life of me.

“Ah, there’s my unicorn!” A dark blue stallion, middle-aged judging by the newborn wrinkles around his eyes, shouted to my left. “Couldn’t miss you, you clash with the rest of us, sonny.”

I’m older than your great-grandfather would be today. “O-oh?”

“The last time I saw a unicorn working the weather, I was in Manehattan thirty years ago.” He offered a hoof, which I took sheepishly. “The name’s Fierce Storm, newbie, and I’m the weather team’s manager. Glad to have you on the team.”

“I-it’s really an honor, sir.” I shrunk on myself, smiling as an apparent attempt to pacify or at least quiet him down a little. “I’m… huh… glad it didn’t bother you…”

Around us, a few ponies seemed to be greatly amused by my ‘reaction’, some snorting and others snickering between their teeth.

“Sweet Celestia…” A beige mare whispered out of earing range.

“He’s like a male Fluttershy!” Her friend replied, not letting their eyes move away from us.

Their observations weren’t that far off though. Some of my tics were derived from what I remembered of the bearer of the Element of Kindness. It added to the persona, in my humble opinion.

“Nonsense, sonny. Your recommendation letter was flawless. It couldn’t have been better if Princess Celestia wrote it.”

There’s something funny about this that you ignore, Boss, I thought to evacuate the smartass urges.

“Plus, you’ve got a glowing review from Rainbow Dash in your entrance test.” He put a hoof on my shoulder, making me inwardly flinch in fear he might feel the height difference. “I would be crazy not to hire you.”

“T-thanks…”

“Now, you’ll be assigned a sector in the mid-west part of town to clear out first, then you’ll have to rejoin with the rest of B team along the Everfree Forest’s borders. Got it?”

Slowly, I blinked. I hear words… but I don’t know what you mean by that!

“Hum… Boss.” I raised my hoof timidly. “Not that I want to cause trouble or anything, but I was told in my acceptation letter that there would be another weather pony to show me the ropes, so to speak...”

“O-oh, yeah, there was that too, wasn’t it?” He muttered, suddenly frowning.

“Horseapples…” Flitter said, a little out of earshot.

“Urgh, where’s Rainbow Dash? She was supposed to be here for this!” The middle aged pegasus shouted, the corners of his mouth twisted downward.

…Did he just switch personality? I thought, bewildered.

But before I could ponder this abrupt change further, an orange cannonball shot into the room. “Rainbow Dash has gone to help Twilight search the Everfree forest!”

Her purple mane as un-brushed as ever, Scootaloo sent wild looks at everypony still present, obviously not knowing who to deliver her message too. Fortunately, for her, Fierce Storm’s expression had already darkened, indicating that, yes, he had heard her.

In the few seconds of silence that followed, an out-of-place thought came to me.

“S-Shouldn’t you be in school?” I asked, blinking. “I thought… I thought classes started fifteen minutes ago…”

Looking to the pony that had talked to her, Scootaloo’s eyes stopped on my horn, with what I supposed was understanding. To my shock though, her expression morphed into one of annoyance and hostility.

“Yeah, yeah. I’m going.” She waved a dismissive hoof at me, then looked toward Fierce Storm again. “I wasn’t going to let Rainbow Dash hang.”

“I see…” He whispered, holding his forehead with his right hoof.

Her mission accomplished, the orange filly sent one last glare my way before running outside.

What’s with her? I never met her as Ventus or as Cloud. It could be the ‘shyness’ that annoys her… But then again, I’m the only ‘unicorn’ on the weather patrol, so she probably recognized me. My eyes went upward, while I thought back on the things I had heard about my brother’s first day of school in Ponyville. There had been a small interaction between the two… Does she have something against Calx?

Feeling a pinch in my chest, I resolved to keep an ear open around Cheerilee’s classes. Just in case.

Turning back toward my new boss, I realized that he hadn’t moved from his previous position, still grumbling inaudible things under his breath. The string of swearwords he put together was pretty impressive for a simple unexpected leave from an employee in my opinion.

Note to self: don’t cross him. It is not the time to test how long my temper will hold when that thoroughly insulted.

“-uck, I can’t exactly scold her for answering a princess’ summon, even if they are best friends.” He looked about ready to bite somepony. Subtly, I inched away from him and was imitated by the few pegasi around me.

For a couple of seconds, his anger seemed to grow, until...

“Screw it!” His wings exploded to their full extent. “Thunderlane, you’re it.”

“Celestia’s flanks…” The dark pegasus grumbled under his breath, ears flattening against his head.

“The rest of you, you know your job!” He shouted, turning to the miniature crowd of weather worker. “We have a schedule to respect and we WILL! Even with one pegasus down!”

Rapidly, my new colleagues all scattered, running outside to take flight. Soon enough, it was only me and the dark stallion. Even then, Thunderlane wasn’t looking at me, instead rummaging through a saddlebag on his flanks for some sort of papers.

The frown just wouldn’t leave his face.

“Hum… the name’s Cloud Circle?” I said with a grimacing smile. Elders this was awkward!

“Yeah, I know, I heard yesterday. Thunderlane.” He rolled his eyes, snorting in derision.

Okay… Either I misjudged you, or you woke up on the wrong side of your bed too. I had a feeling this was not going to be a good day.

“Alright, follow me, newbie!” He shouted, taking off the air. “We don’t have the time to laze on our asses, so get going!”

“Going… where?” I asked, doing my very best not to make it sound obviously deadpan and annoyed.

At my admission of ignorance, his hoof made contact with his forehead with a grunt. “We’re going to the town square! Then we’ll try to do our job so the boss won’t kick our rumps, you get that?”

Watch your tone, buddy, I thought, feeling my shy smile freeze on my lips. You wouldn’t want to lose your ability to fly, right?

I was starting to have doubts about Celestia’s plan already.

Two Brothers

It was bad. Not nearly as bad as yesterday, but nothing in the whole wide world could ever be as bad as yesterday for him. A part of his soul had died and ended up fusing with his desk, thus giving it a vivid green color.

Kidding. Manipulating your own soul was a surefire way to get everypony mad at you, so Calx wisely chose to never cross that line.

Just like every other foal in the classroom, his rump was firmly set against his very own miniature bench. Unlike the others though, his eyes did not lift up to the chalkboard with every screech it produced. Calx’s attention was on the small essay Twilight had tasked him to read and analyze.

So far, the scroll he had planned to use remained desperately blank. The words were still fresh in his mind, but he was still unsure about the format. With his right hoof tightly holding his quills, he was letting himself be invaded by the ideas.

Absentmindedly, looking down to the corner of the sheet, Calx made a diagonal stroke without really looking, going from the top of the page to the middle of the right side. An idea growing in his head, the colt dipped his quill in his inkwell, waiting a few seconds to get rid of the excess, then traced another line, in the opposite direction. Not to be discouraged, he made another. And another. Slowly but surely, the traits of ink became linked to one another, becoming familiar shapes.

His body now leaning over his desk almost completely, face crunched up in concentration, Calx started to think of the adventures they could have, him and his big brother, if they weren’t stuck doing normal boring things like this. Maybe they could fly over a mountain! Or explore a hidden dungeon somewhere in the Everfree! Or even build a submarine and see if there really were seapo-!

“Feather Dust?” The voice of his teacher made him jump and scramble back to a normal sitting position.

“Yes, Miss Cheerilee?” He asked, subtly pushing another blank sheet over his drawing.

For a split second, her gaze went to the scroll he had been working on, and a slight frown graced her features, until, at least, it softened into a more neutral expression. “I would like you to help your classmates when they are stuck on a problem. I trust you have no issue with this?”

His eyes quickly darting over to his classmates, the colt shrugged, his lips forming a nonchalant moue. “Fine with me.”

In his mind, this wouldn’t be that big of a deal. Maybe it would be less monotonous than trying to write that summary. IF Miss Cheerilee thought he was needed.

It didn’t take long, however, for his classmates to start having troubles. Perhaps subconsciously, their teacher had upped the difficulties of the questions, causing more than a few to raise their hooves in a bid for some help.

Quickly, Miss Cheerilee’s eyes widened, taken aback by the number of foals needing her assistance. Putting a hoof over her chest, she cleared her throat, even as her cheeks felt like they were on fire.

“Yeah, yeah, I get it.” The colt rose to his hooves, moving away from his desk and trotting to Twist, who seemed very confused about the first question.

His teacher frowned at his disrespectful tone, but found that she could not very well fault him when he was both following her instructions and genuinely helping his classmates. Besides, the main reason she had asked him to do this was to help the poor colt socialize. It wouldn’t be doing him much good to never participate in her lessons or even give the impression of being that much better than the rest of his classmate. At least this way, her students would be more likely to accept him in their cliques.

After just a few more seconds of observation, Miss Cheerilee turned around, satisfied, and went to the first foal she saw with a hoof raised in the air.

“Yes, Diamond Tiara?” She asked gently, looking over to the sheet of paper still blank. “What can I help you with?”

The pink filly shook at once, her head snapping toward her teacher. For some reason, Diamond Tiara had been looking at the back of the class, nowhere near Silver Spoon, her usual partner in crime. It hadn’t even been in the Cutie Mark Crusaders direction either. Strange.

“O-oh, huh…” Eyes wide, a deep blush adorning her cheeks and her hold on her quill unsteady, she quickly glanced at the first exercise on the board and bit her lips. “The… first one…”

And, as soon as she had said it, her ears drooped, giving the little girl a severely disappointed look.

Alarm bells started ringing in the teacher’s ears. She made a mental note to keep an eye on her and, maybe, speak with her father.

Letting nothing of her thoughts show on her face, Miss Cheerilee smiled and started explaining the solution to her student.

Celly’s light was falling over my coat, giving it a lighter shade, closer to its true color. In more ways than one, the rays of the sun were brushing off against my body, on two radically different scales. It felt akin to… to a subtle reminder to behave, and even the paranoid parts of me thought that the unease settling down in my guts was ridiculous.

I could not help but glance overhead, toward the sky and beyond. A certain number of clouds had drifted lazily over town, shadowing some houses and streets, leading to a few unhappy ponies to glance at Thunderlane and I with a distinct unhappiness to their frowns. From my partner, a few grumbled words reached my ears, but they were nothing new, nothing that could take my mind off the opened space over us.

Parts of me were reaching for the sky, encouraged by sweet whispers in my ears. Only the knowledge that I would soon be able to elevate myself toward the sky could clench that new found thirst. Something up there was… calling for me.

Yet, at the back of my mind remained the souvenir of my body against the hard wooden planks of Blueblood’s airship. Why would I want this so badly when I had been made to pay the unsavory price before? Why now?

I didn’t know the answer.

My ear twitched at the sound of brushing feathers. Before Thunderlane had spoken, my head had already snapped in his direction, in time to see him extending a wing toward the town hall. “Here, this is the town hall.”

“H-hum…” Is he being sarcastic? “I already knew that…”

He gave an annoyed snort, his expression falling flat. “Amazing. Now listen up to the rest of it. Every day, one of us must meet with the mayor’s assistant for a last minute confirmation of the weather or assess any reported emergencies. This means slow negotiations on a bad day and useless trip on a good one.”

Behind my mask of shyness, I was fighting a grimace of annoyance. Glancing to the building, toward the fancy, almost olden layout, that sensation only grew. For a second, it made me worry my true feeling would slip.

“You got it?” He asked, prompting me to nod quickly and avoid giving anything away. “Good, in that case, you’ll be the one talking today.”

My jaw dropped. Ah, and to think most of Canterlot combined couldn’t do that to me.

“W-what?”

“You heard me,” the black stallion said, turning around and taking out a weather report. Without waiting any longer, he then started walking toward the town hall, unaware of the death glare I was holding back.

If looks could kill…

“I think I got it!” His classmate finally exclaimed, letting him breathe a sigh of pure relief.

“About time!” He grumbled, staring at Snail’s triumphant expression.

It had taken ten minutes, which, since the colt just wouldn’t get it, had seemed like a real torture for the poor little alicorn-in-disguise. For starters, he wasn’t all that patient, and this stuff wasn’t all that hard, so his classmate’s dumbfounded expressions had gotten old quickly enough.

Feather Dust was just happy that he could get away from that desk before he’d just rage quit. With a relieved sigh, he started walking back to his desk, going from the front of the class to the back row. His thoughts already drifting away to more pleasant topics than this tedious task, the little colt almost bumped into a desk, jumping away just in time.

“Oh, sorry, Rumble,” he whispered and took a step to his left, only to stop at the look on his classmate’s face.

Purples eyes focused intently on his work, mouth twisted in a grimace, nose crunched up, he had the profile of a foal needing some help.

“What’s up?” He asked the other colt, putting both his front legs on his desk and leaning over to look at his work. It looked good to him…

“I don’t need your help, Feather,” Rumble said dryly, accidentally snapping the end part of his quill in half. Because of that, ink splashed all over his copy, with a particular blob obscuring an answer completely. “Horseapples!”

Grunting, the gray colt let his head fall face first against his desk, creating a loud noise that alerted the whole classroom.

“Rumble? Feather? Is everything okay over there?”, came their teacher’s voice.

“Yeah!” Calx answered quickly, not nervous in the slightest. “T’was just an accident, Miss Cheerilee.”

For a second, the mare kept her gaze on the two colts, but soon deciding it was not a big concern, she went back to helping her student.

Knowing he had possibly dodged a bullet, Calx turned again, taking care not to talk too loudly.

“No, seriously, what’s up with that?” He pointed an accusing hoof at the desk Rumble had just assaulted. “It won’t even be long to do it again. Hay, I’ll tell you the answers if you want.”

At first, neither colts spoke, Thunderlane’s brother going through a wide plethora of emotions, as shown by the quick successions of grimaces and glares that appeared on his face. Unfazed, Feather Dust waited, albeit with a slowly dulling interest, his chin resting lazily against the top of Rumble’s desk.

For a whole minute, he held his ground against Feather Dust’s inquisitive stare. “It’s not that… I don’t care about this stupid exercise.”

“Huh? What was that all about then?”

“I… had a fight with Thunderlane yesterday.” The grey colt lowered his head, eyes downcast.

Calx winced in sympathy.

“Aw crap, sorry about that.” He reached forward, tipping over the edge, barely reaching him to give him a couple of pats on the shoulder. “How did it happen?”

With a grunt, Rumble sneered, putting his quill down before he snapped it in half.

“Well, when I got back from school, he hadn’t come back from work yet,” he said, shooting a cautious glance in their teacher’s direction, then to his peers. None paid them any mind, which was precisely what he was hoping. “So I got in and waited for him to come back for a looooong time. The sun was already setting over the hills and he still wasn’t coming.”

His friend’s ears flattened against his head. “Yikes...”

“Tell me about it! My stomach was growling super loud when he finally got home, but that’s not even the worse of it. He hadn’t even done the groceries, like he said he would!” His scowl deepened and Calx nodded, albeit not with a frown of his own. “We had to eat some hayseed oatmeal, even if it’s really yucky! But he forced me to eat it all, anyway!”

Orange feathers were rustled. “That’s so not cool…”

“A-and then he got mad, because I failed Miss Cheerilee’s test!” For the first time, Rumble’s expression morphed into something saddened. His bottom lips quivered. “I was sure I had studied enough, but he still grounded me. It’s not fair!”

Now his friend was shaking his head in unison. Clearly, there was injustice at play here. Already, his mind was made, he’d give his pal all the support he needed.

But the poor foal wasn’t done yet. Calming himself down just enough to speak, he leaned closer to drop the bombshell. “That’s not even the worst of it. We started arguing, shouted a lot, and he even sent me to bed an hour early!”

“Un-awesome!” Calx hissed, all too familiar with the punishment some grownups like to inflicted on kids like them.

“Yeah, and I’m not going to talk to him until he apologizes.” Rumble crossed his front legs over his chest, his mind miles away from the exercises he was supposed to be doing. Not that his companion cared much either.

Still grimacing, Calx’s expression had nonetheless softened, a light of understanding unusual for his age glinting in his eyes.

“It sucks, no question, but you shouldn’t stop talking forever. That’s way too much for one fight.” He flashed a grin and his shoulders moved up in a nonchalant shrug. “Hay, my big bro’s a pain when he wants too.”

Rumble scoffed, quite convinced that the injustice done on him couldn’t be equaled by another big brother. Thunderlane was the worst! “Right…”

“No joke!” The orange colt assured confidently, with enough conviction to get Rumble’s full attention. “Like, the other day, when we were in the train to come here…”

So that’s why? I thought, putting the information at the back of my mind. With a little focus, I redirected my attention back to the situation at hands, though not without keeping an ear open in case something more happened at Calx’s school.

Well… I couldn’t say I had no idea what that was like. Calx and I had had our fair number of fights, sometimes for really stupid reasons too. If… if my memories served me right, then I wasn’t a very sociable person following these either. Besides, experience told me that kids didn’t frame it all in an objective way.

Good, now that I know the ‘why’, I just need to find a way to get him to stop sulking…

But looking at him flying ahead of me and kicking clouds with excessive strength, the confidence I should have felt was nearly absent.

Nearly.

With my hooves solidly planted into the cloud that was carrying me around, I sent magic into my horn, sparks running through my forehead. A second later, that fluffy method of transportation was taking me up to him, pushed by an unnoticeable breeze.

Though with the distance growing between the ground and myself, I soon was reminded of the reason I disliked heights in particular. My heart was dancing near my throat, pumping blood at an unpleasant speed.

For a split second, the nausea jumped higher in my throat, my body fighting a powerful retch. I had to stop before I got sick. Something told me that barfing on the citizen was not part of the weather patrol’s duties.

“What’s with you?” Thunderlane asked, having turned around to see me immobile. “Are you going to just stand there, doing nothing?”

Pushing back the bitter remark on how I had just dispersed seven stray clouds to his four, I forced myself to follow Celly’s script on Cloud Circle, were such a situation occur. “How would you react if I told you I was scared of heights?”

“WHAT?!”

“So that’s how,” I faked lightness in my words, all the while thinking that this plan was not the best Celly had ever lain down. “I was kidding.”

His frown deepened and his stare intensified.

“What?” I shrunk back slightly, my tail curling over my fake cutie mark. “It was just a joke…”

“Good one, here’s another: a pegasus and a unicorn walk in a bar, then they realized they should have been working instead and got fired. The end.”

I tried, I really did try, but for the Elders’ sake, he was giving me urges to beat his face in.

Hopefully, this job offered a good dental plan, because at the frequency I was gritting my teeth together enough for my jaw to hurt I’d run out of teeth in a week.

My tone approaching subzero temperatures, I moved the cloud closer to him, refusing to think about the air entering and exiting his lungs. “Are you always this rude to ponies you barely even know?”

For the first time today, he seemed taken aback, eyes wide and mouth hanging open. “I-I’m not… ”

Far from calming down at his slow realization, I could feel the anger grow stronger in me, eating away the edges of my mask. “This day started with you being unpleasant and just continued spiraling into rude. Look, I’ve had to dance on eggs all morning long and tried to lighten up the mood. Sure, it wasn’t my best, but still… What did I do to you to make you treat me like this?!”

In the moment my words had stopped echoing, it had seemed like the wind had become a deafening force. It was beating mercilessly against our ears, but that alone did not affect us. After hearing my words, Thunderlane's attention seemed so completely on me... It was as if the world had briefly stopped existing beyond the limits of ourselves.

“…Buck,” he swore under his breath, briefly sounding decidedly angry even as his gaze tore itself away from mine. But the next moment, his head turned to me and his expression turned apologetic. “Sorry, dude. I… I didn’t… Darn it!”

I kept silent, catching glimpses of his inner turmoil with every twitch and flinch on his face, ears and tail. Biting on his bottom lips, sending looks toward the ground and somewhere far to my left – the school I realized –, Thunderlane seemed the perfect image of the guilty stallion.

Thus, after only a small moment of hesitation, he let out a deep sigh.

“It’s because of my little brother,” the black stallion said, miserable. “We got into a fight yesterday and it’s been eating at me ever since…”

E-even though I knew beforehand… e-even when I had decided to get him to confess so we could work together… I…. That one hit so close to home…

Inside my chest, something sparked, but nothing I could identify, albeit it was all too familiar. I-it’ll be fine… I found myself thinking toward him.

“Want to talk about it?” I sat down, placing my rump firmly on the fluffiness of my transportation cloud, and tapped the spot next to me with one hoof. “It helps to vent, or at least that’s what my personal experience tells me.”

“We really shouldn’t…” He protested weakly, his eyes going over to the few clouds still floating above the town. “The boss will be pissed if we don’t finish it before ten…”

I probably shouldn’t… but… oh, what the hay? I decided, focusing on the air around the clouds, and with a simple thought, dispersed them.

Ten seconds flat. The urge to chuckle stupidly rose in me.

Fighting to keep my expression neutral for fear that a supremely smug grin would slip, I barely spoke evenly, nodding toward the clouds he had not yet realized were gone. “You’ll find that our tasks might have been cleared out already.”

As he turned around, a burst of satisfaction shot through my veins when his jaw dropped once more. Raising his hoof toward the clear sky with disbelief, he took a few seconds to recover, but once he did, a grin was threatening to split his face in two. “I’m starting to like this magic of yours.”

“It has its advantages,” I replied neutrally, mockingly acting haughty.

“Alright, alright, you win…” Thunderlane flew the distance separating us, expertly landing on his four hooves next to me, before plumping down. Eyes closed, he gave me the impression of his entire body relaxing. That is, until he awkwardly opened his mouth and unsuccessfully tried to push some air out before speaking. “How are you sitting on a cloud?”

How I wanted to give him a deadpan look… You hadn’t care to notice before? “Cloud walking spell.”

His cheeks darkened, taking a pitch black taint. “Ah, huh, yeah, okay…”

Not willing to allow this to devolve into awkward silence, I took the initiative. “So… how did it all happen?”

“I…I was just really tired yesterday. Because of your test, we started the day behind on some stuff. It wasn’t all that bad though, except that near the end of the day, we got an alert for an unexpected thunderstorm over the Everfree Forest.”

His eyes went to the cloud, before going back to me. “So we spent hours to fight it off, make sure it doesn’t get near the town, but by then, it’s way past sunset.”

Internally, I cringed. Had that been my fault? I hadn’t particularly kept a great focus on the skies yesterday, so I couldn’t be sure. Knowing what this had led to, I felt my tail twitched with the jolts of unease this sent through me. Luckily, Thunderlane hadn’t noticed or cared. He just went on, his shoulders starting to lean down, as if a weight was pushing on him.

“I came home late, I didn’t even have the time to go buy some grocery before the shops closed. Can you imagine being me for two seconds? I’m sweaty, my legs feel heavy, my wings are sore, I just want to relax and forget this whole thing ever happened. But Rumble’s been waiting for me for a few hours now, so I whip out the first thing I can do for supper.”

“I’m… guessing that didn’t go too well?” I said slowly, my mouth twisting into a pained grimace.

His nostrils flared, his voice grew bitter. “You think? The little brat starts to whine about the food not being to his liking and he gives me lips for not filling the fridge sooner. Not just a few words, a whole blown up tantrum! At that point, I’m already on the verge of smacking his rump red. But I manage to swallow it down and sternly tells him something like ‘don’t you dare act spoiled now’ and tells him to eat everything because there aren’t any snacks left in the house.”

The scene comes easily in my mind, too easily. I was not observing the scene, I was part of it, as the big brother tired of hearing whining.

My guts contracted painfully on themselves.

Again, Thunderlane did not notice. At this point, he was venting for himself more than my benefit.

“By then, the atmosphere in the house is just shot, we’re both pissy. Except I happen to catch a glimpse at one of his school papers, a test he took not long ago.” He paused, his hooves actually shaking with barely restrained anger. “He failed and normally, I would have just tried to talk to him about it, but for this test, I had to nag him for a few days to study. And the day before the exam? I caught him slacking off. When he said that he was ready, I decided to give him the benefit of the doubt, but… yeah…”

To my own surprise, my hoof went to his back, giving him a couple of comforting pats. At that, Thunderlane glanced at me, a ghost of a smile on his lips, that I actually returned.

I knew what it was like all too well… Calx’s voice was ringing to my ears, though one purely from my memories. His blue form was at a small school desk, squirming with an excessive energy that he could not exhaust on a good day, and whined.

“So I ground him, which was probably harsh, but again, bad day, bad attitude from him, we start arguing. It didn’t get that ugly, so I’m really grateful about this, but I still ended up sending him to bed early. No way was I going to deal with him any longer.”

“I… yeah, okay, I get where you’re coming from with this.”

“And this morning, we both refused to say a word,” he finished slowly, this time much more clearly hesitant and remorseful.

I felt just a little stunned. Okay, yeah, you had a lot on your plate, buddy.

And, more than that, the cold had left my chest. His… his tale had chased it away.

“Look, I know it sounds bad right now, but believe me, this isn’t going to last.”

“Really?” He replied, but without much conviction to it.

“Yeah, it happened dozens of time between me and my little brother.” I fought the urge to extend a wing over his shoulder, opting for a less cover-blowing hoof. “You’ll be fine.”

That got him more interested. His back straightening, the hint of grin floated on his lips. “Oh, so you have a brother too. What is he like?”

“Kind of a brat, actually.” I snorted, unable to help myself. “I love him, but he’s a hoofful for sure.”

He rolled his eyes and chuckled. “Tell me about it.”

“Well…” My voice trailed off, as I pretended to be hesitant and inexperienced. “Since you asked, I could tell you about some times he really made me want to tear my mane apart…”

Eyes sparkling with renewed life, Thunderlane quickly stretched one wing and folded all but one feather, forming the pony equivalent of a thumbs up.

Grinning, I got started, fishing from my memory something just up to Calx’s level of spectacular. It did not take long to get him laughing with me.

They were progressing so slowly... she dared not imagined the thoughts that had to run through Applejack’s or Rainbow Dash’s minds. Green and dark pink irises were focused on the path ahead of them, but she had the firm conviction they flickered to her as soon as she stopped looking.

Already, she could feel a sting behind her eyes. Her cheeks were burning. She was so ashamed! Even when she had told them she would conquer her fear, even after she had insisted to come with them, their progression was still sluggish to an extreme. Try as she might, her body fought her on every turn and just about every instinctual parts of her did the same.

The forest was sending vibes of sheer wrongness in every possible direction. It was unnatural, unscientific, un-… un-…unorderly! And it had never done so in such a powerful way before.

Each step demanded an effort from her. Her legs shook, leaving uneven hoofprints in the muddy ground.

“Yer feeling okay, Twi?”

No, no she was not feeling okay. In fact, if she were to scientifically quantify her state of mind, she would say that she was the very opposite of okay. Her whole body felt funny, and not in a good way.

Her instincts were telling her to take her friends and run as fast as ponily possible. Every bone in her body trembled at the dancing shadows, at the overgrown plants and the unkempt nature. Paradoxically, the complete silence had a reassuring quality for her. She could not have explained it, but the sterile background reminded her of something…

A flash of light… trumpets… a calm motherly voice…

Beyond this, however, her senses were stretching ahead, toward the old castle of her mentor, the place she had first discovered the Elements of Harmony. It was the only thing that allowed her to move forward. In her blood, she could feel the call of an ancient being, perhaps the most appealing call to have ever reached her ears.

All of this served to reaffirm something in her mind.

The Everfree Forest didn’t make any sense!

‘Chaos’, Ventus had all but told her.

“I… No, but I’ll power through it.” She stopped, taking a deep breath and repeating the calming motion Cadence had taught her. “We need to find out what happened to Zecora!”

“’Course we do, Twi. And we will. Yew just look yer gonna pass out.” Applejack frowned, before moving right in front of her alicorn friend. Legs locked, she stood strong, but it did not affect the light of concern shining in her pupils. “Rainbow and Ah could always just do the searchin’ and tell yew everything back in Ponyville. Wouldn’t be needed for yew to push yerself so hard.”

“N-no…” Twilight said, even if dozens of voices in her head were pushing her to accept the offer. “I’m sure. It’s something I told the Princess I would do and I will. I’m strong enough to do this. I’ll find out what happened to Zecora.”

For a moment, the new princess wasn’t sure her friend would accept her reasoning, as the orange mare was staring straight into her eyes with a serious face.

“Okay…” Applejack agreed and stepped aside, but with no little amount of reluctance. “Ah can’t fault yew fer that.”

Smiling, Twilight nodded gratefully at her, a silent promise being exchanged between them.

“Hey!” A rash voice suddenly called them from above.

Taken by surprised, both mares turned in an instant and, their instincts attuned to danger in a place like the out-of-control forest, stood ready for any confrontation. However, the instant they recognized the rainbow mane and the cyan fur, they relaxed, allowing to speedster to land next to them.

“So far, I haven’t seen anything from up there.” Rainbow Dash shook her head, gritting her teeth in frustration. “There’s no way of seeing through that screen of leaves, Twilight…”

“Let’s start by getting to her house. Perhaps there is some sort of hint your siblings couldn’t detect, Applejack. Then, if we didn’t fi-” She abruptly cut herself off as if something had punched the air out of her lungs.

“Twi?” Applejack stepped in, placing a hoof on her back. “What’s wrong?”

“I-it’s…” she started, staring at empty air.

If Rarity had been with them, perhaps she would have understood as well.

Twilight could have sworn that magical signature was one she was familiar with. In fact, she might have studied it in details already. In a small laboratory in Canterlot Castle, with electrodes and graphs. And one handsome stallion on a pedestal.

“Ventus?” She whispered as her cheeks started to burn, glancing at their surroundings.

No sooner had the words escaped her lips that she was hit by a burst of bone-chilling cold. For a split second, the alicorn was convinced that she had been turned into a block of ice, that even her heart had stopped being made of flesh and could only pump cool disdain for the world in general. A lance of freezing magic seemed to have went straight through her.

“Twilight!” Applejack and Rainbow Dash shouted, running to her side.

The sensation passed. In the ambient magic, the disturbance had already disappeared, leaving no even a trail of that corrupting cold. But the shivers would not fade away so quickly.

No, she decided, it definitely hadn’t been him.

It… somehow, it had clicked. Once the ice had been broken, it just turned into a contest of sort, see which one of us had the brattiest brother, and the stories wouldn’t stop coming out of our mouths. So far, neither of us were willing to concede in favor of the other. So we went on at it all morning long, even while bucking or magicking the clouds away, or drenching some very specific crops with reasonably heavy rain.

“He did not do that!” Thunderlane screamed foul, half-grinning, half in disbelief.

The farmer on the ground sent a very confused look his way. That poor mare… She probably wasn’t used to dealing with weather ponies as unfocused as we were in that instant. But then again, her farm was a little outside Ponyville proper, not unlike Sweet Apple Acres. Maybe she wasn’t one for noises in general…

Not that I really care much.

“I swear!” I shouted back, reveling in what I knew would be my victory. “He was convinced it would enlighten him.”

“Cloud, you’re pulling my legs!” Black hooves pushed the rain cloud away, shaking his head. “I’m calling horseapples!”

“D-damn it, Thunderlane!” My magic surrounded the next cloud, pushing it over the next spot. “Stop calling me a liar, my fur was stuck like that for days!”

Startled, he missed his kick completely, bucking the empty air and, momentum obliged, falling flat on his belly against the raincloud. Which promptly started showering the plants we were aiming for anyway. And dispersed, causing the black stallion currently lying down to let out a yelp of shock and fall face first into the mud.

At this point, the mare just about had it, deciding that she had better stuff to do somewhere else. We were just about finished anyway. Or… Correction, I thought, glancing at Thunderlane who was standing up and cracking his neck, we will be as soon as he gets out of the veggies.

“That was…” He said, trotting up to the spot next to me, flapping his wings to get rid of the excessive water.

“Yes, it was…” I started, tearing off my gaze away from the soaked plants and giving him a semi-serious look.

It started with a chuckle. Just a small noise, coming from him. We held each other’s gaze for quite a long time actually, about five seconds. Then… then we started laughing for real.

I was rolling on the floor, my hooves wrapped around my stomach as my hilarity got the better of me. I laughed and laughed… the world around us disappeared for an instant. My soul wasn’t weighted down by evil thoughts, my parents didn’t depend on me to save them, my brother and I weren’t stuck in a completely foreign world. It was simply… me… and Thunderlane, laughing our rumps off so hard we were starting to cry.

Elders that felt good!

I heard a long-going sigh of relief from where Thunderlane was. We sniffed, and I ran a hoof alongside the damp trail on my face.

To my surprise though, Thunderlane started chuckling again, though with a sadder tone. “You know, we stand around complaining about our little brothers, but I don’t think I could really stand to live without him.”

Nodding, my ears wide open for Calx’s mishaps that were doubtlessly going on in school, I focused a bit to create another cloud. “I understand the feeling.”

“When our parents passed away, it was just me and him, you know? It’s not easy, but… I know I have to. He’s my brother; I don’t want to let him down. I can’t.”

I gave him a reassuring smile, and it was genuine. “I have a feeling you won’t.”

“Thanks.”

Well, things aren’t going too badly, I thought, hopping on my cloud, its softness feeling almost skittish underneath my hooves. For perhaps just a second too long, I played a bit with the pressure I was applying on each limbs. Clouds had the weirdest texture.

“Where’s the next one?” I turned to Thunderlane.

“The next field over, east of here,” he replied, extending his wing, then taking off.

For a split second, a pained look flashed across my face. Any smile, any lightness, any confident, it was all briefly gone. I didn’t want to fly.

And yet… there was still this whisper in the back of my head…

With no other option, I forced my cloud up, trying to keep my mind on my partner rather than the growing sensation of illness that came with high altitudes.

The familiar nausea was back. Slowly, a strange feeling of weightlessness was snaking around my limbs, running across my skin, giving me the impression I would fall apart. The pulse of my blood in my temples had my mind going wild, as if every squirt of blood would just drip of my body, as if my flesh was disintegrating. It was only when the feeling was at its worst that my luck so far ran out. Starting with my colleague flying besides me.

“What about you?” He asked, his eyes shining with sincere interest. “What’s your story?”

Closing my eyes for a second, I let out a deep sigh. “W-well, perhaps you’ve heard of our parents, Sky Pattern and Wind Tunnels?”

That stopped him almost dead in his track.

“Are you kidding me?” Thunderlane was suddenly in my face, albeit without any hostility, luckily. “Those two only have their names in every weather patrol’s ideal workers! I can’t help admire them.”

Blinking, I only moved my cloud backward, still staring at him as he got over the initial shock.

In fact, it happened rather quickly, with him placing his chin on his hoof. “Never heard they had children though.”

“Yeah…” Okay, Celly, can’t help but think that was not your best move so far… “Well, they didn’t want the publicity or the harassment for us, especially considering…” I grimaced, gently touching the tip of my horn.

Thunderlane’s eyes widened in understanding, and he winced badly. “Oh…”

“It’s not all bad, certainly not…” I looked down, before taking a deep breath and putting on a ‘brave’ face. “I’d just wish that everypony could look past my physical attributes and let me do what I want to do with my life.”

Now the guy was grimacing as if I had been forcing him to chew on a sour lemon. Ears flat against his head, a sympathetic look on his face, he placed a hoof over my shoulder. “L-look… I didn’t mean to be so…”

“S-sorry, I wasn’t trying to make you feel guilty.” Maybe…

That would be a little too vindictive, especially since I knew his reasons already and… well, I kind of like him as a pony. Still, I had to keep those manipulative skills sharp; they would probably salvage more than one lie I had had to spin to protect Tom and myself.

Once the silence had gone on long enough, I continued.

“Still, I never had too much of a problem with it when our parents were alive. I even got to complete half of my studies without any major trouble. But… once, they… they, huh…” To my surprise, my eyes stung and my guts felt twisted. …This isn’t what happened… this ISN’T what happened. They’re doing fine! They are! THEY HAVE TO BE FINE! “You know…”

He nodded sharply, once, and the grip on my shoulder tightened.

“A-and after t-t-that, a friend of my father took us in, but they weren’t very rich. Still, we couldn’t complain and I even managed to score a position in Gallopfrey’s weather patrol. I-it… seemed like things were looking up.”

I could see Celestia and Luna smiling at us, that night when we came back from the orphanage… I could hear their voices clearly… I could feel a motherly warmth

The weight of what had been lost, by my own damn fault, hit me with such force… I almost stopped breathing.

For a moment, I could not speak. Under the surface, my mind had gone wild, emotions running free in a maelstrom of regrets… of guilt…

But… at some point, I started to feel a little warmth, spreading in circles. It was a soft pressure, so unlike the weight of my shitty choices…

And a whisper reached my ears. “It’s okay, Cloud. It will be…”

I… I had to stop this… This had to come to an end, fast! “When I heard they were cutting down on the number of employees back home in Gallopfrey… there wasn’t any choice. We came to the closest town with an open seat for a weather pony. And now… it’s just me and Feather Dust…”

An awkward silence installed itself between us. The wind itself had seemed to quiet down around us, but that was no surprise to me. T-this one had hurt… badly.

“Look, Cloud…” He rubbed his hoof against the back of his head. “You seem like a nice guy and all, and, believe me, I know what you’re going through. If you need help… you can come to me. I might not be the best there is, but I like to think I am not doing that bad of a job raising Rumble and I will help you. I swear I will.”

When I spoke, it wasn’t the acting that made my voice tremble. “Y-you don’t have to do this… I already told you I didn’t take it personally before-”

Something vaguely mud tasting pushed against my lips, stopping my words cold and making a really stupid thought go through my mind. So that’s what it feels like to have a hoof shoved in your mouth?

“It’s just something I can relate to, and I do want to make it up to you for my behavior. I’ll help you if you want.” He grinned, almost cockily. “Deal?”

The heart wrenching feeling being nearly gone, I opened my mouth to reply, but before I could say anything a sudden fear enveloped my entire being.

“Wha-”

A blur violently threw Thunderlane out of my sight, at the same time as an unbelievably cold air brushed past my muzzle.

You have GOT to be clopping me!

“Thunderlane!” I shouted, spinning around, and freezing in place when two pale blue gusts of wind spiraled past me.

But there was no time. I shook my head, trying to shrug off that moment of hesitation, and scanned the air for a sign of the black stallion.

Buck…

I spotted him.

Three ghostly figures had encircled him, trapping him within their grasps. Three figures… three figures in the shape of ponies…

Caelum…

“He tore apart his soul.”

One of them suddenly charged, wrapping itself around its target.

“The fragments he had thrown away had taken on a life of their own.”

Fragments of Caelum…

My vision blurred and I staggered, new emotions rippling through me. They overwhelmed me, with each thought fading away into something lesser, something primal.

Mine.

Feeling the power built up in my guts, I brought myself closer. The windigoes’ attention was sorely on their prey, on the pegasus who had been unlucky enough to cross their path. Their ethereal bodies were twisted, akin to the coils of a ghostly snake.

Small, pale clouds escaped Thunderlane’s mouth, fading away as soon as they formed. Already, his eyes had become glassy, as if a veil covered them. Weakly, he struggled, hoping to get out of their grip, but his hooves went right through the windigoes. For but a brief moment, it appeared as if the two’s bodies existed as one, as if the windigo was part of him.

A violent impulse washed over my mind. A need. A want. A lust for what was to be mine.

Without thinking, I willed myself closer to them. The cloud underneath my hooves was already a pony’s length away from the ghostly creatures. Their proximity had my heart pumping blood at an accelerated rate. The edges of my vision were hazy, unclear… blurry. A filter of ice seemed to be growing over them.

“Stop,” I said.

And they stopped, moved by an unfathomable instinct to follow my commands.

The three windigoes stood still, their heads turned toward me. The one closest to me… I could see Thunderlane behind him, through its body. A fine layer of frost had started to cover his coat.

Finally, my head light, swimming in cold water, I raised my right front leg and pointed it at the windigoes.

“You’re mine…”

Strident neighs.

Grey.

One windigo gave a panicked whinny, but moved no further. It couldn’t. I didn’t want it to.

The wind was brushing against my fur. It, alone, accompanied me here. No other living souls remained in the valley. Everywhere my eyes fell, they saw nothing but the hills, charred by lightning bolts or magic blasts, covered from one end to another with the senseless losses of lives that had been perpetrated.

They had lied. Their names on the treaty… meant nothing. It had been a diversion, a way to divert the eyes from the attack they had prepared.

A skirmish. They dared called it a skirmish!

The ghostly imitations were starting to fade away before me. Their hold on my companion was also wavering.

A feeling of nausea lifted my heart in my throat. Staggering, I pushed my right hoof over my mouth, forcing the sensation back. I was failing. I couldn’t bring Order back to ponykind. Their hatred of each other ran too deep, firmly anchored by their prejudices. They wanted no peace. They would rather kill each other to gain a fleeting advantage.

My strength was being challenged. Already, the air felted charged by something outside of Order. I would not allow this!

Things blurred. The world was not of an ashy grey anymore. Vibrant green flashed before my eyes, and I realized I was staring at the ground from my perch. It felt as if there was truly nothing but this single color, with only the light of the sun to create variation and shade. But something shattered this illusion of a united world. A black object was falling.

W-what wa-?

Pure white eyes were staring back at me.

I could not help but smile at the creature. It was perfect. A creature of wind and cold. The bringers of a perfect Order, extensions of myself, fragments of my soul, ready to bring this barbaric species to the brink of extinction.

I blinked. My creature had disappeared.

Was that… Caelum? I frowned, trying to summon back the already fading memories. Images that could be seen with perfect clarities just seconds ago were disappearing from my memories. Even my own body, which I knew should have been covered with golden fur, only appeared to be of a plain orange color.

At my sides, the illusion covered up the truth of my nature, making me look like a pony. Like one of… of them?!

Pure ice started pumping in my veins. A vivid disgust twisted my mouth into a scowl. I could barely stomach to spend even an instant in this form. As soon as that thought had formed, my body turned to air, and dove toward the ground.

Thunderlane was still spiraling downward, his body battered by the wind. There was not much time left until he'd hit the ground.

His eyelids flickered open, and, as luck would have it, it felt as if his gaze met mine.

Something flashed in my mind.

“When our parents passed away, it was just me and him, you know? It’s not easy, but… I know I have to. He’s my brother, I can’t let him down.”

I felt a twitch, something, through even this state of immaterial being I was in.

“Sorry, Cloud, I shouldn’t have taken out my anger on you. That was a real jerk move of me. Can we start this over?”

“If you need help… you can come to me.”

“It’s just something I can relate to, and I do want to make it up to you for my behavior. I’ll help you if you want.”

With a gasp, I watched the body as it nearly collided with a bird of some sort. To my shock, I felt something grip the inside of my chest. My heart had suddenly started beating at a maddening rhythm; I felt a shiver reach down to my very soul.

For some reason, the pegasus’ fall slowed down. The air around him… felt different, a little more solid, stretching out at his passage rather than pushed away outright. Beneath him, a cushion of air started to form, and I understood.

I was doing this?!

In but a few minutes, Thunderlane’s mad descent toward the ground had slowed down enough that there were no more risks for his life, and when finally he touched the ground, the air let him go softly.

For a few seconds, my body didn’t reform. The wind, almost shakily, span around the clearing, coming close, but never in contact with him.

Gritting my teeth, I forced myself to overcome this ridiculous unease, and almost fell to the sensation of weight my pony body had.

There I stood, Cloud Circle, over the weakened pegasus that I had decided to save.

Why? Why had I bothered? Ponies were ungrateful, spiteful creatures by nature. There couldn’t be any benefit to saving somepony I’d just met. Not when I knew what ponies really were like. Backstabbers. Warmongers.

A sharp pain seized my forehead, and I felt myself stagger forward, one hoof bumping against Thunderlane’s shoulders. The contact felt burning.

WHY?! Why, why, why, why?! Ponies hate me! They don’t care! Not that humans are much better! Or the griffons! The minotaurs! The donkeys, the mules, the dogs, the dragons…

The edges of my vision were darkening. I could only focus on the unconscious black pegasus right in front of me.
I was panting, each breathe coming out loud and heavy, ringing to my ears, almost reminiscent of a predator running after a prey. White mist danced in front of my eyes, evaporating too quickly to be discernible. My insides felt cold.

There is only… there is only…

Red eyes – or are they meant to be brown? –, curious and shining with life.

A lavender coat, that gives her cheeks the perfect shade of purple once she’s embarrassed.

A gruff voice and one so delicate.

A flowing mane of multiple colors, a tall and proud stature, but at the same time, the sensation of a warm, feathery embrace all the same. Light and flames.

Perhaps… perhaps even that stupid compass star cutie mark.

Slowly, I let out a deep sigh, shaking off the darkness snaking around the corners of my eyes. My thoughts were growing more focused again.

Celestia would never be able to ignore what would have transpired here. My colleague, found dead while showing me the ropes all alone? There’s no way she’d believe in an accident.

There, a good and rational reason for my actions, but… the image Thunderlane’s unconscious body felt burning against my retina.

He needs medical attention. Quickly.

Acting up on instinct, without stopping to give it a second thought, a wave of magic went through me and focused into my horn. However, that heating up sensation brutally evaporated, as I let the build-up energy loose.

Slowly, I looked up. My eyes followed the bolt of magic as it flew higher and higher, marking our position with enough flamboyance that a few pegasi were bound to notice. The sky was mostly clear by this point.

But a few minutes passed, and nopony had shown up yet.

“Thunderlane!”

I jolted with relief as I heard the panicked shout, and could not remember the last time I had been this glad to see a mortal. Three of them actually.

One light blue stallion and two grey mares, Flitter and Cloudkicker.

She dove for him straight away, her breathing accelerating as she kneeled by his side. Quickly though, she looked up to me, her eyes reflecting my own – falsely nervous – image. “What happened to him?! D-did you do this?!”

Of course. You would think that, you insignificant lit-

“Flitter, shut up!” Cloudkicker shouted, grabbing one of her shoulder and pulling her back.

The stallion turned to me. “Quick, tell us what happened.”

“A… there were…” I won’t be able to hide this for long. Celestia’s bound to ask questions… “Windigoes, three of them.”

For a second, the three of them froze, their jaw slackened.

“I just blasted them with a thunderbolt…” I continued timidly, pretending to that the reason my legs were shaking so badly was fear rather than bloodlust, pretending that their incredulous gazes weren’t making me want to grind their faces into the ground. “They scattered away… I-I…”

“Is this a joke?”

“N-no, it’s not a joke.” Elders, that mare was just pissing me off! “Thunderlane was hit directly by them and I don’t know what to do. He just keeps getting colder!”

Briefly, that this was part of my knowledge surprised me, but it was eclipsed by their reactions. Flitter, running a hoof on his body, froze, before turning back to me.

“Can’t you teleport him to a hospital?!”

As if I’d accept a pony into the wind!

Feeling my self-control slowly slip, I forced my anger down my throat, lest I lash out and get in deeper trouble. “I-I don’t know the spell…”

No sooner had I spoke that the one of the pegasi I couldn’t name took charge. “Cloudkicker, fly ahead and warn the hospital staff. Flitter, help me carry him.”

With a stiff nod, both mares agreed, moving without a second of hesitation to help their friend.

“You…” The stallion hesitated, a glint of unease passing in his eyes. “Cloud, run back to the headquarters and inform the secretary of the situation.”

“Okay…” I said, pushing on my hind legs and sprinting away.

I ran, but didn’t think of trying something else. The idea of changing into air briefly crossed my mind, but… I felt hesitant to do so. What had happened was eating at me.

So, my new colleague, who, up to recently, hadn’t shown anything but annoyance at me, ended up being attacked and I had to save his life, right after we had a talk about our respective situations, sympathized and became friendlier toward one another. I couldn’t have come up with a more convenient plan if I tried.

The images of his falling body flashed before my eyes.

I slowed down.

But that would have implied that I deliberately set him up to be attacked by those windigoes…

My tail twitched. I was trying not to think back on his promise already.

“When our parents passed away, it was just me and him, you know? It’s not easy, but… I know I have to. He’s my brother, I can’t let him down.”

Shaking, I gritted my teeth and lowered my head. My focus was only on the blades of grass twirling and twisting under the sudden assault of an unexpected breeze. But through flashes, the green turned black, the twisted lines became feathers.

Why did I catch him?!

...

Why wouldn’t I?

He’s… a friend, isn’t he?

And at once, the whispers died out, as if they had never existed.

I felt calmer than before, that swirling pool of ice resting too deep inside me to reach my consciousness. Still, the peace I sought was tainted by an imperfection, a pinching bolt of unease right in the middle of my chest.

Finally, I looked upward and closed my eyes.

…I hope you’ll be okay. I really do.

Empathy

My left eyelid flickered, with flashes of pain and discomfort, but it could not close. A bright light blinded me, as even my right eye could not see anything beyond a pony shape in the darkness. I could not move, not so easily, my chin pressed against a hard surface.

The pressure on the left side of my face suddenly disappeared, and, with a blissful sigh, I saw the light grow dim, then fade away. For a second, the room remained tainted by a darkness my vision could not pierce, with dots of blurry darkened colors dancing in front of me. But soon enough, somepony threw the windows open, lighting up the examination room and giving me a full clear sight of the doctor in the middle of this dull green room.

“It appears, young stallion, that you are indeed uninjured,” that doctor version of Caramel declared, happily putting his flashlight back into his white coat. “You look pristine, as good as new.”

That, or the spell hides even my injuries… That’s a scary thought.

Careful not to let my unease ruin the shy smile I was showing, I moved away from the counter and took a few steps toward the doctor. His attention had shifted to a small tablet on which he held some papers. Rapidly, his eyes darting from one side to another, he made his quill scramble against the forms.

“So I’m fit for work next monday?” I asked, feeling a tickling sensation running up my legs.

I really had to leave this place behind soon. It was as if I had ants in my limbs.

The brownish stallion didn’t seem to notice, absorbed by his work. Between two marks, he turned to me with a grin and shrugged. “I don’t see a medical reason for you not to go.”

You did not spot that I am in fact an alicorn, though, I thought on the inside, while just nodding and muttering a quick word of thanks to him. That has got to be a mark against you in my resume.

One might think the wings I had clamped against my sides so hard they became numb would be a dead giveaway, but Celly’s spell had been remarkably well-conceived. Not once did he suspect anything when physically examining me! Not even that accursed height difference tipped him off.

He had “slipped” a few times too. Whenever he was aiming for a precise spot on me, there had always been a miss. This, in turn, meant that aiming for one eye, he’d hit the cheek bones. Thrice. The spot still felt sore.

If it had been me, I might have stopped apologizing so much and tried to figure out the reason my expertise was continuously failing me when dealing with a particular stallion. But then again, ponies were trusting fellows…

Images of a posh castle flashed in my mind.

Okay, maybe it’s more of a countryside thing…

And another image, but this time that of a white stallion with a blonde mane, willing to put his faith in my words alone, even after I had thoroughly insulted him.

…Maybe I’m just imagining things. It’s a spell Celestia crafted after all, it’s can’t be that easy to find out…

With a small shake of my head, I diverted my focus to my surroundings, letting the stronger circulation of air of the hallways reach me. It soothed me, if only for a small moment. There were far more activity here than in that examination room.

“Passing through!” A nurse shouted, and I backed away into the wall, in time to see a pink mare push a wheelchair-bound old-timer right where I had just stood. In fact, she had moved fast enough for a small gust of air to hit me the second afterward.

For a second, I fought against the grin my lips threatened to break into. It would probably make ponies ask question if they thought I smiled after a nurse had nearly hit me with a wheelchair. Hay, I would ask myself if I was unwell if I were in their horseshoes.

Putting back a mask of neutrality, I walked down the hallway toward the southern end, where I had first came in to start the standard tests. Going past the mare at the receptionist’s desk, I trotted into the adjacent room where I was greeted by a peculiar sound. A long suffering groan of boredom rose from the depth of the room and I directed my gaze that way, recognizing that voice amongst every other.

There, on the cushions of the waiting room, splayed across four of them in the most ‘I’m-bored-the-buck-out-of-my-mind’ posture I had seen in a long time, was Calx, muttering to himself about the unfairness of everything. But mostly about how long this was taking with the doctor.

Torn between the desire to end his suffering and the tradition of big brothers everywhere to screw things up for their younger siblings, I made my way to him, slowly, without making a sound. A fraction of my attention had been put precisely to the task of making my approach completely silent.

I passed by a few other ponies, one of them holding up an old magazine in the air with her magic, the rest looking blankly ahead of themselves or at the number paper in their hooves. None bothered to give me their attention, since, you know, I wasn’t part of the hospital staff.

“Feather Dust,” I said.

Ears standing up instantly, Calx’s head snapped in my direction.

“Finally!” He rolled over, getting his rump off the cushions and unto the floor, but not his upper body. That part of him remained firmly set where they were before.

At the very least, his halfhearted attempt to stand, namely move one front hoof up, showed that it was not entirely planned. It did not, however, mean that he wanted to try anything more.

I chuckled, feeling rightly amused by the indignant look on his face. “Bored?”

“It’s a conspiracy,” he grumbled, refusing eye contact and burying his face into his pillow. “I bet it’s your fault too, Sam. You’ve told everypony to make every day super boring.”

Boring? Oh you little brat, I can’t have a day with nothing happening and I would make sure everypony leaves you alone? …Actually, that does sound like something I would do…

Defeated by my own brain, I decided to forego arguing. I went with the ancestral technique of poking-until-sufficiently-annoyed. The orange fur I pushed seemed to strangely absorb every push though, somewhat like a lazing cat’s would.

“Yes, and when you reach maximal levels of boredom, you will do everything I say just to stop being so bored.”

“Evil.” He rolled his eyes. “And cliché.”

“Well, minion, time to go back to our lair.” I rolled my eyes in turn, giving him a dubious look when he didn’t move. To motivate him, I levitated one of his legs in the air, but it fell flat again a second later. “Seriously, bro, move your rump. We’re leaving this place behind us.”

That seemed to get a reaction out of him.

“We are?” He asked, suddenly attentive.

“Yeah, I’ve passed all the tests. Now come on, stand up and we’ll be able to leave.”

However, just as Calx had finally registered that his boredom would soon come to an end, I heard some scrambling noise behind me.

“New guy?” Some new voice called me, making me freeze right in my tracks.

Horseapples! Why didn’t I pay more attention?

Reluctant, I turned around, pretending to take in the image of the gray mare, as she was, standing a few meters away from me next to a coffee machine. “C-Cloudchaser?”

“What were you doing here? Are you looking for Thunderlane’s room?”

Making my ears droop, I looked away, hoping to show the image of a slightly ashamed pony. “A-actually, I just finished my medical check-up. Y-you know… That thing they ask of employees that are involved in an incident. T-to make sure I’m still physically, mentally and emotionally sound.”

Hearing this, her mouth formed a thin line, pinched together. On her face was the expression of somepony that knew all too well what I had gone through. And would rather forget it ever happened.

“So, what’s the result? Am I working with a psycho in disguise?” She asked in jest, though with little heart behind her jab.

I was glad that I had perfected my poker face so much. You have no idea…

Deliberately putting too much enthusiasm in my response, I gave her an exaggerated grin. “Well, I am in the seventh-group most likely to snap… But other than that, they said I am a likely invaluable member of society!”

It was ridiculously awkward.

With a perfect mix of eye rolling and half-smile, she gave me a knowing look, the very same one would give to a friend whose attempt at being funny had fallen flat, excessively so.

Good, I thought with some satisfaction, that should do the trick.

Under his breath, Calx snorted. “Seventh?”

That comment earned him a flick of my tail to his face, but it didn’t stop his laughter in the least.

Now, Cloudchaser seemed a little cheered up by our antics. At the very least, the world didn’t look like it weighted as much on her as before.

“Thanks for the reassurance. I’ll make sure to ask the boss not to put us on the same team,” she said, a bit more sincere in her humor than before. “But I’ll also bring the occasional cupcake to you, just in case.”

“My stomach will appreciate that…” I muttered, pausing for a few seconds, with just the occasional twitch on my body. Then, when enough time had passed, I spoke up again. “Anyway… Y-you were going to his room?”

“Yeah, I just needed some coffee.” She glanced insistently at the cup tray balancing on her wing. “Plus, Thunderlane not so subtly hinted that he wanted a few minutes alone with Rumble.”

How easily I could summon up the memories of earlier today, when we were just goofing up and messing around, telling each other how much we cared for our little brothers. That competition we had had in jest… it had probably come closer than I would have dared admit.

“How… how is he?” I asked, feeling my stomach twist.

To my displeasure though, she did not answer right away. In fact, Cloudchaser had rather taken a moment to ponder it, remaining silent.

This one unnerved me. I just didn’t see this little oddball coming.

“You know what they say?” She smirked, waving her eyebrows in a taunt. “Best way to know is to see for yourself.”

There was something about the way she was looking at me…

“Oh, yes, I g-guess you’re… right,” I said, with some difficulties, but also with a strange bubbling relief in my chest.

“Then, the two of you should follow me, it’s u-”

The yelp of a pony cut her right off. Swiftly, the two of us had both turned our heads, toward a young mare that had almost tripped on Calx.

His forehead resting against the wall, albeit at an angle, it seemed like he had attempted to bang his head on the wall. With a jolt of anxiety, I realized that a reason for his failure was the presence of his horn under the illusion, a fact that Cloudchaser had to remain unaware of.

“It won’t be long!” Calx jumped from the unexpected proximity of my voice, with an innate understanding that me using this power of mine meant I was serious. “Now get your flanks over here.”

Instincts instilled in him since his early childhood winning over the indignation, for now, he ran up to my sides, scowling.

“Foals,” I mouthed off silently, glancing meaningfully toward the shape of my sulking little brother.

Nodding in understanding – and I could have sworn, caution –, the gray mare quickly led the way along the hallways, going from the testing rooms, to the cardiac department, in which we thankfully just trotted through,

But, as we were approaching the room, I allowed myself to turn my attention inward, toward their voices. Shameful maybe, however my curiosity got the better of me. As a friend and a brother myself, I had this… this desire to know if things turned well. Severely ingrained lectures from my mother only got contained when the happy consequences became clear to me.

And I felt the urge to stop us from barging in right at the wrong time.

“Oh, huh, Mrs. Cloudchaser?” I called her, with the familiar hint of timidity.

Her steps came to a halt, as she looked at me with the beginning of a frown. “Yeah?”

“It’s only been enough time to get a coffee? A-are you sure there was enough time for them to talk?” At this, her expression turned pensive. I could tell that she was giving my remark consideration. “P-perhaps, it would be best… you know… to wait just a little bit longer.”

And as soon as I had said that, somepony cut her before she could ever try to give an answer. And in a memorable manner too.

Calx swore. Loudly.

Cloudchaser instantly turned to him with wide eyes, her mouth dropping in slight shock. His own grimace dared her to say something while he was stuck waiting again, after he had been promised that it wouldn’t take long.

On my side of this, I was desperately keeping a mildly stern look on my face, while all I wanted to do was laugh my rump off. This had definitely crossed back from annoying and into funny again.

“Language,” was all I managed to say. My voice was shaking a bit too much to convincingly convey disapproval, in my opinion.

If her half-amused look was any indication, then she didn’t really mind. In any case, she went on without making a comment, at the very least.

“It took some time to get to the coffee machine, and I honestly can’t imagine those two really fighting,” she recalled distantly, before her brows furrowed together as she looked at me. “Are you sure?”

Considering what they were saying at the moment…

“But even if I had a horrible day, that was not right of me, Rumble! I’m sorry!”

“I am,” I said without the slightest hint of hesitation, allowing myself to show my conviction through those two words alone.

“Alright.” She nodded, uncertain.

Cloudchaser took a sip of her coffee cup, looking ahead of herself without much care for more small talk.

I whispered some things in Calx’s ears, things the air didn’t carry to Cloudchaser’s ears, or anypony else for that matters. At first, it seemed to have surprised him, but quickly enough, he broke into an excited grin. So, with a few more words, I coaxed him into settling down next to me, and got him to think.

Eyes closed, him leaning against me and an unnoticeable blanket of air over his body, we thought of things beyond the mere wall of the hospital, of things… in a scope beyond mortal comprehensions.

In a rapid succession, I felt the green of the land beneath me, as a growing sea that went untouched and defiant, the friable sand, shapeless and evermoving, covering the hidden but strong earth itself, then the marshes and the wastelands, desolate and saddening. I imagined it would feel somewhat the same for him, looking up at me from the lower ground.

We went at it with invisible sparks, good-natured lashes, taunts in forms untold, as a mock fight not unlike friendly wrestling. It took different shapes, escalating in sudden intervals, only to dwindle quickly. It changed quite a few times, until it reached the best part.

The most common grounds of us both, the oddities in the otherwise smooth shape of the world, somehow. Tunnels and careers, mountains and high peaks, where the earth reached for the sky or the sky seemed to stretch downward. They were those… those pieces of the world that meant the most to us, as they seemed to refuse that otherwise clear separation. Soon, it devolved into another game of sort, where he would try to shift those passages around and I would find a way to still infiltrate my consciousness further, where I would evade him and he’d rise up above and higher.

The good news was that at least the playing softened up Calx’s anger. When I deemed the time right for us to go see Thunderlane and Rumble, he seemed not perfectly happy, but certainly not pissed off anymore. His hooves dragged a bit against the ground, and his wings had the uncommon flutter of restlessness. Still much better than he could have been.

Actually, Cloudchaser seemed just a tiny bit more annoyed than him, to tell the truth. Her first reaction to my announcement had been to roll her eyes with exasperation. It stung a little.

Then again, if someone had suddenly asked me to wait until I went to see some injured friends of mine, I would be snappy too.

The thought made me scoff, though with a bitterness that surprised me. I would need to have true friends for that, ones that know the real me. Fat chances of that ever happening…

As if to prevent any more delay, the gray mare moved swiftly, going through the distance separating us from Thunderlane’s room in a blink of an eye. We had barely made it behind her that she stepped inside, with us in tow.

“You’ve got visitors,” she announced. “Fresh from the examination center too.”

“Huh?” I heard him say. “Who is it?”

“The new guy,” was all Cloudchaser gave me as a cue, before she abruptly stepped aside and pushed me a few steps forward with her wings.

It took some self-control not to yelp in an undignified way at that. For a second, I had felt the touch of her feathers around my midsection, close to my wings. Through sheer luck, she hadn’t made contact with them.

Stumbling, my hooves uncoordinated by the surprise, they found their foundation quickly enough, thankfully. It had almost ended badly there. Then, shaking my head, I directed my gaze forward, straight at my bedridden friend.

He looked… better, which wasn’t that big of a compliment. His fur as a whole was messy, in some places shortened by broken strands of hair. Still, my gaze was more attracted to his wings, to the feathers that looked broken or singed. The experience, as brief as it had been, had messed him up pretty badly.

Above his bed, I could see some of those square bags hooked up to one of his legs. Fluids dripped slowly from the bag, gathered in a pocket, probably for the nurses to later inject as needed. It seemed not to affect him badly, as Thunderlane had been grinning at his little brother without a care for the instruments around them.

And when his eyes fell on me, they seemed more sober, yes, but in some ways… caring too.

…Why?

“H-hey Thunderlane,” I said lamely, still too distracted by his apparent fondness of me.

Ponies are foul creatures! Liars! Or at least, that’s what I remembered feeling, just hours ago. But this pony here, in this bed, made it harder and harder for me to hold up this point of view.

Not to mention, he was on a roll.

“Hi Cloud. How are you holding up?” He asked, as if I was the one in the hospital bed instead!

This made something twist in my guts, painfully.

“I-I’m fine...” I forced myself to give him a smile, however little I could manage. “I’ll be back to work next Monday.”

“Oh, so you got unlucky then?” He chuckled a bit, though the twitch of muscles at the corner of his mouth hinted toward a less positive outlook of his situation.

For everypony’s sake, I decided to humor him. A bit of over played drama and sarcasm would do wonder for us. “I guess so. Is the jealousy I feel toward you normal?”

Smug, he gave me a lopsided grin. “Every stallion in town feels that way, so, yeah.”

“And every mare wishes to wring your neck out,” Cloudchaser quipped, which made him deflate almost comically. “I guess that even things out, eh?”

“Not every mare in town…” He muttered under his breath, his tone turned sullen while his wings had clamped against him and his wounded ego.

Just then, however, luck stopped this from becoming really awkward, by having two foals greet each other in recognition. Our heads snapping toward the noises, we only got to see an orange cannonball rush for Rumble with an excited call.

“So this is Feather Dust?” Thunderlane croaked, getting the attention of said little colt, right as he was able to engage in deeper conversation with Rumble.

“Huh?” Calx blinked, twisting around when he heard ‘his’ name. “Yeah, that’s me an’ all. Nice to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you too, Feather Dust. I heard about you.” He chuckled, eyes glittering with a playful light that made entirely too much sense with what he said next. “I had imagined you taller.”

The reference obviously clicked for my brother as it did for me, but whereas I tried to contain my laughter, Calx groaned. “Did he tell you about that?!”

Not leaving him enough time to answer, he ran up to the dark stallion’s bed, hooves firmly against the bedframe as he scowled.

“I swear it worked!” His tone was a strange mixture of panic and boldness. “Like, big times! I was totally in control the entire time!”

In full view of everypony else, I smacked my hoof against my forehead.

The other adults at the scene knew better than to contradict his claims. The smart idea was, of course, to look indulgent and nod along with what he said, murmuring words of encouragement if needed.

“What’s that?” Rumble asked, glancing between his pal and his big brother in confusion. “What did you do?”

The intervention of another foal his age cut his rant off completely. In fact, it deflated him quite a bit. With the spell coloring his fur orange, he blushed from ears to cheeks a deep red.

“Huh…”

Pleading silently with his eyes, the little guy grimaced pitifully, ears flattened against his skull. It appeared that he was hoping for a swift rescue, appealing to a mercy I didn’t quite felt like showing.

Haha, nope. Squirm, bro. SQUIRM!

Hey, if he insisted that it had been a good idea, I wasn’t going to contradict him anymore. He was free to dig himself deeper.

“It’s… huh… something that, like, happened… sometime ago.”

“Is it like the time when that mare was the fifteenth to say ‘no’?” Rumble questioned, with a little insistence and annoyance at being deflected. “Or more like the time somepony asked him if he needed some water to help him through his ‘dry streak’?”

With that, the atmosphere shifted drastically. First, I was akin to a deer in headlights, eying the gray colt with shock. Obviously, from the way Rumble was taken aback by Thunderlane’s, Cloudchaser’s and my reaction, he hadn’t quite understood the meaning behind that expression. Except that very soon, the initial moment of stillness passed, leaving me the center of the unwanted attention.

Under their scrutiny, my face was burning hot. And it did not help things that Cloudchaser was laughing behind her hoof! Even Thunderlane was pretty much chuckling quietly.

Well, buck. Beaten at my own game. That little squirt!

Of them all, he was the one clearly enjoying it the most. In my gaze was the promise of revenge soon planned and executed. In his was the bravado of a colt too headstrong for his own good, with the classical ‘bring-it-on’ expression painted all over his face.

For a few minutes, nopony said anything, save for Rumble who grumbled about being left out of the loop. It was a comfortable atmosphere, in which I could feel the tension leave my muscles, as if washed away by invisible waves. A few ponies gathered that could laugh, if only for a short while, even in the face of a dangerous accident and the traps of life.

Unfortunately, that relaxed ambiance we had created came to an unpleasant end. In the middle of his and Clouchaser’s uninterrupted snickering, rougher sound came from the black pegasus’ direction.

Rushing to his sides, we all crossed the space separating us from Thunderlane’s bed. Even my legs had moved before I could think about what I was doing, and thus I was standing right next to Cloudchaser when she placed a hoof under his back and lifted him into a sitting position.

“My throat feels like hors-” He clamped his mouth shut, looking at his brother and mine. “…Like sandpaper.”

Cloudchaser sent him a worried look. “Did the doctor say something about that?”

“Oh, it’s not that bad.” Thunderlane waved his hoof in front of himself, sheepish. “This is the second time I’ve been sent here, pretty much for the same problem. The cold does that to me.”

I blinked. “Really? This has happened before?” You can’t mean the windigoes!

“Yeah, I got lost during a snowstorm, only found the next morning. And even then, it was apparently a near miss,” he recalled with some agitation.

Images flashed in my mind, images of a cold plain, whiter than anything I had ever seen, reflecting the light of the sun and illuminating the ghost horses above. Stranger was the simple satisfaction I felt, nestled down in my heart, at the sight of this dead scenery.

For a brief moment, I feared my unease had shown on my face, but if the others noticed at all, they might have attributed it to the nature of Thunderlane’s story. In any case, he continued his explanation, his mouth twisting into a grimace.

“Celestia’s pl- crown! I never thought a black stallion would be so hard to see in the middle of a snowfield!”

“Yeah, you’d think this kind of thing wouldn’t happen, but…” I let my voice trail off, not sure what else I could say, truly.

Suddenly, Thunderlane’s expression softened, losing the hardness of anger to a much kinder and gentler smile. “T-thanks, Cloud. Really. I-I’ve been treating you like crap all day long a-and… and you saved my life.”

“Morning,” I said, doing my best to appear bashful.

“What?” He blinked.

“You treated me like crap all morning long.” I scratched the back of my head with my hoof, giving him a small smile. “The rest of the day was quite nice actually. Kinda fun too.”

It seemed to stun him, as his eyes widened and his words died in his throat. The guilt had been big enough that he had refused to consider the good alongside the bad.

I guess that’s one more thing we have in common. My eyes fell to the little guys that were hanging by the bedframe, standing on their hindlegs for a better look. Neither looked particularly happy at the time, which the sole mare in the room noticed.

“Hey, Rumble.” Her grey hoof lifted his head toward her own, wearing that half smirk of hers. “Have you told your friend about that new game you came up with the other day?”

Lighting up at the mention of a game, Calx jumped on the opportunity.

“What’s it like?” He asked, his wings buzzing again. “How do you play? Is it like, a flying game? I love those, but obviously my big bro’s not gonna play much on that side!”

A little overwhelmed by the sudden barrage of questioning, the grey colt didn’t think much, blinking and not resisting the pull on his legs.

And as simple as that, my little brother had swept his friend away, getting him to open up with a smile. I swear, he’s bigger than life or something… He does that all the time. H-he was… like that before, right?

I nearly jolted when a hoof grabbed my own shoulder. Head snapping around, I came face to face with a sober, guilty friend. With a mental slap to the back of my head, I forced myself to calm down. From the look in his eyes, I would need it.

“I had to tell you…” He hesitated, his breath hitching and his gaze darting around. “W-what you did today…”

“Thunderlane…” My voice started to strain as well. I wanted him to stop this. With every expression of pain flashing across his face, a pinch in my chest occurred. In the back of my mind, I could feel the heaviness of a powerful sadness threatening to breach through my mask.

“I don’t think I can thank you enough…” He continued with a whisper, and in his eyes I saw a glint of something… sad and happy.

My memories of Luna came, of her stern look and her thundering voice. In it, she spoke of warnings, of my responsibilities as the one that had likely awakened the windigoes again. With just that, claws of guilt started to reach for my throat.

“You don’t need to…” I pleaded, ears flat against my skull.

Of course, he ignored it. This was something he had to do for himself.

“If not for you, the last memory Rumble would have of me… it would be of us fighting,” he choked, a few tears starting to roll down his cheeks. “I-I can’t… I wouldn’t have wanted this to be a burden on him for the rest of his life!”

“Thunderlane, it’s okay!” My voice rose, as I felt my breathing accelerate. Fighting a sense of urgency, I patted his shoulder gently, feeling the bottom of my vision blur too. “You have this chance to make up with him. You’re both going to be okay and this isn’t where things end!”

As if my words had broken both his guilt and his fear, he let out a loud snort of relief right in the middle of his crying, and he immediately hid his face behind his legs in embarrassment. “Thank you so much, Cloud...”

The use of my fake name was like a stab in the chest. You shouldn’t be thanking me.

Uncomfortable, I did not know what to say. It felt… indecent that I accept it, as if I was taking credit I didn’t deserve. For all I knew, the only reason he was ever in danger was my presence with him on that cloud.

Cloudchaser herself seemed to be pointedly trying to stay focused on the two little guys. Her gaze flickered toward mine once, but otherwise, she didn’t acknowledge me. This was something between Thunderlane and me.

But with two stallions refusing to talk, which we could luckily chalk up to stallions not wishing to speak about their feelings – or at least I would –, things weren’t moving forward. A heavy silence seemed to form an invisible wall.

My tail flickered, and my hoof started to scratch the tiles on the floor. I really wanted to talk about something else now.

“W-will you be alright for taking care of Rumble for the next few days?” I asked without thinking. “I could help you with that if yo-”

“That’s already taken care of, new guy.” A gray hoof rose to my eyelevel, as its owner smirked fondly at me. “I’m bringing the little sweetheart back home with Flitter and me until Thunderlane’s out of this place.”

“Yeah, Flitter wouldn’t let me take no for an answer.” His smile faded around the edge, as his expression turned worried. “She was kinda scary about that too…”

“I see.” Yeah, I could see that, considering how she was earlier.

“Still, thanks for the proposition, Cloud.” He grabbed my shoulder, looking grateful. “It means a lot.”

I could not help but smile back. “You offered your help earlier. It’s only right I do the same, isn’t it?”

“Well, yeah…” His face crunched up for a second, and a strange noise came out of his mouth. It was as if he had tried not to open his mouth, without success.

Was that a yawn?

“S-so I know what it means, Cloud.” He went on as if nothing had happened, but I could see now that he was trying to stay awake, forcibly.

“I think we’ll leave you to rest.” I glanced at Calx, then back to him. “You look like you could use the sleep.”

Eyes half-closed, he gave a dismissive snort. “Nah, I always look fresh as a rose.”

A shriveled one, maybe.

To my amusement, I caught Cloudchaser muttering that this might be true in terms of appearance, but that in terms of morning breath…

I held back a snort.

“Yeah, but even roses have their downtime. Feather Dust, come here,” I called for him gently, and was relieved to see him comply. “Say goodbye, bro, we’re going home now.”

“Oh, okay…” he replied, a little saddened to leave now that he had gotten to do something fun. “I guess I’ll see you in school, Rumble?”

With a nod, Rumble agreed and waved at him. “See you later!”

“See you!”

With a curt nod to Cloudchaser, I gave Calx a little push forward, and we left the room. Though I should be, I wasn’t quite at ease with this. This meeting had been… significant.

Behind me, I left one stallion alone with his brother and his friend, alone with the relief of what hadn’t come to pass. And in essence, I also left him with a new desire, with a course of actions for him to take, lest he leaves only regrets behind his own passing.

Mending bonds… before it becomes too late…

I could not help but ponder myself, but think back on the ponies I had clashed with. They were a certain number of them, more than I would have liked, admittedly.

Parting with my anger, before it turns into regrets… Can I do that? Can I actually do that? This anger, this hatred, it had been a part of me for a while now.

Oh, there was something in Ponyvile we definitely had to do quickly. Before we lost our chance.

Calx walking ahead of me, I let him lead the way. He bounced around fully taking in the notion of it being a weekend just starting. No doubt in his minds, there were a few projects on how to spend this time judiciously. If I was lucky, then, maybe, there wouldn’t be an earthquake. Explaining that to Celly would be hell.

Though… the image of serene, unflappable Celestia spitting her tea all over her messenger when she got the news got a chuckle out of me.

Walking by the entrance of the hospital, I noticed a nurse sending me a weird look. She probably thought it was unusual to have somepony leave this kind of place while laughing, but hey, for once I felt good about something, I wasn’t about to hold back on it.

Just like in Thunderlane’s room, now that I thought about it. Seeing him alone had reached into my core. It had felt terrible to see him in such a pitiful state. And guilt had been eating away at me when he tried to thank me for my role in today’s events!

Guilt…

That… that wasn’t… I felt guilty… I empathize with a pony?

Not only that, I had experienced a pretty diverse palette of emotions, actually… without the usual, petty urges to silence somepony permanently.

W-why? Why does this bother me?

The answer came to me quickly, as I could not help but frown at my own discovery. The mark of annoyance had appeared on my face before I could rein it in. While I managed to push it back afterward, to cement my mask on my face again, it turned out to be harder than I remembered.

My ability to hide my emotions was hindered by this change. So, I could guess that this was one reason for this tremor in my chest. Still, more importantly, why? Why had this happened at all? What could have been the trigger?

Even as I formulated the thought, I knew the answer, and felt the biggest of fools for not seeing it sooner.

Would this mean… that the windigoes…?

I had encountered four of them. Both times had happened in the exact same manner. A desire stronger than my rational thoughts had overcome me, overcome all but the basest of thoughts and left me a savage creature, if only for a moment. T-then…

Once I had… dealt with them…

“His behavior became… less emotional, more paused and patient. Things… things didn’t affect him as strongly as before.”

If… if tearing his soul apart created the windigoes, w-what had been done to me in return when I took those fragments back? He tried… he tried to fight away an overwhelmingly strong hatred, by detaching it from him, until he was void of empathy.

Luna had told me I was the most likely reincarnation of a fallen alicorn. I could believe that. A part of me could. But, the significance of this…

W-was this darkness not even mine to begin with? I-is it possible that I…?

Suddenly, my throat tightened to a painful extent. My eyes stung and burned, thousands of needles prickling them until I had to stop.

A flash to my left made me flinch. Turning, I saw the sun reflecting over the large window of a furniture shop. Right next to that blazing orb though, there was a young unicorn stallion.

Eyes of a greenish blue looked back behind an illusion, with an air of eagerness I could empathize with. They weren’t a cesspool of swirling loathing, of destructive decadence. For the first time since my coming in Equestria, my own image didn’t tell me of a hidden darkness underneath the surface. It simply appeared to belong to a stallion a little out of his depth. In an instant, a blazing need ignited in my chest. I wanted to be this pony, so much more than what I had been!

Hoof raised, my reflection pushed back at my touch, but it barely felt hot under the sun. The touch made a little cold go up my leg, and finally, pensive, hopeful, eyes fixated on the symmetry between both orange hooves, I allowed myself to think it, that sweet ideal.

Is it possible that I’m not… a monster?

“Sam?”

Another reflection had showed up in the boutique’s window, one of my brother, looking up to me curiously.

“Oh,” I said, a little unsteady on my hooves, “I was just thinking about a few things we’re still missing back at our place.”

“Yeah, like games!” He took off, zipping around me a few times, before stopping right on the level of my face. “Seriously, we have nothing fun at home, ‘cept the comics we borrowed from the library!”

“I’ll think about it.”

Oh, that would not do for him. Two hooves grabbing the sides of my face, he gave me his patented puppy eyes. “Pleaaaaaaaaaase?”

I rolled my eyes at that. “I’ll think about it strongly.”

Seeing his technique fail against the grandmaster that had taught him, Calx resolved to try the childish pout of dissatisfaction, in hope to instill feelings of fear in his guardian. It just so happened I was also immune to that technique.

“Move along, squirt.” I pushed him away, snorting. “I can bet you’re hungry.”

He shrugged. “Yeah, kinda.”

“Well, you’re only getting fed at our place, so get going.”

“’Kay…” he replied without enthusiasm, opting to drop to the ground and trot.

Watching him go, it took me a second to follow suit, trying to get my ideas in order again.

Not a monster, eh? I thought about the force of my wings against my sides, about this lie I was living once more. It was a fairly dastardly thing to do… but this was a necessity. It was to protect us… and others. Perhaps, perhaps not… Was it true? Was I really sincere in those thoughts I had? I… I’ve always been protective of him… of our family…

Though that didn’t quite chase my doubts, it helped. A little. However, while a peaceful afternoon was ending over Ponyville, I had to slow down, feeling unwell.

There was something else, inching at my consciousness. At first, it felt faint, almost a ghost of an impression, but with each passing second, it became clearer, louder. Not halfway through my step, the memory struck me and I understood what my mind had supplied me.

A sound. Simple and repetitive. It came in an uneven rhythm, as it held, to create its own message.

A part of me broke at the realization, as only one thing I knew of could create that singular yet still very familiar sound.

Fingers. The sound came from ten digits hitting a keyboard, over and over again.

Pages upon pages of angry rants, that was all I could think back then. But even in my memories, those dimly lit texts, coming off the dull light of a computer screen, radiated with an oozing evil. They had held the intent to kill, the roar of a monster made to see the day, a cry for blood left unclenched.

I remembered the hatred I had felt… I knew I could summon it back all too easily, with the same intensity, from the knowledge of what had transpired alone.

Because I could not let go of that. I could not. It went against every fiber of my being to willingly forget a threat to my family. Or even the risk of one. I would rather die than let anything happen to any of them. I would kill sooner than let them suffer!

For a brief instant, the world blurred with my anger rising.

And that beautiful, soaring hope came crashing down.

I wasn’t yet this ‘me’ back then. There’s no excuse. I wanted them to suffer, I still do. I’m not a good pony.

What would they think? Mom and Dad… if they ever knew what I became, how would they react to the knowledge that their son is a horrible stallion?

Funny how I say it all the time, yet it never ceases to hurt me.

I ignored the darkening of the day, I looked up at the sun ahead, soon to set over the horizon and turn crimson. My thoughts were turned toward the future. What was in store for us? Celly hadn’t come forward with any solution yet, but this was a complicated issue, otherwise I would have found the answer myself already.

Pushing it all down, I did my best to seem enthused by our return in our little house, since the week was over by this point. We’d have a whole two days for ourselves in Ponyville. Or so I told him with a grin.

I knew it worked, at first.

However, soon enough, Calx frowned, giving me a look just like the ones back then in Canterlot. He knew that it was all a mask again. And inwardly, I was asking him to pretend a bit that everything was fine, that even if today was a bad day, I would put on this façade and act like it wasn’t for his sake and those around us. It was rather easy for me by this point. So I smiled, chuckled and joked, a few times with sincerity too.

Even if the inside of my chest felt burning with cold.

Rainbow Dash was the first to step inside. They entered right afterward.

At first stumbling in the dark, Twilight was quick to channel magic into her horn and cast a spell to light up the hut. All three of them gaped in horror, as even with the reports of Applebloom and Big Mac, they hadn’t been quite prepared for this.

The whole tree had been emptied. No traces of this ever being a habitation remained besides the presence of a door and some heavily locked windows. The wooden panels block any light from illuminating their surroundings. Twilight’s horn remained the only thing allowing them to see past their muzzles.

Tired of this, Rainbow Dash flew to the closest window and tried to throw them open, only to struggle with the lock.

“W-what is this thing made of?” She whispered incredulously. “AJ! Can you help me?”

“Ah’m coming,” Applejack replied, leaving Twilight to examine the emptiness by herself.

The darkness was all-compassing, or so she could have sworn. Beyond the light of her horn, the shadows seemed to taunt her. It must have been her imagination, she told herself. If the house was empty, then there would be nothing to project shadow from in the first place.

Yet…

Her heart nearly stopped when she caught glimpse of a flashing green. However, as she was about to shout a warning, Applejack finally managed to break the lock down and open the windows wide. With light filling the house, Twilight was left to stare in puzzlement at an empty spot.

"T-this is... " She stopped, a shiver doing down her spine. It was different in the hut. The illness that had threatened her in the woods themselves had changed. Her mane was standing on its end from the air in there. "We shouldn’t stay here, girls. T-there was something... evil here, deeply evil."

Her breath hitched, as in her mind flashed the image of a mouth with fang. She blinked in shock, but the image had already disappeared. But a tingling sensation wouldn’t leave the tip of her horn, it lingered, as traces of magic would.

"I can hear... I can feel what it wanted..." She said, breathlessly.

All she could feel was a sickening weight in her chest, growing and twisting, reaching deeper into her with tendrils of illness. At once, her legs weakened, and she could have sworn her vision became misty.

“Twi!” Her friends rushed to her side.

“Twilight, are you alright?” Rainbow Dash asked urgently.

She wanted to answer with the affirmative, as truly it was uncomfortable but not overwhelming yet. However, as she opened her mouth, her horn felt hit by a bolt of lightning, searing with heat and pain. Heaving, she felt her wings contract madly.

"We shouldn't stay inside,” Twilight pushed the words through gritted teeth. “Zecora’s not here, and there’s no hint of where she’s disappeared to."

The other two mares shared a look, both frowning at the state of their friend.

“Rainbow, go take a look outside.” She pointed out at the door with one hoof. “See if it’s safe takin’ out Twi right now.”

Wasting no time, she disappeared in a rainbow blur, causing a miniature gust of wind to shake up her friends. Applejack might have glared at her, but at the moment, her immediate preoccupation was the pain Twilight seemed to be in.

So, it was with relief that she heard that same raspy voice echo back in the hut.

“The coast is clear, guys.”

“Good.” The orange mare nodded, before turning to her alicorn friend. “Twi, d’yeh think yer going to be able to walk the way back home? Should Ah carry yeh?”

“No, no… I’ll be fine.” She bit her lips, grimacing. “I just need to get out of here.”

“Then let’s go!”, came the brash shout, and their legs followed the order without question.

Once outside, the three of them stared at one another. A sense of restlessness ate at them. This expedition had not been fruitful so far. Amongst them, Twilight seemed to be the most concerned, as her eyes kept going toward the tree-house they had left.

“Well, what’s next?” Applejack tilted her hat over her face. “We’re not any closer to findin’ out what happened.”

Instead of answering, the young alicorn turned to face Zecora’s home again, this time with a look of determination.

“Huh…? Twilight?” Rainbow Dash asked, not sure of what was happening.

Closing her eyes, the sorceress took a deep breath. With her focus narrowing, she thought back on the sensation that had assaulted her, on the vanishing flash of light. Her mind remained on these specifics. Her surroundings had vanished, leaving her the lone figure in the face of chaotic silence.

No… it was not silence… She was simply focused elsewhere. Her friends were there, and it was another one of her friend that she was trying to find. Her help was needed, she had made a promise to her teacher and herself that she would do this, and she was going to.

Raw magic submerged her, and her eyes turned white.

Her two friends backed away a step or two as an aura of purple magic grew around the tree. Spreading as a gentle entity, Twilight’s magic grew, sparks of violet and black ignited into the light, but the light itself stretched once more, to capture them. Rainbow Dash and Applejack watched in fascination while the spell engulfed the house in its entirety and triggered more and more of these events.

Once it had reached its full extension, a tremor shook the aura from top to bottom, in a way not unlike a shiver, one that Twilight had seemed to feel as well. But before they had the time to digest that notion, they heard a faint roar that stirred at their memories. Heads snapping toward the house, they saw the magic recede, dragging along the spots of black into the mystical field. It shrunk and shrunk further, floating toward them all the while, until it became only a droplet, no bigger than a cherry.

“What was that all about?” Applejack eyed the small sphere with suspicion.

“It’s… it’s a sample of the magic that was left in here.” Twilight’s eyes narrowed on the dancing spots of black. “If I can crack its composition, I could be able to track its source with a spell.”

“Magic’s like… a scent?” Rainbow Dash said, exchanging unconvinced glances with both her friends.

Frowning, the orange mare tilted her head. “So we’re gonna track whatever’s did this like Winona finds her food?”

“I think that’s the closest analogy I could find, yes.” Twilight nodded. “All ponies can sense magic, but it’s usually unreliable unless there is some high levels of magic used on both ends.”

Letting her friend process the information, she was about to turn back toward Ponyville, when said friend was hit by a disturbing thought.

“Hey, d’ya think that’s what Pinkie’s doing?”

Twilight became very still, her eyes unnaturally wide and her smile absolutely frozen on her lips.

“Nope!” She said with overreacting enthusiasm. “I’m not dwelling on the Pinkie Sense, not now, not ever! EVER!”

Then, her gaze fell back on the orb she had decided to bring back with her. Her emotions settled down very quickly. Something about that magic… it was extremely familiar. It racked at her brain to see it, but she couldn’t place it. All she knew was that whatever it was made her feel nauseous with repulsion.

“The forest is very quiet, don’t you think?” The words came out first as an observation, but as she spoke them, her tone grew uncertain. “Why would that be?”

“Ah dunno, Twi.” The farm mare shrugged, giving the first idea that came to her mind, even if she didn’t believe it entirely. “’Cause all them critters are gone?”

But as she said it, Applejack saw her pegasus friend still. Thinking back on it, the scouting mission she had been given hadn’t really been useful for their little trip, had it? They hadn’t seen… anything…

Twilight let her gaze move from the clearing to the path they had come, occasionally stopping on some bushes or branches. Nothing moved, no sound came out.

“I think that might be the case.”

The plates fell into our sink, sending some soapy water flying around. I should have cared about that, but truly, it flew over my head. We had finished eating just moments ago and I was more or less feeling drained. I had put something together for our meal quickly, though even I was thinking it was a little subpar. Seeing as I was competing with a couple of royal chefs, that was not a big shocker.

At the very least, Tom had eaten without complaints.

Swooping everything from the table with some precise wind control, I put things to be washed later. I did not feel like doing all that much cleaning this evening. So, satisfied at the state of the kitchen, I left it behind, only to trip on a half torn piece of cardboard.

Where did this come from?

Puzzled, I looked to my right, only to see two boxes, with one of them opened and presumably emptied of its content, lying next to a bigger one.

“Calx, do you know wh-?” I asked, sending a glance toward the living room and only seeing an empty spot where I expected him to be. “Calx?”

I felt more than I heard his exalted breathing when he flew down the hallway, covered up in golden plates. As he landed with gusto, I felt my eyes grew wider and wider.

“Celestia sent us both sets of armor! You gotta try them on, they’re awesome!” He shouted and reared on his hind legs, grinning from ear to ear at the idea of wearing something so badass. “For the glory of the Solar Empire!”

And on that simple declaration of badassitude, he ran past me with the whole set of armor, shouting war cries toward whatever poor soul he would find in that state of mind.

I did not need to turn around, not even for a measly second, to know where this was going. Mere seconds before he had declared the awesomeness of his new armor, a strong noise rippled through me, making me sigh in exasperation.

“Tom!” I shouted.

“C-crap!”

Ears twitching, I sent a withering glare in his direction. “That was the bathroom, wasn’t it?”

“Huh… ” A little blue head, half hidden by a golden helmet he tried to lift with his magic, emerged from a room at the end of the hallway. On his face was the sheepish smile to end all sheepish smiles. “Have you ever thought about how little guys actually need a functioning bath?”

Instantly, it was as if the events of the day had caught up with me. My head fell, heavier than ever as I just took a few instants to digest the fact that I had yet another thing to fix for tomorrow. For the Elders’ sake, couldn’t things just be uneventful and quiet for even an hour?!

As if I didn’t have enough things on my plate!

Throughout my silent ranting, my little brother had stayed very still and as unnoticeable as he could make himself, recognizing the signs of a punishment in the making. Just like I had taught him, the less of a fuss he made before, during and after, the shorter it would be. It worked with me, Mom and Dad, so that was a tested concept.

“Tom…” I started, with a tone dry enough to evaporate a lake.

But I could not complete my statement. With that word alone, Calx had shrunken on himself pitifully and I felt my heart contract painfully at the sight.

In his flinch and his eyes, I saw the promise of a good time disappearing fast. After much suffering today, he knew that he was not going to get the reprise he had hoped, all because he had been too excitable with a gift from our cousin. And it had hit him right where it hurts.

Ears flat against his skull, he looked on the verge of tears, yet was fighting the inevitable with all his might.

“But even if I had a horrible day, that was not right of me, Rumble! I’m sorry!”

Lowering my gaze to the ground, I felt a grimace twist my mouth. If I had said anything there, it would have been harsher than necessary…

Angrily, I chastised myself. Come on, give him something, Sam! School can’t have been fun, and then he had to sit by himself in the hospital’s waiting room! And then he had to also wait for us to enter Thunderlane’s room! Of course, he’s going to be antsy and careless! It’s not always about you and your troubles!

Taking a deep breath, I mercilessly squashed the blots of anger tainting my mind. Tartarus be damned, I was not going to take it out on him!

No, instead…

I reappeared behind him, wings flared into extension. Calx reacted predictably; by turning around so quickly he almost lost balance. His eyes darted behind me, toward the damage done, but I resolved not to even glance that way.

Crouched down to his level, a playful evil grin on my face, I deliberately butted head with him. Not too strongly – we both had a horn, after all –, just enough to give him a startling little push. “So, what would you say, little squirt, if we were to make a deal?”

“Huuuh…” It seemed like his brain hadn’t caught up with my sudden appearance, in part due to a very likely fear of retribution. The change of tone hadn’t quite yet registered either. His gaze had simply gone toward the exit, as he obviously contemplated how much he needed to run away from me and how far was a safe distance. “What kind of deal?”

Still grinning, I bumped his muzzle playfully with one hoof. “We forget this whole mess. You get to stay up past normal bedtime. We get to do something fun. And, maybe, if it’s not too late by then, we order some sort of treats and eat them in the living room with some comic books.”

He blinked. Slowly.

“In return, you behave. For real.” We stared at one another, with complete serious from my part. “That means no fuss tomorrow morning, even if it’s the weekend, and you try your best in school from now on, even if it’s more boring than listening to great auntie Lexia. Tomorrow, we’re cleaning the bathroom together. If Twilight comes around to help you with school, you’re polite and well-behaved. That’s what it means, deal?”

By his look alone, I would guess it was Hearth’s Warming Eve. Gone was the horror and sadness. His grin stretched from one ear to the other.

“Hay yeah!” He shouted, his wings buzzing with excitement at the prospect of finally getting to do something real fun.

“And no more playing with armors near breakable stuff,” I added before it was too late.

“’Kay!” He agreed nonchalantly, with a half grin, which meant he probably wouldn’t be trying to keep up that one too hard.

Meh, good enough.

“Then, let’s start things up, lil’ bro.” I grinned, making my horn glow with magic. “Last to reach the couch loses.”

That’s all it took to get him barreling for the living room.

Stretching my neck and my wings, causing a few cracking noises along the way, I let out a dark chuckle. Time to bring on the big brother guns again.

But, before I fully focused my attention on him, I allowed myself one stray thought, or rather, one rogue threat I projected toward the throne room of Canterlot. With my gaze fixed on our exploded bath, I uttered one ominous statement. “You realize, of course, that this means war, Celly.”

Quite honestly, Blueblood would later admit to being extremely startled by the passing smugness of Princess Celestia’s smile. Her cup had hovered near her lips for a few seconds longer than they should have, and in the split moment before she took one more sip of tea, a playful superiority had seeped out of every pore of her body.

More importantly, he didn’t have the slightest idea what could have provoked such a reaction when they were only enjoying a few slices of cake at a café!

“Get out.”

“N-no! Please, you just have to listen to me!”

“I’m not repeating.”

“B-but I’m not lying!”

“Leave…”

I was in a strange place, of silence and mirrors. Alone in a crowd, wherever I looked, there were no sound. Wherever I heard, there were only ponies of all kinds, some vaguely familiar. Every single one of them had a golden yellow coat. All of their manes were pale as snow.

Hooves stomped against the non-existent ground, in unison. No steps made a single sound. Silence surrounded me. For some reason though, I was the only one moving, and something pushed me to never stay still.

I passed by a bulky unicorn, of similar height. For some reason, my steps became faster when I came close to him, as if I didn’t want to look at him further. Perhaps the feeling had been mutual, as the stallion turned his head in a huff.

I passed by more ponies, mares, foals and stallions. None of them were the same, but all of them resembled me. And none of them were saying a word.

“P-… tus…”

Slowly, I turned and scanned my surroundings. But whereas the rest of the world was a lone reflective surface, in the direction I looked, there was only a spot of pitch black nothingness. And from it, a fresh breeze came, brushing against my fur. So, tentatively, with a single hoof, I reached forward and the dream broke.

Instantly, my senses became blurry, as I was no longer standing, but lying on my right side. I could not see anything anymore; my eyelids were heavy, unmovable.

My mind hazy, I vaguely felt a weight over my folded left wing. Pain shot up to my brain from that spot as well, my muscles ached from the uncomfortable position. Still, nothing came to my mind until the weight moved, pushing against me in a rhythm that I knew by heart.

Half-amused, half-fond, I opened an eye, glancing at Calx with a smirk. At some point, our game night had gone horribly right.

Stretching a leg, I heard a scrunching noise of paper rustling and felt a cool contact against that same limb. With a glance toward the disturbance, I made out the shape and colors of a familiar object, of a story told with pictures and text bubbles.

Maybe falling asleep in the middle of the room, right next to the comic books, hadn’t been the brightest way to handle tiredness, but when we were getting to the duel between the Mare of Steel and Brainiac, doing anything but read further hadn’t even been an option.

Why did I wake up?

Scanning the room, I saw nothing out of the usual, except the spectacular mess we had made of the living room. Nothing that warranted waking up, really.

“P-Prince V-Ventus…”

Blinking, I glanced around once more.

I know that voice…

“Violet?”

A sound akin to a mouse squeak came to my attention, and I could easily imagine the little filly being quite shocked that my previous promise had been literal.

“What is it?” I asked softly, toning it down to a whisper only she could hear.

She did not answer. I waited in silence for her to speak up, and soon started to fear she might not talk to me at all. I knew she had been desperate, it was obvious just hearing her!

A wave of relief crashed into me when she finally spoke up.

“I… I’m sorry!” Her tone grew higher pitch still, pulling at a string around my heart. “I didn’t mean to bother you in the middle of the night.”

“Don’t worry about that,” I told her, trying to convey the same indulgence Celly showed her subjects. “Is something wrong?”

“S-somepony said that you were gone. That you had made the Princesses angry and that they had banished you away…”

My heart fell. T-that poor filly, after what she’d gone through already… had she thought it would happen again so soon?

“They were wrong, Violet.” I subconsciously glanced at Calx, feeling a pinch of pain from the sorrow in her voice. “I’m just away from Canterlot for a little while.”

“I was scared you might… y-you might…” Sobs started to break through the flow of her sentences, and I felt a heavy regret at being so far away from that crying foal. “You might have left me… l-like M-Mom and Dad…”

Oh Violet…

“I wouldn’t leave you alone like that,” I said with a gentle tone. “I promised that I would be there if you needed me, didn’t I?”

Breathing deeply, I stretched my consciousness through the air. I saw the town, disappearing behind me, behind the grassy fields and the train track, behind the frosty mountains top and the coursing river, until I was above, around and in Canterlot again. A city I had never left lay sleeping in my grasp.

Voices came more strongly here than they did in Ponyville. The night was still buzzing with activity, as many adults trotted in the streets, going on about their businesses as easily as others did during the day.

For a split second, I felt a pinch of joy. Good for you, Luna.

Quickly, however, I sobered up, knowing that the object of my current quest was close. As a gust of wind, I slipped through the houses of stone, evolving through the streets as I followed the breathing of the filly I sought. Soon, I was by the Star Covent, and entered silently through the upmost window.

My instinct hadn’t lied to me, this was the dormitory and I caught sight of the cyan filly that had called me.

Violet was lying in her bed, her eyes reddened by her tears. Darkened trails of fur smeared her face. She was looking up blankly at the ceiling, hooves hovering just above her chest.

“I’m here, Violet. Just like I said I would.”

Her legs sprung, encircling an empty pocket of air. Reflexively, I forced the material of that same spot to change, until it became similar to my body of flesh. With a soft gasp, she looked up, through the form she could feel.

“Prince Ventus?” She asked in the quietest whisper. “I’m sorry… I couldn’t sleep. I-it just hurts tonight.”

“There, there…” I ran circles in her back with a warm breeze. “Would you like me to sing you a song?”

Buck, do I even know one? I thought to myself with dismay.

My first reflex was to send a few frantic looks around myself, as if the inspiration would strike me so easily. What I had hoped to somehow find was not amongst the sad, barren room. It was not part of the low ceiling and its wooden beams, not within the dusty shelves, nor the orphanage itself I suspected. On the other hand, I did find something to push me more strongly into this endeavor.

Foals.

Of course. Violet lived in an orphanage, after all. Who else would be here, but the other foals that shared this bleak past? How many of them even had the chance to know of their parents? How many of them would ever be adopted by some kindhearted soul?

With a soft push, I made the filly lie down in bed again, then replaced the sheets over her. A shiver made her jolt, and the poor thing curled up on herself more.

I’m sorry, Violet, but this one is not going to be yours alone…

The little filly jumped when a blanket of invisible feathers fell on her. After the surprise had passed, she allowed herself to relax.

“I’m still here, Violet.” Another breeze brushed against her mane softly, and her eyelids started falling down. “Just listen to my voice, okay?”

Gently, she nodded, leaning into the touch she craved for so badly. With a heavier heart, eyes closed, reaching deep inside me, I listened. I listened to the calls of the little ones, from here and further beyond.

Moans of fears from little foals that batted away at their nightmares. Silent sobs from saddened children. Unsteady breathing and squirming in the cold of night.

Inside of me, a restraint broke.

And I went to their sides, all of them.

Foals, calves, chicks, puppies, fawns, dragon hatchlings; the list grew and kept growing. I was by their sides, as even the faintest wind, just so they could hear me this one time.

Slowly, letting the power build up within my chest, I hummed a low beat. I knew not its true origin, but a song started to appear in my mind. A light bathed down my thoughts, pushing me forward, onward, with more strength than I thought I possessed.

Within me, all I could see were memories of the past, tangled between two ages and lives, both lost, equally out of reach to me. Longing tainted each and every one of them, bringing down my heart, weighting it down. Yet, the presence of this filly next to me, calling for my help, helped me push back the pain until I was left with only this distant sadness next to my brotherly and fatherly instincts.

The words came to me.

~ Hush now, quiet now,
It’s time to lay your sleepy head,

Hush now, quiet now,
It’s time for you to go to bed…

When you wake, you will see
All the other foals as your friends
Pegasi, unicorns and earth ponies
Together to the very end ~

Households by the thousands flashed before my eyes, each one of them holding the recipients of my song, each one of them receiving this small gift in the hope it would help them fight back their inner demons, each one of them I offered the comfort of a gentle wind by their sides.

~ Hush now, quiet now,
It’s time to lay your sleepy head,

Hush now, quiet now,
It’s time for you to go to bed…

When you wake, you will see
The sadness gone,
with the rising sun,
And you will be happy. ~

I went on for several minutes, letting my voice rumble deep and clear into as soothing as a sound I could muster. As close to a father’s voice I could create. As close to one as I could remember myself.

An invisible hand gripped at my heart, bringing a burning sensation into my eyes. I feared my voice would falter, but it did not. I wanted this to be what they needed. Its costs to myself were irrelevant!

“…And you will be happy,” I sang the last verse, with a hint of defiance to those dark whispers in my mind.

I did it… I thought, looking to the filly that had brought this on.

Violet’s eyes were closed, her entire being expressing naught but a peaceful rest. Leaning closer, I felt her breathing, calmly and steadily. She was smiling.

With one last brush of her mane and a small kiss on her forehead, I let go of my focus.

Still lying on my side, in the middle of a mess in our living room, things were the same as ever here. The muscles in my wing were still dead, but my mind was hazier than I remembered. A great fatigue was dulling my senses.

Gently, I moved my wing from under Calx to over his sleeping body, not caring that I was breaking the illusion spell. His rest remained uninterrupted, and I took a minute to just look at him, my chest warming up with my love for my little brat of a brother.

He had not even woken up through my lullaby. Go figures.

“Goodnight,” I whispered toward the foals.

A few of them even answered, through half-asleep words and the sound of them shifting under their covers.

Satisfied, I let my consciousness drift away for the rest of the night.

Author's Note

Phew, that was a big one. Too big? Let me know if you feel this would have been better separated.

Oh, and for those of you wishing to know about power levels, well, you've got one little show to extrapolate some stuff now.

Rupture

I was pacing, moving back and forth between my room and the living room, or at least, that was the impression I would be giving to another that looked at my behavior. The truth was slightly different. Calx was sitting on the couch, one scientific article spread on his lap while he pretended to study.

That alone was worrisome. Not so much him pretending to study, but the fact that he felt the need to sit still and do nothing set off some alarm bells in my head. Even more considering that I knew the responsibility fell sorely with me and me alone.

In truth, every time I was about to reach the room Calx was occupying, my mind went to war with itself. He was doing precisely what I thought he needed to do, which was thinking about the consequences of his reactions to ponies he didn’t like. It was important, dreadfully important, and a sly voice in the opposite camp kept whispering that I wasn’t setting any example for this.

Well, this isn’t quite true anymore. He did see me apologize to Filthy Rich, and he saw him apologize to me.

Still, even if I had been trying to set off a better example, I couldn’t go down that road with him. If he didn’t make the right conclusions himself, then his beliefs may waver later. It’s always easier to follow a thought you’ve had yourself, rather than one others tell you to have.

My heart squeezed, as images of my mistakes came back. Amongst them, I remembered at least one emotion from those times, flippancy. I’d been convinced in my younger years that I knew better… or, more recently, that I hadn’t forgotten.

I should give him time to think about it by himself, enough that he can take considerations…

But the strongest voice shouted, above all others, above those ‘reasonable’ voices, that important or not, Calx was still just a confused foal.

Oh screw it!

Springing into action, I snapped my head around, wincing when my hooves came down with a loud stomp. For a second, I froze, worried I had startled my little brother who was probably thinking pretty hard about difficult stuff. Slowly, I breathed in and out, trying to chase out the hints of frantic worry still in my mind.

It didn’t work very well, but at least I wasn’t going to barge in like a bull. There was that, at least. Still, the second I stepped in the living room, Calx turned around, obviously aware of the rucus I’d just made.

“Sam?” He tilted his head, frowning.

Slipping on a neutral face, I decided not to ponder on the meaning of that frown and walked up to him. Careful not to push him, I sat down on our couch.

“Let’s talk, okay? Just you and me, with nopony else around.”

“’Kay…” He said, looking down.

Feeling my throat constrict, I forced myself to silence the cries of guilt rising in my mind. “Have you decided what you wanted to do?”

“N-not really…” He hung his head lower, his mouth twisted in a weird angry pout. “I don’t know. It’s just really not fun to think about!”

“So, are you going to see your friends?”

Tapping on our couch with one hoof, Calx didn’t seem very eager to answer.

“W-why should I do that?” This time his voice shook, and he imperceptibly scooted closer to me. Yet, even like this, there was a hint of defiance in his tone. “Everypony’s going to die anyway, right?”

Knew it…

“So you don’t want to bother with friends if you know they might die, is that it?” I asked, not expecting him to react. He didn’t.

His gaze seemed locked in a staring contest with our floor. Our blank floor with no motifs whatsoever. He was almost glaring at it, with the intent to make it combust spontaneously.

Time to clear things up a bit for you. “Why did you always want to play and have fun if we had to stop anyway?”

His eyes widened instantly, and the twitches around them indicated how badly he was struggling not to blink repeatedly. Opening his mouth, he tried but failed to articulate any thought. “Huuuuh…”

“Why eat if we’re only going to get hungry later?” I poked his stomach, then moved my hoof up to his forehead. His gaze followed my movement, incomprehension glittering in his eyes. “Why wake up if we’re only going to need sleep a few hours afterward? Why live at all, if there is an end to the journey?”

“B-but… you said they will all die! It’s not going to matter!”

“Sometimes, lil’ brother, the goal is the journey itself. Everything is fleeting.” Without warning, I expanded my wing completely, and closed it on him. After his yelp, that little bundle of brattiness crashed into my ribs, though not hard enough to really register as painful. Perhaps reflexively, his legs shot around my chest, and he hugged me for all it was worth.

Wordlessly, I stroked his head with the tip of my wings, letting him bury his head against my sides and have the world disappear for a few minutes.

Normally, I would have felt a pang of regret at breaking away before he was ready, but I was prepared for it this time. I knew what I was doing.

“See? That hug didn’t last longer than a few seconds, didn’t mean I didn’t hug you or that I don’t love you lots and lots,” I grinned as I said that, ruffling his mane.

“Laaaaaaaame!” He whined, pushing me away farther, pretending the last few minutes hadn’t happened.

“Don’t say that, Calx. It’s true.” I rolled my eyes, flicking his nose with one feather. “Things don’t have to last forever to be important. Even if it ends, it doesn’t make anything less precious…”

Despite his annoyance, the life was obviously returning to his eyes. Twitches on his body indicated that he was probably already fighting his usual bounciness. Oh yes, soon, he’d be back to his usual self, hopeful with a little bit more restraint and thoughts. He just needed a little bit of a push before it might happen.

“And THIS is why alicorns learn those lessons together, lil’ bro.”

Standing up, I gave him a grin that he should recognize all too easily. It was the same I used whenever I played up the big brother awesomeness. And with the same efficiencity as a school recess bell, it made a light of anticipation flash in his eyes.

“Come on.” I extended a hoof to him, urging him to join me. “I’ll show you that no matter the grim, the dark and the scary, there is still some light above us.”

For a second, he squirmed, a little hesitant, but with his typical eagerness, he jumped down the couch and ran up to me.

The instant he made contact, I willed us elsewhere.

We stumbled together, in the middle of a grassy field just outside Fillydelphia. Wind could travel pretty fast. I was fairly certain he hadn’t had the time to really grasp what I had done.

“What the…?” He muttered, glancing around without a clue of where we were.

“Oh little brother…” I grinned, letting my tone grow more musical. “Time to show you what even the blind can see.”

His face scrunched up at that, and he gave a grunt.

“Feel the wind brushing your fur.” I leaned in to nuzzle him, but he dodged, rolling his eyes. For a second, the urge to grab him and inflict on him the worst display of total affection ever felt sweet, but this wasn’t the time.

“Feel the ground rolling beneath your hooves.” I started trotting, pressing my legs just a little longer than needed against the earth in every step.

He didn’t seem very convinced, which called for stronger arguments. And better visuals.

“And see the world in-between.” With a leap, I dove into a patch of wheat.

For a few seconds, my sight was filled only with their golden stems, but, following a surprised yelp, dark blue soon mimicked my actions and came into view. Pretending to be unaffected by the plants, I just continued our little escapade in this sea of wheat, feeling Calx’s breath just behind me.

I could tell he was a little uncertain about this, he could not very well see. At most, the sky was a great canvas overhead, but down on earth… not so much.

“No matter what, there’s always something. It’s not pointless. It’s not endless.” We trotted past the limits of the field, with just a step outside the growing wheat and into the fresh grass. Calx snorted when he realized what I had said at that moment. For that, I kicked up a little dirt from that edge. “From beginning to end, there is something in-between.”

Scrubbing his mane furiously, he stopped. But, while he was standing still, his body shook with a shiver, a ripple that I saw spread into the earth below. Gently, he pushed against a patch of grass, with a look of intensity certainly belonging to an alicorn.

Crouching down, he gave the few blades another look, then glanced up to me, as if drawing a comparison.

“How full is the world ahead, Calx? It’s close enough to you, isn’t it?”

He seemed transfixed, looking ahead to the lush verdure, wings flickering against his fur. “It’s… it’s…”

The words weren’t coming to him yet, but he was certainly getting it.

“Feel the wind brushing your fur, feel the earth rolling beneath your hooves.” I laughed softly at the look of realization dawning on his face. “Can you see?”

The inside of my chest was burning with pride. My little brother was growing up, just a little.

“Sometimes, what matters the most is the journey!” I straightened, showing the fields behind us with one hoof. And with a flick of my tail, I caught his attention again. And with a burst of wind, I made him bounce just ahead of me.

I knew he’d have yelled, if not for the sudden sight I had brought him to.

Before us was the buzzing city of Fillydelphia itself, streets darkened by representatives of multiple species.

Muscles in my shoulder blades flexed, spreading my wings wide. Under Calx’s widening gaze, I gave them a tentative try, a single flap. At that, his jaw drop. Of course it would, I never flew anywhere physically.

“Take off, little brother.” With a powerful beat of our wings, we did, even if my own flight wasn’t quite as steady as his. It did not show in my singing anyway. Plus, my own nature made it a fairly easy task to stabilize my gliding. “The world awaits, and with it so many ponies just waiting to meet you!”

The land started scrolling past us, green swiftly changing shades and tones, sometimes jumping into brown or grey. We were truly flying, high enough that every breath required me to swallow back my nausea, but that was not going to stop me.

“See the fields beneath you.” Diving, we dodged a few masses of white and pale grey. At that, my tone grew playful. “See the clouds flying with you?”

“Do you not see? There are so many things for you to enjoy here!”

By then, he was smiling, relishing in the thrill of flight he’d always loved.

Right as I was about to sing the next verse however, I caught a familiar form in the corner of my eye and I grinned at this bout of possible luck. Flapping my wings harder, I made a turn, to the puzzlement of the colt who chose to loop after me. But not long afterward, I heard his gasp of excitement.

Now in front of us, there was a gray mare flying, somewhat erratically it was true, but with a bubbly joy that could only be an expression of her cutie mark.

Bright golden eyes that lit with recognition followed our flight. Ditzy would have flapped her wing to get closer, except she did not get the chance. Almost barreling into her, Calx enlaced her into a hug.

Her confusion lasted no longer than a second, after which she returned his hug with all the affection a mother could have. A quick nuzzle, a stroke of his head, and they separated, both smiling widely.

I could not hold in a laugh when she took a muffin out of her saddlebag and placed it in his hooves.

“Was it pointless to give her a hug, just now?” I whispered for his ears alone, while waving away at the blonde mare who was doing the same.

“N-no…” The corner of his lips started to inch upwards, and his flight grew more stable. “She was happy about it. Plus, I got a kickass muffin out of it!”

My grin widened. “Now you’re getting it.”

“There is light! The Sun and the stars shine bright!”
“There is light! It’s the others! It’s the passing life!”
“We’re here together; I’m with you, little brother!”
“If it ends, remember. If it lasts, cherish it forever!”

“Everything’s precious,” I finally said, landing just next to a pond and its quacking little ducklings. Hey, not a bad finish.

A second later, Calx flew down to my sides, grinning.

“Everything’s precious, lil’ brother.” I repeated one last time, giving him a quick nuzzle that he didn’t refuse for once. “That’s why we have to cherish as much as we can… and help where we can. That’s what alicorns do.”

The door to the Carousel Boutique opened violently, producing a loud noise even as a lavender mare ran through its frame.

“RARITY! You have to help me!”

Her attention previously entirely focused on a drawing table upon which rested a new plan, the white unicorn jumped, letting out a yelp while her magic wavered.

“My goodness, Twilight, don’t startle me like that!” She turned, quickly putting her creation on the nearby work table before it was damaged. “I almost dropped my new ensemble!”

The alicorn came to an halt almost immediately, blushing from horn to hooves. The corners of her lips curling down with unease, she looked down, ears drooping. “I-I… sorry, Rarity.”

The image of her friend’s apologizing in that way put her last traces of annoyance to rest, instead leaving her to take a good look at Twilight’s form and silent language. For such a startling cry and the vibes of urgency pouring out of her, there had to be a great problem. “Is it a mundane emergency or do we need to save the world again?”

“Both.” The poor alicorn’s shoulders slumped.

For a second, Rarity was nonplussed.

“Both?” She repeated, before it clicked and her frown disappeared completely. “Ah, what issue is it this time that we must stop from becoming a disaster?”

The following answer was almost too quiet for her to hear it.

“A stallion…”

Luckily, Rarity’s hearing was acute and not a syllable was lost on her. Twilight truly couldn’t have gotten her undivided attention faster if she had tried.

Instantly, Rarity’s work was forgotten in favor of this predictable and oh so delectable development. Her horn glowing blue, she grabbed Twilight’s hoof and dragged her to her kitchen, where she sat her down on a splendid hoof-sown cushion.

“Oh my, my, my, why didn’t you tell me right away?!” Rarity rambled, running around the room, looking into drawers and taking out her emergency gossiping supplies. “Tea? I still have some of my imported brand from Bitaly, would you like some?”

“O-oh, yes…” Twilight answered, a little overwhelmed by her friend’s reaction.

In a matter of a few minutes of rambling and small talk about weather and the Cakes’ newest pastry and Blossomforth’s – would you believe it? Why I never suspected it! – new marefriend, they were all set. Both mares were sitting down comfortably, with a cup of hot tea and some light crackers at their disposals.

“Perfect,” Rarity praised after giving her preparations a final look over. “Now you can tell me everything about him.”

A few things simultaneously dawned on the still silent alicorn, the very first of which was that her coltfriend’s presence in town was meant to be kept secret as long as possible. Of course, there was a fake identity for her to draw upon and weave a little story. That would be fine if her friends were not likely to make the connection if she had suddenly fallen in love with a stallion.

She… hadn’t exactly displayed much interest in them before. With a little luck, a good story could have been elaborated, but not with resident gossip hen Rarity in front of her.

The lack of speaking on her part ended up making the unicorn raise a delicate eyebrow at her.

“Well, darling, we are going to have to start somewhere…” For a few seconds, she paused, giving her lavender friend a piercing look. “Do I know him?”

“O-oh, I don’t think so…” Twilight diverted her eyes, feeling her cheeks heating up. “You might have met him a few times, but I doubt you ever spoke to him.”

“I see,” Rarity whispered, hiding a smile with a sip from her teacup. “What do you think of his horn?”

For a moment, Twilight staggered, a few dozen ideas flashing before her eyes, as to the very real impossibility of mindreading, and had to remind herself of several physical tells used by more social ponies. Right now, she did not doubt that she was like an open book. “W-what does that have to do with anything?!”

“Well I need to gauge your sentiment for him before I can help you.” A posh fan floated up from the top of a wardrobe and opened itself in front of Rarity’s face, before she continued with a tone of finality. “So, tell me.”

Resigning herself to this standard interrogation, Twilight sighed before allowing herself a timid and pensive smile. This was a safe question, ‘Cloud Circle’ was supposed to be a unicorn anyway. It wouldn’t hurt to remember Ventus leaning toward her, to imagine their horn touching; even if a tingling sensation reached the base of her forehead.

“W-well… it’s nice… a-and long…” She said breathily, flushing.

Rarity could not hold in a giggle, which sounded entirely too close to a schoolfilly’s for the aspiring lady. Their relative privacy however helped mitigated the impact of the action, as she continued her questioning smoothly.

“I see. And his wings?” She asked, taking a bite out of a delicious cracker.

“T-they’re warm… and I like it when he embraces me wi-” The poor alicorn froze, realizing her mistake a second too late, and shot a panicked glance to her friend.

Rarity raised her cup to her lips serenely, unflappable. If she was in any way surprised, she did not show it.

“My, I didn’t know Prince Ventus was here,” she said, the corner of her lips twitching upward to form a smile. “You would think an alicorn stallion would be the talk of the town by now.”

Twilight’s face was the very image of horror.

She wished the ground would open up and swallow her, preferably crushing her to death painfully. Anything! Anything at all to escape the embarrassment she had just put herself into!

… Until a gentle pressure on her shoulder made her pause. She almost tensed, as her eyes moved forward to see the smiling face of her friend. The touch was soft, and spoke of a certainty experienced all too well for years now.

“Now, now, Twilight,” Rarity whispered, running her hoof in a smooth circle on her friend’s back. “There isn’t a thing for you to be ashamed of. Your feelings for each other are a beautiful thing you should cherish with all your heart.”

As gently as she could, she tried to get her friend to let go, but the shame didn’t seem to leave her so easily.

For a moment, the smile faltered, Rarity’s enthusiasm lost. “I apologize for this little indulgence. You know how hopelessly romantic I can be…”

Twilight’s only response was a slow nod, looking down again.

“I am truly happy for you, dear.”

“I… I know you never wanted to put me in a hard situation, it’s just…” She sighed, her voice becoming hoarse. “It was supposed to be a secret…”

“Don’t worry, darling.” Rarity nodded, a confident look on her face. “My lips are sealed. I would not dream of interfering.”

For a second, Twilight allowed herself a brief respite with the knowledge that her coltfriend’s situation would be kept secret. Then, her eyebrows lowered into an uncertain frown.

“H-how did you guess? Did I really give it away that easily?”

“Well…” Rarity’s voice trailed off, as she looked away, gears turning in her head. “I had my doubts the second you mentioned a stallion, really. Your hesitation to speak about him simply confirmed my suspicions.”

“S-so, you needed previous insider information to deduce anything,” Twilight whispered, her voice growing stronger as she drew her conclusions, to the point she looked up with eyes full of hope. “Am I correct?”

Well, there simply was no reasonable way Rarity could ever deny her friend when she was in that state. It was rather helped by the fact that, yes, as much as it pained the gossip in her to admit, she might not have guessed without at least the passing notion that Twilight harbored an attraction to the alicorn prince. The fact that many ponies were aware of that fact could be silenced for now. “Yes, yes you are.”

In a slump, the accumulated tension in the overreacting librarian’s muscles deserted her, leaving her to drop down against the table with pure relief. It might be silly, but a part of her feared how her… her coltfriend would react to his secret getting out. Even more if it had been the result of her negligence.

Patiently, Rarity waited for her friend to feel stronger before saying anything.

“Now, since we established that I will not betray your trust and that I steadily support you in your feelings, perhaps we could get to the issue at hooves.” A delicate eyebrow rose over her right eye, the sole betrayer of the curiosity still devouring her. “What is the reason you barged in my boutique like Sweetie Belle and her little friends?”

“He asked me for a date.”

“Oh. My. Word!” Rarity’s tea cup hovered between her lips and the table, frozen on the spot while its owner’s mind was suddenly overwhelmed by wild fantasies. “Where?” She asked with a rather unladylike rough accent.

“The library.”

One could have heard the precise moment the romance had been brutally slaughtered. The fashionista’s mental lyrical odes to true love were silenced with the force of that simple statement, and everything came crashing down for her with a loud record scratch.

Truly, she didn’t mean to give Twilight such an incredulous look – the poor dear certainly did not need judgmental reactions –, but a library!? For a first date?! Oh no, that would not do, that would not do at all!

Seeing Rarity’s expression, Twilight realized she had seconds to explain the situation before being dragged into a crusade for a more romantic setting. “We figured that somepony would find out his secret if I suddenly appeared with a new stallion in my life out of nowhere…”

And once more her dramatic inclinations crashed hard with a good dose of reality.

“Ah, yes, I suppose I can attest to that…” Rarity bit her lips, hit by a small amount of shame at the thought of her own reactions.

Silence followed her words, an unusual awkwardness passing between the two best friends.

“Well, Twilight, let us not lose time.” The fashionista took over again, speaking with confidence and bravado. “We shall give you a grand makeover.”

“I don’t think the other patrons would overlook me wearing a gala dress…” Twilight objected, even if her eyes did linger over a few models. Biting her lips, she felt a pinch in her heart at the sight a mirror offered of her own image. She wasn’t ready for a date! How her resolve wavered, thinking about appearing tardy and unprepared for a date with Ventus. “A-and… there is no time for you to make it all from scratch.”

But Rarity brushed off her concerns with a wave of her hoof. “Oh, I will simply make a few adjustments to some of my finest work. Do not worry, my dear. It shall not take too long, and it will be as good an occasion as any for us to discuss your strategy.”

Hearing this, Twilight held back a sigh of relief, her mind reminding her of the worries remaining unaddressed. However, no sooner had the thought crossed her mind that Rarity felt the need to elaborate.

“Oh, and for the other visitors of the library, I’m sure you can find an excuse easily. Mention something about practicing decorum for a foreign affair, or even just testing a new dress before an official function. Why, if it were me, Twilight…”

During a few instants, the fashionista’s voice remained inaudible, as she had already disappeared behind a curtain to find the right dress. Swiftly, her shadow moved alongside the mannequins until she stopped next to one. A moment later, she came back, levitating behind her the one article of clothing she knew was the right choice for Twilight’s date. The confirmation came a second later, when the alicorn’s eyes fell on the dress.

With her usual chatter, Rarity guided her oh so lost friend to her fitting room, slipping in as many advices as she could think of about dating. Chances were very little of that talk would be remembered, but, then again, Twilight Sparkle had always had an uncanny ability to retain information. However, as the task grew more delicate, especially with what was at stake here, Rarity’s voice slowly lost strength, until only the ethereal sound of magic moving needles could fill the silence.

This, more than the rest, gave Twilight time to put her thoughts in retrospective.

For some reason, she found herself opening her feelings to Rarity, without prodding or encouragement. Parts of her, the more scientific ones, wanted to rationalize, to compare and contrast her feelings with somepony else. Even if it only made her more embarrassed, her mouth seemed to possess a mind of its own, and words started to spill out.

“T-the first time I felt different… was on the day we met. Just after he had scolded Calx, y-you remember that, right?”

Quickly, Rarity nodded, forcing herself not to frown. It certainly was tremendously easy for her to think of arguments between siblings and she did not particularly like those memories herself…

“Well, when I saw him, looking so pained by his own actions…” Twilight’s hoof hesitated over her chest, then toward an invisible pony in front of her. “There was a part of me that told me I had to help him. And I tried to make him feel better, comparing some of my own experience with Spike and his own, and… and he looked at me, truly at me, for the very first time, with eyes that spoke of gratitude. Already, I think there was something.”

The sound of stitching needles stopped for a moment, not that Twilight would notice. Albeit her heart was already swooning at the small story of romance unfolding in front of her, Rarity forced herself to feel a bit of skepticism. It wasn’t impossible for her friend to have experience attraction and possibly more from such a short meeting, but not that likely either. It didn’t seem to be Twilight’s style. Why, there hadn’t been any stallion in her life before, nor had she expressed interest at some of her own tales of relationships.

As if to confirm her thoughts, Twilight went on. “It was the first time I felt anything different with him from my relation with any other stallion. Yet… it wasn’t anything strong… something of a nagging thought at the back of my mind, just like the sensation of having an important task set out and being forced to constantly delay it with changes in your schedule.”

Her eyes still focused on a knot that refused to obey her touch, Rarity nonetheless nodded, half of her mind on the task at hooves.

“After that, we met a few times in the castle, and he mentioned he needed to go home.”

All to her rambling, Twilight missed the expression of pure shock that passed over Rarity’s traits.

“At that time, I felt truly dismayed.” Subconsciously, she punctuated her word with a weak stomp. “I-it was denying me knowledge of things I had been curious about, but there was also a tiny part of me disappointed because he wanted to leave…”

“W-well, obviously, he didn’t follow through with that course of action, darling,” Rarity said, her voice suddenly unsteady, praying that it didn’t betray her.

“Y-yes, you’re right. He stayed.” Her wings fluttered, once, before settling down in unison with Twilight’s smile. “After that, well… I had my first chance to know him. We just played a game with his brother and Pinkie: a water balloon fight.”

“That must have been quite the sight.”

Remembering the event, a giggle escaped Twilight’s lips. “I actually nailed him in the face.”

“Oh?” Rarity gave her a amused look. “And how does he look with a wet mane?”

The coloring of her face was more than enough of an answer, Rarity felt, even if Twilight pointedly ignored her question and continued. “It was good fun; it really helped me relax and see a more playful side of him.”

She only heard a thoughtful humming for an answer, seconds before she flinched when the fabric around her hips tightened.

Golden flanks flashed in her mind. Greenish blue eyes stared at her form, looked at her with a burning desire, with a forceful need. It made her heart faster, which she knew should have been fear, yet…

“And a more passionate side of him…” She could almost feel his touch over her shoulder, trailing on her fur toward her wings. Her face grew more heated than ever before. “A-and a more compassionate one…”

The smell of ink, fresh ink mixed with the sulfur and minerals of a dragon’s breath.

Words of kindness, of concern toward her fears, echoing so easily to her ears.

“He sympathized with…” She could almost hear his voice tell her, again.

Have you talked to your friends about what you told me? It would most likely be highly beneficial to your state of mind to rely on somepony close to you as a source of strength in your times of need.

“With a problem I had…”

“A problem, Twilight?” Rarity repeated, feigning surprise. “You never told us.”

The slightly tilted tone didn’t register in Twilight’s mind, not with the internal conflict she felt. “I-it’s nothing. I already figured it out.”

“Alright,” the fashionista replied smoothly, levitating a ribbon and holding it next to a shade of color on her dress. Making her choice, she picked the newest addition to the dress. “Well then, when did you concretely start confessing your feelings for each other?”

“A-at the party in Canterlot, h-he took me aside. He wanted to talk.”

There was a pause, an hesitation of sort danced in Twilight’s eyes, as if there was something else she refused to tell, which was all forgotten with her next words.

“He… he kissed me, told me how much he needed me.”

Rarity let out a high pitched noise, muffled by her hoof suddenly clamping down on her mouth, but her eyes still sparkled.

“It was…” She paused again, trying to sort through the many feelings flashing in rapid succession in her brain. “A little sudden. I wasn’t sure yet.”

The white unicorn deflated a bit, her cheeks growing pink with embarrassment at letting her imagination get the better of her. She had been present when the prince had spoken to Twilight before their departure to Ponyville. That certainly hadn’t been very romantic.

A purple hoof brought Rarity out of her thoughts. “He did apologize for making me uncomfortable afterward, I promise. Then, he listened to me… he helped me think some things through... It was only when we met again that… that I…”

Her mouth abruptly closed, blushing again. Squirming in place, she refused to say more, looking away.

“There, all done!” Rarity declared, viciously crushing the awkward silence between them. “Look at the result, darling, and tell me what you think!”

Following the instructions, Twilight turned her head to gaze at her reflection.

The dress was very flattering on her figure, enhancing it to a point she felt her heart grow lighter. There was a sense of confidence building up in her guts, unusual for a simple librarian – now princess, she reminded herself –, about her charms. Entranced, she twisted around slowly, lifting one hoof in the air to see the way the fabric danced over her, the way the light reflected on each gem, the way it made her seem… beautiful.

Inwardly, Rarity beamed. Bubbles of joy seemed to pop in her chest, as the satisfaction on her friend’s face was precisely the one she wanted for each and every single one of her customers. It was an expression of confidence, of self-esteem renewed and inner beauty revealed.

It was the very reason she had chosen this career.

“Oh thank you, Rarity!” Twilight turned to her, grabbing her hoof and shaking it. “I-I just feel like I can do this!”

“Of course you can.” The words came out easily, and her smile grew on her white lips. But, Celestia forgives her, the urge to tease was simply too strong to overcome. “Say, Twilight, did you tell him about that spot behind your ears already?”

“O-oh please, tell me you’re not still going on about th-” She cut herself, her face locked in mortification suddenly growing much paler, twitches running through her facial muscles. “Stop! He can hear you!”

“What?” Rarity repeated, not processing the words quite yet…

“He’s the alicorn of wind! Sounds travel through air! Through him! He can hear everything everypony says!”

If it had been possible for Rarity’s ivory white face to pale, it would have. Drastically. “E-everything?!”

“EVERYTHING IN TOWN, AND BEYOND THAT!”

Finally, the idea made its way into her brain, hitting her with such force it left her dizzy.

“H-how long has he been in town?” She asked with a frail, quiet voice.

“It… it has been a few days,” Twilight answered, growing puzzled.

But her incomprehension quickly turned into concern when she noticed the change operated in her friend’s body language.

Rarity’s eyes suddenly seemed distant, glassy, as memories came back to her of what had happened during the last few days. All of it. Slowly, her cheeks took on a reddish color to the point her whole face was radiating heat, while her body seemed to stiffen more and more. Until...

The white unicorn fainted and, ironically, did not land on her fainting couch.

“RARITY!”

Crimson ripples spread with every impact of the stallion’s dark hooves. They reached into nothingness, before the lights of stars beyond, uncannily similar to waves of blood. The alicorn took no notice to it, moving with intent he did not understand fully. There was an impulse going through him, born of an instinct a being like him should not possess, born of emotions rather than reason.

The touch of Pandora reached all and spared none.

Magnus Vis missed his sons.

It weighted down his steps, in subtle ways that the seasoned eye would be hard pressed to catch. His trot was slower, heavier. The focus of his eyes seemed distant, yet his mind wasn’t focused on his duties.

He was the Alicorn of Strength, therefore, he did understand something other alicorns couldn’t. Emotions weren’t inherently a weakness. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have any himself. He chose not that they were strengths, they were part of him and always were. It hadn’t been a choice, simply a fact.

They did not alter his diligence. They did not stop him.

But the pain never wavered and his fear only grew with the passage of time.

He stopped, seemingly without reason. A sense of nostalgia swirled around his heart, as a sound he yearned for almost rang to his ears. Lowering his gaze to the eternal fields below, he sat down slowly.

The breaking had started near this point. It was a fact he knew, a fact shared by all alicorns of this realm. How could they not know of this? How could they not realize the fissure that had started to run through their very home?

Its location, however, was unknown to all but the Elders. And him now, he supposed.

His eyes lingered to his right, into a perfectly normal spot. He could see the stars, the stray bodies of rock, of air, of ice. He could see them as he always did before, but he could look no further to his right.

His body refused. Twitches and cramps would befall his muscles, his jaw would clench harder and a shaking would curse his limbs; no amount of determination would change the end result. For all he would will it, the rift could not be seen by an alicorn of his rank.

Realizing the futility of his attempts, Magnus averted his gaze. With some effort, it would become possible to ignore the lingering sensation at the edge of his field of vision. Here, in this place, it seemed both the easiest and the hardest of tasks. Beyond the physical impossibility, the rift remained the closest thing he had to a direct link to his lost sons. It had come into being at their hooves, after all.

This truth still boggled his mind. He could not understand, neither the reason nor the impulse that had pushed them to this extremity. Calx had always been an overly energetic colt, but for him to decide on a whim to borrow one of his own artifacts and use it to travel to another dimension… it didn’t make sense!

As for Ventus, the actions of his eldest child drove a knife through his heart. Why, in the name of Order, had he chosen to go look for him in the mortal realm by himself? What had motivated him to go alone, without even informing them of his decision? Why not inform the rest of the alicorns as to the location of his younger brother so they could rapidly retrieve him with minimal consequences to the mortal realms?

Had he not trusted them with that knowledge?

As the idea made its way into his brain, an encroaching cold crawled over his skin. It seemed so strange that his son would not place faith in the work of other alicorns. He himself found it difficult to wrap his mind around it. Yet…

The fear that Calx had acted in punishable ways might have sufficed, if such thoughts had come to his mind. In Ventus, the fear of retribution would have been stronger than in most other alicorns. Unfortunately, his predecessor had left too deep a mark into their subconscious. The First of the Fallen, they had dubbed him, as the ineffaceable proof that not even in the fourth age, their kinds could escape failure.

He remembered, and slowly, the possibility calcified into a fact in Magnus’ mind, as another memory resurfaced. That of his son’s reaction to the condition of their returns.

The bitter accusing roar seemed to reverberate, as a thousand times denial of their bonds. “YOU’RE NOT MY FATHER!”

He flinched, closing his eyes with a heavy heart. Pain radiated as if from an invisible wound, while the father fought his own tears.

To his surprise, a hoof fell on his shoulder. A green hoof that summoned images of wild beasts and roars of anger.

Dominus Ferus, an old friend. An unspoken law of nature had bound strength with wilderness, in a question of survival if not living, but perhaps it was them that had brought its birth in the first place.

Magnus felt his eyebrow raise in suspicion. Their presences near the rift was not forbidden. Rather, it would be perceived as unusual, for this place should not have gathered their attention in any case. Yet both alicorns had found their ways here. It made Magnus curious, to say the least.

Uncertainty rolled off in waves from his friend. There was incomprehension in the green alicorn’s movements as he struggled to see – but never succeeded – the rift left by the departures of the two brothers. Still, he did not relent. There was a purpose he should have been fulfilling by coming here, yet he did not know of it.

A strange sensation visited Magnus, as his gaze fell on Dominus’ expression. A pit had carved itself in his throat, contracting the muscles of his neck almost painfully. Neither could relax, even in the presence of one another.

Things were still to come.

And Justice awaited its moment furiously.

Twilight had left the Carousel Boutique more than half an hour ago.

Every word was still fresh in Rarity’s mind. Every little detail, every twitch and smile, had been committed to her memories. And she found herself pacing around her bedroom.

At first, she had sent off her friend, with a few good words of advice, and the promise to be ready to answer any last-minute questions she might have left. She would even make a small trip to the library just to make sure everything was fine before any date could take place.

“Ah, Twilight’s first date…” Rarity whispered longingly. “I do hope everything will be perfect.”

Slowly however, a thought had grown stronger in her mind, an idea of sort, that had her gaze wandering toward a locked drawer in her bedside table.

Without even opening it, she still could see its content. All of it had been consigned to memory.

They were letters, words a previous lover that had captured her heart had left her, a few lyrical flights that had made her soar with happiness. Oh yes, just thinking back on them, on the prose that declared the beauty of her figure, that whispered the colors of a blazing passion for every inch of her, that said the most precious thing, just thinking on them made her heart soar.

They all said “I love you.”, and, for a second, Rarity let her precious memories carry her.

Being loved was the most delightful of sensations. Was it so surprising then that she sought ‘the one’? That she wanted her friends to share that happiness just as well?

In an abrupt whiplash, her mind went back to the ground, to Twilight and her current situation. Things could be much worse for her, she knew.

And, as it so happened, her thoughts led her to a certain tabloid.

Of course, they had made a promise not to read them anymore. The lies they had tried to pass as facts were disgusting, ridiculous even for a sensationalist.

But, just like Rainbow Dash, she knew how important the words spread about one pony were for their continued careers. When it came to royalty, to the very figures of Equestria, then it became truly crucial.

She had made it a duty for herself to follow the words spread about Twilight, if only to keep them one step ahead of any embarrassing situation. The fact that it gave her things to gossip was a secondary but pleasant bonus.

This precise article however, albeit finishing with a truly ridiculous conclusion, had brought forth some interesting ideas. For starters, an union between Prince Ventus and her friend would essentially link her to Celestia and Luna by blood. What she had always suspected of being a childhood dream for Twilight would thus come to pass. A fortunate coincidence, no more.

But this was only the tip of the iceberg, so to speak.

For all its coverage by the journalists and paparazzi alike, very few ponies had reacted in outrage at the news. After all, a princess pursuing a prince only seemed rather appropriate, did it not? Even under the scrutiny of the Canterlot populace, and the rest of Equestria, the couple was at most a source of harmless gossip.

Luckily, Twilight’s ascension had been recent enough. She had yet to be courted by ponies with political alliances in mind. Or if any had made plans like that before, then they had been too patient and cautious.

There was no doubt the Princesses would have allowed her to love the stallion her heart desired, as they had approved of Cadence’s union, but any pressure had been removed before it even started. There would be no outrage, barely more whispers than necessary, if she did give in to her feelings for the prince as opposed to her loving a peasant.

With her new responsibilities stressing her as much as they did – which they had all noticed rather quickly –, Twilight might have felt much more uncomfortable if she had had the impression most ponies disapproved of her love life. She might have come to imagine her mentor would disapprove, simply because so many others did; or that she would have caused her troubles with some public outrage.

Twilight might have… placed her feelings below her perceived duties.

And with Ventus, there was no need for such worries. She was free of these apprehensions, free to give in and love.

Even death could not become a shadow over their happiness. Though she was still unsure if her friend had been ‘gifted’ with immortality… It remained a darker point of contention amongst themselves and the verdict was out on this one. At the very least, Ventus seemed to be.

One did not get to be centuries old and still look like that without being immortal.

For a moment, Rarity waved a paper fan in front of her, trying to get rid of the heat spreading in her chest. Why did royals have to all be so attractive? Even that… that un-princely Blueblood?! Curse him for his muscles, his ocean blue sapphires orbs of sight, his oh so grand mane of flowing gold, akin to the most majestic harvest, topped by that snow-ivory fur of a thousand shade of white! Curse him!

Her overactive imagination had treacherously burned his most charming smile in her mind, forced her to remember time and times again how dreamy he was. She didn’t fall for him for nothing…

Albeit it hadn’t been for the best reasons either, she thought with a grimace.

Her eyes darted to another envelope, resting upon her bedside table, but not with her love letters. That one… had been quite recent.

She let out a sigh bigger than the ones before, full of nostalgia for a time before the Gala, when it had been easier and less painful to lose herself in her delusions of fairytale love. Nowadays, she understood just how much of it was wishful thinking bordering cruel naivety.

Though… perhaps Prince Blueblood wasn’t as un-princely as she had thought… but he was still a royal pain in her neck, twisting her fantasies and most beautiful dreams into uncouth nightmares! Still, it didn’t do well to hold grudges… It wasn’t lady-like.

Shaking her head, Rarity forced herself back on topic. It wasn’t about her love life, it was about Twilight’s. Where was she going on with this again? Oh! Yes, immortality…

Her heart fell in her chest. That aspect of her friend’s life remained blurry, as if a veil of blissful ignorance had been given to them. She herself could not find it in her to ask just yet. At the very least… Ventus’ immortality was not put in question. Even his young brother was nearly thrice her own age!

I-in any case… Twilight would be spared this pain…

Strangely, the idea caused her more unease than sadness. In her mind, she felt two gears line up with an uncanny precision.

There hadn’t even been uncertainty, if she had understood clearly. By herself, perhaps her friend would have been too shy to dare initiate any kind of relationship. However, Ventus had cleared that ordeal himself, coming to her, expressing his desire for her. It might have been off-putting in the very beginning for a shier pony like Twilight, but when the idea had started to make its way in her brain, clearly the passion had become flattering.

Every single obstacle seemed to add up, only to be rendered meaningless one after the other.

Ventus made for such a convenient lover, did he not? Status, physique, wealth, immortality… Yet, there was still one thing that she could not place back in harmony with the rest. It had been a few words, possibly some that Twilight had already forgotten in her excitement and fear.

“Because he wanted to leave…”

This detail… this one sentence haunted her. Why would he willingly court Twilight if he intended to leave?

…Was he planning to ask her to follow him? No, that could not work either, she was both a princess and the bearer of an Element of Harmony… Unless he had chosen to stay himself, what could he…?

She was not able to decide.

Her eyes trailing back to the locked drawer, Rarity picked the key in a nearby vase and delicately opened it. With an air of nostalgia passing over her traits, she lifted a pure white envelope whose seal was long since broken. There was no need for her to take out the message within; she could recite it by heart.

Rarity sighed again, but of sadness this time.

Every relationship was bound to hit problems sooner or later, and sometimes, it did not survive them. The most beautiful dreams could be ruined all too quickly. She would know.

What will you do then, Twilight? The images of her friend’s shyly hopeful smile wouldn’t leave her. How will you act once things are not so easy? What will you do if this good luck runs to an end? How will you feel?

She might need to speak with the others about this.

But, as she remembered what had been revealed to her about the stallion earlier, heat crept on her cheeks, bringing a blush to her face. Ah, I’ll be writing to them. But first, she added, glancing at the clock on the wall, I should pay Twilight a visit as promised.

Turning the sign on the door to ‘CLOSED’, Rarity left, thoughts filling her head. It wasn’t a long walk to the library, but she could hopefully sort things out before she arrived. That darling Twilight would certainly need as much support as she could get and if she arrived a tad too late to be useful, she could always save face and pretend to have come to see Spike. The poor dear had seemed a little down the last time she had gotten to see him, and he certainly deserved happiness as much as anypony else.

About halfway there however, an unpredicted turn of event made her plans unravel. At the intersection between the main street and the road toward the market, a loud cry of blazing bravado made her head snap to her left. And she witnessed an intriguing sight.

She had never seen that orange unicorn before, though there was an air of familiarity about him.

A part of her was reminded of Fluttershy, in the way he carried himself as soon as he noticed another pony in the vicinity, with a hint of fear, a stumble to his steps, or even the twitch of his tail. It appeared obvious that this new stallion was painfully shy.

Apparently sheepish, he was giving off nervous smiles to the passerby that frowned at the aerial tricks and general ruckus caused by the orange blur overhead.

Her eyes fell on the young colt flying around, who happened to fit the description her little sister had given her of the new student in class. Feather… Feather something, the name escaped her at the moment. Still, there was no doubt that those two were closely related. It was rather obvious.

The direction they were following was the same as hers. Most likely a coincidence, she decided. Most likely. After all, it did not mean they would be going to the library, right? But, as she quickly realized, their steps were going to overlap in less than a minute.

Finally tearing his eyes off an older mare that seemed very disapproving toward the colt’s antics, the orange stallion finally faced forward and stopped. Briefly, his eyebrows shot upward, disappearing beneath a blonde fringe.

“Miss Rarity! What a pleasant surprise!” He exclaimed, hints of uncertainty tainting the seemingly jovial greeting.

“Oh.” She blinked in mild surprise. “I’m sorry, I don’t think I recognize you.”

“Cloud Circle,” he offered sheepishly. “And this is my brother Feather Dust. We’re new in Ponyville, but we have heard about the bearers of the Elements of Harmony.”

Before she could even help herself, she had already gauged the stranger. A new stallion in town… not bad looking… going to the library near the end of the afternoon… and with a little brother…

Her mind decided right there of the obvious identity of those two ponies.

“It is a pleasure to meet you.” She gave him her most beautiful smile. “Even if I am still surprised you managed to identify me on a first meeting.”

“I’ve… ah… how to say…” A glint of unidentified nature seemed to flicker in his gaze, although she could have sworn the stallion seemed amused. “… heard a lot about you.”

Her whole body came to an halt immediately, while her ears twitched. Eyes wide, she stared at this ‘Cloud Circle’, his voice ringing in her memory on how he had put emphasis on “heard” of all words.

The second he smiled, Rarity understood. Oh yes, she understood all too well. He was no prince charming, he was EVIL INCARNATE!

The orange unicorn leaned forward, his innocent smile suddenly turning sinister. “I must say… That sounded like a lot of leather, Miss Rarity.”

In an instant, her hoof flew upward, flicking away at his horn while she jumped away. Gritting her teeth, she sent nervous glances everywhere, thinking that this had to be a nightmare. An even worse one then that time she dreamt Sweetie Belle had sold pictures of her old designs to Photo Finish.

“I deserved that one,” Cloud Circle whispered, blinking and shaking away the remainders of his sudden headache.

“Yes, you did!” Rarity vigorously agreed, which only seemed to amuse that evil creature of darkness and suffering.

Not about to let herself be underestimated by that stallion, she focused on her horn for a fleeting moment, then on a group of daisies that suddenly found themselves flying through the air. She was almost pleased at the confusion in his gaze, at his interrogative stare that showed he did not expect her retaliation. Wasting no time, she jumped, intent on shutting down that mouth that threatened her reputation, namely by stuffing it full with flowers.

Taken aback, Cloud Circle jumped, pupils shrunken for a fraction of a second. Swiftly however, his eyes returned to normal, and he proceeded to chew on the flowers thoughtfully before swallowing them in a single gulp.

“Not bad at all, Miss Rarity.” He nodded appreciatively, his shy behavior almost gone by that point. “Though I have to wonder if it really is allowed to eat flowers off the library’s lawn. And if the earth on your legs is really that fashionable.”

The fashionista’s mouth dropped open in horror, her whole body shaken by a frightful shiver. But, to the surprise and interest of the ‘unicorn’ in front of her, Rarity’s shaking came to a rapid end. Standing her ground, eyes leaving her dirty coat, she locked her gaze with his, a glint of steel showing.

“You heard us.”

“Not in its entirety,” he admitted slowly, as if ashamed of what had happened. “Mostly the beginning. Afterward, I tried not to. It seemed very private.”

Taking a deep breath, Rarity thought back on her friend, and found the most constant fact about her friend’s visit to be her smile. Thus, she turned around, whispering the only thing left for her to say. “Be kind to her.”

He gave her the most confused look, before he let out a chuckle. “I don’t intend anything else.”

And she left, with a strange sentiment wavering in her chest.

It had been a… disconcerting meeting, to say the least. No majesty, no grand air, nothing from the prince except simplicity, yet she could not help think that the soft laughter he had produced was probably the most gentle sound to ever grace her ears. For a fleeting second, her heart squeezed with the regret that she had never had even a chance with him before they left, but already she squashed it and sent a mental encouragement to a doubtlessly fretting Twilight.

And, Celestia’s perfect coiffure, may the future be kind to them both.

I was still chuckling when we entered the library. And so was Calx.

The library itself was not changed in the slightest. Except, maybe, for the vibes of restlessness I could feel in the air. Albeit I knew it was in part my fault, I was still under the impression there was something else to it. For starters, I could not see Twilight anywhere.

Or anypony else for that matter.

Good.

“Hello?” I called loudly, contradicting the entire point of a library.

I fully expected a reprimand from Twilight for that, but was sorely disappointed. S-she was here, right?

“I met Rarity at your door!” This should at least serve to summon up Spike…

…Nothing.

Now this was getting curious…

“She left quickly, for reasons I cannot possibly fathom,” I went on, with a casual tone, trotting between the shelves with Calx in tow.

Well, the good point was that he didn’t seem really disturbed. He kept glancing around, with an honestly different look of appreciation on his face. It almost seemed as if he was trying to guess the age or the value of the books surrounding him.

“I didn’t even hear what she was so embarrassed about. And to be honest, if I had, I would have focused my attention elsewhere.” I was surprised at my own sincere annoyance, implying at least some expectations in others... The rest of my sentence disappeared in a bitter whisper. “I don’t make it a game to spy on innocent people.”

My resentment, however, took a secondary place in my mind as soon as I caught a flash of purple magic, followed by the uneven rhythm of somepony’s breathing.

“What a coincidence…” Twilight’s voice reached our ears, albeit it felt… different. It was sweeter for a lack of better word, a little forced though, what’s with the hint of uncertainty piercing through. “I also saw Rarity today.”

I barely had time to ponder her words, the meaning of which I already knew – or, more accurately, I thought I knew –, before I first caught a glimpse of her hoof around a bookshelf. Then, just as I was moving forward, Twilight stepped out into the open.

My knees almost buckled.

Holy b-buck… My brain started to suffer from a lack of blood, due to diverting flows and other such biological responses. She saw Rarity alright!

But it was Calx that put my thoughts into words. Unfortunately, with his usual lack of tact…

“Bow-chika-wow-wow,” the brat hummed mockingly.

There was only one appropriate for that: a wrathful noogie.

“AAAAAAAAAAH!” He soon shouted, squirming and thrashing in my grip. “LET ME GO! UNCLE! UNCLE!”

Now, if I wasn’t in front of my marefriend and this wasn’t a library, I might have let him scream a little bit more. However, since these circumstances were currently relevant, my grip on him loosened and he escaped with a kick.

“Come on, go see Spike.” I gave him a push, that may or may not have been a little rough. “You had this, and I quote, awesome idea you wanted to share with him.”

“And leaving you alone with Twilight?”

The look I gave him was enough to send him running. A wise call on his part.

“SPIIIIIIIKE!” He shouted, his tone a mixture of fear and excitement, while he ran up the stairs at an impressive speed.

We followed his progression with our eyes, just in case.

“Colts,” I said sheepishly, hoping that she hadn’t been too embarrassed by his behavior. I knew I was.

To my surprise, however, Twilight did not nod with understanding at my statement. Instead, her gaze trailed off after Calx longer, her eyebrows lowering ever so slightly. If anything, she seemed pensive.

Thankfully, that moment of uncertainty passed, and she became conscious of my presence once more.

“Soooo…” She stretched her wings a little, and twisted around. When she was certain I had gotten a good, long look at her clothing, Twilight finally turned back to me with both hope and apprehension. “H-how do you like my dress?”

With just that, the warmth came back with a vengeance. My vision had judged useful to zoom in on every single one of her more flattering attribute, dancing from her face, to her lips, to her curled mane and the waves of the fabric that cascaded into her back, all the way to her flanks.

“Y-you look stunning, Twilight. It’s really fitting you, you’re incredibly beautiful, and I-” And I would have said a lot more, if not for the sound of the door to the library creaking open.

Instantly, I disappeared in a gust of wind, only to materialize in front of a row of books. Light silver threads formed the delicate writing of their titles on their spines, against the darker colors of their covers. The work put on them was clearly artistic, and the vibes exuding from some of the volumes had me thinking I had ended up in the ancient books section. It could have been interesting were this not opening now.

Behind me, hoofsteps filled the empty space between Twilight and the entrance.

“My, Princess Twilight, what a beautiful dress.” A female voice I didn’t recognize rang to my ears, alongside a slight noise of fur against fabric. “Is it for a formal occasion?”

“Huh… y-yes, it is.”

“Well, you’ll be the belle of the ball then.”

Yup, I found myself nodding along. Definitely going to impress with that kind of clothing, Twilight.

The rest of that polite exchange was soon drowned out by the fresh recollection of my marefriend’s incredibly flattering outfit. The image was almost intoxicating, and it sent shivers down my spine just thinking about it.

It required a great deal more patience than I would have expected, to pretend not to be here simply to spend time with Twilight but instead browse through the shelves.

Needless to say, the moment the door closed, we were already facing each other. Except, with that interruption, we had lost the flow of our exchanges, however little we had it. It made me unexpectedly nervous, even more so with the stronger than usual attraction I felt for her, enough to ponder the right way to start things again, potentially with the least awkwardness possible on Twilight’s part.

However, as it turned out, I didn’t really need to think about it so hard.

“S-so, you spoke to Rarity?” She asked, valiantly trying to get the conversation going again.

“Yes, we didn’t exchange much…” I replied, with a fake neutrality. Taking a few steps closer, I then continued with a mixture of impishness and curiosity. “Though I have been hearing about a certain spot behind your ears…”

There you go, Twilight! Blushing and looking all cute like that again.

Author's Note

So many fun things happening in that chapter. Eh, you should enjoy it. *evil laughter*

Say, am I the only one thinking that lovestruck Sam is actually a little adorable? (I know, I know, ambiguously evil psycho, but STILL)

The Coming Storm Clouds

She refused.

Quite frankly, I hadn’t expected anything else from Twilight. It was rather obvious that it was an embarrassing spot for her to be put into, which really was just calling for me and my more dastardly instincts. Plus, teasing her was just unbelievably fun. There was something about the way she blushed that was just so…

No, bad Ventus! No teasing your cute marefriend!

Twilight, taking my amused silence as a signal to kick things off, levitated a scroll of paper from her desk. Under my curious gaze, she scribbled something on it with her quill, before turning back to me with eager eyes.

“I-I guess we could start our ‘date’ now.” Her feathers fluttered. “I’ve made a schedule.”

Of course you did, Twi. I chuckled mentally.

“Since I believe the intended purpose of our meeting today was ‘find material to entertain Feather Dust’, it is the first item on today’s list.”

Smiling, I followed her into the foals book section, letting her take the lead for this ‘date’. “Now then, where are the adventure novels? It’s one of the only way to get him to sit still, for a certain value of ‘still’ anyway.”

Understanding, she made a quick comment about Spike and his comic books. Apparently, it was a big thing for him and many foals around town. Thus, her schedule made us stop in front of a cardboard cutouts of Daring Do and the Power Ponies, whoever those mares were. Here started our epic quest to find appropriate reading material for an overacting colt, and possibly make out in between two choices.

I wish, I thought about this second part. Twilight was rather dutiful when it came to books.

Every volume she rejected, she placed on the ground next to us, piling them one by one. Slowly but surely, as I pointed at books she immediately glanced at and rejected, her magic built a growing stronghold. A rather juvenile part of me deliberately sought out the military marches of trumpets and horns of Canterlot Castle. With the slightest of smirks, I imagined that this was the love nest we’d make for ourselves in some other world where there was not so much resting on our shoulders.

Mighty walls of books made our fortress and nopony alive had the strength to take over our refuge. Not the boiling wrath of the fiery sun or the tranquil fury of the cold moon, nothing. We were completely, free to sit down, just to read some great stories to each other and make out in-between.

Gently, I spread a wing over her back and inched her closer to me. It didn’t matter to me that the illusion covering me was broken at the moment. “We’re alone, Twilight.”

“V-Ventus…” She gasped.

“I just want to stay close to you…”

Her resistance melted, the tension leaving all her muscles at once. Without a fuss, she leaned into my embrace. Her scent filled my nostrils, mixed with the fragrance of her shampoo coming off her mane.

Strangely though, she sighed after a short moment, resigned, then looked up. “You want to know what the mystery about my ears is about, don’t you?”

Well, if you offer… “That’s about accurate.”

“No,” she deadpanned, almost making me groan in indignation.

“But Twilight, a good coltfriend must know everything there is to know about his mare,” I said with a bemused grin. “It’s a cold hard scientific fact.”

“Don’t you dare bring Science into this!” Her tone approached subzero.

With a shrug, I rose a hoof in front of me, feeling no need to express my point further. Twilight, however, was thinking otherwise.

“Plus, ‘an aura of mystery from you will keep your stallion attached’!” A yellow book appeared out of nowhere and was shoved in my face. A little harshly too. “It says so right in this very serious guide here!”

I was about to reply, when my gaze fell onto an interesting line. Slightly pushing the page with my hoof, I managed to put the book at a more readable distance and gave the text a quick skim.

Pretending not to see the look of nervosity that flashed on Twilight’s face, I chuckled and wrestled control of the floating object with my own telekinesis. She made a noise when I secured it, something not unlike the sound one would make caught redhoofed.

“It really is a fascinating volume. Listen to this: ‘Stallions are your equals, treat them like living beings.’.” It was quite difficult not to grin smugly, while she flushed a deep purple. “It is good to know that you have taken these advices seriously. You have, right? I’m not going to suddenly become your ‘pet’ or something equally undignified, am I?”

“Well, maybe that source is slightly dated, but still…” Twilight paused, averting her gaze sheepishly.

“Oh, I see,” I said, nodding my head with mock serious. “I’m sorry, I’ll just go sit quietly next to my bowl of treats over there.”

Like an obedient pet, I sat down in a corner, and looked back to her 'innocently'.

“I’ll put on the muzzle later if you don’t mind.”

“I’ll put it on you myself…” She whispered under her breath, deadpan in spite of her blush.

Kinky, I kept that thought to myself. Clearly, that one would be going a bit too far. She was still guarded around me. Wisdom said to wait for that kind of joke.

Before anything else could be said though, the doorbell rang.

“I’m here to return that book on the Pre-Unification era you told me about,” some stallion said after twisting the knob and opening the door. “It was truly fascinating.”

In a blink, I was by the other side of the library, trotting around the history books. On the other side of the room, a brown earth pony with an hourglass cutie mark was just making his way inside the library.

Briefly, our gazes met, and he gave me a brief nod of acknowledgment. Looks like he remembered me from that visit at the Town Hall then…

“Oh, nice dress,” Time Turner exclaimed, impressed. “Is that for a formal occasion?”

“Y-yes, I’m testing to see if it’s comfortable to move with.”

“It’s always a good idea to test before making the jump.” He nodded in approval. “So, Princess Sparkle, I believe I have managed to get through this essay as I promised you I would. Do you have any suggestion as to what I could be reading next?”

“The Art of Dating for Dummies,” I whispered for her sake, snorting when she jumped.

Twilight wasted no time to send an inflammatory glare to the offending volume, who was clearly the source of all her problems at this very instant. To be fair, it wasn’t that off of an assertion.

Still, not to be undone in her day-to-day job, Twilight glanced around herself frantically. “H-huh… this one! It’s great!”

“The Explosive Power of Stars?” He muttered under his breath. His confusion was clearly illustrating that Twilight was sending me a message. With images.

I shivered.

“Well, if you say so…” Time Turner said, still a little unsure. “I guess I’ll trust your skills as a librarian.”

“Oh, I’m sure you’ll appreciate this book. It’s always fascinating to understand what happens when you taunt a star. It turns out it’s not pretty.”

Now, that brave citizen was simply lost. “Hum… ‘taunt a star’, Princess?”

“As in deliberately messing with its internal chemistry and nuclear reactions,” she deadpanned, probably fighting the urge to glare in my general direction. “Turns out it’s not a good idea.”

“Well, I’m sure this book will tell me more about that then.” Time Turner decided not to fight the flow anymore, and simply accepted her suggestion.

The message now transmitted, Twilight’s snark died down as she led him to the front of the library to register his choice. After the standard procedure was completed, he was free to go.

“Hello Mr. Circle,” he greeted me pleasantly in passing, to which I replied with a soft ‘have a nice day’.

A minute later, the sound of the door closing rippled in me. Before it had even reached Twilight, I was back on my hooves, standing next to her.

“So then, what were we saying?” I said gently, placing my right wing over her back. For some obscure reason, it seemed to me as if being affectionate, serious and attentive was the way to go.

Twilight’s reaction was entirely opposite to anything I could have predicted. Glancing up to me, her eyebrows lowered a little, a ghost of a smile on her lips, she tried to appear worriless. “Something about not keeping secrets from each other.”

For a moment, I hesitated. A hint of something different had flashed in her gaze. T-the way she had said it made me wonder, at the very least, why speaking about secrets made her react this way.

That moment of hesitation had been key, as she freed herself from under my wing, stepping forward quickly. Confused, I tried to ask her what was wrong, but she had already turned around, a look of pain on her face.

“Ventus, I-”

A rumble rose from within the depths of the library, almost like a mute growl lacking ferocity, until it reverberated through the whole tree.

Quite a few things happened next.

A shout of annoyance toward Calx died on my lips, pushed at the back of my mind by the sudden sinister wince the shelves gave. Eyes wide, we looked at them all, observing in the hopes we wouldn’t see. Just as it looked like none would fall, an entire row of book started to fall, right above Twilight.

I shouted, which made her jump in surprise, and probably startled her out of her focus. Her instinct then told her to leap away, which, unfortunately, was toward me. And since I was taller than the illusion shown, the result was unpleasant. Unprepared as I was, the impact against my chest was enough to empty it of its air. In a tangle of limbs, we fell, only for another wave of pain spread into my left shoulder and the side of my head.

Blinking, face twisted into a grimace, I tried to see past the sudden disorientation, only to freeze in place. Soft fur and fabric brushed against my sides as my marefriend stood up from on top of me, at a speed I would not associate with normalcy.

“Twilight, are y-?” I started to ask, turning my head in her direction.

And I was treated to a breathtaking sight in return.

Twilight was standing over me, a few shallow exhalations coming out of her mouth rapidly, her mane falling alongside her face as if to keep only a window of purple and pink that allowed only gazes toward her beauty and nothing else.

My face exploded with heat, as my heart and brain both acted up in a frenzy. Words flew out of my lips before I could stop to think about it.

“You’re beautiful,” I said, and meant it entirely.

Her breath hitched up, a blush spreading on her face and her neck disappearing underneath the edges of her dress. The muscles of her legs tensed up on each side of me, but only for a split second, and the feeling of unease in my stomach disappeared. Gently, she lowered herself, half-closing her eyes already.

We united our lips in another kiss. A kiss unlike the preceding ones, softer, more tender. We relished in a soft embrace, legs enlacing each other softly.

It was different. Less forceful, gentler. Less passionate, shy and slightly testing. In many ways, it did not compare to the burning kisses we had shared before, but this one soothed me, appeased the knots of fears and anger hiding beneath the surface.

This time, it felt like love.

My own lies were already forgotten. My focus was only on the mare I loved, on what I loved about her.

It was at that moment that the mischievous part of me acted up, the thought had simply flashed in my mind and remained too powerful to ignore.

I simply couldn’t resist.

My hoof previously curved against her neck moved up, subtly enough that, lost in our own kiss, she didn’t notice until it was all too late. And I softly rubbed the spot just behind her ear.

The reaction was instantaneous. A tremor seemed to shake her, shaking her shoulders briefly, before a sound rose from deep within her chest. Without the capacity to stop herself, she breathed strongly into our kiss, a few times in staccato. Then, she broke away, placing a hoof in front of her mouth to prevent the incriminating sound to echo. But I had already found out what that spot triggered in her.

Giggles.

A tickle spot? I thought incredulously. You hid a tickle spot from me? Now that’s being genre savvy, Twi.

And even more savvy was her decision not to let me capitalize on that discovery.

With a crackling noise, she disappeared in a burst of pink light, rematerialized somewhere to the left of that pile of fallen books. Her mouth was twisted in a scowl, one that did not, however, hid her blush perfectly.

“I’m sorry, Twilight. I couldn’t resist. My thirst for knowledge was simply overwhelming.”

Her deadpan look proved she was definitely not amused by my choice of words. Darn, and here I thought that might make her smile.

“You said you would drop it,” she complained, her tone a mixture of disappointment and childish embarrassment.

“Yes, forgive me.” I brushed a hoof against the side of her face. “But, by the Elders, that was just adorable.”

“What? Adorable?” Her eyes lit up with the realization, but then surprisingly dimmed. “Oh no…”

“Wait, why would you be disappointed?” I asked, stepping closer to her, ready to give her a hug if needed.

However, it didn’t seem as if the change of plans were making her particularly sad. As she frowned, her horn started to glow. A second later, she teleported, leaving me blinking in utter confusion – and disappointment – at the empty spot she had left behind. What the…?

Luckily, another burst of pink magic followed, making me jump back. Twilight, now standing where she had been a few seconds ago, was levitating a scroll toward me. On it, there were two graphs, each of them a color that was labeled helpfully.

The first one read ‘smoking’ and the second ‘cuddly’.

Amused, I sent her a look expressing exactly how impressed I was.

It did not faze her.

“It’s an old attraction charter I made with Cadence regarding seduction. Attributes are listed as either ‘sexy’ or ‘cute’. And now I have to work off that trait off the charter to return to my previous level of ‘sexy’.”

“Can’t you be both?” I grinned, giving her an approving look. “I find you sexy in part because of your cutesy sides.”

“No, no, Science says otherwise.” She shook her head, an unusually strong conviction tainting her voice. “There is no arguing with Science.”

“Hu-uh,” I mumbled, not in the least convinced. Still, to humor her – and partially to mess with her composure again –, I spread the scroll on a nearby table, examining it. “And where am I on that list?”

Unexpectedly, Twilight turned her head up, rising her nose in the air with a haughty smile on her face. “Well, I’m afraid to say you do not list high on the cuteness side of the chart. It’s all sexiness.”

Instantly, pride filled my veins, and the corners of my mouth threatened to turn upward. “Huh. So if I start pouting right here, does that mean I’ll look less sexy in your mind?”

“Science has spoken,” Twilight spoke with finality.

“Well, that’s not fair…” I whispered with fake sadness, forcing my ears down and my lips to quiver.

“No! Stop pouting!” Her horn lit up, and a tingling sensation grabbed my lips. “I’ll have to compile new data!”

Bubbles of pure hilarity popped in my brain as I fought to keep pouting against the mystical aura of the Princess of Magic. Never before had I thought I would need to test the strength of my lips versus her magic, but there was apparently a first time for everything.

The battle was obviously lost from the very beginning though. The whole situation was making me laugh. A pout was simply too difficult to manage in that position, thus I relented, and Twilight followed suit.

“Well, if you insist,” I said, letting a lazy grin show on my freed mouth, “I suppose I can settle for pure sexiness.”

“Hum…” Twilight examined me from horn to hooves, her own smile slowly turning daring. Circling around me, she swayed her hips a little forcefully, which, while not the sexiest thing ever, was still rather pleasant on the eye. “I think I can live with that as well…”

Bathing in that moment of shared complicity, we closed the distance between each other. At that time, I was ready to give her another kiss, but the same glint as before flashed in Twilight’s gaze again.

“You were going to say something…” I whispered, frowning.

Her eyes darted to her left and right. “Oh, I… hum…”

“TWILIGHT!” Calx suddenly bolted in-between us, with all the subtlety of a manticore. “We need your help!”

“Y-yes!” She replied loudly, startled. Though, even in her surprise, I caught a short sigh of relief from her as well… “What is it?”

“Spike and I were talking about the Power Ponies, and we were sorta talking about superpowers and we were like wondering if you could teleport into something!”

“W-why would you want to know that?!” She flinched back, a shiver of disgust going down her spine, all of which completely failed to register on his radar.

“’Cause it would be really cool!”

“…No, as a matter of fact, it is impossible to teleport into something else,” she stated, slipping into a more teacher-like behavior, with a mild lecturing tone and some very formal body language. She was only missing the blackboard and the diagrams. “The burst of magic preceding the transportation is in fact a spherical push, moving anything mobile out of the way. As for immobile things, well, that’s where Neighton’s laws on motion come in. The burst would push the teleporting pony away from the wall before the transportation was completed. Or fail if the explosion cannot occur.”

Calx looked at her blankly.

Twilight’s expression fell.

Taking pity on them both, I just sighed loudly. “It wouldn’t work. Sorry, lil’ bro.”

“Awww…” He deflated, ears drooping and wings slowly dropping to the ground. “But we already made up a super cool hero that would run around like a real juggernaut, then teleport through those big walls in the villain’s lair so he could bring them all down in one go!”

Eh, sounds fun, I thought, wondering what an actual comic with that guy would look like.

Twilight, of course, didn’t just let it go.

“Actually, teleportation kills the initial momentum through the first burst of magic and-”

She stopped when she noticed him pouting, his pupils widening and watering.

“I-it’s because of the…” Her resolve was wavering. She moved her gaze away from him, sending me a look of pure distress, to which I only had a shrug as an answer. “The anatheman theorem of fixed dimensional position and-”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

This time, she got the hint. “No, it’s not possible!”

Pouting, Calx scoffed, earning himself a glare from me. Rolling his eyes, he turned around, making his way back to his friend with the bad news.

In the following instants, Twilight’s gaze followed his progression, something akin to incredulity showing on her face. “He can give me an intelligent debate on the benefits of earth pony’s magic versus unicorn magic on plants’ growth, but what I just said confused him?”

“He has a rather selective memory,” I said quietly, a few examples of my statement coming to mind. “Hit him where he’s interested or you won’t get much out of him.”

“I’ve started to notice. He is acting similarly in our meetings.”

The mention of what she had been doing for us gave me a pause.

I can’t thank you enough, Twilight. With the way things are, we need something to ground us, to help make things more normal. I just wish it didn’t always fall on your shoulders.

Stepping forward, I enlaced her with my wings, uncaring at that moment of anypony that might see us. “Thank you, Twilight. Y-you’re extraordinary. I’m a little sorry we keep barging in on your day like this.”

“A-a little?” She asked with mock indignation, even if her voice was clearly shaking.

“Well, I’m not sorry I get the chance to spend time with you,” I replied, running a hoof on the side of her face. Instantly, her cheeks colored a darker purple.

“O-oh…” She stuttered.

“I know things are stressful for you, Twilight,” I continued, now feeling more serious. “And I don’t want to make them worse. You mentioned an important research project this morning. Can we help with that?”

“No, d-don’t worry. It’s fine.” She waved it off. “I had this analysis I was planning to do, but I just swapped the schedule around a bit. The six hours long process is working as we speak.”

“Hmmmm…” I leaned in closer, stroking her wings. “So we have at least six hours together? I like this plan.”

“W-with some interruptions in-between!” She quickly added. “Y-you know… to check up on things.”

Getting the hint, I stepped back, and her heart started beating a little slower in response.

“Would it be inappropriate to ask for more… about this project then?”

My phrasing luckily flew over her head. “Ventus… I went into the Everfree Forest yesterday and I brought back a sample of the magic lingering around Zecora’s hut. That’s the project I’ve been talking about.”

“I knew you could do it, Twilight.” A tender smile found its way on my lips, as I leaned forward and gently nuzzled her. “I’m proud of you.”

“Thanks,” she whispered, her voice shaking with relief.

For a moment, Twilight relished in that simple compliment, soaking it up. Slowly, I felt my expression slip as I noticed the heavier signs of stress plaguing her.

My mouth was already opened, when she went on.

“I know this will be difficult for you as well, but I wanted to ask you…” She let her words trail off for a few instants, trying but failing to articulate the last few words of her thought. Seeing this, I gently ran a circle in her back with a hoof, silently encouraging to face her fear head on, to let go. After a deep breath, she spoke again. “Could you please accompany my friends and I when we’ll look for her in the Everfree Forest?”

I blinked.

Briefly, the thought struck me that it would not be quite the same, not with the nexus of a chaotic spell all over me. Then again, maybe not. I was no expert on spellcasting beyond its instinctive uses and its more obvious limitations.

Or, in the case of a spell that could warp Reality, the lack thereof.

“I will.” Locking my gaze with hers, I nodded gravely, in response to which she let out a sigh of relief. “What is out there… might have been summoned by my brother’s or even my own arrival in Equestria. It is only right that I help you with this, isn't it?”

It was one of the conditions for going back to the Astral Planes, right?

“I will tell you as soon as I finish cracking down the magical components.” Her expression hardened, conviction shaking her voice. Sparks of magic flickered in the air around her horn as she stomped once. “Then, we’ll organize an attack force good enough to take on what is out there and save our friend.”

Silence fell between us.

This had taken a turn for the grim and serious rather quickly. The right words to say escaped me at the moment.

Luckily, I didn’t need to find them anyway.

“Sam! Twilight!” Precisely when you're needed to, little brother. Good job. “You have got to come with us! We need two more players for our game of Conquest!”

Glancing at my marefriend with a small smile, I motioned toward the direction the boys had installed their game, a gesture she returned with an amused chuckle.

“Sure, show us the way, lil’ brother.”

A rare grunt of frustration escaped the white mare’s lips as she focused on the problem at hooves. Careful considerations floated in her mind as she searched for the best decision to take at the moment. As they often did, her choices would impact more than just a few of her subjects should she be even the slightest bit off about it. Sometimes, the weight of her kingdom felt heavy on her shoulders.

Yet, it was a burden she would not wish on another. Her own worries felt like such little things in comparison to the happiness of her little ponies. Time was hardly wasted when one had eternity in front of themselves. Rather her than a subject of hers with a single life to live.

Breathing deeply, she returned to her paperwork, though not for long as the result of her previous orders became obvious.

The opening of her door widened, one knob glistening with a smooth dark blue aura, while a similarly colored alicorn stepped inside Celestia’s office.

“You asked for me, Sister?” were the younger princess first words.

“Yes, if you would just let me complete this…” Celestia’s lips tightened into a crisped line, her quill hovering next to a document spread next to an opened scroll.

This latter item managed to get the Princess of the Night’s attention, as it held a rather distinctive seal, even broken, that she knew was associated solely with her sister’s students. Opening her mouth to push this issue further, she paused, noticing the second document’s form as well. Briefly, her eyes widened in surprise, before narrowing in suspicion.

“Why are you authorizing a military deployment toward the bearers’ hometown?”

Sighing, Celestia stopped in her writing, giving her younger sister a meaningful look.

“I have received another update from my faithful student regarding the possible situation in the Everfree Forest, Luna. Her analysis isn’t completed and will not be, according to her, until tomorrow. However, preliminary results suggest that this is not a simple missing pony case.”

Standing up, she walked up to her window, setting her gaze upon her capital below and, in the distance, the city her prized pupil and her rambunctious cousins inhabited. A pang of guilt struck her at the thought of placing such responsibilities on Twilight Sparkle’s shoulders once more.

“Her instincts spoke to her in the Everfree Forest. She felt incredibly uneasy inside the hut of that zebra shaman, as if she could feel the traces of the one responsible.” Celestia’s expression became a mask of concern. “You know how methodical my student can be, Luna. I fear that if she is listening to her intuition, then it is because the problem is quite severe.”

It took little time for the answer to flash in Luna’s mind. “Ah, yes, then the verdict is all but certain. This is the result of an imbalance of Harmony.”

Without a word, the eldest sister nodded.

“Are our forces ready to face such monstrosity?” Luna wondered, non-maliciously to her credit, while remembering the state of their standing armies.

Peace vanquished the strongest warriors where not even the most gruesome wars could. In her own opinion, the modern ponies were too cuddled by her sister. Few would ever survive in the conditions their ancestors did.

But then again, the sacrifices of their previous brethren were precisely so that their descendants could live decent happy lives.

The thought had struck her just as Celestia had opened her mouth for a firm reassurance. Luna spoke first, guessing the content of her sister’s reply. “No need, Tia. I understand the value of your work over a millennia of rule. I am simply concerned with the fate of the soldiers deployed.”

“Would you like to take part in this expedition then?”

For a moment, Luna’s jaw hung in the air in shock, her eyes wide. “T-Tia?”

“You know as well as I do why your participation had to restrained before. It was more than a test for my student alone.”

She seemed to accept the answer graciously. “Then, I shall participate in this upcoming battle.”

“As an emergency reinforcement, Luna,” Celestia added. “Excessive use of our powers might render our efforts meaningless in the long run.”

The dark princess’ eyebrows lowered in annoyance, but she nodded nonetheless.

“Thank you, Luna. I understand that the inaction is difficult.” Her hoof went to her sister’s shoulder, the contact of which seemed to reassured her a little. “Now, if I may ask, there was another issue on which I believe your knowledge necessary.”

“Oh?” Luna leaned forward, curious.

“Yes. This morning, three different countries have sent accusations of brainwashing our way, claiming that their children woke up feeling inspired to become friends with ponies.”

“I see what you mean.” She nodded, looking not in the least surprised. “This is the work of our young cousin, The Whisperer.”

Fighting a sudden wave of annoyance rising within her, Celestia disciplined herself to remain calm. “Is that a title you have given him?”

“You know as well as I do, Tia, that titles are earned.” The night princess huffed, a hint of satisfaction showing on her features. “I felt that this was an exploit worthy of one.”

Her eyebrows raised in incredulity, Celestia managed to carry both annoyance and curiosity as she swept the military papers aside. “Pray tell, my dear sister, how he came to do what is both worthy of a title and an international incident?”

“He sang.” Luna felt tempted to stop at that point, if only to enjoy a few seconds longer the expression on her sister’s face. “He sang for the foals of Equestria and those beyond in an attempt to fend off their fears and anxieties. I noticed his presence at the bedside of many, in the middle of the night. His voice was rather soothing, if I may say so myself. Be sure to compliment him on it.”

For a few seconds, the thousand year old Alicorn of the Sun, the Queen of Day, the Burning One remained speechless with pride.

“He was singing a lullaby for these children, encouraging them to make friends and count on them for hardships.” Luna chuckled softly. “I believe, however, that the lyrics were pony-centric.”

“So he did…” she whispered in amazement.

“At the very least, you can claim innocence and lack of malice.”

“I am certain that it will convince the ambassadors of our good will, Luna,” she deadpanned, unable to put any conviction in her annoyance anymore.

With a little laugh, the very mature immortal Princess of the Night left her big sister to deal with a stupid problem, all by herself. If possible, she would find a good seat to witness the whole resolution, without getting involved, of course.

Surprisingly, Celestia herself felt only joy at the sight of her younger sister being so lively about Ventus Vinco and Calx Iugum.

It makes you quite happy, Luna, to see that our cousin is not the same as his predecessor. Perhaps his shadow will finally fade away from your memories now...

Glancing at the clock, then at the door behind which Luna had disappeared, the remaining princess steeled her resolve.

Ah, time to explain the finer details of this incident to the ambassadors now, Celestia thought, forcing her own fond smile to fade away for a more appropriate neutral expression.

“Ah! With this, my tower of magic destroys your ramparts.” Calx grinned, his legs thrown in the air in triumph. “Sounds like somepony’s gonna lose next turn.”

Sharing his amusement, Twilight lifted a notepad with a rather simple calculation on it, based on the available resources each player had at their disposition.

“I’m afraid this statement is quite accurate. With your walls breached, it’s only a matter of time before you are overwhelmed. The predictions show a 90% chance of annihilation.”

Quickly memorizing the dangerous information Twilight had not realized she had just given me, I let out a sinister chuckle. At that moment, a light of uncertainty appeared in their gazes.

Time to step up my game then.

“Not yet, I still have one card left to play.” A weak breeze stroked my cards, running alongside them all, until it circled over a particular one. Picking it up under the curious gaze of all three other players of our little game, I turned myself toward the key component to my strategy. “Spike, would you be interested in getting a hold of my third set of goldmines?”

“Huh…” Green emerald eyes briefly disappeared behind purple eyelids, as Spike did not quite comprehend what was happening.

“Yes, I propose an alliance to defend ourselves against the evils of the Earth Congregation of my brother and the Might of Magic faction your sister commands. In exchange, you will get a well-defended mine that would have doubtless fallen in the control of one of your enemies.”

The clanking sound of a stool falling over deafened Spike’s first question. As one, we turned, with me being the only one unsurprised. Red in the face, Calx was standing up, nostrils flaring. “What?!”

“There is more than one way to attain victory, little brother.” My chin rested up against my hooves, my eyes obscured by my falling mane. As much as possible, I altered my voice into a stern statement of pure power. “One of them is tactics.”

“How could you betray me like that?” Twilight placed a hoof over her heart mockingly, this reaction unknowingly tilting the balance for Spike’s decision.

After what he had revealed to my little brother, he had obviously been working on unwinding some of his frustration at his lack of friends. And for that, he needed to let go of inhibitions. The path I envisioned was him putting on the ham, aka, the return of the dastardly mustache. It would be fun. Not to mention, it wouldn’t hurt to be appreciated by the younger sibling of my marefriend. Considering who was the older one, it might be a good thing to gather as many allies as possible.

Spike’s gaze met my own, a spark lighting in his eyes, and we nodded at each other respectfully.

“All’s fair in love and war.” I grinned, hoofing over the deed to one of my mines to my new partner in crime. “And it so happens that both are happening at the same time here.”

My evil laughter rang over their protests of ‘unfairness’ and ‘cheating’, where I was soon joined in by my draconic companion in evil conquest, all for the sake of winning evilly. For dramatic effect, he found it appropriate to don on his mustache and his cape again.

Perfect.

We were obviously going to win now.

A black marker rested onto the top of his desk. In a nearby wastebasket, two similar items had been thrown away, their ink all used up. A hand had settled inches away, but its owner paid not the slightest bit of attention to the object that had been vitally important minutes earlier.

Its purpose had been accomplished. Now, Eric was wrapping up some other aspects of his trip.

His room bathed in an almost uninterrupted silence. Every so often, the young man would whisper a few words, always as a question, or use his computer’s mouse to progress in his current goal. In his mind, at least one thing had to be done perfectly, if only as a failsafe…

He had browsed through a few websites, despairing at first that he had set himself up for an impossible goal, but it had quickly became clear that there wouldn’t be a need for his plan b. He could do this himself.

Finally, his cursor stopped over the confirmation box. For a second, he hesitated, his finger frozen against his mouse. A combination of number was his to recall just behind the box, though he did not intent the purchased content for himself.

It’d be too late for him to see them in person by then. His hopes were more that he could get to witness their effect once this whole adventure was over.

Over? He thought, with a little snort of derision. It hasn’t even begun for me, and I’m already thinking about the endgame.

Yes, the biggest, most difficult part was yet to come. He had made his decision already, but last second fears were erupting in his mind all the same. His conscience’s verdict on the whole thing was somewhere between disgust and relief. How dare he not jump headfirst into what might be the biggest change in his life?

Lowering his gaze, he chuckled silently. And here he’d thought so often how nice it would be to experience the same thing those fanfic characters did. To live in a whole new world, get magical powers and become a hero.

Childish dreams. Not evil, not bad, just… naïve.

Trying to save a friend, that was a sufficiently noble goal, right?

His breath hitching, Eric closed his eyes.

Trying to save my friend? From who? For who?

Without any other ceremony, he lowered his finger and heard a simple clicking noise. Slowly, he waited, keeping calm, until another alert rang to his ears. His eyelids lifted, allowing the image of his screen to return, and he saw that he had completed his last self-imposed task before the jump. “All done…”

He had signed off his human life.

“Almost,” Eric corrected himself, picking up a certain piece of paper. With a sense of growing excitement, his eyes followed the curves and symbols drawn on it, exactly the same as those below his feet.

He made no move to leave his room, no other final words than the ones already spoken. With a little luck, they wouldn’t be final after all.

Once again, the wind carried my mortal form into the basement of the library. The game was over, the pieces were stored away and the victorious little dragon was done bragging about his awesome victory. The losing alicorn colt, on the other hoof, wasn’t done glaring at me. Eh, he’d live.

Hooves suddenly solid against the ground, I staggered to get my balance back. On the instant of my reemergence, I had been assaulted by a small plethora of sounds, previously muffled by the complete isolation of air in that room.

Beeping machines, quills scribbling against scrolls, dripping droplets of colored liquids, mute whistling of steam in closed spaces, calm, tempered crackling of a flame. Just the noise I expected from a standard laboratory. A few were absents, if my time in Canterlot could be used for the comparison, but otherwise, the whole place had been put together very professionally.

In the middle of the room, my favorite lavender alicorn, princess and marefriend glanced between two glass beakers halfway full. So concentrated on her work she was that my reappearance went unnoticed.

Well, I can use that, I grinned.

Dampening all sounds surrounding me, I made my way to her, stopping just in her blind spot. Seconds turned into minutes, and she still hadn’t noticed, prompting me to take a slightly drastic measure. Casually, I closed my left wing over her body and gently nudged her toward me.

Beyond an initial yelp, she did not fight me. Her muscles instantly relaxed, and her form melted against mine. A gentle heat radiated from the contact, and I closed my eyes, just… happy.

Nuzzling her, I whispered a few words. “We’re on our own. I just finished putting the boys to bed.”

“How did that go?” She asked, a little distracted.

“They surprisingly agreed to it without a fuss, which means that they are just going to pretend to be asleep while they think we’re looking.”

And indeed, they are, I thought toward the quiet voices from upstairs.

“And it doesn’t bother you?”

“Tomorrow’s not a school day.” I gave a non-committing shrug. “I try to give him some freedom when it’s consequence free. He knows to listen when I ask him to.”

Usually, I completed my thought silently.

“I… have to go back to this, Ventus…” Twilight grimaced, hesitant, until I nodded and pointed to the distillation system about to whistle.

Instantly, the scientist in her surged back, full force. Three sets of scrolls started floating around her, inanimate quills acting in concerts at her words. From the corner of the room, a flurry of feathers shot in a straight line over to her, dropping a full inkwell next to her and picking the empty one in its next flying circle.

To my surprise, once its task had been accomplished, the owl did not return to its corner, instead setting its course toward me. I recognized the look on its face.

“Hello Owlowiscious,” I greeted him – it was a ‘him’, right? – as he perched himself on my stretched out hoof.

My words caught the attention of my marefriend and she paused to look at us in fascination

“He seems to like you,” she said, blinking at the nocturnal bird. “That’s… well, not odd, because he was never really hostile toward strangers, but you two never met before…”

“Well, Twilight, I’d be surprised if I ever met a bird that really dislikes me.” I lifted a wing to brush the side of the owl’s head, a gesture that made him coo appreciatively. Smiling for a short moment, I then corrected my affirmation. “Except maybe Ziz…”

“Ziz…?” She repeated, searching her memory for a mention of that name.

“Oh, just an old acquaintance of mine…” I shrugged quickly, not willing to spend more time recalling that particular jerk. “It does not think that highly of me.”

“So… birds are your friends?”

“Maybe. I daresay it’s not stronger than Fluttershy’s calming influence.” That sounds about right, my own memories showed nothing to contradict that idea. “I just suppose my nature means they’re mostly willing to give me a chance.”

“That’s actually an interesting theory, Ventus.” Twilight turned, already aiming her horn at a blank sheet of paper and a quill. “We should test it at our earliest convenience!”

Seeing this possible development escalating way out of proportions, my mood took a spike for the worse.

“Not to put a damper on your scientific enthusiasm, but…” I coughed. “Shouldn’t we focus on the present experiment?”

It froze her in her tracks.

“Y-yes, of course,” she agreed, lowering her gaze to the ground.

“So? What does it look like?”

Rapidly, Twilight read her notes silently once more, before she turned to me with a serious look. “I’ll have an answer by tomorrow night.”

The night in Canterlot had many times been more peaceful than it currently was. Albeit the difference was almost unnoticeable from the lower districts of the Equestrian capital, the upper streets and the general area of the castle was disturbed by some intense activity. In the barracks and the training fields, ponies moved akin to the ants of a colony.

Orders rang from every side of the courtyard, echoing well into the darkened sky above. Groups of armored ponies moved through the dusty paths in accordance with each words. With the appearances of Chaos, the military force slowly assembled itself, with not so much as a hint of confusion from the soldiers.

A long line of ponies marched in a straight line across the terrain, and disappeared into the city. Within minutes they would move onto a train specifically waiting to take them to Ponyville.

Toward the docks, ponies awaited in numerous smaller groups, ready to embark for their flight through the Equestrian sky. Amongst them, two soldiers finished packing their weaponry near the wall of the courtyard. Neither of them seemed particularly pleased.

“Can you believe who we were assigned to?” The first one, a green pegasus stallion, said with a groan.

His partner, a yellow earth pony, scoffed, shoving the final piece of his armor into his bag roughly. “Hay, why was he even allowed here? It makes me sick in the stomach just thinking that he has a leading position in the guard.”

“Him? An officer? His position came with the birth certificate!”

“Gentlecolts.” A voice came from behind them, and both guards suddenly felt like they were royally screwed, so to speak. “As tradition would have it, I was required to serve for five years in the military like every other mortal member of the Royal Family. Therefore, I am still your direct superior.”

Judging by the pale look on their faces, they were acutely aware of that fact.

“Now, act like actual soldiers and get on my ship!” He scowled, pointing at the wooden bridge leading up to his prized airship.

Effectively cowed, and they barely believed it themselves, by the unicorn prince, the two soldiers wasted no time in obeying his order.

It was only after he had confirmed that both stallions had disappeared behind the railing that Blueblood allowed himself to lose his stern posture and sighed. He wasn’t quite sure if that had been the right way for a commanding officer to act, but their words had pissed him off.

Quite frankly, he wasn’t sure himself if he had made the right call by taking part in this operation. Once the news had reached the docks that the Royal Guard would use their ships, somehow, the idea had blazed into his mind that he needed to do this. No, that wasn’t quite right. It had been when, in a hushed whisper, a batpony had excitedly announced that their princess was taking part in the operation.

And it was right of him to do this, wasn’t it? Royals needed to put their subjects before them! It was what his auntie would have preached. He told her as much when she looked at him in shock.

That had stung a little, something she apologized for, of course, but still…

“Baby steps…” The damnable alicorn’s voice kept ringing to his ears!

Biting off a groan, Blueblood span on his hooves, trotting slowly toward his squad. Midway, he stopped, feeling a pair of eyes on his form. Seeing nopony fitting his intuition, he resumed his way, climbing up the same bridge he had sent some member of his squad on.

Over them all, on a balcony nearby, the tall figure of a blue alicorn stood alone, as imposing as the moon above. Her armor reflected nothing, rather taking in any light until it seemed made of pure darkness. From her pedestal, none but her most loyal batponies could see the sheathed weapon she carried.

Princess Luna looked, with a mixture of trepidation and dread, at the troops gathered for the defense of their kingdom.

A pair of small blue hooves. Beating against the wooden floor. One, two. One, two.

One, two. One, two.

Darkness. Complete and absolute darkness that no light could penetrate.

One, two. One, two.

Nothing but the drums of war. It was a beat, one that resonated within my being. It was the one thing I could feel, outside the dark, the empty, the desolated. I had lost every other sense.

I fell, into the sky. A blast of color surrounded me, exploded from me, spreading so suddenly it absorbed all darkness. And spit it back.

A little sphere of black, thrown out, rejected by the colors, flew. It passed over me, underneath, but I turned, disoriented, and understood not the reality of this. When I tried to speak up, nothing came out, no sound could be projected outside my form, not after this sphere, shuddering with the evil within.

A ghastly equine flashed on its surface, for the shortest moment, but its image remained burnt in my memories.

I didn’t have the time to react. Already, I had been transported elsewhere.

They yelled. They yelled over the cries of mercy of the soldiers. They yelled as one single beast that arose from the burning battlefield. Blood thirst was their god, their every breath was a prayer to the idea of war. Their gospel was a chant of death sung by the mouths of thousand.

And I was one lone stallion hiding from the jaws that threatened to swallow me whole.

One of my hoof sunk into the ground, as if it had suddenly became liquid. My heart accelerating with horror, I spread my wings clumsily. Panic rose in my chest, making my movement more frantic.

But my terror was all in vain, and only about to worsen.

A blinding light flashed through the entire landscape and the impression of a searing pain struck into my eyes, in the split moment before my eyelids had blocked the aggression.

Somehow, my actions shielded me not from a sight proper to freeze me into place.

Hovering above the armies and the hellish plains was a great fire, of blue light and heat; strange, like a scorching gaze, restless in its quest for a single thing. It twisted, growing in size almost grotesquely. It seemed a giant, a second sun of the harshest flame, an eye seeking one particular sight. From the bottom of my heart, I believed that thing alien, incomprehensible in its entirety for me. I knew of it.

I knew that I had prior knowledge of it.

The eye opened, splitting in its center, the darkest side of it, previously a pupil, becoming a chiasm, a gaping maw that hungered for a single thing.

From the bottom of my heart, I understood that I was the one it hungered for. With that realization, my thoughts degenerated into a frenzied mess. Everything became a blur; the warring ponies disappeared, their screams faded away into whispers, and their forms were nothing more than dots in the sky. I was alone with my executioner.

Suddenly, my hooves left the ground, all four of them at once. Numbness spread in the muscles of my left wing, near the base, where the pull from the blast had been the greatest. I never hit the ground, it simply didn’t happen, but I was now lying on my sides. My mind clung at words of denial, grasping desperately, for a nothing I didn’t understand.

Movement became impossible, an invisible weight cluing me to the ground, with only the ringing noise of my own deafness for sole proof that I was still alive.

I was still alive, but it started to dawn on me that I had forgotten somepony far more important.

Tom! Where was he?!

“Tom!”

My scream echoed into the vast wasteland, deafened by the monstrous roar of the searching flames behind me. I did not turn back. Scrapping at the ground, I tried to feel the connection to the Earth, to him, that I always carried within me, but I felt nothing in echo.

Dirt stuck to my hooves, hard rock resisted against my angry stomps, but there was NOTHING!

“Tom!” I yelled, springing upward, eyes wide open and wings extended.

For a brief moment, I was disoriented at the lack of blood, at the smell of burning flesh, at the screams, gone so abruptly. Then, what my senses were telling me registered. My rump rested upon a soft surface as were half my hooves, the weight on my lower half was light, the thing I was staring at was nothing more than a bookshelf.

It hit me.

A dream.

I was in bed.

Relief flooding my veins, all tension in my muscles faded away and I fell backward onto the mattress. At least, this particular problem was already dealt with. I only needed to sink my head back into my fluffy pillow and forget about it.

It sounded like a great plan, but now that I wasn’t on high alert anymore, I noticed a few other details. Like the velvet bed sheet, the wider frame or even the bedside table on the other side of the room.

This wasn’t my bed.

This was Twilight’s.

The place next to me was empty, the covers wrinkled, half turned over in the spot she had occupied. Not even my reaction had sufficed in disturbing the masses of covers. Her scent lingered, as hints of lavender and ink. Instinctively, I ran a hoof against her pillow, remembering her face, her expression under the epic blush adorning her cheeks. She’d been so flustered, so close to a complete freak out, even if we did nothing more than share a bed and cuddle in our sleep.

Twilight wasn’t ready for more yet.

…And parts of me weren’t either. I-it would be… a final thing, perhaps, to accept our lives here this much. In doing so, I would cross a line of sort.

I would rather not think about it at the moment. There were other preoccupations at the front of my mind. Such as the possible thing that had likely taken residence in the Everfree Forest. More disturbingly was the immediate lack of noise coming off those chaotic woods. For quite a distance, nothing could be heard in that direction. Without Twilight’s experiment, it would be difficult to find out more.

Speaking of which, she was downstairs, her breathe coming off steady but silent. Her voice, however, was much more audible.

“Now, if I just combine this sample I extracted with the first reactive, I’ll be able to-”

Her rambles devolved into rather technical terms after that, none I had a true understanding of. On the principle of the matter, I probably could figure out some things given context, but I would still rather leave her to it. Every time she performed some experiments, Twilight’s voice jumped, subtly shook with excitement.

She wasn’t the only one. Calx and Spike were both discussing last night’s game with only the investment foals could put into that stuff. The mare passing by the library spoke to herself about the delicious meal she would cook her sweet little filly today. The stallion flying a little beyond that was happily flirting with his coworker on the way to their first client, an attention she wasn’t unresponsive to. Through Ponyville and beyond, I heard many ponies, their days either starting or well underway, going about their things with enthusiasm. A certain sense of hope floated in the air, and I allowed myself to feel it as well.

With any luck, today wouldn’t be too bad.

Author's Note

What I discovered writing this chapter is that I'm, without a doubt, a total tease.

Eve of War

“Alright,” Twilight said as she crossed a square on her experiment’s protocol. “From this point on, I must leave the last distillation run for fifteen minutes and no longer. Afterward, it will be time for the results compilation and subsequent magical profiling.”

With a sigh of relief, she sat down on her favorite cushion, right next to her hourglass. Finally, she would have a short moment of respite in the middle of all that research. With such a vital topic at hooves, she dared not delay it any more than she already had.

Gently, a plate of cold pancakes and fruits floated up to her, directed by her magic. When the few remaining aromas hit her nostrils, Twilight’s lips morphed into a fond smile.

Spike had been quite diligent earlier. While she had woken up first, slipping out of her bed unnoticed to go back to these experiments, she had heard the ruckus made above when the boys had decided they were hungry. Minutes later, a ray of light had filtered into her lab and who else but her favorite little assistant had come in with a nice lunch for her.

And what an entrance! Proud, confident, Spike had walked in like a dragon more than a pony. It had been a little amusing, but even more so it had been heartwarming to see him so joyful. Perhaps the lack of foals around him hadn’t been quite a lack of attention on her part…

A-at the very least, it had changed. Spike’s friendship with Calx Iugum was working wonders for him. And that had only been possible through her mentor’s decision to send them here.

Ventus… I’m glad you came…

Oh, she was. Even now, remembering some of the finer details of his anatomy brought some heat back to her face; but remembering their gaming session with the boys, seeing him play things up until everyone had been pulled into the game and had had fun, that had made happiness burst in her chest. B-back in Canterlot, she could not have imagined how things would turn out.

…Why not? Hadn’t they played together with Pinkie as well?

Her analytical mind quickly fetched back the memories she sought. And she understood.

When she thought back on it, the difference was staggering.

Her coltfriend simply appeared to be so happy nowadays. His smiles reached his eyes. They weren’t polite, political or even indulgent; they were entirely sincere, and in a way more seducing than she had ever imagined them before. I-it made his whole image lit up with an unexpected youth and kindness. Not an age old alicorn, but a simple pony like every other. The difference was in his eyes.

Every time, he had looked at her as if she was something precious… He would move closer, for a nuzzle or a kiss, and her knees would want to buckle every time. His wings would enlace her, softly, just around her midsection in an intolerably tender contact. It was always warm… protective… and even possessive.

Love involved its share of selfishness, did it not? That much she knew, or rather speculated and extrapolated from a series of reference pools ranging from authors, gossips, personal anecdotes and counseling from Cadence. The emotion was complex, beautiful in certain aspects and ugly in others.

For a brief moment, Twilight Sparkle looked down, a light of uncertainty shining in her eyes. Love… was different for everypony, wasn’t it?

If perhaps she asked-

A loud whistle cut her train of thoughts.

Startled, she turned quickly in direction of her experiment. “Oh, it’s already been fifteen minutes?”

To her regret, half of her meal still remained intact, calling for her with a sweet sweet siren song. Flaring her horn, she levitated the fruits and her notebook, ate the first and prepped up the latter, and galloped back toward her workplace.

The thoughts that previously inhabited quickly faded away while she observed the results of the distillation, comments scribbled hastily in her sheet. There was no more time for these ideas.

She had a task to complete.

How had I gotten roped into this again? Oh, yeah, it started with an invitation I found in our mailbox. My reply had been rather swift, though it had taken a few instants to explain to Filthy Rich that it was normal for him to suddenly start hearing my voice out of nowhere. Afterward though…

“Mr. Rich, what is this invitation for?” I had said, levitating the letter I had found in our mailbox.

His reply had certainly sounded benign, once he had gotten used to hearing my voice even from that far away. “There is certainly no harm in inviting an alicorn to a social event.”

“There mustn’t be an enormous benefit to it either, if the guests don’t know that fact.” The door had closed behind me, and I had stepped inside the hallway. My eyes had remained unfocused, with my thoughts still directed on Filthy Rich. “I cannot imagine that the prestige sought can be earned when the guest of honor is hidden under an illusion.”

“Getting to know you better should be enough of a reward in itself.”

It had made me smirk. What a smooth talker.

“I have very little sway in matters of state, or anything else, for that matter, Mr. Rich. I hope you weren’t planning to use this connection to further your business or you might be quite disappointed.”

There had been just a moment of silence, during which I had entered the kitchen and fetched myself a glass of water. If this conversation is going where I think it will, I’ll need a well hydrated throat.

“A cousin of the Princesses themselves? No sway?” There had been a bemused scoff on his part at that. “You greatly underestimate the importance of a name and of blood, Mr. Circle.”

At the time, I had almost tripped, my legs giving out when an irresistible desire to laugh had threatened to overcome me.

I underestimated the importance of blood?

If there had been one thing I had not expected ponies to tell me, it had to be that!

Still, I had managed to keep that urge under control and affected a much more neutral tone of voice. “I’m afraid the nobility is no fan of me. Not even Prince Blueblood, the one noblepony I have spent an extended amount of time, really appreciates me and that is not something I could fault him with. I suppose I could ask him to put some time aside for you, but that is quite frankly optimistic.”

“That is more than enough,” he replied with gratitude, something I noted with a small amount of guilt. “I do not know if you realize, Mr. Circle, but the Prince is one of the richest ponies in Equestria. And his family has been one of the most influential parts of the Stable of Nobles for decades now.”

My body had frozen on the spot, with the exception of my jaw that had slowly fallen down. Something akin to shame burned through my defenses as I realized I hadn’t even known that. How had that ever escaped me?

But really, the answer wasn’t that complicated.

“You know, one pony would have to be extremely self-centered not to learn those things through osmosis after living in Canterlot for a while…” I muttered.

“Oh, don’t sell yourself so short.” He had sounded so paternal at that moment… It had reminded me of... somepony… “I’m certain you had your own things to care about.” He had added gently.

Words had gotten stuck in my throat, before I had been able to finally push out a strained reply.

“…Thank you, Mr. Rich. You didn’t need to say that.”

He had shrugged it off. “I believe it would only be fair of me.”

After all that, the thought to refuse had seemed terrible to me. He had bought me over – perhaps intentionally, yes – with his kindness.

This made things… delicate for me.

“Well, listen,” I had said with a sigh. “ I have some responsibilities to fulfill as a prince, and I cannot even guarantee that I will stay the whole time. However, I will try.”

“It would be a shame if you had a conflicting schedule, of course, but I would still appreciate that you made an appearance, if the possibility exists.”

Moving my eyes over the ballroom, I permitted myself a stupidly obvious thought. Well, I’m here. Nothing to do but keep making the best of it.

For a moment, I remained still, letting the atmosphere of the room sink in again. Wine red colored the walls and the ceiling, with great curtains of silk attached to each window, each falling almost ethereally toward the intricately sown carpet. A faintly orange lighting reflected on most surfaces, coming down from the flames of the chandeliers. If anything, an aura of calm had fallen on the assembled guest, whose collective voices barely felt above notice to me.

Tinkles of glass cups hitting each other, tilted by hooves or claws, echoed just over the low rumbles of the guests voices. From one side of the room to another, groups of people had formed small circles only ruptured by the occasional arrival of a servant carrying hors-d’oeuvres. Once everyone had a bite, the circle would be reconstructed and conversations would carry on.

The servants simply moved in a back and forth motion from the small ballroom to the kitchens in the next aisle. In that place, the staff were active in a much different fashion. Their employer’s reputation rid on every detail of the soirée, or so the head chef said every time they plated any food. The poor cooks were giving it their all, working so hard their breathing was very clear at this distance.

Now I almost felt guilty for eating that cracker with a piece of tomato and some sage on it.

That was too bad, because they really were fresh and vibrant, quite unlike anything I could cook up. Those were probably the best things I had eaten since leaving Canterlot. Luck had been on my side on this occasion however, as Calx hadn’t truly developed a refined palette by that time. He was fine with mostly everything.

Thank the Elders for small miracles.

“And this is Mr. Cloud Circle,” a sweet female voice grew closer to me.

Ears flickering in displeasure, I turned, already knowing who was coming closer.

Golden Harvest, or, as she was known by her friends and how she insisted I call her: ‘Carrot Top’.

And following her – or, much more accurately, dragged by her – were Applejack and that one griffon chef from an episode. I didn’t remember which one.

Irrelevant.

Both of Carrot Top’s companions seemed slightly wary, as if they had been manhandled a bit too often. Their polite smiles were just that: polite. I didn’t quite blame them, this was the third time I was being forced into a conversation with that orange-maned enthusiast. Not to mention, I wasn’t looking forward to being in another conversation with Applejack.

I would rather not blow up my disguise, especially not here nor now. If only I’d paid more attention to what Carrot Top had been saying…

Apparently, she had taken a shine to me after knowing that I could create rain clouds on demand.

Personally, I figured that her interest was simply having a contact in the weather control industry for her fields. Any other weather pony would have done the job. The fact that I was a ‘shy’ stallion probably made it easier for her to tempt me with later ‘offers’.

Once more, the evening proved to be an occasion for deals and making connections.

Business. It never changed, no matter the place.

Still, I had agreed to play my part, if only to ensure that there really wouldn’t be any bad blood between myself and Filthy Rich. So I smiled politely, forced a timid blush across my face and raised my drink so we could all clink glasses, as seemed the norm in the room. The sweet taste of wine lingered an instant in my mouth. There was a light quality to the beverage, doubtlessly as part of its quality as expensive as buck. Not that I had any real knowledge of wine, but this was a soirée thrown by Filthy Rich. It figured.

Downing her own wine with even more appreciation than I did, Carrot Top let out a small sigh of contentment. Her cheeks had started to take on a darker color. “Ah, I might be just a humble farmer, but I know what quality is! And this, my friends, is quality!”

“Yes, yes, very delicieux.” Gustave pursed the top and lower halves of his beak together, making a smooching noise. “I am impressed.”

“Ah’m not one fer big fancy drinks, that’s more Rares’ thing,” she chuckled, earning a smirk from me and a polite laugh from both Carrot and Gustave. “But Ah can’t argue on that with yew, partners.”

With her comment over, Applejack and the other two turned toward me, as I realized I was the only one that still hadn’t commented on the wine.

“I must go w-with the general opinion. Quite good.” A small laugh escaped my lips, while my eyes went from AJ to Carrot Top.

Both mares showed an indulgent smile, but for vastly different reason, or so I imagined.

“So, Ah didn’t think Ah’d see another familiar face here.” Applejack nodded to me. “How’s it going?”

Nervous, but not for the reason I projected, I started scratching the floor shyly. “It is nice… t-to see you again, I-I mean.”

“Aw shucks.” She laughed, readjusting her Stetson hat firmly on her head. “Yer mighty kind, but that was just me selling yew some apples.”

Okay, that was more blunt than I expected.

The beat in my chest accelerated, as the thought crossed my mind that my act might not sell well with her. A lot of ponies were probably too restrained to actually poke holes in my stories if they saw them. That obviously wasn’t going to work long with her.

“You had… good customer service?” I said as softly as possible, reproducing Fluttershy’s mannerism to the best of my ability. A nervous laugh rose from my throat, and my eyes darted between her and the ground.

However, I nearly blew it, when Applejack started staring at me curiously. Her gaze was on me, tainted by a faint light of recognition.

What did I do?

“S-something wrong?” I blurted out weakly, feeling my eyes widen involuntarily.

“Nah, don’t worry ‘bout it.” She waved it off immediately, moving closer to enlace me. Seconds later, her orange hoof weighted down on my shoulder, our fur remarkably similar in colors. “Yer just remindin’ me of a friend.”

The sigh of relief I let out wasn’t faked. “That’s a g-good thing, I suppose.”

“Yew betcha!” AJ’s face split into a grin, and she gave me a good pat in the back.

Narrowly dodged the base of my wings there… I thought with a wince.

“I’m happy for you, M-miss Applejack.”

“Not as much as Ah am.” She chuckled, then put her glass down on some servant’s empty tray. “Having good friends is one of those things, y’know what Ah mean?”

“O-oh, yeah, I do.” I said quickly, and the others agreed as well, discussing one or another good anecdote. However, under my fake smile, I was troubled. Applejack’s question gave me a pause. Did I have any good friend here?

Thunderlane qualified somewhat, but he didn’t even know I was an alicorn. That was already an obstacle to later overcome, one that I wasn’t looking forward to. Filthy Rich knew, but he was more of an acquaintance… Blueblood? He knew a lot more about me than most ponies, save Celestia and Tom, but we weren’t big fans of one another…

Maybe I don’t actually… I thought, feeling something in my chest constrict. It was logical, when one considered how badly we needed to leave this world behind. Why do I still want to date Twilight, then? Why does it matter so much to me that she loves me?

All too suddenly, I didn’t want to be in the presence of the bearer of the Element of Honesty. My throat tightened around my windpipe just by looking at her. The stains of my own corruption, of my dishonesty, felt like burning spots all over me, like suffocating grips that encircled me.

It worsened, at the exact moment her green eyes fell back on me. I almost didn’t hear her.

“Eh, Ah think Ah’ll go see Filthy over there. Haven’t thanked him yet for the invitation.” She scratched the back of her head, blushing a little. “Have a nice night, y’all.”

It took most of my self-restraint not to shoot in triumph.

“Y-you too,” I replied quietly, and was imitated by the other two.

My eyes trailed off after her shape for a moment, as I had to reassure myself that she was indeed leaving. Luckily,
With her out of the way, I could start breathing again. Not that I needed to, but still.

That ordeal had been cleared, if only by luck. Now, the rest of the conversation would be a breeze, figuratively speaking. It wasn’t very hard to mingle amongst the small elite of Ponyville. If I could survive somewhat unscathed in Canterlot, I should be fine here.

Nodding your head periodically, sometimes making a short comment supporting their previous statement, happened to be the norm to live through most conversations in the high society… and just conversations in a group in general.

Back there, my focus wasn’t really learning on how to be a noble. If the blood in my veins was enough pedigree, fine, then that should have been enough and the unsatisfied pompous idiots could just go buck themselves. It wasn’t as if I didn’t have anything to deal with back then.

I did. I had really big preoccupations when I was in Canterlot… I-I still had to… it was still my responsibility t-to get back.

But I had placed them out of my own hooves for the moment…

All that was left for me tonight was to mingle with the middle to upper classes of businessponies and others that occupied Filthy Rich’s ballroom while keeping an ear out for my marefriend’s summons. Right now, I was a little on the fence about which options I would prefer.

Socialites or hostile semi-divine creature from another dimension. Hmmmmm… not an easy choice.

“-o you say, Mr. Circle?”

Carrot Top and Gustave had both turned toward me, their expressions kept polite, but expecting.

I fought the urge to blink, refusing to show any change that might have betrayed my inattention. Instead, my lips turned into a small grimace and my ears drooped. “I… don’t really have an opinion of that subject… sorry.”

Luckily, they were nice enough not to insist too badly. The subject had probably been something rather mundane, rather than some truly important thing for them.

Dodged a bullet here. And since I didn’t fancy appearing incredibly rude when it was known that I had been invited by Filthy Rich personally, it was more than time for me to excuse myself.

Flickering my tail once, I glanced around the room, biting my lips. “If you’ll excuse me, I promised to talk to our host before. I think I should get to that.”

Carrot Top’s response to that was disturbingly flirty, closing the distance and whispering a few things in my ears that set my face on fire. Enough that our griffon interlocutor cleared his throat and gave her a look, more or less cowing her into keeping it under her tail. Elders bless him twice.

I certainly did not need to feign uneasiness after that. Stuttering, I glanced left and right, before quickly excusing myself.

“M-mister Gustave,” I said, raising my drink to him. “It was a real pleasure to meet you.”

“And you as well. Bonne soirée, Monsieur Cercle.”

I paused mid turn, ears still flickering. As the words echoed in my mind, a twist of ice formed at the bottom of my stomach. Slowly, my neck twisted enough to look back to the griffon. “I-I’m sorry… what did you call me?”

The emotions slipped into my tones, they must have, as Gustave gasped in disarray.

“Oh, pardon! I do default to my native Prench at the drop of a hat sometimes,” he apologized, his eyes expressing sincerity. “It was not in any way insulting, I promise. Your name, that’s all.”

“No, don’t worry.” I waved it off, putting on a convincing smile. “I-it simply intrigued me.”

Gustave accepted my answer without a fuss, prompting everypony in hearing range around him to nod in approval. A small pause followed, a silent signal for the socialites to take a bite of their hors-d’oeuvres or a sip of their glass of wine. Then, one grey stallion mentioned his last trip to Prance ‘casually’, of course. Instantly, the ponies gathered in a new circle and started discussing every aspect of delightful refinement they could think of, many of which were punctuated by words pronounced with a strong accent.

Each one ticked at my ears. T-there was just something about this…

Affecting nothing of my inner troubles, I put on a confident façade, trotting my way through the room. I was barely paying attention to the ponies in the small ballroom however. These accented words had created a strange entity gnawing at my mind. Prench… Prench? Monsieur? Why does this ring a bell?! I’ve heard it before, I’m sure!

“Now,” some mare on my left said, looking at the manor’s windows. “Can anypony tell me if I’m the only thinking that there is some sort of… weight in the air? It reminds me of the feeling before a thunderstorm.”

No, that’s just me feeling a little restless, but thanks for the concern.

Her interlocutor, a stocky beige stallion with a pear cutie mark, gazed outside, toward the darkening but still clear sky. “As far as I can see, there’s no a cloud in the sky. Plus, I’m fairly certain the weather patrol didn’t schedule any rain today.”

On that point, that guy was absolutely right. A part of Friday’s afternoon was supposed to be dedicated to ensuring there would be no stray clouds coming from the Everfree. Now, even if Thunderlane hadn’t been able to get to it, surely somepony else would have pulled overtime to do it. Granted, it was speculation on my part, and I could tell them all about it, but…

I didn’t really want to mingle here. Their concerns felt so mundane by comparison, which, while uncharitable and unlikeable, was a true statement. After all, speculating that the plump little lady on the luxurious sofa wasn’t currently anticipating a fight for the balance of Equestria seemed like a fairly safe bet.

The only reason I could see that idea being wrong was if either Celestia or Luna had seen fit to use the illusion spell on themselves and were spying on me… as a beige old mare rambling to a few other olden ponies.

Nopony, least of all me, would see it coming.

Paranoia, thy name is Ventus Cloud Sam Circle Vinco Miller, I thought, rolling my eyes while I passed that group by. Now, that’s a mouthful.

Still, none of them stopped me if any of them recognized me as the sole unicorn on the weather patrol.

A good way to dodge socialization when it was unwanted was to give the impression that you were awaited somewhere else in the room. For fear of antagonizing anypony important, most of the socialites would rather wait for a moment of pause to engage in a quick conversation. If there were no such moments, they would send a servant to ask for one, which would serve as an opportunity to schedule that meeting at a later date.

Somehow, Blueblood’s rambling had proven useful.

How sad that it comes to that, I thought in bemusement. All’s fair in love and war, I suppose. And this is no small battlefield.

Quite frankly, I hadn’t expected so many guests to have been invited. Ponyville had never struck me as a place for blooming business. It still didn’t. Of the many that were there, I could see more than a few of them that simply owned their shop somewhere in town, like the stallion that owned ‘Quill & Sofas’. He was currently part of the group that I was trotting by, though I hoped he didn’t recognize me.

Alas, my movement wasn’t unnoticed.

Out of the small crowd of ponies emerged a brown stallion wearing a bowtie, whose eyes lit up when they fell on me.

“Ah, Mr. Circle,” he said with enthusiasm.

In response, I tilted my head and my glass of wine, slightly. “Mr. Rich.”

For a short moment, he readjusted his black tie, chuckling and generally seeming satisfied with the evening so far. “Have you been enjoying yourself?”

“It has been quite relaxing, if I may say so.” My gaze slipped to our left, toward the biggest concentration of ponies in the ballroom, that still didn’t produce enough noise to eclipse our conversation. “I certainly am used to a little more unruliness, especially since I started looking after my brother by myself. So, yes, thank you for giving me the opportunity to calm down.”

I was slightly amazed I hadn’t yawned while saying that.

“There is no need for this politeness, young stallion.” He chuckled again, as if in on a great joke only he knew. “You can say quite honestly that this evening has been boring you out of your skull.”

“Err…” I blinked, too surprised to react appropriately. There was something disturbing at being seen through that easily. “How did you know that?”

“I taught my daughter the same phrase to say in social events.”

“Ah…” I grinned sheepishly, a faint blush heating up my face. “Sorry about that.”

“Nonsense.” He waved a hoof in front of his chest. “I can understand the feeling. When I was your age…”

He paused and gave me a teasing look, making it quite clear that this was more directed to my disguise than myself. And albeit his smile was quite natural, I thought I could see some hesitation in his gaze.

But he needed not be cautious on that level. I could take that kind of good-natured jabs. I certainly deserved more than a few too.

So, with a bemused smirk, I motioned for him to go on.

“Well…” Filthy Rich continued, his eyes going over each of the guests. “I would see the economic interest of attending these events, but they weren’t as appealing to me as they are now.”

I could sympathize with that. Intellectual understanding of a thing and its enjoyment were drastically different things. Quite like my lies, really.

“Duty and pleasure,” I whispered for him.

My words seemed to strike a chord, as his traits sobered up, lost a little light.

“It has been quite a few years now since I managed to get my own successful business, Mr. Circle. It is a responsibility of every moment, not that dissimilar to parenthood. And sometimes, one’s responsibilities do not mingle well.”

I brought my head down in a slow nod, eyes darting toward another part of the mansion. “I believe I can imagine the feeling.”

The image of a certain blue colt flashed in my mind, in all his overly excited glory. In the background of that same picture was an apocalyptic wasteland.

Okay, that’s a slight exaggeration, I thought, bemused.

“So, you can imagine that having a chance to discuss insignificant topics is quite my cup of tea, so to speak…” His voice trailed off, an easy smile on his face as he looked at me.

Slowly, his words started to seeped in, and I felt the need to look at my surroundings once more.

They were simply… middle aged ponies, business stallions and mares, all the age to have foals, or grandfoals even, some as old as Diamond Tiara…

They weren’t looking for parties like youngsters did, were they? More than one of them probably just wanted to socialize with some friends, colleagues or acquaintances over a glass of wine and some crackers.

And there was nothing wrong with that! Of course some nobles would be less than pleased with other ponies suddenly starting a ruckus! If one were to attend a concert or a flight team show or even just a butterfly-migration sight-seeing, they wouldn’t want to be disturbed in their moments either. Why would it be wrong to enjoy a gathering with friends in a certain manner rather than another?

It was a new angle to see things from, for sure.

My throat tightened into a knot. Had I been so willfully blind? No wonder Blueblood liked calling me a kettle. A-at the very least, it was always harder to close your eyes once opened.

“From that point of view, Mr. Rich, I suppose that, yes, it is quite the nice event.”

“I knew you would see it my way. Cheers, Mr. Circle.” He raised his glass of wine, titling it toward me.

“Cheers,” I replied with a smile, and our glasses touched.

In the same moment the tinkling noise rang, my chest started heating up with a gentle warmth. I was… grateful toward him.

It felt as if a connection flew between us with just that gesture. His words had opened my mind to a possibility. The desire to settle down and relax wasn’t such a terrible thing. Really, to be able to let go of your worries, to access if not peace of mind, then maybe some level of complacency. Just… not the perpetual fear, nor the eternal guilt.

…One more evening, I thought, staring at my drink. Yeah, j-just one…

Perhaps too harshly, I downed it, and felt the fire going down my throat. Coughing, I decided that a quiet evening of discussing the state of Equestria would help calm the sudden unease I had been assaulted by.

In another aisle of the mansion, far enough that only a faint rumbling noise could be made out of the ponies in the ballroom, an older stallion was placing some food on a small wooden table, right in the middle of a circle of cushions. He moved slowly, a slight shaking affecting his movements, but none of the ponies in the room protested. In fact, they didn’t appear to notice him at all, not until he bid them farewell.

The Rich family’s butler disappeared back behind the closed door, carrying the empty tray of snacks back. His voice faded away quickly, the echoes of his promise to be back soon with apple juice being the only lasting impression he left.

There were only three foals in the room, two fillies and one colt. While the fillies seemed at ease with the rhythm of the events, the slow pace of the soirée had started to get on the colt’s nerves.

Lying on his sides, his chin resting against the finely chiseled table, Feather Dust was not taking the inaction well.

“Urrrrrrrghhh,” he groaned, hiding his face between his legs for a second. “I can’t believe how boring you two are. Is THAT why you always bully the CMC all the time? GEE, get a better hobby!”

All too suddenly, Silver Spoon felt like she had been thrown in boiling water.

The word had come out again, ‘bully’ they had been called. It was an ugly word. Their parents had told them, Miss Cheerilee had told them, even their textbooks said it. There was something so despicably ugly about it.

They only told ponies things. “It’s just words,” Diamond Tiara would say every time. “They can shrug it off. They’re not babies.”

And for a while, it worked. It did make her feel better. They weren’t doing anything too bad. Just words.

Just words…

The prince had only told them words too. His whole speech had taken less a few minutes even. Not enough to do anything really bad, right?

But ever since that night had happened, the accusation hadn’t stopped ringing in her mind at the worse moments. It had hurt to be humiliated in front of so many rich ponies, hurt so badly that she had wanted only to hide in her bed and disappear all over again. She had isolated herself in her bedroom for an entire day once they had gotten back. She couldn’t look her parents in the eyes, couldn’t see their concerns for her without seeing the absolute disgust her sort-of-crush had felt toward her.

Words hurt…

And she had realized, with a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach, that she had inflicted that kind of pain on other ponies before, more than once and laughing, as if it had been funny.

Prince Calx had told the truth. They had been mean. Really mean.

So far, her friend had toned it down somewhat. It felt as if her attention hadn’t been on any of their usual victim, and for that, she felt very thankful. She hadn’t been able to put much conviction into their usual taunts. It had even started to unnerve her, as she feared that her poor efforts would be noticed by her friend. It hadn’t happened yet, thankfully. However, now that she thought about it, Diamond Tiara’s eyes had had a tendency to dart to the back of their classroom lately.

Although she didn’t know the reason for this, she could only pray that it would last longer. The idea of bullying anypony else, and mean it, was making her heart leap up in her throat.

But her friend did not seem to hear the same thing she did.

“B-boring?! W-we’re n-not boring!” Diamond Tiara stuttered in indignation. “And it’s not a hobby! Like we’d ever have a hobby about them. We just call it like we see it! It’s not our fault they don’t have their cutie mark yet!”

“You don’t even care about cutie marks! Babs didn’t have one!” Feather Dust pointed out, his hoof directed straight at them.

Silver Spoon flinched, unable to come up with a response and distantly wondering how he had ever known that. H-had anypony told him? W-who? And who else knew?!

“Or I’m gunna tell your mothers!” The manehattan filly’s voice rang to her ears again, and fear gripped her heart.

“Why do you always jump to their defenses like that? Why is it about them?” Her friend leaned forward aggressively, her tone betraying a very bitter note. “They’re not better than me!”

For a short moment, the colt seemed taken aback, but his eyes narrowed again. He seemed to be growing tense, angrier, with a flutter to his wings.

She could have sworn she saw something looming over his form.

“Hu-uh…” He scoffed, clenching his hooves against the table. “And you’re better than them?”

It was a challenge, Silver Spoon realized. And if there was one thing about her friend that she knew, it was that she was prideful.

“All they have is their sisters’ fame! They didn’t do anything! They’re just related to heroines! My father’s the richest pony in town and he worked for it! He works hard, all the time!” She started shouting. Yet, Diamond Tiara’s passion dimmed when her words reached own her ears. Her mouth quietly settled down into a thin line, and her eyes fell downward. “I… I’m rich, richer than anypony else in town!”

“That’s your dad’s stuff.” Feather waved a dismissive hoof in front of his face. “What makes you better?”

“I can run about any business I want,” she boasted, raising her nose haughtily. “For example, the Foal Free Press sold like hot bread under my guidance.”

For a reason that Silver Spoon could not place, the mention of her friend’s time as an editor for the school paper lit up a spark in Feather’s eyes. With some apprehension, she noticed how the muscles around his mouth twitched, how the beginning of a snarl appeared on his face, and she fought the urge to back away.

But Feather himself looked down, one ear twisting as if to catch a sound only he could hear. Subconsciously, Silver Spoon leaned closer when he whispered something unintelligible. Whatever it had been, the words had a notable effect on him. One sigh escaped his lips, and he looked up with a determined but calm expression.

“Yeah, and you made everypony feel bad about themselves.”

For a brief moment, Silver Spoon felt a shiver run down her spine at his eerily quiet tone.

The words rang true, and hit her in her growing conscience with the weight of a train. However, her friend had no such reservation. Diamond Tiara just stood straighter, not impressed in the slightest.

“So what?” She rolled her eyes, seemingly bored, as if she had heard that complaint before a dozen times. “I was trying to run a newspaper. I don’t care about their feelings!”

“So why should anypony care about you?” Feather countered, and silence fell.

Neither fillies knew what to say to that.

Silver Spoon first wanted to reply that Diamond Tiara was likeable, that she was fun to hang out with, but already the knowledge of the pain they had spread blocked the words in her throat. Their times together had been fun for her, but that hadn’t been Feather’s point.

Diamond Tiara, on the other hoof, thought about what she knew she was. Riches were at the front of her mind, but the colt’s previous question rang back. That was her father’s accomplishments, right? H-her status came from her father’s situation as well. The newspaper had only left ponies mad at her…

Her breath hitched up suddenly, as her eyes widened more and more while the realization slowly sank in.

For his part, Feather Dust returned to his previous position without much care for the bully’s epiphany, his hoof fetching one biscuit from the tray. The sound of his eating was the only one they heard for a time.

There was something on her mind, she realized.

How strange. Things were as they should be.

The comforting smell of her own cigarettes still rose from the kitchen, the blurring lines of smoke still rose from the burning ashes. Yet…

In her chest, a twisting ball of unrest had taken form. It was a new feeling, surely, or more likely a very old one. One of her hands went to her chest in puzzlement.

Absentmindedly, she let the spoon she had been holding slid into the cauldron, her gaze turning toward the hallway. Eyes half-narrowed, her focus moved just beyond the walls of the kitchen. She had said her piece, things would unfold the right way. Still, it didn’t stop her from leaving her cooking behind her while she checked something.

And the idea quickly became a fact in her mind.

Eric wasn’t in his room.

Moved by an impulse she didn’t understand, she took the first step within her son’s bedroom. Everything seemed… halted, in stasis, dead. The bed sheets hadn’t been tossed haphazardly over the mattress, they were neatly folded around the corners, perfect, just the way she always told him to do. Everything was in place, as neat as she had ever seen. Her son had taken the effort to tidy up after himself.

The thought bothered her.

She took another step.

Something was off.

With her foot, she followed a faint line on the floor. A curve of sort. Insignificant, she thought, without diverting her gaze. A few blots of ink remained close to that line, on the outside of the curve – circle –. Annoyance flashed in her mind, but soon that feeling faded quietly.

Kneeling, she picked up three markers, two of them dried up and useless. The third left a colored spot on her finger.

Eric had done something in his room. Her guts told her so. If he was around, he would be looking down, shoulders slacked and waiting for her to punish him. If he was around…

No.

He left.

And the moment the thought crossed her mind, her fingers clenched into fists. She couldn’t explain it, just like most feelings that she had harbored toward her son.

Taking her time, the mother walked toward her son’s desk, where she had noticed an envelope. Strangely, the only images to flash before her eyes were those of a man in a priest’s attire, of a sober, somber atmosphere that fell heavily on everyone. The idea left a sour taste in her mouth. So, it came as a relief, the moment her eyes fell on the letter and she could forget these irrational things.

Without much decorum, she unfolded the piece of paper and read.

Mom…

These might be my last words to you, so I hope you’ll find them…

Thank you.

I know no one would ever believe me if I told you where I’m going, so I’m not going to bother. Just know that I decided to look for Sam and Tom Miller. If I can, I’ll come back, it’s just unlikely.

I’m sorry I’m leaving you behind. I’m sorry I was never a better son for you. I’m sorry I could not become what you wanted me to be. I’m sorry for that time I failed my math class. I’m sorry I did not get that job at the tourist office. I’m sorry I completely failed my last attempt to make your favorite meal for your birthday. I’m sorry I egged you that one time about smoking.

I know I was not always your dream son, but I still tried to be the best I could for you. And I want to thank you, for everything. Man, there’s so much things I want to say and I can’t really think of how.

I love you, Mom. I really do. I remember that time you passed on a promotion because it would leave me all alone each Thursday when I was nine. I remember that time I was bedridden at the hospital and you called all my friends to cheer me up. I remember…

I remember all you did for me, and I just don’t want to leave anymore.

…No… I’m not going back on my decision, but I want you to know it was hard. I didn’t want to do this to you, Mom.

Y-you told me… to make my own choices, right? And I think, I think that I’m needed somewhere else. It’s not… I’m sorry, I don’t mean to say you’re not important, I just… I want to help my friend. I want to help him and everyone around him.

If there’s one selfish thing I can ask of you, it’s that you don’t tell the Millers why I left. I don’t want to get their hopes up if I fail, and I don’t want them feeling guilty over my actions. As you said, it’s my choice alone.

Love,

Your son.

After a moment of stillness, she placed the letter back in its place and glanced at her son’s bed, her face never changing. For a second, the mother felt something in her chest, something unpleasant, but she ignored it. A hint of a grimace even seemed to pass briefly over her mouth, but it didn’t linger.

As she turned, she hesitated over an old photography of him, all smiles and eagerness while looking at the camera. She had taken that picture herself yet the circumstances of that moment escaped her. There was a blank in her mind. She couldn’t remember.

So she left the room without a word and didn’t look back.

Things weren’t going badly.

“Stay calm, lil’ brother,” I whispered to him. “Breathe, I’m right next to you. You can do it.”

I drew soothing circles in his back, closed a sheet of warm air over him like a wing, and let him slow his breathing back into a calm and steady flow.

“You’re doing great,” I said again, grinning. “I’m proud of you.”

Inside my chest, comfortable heat was spreading. He was trying, trying real hard just because... well, he understood now that it was the right thing to do. The anger was still there, but he was finally learning to keep it in check.

I let out a sigh of contentment. From the looks of it, this evening wouldn’t turn out too eventful.

Then came a startled shout and the sound of a breaking glass.

And that was followed by a rapidly paced feminine voice. “Oh no! I’m very very sorry, Miss Silk! I didn’t mean to surprise you! Here, I’ll clean things up for you, I know where to find a broom!”

“Pinkie Pie?” I muttered, turning around toward the commotion.

Much to my surprise, and those of most guests, it hadn’t been an illusion or a fluke, or whichever convoluted explanation could sum up a sighting of the premium party mare at a high-class event. The unmistakable pink bearer of the Element of Laughter and hyperactive friend nonpareil was definitely standing right in the middle of the ballroom, sweeping some glass into a pile and fetching a wastebasket to hide it away.

Hazarding a wild guess as to her presence, I made my way over to her. That closer look almost had me rethinking my decision, a little too late. Her legs and tail shaking, her lips being bitten periodically, Pinkie Pie seemed in absolute conflict with herself. When her shining blue eyes turned to me, I didn’t have the heart to leave her to whatever predicament she was in.

“Are you alright?” I asked slowly, staring maybe a little too intently.

“Must… resist… urges… to… PARTY!” She shrieked.

Around us, curious glances turned to disapproving glares; more than one pony had covered their ears after such a loud shout.

“Ah, hum, yes, o-of course…” I coughed, and subtly tried to get her to follow me . “How about we… w-we go get you a nice glass of water and we talk about it? D-don’t hesitate to resist the urges too.”

Luckily, she only nodded quickly, with a smile. “Oki doki loki!”

So, each of her steps bouncing like springs, Pinkie went with me to the refreshment table that was now suspiciously deserted.

Ain’t that a nice coincidence? I thought, eying the guests clearing the general vicinity of Pinkie Pie. Smart.

Once next to the table, I levitated a glass to her, which she happily took and finished in approximately two seconds. And of course, her expression morphed into that of bliss and content, a sweet sigh escaping her control.

“Huh…” I blinked, trying to keep a straight face. “So… you wanted to party?”

“Nope! Well, yes, of course, I want to party, but that’s not why I’m here,” she giggled, then abruptly stopped, her traits becoming extremely serious. “I have a letter for you, froooooom…”

Drum rolls… I quipped mentally, knowing she might have actually taken out some drums if the thought had been vocalized. Not that it wouldn’t be hilarious… No! Bad Ventus! No ruining the calm event because you’re bored!

Resisting the dark temptation, I forced myself to focus on Pinkie, whose front hooves seemed to have gone all the way up to her elbows in her mane. Her tongue sticking out of her mouth, her muzzle scrunched up a little, she was obviously focused on finding the object of her mission. That it was difficult to find in her mane only raised too many questions, all of them unsolvable through anything but Pinkie logic.

Patience was the only proper answer to this, so I calmly sat down on my rump. And waited.

And waited.

And…

“Twilight!” She shouted, suddenly holding a sealed envelope just before my eyes. “Phew! My hooves kept bumping into some hammers, sorry about that! Aaaaaaaaaaanyway, Twilight, she almost sent it with Spike, but then I popped out from under their work table to help them get everypony together.”

Sounds legit. A faint air current twisted it in midair, and I picked it up with one hoof.

The seal broke on its own within my hold, a faint glow coming off the broken halves. It seemed that Twilight had taken some precautions to make sure I would be the one to read the content of her message.

Dear Ventus…

I immediately moved the letter closer to my chest and hid its content from view, sending a few nervous glances to the ponies around. Most guests had returned to their previous conversations now that Pinkie hadn’t proven herself about to crash the place. Still, a few kept their eyes in our direction. At the very least, if any pony had noticed my reaction, none of them spoke up.

“…Well, that was not incriminating…” I muttered in anger at my stupidity, glancing down to the written words again.

A closer look revealed sharper traits and scratchier lines than what I had been used to. Granted, I hadn’t really seen how Spike wrote, but something about this told me that the scribe had been either nervous or excited when writing this. Plus, she had used my real name, which I hoped was a sign that she had something tremendously important to say.

Okay, let’s try that again…

Dear Ventus,

I am happy to tell you that I have finally managed to recreate the magical signature we found in the Everfree Forest. Through the use of a simple spell, it is now possible to track down the entity that has taken Zecora and most likely a good fraction of the population of the Everfree Forest.

So far, I can only speculate as to the nature of the threat we will be forced to face, but I have caught glimpse of its true nature. In all honesty, it frightens me. What I have felt were mere fragments, but in them was the desire to rule, to subjugate all beneath its hooves, if hooves it has. I fear for Zecora’s safety more than ever, and that of all our friends and family in Ponyville. We must strike as soon as possible.

The Elements of Harmony are ready for use and all my friends will accompany us. In addition, I have mailed some of my findings to the Princess and she agreed that military troops could prove themselves useful in that situation. Thus, the expedition will consist of the set of Elements, yourself and a few groups of guards.

Meet us in an hour’s time at the entrance of the Everfree Forest, west of the town.

P.S. Princess Celestia has sent me instructions to temporarily disables the illusion spell on you so none of the guards will discover the current guise you have taken. She wishes for your new identity to remain a secret as long as possible. Please come to the library at your earliest convenience.

Princess Twilight Sparkle.

Slowly, my magic tore apart the letter and gathered the debris to throw away. Eyes closing, I took in the news. Nothing surprising, not really, but a few reaffirmation of what I already knew. Amongst those things was the fact that Celly really wanted us to keep our identities a secret.

“As long as possible.” I whispered for myself, trying to ignore the nausea rising up in my throat.

At the moment, it was hard to tell if that was the anxiety or the alcohol. Hopefully, it wasn’t the latter. Nopony needed a buzzed alicorn in an attack squad.

“Mister Rich,” I called, turning back toward him. “I’m sorry to say that I will not be able to stay here any longer.”

Fast, biting cold wind brushed against his entire body. His blonde mane flew wildly as he kept his sight forward, even with strands of his fringe slapping his eyes. He would flinch, curse and run a hoof through his ruined coiffure. He would withstand this without complaints, he swore; he knew there were much more important issues ahead of him.

With the bar still firmly held by his magical aura, the white unicorn twisted his head to look back. Behind him, Canterlot was becoming more and more distant. There was no going back possible. Shaking his head, he directed his gaze to the sides of his ship.

The movements of the fins were slow, but powerful. Each blade cut through the air and helped steer the whole airship forward. A simple fact, but one so difficult to remember when one was awaiting a battle.

The sight of those vitally important part of his ship bothered Blueblood. His crew had slowed down considerably, in order to arrive at just the right moment. Unfortunate as it was, they did not possess a clear target. They would have to wait, and he understood once more that to stay still on the eve of battle was more maddening than the fiercest conflict.

His squad was restless. Some soldiers, in full armor, trotted back and forth on the deck, as if they were patrolling. Not a very useful outlet, if he could think so, seeing as they were still near on the capital’s territory. They had nothing to fear around these parts.

It was more of a conditioned habit, Blueblood supposed.

With a shout, he sent one of those idle ponies into the lower parts of his ships. His crew would need to start the descending phase and he could very well not leave his post. It was his position as captain to hold the wheel.

For a brief moment, the prince allowed himself a small smile. Flight had always been one of his passions. It was such a shame that it had to happen under such circumstances.

The corners of his mouth settled back into a thin line, and he glanced to the west.

The sun was setting, a blazing circle of red halfway beneath the horizon. The shadows kept growing darker over the land, stretching over the hills and eclipsing even the orange tones that seemed the lit the fields of wheat ablaze. Yes, underneath his ship and the other two in front, a sea of fire had been created by the light of their princess.

Just beneath his skin, Blueblood knew the fear was crawling. Right as it might be, he was still flying straight for an alicorn-level threat.

His apprehensions did not disappear when he left his contemplations. He had simply pushed them down, and hoped they were apparent.

Shortly afterward, a soldier called him, with important news.

Ponyville was in sight.

Things were frantic. I had just came back from the library, feeling like I had just casted away an old skin, and I could see the clock ticking away, even as I prepared some sleepover material for Calx. The plan was to send him over to the twins, Cloudchaser and Flitter, where Spike and him would have a boy’s night.

“Okay, but why aren’t you staying here tonight?”

Of course, it couldn’t be simple…

“Squirt, there’s lot of stuff going on.” I sighed, closing my eyes to stay patient. “I just won’t be able to look after you tonight with what I’m supposed to do. So, just in case something happens, you won’t be all on your own. In fact, you will be with Rumble and Spike, your friends.”

Unfortunately, as he had the tendency to do so whenever it was inconvenient, Calx put two and two together.

“Are you going where I think you are?” He asked loudly, with – and I dreaded such a thing – a hint of excitement.

He wanted to come with me.

No, just no.

“Tom,” I said, stopping what I was doing and sitting down right in front of him. “Here’s what’s going to happen. I will go with the girls in the Everfree Forest to exterminate something that is plaguing the woods and has most likely abducted Zecora.”

I waited for a few seconds for my declaration to sink in, then I added the one thing he did not want to hear.

“You are not coming with us.”

The very next moment, his mouth was opened and he was in the middle of standing up. “Bu-”

“I already know what you’re thinking,” I cut him off, and forced him back down. “You will sneak off on your own, when no adult is looking, then you’ll follow us and make a climatic contribution to the battle and save the day, like so many other foals in those stories.”

Hearing that, his eyes widened slightly, and he became hesitant. Doubtlessly, it had sounded so much cooler in his head. That was how these things worked.

I would not let that idea fester any longer. Not for a measly second. I would be a complete failure of a big brother if I let a kid like him on a battlefield.

“No.” My tone grew stern, and my stare piercing. “This isn’t how things will turn out. Calx, you’re an alicorn, but, at your age, you are no more powerful than an adult pony. In truth, you’re probably weaker than that.”

“Sam! That’s not fair!” He jumped up to his hooves, looking at me like I was punishing him.

Ha! Punishment, not letting him put himself in danger? That one sounded like a terrible joke.

“I can tell you many reasons for this, but the most simple one? You’re my little brother and I care about you. The furthest place possible from where I want you is on a battlefield. If you come with us, I know I will not be able to concentrate on anything but your safety, even when the others will need my help. So, please, just stay here, Tom. For me.”

The idea was working its way in, I could tell, but he probably needed the extra push.

“The other reason is that if you decide to sneak out and ‘help’ us, I swear on the Elders of Order AND Chaos that your rump will remember my anger until the end of time,” I said with gritted teeth. “Got it?”

His eyes wide, ears flat against his skull, Calx quickly nodded.

For that, I patted his head gently, and gave him a quick hug. “Stay safe, lil’ bro.”

His voice came out quietly. “You too.”

Mere moments later, my consciousness was turned toward the entrance of the Everfree Forest, and the short procession of soldiers gathering there.

I manifested within a silent gust of wind, mere strides away from the bulk of the group. Just far enough to be outside the line of sight of anypony that wasn’t looking my way. None of them were, as far as I could see, though my hearing told me otherwise. There had been a short spike in the breathing of a creature to my far right at the precise moment I became visible.

Still, if they hadn’t shouted any word of warning right away, they had probably decided my presence wasn’t worth the alarm. Or figured I was supposed to be here. After all, the illusion covering my fur had been suppressed for now. Every strand of my fur was golden, every strand of my mane was a pale shade of silver. My wings were perfectly visible and so was the true image of my cutie mark.

I stood as myself, Alicorn of the Wind, and my presence had been requested.

In the main group, composed of approximately thirty ponies, a younger officer caught sight of me walking out in the open. I took that as my cue.

“Hello everypony,” I said, my voice easily carried over to them, a quiet note of confidence filtering through.

The effect was instantaneous. Those that hadn’t noticed me jumped, suddenly standing at the ready, spears and swords drawn. Those that had only gave a nod of acknowledgment and kept their expression focused.

“At ease, soldiers,” came an authoritative voice, and the troops rapidly returned to their previous positions.

Then, a grey middle-age stallion broke out from the group, sending disapproving looks at the ponies that had been surprised so easily. And when he turned back to me, I could see he was not entirely pleased by my approach. His traits remained severe, eyebrows lowered in a frown and lips tightened in a line.

“Prince Ventus.” The armored pony trotted up to me and lowered his head when he came to my level. “I am officer Silver Plate. It is an honor to serve at your side.”

As staggeringly flattering as that was, it only made me want to mess with him.

“You are aware that I haven’t actually worked with any military force before this, correct? I certainly hope you have at least groveled before the bearers of the Elements of Harmony then. Anything less would be a faux-pas.”

At that, the touch of steel in his gaze lessened, and he shuffled on his hooves. From the region of his chest, underneath his armor, his heartbeat had started coming faster and stronger.

“It was in jest. Don’t be nervous,” I said, showing an amicable smile. “Though, honestly, those mares do deserve more recognition than what they get.”

Saying nothing, Silver Plate quickly nodded.

“My apologies for the surprise here.” My hoof went to the back of my head. “It was not my intent to startle them on the eve of battle.”

“That is nothing, my Prince. If those slackers had been on their guards as this mission demanded, it would not have caused any fuss. I already have their names for some remedial training,” he explained with a grin that gave me chills and a pinch of guilt for screwing them over. “A-anyway, Princess Twilight has informed me that you will be playing a role as an advanced scout and possible caster during the mission.”

I nodded. “She has explained things similarly to me as well. The military details, however, were not at her disposal at the time.”

“Very well, I will introduce you to the troops and show you your place in the formation,” he said, pointing a hoof to the ponies behind him.

I agreed, and he lead the way to the bulk of the group. It happened quickly and efficiently, with an immediately established routine.

It surprised even me, how easily it was to trot amongst the soldiers and greet them all politely with no restraint whatsoever. Earth ponies, pegasi, thestrals and unicorns, all of them divided in squads with various roles. Some of their importance were still lost on me, but I could feel respect for any being willing to put their life on the line for their compatriots. In return, I may have caught a similar sentiment from the more expressive guards.

Finally, Silver Plate showed me the last of his soldiers, ending this miniature tour a few meters away from a few very distinct mares.

The Mane Six, all of them wearing their element and looking more or less ready for this new task, with the exception of the most important of them. Disappointment mixed with relief, as I did not quite want to make things too obvious between us yet. These were the preparations for a season finale level of villains. Some people were bound to be watching…

“Hello miladies,” I said as they turned to me. “It is nice to see you all again. Have things gone well for you here in Ponyville?”

Rarity was the one to answer first.

“Yes, thank you ever so kindly for asking, Prince Ventus,” she replied sweetly, almost a bit too sweetly. “It is not often that the nobility show interest in us.”

Well, perhaps the attention wouldn’t bring many good things to you, but…

“You deserve better,” I said in a serious tone, looking her straight in the eyes, then glancing back to each of them. “You all saved this world and my cousin from her inner demons. You stopped the Elder of Chaos, and even befriended him. I believe it is natural that ponies care about your well-being.”

“Wow, thanks Sammy!” Pinkie jumped at me, her front legs closing around my neck. “Not often we hear that!”

I nearly stumbled at the unexpected contact, trying not to lose balance with a grateful mare hugging me. My wings stood half-opened, feathers moving up and down quickly.

“Eh, s’all natural, Princey.” Applejack shrugged, smirking at my unease with Pinkie. “Ah reckon yew’d have done the same thing in our place.”

“Maybe.” Rainbow Dash grinned, looking at her hoof with a fake nonchalance. “But I bet it wouldn’t have been half as cool as when we did it. You’re welcome.”

“Indeed, Rainbow Dash. You have our thanks for the care, Prince Ventus. Our reputation is one we have certainly not cultivated, but it is always nice to receive some appreciation. Of course, one would imagine that you would be curious about the whereabouts of the Elements’ bearers,” Rarity said, even if the mild smirk she wore implied other things.

Such as me being interested in one bearer more than the others. The others might not pick up on it, but I did, and that was all that mattered to her.

Her inner thoughts must have been along the lines of “SWEET SWEET REVENGE!” and similar gloating. Mine were focused on keeping my poker face intact. There was still somepony hanging on my neck after all.

“M-miss Pie?” I cleared my throat, gently trying to push her away, all the while fighting a growing embarrassment. “You are starting to make me uncomfortable.”

Thankfully, she heeded my demand, and quickly let go.

“Oops, sorry! I just heard a really interesting conversation when I was hugging you.” She snorted, earning looks of bafflement from her friends. “There was a recipe for cake and everything!”

…Is that because it’s Pinkie or did I just never realize…?

The others however shared not my interrogations. A swift glance was exchanged between Rarity, Applejack, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy, following which they all more or less shrugged and stopped questioning it. In fact, they seemed to decide on something else here and there as well.

While I tried to discreetly inch my ears toward my skin and see for myself if Pinkie was onto something, Fluttershy stepped forward… sorta… Her head was still lowered, her body language screamed of timidity, but she still moved close enough to get my attention.

“W-we heard that… you had disappeared… It w-worried us…”

I froze.

They… had worried? About me? Why would they? I was at most a passing acquaintance in their lives. Hay, they didn’t even know I was going out with Twilight before, so that couldn’t have been it. They… they had simply cared.

A mixture of happiness and pain shot through me. Staring, I swallowed the lump in my throat.

“And it pains me that I put you through such things, Miss Fluttershy. It was not by my will that we left the spotlight of the journalists’ cameras. I will not say I regret their articles, but I am sorry it came at a cost to you fine mares.”

“Yeah, okay, and where were you?” Rainbow Dash gave me a look. “Or is that secret too?”

“Oh, here and there,” I waved it off, trying not to make eye contact. Maybe she wouldn’t take it as a personal betrayal if I turned up to have been right under her nose all this time, but hey, I wasn’t going to take chances with my boss. “We tried to visit new places, see things from new perspectives; we even visited Fillydelphia.”

“Oh yeah, I heard that.” Rainbow Dash replied, looking up then back to me. “Ditzy even said she saw you.”

I let out a quiet laugh at that. A few images came back, most of them adorable.

“Calx sends his compliments on her muffins. He ate the whole thing in two bites, and not for a lack of trying in a single one-”

“Ventus!” Somepony dear to me shouted.

Instantly, I turned around, only to feel yet another pair of hooves encircle my neck and shoulders. At least, they were a beautiful shade of lavender this time.

Following my immediate instinct, I nuzzled her, enjoying the tenderness of her embrace.

So much for stealth, the thought crossed my mind, but left little impact. I couldn’t bring myself to care much. My focus was on my marefriend, whom I could feel still shaking.

“Are you ready for this?” I whispered softly.

“Yes.” Her voice was as quiet as it was strong. “Are you?”

“For you, yes.”

And at that, her embrace tightened. She was nervous, understandably so. The forest was more or less at the opposite of what she was now. She had braved it before, she would do it again, it simply required a bit of… mental preparation. I would stand by her side for that.

But, even together, I suspected this would not fade away. It could be fought, but it would remain not until things were over. So, with regret, we parted, both still leaning forward for that lingering contact.

“I-it’s time…” Twilight whispered.

I nodded.

Time to step inside the Everfree.

From a bird’s point of view, the woods had not changed. Thick dark foliage blocked the rays of light in most places, with the exception of a few paths and its lakes. It appeared peaceful, more than it should. Yet the air above felt relentless, tormented. The touch of pegasi affected it no more than that of griffons or mages. It was wild, untamed and chaotic. It obeyed no laws, not even its own, and surpassing the height of clouds, in the space just below the boundaries of this world, a disturbance twisted it around. A clear path should have existed, yet it deviated from its given trajectory as if it had come across an obstacle.

It had.

With a low rumble, the air oscillated, faintly giving out under an unbelievable pressure. For a moment, the impression built up in amplitude, growing and growing, until it abruptly stopped.

There was silence.

And a fissure appeared in the open air, running down a short invisible line that pulsed with a strange power.

A wisp of blue flames slipped through.

The wilderness became tame.

The Realm of Beasts

She stared with intent at the setting sun disappearing under the line of the horizon. She stared at the reddened orb, and its grandening shadows, with only steel in her heart.

It was time.

Her horn lit up with a mystical blue aura as her consciousness linked to the manifestation of her will. Behind her, the moon rose and took its rightful place in the darkening skies. Soon, the night would fall completely; then her art, the constellations she had created so long ago, would oversee her subjects yet again.

A single bead of sweat rolling on her brow, the Alicorn of the Night sighed and relaxed her stance. Her eyes closed, her mind opened.

Night would fall in mere instants. Then, it would be time to purge the world of the imbalance as they had once done.

Memories of another age, a thousand years back, flowed through her head. When Equestria was young and it held within so many dangers. When her nights were the nest of monsters that would only hunt in the dark. When battles were the only reality that mattered. When they lead warriors in the hopes of a better chance at survival for those left behind. When she had first given death and cursed the Elders.

Ponies had suffered. By their Mother’s mane, their subjects had suffered into this new realm. Caelum’s fall had created abominations, and through a twisted cruelty, it had allowed one Elder being to claim a form onto their lands.

Failure. There had been no other word to express the disarray of seeing the newly formed nation fall prey to the draconequus. Their powers had been nothing in front of him.

She still despised him.

With every fiber of her body, she loathed Discord. He had laughed – laughed! – at their determination, at their misery, at their love.

During what would be their final confrontation, his aborrhant yellow eyes had not moved from his scroll. Casually, he had dismissed them, claiming a much more fascinating read required his attention. When they had not relented, his hilarity had exploded, and he carried that emotion into his frozen state.

Even his defeat had been bittersweet. For after the petrification, the realm at only returned to its natural state. Equestria had had to rise again from its ashes, and an empire up in the North awaited them for salvation…

It had truly felt without end.

No matter how many times…

A face came to haunt her. An old stallion, coat of olive green fur, whitening mane and eyes that spoke too little. Ragged breaths that came in clouds against the cold world. A tickling red flow from his hindleg.

There had been only one word.

“Please.”

Her blade had swung through the air.

Luna’s eyes shot open, and the peaceful realm below were laid bare once more. Winds moved the fields below as waves would a green sea that stretched beyond what anypony could see. From Canterlot to Ponyville, the tamed nature hid little in the ways of danger. The town stood silently, and no disaster had struck it.

…Recently, as far as the reports had said.

Slowly, her lips formed a smile. Your peace is truly a blessing to remember, Sister.

Mere instants later however, nostalgia and satisfaction vanished from the Princess of the Night’s expression. Instead, she gazed upon their destination with cold contempt, almost immobile.

She heard the steps behind her before her lieutenant had spoken.

“Princess Luna?” Leather Back trotted up to her form, his brows lowered with worry. “Is something the matter?”

“Tis the Everfree Forest, Lieutenant?” Her voice came out flat, void of any emotion whatsoever.

The question startled him, and his leathery wings clamped against his sides. He took a second to look back on the rest of the fleet, lingering on the leading ship before returning to her. “Yes, Princess. We are proceeding as schedule… Is there something to make you think otherwise?”

Yet Luna moved as if she hadn’t heard him. Her form hung before the railing, and her eyes shimmered with a hint of power.

“What is this trickery?” She whispered, her eyebrows lowering into a frown.

Her senses told her one, and one thing only, through sight or mystic arts.

Those were not woods of Chaos below.

The impact of hooves against the dirt echoed with clashes of metallic armors. Muscles rolled underneath those plates, and dozens of heart beat in a chaotic symphony. Those were not new sounds, but they were the strongest in this dark forest, below the foliage obscuring our paths and the shadows the night had brought.

My legs were moving in unison with those of the soldiers surrounding me. Instinctively, I had followed their military rhythm. It was much easier that way, even if the bulk of the troops were behind me. At the front of our formation, a single squad were trotting ahead, their eyes searching the canopy and the bushes for sudden threats to us.

A precaution, and a smart one at that, but I had little expectations it would be useful. At least at first. The plan was rather simple. We would start by trotting the distance back to Zecora’s hut. That ordeal had been cleared at least once by Twilight, Applejack and Rainbow Dash. It had given me a quiet little heartattack to learn that fact, but that was really my fault for not paying attention back then. In any case, once there, the unicorns would use the spell designed by Twilight.

The first half of this ingenious plot had yet to be completed, yet my sweet and slightly OCD marefriend’s zeal meant she was using the walk as an opportunity to debrief Officer Silver Plate’s lieutenants.

“-oking for evil aligned magical aura with a frequency between high-rates and extreme-rates. Traces are subtle. The best way to highlight them will be with a parallelly-ajusted aura of significant-”

It truly was a shame that I had little training in terms of unicorn magic. Twilight’s instructions had felt incredibly obscure to me, even if I could probably guess some of their meaning. Still, parts of me were bothered that I could not understand her well in these circumstances.

In the grand scheme of things however, it probably didn’t matter. I had been given my own tasks, all of them properly utilizing what my marefriend knew of me.

For starters, I was to stop our scent from spreading to anything that might detect it. In practical terms, it more or less meant that I had created a thin layer of air around our group and used it to imprison the particles responsible for olphactory signals.

Nothing too out there as far as requests go. And a little original to boot.

I had told her as much, in slightly more sophisticated terms, and had been quite pleased by the smile it pulled out of her.

Then, she had asked that I keep an ear open for any and all signs of life that would come too close to our formation. When asked, Twilight requested a few miles of margin.

Again, entirely reasonable.

In an environment such as this one, well, it wasn’t that difficult. However, now that I was doing so, I could not fight the crawling fear in my guts. The instant the realization had struck me had been the moment I knew with certainty that things had gone to Tartarus.

“I cannot believe I did not take a look at this before.” A harsh scoff forced its way out of my muzzle, and a scowl appeared on my face. The more obvious the problem became, the stronger the freezing self-loathing grew within me. “It is almost unprecedented.”

One guard took notice, ears prickling before his eyes had gone to me.

“My Prince?” Silver Plate instantly moved closer, a look of concern on his face. “What is it?”

“Worry not, Officer. It is no cause for alarm yet,” I said with a wave of my hoof. “I was simply acting as Twilight Sparkle requested of me. Advance scouting.”

His desire for information was not so easily placated. His patience seemed tested, and his tone was less referentious, as he repeated his question. “Have you heard anything?”

“Nothing,” I said, but the grim look in my eyes prevented him from feeling any relief.

At this point, he seemed hesitant to ask. A slight movement in his features hinted toward Twilight, behind of us. His guess, while reasonable, was far off for once, and I could believe that it showed on my face, for he spoke up again. “Then, might I ask why you seem so troubled?”

“I told you. I have not heard anything and this is precisely why it is so strange to me. The forest is silent. Silence reigns for miles, Officer.” I swallowed the lump in my throat. “Can you imagine such a thing in the wild? No leaves rustling, no little paws cracking branches, no growl or groan, no fruit falling off the foliage, no jaws breaking bones nor wings flapping up and down.” I stopped my tirade and spared a glance to the plants around us, almost to reassure myself that Life was not entirely gone from this place. “A dead silence has befallen the Everfree Forest.”

Ironically, my words created such a thing between us. For a moment, we both held each other’s gaze, until I went on and confirmed what he had likely implied from this new revelation.

“Most ponies could tell that a complete lack of noises in a living forest was unnatural, and they would be right.” My eyes went to my right, to the sight past Silver Plate. Dark leaves made a mask, a screen that would keep hidden more of this chaotic location. It might have been scary for others, but my ears told me it might as well have been a void. “This section of the forest is indeed completely silent now that I have stopped moving through the branches and leaves. For at least four or five miles around us, there seems to be nothing moving. Nothing at all.”

The news visibly made its way into Silver Plate’s mind. He pondered its implications for a moment, then spoke with a careful tone. “Could it simply be you missing something?”

That would be difficult…

“Well, my ‘hearing’ has a few flaws. I cannot hear what is said underwater, though I can tell if bubbles break the surface, especially in an environment as noise free as this one.” With a hoof, I designated our surroundings. “I can feel plants breathing, but that level of noise is too quiet to be noticeable unless I explicitly focus on it. So, yes, watching out for evil plants may be necessary.”

A mare a few strides behind him quickly glanced at the grass she was walking on. Her stare was hardened, but tainted with a hint of fear and stress. Likewise, albeit more controlled, Silver Plate looked warily at the crooked trees whose branches hung over our formation.

Quickly, he turned back to me. “And… how precise can you be then?”

“I can hear your heartbeat, your breath as controlled as it is, and those of every ponies in this formation, Officer Silver. And I am not trying very hard.”

He almost stopped trotting. In his gaze, there was another emotion directed at me: caution. It was unlikely he would doubt my senses now, not with the weight of my words starting to sink in. “That… is an interesting application of your powers, my Prince,” was his political answer.

I fought very hard not to snort loudly. For some reason, I would have no problem imagining him calling me a freak and a monster with the same breath.

Something petty crawled under my skin, and, for the life of me, I could not master the desire to fight it. With as much control as I could, letting but the faintest glipse of my actual sentiment, I gave him a benevolent smile.

“Every hoofstep is akin to a thunderclap in here.” My tone was as patient as I could picture Celly’s. “The few codewords that are shouted explode around me, and if it were not for the conversation the bearers are holding, it would feel worse still. I surmise these impressions may be the exact reason for my lack of awareness on this matter. I am much more used to focusing on actual sounds rather than their absence, on the words of others than their lack thereof.” My lips twisted into an uneasy grin. “For a living forest to be this silent, it is actually creeping me out.”

Silver Plate’s heartbeat grew faster after that statement.

Applejack could feel the tension clawing at her throat. The silence seemed just as unnatural the second time around. All she could hear was the sound of her group’s hooves hitting the dirt road or the neighboring grass. She wasn’t one to be jumping at shadows, usually, but there was a big fight coming and the anticipation was starting to make her imagine timberwolves and manticores behind every tree.

More than once, her stomach had churned when a bizarre shape had flickered between the bushes and the trees. Every time, only the passing light of another unicorn’s horn had stopped her from calling attention to her fears.

She had breathed a sigh of relief the last time, and, curiously, she had felt the prince’s eyes on her. They hadn’t stayed long, but he had appeared a little concerned.

The prince…

Now that she thought about it, it made for quite the orange tree in the apple orchard. And if she wanted to continue that analogy, she would have mentioned the library in a tree that it involved as well. A library-tree that was conspiculously trotting slightly ahead of the herd, somewhere between them and the orange tree way at the front.

Perhaps this could serve as an occasion to calm her silly fears and assuage her more mundane ones. She had seen the look on Rainbow Dash’s face when the two had hugged and she wasn’t sure if she really disagreed with it. Their time in Canterlot had left her with a mixed impression on the guy. He was probably a decent fellow, but he had come across as a bit condescending to her. Then again, noble, Canterlot… at this point, she would give credence to the rumor that a stick was inserted up a pony’s rump to make them more stiff when they reached a certain ‘level’ of nobility. Though, she could also admit that there was little restraints in his display of affection for her friend.

For a brief moment, Applejack’s brows furrowed together and the corners of her mouth stretched into a thin line. She glanced ahead, toward Twilight, then to the rest of her friends.

They weren’t paying attention to her. The upcoming challenges were the subject of their conversation, something which had Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie talking animatedly. Unsurprisingly, Fluttershy was trailing a little behind, occasionally sharing a few words with Rarity.

She observed them for a few more seconds, before her legs started moving faster and she got to Twilight’s level. That, in itself, was not a fact that her science-oriented friend noticed, at least until she drawled out the question on her mind.

“So… yew and the prince, huh?”

Twilight stumbled, caught at the last second by the combined effort of her friend and the nearest guard, the latter of which was thanked for his intervention.

“Is everypony going to ask?” She then asked miserably.

“Sorry, Sugarcube, but friends take interest in that,” Applejack chuckled, amused despite being sincerely apologetic. “The gig’s pretty simple, and we ain’t askin’ much. See if he’s a good stallion, if y’all need some help, an open ear, that sorta thing.”

During a short instant, Twilight’s features softened, but they quickly gained a hint of exasperation. “Please don’t start going on about breaking his face. Shining did that and it wasn’t even official back then.”

“So, it’s official now? Yer datin’ him?” Applejack asked once more for confirmation, a little smile tugging at the corner of her lips. “Since when?”

Twilight’s answer was swift, with her deliberately refusing to look her friend in the eyes, lest she start blushing. “A few days.”

Applejack let out a low whistle at that. “Ain’t that the tiniest bit fast?”

She regretted opening her big mouth quickly, as she witnessed mortification settling in on her friend’s face.

“I-is it?” Twilight turned to her with a mortified squeak. “I haven’t quite managed to establish a general average for our age category, especially since his age completely falsifies all the data. Oh dear… we’re going too fast, aren’t we? That’s it! We’re going so fast we’ll have burned up any passion we have in the first month, then we’ll be an old married couple for the rest of our lives!”

It was only when she felt a strong hoof maintaining her to the ground that she registered that her wings were fully extended and flapping. Other ponies were staring, a few with cautious expressions. The treacherous appendages clamped against her sides, hard.

“Whoa there, calm down, Twi,” Applejack said slowly. “Ah was just asking. From what Ah get, it’s really up to the ponies themselves. Some take it slow, some don’t. It ain’t that big of a deal.”

But her destructive lines of thoughts could not be so easily diverted from an imminent disaster. Flustered and frowning, Twilight was coming up with as many justifications as possible for her lack of justifications.

“It’s just… everything, clicked so fast, after I… and he…”

“What? Kiss yew?” Applejack completed for her, allowing herself some indulgent teasing. “Is he that good?”

“No!” was her immediate response, and her whole face turned a darker shade of lavender as she realized what she was saying. And mostly, when she remembered a little detail about how acute his hearing was. “I mean, yes! Yes, yes, good, but I-! But that’s not the…”

Once more, Twilight got to taste the dust and dirt on her friend’s orange hoof. “Not the point, Ah getcha, Twi. Calm down, yer gonna explode at this rate.”

With a still shaking nod, the panicking mare agreed to what she knew was the most reasonable course of action. Her foalsitter’s example had to be followed. She closed her eyes, her hoof held before her chest for an inspiration, then away with the exhalation of the air in her lungs. His image almost came to her, flickering in that breath, and suddenly the Everfree was not so tormentful of a place. Ventus was with her.

Her steps became lighter as she resumed the trot to their first checkpoint. With optimism, the thought crossed her mind that nothing could be quite so scary as of that moment.

She didn’t see it coming, six simple words that made her wish for a rematch with Discord.

“So, what is the point then?”

Just as quickly as it had come, the lightness deserted her. She didn’t stop, surprisingly. She moved slower, but in no way did she stop. Her gaze flickered between her best friend and her coltfriend, eyebrows imperceptibly lowered, and her mouth closed. It could have appeared thoughtful, to an outsider.

But the way she remained silent seemed off. It didn’t quite fit with the attitude of a shy mare… It was a different hesitation that held her tongue this time. Applejack’s guts told her her shot in the dark hadn’t hit the intended target. Instead, it was a whole other can of worms.

“Twi?”

“N-nothing, I’m just… new to this, alright,” she hastily said, but even to her own ears, it came out hollow.

No elaboration followed. Twilight, cheeks burning dark purple, found herself with something urgent to communicate with one of the squad leaders and blinked away.

The thought then crossed Applejack’s mind that, perhaps, Rarity had been right. Maybe this did require more digging…

We had reached Zecora’s hutt without incident. Preparations for the second part of the plan were well on their way.

The soldiers remained stationary, still for the most part. The only exception was their eyes, that glided over our surroundings. Anticipation made their breathing faster, something that was only exarcerbated by our current stop. The unicorns in each squad had been gathered by Twilight, and were currently listening intently to her every word.

Humorously, I wasn’t. It would have been mostly pointless for me to try and master a new form of magic on the fly like this. Looks of interrogation were sent my way as I sat down near the end of the clearing and closed my eyes. Perhaps they expected more from me, because, as one of the two alicorns on duty, I should have been blowing them away by the sheer depth of my knowledge and what’snot. Yeah, right.

Biting back an annoyed grunt, I stretched my wings, flexed them into extension, and focused on my own breathing, for once.

Calx’s safe in Ponyville, there’s no immediate threat around, at least not one that is living or moving.

My thoughts turned inward. There were many emotions spreading through me with each passing moment. Fear, of course, at the prospect of facing down a being in my own mystic class, and likely tailored-made to invalidate my intrusion into this world. There were many images flowing and blinking behind my eyes. Magister’s teaching had been thorough, and I felt my resentment for him grow for it.

Yet, that was not all I did feel. There was, underlying it all, the words of my father were echoing back. We were forbidden to return, but only until we had restored the balance we had upset… Maybe… once this was done… we could return and leave this world behind.

Leave Twilight behind, a treacherous part of me added.

And she was not even out of sight while I was thinking that. Just about done with the instructions, the unicorns returning to their respective squads while she turned around with an air of worry.

My gaze fell downward. I am a cruel stallion, aren’t I?

“Ventus…?”, came her careful call.

Taking my cue, I jumped to my hooves, quickly wiping away the traces of guilt and turning toward my marefriend and the officer in charge of this expedition following behind. Her expression was marred by a hint of a frown. And as she reached the spot before me, I noticed a few more signs of stress, in the subtle swish of her tail, the imperceptibly quiet grating of her hooves against the ground and the rustle of her feathers.

“Yes, Twilight?” I asked, leaning forward in concern.

She only seemed more sorry for it, her gaze avoiding mine. “…Officer Silver Plate and I agreed that we need a better idea of what we might face. The tracking spell I developed has been working well, but we cannot afford to stumble over the entity we need to defeat.”

My brows furrowed together. I could understand the sentiment, but there was something else they had yet to say.

“I am hesitant to send our pegasi soldiers ahead, knowing that there is a very dangerous enemy roaming about,” Silver Plate explained, his voice firm.

At that moment, I glanced between the two. So that’s what this is about…?

“That goal is certainly honorable, Officer, but how can I be of help?” I asked, all the while steadfastly refusing to look at Twilight. There was something deeply embarrassing in being unable to contribute when she needed me. I… damn it, I wanted her to be impressed! My next words then understandably came out tainted with regret. “I do not possess the knowledge necessary to master Twilight’s tracking spell. A manual search of the Everfree would be a long delay. Longer than what you would deem acceptable, I am certain.”

“How long?” Silver Plate demanded to know, almost challengingly.

“For an intent such as this one, I need a concentration not unlike that of any mortal pony. There is no guarantee the threat we are looking for will breath at all, thus I must have enough focus to examine each spot. The scope I could scan this way would be that of a normal pegasus. ”

That declaration had them fall into a sober silence. It was not what they had hoped to hear, clearly. Silver Plate’s expression had darkened, and it would not have surprised me if he had chosen to let out a few expletives. His eyes went to the troops assembled, concern lighting them up. Around us, the soldiers were still awaiting further instructions with febrility, which was something none of us could quite give at the moment, not without regretting it first.

“Ventus, what if you took me with you?” Twilight suddenly spoke up. “You’ve already done that before. In Canterlot, remember? This way, I could show you the traces of evil magic as we search.”

“Well…” I glanced downward, hesitant to face her directly. “The last time had me as the sole conscious soul… For a mortal to come with me and try to retain their consciousness…” I looked up, I had to; it would be almost a betrayal not to express it as clearly as possible. “It would be difficult. And any mistake could have dire consequences.”

Quickly, the information made its way in her brain, as I saw the gears turning behind her eyes. And even so, it only served to bring a faint flush to her face, when she leaned closer and whispered: “I trust you, Ventus.”.

My wings fluttered, and a shiver went down my spine. Cold assaulted my chest, as the guilt screeched whispers of my unworthiness to my ears. On the outside, I projected only a smile of fondness, regardless of my inner thoughts.

How…? I pondered sourly. How could I have ever managed to inspire such a thing in you, Twilight?

Before I could delve too deeply into it however, a cyan blue form landed swiftly right next to us. Four other mares almost instaneously followed.

“Hey, what was that I heard about Twi risking her life?! Wherever she’s going, we’re following with her!” Dash’s annoyance was unsurprisingly directed toward me, in the form of a glare and an accusating hoof. “Don’t think you can just spirit her away on your own or something when we ain’t looking!”

“Ahem, yes,” Rarity coughed in her hoof, alternating looks between Twilight, myself and Rainbow Dash. “While this isn’t quite the point I wished to make, I agree with the general sentiment. Twilight shouldn’t have to risk her safety on her own in this way.”

“Whatever yer plannin’, Ah want in.” Applejack nodded.

“Me too!” Pinkie shot in the air.

“Twilight can count on us,” Fluttershy added firmly, eyes shining with more determination than I had yet witnessed from her.

Yet, before this display of solidarity, I could only feel my stomach sink. No… This would be really bad…

“Twilight,” I whispered to her ears, grimacing and frowning. “This will be hard enough with a single passenger. I fear the dangers that could arise if we try this with all your friends. O-one of them might…”

One look in her eyes was enough to tell me her choice right there, before she had distanced herself from me to face them. The pain was visible, for me as it was for her friends, but Twilight carried on nonetheless with a buding majesty.

“Girls, this… this is okay.” She sucked in a sharp breath. “I have to try alone, for the sake of everypony. It’s a responsibility I accept.”

“But…” Rainbow Dash moved forward, one hoof raised.

To her regret, Twilight simply shook her head. The words did not come out easily, but they were without ambiguity. “Just, please, give us some breathing space.”

They looked ready to protest further, as the sound already erupted from Rainbow Dash and Applejack’s mouths, but Fluttershy cut it all short with one sentence.

“It’s not what she wants…” she said quietly.

They murmured wishes of good luck, with a heavy heart and I resolutely ignored the pangs of guilt in my chest.

“Ready, Twilight?” I asked as my wings closed on her.

Her response was to hug me tighter.

With one breath, we faded into air. The other bearers’ expressions looked quite comical in that moment, but already the difficulty of the task ahead captured my attention. Twilight was a strong, vibrant mind, and a brighter soul still. The process was stimulating her senses in ways she had never experienced before. As a purple light, she was spreading unevenly, far away and thinly into one direction or another. Holes were appearing were she could not remind constant, and I tried desperately to call back to her.

“Twilight! You have to focus! You’re not one with the air! STAY WITH ME!”

To my unending relief, she froze into place. Possessively, I moved around her, shaped her back, and once her form pulsed with light. It almost made me sigh with relief. While before I had carried others, she could now exist at my side as a partner.

We stood above the troops, and below them, to their left and to their right. To the tiniest cracks where only a faint breeze could slip through to the uproarious storms in the East, we were as one.

I knew she could see it, that she could feel it. Her mind opened as mine did in front of the vastness of this world’s atmosphere. But a fraction of it was a scope too large for her to comprehend, still I knew that an instinctual understanding of it was dawning on her. Currents, ascendants or descendants, storms and breezes, what carried flyers or sent them quarelling to their demises, the father of many lives blooming, the uncaring mother that snatch away all on her path. The world swirled before us.

She remained silent for a long time until...

“This…” Her voice echoed in my mind. “This is what an alicorn is? This is you?”

“To the core,” I said without arrogance or shame.

She was rendered silent once more. Her presence, once very bright with enthusiasm, grew contained, reserved. The thought struck me that she was faltering again, and it sent a spike of worry through my heart, but, as I moved to pull her back, her voice echoed.

“You… you trust me this much?”

Absurdly, I was reminded of my own hesitations. It felt like a mirror of myself, and the impulse went through me to comfort her. “Twilight, I-”

Other sounds interrupted us, sounds that were otherworldly, that came from the remnaints of another age. An ache tugged at my being, demanding that I turned the entirety of my attention to them, that I forget up to my very name if it was what it took to have them…

His fragments…

Screeching winds thundered away above the mountains of the East. Cold winds weighted down on the air, dragging it closer to the ground as a waterfall did a river. Darker winds gathered. Beings that should not have been neighed almost tauntingly at the world below.

And I wanted nothing more than to hide that darkness away. From Twilight, Calx, Celestia, Luna… the world.

“Don’t look,” I said, with the only explanation I could give being the lack of one.

There was no protest, barely any curiosity from her. She simply turned to me and nodded in understanding. Elders, I loved that mare.

“Guide us, Twilight,” I coaxed her, closing the distance between us.

She picked up a trace, something of her that was little and fading. Sparks, scattered across my hide, some faint hints of another’s presence before. They glittered, shadows in the light, and Twilight moved forward after them.

Our path was clear, uninterrupted, through miles in this sea of trees; her spell created a beacon for us to reach. And when we reached it, a wave of repulsion shook us to the core.

We both finally understood why the Everfree had appeared dead before. Its life wasn’t gone, it had been gathered.

Still, it was in this place where most life had gathered, that Twilight and I discovered the most deaths. Bones littered the ground by the dozens, on every side. Small bones, none of which I was intimately familiar with, but I recognized amongst them beaks and wings. Little skulls, long ribcages, rodents’ teeths, short claws, even a much bigger skeleton akin to a bear’s laid on the grass, anything that could have belonged to a non-useful servant could be found.

Well… I thought grimly. At least we know where most of the small critters went.

Twilight stayed silent, but I felt her shivering.

She hadn’t lost focus. She was still examining the large clearing and its inhabitants.

Had they been asleep, eyes closed, the creatures might have been mistaken for simple branches, lying in heaps on the forest’s ground. And trees had fallen in this place, laying rotten and decaying amonst many others. But they were not the concern, they were here. Their features were lupine, with thin muzzles, and fangs of sharpened wood. Leaves hinted at eyebrows, but the pale green-yellow light of their gaze appeared darker than I could remember, losing itself into small wisps of mist.

A regular pack should have been up to eight timberwolves at most. They were ten times that numerous, pacing and growling low at one another.

One timberwolf blinked, its movement slowing down to an almost sluggish extent, as it rose its head toward the sky. The tip of his muzzle contracted through the bark, and air entered its nostrils.

Something felt terribly wrong then.

I could only notice now, but the wolves breathed strangely. Not ragged or deep, simply… forced. As if the movements to induce such a natural thing were not. The gears of a machine turning, not the impulse of life perpetuating life.

At my sides, my marefriend flinched, sensing the disgust that spiked through me.

“Terrible magic is at play here,” I thought, and I felt her nod.

Even then, her attention was on the small army discovered. The wolves weren’t alone. The Everfree was certainly more diverse than that.

Bigger shadows hid not far from this clearing. Predators greater than the golem-like lupines rested and stood guard. They would be far more powerful enemies. All too suddenly, the knowledge of the reinforcements at our disposable seemed a very real necessity.

But in the middle of this gathering, there was still a stronger signature, that of the source Twilight was tracking. Floating in between the creatures, a single line led straight into the hills, into a patch of darkness hidden behind vines and roots. We slipped unnoticed, not a single hair displaced by our passage.

Light slowly became faint, nonexistent, and only our senses allowed to us continue so much deeper into the earth until, at last, we reached a great opening and spread throughout. There were corpses, once more, but none of which as recent as those outsides. This lair had known a change of owner, likely wrestled away by the magic at play.

Unease held me back, as the being inside was opposite to my brother and me, and its sheer presence had me sickened. Perhaps that impression was transmitted to Twilight, as she intensified her search, and with a gasp pointed me in the direction of our opponent, far away on the walls. It could not be seen so easily. It was its nature.

Hidden was a shadow. Unliving as are objects without the spark of Vitam Mortem, but not unmoving it was.

It slithered, it crawled, from the darkness and into darkness, always to escape notice.

Our notice, I realized with horror.

Within the caves, the shadow swirled, flew through the air and stood, a mass of miasma unable to take shape. Purple mist slipped from it near the top, and sparks of green ran in twin circles, fast, too quickly for us to understand. The next second, a pair of crimson eyes looked back straight at us.

I pulled back before either of us could think.

We were within our circle of friends, as made of flesh as we had been before this scouting attempt. Twilight staggered on her hooves, eyes wide and wings fluttering. Not only the encounter with him, but the sheer experience of being part of me had drained her as well. My right wing stretched over her back.

Already, her friends were at her sides, trying to help her on her hooves, asking her if she was okay, what had happened, what was wrong. Yet, the only voice she paid attention to was my own.

“You… understand, don’t you?”

For sole answer, Twilight’s eyes went downward, and her wings twitched.

Gently, I leaned in to nuzzle her, a contact she herself deepened subconsciously. She was shaken.

“I’ll tell them, Twilight,” I whispered. “Don’t worry.”

“Tell us what?” Rainbow Dash demanded hotly, her gaze turning into a suspicious glare.

“Well, I have good news and terrible news,” I said, and they turned toward me at once.

Their full attention was on me. Even the sentinels seemed to be slightly distracted by the sheer interest shown by all those important ponies. It would not cause much problem, in my opinion, as truly the troops to face were still a good distance away.

We would be coming to them, and not the opposite. The enemy was one to lay traps, not to chase in pursuit. It had least gave us the opportunity to talk.

Taking a deep breath, I looked at them all in the eyes. “The good news is that we did find out who we will likely be facing. The terrible news is that the monster in question is rather scary.”

The wisps of black smoke flashed in my mind, and I felt them dance somewhere beneath my skin. Not for the first time I cursed that my body was the host to such dark entities. If I concentrated, I could almost reach them, those swirling masses of corruption…

A shiver shook me and ruffled my wings. The others saw it, but they had yet to understand. Twilight did, and she had barely caught a glimpse of what he was capable of.

Once, he had not appeared so scary, with only his bestial intelligence. That simple memory felt so distant, just an image lost in the fog. What I remembered clearly was my teacher’s lessons, the long list of atrocities, the clever traps he had laid and the frightening lengths to which he had gone to protect his reign. While his newer form had appeared powerful enough on its own, it paled, paled, in comparison to the spellcasting he had been able to do at his full power. He had brought an empire on its knees, with his power and cunning alone.

Keeping my voice under control, I faced them with the utmost serious as I announced the reality of our next fight. “From the Age of Chaos, in the blank decade of unknown time, arose the second-coming of the pinnacle of unicorn abilities. I present you our opponent: the Archmage of Shadows, known through history for the crimes against ponykind he would later commit as King Sombra.”

As did the others before her, the mare entering the court room looked with hesitation at the throne. Her stride continued uninterrupted, each one of her decorated horseshoes creating a resounding noise in the otherwise empty room. The echoes carried over to the painted windows, which let in a filtered moonlight to depict champions of ponykind onto the royal red carpet.

Celestia observed patiently the figures of her faithful student and her friends, in their various exploits, while one of her subjects trotted up to her. Fondness mixed with worry at those images. It should have been her. Every time. Her subjects should not have to face threats such as those the Elements’ bearers had to.

Briefly, her expression showed but a glimpse of her frustration. Had the poor mare coming to her noticed, she would have fled begging for forgiveness. As a small mercy, the mare had been focusing on the steps leading to her dais. The audience could thus begin as scheduled, and Celestia answered to the requests calmly, despite feeling weighted down by chains.

She did as she always had.

She waited, fear in her heart, serenity in her eyes and in her smile, and placed her faith within those around her.

And cursed silently the laws that restricted her interventions.

They moved as silently as possible, becoming little more than shadows between the trees. They were close now. Enough that the subtle wind barrier was the only thing preventing the beasts from catching their scents. But they could. The smell of dried blood and the putrid breath of the timberwolves made them nauseous. It was not enough to affect their movements though. They had their orders, there was a plan. They could all picture it quite easily.

Words of warning were at the front of their minds.

“King Sombra’s most dangerous spells revolve around inducing fear. He uses them to break his enemies’ will and subjugate them to his own.”

A few soldiers glanced back at the center of the formation, toward their leader and the two alicorns. Princess Twilight had been the most adamant about it; her eyes had briefly glazed over with memories at the time.

“Consider it incapacipating. While it may not cause physical or even lasting psychological damage, the spell completely takes over the senses of the victim until it is broken. Any pony hit will be rendered immobile and unresponsive until rescued.”

It was difficult to ignore the visible shudder she had done her best to suppress.

“King Sombra is skilled in the art of traps. Caution is imperative.”

The last squad quickly took its place, melting in the shadows outside of view.

“He is not to be engaged face-to-face. He has shown himself capable of making a unicorn unable to cast spells once he got his hooves on them. Our strategy will need to account for that.”

Eyes closed, Ventus Vinco gave a slow nod, and mouthed a word under his breath. Even those closed to his position heard nothing, yet some distance away, three squads leaders confirmed the state of their group.

“All squads are in position, Officer,” the alicorn declared simply.

The word of gratitude was quickly given, and the military commander moved slightly closer to the front, amongst his soldiers. His progression was followed by a few pairs of eyes, one of which was a cold mixture of blue and green. Yet, that gaze showed worry, as the tension in the air rose and it became obvious battle was imminent.

“Stay behind me,” he whispered to the ones at his sides, his wings spreading in front of them while he took a step forward. “I will ensure that nothing reaches you until you’re ready.”

The six heroines looked resigned, determination crossing with the inevitable fight that was to come. Shadows stretched across their faces, as light swirled around Twilight’s horn. In the dark, it was uncomfortabley close to a beacon. Of the six, she seemed the most focused; even as beads of sweat rolled down her coat, even as her muscles twitched, her eyes remained transfixed on the goal ahead.

When she nodded, Silver Plate’s gaze went to his squads briefly, before he silently motioned with one hoof.

On the spot, Rainbow Dash reared, and, as she had done before, roared like a beast. It echoed wide and strong, but more importantly, it carried up to the monsters waiting.

As one, the wolves stood and turned. There was no hesitation, no such thing as doubt, while they started running as a collective entity. The ground shook, rumbling with the impact of hundreds of paws hitting it in unison. The wave of wood and flesh rippled in its progression toward the ponies’ position, and in the darkness, the image struck fear in their preys’ hearts.

“Earth ponies, at the front!” Silver Plate shouted. “Intercept the enemy!”

With a loud cry, the bulkiest soldiers spread into a wall and locked themselves into place. Muscles hardened, hooves digging into the ground, they seemed of stone. It was their very intent to prove it true.

“Unicorns, pegasi!” The order came again as a whiplash.

From the shadows, the ponies jumped and started their assault. Bolts of light and lightning alike flew from their ranks into the charge of wolves. Every flash was blinding, and as they struck their targets, they grew into a cacophony of blasts and pained cries.

The spectacle sent the bearers’ blood pumping at high speed.

“Get ready to run, girls!” Twilight warned them, to which they responded with quick nods.

Their shadows stretched on the ground, the purple light intensified. It was almost time. They were to wait until the exact… right… moment…

The wolves crashed into the line of soldiers.

Then, in one large flash, the bearers were behind the enemy lines, standing right before the entrance of the cave. The teleportation had not startled them, though its caster felt a spike of pain go through her horn. Teeth clenched together, she sent a sweeping glance to her friends.

“Quick, we have little time before something notices o-”

Twilight’s irises shrunk into dots at the sight of a wooden jaw inches away from her.

The burst of magic behind me had almost been enough to throw me off balance.

The horde had not stopped. The fighting had truly started, with spears and fangs. More than one cry of pain echoed in the night, and not all of them belonged to mindless animals…

Necessary, this is necessary…

The unicorns collectively sent the beacon spells, launching bullets of light into the darkened sky, and projecting the equivalent of many large spotlights over the forest. At that moment, the Mane Six’s characteristic coats briefly came into view, as did many lumbering bodies of wood heading backward.

“What the…?” rose from my left, and the recognition sent a spike of panic in my brain.

“Applejack…?” I muttered in disbelief, as I glanced to her very real, orange, stetson-wearing form.

The farmer looked just as surprised as we did, checking herself almost as if expecting to disappear at any second.
I wasted no time.

“Officer Silver, the teleportation failed to move all of the Elements’ bearers!” I shouted as loudly and as quickly as possible. “Applejack has been left behind!”

In that instant, I could see Silver Plate’s face pale, and in his eyes, the same question I wondered.

…Why?

In an instant, memories of my last date flashed before my eyes. I saw Twilight standing a few steps away from Calx, words were coming out of her mouths. Calx’s ears flattened, his mouth twisted into a pout, and he left disheartened.

The answer hit me all too suddenly.

I turned, eyes wide, to the place Twilight had teleported to, with only a panicked thought piercing through.

Something got in the way!

Despite my powers, despite the darkness that had befallen those woods, my first and foremost instinct was to frantically hope to see through the distance separating us and see her alright. It was futile, for I did not see anything. I was only saved from my fear by a refined alliterative yell.

“Not Twilight, you rotten rooted ruffian!”

I had never been so glad to hear Rarity’s voice.

But somepony cut through that single moment of relief. “Take her to them!” Silver Plate yelled, even as he tried to recoordinate his troops.

I didn’t take the time to observe their work. My hooves were already carrying me to Applejack. Magic channeled into my horn, I was focusing on the ragged breathing of the others, on their quick whispers of confusion.

“Where’s AJ?!”

“Still with us!” I told them.

“Can you bring her to us?” Twilight’s voice reached my ears, with a hint of desperation.

“On it!” I nodded, stopping right in front of Applejack. “Get ready.”

There was no hesitation, no pause. Applejack’s leg closed over my own. We were ready to move. Our bodies became lighter, and took shades of transparency. However, right as my wings turned to air, an explosive noise threw me off my hooves.

What the hay? I thought, getting back up, ears still ringing. My vision blurred, though not enough that I could not see an orange mare getting up as well. What just ha-?

“Hydra!” the closest soldiers shouted.

With horror, I felt the deep exhalation of five heads, moving more air together than three platoons of ponies together. Liquid ran off the scales, falling back into the ground and a pond with splashing noises. Twice, a low rumble shook the ground, as it unsteadily climbed over the muddy shores. Its claws dug into the wet soil, cutting through it with a small squish. The moment it was steady however, a growl rose from the pit of its entrails, and it charged, quickly, faster than a member of its species waking up would. Nothing else was needed to know where it was headed. That creature had been a trap hidden underwater. In the back of my mind, a part of me blamed my stupidity for completely overlooking that possibility. But, even over the loud roar it let out, something else racked my nerves.

The hydra’s appearance had disrupted my concentration at precisely the right moment. That couldn’t have been a coincidence. The timing of that one had been too perfect to be simple bad luck.

There! Through the foliage, a faint green light pierced through, in twins orbs. My blood curdled as I realized he had been more than prepared for our arrival.

“Begone!” I growled, and a blast of air hit the shadow dead center. Its form grew faint, dissolving into nothing. Still, its elimination gave me little gratification, as still I felt the faint nausea.

The disturbance had truly thrown me off my game.

I felt a warm pair of hooves against my shoulders, shaking me roughly. The familiar accented voice followed suit. “Quick! Yew have to take me there! Before this gets any worse!”

“Y-yes… Miss Applejack,” I grunted, frowning and trying to see through this fog. “L-let me just…”

Officer Silver Plate chose that moment to yell at the top of his lungs, at a volume that could seriously impress me, for the countermeasure at work.

I did not know if she had suddenly seen an opening, if the attention-grabbing events had cleared a path for her or if the fate of her friends had unnerved her so much she could not bear to wait any longer. But, just as I regained my senses, Applejack had started running forward. In an instant, she had circled around the line of soldiers and wolves and galloped through. Two pegasi immediately broke through and flew afterward.

There was no time for another reaction, as the hydra roared for attention. And its massive presence hung over the rest of us.

As one, the unicorns had turned, heads half-lowered, and magic had illuminated the tip of their horns. Unflinchingly, trusting their partners to protect them from any other oncoming assault, they fired. Two dozens beams of light flew at once, as one unavoidable wall of power.

Even that was not enough, for the hydra faltered on its feet but did not yield.

There was a one word order and they fired again.

With a great cry of pain, the beast fell back, tilted on its scaly feet. Its fall was akin to that of a mountain, as its awe-inspiring size evoked.

The earth shook one last time from the hydra’s actions, and with all its weight behind it, this time was the most powerful.

I felt before I saw that the assault had been successful. Yet, even with the creature down and knocked out, something shifted underneath its skin. Though unconscious, there was more activity in its lungs than there should be. Whatever it was, it made me sick. It should not be part of the air.

From its jaws, dark smoke leaked out.

In a flash, I saw Twilight, still a unicorn, sitting in a dark cave with her eyes reflecting only that same malevolent green light. The outside world had disappeared for her during that time, until she had been saved by her faithful assistant.

Grimly, I could imagine what such a spell would do to the troops assembled, were they to be hit in the middle of the battle. The tides would turn in an instant. Those brave ponies would die, en masse, without ever realizing what had happened to them.

My jaw clenched so hard they hurt. This was a tactical decision. This was a choice from the Dark King himself.

This wasn’t right!

There was thus but one thought going through my mind while the winds picked up in strength, and circled the fallen beast. There was one sentiment I let echo in my head when the air accelerated and formed a barrier between the darkness and us. Not on my watch.

Things had gone by in a blur. One moment, they had been standing at the ready, waiting for the signal to start running toward the cave. The next, they were in the dark, stumbling around with growls and tripping. And then the light had come and she had bitten on a timberwolf’s tail to stop it from reaching Pinkie Pie. The pull had almost dragged her forth, but she had hold on just enough, and a vengeful Rainbow Dash had taken care of that threat. Even then, there had been no time to breath. Shifting noise had come from behind her. As fast as her fear could carry her, she’d spun.

Fluttershy now stood very still, frozen in place, her muzzle inches away from the shimmering wall of light. Her gaze was transfixed upon the sliding jaw and teeth and drools and… and… oh my…

She was fighting very, very hard not to feel faint, but she still felt her herself grow a little dizzy.

“Quickly, dear.” A gentle hoof pulled her away from the barrier.

Without a fuss, Fluttershy let herself be led to the center of their formation by Rarity. They stopped just next to Twilight, whose horn was channeling the power necessary for the barrier surrounding them.

The prince’s deep voice floated in the air, in quick words she did not catch. She only knew that Twilight and Rainbow Dash had looked relieved, and they had relaxed right afterward.

But there soon was the awakening of a much greater beast than the timberwolves. Like the others, they had been shocked and intimidated. Pinkie had been the one to take care not to let Rainbow Dash fly in the face of danger, a wise move considering the barrage of spell that had been hurled toward the creature.

While the others weren’t looking, Fluttershy had gazed downward, closing her eyes and mouth. She could not help feel a pang of sadness in her heart at the hydra’s downfall. It just seemed… avoidable…

Others were not nearly as touched by the events.

“Why aren’t they here yet?!” Rainbow asked, her voice more hoarse than she remembered, wings shaking. “We’ll have to fight through a pack if this goes on much longer!”

Beyond the conjured up shield, the timberwolves circled their position, growling. Their green eyes fixed them with an abnormal intensity, and one could easily see the wisps of purple smoke escaping from the side of their heads. They seemed to have a slight preference to the western side of the barrier, to which Fluttershy and Rarity were the closest to.

The fashionista spoke with a hint of fear. “Am I only imagining this or are they-?”

The sound of rushing air stopped her. Before her widening eyes and that of her companions, half of the pack was lifted in the air, howling in pain. Branches showered the ground in the next moment of heavy silence. It lasted barely an instant. Three more wolves broke apart, dismantled and dispersed at once, as if struck by the swipe of an invisible paw. There was only one wolf left.

Its orders were frantically forgotten, for it pawed at the ground as best as it could, searching desperately for a better hold against the wind. A tug shook its whole wooden body, snatching up pieces of its hind legs. Its claws slid, slowly, then a little faster. In the closest trees, all too suddenly, the leaves shook with much greater intensity and, with one last pitiful yelp, the wolf was sucked up in the air.

The five mares stared in awe or horror at the figure disappearing into a column of wind. There were no clouds, no storm, the tornado remained a solitary figure as if it’d been artificially triggered. It had but one distinguishing trait in comparison to those somepony like Rainbow Dash could create: it was pitch black. Even the beacons could do nothing to brighten it up. The tornado seemed nothing more than a pillar of darkness.

“I think he’s busy with that!” Pinkie pointed, a flashing sign helpfully illustrating the phenomenom.

“You don’t say, darling!” Rarity’s voice was laced with enough sarcasm to shame a noble.

Naturally, it easily flew over Pinkie’s head, who amicably nodded and repeated her affirmation.

Grumbling, one hoof hitting her forehead in annoyance, Rainbow shot a critical look to the battlefield. “Well, if he’s busy, then I’m going!”

Twilight’s eyes widened in panic. “Wait!”

But Rainbow had already left in a multicolored blur, going straight through the barrier as if it didn’t exist. They were left to gap as the assistant weather manager zipped through the storm-like winds as if they were nothing more than summer breezes.

“Dashie will need assistance!” Pinkie solemnly declared, placing a hoof to her forehead in a salute. “And I have just the thing to help.”

Before Rarity could even blink, her pink friend was inside a pastel blue canon, wearing a, thankfully fashionable, fuschia helmet. The one thing she was truly wondering was when she had started holding the trigger for said contraption.

Too dazed to notice Twilight running toward her, Rarity only gave a blank look to her friend in her party canon.

“Do it!” Pinkie yelled just as they collided.

Neither Rarity nor Twilight could later recall which of the two had ended up causing Pinkie Pie to soar through the air, the only thing they could vividly remember was how much confettis were scattered through the battlefield with the growing gusts of air rattling it.

Rainbow Dash really didn’t see why her egghead friend had been so worried when she’d decided to go look for them. This? Dodging the manticores, following the crazy air currents her coltfriend had made and the occasional stray shot? Easy! She ate harder obstacle course for breakfast.

Diving, she suddenly straightened up, making a fast loop and barreling hooves first at the back of a manticore’s head that had been much too slow to keep up.

Easy as pie, Pinkie would say.

Things were really starting to get hectic.

Or so she thought when her body darkened under a much larger shadow. She barely needed to look, she could hear them and she knew what they were. The spinning of their propellers caused wooshes after wooshes of air, their long fins directed them in the sky, the sight had something humbling.

She’d seen them in Cloudsdale before, though not quite the same model. Whereas the ships she had seen before were all size and transportation, those were all about air superiority. With the beacons’ light cast unto them, their every edges came out sharper. Their canons were aimed down, ponies ran on the decks, pegasi were already raining down from them to join in the fray.

They were war ships.

Maybe the poor suckers King Sombrero had recruited would really need the therapy. Too bad she wasn’t going to pay for it. Ah!

She stretched her wings, ready for a reprise of her previous performances, when a flash of green caused her to pause. Turning, she noticed, rightly above her brethrens, some sort of shadow with eyes.

She might have ignored it, left the task for somepony without a vital mission on hooves. But she still remembered something, when they’d come back from the Empire, they’d spoken in hushed whispers about the stairs, the traps. If there had been one thing, one thing that had truly struck her, it was the way Twilight was hugging herself mentioning the sickly and malevolent green light!

Nopony did that to her friends.

She shot forward like a cannonball.

A shiver went through the thing, when it noticed a bearer of an Element of Harmony. Its gaze bore into her, and in its silent glare, there was an invitation, a taunt.

Her wings beat faster. She accelerated, the air flowing right around her as she reached incredible speeds. Her body ripped through the sky, straight toward the spy.

Then, just as they were about to collide, Rainbow Dash broke into a large grin.

The green eyes widened, attempted to move away, but was much too slow. At the very last moment, she had taken a turn to the right, dodging it by the smallest margin. The sheer force of air moved by her pulled at the shadow’s form. The next second, it was pulled from the opposite side, as a multicolored blur sped away, brushing past it. There was no time to move, nor to react, as the shadow’s form was stretched and pulled from all side, each time feeling its senses grow duller.

In silence, with the final beat of its enemy’s wings, it disappeared, torn apart.

“Ah! You thought I had forgotten their warnings?!” She taunted the empty spot the shadow had occupied. “Too bad for you, Rainbow ‘Danger’ Dash never forgets a thing while flying!”

Below her, the sound of the fighting was intensifying.

Forcing herself to forget about her own moment of glory, Rainbow turned her eyes back to the ground, scanning for any trace of Applejack.

Something must have provoked him. I did not know what. Perhaps he was simply bored, perhaps he was worried, but Sombra’s next move was easily felt.

The command resonated across his servants. For an instant, they all froze in succession, one after another, as if Sombra’s mental probing went from one creature to another. To my disarray, it carried even beyond the slaves assembled, and I sensed a gathering of magic power beyond the clearing.

“Something’s coming, Officer!” I shouted.

He reacted at an admirable speed. “Squad two! Scout for an additional threat!”

Three more pegasi took to the sky on the spot, one of them heading straight for an airship. It was fast, but not fast enough.

A long and almost lazy growl reached my ears, as the sudden displacement of so much air struck fear in my heart. The hydra hadn’t been big. This was the real nightmare to come.

Oh no, oh nooo, that’s a bucking joke!

“URSAS!” I screamed, for the first time feeling something akin to blind panic.

My shout carried over the air, rippling through the battlefield as both a warning and a call for help. The fighters flinched or fought harder when it reached them, and Officer Silver Plate’s commands became more frantic.

Three very large shapes walked slowly outside of the beacons’ range, which could only serve to highlight their sharp contrast with the forest. For two of them, hints of their heads and their shoulders could be seen. For the third… I almost staggered on my hooves when I saw that mountain-wide torso, the gigantic pillars that were its legs, the form eclipsing the moon that was its face… Elders strike me down, no mortal creature could be that big! And they had appeared without our notice, from nowhere, so quickly I could not help think they had been summoned.

One starry muzzle slowly extirpated itself from the darkness, with a single moment of waiting in puzzlement. The tip of the muzzle scrunched up together, as the stellar beast sniffed the air several times. Whatever enticed it was unknown, but soon the ursa moved forward, and its titanic body shone with stars and moonlight.

Tensing, I saw the mother stand on her hind legs, lifting one paw high above her head, so high above the canopy and the hills.

NO!

A scream of pain tore through my throat as the wind barrier fell in one fell swipe of the mother’s paw.

My head felt like it was swimming in water. Dizziness made me unsteady, with each of my thoughts slowed down. The heat was still channeled through my horn, the shimmering light still wrapped up around it. It was just a matter of will… of will… to pierce through this fog… to summon back the strength necessary.

Flames ate at my temples, beads of sweat started to roll on the side of my face, I staggered, but the smoke was imprisoned once more.

“Reinforcements!” I said weakly, hoping it carried over to the right mare. “We need reinforcements!”

A solid hoof held me in place, and through the heavy blinks, I recognized Silver Plate, looking much less disheveled than I, but no less worried.

“T-thank yo-” I started to say.

“Have at thee!”

We looked. Not only us two, but the soldiers and even our enemies looked up at once, all guided by the resounding warcry. The green eyes of Sombra’s slaves reflected a cautious curiosity. This was a voice he doubtlessly remembered, and he must have wanted to gauge the power at play here, the very same spiraling spark that shone through the night, twisting around my cousin’s body.

The spell was cast. There was nothing but a whistling noise to accompany it. A single ray of blue light sprung from her horn and cut through the air, unstopped, unstoppable.

In but the brief moment I had taken to blink, the light was already fading. Then, from the other side of the clearing, a thunderous explosion sent a shockwave over the battlefield.

The ursa roared in pain, half of its face still smoking from the hit.

I stared, slack-jawed at the spectacle before us.

Luna was akin to a fly in comparison, almost unnoticeable next to the mother stellar beast. Almost. Streams of incandescent blue flames wrapped around the ursa’s torso, struck at it, pushed it back, all emerging from the same fast moving source. Every hit was calculated, almost cold with precision, in how the ursa constantly staggered back, stopping its cub from ever entering the fray. All she could do was throw wild and desperate attacks, swiping at the air with her titanic legs, but even that, Luna could dodge.

One such attack I saw, without the power to intervene, go straight for the barrier I had put up.

My knees buckled as the tornado broke apart from the sheer power thrown against it. A ragged breath left my mouth, one of my eyes half-closed from the exertion this monster was forcing me through. I didn’t have the time to rest. Not even when Luna did her absolute best to contain one of two very dangerous threats to the operation. I still had my part to play.

The shadows once again threatened to overwhelm our forces.

Not again! This is… this is insane! I have to…

At that moment, my heart turned to ice with fear, as I realized how close the breach was to Twilight.

My wings spread of their own accord.

Cold washed over my fur even before I had taken off, lightness took me over, while my limbs became see through. With a gust of wind, I was no longer flesh, and my path was set. I flew.

Straight into the heart of the corruption.

An heavy breath came out of her mouth as she jumped over a fallen log. On reflex, she pulled at the chord attaching her Stetson to her head, just to make sure...

With all the things unfolding around her, it would be no surprise if it flew off her head, especially since that tornado had started on one side of the battlefield.

She’d become aware of her guardian pegasi some time ago, when the wolves’ first attempt had been cut short by spears piercing their guts. In many ways, she was grateful. It certainly made her progress faster, and Celestia knew she needed to hurry. The failed teleportation worried her sick. Putting two and two together hadn’t been hard when the lil’ prince had looked pale as a ghost.

The big critters that had shown up just afterward had truly proved her right. Her legs had started moving faster, the burn of exertion crawling on her, in her limbs and her lungs. Twice already, she’d have to turn sharply to avoid either a few wolves that had broken the ranks or just the plain madness that were the monsters fighting the princess.

With so much noise everywhere, it was starting to get hard to dodge the really dangerous parts. Everything just came from every direction, to the point her heart was going into frenzy with adrenaline. She could harldy make anything out of all that screaming, yelling, howling, roaring, growling, squawking…

Squawking? She almost stopped short, if only for the absurdity of such a thought going through her mind. What was she imagining? They weren’t on her farm. And she’d be damned if it ever ended up looking like that.

Glancing in direction of the sound, she let her jaw drop. There was a chicken. A chicken. Running around on her right. She could only see its head, but that was a doggone chicken! Again, it squawked, looking around.

Her bafflement, however, faded away in a fraction of second. On the glitter of the moonlight and that of the shining beacons, she’d seen reflecting from the chicken’s beak. It had… fangs?! And no sooner had the thought crossed her mind did Applejack witness the creature slither over a rock on its long scaly tail. Celestia, that thing’s body couldn’t look like less of a chicken’s if it tried. All of scales and spines, bat wings, bloody red eyes… crimson… red… eyes…

“Look away!” She heard, and her body responded before she could even realize the meaning of it.

Applejack turned, only now realizing the abnormal stiffness in her legs, and looked at her savior with blinking eyes.

“A cockatrice turns its victim into statues through eye contact!” A gray pegasus in armor yelled, wrestling away with a timberwolf that had a particularly tenacious streak.

Already, the cockatrice’s squawking was getting closer, making them tense up.

“Ain’t that just a fine thing?” She asked with sarcasm seeping through her every word, her heart pumping faster than ever.

Seconds later, glimpses of white feathers appeared in her vision. Applejack’s eyes went shut.

Her ears caught the movement of its wings on her right. She spun, but already its putrid breath was on her side, and she felt some air brush against her back’s fur. The squawking came from her left, and at the moment the scales teased at her coat, she buckled.

Hit nothing.

She was dimly aware of the growls and howls around. Her two guardians might be fighting, but if something slipped by, she’d be a sitting duck with her eyes closed like that. The frustration was enough to make her grind her teeth together.

Focused, she had to be focused. If she could only give the creature a good buck to the head, she’d be fine. Ruffling came from behind her, alongside the sounds of droplets. She could visualize its position.

In a second, her front legs tensed, her hind legs hitches to spring.

But it was wrong. It moved with too much weight, too much slumbering. It was too big!

She sidestepped on reflex. Large jaws of stone snapped inches away from her hooves.

“Whoa nelly!” She jumped back, backing away as quickly as she could from the emerging threat.

Previously immobile, the cragodile had been well-hidden amongst the overturned stuff and the muddied water from which the hydra had also came out. Now, it half-loomed over her, eying her with hunger and malice.

“Right…” She sniffed with contempt, while feeling cold sweat roll over her spine. “Ah couldn’t trot through this place with mah eyes closed. Ain’t smart to think Ah could with these critters around.”

This wasn’t going to work. The cragodile’s breath still reached her, and that was a smell she didn’t appreciate one bit, while the cockactrice’s cries were not far behind. Either the critter had a tooth against her or it’d been sicced on her.

Slowly, her breathing completely stabilized, Applejack opened her eyes.

She saw the gaping maw headed straight for her.

Immediately, she jumped to the side, taking the high ground on some fallen trunk. Her hooves scrambled against the rotting surface, and she barely kept herself from slipping down. With a push of her legs, she slid off the side of the trunk, while the cragodile’s stone jaw pulverized the trunk. Splinters flew off, luckily avoiding her eyes.

Rolling, she jumped back to her hooves, galloping away from the rampaging beast. The ground shook with its thundering steps closing in. In desperation, she kicked a piece of wood, hoping to distract or blind it, but she missed. The projectile flew to the cragodile’s right, and a cry of indignation reached her.

Thunderstruck, Applejack accelerated and turned around. There was no time to stop, the monster was upon her. With three agile jumps, she passed it by, certain of what she had to do. She heard the noise again, not even a pony’s length away, and already she could feel the movement of its scales. Her hoof shot off without her turning, in one wide motion to catch it at the neck. A squawk of surprise came out, when her second front hoof held its head in place.

The jaws of stone came one more time, and she bounced off the broken trunk onto the cragodile’s head, and shoved the cockatrice’s into its face.

The beast froze, its beady eyes transfixed and away from Applejack herself. Gray started to cover its body, melding it solid in an unmoveable piece. The curse moved swiftly. It did not cry. It stopped moving completely without even one last sound.

Applejack thought for a moment that the relief would make her legs buckle.

More screeches rose from the cockatrice’s throat. It struggled, its scales dug a little deeper into her flesh, but she did not drop the creature. Her grip tightening, she slammed it down against the statue, hard. Just to be sure, or so she figured, a spear ended up finishing the job.

She did not flinch when droplets of red splashed her face.

With a breathless turn, she scanned her surroundings and glanced back at the guards, both of whom were already closing on her for her protection. Feeling perhaps a bit too cocky, the adrenaline still pumping blood rapidly through her veins, she drawled.

“Next!”

I was struggling, feeling my head ready to break apart at the slightest touch, with lances of cold piercing me through. I was struggling, with my wings as gusts of wind and my heart, a seal. I was struggling and failing, as the barrier faltered in its own pedestal.

There had been something so foolishly obvious about it. That I did not see it coming was a fairly strong indicator of my arrogance.

I was the air.

And his corruption took the form of a darkened smoke.

The darkness was gone. I’d taken it all in.

A voice had slithered through my mental defense. Deep and suave, it rolled off the pitch black mass crawling in my mind and asked a single question.

“What do you fear?”

A crowd of ponies, white, purple, blue, black or brown, screaming in anger and disgust.

A claw that tore apart my eyesight with three lines of nothing, holding up a mask of gold. It resembled my face, it was my face.

They saw beneath it, and they demanded my death. Without exception.

Thousands of faceless beings broke through the Veil to oblige.

“What do you fear?”

Two lone figures in a featureless home. Two lone figures that broke apart and, in a whisper, called my name and that of another.

“What do you fear?”

A blue colt, lost in shadows, calling for help, calling for his family, for the one that could not come. Streams of tears fell off his eyes, sobs choked him, and he curled up on himself with pitiful cries.

Monsters circled him, smiling through their fangs, and taunted him with the knowledge that he had been abandoned.

And in his last moments, he would believe it.

I saw nothing but green. Nothing but green. Nothingbutgreen.

Nothing but green, and the knowledge that could break me.

Their deaths.

A savage scream broke through the illusion, and it was only when the rage had become a maëlstrom within the knot of winds that I realized it was mine.

I was struck down. Swatted away like an annoying insect by the paw of a giant.

Hot liquid trickled down into my eyes, blurring it with red. A line of burning pain split my forehead in two, blood leaked from the gash. My hooves were unsteady; my legs, folding. Jagged breath came out of my mouth harshly in burst of cold, and the heaving of my chest grew with the anger that pulsed deeper every second.

It would not come to pass! No matter the cost, it would not become the truth! On the Elders of Order and Chaos together, on Those Beyond, I swore, those visions would never be more than images of a future that was not to be!

I stomped, ice spreading beneath my hooves, but I registered no cold. It felt perfectly normal… right. Half of my limbs were already translucids, pale, icy, with no shade of their usual color. There were feathers on the ground, probably mine, if I listened to the mute pain lancing in my wings. They were already just remnants, crystals of snow.

A large shadow suddenly darknened that sight.

Surprised, I looked up.

And I was made aware of a terrible sight.

Green scales shone with moonlight above us. Great flaps from two enormous wings created small hurricanes. Grand was the shadow it cast underneath, onto me and the rest of the troops; that of a reptilian beast with unequaled greed.

Its claws swept at an airship, and cut through. Splinters flew, sails were blown away by the impact alone, as a long tearing noise rang over the battlefield. Two large pieces of a once proud airship fell, and overboard the flailing forms desperately reached for those of them that could fly.

A stream of flame erupted from its mouth, toward the sky, as if defying the will of those above to stop it. For a brief second, its roar mixed in with the lightening breath of destruction; I saw every shade over its skin, felt every contraction of its ribcage, as it turned an almost mocking glance downward.

But its path of destruction did not lead toward our troups. No, each flap of its wings carried it further, placed more distance between us.

The green dragon of the Everfree Forest was flying away from the battlefield. And I realized, with blood freezing in my veins, that it could only have one possible destination.

…Toward Ponyville?

Right in the middle of the clearing, under the shadows of a dragon, while the shouts and the cries mingled, there was a simple shift in the air.

The first to notice had been the commanding officer Silver Plate, when his shout for a new formation had rang to no ears, not even his own.

At that moment, he had looked down at his muzzle, with a moment of uncertainty, in time for a blistering cold to lick his left hooves. The second the information had reached his brain, the cold had already griped his right side, and he saw, under his ponies, an icy breath spread in a white veil.

Gradually, all sounds died out, and as they did, the fighters slowed down as well, puzzled by this oddity. The beasts were unsure, their gazes flickering between each other, as if to know what to do next, when no order could be heard at all. Their master had become cautious.

The silence was growing closer to them, more oppressive. Air was lesser, almost solid around them and the assaults of panic started to triumph over them. Their limbs were trapped, ensnarled within invisible strings; their back gave out, pushed down by the force of a single cloven hoof.

And strident neighs cut through the thick void trapping them, so unlike the living that their echoes curdled their blood. Blasts of freezing air suddenly blew over their hides, as ghostly equines made the battlefield their feeding ground in the rebirth of a thousand-year-old nightmare.

Author's Note

Sweet Celestia... it's done, this was hell, it's done. I want to say never again, but if any of you read the chapter, you'll have noticed that there are a lot more where that came from.

*gross sobs* Why did I plan my fic this way?! Whyyyy-y-yyy-yy-y?!

Oh well, as always, plenty of foreshadowing around, and hopefully, that was epic enough for the wait.

Of Ice and Darkness

She wished for the freedom to yell her frustration to the heavens above.

The flow of battle had turned against her.

Blasts weren’t as disruptive when they failed to explode in time to unbalance a monster. Blinding shots did little if they fizzled too soon when thrown improperly. The careful and calculated control she had exercised was slipping away with the urgency of the threats called forth. Every moment mattered, but she was still stuck fighting the star beast and it unnerved her, no matter how much she wished to deny it.

And in those giant reflecting pools of green, she saw the glitter of amusement of a puppetmaster. Curse the King of Shadows! Curse him and his games!

She dodged the swipe of a paw, barely, noticing the action alone had caused small dots of white to swirl at random. But closer examination, between two blasts of her magic, revealed those dots to be snowflakes, and worry gripped at her heart. Were the windigoes already growing in power?

Briefly, her gaze went downward, not to her allies but two more victims of Sombra’s magic. The ones that depended on this enemy she had challenged. Wordlessly, she prayed. There were many sins to her name, she could call this one another.

She summoned forth her power, searched through the dark well in her source and pulled. Energy blazed through veins, and she felt the pressure built up in her horn. Her heart sang, for the shortest of instants, to the melody of her own magic. It felt good to let go of the limits, to be as she was meant to be. And power, power built up still stronger within her as the spell distorted the air around her.

There was no more time to lose.

For a creature of this strength, restraints were impractical.

All at once, the magic erupted in a tidal wave of blue light.

There was no time for it to roar, to scream and shout its pain. Within less than the instant needed for the attack to make contact, it was already too late. Its head lied backward, scorching and unmoving. Then, pushed by its own weight, it started falling on its back.

Luna let out a shaken sigh, then started to turn.

The Ursa Major was no more.

And her cubs wailed beyond even the dark king’s control.

Luna forced herself to look away, teeth grinded together. There was no time.

A glance confirmed her worst fear and some. There were easily fifteen windigoes overwhelming Sombra’s forces. A third of that had drunk up the hatred of the Three Tribes to cause an unending blizzard. She wished not face this many monsters at the height of their powers again.

“Don’t be afraid, my sweet Luna,” he whispered in her ears.

Her heart blazing, she shook herself free of those wretched memories. With the thunderclap of a wingbeat, she dove headfirst into battle.

When the worst of the storm had hit, they had acted quickly. The red pegasus had taken off close to the ground and urged them to follow. His fellow soldier had not hesitated, and she hadn’t seen a reason not to trust him. Even she could tell about where the worst of it originated. It was the best time to take their distance from it, especially with the unearthly creepy horse ghosts neighing around.

In complete circumference of the fighting, they had found a caved-in part of the ground that made them much harder to detect. But, even in their avoidance of the frozen things flying around, they managed to share their hiding places with undesirables.

“Consarnit, Am Ah a rotten luck magnet or did Ah just miss a scroll about this?” Applejack growled, stomping.

Her hooves cracked the wood, forcing a helpless yelp out of the timberwolf, just before two more weapons cut into it. The brittle material gave out easily, turning into dust under the strong assaults. It would be a wound that the monster would not regenerate from.

On either side of it, the two pegasi were not having much more fun, as the creative flow of curses out of the gray coated one could attest. Wiping the sweat off his brow, he retorted, “Ma’am, I regret to say I think it’s your Celestia-damned luck.”

At his side, his companion found the strength to snort in spite of their situation. He quickly punch his shoulder, seemingly offended. “Rain, don’t say that to an Element’s bearer!”

“She’s Honesty.” Rain shrugged with his wings. “You want me to lie to her?”

“S’fine, guys. Ah don’t think it’s really important right now.” Applejack shook her head, before gesturing toward the howling winds around. “We’re kinda busy, remember?”

Grimacing, she sent a worried look in the direction her friends were supposed to be. At least, from what she remembered. It was starting to get hard to tell at all. Turning to the stallions, Applejack mumbled. “Ye think you could get me to mah friends fast?”

From their sudden hesitation, she could tell it was not going to happen.

The red one cringed, his tail twitching once. “With that kind of dangers roaming around, you’d have to be a pretty fast pegasus not to fall prey to the weird things flying around.”

Applejack didn’t feel the need to ask if they thought they could be fast enough. Things were turning out more dire than she had hoped. Without her, the others couldn’t zap that darn unicorn king and be done with it. With her stuck in this trench, things weren’t in their favor and wouldn’t turn either.

“Did somepony call for a emergency dose of awesomeness?” a well-known cocky voice came from above.

Looking up, they all saw the rainbow-maned mare flying overhead with barely a scratch on her.

“Rainbow?” Applejack called, taken aback by her sudden appearance.

“Come on, AJ, no time to lose!” Rainbow Dash landed next to her, quickly taking her hoof. “We gotta go back to Twilight and the rest right now! This fight should already be over by now.”

Still a little shocked, the mare looked at her previous company with a hint of worry. This wasn’t how she had imagined their daring escape.

“Fly, we’ll hold them back,” the red pegasus gestured for her to take the offer quickly.

Applejack grimaced. “Y’all helped me way too much for me to leave yeh like that.”

“It’s what we’re supposed to do.” Rain shrugged, with an easy smile. “You mares are supposed to be saving everypony. So get to it.”

Briefly, her legs shook with anger. She seemed ready to buck something, anything. But finally, gritting her teeth, Applejack simply tilted her Stetson to them.

“Come on, Rainbow,” she said, settling down on her friend’s back. “Show off yer supposed awesomeness.”

No sooner said than done, Rainbow Dash took off at a startling speed for a mare carrying another pony on her back.

“Dashie! Applejack!”

Their jaws dropping in collective indignation, the two glanced to their right, in time to see pink and light blue collide with them.

The hit was too much for Rainbow’s precarious flight. Without any opportunity to straighten up, the three of them crashed violently into a pile of snow. Though fortunate in that it softened the failed landing, the impact lifted much more snow, creating a white cloud that obscured their sight.

They could not have seen the windigo heading straight for them.

“Look out!” One of their guardian took off toward them, grasping his only weapon in his hoof.

The blade was trivial, he knew. He doubted it would even leave a mark on such a thing, but there wasn’t enough time to push three civilians out of the way. So he spread his wings wider, took place in-between prey and predator, and stared his death in the eyes.

“Fireflight!” Rain shouted.

He gritted his teeth, tensing every muscle in his body. His heartbeat felt loud in his ears. His feathers rustled with every one of them, every beat that left him that much closer to his demise. In the last seconds, strands of his coat whitened under a new layer of cold and he understood with absolutely certainty that would be the thing to do him in, when the windigo suddenly contorted in midair with a bloodcurdling shriek.

An aura had taken hold of its body, brighter than the cold swirl in its eyes, burning with power. With almost insolent ease, it launched the beast away despite its snarls.

“Do not touch the cursed spirits, soldiers!” Princess Luna warned from above, her figure already disappearing through the growing storm, with only the illumination of her repulsing spells to follow her progression.

Then, the few instants of stunned stillness came to an end, and the three mares quickly untangled themselves from the ground, Applejack and Rainbow doing so with a particular haste and annoyance.

“Pinkie!” they shouted in anger. “What are you doing here? We were supposed to stay together!”

“Yup,” she nodded in earnest. “That’s why we’re together in this right here.”

“No, I meant with Shy and Rare and Twi!” Rainbow grunted. “We can’t just split up like that!”

The following reply died down on Pinkie’s lips, as her mane suddenly stood straight on her head. At incomprehensible speed, she twisted around, her blue eyes suddenly on the trees and the open air around them.

Recognizing the signs, both her friends frantically scanned their surroundings, but that valiant effort was unneeded. Their enemy announced its presence clearly. An ominous, ever echoing neigh flowed around them, as wisps of frozen air snaked near them. The trail led to the floating windigo above them.

Some of them wouldn’t admit it, but the equine-like creature unnerved them in incredibly creepy ways.

And one of them did not need to admit it at all.

“I got this, girls!” Pinkie confidently strutted toward the spirit of hatred.

For a short moment, the other ponies did not react, mesmerized by the brisk pace she set herself on to meet a windigo head on. Then, they saw her crouch down.

“Surprise hug attack!” she shrieked as she jumped up high in the air.

Confusion briefly appeared in the windigo’s eyes, before it glared and flew in a straight line toward her. Shards of ice already formed within its tail and its mane. But one rainbow-colored snatched its target away before there was any contact. The creature only howl in anger as it followed the afterimage and the trail leading back to the group of ponies.

“Hey!” Pinkie protested, aggravated by the intervention.

“The princess just told us not to do that!”

“But it’s the way to deal with those meanies, right?” Pinkie said, looking at them confidently. “Love and tolerate, and hugging while slowly freezing to death.”

A… contemplative… silence followed that ingenious finding.

“Urgh, Pinkie!” Rainbow groaned, facehoofing. “What are you talking about?!”

Before anything could be said, their attentions were stolen by the angry howl of the windigo, cheated of another victim. Much faster than before, it flew at the edge of their little group, silently daring them to try to escape while it froze them alive.

And perhaps it was that circling motion and the ice crawling in their direction, the very same things they had been told to imagine a few years back, that stirred up the farmmare’s memories.

“No wait, Ah think she might be onta sumthing.” Applejack placed her hoof on Rainbow Dash’s shoulder. “Don’tcha remember the play? The whole fancy theater thing we did on Heart’s Warming Eve?”

Rainbow Dash looked at her as if she’d grown a second head.

“…What?” she deadpanned. “You want us to hug to chase away the icy monsters?”

“Ah wouldn’t even be surprised if it worked.” Applejack tapped the necklace around her neck.

“Friendship is magic… al, Dashie!” Pinkie declared with utmost serious. “Of course it’s going to work.”

Scowling before both of her friends being so insistent, Rainbow’s resistance crumbled and she rolled her eyes. “Fine!”

“If you’re absolutely certain about this, ma’ams, we’ll do our best to buy you time,” Fireflight declared solemnly, to which Rain nodded in approbation.

Swiftly, the two soldiers turned, intent on giving that spirit-monster-thing the fight of its life, but bumped into something on their first step. On reflex, their glancse went downward. There, they saw the orange leg on their breastplate forcing them back. Their jaws hanging, they blinked, unable to understand.

“Yeah, y’all coming into the hug too, y’know?” The farmmare gave them both a sly grin. “Saved my skin there, yeh think Ah wouldn’t wanna know y’all better?”

“But…” they started to protest, but were cut off by a suspiciously strong grip from the pink mare. In one fell swoop, she gathered all five of them in a closed circle. Nopony but her knew how they had come to be collectively hugging each other.

“So… how long are we supposed to be hugging while windigoes are on the loose?” Rain asked slowly, shifting a little under the hooves of the rather attractive mares.

“Hopefully not until we are covered in ice,” Fireflight deadpanned, his eyes still trailing on the neighing beast circling them in the snowstorm.

“Well, according to the script last ti-” Rainbow grumbled, but was cut off.

“Any second now. We’re all friends here!” Pinkie insisted, scrunching up her face to will the friendship to friendship faster.

But with the passing seconds, her daredevil friend started to feel embarrassed. Denying up to the red on her face, Rainbow cleared her throat. “I just want you two stallions to know I’m only doing this because she asked. I’m usually doing more awesome stuff.”

At that, a worrying fit of coughing shook the bearer of Honesty, making the others turn to the now blushing mare. “S’rry, swallowed wrong there.”

Pinkie seemed the only one to take it at face value. The others noticed how suspiciously like laughter her cough sounded. It was more or less confirmed when her leg brought Rainbow in a stronger embrace, still chuckling goodnaturedly. “Never change, Rainbow.”

“Of course not,” she said, boasting without shame. “I’m already the fastest pegasus in Equestria, no need to be any different.”

Rain and Fireflight exchanged knowing glances, and perhaps there was a little fondness in those usually serious eyes. Freezing here, with those mares? It could be worse.

Inside of them, it was like a bubble of true warmth had popped, a spark that linked them together. From the three mares and the two stallions, the bond carved itself on their hearts and they accepted each other. Serenity and warmth filled their every pore, a light pink aura surrounded them in the midst of the storm. They felt lifted by the most powerful of magic.

Harmony sang in their blood.

I had felt cold, chilled to the bone even.

Snow had fallen and ice had covered all. The storm had brewed above, and the time for reaping had come. So simple, such an amazing joy had sung within me through the unleash of my power, it had been… perfect.

But not anymore.

Fire. My veins were filled with bucking fire!

I writed on the ground, holding my barrel with my wings and my hooves, vainly trying to ease off some of the pain. Worthless, but equine as far as reaction goes. Through the blur of my tears, I attempted to locate the reason for this, and found it instantly.

Two hearts of pure energy shone over two spots of the battlefield, sending the children screeching away in unholy terror. I knew what those were, I had seen them in action before… With a light beyond those of the magical beacons, so bright it seared, so strong it blew away every remnants of darkness lingering, their bonds burned through the night and fended off evil.

I wanted to hate them for it. Deep down, I just knew there was something primal wishing to lash out at the stupid amount of pain they were putting me through. But every ray of light those hearts sent my way were filled with something too pure for that. To even resent them self-defense… It just seemed so petty…

My mind felt so clear… it had been before, but I could see now that it was just a lie, just an adrenaline rush and the words of an ancient curse.

“Prepare yourselves,” I whispered, hoping to carry it to the girls.

My hooves dug into the ground, my muscles tensed, as I steeled my resolve. My gaze locked on the monsters I had summoned. They were going to ruin everything. I could not let that happen, too much hinged on this mission succeeding!

From the pit of my guts, the same devouring desire rose to overwhelm me. I did not fight it, staying focused on the windigoes with every ounce of willpower I possessed.

“Enough!” I shouted, the echo reverberating over the battlefield. “Feast no longer! You. Are. Mine!”

Through the air went a pulse of magic, and silence fell at once. The shadows of the past melted, and the cold winds stilled.

Dark clouds gathered at my behest. The sky took on an inky shade of black, casted upon those accursed ponies a reflection of their hearts. Darkness.

With thunder and storms, I summoned Light.

“STOP!” I bellowed. “CEASE AT ONCE!” My panicked shout was punctuated by the strikes of lightning, and below me the mortals scattered, though not to the singing of their hearts. They were vile creatures, I was starting to suspect. They simply did not wish to challenge my power directly.

But they would bid their time, once more.

With more fatigue than my display of strength warranted, I landed straight where the heart of the conflict had taken hold. Thus, I knew despair once more.

I recognized them. I recognized so many of them. None seemed to be moving. None breathed. They were long gone.

For the shortest instant, a blasphemous curse toward Vitam Mortem lingered on my lips. How could the Elders be just if they had asked this of me? Why did they give me such a task if they were to claim so many of the innocents I was meant to save?!

No… I shook my head. It was not my place to question them. My place was only with the fallens. So I trotted through the ruins of a burning military camp.

My hooves stopped next to a young adult’s head, into a puddle that smelled of iron and copper. The taint soiled my fur, added a shade of red to it.

Half of his face was indistinct, hidden by a caved-in piece of his helmet. The other half was known to me.

A knot tied itself in my throat. What had it been…? Oh, yes, he had wished to be a baker. To feed his community, to give them something to eat and appreciate.

A noble goal, that was never to be.

Judicium, have you given it to him? Or was his heart deemed unfit for a reward yet?

No, no, of course not. The fault was not this stallion’s – nay, this colt’s. If anycreature would ever need to bear it, it would be me. I had been given the task to restore Order to this land, I had yet to succeed. There were… obstacles to my mission.

The faces of a few ponies flashed in my head, insignificant in every aspect other than belonging to all three separate tribes.

The rot started at the head. The ROT started at the head!

“Caelum,” I heard them call.

They swooped down, and their hooves sank down into the mud. Once more, they repeated my name, together.

Two voices, both feminine. Both of them of my kind, able to understand.

My eyes went to the sisters, first to the eldest.

Celestia the Dutiful, whose eyes still asked the same question. She had been chosen for a reason and we both knew it. Hers was the power of flames and light. Hers was the power to purge this world.

For a long moment, I could not find the strength to answer. Had I tried, there would have only been a supplication.

And we would be asked to return Home to the smell of burning flesh.

It took a moment of contemplation to force myself to tear my gaze away from hers.

Luna, sweet and loving Luna. The younger sister, the temperance to my anger, the one they had sent to support me rather than my mission.

Her wing fell onto my back, her gentle touch soothing against the evergrowing cold of WAR and FAILURE. The fires of my anger felt tampered with a glance of her beautiful eyes, there was still hope, they told me.

“No,” I told them. “I must complete my mission.”

The air around me shivered.

There would be another parlay. It would be the end of this war.

Blazing cold erupted from the tip of my wings, waves of cold air washed down my surroundings. Webs of ice spread. Spread over the inanimate, over the living… over the dead.

A white mist blurred my sight. I could not understand, I did not understand. There were screams, they pierced through a veil, and they were panicked and pain. But why? Had I not already stopped this battle?

The haze dulled my senses. I only knew I had to stop the Three Tribes from fighting anew.

I had entered the chancellor’s tent after leaving his guards unconscious. The lesser of his qualities was at least some courage. Even when faced with the howling winds, he refused to back down.

“You don’t understand! You would NEVER understand! How could you, with your wings and your horn, Caelum?!” The young stallion slammed his hooves onto his table. “We grow the food they demand, we work tirelessly on our crops, it is the price we paid for in sweat and blood! And they still look down on us, because they are somehow more ‘special’ than us?!”

“You promised a ceasefire.” My voice was cold, colder, colder, colder… freezing… “You wagered your name on it. You swore peace for the sake of your own. You betrayed them as much as you betrayed your enemies.”

“They would have betrayed us FIRST! That peace treaty was a ruse by the featherheads and the snobs, and we showed them that no more! No more mocking, no more bullying, no more threats! They can all starve to death for all we true ponies care!”

I had heard enough, I did not need to stay and listen to this mad rambling any longer.

The whispers of my anger were growing stronger, growing harder to repel. I was not weak, I would NOT fall to the influence of Chaos! No… No, I shook my head, I would simply ignore those insidious thoughts, until my mission was completed.

Though ignoring them never made them go away. They came back with an alarming regularity. With every skirmish and every senseless destruction, the taste of ashes twisted my expression into a scowl at the foolishness – nay the evil of that species.
The destruction of their lands didn’t faze them. The deaths of their own did not concern them.

In their hearts, there was nothing but the insane hatred of the ponies that did not share the same attributes. Were they on the verge of death, were they forced to live together or perish, they would do their best to meet an early grave.

“Perhaps they could be helped along that path…” murmured a sweet voice at the back of my head.

How could they demand that I stand back while they promised to cease when the orders were already moving to attack the other two? How could they DEMAND that I stand back and watch their foals die?

…They really did. They wanted me to stay out of the way so they could kill each other and feed their precious egos.

I hated them.

…I didn’t think it was possible for an alicorn to feel it, but how else could I explain the burning sensation in my chest, the anger every one of them inspired me…? Were my eyes the same as theirs? Were they showing only my desire to see their corpses on a battlefield for once?

Was I truly the one meant to do this?

I… had a mission…

But I would never be able to lead those little monsters toward peace if the very sight of them made me nauseous.

The memories shuffled, blurred before I felt transported to a damp and dark place.

I stood immobile, transfixed despite my best intention.

The piece of hatred pulsed within its prison, a dim shade of grey filtering through white light. With time, it should dissipate into nothing and my mission could continue as ordered. Twice it became dim, only to turn blinding. With a jolt of my magic, I forced it back under its seal, and turned my back on it.

When I spread my wings to fly, I could only have imagined the echoing cry.

I retched, the ground shaking beneath my hooves, or vice versa.

Once more… I was still too WEAK!

Frost covered my mane, its hardened edges fell into my eyes. They prickled, but caused nothing more than mere discomfort.

The tips of my feathers felt strangely cold. Soon it spread further.

My whole body shook, an invisible thing pressing down over my barrel, forcing my breath into ragged and quick intakes of air. Lines of white ran over my fur, cutting through the gold like rims. They reached my heart.

There was no warmth in my chest every time Luna comforted me. I simply wished she focused her energies on more useful things.

She was there, between the soldiers and the monsters, with blue flames and mystic light her companions. Her roars were terrible, and pained.

They made my blood curdle.

The deads left me indifferent. What pity was I to have for those fools?

Monsters were falling. Beasts were falling. Ponies were falling.

“Celestia, may I speak to you? Privately?”

Her eyes briefly shone in suspicion. How right she was.

There were screams, equines and then not. I could not tell whom they had originated from. They mixed together, onto the canvas of a mare’s cries of horror.

Celly?

I found it in myself to smile. The children flying around me were delighted by the memories I kept close to my heart.

King Iron Crown.

Chancellor Slow Braised

Lady Commander Typhoon.

Dead!

An hysterical laughter rose from my throat. Too suddenly the entire debacle felt like a story told in jest. Things were so clear to me for the first time in decades! The only way to end the war was to end the species!

I was not laughing.

Though I could hear the echoes, I was not laughing. Truly. There were few times I could have ever experienced so little a desire to laugh. In fact, I could barely fight back a scowl of disgust at the spectacle in front of me.

Ponies… fighting…

They moved through the blur over my senses, weapons in mouth or spells at ready. I didn’t recognize their opponents. It was as if I was sinking in a sea of pitch black darkness. My breath caught in my throat. The bloodthirsty rage threatened to choke me.

It didn’t change. That was all I knew. A millennia of peace would not purge them of their unworthy individuals. There was only one solution.

For a split second, I wished I could summon the indifference I had first felt toward them. It would be better than this… It would be less… painful…

They really just deserve their fates, don’t they? He whispered.

A spell, just a simple one, would be more than enough to give them what they deserved. It would be easy. I had already accomplished more complicated feats with comparatively less experience. With a thought, I could deny them their lives through me. Within the space of a heartbeat, they would be crawling on the ground with their hooves pawing at their throat.

Lowering my head, I pointed my horn toward the contingent of ponies.

That was the will of the sky.

My will.

No… the thought was sudden, subtle. His will, right? …There's a difference. Why would I...?

“Prince Ventus! Look out!”

I turned around, distracted by the warning, only to see the raging face of a manticore closing the distance between us. I did not even think to unleash the spell on that creature.

A gray blur tackled it in midair, away from me. The mass of muscles and fur rolled, roaring like its lion head suggested, pawing at the stallion’s back and viciously slashing his left hind leg. A strangled scream got stuck in his throat, but he did not let go.

It ended all in a moment. Two swift strikes of a blade to the neck silenced those growls forever. The manticore’s paws fell down slowly and did not twitch.

Panting, the stallion stood, gasping when he inadvertently placed weight on his injured leg. I stood by while he spat his blade into his hoof, then spat more saliva to the ground, glancing quickly at the lines of red scarring his leg. Yet, even then the self-preservation returned to the background when he caught sight of me.

“Are you alright?” the pegasus asked with honest concern. “It didn’t get you, right?”

What…? Why did you do that? And, remembering the thoughts that came to me instants before, I felt horror grasp my throat. Why did I want to… to…?

No evil whispered an answer to me. There was only stunned silence ringing through the echoes of my mind.

Their hoofsteps echoed rapidly into the small tunnel. They were galloping as quickly as possible, the only light being that of her and Rarity’s horn. At their necks and her head, the Elements rested and glimmered in the dark, waiting for their use.

The artefacts were at the front of Twilight’s mind. There had already been too much pain born from her botched teleportation spell, they had to end this as soon as possible. They had to use the Elements without hesitation!

The screams still rang to her ears. The growls and the roars still made her fur stand. Every second. Every second was one the fighting went on. Her feathers were still stuck together with traces of frost. She willed herself to ignore its source, only the most immediate consequence should count at the moment.

She tried not to think of the red pegasus that had chosen to stay back, claiming he would stop anything from entering after them. There had been little time to thank him, he had protected her friends, brought Applejack, Pinkie and Rainbow back.
She tried not to think how they were leaving the fighting to others…

No! The fastest way to end this madness was to surgically remove the infection at the top! A precise intervention to break away the enemy’s coordinated attack, then pick off the last of the resistance was the best solution. Even if, in the corner of her minds, she only prayed she’d be forgiven by those she was leaving behind to fight.

Her steps almost became a stumble, so taken by her morose thoughts that she did not notice the change in terrain.

They came into an open area that seemed to be deep enough into the hills. Above them, the ceiling was a comfortable enough height that a full grown dragon could stand without crouching. But their enemy himself was not within sight.

What was however sent a chill to their spines. Piles of bones and… fleshy parts laid next to a cauldron and ominous chants echoed around. The image seemed straight out of a dark novel about rituals and other magics ponies were not meant to know. Somepony, mare-like it seemed, moved stiffly around a large metallic pot. From their position, the Elements’ bearers could easily hear the bubbling liquid stir in its cauldron, and even more so see the sinister glow it crowned the cave with. There was still only one thought crossing their minds.

That mare-like shape could only belong to one pony.

“Zecora!” they called for her, their voices strong with panic.

The zebra shaman truly was in a pitiful state. The purple hue tainting her whole being did little to cover up the harshness she had endured. Smudges and blots of dried blood dirtied her fur. Trails of dried tears had marred her face, almost as scars would have. Her right hind leg was twisted too far to be normal, and she did not favor it.

But less than her physical state, it was in her eyes that the trials had left the deepest traces. Once sparkling with wisdom and good nature, now just empty orbs that reflected nothing. Or almost, for their images did appear to register to her.

Upon seeing them, upon realizing that she was in the presence of her friends, Zecora’s chanting came to an abrupt halt, even at great physical strain. Her wheezing breath soon turned into a wet cough. Through it, even as they all sprinted in her direction, she whispered hoarsely, “Flee…”

“Not without you!” Rainbow Dash replied hotly, taking to the air without realizing her mistake.

She first felt a wrong pull at the tip of her feathers. It was light enough to be almost unnoticeable, but not from an expert like her. Every instinct honed by years of flight Thus, she got to see firsthoof the shadows stretching toward her in a massive gaping maw.

“What the b-?!”

There was no time to finish her sentence. The remaining bearers could only look up in time to see her, sclera colored green, disappearing beyond the light.

Their reaction was synchronized, as the danger their friend was put in woke every protectiveness bones in their bodies. At once, they turned their attention upward, spells and aerial feats already started in the hope to rescue Rainbow, at the moment they really couldn’t afford to. From the closest shadows, black smoke leaped out of the trap.

The darkness swallowed them all.

What have I done? What… happened?

The whispers were far in the back of my head. They could not at this point influence me. The actions of one dutiful soldier had extinguished their cries of unworthiness. It was as if every restraint on me had fallen off at the same time, leaving me with nothing but the pure truth.

And what a fearsome truth it was.

As gentle as I dared, I asked the air to lift my savior off the ground. Dazed as he was, it still took him very little time to regain his wits and stand of his own free will. I should have concerned myself more with his well-being, I should have done everything to be certain, but…

“Prince Ventus?” the loyal pony called for my attention, trotting on three legs.

I could not look away, I could not give him the attention he so rightly deserved. I was too taken by the devastation visited upon this place.

Ice. Snow. Cold.

It should have been a forest. A clearing in the forest. But I was before a frozen wasteland, something like a graveyard full of icy tombs. There were shapes under the snow, blue from the chill, lifeless and screaming. Dim light still shone on them from the beacons, adding a macabre twist to every sculpture.

I stared, my heart jumping in my throat at the open jaw of stalactites and stalagmites. A timberwolf, confined within the hatred of the windigoes. It would never hunt again. The light had already deserted its eyes.

A lump formed in my throat. There could only be one pony responsible for this. I had been so angry… The image still floated in my mind. Sombra’s spell had overwhelmed my reason, in that haze, I would only respond one way.

And if anyone had been caught up in the crossfire...

The sorry state of the clearing was more than enough answer.

I took a step forward, trying to swallow despite the dryness in my mouth. The ice beneath my hooves creaked, white lines spreading across the surface. I flinched, finding the noise grating. Yet, in a way, it was also oddly comforting in the mostly silent clearing.

Forward I looked, to the spot the soldiers were returning. Unease filled my heart at the thought of those brave ones I had placed in the crossfire. As if to reflect that, a strange event prevented me from going to them.

Moved by a force outside my control, the air gathered in a spiral before me. Wisps of cold emanated from it, and the form became that of an equine. It looked at me with curiosity, neighing softly. Again, the sound echoed, but… it did not… resonate with me. Not as it had happened before. With a startle, I realized that I wished not take back this creature.

Behind me, the soldier’s breath hitched up, and I felt him tense up. Without looking, I knew he was ready to take whatever action he would judge necessary to repulse this windigo.

“Wait…” I asked him, my tone betraying my fascination.

This one was different, utterly different from the others I had yet seen. Physically, it was the same. In every way, it was as its brethrens before, but… upon materializing, it had looked at me not in fear or envy. The dancing frost in its eyes had lit up. Almost with... affection.

It neighed, but quietly, unlike everything a windigo stood for.

Grandfather? it asked me.

The word took my breath away.

It can’t be…

An actual living being? One who was not born as a legacy of an alicorn’s hatred, but as the member of an ancient species. No less a fragment of hatred than a regular changeling was a fragment of poisoned Love.

I looked down, a cold hand gripping at my heart while the frightened neighs of the windigoes came back to me. My shoulders crumbled under a sudden oppressive weight. There was no coming back.

They were gone. I’d taken them all back.

And, as the realization hit me, the world tilted.

My muffled scream only came out as a grunt against the ground. Cold circled my mouth, from the snow covering the spot I’d fallen into. Hooves hurriedly tried to lift me, but their grip slipped through my body entirely. I was not right. I was not right at all. My wings felt stretched across miles, my head across hundreds of miles. Weightlessness. Things spun in a weird pattern. The face of a pony was there, only to be replaced by another I knew resided in another town, then by the dog sleeping in an apple farm somewhere, then the ticking of a clock, the snores of a grandfather, steps in a hall, running water, rustling leaves, crickets, voices, noises, noises, noises.

I attempted to shake my head, to clear it, to chase the distractions, it was not the time. They only grew stronger.
So small… I had never felt smaller…

No, I thought, desperately trying to stand but falling everytime. We could not afford to stop. Not yet! The dragon… it was still on its way to Ponyville! There was still… My focus had to be on the dragon!

I stopped, a select few words reaching me and leaving me speechless. My knees giving out barely registered, it had been that much more striking.

I could not believe my ears.

On the decks of the Sky King, the mood was to restlessness. Ponies paced on the deck, except those that were blatantly stretching their wings just under the balloon. Twitches shook their legs or their tail, while pulses of blood were pumped by their fast beating hearts. Adrenaline was keeping them all on edges.

Sounds carried over well in the silence of the night, and the battle further in the forest had been echoed by more than one monstrous roar. One of them had been strangely equine.

They itched to join the fray and help their comrades, but the only order for now was standing as the rear guard. As a last failsafe against whatever was out there.

Thus, when one green pegasus going by the name of Lost Leaf shouted, he got the attention of the whole crew.

“Unknown object detected, Captain!”

Instantly, his nervosity aiding, Prince Blueblood’s head snapped in the direction the vigil had pointed at. Through the inky black skies, it was impossible to see much further than the immediate surroundings of his ship.

He saw it. Them, rather. Two flashing green lights moving closer and closer.

He had heard many tales in his youth, back in the days his father was alive, back when his aunt visited them and narrated tales of the old Equestria. The world was harsh back then, or so Celestia remembered. There were threats around every corner, some more dangerous than the others, though none quite as much as them. The flame-breathers, the great winged lizards, the bane of civilization, Greed-in-the-form-of-fire. And though he had once – eyes wide and smile twice that – wished to have been there, to witness such majesty and epic battles, Blueblood had wisened up over the years. Irony made it so he was now to face that which he only knew the worst of.

A dragon.

One most unprincely squeak rose from his royal throat, all higher functions of his brain shutting down with abject terror.

“Pro-!” he started saying, only for the shout to die down in his throat.

Protect me! At all costs! Those should have been his words. Those would have been his words, not too long ago. He could easily picture his mother glaring through his head for not saying it faster. But hers was not the image that held the most sway over his mind anymore.

The little village, full of commoners on the way here… The shining marvel that was Canterlot further back. And the white alicorn at the heart of it, her surprise at his demand. She’d been almost shocked, something that he had never been given to witness in all his years in the castle. But then, all of it had been replaced by a fondness and the warmth of a heartfelt embrace.

And one more, cladded in gold and silver. He was explaining gentle truths, with eyes so full of rage that they terrified him. He was screaming with more self-loathing than should have been healthy.

Dare, little prince, dare and show me what nobles are worth! The alicorn smirked smugly, looking down on his figure from the invisible heavens. His tone was that of amusement. They’re better than commoners and soldiers, right?

Anger burned at his heart.

“C-come, y-you big… scary, fiery, monster!” Blueblood challenged with a shaking voice. “I will show you what happens when you face a prince of Equestria!”

Ponies stopped and stared. His crew, his troops, all stopped, half of them already in the process of preparing their own counterattack, looked at their cowardly leader in astonishment.

And though he agreed with them, he still found it in himself to grin. The pride of a prince was not so easily squashed. What character was that of one that could never back up his claims of greatness? It was high time that he showed all of Equestria what he meant when he was listing the reasons he was fit to be an actual leader. A dragon should be just about right for that purpose.

Mad, he was absolutely mad!

“Stop,” she demanded, channeling power through her horn and projecting it outward.

The smoke dispersed, faded further into the cavern, away from her. Briefly, the light of her magic illuminated the rocks and the earth and she could see she was on a plateau. No traces of her friends. The realization made her heart constrict in her chest. She was alone. Mostly, in truth.

A low chuckle rose from the shadows.

Sombra’s voice echoed around her, surrounded her from all sides. Through the pitch black darkness, she could not see him, but could no less deny his presence.

She tensed, mentally forming the structure needed for a few spells that could come be useful. Scanning her surroundings, she tried to detect his presence, to find where he was. Then, he started to speak.

There had been an expectation, one born from an illusion shown to her in a castle on a mountain and from a shadow looming over an empire. Though he had managed to frighten her before, Twilight had not known, never even heard, the Archmage of Shadows. Where she had expected it raspy, demonic, grating, his voice was warm and suave, floating in the air, stroking her ears smoothly like a lover’s caress. His tone was accented with decorum, formality and respect. When he spoke, part of her was moved and, with a brief surge of horror, realized that it was not dissimilar to that of another royal pony in her life.

But his words could not have been more different. He started by picking apart her first fear.

“You are afraid, Twilight Sparkle. You see a kingdom of ashes, the burden of a kingdom pushed onto you. You fear responsibility. For one with so little ambition, for one who thirsts for knowledge rather than power, those wings are so heavy. Sometimes, you dream of them falling off. What a relief that would be for you, little filly.”

She flinched, subconsciously folding her wings closer to her sides. Their touch was however all too obvious in her mind, and the words of the fallen king seemed to seep deeper into her mind.

“And what a betrayal it would be toward the one on her golden throne in Canterlot. How would your teacher, this second mother of yours, take the rejection of her protégée? Surely, she would renounce you, abandon you.”

The image was there, terrible, of Celestia denouncing her as a disappointment. It was not real, it was NOT, but to imagine it alone made her want to sob. Never, never…

She did not realize her magic had started to flicker, even when she was gritting her teeth together and shot wild looks to find where he was hiding.

“A fear that is so common.” He was next to her, his breath tickled her ears. “One your friends share. The fear of loss.”

The shadows gathered, made her look to her far right, where she could only catch a glimpse of a weeping pink mare, of a quiet and broken white one.

“Stop!” She yelled, refusing to think of her friends reduced to such sadness.

“And another one, that you revealed at this moment.” Sombra laughed, and it seemed he was closer to her than her loved ones, that he could see deeper in her than anyone had ever done. “The fear of failure.”

Flashes of light blinded her, in a succession so fast she could not understand. But behind those blinding displays, there had been ponies hiding their faces, hiding themselves from the judging eyes of those they had sworn never to let down. She had seen her own amongst the many others, the most terrified of them all, curled up on herself.

“Amusing, wouldn’t you say? Those that thrives for contact are those that fear solitude the most. But then again, fear is a powerful motivation. It is the driving force behind every mortal, Twilight Sparkle.”

“Twilight,” echoed a gentle voice around her.

Despite herself, her mind weighted the argument and compared it with Fluttershy.

There was no need to even imagine. It had been something she had seen dozens of times before. Half of her mane placed between her and others, as a weak and imperfect shield she hoped to disappear behind. She crouched, backing away and obviously readying herself for a swift escape. As every other time, Twilight felt the urge to take that poor mare in her hooves and let her know that she did not need to be afraid.

But… no matter how many times they came to her help…

“Ah, and here is the wisest of your friends, she who fears others the most.” And the way he said it unnerved her. He was intrigued. “How right she is. Behind every pony is a darkness that awaits its moment. Even those closest to you. Or, I would say, in this case, especially those close to you.”

Something flickered in the corner of her eye, and Twilight jolted, twisted her neck quickly to catch it, but whatever it had been was gone. Gold…

Eyes of a greenish blue stared at her, devoid of love and care. Ice crawled over the memory; ice crawled over everything.

“You’re wrong!” she shouted. It was wrong, she knew it, in her bones. Some ponies, some people were not just puppets to their fears. They were strong and good, and there was so much more to them than that! But it was already too hard to express even that much.

A deep chuckle resonated around her.

“Oh? Is it the bedwarmer you’ve chosen? That noble prince you sought? I’ve seen his fears and yours, Twilight Sparkle. They are quite entertaining, to tell the truth. You might think the spirits of law would have more interesting fears, but perhaps he is too young for it. You are featured quite prominently in a fear of his.”

And though she wanted more than ever to shake off the King’s dark voice, parts of her could not help but wonder … Me?

“Would you like to know?” he asked with insufferable kindness. “Do you wonder what could he possibly fear in relation with you? I would surmise it is quite a good deal more fascinating than cradling your corpse and cursing the gods through his sobs.”

Her lips quivered, no matter how much she tried not to. Tears threatened to roll down her cheeks… Every image had stricken her at the heart, and no amount of rationalization could help her deal with the perverted thoughts he was putting in her head.

“Stop! JUST STOP!” she shouted, sending a blast of magic through the air. “I don’t care of what he’s afraid of, what any of my friends are afraid, they still matter to me! We’re more than just that!”

“Ah, but you fear him as well, don’t you?” he said with his suave voice, and Twilight flinched, silent. “Have I been mistaken before? Could you be even wiser than your cowardly friend? You fear the emotions he is making you experience. A mare of logic such as you cannot bear the thought of losing control of yourself.”

As if summoned by his words, everything she had herself noticed came back to mind, and she wanted to curse her thorough organization of it. There was the fire in her chest, the lightness that carried her away, the fleeting thoughts that came and go, all about herself and him, all about them, together lost in a passion.

And the rest of her life felt so distant when such a thing happened.

“This stallion you court… you know of his power. You know of his desires.” Her cheeks grew a darker purple, before she forced it to recede. “He is outside, close to you, but when faced with his fears, he called forth an ancient power. The spirits of hatred, the windigoes. In my youth, they were the monsters adults named to control foals. They are his to command, he is theirs to corrupt. And when that happens, what will become of you?”

S-she already thought of that. She made the checklist and everything! She’d be ready… she’d… be ready… she would… could…

“Power can be overcome, you think,” Sombra continued, relentless. “Cleverness, determination and allies will allow you to bring down any foe, but those are useless when turned against the fickleness of one’s heart.”

Suddenly he was too close, intimately close, and a wisp of black smoke caught her chin in a gentle grasp. His eyes were riveted on hers, and they spoke of pity and amusement at once.

“And your heart wavers.”

There was light in the darkness, a spark to pierce through the pitch black veil. It sailed across the skies, toward a similarly flying target.

“No!” came the despair filled scream.

Fire swooped across the deck, and Blueblood froze in place.

Everything was going to Tartarus.

His ship… his beloved ship…

He had been the one to design it, to draw the plans and submit it to another for verification. He had been the one to move assets around to finance its construction. He had had the pleasure of piloting it first! Every inch of that airship was his, every detail was known to him as intimately as any mare.

And it was with the complete mental image of his most prized possession still in mind that the idea struck him like a freight train. In any other circumstances, his jaw would have dropped and he would have stared dumbly ahead of himself.

“Take the wheel,” he told his second-in-command right as he started to gallop. “Stay within sight of the head!”

“What?!” the mare yelled, but he paid it no mind.

He had already jumped down on the main deck.

“You three!” He pointed at the nearest ponies. “Smother the flames! Now!”

Without waiting for a response, he spun on himself and sent a sweeping glance over his troops. His voice still shaking, but this time with excitement, he addressed the moving soldiers, “Unicorns, focus on blocking its attacks!”

The scatters of hooves shook the deck. Lieutenants started choosing formations, and the light of magic illuminated one side of the airship.

“Pegasi,” he shouted over all noise. “Distraction! Make sure it doesn’t sink us OR leave!”

His subordinates sent him a steely look, their expressions grim at the request. Perhaps in some other bizarre dimension, he would take the time to apologize. In this one, he turned around as soon as the words were said and he took to the lower levels. He only prayed that his orders would give him enough time.

The door flying open within his magical grasp, Blueblood barreled down the stairs toward the inner levels of his ship. His legs moved faster than he could ever recall moving, his breathing already fast in his chest, his heartbeat thrice that. He jumped steps at such speed they scrolled past him in seconds, and his mad race continued within the inner part of his ship.

He remembered, blood pulsing in his temple, leg springing at evergrowing rhythms, that there was still more to do.
“Cannoneers!” he shouted again, his tone starting to break. “Keep the dragon at bay!”

They were already doing just that, or trying to. Scattered across the bowels of his airship, Blueblood’s crew maned the cannons in pairs of two, working near piles of cannonballs and barrels of explosive powder. He saw, quickly, the sparks going off, then the deafening sound of shots fired. For once, he found them comforting.

The sprint toward the front of his ship somehow felt like eternity and the blink of an eye. Everything he had never cared to notice seemed intrusively present. The smell of burning wood entered his mouth and nose, the dragon’s shouts never stopped, and were only covered by the cracking thunders, the wind was bitingly cold, even when his heart pumped pure heat throughout his entire body. Then, he was already in sight of the front.

Passing by one of his worker – Daybreak, he somehow remembered – struggling with a canon, the prince scampered to the one contraption he really hoped to remember how to use.

His horn lit up before he had even reached it, aiming for the string, then the handle underneath. His hooves fell onto the sides of the bow-like top, and he bypassed half the protocol he had drilled into his head. A small burst of light picked up the one piece missing, another forced it into position. Everything happened in a blur, no thought existed for him other than the goal he had set up for himself.

He had done it, he had done it dozens of times already. The very first time had been his task alone, a personal indulgence of his, and it had gone so the following times as well. Granted, it was simply meant as a way to anchor the airship when pegasi could not be recruited for his trips, but in these circumstances, he was willing to make do!

He’d have cursed, he wanted to, and insulted every deity he could think of for putting him in that situation. But even with the shaking of his legs, he had enough dexterity to execute his task perfectly. Above, the screams were louder, sending pangs after pangs of abject fear into his heart. In the corner of his eye, the image of the rampaging monster never disappeared. The twin green circles never faded from sight.

The final ‘clink’ he heard was the only thing that stopped him from fainting.

A prayer whispered under his breath, the magic of his horn flickered and he pulled the lever.

The harpoon flew.

It cut right through the air, as if it were weightless, ethereal maybe. But it was all too real a weapon, and its trajectory was as a straight line. By the prince’s side, the rope unrolled around its wheel at a frightening pace, wheezing against its hold from the friction alone. Even the slight burning smell it gave off could not be registered, as Blueblood attention was transfixed on the harpoon whose shape was disappearing in the night’s darkness.

It will never… he thought with a sudden dread filling his veins. Of course it would not! How could he even th-?

Before he had even finished his imagining the worst, he caught a lightning fast glimpse of the harpoon, right before it hit, with a shade of colored light washing over it.

Through a feat of marksmanship none would have expected from him, the projectile embedded itself in the green-tainted orb of sight that was the dragon’s right eye.

The elated sensation was blown off, in the space of a second, by the roar of the dragon. In a jerk of its massive head, the beast pulled back and with it, the rope started tensing. Within seconds, it unrolled at immense speeds, reaching its full length with a frightening clank of metal against metal. Under the ballista, its solid attachments cringed on their spots, and the shock rippled on the floor.

With a thunderous rumble, the front of the airship started to lift with the dragon’s maddened pull.

“Cannons!” Blueblood shrieked, so loudly he thought his vocal chords would break, all while trying not to slide off his spot. “Cannons! Hit its wings!”

A veritable barrage of projectiles blasted into the dragon, tore into its wings, through the more fragile membrane. Resonating ripping noises filled the air when the cannonballs broke through. The dragon’s flight lost coherence.

Things deteriorated after that.

With a long plaintive howl, the reptilian beast struggled. Its movements grew frantic, too clumsy to keep afloat. Foam erupted in the corner of its jaw, popping and flying off with its blazing hot breath. But its efforts amounted to too little. Steadily, the huge flyer lost altitude, still flinching and lashing out with every flash of lightning hitting it. Its claws missed target and when it tried to breath fire, the sparks died out harmlessly. With the last of its exertion taking hold, its entire body seemed to give out at once.

Unable to glide, it started to fall.

Eyes wide, Blueblood realized too late the flaw of his panicked-induced plan.

The rope! He had to get to the rope! He had t-

The airship shook through its whole frame.

Half lifted by the pull, Blueblood scrapped at the ground, yelping without any dignity, looking everywhere for any suitable object. With clanks and clinks, debris bounced off the planks. When one passed within eyesight of him, his magic engulfed it in his grasp.

It would do, he thought, still sliding.

He struck. Once, with just enough strength to graze the solid rope. Not enough. And the tilting of his ship was now accompanied with a sinister creaking noise over the dozens of ponies screaming. Gulping, sweat running down his coat, he readjusted his grip on the shard of metal and focused very intently on the rope, on the same spot as before.

The shard moved in an arc, faster and stronger than before, and with the ruthless backlash, the airship was freed.

The movement was stronger and more brutal than he could have imagined. Instantly, he was hit by a sensation of weightlessness, by the feeling his internal organs had been suddenly left behind. His mind turning blank with complete horror, he saw the window he shot the harpoon through offer him the exact same courtesy. The wooden frame scrolled past his head, then his shoulder and his barrel.

And his scream was cut off by the jerk of a sudden deceleration.

Blueblood could not move; heat spreading to every corner of him, tears shining in the half shade of the torches, he stared into the open air below him. Two hooves were firmly holding onto his flanks.

His body almost protested when the pull roughly jumbled his insides around again. He could have sworn, while his earth pony worker saved his life and helped him back inside the ship, that his heart was somewhere above his throat.

“R-remind me…” He swallowed weakly, his eyes glazing over. “…To give you all a raise.”

Then, having used up all his courage for the year, the Prince of Unicorns leaned over the railing to expel the content of his stomach overboard.

So heavy… Her head felt so heavy. Mist seeped from her eyes, a strange filter tainted her sight… There was… there should have been something strange, but she could not think. An invisible chain pulled at her limbs, pulled at her neck until she was forced to look only downward.

“They are your shackles, Princess.” A faint touch lingered over each of the stars of her cutie mark. “You are a magical prodigy, a unicorn born with the potential to tear apart the current Order of this world. A unicorn with such potential that she transcended her species to pry at the domain of gods! And you squander it each day wasted with those worthless companions of yours!”

His last outburst echoed in the cavern, sinister and angry. Flinching, she had backed away as much as she could. However, that hadn’t stopped her brain from instinctively picking apart what she had heard, and she knew one thing: he genuinely believed everything he told her. Good, she could believe the same as well then.

There was just one thing that bothered her, if ever slightly. Why did he suddenly sound like he was in a hurry?

“Join me, Twilight Sparkle, I am soon to be reborn,” his voice made its way within her so easily, “I will show you the path that is free of fears.”

With his words, she leaned forward, thinking. His proposal was a solution to every one of her problems. He’d take away those wings, and the weight on her shoulders. She could fade away behind her books again, forget she had ever tried to go out. She would be able to study to her leisure… It would be so easy. Easier than anything else, really.

She opened her mouth, willing herself to give away everything he asked but she did not even manage to put forward a single word.

“Twilight!”, called five familiar voices. “We’re coming!”

It was as if she’d been slapped awake. Suddenly, the enchantment was gone and the pony in front of her returned to being the most evil pony in history. Jolting, she felt the sparks of her own magic cleaning away all the residue, and she recoiled away from Sombra, before a loud pink burst winked her some distance from the dark king.

“This changes nothing,” Sombra growled, the shadows around him twisting in preparation.

Wary, her heart beating at a maddeningly fast rhythm, his target was glancing toward every corner of the cave. She only stopped once she saw the tunnel behind her, lit by a faint blue glow.

They’re coming! All I need to do is stall him, Twilight thought. Slowly, the corners of her lips turned upward. She knew just what to do, and perhaps it was entirely her imagination, but it felt to her as if the air itself had chosen to lift her, to carry her despite her burden. With her voice clear and strong, she gazed into the eyes of the abyss. “Here’s one very important truth.”

A bolt of magic struck the king in his would-be face.

“You know nothing, Sombra,” Twilight spat, her horn burning with brighter magic still. “You are a clueless foal that stumbled upon the right answer without ever understanding how to reach it! Fear may be powerful, but it is not all-powerful! My friends and I can be afraid of one another, but that’s because we care, not the other way around!”

“You fool! You wish to blind yo-”

“Don’t bother wasting more of your time and mine with your psychological evaluations!” She glared at him, feeling her anger grow stronger just remembering what he had put her through. “The ponies I should talk to about my emotional problems are my friends and my family, those that care about me, not some brutish, arrogant, stuck-up monster that stole a crown a thousand years ago and enslaved as many ponies!”

This time, it was a shockwave that sent him reeling back.

Twilight was not even winded. She pointed straight at him, her eyes narrowed. “You are not worthy of knowing that.”

Her ears picked up a faint sound, of air being tossed aside quickly, and its source sent cold air washing over her fur. In panic, she turned around, her wings half opened, so certain he had prepared a spell to strike her down. She was too late.

Twilight found herself almost strangled by two soft yellow legs, with strands of pink hair stuck in her mouth. Before she had time to react or escape, the words finally nailed down what she had hoped: “Twilight, you’re okay!” Fluttershy cried with relief.

The bearer of the Element of Magic was not far behind on that aspect either. Every single one of them had escaped Sombra’s trap and they had all come rushing to her aid. It warmed her heart like so little else could.

“Thanks to you,” she replied with a smile. “I’m not sure if I would have snapped out of it in time without your help.”

“Oh, don’t thank us. Thank her.” Applejack grinned, sending a very impressed look to the yellow mare that wouldn’t let go just yet. “Shy here snapped out of it first. Quick as that, we’re all freed.”

“W-well…” The mare of the hour shrunk on herself, a pleased smile and a blush on her face. “I really was afraid, and Pinkie was almost awake by then…”

“Yep!” Pinkie giggled. “Sure scared us both when she tried to help. We were both like ‘Wah! I’m real, you’re real, meeeep!’.”

From sheer relief, they shared a laugh over the silliness.

It could not be helped, but one dark unicorn had no intention of standing still while their mockery echoed in his lair. With a satisfied smirk, he laid a trap. In seconds, a wisp of black smoke slithered across the rocky ground toward their little group. It went from shadows to shadows, slipping beneath notice under pebbles and debris. The mares could not conceive how swiftly it could move, how deadly it could be. They did not realize death was within a hair’s breadth.

Silently, the snake-like construct struck, aiming straight for the heart of its target.

It was only then that she saw it, that lightning fast spell. Fluttershy’s pupil shrunk into small dots, a cry of shock dying in her throat, there was no time to do anything else. Already, the fangs sank into her neck under the horrified gaze of her friends.

At once, they rushed to her side, praying there was still something to be done. Rainbow Dash was the first there, and, at the spectacle she saw, froze as still as Fluttershy had.

The light of the Element of Kindness kept the construct’s fangs at bay while it writhed helplessly in its place. Steadily, the power of the Element grew and its shine became harsh, until a single pulse of power threw off the tendrils of shadows, and made King Sombra roared in pain.

For a split second, his shape blinked out of existence, as if Harmony rejected him. He grew lesser, lost in strength and hatred under a power greater than his. He was no longer the formless menace of dark magic; his appearance was that of simple unicorn, sweating and panting under the strain, but even then the girls thought him wrong to look at. His body could be seen through, save for his blood red horn.

Dressed in his silver armor, his cape on his back and his crown on his head, he snarled at them, bubbles of black magic popping around his horn. “You fools could have ruled alongside me! Your power could have dethroned gods, but you are too pathetic to realize it!”

“We dethroned you!” Applejack shouted back. “That’s good enough for me!”

From her left, she heard a shocked gasp.

“Sweet Celestia! What is that garish thing he’s wearing?” Rarity asked in all too real horror. “That is so over-the-top I would not recommend it even for a foal’s school play!”

“You know it, Rarity!” Pinkie swiftly nodded. “His costume is hitting every box on my cliché checklist.” Then, she lowered her voice and placed a pair of sunglasses on her muzzle. “That’s a new academy record.”

“Don’t you dare mock me, peasants!” Sombra shouted, sending a wave of dark crystals in their direction.

Not a single one of them reached the six mares, for their Elements’ light was strong enough to dissolve the crystals into nothingness. Cocking a sly grin, Rainbow Dash flexed her wings smugly. Doing a shot loop, she showed off a few more moves, all with the knowledge he couldn’t do a thing to them.

“That’s the guy that the Princesses kicked out of his own throne room before? And now he thinks he can take on Equestria again?” Rainbow asked with a raspy voice. “Ah! Who do you think you’re kidding, dude? You can’t even lay a hoof on us!”

The mocking taunt was echoed over by the others’ giggles, something Twilight Sparkle joyfully joined in. After the tugs at her heartstrings, it felt so good to just stand together with her friends. She knew she had been right all along and, looking at the furious shadow being, she found herself ready to put an end to it all.

The power built up easily in her crown, without any restraints. The fear had completely disappeared.

Smiling, she addressed them all one by one. “Thank you. You’ve saved me again.”

“Aww shucks, s’what we do, Twi,” Applejack easily said with a wave of a hoof, “and we’ll keep doing it ‘long as we live, right, gals?”

There was a strong series of agreement in response.

“Ready then?”

This time, there was no need for words.

“Well, Sombra, it’s over,” Twilight said, letting loose the power in her crown and linking it with the other Elements. “You’ve lost.”

The cavern shaking from the strain, their magic burst in a maelstrom of colors.

And the Rainbow of Light washed over them all.

Far away, farther than the deepest abyss of the highest peak, beyond the reaches of the skies and the celestial bodies themselves, on the other side of the Veil, there stood amongst the dancing stars two stallions, sitting in companionable silence. A long curve of cold light cracked the space behind them, though neither alicorn showed great care for it. They seemed perfectly unaffected by its presence, nor anything else.

They had shown themselves to be patient. They could wait longer, for time stretched infinitely to those with wings, horn and earth’s strength. That, however, did not mean they would be happy to do so.

A shadow of worry passed over the red stallion’s gaze. The shift in the balance of power had been evident enough, with the extinction of the most immediate threats to Harmony. Below the unmoved surface, there was unease. His knowledge of the change was incomplete, relied on nothing more than the intuition of a thousands of years old alicorn, by choice.

Scrying would have been too difficult. To see and remain incapable of acting? It would be the very definition of powerlessness. And that was the one thing he was not allowed to be.

So Magnus Vis of the Old Powers silently asked those above to be merciful toward his sons.

Answers did not come, neither in the form of words or images. The Astral Planes remained undisturbed in their peaceful state. A quiet serenity reigned over the shimmering stars, whose glint gave off the faintest noise. But, if one listened carefully, they could pick up an interference. It was akin to a rumble, mute but starting to spread through the space.

Together, Magnus and Dominus looked to their surroundings, projected their senses onward, but could not understand the source of this phenomenon that was only growing in intensity.

Struck by a horrified realization, Magnus attempted to look at the space he was not meant to. The muscles of his neck bulging, twisting his body as far as he could, he forced himself to turn until he was at the very edge. But it still was not enough, and the rumble erupted into chaos.

Tendrils of void flew from the rift.

It was over in an instant.

The peaceful glint of the stars had not changed. The inevitable movement of the celestial bodies continued on its course as the gears of the cosmic order as they had always done. By all definitions, nothing had happened. But Magnus could not stop the madness of his fast beating heart.

For a moment, a troubling eternal and ephemeral moment, it had been as if he had seen a shadow of a giant dug its claws into his friend and tore him apart. The thing had stood over the body, with a pale cloud seeping through its monstrous lips. There had been fear, mindcrushing terror that pushed against his mind, as the shape lowered itself closer to them, then… nothing.

His friend didn’t seem any different, there didn’t even seem to be an injury at all… But things were not as they should have been. Feathers ruffled, mane disheveled, he seemed at long last awake from a long and terrible nightmare. And the waking world presented realities no less frightening.

Briefly, Magnus saw a mirror of himself in the Alicorn of the Wild. He saw the touch of Pandora in his friend, her inescapable grip ensnared them all.

Then, looking into the heart of the still spreading corruption, Dominus Ferus called a name through time and space with all the might of his emotions, in the hope that his son would answer.

The ringing in my ears was killing me. Thankfully, it was the only ill effect I could detect on my person. Little to no injuries had befallen my person.

The same couldn’t be said of the gray stallion at my sides. So why in the name of buck was he still standing protectively close to me?

“You should rest, soldier…” I said quietly, feeling all sorts of shames giving me grief over his health.

“Not until the commander gives the confirmation that it is over!” the stallion replied strongly, still on the lookout for more threats.

I could tell his heart was still pumping fast from the adrenaline alone. He had that slightly manic twitch under his eyes, and his attitude on the lookout were just a little too stiff. This guy would crash hard soon.

As if to prove me right, he then shook his head quickly, blinking fast. “…My Prince,” he added, his ears lowered sheepishly as a show of his forgetfulness.

“You think I care about titles after you jumped on a manticore to save me?” I asked incredulously. “Hay, I’m still wondering why you’re not cursing me righteously.”

“I-I would never!” he stuttered, suddenly staggering.

Sighing, I helped stay standing, feeling another pang of guilt wreck my conscience. What sort of trouble would I bring next? Or would come to me?

I heard the movement of air above, just as the shadow scrolled past our forms. My throat tightened when I recognized her.

Luna landed smoothly in front of us. Graciously, her hooves touched the frozen ground and her horseshoes tinkled. But the lightness of her figure was contradicted by the sternness of her gaze. First, she addressed my companion.

“At ease, brave one,” she commanded. “Victory has been attained at last. The last few enemies flee this clearing as if my sister and I were chasing them.”

As I predicted, his hind legs gave out under him and he sat on his haunches on the spot. A long sigh of relief came from him, and I could understand the feeling rather well. Only a last bout of paranoia was preventing me from doing the same.

“It’s really over?” I asked quietly.

To my surprise, Luna raised an eyebrow skeptically at this. “Have you not felt the Powers at work, Whisperer?”

I snorted. It was all I could do to keep from laughing.

I knew you could do it, Twilight.

“I’m afraid not, cousin. I’m having trouble feeling anything but fatigue at the moment. It took a lot more out of me than I had hoped,” I said with a weak and sort of smug smile. It slipped quickly though, as I had to lift a hoof and push it against my ear in the hopes I could stop that freaking ringing!

The look she gave me was devoid of sympathy. Or warmth, for that matter. In the cold blue of her eyes, I saw nothing but the same warning she gave me in my dreams some time ago, but now the warning had grown more dire. Emotions rumbled beneath that stony glare.

I could not help but wonder: did she want to kill me?

“What you have done may have broken apart the chaos of the battle, at first.” Her mouth twisted into a scowl, and her tone lowered. “But this came dangerously close to backfiring on everypony here, do you understand that? Do you understand the risks? Or was I too optimistic about your intelligence?”

I flinched. Ouch, that stings a little.

Then, grinning coltishly, I picked up a little breeze to brush the stars in her mane. “He always liked this part of you a lot, you know?”

Her frown deepened and sparks fizzled around her horn.

Touchy. I snickered under my breath, shrinking away a little just to put some distance between my angry cousin and myself.

Seeing as she was not calming down, I forced myself to become serious again.

“Caelum’s not coming back, Luna...” The muscles in her neck tensed. “He was never in a position to do it. He’s as close to dead we can get and I’m not him.”

I let the words sink in.

Slowly, gently, the tension in her gaze eased up, and the crease of her brows softened. The warrior maiden receded to show back the somewhat awkward princess of the night. She breathed easily, and surely she was thinking the same thing I was:

Finally, it’s ov-

I fell, struck speechless, everything coming to a halt. Time slowed down, the world spun, when the pain hit me.

It felt as if someone was clawing at my skin from the inside, with searing hot metal.

I screamed, madness suddenly gripping my mind, thrashing on the ground and trembling. It wasn’t possible, it wasn’t possible! That kind of pain was not possible!

Yet, far from receding, the blaze spread throughout me, invading every inch of me until I felt trapped in a cage of fire. My thoughts were only a frantic plea for mercy that was not answered. A low pitched, a long call, perhaps a howl or an echo, ripped apart the fabric of the skies, and the pain burst forth. And the pressure disappeared.

Eyes wide, I stared at the pool of blood forming beneath me. My hoof went to my chest, and pain mixed with the strange wet feeling. It even did a rather freakish squishy noise, when my broken skin pushed against the wound. Too suddenly, like time was catching up, I folded on myself, the pain turning insufferable.

Another scream escaped my lips, but it stopped abruptly when my body retched and a nauseatingly wet cough shook me. There was liquid sticking to my throat and itching, demanding to be thrown out. Red droplets colored the snow and ice around me. My mouth was filled with the taste of metal.

A faint ‘thud’ came from my left, snowflakes lifting from the ground in that spot. Some of them even fell into my blood and melted in red goo. I could not bring myself to care who had fainted, even if somepony shouted their name so close to me. I just wanted my agony to stop.

It did not, but the creaking sound from above provided a fair distraction.

Weakly, jumping in their orbits because of my spasms of pain, my eyes turned to the skies. And even so broken, I realized it could get much worse.

The vault of heavens was a field of celestial white. The darkness of the night was no more. I could no longer see the stars and the constellations. The moon itself had paled so much as to become invisible onto this canvas of pure light.

However, it would have been false to declare it monochrome, to say it was only a great blank space. In complete opposition to the moon, there was a hole. Lines of nothing had spread from that single point, as if the air was broken glass and the realm beyond was a void. Within was another astral body, akin to a star, moving and spinning on an unknown orbit.

But no new sun had grown into the skies. That, I realized through the mind numbing terror, was an eye, of light and darkness, of ice and fire, and it was scanning the earth in search of something.

The Burning Eye… I wanted to cry. Just like my dream… weak, helpless, while it threatens to overwhelm the world. And I can’t do anything about it…

Darkness was growing stronger. It floated around the edges of my sight, slowly seeping over every form, every color. My eyelids were heavy, demanding much of my remaining strength just to keep them open.

And if I had been in the least bit smart, I would not have wasted what little energy I had left to look at the event unfolding. Had I had kept the smallest amount of control over my body, I would have let myself drift away from the pain.

But the thing in the sky commanded anyone’s attention. It could not be ignored. All that could be done would be to try… and endure.

Gritting my teeth, I bit back another scream as the air start to rumble.

What now?! I still had the strength to growl.

The eye became still. Its piercing light turned inward, to the void it came from. I did not understand, at all. Why? What was going on?!

And there, in the sudden shift of flames, there appeared something else within the eldritch being, something that made my jaw drop when I realized what it was.

Shock.

No, that… couldn’t be… The fires shivered, trembled with rage. They pulsed, sending forth a shockwave across the skies. A scream that was not a sound broke through my eardrums, reached past the flesh and the spirit, down to the essence that made me an alicorn. I thought my head would split open. Barely, I registered the night skies darkening again.

The flames dimmed. Just like that.

It… it… left…

I could have laughed, but the pain would have been too much. I could have fallen deep into slumber, but still my body shivered and my feathers rustled even under my weight. There was still something to happen, something to shock the One Beyond.

I found out, when my sight blurred.

Tears fell from my eyes, and I would have understood, in other circumstances, would not have felt shame at my weakness. But that was not my tears. Fighting with the last of my power, I managed to witness the last of these catastrophes. From the broken skies, torrents of water fell, not as rain but as waterspouts, vortex of liquids falling and breaking into the earth.

Beyond all levels of perception, beyond senses and intuitions, beyond even the spark of life granted by Vitam Mortem, a part of me felt the High Skies and the lowest Circles of Tartarus tilt in imbalance.

And the cries of four astral alicorns were my last thoughts before my fall into unconsciousness.

Downtime

The world was only warmth and light.

I was floating aimlessly in a neverending sea.

Floating?

We were sitting down, not on our haunches, not at a low table with our hooves in front of ourselves.

…Like minotaurs, rather. Four of us, like minotaurs but not quite. Another species.

No, no, that was the wrong thing.

I folded my wings over my chest, took comfort in the contact of my feathers with my fur.

Like alicorns.

The thought felt clearer than any other before. I clung to it, I felt myself reach for that single idea, while everything else started to fade. There wasn’t any light around me, and the world started to push me down into a mold.

The world was dark and a light weight was draped down on me.

My eyes were closed, as my eyelids were too heavy to be lifted. My ears prickled with the silent movement of air, in and out of somepony’s lungs. My head was lying against the most comfortable thing I had ever touched.

So many parts of me wanted to just ignore whoever was in the room and go back to sweet unconsciousness. Unfortunately, with the fogs of sleep lost, I was remembering the events before my fall into this peaceful darkness.

The Eye of Fire…

I curled up on myself, feeling all too suddenly as vulnerable as a newborn. The sheet over my body seemed like an impregnable shield in the circumstances. Anything, I’d take anything at all that could put even the most meaningless of distances between us. My chest burned in a cross shape where I knew it had opened under the Power displayed. No more… please…

Then, an icy chill suddenly surrounded me as I remembered what I had noticed earlier.

I was not alone.

And it was that fear that forced my eyes open, that allowed me to see the artificial lighting of the room I was in, alongside another alicorn.

A white alicorn, with a mane waving and the sun on her flanks, whose eyes looked at me with a mixture of worry, concern and, deep underneath, suspicion.

I remained silent, my throat and my mouth dry.

“I am glad to see you wake up so soon, Ventus,” Celestia told me with a gentle, soothing voice.

I let out a sigh of pure relief I hadn’t known I had been holding.

Family. Safe. Family. Safe.

Warmth tickled at my fur, as I saw my bed sheet glow under her bright power, and then move to better cover me. Celestia was still smiling.

Her gaze lingered over my neck, before it went to the ceiling. As if answering a question I had yet to ask, she made note of our surroundings. “This is Ponyville’s hospital. Since the stakes have clearly been raised above our previous expectations, I took the liberty of coming here to assess damages and the need for further actions.” Her expression became apologetic. “I am afraid it also means that I have requested to be the first to talk to you once you woke up.”

So this is still Ponyville?

Wait… I thought, looking down to my muzzle, and saw the very much golden fur rather than the much less flamboyant orange.

“Then…” I croaked, then cleared my throat, feeling my chest heat up with an uncomfortable sensation. Not quite pain but…

Celestia spoke softly, as a side-effect of my pitiful state, I suspected. “Everypony involved has been sworn to secrecy. Your presence is kept a state secret for the moment. Nopony in town knows that you are here, save for the select few members of the staff.”

I think this should scare me a little… I had already broken that little promise by making that peace offering to Filthy Rich. Truly, luck had been on my side when he had decided to be so gracious about it.

It took me a moment to process what could have happened had he been as vengeful as me. There could have been so many things going wrong with that scenario, and my arrogant certitude would have caused problems for both me and Tom.

My breath got stuck in my throat. It did not happen. He chose to be the bigger stallion. We’re fine… we’re fine…

Four screams echoed in my ears, one of them shattering that notion to pieces. Panic started to pump in my veins. He had screamed.

Finally, I mustered enough strength to speak, and I did not bother masking my open fear. “Calx?”

Something tugged at the corners of her lips, something I suspected was fondness.

“I’ve sent somepony to go fetch him, which was made difficult considering he wasn’t in your home…” I flinched, accepting the implicit reprimand. “…But luckily Spike had the presence of mind to send me a message personally.”

Spike, huh? I thought with a smile. The little guy was always a smart dragon.

Still, I asked again; I needed to know. “So he’s…?”

“Perfectly fine,” she completed patiently. “He has a small bruise on one leg, but it is already healing.”

It couldn’t have been so simple. With him, it was never that simple. I knew my little brother better than that.

“Did he try-?” The rest was lost in a fit of cough.

I clenched my front legs around my barrel, hoping to lessen the scratching sensation all over my throat. It grew instead, deeper and more painful, until I felt like I was going to lose my lungs this way.

Something floated up to my eye level. Encased in a golden aura, there was a glass of water. For a few more seconds, I just lied in my bed. Then, I stretched across the sheets to take it with grateful word.

While I struggled with the glass, Celestia saw fit to continue her explanation.

“Your brother strongly insisted in being able to visit you.” The words on their own were enough to warm my heart, but, from the unimpressed glare that she directed my way, I knew there was more to come. “He had some peculiar choices of words for the ponies that tried to tell him otherwise, most of them involving violent shoving and places where the light of my sun doesn’t reach.”

I very slowly placed the glass on my bedside table. I could not do it faster, lest I loosen the iron grip I had on my desire to laugh. I knew it was obvious enough. Celestia’s stern glare could compare to Mother’s.

“C-Celly, I’m sorry about that.” I tried to sound like I was sorry. “He didn’t pick it up from me. Promise!”

A healthy amount of skepticism rolled off Celestia’s general direction.

Still struggling against a few rogue giggles, I decided that changing the subject was my only salvation.

“Luna?”

Something ancient passed in Celestia’s eyes, and disappeared very quickly. Against all odds, her tone seemed very casual. “Healed. She suffered from a mild concussion, but she has already left the hospital against all common sense.”

A small grin settled on my lips. That sounded very much like the cousin I knew.

Celestia smiled back, though hers was more reserved, a little less enthusiastic. Under her eyes, I could faintly make out an outline of fatigue.

I felt a lot less like smiling. My tone was sober when I reached out for her. “You?”

This time, her breathing changed. Anypony else wouldn’t have noticed, but that was the one thing that I would always see. And I knew my question had struck a chord in her.

“Through some great stroke of luck,” she said gently, “I was alone in my office at the time. Luna’s guards had quite the fright, but I recovered quickly enough that it could remain unnoticed. There is not even a rumor about it, which, as far as events in my castle go, is quite rare.”

At that, we shared a knowing look. It had not taken long for me to discover that, nor had it taken more than a couple of minutes for ponies to discover what my opinion of that was. Strangely, to think back on it now… it made me angry, yeah, but it wasn’t the same. More of an annoyance, less of an insult worthy of-

My thoughts came to a screeching halt. Is that journalist okay? Celly said they’d gotten a new place to go…

Looking back to her, I saw Celestia waiting patiently, with mayhap a touch of interest. She probably had placed the pieces of the puzzle together. My poker face had more or less shattered since last night; I could not put it back on. It felt too hard when my body seemed so heavy. I was an open book to her.

She was waiting for me to ask the question. We both knew I was delaying having to ask it.

At first, I made only a strangled noise, which forced another coughing fit out of me. In the back of my masochistic mind, I was glad for those few more seconds of respite. But they came to an end all too quickly and I felt no more ready than before.

“The soldiers? Everypony else?” Everypony I don’t know personally. “Did I…?”

I couldn’t… The sheer guilt was making it so hard to speak.

I diverted my gaze, pretending to find my glass of water absolutely fascinating, but I could not hide the way my ears fell down, or the curl of my tail or the fold of my wings. I could only pretend that the idea did not make me cold when it did not even faze me before. “Did I kill somepony?”

Silence.

Elders…

I could feel Celestia’s hesitation without even looking. When she spoke, her tone was sober, as were her words, “The final tally shows that there were a good number of ponies injured, with a variety ranging from bite wounds, burns to frostbite.”

That last word made me tense, made me fear the worse. Tears started to gather in the corner of my eyes already.

“Ventus,” she called as the feathers of her wings fell over me, “there were no casualties last night. In that regard, at least, the mission was a glowing success.”

Nopony… nopony died?

I could have cried. The relief flooded over me, washed away the iron in my limbs, the ice in my veins, and made it all vanish into thin air. It was as if she had unlocked the chains covering me and set me free.

Some of the chains.

“What about… t-that?”

There was no need to explain what that referred to.

For once, Celestia’s smile showed relief. “You need not worry about it. Very few could perceive the truth. For most mortals, it was simply an earthquake.” The smile slipped off her face. “They did not see what happened to the sky.”

To me, I completed the thought.

Her eyes trailed toward my chest, on the heavy bandages wrapped around me. A hint of a frown marred her expression.

“A few governments did send courier to my office, demanding that I share what information I had at my disposal regarding the shift in the higher powers, but those will keep it quiet as well. Everyone understands the need for stability within their realms.”

So balance had yet to be achieved? This time, the threat felt ever more reaching than Sombra could have ever hoped to be. It wouldn’t only be ponies. It would be everyone.

I could hear their voices. Ranges, tones, pitches, they mixed into one another regardless of distance and language. I could not even understand most of the words, but it wasn’t a cacophony, nor a symphony. It just… was. And that was the greatest thing about it.

“Should I…?” I asked Celestia.

“No. Let me take this burden off your shoulders, Ventus. Last night, you helped restore the balance of this world back to its normal state. You have done your share for now, let me take care of the rest.”

It felt so strange to be praised sincerely.

Yeah, okay, I helped restore the big scales. By eating up the windigoes… no, not the windigoes, just the ones that were extensions of myse- of Caelum.

What I had been shown were only what he had seen a thousand years ago. The words were not his, they had been mine all along. Just… influenced by a grudge that destroyed him, by the horrors of a war he proved himself unable to stop.

Not even with…

“I saw it, Celestia,” I said, instantly bringing her guard back, “I saw what made Caelum fall…”

There was a flicker of fire, beneath Celestia’s coat. Her eyes were staring a hole through my skull.

“I saw…” And my gaze was locked with hers. “But I don’t understand why…”

Perhaps she felt it, perhaps she could guess what I meant to say, but she shifted in her place, and I saw her wings tense. There was almost a silent prayer in her demeanor, that I did not voice that thought.

I almost didn’t.

“You…” I felt my breath hitch up, and I had to force myself to ask fully, even knowing it would be painful for her. I needed to understand this. “You were meant to act as a weapon. That was the mission given to you. What he did… was in line with what you should have done.”

Silence followed my declaration. No sound came from her or me, from the waving lengths of her mane and tail, from the dripping water on the side of glass, from the mattress I was on that threatened to creak.

We were looking into each other’s eyes, hers at their most serious since my awakening.

“You are wrong, Ventus.” The words felt like a reprimand. “That moment remains only one of the many deeds for which I will someday be judged on. But I did not forsake my mission. I made the choice that was more in line with the spirit of my task than the letter.”

I was struck by a horrible realization. Wait… what made the Greater Tribunal consider…

“You… Celly, you…”

It couldn’t be. It couldn’t be! The Greater Tribunal was wary of her because–

“I refused him,” Celestia cut through my thoughts, completed them. She was solemn, with hints of sadness behind the reminiscence of this time long gone. “When he came to me, clad in ice and monsters, I refused him. Luna assumed I saw deeper into Caelum than she did. She assumed her past self had been blinded by love, but she is mistaken. I only understood the full truth when he said it to me.”

I knew what was coming. I flattened my ears against the top of my head, bracing myself.

She closed her eyes, steeling her determination. Yet her voice wavered, and I saw a glimpse of the mare behind the royal figure as she said, “Burn them all, Celestia…”

The words hadn’t been hers. They echoed in my mind, stirred at a long gone memory.

I staggered before the intensity of the shout. “IT’S WHAT YOU WERE MEANT TO DO!”

He had been angry, livid even. He had cursed and yelled and thrown his windigoes at her. They had swarmed her in a wave of cold that had shattered the tent into broken shards of razor sharp ice. In the sudden afflux of light, her new prison shone brightly.

It had happened so quickly… As if she had not even thought of fighting against him. She had never thought he would sink so low. Not even for an instant, not even when he had gotten angry. In her then frozen eyes, there had been nothing but the pain of betrayal.

At this moment, I realized that Caelum hadn’t been only a ghost of the past. The First of the Fallen had been part of my cousins’ lives. He had been their friend, even more than that.

Twice! She had been betrayed by those closest to her twice!

I was a living reminder of that. I was… I was almost a clone of him. I had seen him and the resemblance was so obvious as to be painful. What must it be like for those that had known him?

What kind of cruel Power had made me look like him so much?

My breath caught up in my throat. “Celestia…” I whispered weakly, wanting nothing more than the right to comfort her.

She looked at me again, with no trace of doubt or even pain.

“I believed in them,” she said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. “I believed mortals capable of much greater deeds than they were ever suspected. I believed them capable of putting their differences aside and cooperate. In the end, Caelum’s actions proved me right. Mortals did put their differences aside when their existences were at stakes, they did strive to repel the hate that had poisoned their minds. Even the last of his will could not drag them down.”

But I let it sink me into the dark… I’ve summoned him again and poured salt all over your wounds.

I shrunk on myself, willed myself to just disappear and reflect how small I felt for this new mistake in a long line of many. Had I been stronger, my body would have faded into air, hidden me and this shame for some time at least. But I was forced to stay and face it. Though, as I came to understand, not without help.

On the side of my cheek, a gentle warmth spread. The touch was light, kind.

Celestia was smiling, the tip of her wing stretched to comfort me. She was beautiful that way, brimming with the light of an ideal and the youth it represented. This image, more than Caelum’s memories, showed me what Celestia was at her core: a spirit of light.

“Do not be ashamed of weakness, my little pony. Nothing in this world or the next is devoid of flaws. Not even the greatest of all Elders can make such a claim.”

In spite of myself, I grunted something derisive. Yeah, right…

“Do you imagine me to be perfect, Ventus?” The notion seemed to amuse her. “How many times do you think I have stood where you are now, plagued by the guilt of yet another failure? I have ruled for a thousand years, giving me time to deal with more mistakes than any other creature on this world. I’ve simply learned to rise again and fight for my betterment and that of others.”

Her amusement morphed into something fond. Her whole features seemed to suddenly brighten with this new emotion, and it took me a moment to understand.

She was proud of me.

“You have fought your inner demons last night. It is a claim any other would be proud to make.”

My eyes were stinging, and I rubbed my hooves over my face. I did not deserve it; I did not deserve that kind of praise. I…

The dams finally broke. My legs shot up, grabbed her and forced her into a hug. I did not care for the pain stretching across my chest, nor the numbness in my shoulders. I hugged her.

I did not know, I truly had no idea, if I was doing it for myself or for her. I just had to. And the warmth and softness of her contact felt soothing. There was no barrier to be had, no mask at all for just that short instant. I did not hide.

Tears dampened her fur and mine. Sobs shook me. Heck, my nose was running a bit, and just like a foal I clung to her as if she was Mother. She was whispering things in my ears, gentle things, sweet things, with a melodious voice that pierced away some shadows.

I have no idea how long we stayed that way. After that experience in the Everfree, after the things Sombra had shown me, I bitterly needed the comfort. She was giving me more than that.

When the contact came to an end, something broken had been mended. I felt… at peace.

“I will return to Canterlot soon,” Celestia then declared with some regrets. “In the meantime, would you care to share your experience in Ponyville so far?”

I could not help but smile bashfully.

“I’d certainly like to do that, Celly.”

And I started spilling my bag. I went for the easy stuff, what she expected. The job, the schoolwork for Tom, the few times we had just trotted around town, our frequent trips to the library.

I mentioned something about still having an interest in Twilight, which made her eyes glint with amusement.

…And… I told her. About Filthy Rich and Diamond Tiara. Elders knew what I was thinking, but when it came to them, when it came to the moment of making up something to hide my fault, there had been a voice at the back of my head telling me not to.

I listened.

She deserved it. She deserved better from me.

Not a lie. Not a deception.

The truth.

When I was finished, when I had explained everything despite her frown, Celly merely sighed.

“There was a reason I asked you to keep your identity as secret as possible, Ventus.”

I looked away, feeling just a little colder, a little worse.

“But,” she added, “in the circumstances, I can only agree that you made good use of that secret to make amends. As such, you will not suffer any retribution on that level, though I ask that you make a more rigorous effort in keeping your disguise convincing.”

“Thanks, Celly,” I said with genuine relief.

For a split second, something in her mask slipped, a hint in her gaze or a twitch close to the corner of her mouth, and I was almost startled by how tired she seemed to be. At that moment, her eyes went to the open window and the sun starting to settle over the horizon.

“Now then.” She stood. “I believe it is more than time for me to stop keeping your company exclusively to myself.”

Gracefully, she turned, not without one last gentle touch over my mane, and started trotting toward the door.

It was only then, as I saw her retreating figure, as I was made aware of that fact that she was leaving, that my thoughts all came crashing down with one desperate idea.

Leaving…

“Wait!” I croaked, my throat on fire.

She came to a halt. Without speaking, she looked at me with some curiosity.

The words didn’t come. There was a cold hand gripping at my heart as scenarios started to spin out of control in my head. It was hard. Harder, much more than it should have been. It certainly was not a matter of irritated throat. I… I was scared to ask. On the off chance that she had an answer.

“Have you found… a w-way?”

It’s what I asked, but somehow, it felt as if I had asked something else. Will you send us away?

“Not yet, Ventus. But I think your actions will make it easier.”

“Oh…”

I can live with that, right? It’s just… well, that’s the thing that shouldn’t be right. I shouldn’t be fine with waiting a little longer…

I shouldn’t…

But while I ruminated those fatalistic thoughts, Celestia had chosen to take this opportunity to give a silent signal of sort. The door creaked open, enough to make me shake my head and see my cousin leave…

Then, to see enter a lavender mare that made my heart skip a beat.

“Twilight!” I said with relief flooding my whole being.

Grinning, she ran up to my bed and stopped just short of it, conscious of my injuries. It did not however stop her from leaning in to nuzzle me. “I’m glad you’re finally awake, Ventus.”

I could hold in a little laugh at that. “Finally? I made you wait, didn’t I?” My hoof rose to stroke the side of her face. “How badly did I disturb your schedule, Twi?”

She gave me a warning look. “Don’t say that,” she protested sourly. “Your health is much more important to me than a checklist. You were unconscious for hours! They had to bring you in with a stretcher because they feared the injury was too severe!”

I blinked. I hadn’t really thought of it from that perspective. I’d just taken it for granted that magic, and then I was in the hospital waiting to recover.

“Sorry,” I whispered.

She seemed mollified, on the surface at least. However, like a foal caught sneaking toward the cookie jar, her ears drooped and she smiled sheepishly. “…And I had already modified my schedule anyway.”

It was so hard not to chuckle, but I managed. My grin was a little wider though. “I’m glad.”

A little stiffly, injuries obliged, I caught the back of her neck and raised my head to catch her lips.

We kissed. And it was different. It was hard to tell how… Twilight wasn’t quite… No, that was…

Just a little less… just a little less open.

Was it the circumstances? I… had I done something wrong? Too soon?

A much more terrible idea struck me. She was there… She saw the windigoes.

My heart leaped in my throat. Please no…

“Twilight…”

I should ask, now. Tell her the whole story, the windigoes, Caelum and this reincarnation business! She’d understand. She would have to!

But a tiny little voice in my head whispered otherwise.

“Y-you’re not injured, are you?” I looked her over. “Everything’s fine, right?”

“I’m fine.” She nodded quickly. “Sombra managed to surprise us, but we repelled him in the end. And before that, my friends protected me from the monsters he had enthralled.”

Pride swelled in my veins, for all I could think of was this darkness trapping me, the strongest fear I had ever felt, and she had triumphed. So I looked at her with quite a fair bit of admiration. “I am proud of you, Twilight. You faced a monster of a pony and defeated him.”

Pleased, she blushed, and started to say, “I was not alo–”

“There you are!”

Together, we turned toward the door, where one fuming little colt had stomped his way in.

Crap… I thought, seeing the snarl on his face.

Twilight chuckled nervously. “I think I should leave you two to this touching reunion.”

“But… you just came here…”

“I’m sorry, but I can see what takes priority. I’ll see you another day,” she said while quickly making her way out.

Then, something happened to keep me from protesting further.

Tom punched me in the chest.

BUCKINGPLOT! I screamed in my head while I gasped in pain on the outside. Oh you little brat!

My wound throbbing, I gritted my teeth hard as I looked down to see that hellion half nestled on the top of my bed, close to the area he had freaking punched. A number of unpleasant thoughts flashed through my head, many of which including the chores he'd be taking care of for a while after this stunt. Hot air was already blowing out of my nostrils as I decided which was the most appropriate punishment, when I noticed him shaking.

"Liar," he muttered into my coat.

...What?

“You said you didn’t want me getting hurt… then you got yourself hurt!” He sniffled, fighting a sob and trying to make himself look bigger. “T-that’s so uncool! Don’t do that!”

My anger popped like a balloon. He had just been worried. Probably annoyed that I kept him away from the action, denied him the chance to show off, then I came back on a stretcher. They said hours… it’s almost sunset…

If it had been him…

I closed my wings over his form, kept him close to me as gently as I could. With a whisper, I gave the little squirt the hug he needed. “It sucks, doesn’t it, lil’ brother?”

“Y-yeah…” he sobbed, and held me tighter.

Through some inequine forces out there, I did not wince in pain as he maltreated me.

“Sorry, Tom,” I said softly while I stroked his mane. “I won’t do it again, promise.”

His horn poked my shoulders as he drove his head further against me, in a vain attempt to hide his tears. “You better…” he hiccupped.

“There, there, lil’ brother. It’s alright… it’s over.”

He did not let go. Neither did I.

When the nurse came to announce the end of the visiting hours, she decided not to disturb us.

The two voices – one deep and gentle, the other childish and shaken – stayed with her for a few more instants.

He had asked, maybe he had seen through her already, but even then she had denied. To see him like this had been a cruel reminder. He was already so burdened, so weakened by the injuries he had suffered. It had only seemed cruel to add to his pain. Her own could wait.

The others… they had already talked to her. They had said a number of things and done even more. Yet, the guilt lingered. Why? Why was it that she could not let go of it? After all her friends had already done to help ease her worries and her fears, it should already be gone!

But it wasn’t, and she felt only more ungrateful for it. She avoided eye contact with the members of the hospital’s staff as she passed them by and with patients who seemed fascinated by her presence. In other circumstances, she would have stopped for them, she promised herself that. This time though, she didn’t feel able to.

Her steps carried her all the way to a single hospital chamber, one that had recently gotten a new occupant. Her body was still, stopped before even the doorframe, as she could not bring herself to enter. She did not feel worthy of that.

Twilight Sparkle looked at the zebra mare on the bed and wept.

When the nurse came to announce the end of the visiting hours, she swore to give her news as soon as the patient woke up. It was all that could be said before the poor alicorn could be convinced to leave. Had she been anywhere else, she would have disappeared in a flash of light, but, fearing interference with some of the medical equipment, she took the long way back home.

By the time she had reached the library, the sun had set over the horizons and she headed to bed with a heavy heart.

We materialized inside the tree house first thing in the morning, while Celly’s light had only started to peak over the horizon and shine across the lands. In other words, earlier than the time sane ponies woke up. It was the idea, in fact.

However, when my hooves and Calx’s quietly fell onto the wooden floor, I was surprised to notice that there was activity in the library. A faint mechanical whirring served as a background for a boyish humming, while a few fresh perfumes came from the room on the other side of the library.

With his natural lack of subtlety and manners, Calx bolted toward the kitchen.

Biting back a growl, I hurried after him, just in time to see him say, “’Sup Spike?”.

The poor dragon jumped, startled by the unexpected greeting, and almost dropped his spatula. At once, he turned around, half ready to defend himself against the intruders, when his eyes lit up with recognition.

“Oh, it’s you guys,” Spike said with sigh of relief. I almost apologized for the scare right there, but he had already gotten over it and was now looking at my little brother with a grin. “So you weren’t hurt too bad in the end, huh?”

For just a second, Calx blushed under his fur before the ‘I’m-a-badass’ persona took over. With an exaggerated eye roll, he acted as if absolutely nothing had happened and the last few seconds were just a distant dream.

“Me? Hurt?” His blue hoof went to his chest, in a perfect demonstration of ignorance. “Naaaaaaah, like, I don’t get hurt. S’really not my kind of thing.”

“Riiiiiight.” Spike crossed his arms, one eyebrow raised at Calx’s huff.

With a sly grin, I winked at the dragon. He understood with just that. Smart kid.

“Alright, you two, go have some fun quietly and safely – yes, I’m serious, squirt, don’t make that face – while I prepare something for Twilight.”

They both looked at me.

“You’re sure about that, Ventus?” Spike eyed me strangely, in all his apron-wearing glory. Certainly, he sounded hopeful about getting out of a chore, but at the same time, a little wary.

Tom’s exaggerated snickers left an impression.

“Hush,” I growled and pushed him back with my hind leg. “I can cook decently. Enough for a good breakfast.”

“Alright. If you say so.” Spike shrugged. Quickly, his paws went to his back to untie his apron, all the while he listed off a few things. “Twi likes her toasts with melted butter, yogurt, sliced fruits and a little cup of jam on the side – oh and her coffee, black.”

“Thanks, Spike.” I ruffled his head, before gesturing for him to follow the other little boy that was literally on the verge of exploding. Impatience did that to Calx. So, Spike chose wisely and jumped off his stool and ran after my brother.

With that, I had the kitchen to myself.

I also placed a silencing spell around Twilight’s bedroom. It never hurts to be prepared.

For a few minutes, my time was spent levitating ingredients, handling a knife with a breeze, strengthening the aroma, all the while humming to myself. By the time I had started to spread butter on the toasts, an exclamation loud enough to rival the Cutie Mark Crusaders echoed in the library.

“Called it…” I said to myself while putting the finishing touches on the plate. “You okay over there?”

“Yeah!” Calx replied airily.

Satisfied, I gathered Twilight’s breakfast and left the kitchen.

Before I headed to see her, I sent a cautious look over the area they were playing, and what I saw got me to grin. Spike was wearing a superhero cape, Calx was wearing a helmet. Their enemies would obviously rue the day they decided to oppose this new alliteration of the Alicorn Rangers.

Smiling as I went past the two playing boys in the library, I trotted upstairs carefully. The tray was floating in front of me, and only moved when I reached the door to her room. Gently, I knocked twice with one hoof, then listened carefully.

There was a low groan, not unlike somepony that was just waking up.

“Twilight, I’m coming in,” I said, twisting the doorknob with a small burst of magic.

Please be decent, was my first thought. My second one was a puzzled ‘How can naked ponies ever be indecent?’. The third was the answer, making me blush stupidly strongly.

Right before I entered my marefriend’s bedroom. Of course.

Well, I pushed the door open while practicing my poker face to the best of my abilities. Thus, my disappointment did not show, when I realized that I had, in fact, an overacting imagination. Twilight was still in bed, lying on her side with her head against her pillow. Strands of her mane were out of place, wildly, which only served to make her look cuter.

As she heard my hoofsteps, she turned around in bed, blinking slowly. “Ventus?”

“Good morning, Twilight,” I said softly.

“W-what time is it?” she asked, rubbing her eyes and tentatively reaching for her alarm clock.

“Just a little before dawn.” I placed the tray before her on the bed, then gave her a gentle smile. “We woke up early, and I had to talk to you before going to work.”

Her horn lit up as she rose the cup of steaming hot coffee to her lips slowly. Twice, she blew on it, savvy about the heat. She only took a tiny sip at first, preferring to wait until it had cooled down a little. “About what?”

My wings flapped twice. The light dawned on her after that.

“Oh, right, the illusion,” she muttered. “Sure, I’ll get right to it once I’ve eaten and taken a shower.”

I could not help but notice how her eyes flickered downward in disappointment. It did not last, for she took an appreciative bite out of a toast with a generous helping of strawberry jam. Still, I did not put that observation out of my mind.

“Don’t worry, I wanted to come see you anyway.” I sat just next to her bed, as close as I dared to without disturbing her. One of my hooves covered hers. “It makes my day easier to go through.”

She giggled quietly. “Ventus, even I can tell that’s super cheesy.”

I knew that, but, in the end, it was what I wanted to tell her the most. Even if her obvious amusement made me feel a little embarrassed.

“Do you like it?” I asked with a shy smile.

With a playful glint in her eyes, Twilight pretended to consider it. “Yep,” she concluded, picking up a slice of apple with her magic. “Cheesy is within my range of appreciable romance.”

The slice disappeared in her mouth, behind those beautiful lips that glistened with traces of coffee. A swipe of a napkin and that was gone, with a mark on the white sheet that now held the shape of her lips.

Warmth started to spread in my chest. I just… I wanted to…

I leaned forward, moving past that adorable confusion in Twilight’s eyes, and gave her a kiss as tender as my love for her.

It was not forceful, not consuming nor even pressing, but it reaffirmed for us both one thing.

“I love you.”

She was stunned. Without a word, she placed her hoof against her lips. Her face was a darker shade of purple, and there was a twitch on the corner of her mouth. It looked as if she was trying not to smile, bashfully hiding her pleasure behind a more stoic façade. Though, when she looked up and our gazes meet, she did smile and it was beautiful.

An instant later however, her horn started glowing with power, the very same that lifted the tray off her person and onto the nearby bedside table. Free, Twilight clumsily got out of bed, still with a very strong blush on her face and a slightly too wide smile. “Well, I’m full. You can meet me downstairs.”

And she was off toward her bathroom.

Keeping my eyes trailing after her, I could not resist saying, “Have a nice shower, Twilight.”

Was I a terrible stallion if I hoped it was a cold one?

There he stood, in front of the purple doors with naught but his most simple attire, and yet he still had no idea what had possessed him to come to this spot. Other things required his attention, first and foremost the state of his most important material possession.

Truly, he was well on his way to be corrupted by the few words of that arrogant prince if he believed–

Oh, who was he lying to? Himself? He knew. It was rather simple too. He was in town and he knew that she was as well. It had been an impulse, yes, but at no point had he turned on his hooves to return to his hotel and go back to sleep. Instead, he had started making up arguments in his head, all the while hoping they wouldn’t actually be necessary.

“Craven?” The same taunting voice came, and though he realized that one was only his own imagination, it still made him straighten.

With a twist of his magical field, he opened the door and took the first few steps inside.

“Welcome to Carousel Boutique, where everything is chic and unique!”, came a well-rehearsed greeting by an accented and feminine voice.

And with an appreciative eye going over the refined decor, Prince Blueblood replied, “It certainly is.”

The white mare froze in place, her pupils shrinking at the sight before her.

Softly, with a hint of disbelief, she only said, “You?”

Blueblood could feel his resolve start to melt, shaken in his conviction by the weight of her gaze.

“May I enter?” he asked as politely as he could. “I would like to speak to you, Miss Rarity.”

Momentarily, she hesitated, her eyes going over anything but him. She bit her lips and stiffened, until finally she relented with a long sigh. “Very well. Follow me.”

With an exquisitely refined gait that betrayed nothing of her inner turmoil, Rarity led him into her modeling room, toward the pair of sofas she kept for her clients. It was, in her humble opinion, the most beautiful ones she owned.

Silently, Blueblood was taking in his surroundings. It was an old habit, one that helped determine the ‘value’ of an acquaintance. He could admit – only to himself, of course – to no small amount of surprise at the quality of the furniture she owned. Not even his own hotel room could compare, and he was paying the highest price for it. It was hard to believe such refinements could be found in Ponyville of all towns.

All of it, from this mare of humble origins…

It suddenly felt harder to speak, with his well thought-out speeches fading into nothing.

“Well…” Rarity’s voice trailed off, as her patience started to grow thin. “Since you have come to do so, speak.”

“How to say…” Think, think, think, think! “I have recently come to the realization that I am not in fact a perfect pony.”

“That must have been quite a shock for one such as you,” she deadpanned.

Barely, he managed not to make a scathing comment.

“...You seem to have hold onto that belief before we met.”

“I dropped it quite quickly as well,” Rarity replied dryly, though the bitter twist of her lips implied she at least acknowledged the point. “A single evening in your company was more than enough to beat that idea out of my head forever.”

It had, admittedly, been the point. His patience had long since ran dry toward the vapid dates he found himself plagued with every time he graced high society with his presence.

Yet he wondered. Was that how most of his would-be dates thought of him now? While the thought didn’t bother him previously, he was surprised to feel a small pang of guilt in his chest now that he could see the genuine sadness he had caused.

His voice was slightly unsteady when he had processed the idea. “You know many of the things I mean to tell you, Lady Rarity.”

“…I do,” she sighed. “I’ve read your letters enough times.”

He swallowed nervously.

Rarity looked at him with pained eyes. “What I don’t understand is why now? Why would you bother to do this now of all times? This incident happened a few years ago, to the point I had almost forgotten it entirely, before…”

Her voice trailed off, as did her gaze, whom he could see had gone to his left. As far as he could tell from the short glimpse of the Boutique he had gotten, the staircase to the upper level was in that direction.

He sighed. “…To tell the truth, I did not see the need to do it until quite recently. I had convinced myself that there was no fault in how I acted toward you.”

He recognized his faux-pas as soon as the words left his mouth.

“Excuse me?!” she hissed, her eyes narrowed.

Quickly, he raised his hooves in front of himself to placate her… and to block a vicious hook if she decided he deserved it. “I now know that it was wrong of me to think that!” he insisted. “I believe I said as much in my letter to you.”

There still lingered traces of her anger in her gaze. She pointedly looked next to him, frowning.

Feeling that the conversation truly wasn’t going his way, Blueblood fought the ingrained reflex to pull rank. It was tempting, very tempting even, but he could not have done a worse thing in the circumstances. Against every one of his instincts, he hung his head in penance. “Forgive me, this is truly not something I am accustomed to, my position being what it is. The number of apologies I’ve recently started giving haven’t quite prepared me for a conversation like this one.”

Slowly, Rarity met his eyes. Conflict passed behind her gaze, though it started to fade. She nodded, graciously giving him at least credibility to his excuses.

A few more moments of silence passed, during which both ponies tried to find the right words to say, to get themselves out of this awkwardness. In the end, it was Rarity’s curiosity that won the battle. “How many of these letters have you sent?”

“Four,” he answered prudently.

For a second, Rarity was nonplussed. The number was unexpectedly small.

But Blueblood, avoiding her silent questioning, grimaced. “I am afraid I’ve forgotten the name of many would-be dates. I couldn’t apologize to them if I wanted to.”

Her jaw dropped in a completely unladylike manner.

And through her mind, she felt a surge of anger! They weren’t being remembered? It was only because she was a recent one, wasn’t it?! Or maybe because she had saved his sorry flank with her role as an Element’s bearer!

But a kinder part of her wondered instead, how many of them were there? Surely, a dream-like bachelor such as Prince Blueblood would be swarmed by admirers wherever he went. He was the ‘crème de la crème’, she was well aware of that. From the gossip in the town alone, she could tell no less than fifteen mares would gladly ditch their lives to pursue him at the slightest sign of interest from his part, and not all of those mares were single.

Bitterly, she forced herself to accept that she might still be one of them, had reality not slapped her in the face. Her dream-like expectations had been dashed mercilessly.

Her dream…

Ponies upon ponies demanding her attention, all wishing to cater to her whims, to please her. And they pushed through the ranks for the chance to gaze upon her and declaim her beauty, her grace, her talent and her generosity!

But… their eyes… they were all focused on the gems, on the silk of her dresses, on the content of her purse. One hollow smile. One fake bout of laughter, when truly the jest had been unremarkable.

Lies.

Fakes.

None of them interested in her. All of them interested solely in what she represented. She was not her own person, not in their eyes. She was a prize to be won, a key to a higher destiny, but she was no pony. Had never been one from the moment she had been born.

Too suddenly, it felt like such a terrible destiny.

There was a pony in this room, which had gone through this, she understood. He was talking to her, asking to be forgiven for rudeness of all things.

And she found it in herself to look at him with sympathy.

With remorse.

For the first time, she reached for him, placed her hoof over his without thinking of the prince before the stallion. “Well, Sir Blueblood, consider your apology officially accepted.”

Under her eyes, his carefully guarded expression fell apart to reveal a most coltish smile underneath.

“Oh?” He sounded cheerful, like a little foal that had been given something he wanted for so long. “Am I to understand that you finally see things from my perspective?”

And Rarity could see all too well what meaning was laced within that innocent question.

“It is dreadful form to egg a lady in such a way,” she exclaimed with a benign smile, and her expression morphed into something sweet. “Oh, alright! Do you accept this short-sighted mare’s apology as well?”

In a heartbeat…

“I suppose I will think about it.”

A soft and delicate pillow he had spent some time admiring earlier collided with his face.

She denied any involvement whatsoever.

There was a giant grin on my face, and nothing in this world could stop me from feeling like the King today. Not even the same old ungrateful work.

“Alright, Cloud.” The black stallion trotted next to me, his snout in a scroll. “we’ve gotten North-West of Town and Westernmost to do. The standard trifecta. Got it?”

“Yup. Let’s do it, Thunderlane.”

The white vapor gathered beneath my hooves, thick despite its fluffy texture, wide enough to accommodate more than just one pony. Three would be a crowd, barely. We could sit in circle and be fine.

On my left, I heard the flapping of wings and felt the air follow Thunderlane’s trail. I would have to hurry up a bit. The platform was just about right, it just needed a little more substance. There! Done!

I fought the muscles in my wings and ordered them to stay immobile, while I focused power into my horn. The cloud shook under the pressure, but kept together. With just ordinary telekinesis, it lifted in the sky, rather swiftly at that, though my organs luckily hadn’t all been left down there with the ground.

I almost froze mid ascension.

I wasn’t sick. No nausea, no unease rippling through me. The skies weren’t… rejecting me anymore. There was still something alien to the air, to my place in what was essentially my own essence. But the contact had ceased to be painful.

I could imagine a good reason for this.

“Grandfather?”

A shiver went down my spine.

“Cloud, are you coming?” Thunderlane called me from a few meters ahead.

“Y-yeah!” I shook my head, trying to chase off the ghostly figure from my mind. “Sorry.”

My magic seized my cloud platform again. It took a second longer than it should have, truly, but nothing dramatic. Already I was catching up to Thunderlane, as if there was no wind to slow me down. His expression when I came to his level was that of suspicion, eyes narrowed and a slight huff of his chest.

“Ready,” I said while hiding a cocky grin.

Together, we charged into the gathering of clouds and started doing some simple dispersion.

It was just that: simple. Being low levels grunts at most, we had gotten the tasks expected of young adults that had started at most a few years ago. Moving clouds, changing some patterns, gathering moisture, helping evaporation. It was pretty easy, once I figured out the best way to do it without making it obvious I was a bucking alicorn. But even that was a hurdle swiftly overcomed.

So, for the most part, we were just talking, about anything and everything. His wings were feeling a bit sore after the treatment they’d given him, he’d eaten more hospital food than he ever wanted to again and he thanked me again for saving him. That little bit of praise made me sicker than the altitude should have.

I asked him not to mention it. The important thing was that he had recovered and that things were mostly back to normal for him. So, we ended up exchanging some meaningless banter to fill up the silence, about anything and everything, all the while dealing with stray clouds.

Working alongside Thunderlane on this stuff really seemed like the bastion of normalcy in my life.

And, for the love of everything of Order, I could almost kiss him for giving me that!

Which is a thought I will never vocalize.

“Hey, Cloud,” his voice brought me out of my reverie, “wanna take our break now? I see the mares coming this way!”

Blinking, I turned around, just in time to see those grey spots in the sky. From this distance, it did look like two ponies, but I could not guess they were mares without a little extra magical help. Maybe he had planned it this way beforehoof?

Just as I was formulating the thought, the cloud shifted under my hooves, and a glance behind me showed Thunderlane stretching it with his mouth. “Gotta make room,” was all he had to say.

It was also all he had time to say, as the two somewhat familiar mares landed graciously on our cloud.

“Can we join you boys for lunch?” Flitter asked, already sitting by Thunderlane.

He shrugged and agreed, and I imitated him. I didn’t mind. Who could say no to mares like these? To do so was the equivalent of asking them to buck the cloud you were sitting on. I much preferred having something solid under my haunches when I was trying to eat.

So, Cloudkicker dropped herself a few feet in front of me, and started to rummage through her lunch box.

Unexpectedly, I actually felt a little nervous at being in presences of two mares like this. N-not that I thought they were attractive. They were more like strangers, and sharing lunch promised to be awkward.

She caught me staring. “Yes?”

“Oh… sorry…” I flinched. “Girls, I just wanted to say thank you for agreeing to look after my little brother two nights ago.”

“It was our pleasure,” Flitter replied, sending a sultry look in Thunderlane’s direction. “You know I love watching over kids…”

“Oh yeah, being awoken by the guards because the little dragon dude sent the Princess a letter,” Cloudkicker grumbled under her breath. “Sure remember you squeeing in pleasure then, Flitter.”

I fought the urge to cringe.

“Sorry,” I whispered to her, but she waved it off. She apparently didn’t really think it had been a big deal.

“I am used to dealing with kids.” She shrugged, taking out a sandwich out of her saddlebags. “Rumble’s practically family at this point. We’ve taken care of him so often he’s almost started calling us his big sisters.”

“That’s nice,” I said with a grin.

She grunted something unintelligible, halfway into a bite of her sandwich. To my left, I could hear the others doing the same. Or, more accurately, Thunderlane doing the same.

Flitter hadn’t started eating. Rather, she was politely making inquiries about him, his injuries, and how well he was recovering. All the while leaning quite close to him. Not that Thunderlane seemed to mind that much. Between two bites, I could tell he was smiling.

“Say…” I whispered to Cloudkicker. “Are those two…?”

“An item?” she completed my thought with a sly smile. “She wishes.”

Wishing pretty hard, as far as I can tell.

“What’s stopping them?”

“Thunderlane doesn’t think he can date and still take good enough care of Rumble. Plus, he probably thinks Flitter doesn’t want the shackles of a kid in her hooves so early.” It seemed like she was done with, but she added an afterthought, “And I don’t blame him for that.”

I would have asked, carried by the newfound curiosity I had in Flitter’s relationship with Thunderlane and Rumble. Did Cloudkicker doubt her friend’s ability to actually commit herself to the education of a foal? In spite of her friend’s assertions? I would have asked, if I had had the chance.

“What are you two saying over there, hmmmm?” Flitter asked with the tone of somepony that knew we were up to no good.

Cloudkicker took it in strides. Without missing a beat, she declared, “Oh, I was just inviting him to take a drink after work.”

My face exploded with heat. What?!

I was not the only one surprised.

“You want to take him out?” Flitter gave her friend a long hard look.

Bitch, I thought just as Thunderlane made a disapproving noise.

“Oh yes, you know what they say about the shy ones.” Cloudkicker wiggled her eyebrows at me, “I’m always up for testing that theory.”

And she said it with exactly the same teasing tone I sometimes used on my dates. That got alarm bells in my head to start ringing. Loudly.

Discreetly, I used some of my magic to make the cloud bigger. Solely to have the space to back away from the mare that was possibly after my virtue.

I smell danger if I ever get drunk around that mare. And not just for my secret.

“No, guys,” I tried to brush it off, playing up the amount of discomfort caused by Cloudkicker’s proximity. “Seriously… you don’t wanna see me drunk.”

It did not work.

She leaned a little closer, her mouth turned into a confident smirk, and for once, I cursed how well I could feel her breath, across my fur and the tip of my muzzle. “You’re wrong, Cloudy, we do want to see it. It sounds fun.”

The worst part was the other two nodding in unison in the background. It did nothing to rein Cloudkicker in.

“E-even then,” I almost shouted. “I had something else in mind for tonight.”

Only one of her eyebrow went up.

“Oh really?”

“Yeah…” I grinned nervously. “Since Feather’s been a real lil’ angel about not wrecking everywhere he goes recently, I figured I’d treat him to some stuff he likes this evening. I have to give the little guy something, every so often, you know?”

My explanation was met with… mild… enthusiasm, to say the least. It wasn’t to say Cloudkicker disapprove, unless she hid it well. I just saw the cogs turn behind her eyes and the idea was making its way in her brain. Similarly, I noticed some of the playfulness had slipped from Flitter’s face. It looked a little closer to a frown.

Cloudkicker was onto something, wasn’t she? Maybe, it was just my imagination. Maybe I just rubbed that mare the wrong way all the time. But that didn’t mean my proposition hadn’t gotten a negative response out of her.

Thunderlane, on the other hoof, seemed to be pondering my words the most seriously. His hoof softly tapped his chin, as his eyes went to the upper right corner.

“You know, that’s a pretty good idea.” He nodded. “With my stay in the hospital, Rumble hasn’t been having much fun and I know he was still a little shaken when he went to school today. Maybe we should do this together.”

“Sounds great.” I grinned. “To- Feather will be happy to go out with a pal.”

“Yeah, alright, we’ll tell them when we pick them up after school.” He smiled back, then turned to Cloudkicker and Flitter, the latter of which put a larger smile on her face as quickly as she could.

I could not tell if Thunderlane had noticed.

“Are you coming too, girls?”

The two mares exchanged glances, and before either had the time to speak up, Cloudkicker was already grinning wildly.

“You know what? Yeah, I’m going. I’ve been craving something greasy all week long.” She chuckled and slapped her own flank. “Those hips don’t fill themselves on grass. It’ll be good for my figure.”

Flitter facehoofed while Thunderlane and I joined in the laughing.

“Cloudy, you’re impossible. It was just one week of healthy habits, not a month.”

“Then why do I still have to eat this,” she declared with a disdainful sneer. The feathers of her wings were flicking the top layer of an admittedly very green sandwich. “Guys, I hate you both. I have hayburgers on my mind, and Flitter’s snack in my hooves.”

A cherry collided with her snout.

“Oh just shut up and eat!” Flitter threw her hooves in the air.

Meanwhile, Thunderlane’s gaze met mine and we wisely and very silently agreed to stay out of it.

After that, we fell into a more amicable silence. The girls duked it out for a few more lines, but there were little malice to it. They apparently did this often. The idea of getting me drunk had apparently left their mind as well. They were more interested in filling their stomachs before the end of our lunch break for a few minutes, just in case some freak weather phenomenon required our attention right away. According to Thunderlane, it happened a few times in the last few months.

Not to be outdone, I joined in, finally taking the time to savor the last minute stuff I had put together before. It was certainly nothing special, even a little bland, but, hey, so long as it was filling, it would have to do.

N-not that I regretted the sumptuous cuisine at the castle or anything…

The last bite was a little harder to swallow. A little swing from my water bottle helped with that.

I was in fact the last to finish eating, and I let out a sigh of contentment when I did. “That hit the spot.”

The others made a satisfied noise that could be interpreted as agreement, and once I decided to stretch out my legs, so did I.

Yup, that was the life. A full stomach, an extremely comfortable cloud for a seat, and fresh water to clench one’s thirst. A recipe for a–

“So… you and the princess, huh?”

I could feel the world come to a halt around us. The others were slowly looking up from their lunches, Cloudkicker’s sly grin stretched and stretched further. She wasn’t asking, she already knew.

And, since I had been taken a sip of water at the time, there was only one reasonable response.

Spit take.

“Whoops, didn’t know we had rain scheduled today,” she said in a singsong tone.

“W-what makes you say that?!” I ignored her, speaking through my cough and being unable to keep some of the panic from my tone.

This was bad. This was very bad!

“Oh come now, Cloud, I wasn’t born yesterday.” The mare passed a hoof over my neck and brought me close to her – and I squeezed my wings under the illusion as hard as possible. “You come to my house two days ago to drop your kid brother and Sparkle Princess’ assistant dragon for the night?”

All too suddenly, I could imagine how the entire scenario would unfold. I would not even get to place a word in, edgewise. And it would get increasingly embarrassing.

“That-”

“Yeah, I really can’t imagine why two adults would suddenly want the kids outta the house for an evening. Not to mention two adults I swear are the nerdiest things I’ve met in years. You’re like birds of a feather.”

Called it.

On my left, I heard a low whistle, and through me rose the desire to buck Thunderlane’s face in. “Wow, Cloud, the princess? Didn’t know you had it in you.”

“Well, according to our sources,” Cloudkicker chuckled, “it’s been a while.” She wiggled her eyebrows, and I started to wonder if maybe murder was not the answer. “So I suppose that overrode his natural timidity.”

There were very few words to express the mixture of panic, anger and wild embarrassment going through my mind. I’m rightly bucked… Think of a good lie, think of a good lie!

“It wasn’t like that!” I slipped out of her grasp, putting some distance between myself and the teasing mare. “We… huh… worked. On a weather phenomenon seen in the… err… the…”

I did not say anything else. Just seeing their faces was enough. They could not be convinced. Their opinions were set in stone. And so was my impending doom.

Bracing myself, I closed my eyes and awaited the accusation that would break the silence.

“Whoa, you got guts, stallion!” Cloudkicker laughed. “You heard that that alicorn dude was courting her, didn’t you? And you still went ahead to court her?”

I peeked one eye open, only to see both Cloudkicker and Thunderlane grinning at me.

…Okay, they’re not suspecting the truth at all. Is the illusion that convincing or is it that they just can’t reconcile me as an alicorn and me as this mousy unicorn?

Though, on a second glance, I could question that notion.

Flitter was still staring at me like I had grown a second head. “How…” she stuttered, “I really don’t get how you of all ponies could gather the courage to get her. Love may make somepony blind, but not brainless…”

“W-what makes you think I was the one that-?” Wait, why am I even humoring them?!

Too late. The others had already noticed my mistake. And had more or less chosen to run with it.

“More importantly,” Cloudkicker declared loudly, one hoof around my neck, “how do we help the poor guy when it inevitably comes to a stallion competition between him and a bucking alicorn? Cloud’s like Fluttershy, except less cute. There will be no mercy if he goes after a royal’s mare.”

By this point, the panic had mostly faded away. In fact, it was starting to get hard not to laugh at their wrongful interpretations. I had half a mind to tell them just to see their faces. Nah, that would be really stupid, but the idea was still rather amusing.

Guys, I think that I’m not at risk of punching myself. I don’t feel that schizophrenic yet.

“Ah! If that snooty Prince tries to beat up my pal here, I’ll show him just how far I’ll go for my friends.” Thunderlane puffed out his chest proudly.

“Err… thanks,” I said while rubbing the back of my head. I wasn’t quite sure how to feel about that. He had just threatened to beat me up so I wouldn’t beat myself up.

Come to think of it, that sounded like a good friend alright.

Cloudkicker looked at him with a sly grin. “Oh, I’m sure you’ll be able to beat up an alicorn just like that, Thunder.”

“And what are you implying, exactly?” he asked, eyes narrowed.

“Nothing,” I said quickly, placing myself in-between the two of them. “She’s not implying anything, Thunderlane. Why, I’m sure it’s only her concerns for your health after you just got out of the hospital speaking.”

He scoffed, his fur actually straightening and making him seem more imposing. The air around his feathers was shaking as surely as they were. In my haste to act like my role, I had rubbed it in and provoked him. Great.

Seeing no other recourse, I hung my head low, slumped. “P-please don’t fight o-over me… or my love life…”

Thunderlane was quick to react, but while I flinched at his sudden movement, his hoof felt gentle on my shoulder. “Hey now, no need to act like that, Cloud. We weren’t seriousy going to fight like that.”

“Oh, sorry…” I faked embarrassment, avoiding eyecontact. “I guess I’m a little too sensitive…”

I swear, if any pegasus on the weather patrol doesn’t think I’m a shy little unicorn after this, I will summon a tornado!

Just one more thing to do beforehand.

Scrapping at the cloud beneath us with one hoof, I gave them a timid smile. “Can you… please not tell Miss Dash?”

They tilted their heads. “Rainbow?”

“Yeah…” I said, ears flattening against the top of my skull. “About Twi- Princess Sparkle, I mean. I’m a little more afraid of what the Element of Loyalty would do to me if she knew I was dating her friend…”

Which could lead to her figuring out my disguise, thus screwing up everything.

“Hey, don’t worry.” Thunderlane patted me on the back. “Cloud, my pal, we’re not the kind of pegasi that babble secrets to others. We’re better friends than that.”
The two pegasi mares nodded in approval, even Flitter to my surprise.

After that, the conversation slowly drifted away from that topic, causing me no small amount of relief. Better we bitch about taxes together than slip too close to some of my secrets.

In no time at all, or so it seemed to me, our lunch break was over. A little sluggishly, we rose from our sitting position and stretched. The way my joints popped into place felt just right, as did the others’ with their wings, if I could judge by their satisfied smiles. All three pegasi flapped their wings a few times, tentatively, and apparently deemed themselves ready for flight. Swiftly, Cloudkicker and Flitter took off toward their afternoon duties, not without one last good wish for us.

Thunderlane himself just rolled his shoulders a bit, before turning to me, “Ready, Cloud?”

“As I’ll ever be,” I replied, seizing the cloud platform underneath us. “We’re going West of town, right?”

“Yeah.”

Well, regardless of possible disasters just hanging over my head, there was still half a day of work left to do. Preparing rain clouds.

Joy.

Both guards failed to hide their curiosity as she went past them. Her steps were leading her into a lesser known office of hers, in an aisle that was forgotten by most of the staff and nobility. Only her personal soldiers knew of it, and even then, it was only an assignment more boring than most.

In that regard, Princess Celestia could not blame them for their thinly veiled interest. Neither had been informed of what they had been guarding, but they had been pulled away from an emergency shift. Curiosity was only too natural in such an instance.

Her Mother knew how much it gnawed at her mind at the moment. It had not left her since the moment they had discovered him. In fact, there had been plans to do this before going to Ponyville, but she had eventually decided against it. There had been too many important ponies in her life needing her support, and afterward, the diplomats from the surrounding countries had arrived. It had been possible to put off this task for some time. She had done so.

A spark of joy lit in her chest at the simple knowledge that she had managed to put her family first, for once. It felt rather cruel of her to think so, but she could not help herself. Not this time.

Alas, her interlude in Ponyville was over, the meetings with the griffons and minotaurs had been delayed until tomorrow, and this confrontation could not be put off further.

With a flicker of her horn, she closed the door behind her.

Only three strides were necessary for her to reach the center of the small bedroom, and she did so with her horseshoes almost gliding over the red carpet. Now that she was in front of him, Celestia could not help wish to understand the one she had come for.

One young pony – though his youth was more relative in regards to her own age – of brown coat and mane was sitting down on a comfortable cushion, while awaiting her. Of the more remarkable things about him, there was of course the amount of bandages the poor stallion was covered in. Burns, in numerous spots across his body. Yet there were two far more remarkable facts about him.

This stallion was an alicorn. And she had no idea what his name could be.

“Well then, I believe we can get started,” Celestia said as she sat down. “My servants have told me you awakened less than an hour ago.”

“Hmm, y-yeah…” He gulped down, then attempted a nod, but overdid it. “I mean, I don’t really know how long, but it sounds about right.”

He was nervous, she could easily see that, and much more. He shook, trembled, with twitches running up and down his legs, as if he had no idea on how to stand at all. One rogue breeze would have been enough to make him fall flat on his face.

Obviously, this alicorn had not left the astral planes in a very long time, or had not left them at all before. Probably the latter, considering she would not have thought him much older than Ventus.

“Who are you, young one?”

His mouth opened, then closed. No word came out.

He tried again, failed again.

Forcing her frustration back, Celestia levitated two cups of tea between them and started to pour. “I am afraid things cannot proceed if you are unwilling to identify yourself.”

“I-I…. I’m an old friend of Ventus. Thadal Fragor,” he said, shaking, all the while offering a hoof like he would have done for any stranger he met.

But the hoof fell swiftly, before she had a chance to take it. The stallion’s eyes had closed, his face scrunched up as a sudden hiss left his lips. One leg gave the impression of itching upward, toward his abused forehead and horn.

Somehow, the first and foremost impression his sudden reaction brought forth was familiarity.

She had seen this before. From yet another young one, at that.

Her guest did not seem to notice, which seemed understandable if it truly was pain he was feeling. A short moment of silence fell between them. She did not claim the need to speak for now.

Finally, Thadal Fragor looked back with naught but the faintest hint of pain left. Then, with a small ‘sorry’, he raised his hoof again.

For politeness’ sake, she humored him, though not without taking note of the appreciable strength he had put into it. Even then, it was him that gently massaged his hoof to get some blood circulation back.

And while he did, Celestia paused. Her eyes widened slightly in fascination, she realized the previous signs of unease were already gone from his behavior. The young stallion was steady on his hooves, no longer out of balance. He was acting almost relaxed, with so fewer signs of tension in his body. She might have believed it too, if his eyes did not seem to scream in unholy horror.

“I am pleased to meet you, Thadal Fragor, despite the somewhat unfortunate circumstances behind your arrival.”

“L-likewise…”

Hmm, this was actually sincere, she took note with a hint of surprise. To mask the thought, her horn lifted her cup of tea to her lips. The delightful aroma briefly distracted her, as did the taste once the refined liquid came in contact with her tongue. She allowed herself a moment of delight, before putting the beverage to practical use. Her gaze pointedly went to her guest’s own full cup, then to him.

Trying and failing to hide some grim thought, Thadal leaned toward it. He could not ignore the all-but-explicit invitation to partake from her.

He took the cup with his hooves and held it perfectly. There was no clumsiness at play. The cup stayed unflinchingly stable, and the moment he put it to his lips, the steaming hot tea only entered his mouth, as opposed to the very likely burn he might have gotten a minute before.

When he looked up from his cup, Thadal noticed her insistent stare. And thankfully misinterpreted it.

“It’s pretty good…” he whispered with a timid smile.

Celestia reciprocated with a maternal one of her own so similar to those she showed her little ponies. Jokingly, she thought that a fine young stallion that could appreciate tea was nothing but a blessing, but even then, the fantasist thought did not linger.

There was something very unusual at play. She intended to find out.

“Well then, let’s see what we can do with you.”

Words of Advice

The sound of the semi-liquid flowing through our espresso machine was the song of an angel, announcing to me that the End of Times had been postponed for another day. This simple morning would not be followed by Reality crashing down, because I finally got my coffee.

Letting out a sigh of relief, rubbing at the bags under my eyes, I grabbed the cup from under the machine and took a step left, just in case one of my colleagues needed it. Then, I put the cup to my lips.

My eyes shot wide open, as the molasses-like thing washed over my tongue. Like a whiplash, my senses came to a full awareness and perhaps beyond that, if only because my body was convinced it was now in imminent danger. Not that my mind was any better.

I could honestly believe that stuff was pure poison. It tasted that bad. Only repeated and increasingly desperate attempts at feeling the caffeine have any sort of bucking effect on me could have prepared me for it. But it was still amazingly bad.

With a shiver of disgust, I forced the cup away from me with a little bit of levitation magic. Okay, it did its job for now… I thought before cursing the Elders for this injustice. To force poor little alicorns like me to drink something so hideous to survive…

Perhaps that was why Celestia liked tea.

Food for thoughts, huh?

Well, nonetheless, I should probably throw away the whole batch before somepony got hurt.

With a nod to myself, I turned. Too late, I saw that an unsuspecting colleague of mine had managed to get to the machine and make herself a cup. With a grateful grunt, the beige mare had risen it to her lips, not suspecting what she was subjecting herself to.

One second in, and already the porcelain object was thrown across the air, somehow landing in the sink.

“Who made this stuff?!” the poor unfortunate soul gasped, before retching and making a beeline for the bathrooms.

I winced while she disappeared behind the closed door. Sorry.

I would have followed to make sure she was at least okay, but one large black wing fell over my back and pulled me into a stallionly hug. “Morning, Cloud.”

“H-hey, Thunderlane,” I stuttered, taken by surprise.

Don’t feel my wings, don’t feel my wings, please don’t feel my wings!

“I’m glad to see you’re still alive,” he snickered.

I did not need to force a blush on my face. It came naturally. “You never told me Rumble could do that…”

“Well, I had no idea myself!” He snorted and poked my shoulders. “Pretty sure it’s coming from some bad influence. You know full well what started it.”

Indeed I know…I thought, remembering how our last outing had ended. Why, I could still easily hear the panicked screeches and the desperate plea.

“Not the Princess Celestia poster!”

And then… death.

The point was, it would be best if we did not show up there for a little while.

“Touché…” I grumbled, swallowing yet another gulp of hellishly strong coffee.

Once more, I groaned at the complete lack of effect it had on my mind besides telling me that horses cannot throw up no matter how desperately they wished they could. How ironic.

My work shift would start in literally a minute and I was just about to fall to the ground with my eyes closed. Those quick boosts the abominable coffee-like liquid was providing me with were merely temporary comforts, ending with me feeling both tired and nauseous.

With a disgusted grunt, I gave up and flicked the thing away from my face. There was just no way around it. I would have to get used to never using coffee to wake up again.

I jealousy eyed the thermos Thunderlane uncorked and tilted toward his mouth. If only…

“Thunderlane, Cloud Circle,” we heard an older voice come from our right.

Suddenly much more serious, we twisted around and presented ourselves as serious as possible, Thunderlane by hiding his thermos behind a wing. Professionalism was the word of the day.

Especially in front of the blue pegasus that was our boss.

“You two aren’t doing grunt work today.”

I perked up, unable to keep the sudden curiosity from my face. At my side, I could tell Thunderlane was equally curious, though not as enthusiastic.

Fierce Storm, his muzzle still in his paper, was frowning something… well, fierce. He was a bit of a control freak like that, made for a decent enough manager, but with an inflexible streak the likes of which had to be seen to be believed.

“No, colts,” he said, finally looking us both in the eyes. “A Canterlot big shot has requested two weather ponies to help with the temporary repairs of his airship. Said he had an unlucky run-in with a dragon and some of the frame has to be replaced, and since that requires unicorn and pegasus magic, you two are it.”

“Hey!” protested a raspy voice that dashed for our location. “If they’re looking for an expert at weather manipulation, why aren’t you sending me?”

Rainbow Dash.

Oh hay no. It would be my death. The figurative death of the ‘Cloud Circle’ persona, I meant. I had little doubt that if she found out, then the whole town would soon know as well.

“Because you’re my assistant, Rainbow Dash. That means I need your help and the few times I actually have it instead of you frolicking on princess-damned business again, I will take it!”

Her wings shook with indignation, but she said nothing, blowing hot air out of her muzzle with a frown on her face. She was dropping it, to my everlasting relief.

Thank you, nameless guardian angel!

“So, no more objections, you two are it, end of discussion. You’ll find it on the eastern side of the town, a mile outside the borders. Can’t miss it.”

We could only stare at one another before our boss turned to the rest of the team.

“You lots know your schedule, so get to work!”

So, a Canterlot big shot with an airplane…? And a run-in with a dra– Oh buck me.

In yet another area of the town, one most of all very carefully monitored by the weather patrol, time had ticked by oh so slowly. For the sun had already risen and reached the peak of its course through the sky all the while one reddish schoolhouse dispensed knowledge to the future members of pony society.

And valiantly, the little ones attempted to remain focused, despite the pleasant warmth of the room, the looooong time they had been stuck sitting there and the difficult problems thrown at them.

Then came the one thing that everypony in attendance had prayed for with pious devotion: the shrill sound of the school’s recess bell. Oh, how joyous the foals were, for this was the chime of freedom and fun! Playing around for the whole lunch hour, none of them could wait!

But Miss Cheerilee, ever the kind tyrant, first told them they had to calmly put their things away and leave quietly without pushing each other.

With… minimal protest, the students all started to eagerly grab their stuff and shove them into their saddlebags, too conscious of each precious second lost when they could already be outside and eating their lunch!

At the back of the room however, an orange pegasus colt nervously pawed at the top of his desk, his eyes staring ahead of him and nowhere near the essay he had started. His feathers shook ever so slightly, his ears were twitching. Glancing left and right, he only saw his classmates hurrying to complete this tidying up of their classroom, with the firm intent of leaving as soon as possible. No help for him there.

Not even his other pegasus friend noticed his hesitation, too enthralled by the prospect of getting out. Finally, he swallowed, then pushed his seat away.

His little legs carried him forward, toward the one he had stared at all morning long. The thought had been nagging at him, and the image of a big oaf of a brother had kept telling him to try. Truthfully, he didn’t want to.

T-there was just… that sorrowful voice, asking him about regrets. It sent him reeling every time. He could not just keep ignoring it. He would not!

Firmly, both his front hooves locked onto the ground like pillars, reaching much deeper than any foal had the right to. He was there, in front of the one filly he really didn’t want to talk to, and he was feeling the strength to do it!

But, as soon as she turned and saw him, her pupils shrinking into dots, he found his courage deserting him. And the commotion started to get noticed. Silver Spoon, a desk away, opened her mouth in shock, probably to defend her friend. Rumble had to be looking at him. The whole class had to be looking!

“S-say… Diamond Tiara…” Feather Dust stuttered. “You… huh… wanna hang out with us?”

Half of the class stared, their teacher more so than any other pony.

Squeaking, the pink filly blushed so hard that her face became akin to a tomato. For the first time in her life, she was completely speechless in front of one of her peers.

Sweat trickled down my eyebrows, as I gritted my teeth and forced the raw magical power into the glowing letters. Golden light shone from my horn, floating in a lazy cloud toward the damaged rune. I ignored the charred wood underneath, trying for the love of my parents to get that damn bleeding of sky magic to stop.

But a bolt, a stride away from us, shot out of its position with a small detonation. Buck.

Two black hooves pushed against the unruly planks, and I hurried to his spot. Physical defects could easily unravel an hour’s worth of runic work if allowed to fester. Tartarus would become a pleasant vacation destination before I allowed that to happen. Grim, my mouth stretched in a thin line, I forced the thing down with as much pressure as I could without breaking it. Which, unfortunately, was no easy task. The base of my horn heated up, demanded that my mana either be unleashed or held back completely, no in-between.

It would be all fine and dandy if it weren’t for the… auditive interference.

“Prince Blueblood! We love you!”

“Come out, please!”

All.

Morning.

Long.

Certainly, I had learned – or acquired, whichever – the ability to ignore unwanted noises, but, no matter who or what, distance mattered. Volume as well.

And those fourteen mares all calling for one name were at the very edge of the security perimeter. Which was not nearly big enough to my liking, or Thunderlane’s.

“Holy buck, those fanmares are so annoying!” he growled.

I chuckled bitterly, unable to let rein in some vindictiveness. “Jealous?”

His face turned a darker shade of black, while he tried to muster enough indignation to properly defend the idea that he would not like to have fanmares of his own. It took long enough to be noticeable.

My grin widened in a very un-Cloud-like simile. “Oh, so you’re the kind that likes them like that? Pretty face, obsessive and determined to get in your bed at all cost?”

I got a swat of his tail in the face for that. “Shut up, Cloud.”

Worth it.

But the increasingly grating creak of the bolts underneath us wasn’t.

“Engineer!” I called, hoping to be heard over the mass of hysterical nutjobs.

To my relief, the sound of quickly approaching hoofsteps became known just as it looked like all was lost. Help came in our time of serious need in the form of two more solid hooves and a hammer.

One of Blueblood's machine engineers, the younger of the two brown earth ponies that I had met with Calx…

I really can’t remember their names.

“You’ll have to nail this piece again,” Thunderlane said in-between two grunts. “It’s busted.”

“Got it,” he acquiesced and pulled a nail from his overalls with his mouth.

With his cooperation, this plank and the next were swiftly fixed to the best of our abilities.

Finally! This section of the airship was done!

If I ever met the dragon that did this, I would kill it, no questions asked. It had no idea how complicated it was to make an airship float correctly in a world like this one.

My eyes went over to the remaining patch of burnt wood, gauging its size and the extent of the damage. Next to me, I could tell Thunderlane was doing the same while he caught his breath. And, just like me, he wished that a very dangerous freak accident hit the dragon and the next creature that would harm this airship.

Sighing, we exchanged a resigned glance and forced ourselves to march toward the last place on this ship that would test our patience and our ability not to call up thunderstorms to strike the crowd of sycophantic suck-ups that were still shouting!

Luckily for everypony, at least my patience needed not be tested any further. Halfway to the last piece of the ship that needed fixing, the door to the captain’s cabin opened.

For the briefest of moments however, a minute glint in the air caught my eyes. And there was suddenly an invisible movement, a form as tall as a pony discreetly making its way toward one of the railings opposite to the mob of mares. Entirely without the notice of either of my companions or the mad creatures wailing for their ‘Prince Charming’.

I hadn’t paid attention to what had been said in the cabin. There had been too much work to do around here, and it was delicate enough that to be distracted was to ask some sadistic force of nature ‘please, make me start this crappy work all over again’.

But there was no mistaking that unicorn for another now. The shape of her mane alone was a giveaway, and I could so easily feel the way my wind brushed against it as she graciously jumped off the ship.

Rarity?

For a brief instant, I stared at the spot she had last been, trying to imagine the very same mare that had completely blew up at him now coming to talk to him on his airship. It was not easy, despite the physical evidence I had just witnessed. Thus, the staring.

“Cloud?” Thunderlane asked, frowning a little. “Is something wrong?”

“No, I…” I tried to explain, but knew not what to say. It wasn’t really my place to talk about this with others. “Don’t worry about it, I just got distracted. Sorry…”

With a snort, he rolled his eyes and patted my back. “Don’t be like that, Cloud. It happens.”

I would have replied, already smiling as I was, had I not been cut off by a sudden peak of fanmarism.

On the deck had stepped another unicorn, with a coat just as white as I could picture Rarity’s, but with a bulk and a mane woven of a different clothe entirely. The screeches of the fanmares had thus doubled, tripled, and then gone into a full symphony of hysteria.

Shoot me, I pleaded with the Higher Forces while flattening my ears against my skull. And since They were cruel and rigid beings, They did not strike me down where I stood.

Blueblood’s façade was that of a perfectly calm noble, with nothing betraying his annoyance at the gathered mares beside a small twitch of his right ear. Striding with the sure knowledge that he owned the place, he stopped two ponies’ lengths away from Thunderlane, the brownie and myself.

“You,” he said barely looking in our direction, “the unicorn.”

The urge to remind him of his place surged within me, but immediately afterward, I felt a pang of self-consciousness. I wasn’t proud, but that pulse had almost guided my response. Too close for comfort.

I lowered my head and shrunk, forcing myself to look nervous and timid.

Here it comes…

“Y-yes, my prince…?” I asked with a breaking voice and not a little amount of embarrassment. There were fanmares staring.

“Come talk to me, I would like to hear a report of your progress so far.”

“Of c-course!” I quickly nodded, ignoring how Thunderlane was looking more and more pissed off by the second.

It’s all an act, buddy. Please don’t blow a fuse here… They'll rip you to shreds.

“Follow me,” Blueblood commanded, leading me to his private cabinet.

The door closed without my prompting, just loudly enough to disrupt my focus. Before I could rein myself in, I had already shot a glare at Blueblood.

It was simply lucky that the stallion still had his back turned to me. He was slowly trotting toward a large wooden table, on which two tall glasses waited to be refilled. They had clearly been used in the immediate past. He did not seem to care that I see this, though I figured he still had enough of an opinion of himself to brush it off.

Or, as I wondered when he looked back at me with the same confident smile, perhaps he simply thought that ‘Cloud Circle’ was unlikely to gossip.

Snapping back into character, I lowered my gaze and flicked my tail for good measure. The tip of my right front leg circled over the planks, bumped into every small crevice, while I was pretending not to have the guts to look the prince in the eyes.

“P-p-progress is around… thirty percent away from completion,” I said with the same deference I pictured of Fluttershy before the Princesses, merely, trying to be as unassuming as equinely possible, and even more. “O-of course, this is merely the temporary fix that will allow your ship to fly again… I suggest – I’m sorry if it’s not my place, I-I mean, it’s just what I think – that you have it looked over by a team of airship engineers immediately after your arrival in Canterlot.”

Silence, relatively speaking, followed my words. It wasn’t what I had expected of him. Perhaps some indignation, a few demands or, in the best case scenario, acted comprehensive and reasonable. But I hadn’t said anything worthy of a complete lack of reaction from him.

Tentatively, my gaze left the floor to meet his. Only then did he speak with a vibrant, clear voice.

“I have to admit I had no idea you could sound so humble, Prince Ventus.”

And the corners of his mouth tugged upward in a smug grin that betrayed nothing but complete conviction in his deduction. He truly knew it was me.

I sighed, dropping the mask entirely and straightening my posture. “How did you know? Did Celly tell you?”

It didn’t quite sound like the kind of thing she would do, but maybe s–

“She didn’t,” he replied, and I couldn’t keep the shock off my face. What?! “You see, I looked through the records.” His tone became haughty, as he couldn’t help but sound as smug as he felt. “Two brothers, moving out of Canterlot on that day, and one of them just happened to have a weather control specialty. Aunty’s Crown, the fact that you are a unicorn makes you stand out quite a bit. The letter of recommendation from my aunt was just the icing on the cake.”

I hadn’t thought of that. The paper trail. Oh Tartarus… How could I have overlooked that?

“Though, if you were going to go in the weather business…” he wondered, levitating a glass of red wine toward me, “why didn’t you make the illusion look like a pegasus?”

Briefly, I toyed with the glass, letting the liquid slosh around its transparent prison. It at least bought me a few seconds to think of an answer.

Celestia hadn’t said back then. Her eyes had flickered to me when I asked, and the emotion I had seen… it couldn’t have been guilt of all things.

I settled down for the likeliest reason. “You… know I don’t like flying.”

“I do,” he said, taking a sip from his glass. The red liquid inside flowed forth and back in a too organic manner. Almost like blood. Was it on his mind as well? Maybe, for he added: “It is still an unpleasant thought to have, this…”

He waved around himself, to the seemingly empty spots around himself.

“…It still boggles the mind, but I am slowly coming to accept this.”

There was no warmth in my chest, none at all, telling me that this was acceptance, gratitude or whichever. There shouldn’t have been either. Right?

A little quickly, I chose to look elsewhere, any spot at all of this small room. There might have been desperation to change the subject too.

“I have to admit I did not expect you to give me work. That is almost… nice of you.” I took another sip from the glass, placing my thoughts in order. “Should I be worried, Blueblood? Is this a plan to get back at me for some obscure reason?”

“Obscure?” he scoffed into his wine. “You know perfectly well why I tried to get back at you.”

I frowned, not liking the accusation. Had I forgotten something? No, I did not think I had. The things… what I lost in memories… they weren’t about him. And what I had done to him felt too small to deserve a vengeance of sort. He wasn’t that petty. I had come to learn and appreciate that recently.

“As a matter of fact, I do not know,” I told him slowly, trying to stay calm. “Was it something I said?”

I figured that was a reasonable inquiry. He had to tell me at least this much regardless of his convictions, right? By the look on his face however, that was something he barely consented to answering.

“Something you did, rather. Nopony has any idea why, but I alone know that only you could have gotten that reaction out of Princess Celestia.”

Interesting, I thought with a pensive frown. “And what reaction would that be?”

At this, he glared so hard I rightly fought the urge to back down. His eyes were narrowed on me, the blue of his irises seemingly of ice and frost. All sorts of promises of bodily harm danced in those eyes of his.

And no word came from him. Nothing was volunteered, nothing was said.

His scowl, so epically threatening just a second ago, looked more and more like the only way he could appear not to be sulking. That thought alone brought every small worry down with it. It was just such a familiar place to be with when talking to Blueblood.

I would have to thank him later for the wine, drinking from it made me feel both classy and in control when he was trying to will me into non-existence.

It went on long enough that I could almost finish that delightful drink. When about two sips were left, Blueblood finally relented and slumped down, miserable and embarrassed beyond all belief. His face disappeared in his hooves.

“She spat her tea during breakfast... all over me.”

Laughing would have been a terrible faux-pas.

I repeated that mantra in my head as quickly as possible, for it was just as terribly tempting to fall to the ground clutching my sides. With an obviously fake stoicism, I went on to explain just what I knew of this. “I am certain that what got such a rise out of her could not have come from me. In fact, I would never–”

“Do not lie to me!” Blueblood stomped with all the pose of a foal demanding he be taken seriously. Red still colored his face. “Before you came, nothing could have broken my aunt’s composure so! I just know it!”

It struck me again, that he was being a child, though not from reasons of petulance. From beginning to end, this prince had always admired the Solar Princess, the Mistress of Light, the Alicorn of Day, the one and only Celestia. He had always put her on a pedestal, and I was the one forcing him to see things differently. She was certainly all those things, but then…

Celestia could be surprised, she could feel pain, sadness and love as well as any other being despite all her power and cunning. She was, in other words, a pony and a mare.

So few actually thought of her this way. I knew she had an idea, but if she actually heard how many times her name was taken in vain…

“By Ventus’ spankable rump!”

My thoughts came to a screeching halt.

“What in the world?!” I blinked and twisted around, as if somepony had suddenly snuck up on me.

With my jaw on the floor, my gaze went east, toward the source of the incongruous statement. I was still baffled. D-did somepony just swear on my butt?

The answer to that question was ‘Yes’.

…That was a teenaged mare’s voice, I realized with a shiver.

“Prince Ventus,” called the one pony that was actually in the room with me, and worrying somewhat about my state of mind.

I shook my head at his approach, taking a step back to show that I was fine, and it was merely a momentarily distraction.

By somepony wanting to spank my pretty rump.

“J-just an unexpected declaration I heard.” I feel so violated.

“What… declaration?” Blueblood asked slowly, frowning.

There was no way in Tartarus I would tell! Oh, that felt a bit too wrong.

Without any conscious command on my part, my tail curled up over my left flank to protect it from this rabid fangirl that was only a few hundred miles away. “Excuse me…” I whispered toward whoever had said this. “I do not use your butt as a swearword, I would like you to return the favor.”

I doubt that would do the trick, but I absolutely had to put my hoof down on this issue.

Blueblood’s eyes had not left my form, and they were narrowed in suspicion. “Ventus, what exactly was the content of this declaration?”

He could never find out about this. Ever. In fact, nopony at all should be allowed to know.

“Seriously, Blueblood,” I said with a tremor in my voice, feeling my face heat up, “I simply caught my name being used. In an unconventional manner. Something about my good looks."

Quite frankly, I wished I still felt no qualm about letting ponies suffocate when he grinned. I honestly wasn’t very far from doing it, conscience or not.

That smug bastard… He knew what that felt like!

“Ah, I believe I understand,” he said with fake compassion. “Worry not, Prince Ventus, being exhibited like a piece of meat slowly becomes more or less second nature to royals. Surely, you will learn to drown out all this as background noise.”

I was this close to summoning a storm in his office.

“Why, I could not be more thankful for your support, Prince Blueblood. It is good to know that you have learned well… and for the record, yes, using my name is likely to capture my attention. Luckily, I am the only alicorn that really realizes how often ponies use our names to swear, in every meaning of the word.” At that, his smile slipped to be replaced by unease. His mouth twisted, and he squirmed on his hooves. That’ll teach him… Hopefully. “And no, I’m not saying it is okay to do it with other alicorns. The first one I catch doing it with my little brother’s name will not like what I will do next. The others are unfortunately too ingrained into ponies’ image of them to be rooted out yet.”

I sat down on my haunches, flapped my wings and felt the illusion falter for good measure. Then, I waited for the meaning of my words to sink in.

The silence stretched between us, while I still got the occasional glimpses of conversations in other places. Including the excited squeals of the teenager I had corrected.

… She would not shut up about it to her friends.

“I swear it was him!” she said.

“He can hear us?!”

“Please, Prince Ventus! Tell Goggles and Precious what you told me.”

“Be my special somepony!”

“Prince Ventus, can you hear us? Please, I really like your mane!”

“I wasn’t dreaming! You can hear us, I know it!”

Yes, I can, you hormone ridden fillies! Shut up, please!

Suppressing a shiver, I placed my glass of wine down on Blueblood’s table, not caring too much about the force of my telekinesis. It was time this nonsense stopped. Scowling, I forced my focus completely away from those teenagers and fully onto the unicorn that was technically a contractor for my workplace.

“Why did you want to see me today? I’m sure this misbehavior you attributed to me and this amusing discomfort of mine you just witnessed were bonuses. You had something else in mind.” A bit too forcefully, I asked again, “What was it?”

Blueblood gulped down, trying to still look the part of the fearless and peerless prince while being completely obvious about his nervosity.
“It’s… huh… this concerns the mission to restore balance of the other night...”

With a sigh, I allowed my features to soften. There was no way this could go well, but I could still try. “Yes?” I asked quietly.

“Well, I wanted you to see that… that…” His voice trailed off, as his façade crumbled into pieces. He seemed to want to speak more, to boast and show me up, yet there were no such words coming from his person.

He couldn’t.

“You see, I participated in the operation, I… I was there and–”

“You’re feeling proud of yourself.” I finished for him. “That’s nothing to be ashamed of. You took down a dragon.”

“With my crew’s help,” he added, and I blinked in surprise.

Would you look at that? I felt ready to grin.

“You acknowledge their contribution?”

He jolted as if shocked, then brought down his hoof in an indignant stomp.

“Of course I do!” He huffed, raising his nose in the air as if offended. “Why, if not for some timely intervention on their part, I…I might have… died… f-fallen…”

Then, as the word flowed out of his mouth, his eyes focused on the floor. The solid – breakable – floor beneath his hooves, that he could feel beneath him, that he had to know was hollow. He had to. I was certain he did; his breathing accelerated and I caught sight of a trembling strand of his mane.

He was afraid. So obviously afraid, and more to the point, on the verge of crying. His shoulders had stiffened, and his eyes had screwed shut, as if he refused to acknowledge it.

A noble pony is above such things. Or so Blueblood would believe. Of course he would believe it still, a lifelong conditioning did not disappear so easily, less so the parts that seemed ‘benevolent’.

He could not have those emotions, let alone show them, least of all to ponies ‘lower’ than him.

But I – as we both knew – was a prince.

My legs moved before I could think about it. They forced me next to Blueblood, then folded to make me sit. A little air pressure applied in the right places forced him to follow suit.

He yelped and gave me a withering glare for being manhandled. What an indignity, he doubtlessly wanted to tell me. But I had a feeling that if he tried, he would barely manage a word before his voice cracked and croaked. If not for the terror that night could still summon, then for the gentle touch of my wing across his back. He immediately stiffened, but the tip of my feathers ran over the tensest spots with sincere care. Warmth spread from every contact, helping ease the guard he had put up, as it did for me long ago.

My wing closed over him and brought him closer to me. A little rougher and a little truer to the real me. In that moment, I felt only the same desire to protect and comfort toward a younger pony. I spoke firmly, but without a trace of disappointment or reproach. “You can feel fear, you can have nightmares or shake at the thought of it happening all over again. You have this right, Blueblood. You are neither craven nor shameful. I swear to you, on my own name, that you are braver than a good deal of ponies.”

He let out a shuddering breath, refusing to acknowledge any of this. But already the muscles in his shoulders relaxed and his heartbeat slowed down.

“Princes can be scared out of their minds,” I told him with the thinnest smile. “In fact, they often are. There is a great deal to be afraid of, when in the midst of battle.”

Or afterward, I thought with a shiver, hearing the faintest crackling of flames.

Blueblood noticed my sudden discomfort, turning toward me in earnest. There was a strange mixture of curiosity and worry in the look on his face. Articulating the thought as it formed, he spoke slowly with the tone of an honest inquiry. “I have heard of your injuries… Y-you were transported to get medical attention…”

His gaze flickered to my chest, the lack of injuries probably puzzled him now that he had noticed.

“They were severe,” I admitted, “but the wounds closed up quickly enough once the one that caused them disappeared…” An itch spread in a cross-shape over my chest, one I felt my hoof rub. “And this was far from my only failing that night. I fell prey to the fear spell of the now deceased King Sombra. It made me act recklessly and cruelly.”

I did not know why I volunteered that information to him. It simply came out in the middle of my spiel to reassure him, to show him that even alicorns could be the slaves of such lowly things as emotions. But I realized, strangely, that this was something I had only shared with Celestia beforehoof. And that this could only lead to one thing.

He asked, because of course he would be the only one to dare ask it to my face. And the only one that did not care enough to spare me the guilt.

“Was it only the fear spell?”

Damn it, Blueblood…

It was already hard to accept that my actions had been so totally reckless and selfish on their own, but it felt so much worse to wonder… how much? Had the magic done anything other than show me a few visions? Had it simply been me the entire time?

“Honestly? I could not tell you. I remember what it showed me, I remember what it made me feel, but I also know I was free from his influence before the Elements struck him down.”

“Grandfather?” I heard, again, the impression, the curious question of that child.

That child. The only one that I had met and didn’t take for myself. The rest…

It had always been so damned tempting to call the windigoes.

“It’s… it’s not important,” I whispered quickly, scrambling to my hooves and standing up.

“It is…” Blueblood replied, getting up as well. “But I will not pry.”

“Thanks,” I said in earnest, looking at him with relief. It was nothing pleasant to think about. He probably understood why better than most.

A weight lifting off my shoulders, I looked upon him with a sincere smile. And no little amount of pride. He had changed so much in so little time, simply because he wanted to be better, because once he had been forced to look, he had refused to close his eyes again.

“…You’re different,” Blueblood told me.

I… huh… what?

“Something about your eyes, the way you look at others…”

You saw that much, eh? No wonder you were so scared of me at first…

I felt my knees buckle from under me. Without warning, the world had disappeared and I had been falling.

Flashes of light, of colors and sounds, hitting me like a freight train then gone the next second. The cabin vanished in a blur, other images came to me, imposed themselves to me as absolute truths. There was a colt, then games, the stars as a playground and a pair of watchful parents.

“Ventus, catch me if you can!” My friend taunted me. And, of course, I obliged, had obliged.

The past, that was from the past. Not – the present – Blueblood, somepony else, but a stallion as well. Younger. In looks, at least.

A phantom touch poked my sides, just before I turned and saw a sly grin and wiggling eyebrows. “Are you watching the pretty mortal mares in your cousin’s realm?”

“Shut up,” I said, but I was still embarrassed, and the heat I felt on my face gave him too much ammunition for this banter.

He didn’t say anything. But his wing briefly covered my back, and his eyes told me that he believed Calx could still be found.

“Is Cloud Circle home?”

This one hadn’t been a memory.

It had been close, a lot closer than it should have been. T-the… location…

I let out a groan, trying to focus under the throbbing wave of pain threatening to split my head open.

A blue cloud of magic held me up, its conjurer looking at me with a frown. “Prince Ventus?”

A moment was necessary to let the nausea fade, else I feared I would start throwing up the minute I opened my mouth.

“I… I’m sorry, I just thought I heard…” I could not finish that sentence, not verbally. It just seemed too unbelievable.

I just thought I heard an old foalhood friend of mine.

Most likely, I had been mistaken. With how many voices I hear every second of each day, I could be forgiven for confusing one with another… That was just a disadvantage of being so conscious of so many sounds at once.

It had come from Ponyville, that couldn’t have been him. There… there was just no way.

He wasn’t around, was he?

Diamond Tiara had trouble deciding if she should feel like her father had finally bought her that specially enchanted cloud-bed she wanted, or if he had only promised to think about it.

She was spending her whole lunch break with Feather Dust, the new cute colt in their class, who was secretly an alicorn prince. She had heard of trashy romance more subtle than that! But it was only natural, because she always got what she wanted, whether that was something or somepony.

Even he fell in line… sort of. He was skittish, timid, restrained, and even blushing sometimes. This was a side of him she hadn’t known before, not that she wasn’t pleasantly surprised.

She did not suspect that his behavior related more to a fear of his image. The colt’s thoughts were in fact turned toward how boring fillies were, and he could not believe he had chosen to spend the WHOLE lunch break with two of them. It was even worse than the last time, because there were plenty of really cool things to do outside!

When Feather Dust had decided to take to the air with Rumble for a bit, claiming to want to stretch, she had known that he was feeling the same way. Still, it was pretty annoying how he kept asking her to try all those… brutish games with the other foals.

Climb a tree? Noooooo, too dirty. Play tag? Not with pegasi! King of the hill?

No, no, no, no!

No fun allowed. Not the kind that colts liked, at least. Seriously, couldn’t they think of their appearance? What would they do if somepony important passed by? Look dirty and stupid, that’s what!

And when she thought more about who Feather Dust actually was, it just baffled her. She simply couldn’t wrap her head around that thought. It was just so… so weird. He was, like, Princess Celestia’s little cousin! Shouldn’t he be more…?

More what?

She couldn’t tell and it was driving her nuts!

If it was her, she wouldn’t be just playing around like this. Ah! She’d have other ponies to play around for her, pamper her, praise her… not… not act like any other pony!

“Why should anypony care about you?” came the echo of their last conversation.

With a grunt, she stomped her hoof down. A bitter taste filled her mouth, making her pull a face like she’d bit into one of those disgusting lemons they sold on the market. Why couldn’t she get that question out of her head?!

“Tiara?” her friend asked, glancing between her and the colts flying around the tree. “Are you okay?”

Taking a deep breath, she forced herself to get her countenance back. But it was not as effective as it had to be. There was still this knot tying her guts together, no matter how much she tried to erase it. It was messing up her perfect appearance. And anything that messed with Diamond Tiara, the richest filly in town, deserved to be smacked down.

Just then, from the corner of her eyes, she caught sight of three rather familiar fillies, making plans as always to find their calling in life. Oh, if only they listened to her, they’d have already known they were simply a hopeless exception to the rule. They had no talents.

The thought was so perfect, she could not bear to let it go. Well, there would be no harm in just showing other ponies who was the number one filly in the school. That would silence the stupid voice in her head.

At once, she turned toward Silver Spoon with a sly grin.

“You know what? Let’s pay the Cutie Mark Crusaders a visit,” she whispered.

“Huh, a-are you sure?” Silver Spoon strangely looked hesitant, biting her lips and turning around to face the schoolhouse. “I mean, Miss Cheerilee was really mad for what you told Scootaloo the last time…”

“Oh, don’t be like that, Silver Spoon.” She rolled her eyes, placing her hoof on her friend’s shoulder. “It’s going to be fine. You know Miss Cheerilee always eats her lunch, like, around now. She won’t see us.”

For just a moment, her friend’s mouth opened and closed, like she wanted to say something, but since she didn’t, there obviously wasn’t any objection.

Satisfied, Diamond Tiara took the lead, her eyes firmly locked onto the three unsuspecting idiots that were going to help calm her nerves. Already, she was walking up to them, passing by the tree and heading straight for the other end of the playground.

A predatory smile appeared on her face, she would delight in having those three annoyances put in their place.

“Hey! What do you think you’re doing?” said a coltish voice that made her jump.

She had actually forgotten about Feather Dust right until the moment he decided that he could land right in front of them. Her ear twitched with irritation, but she forced herself to keep smiling sweetly.

“We’re just going to say a word or two to some friends. Why? Is that a problem?” And she voiced her next thought with a hint of hope. “Don’t worry, we’ll come back to be with you right afterward.”

The colt shuddered, doubtless imagining something cooty related, before finding his ground again. Despite his blush, he did not back down, wings flaring in challenge, and his eyes narrowed on them both. “Who?”

“Friends, I told you,” Diamond Tiara repeated, but his expression didn’t change. Or, more accurately, it did not change for the better. The crease of his brows furrowed, the corners of his mouth twitched into the beginning of a scowl.

He knew. She knew. There was little need for pretense when one of them was already posed to fight back.

And seeing him like that, so alike to the disaster night, filled her veins with fiery anger.

“Do you think you’re going to stop me?” she tried to say with cold contempt. The effect was ruined however by the snarl on her face. “Me?!”

“DUH!” He shouted back at her, pointing an accusatory hoof toward her. “You think I’m gonna stay near you if you bully other people in front of me?!”

The implications alone sufficed to make her temper explode. “You’re not my dad! I tell what I want to who I want! That’s none of your business, it’s mine.”

“Like hay it isn’t my business!” He stomped.

Bristling, she dragged her eyes away from the cracks under his hooves. It took all of her training in manners to force back the angry orders she wanted to yell. Instead, eerily calm intent pushed her another step forward.

“Move away, or I tell everypony who you are…” she said quietly, like a confidence between friends. “I bet the princesses wouldn’t be pleased if they knew…”

He stiffened, tensed up at once, as if he hadn’t expected that. That was really naïve of him, she thought. What else was she supposed to do with that sort of information?

She waited, knowing at that moment he would give in, knowing he would do like the others and move out of the way. With a haughty sniff, she moved her hoof forward, confident that he would fold and let her do as she wanted. Everypony did. She could already taste the thrilling sensation of power that washed over her body each time.

But her hoof bumped into very solid flesh.

Feather Dust hadn’t moved.

He hadn’t moved! How could he?! Didn’t he get the memo?! Hot anger burned in her heart at being denied, at being made to look a fool before others. Nopony could do that to her, nopony!

“Move!” she shouted. “Or else…”

The colt snorted, but it was no amused outburst. It was a harsh sound, bitter and angry. Mocking. Mocking her, and himself, with a joyless mirth that reminded her of the restaurant. The perfect night… ruined when words had suddenly humiliated them in front of all those important ponies.

Trembling, she could feel her stomach churn, and she desperately fought with herself to stand her ground.

“Go on. Do it,” he hissed, his gaze turning hard.

“I will!” She stumbled back, trying to keep the fear at bay.

Now, he was the one marching on her, a growl rising out of his throat, his feathers rustling. His glare went through her, touched deeper than that. It made her feel small, tiny, puny! She wasn’t weak! She was Diamond Tiara, she got what she wanted!

But Feather Dust couldn’t have cared less. “Will you?”

The resounding ‘Yes!’ she tried to shout didn’t come. She was gaping like a fish, wishing nothing more than for Miss Cheerilee to come save her!

“Tell everypony, tell them and I’ll tell them you threatened me so I would hang around you. You just proved me right! You can’t make anypony like you, even when they come to you first!”

She reeled from the shock, staring agape in utter disbelief. “T-that’s not going to work!”

Feather Dust smiled, but it was nothing kind. It was the smile she wore around the Cutie Mark Crusaders. “Gee, I wonder who they’re going to believe. The new student or the bully that already humiliated ponies with embarrassing pictures?”

Diamond Tiara growled, her face reddening. Thought he was so smart, didn’t he?! He thought he had her cornered, huh?! Well, she could cow those losers with one word, and they’d do as she told, because if they didn’t, they’d face the consequences! They’d be crying and begging to take her side–

And Feather Dust would stand right in front of her, between her and the others, and dare her again, and look down and she’d be alone…

–But even she couldn’t imagine foals like those three saying they believed her instead of him. They – and all of their classmates save Silver Spoon – would happily side with him. Against her!

N-nopony… likes…

“Shut up, shut up, shut up!” she shrieked, tears gathering in the corner of her eyes. “I don’t want to hear this from you!”

“Not fun being on this side of things, right?”

He… he didn’t even seem to enjoy it! W-why was he doing this then?! Why was he making her feel so small?! It wasn’t fair, it wasn’t fair!

“Feather Dust!” yelled a mare, and Diamond Tiara never thought she would one day be so happy to see their teacher run toward her.

I trotted out of the room with the feeling that my day had gone on for far too long. Parent-teacher conferences really took out the most out of me. Having been on both ends didn’t make it any easier.

The disappointed look of Calx’s teacher and principal followed him out as surely as I did. They trusted me to dish out whatever punishment I would see fit so it didn’t happen again.

Great.

Just what I wanted to do after an exhausting day at work on Blueblood’s airship. Decide on how and why I should punish my little brother for apparently making Diamond Tiara cry. Or not. They had been evasive about that detail. Point was, they had been caught fighting.

So, decision time.

And his stubborn silence did not make it any easier.

He was dragging his hoof on the wooden floor, refusing to meet my eyes. Thrice, his tail flicked with a nervous twitch. Twice, his wings shuddered. But he didn’t feel guilty, it was written all over his face, all over his frown. He just knew he was going to be punished and he thought he didn’t deserve it, so he was both pissed and uncooperative.

Hence, I had to know why he thought that.

“So… squirt, tell me what happened at school. I know you didn’t tell everything to Miss Cheerilee or Sir Career Path.”

He actually froze in place, eyes wide, like he would always when getting caught red-hoofed. Good, this should make it a bit easier.

“Is it because of…?” I gestured to his forehead, brushed the hidden horn with a breeze, and he nodded stiffly.

Okay, I think I get it then, I said to myself as I made my way out of the schoolhouse, him running after me shortly. No more dragging his hooves. He had felt a difference in how he imagined this to go, he was thus all the more eager to find out how, despite his caution.

“Say, Tom…” my voice trailed off while we walked past the fences near the courtyard. “Do you think you could ever act like a bully?”

The reaction was, of course, instantaneous.

“I did not bully her!” he bellowed, wings flared open.

A nudge on his muzzle with my hoof stopped any other incoming shout. Hard to speak with a hoof on your lips. So, he looked at me with a frown, but waited.

“I’m just asking you a question, Tom.” I told him calmly, but not without a certain sternness. “I’m not accusing you, so settle down, alright? Just answer me. Do you ever think you might act like a bully?”

“W-well, I’m never gonna!” he said, but his voice trembled. There was a hint of fear in-between those notes.

Good, I hope you never do, I thought. That would be the day our bond took a dive for the worse… unless it was only him following my bad example…

Please, I begged him, learn from my mistakes, squirt. Don’t repeat them.

There was only one way I would make that lesson stick though.

Gently, I whispered a few words, letting my gaze wonder on the road ahead. “How would you know?”

He blinked, stared and stopped right in his tracks. “Huh?”

For a few more steps, I did not answer. My attention was to the streets around us. There were still a great many ponies walking around, trying to go about their business before dusk settled over the town. Why, they were still one or two latecomers trying to haggle down the prices on the market. And how did they do that?

It was all so simple, but perhaps those were the hardest things to see.

Well, it was my job to provide that help. Looking at Calx straight in the eyes, I asked with utmost serious, “How would you know if what you did was bullying or not?”

At that moment, truly anything could have happened around us that we would not have noticed. The whole world had ceased to be around us. There was only this one question that had him entirely stumped, and me, his foalhood hero, asking it.

The gears were turning behind his falsely brown eyes. They jolted from one scrap of dirt to the next on the path, as if any of them could hold the answer. And I could easily see the relief flood through his veins when he found it. “I… I stopped her from bullying the CMC!”

“You did.” I nodded, feeling just a little bit prouder of him than before. “How?”

By this point, the fear was mostly gone. The more questions I asked, the more I reminded him of a teacher. He frowned, mouthing an indignant ‘seriously’, and stood his ground again.

A small ripple spread from the tip of his hooves, and stopped just short of my own. There, this is it. This was the conviction of an alicorn.

I knew then, that this was the thing I had to listen to.

“When she wanted me to move out of her way, I didn’t. She could do whatever she wanted, but not near the CMC. She doesn’t like them, she had this big nasty grin on her face, it was way too obvious. And when she tried to threaten me, I just told her to do it and be prepared for when it blew up in her face.” Now the doubt was gone, and he stood proudly, wings flared and prepared to fight tooth and nail in defense of his actions. “I didn’t do anything to bully her,” he said as a closing statement.

A few more seconds passed, a few more seconds during which the thoughts set and became unmovable. He had come to the conclusion himself, it would stick. No, standing up for others and himself didn’t make him a bully.

“You’re right, Tom,” I told him, smiling. “If she started to cry because she didn’t get to do what she wanted, that’s her problem, not ours.”

Then, because I could not hold it anymore, I grabbed him by the scruff of his neck and made our foreheads touch. It was not very long – I was still afraid I would brush his horn and pierce the illusion –, just long enough for him to feel the warmth beneath my skin, to feel the bursting pride in my veins.

“You did well today…”

And he had. Definitely. He’d done it! He had put enough of his stubbornness and his grudge aside to act the right way. There were so few feelings greater than seeing your little siblings grow up like that.

Looking at him though, being praised by one of your idols had to be high on the list too. Oh Tom…

“Y-you really mean it, right?” he asked, pointing his hoof at my chest. “Even if she said she’d tell others?”

Without hesitation, I nodded.

“Her knowing our identity was my fault, and I never intended it to be used that way. You didn’t let her blackmail you either, and that’s a big thing, little brother. Plenty of ponies would have fallen for that.”

I might have…, I thought while seeing him grin widely at my praise.

“Yeah, well, I’m not like most ponies!” Calx paraded, flexing his muscles in an adorable and arrogant manner that was just so him.

“You sure aren’t, lil’ brother…” I ruffled his mane, coincidentally getting him to stop showing off in public by disruption of cool appearance. “If she ever tries that again, you have my permission to ignore her threats.”

At his smile then, I swallowed back a hint of fear. I could only hope this would not come back to bite me in the rump. But for now, I had managed to get him to figure out what was acceptable when it came to dealing with her. He’d hopefully keep to this: always in defense of somepony. That was a good starting point, at least.

Clearing my throat, I picked up the pace a bit. The houses in this neighborhood were all the same to me, but, well, ours was here too. Yet… a voice in the back of my head whispered not to go further. Something like… anticipation, familiar, like Calx’s presence. The pulse of his essence in the earth under my hooves.

I was just being paranoid. Hopefully. Calx didn’t seem to feel anything like that. He was still high on his success at proving himself a good colt. And honestly, I wanted that to stay a trend.

“If Diamond Tiara does tell somepony… well, I’ll be the one to deal with that hurdle. But hay, you’ll probably just be the super popular colt in your class.” I shrugged, grinning at him. “I’ve heard worse, as far as blackmailing attempts go.”

“You say that like I’m not already the bestest colt in the school. No, like, the greatest ever!”

“Dream on, squirt.” I snorted, sending him a challenging look. “I was a much more awesome colt than you. By the time I was your age, I had already conquered a nation and became its deity figure. Then, I outlawed veggies and may or may not have discovered the secret of good character design. The verdict is still out on that last one.”

“Oh yeah?” Calx took off, floating in front of me with a cocky grin. “Well, I’m gonna show everypony that that was all baby stuff compared to what I can do!”

It was hard to keep the wince on the inside, but that line had just summoned so many bad memories. Forgive me Elders for I have sinned… by tempting my little brother into causing a cataclysm.

“Just don’t go overboard with that, okay?”

“Duh…” He rolled his eyes. “I never go overboard.”

What was it with colts today making me want to scream?

Before I could sternly tell him to never experiment anything in the house, an unexpected sight caught my attention. It was both so ordinary and unusual that it would have sufficed to get me to stare even if it had happened to somepony else.

Sitting awkwardly on our doorstep, there was one stallion of two shades of brown and a dark blue cutie mark on his flanks.

My jaw dropped. It can’t be…

I-it actually couldn’t. This guy was obviously an earth pony. No horn or wings. Just the plain old body of any other equine, with the added benefit of a strong connection to my brother.

And me. I could feel it. Sky magic gathered at his sides, where wings would be if he were... if he actually were…

I felt the need to stop. My head felt like lead, spinning, swimming in a pool of water.

Ironic, thought a sardonic part of my mind.

How could I have ever allowed this to slip past me? W-when? Just when had he managed to come here unnoticed? T-there couldn’t have been…

Fires and flames.

Followed by torrents of waters, falling through the cracks in the sky, and tears that were not while I lied down in a pool of my own blood...
I hadn’t noticed because I hadn’t examined what I had seen before.

He hadn’t noticed us yet either, but I was staring so hard I was surprised he didn’t explode. So many conflicting emotions were rising to the surface to pull me apart. Joy, to see him again, for certain, but fear as well, worry, that his presence was proof of a much direr situation than I had dared think so far. But, beyond all that, there was disbelief. He couldn’t be here. That was as much against the rules as we had done, doubly so now that the threat had already passed!

Yet… this stallion looked exactly like my friend. The only difference was the one that could be explained by the magic that was veiling mine and my brother’s looks. But him?

He was exactly as I’d known him for four centuries…

So naturally came the question that couldn’t be ignored. “Thadal?”

That hadn’t been me.

“T-Tom? You…” I turned to him, a horrible realization suddenly dawning on me. “Did you… did you get a headache today?”

“…Yeah?” He grimaced, not happy at admitting even a little bit of weakness. “Like, maybe? Didn’t last long…”

“S’okay… Don’t worry about it…” I placed a hoof on his shoulder, and stroke the back of his wings.

I’ve gotten a new onslaught of memories today, haven’t I?

“Not bothered,” Calx mumbled, his voice low despite his actual leaning into my touch.

“I know you aren’t,” I replied, keeping some bitterness to myself.

Wouldn’t do. It wouldn’t do at all. It wasn’t his job. It wasn’t the time and place. There was a stranger – friend – on our doorstep.

Looking at us.

Thadal had heard us, and shifted on his hooves with surprising agility for a first-timer. He shouldn’t have been that quick to adjust to moving around the mortal planes, but, apparently, he had. He didn’t seem overly bothered, just a little anxious. His eyes actually stopped over my sides and on Calx’s forehead. For a split moment, he seemed to just examine us, as if to decide if we were the right ponies.

And in that moment, I could have told him. It would have been the actual thing to do, just tell my friend that yeah, he had gotten the right alicorns. Some part of me screamed to just do it, get it over with and possibly give him a hug in passing. However, the vast majority of my being remained still under his scrutinizing gaze.

I… I could not simply be so open, right? It was never that simple…

It was Thadal that came forward, with two steps and a hopeful inquiry, “Sa- Cloud?”

Cringing at the slip, I nodded.

Unreal, this was absolutely unreal. Why had the Elders ever authorized that? If anything, the orderly thing to do would be to quietly take back the extra alicorns trotting around this world. So why now?

Thadal’s mouth opened, taking shape without letting out air at first. One of his hind legs was shaking; his gaze darted from us to our surroundings, and a little beyond that. He tried once more to speak, with greater success. “Can we talk? ...It’s about… it’s about your parents. And kinda… that place? You know, back…”

Home. Back home.

I was tempted, sorely tempted, to ask which one. Instead, I forced the door to our home open with a twist of magic, allowing everypony inside. Calx needed no prompting. His face all but screamed about how he would not lose a shot at hearing about Mother and Father. As for Thadal, well, that was his goal in the first place.

My eyes stayed focused on him. I could not look away. I stared as he walked slowly in our hallway, taking in the sights as would one politely visiting. It would seem just a friendly get-together to somepony else, perhaps, but his breathing was short and almost controlled, his heartbeat pulsed just beneath his skin in a rhythm not unlike my own.

“Right…” I whispered when he arrived on level with the kitchen and the living room.

He jolted in surprise at hearing my voice so close to his ear while I was still at the doorstep.

Briefly, he looked at me with something akin to shock, yet his left eye twitched and suddenly that sentiment was gone. The light dawned on him.

It shouldn’t have scared me. It shouldn’t have made me feel as if a cold hand had caressed the back of my neck. It did.

There was no doubting it. Thadal’s situation… it was the same as us… the same… He couldn’t have gotten permission, he had come and it had distracted something much bigger. Thadal… had he also used the spell?

“Why, Thadal?!” I shouted, half-rearing in anger and in fear. “Why did you come?!”

His smile then was a small and sorry one, bashful, nervous and saddened all at once. Though… in the end, it was still a smile.

“…Because I’m your friend,” he said as he entered our living room.

As the light around her horn dimmed, the ruling alicorn turned on her hooves and left behind the simmering image of the sunset growing red. Her task was accomplished, her true purpose was completed the same way it had been every day since the moment of her birth. Thus, all that remained was but the trivialities of mortal lives.

Why did it have such weight on her mind then? In the clatter of golden horseshoes and sweeping tail, in the few instants it took her to enter her richly decorated bedchambers, there had been nothing more than buzzing words of worry about the state of her kingdoms.

Predictions for the next winter’s need, reports from the weather institutions, surveys about the crops and the migration of pests, trade agreements with the griffons, placating words for the Minoan ambassador, disputes between three merchants and a contract with a loophole that could set a precedent without her interventions... and, of course, that incident. One day, in a distant future maybe, there would be no more rude letters and call for her complete transparency regarding her knowledge of such a great disturbance throughout all the realms.

One marvelous day, she would step down from her throne and move into a small cottage in the countryside. Then, she would finally rest.

One day… when the mountains walk, when the storm is silent, when Love is Hate and the Elders bow. One day that is night under the sun, and Disharmony is lesser than a thought.

On that one day that would never come, she would have a cake she had baked herself and a nice picnic near a river. It would be peaceful, that was all she could hope now.

But that day had yet to come, and no immediate solution appeared in a blissful stroke of genius. So, each problem required careful considerations…

During this time of doubts and silent questions that went unanswered, the door to her chambers opened on a much smaller mare in uniform. The maid only glanced in direction of her princess, waiting for any sign of acknowledgement or rebuke before going on with her own tasks.

The white alicorn nodded and authorized the presence of the maid. She was one of the most skilled and discreet. Her thoughts would not be interrupted by the work.

But no interruption could stop her from worrying about the future. Her dices had been thrown, only time would reveal how wise had it been to even risk it.

The image of her mother floated in her memories. “What is the difference between a good and a great ruler, Celestia?” she repeated.

The answer was well-known, but once more, she felt the need to evaluate her decisions.

“Silent Praise, may I ask you a question?”

Of course I can, Celestia thought with the closest thing to amusement she could feel at the moment. The way her little ponies carried themselves around her, she could rightly wonder if they worshipped her despite her insistence not to. Her words were akin to law in the minds of so many, and it was such a dangerous thing.

Most would do their best to act in accordance to her desires, no matter how ridiculous the request. The year she had tested this had been one for the ages. If only the historians would acknowledge it had ever happened…

Regardless, one of her most dutiful hoofmaiden was currently kneeling before her. “Of course, Princess. I will help in whatever ways I might.”

“You have my thanks, my little pony,” she said warmly. “I am facing a dilemma and wish for your opinion on this matter. Worry not about your knowledge of the situation, it is not needed to understand more. It is a question that most ponies would face in their days. Do you sometimes ponder if the best of sentiments are our worse enemies?”

“I would say it depends on the pony, Your Highness,” Silent Praise answered simply, after a moment of deliberation. “They can push us to extremes we would have never thought possible, for the best or the worst.”

Briefly, the alicorn’s expression showed more regret than she wanted to. “Perhaps that is the closest to the truth one like me can grasp.”

“…One like you, Princess?”

For a long time, Silent Praise’s question went unanswered. Doubtlessly, the maid thought it had been spoken out of turn, outside of what was permitted. So she quickly returned to the dusting she had been doing before. It should be the end of that hopefully, unless the offence had angered her enough to bring down punishment.

It had not. But the princess’ heart had ached with such powerful longing the words had refused to be spoken, to be acknowledged. She remembered, of course, of the time she had the young stallion in her office, asking her something like it was the most self-evident truth. It had revealed so much of him in that moment…

And so much of herself.

The silence broke with a simple, bitter and tired statement, spoken wistfully with full knowledge it was all too true.

“One that puts duty before family,” Princess Celestia said with each word weighing her down.

Half-truths and Half-lies

I had never, in my entire life, been so scared to hear somepony talk.

Sitting down, we had taken to the living room without much formality, Calx lying on his new favorite cushion of the Power Ponies. Thadal, on the other hoof, was not so inclined, seemingly unable to stay absolutely still now that we were in the same room together.

“Because I’m your friend,” he had said to me. The words kept echoing, over and over again. But it was so hard to believe. This, what he’d done, was not the normal thing to be done between friends. Risking… risking losing their whole world wasn’t what simple friends did for each other.

Thadal was more than that.

And this stallion in front of me wasn’t entirely Thadal either.

His eyes showed a great deal more than just the casual cockiness of the friend I had had for centuries. Worry and panic lit up his gaze far more than even my own, I suspected. He had already tried speaking once, making both my brother and I shift in our seats with anticipation, before choking and taking a much deeper breath.

His mouth probably felt dry, and in his every movement, there was a subtle shaking that betrayed far more than he would have liked to. “I… huh, wow, this isn’t easy.”

I bit back a sarcastic comment. Could he just not?! If he kept this up, I might accidentally cause a storm somewhere from the sheer pent-up emotion.

Luckily, he seemed to get his fear under control. “Gotta start somewhere…” he muttered, more to himself than to us, then gave me a tentative grin.

For a split second, I saw not an alicorn, but a human, shying away from a group gathering of bronies and excusing himself with a word about Fluttershy.

A sudden worry gripped at my throat. Don’t tell me you…

“Well, okay, first off, I’m here,” Thadal finally said, tapping the floor conspicuously, “in Ponyville, because I met with Celestia the other day. She found me unconscious in a field somewhere outside of town. I have no idea why and how.”

Without thinking, I lifted a hoof to my face, feeling a ghostly trail of water still dampening my fur. There had been pillars of water…

“I just know that Judicium wanted to come himself, and I kinda screwed it up without meaning to. A-at least, Celestia didn’t think he would be too mad.”

Oh, that would be up to debate, unfortunately. He had roared. Just thinking about it was enough to make ripples go over my coat. Nopony could see it under the illusion, luckily, not even Thadal.

“So… she kept me in Canterlot till the burns I had were healed, which was freakishly fast.”

“Alicorns,” I said simply.

That seemed to have startled him far more than it should have.

Eying me with just a hint more hesitation, he cleared his throat. “Y-yeah, alicorns, aaand she more or less told me where you two were and said she’d allow me to stay with you, so long as I agreed to pretend to be an earth pony friend visiting. It… kind of annoyed me, to be honest.” He scoffed, shifting where he stood. “I wanted to fly.”

“Yeah, it’s really awesome.” Tom nodded sagely, then looked at me with a half-frown. “S’just Sam that doesn’t like it for some weird reason.”

I lightly swatted the back of his head with my wing. “Shut up, squirt.”

Thadal chuckled. “Right. Well, Celestia used the spell and sent me on my way here. With some instruction to show up to the Town’s Hall later this week.”

Well, I recognized that pattern. Probably for a job. At the Ponyville’s dam, maybe?

But why would Celestia feel the need to give him that if we were supposed to be able to go back soon? She… she promised to look deeper into it, to get the approval for our return now that Sombra had been crushed…

Don’t tell me…

“That’s pretty much it for how I got here,” Thadal said slowly, looking a bit uncomfortable under my gaze.

That was new. The friend I had known most of my life wasn’t the kind of alicorn to get flustered by so little. He could be shy, but the time we had spent growing up together had more or less brought him out of his shell. For him to act like this now…

“That’s it for the Equestria part of your story?” I asked with a bit more surprise than I felt. “I was expecting more…”

His face didn’t change, but his tail flicked to the side in a jolt.

“W-well, there wasn’t a lot of stuff happening in Canterlot. I was a little disappointed, but, well, I was stuck in a bed for a while… Then there was the business with Celestia and me being sent on my merry way, so, yeah, that’s it.” He put on a cocky grin that seemed to hide just a hint of disappointment. It would have been convincing, if not for the briefest flash in his eyes. “You believe me, don’t you?”

It had tainted his words, made him sound guarded about me. Was he afraid?

“Come on.” I rolled my eyes, smiling widely. “What kind of friend would I be if I didn’t trust you?”

He seemed a bit too relieved by my approval. “Yeah, losing a friend’s trust is the fastest way to lose a friend…”

“Forever!”

The high pitched shout came out from underneath Thadal, sending a jolt of surprise through Calx and I, and he reared in shock with a whinny.

Blinking, we stared at the mare that had slipped past all of us to make her declaration, who didn’t seem very bothered by the way we’d almost gotten a heart attack.

“Oh, hey guys!” she said innocently.

“Thank you, Pinkie,” I said, trying to smile despite the shaking in my wings. “That was perfect added weight to our discussion.”

From the way Thadal looked at me as if I had grown two heads and started singing in a chorus, he might disagree.

“It was?” Pinkie cheered up. “Great!”

Grinning, I nodded and put on a face of mock concern. “Now, if you don’t mind, can you please move a few steps to the right or the left? My friend is not used to having a mare scream underneath him.”

“Oh gosh, gotta get away quick then,” she said, slipping away by stretching out from under him like a slinky. There hadn’t been a trace of anything but sincerity in her statement, and she even shot an apologetic look to my friend.

Of course, Pinkie wouldn’t pick up on the underlining taunt, but Thadal would. And so did Calx, whose snickers loudly made the situation that much worse.

Shots. Fired, I thought with a shit-eating grin.

His eyes narrowed on me. I bet he was regretting taunting me on my old scrying habits now.

“I’m not forgetting this one,” he mouthed off.

Promises, everypony made them. And yet I was still alive. What was one more? Hay, Blueblood alone had promised my untimely demise a few times already. It seemed to be a trend. Well, Celestia hadn’t, but it was always on the edge of her voice after I did something to give her a headache. She was just too wise to wish for things that would sadden her.

Likewise, Pinkie wouldn’t have begrudged me for that joke, even if she had gotten its meaning. She was much better natured than I. Always a smile that one, to the point it felt like the show didn’t do her justice. Twenty minutes weren’t long enough to show exactly how strong
somepony had to be this happy, energetic and kind twenty-four seven.

“Oh, hey, you’re the new pony I met today!” Pinkie clapped her hooves together, before suddenly leaning very close and whispering in his ear, “You’re friend with Ventus, Raindrop?”

Thadal stared in shock. “I… I, huh, I mean…Y-yes, like, you…”

Pinkie tended to have that effect in person. Another thing the show couldn’t prepare you for.

“Yes!” She pumped her hoof in the air, even making a little dance that I didn’t think an equine had the joints for. “This makes another friend of my friend being friends with my friends. Phew, this’ll make things smooth as a banana’s skin. So, special new friend from Canterlot, the party will be somewhere after tomorrow, because the girls all had a busy day. Especially Rarity. She was running everywhere today, first the fields, then the train station and the mailpost for that special silk order she needed, then to Sugarcube Corner to cry over the delay that screwed over her schedule, then for her parents to take care of Sweetie Belle for the night, and –”

I didn’t hear much after that. My mood had plummeted down, and worse yet, Calx’s had as well. He sank a little deeper into his cushion, a grimace on his face, and his eyes fallen to the floor with more interest than the mosaic pattern warranted.

Pinkie was instantly as his side, quite literally. I swear, that mare was related to the Weeping Angels. “Bladey, are you feeling alright? You look a little glum.”

“Meh,” he replied while curling up a bit more on himself.

“Do you need your aunt Pinkie’s precious help?” she asked eagerly, winking as she closed in on him. “I know a few secret warriors that still need a strong courageous alicorn’s help in their rescue.”

For once however, my little brother wasn’t entirely receptive to a chance at spending time with his favorite pony.

“Aww, but I…” He traced a circle on the floor with his hoof, avoiding her gaze. “I wanted to hear this stuff too… S’been a while since we talked to Mom or Dad.”

My heart dropped, and I wasted no time to kneel down on the opposite side of him.

“I’ll tell you, if you want to go. It’s… fine,” I forced the words out, struggling to smile. “It might take a while. Just go have fun.”

“You see? My idea is brother approved.” Pinkie spread her forelegs wide. “The best remedy for gloomy times is funny times! And that is a philosophy Granny-Pie-TestedTrademark,” she whispered the last word in an aside.

It had its effect. Calx chucked under his breath, itching to get up. Now he looked back to me with a twitch on the corner of his mouth, fighting a grin while seeking approval, just to be sure it was alright.

Wordlessly, I nodded, and brought him into a quick hug. Then, with a small push, I encouraged him to go with Pinkie Pie. She was still all smiles, quite ready to make sure his frown was turned upside down.

Calx suddenly turned to my friend, his brows furrowed together. “They’re fine, right? Promise they’re doing alright!”

Thadal stared right back, and said with what seemed to be a reassuring tone, “Magnus and Atonie are doing alright.”

It took so much of my willpower to keep my ears from ticking at that. Father and Mother, huh?

Calx didn’t catch that, as he grinned and gave me a much happier look.

Thank you, Pinkie. Seriously.

Said mare started bouncing her way out of the living room, followed by my crazy colt of a brother, but before she had left completely, her gaze caught mine. In that split second, there was so much understanding in her eyes, so much compassion, that I was convinced this hadn’t been a coincidence at all.

Their combined figures disappearing around the corner with Pinkie asking, “So, what did you want to do, Bladey?” And then, it was just me and Thadal in the living room.

“For the record…” I turned slowly toward him. “Not even I know how Pinkie manages to say so much with so little air.”

I had hoped that would help, but no. Thadal did not have a mind for laughter at the moment. Something about him, about his guard, crumbled with my brother and Pinkie gone.

Sighing, I channeled some magic through my horn. The subtle change spread across the living room, washing over him in an invisible wave, and kept going until it reached the hallway.

“…It’s okay…” I told him softly. “They won’t hear us now. Nopony will.”

It came out as half-scream. “You know who I am, right?!”

My ears flattened against my skull. “I… remember.” But your name’s fuzzy.

It was as if he’d read my thoughts, or the look on my face. “Eric!” he shouted, with more fright than anger. “It’s me, Sam! I’ve… I’ve found that ritual thing in your room and I figured… It looked the most promising of the bunch so I did it all exactly like the drawings and I…”

But then, his voice died out, and his whole self seemed to shrink down with a shudder.

“I heard a voice,” he croaked. “A deep, thunderous voice, as booming as an explosion, the sternest thing I’ve ever heard. And…”

I leaned in while he paused. My heart was beating too hard in my chest.

“Next thing I know…”

His voice broke, as did the last of his resolve. He looked at his hooves, as if he had never seen them before.

“I’m a pony…”

A cold hand gripped at my throat. My friend shouldn’t look this miserable. It wasn’t something normal, it wasn’t something that should happen at all. Perhaps it was the reason my legs remained stuck to the floor. I should be helping him!

Without a sound, he sunk to the floor and hugged himself. “I’m a pony…”

Biting my lips, I tried to move closer.

“Thadal, please calm down,” I said.

The wrong thing to say.

“No!” He shouted back, almost angry with me. “I didn’t get to do that before! There were other ponies around! Celestia was there! Like, the actual Princess Celestia, High Queen of Dawn! The one my dad said had lived amongst mortals for a thousand–!”

For a second, a single terrible second, his pupils shrunk and the warmth left his gaze to become a strangling fear. To see that look directed at me was like a punch in the guts.

Don’t… “Thadal, please.”

“Why do you keep calling me Thadal?! You know that’s not my name!”

Cringing, I took a step forward. “…Eric.”

Why had that name felt so forced? Why had it felt so unnatural to use? It was his name, or one of them. I knew that much!

What’s Dad’s name? I asked myself, blinking in shock. Mom’s?

With another wave of nausea, I realized that even that had been forgotten. They were lost adrift a sea of other memories, of much more tangible – real – memories. Why was it that I could remember the shade of blue in Mother’s mane with such ease, that I could recall the scent of Father’s coat? The tone of Dominus’ voice like he was talking to me at this very instant?

My human life was but a lost cloud in the skies in comparison, one I clung to desperately, whenever I remembered to.

And that was exactly what fear plagued Eric right now. To be honest, I could not tell how justified he was in that. He hadn’t been stuck here that long, even I could remember the first few days being moved by a single-minded purpose. Unless the spell had reacted differently to him.

“Do you remember your father?” I asked slowly.

“I…” His gaze fell to the floor, choked words coming out of his mouth. “I do… What kind of question is that?”

It took seven seconds, to the clock, for his mind to catch up. And when it did, I felt discouragement gain ground over me. Yes. I had been given my answer and so had he. The realization dawned on him, and at once, the dam burst.

“I… I do remember and I shouldn’t!” He yelled, standing up at once and running up to me. “I’ve never met my dad before! Do you understand what I’m saying?!”

Flinching, I wiped the spittle flying out of his mouth off my muzzle, my mind briefly going to Twilight and the work we had done together.

“I do.” As careful as I could, I placed a wing over his shoulder with the hope the contact would soothe him at least a little. “Thadal, calm down. It’s okay, it’s just the two of us. We can fix it. Calm. Down.”

“I’ll calm down once I’m done being hysterical!” he shouted… well, hysterically.

Alright, gentle and patient pleading hadn’t wielded much result. Perhaps a bit more abrupt.

“Any chance that will happen today?”

“NO! Dude, we’re ponies! Actual ponies with hooves and tail and everything else!” he completed his statement by waggling his tail and wings. “Including remembering being ponies all our lives!”

I gave him a flat look. “Technically, it’s a lie. We’re alicorns, not ponies; there’s a difference. And I’ve learned to deal with it by now. You’ll have to tell me something more shocking than that if you want a reaction out of me.”

I could tell, from the widening of his eyes then, that he had not expected my answer at all.

“W-w-we’re… we’re not wearing clothes!” he shouted, then realized that what he had said was perfectly true. In one fell swoop, he dropped down to the floor, blushing all the way down his neck.

He has a point here, but… I hid a little grin thinking about mares not wearing clothes. Some heat spread to my face as I pushed the lewd thought away. “So long as I don’t have to see your junk, I’m surprisingly okay with that.”

“Oh… Wait w-what?! Where is it?!” His eyes widened in shock, prompting him to jump to his hooves and look between his legs. The very next second, he turned to me in panic. “Sam, I don’t want to be a girl!”

I held in an annoyed sigh. “Oh for freak’s sake, Eric, it’s a sheath, look it up.”

Eric blinked. Twice or so. Then his eyes started to light up with comprehension. Not completely though… His head tilted toward my rump, and below that.

“Thadal!” I shouted, self-consciously unfolding my wings downward to shield myself.

As if realizing his shudder inducing mistake, he recoiled with an obvious cringe. “Errrrh, sorry. Didn’t mean to do that.” He lowered his head, but still shook a little, squirming uncomfortably and rubbing his hind legs together.

If I didn’t know any better, I would say he wanted to make sure it was really there.

Well, that wasn’t anything I needed to know. Where the hay is the brain bleach?! Ah, yes, right there, the same place I left it after having to hear a bunch of ponies have an orgy in the next town over. So many fetishes at once…

Sometimes, my powers really sucked.

“Let’s just forget that happened, okay?”

For a moment, he didn’t answer, his head tilted to the side as he stared with suddenly narrowed eyes.

“…What?” I asked, a little self-conscious.

“What’s wrong with your voice, Sam? I could not even recognize it at first and it’s still hard to now.”

That wasn’t what I had expected.

“I… just took a more ‘proper’ tone, what’s with alicorns and royalty…” I also figured we’d be able to come back quickly, but that was another completely foolish notion, right? “I just thought it would be appropriate.”

“Wait, so you’re forcing yourself to do it right now?”

That gave me a pause. When was the last time I had to actually make my voice like this?

“No, I’m not… It just comes naturally. I guess.” Then, as an idea struck me, I let out a chuckle. “Eh, that’s a good thing, considering Twilight said she likes the sound of my voice in her ears. She’s so adorable you have no–”

This time, his eyes widened and he almost recoiled.

“…idea,” I completed my thought hesitantly. “Thadal?”

“Wait,” he said slowly. “You’re actually dating Twilight? I thought that was just a crazy wild guess.”

This was the tipping point. We couldn’t go on like this, stumbling at whatever the other said. We had to do this better.

“We need to establish clearly what we know of the other’s situation,” I said in a tone that brokered no argument. “First off, can you tell me more about how you got here? There might be something we’re overlooking there.”

I thought he would freeze up, put on the spot like this, but no, he spoke with an almost casual tone.

“It’s not that complicated. When you disappeared… well, Cassandra transferred to another school and I was alone. S-so I figured I’d seek you two out, and I found out about this, being alicorns and what’s not.”

There he paused, glancing downward before locking gaze with me.

“I told them…”

I tensed.

“I told your parents, Sam. I said you two were here.”

Elders… I thought as he gave me a sad imitation of a smile.

“How well do you think they took it?”

“H-how are they?” I choked. “How have they been holding up?”

“Y-your mother’s in therapy last I heard, your father is still searching, and I… I came along to say ‘your kids magicked themselves out of the world’. Ah, it’s… is it any surprise if they threw me out?” He chuckled, looking at the ground like he wanted to be buried and never see the light again. “I couldn’t even think of a good reason, I couldn’t explain. I just froze up after saying it.”

Closing my eyes, I steadied my breath. The image of two humans, two that were like my parents, suffering in silence in our home, it was there, at the front of my mind. Dad held himself together with a haunted look, nothing but despair at the world crumbling around him. Mom stared at the small bottle, at the pills inside, and sometimes thought about taking a bit more… a bit more than what was recommended.

I almost retched. Please…

“It wasn’t…” Thadal said, because there always had to be more. “It wasn’t the only thing…”

My gaze met him, even if I felt like my shoulders carried a weight far past my strength. I looked and waited, despite wishing I could just forget it had ever befallen me. “Yes?”

“W-when I started the ritual… t-the chanting… I felt… I felt something different, big.” He shuddered, a shadow falling over him. “All I could think of was this strange presence, just outside of my field of vision, no matter where I looked… And it grew. It grew stronger with every syllable, every sound I made.”

Whispers echoed through the living room, three voices saying the same words, though none at the same time.

“Then, when I was just a sentence… one sentence away… I heard a scream in my head. That voice, it wanted me to stop.” He was almost pleading, but I could not tell to whom. “And the paper I was holding… it suddenly… brightened.”

In a second, my mind flashed to the bedroom I had owned, a lifetime ago, to a piece of paper and a complicated pattern drawn upon the floor. And just like that, it was all gone, from my mind and my home. They hadn’t found it, because there was nothing to find anymore.

“It felt like something had detonated around me. My hand was burned, the paper was gone. I… I was just one sentence away… My ears were ringing, I could only see blurs and silhouettes, my whole body felt as if I had been plunged deep underwater… So I just said the last few lines anyway…”

I saw Fire, shivering in rage, then disappearing.

His next words fell heavily between us. “And, while I was sinking through the ground, I heard a roar of anger.”

The atmosphere had grown grim. Gone was the semi-casual air, we could barely keep ourselves from looking like this was a funeral.

To be honest, that was more or less how I felt about it. The ritual was gone on their side as well. They would never stumble here through some strange unlucky accident. The only way we’d reunite with our human families was by succeeding in pulling off this trip in reverse.

It was as if somepony had cut off a link between us. Stinging prickled at my eyes, something I did my best to hide. I hadn’t even realized it before, but a small part of me had hoped we would be reunited here without the pressure of success relying entirely on me.

But no, it would not be that simple. It never was.

I sighed. “Alright… So no hope on that side, right?”

He nodded quickly.

“Figures…” I growled to nopony, letting it sink in.

Thadal, however, did not intend to wait or ignore this. “I think it’s Judicium. At the time, I couldn’t have known, but now I kinda remember what it felt like, when I was there at the Higher Tribunal and –”

He seemed to catch himself there, like he hadn’t meant to say so much. His hoof had shot up to his mouth in a flurry of panic.

They’ve already judged us… “Alright, no need to ponder that too long,” I told him, letting his blunder slide away unnoticed. “If we think of it like the show, then the finale should have already happened and there won’t be a big event for some time. I’d think the Elder of Justice would warrant a two-parters, considering the kind of hatred he has for Discord. Would a week be too generous? It’s never really clear how time passes in-between episode and in comparison to the human world. We just need t–”

“Huh, Sam?” he cut me off suddenly.

I blinked. “What?”

“The finale hasn’t aired yet.”

Just like that, he stopped me cold.

“…What?”

He bit his lips, looking away. “Well, I left just a few days before the twenty-second and twenty-third episodes aired. There was a special, and it promised to be epic, so I knew I had to come here fast, just in case you were involved.”

He didn’t need me to reply. The look on my face must have been enough.

“I missed it all, didn’t I?”

Father, give me strength. “Y-yup…”

Swallowing another bout of nausea, I started pacing around the room.

King Sombra wasn’t the main villain of season four? How can that be? Is there really no epic season finale this time?

No, no, there must a threat for the girls to take down, likely with the Elements, that is how the show rolls. There’s a finale and it involves a very big threat.

I stared at the ground with a sinking feeling. It wasn’t over. It wasn’t over yet and Judicium was more pissed off than ever. And there was just enough episodes left to make it a reality. Just enough time to allow Him access to us and unleash whatever circles of Tartarus he thought appropriate.

I shouldn’t be thinking of that. I bravely attempted to put on a smile. Maybe it’ll be like season one, the Gala. A big event that everypony looks forward too and learns a personal lesson through. Maybe the Equestria Games? Those were mentioned last season.

That train of thought did little to quench the fear gripping at me. I haven’t heard of anything remotely like this yet.

“Sam,” Thadal called. “Calm down, okay? It’s not happening yet.”

“W-well… alright.” I pawed at the ground, not quite feeling able to look him in the eyes. “Celestia promised she was working on it and last I heard there was some progress.”

He quirked an eyebrow. “Working on what?”

“Getting us home.”

“Home?” he repeated, his brows furrowing together for some reason. “I thought… So she knows then? About where home is?”

“Y-yeah, I…” The words got stuck in my throat. No, no I hadn’t actually given Celestia the right location to look for. I had just asked her to send us home, and she thought we were astral alicorns.

I had been waiting on something that would not happen.

What the hell?! W-what… how?! Just how had I not realized that?!

Or maybe I did, said another voice full of disdain and anger.

“Sam, what’s going on?! You’ve been here for almost the entire season! You have had so many chances to say it.” Thadal trotted forward, glaring at me like he had never done it. He was quite literally shaking with anger, and every step he took was echoed by one of mine backward. “Why haven’t you fucking told them already!?”

His shout came in a burst, startling me in a jump. My flanks collided with the wall, then slowly slid down to the ground.

“Because…” I looked down, trying to gather my thoughts. It had been so easy to understand before. Too dangerous, too risky, too something, always something that I could not risk. So why? Why was it that Thadal’s question stumped me so!

His brown eyes searched on my mask. They knew, unlike everypony else, they actually knew what was underneath, they saw the discrepancies nopony else could. And Thadal was baffled by my silence. It wasn’t like me, he knew.

But he didn’t get what had happened here, not yet.

Miserable, wishing this could be done with, I whispered, “…Everyone hates humans in Equestria.”

“That’s just fandom bullshit!” He stomped. “Ponies aren’t xenophobes!”

“I’m NOT talking about the ponies, Eric!” I said hotly, glaring at him with a sudden burst of strength. “That wouldn’t have stopped me before! What could a bunch of ponies possibly do to us as we are?! Do you think I would have bothered with a lie if that had been the reason why?”

“Then who’s stopping you?!” he cried out.

“I’m talking about them… They’ll… the fans will…”

“That’s…” The words died out, as he struggled to even comprehend what I was hinting at. “That’s insane! Why would you even believe that?” And as he said it, he stilled. “You mean… it was all because of that piece of garbage?!”

My ears drooped down, his sheer disbelief grating against my fur. Hearing it from him, with such conviction behind every word, made me feel all the more foolish.

“Y-you know what that thing was about…” I said weakly, so small under his stern gaze.

And that was the worst part. He knew.

“For the Elder’s sake, Sam!” His hooves slammed on both side of my head, forcing me to look straight in his eyes. They were hot, burning hot with barely suppressed fury. On each side of me, the hooves trembled, as if he was restraining himself not to punch me in the face. “It. Was. A. TROLL FIC! All just a sad attempt at shocking people with mindless gore and out-of-character behavior! It means horseapples in the end!”

I could not say a thing in my defense, but that seemed to only enrage him even more.

“You… You completely sabotaged yourself over what people thought of you! I don’t believe it! That’s not… that’s not the Sam I know! You could have… from the beginning, you could have just…” Sheer bafflement seemed to sap his strength and he faltered. “Over a fic of all things…”

It stung. By the Higher Powers above and the Circles of Tartarus, it stung to hear my long-time friend call me a moron, and be completely right about it.

“I know…” My voice grew raspy, sore. “I fucking know it was just a fanfic…”

He fell back down, drained of his strength, his voice thick with pain. “Then why did you act like you didn’t?! I… everyone thought you were lost…”

I’m sorry, Thadal. I swear I am…

“I… I haven’t really…” I held out a hoof to my eyes, trying to keep a hold on the boiling emotions under my skin. “At first, I really did believe it and it made me so angry…”

An old ugly thing stirred deep inside of me.

“So… angry…” I whispered, seeing the words again, the little details, the ones that meant effort had been put into it. We twist the wings! “You can’t even imagine. When I read it, I was ready to kill that author with my bare hands, stomped him to death with my own hooves if it was what it took.”

At some point, I had gotten up to my hooves. I was looming over my friend, hot churning fire run through my veins, defying him.

A worrying rumble came from outside, and Thadal’s eyes flickered to the window. There he saw the darkened clouds gathered at my behest. The lighting in the room was growing dim, slowly stealing away from the vibrancy of the sunset’s colors.

The wind howled.

“Do you have any idea what it is like?! To read about people’s desire to torture a member of your family over the pettiest reasons?! TO GUT OPEN YOUR LITTLE BROTHER?! HOW WOULD YOU HAVE REACTED IN MY PLACE?!”

Lightning struck.

Somewhere, outside, there had been a cry from a few startled ponies. Something was charred, a tree, set ablaze in the streets. Already, there were a bunch of people trying to extinguish it.

Stinging pain exploded from the side of my face, and I fought to keep my balance. Thadal’s hoof was raised, still high from the backhoof strike, while I could barely believe the sight.

“I don’t know, Sam! The truth is I just plain don’t know how I would react! But I sure as hell wouldn’t let it turn me into a monster.”

My jaw dropped as my ears rang loud with the word I had feared more than any other in this world. Monster. My best friend just called me a monster.

I wished he had just punched my lights out instead.

Heaving, Thadal collected himself in the false impression of silence fallen over the living room. He gulped down, green under his fur despite the obvious traces of anger left in him. “Sam, they were lashing out at a fictional character…”

I saw red.

“That’s a lie!” I stomped, my hoof coming down with a shockwave. It could have just as easily been another strike of lightning.

The excuse, that was the excuse they all used to fantasize, to mock and laugh while my parents cried their eyes out hoping such a thing wouldn’t happen! The same neat little package to justify sharing the hope my family’s worst fears came true!

“This is REAL! WE’RE STUCK HERE WITH NO WAY-… no… no way out.”

I crumbled, the fight leaving me for good. Elders above… there’s no way out. It’s all on me, all of it. If I fail – I am failing – our parents will… will…

“It’s real for us, but they didn’t know it was a lie,” he said gently, placing a hoof over my shoulder. “And even then, it was still just fanfiction. You know, Sam, haters gonna hate or whatever motivations people use to keep going. They don’t matter in the long run.”

He didn’t say anything about being able to leave Equestria.

“…” The words didn’t come. I just looked away, my ears drooping down, my tail flicking nervously. “If… if it were up to them…”

“It’s not. Come on, Sam. You can’t keep that over your head. You can’t keep worrying about the opinions of people a world away. It’s not as if it was the majority opinion either.”

There was a second I was tempted, so very tempted, to believe him, but I smiled and said, “You know… they changed Derpy.”

He grew pale.

“You weren’t a brony back then, but I was. They actually changed the model, changed the voice and the lines, just not to face the backlash. They’re a company, they do this for a profit and if we really hurt their numbers, they’ll do their best to make the problem disappear.”

“T-they would not!” he said, but he didn’t look perfectly convinced. A sliver of doubt had come through.

“Doesn’t matter… we’d be gone by now if they had wanted it to happen… Unless we try something drastic…”

Like covering Equestria with ice and snow, I thought with my face burning in shame.

Thadal took no notice. “If you know the fandom won’t make you explode, why haven’t you told everypony the truth?”

There was a moment of pregnant silence during which I pretended not to notice his confusion. I did not honestly want to say it. It was just unfortunate he would not allow me that.

“…What truth?” I asked calmly.

“That you’re human!”

It had come so clearly, with no pause whatsoever. He had not hesitated.

The same couldn’t be said of me.

“Because…”

“Because…?” he pressed forward.

I could not find the words for it. Even with him asking me in earnest, it was so difficult to even formulate the thought. To accept it. Was there anyone that could? I didn’t want to say it, but my friend deserved at least this much from me.

With a sigh, I grabbed his foreleg and willed us elsewhere. In the blink of an eye, we had slipped away from my new house toward the fields surrounding Ponyville. There was no danger of being found, for the spell still hid our alicorn nature. It would simply look as if a unicorn had teleported here with his friend.

I felt surprisingly calm for this. Serene, maybe, despite what I was about to do.

Eric probably understood before I had even lowered my head. There was nothing else in this place, it was just green hills as far as the eyes could see. Just two herbivores and a grassy field.

I opened my mouth and closed it on a patch of grass. I made a conscious show of looking up to him, of grazing like any other common pony. Honestly, it tastes a bit like salad, with a lot more fiber. Nothing terrible in itself. I swallowed without much of a care for it, and straightened to look back toward Thadal on an even level.

His eyes had shrunken into dots. His mouth was half-opened, completely immobile as he stared at me and could not see a human.

He looked scared. Terrified.

In a stumble, he fell back onto his backside. His hind legs had given out from under him. I imagined the truth had struck him dizzy.

Gently, I walked to his side, offering a few words in a soothing voice. “I’m sorry about this… you came here to help us back, to help Sam your brony pal and his brother back home, but I don’t think that’s possible anymore.”

“Aren’t you going to…? D-don’t you want…?”

Nothing else came out. His eyes asked many more questions, all of them aimed purely at my resolve.

Are you going to stay here? Do you think you belong? What of those back on Earth? Do you still care? …Can you?

Closing my eyes, I chased off those visions. It was not the first time I had come to see them, it would not sway me now!

“Do I want to go home, Eric?” I asked – and he had the good grace to look guilty –, “yes, but you have to understand that the person who will go back to Earth won’t be human. Not fully.”

My eyes went to my hooves, but the truth was so much deeper than that.

“I’m quite aware that I’m not just Sam anymore, I’m different. I changed. I’ve learned some things, many of which I would rather forget.”

“I… I think I get it.”

No, not yet, Eric.

Smirking, I glanced at the hills to the East, focusing just a bit beyond that. “Come on, let’s go back to Ponyville before Tom throws a fit trying to find us.”

I moved to pick up his hoof, but to my surprise, he jumped backward and dodged. “No… not yet! I’m not giving up that easy, Sam. There’s still a lot for us to talk about!”

“What?”

“You tried, didn’t you?”

It was as if he had punched me. “I did!”

“Why hasn’t it worked out then? I’ve said a few big lies here and there, and everypony treated them as the truth. Heck, I remember most of the stuff I lie about as if it were the absolute truth! How did you not find a way out?! ”

I had to laugh at that. “Why, you ask? Because, even considering that dimensional travel’s a crapshoot that nopony could ever figure to make work, the main way to come here is already…”

Gone, Twilight had said.

“For fuck’s sake… it’s the first thing I tried. Said I knew the way back and the spell…”

The spell…

I froze.

Thadal’s eyes widened, completely taken by my words, not realizing what I had realized. He was almost leaning, trusting me without question, and he was completely unprepared for the hoof that fell over his shoulder and spirited him away.

Our arrival was punctuated by an explosive decompression.

“Twilight!” I called out over the sound of toppling books and wincing bookshelves. “For the love of the Elders, you have to start testing him now!”

She was there, amidst papers, books and inkpots, half of them scattered across her worktable. In any other situation, I would be bowing at her hooves and apologizing in ways of kisses and hugs until she forgave me. As it stood, I overrode that instinct and pushed my just-as-stunned comrade forward.

“This is Thadal Fragor, a friend of mine. As you can guess, he’s also an alicorn,” I said in lieu of presentation.

Still reeling from the shock, he waved absentmindedly to my marefriend, who did not seem to know how to react other than by copying him.
Well, with that part clear, perhaps we could get to what was important!

“Twilight, he’s used the same spell and it’s on him, at this very moment! It’s only been a few days, since the mission in the Everfree. We have to do this quickly before the same thing that happened with me happens to him!”

With my tirade coming to an end, I realized in-between two gulps of air, that during all this time, Twilight still hadn’t spoken up. She was looking at me, like a deer in headlight and she couldn’t formulate a response. Surely, another alicorn out of nowhere had to be a bit shocking, but not THAT much. So, yes, after a few more seconds of staring, and a gentle call for her name, Twilight finally digested what was going on.

Except, when she got her wits back, when she shook her head and steadied herself, there was an inimitable sadness to her eyes. Like she was about to lose somepony precious.

It hit me like a tons of brick.

“I… I know what I’m asking of you… what it must sound like to you…” I swallowed, my heart pounding in my chest and nausea gripping at my throat. “But, please, Twilight… If you love me, won’t you at least allow me a choice?”

Just saying that pulled at my heartstrings, and I knew from the way her muscles tensed that it had been so much worse for her. I had learned how to manipulate ponies a while ago.

And the worst part? It had been completely sincere. I had not even planned it.

Bastard, I thought to myself.

“Follow me downstairs,” she said faintly.

We did. But Thadal’s gaze didn’t leave me the whole time and Twilight was trying to still her breathing. It didn’t feel like a victory, nor a breakthrough.

Once downstairs, surrounded by Twilight’s lab equipment, she took a moment to properly greet Eric, saying something to the effect of being sorry the surprise had affected her manner for that long. In return, he acted a bit shy, meeting an incredible heroic mare for the first time and a personal favorite of his. And the whole time, he was subtly glancing at me as if to really confirm to himself that, yes, she was dating me.

Smirking, I gave a quick peck on Twilight’s cheek and whispered to her how it wasn’t a big deal, that it was my fault, and maybe, perhaps, probably, that my desire to see her again had influenced how quickly we had arrived. It was enough to make her go beet red.

No, I wasn’t strutting around like a peacock, showing off my marefriend to my best friend. It was kind of obvious enough from the possessive wing draped over her back.

Thadal didn’t ask any question after that, but he sure rolled his eyes hard.

Sue me, bro. I got this great mare as my lover.

To my regret and shameful relief, Twilight quickly got things back on track.

“Okay, guys, you’re both going to stand on the pedestals, so I can compare the data I have with what we’ll test,” she said while levitating a bunch of science-looking objects.

Like two very obedient little colts, Thadal and I climbed on top of the wooden platforms near the southern wall. Likewise, we did not utter a word of protest when Twilight started placing the probes and the electromagnetic patches on us, even if my friend eyed them warily.

“Please try not to move too much,” Twilight asked with a professional tone. “They will register magical energy at a certain frequency, but I don’t want the illusion spells to create interference if you shatter them.”

We nodded, and the next few minutes were spent in silence, each of us lost to our thoughts.

I felt relieved to see Twilight in her element. The shadows left her eyes when she was in a lab. I was still silently wondering why her cutie mark hadn’t related to science. She had the attire for it, what’s with the lab coat and the oversized protective glasses on her muzzle. In my humble opinion, it was quite flattering of her best features.

Harmony must have had a hoof in making that cute muzzle.

A small grin showed on my face, one I pushed down as she turned to me.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered instead when she passed me by.

She responded with a quick nuzzle. Just enough to leave her warmth lingering over my face and my neck. And Elders if it wasn’t hard to stop myself from chasing after her after that.

Maybe that had been on purpose.

No, Twilight wasn’t evil like that.

Thus, the reason my fur suddenly tingle from my stretched-out wing to my shoulder was only coincidental. The way her magic flowed over my feathers, with a light and gentle touch, barely stroking the tip, made me shiver, and it was all I could do not to gasp.

Oh yeah, definitely on purpose, I thought as I saw her teasing smile. Aside from the fact that I certainly deserved it, that was truly unfair.

I wanted to tease her too…

And of course, of course Thadal couldn’t keep his thoughts to himself. From my left, I heard, oh so distinctly, humming that amounted to something suspiciously similar to ‘bow-chicka-wow-wow’.

Everypony just likes to kick me today.

My puppy eyes did not even convince Twilight to stop! She did the same but twice as sensual with my other wing!

Thus, like a brave soldier before an opponent that could not be defeated, I tried my very best to ignore Twilight and her coy smiles, even if they made my heartbeat speed up every three seconds. The only reprise I got was when she announced that she needed a minute to look at the preliminary readings, and even then…

“You two actually are an item, aren’t you?”

I raised an eyebrow at that. “I told you earlier.”

“Yeah…” Thadal nodded, his tail flicking. “But it just didn’t quite register. Like, seeing you two interact like this…” His mouth formed a fond grin. “I didn’t think I’d see the day I saw Twilight Sparkle act flirty.”

I shrugged, though a part of me did think it was a bit at odd with her previous behavior. My cute little marefriend was acting a bit bolder than usual. What had brought that on? Was it just the fact that Thadal was around for it to be seen?

Damn, I’ve been missing out then.

Unfortunately – or perhaps very fortunately – Twilight chose that moment to come back, her eyes on a long sheet of printed paper, and I did my very best to keep the inappropriate thoughts I’d been having to the back of my mind.

“Alright,” she said, going through her notes, “I haven’t quite isolated the core components yet, but I think there’s a test I can run to get a better idea of it.”

We leaned forward, suddenly attentive.

“I’m theorizing that if I attune my magic to an aura as dissimilar as possible to the wavelengths I’ve discovered studying you, Ventus, then it will make it possible to physically see the structure of the spell.”

My eyes went up, as I recalled a sliver of light, held at arm’s length, fading out. “Like… how the spell fragment flashed once cut from the rest of me?”

“Somewhat.” Twilight held a hoof, readjusting her protective glass over her muzzle like the absolute cutie she was. “It’s not exactly like that, as the fragment was coming to the end of its natural life anyway, and this is more of an active reaction than a passive reactivity to external stimuli while the magical wavelength back then had gone full Omega and… I’ve lost you, didn’t I?”

My smile turned sheepish. “It’s a possibility, I’m afraid.”

“Seconded,” Thadal raised a leg over his head, frowning. “Elders, I thought I had left Magister behind…”

“Hey!” I called him out, a mock snarl on my face. “Don’t compare my marefriend to that old geezer! Twilight’s lectures are a charming part of her adorable character. None of it could be called boring or obtuse!”

“Oh yeah?” Thadal asked with a grin. “Then what did she just say?”

“She… she said shut up!” I stuttered in indignation, my face heating up.

“It’s fine, Ventus.” Twilight brought a hoof to my face and kissed the tip of my muzzle. “I do tend to ramble and forget to vulgarize from times to times. Think of it this way: I will be putting a filter over it that reacts only with the spell. It will be like noise cancelling.”

“Sorry.” I looked away, not happy with my failure as an attentive coltfriend.

“Don’t worry about it.” She nuzzled me. “It’s time to test out just how deeply this spell runs.”

A purple glow surrounded her horn and her eyes narrowed with focus. With a shimmering crackling noise, Thadal’s body lit up with a flash of purple light and the spell was cast.

Twilight and I instinctively took a step back, horror painted on our faces.

We hadn’t put enough thought on what the spell was actually like, though little could have prepared us for the sight of it in a contrast of purple and nothingness.

Thin tendrils of purple voids, curved at abrupt obtuse angles, each end twisted into hooks, stretched forward, away from Thadal, as if trying to escape into the rest of the world. The mass of unlight seemed focused on the middle of his back, in unmoving swirls that pulsed, not in outward, but inward waves.

At the sight, a simple image came to me, of ticking mandibles, dripping venoms and digestive fluids, attached below eight eyes. It spoke of a posture, of a willingness and eagerness, of a preparation to strike at an unsuspecting prey.

I felt my skin crawl, tingling in lines on my fur not unlike the thing in front of us. My heart jumped in my throat, as the sensation of something digging into me lingered over my chest. Yet my eyes told me it hadn’t moved. It remained immobile, waiting.

“I…” I blinked, trying to say something for poor Thadal, whose entire body was as stiff as a stone statue, the tips of the tendrils just a hair’s width away from his neck. “What is it?”

“That’s almost like… a delayed spell.” Twilight stared in confusion. “If it faded for you, then it was triggered. Have you noticed anything that could have been caused by… that?”

Thadal’s eyes screamed that, yes, he had.

If only I hadn’t fucking lied before… Later, I’d give him permission to buck me in the face and make him promise to keep me in check from now on.

“I-I’m not sure…”

For the love of Vitam Mortem… I had had that all over my body before?!

With a shiver, I saw, vividly, Calx back in Celestia’s throne room, kneeling and complaining his head hurt. Only… this time, tendrils of unlight were sunken at his head like mandibles.

I steadied my breath. Father, Mother, forgive me…

“I think the trigger is verbal.”

“Ventus…” Twilight paused, her eyes closing as she steadied herself. For a second, her breathing seemed slightly shorter, shallower, and the pulse of her heart radiated even more strongly from her chest. “Could you make up something about your friend?”

“Anything?” I asked, adding just enough interest to my question to make Thadal’s eyes zoom on me with worry.

“Huh… Sam?”

Unfortunately, Twilight caught on to my vicious glee and smirked. “As inconsequential as possible, if you could.”

Spoilsport.

“Fine.” I gave a wing shrug. “Hmm… the spell reminds me… of the star spiders’ incident, back in the days.”

There was a flash of light.

My front legs gave out, and I fell forward, kneeling, as if bowing to an incomprehensible entity. But my consciousness was not on such things, for I was reminded of an unwelcomed pain striking my head. At my side, Twilight’s panicked shout blurred into muddled sounds, replaced by much younger voices and the scolding of adults.

Colts, that’s what we had been. Only colts would have done that. The consequence was as ironic as it was self-inflicted.

“Irresponsible!” some pompous alicorn had growled after retrieving us.

“Are you okay?” a much sweeter voice asked me, and soft hooves rubbed against my shoulder.

“I… I think I am,” I said as I straightened. I’d be fine, I knew that much. It hadn’t been the first time this kind of mind whammy hit me. I was more concerned with my friend.

Thadal was heaving, beads of sweat dampening his fur, and his glare bore into my skull. “Ventus, I can’t believe you just said that. You know I hate these things!”

“Did you always?” Twilight immediately stepped forward, staring at him very intensively.

Startled, Thadal forgot to look angry. “Well, it started with that time when we were colts and… Wait…”

His voice trailed off, bringing silence while Twilight’s nose dove into her notes. By her enthusiasm, it was clear she had noticed.

It was starting to dawn on me as well.

“So it is causing circular reasoning!” Twilight deduced while holding out her notes. “You were annoyed at him for making up something specifically about spiders, because he should have known you have hated them since the incident he just made up!”

My friend squirmed before the hoof pointed at him. “I… huh… n-no, that’s not what…”

“And you don’t even realize it!” Twilight shouted in triumph.

She was the only one happy about that discovery.

As her words sank in, I felt a pair of ghostly hands gripped my throat. “And you don’t even realize it!” a voice repeated in my head. No, I hadn’t realized it, or maybe I had, then forgotten. There was still a haze over my memories, reeling as I felt over the foalhood incident that apparently hadn’t happened.

And we had had fun too, until we discovered why it was a season of spiders.

With a single breath, I chased away the smoke of that fake dream and tried to focus on my still febrile marefriend.

“A-amazing…” she muttered. “I’ve never seen anything like it before. This is what studying Chaos magic is like?”

“It’s called Chaos for a reason,” Thadal scowled at me. “It’s not linear, straightforward or predictable.”

Gee, next time I’ll go about gumdrops and icecream, bro.

If it had been left to me, that spell would have been destroyed as soon as it had been created. But alas, the one to discover it first had lacked the judgment necessary to tell it was a bad thing to use. We could have just went on happily in the astral planes, growing and waiting for our true assignment, though that would not be a possibility now.

For a short terrible time, I felt almost blinding bitterness toward Tom and the reckless, childish tantrum that led to this situation. Bile rose in my throat, and I bit the interior of my mouth to the blood.

Get over yourself. You didn’t help, Ventus.

So lost in this, I almost didn’t hear Twilight speak up again.

“Okay. Guys, I think I will need a bit more time to determine the spell’s structure, but this has given me a tremendous amount of data. When added to what I already know… I can make an educated guess.”

My heart started beating madly.

Then skipped a dozen beats entirely as I saw Twilight’s eyes go to the floor. “It requires Chaos magic, much more than equinely possible to produce… I still have no idea how you could have used it in the first place, it’s insane.”

For a moment, I thought Judicium had come back, ripping apart the fabric of the world and exposing my raw flesh in a messy cut. There was a hole where my heart should have been. Without both Thadal and Twiligth’s support, I would have fallen.

“H-how?” I asked, my throat raw. “We ourselves had no access to Chaos magic in the first place! I did not possess any of the prerequisite for it, nor did Calx or Thadal.”

Twilight’s eyes shimmered with new tears, and she leaned in to give me the most tender nuzzle yet. I drank it, I drank that affection for all it was worth, and Twilight kept giving, her words now tainted with the guilt of failure. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry… This thing, it’s so complex…” she whispered, “it feeds off a strange source of power from outside of this reality. I… I think it comes from the anchor point. And what I don’t get… is that it seems to be fueled by a visual affection.”

Thadal’s hoof tensed against me.

It triggers when it’s an episode of the show, I thought, knowing that my friend had understood as well.

Nothing that helps now. Not the way Twilight did. She was such an amazing mare, such a beautiful, beautiful alicorn. I wanted those pure lavender wings to take me away from this nightmare again, but I forced myself to stay at least focused. “Is there any way to do the same on our side?”

“I… I don’t know anypony that could have ever created this. It… it will take time to reverse engineer just the destination point. I can’t find the way to convert a similar source or power into it, but I swear I will do everything to pinpoint the location of your home. Maybe… maybe there will be another way to get there than the original spell. I just need to get more information, then maybe…”

Sighing, I let go, trying my best to show my appreciation of her effort. A gentle kiss brushed her lips, and I whispered a shaken ‘thank you’ in her ears.

“I do know the name of the creator of the spell,” Thadal piped up, freezing us in place. “Or at least the one that wrote it where I saw it.”

“Who was it?” she asked quickly, with a touch of eagerness in her tone.

“A certain Monsieur Ten Ropes.”

“That doesn’t ring any bell…” Twilight slumped, as did my hopes. Perhaps she had thought she could recognize the creator, that she had read about them before. Even then, she shook her head and looked curious. “Monsieur? That’s Prench, isn’t it?”

…Prench? The word ticked at my mind, as if aiming for specifics spots to pierce. I’d heard it before, of course, but why was this so important right now…?

It’s Monsieur Ten Ropes, I heard somepony say – or maybe I hadn’t. The voice had been grating, nerve racking, higher pitch than my own, with a strange insistance on the title rather than the name. It just came and came again. And I looked at Eric, saying the name that slowly returned to me as it had been put to paper, with a shock going down my spine. The key, I stumbled upon it, it was there, in just three words said by an alicorn to another.

“Twilight?” I asked, shaking. “Do you happen to have a Prench dictionary upstairs?”

“Oh, good idea, Ventus!” she said, seemingly relieved by how calm I appeared. “There’s one upstairs, in the referential section, just under the spiral stairs to my room.” Seeing me nod, she turned back to Thadal, still professional as if I hadn’t interrupted. “Alright, and what happened once you used the spell?”

Thadal’s gaze stayed on me perhaps a second longer, with a silent question filled with worry in his eyes. He saw me shake my head before heading upstairs.

“I… sank into the ground, then I was in a void of colors. It was strange, like nothing I ever felt before or since, with just shapes and shades, but nothing ever material, not even me.” He repressed a shiver, and so did I. “Except… yeah, there was something else…”

I had reached the door to the library’s level when Twilight started pressing him.

“What did you see? This is important, it could be a vital clue!”

“I-I saw…” His face scrunched up in concentration as he grasped at the memory. “A snake… then it turned into a goat.”

I stilled.

A snake that turns in a goat?

The idea was ridiculous, yet familiar.

Wait… when I used the spell, I saw a changing thing, didn’t I? What was it?

Twilight’s voice rose again from downstairs, this time asking that Thadal rake his memory, perhaps he had had an encounter with that spell’s creator.

A pony! My thoughts came together with a sudden clarity. It had been a pony, and then something like a… a… Fire and blood. Green scales. The shade of moonlight washing over us. Dragon!

I started to pace around the library, almost at a gallop’s pace as my thoughts flowed through my head at still higher speed. A pony… a dragon… a snake… a goat… a pony… a dragon… a snake… a goat…

What does it mean?

It felt… incomplete, like there was a piece or two that could be added.

And there was another that had used the spell.

“Calx?”

“Sam?” his juvenile voice rang to my ears, curious and a little bit reproachful. “Where are you?”

I cringed, but kept my voice steady. “I needed to ask something to Twilight.”

“Awww, you went to the library without me?”

Never thought I’d see the day…

“We had to go in a hurry. Don’t worry, we’ll pick you up right when we’re done.”

I got the distinct impression he was rolling his eyes and crossing his forelegs over his chest. “Pfffff, fine.”

“Yeah, it’s right-o okay with me too!” Somepony cheery piped up, making me blink.

“T-thanks, Pinkie,” I stuttered, embarrassed by this gross oversight. “I’m sorry to spring this on you out of the blue.”

“Well, it’s better than if you had a fall in red,” she giggled, almost snorting at her own joke, something I barely stopped myself from doing. I hadn’t expected it, that’s all.

Luckily, laughter didn’t carried if I didn’t will it. Thus, I remained cool in Calx’s eyes.

“So, little brother, I kinda needed to ask you something. About the spell we used to come here.”

“What about it?” he asked, his voice hinting at his curiosity.

“Do you remember seeing any animal in the colors?”

There was a pause. He was thinking, that was all. Hopefully, he hadn’t seen anything. I should not have wished that, but Celestia burn us all, it was the biggest hope I had at this point.

“Animals? Huh… yeah…” he said, making my mouth dry up. “T’was a… lion… and then it became a bird!”

“T-thanks… have fun with Pinkie,” I said, to which he replied in kind, and as soon as he had, I turned to frantically search for the dictionary. It had never been that imperative that I find one before.

A pony, a dragon, a snake, a goat, a lion, a bird…

I wanted to laugh, and, at the same time, never had I wanted to not laugh that badly.

Slowly, a ridiculous idea crawled out of the corners of my mind. One so bizarre it couldn’t be ignored, one so strange that my guts twisted on themselves. I could not put it into words yet, but my legs suddenly felt crawling with energy. It was impossible to stay still.

It was just there, the whole concept was just on the tip of my tongue.

Thadal’s words were burned into my memory now. I echoed them again, “Monsieur Ten Ropes… Monsieur…”

The Prench-English dictionary floated toward me.

“Do I speak Prench?”

“Bonne soirée, Monsieur Cercle.”

I repeated the words to the book, almost expecting it to reply to me, “Do I speak Prench?”

The words were blurry on the pages, and it took me a moment to understand that my grip was too shaken.

“How do you translate ‘Ten’ and ‘Ropes’ in Prench?”

The first blast of wind was too strong and almost ripped off the pages from the book. The second was just enough to end up over the page starting with the letter ‘T’. So, I glanced inside, ignoring how light-headed I felt and zoomed in on the translation.

One word down, one to go.

Like a wooden puppet, I searched for the second word, as if I hadn’t already guessed. As if the very first part hadn’t been enough and I needed to be absolutely certain.

The pages flipped before me again, pushed by a cold wind that stiffened the paper itself. Distantly, horror clawed its way in the darkest corners of my mind. It couldn’t be, I would think, only for the first word to echo, to taunt me. And so I ended up finding the Prench equivalent of ‘ropes’ in that small dictionary, with my body as tense as the chord of an arc.

It was there. In plain black ink.

I stared.

The answer stared back.

“B-but what about the situation back in the Everfree?”

Such a predictable question, spoken in exactly the tone her dear student, too nervous to be at ease, too serious to allow herself to relax.

“Am I to believe you have not already consigned every single detail to paper in a report?” she asked in a teasing tone.

A deep blush rewarded her inquiry, and the poor young alicorn nodded. “I-I did, of course. I simply thought you would like to hear it from my mouth.”

“Now, now, Twilight, I have complete faith in you in this matter,” she had told Twilight Sparkle gently. “I do wish to find out about this new act of heroism you participated in, but there are many factors limiting the time I can give you today. As such, I felt it would be better if we spoke of more interesting topics. Why don’t we talk about your time in Ponyville for instance? Have you been adjusting well to your new duties? I’ve noticed a few hesitations in your previous letters.”

“I would not want to ”

“Please, never forget that I wish to help you in as many ways I can, your new duties especially.” She folded a wing over her student’s back. “This is not a burden one can bear on their lonesome.”

“T-then…” Twilight took a deep breath. “Could we speak of Ponyville? There are so many new things I want to tell you about. The girls and I have been busy, even without the mission in the forest.”

“Very well, my most faithful student.” They settled in more comfortably, a steaming teapot resting on the table in front of them. “Talk to me of your recent experiences. I am certain they will be a delight to hear about.”

She still had to fight to keep her regal manners when thinking back on the content of that conversation. Truly, there was no dull moment for the Elements of Harmony, no matter what era they lived in.

Yet, her recollections would have to wait, no matter how tempting they were. The Royal Courier had not galloped through the entire castle to deliver her student’s message only for her to zone it out.

Luckily, the red pegasus had barely started reading and had not yet finished the long-winded explanation her student used as an introduction. She easily kept her momentarily distraction off her face, acting as if she had been listening all along. It would have worked, flawlessly, had it not been for the word she happened to catch.

The thought struck her like a thunderbolt, and she felt a cold breeze wash over her body.

“You… can you repeat what you just told me?” Celestia turned to the messenger slowly, a strange stiffness to her movement clashing with her image of unending benevolence and calm.

“O-of course, y-your Highness.” The pony stumbled with the scroll, suddenly rendered nervous by his princess’ unexpected reaction. With a lot of professionalism, he managed to clear his throat and sound generally neutral about the text he read out loud. “Princess sparkle has reported that the source of some strange events occurring around Ponyville has been discovered and neutralized. With the help of Prince Ventus has an undercover ally, Princess Luna’s fleet and the coordinated effort of the soldiers assisting them, the bearers of the Elements of Harmony managed to purge out what appeared to be a cloud of black smoke, animated with evil magic. Further investigations have proven that King Sombra of the Crystal Empire, or what was left of him, was behind the events.”

Looking up from his scroll, the poor stallion got the shock of his life, seeing Celestia dumbstruck.

“T-that is impossible. You must have been mistaken.” She came forward with a strange insistence that scared him out of his wits.

“I-It is what is written-” He stuttered, and squeaked when the piece of paper flew out of his hoof and into his ruler’s.

Rapidly, her eyes darted from one side of the letter to another, her mouth moving in a similarly rapid succession as well. It seemed as if answers to question untold were suddenly becoming known to the alicorn mare, as if she finally saw things in their absolute clarity. Then, before he could even blink, a spark made the parchment burst in flames.

He yelped, making her regret the intensity of her reaction, but there was no time for apologies. This would require immediate attention.

“Y-your Majesty, why is Princess Sparkle’s retelling of the events impossible?”

Grave, the princess finally looked at her loyal subject in the eyes and spoke with such finality it was impossible for him to mistake the importance of her words, even if he did not know their meaning.

“King Sombra was a monster born to bring Order.”

“O-Order…?” The messenger asked, unable to process the information she had given him. “What does this mean, Princess?”

There was a moment of silence, during which he wondered if he would experience a terrible punishment for bringing what was apparently bad news. She was simply looking at him with shifting emotions behind her eyes, none of which he could identify, until she spoke.

Then, she sounded dire.

“It means that what came before him must have been of Chaos.”

Her words fell on them with an unusual gravity. Though his eyes shone with confusion, his muscles still tensed at her declaration.

“…Chaos?” the messenger repeated with a very small voice, and Celestia realized this was not fit for the ears of anypony in her castle.

“Leave!” she ordered more harshly than she intended. “And speak nothing of this to anypony. Not even my sister!”

A precaution that would surely prove useless. Luna had been on the battlefield herself. She had to have come into contact with the Dark King himself, and understood what his presence meant. Why, if her sister hadn’t decided to leave for an unknown venture in the Everfree Forest, she surely would have informed her of this by now!

Luna had to have noticed. She had fought the corruption head on, had fell Sombra’s champion beast. Any hope of this not being recognized by her sister would be null and void. There had been signs before, this could only be the confirmation.

Celestia couldn’t believe she had let that slip past her. She had been content with the simple presence of her cousins, troublemakers as they were. They were family, and she had too little of that as it were.

The windigoes. Ventus had brought the windigoes back, then dealt with them accordingly.

He took them back.

An alicorn had absorbed the remnants of their previous incarnation. It was appropriate. Of course, plausible and proper even. But the windigoes… their arrival had threatened the realm with chaos. For one of Order to absorb Chaos…

It had soothed him… repaired him in ways he had been broken. Ventus Vinco, appearing on a whim, running after a younger brother that had disobeyed rules, unable to keep himself from causing more and more trouble, even in his attempts to help others.

The hallmarks of Chaos.

It seemed, somehow, as if that was the most plausible conclusion.

But that couldn’t have been the real answer either! Even if it had been the spell they used that had somehow altered them to the core, they still had had to break the rules to cast it in the first place! Spirits of Order were unable to do such things, and not even the excuse of foalhood eagerness could justify that!

There could not have been an Alicorn of Chaos born. That impossibility would have damaged the Astral Planes to the point of breaking them! And the ones of her species she had contacted had confirmed their words. Every alicorn had considered the two colts of their own kind. They had to have been of Order…

Judicium had looked upon the world, before suddenly retreating, as if a more urgent matter had demanded His attention.

A matter such as the Astral Planes suffering from the strain of a sudden discharge of Chaos magic… But that could have only happened if someone from that plane of existence had had access to it in the first place.

She could feel a headache hammering down on her temples, as every contradiction existed only to drive her into a mental impasse. Every possible fact only seemed to deny the others and vice versa. It simply… didn’t…

Celestia’s entire being froze in shock, as the words appeared in her mind, with perfect clarity. So sudden had been her revelation that the idea hardened itself as an undeniable fact.

She understood now, who had been behind this whole mess.

It didn’t make sense.

“Dix…” I chuckled, panting. “Ten is dix.”

Really? REALLY?! Of course, of course that would be the answer. Of course I’d been too bucking blind to see it! Had I ever cared to go back?! Was I really lying to myself that much?!

“And Ropes is corde.”

My wings scrapped against the dirt, lifted it in small clouds of dust, all along the way to my destination. I’d tried, I had tried to get there at once, but my aim had been off. I’d ended up a hundred meters away. My control was shot to Tartarus.

There was a mute pain in my jaw, spreading from my cheeks and my gums. My teeth were being grinded into dust, only getting a reprieve when I repeated the words again and again, “Monsieur Ten Ropes.”

And if you flip it around, you get…

“Mister Dix cordes.”

Together, my hooves stomped against the door to Fluttershy’s cottage. With my lungs working at full capacity, I bellowed one word strongly enough to shake the whole structure:

“DISCORD!”

Author's Note

And here we go. It's all downhill from here. So enjoy.

So much stuff I still need to say, so many things I am waiting to make explode in everyone's faces. It's all in the details. No, seriously, there's a lot in the details this chapter.

Shredded Deceptions

Author's Note

Oh wow... guys, I felt like taking a shower after writing this one. And not in a good way. Content starts to head into mature near the end... be warned.

Shredded Deceptions

There was a tale in a world that was too far away, one of pigs and wolves. Twice, houses that once hid pigs away from the jaws of a wolf collapsed by the strength of its breath. Only the third one, made out of stone, resisted. This was no house of stone.

But this was not a pig’s den either, this was Fluttershy’s cottage, and it was the only reason it was still standing.

With a single scoff, I dissolved into air and slipped through the doorknob. The bearer of Kindness was still upstairs, reeling from the shock.

I would apologize to her later. And to her furry friends.

The smell hit me first. Even for one such as me, the scent was strong, musky and entirely too savage in comparison to the rest of Ponyville. Not even the Everfree had felt so concentrated into one place like this. For the briefest of moments, I was given paused, my muzzle scrunched up together before all those animals gathered around the house.

Their eyes fell on me during that time, dozens looked upon the intruder that I was, all of them tensed and readily fighting their instincts already. They were sensible to the tension in the air, they could feel my anger brushing against their coat, and never had such small animals look more hostile to me.

It was the matter of a single stomp. With a shockwave, the closest ones were thrown off their feet, and that booming sound was followed by silence.

The critters fled at once, as if they had been one entity. In a flurry of fur and feathers, they all disappeared away, the birds obeying faster than the rest. All of them, gone in an instant.

Except for one little fluffy white rabbit.

“Out of my way…” I growled.

Angel spread his arms wide, defiant.

Fine. My patience had already run out.

I made a sweeping gesture with one wing, and the bunny was sent flying by a blast of air. With a silent screech of fear, he landed straight on Fluttershy’s couch. For a moment, it stopped him from moving, then he scurried off behind the couch.

Good, I smirked, already looking to the stairs. As I started to head that way however, I saw the same unmistakable white blur throw itself in my way.

Angel, a frown on his face, stood firm in front of me, even as his limbs and lips trembled violently. One more step from me in his direction, and he might have pissed himself. Something like respect came to my mind at that. Jackass as he was, Angel at least had some guts.

The Ventus that had shown up in Canterlot would have followed on that statement by confirming how much guts, precisely. Spilling would be his choice method.

“I’m after him,” I snarled, barely restraining myself from stomping that annoyance to the ground. “I do not want to see your mistress right now. I’m not going to do anything to her.”

Beady black eyes met mine in a frankly surprising display of devotion, before a glint of acknowledgement passed and broke away the staring contest.

Angel Bunny quite literally bolted out of the room faster than I had ever witnessed a rabbit run.

Good, I snorted, trotting upstairs. My pulse throbbed through my veins, circled at my head with the same furious focus that Caelum had once possessed.

Monster.

Heartless, pitiless bastard.

He had rejoiced in their deaths. Those three leaders had last drawn breath with windigoes drinking at their lives, all under Caelum’s eyes. I could still see it, though with a growing blur.

I would rejoice too in the event of his death. I would gladly dance on his grave.

Yet, the small, weak, little voice of reason still inside my head whispered caution, reminded me of bigger risks and greater goals. I couldn’t afford to lose sight of that. Not now, not in the doorframe of the room where they had been drinking tea together. My shouting had alerted them to my presence much too clearly to allow for leniency.

Shaking like a leaf, holding a litter of kittens in her legs, Fluttershy was trying her very best to silence the panicked mewling. Her own chest was rising rapidly, obviously affected by my sudden interruption at her house, yet she gave me no regard. All of her focus was upon those small lives that were crying out for help. It was simultaneously a beautiful image and sickeningly out of place.

Not next to him, that destroyer of lives.

“Hello, Windy,” Discord greeted me calmly, placing his cup of tea back on the small table, then turned to me with an air of reproach. “You’re interrupting tea time.”

The skies rumbled. It was all I heard over the blurring hatred obscuring my sight. He dared! H-he dared act like I was the one that inconvenienced him. OVER TEA?!

I wanted to bash his head in.

A meek squeak rose over the cries of the kittens. “I-it’s n-n-no problem… really…”

Discord acted as if he hadn’t heard her. “Not that I don’t understand the appeal of a conversation with someone as great as me, but you will have to wait your turn.”

My tone could have frozen a windigo solid. “No, we are talking now.”

Already, my mind was swirling with ideas on what to do, what to say next to get him to spill the beans. If he ran, I’d chase him. I’d find him, there was little place to hide from me, and less so from me and Thadal together. There’d be nowhere, and I could already call Twilight if he bothered to try.

Except… he didn’t. To my ever growing surprise, Discord sighed and threw his cup through the fifth dimension.

“Dreadfully sorry, my dear.” He gently patted Fluttershy on the head, winking with one of his disgusting yellow eyes, and made a grand standing. “But a certain alicorn has his head too far up his own rump to be polite! Typical, really.”

He snapped his claws, and I felt suddenly unbalanced. My insides had jumped, unable to follow the acceleration and the downward spiral I was describing. There was no time, not to react, nor to think. No, on the moment my eyes caught sight of my surroundings, I had known on a deeper level that this was a realm where Time did not exist.

Time was of Order.

Without landing, my back sunk into a soft, gelatinous ground. My legs hung in the air, but I was standing on solid ground, amidst circles of brown and stars of red. The disorientation made my head spin.

This place…

With the tip of my wing, I reached for a color, somewhere on that horizon, and a very familiar yellow spread like thunder across the landscape.

“Does this help clear your doubts?”

I spun on my hooves, a snarl on my face and I shouted at the mismatched figure behind me. “I knew it! This is the realm we went through to reach Equestria!”

Discord’s floating form seemed darkly amused. “It’s a realm of Chaos, little Windy.”

I felt a shiver crawl up my spine. It was a place of perdition, of complete loss of reason in favor of primal things. Colors I did not recognize chased after sounds; tastes politely went around us as to not disturb our conversation, even when electrifying touches snarled from the confines of a non-cage worlds away. I could not define most of what I saw, not without coming up with entirely new terms for them.

And something deep inside of me sang. It celebrated its return, wanted to mingle back into the Chaos, and it fought against me every inch of reason I could give. My body told me I had finally gotten back home.

“So it really was you?” I whispered to the draconequus, fighting a shudder and a chuckle. “This whole mess is your fault?”

Discord crossed his forearms over his chest in an all too common expression of annoyance.

“The way I recall it, I’m not the one that played with forbidden spells. Of course, you might recall it differently, but that doesn’t mean you’re right.” His claw booped the tip of my muzzle. “Your brother decided to use that spell all on his lonesome with no input from me.”

My hooves dug deeper into the ground as I tensed. “When a child finds a dangerous object and harms themselves playing with it, who is to blame? Is it the child? Or the one that left the thing lying around in the first place?”

“Or the one that could not keep watch of them?” he shot back with a smirk.

My blood boiled over. “You promised to use your powers for Good!”

“Now, now…” He shook one long claw in disapproval, sickeningly paternal in his faked cared. “Don’t go around saying things you don’t think about things you don’t understand. I haven’t broken any promise here.”

“Why?!” I snarled, taking a step toward him. “Do you think this doesn’t count?! Because you haven’t specifically promised not to do this?!”

“No,” Discord said, shrugging, “because the spell you used was created before my reformation.”

My eyes widened. What?

“It was… hmmm, how to put it?” he mumbled while a rain of thesaurus fell sideways in the background. If I strained my ears, I could make out some of the words the books were shouting at the draconequus, until one made Discord’s gaze light up. “Ah, yes! That’s the one.” He snapped his claws. “A contingency.”

The word rang to my ears. It couldn’t be… Our lives… our existences… reduced to that one single word. I saw, in the gaze that then fell on my form, that I was not reflected. There was simply that word, stamped all over me.

A back-up. A spare. A fucking contingency for the Elder of Chaos and Disharmony. That was all my parents' despair, my brother’s loneliness and my own fears amounted to before this monster.

“I can see you are having trouble grasping the idea, Windy. Here, let me explain. When the two you call your cousins came along with brand new weapons, of course I laughed in their faces. Not like it was going to make a difference regardless. But, just in case, I threw a little something together and sent it through a few dimensions.”

My gaze fell to the ground, or what passed as such in this place.

“Quite frankly,” Discord went on with his typical aplomb, “I figured something would come around in the first few decades of my imprisonment. But I suppose it got stuck somewhere. Maybe it crossed a few planes of existence then met a nice spell on the way, who knows?”

“Stuck where?” I asked slowly, my voice growing distant to my own ears.

“Anywhere. Maybe in-between one or two places. In a void or an antechamber of Reality. Well, regardless, from what I could read off of you, it got unstuck recently. Otherwise, I would think that world would be overrun by stuck-up self-righteous little cornies. Even a good dose of chaos can’t get the cosmic-sized pillars of creation out of your rumps. It’s… disappointing, really.”

“…Disappointing,” I repeated, hoarse. Not that Discord would notice. He was on a roll now.

“Well, not quite. It had its good points too. It was almost amusing, how you reacted I mean.” His claw touched my chin, lifted it up and forced me to look at the mixture of amusement and pride in his gaze. “I’m sure you didn’t know, truly. In fact, I was expecting more denial from you. That was part of the fun I had predicted, seeing the new alicorn try to convince the others they hadn’t always been like that even as they started to remember a whole new life. A slow but inevitable loss of self and purpose until one day there would be a brand new alicorn around, in every way.”

It was all too easy to imagine somepony else in my horseshoes, slowly slipping away from their past life and deeper into madness as everything they recognized turned into falsehoods. I had struggled with it so many times myself.

“But you?” Discord added. “You rolled with it, like a fish took to slightly muddied water. You lied, lied, lied and lied some more. You rolled in your lies and made up as much as you could and played the part of the perfect dreamy little prince. Not that you are one, because, wow, I’m almost impressed by how long it took to get Celestia to kick you out of her town.” For a short moment, he looked uncomfortable with his words, as if he noticed the compliment it paid to the ruler he hated. Of course, he brushed it off the next second. “Nevertheless, little corny, I quite like how you went the unpredictable way. I am a fan, you see. You acted, kept your own mental failings under wrap, then got ponies to bow to your face instead of being sent to an asylum. Not one of them to realize how bad you were under all that pretense. Of course, it helps that the spell compensated your lies, but hey, everyone needs to start somewhere.”

The mention of the spell made a terrible idea appear at the front of my mind.

“Y-you… you’re the one making up what’s in my head,” I said with a renewed fear clutching at my throat.

“Not at all. I do not have remote control over this. It would be boring.” Discord folded his arms and rolled his eyes, as if I had somehow offended him. “No, it is designed to be a mindless reaction. And since I was in a hurry back then, the pattern is even rather predictable.”

“I can make an educated guess,” Twilight had said.

Discord snapped his claws together, blinding me with a flash of light. When my eyesight cleared, I saw him sitting over a miniature of an electric dam.

“Let’s say… electricity. That should be familiar to you, yes, Mr. I-am-a-weather-pony. When left on its own, energy takes the path of the least resistance. Put a roadblock somewhere, and it will first try to go around it, not through it. Of course some things are harder to change than others, require more than a drop of power, so it goes another way. You’re of the Wind because the spot was empty and it was close to the Earth. You filled the seat because it was easier for the magic to find, and because messed-up little you is such a dead ringer for messed-up little Caelum.”

I took the hit less graciously than I wanted. Accurate or not, the comparison to a mass-murderer racked my nerves the wrong way. “It’s not what I wanted! I never called the windigoes! I did not even choose my name!”

“No, you did not control much, beyond the initial direction of your petty little lies. Why, some things just came with the package deal,” he chuckled, holding up a drawing of an alicorn with the words ‘pretty alicorn prince’ on top. “Beggars can’t be choosers.”

In one fell motion, he crumbled the paper beneath his paws and transfigured it into a horrifically familiar spider. Its mandibles rubbed together as it stared at me with all eight of its black eyes. Then, it leapt forward, a fin trail of silk appearing in its track.

“The web has been spun, now you get to stay tangled in it.” Discord declared in a grand standing, arms spread wide. “Well, unless you wish to ask your friend to add another layer to it. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind.”

There was a squish, a sickening squelching wet sound as chitin gave out under the pressure of one of my hooves. At some point, I had started panting in anger, and it was only now, with Discord’s spider dead under me that I came to realize it. Cold licked at the tip of my feathers.

No. Not anymore, I thought. I had been blinded by the windigoes’ malice. I had lost too much time defined by the darkness in me.

The temptation was strong. There was power in those boiling emotions, power to carry me in the harshest times. Primal cries could force me into action when the coldest logic only left me empty and weak. But where had it taken me? Here? Scowling, I closed my eyes and emptied my mind. I pushed the anger down, all the fury, the rage, the churning hot desire for vengeance, all of it put aside. Calm overtook me, steadied my body while I struggled with acceptance.

Fine. More of my fault, more of the same, done, acknowledged, moving on. There are more important things to care about.

Slowly, I looked up to his floating form, straight into his eyes. “…Thanks for the explanation, but I think you don’t get it yet.”

He went still.

“I don’t care,” I growled in the echoing silence.

For the first time since this conversation had started, Discord’s eyes went wide and his jaw dropped a few inches. It made a savage part of me cry out in triumph, but even that was ultimately insignificant. I almost scoffed at how shocking that had to be for him; he would not get it, not someone like him.

What did he think I was pissed about? Being manipulated? Being transported? Being lied to?

My anger fought to break free from its constraints. Almost succeeded. “Do you think I came to see you so you would tell us how we’re here?! I want one and only one thing out of you: send us back!”

Discord… laughed…

“Oh, ohhh-oh, yes, that is excellent.” He wiped out an inky black tear from his cheek. “You got me again, I’m truly glad you were the one to make the jump. It’s endlessly entertaining. Now, as for the request you kindly made…”

He paused, the joyful burst slipping off his face, making my breath itch up.

“I cannot.”

The words fell like a death sentence.

No.

“Unmaking Chaos on a scale as massive as the one you are currently tilting is impossible for me.”

It’s a lie!

“I can no more undo the chaos of your collective existences than you could pluck out half this world’s atmosphere and turn it into stone.”

I was not going to let him play that game!

“Stop,” I commanded, shaking. “Impossible is not part of your vocabulary, Lord Discord.”

“Eh, you’re half-right, I suppose, boy,” he admitted, pulling a face. “In a technical sense, I would be the ‘lord’ of a little corny of Chaos like you are, but that has nothing to do with it. Do you not understand what Spirits are? Even for Chaos, there are some limits. And Chaos does not disappear if you add more Chaos on top of it. Things just grow more chaotic.”

I stared, and he stared back, all of his goat-like head frozen in rigid honesty. Of all the times, of all the places, he chose now to be the figure of unwavering truth.

“…It’s not a joke this time,” I said, my knees weakening. “You, of all people, are serious.”

Still stuck in this uncharacteristic sternness, Discord nodded once.

My thoughts grew frantic. The facts flew through my head in the briefest glimpses, all of them a screech of reason or fear. It could only be impossible if we had scrambled the order of things too much. I desperately reviewed everything I knew of our presence, recalled the reactions I had seen on a screen once, and found the terror rising.

I snarled and shouted, my voice growing thunderous with every maddened heartbeat in my chest. “You’re wrong! We’ve been causing ripples, yes, but nowhere near as much as you claim! You CAN send us back and you WILL!”

Discord drawled, “Oh my naïve little corny.”

Supremely indifferent to his declarations’ effects on me, he patted my head, and I found myself unable to move. A low rumbling sound shook his chest, the closest I could equate it to being a barely restrained chuckle.

He spoke, and he sounded incredulous. “You didn’t cause that much chaos? Inside Equestria, maybe.”

Every strand of fur on my body stood on edge. “W-what do you mean?”

“Alicorns are quite the powerful species, aren’t they?” he said, slowly, as if talking to an innocent foal. “Everyone is aware of that, right?”

Everyone.

No, that… it couldn’t be…

Discord put on small spectacles on the tip of his muzzle and pointed at a black backboard that hadn’t been here a second ago. “As of your friend’s arrival, there are now seven alicorns in Equestria. Quite the jump when one considers that there was only one less than a decade ago. And now, for the bonus question…”

The crude sketchy drawings of the seven little alicorns shrunk down on the board. Then, springing from nowhere, a green piece of chalk swiftly created another shape surrounding them, then another just below, to the left… to the right…

“What do you think that looks like to the neighboring countries?”

I felt pined to the ground, with nails piercing through my hooves.

I knew the answer to his question. My ears could not quite reach much beyond the borders of Equestria nowadays, but I still could pick up on certain clues. There was unrest in Canterlot, especially, with the arrival of a couple of foreign diplomats. It was almost too easy to imagine myself in their hooves.

The mask slipped on my face, and I was a griffon ambassador walking up to the throne. I remembered doing the very same thing five years ago, when it was only Celestia the Undimmed on her dais, serene as the negotiations had started. I remained as calm, of course, with the knowledge of the Powers backing my nation. However, now there was sweat tickling down my beak as a circle of alicorn sat at the end of the negotiation tables, and I was no longer as self-confident when it came to speaking up. Ziz was more likely to side with mine, but could he triumph against four of Celestia’s?

Another came, a minotaur, and the scenario played the same. A dog, a zebra, a camel, a deer, and so forth. All came to the same conclusion, and gears shifted in their heads.

Equestria’s power had grown.

I looked at Discord in despair, wishing he would contradict me, somehow. “A… an arm race… They think Celestia gathered weapons of mass destruction.”

Everything started to unravel.

Back then, back then when we had first arrived, Celly had asked we be sent to her, and a veritable audience of nobles, dignitaries and journalists of all sorts had been present. It had been a public event, showing that we were subservient to her.

Of course we got status as princes of Equestria. If… if the spell hadn’t hit her and made her think of us as her cousin’s children, she would have still bestowed it upon us. If we weren’t affiliated with one kingdom, another would come. Better Equestria than any number of her political rivals. And many would come for two alicorns! E-even if one… was still just a colt.

Sickening images flashed past my eyes, of indistinct creatures telling themselves that if they could only capture one while they were still young, they could be raised loyal…

Whispers reached my ears. Dark, cold, angry whispers that had nothing to envy to the voices of the windigoes themselves.

I would have killed whoever had tried to brainwash my little brother. I would have sparked a war over him and slaughtered every enemy myself if they had threatened him.

But I hadn’t needed to. Celestia had seen to that.

When she told her court we were her cousins, she placed us under her protection. An attack on us was an attack against Equestria. Many would look at the White Alicorn on her throne and decide that there may be a wiser course of action. Celestia had given us asylum.

And in the process, she had sealed our positions into the world. It was not the matter of when, but where our presence would disturb the world’s politics.

There had never been any hope from the start.

“Well, well, looks like you finally chose to think for yourself about what Miss Sunshine was doing. Did it really take you my help to see it?” he asked mockingly, and I looked away in shame. “Celestia never believes me when I tell her she does too much to protect her subjects.”

“It’s… don’t,” I struggled to say. “She’s doing what she thinks is best… It was my own stupidity. I sang to the foals…”

“Oh sure, your little singing stunt may have forced the laser back on you, but it’s not like you were exactly invisible before.” He scoffed dismissively. His claw abruptly disappeared from view, even if I could still feel its grasp on my chin. “Don’t worry about that, it didn’t make a difference in that regard.”

“S-she… Celly made us leave under an illusion,” I said with a note of despair in my voice. There had to be something – anything – to salvage it. “She spirited us away. Nopony knows where we are!”

“Yes, when things were starting to grow just a teensy bitsy bit urgent, Celestia did make you look orange. But it’s not as if the rest of the world has nothing on you.”

Just then, something cylinder shaped fell on my face and bounced off to the ground. It rolled away from me, unevenly, with a rope tied around its middle section. Even then, I could see writing in ink, and it started to sink in.

In the distance, something shouted “Extra, extra, the exclusive interview of a draconequus. His secrets revealed!”

“The… newspapers?”

Another flash of light, then the papers unfolded, leaving the front-page visible.

The pictures were old. They were of me and Calx and – I had already read this paper before.

My heart skipping a beat, I saw a high tower of articles toppled over, I saw the names of so many companies, so many organizations defined by the spreading of information. I only recognized the first three. There were dozens; the words were in languages unlike Equestrian, the few pictures of the journalists showed many creatures, but no pony.

And there was a newer one in the pile. An edition of the Canterlot Daily, without a front page gossiping about me. This one held my curiosity more than the others. The day of the publication seemed off in comparison to the rest, and I had a feeling I knew why.

I found it. An editorial, showing a letter of resignation by a certain Blotted Ink. I knew that name; it was all over the previous articles, save one or two.

He was the pony I had humiliated with my curse.

I saw Celestia’s eyes again, disappointed, saddened. She had asked if I had even cared about his fate. She had looked, she had known, and I must have appeared such a petty, unworthy foal.

I’m sorry…

The draconequus, however, was pitiless. “They know you can be provoked, they know that you will respond in kinds with spells unheard of. Certainly, a few ponies up in Cantaloup wizened to the fact and stopped the articles, but now, there are certainly some that wonder if it might not have been real. Touching genitals between closed relatives aside,” Discord chuckled, darkly amused, “a good number of fools abroad are thinking she planned this all over the years.”

Oh Celly…

“Right after lil’ Chryssie had her on the ropes, Celestia, the peaceful gentle ruler that ate a beam of love to the horn, got another extra three alicorns to show up under her crown. Two of which that could be her illegitimate sons with a secret, unheard-of alicorn.” He seemed almost casual at that point, as if talking about the weather. “They’re nervous. VERY nervous. Imagine what they would do if they knew what you can hear.”

War.

They’d accuse Equestria of spying, they’d demand compensations, reparations, concessions, by the dozens. And that was all without what they would try to do to me in particular. The best case scenario would be a geas to keep silent to what I came to know through my power. Worst case…

Something hardened within my chest. All of this, all of it was happening because of my weakness. Had I ever stopped and thought about it, I would have known. I would have spent my energy elsewhere.

My mouth twisted in a scowl. “You really can’t send us back…”

“Nope,” Discord said nonchalantly. “Glad to see it finally got through your thick skull. Why, for a moment here, I almost felt for Celestia.”

The idea seemed to bother him, to bring just a bit of panic. Yeah, how dare he even superficially feel any compassion for the immortal princess that had dealt with ruling for a thousand years on her own? How dare he even consider her job hard after he had admitted to throwing worldwide politics in shambles?!

“Well, that’s that.” He threw his arms in the air, yawning and patting himself in the back with his tail. “I think I am getting the hang of this ‘good’ nonsense. I graciously told you what you needed to know, all without asking for a single thing in return. What do you say to that, Windy?”

…What did I want to say to him?

I wanted to laugh and I wanted to puke. T-that was going to be it, right? He had played his game, he had reveled in a bit of gloating and now it was going to come to an end with me enlightened about how hopeless everything is?

I fought for control, I really tried to, but I lost so miserably it could not be called a fight. I was livid.

“You know what?” I asked with an icy tone. “Fine, I’m going to be that bucking stupid! I’m going to tell you exactly what I think you deserve to hear, you thrice damned monster.”

Discord’s eyebrows shot upward. “Hey, what is up with this mood swing?”

I gritted my teeth so hard my jaw hurt.

“You’re not good, Lord Discord. You will never be! You lied! You lied to her face!” I stomped. “When Fluttershy was about to leave you, when it came to losing her friendship versus your freedom, you lied. The whole reason you gave for your monstrosity was a lie! You have had friends before. You just deny it.”

He stared.

“Have you told them? Any of them?” I pressed, somehow standing to eye level with him. “It’s not your first redemption. It’s not the first time you said you turned your hat.”

“Well…” he had the good grace to hesitate. “I suppose they were technically fitting the description. But that was a long time ago, when I was a young and naïve draconequus not wise to the way of the world. It didn’t count.”

“It never does with you! How could Discord ever just settle down on one side? You’re CHAOS. It’s in the job description! You just jump between alignments at random, whenever and wherever. It’s just that you stay on them long enough that mortals forget. But the alicorns remember, they know that you’re untrustworthy and that you will never choose a side permanently.”

His face scrunched up, and his eyes narrowed. “The horde of humorless freaks do not know me, Windy. You would be wise to remember that.”

Ah! Wise, me?! Who did he think he just spent an hour lecturing on his continuous mistakes?

I ignored his threat entirely. “And the irony of you calling yourself ‘good’ now? You’re not and you will never be.”

Discord’s form loomed over me, a shadow passing over his every feature, save for his twitching eyes. “I can be anything I want to be, foal! I am Chaos, I am Formless and All-Forms together!”

“Ah!” I scoffed, and it was a sound so bitter. “You need a proof perhaps? After you stood there, after you explained to me in details exactly how and why my brother, my friend and I are all stuck here, what was it you did? You gloated! You thought it was amusing, a foolish moronic catastrophe that happened because someone didn’t have the foresight not to be somehow omniscient and know that you rigged the game from the first step! Do you remember Fluttershy in the maze?!”

Perhaps it was the mention of his friend that did the trick. I didn’t know, I didn’t care enough to find out, but this time, my words had an effect on him. The sense of doom lessened to a manageable level while he shrunk to his normal size. There was careful consideration in his eyes, an hesitation.

I seized it. “And that’s only the things you did to me personally! Are you going to eat popcorn and watch if this mess of politics you made reaches the breaking point?! People DIE when war is declared!”

I faltered, reeling from my own accusation. I had only been part of a single fight since my arrival in Equestria, but the chaos at that time… I did not want to relive it. I did not want to see things spiral out of control again, to see many brave ones look Vitam Mortem in the eyes.

I did not shout.

I spoke quietly, disgust rolling off me in waves. “If you had told half of this to Fluttershy, how long before she dumped your ass in the street? Oh, oh no, her you don’t tell, but others… it’s a joke…”

I sniffed, scoffed and balked, the last of my anger spent.

“You told me… you told me I completely ruined my parents’ lives, that I dragged a friend of mine into this mess, that I failed the one who counts on me the most… and that there’s no solution…”

I hung my head, willing this to be a nightmare, but knowing that it was only too real.

“That it was your fault…”

One last echo of anger seeped through my tone.

“And you did not even apologize, you laughed. That’s why you will never be good. Not like this.”

There was a moment of silence. The realm of madness we were in had long since stopped registering. It was only the two of us, and Discord seemed concerned, one mare in mind. I was the one to break the quiet.

“So?” I chuckled darkly, and looked up straight into those creepy yellow eyes of his. “How screwed am I now?”

My landing conveniently happened on the only rock on the hill overlooking Ponyville. The muted pain spread across my shoulder, but it did not silence the angry laughter coming through my mouth.

He promised he’d get back at me later, for the principle of the thing.

Saying ‘I told you so’ had never been more satisfying before, but nothing could quite beat asking him what he thought his next encounter with the Elements of Harmony would be like. If there had been anytime I had been playing with fire, it had been then.

…For what it mattered.

Not even the Elder of Chaos could send us back. He was the only one with the actual power to do it and he couldn’t. Celestia and Luna couldn’t use Chaos; Cadence and Twilight weren’t strong enough to use Chaos or Order!

We were stuck.

A-and I didn’t even… I… I abandoned them!

There had been so much more I could have done. I could have talked to them, I could have confessed my thoughts, I could have shown them, could have asked them to stay while I did the ritual, could have done that, could have.

But I hadn’t.

It had all been impulsiveness, stupidity and rage. And the result really spoke for itself.

Restless, I paced from one end of the hill to the other, staying on the plateau and trying to think over everything that Discord had told me. Not only were we not getting a magic pass from him out of nowhere, but our troubles were only growing direr by the day.

No… There was no way the producers would allow something like war on air. Right? This was a show for young girls!

They didn’t plan to have us either though, my voice reminded me.

“No. It’s going to be okay,” I whispered. “Celly’s still working on things back in Canterlot. We just need to keep quiet, stop making troubles and find a way home without calling attention to the fact that we exist. There, if we just follow that plan, we’ll-”

“For God’s sake!” I heard over the rest, one ear twitching. “Sam, where are you?! I know you can hear me!”

There was only one stallion that would say that.

I let out a long sigh, then focused my voice to carry over to him. “I’m outside Ponyville, T-… Eric.”

If it startled him, he didn’t let it show. He replied on the spot. “What are you doing? Where did you go?”

“I felt overwhelmed.” Understatement. I felt like I could explode at any given moment. “I couldn’t stay in the library anymore.”

“Well, are you coming back now?” he asked strongly, his voice shaking. “I was getting scared when you didn’t reply!”

“Not yet… I… I really can’t.” I glanced up at the sky, empty like every other evening, but riddled with traits of dark red, purple and pink. “Please look over Tom while I’m sorting this out.”

“B-but, Sam, what will you-?”

“I don’t know.”

There was a moment of silence, and I could only imagine what was going on through his head. He had… he had done this to himself, to help. And I was shutting him out. But if I went over right now, I’d tell him everything and I wasn’t sure I could find the guts to. I was going to rip out his world from him, I knew. So… if I could just delay, enough to sort out my own feelings first…

He finally agreed to it after another minute of silence. “I’ll be at your place. Don’t do anything stupid, okay?”

I sighed in relief, grateful and saying as much. However, that moment of triumph was cut short, for it seemed I would not be able to be on my own long.

Little feet, not hooves, came down on the grass behind me. They paused, twice, each time squishing the blades of grass under their scales.

Sighing, I hid my annoyance. He hadn’t done anything to earn enmity from me. Quite the opposite, he was one of those that I felt a good deal of gratitude toward.

“Hey Spike,” I said clearly.

He startled at the sound of my voice and quickly ran in front of me.

“Ah! …hi, huh…” He paused, rubbing his arm. “I’m not sure what to call you actually when we’re not in the library…”

I smiled at his honest emerald eyes. It was a question like any other to him. Perhaps that was why it didn’t bother me. With the tap of a hoof, I urged him closer.

“Just go with Cloud for now. More ponies know me with that name.”

“Alright… Cloud,” he stumbled a bit, but caught himself. “Might take some time getting used to it.”

“It’s okay.” I rubbed the top of his head. “It was the same for me at first. Can you believe somepony had to call after me four times before I remembered that Cloud’s my name now? I had to pretend that I had been momentarily deafened by an unexpected thunderbolt. It’s harder to sell than you would think, especially when you were assigned to filing reports indoors.”

The story brought a few timid snorts at first, that soon devolved into louder chuckles. A well-timed bout of miming made it reach the next level. For those few instants, we were both laughing loudly, but all too quickly, the laughter came to an end and Spike sighed sadly.

“You okay, little guy?”

“Yeah… I am. It’s just that Twilight was real worried because you disappeared on them. She asked me to keep an eye out for you.” He started fiddling with his claws again, a reddish taint coloring his face. “I… might have been a bit worried too…”

Colts, I thought fondly, unable to restrain from imagining Calx in his place doing more or less the same thing.

“I see. Sorry about that. I just…” I paused, biting my lips. “I found out who…”

I couldn’t tell that to Spike. The poor kid didn’t deserve that kind of burden. Hay, I was just his sister’s coltfriend.

“…Who did something bad to my family.”

I had hoped to leave it at that.

But of course, Spike was a curious boy trying to figure out what was going on around him. “Who was it?”

The name almost slipped out of my mouth.

Almost.

It wouldn’t do to get them on Discord’s back. What would it change? Sure, it’d feel good to have him back to stone, but it’d hurt Fluttershy, and by proxy, every one of her friends. I really didn’t want to hurt Twilight more than I already had. And if I turned on him, he might blurt out a few facts I’d rather not be made public. Things were already bad enough as they were.

“Nevermind that. Just…” The words failed me. How to tell him about all I had weighting on my mind? “Spike?”

“Yeah?” he asked, still eager for details.

“Cherish the ones you love, okay? Can you promise to do that?”

He blinked, nonplussed by the seemingly nonsensical change of subject, but I could see the idea making its way in his head. The gears turned and he registered my question.

His face serious with fierce determination, he rose a paw to his head in a solemn salute. “Dragon’s honor, I promise I will.”

I could not help but smile again, and Elders’ sake, it felt good for that fleeting moment. He was just making my day better in such simple ways.

It wouldn’t do to neglect to return the favor. “I’ll take you to Sugarcube Corner with Calx when this is all over with, okay?”

“Really?” he asked with an all too childish eagerness. “Will… will I be able to have the sapphire cupcakes? Twilight says they’re expensive but…”

It was too precious to see Spike fiddle with his own claws like that. The poor boy was too polite to give in completely to his desire, but he was unable to hide how badly he was hoping I would say yes.

“Don’t worry about it. You’re getting the sapphire cupcakes for sure.” I smiled, then brushed his top fin. “Come now, go back to your sister. Tell her I’ll be alright.”

The little drake hesitated. “You’re not coming back with me?”

With a sigh, I shook my head. “I just need some time alone. To think on what happens next.”

Still Spike looked uncertain, frowning in concern for me. It took another reassurance from me to get him to leave. Even then he seemed ready to try to convince me with all of his draconic wits and charisma. Promises of another bribe sufficed this time around, and it made me chuckle to see him happy.

“Now go,” I said after a quick hug.

When he was truly out of sight, I allowed the smile to drop from my face.

I had quickly found the perfect place for being alone and I was savoring my luck for all it was worth, my muzzle deep inside of a glass mug and a small trickle dampening both sides of my chin. The heat sticking to my throat and my mouth echoed well the almost suffocative warmth of this place. Whole strands of my mane were falling over my face and stayed glued there.

Most likely, I must have looked at least a quarter of the mess I felt inside, not that ponies were likely to notice.

The place was so dark most everypony were indistinct… and kept changing under the few rays of green, red or blue light. My own alternated between sick neon green and dirty brown every five seconds or so. For what it mattered. That would be what? Third, fourth skin I slipped under? Whatever. I’d be Giant Moron, the drunkard unicorn. I’d fit right in with the crowd of this bar.

In the air, there was this lingering smell of sweat, of cheap deep-fried food and of booze, drifting from one pony to another and setting the mood for whatever debauchery one had in mind. Two mares in the back certainly whispered enough to leave nothing to the imagination, position, how much they wanted one another, how they were going to buck each other’s brain out. The whole thing, and that was only two horny mares. The background music just barely drowned out most of the lewd proposals being made in the bar.

Who would care for the lonely nerdy drunk nursing his liquor then? Nopony and that was just right with me, I could down another…

My thoughts came to a halt as I staggered in place, my vision blurring, the sound of glass hitting wood ringing in my ears. Another bout of nausea hit me hard, and I reluctantly pushed the mug away. I wasn’t… I-I needed a… a second…

My cheek rested heavily against the wooden surface, a sensation of lightness pulsing through my head and what little I could see slowly tried to tilt on the side. It felt as if my own body would follow. Wouldn’t that just be a good idea? Lie down and pass out forever.

Unfortunately, I felt a breath of fresher air, the faint perfume of flowers rather than that of alcohol, and a pony moved in front of me.

“Broken heart, sweetie?”

Lazily, I shifted on my seat enough to glance up at the purple mare on the other side of the counter. There was something compassionate in her eyes, but thankfully no smile to pretend it’d get better.

“…Nope,” I said, pushing my empty glass closer to her. “…Family trouble.”

A few more bits clattered in front of her, the noise drowned out by the ambient music and the chatter of the various ponies around the bar. It filled the moment of silence between me and the barmaid as she tried to judge if there was more wisdom in letting me cooldown.

“I see.” She gathered the bits, then tilted an opaque bottle over my glass. “If you need somepony to listen… well, it’s part of my job description.”

Really? Did I actually have the option to talk nowadays? Knowing me, I’d end up spinning a tale on how I was a tragic little bitch being tricked by a horny dog or whatever nonsense I made up. It was all real anyway. Always, never.

Finally, the thirst won over the rest, and I made to refuse her generous offer.

Weakly, just enough to lift my head from the counter, and shake it, “Leave… leave the bottle, please… I’m going to need it.”

There was a second of pause, a moment where her body stilled in hesitation, as if debating the wisdom of my binge drinking. If I wasn’t so wasted, I could have probably guessed more from the way her brows furrowed together, or the glance she sent to a door in the back.

Regardless, the barmaid placed the bottle next to my head with a sigh, muttering under her breath on how she hated that part of her job. She probably got one or two broken ponies trying to drown out their troubles every night. The strangest thing was that she hadn’t sounded bitter, just sad.

I’d feel guilty about it another day.

Time for some liquid courage-slash-forgetfulness.

“Cloud?”

Can’t I just…? I started to think, only for my brain to identify the voice of the pony quickly trotting to the counter.

“Thunderlane…” I slurred as a greeting.

“Luna’s teats…” he whispered with an incredulous tone, “it’s really you.”

Okay, maybe I do look exactly as messed up as I feel, I thought at the concerned glance he was sending my mug’s way.

“Yeah… guess so…” I said, slumping down. “Sorta, maybe, I lost count anyway.”

The slip went unnoticed, or was passed off as drunken rambling, as Thunderlane quickly sat down in the cushion next to mine and spoke softly.

“Talk to me, pal.” His hoof spread warmth into my back, as he started to stroke it in circle. “What’s wrong?”

My tongue was almost loose enough to spill it out.

“N-nuthing, s’not sumthing you should worry about…” I muttered, and suddenly rose in me the need for more alcohol.

With a whine, I saw the same bottle I longed for be taken away by a black hoof.

“Horseapples, Cloud,” he growled, his eyes hardening.

He looked so earnest then, honestly concerned and angry on my behalf. The way his feathers were shuddering, I would bet the first name I said would have to fear a good beating. There was no doubt in my mind, he was itching to do something to help.

Something warm bubbled up in my chest, something good. A part of me stopped fighting, relaxed under his hoof. Yet cold seeped in as well, dire warnings ringing in my memories of the chaos the ‘truth’ had brought. I couldn’t… If I…

I stifled a bitter laugh at one more monstrous thought.

I was glad. I was clinging to that order Celestia had given me. It was not just my fault that I had to lie again. This time, I could take comfort knowing… knowing it wasn’t just my flaws taking over. I was just that craven.

“Fine, I’ll tell you.” One more lie.

Thunderlane shifted, his ears twitching and turning toward me.

“Remember…” I started, raising a hoof and pointing at nothing. “Remember this stuff I told you, about this family friend who took us in in Gallopfrey…?”

He nodded quickly, and I took another deep breath to steel my resolve.

“W-well… I just got some news from an old friend of mine that came to visit.” I could feel the exact moment his muscles tensed, the exact moment the realization sank in. He just looked so sorry for me. “Basically…” I said, looking down at my almost empty mug, “…our previous caretaker is in the hospital.”

“Buck…” He swore under his breath, then gave another look to my messed up appearance. “How bad is it?”

Worse, but that was more than I could say. So, I went with the truth that had been weighting me down for weeks. “I don’t know if we’ll ever see them alive again… And we can’t even afford the train ride.”

There was a bang, a booming stomp that shook the whole counter and sent a few glasses toppling.

Startled, barely suppressing the urge to flap my wings to fly away, I turned to the source of that noise.

Thunderlane’s gaze had turned into a harsh glare, and he spoke up with a tone that brokered no argument. “Cloud! How much do you need?!”

My breath cut short while my eyes became large as saucers.

“T-Thunderlane!” I shouted in shock.

What was it with ponies that made them so loyal so shortly?! I knew for a fact that he was not in a brilliant financial situation, so why would he even propose that?!

“You…” The words kept getting shambled in my mouth. “You, there’s no… you don’t have that kind of money!”

“Buck that, I don’t care!” he yelled back, his wings almost flaring. “How much do you need?”

IT’S JUST ANOTHER FUCKING LIE, THUNDERLANE!

Stop… stop caring about me…

“Look, I… I can’t tell you how much that meant…” I choked, refusing to look at him any longer. I had… Elders’ sake, I couldn’t let him waste what little he earned on me! “But… but it won’t work. Even if we left right now, we won’t get there in time. It is, as the expert told me, much too late for that. They probably passed away shortly before I got the message.”

Two strong black hooves grabbed my shoulders and forced me to face a stern Thunderlane. “Cloud, you can’t give up like that! It could be your last chance to talk to your guardian! The last one your brother will get!”

It was like he had stabbed me in the heart. I had never felt more physically ill before, and none of it could be blamed on the drinking.

I sagged in his grasp, ears drooping down, unable to speak above much of a whisper. “I… I don’t want to go. I… I just got a job here, I’ve had to call in sick less than a week in. I can’t… and Feather….” One of my hoof stuck to the counter, hung onto it for dear life, like it was my lifeline. “How am I ever going to tell my brother about it?! S-should I even…?”

At the rhythm things have gone, we’ll have both forgotten mostly everything soon enough…

“You can’t hide it, Cloud,” Thunderlane said firmly. “There’s just no way you can do that to him. He doesn’t deserve that.”

“B-but…”

“Though, for now,” he added with a gentle tone, “I think you need to deal with it yourself first.”

Thunderlane slammed a hoofful of bits onto the counter, and the bartender came back with another bottle. Of stronger stuff.

Now, that was a friend.

At some point, everything had started to become indistinct. I remembered laughing, loudly, at the stupidest jokes. I remembered downing a bottle of something so burning my throat still felt sore. I remembered a challenge in-between me, Thunderlane and some random earth pony mare at the bar, which she fulfilled much faster than us. Dancing, flirting drinking, all under the deafening pulsing beat of the music filling the bar.

I did not remember how I had ended up on stage with a mic held clumsily somewhere in front of my mouth. It did not stop me from belting out the words at the top of my lungs.

~ On the Last Day of Summer… ~
I was selfish, I went away… I didn’t think of you…

There were jeering and cheering from the drunken crowd in equal measures. I had no idea who was doing what. A large column of light shone down directly on my face, courtesy of the bar’s spotlight. So, staring into the blinding whiteness ahead, I was letting the impulse within carry the song.

~ On the Last Day of Summer ~
We were young, we didn’t think it through.

A knot started to tie my guts, even as I tried to babble the rest of the chorus.

~ I swear I will remember. ~
I-I… will...

My voice died down.

I staggered on my hooves, unsteady, unable to see clearly. The lyrics kept echoing in my mind, accusing me. I was selfish, I went away. And I did! I threw everything away because I couldn’t take it! I did everything with the barest thought given to it, hoping for the best and falling flat on my ass when, surprise, surprise, things didn’t work that way! And now…

Now…

I could only hope to remember.

“Okay,” Thunderlane said with a slight slur, pulling at my shoulders. “I think that’s enough for tonight. Let’s get you back in your bed.”

Defeated, unable to think of a response, I let him lead me off the stage under the uncoordinated applause of the bar’s clientele. Trotting down the three steps was hazardous, especially when my friend’s grip on the rail wasn’t as steady as he would have liked. Once there though, he was accosted by a mare coming from behind the bar’s counter. Her brows were furrowed together. They said something, but it did not register. It simply mixed up with the rest of the buzzing sounds from across the country.

Whatever it was, Thunderlane agreed to it with too much enthusiasm, the mare’s ears flattening against her skull at the volume used. Still grinning, he got me to follow in through the crowd of ponies. He was my only point of reference, the only thing I still was vaguely conscious of.

He grabbed my hoof again, pulled me forward, and the ambiance shifted drastically.

Stumbling, I realized that the music had been muffled, held at bay by the now closed door behind us. The lighting had changed, from brightly colored darkness of the bar to a much subdued night under Luna’s constellations. Whereas I had almost suffocated inside, the air outside was chilling and free.

It hit my senses strongly and sent a shiver down my spine.

“It helps, doesn’t it?” Thunderlane said, breathing in the night’s breeze. He, on the contrary, seemed invigorated by the change of scenery, his wings twitching with the call of flight striking him.

I could understand wanting to fly away and leave somewhere behind forever. I… I could…

“Wow, Cloud,” Thunderlane cried out, pulling me closer. “Don’t cry, pal. I’m here for you. I can listen.”

I’m… crying? I thought, bringing a hoof to my eyes and feeling it dampen. I had not even realized. Thinking about it had just brought back too many swirling feelings inside.

“S-sorry, just came back to me.” I tried to look away and keep a bit of dignity intact, but it was easier said than done when held by a headstrong pegasus.

“Don’t worry.” His hold shifted, and eased me into sitting position. “Alright… just sit down. T-taaake a minute to c-clear your head. S’a beautiful night.”

That cheesy line was enough to get a light chuckle out of me. Of course it was a beautiful night in Equestria; an alicorn princess was taking care of it, and the poor sap on the weather patrol’s night shift was keeping rogue clouds at bay. For any moment of the day in this country to be ugly, it had to be planned.

Sure enough, the thoughts distracted me long enough to push down the sadness under manageable levels. I sniffed, smirking back at Thunderlane who was proud of his work, then rolled my eyes. He could be many things. Truly.

“C-check dis out…” I said, focusing a bit of strength through my horn.

Moisture gathered at my behest, swarming into a single spot in front of us, molding into a form of water vapor. Thunderlane, despite himself, leaned forward at the impromptu cloud shaping trick I was doing.

A wild shit-eating grin plastered on my face, I presented him a cloud in the shape of a truly overweight pegasus. And, for the one-liner… “Fierce Storm, ten years from now on.”

Thunderlane chortled with laughter. He shook all over, his knees more than the rest of him. Once, he faltered enough that I swerved with him. For a brief moment, it looked as if we would be splayed over the dirt road of Ponyville, and maybe stay there till morning.

We barely avoided that fate when he steadied himself and sighed in content.

“Okaaay, C-Cloud,” Thunderlane slurred, putting a leg around my shoulder. “I think s’time to get you to bed…”

“No, c-come on, not bed… ‘M always waking up different. Got the horn one day, got different fur the other, changed my name, twice, thrice, maybe, not sure anymore… Twilight. I got to… I got to talk to her. She’ll…”

“Are you…” he paused, putting a hoof to his mouth before burping loudly. “Are you sure?”

“Maybe? What am I… S’mday…” I slurred, leaning more against my friend’s shoulder. “I’m going to… to tell ya… the time I was more a great ape, ‘kay?”

Thunderlane snorted. “You definitely are off your rockers.”

Huh…

Maybe I never was human in the first place…

The soap banged against the porcelain-like ground. It had fallen when my magic flickered out, and then had started sliding away from me. I made no move to get it back. I was more or less convinced it would be akin to standing on my horn while dangling over a pit of lava while also holding a basket full of babies in my hooves. Plus, there was something else on my mind. I was accurately making a comparison between now and the time windigoes had almost taken over my soul.

The shivering cold bit at my flesh, sticking to me like my own wet coat. The showerhead spat so much water at once it felt like waves instead of droplets. Distantly, a small part of me wondered if that was just Thadal being rightly pissed. It was cold, just… shockingly cold. Any and all traces of fatigue had long left me with this whip to my flesh.

Even after I had twisted the lever with my magic, the cold stayed, dripping down from me with each drop of water. I stood immobile for a long time, shivering, trying to keep things at least somewhat clear.

I was in the library. We had woken up Twilight in the middle of the night… No, Thunderlane had, he was the one banging his hooves on the door. I had merely… lain across his back, my chin resting against his… – right? Yeah – right wing.

…What kind of absolute stupidity had led me to suggest that? She did not need to see me like that. That was pathetic! …At least, when Thunderlane had carried me through the door, she hadn’t thrown us out.

Twilight had taken one look at me, had held back a sniff, and carried me to her shower once I had collapsed half on top of her. Smart. At least I wouldn’t be stinking of alcohol so much anymore. The water and soap had taken care of that. Of the rest however, I still felt very dizzy.

I finally opened my eyes to a blurry mess of a bathroom. Two phantom handles and two transparent showerheads, slightly out of synch but trying to mix into one. Two edges to the bath, both covered with liquid, bubbly shimmering liquid.

Slowly, I put a hoof over the second edge, then another. Both felt damp, both were standing in puddles. It was when I tried to put a third leg out of the bath that I slipped.

Pain exploded in my muzzle from the hard tiled floor it made contact with.

Groaning, I stood up again, the dizziness mixing with that burning throughout my face. One of my wings leaned against the wall.

Great…I should have faded mid-fall. I scowled, testing the sensitive spot with a levitated tissue. Too late for that now…

Frowning, I looked at the bit of red contrasting the white. Yup, I had definitely gotten a nosebleed from falling out of the shower. Great. My head might have started to clear, but I was obviously still far from my normal self.

Tomorrow’s hangover is going to hurt.

“Are you okay in there?” came Twilight’s question.

My reflex was to call out in reply, just enough to put her worries to rest, but when it came down to say ‘I’m okay’, it wouldn’t come out.

I hesitated for too long, for the knob span and the door opened up on my sweet marefriend. One quick look at me, one flash in her eyes as she glanced at my bloodied muzzle, and she was gently trying to lead me out of the room. And I followed after her, like an overgrown duckling that had three left hooves. Even sitting down proved a challenge, as I almost crushed my tail under my weight on my first try, then stumbled a bit against her bedside table on the second.

The more this went on, the more I was rethinking how brilliant drowning myself under as many bottles of hard liquor I could find was. Doubly so when the harsh light of a candle pierced through my abused eyes.

“It doesn’t look broken,” Twilight said, expertly examining me. “Did you fall face first?”

I let out a grunt, shrinking on myself in shame. I had to look like the crappiest stallion ever to her. And what I looked like was the least of what I had done to her. How… how could I?!

But then, her legs draped around me, pulled me in for a loving hug. “It’s okay, Ventus. Don’t worry about it, I’ve been far clumsier.”

It was nice – too nice – to feel her support right now.

“Twilight…” I sighed, wishing I didn’t have to do this. “I… I think we need to speak.”

She stilled against me, the words having reached a sensible chord inside. Slowly, she distanced herself from me, locking gaze with me with such sincerity I fought a wince.

“Now you want to speak?” she repeated, low enough I couldn’t tell if she had meant me to hear. Her voice felt harsher than usual, ringing with an unusual note. “Then let’s talk, Ventus. Where were you earlier? Spike said he saw you outside of town, but not where you came from. So where did you go? I couldn’t even find your signature in the air. We were worried you had decided to go do something stupid.”

“I did. I left to speak with Discord,” my mouth said.

The name likely was enough. So many things flashed on her face: shock, realization, anger, worry. Only half of those were directed at me, but they stung all the same. It all came down to a word, one that I could be thankful she hadn’t vocalized.

Why?

I had no single answer to that. Why had I left on the spot? Too angry. Why hadn’t I told anypony? Stuck in my own lies. Why hadn’t I come back sooner? Why do this to myself instead of seeking out my loved ones? Because I was so sick with myself I didn’t wish somepony like me on my worst enemy.

But I could not even find the strength to say that. Too weak. Liar.

Twilight let out a long sigh, and looked at me with saddened eyes. “…He’s the one that created that spell, isn’t he? The whole thing is beyond any mortal caster I can think of.”

There was no doubt in her voice.

“He is. He admitted to it and explained a good deal about it to me. Long story short…” I took one long shuddery breath. “…he can’t send us back. I don’t trust him, but I can see exactly why it’s an issue. It’s a… ‘spirit’ thing. I don’t think he’s lying this time.”

“You don’t know that!” she said with a staggering force. “I faced him before. The more reasonable he sounds, the more you should doubt! I could have told you that before!”

“I… Sorry.” My eyes went to the floor as my breath got caught in my throat. I hadn’t been able to come back to her. To Thadal or Calx. It had all been just too much, and I had… “I needed to think…”

“And drink, apparently,” Twilight deadpanned.

The words ticked at my ears and I pawed at the ground guiltily. “Y-yeah… wasn’t my plan but it sort of… happened…”

I felt her hooves on my shoulders, firmly grasping me.

“Ventus, you could have come to me,” she insisted with greater force still, and I could finally put a hoof on the sentiment behind the words: fear. “I swear. I’m here for you, that’s what a lover does.”

“I…” I started to say, then saw the futility of it. “Thanks, Twilight.”

It put a tender smile on her face. She was reassured now. She trusted me to come the next time; I could see it in her eyes. With incredible softness, Twilight held me steady, whispering comforting promises to my ears. The alcohol in my veins helping, it was so easy to lean in and forget.

“You lied, lied, lied and lied some more. You rolled in your lies and made up as much as you could and played the part of the perfect dreamy little prince.”

“What does it look like to the neighboring countries?”

Fear grasping at my heart, I broke away from her.

“I can’t drag you further into this…”

“You’re not dragging me; I’m jumping in voluntarily, Ventus,” she insisted, closing the distance between us again.

Just then…

There had been something strange. Something that ticked at my ear. In the fog of drunkenness, the idea was slow to form, but then... Wait.

Inside of me, a spark lit up a horrible fire. It filled my veins at once, and allowed me to rise to my hooves. No. That wasn’t right. It wasn’t her being oblivious. She was smarter than this. Twilight Sparkle was much smarter than this!

“You cannot be so blind, Twilight! Don’t you realize why I’m acting this way…? Why I brought my friend to you, what you were looking for, what I discovered today, what it means about us?! Don’t you see it?! It all points in one direction! Do you not see that?!”

Was she letting me use her?!

What I had done to her was wrong! It didn’t warrant being brushed aside with so little thoughts put to it. It should be confronted head on, and I should get my due for using her like that! I did not deserve to get away with toying with her.

Why would she ignore that?! Twilight deserved better… She should not put herself down for the sake of a poisonous love like mine. Even now, I was just causing more and more problems for her.

My outburst had scared her. Her ears had flinched back at the sudden rise in volume, and she had taken an instinctive step backward. Her eyebrows had lowered in a slight frown, before she looked away. I almost hoped she would be angry with me, but instead, she seemed unwilling to call me out.

Then, softly, her words reached me… “I do see it, Ventus.”

I felt struck by lightning.

It threw me off the loop. In the middle of taking a stand, that felt akin to falling off the stairs. In my case, I lost my balance and fell over her bed, stupidly. The whole room felt like it was spinning: her body looked as if it had moved from my right to left, all without her doing a thing.

Never drinking again, I thought during a brief moment of lucidity.

She had moved closer, used only a gentle magical aura to help me look up. “Your goal is to leave Equestria. I know. You mentioned it before.”

“But… I… I don’t understand.”

“It was the one thing I could never get out of my mind, Ventus, when I was thinking of you. I never forgot what you first told me… You want to go back! But… I did not think I had the right to mind.”

I blinked, staring in complete incomprehension.

“Not… not with what I…” She struggled with her words, her resolve starting to crumble. The confidence she had displayed till now was rapidly shrinking away as she fretted over a strand of her mane. Her eyes avoided my own, right until she found her strength again and dropped one bombshell that sent me reeling. “T-the truth, Ventus, is that I didn’t know if I was in love with you.”

Something broke inside of me. I looked, as immobile as a statue, and I witnessed Twilight’s growing frantic over my lack of reaction.

“You were… you were everything I could have ever needed in a stallion!” she tried to explain, her voice rising in pitch. “When I asked myself what I could want with a coltfriend, I realized… I realized how you were a perfect fit. You’re royalty, you’re an alicorn, you’re handsome, well-spoken, powerful, everything I have to pursue in a match. Nopony could say a thing if I wanted you! I-I tried… t-to convince myself at first – it would have made so much sense! – that I would simply fall for you on my own. If I had to ever love somepony, it should have been you…”

Should.

Should, always should. That one word that haunted me. What should be done, how things should be. It was a taunt. Just a reminder of how things could be but never were.

An absurd desire to laugh rose within me. Of course, of bucking course. How did I not see that coming? Just when I thought…

I saw myself reflected in her earnest eyes then. It was so similar I could guess all that had gone through her head. Distress, a bad decision, trying to cover it up, with an underlying guilt starting to take over.

Who am I to judge? Who do I think I am to call her actions wrong? Where’s the difference between her and me?

At that moment, the mask fell over my face one more time. For once, I was thankful for its presence.

“Don’t worry, Twilight. I understand,” I said softly, keeping my voice as even as possible. “There’s no need to feel guilty.”

She looked hopeful, and the corners of her mouth curled up in a timid smile. It was just so much like her that I was overwhelmed by the familiar desire to comfort her.

For a second, I started to lean into a comforting nuzzle, but froze midway as I realized this was too intimate of a gesture. Staggering, I backed away like I’d been burned.

Twilight’s eyes started to water.

“Ventus…”

Was it regret in her voice? Over what? Lying? Telling me? Not being able to love me? Well, she was in luck at least. I could not be angry at her. I really couldn’t. It was just what I had been doing, even if I had been unlucky enough to fall in my own trap. I could not begrudge her for not being as foolish as me.

“If we both know it was a lie…” I choked out, my throat tightening. “We… maybe we should…”

If it wasn’t real, then why does it hurt now? Why does it feel like I’m ripping out my heart out of my chest then?!

I closed my eyes, feeling the sting and burn. “Our relationship was just a pleasant lie… I’m sorry I couldn’t live up to your expectations. It’ll be for the best in the end. I really wish… I wish it had been real though.”

“N-no! It is real!” she shouted frantically. “I do love you!”

W-what?!

My heart skipped a beat as my eyes shot wide open. That couldn’t be right. She hadn’t just said that! There was just no way… she had just confessed to pretending to love me! But all of my doubts didn’t suffice to keep down the soaring hope that I had heard right.

I almost flinched in fear the moment she started talking.

She reached out, looking smaller and more vulnerable than ever. “P-please, Ventus… Listen! I’m sorry!”

What could she even love about me? What part of me had ever been real? I was just a bastard son and brother lying about everything.

Lies, lies, so many little lies, so useful but much too faithful; once you lie, you lie again and your lies follow you everywhere. Twilight cannot love you if she does not know the real you. But what is real, when you’ve never shown anything but falsehoods?

“…I get it, Twilight. I really do.” Elders strike me now… “Y-y-you don’t need to… to pretend anymore…”

“This was all at the beginning, Ventus! I did fall in love with you! When you were comforting me, my heart flickered! When you were playing with Spike and Calx, you never looked more handsome! Y-you… the letters! You were there, when I thought I was failing, you were there. It… I really fell for you. I swear!”

Her cry echoed throughout the library, and I realized her wings had flared open under the burst of all her pent-up emotions. Tears were falling freely from her eyes, running down her cheeks and dropping to the floor. She looked so frazzled, so desperate…

But the most terrible part?

I didn’t know if I believed her.

I didn’t know. Twilight was, had always been, the kindest mare around. If she had lied before, what made it so she wasn’t lying now to patch things up? If she simply wanted to spare my feelings, if she wanted to believe her own lies… then how would I know?

“It should have been you.” Had it been a slip of the tongue? Just a clumsy way of phrasing her intent?

I… I didn’t know anymore… I couldn’t think right now. T-things were too blurry; my head felt too light, my grip too unsteady. I needed time to think.

“Twilight, we should –” I started to say, but she cut me off.

“Let… let me prove it to you…”

Before the words had even registered, I felt the pressure of her hoof push me on my back. Without any sort of control over my balance, I could not oppose any resistance. Even as I tried to sit back up, Twilight’s hooves came down on both sides of me. She was close to me, over me, with her whole being intoxicating in its beauty.

A wave of warmth washed over me, went straight down my belly and over my groin as she kissed me. There was such strength to it, so much emotion in the contact of our bodies that there were no illusions about her intentions.

No…

It was wrong. This wasn’t how it was supposed to be. Never like this. Not with her crying. Not with her begging me to believe her!

But already, a treacherous side of me spoke up, What do I care? The truth was never the most important thing to me. I fed off lies and here I am.

Here I am, yes, the bitter thought arose, on the verge of a mistake like no other.

“You cannot want this now, Twilight. This is not like you at all…”

“I don’t care…” she breathed out, swallowing. She advanced on me further and held eye contact steadily, with naught but a hint of her normal self then. “I don’t care what good, naïve Twilight would want! I don’t want to lose you now! Ventus, I love you! I’ll show you how much I care!”

She moved forward. She kissed me. Faster than I could react, she had caught my lips with hers.

It was everything: everything and nothing together. It was fiercely possessive, passionate, dominating over me in every way I remembered doing to her. It was love the way I knew it to be, but like it had never been with her before.

And her lips tasted sweet, so sweet and salty.

One more… just one more little lie… sang a lustful voice in my head.

One too many!

“S-Spike!” I tried in-between two kisses.

“At Rarity’s,” she replied without missing a beat, nor the occasion to slip a hoof behind my neck. “There’s nothing stopping us. Just… us…”

For a moment, I said nothing. My chest was rising rapidly, my wings had sprung up wide and there were tremors all over my skin. She… Twilight wanted…

Gently, she gave me another kiss.

I could feel my resolve weakening. I knew. I knew this wasn’t the right thing to do, but my mind came up with blanks. My thoughts were in shamble, pushed around with every one of Twilight’s caresses. There were no arguments, just reminders of the warmth of her body so close to me, of the taste of her lips, of the trail of kisses she left lingering down my neck.

Lie to yourself. You can do this, whispered the voice in my head. It demanded I give in, it wanted me to so much. Lust had started overcoming reason. The protests came back the same, but it was harder to bring myself to care.

Then, almost completely lost in that haze, I felt the touch hesitate and stop. In protest even, my hips nearly bucked, only the last of my inhibitions stopping that. Over me, Twilight had gone still.

“V-Ventus?” she asked.

She asked, no longer searching to prove, no longer forcing herself to show me. She asked. With a heartbreaking fear. With a sudden horror. I needed not see clearly to realize she was shaking.

Again, timidly, shamefully, desperately, “Ventus?”

The trail of tears that had dried off started dampening again. The mare I had come to love was back, disgusted, terrified, and flinching. Under us, the bed creaked as her hooves shifted to move her away. Whispers flew out of her mouth too fast to understand, panicked, self-loathing. Light gathered at the tip of her horn, with the build-up of a teleport.

My hoof grabbed hers.

Everything stilled as I stopped her from leaving.

Hope lit her eyes, pushed everything aside, and I realized it was everything I wanted to see in her. It hadn’t changed, no matter what.

And it was then, my head light with alcohol and lust, sorrow and fear following me like shadows, that I listened to the silly lovestruck stallion in me. That poor guy buried underneath, that had wanted to know Twilight rather than use her knowledge, that had been at the happiest when it was just him and her playing around books and games. Just that part of me that could not bear the see Twilight sad.

In one breath, I spoke four little words to put it all to rest.

“I love you, Twilight.”

Self-actualization

I awoke with a low groan. Through my closed eyes, I could already feel the stinging burn of the light shining down on my face. One day – yes, one day –, Celestia would have to tell me why she made mornings so miserable for everypony by having them before noon. That would all happen some other day though, because as soon as my mind had stirred from its slumber, it had been assaulted by a flurry of unpleasant sensations. At the front of it, pain.

Nothing could quite equal the throbbing headache hammering down on the sides of my head. It made me curl up an inch, then flinch as the movement had made my fur brush against another’s.

My eyes shot wide open then, closing a second later because of the brightness. The dryness in my mouth was not purely due to my hangover. Somepony was leaning against me in the early hours of the day. The scent that floated to my nostrils had a subtle hint of lavender still.

Twilight, I thought, and the last of my sleep left me. I remembered… enough. Something of heat, kisses and hushed whispers, then cries of pleasure and ecstasy.

We had done it. We had actually done it.

Sex. I’ve had sex with a mare. I think that’s the biggest proof right there.

Another memory came to me. Not the act itself, but right afterward when we had lain together, ours wings held mixed, our bodies touching and sharing warmth, and her smile a thousand times gentle.

Love. I made love to her. The thought gave a part of me shivers, though I could not decide from what. Restlessness started eating at my legs, but I did not leave the bed yet. She was still sleeping next to me, still sharing such comfortable warmth. A small smile etched on her lips, and she leaned closer in her sleep.

I raised a hoof to my cheek, testing for a spot where I could still feel the phantom stroke of Twilight’s magic. It had tingled, but there had also been tenderness to it.

“Let me prove it to you,” she said…

What did Twilight prove to me? What did I prove to her? That we cared, maybe. That we hadn’t wanted to say goodbye.

I ran a hoof across her mane, gently pushing a strand back in place, but the touch was enough to make her stir.

“Ventus…” she whispered, eyes flickering open.

I kissed the tip of her muzzle. “Good morning, sleepyhead.”

She giggled quietly, burying her face in my shoulder. Strands of her mane tickled at the side of my face, and more than ever I was aware of her intoxicating scent of lavender and parchment. Stiffness started to spread in my wings, deeper breathes did not, surprisingly, help much this time.

“Good morning…”Twilight muttered under her breath, then snuggled even closer to me. There was no escaping her anymore, not that I minded.

We could have stayed like this all day, just breathing in the other’s presence. Or at least… I could have.

A pang of worry went off in my chest when she stiffened between my forelegs. Her ear ticked and squished against my barrel. “Huh… Twilight?”

“I can hear Ponyville,” she whispered, her eyes growing wide in marvel.

“Eh, is that so?” I said, a smirk on my face.

“Yes, I’ve just heard Pinkie calling an order of waffles. Extra chocolate!”

I snickered.

“Well, I am simply full of surprises, aren’t I?”

“Oh, hush.” She snorted and gave me a playful push. “I just never really noticed before. It’s the first time we’re…”

The words died out as a blush colored her face. It complimented her fur nicely, in my humble opinion. Or it would have, had it not been for the mute hesitation that I felt in her. She seemed tense, and my heart skipped a beat.

She bit her lips, her eyes darting to her own hooves. A small sound came out of her chest, words, weak, just quiet enough to catch, “Did we make a mistake?”

A mistake? My throat tied into a knot. Why would she ask that now? Was it… was it disappointing? She regrets it, doesn’t she? That’s it, she thinks we shouldn’t have! She’ll throw me out and it’ll be the end of us!

“…I don’t know.” My ears drooped and I lifted her chin, asking her, begging her, to look me in the eyes. “Why do you ask?”

She did not look at me, not immediately. Her gaze darted to the side. “I-I… Ventus…” Her voice trembled. “Does this feel like a mistake to you?”

Our conversation last night flashed before my eyes. I understood, I felt the answer appear to me, hit me a strike of lightning. Of course she’d be worried, of course she’d be insecure! We had all but been on the verge of breaking up last night. And yet, the thought could not have been further away from me this morning. No, I thought while wrapping up my forelegs around her, I don’t want to.

It was easy then, to snort and give her the answer she needed to hear.

“It doesn’t.” The grin came easily, and brought a light of wonder to her own. “It feels right, Twilight. I really love you, all of you.”

It was even easier, because it was the truth. I felt happy. I felt as if the world wasn’t so bleak anymore, at least a little bit. There was something immensely precious to us, not just lies.

She squeaked when my lips brushed against hers, but soon enough she was the one growing adventurous. One of her hooves slid down my shoulders, stroking my fur just right, her touch so light I shivered and deepened our kiss. Our bodies felt closer than ever, warmer than before, and suddenly I ached for her, for more of her. A low moan rumbled in my chest, my feathers quivering.

It was all I could do to push her down beneath me. I stood up, just over her body, my lips locked on hers and asking in-between two whispers if she wanted, again, please, and Twilight made sounds that were delight to my ears. She looked so beautiful, so incredibly beautiful, and I wanted her to know…

But a single hoof on my chest stopped me, and a pang of frustration burst in my chest.

Twilight’s smile looked so very apologetic then, sheepish to a fault. The shortness of her breath told me long about how little she wanted to say her piece, and yet, face red, she apologized. “I need to open up the library, Ventus…”

Sagging, I let myself fell down next to her, unable to quite hide my disappointment. Still, I could at least wish her off to a better day than that. Don’t be a selfish horny douche, Sam.

Twilight seemed happier when I let her go with just a kiss on the cheek. She rolled off the bed, taking with her all that pleasant smell of her, all that gentle warmth, and the growing cold next to me felt so wrong I could not help but call in a slightly less dignified tone, “Do you have to?”

For some reason, what I said made her whole face light up. A smile on her desirable lips, she used a bit of magic to stroke the side of my face. “Unfortunately, yes.”

With that, she turned around, a word of goodbye echoing in the room, and me left staring with my head resting on a pillow. My eyes followed her, from the bedside to the bedroom’s door and as she opened it, the retreating figure of my marefriend leaving made my heart skip a beat. “Twilight!” I called.

It had come out on its own, without me thinking about it. I had just seen her going on to her business same as always. She would go down the stairs, shower, eat breakfast and go about her day as the adorable cute scientist-librarian she was. Maybe at some point of the day, she’d think of me, just like I knew I would think of her today. She would smile then… and perhaps for the first time, I felt a deep ache in my chest at the thought of leaving this world.

I stilled. Since when did I care so much about staying? Had it ever happened before?

Twilight was looking at me with worry now, and I found myself unsure what to say. “Ventus? What is it?”

“Oh, huh…” I looked away quickly, trying to think of something to say. “I’ll… be taking Spike to Sugarcube Corner tonight… or tomorrow night. I promised him that for his troubles.”

For a second, she looked nonplussed, head tilted to the side. She probably hadn’t expected me to say that…

Then, she chuckled. “Alright, I’ll know where he went if he suddenly disappears on me.” Her eyes lingered a bit longer on me before going to the rest of the bed. Just beneath the surface, I felt her heartbeat quicken. “…Speaking of Spike, I should really start cleaning up before he comes back from Rarity’s.”

“I think I ought to help with that,” I said with a sly grin. “I helped make the mess after all.”

She turned beet red, and how I tried not to laugh.

“I-it won’t be necessary, Ventus…” Twilight cleared her throated and attempted to look dignified. “B-besides, you should probably go before it gets too late.”

My ears ticked. As the last of my idle and oh so comfortable rest came to an end, I remembered something… important. Tail flicking, I felt a grimace worm itself over my face. “What time is it?”

One glance to the clock on the wall sufficed to set me straight.

“…I’m late for work.”

In retrospect, I would not be able to tell whether the sound of me disappearing into a gust of wind was enough to cover up the swearing.

In the corner of her eye, she noticed somepony running straight toward her. It would not have been anything special, maybe even a small relaxing break from all that apple bucking, if the pony had been somepony else. As it was, she could not appreciate the short respite that made a bit of the pain in her hind legs recede.

“Applebloom!” Applejack called out, her brows furrowed together. “What’re yah doin’ in the orchards at this hour?! Why isn’t yer rump on yer school bench?!”

The filly didn’t seem terribly ashamed of her behavior, as she simply stretched her neck to pick up something from her saddlebags and handed it over to her big sister.

“Ah met Spike going to school, sis. He had a letter for y’all.”

For a second, Applejack remained silent, eying the scroll with suspicion. Finally, perhaps deciding to wait just a moment before handing out a scolding, she wiped the brow off her sweat and picked out the piece of paper. Even then, the scowl was not leaving her face.

“If yer thinkin’ this is gunna be enough excuse for skipping y-”

She fell silent when her eyes caught sight of the carved figures in the wax. A winged crown rested beneath a sharp and thin horn.

The Royal Seal.

Forgetting the scolding on the tip of her tongue, Applejack sat down, picking away at the seal. Once broken, the parchment started to unfold, and her green eyes went over every single mark of ink. Without her noticing, her jaw had dropped progressively lower, while her younger sibling had grown even more intrigued by the letter.

“Well, what’s it saying?” the filly asked.

“Don’t go over worrying about that,” Applejack said without bite, her gaze still slightly unfocused. “Just… just go back to school and apologize to Miss Cheerilie.”

And, before the resounding ‘no fair!’ could even be shouted through the orchard, she had started galloping back toward the farm itself. Near the red barn, she saw her no less red brother pulling a large cart of Gala apples, while her green grandmother took a well-deserved nap in her rocking chair on the gallery.

“Mac! Granny!” she shouted, getting Big Mac to stop and Granny to mutter confused words. “Y’all won’t believe what Ah just read!”

Fidgeting, her heart racing in her chest, she held out the scroll in front of them.

“Is that…?” Granny Smith started, narrowing her eyes over the blurry letters.

“Eeyup,” her grandson said with a nod.

A grin tugged at the corner of his lips. Something that was mirrored on his sister’s face. She pulled at her Stetson hat, securing it just right over her head, and rolled her shoulders.

“Y’all know what it means, right? We’re gunna have to be working triples today, but consarnit if we can’t make the best of that chance!”

For the most part, one would be forgiven to trot through Ponyville’s marketplace at that time, under the blazing sun and the cerulean sky, and think that it was a nice day. Ponies and a few non-ponies were going about their businesses without a fuss. Without anything of note, even. In fact, the last thing of note had been Princess Twilight’s personal assistant entering one of the closest store a few moments earlier. Truly, one could call this day in Ponyville an almost shockingly peaceful day.

Until, of course, the peaceful atmosphere of the afternoon was ripped to shreds by a shrill screech worthy of the appellation “Royal Canterlot Panic Alert”, or so the legend said. The Carousel Boutique itself shook on its foundations and one lone cat was seen running away from its vicinity with a stolen pair of earmuffs. The animal had found wisdom in leaving its master for a time, and within the building itself, a young filly somewhat regretted using her lunchtime break to go see her sister.

Alas, Rarity was already running around her shop in a panic.

“THERE’S NO TIME! I NEED MORE TIME!”

“I can help!” said a young and impressionable filly.

She did not get to say much else. Sweetie Belle found herself delicately thrown outside of the Carousel Boutique in a cloud of blue magic. Her school saddlebag and her lunch fell next to her just as gently, but the burst of air that followed the slamming of the door threatened to topple her over.

“No time, Sweetie. Just go back to school. Like a nice little sister.”

Sweetie blinked, impressed. That had almost sounded normal. It was as if her sister had stopped panicking…

“SPIKE, BE A DEAR AND GET TWILIGHT TO STOP TIME!”

Ah, there it was.

“See you tomorrow, Thunderlane.”

He waved back at me, taking off with Rumble trailing after him. A few more pegasi adult and child pairs had imitated them, while the rest just trotted back home on their own and I waited with a nervous smile plastered over my face. The mindless chatter buzzed at my ears, blurring together to the point I almost missed the greeting of a certain middle age stallion.

“Mister Rich.” I nodded, barely noticing the huff from his daughter as she hurried after him.

Eh, at least she hadn’t gotten into trouble with him or something like that. Today had been mild for Calx, or so I had figured. Just a bit of schoolwork and a whole lot of fun during recess. Nothing that required a guardian’s intervention, thank buck for that. His had probably been the easiest day out of everypony I could think of.

Albeit I thought it was a bit paranoid of me, I had spent a good deal of time today just keeping an ear out for possible trouble. Of course, the old saying about paranoia held true: it was only paranoid if nopony was out to get you.

Rarity’s shrilled cries still made me cringe. She obviously had had to deal with a big order today.

“Time, time, time, time, time,” she had repeated over and over like a mantra for hours on end.

Thunderlane had been seriously weirded out by how often I had been flinching in the middle of the job. I had had to dispel accusations that I was still both hangover and drunk. False, but reasonable, especially with the smell lingering to my coat. The few impromptu showers I had taken with the rainclouds hadn’t managed to quell it all. Thunderlane had grinned and winked at me, saying he’d keep his mouth shut about that, lest I had a terrible encounter with an alicorn stallion. Yeah… there was definitely a rumor starting to spread to my coworkers.

Still, I had had done my best to ignore them, which had worked, for the most part…

“That’s it! Ideaaaaaaaa!”

That, on the other hoof, hadn’t been reasonable or reasonably easy to ignore. Judicium’s balls! Volume, mare! You’re not alone in this town!

New rule: if Rarity starts screeching, get a pair of solid ear plugs.

…Anyway, yeah, I understood the diamond dogs now. I would have given her up as a hostage if she could keep that up. Or I’d have gagged her... Moving on, the day of work was over.

I started to paw at the ground, watching as the last few ponies left the schoolhouse without catching sight of him yet. He was around, I could tell, so why hadn’t he come out yet?

At long last, a little orange colt appeared in the doorway of the schoolhouse, at first looking quite excited to be done with school for at least an evening. Except… well, it changed when he noticed me waiting near the fence.

“Hey,” he said quietly, his ears flat.

I fought back a wince. “H-had a nice day at school?”

“Yeah…” He looked away. “It was fun, I guess… There was that game of hoofball on lunchtime.”

“Sounds fun,” I replied, and on that particularly lame note, we headed back home in relative silence. I did not know what to say exactly. I wasn’t sure how he felt in the first place, except it probably wasn’t looking good. That kind of lukewarm was… new, in the worst possible way. It made me feel as if there was a rift between us.

When our house got within sight, I simply couldn’t take that kind of silence between us anymore. “D-did you sleep well, yesterday?”

He paused. “…You wouldn’t know.” The scoff was almost too quiet for me to hear, but when he started trotting again, it began with a stomp. “Or, okay, maybe you would know. Could check on me if you wanted, right? Not like I could do that.”

Feeling, again, that pit in my stomach growing wider, I tried to reach out with a gentle hoof. “Squirt, I didn’t-”

“I asked him!” The accusation made me back off. “I asked Thadal, and he said you would be back last night!” His voice faltered, and his lips quivered. “Except you weren’t there, not even when I woke up…”

I left him alone. If there had been anything to make me feel greater shame than my darkest thoughts, it would have to be that. Everything had been to ensure that none of our family got left on their own, missing the rest. To fail so miserably…

Being shot in the face would have been kinder.

“Calx, I…” My breath hitched up. “I’m sorry… I didn’t mean to make you worry.”

I was just too selfish. It’s always about me in the end, always. I just can’t help hurt everypony around me, can I?

No. That was wrong. I could help it, starting right now!

“Squirt, lil’ brother, I swear it. It won’t happen again.” I stomped, making him jump a bit, and the next words came out with power rumbling in echoes. “I swear to you, I will not allow this to happen again. You… you’re my number one priority, do you hear me?”

Calx’s eyes glistened with unshed tears.

“S’okay,” he said, sniffling despite his best attempt not to. “It’s not like I was really worried or anything. I’m too awesome to do that.”

I chuckled softly. “Squirt, you can be awesome and still be afraid for the people around you. I could tell you all about it. Don’t worry about that.”

“O-okay…” He rubbed at his eyes, then shrank down on himself. He looked so vulnerable at that moment. “I… I m-might have cried… last night…”

Oh Tom. My wing brought him closer to me in as loving a hug I could give. It was unacceptable that I caused him that kind of grief. If it had been me in his place, wondering on my own if something had happened because he did not show up at the agreed time, finding out he’d just forgotten about it, things might have gotten ugly. I had had no right to do this to him. It was just us nowadays, so in this hug, I had to give him everything he needed. It wasn’t true I’d let him grow lonely. Never.

“I’m sorry for making you worry, lil’ brother,” I whispered again, voice thick with emotion. “It won’t happen again.”

Calx leaned against my shoulder, eyes closed, his chest moving more slowly. The few tears that had drizzled down had left dried trails across his cheek. He held back the rest, he buried himself under my feathers and mouthed a single word. “Thanks.”

The hole in my chest closed, and I could breathe in easy. The sheer relief watching over me…

“Err, Sam?” Calx asked suddenly. He sounded unsure. “We’re still outside…”

My eyes went wide, and I jumped back as if bitten. Horseapple! I clamped my wings so hard against my body they hurt, the ripples of the spell waving across my fur to change it back to orange. Had anypony seen that?

The streets were mostly empty, but not completely. There were people at the end of the street, trotting on their way back home! Elders be damned! Really?! What were they saying? WHAT WERE THEY SAYING?!

“-and tonight, honey, I was thinking of making you those cabbage rolls you love so much.”

“Mommy, mommy, I got a B+ on my math exam!”

“-so I told him ‘no way’, did you even look at yourself? Your mane? Not a winner.”

“Did you hear about Prince Ventus? Apparently, he’s gone to Las Pegasus and he’s whoring himself there.”

“What I wouldn’t give to be an escort in Las Pegasus…”

It was one of those times, where even the greatest bout of stupidity was preferable to a tiny bit of truth. Even the idea that I was being unfaithful did not bring too much annoyance to the front. It was still better than getting scorched by a pissed off Celestia.

But it was not worth seeing the confused and hurt look in my brother’s eyes.

“I, huh, sorry, Calx.” I grimaced, slumping down in shame. “I just forgot and I didn’t want our neighbors to find out. Yeah, thank you. I really should have thought a bit more this time.”

Calx then did what he did best. He snickered and teased me about it. “Yeah. And guess who told you about it? Sounds like Celly would have been mad.”

Yup, back to normal. And nopony was running around making rumors about us being in Ponyville. However, that thing about me in Las Pegasus? Totally spreading. It’d be the talk of the town, I could already tell.

We had been insanely lucky. I was still shaking a bit when I turned the doorknob.

At least, nothing monstrous jumped out when I opened the door and got inside. Knowing who I had pissed off yesterday, I had to be prepared for anything. But no, the house was normal, nothing out of place, even if there was somepony inside.

I really didn’t want to face this twice in a row. But the second I stepped into our dining room and saw the way he tensed, the way his newspaper wrinkled, I knew I had no choice. So I pulled a cushion, waited till Tom had gotten a snack from the fridge and left to his room, then. I tried to pull myself together. Why couldn’t I do as I did in Canterlot? Why was it that hard to put on a mask in front of Thadal?

Because he’s your friend, whispered a traitorous part of me. You know he’ll see right through you anyway. And that’s really the worst thing you could allow to happen, right?

I banished the thought and took a deep breath. “Thadal, I am sorry for what I did. I said I would come back, but then things got out of hooves and I left the whole problem for you to deal with. I know that what we found out yesterday must have hit you as hard as it did with me. I left you alone to deal with that and my brother when I should have been the rock instead. Tartarus… I probably gave it away by the sheer grief-stricken way I was acting. I left you at the worst possible time to brood in my corner and I am sorry for that.”

All throughout my speech, Thadal had remained immobile. There had only been the barest of acknowledgement, but I felt his body shift in place while I had talked. The second the last word had fallen however, I was struck by the silence. I could hear ponies talk around town, I’d be able to understand if I bothered to focus, but in truth, right now, I only wanted to hear my friend.

He stayed silent.

“Please.” I reached forward. “If there is something I can do to make you forgive me, then please say it. You’re too good of a friend for me to lose like that.”

“Can you…?” he asked, his voice raw, and it was then I noticed what he truly felt like.

Thadal was terrified. His hooves couldn’t even hold the newspaper anymore. It fell, sliding as paper does in air, and covered half our dinner table. His eyes were riveted on a front page article, a small report on the griffon ambassador Grindert, holding Celestia’s hoof. But he did not see that. There was something so distant in his gaze, something that felt familiar, and he moved to hug himself.

“I don’t want to change,” he said, and it hit me like a ton of bricks. “It’s going to happen…”

“T-Eric…” He shot me a look, he had noticed the slip. Great. That would only make it harder to get through. What did he think of me? Did he actually see the alicorn in front of him? Or, rather, did he see that too well? “Look, I get that. Trust me, it’s eaten at me. More than a little.”

I could not bear the look of skepticism that came from him.

“I’m serious!” The table shook under my hooves. “Eric, I had a psychic link to the fucking windigoes! For all intent and purpose, it was like my soul had been split in pieces and wanted to exterminate all ponykind! Do you think that was pleasant?!”

Instantly, I regretted my outburst, for the way he flinched, the way his face filled with guilt. “Sam, I-”

“Don’t you dare apologize to me! I wronged you! Not the other way around! Seriously, I get why you feel that way. You feel as if you’re turning into someone you’re not. You think it’s freakish that you can wake up in the morning, realize you’re not human and not freak out. I went through that too. And I’ll do my best so you won’t have to feel this way anymore.”

“F-fine. Don’t worry, Sam, I trust you. I do.” His ears drooped. “It’s just so strange. I expected to like being here a bit, you know?” He chuckled, but there was no heart to it. “Funny how it works. I was severely burned, got hidden away, then reunited with you under false pretense. It wouldn’t be so bad if this…” He poked the side of his head. “…didn’t change as well.”

The look in his eyes sufficed to make my heart go to him. The spider probably hovered right over his back at this very moment, and he knew it. It was just waiting for the right trigger, and a piece of him would be overshadowed by new memories. How could he not be horrified? In the back of my mind, I knew that was how I should have felt about myself too. The fact remained, I didn’t, not at this point.

To me, it probably meant that my friend would be less tormented. He’d be more Thadal than Eric, but neither would be gone. It was just his outlook on life that would change.

“Look, right now, it doesn’t look like we’ll be the center of an episode anytime soon. The spell won’t go off unless they watch. You’ll be fine so long as you don’t make the kind of sweeping statement that would necessitate a brainwash.”

The ease those words slid off my tongue… I would have never thought that could happen.

At least, my bizarre reassurance seemed to work on Eric. He looked more at ease, somewhat. “Thanks, though, err… before that, there’s something I need to know.” I couldn’t identify what was behind his voice. “Where did you sleep? You… you did not come back at all. I didn’t know what to tell Tom. I think that’s the worst part. When he wanted to know, I had no idea what to tell him!”

Right, so that was the reason why it only seemed like a good idea back then.

Heat radiated from my face, my tail curled under me. Maybe I didn’t need to say it out loud, it probably was obvious from my body language alone. I was embarrassed, but – thinking back on her smile this morning – not ashamed.

“With Twilight.”

“With Twilight,” he repeated slowly.

I evaded the accusation in his eyes the best I could. T-there was plenty of mail to go through. It made a big pile on the kitchen’s counter, a simple breeze enough to topple them over.

The crash of paper scattered them across the kitchen, leaving everything visible and in dire need to be picked up. One of them caused me to pause. Amongst the few insignificant words reminding me of the promotion on quills after buying a sofa or that of Mister Steel Pipe and his generous plumbing prices, there was a scroll.

A simple, rolled-up scroll, a seal of wax to hold it together, and a star engraved into it. So simple, in fact, that once unfolded, I was struck by its emptiness.

No signature, no greeting, nothing. Just two words, hastily written with an unsteady quill or an unsteady hold. A circle of dried moisture wrinkled the paper around the last letter.

They were just two words.

“With love.”

My grip on the paper became unsteady.

On the parchment was a circle, drawn up in ink, filled with markings and symbols, arranged in a very peculiar order. It ticked at the back of my mind. I had seen that before, albeit not exactly like that…

It clicked.

Spatial and temporal coordinates.

Twilight had found it.

She… she had found it.

“Is that…?” Eric asked, unsteady.

My head span. Yes, I nodded, yes it was exactly what he thought. There it was, a quantifiable number, a location. Something solid, so solid it had become real again. Not just a thought or a wish, but a tangible project.

The maddened heart in my chest threatened to explode. What was I to do now?

I had trouble mastering my voice again. “D-did you return to the library today?”

Eric tried not to flinch, but failed miserably. His ears flattened, he nodded quickly. “I felt like I had to… Things ended too abruptly yesterday after… you know...”

“So you guys spent time today to figure it out?” I said, each word a bit harder than the next. “You two…” You two did what I should have done instead.

Every one of my failures was being slapped in my face. One after the other. I’d left things to be picked up by my friend and my lover. Spectacular. No wonder Discord thought I was a riot to watch. He probably was laughing himself to tears.

Wait… My ears ticked. They had met. Eric and Twilight had met today. They’d spent a lot of time talking and unless she’d grown as an actress in the span of a few hours, then…

He’d had known. He would have known that Twilight and I… He would have known and Twilight had still… And she had still worked with him toward the one thing that could tear us apart. “With love.”

Oh Twilight…

“You guys are pulling off such incredible things for me. More than you should ever have to. What did I ever do to deserve ponies like you?”

Eric shifted, looking away, his face red. “Y-you… you helped me. A lot. Before…”

As I turned to give him my sincerest thank you, we were interrupted by the door slamming shut. The resounding smack made the walls of the kitchen tremble ever so slightly, and I started to growl out a stern warning. All for nothing.

“Sam!” Tom called out, his voice trembling with excitement. “You gotta see this!”

It had better be good. Together, Eric and I trotted outside the kitchen and turned into the hallway. My little brother sat down next to a giant cardboard box, a look of wonder in his eyes as he tried to find out the sender.

His ears ticking, he noticed us approaching, and grinned in such a childish way I had trouble staying mad.

“The mailmare said she forgot this.”

“What is it?” Eric asked.

“Dunno, haven’t opened it yet.” Tom shrugged, but the look he sent the box said he had no intention of leaving that mystery hanging. It was as good as a gift after all.

Leaning forward, I picked the etiquette with a bit of levitation magic. Any and all thoughts of dismissing it evaporated when I saw not two names, but three. To Misters Cloud Circle, Feather Dust and Raindrop.

How? We hadn’t told anypony about this arrangement yet. But… that meant…

My stomach sank as I watched Tom struggle to open the cardboard box. It could have been funny, in other circumstances, to see him bite down on the edge and pull like a dog wanting a bone. This time however, I really did not feel like laughing. Eric and I both got to work, and soon the box was opened, its content laid bare.

In the shredded package, beneath the folded bundles of silk, there were three golden tickets.

Thadal and Calx were both waiting for me at the train station. Everything was packed. ‘Everything’ being the suits and ties, more or less. And, right now, I wished I could have just gone with them, but before we left Ponyville for the night, there was something that needed to be done.

This time, I made sure everything was crystal clear. I told them where I needed to go and when I’d be back. The only thing that was false was that I wanted to visit Thunderlane because of work. But the lie had slipped out of my mouth before I had even considered the truth. If they saw the moment the realization had set in, they at least kept quiet about it.

That was truly a terrible habit I would need to get under control. Trust was a fragile enough thing as it was, there was no need to make it worse for no reason. This time… well, this time might have been needed, okay, but it was the fact that I hadn’t done it on purpose that worried me.

Alas, I was there for now. It was not the time to ponder it too much. Thunderlane was a stallion of action and he best responded to action.

Three knocks echoed around the house, rather loudly. I heard him as he first took notice, and he promised to be back soon to Rumble. It was almost enough to bring a smile to my face. Instead, a nervous half-smile stretched my mouth awkwardly.

The door opened, creaking, and the very recognizable pale Mohawk mane came into view, with all of one stallion underneath.

“Cloud?” He blinked. “Huh, what are you doing here? You forgot something for work?”

Steady, Ventus. Don’t let the nerves get to you.

“Err, no, not exactly.” I looked down, and pawed at the ground. None of the little tells of Cloud Circle were faked for once. “You see, Thunderlane, I promised myself I would do better. And for that, there’s two things that I have to do with you.”

At first, he said nothing, one eyebrow higher than the other, himself nonplussed. Then, something seemed to click.

“Eh, no need to thank me for yesterday. It’s only natural.” His smile turned smug, only for it to be replaced by an expression of worry. “Though, seriously, that guardian of yours, did you get more news?”

I cringed and backed away the moment he reached for my shoulder. I thought if he had, it would have burned me. A fitting end for someone like me, a windigo in all but name here. Why did everypony have to be so concerned and empathetic to me when I brought naught but desolation? What did they even see?

“Cloud?” Thunderlane called, steadying himself.

“N-not really.” I stuttered in surprise. “And it’s a bit about that that I want to speak to you.” I motioned to behind him. “Though, it might be better if we spoke inside. May I?”

“Yeah, sure,” he said, stepping aside to let me in. The door clicked behind us, and he called a bit louder, “Rumble! Take ten minutes off! I need to talk with somepony!”

“Okay!” replied the colt, and, the next second, we saw him trot out of the kitchen and into a room somewhere at the end of the hallway.

“This way,” Thunderlane said, entering a kitchen remarkably similar to mine. A bit bigger perhaps, and with vibe of ‘home’. They’d been here for some years now, obviously.

“Water?”

Grateful, I picked the glass he offered and took a sip. My mouth felt so bucking dry. Elders, I had no idea how this was going to change things. Hopefully for the best, but I wasn’t quite that foolish.

Thunderlane seemed to notice my anxiety, more proof that I really needed to keep myself in check. He sat down, and gave me a look that was unusually serious. “Okay, so, you wanted to talk? About what?”

I sighed and placed the glass down. “A lot of things actually. I just don’t know how long you’re going to listen.”

He frowned and huffed his feathers. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Well, I don’t know if you’ll let me finish or start beating me up before I get to the end.” My words startled him, and he grew more attentive, fearful perhaps. “There’s one thing on which you’re right though, and it’s that I need to thank you. Last night was… a bad moment for me. I’m not really proud of what I did then either.”

The light in his eyes softened.

“Hey,” he said, placing a hoof on my shoulder, “everypony can have a bad day sometimes. Doesn’t make you a bad pony. Plus, with what you told me, I don’t think you were wrong to be depressed.”

But that’s just the latest of the things I did that were wrong. I wanted to shout, but I reined myself in. It couldn’t go like that. Thunderlane had a temper, not unlike me, and I really wanted to get a few things out in the open before he punched my teeth in.

I hung my head, most of my strength leaving me. Where were all the good holes to hide in?

A deep breath. Like a Band-Aid. In a single shot.

“No, but there’s a much better reason to say I’m a bad pony: I lied.”

Silence.

Thunderlane didn’t move, nor speak. He looked as if he’d been slapped in the face, hard, and the shock had left him dumbstruck. He stared, eyes shrunken, jaw hanging, and total incomprehension maintaining.

“What?” he asked, his voice raspy.

His wits started to came back to him, gathering under the surface as the shock wore off and anger made his feathers rustle. He made to stand, something of true fury stretching across his face.

Here it comes…

“…What?” he growled, darkening. “It was a lie!?”

He loomed over me, he looked every bit the storm cloud on his flanks, ready to explode at any second. And despite that, I still gave him what he deserved: the truth.

“Yes.”

He bristled. My confirmation had broken the fragile fight of doubt and anger in his mind. I could see it in his eyes. He wanted to strike me. How dare I? he asked. How could I lie to him about something like that?

A small part of me wondered if I had been this spiteful on purpose back then. The memory of the bar was already too blurry to really recall my feelings. The gist of what had been said was already a lot. It already was too much.

I lied to Thunderlane about the same kind of thing he lived with his parents! I deserved his scorn and so much more.

The pain came from my left side, erupting in a blast around my eye with the sound of a sickening crack. Half the world went dark as I was sent splaying on the ground, a low groan the only thing to come out of my mouth. My head span and the first word Thunderlane said blurred into the second.

“WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT?!”

His shout had reached right into my chest and pulled at my heartstrings. Anger and hurt mixed so perfectly in those shouted words, they were so raw with pain, that I wanted to disappear into the ground. I could easily imagine… it was exactly the kind of sheer hurt that I feared most.

When I realized that, it became harder for me to stand up again. The weight in my legs grew, the echoes of Thunderlane’s shout rippling through my whole body and turning it to ice. His shadow stretched over me, and I almost waited for him to strike again.

“I lied… because I had to. But I didn’t need to tell you that. It could have been anything.” His feathers rustled, even as a shade of worry slipped into his gaze. “The reason I said that… It was because that was how I felt like. It was like I lost them that night.”

“Like…?” he said the word as if trying to understand its meaning. The idea crept up on him, it was almost there.

It was my duty to push him along the way. “As far as I know, my parents are likely still alive.”

Thunderlane blinked, the words sinking in and his anger fading. He seemed to wonder, his hesitation palpable, what I had meant precisely. The silent question hung in his gaze, “Did you really lie about that?” And my heart skipped a beat when I realized the answer hadn’t come to me quickly enough. Thunderlane saw it, his face becoming a mask of confusion and disbelief.

He did not believe I had lied. Not about that, not about my parents. The confession about the bar, he might buy if I insisted, I was already very drunk by the time we met… but those talks on the clouds alone. It had been about as close to the truth I ever told anypony in this world. I had channeled too much of my feelings into those talks, it seemed.

I stifled a bitter laugh. The one time I admit to a lie…

“The truth…” I said, rising to my full height in front of him. “The truth is complicated and a shameful thing. Though, honestly, you deserve better than it, it’s the best I can give you as the friend I wished I could have been to you.”

“What bucking truth?!” he demanded, snarling once more. He was getting sick of the game already.

So, I made no attempt to delay it. I unfolded my wings and extended them to their full span in one mighty extension. As always, the illusion washed away, tingling over my skin as my fur changed color, and my alicorn persona became visible again. Before Thunderlane, Cloud Circle the mousy little unicorn became Ventus Vinco, Golden Prince of Equestria and missing pony extraordinaire.

“So, I, huh,” I grinned, sheepish and smug at once, “I believe you said you’d beat me up to protect me from myself. If you wanna finish what you started earlier, go ahead. I owe you that much.”

His face… exactly like I had imagined. It was the perfect mixture of shock, bafflement and shame. For a split second, his eyes glazed over while he recalled every single one of our interactions together. He judged them again in light of this revelation, and I could see a few times where his mind suddenly noticed things that it had ignored before.

“I… huh, what? How?” he cycled through the words, his mind blown. “You mean, the whole time?”

I caught the underlying question. You were lying the whole time?

“I wasn’t lying last night… sorta.” I bit down on my lips. “What I told you, it was always closest to what I felt in regard to my situation. I learned yesterday that my biggest hope to see them again went up in smokes. My parents aren’t dead, but the chances of ever seeing them again are growing slimmer by the day. We really did get forced to move out of Canterlot, though that was a bit more my fault than otherwise.” My eyes stung. My breath itched up and I forced myself to swallow it all back. I could not lose it right now. When I looked back to Thunderlane, the hurt anger was growing thinner, replaced by nothing. “I’m trying to raise my little brother while looking for a solution, and he IS exactly as infuriating as you have seen. No, the stories about him were not even ‘inspired’, they ALL happened. He doesn’t fake anything other than changing his name. He’s that kind of colt.”

The mention of my brother seemed to truly get to him, as he sat down in shock. It occurred to me then that Calx had actually been around them longer than I, especially in Ponyville. That look on Thunderlane’s face was him kicking himself for not seeing the blatantly obvious.

Hey, don’t worry. Nopony sees things they don’t look for. It’s really not just you.

“Point is…” I said in the hopes of getting his attention again. “I like to think of you as a friend, Thunderlane, and I’m sorry for hiding this from you.”

He stared at me blankly.

“W-who knows?” his voice was surprisingly even.

I sighed. “It was a Royal Decree, so… Celestia, Luna, Blueblood, Twilight, Spike. Oh, Rarity and Pinkie too.”

He started so say something, but cut himself off suddenly.

“Wait, Rarity and Pinkie?” He tilted his head and raised a hoof, like a foal in class. “Why those two?”

I did not imagine the tint of resentment in that particular question. It did not help the sudden burning across my cheeks. Ears droop, I said with a grimace, “Rarity guessed, Pinkie found out pretty fast.”

“Pinkie Sense?”

“I’m not even sure…”

Thunderlane chuckled quietly. “Well, it sounds like her, alright.”

Point, I thought as some of the tension eased up. It was a gift of Pinkie’s, to cheer ponies up without even needing to be in the room. Still, it could not last. The chuckles died, and the moment passed.

“More importantly, Thunderlane… last night, you were there for me when it was a difficult time. You acted like a true friend and… and I don’t think you should have.”

His eyes narrowed into a glare. What I had to say next almost got stuck in my throat.

“You… Thunderlane, I don’t deserve you as a friend! Even if I hadn’t been pretending to be somepony else all the time, it still doesn’t change the fact that you became my friend out of gratitude for saving your life! And that’s wrong! You never owed me anything! It was my fault that the windigoes showed up in the first place!”

Silence.

“Oh wow…” He rubbed the back of his neck, his eyes narrowing into a glare. Venom seeped through his every word. “I hadn’t expected that alicorns could say such bullshit with straight faces. Yeah, okay, I think I get you, Cloud, but I’m not buying it at all.”

I jerked back, struck in the chest. Damn it! I knew it! Of course that was going to happen. I had just admitted to lying to him since day one. Ears drooped, I prepared to leave. Buck it all! I shouldn’t have come here! Now he’ll hate me, and work is going to be Tartarus to go through.

“It was not your damned fault.”

Wait, what?

A black hoof grabbed at my shoulders and forced me to face him. His expression was of stone, but not of hate. “We were close to the Everfree, Cloud. I was supposed to be more careful than that. It’s not as if that was the first flying monster to come out of the woodwork, but I still didn’t keep my guards up when it was only me and a newbie working together.”

My jaw fell. “B-b-but the windigoes really did come because of me! They were attracted to my presence! I… I was like a lantern and them, flies. If not for me, you would have never been in danger in the first place!”

Thunderlane waved a hoof in front of his face. “You’re putting too much weight on that. You saved me afterward, remember? And it’s not as if that was my whole reason for liking you. It helped, for sure.” He shrugged, and even chuckled, reminiscing something from the look on his face. “Come on, if you really got on my nerves that much, I swear that I’d let you know, lifesaving debt or not. Just ask Rainbow Dash.”

I stared at that. I… hadn’t seen it that way before. Not that Dash and him were at each other’s throats, but they didn’t seem particularly friendly either. Trying to recall them interact much beyond mandatory weather scheduling brought back a big fat load of nothing to mind.

Something dawned on me, and Thunderlane saw it with a grin.

“Come on, Cloud. You’re my friend. You’re fun to hang out with, even if you’re a little too shy at times. You could stand to be less like Fluttershy.”

No, that was… wrong. He had to be in denial or something! It hadn’t sunk in yet. While I wished I could actually play along, while that was my first instinct, that little voice at the back of my mind insisted with harsher words that I made sure the delusion didn’t last. I owed him that. “You realize I was faking pretty much all of that, right? I was pretending to be shy to keep a cover. And yes, you’re right to say I was too much like Fluttershy, because that’s who I was modeling my reactions after. It was fake.”

Thunderlane’s grin grew only larger and more confidant as opposed to what I was expecting. “Well, you don’t sound like you fake being my friend if you told me about this kind of secret freely.”

That shut me up. I blinked, staring at him with wide eyes, unable to think of a comeback.

“I’m… I’m not that shy around mares, you know? Though I guess I am trying to be politely distant…” Come on! He had to get mad at something! P-please… won’t you just give me what I deserve?! But he was staying resolutely non berserk, if a bit awkward. “Royalty and all that horseapple.”

Those words made him squirm and I regretted them. Now that he was actually seeing the wings on my sides, what they meant, I could see the struggle twist his insides. That was my fault. Again.

The worst part was how I could not move. Dozens of fake reassurances were all at the tip of my tongue, but not one went further. Thunderlane had looked at me like he would any other pony before, not like a servant would, nor like Blueblood had. It had been its own branch of interaction. And I saw the moment he decided, that one moment when he chose that he could throw everything through the window and keep the only things that mattered to him.

“You know…? I think it’s going to be even more hilarious to work around you now knowing everything you just told me. Just the girls thinking they need to bring you out of your shell…” His mouth split into a large shit-eating grin that even I found hard not to reciprocate. “Oh geez, the faces they would make at being played by a stallion. If you ever decide to tell them, please invite me and bring a photographer.”

That did it. For a split second, I actually had imagined the mares reacting to the news of my identity as a prince, and the sight had been a thing so beautiful. Was it any surprised that I laughed? The whole knot of tension in my chest melted into a stupid little nothing.

“You’re not even a little mad?” I asked, wiping a tear off my cheek.

The pegasus that was apparently still my friend let out a long sigh, equally of content after laughing than exasperation after my ninth question.

“Yeah, no, it’s going to be weird, sort of, but no, I’m fine. I mean, I punched you in the face and you seem more pissed that I didn’t do more. Look, that you lied… It annoys me, for sure, really got on my last nerves with that thing last night, to be honest… But beyond that you’re still pretty much the same pony to me.”

“But I lied! You only know a pony I faked being.”

He looked unimpressed.

“Well, look, I can punch you in the face again and forgive you, or I can just forgive you right away. Your call.”

I stared. I really had no idea what to do anymore. This… this was nothing like I had thought it would be. The mute pain in my left eye was the only reminder that anything had gone less than perfect.

Well, buck me. I’d gotten all worked up over more or less nothing.

Thunderlane took my silence the best possible way, of course.

“So, we’re going with plan B, I take?” He grinned, then offered me a bag full of ice cubes. “Good, because I’m pretty sure attacking royalty is a crime. I don’t fancy myself too much of a bad colt.”

I snorted so loud I almost dropped the ice to the floor. Him? A goody four horseshoes? RIGHT!

I can’t believe this went so well… Regardless of my thoughts though, there really was no denying it. The bag of ice pressed to the left of my face, I let it sink in as surely as the soothing cold. He didn’t throw me out after learning I had lied…

Maybe Twilight would –

No. No, I could not take that chance. One pony was not statistically significant data, as my marefriend herself would say. One could be just an anomaly. The thought of losing her love, of that spark in her eyes extinguished, it had a shiver run down my spine. I pressed my wings to my sides and felt the magic wash over again.

In the corner of my eyes, I saw Thunderlane mulling over everything I had told him. It certainly was a lot to take in. When he spoke up though, he sounded rather casual, “So, what are you going to do now that you told me?”

I put on a mildly embarrassed face on. “Well, Celly… err, Celestia asked us to attend a ball in Canterlot so it’s not really negotiable.”

“Oh…” He grimaced and rubbed the back of his neck. “Sorry for giving you a shiner then…”

Without thinking, I raised a hoof to the spot and pressed. The pain made me flinch. “Eh, don’t worry too much,” I told him with a half-grin. “It should be easy enough to conceal. I mean, I look like a unicorn right now, don’t I?”

Thunderlane’s eyes went over, something strange in them. “Yeah…”

I flinched. Damn it, I hadn’t thought before speaking there. Great way to remind him of your lies, Ventus. “Yeah, yeah… Canterlot tonight… I don’t know if it’s going to be any fun. In my experience, those things are really formal.”

And Celestia asking us to return to the very same place she exiled us from could be any number of terrible things. This time… this time, at least my mind is clear. I just hope…

Calx’s face flashed before my eyes, his characteristic cocky grin well in place. He bounced around the docks at the train station, so eager to go back and see Canterlot again. I wished I could share the enthusiasm, but Discord’s words were still on my mind. There would be diplomats or dignitaries, whichever, and they might demand...

“Thunderlane,” I suddenly spoke up. “Before I leave… can I ask you something?”

“Well, yeah,” he said bluntly. “No point in not doing it after that kind of revelation, don’t you think?”

We both smirked at that, reveling in a bit of camaraderie. Apparently, revealing the truth had just made Thunderlane more fiercely loyal. Or maybe he was just naturally like that.

The smirk did not stay long unfortunately. The worries made it hard to really appreciate it. Not to mention, I had a feeling Thunderlane would find it hard to smile after what I intended to ask. A part of me hated the rest for putting him through that.

Shaking, I put down the ice bag and fixed him a piercing stare. I needed to know. The breath would not leave my lungs at first, but I pushed forward. “H-how far would you be willing to go… if Rumble’s life was at stake? What would you do?”

Warmth left the room. In the span of an instant, the kitchen seemed to have fallen into a dark and cold pit. Nothing existed beyond the two of us, beyond was a blur of colors and sounds.

Calm, steady, Thunderlane looked me in the eyes, and said, with a tone that brokered no argument or hesitation, “Anything. I’d do absolutely anything I needed to do for that.”

It was not a lie. I knew it to the core of my being, Thunderlane had told me the absolute truth.

My breath itched up, my heart going to him in earnest. He understood. Elders’ Wrath, he got it. A shard of loneliness in me broke and the cries of ‘monster’ got weaker. Maybe it was wrong, maybe it was just selfishness, but that new bond put my mind at ease. The follow-up didn’t feel needed.

“And… if it were his happiness that was at stakes?”

Thunderlane rose from his seat and reached for my empty glass. Not a word was said, but for a split second, our gaze met again. He smirked, just a tug on the corner of his lips, yet he had never looked so grimly determined before.

I left with my answer.

Later on, I realized he might have stopped me. Had he spoken up, contradicted me, maybe I would have given it more thought.

Clash of Alicorns

“Currently, there are seven alicorns across the worlds, fulfilling their missions as attributed by the Tribunal. In five years’ time, we shall recall all but two of them. Ventus, can you explain why your cousins still live amongst mortals?”

I grinned in my seat, winking at Thadal by my side.

“Because one of them has fallen. She let Chaos overwhelm her and so she was sealed away into her own celestial body.”

“That is technically correct, but that only accounts for the younger of the two. What of Celestia? Why hasn’t she been recalled after her mission to stop the ponies’ war had ended?”

The coltish smile slipped away as I fell silent.

Magister hummed and answered, “The reason why is simple. She has taken her sister’s duties as her own, despite the tremendous effort this has demanded of her. She is guiding away the mortals and is doing everything in her power to bring Order to their realm. And despite her taking on the task of three, the Elders see no reason to relieve her of this so long as she fulfills her duties. Do you two understand?”

We tried to make ourselves as small as possible before Magister who loomed over us with contempt in his dark blue eyes. His voice snapped like a whip, “Alicorns are creatures of duty and Celestia is dutiful. Are you?”

No, I thought as I ducked under a ray of light. Aches cramped my wings, but fear whipped at my blood so strongly it hardly made a difference. To slow down might be my death. With haste, I slipped in-between a gap in the barrage of spells, and crashed into a priceless antique.

Huh, so that’s why she hadn’t shot here yet. The idea would have made me laugh in other circumstances. As it was, I merely threw all my strength skyward, toward the figure of a mare lost in the light, and prayed.

There was a crash, as tiles gave out under the strength of the blow and dust covered the distance between me and there. But I knew, oh yes, I knew without a shred of a doubt that she was still standing and barely feeling it. Red and orange had begun tainting the dull grey of the vault, and hot dry air rasped at my throat.

The shadow in the dust rose. With her, walls of fire cut off any retreat.

She had not landed a hit yet, and I still couldn’t see myself winning this one. Every instinct I had screamed for me to stop being a bullheaded idiot and beg her forgiveness before I became naught but a charred outline on the stone pavement.

Celestia was a giant, fire made flesh in the shape of a mare. The Sun, descended from the Heavens to become the guiding light of Equestria, stood tall and proud before one of its enemy. Its shine seared all shadows away and reached beyond. There was no escaping its all-seeing eye.

And here I was, a foal, a colt, unable to understand that he had tried to enter the big leagues far too soon. So little compared to her, to them all outside, be they bull, deer or trickster. A drop of water in a lake, a needle in a haystack, a blade of grass in a forest. Young, so very young and foolish and fallen, clad in icy winds and blood red.

Here I was, a colt standing on his father’s shoulders and looking the adults in the eyes. And the figure in crimson locked gaze with the sun, cast its power over the foreign spirits, its will an irresistible command. A light touch of his hooves cracked the earth beneath him, a rustle of a feather brought forth a hurricane, and from his horn shone a light that could blind the stars themselves.

Blasts of winds broke the circle of fire apart, threw its flickering light away and lifted Celestia off her hooves to collide into a wall. She let out a cry of pain, short and easily lost in the maelstrom.

Before the guilt could build within me, lances of light lashed out and struck against my wings. The vault tilted, as I was made to see its ceiling, nailed upon the ground. I blinked, stunned and short of breath, but power flowed freely from the cape and I faded in a breeze. There was no time to fight her. I couldn’t be either delayed or weakened.

My unseen eyes focused past Celestia, back on her hooves despite the momentary pain inflicted. A faint outline shone weakly beyond her, cyan and gold lines and forms upon the vault’s doors. They were akin to a cork on a bottle, or a seal in a circle. Silence had rung to my ears when they had flared to life. I needed to break them.

Strength rumbled through my body as my resolve became steel, and I stretched my mind toward the freed-

Fire blocked my path.

I flinched away from the light and the burn in my eyes with a sweep of my wings, then stumbled on the solid ground on all four hooves. The heat licked at my right side, promising pain in terrible whispers, and yet I felt cold sweat run down my spine as Celestia’s glare darkened.

“I cannot let you go so easily, Ventus.”

Magic gathered in my horn for another spell while flames flickered about her tail.

“Burn them all, Celestia,” hissed the voice of a figure long gone. “It is your duty.”

“And what will it take to get you to let me go?” I asked, half in bravado.

“Your immediate surrender,” she said without a hint of hesitation. “I’ve said it before and I’ll say it as many times as you need to hear it. The path ahead of you will not give you what you want,” – her voice faltered – “and I will fight you to prevent the disaster you are about to unleash.”

The ghost of a tear wavered within her gaze. She would not, despite her inner turmoil, despite her reluctance. Already the fires gathered near her.

Dutiful, I thought with a shiver.

“Please… This doesn’t have to be your fight. Not again.” Not after Nightmare Moon.

“Then stop,” she ordered, her eyes narrowed. “Stand down and return the artifact you’ve taken.”

And I saw it for what it was.

An ultimatum. We weren’t negotiating, in truth. We were just hoping the other would back down first. There were no other outcome. Not now. It was not the time to let others fight this battle. It would be us, and neither would give ground. Too much had already been done for us to turn back now. She would accept nothing less.

Neither would I.

“I’m sorry.” Cold climbed up my limbs. “I can’t!”

The words had barely escaped my mouth that I was struck.

A pinpoint of light had flown into the ground at my hooves, and curves and forms from before Equestria’s creation had circled me. Their sinister glow struck fear in my heart, but my wings would not move. A panicked glanced to my back froze my blood in my veins as I came face to face with a slithering beast of light ensnarling me.

Magic sputtered at the tip of my horn, useless.

A low hissing sound rippled over my fur.

I trashed, putting every bit of my power into fighting the crawling snakes of light strangling me. Their grasp only tightened, their coils ever more strong, their touch white-hot on my skin. And each hoofstep growing closer was echoed by a pulse of power in the constructs.

“I’ve wondered for a thousand years, Ventus. What could I have done?” Her eyes flickered away, solemn regret seeping through every pore of her being. “If I had been kinder, if I had been more attentive… if I had been stronger. I could have ended our battle differently. Perhaps I could have subdued her through less extreme means, and bring her back from the throes of the Fallens myself instead of leaving that task to my student after a thousand years sealed away.”

Despite my predicaments, I wanted to laugh. Did she even know how close to home her words hit me? What if, what might, what should. When you think your life unfolds wrong, you really start to look for ways to fold it back into place.

“A thousand years…” she trailed off. “There were so many things that came to me, too late.”

Her gaze swept the dull grey cave, then fell on the tile closest to my head.

“This vault, for example, is so strongly warded that not even Discord could come and go in impunity. I stored in this place anything that could spread corruption to my subjects or others. Once the doors are closed, it might as well be its own dimension.”

She wasn’t lying. I could barely feel beyond the walls of this place anymore, and I had Magnus’ cape on my back. Every single stone in this place only reflected its cold gray surface. Nothing more, nothing else. Nothing.

There would be nopony to come here and interrupt this in a happy accident. Nopony to witness this, to save me from my mistakes. The bonds resisted me and any attempts to counter them with magic ended with a fizzling flick of magic. This could be the end, I wondered as the shadow of Celestia fell upon me. This close, the heat stung my eyes and left my throat parched. Her hoof was inches away. I flailed, uselessly. She loomed over me. After everything, would I fail here?

Tom’s tear-stricken face flashed before my eyes.

Fire, unholy, ugly and tainted in cold, burned inside my chest.

There was a cry, hissed and pained as the pressure over my limbs loosened. On my back, the cape stirred and I felt-

His smile. “Son.”

“FATHER, YOU WHO CARRIES THE LAND AND MOVES THE SKIES, BEND THE LIGHT TO YOUR WILL AND CAST IT INTO THE DARKNESS! I PLEAD IN THE NAME OF BLOOD AND LOVE, TO STRIKE AT DUTY AND RIGHTEOUSNESS!”

And air, magic and harmony stilled, held firm within the grasp of a red hoof. Time slowed down, every color dimmed and lifeless, before the strike shook it from the highest peak to the lowest crevice. From here to the edges of All, Strength reached, and light flickered, and broke into a shockwave.

Artifacts, objects kept hidden and forbidden, and the most priceless treasures were all thrown aside, knocked from their pedestals beyond the reach of their protections. And further as the air swirled and pushed. Pillars screeched and cracked throughout the vault, standing before a barrier that threatened to expand still.

Only a side of the room was spared, shielded from winds and eyes alike by a blinding light.

Panting, I glared and spat a glob of blood. The flames roared and stretched into orange fingers to claw at me, but they all broke into a wall of screeching winds. Their heat did not even register. Magic weighted far more heavily at the tip of my horn, and the agony it burned into my back felt far more dangerous.

But this was a distraction I should not have heeded.

Celestia unfolded her wings, and her legs were lifted off the ground, encased in a glowing golden aura. The purple of her eyes faded into white and her voice shattered my defenses.

“Ventus Vinco.”

I froze. Not of my own volition. My legs locked into place as the tone of her voice echoed to my ears and reached deeper. The words clawed their way into my brain, and tore and swept and-

Missed.

Less than a fraction of an inch.

Missed!

And I flew back, away, away, further, putting distance between myself and Celestia. Air blasted her with the strength of a speeding cart. Her horseshoes slid across the floor with a screech, a shrill piercing screech, and a lance of air fell unto her blazing form – or tried and broke into a gust. And blasts flew at her, again, fast, weak or strong with no rhythm to them. Frantic.

Until seven more broke themselves on a shimmering wall of light.

Then, perhaps, the panic receded enough for me to think and witness as my cousin narrowed her eyes at me.

“I had imagined something like this might be the case. Would Sam work better?”

Chains had appeared and-

There were none.

I almost let out a bark of laughter, things clicking into place in a bitter realization. That wouldn’t work on me.

I called loud and clear, as smug as angry, “Try Samuel Miller, Celly.”

Suspicion lit up in her eyes, as I saw the careful consideration to my sort-of taunt. Surely, she pondered if it might be a trap, but she needed not bother. I barely had passing knowledge of that branch of dark magic. Not enough to reflect a spell, not enough to counter it.

She said the words, called forth the name I had been given at birth with the power of the Sun at her behest, and it brushed past me. It slid off me, burning off as the previous attempts had, but it reached no further than the edges of my coat.

A strange mixture of relief and disappointment thumping in my chest, I lifted a hoof to eye level and saw no difference. “Yeah, I figured the truth would be something like that.”

For a brief moment, we stared at one another and forgot the battle, forgot the grim, the pain and the crackling of flames still eating at some spots on the floor.

“I was not lying,” I said firmly. “My parents gave me that name and I wore it before coming to Equestria, before turning into this. But I’ve juggled so many times with who I am, what I am… maybe you’ll have a better luck trying with Cloud Circle.”

Celestia’s wrath seemed to weaken as her face twisted into a mask of regrets.

Now she understood me in full. The last little piece of the puzzle had been neatly placed at her hooves. The look she sent me was full of pity.

“Ventus, I swear it is not too late if you simply relinquish that cape now.”

“Is it not?” I figured she might be right on that. Celly had always been forgiving enough. She’d be strict but fair, probably. Yet, in truth, the thought didn’t even come to me. The smile on my face was strained. “But then what happens for those left behind? What changes from an hour ago for them?”

Them, Mom and Dad, Tom, Eric. What was to become of them if I gave up now? Would a miracle suddenly resolve everything? Would some unknown force of Chaos choose to undo one of the most chaotic events of the decade to help some kids and a couple of humans they never heard of? There was nothing left to do but…

A sad shake of my head… “It was too late the moment I picked a path. I cannot go back now.”

There was a moment of silence as it all sank in.

“…So be it, Ventus.” She pursed her lips. “You have made your choice. I cannot hold back any longer, for the sake of my subjects.”

Something changed about her. Not in the way her mane and tail wavered, not the subtle radiance of her coat, not even the ripples of heat that rose from her presence. I could not even tell what, but in saying this, there had been a fundamental change in Celestia. She was something more.

I stood my ground, my guard up and my wings fully extended. Most of my magic was focused close to me, ready to spring up in defense at a moment’s notice.

Celestia’s words fell like the chiming of a bell. “A window opens.”

The pressure… vanished. In the time it had taken me to blink, every single drop of that oppressive, crushing presence had disappeared, leaving only an eerie sense of emptiness.

Celestia faltered, digging her hooves into the floor for support, and I saw a bead of sweat roll the side of her face. At the top of her forehead was a light so strong it eclipsed the rest of her.

I heard a ripping, tearing sound.

And I felt a sudden pull on my whole body, as if chains covered me and dragged me away. Dust and broken pieces of stone flew in as many torrents, like rivers through the air. And all of it converged to a single patchy, rough hole floating in midair.

My hooves started to slide across the ground. Strands of my mane stood away from me, in a straight line toward that very same spot, and it felt as if the rest of me would follow. In the depths of that rift of pure inky black, I caught a glimpse of a few shining dots, like dust on a canvas. Or stars in the night sky.

My blood turned to ice. She hadn’t! It was insane! How could she have opened a rift to space?!

And that was where it’d send me, I knew. Already it had drained some of the air in the vault, and it felt akin to having something suck up the blood out of me. Light-headed. Nauseous. My head swimming and my sight blurring. What was taken was lost. I couldn’t feel it anymore. The rift would send me where I had wanted.

Away.

From the Earth. The Sea. The Skies. Away. From Equestria and Earth. Alone. Drifting and barely held together in the vast emptiness. No one to answer to, no one to feel guilty for letting down. No one. Nothing but myself.

It felt like being slapped in the face. Fear and anger clashed inside my chest and I threw a burst of pure energy at my cousin. The light slid over her form harmlessly, while a pillar creaked with a worrying noise close-by. Its shadow spread before my eyes as I jumped aside. Its crash boomed to my ears over the swirling screeches of the vacuum taking its due.

“This is bad,” I growled under my breath. “I have to–”

At the last second, I ducked under a helmet flying straight at the rift.

Closing my eyes, I swallowed my nausea and my pain. This better work!

“Princess Celestia!” rang the voice of Twilight Sparkle.

Stunned, she snapped around while the pull on my body suddenly gave out. She couldn’t endanger her precious student, of course. Her head turned–

There was no one. And pain erupted on the side of her face, against her cheeks and the tip of her horn. The golden aura fizzled out as her body slammed into a column with a resounding and satisfying smack. Cracks appeared on the pillar of stone.

The sound of it made me wince – cheer – and for a second, I was almost convinced it could have knocked her out. Yet, before her body had even reached the ground, her neck twisted and she aimed her horn at me.

The shot was wild, hasty, and flew in a shaky line, more intended to keep me away than to hit. I jumped aside, ducking as the beam brushed against the edge of my coat and singed it. A nauseating smell of burnt hair reached me, followed by another flicker of light, and I forced myself to run.

Heat licked at my backside as a horse-like monster of flame crashed where I had lied down a moment before. Its harsh low pitched whinny devolved into the furious howl of a monster. Something primal, low and haunting. Then… distorted, as the form wavered all too strongly in the air. The burning horse struggled, tried to give chase, but the legs it threw forward flickered and its body shrunk. Before me, its might failed and the last spark of fire died out.

I looked on with something of a strained smile.

Celestia had a hoof at her throat, her eyes wide in surprise.

A raspy noise stumbled past her lips, and her bulging eyes fell on me and the aura of magic surrounding my horn. One of her knees folded beneath her, and she tried to focus her power to repel me, without avail. The net over her muzzle stretched as she snapped, but I grunted and gritted my teeth, even as the pain throbbed through my horn and the cape lashed out. I couldn’t let her take the advantage back again. The emptiness behind the rift still flashed before my eyes. I wouldn’t… I wouldn’t be able to endure this battle much longer!

One of us would die. Two alicorns couldn’t fight for long without escalation. The blows would become desperate, fiercer, clumsier as fatigue settled in and one attack would strike true – and at all the wrong times – and there would be no coming back from this.

It had to end now!

Please! I begged the Powers Above and Below, Father, Celestia, myself. I prayed and pleaded with everything I could think of while I still stood for this to be the last blow. Please, let this be the end now! I can stop as soon as she’s unconscious – I won’t – will I? – I can stop before either of us dies!

A grunt rose in my throat when there suddenly came pain, hammered into my forehead at the base of my horn. And I saw.

My knees trembled.

She was standing.

“W-what?” I muttered, panting. This couldn’t be true. My power still cut her from air. Why hadn’t she passed out already?!

In her slow tedious movements, Celestia looked at me and something seemed to twinkle in her eyes. “Alchemy,” she said in a short breath. “On myself.”

My eyes almost flew out of their orbits. “That’s not–”

“Possible?” She quirked an eyebrow and took a steadier step forward. “Difficult, maybe. Even more so… in battle.”

I fought the urge to take a step backward. Barely, I held onto my spell.

Celestia’s hoof struck the ground with a strange, tinkling sound. “But I need not… keep it too long…” Her grimace turned into a snarl. “Just long enough.”

Her body shone like a miniature sun. Pebbles and dust trembled as space and time quaked, and at once swept across the vault the full might of Day.

I could not… I could have never imagined the pain. The true absolute suffering of Light and Heat burning me beyond mere flesh. To the very depths of my mind, there was fire. And in the midst of that torture, I lost my grasp on my magic. The agony tore at my mind, came down upon it like a savage beast and clawed every thought, every memory to shreds. There was nothing then, no plan, no family, no fear. I spent all of Eternity at the heart of the sun as no one.

And at some terrible, unknowable point, my existence ceased to be merely nothing, and I was almost broken, lying on my side with burning hot air nearly too cold for me to think it possible.

Almost.

Eyes of red twice looked at me, and one stallion offered his leg for me to grab, and with a twitch at the drape of my neck I stood once more, unbroken.

A gasp caught my ears. The mare before me looked less like Celestia than I had ever seen her. She was panting, greedily gulping as much air as possible with each inhalation, and exhaling clouds of searing wind in turn. The ground beneath her glowed red and melted. In her gaze were steel and a radiance that made me flinch.

I wouldn’t stand a chance if she Fell. I barely had one right now.

“Have you lost sight of them?!” I shouted, bloody spittle spraying out of my mouth. “What use is a Fallen Princess?! Who you are fighting for if not your subjects?!”

The light dimmed. Slightly. And her brows furrowed together, she asked, “Have you?”

I grimaced. “No, I weighted them down, and moved the way my responsibilities turned.” I tried to stand. “That’s how it–”

The leg I pushed on broke apart, soundlessly, painlessly, like it had never been attached to my shoulder. Blinking, I looked down and saw how, above my forelegs, most of that limb had become transparent.

Too thin. The window sucked up too much air. And what’s left is overheated, so energized my body can’t stay stable long enough.

Crackles of lightning ran across my barrel and the side of my face, tingling. It was like those parts of me had turned to lead. I had not taken that hit well at all.

“You won’t be able to defend much longer, Ventus,” rang through the air.

“Doesn’t mean I’ll stop now,” I replied with a forced smile. Really, I had no idea how I’d get out of this one.

“You are not the wind.” Celestia sighed and gave me a long suffering look. “Your head is harder than the earth’s crust.”

I chuckled, bemused by the comparison even in the face of danger. Even here, with my coat matted with sweat and blood, with Father’s cape on my back pumping as much power as it could into my veins, I could not help but picture Tom, arrogant and shining with confidence. He’d face it head on, wouldn’t he? Blade Darkblaze knows no fear! Or so he would say.

“I’m a fickle stallion.” I shrugged as best as I could with one leg. “I’m a confused teenager not ready to be an adult. I wake up one day thinking all is well in the world, but an hour later I can hardly swallow my guilt because I keep forgetting there are others waiting for me. Sometimes, I wish with all my heart I could stay and live, a quiet stallion in a little town with a nice, studious marefriend and his family near him. And then it crashes down as I look at my hooves and wonder why I even have hooves and why I’m still here. And this happens and that happens, on and on, and I can’t decide anymore.”

“There might have been a reason for that,” Celestia said, the air around her trembling with magic.

She probably was preparing another heat wave. Or maybe another rift through space.

I didn’t have a defense against that. The heat would still pass through my barriers; it would still reach me and make me unstable. I couldn’t summon cold from elsewhere, cut off as we were from outside this damned vault. And the vacuum… the less said about that the better.

The cape on my back fluttered and I bit down my cheeks. Just a little more…

“Doesn’t matter, Celly, I don’t choose for myself anymore. I’m too selfish otherwise.” An absurd grin found its way to my face. “And that’s telling something.”

For a split second, so short I could have imagined it, a hint of fondness pierced through her mask. “It is.”

The power within me swelled, washing over my coat like cold water. Father stood beside me, a proud look on his face. This would be it. No more. I wouldn’t survive if this failed.

In my mind echoed an ethereal neigh.

The vault shook under a maelstrom of fire.

I fell down a three meter’s height, straight upon the marble tiles of the floor. A loud gasp flew past my lips, too strong to hold in, as the cool air of the room came into contact with me. My body jolted as if struck by electricity, and I sent wild looks around myself. No grey, no shades of red or orange or yellow. Merely pure white and gold, as befitting a bathroom in Canterlot Castle.

Shaking, I pushed myself to my hooves, as best as I could, and tried to ignore the aching pain all over my body. The first step alone made me dizzy, and rose in my throat the urge to throw up. I dashed forward, clumsily, sending a cup tumbling over the edge and breaking upon the floor. Its staggering crash echoed to my ears as the taste of copper filled my mouth.

Heaving, my coat matted with sweat, I leaned onto the pristine white sink and tainted it the color of my blood.

I retched more, hacking, coughing, and the sink’s porcelain turned a sickly color. My chest felt like it had been shredded from the inside, like a piece had gone missing. The pain truly was unbearable.

It slowly dawned on me that meant I was not dead.

I did it. I escaped a sealed room meant to imprison an alicorn.

I could have collapsed in sheer relief, and for a second, my legs felt so weak, but I held on. Not over yet. I had escaped, true, but that was merely the beginning. Despite the extraordinary feat still fresh in my mind, I felt little pride to this. Hard to, when I was desperately holding on to a sink and puking blood, when the end goal was so terrible… when I knew the truth. I, Alicorn of the Wind, cheated.

Because no matter where I am, I also exist elsewhere in this world.

I could leave, because ‘I’ had never truly entered the vault. Because the real me was as vast as the skies and this body was ultimately just a piece of that.

It was an understanding I knew I wouldn’t have reached without the cape on my back, and that trick couldn’t be used in impunity. Somepony had tried that once, and he’d created a race of hate-filled spirits that had gone on to threaten three tribes at war.

Severance.

I held a hoof to my heaving chest, trying to ease some of the burning cold away. A part of me, gone. Let go, left behind. A fragment of Wind, detached.

Eyes a freezing white, howling winds and the shape of an equine.

“Grandfather?”

I clutched my sides, gritting my teeth as I willed the image away. I wasn’t him. I wasn’t the First, only the Newest. What a consolation. Better than nothing, at least. I wouldn’t end like him, so broken I’d fade on my own. Oh no, I would make my own brand of new mistakes. And that thought brought forth its own worries.

My eyes darted to the bathroom’s walls in search of a clock. How much time had passed since… before? How long had I stared at my reflection when it really was time to get my gears moving? The castle would fall under high alert very soon if it hadn’t already. We needed to get moving before the room was flooded with guards and high-powered monsters.

I nearly jumped out of my skin as the door creaked open. The intruder himself was rather lucky that fatigue weighted me so much, as I could not move quickly enough to throw a spell without realizing to whom belonged the worried, familiar voice.

“Sam, are you okay? I heard noi-” Eric cut himself short as he saw the state I was in and his eyes grew wide. He pointed to my back, and said quietly, “You shouldn’t be wearing that.”

Scoffing, I let go of the sink and fell to my hooves. The shock went up my front legs, made me wince. This pitiful face I showed my friend, with no small amount of embarrassment. And strangely, triumph. “I shouldn’t, unless I wanted to send us back home.”

Predictably, my words froze Thadal on the spot. His eyes slowly widened, realization dawning on him with such strength his breath cut short. “…You want to try the spell?”

I nodded, then stopped as another way of nausea made me too dizzy to stand. My hooves slipped underneath me, and I stumbled into an outstretched wing. For a second, it didn’t quite register why my muzzle was buried in feathers. I… huh…

“You’re crazy,” Eric growled. “This is going to tear you apart.”

“I’ve gotten used to it already. It’s not so–” Another coughing fit cut my words short, and above my shoulder, I could feel the dismayed look my friend was sending me. “S’nothing too bad. You should have seen me when Judicium tried to get an invite to this party. My chest plain burst open. And well, he’s going to crack down on us sooner or later. We couldn’t really afford to stay even if I hadn’t dueled Celly in the dungeon.”

I chuckled weakly at his strangled ‘You did what?!’

Slowly, I straightened and stretched enough to look him in eyes.

“Soooo…” I said, a bloody grin on my face. “Thadal, ready to become one half of this season’s final villain?”

His mouth snapped shut with the click of his teeth, shock painted all over his face. He had never prepared for this, and I was reminded that the depths I sunk to had never even been scratched by him. Thadal was a good guy, in every sense of the word, he wanted nothing more than to make sure everypony was fine.

And perhaps an inkle of fear slipped between the cracks in my armor. It had been so clear in my mind that I had not even needed bother with his consent. For all his words on this, for the friendship that had bound us, there had been no doubt to me that he would be willing to help. But if I had been wrong, it would have been for naught. I needed him in this.

My heart stilled in my chest at the sound of quiet chuckling.

“Ready?” he finally said, dubious and bemused. “Nope, but I’m still coming with you, villain or not.”

I threw my legs forward and wrapped them around his shoulders. My sight blurred as relief washed over me. “Thank you,” came the shaking whisper.

He grinned, the joy not quite reaching his eyes. “Don't mention it.”

I stumbled back, my head light and my legs trembling. Right, he had the right idea. No time for sentimentalities. Go.

“Let’s get moving,” I said, near galloping in our suite. “There isn’t much time left before the others come over to arrest me. We'd better be gone by then.”

My eyes first went to the bed, where the faint swirl of a wind barrier still blocked all other sounds. A small sigh of relief fell from my lips. The form under the covers shifted a little, no more than ordinary. Tom's sleep remained undisturbed so far. And if I could help it, we'd keep it that way.

Eric cleared his throat behind me, and I shook my head. No time, I reminded myself. Faint whispers started ringing to my ears again. Most were quick and frantic, and muffled by the distance. Teeth gritted together, I glanced to the drawers and the suits. A single scroll floated from the folded fabric, surrounded by my magic.

Okay, we've got this, the cape and Tom. Time to-

Two things happened.

The door exploded into splinter.

And a tide of shadows surged forth.

Time seemed to slow down, as I could see the strange gaping black skulls amidst the attack, the splinters of wood flying right past me or stabbing into the furnitures. My blood ran cold, and I lowered my head, aimed my horn. But on the corner of my eyes, I saw Eric, and my friend was staring, frozen, eyes wide.

Buck! He'd never been in a fight, I realized with horror. He never got the time to mentally prepare. This one was going to hit him straight on.

I jumped between him and the spell, nothing on my mind but the single-minded desire to block that blast. In the span of a heartbeat, the screeching faces collided into an invisible wall. My legs nearly buckled. I tasted the blood in my mouth.

I heard the shocked gasp of my friend. I heard the soft, peaceful breathing of my brother.

The cape on my back gave a kick, and I bit my lips as the power pumped through my veins like fire. Two large hooves struck back at the wave and ripped it in half. Behind was a furious, near foaming dark blue alicorn, her glare promising true pain.

I reacted on instinct. My hoof came down, striking the ground and sending a shockwave, an order, through the air. Thadal turned to me in a flash, coming out of his stupor, and I saw understanding in his eyes.

“Watch him!” I shouted over a new roar.

Thadal nodded and swiped at the floor. Quickly, his brown hoof closed over the scroll I had dropped before. Yet, I felt no small amount of relief as I began to see through his body, and the typical, familiar power of the Sea and Earth echoed through my mind.

My thoughts flew toward a place far away, one that was right for all three of us, my horn burning with magic. A small boyish grunt rang to my ears then, discomfort at being disrupted in his sleep. I smiled despite my annoyance and my fear. Too typical. The next instant, a gust of wind swept through the room.

There remained only two alicorns in our suite, one having galloped in, her wings flared.

“FORSWORN CRAVEN!” bellowed Luna with such strength I was thrown off my hooves.

Pain erupted in my back, and I slid down the wall with a low moan. Tonight was a terrible night. Ah, and maybe it was just me, but I would not call the guy that evacuated friends and family first a coward.

I flew to the side then, all thoughts deserting my mind as a bolt of ice skewered the wall right where I had been leaning.

“Traitor!” Luna's voice followed me. “Unworthy creature that would abuse our goodwill!”

And as I dodged another rain of bolts in bursts of wind, I came to a startling, terrifying realization.

Celestia had used her power to try and subdue me. Luna had no such restraints.

She aimed to kill me. A thick oozing blackness seemed to swirl inside her magic, and from it dripped a rage so familiar. The anger of an alicorn boiling over, focused in all its deadly intent as barrages of shadows flew at me.

“I should have listened to my instincts and struck you down long before tonight!” Her horn flashed a dangerous, cold blue. “But this ends now!”

I wasn’t fast enough. The bolt struck me on the right shoulder, piercing right through with a ripple of agony and freezing cold. My whole leg went limp, and the frost started to spread. I went stumbling.

That’s gonna leave a mark…, came the absurd thought as my face slammed against the ground. Blood trickled down my nose, and red bubbles popped at my nostrils with each heavy pained breath I exhaled.

“You've brought naught but ill luck and disasters!” she accused, her hooves coming down right next to my head.

I flinched back, eyes narrowed into a glare. Luna loomed, her shadow falling over me, her snarl almost hidden by the blinding light at her horn. Cold seeped into the air, one that seemed to cling to my fur, to my lungs as I breathed. Her hostility was laid bare.

“REPENT NOW OR FACE THE CONSE-!”

Her word cut abruptly, all sounds suddenly gone from her vicinity and the booming voice nothing but a faint fading echo. Luna’s mouth still moved and she tried to march on me, but the look of her furiously miming at me was much too ridiculous. A spiteful smirk found its way to my face, mocking the Dark Princess. Only then did she seem to notice the lack of sound and the magic over her muzzle, syphoning at the air in her lungs.

She collapsed next to me, her lips parted wide in a vain attempt to swallow more air.

Groaning, I pushed myself to my hooves, my tail slapping her in the face. She deserved it. She deserved worse, added a vindictive part of me. But the weight of my limbs was too much. I knew I was approaching a dangerous limit, lest I fall back on Father's cape again.

“You…” she wheezed through my spell, her eyes narrowed in a withering glare. “You foul treacherous beast. We should have never welcomed you in our home.”

Welcomed me?! I thought in sheer indignation, and through me flashed every meal when Luna had been nowhere to be seen, when it had only been Celestia and hay, Blueblood! Of her I only had the memory of her spell when we arrived at court, of her coldness the night Pinkie had thrown a party to help us get better, of her contempt for me and all I represented when I fell on the battlefield. Only once had she ever acted as my family, and still then she had mostly followed Celestia’s lead!

Within me stirred a terrible and ugly beast. It whispered of an endless night, of heroes that braved an alicorn black as night and the forgiveness freely given then. And I choked on the bitter taste of envy.

“Fine… in return for your hospitality, your kindness and your understanding, a present for you, my worthy cousin!” I spat, voice rumbling in anger. The muzzling spell crumbed with a snap, and Luna took a greedy gulp of air. She could not even rein in the blatant confusion in her gaze then. “Not that. The one you wished for all those years ago. When loneliness became crushing, when envy seized your heart, you sought to bring about night eternal. So be it. Darkness is my gift to you!”

Luna jerked as if struck, and an ancient, terrible pain crossed her face. She heard as well as I did the rumbling of thunder and the howls of a growing storm outside. And the pony that reflected in her eyes was twice her damnation, the worst of her former lover and herself.

The thought was cruel, a vicious stab at wounds that were obviously fresh, and yet... frankly, I did not care!

“For this land, and all the lands, neither sun nor moon shall shine their light! Clouds of pitch black shall veil the skies above and shadow the world! A sunless day, a starless night, naught but the lack of light beneath! There, that should make you happy! Happier than you have ever been seeing me, a dark reminder of the past and a colt that was much too immature for you, oh impeccable Princess of the Night! You, I can leave without sadness!”

And she scrambled to stand then, her eyes and horn flashing with the same glowing light as she understood my meaning.

“You will not–!”

Her cries of rage faded away while I disappeared into the night air of Canterlot.

Twilight's eyes shot open as a startled cry rang in the silence of the night.

What?! Who was that? Spike? She reached for her dragon brother, only for her eyes to fail to spot him. Spike?! Panic rose as her thoughts began to unravel, when her memories caught up with her situation.

They were in Canterlot. Spike was sleeping in his own private bedroom, like a good growing boy should do. And here she was, the one having nightmares.

“Just... being silly...” she breathed out.

Twilight sat up in the dark, a low buzzing noise ringing to her ears. Already, the dark images of her dreams were fading, but the deep fears they had brought to the surface refused to let go of her maddened heart. She let forth a long breath, almost a sigh, following the movement of her leg as her foalsitter had taught her. Deep breaths. In. Out. But as the long seconds ticked by on the rhythm of her grandfather's clock, Twilight realized that what she felt was not purely the results of her nightmares. There were little signs, hints that proved her instincts right. The rumbling remained, muffled by the windows. The base of her horn tingled, as if stray sparks of magic ticked at it. And more so, more so than everything else, the darkness around her carried a sense of anger.

A bead of cold sweat rolled down her spine as her mind supplied the answer she had been looking for. This felt the same as that long night, all those years ago. On the morning of the Summer Sun Celebration.

In a flash of purple light, Twilight was out of her bed, wings clumsily extended as she stumbled through her covers. With a dull thud, her face collided with the ground.

“Princess Twilight Sparkle?” asked a strong, tenor voice, and she recognized it as belonging to one of the Royal Guard. “Princess Celestia and Princess Luna need you. Please, follow me.”

And a tiny, shameful part of her sighed in relief, hearing of Princess Luna able to speak rationally in a time like this. Her face warm with the rush of blood, she decided to keep that sleep-addled thought to herself, lest...

Refusing to finish that train of thought, Twilight jumped to her hooves. “Of course, lead the way.”

The guard nodded, and backed away from her doors so she could leave. There, she paused, nonplussed by the dozen of ponies that awaited right outside. At least, until she blinked, rubbed her eyes and caught the half-snore, half-whinny sound that she had heard in so many sleepovers.

Rainbow Dash was practically being carried by her guard, her eyes barely opened and her movements sluggish. In contrast, Applejack, Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy all looked fairly alert, if a bit disheveled.

Twilight held back a smile at the sight of her last friend, a brush floating in the soft blue aura as it fought against knots in Rarity's mane. The poor seamstress seemed to have been taken out completely by surprise – not that the rest of them were better – and as such felt compelled to do everything in her power to look presentable before royalty.

She resisted the urge to point out that, as an alicorn, she was also royalty now. But the desire ticked at the back of her head for some time after that. As they approached the royal bedchambers however, their moods progressively sombered. All six of them had been summoned in the middle of the night, this could not be a trivial matter. Their mouths were set into grim, thin lines – with the exception of one party pony extraordinaire.

Solemn, the head of the guards lifted the heavy metal rings on the doors of the bedchambers, and let it fall with the clank of metal. The thunderous noise made the mares jump out of their skins, chasing away the last remnants of their sleepiness.

Dark blue magic shimmered across the doorframe, and slowly the doors parted to let slip a glimpse of the private apartments of the princesses. Twilight Sparkle entered first, and had to force down a gasp of horror.

With visible efforts, Princess Celestia rose from her cushions and greeted them with a sincere, but tired smile. “It pains me to be the bearer of such terrible news, my little ponies, but Equestria requires the assistance of the Elements of Harmony once more.”

All six Bearers froze in their tracks, though not from the announcement. That much, they already guessed. What wasn't right were the multiple bruises on their princesses' bodies, the smudges of dirt on Celestia's pristine white coat, the trails of dried fur that went down from her eyes to her cheeks.

“What happened here?!” Applejack demanded, one hoof coming down against the marble floor hard.

From the shadows emerged Luna, her expression severe and her voice clipped. “We were fooled, blinded by a presumption of innocence.”

The elder princess shot a warning look to her younger sister, yet Luna merely averted her gaze in exasperation. Celestia's stern look faltered, exhaustion and sadness battling for control of her. As if nothing had even been said, Luna's hooves helped her sister stay standing, and the six friends started to understand that the situation wasn't quite that of a monster escaping from Tartarus.

The Solar Princess spoke again, solemn and more formal than they remembered her, “Our young cousin, Ventus Vinco, has stolen back the cape his brother brought with them. He has taken it from the vault less than an hour ago. They have already left the castle and he has all but announced his intent to use its considerable power to fuel a spell capable of breaking the barrier between our world and his.”

Twilight found herself wishing to still be living her nightmares. This... this could not be true. She had heard wrong. That had to be it! Or perhaps her mentors were pulling an elaborate prank on her, wishing to lighten up the mood after an emotionally charged ball amidst foreign diplomats and heroes.

But time stretched on, seconds ticked by, and neither Celestia or Luna lost the grim masks of pain on their faces, and that hope died in the thick silence that had befallen the room. They were all trying to digest the news, which they understood as dire, but at the same time, didn't. Puzzlement flashed in Pinkie and Fluttershy's eyes yet they could not quite find out how to put it in words, and finally, Rainbow Dash broke the questioning silence, frowning all the while.

“Okay, yeah, I get that he’s taken that cape of theirs, but what’s the problem here? He’s going home, right?” She tilted her head and shrugged her wings. “Things will go back to normal then, won't they? Did you two get into a fight about it?”

Both sisters exchanged a meaningful look, their eyes clouded over by ancient memories. “It's not so simple,” Luna said. “Alicorns are an essential part of this world, Rainbow Dash. Whatever else Ventus might be, he and his are doubtlessly alicorns now. If they were to suddenly sever their links to this plane of existence, the backlash might be catastrophic.”

Twilight felt her breath get caught in her throat, and the room suddenly spin. No... She hadn't... she hadn't thought of that. She had never considered that if her favorite teacher had a role as crucial as raising the sun and moving it through the sky, then her coltfriend might have had responsibilities just as important.

Oblivious to her student's inner turmoil, Celestia took over the explanation. “Were my sister and I to go missing at the same time, the world would be locked within a perpetual state of twilight. At least, until such times when enough creatures worked together to substitute our influences. A generous estimate would put this at a week’s worth of efforts to restart the natural cycle of day and night. In the meantime, damages would already be piling up high.”

“H-how high?” Applejack asked again, swallowing.

“As high as our station. Ventus, his brother and his friend, whom you might have noticed earlier tonight, respectively represent the sky, the land and the sea. In a way, they are representative of the mortal world. For these three to leave the wrong way would provoke disasters, and with the way Equestria’s relations are at the moment…” Celestia trailed off with a sigh. “It might be catastrophic enough to change Equestria forever. I fear for the lives of our citizens caught in the crossfire.”

“T-t-their lives?!” Pinkie Pie cried out, her mane deflating with a strange 'pop'.

“Hmm, excuse me,” squeaked Fluttershy, trying to squeeze herself in the conversation, “but do they know that? I didn’t really speak with them, I thought that might have been too bold, but the princes seemed… nice.”

And, though they did not speak up, Twilight saw that the same sentiment was shared by her friends. Pinkie looked especially relieved, whispering to herself something about the success of Operation Party and how it MUST, MUST, MUST have worked! It lifted the young alicorn's heart to see that, but the dire look on her mentor's face squeezed her throat.

“I am sorry to say...” the Princess' voice trembled, “Ventus Vinco cannot be unaware of this fact. Were he a creature of Chaos, Order, Harmony or None, he would understand it, as it is a fundamental part of him now. He is doing this with full knowledge of the consequences.”

Twilight felt her knees grow weak.

“Please, Princess...” Her voice was strained, breaking. “I know that's not true. He would not... Have you seen his smile around foals?”

“Oh, my poor Twilight,” Celestia lamented, her eyes glittering with moisture, “I have seen it. I have seen, as my sister herself has, the way he acts around lost, terrified foals. But I have seen more as well. I have seen the coldness he tries to hide, the sharp biting edge of his words and his hooves tying the knot of a forbidden artifact around his neck. I have seen what Ventus is capable, good and bad. From the very first day, I knew there was something to be wary of.” This time, Luna made an approving noise, and Twilight could not help but think this so inappropriate. Yet Celestia made no mention of it, and took on a gentler tone. “Alicorns are forbidden from upsetting the balance of the worlds, but he did. Our involvement is always strictly monitored, for very good reasons. A foal… was unprecedented. We were well into adulthood when our mission was given. It should never be done.”

“But then…” Twilight looked up at her teacher with wide eyes.

“Yes, you have guessed correctly, my dear student. Calx Iugum’s appearance in Ponyville troubled us both greatly. Even now, the methods used elude us. It would be a spell of tremendous power, greater than what a foal like him should have been able to call, even with his father’s help.”

And one dreadful piece of puzzle fell in place. Twilight's eyes widened, her breath blown away. He had asked her, rather than Celestia. He had asked a stranger, rather than his cousin, and again, she saw the tears brimming in his eyes, the self-loathing as she refused to abandon him, like he was a monster.

“I do know…”

A dead silence fell over the throne room. All attention focused onto the shrinking alicorn, who wished so dearly to have never spoken up. Her voice shaking, her cheeks burning, Twilight tried and failed to look at her mentor as she revealed her foolishness.

“I’ve been studying the spell they used to come here for some time now. Ventus asked me when he was still in Canterlot. We ran some tests together and…”

The others seemed to disappear, everypony, every object faded from her sight and left her alone with Princess Celestia. Her heart hammered into her chest, and threatened to jump high in her throat. Was this all her fault? Had she allowed this?

And, too suddenly, the words flew out of her mouth without a filter between her thoughts. “I met Thadal Fragor before the ball. Ventus introduced him to me and with his help, we could complete my researches. We worked together, I made the schematics, the calibration, the frequencies. The runes were a semi-sentient construct, and I had never seen something like that before! But with that, anyone could have broken the barrier between the worlds, because it required no magic at all!”

She saw Luna's jaw drop in disbelief, her eyes wide at the sheer implications.

“Have you succeeded, Twilight?” Celestia asked with a soft tone void of any accusation. “Did you recreate the spell?”

Twilight had to fight images of the past flashing in her mind. It was as if she was a filly, speaking of her projects with her teacher, alone in her office. A small proud smile inched the corners of her mouth upward. “I reconstructed the spell matrix they used, minus the spell’s well of power. It could be used by anyone, so long as there was a sufficient crowd fueling its power with emotions. He didn’t tell me who they were, but that spell syphoned emotional energy into its reality warping.”

Fluttershy, who had up until this point content to be overlooked, brought a hoof to her lips and gasped. Her eyes moved down as she recalled a conversation she had had on Mother’s Day. “Her name is Pandora.” What had he said? That she was considered both a terrible and marvelous being. She could understand better now.

At her side, Rarity sent her a look of mild curiosity, before turning back to their embarrassed friend. She could not help notice, and perhaps it made her a terrible mare, but her intuition screamed that something horribly wrong was happening. Carefully, she cleared her throat, getting not only Twilight’s, but everypony else’s attention. “Twilight, dear, what did you do with the results of this… experiment?”

He asked you. He needed you. What did you say when he begged you? What did you do when his façade of happiness crumbled?

Twilight looked careful between her friends, all of them waiting for her answer with a sense of apprehension to their gaze. They knew. In their hearts, they knew there could be only one answer to that. What did their kind, helpful friend do when her lover asked her to solve a difficult magical problem?

“I…” Twilight took a steadying breath. “I gave a working prototype to Ventus yesterday.”

Rainbow Dash reared and her wings flared. “That bastard! I’ll buck his teeth in!”

And despite the nausea, despite the heartache, Twilight felt a surge of protectiveness growing in her. “Rainbow, you can’t!”

“Don’t you see it, Twilight?! He used you!” A cyan hoof poked her chest, hard enough to make her flinch. “He got closer to you, just so he could manipulate you into doing his bidding.”

That noble prince of yours, hissed a dark, suave voice to her ears. You fear him, don't you? You fear the control your love has over you.

Twilight felt a shiver run down her spine. “No, that’s… that’s wrong! He would never… he’s not like that!”

He could not be! His image still flashed before her eyes, him, golden and broken on that bed, crying and shouting that he was not worthy of her, that she was smart, perceptive and able to see through his goals. And when she had opened her heart, when she had told him her greatest shame in return, it was as if the life had left his eyes.

And he had let her go, told her not to be guilty, cared about her feelings first. She had reached for him. Her hoof had been the one to grab the pieces of their relationship and held them together. Her lips had melted against his, her fur had brushed against his and she had whispered, please, let me prove it to you...

But he had said it. Ventus had stopped her, however clumsily and said four little words that had destroyed every rational thought she had.

“I love you, Twilight.”

“Twi, Ah’m sorry,” Applejack cut through her thoughts, “but it looks like Rainbow might be right this time. Soon as he got what he wanted…” The rest of her words trailed off, but none of the mares had any trouble completing them.

He left. As soon as you gave him what he needed, he left.

Twilight felt as if her heart would shatter. Your goal is to leave Equestria. I know. She had said it, she had told him herself. She knew. Ventus had never really hidden it from her. It had just become an unspoken thing between them, before... before they had shared her bed. Afterward, there had been so little time.

But they had still not talked about it. She could not remember asking herself, or asking him if that had changed. The thought had come to her last night, when the ball was unfolding without even acknowledgment from him. Their eyes had met over the crowd while she was standing on the stage, and his gaze had shone with admiration, with pride and love.

And he'd nervously scrambled away, disappeared into the crowd, and her throat had tightened with fear. She could have asked, gone to meet him in his room and ask.

She had not.

And now her friends were arguing, Rainbow and Applejack growling and hissing against loud protests from Pinkie. And the words were the same, vengeful, of indignation and rage from the manipulation of their poor bookish inexperienced friend.

“Girls, stop,” Twilight said, her voice cold and biting, “don't speak like that. You don't know what you're talking about.”

Jaws clamped shut in shock, the other mares staring with looks of surprise. Why would Twilight defend him after his betrayal?

She wanted to scoff, easily reading their thoughts on their face. A betrayal? From him? It was not so simple. Ventus and her had never been. There were still so many things coming in contradiction, she could not make that kind of hasty judgment.

“Twilight,” whispered Celestia, her voice barely above a whisper. “I wish things had gone differently.”

So insidious. Those little words, spoken as truth, spoken as facts, they wormed themselves through her resolve with ease. And little cracks spread on her armor, and doubts began repeating to her “betrayal”. Wisps of smoke seemed to circle her hoof, and the malevolent green eyes of the Shadow King looked at her mockingly.

And she startled, from warmth, from kindness and support. On her shoulders, the hooves of Rarity and Fluttershy ran circles, as if understanding, but she could not quite bring herself to smile back. Solemn, Twilight faced her mentors head on. “I'm sorry, Princess, but I can't accept this. Not until I see it with my own two eyes.”

Irritation flashed in the younger princess' gaze.

“Observe,” Luna said.

Her magic twisted the doors of the balcony, and as beckoned, the bearers felt no choice but to step forward and lay their eyes outside.

“My goodness,” Rarity gasped on Twilight's right, and nopony could add to that.

Her friends and herself were pinned in place, rendered immobile by what they had felt since waking up, by what they were now seeing.

There were no stars. No constellations, none of the figures that had served as guides to ponykind for millenias.

No moon.

As far as the eyes could see, the skies were but a mass of swirling, rumbling black. She had never seen anything like this. The sight sent a lance of ice piercing through her mind, freezing her blood in her veins, shaking, rattling her to the soul. The darkness above roared and howled at her, reaching for her. She felt the wind brushing against her fur, and the touch felt violent.

Crackles of white spread across the sky then, flashing before them, illuminating if only briefly, the snarling faces in the clouds.

She had trouble breathing. Not until she saw it, she had said. But what was this...? What was it if not the proof she had asked for? Something like this...

“Tha-that's impossible!” Rainbow Dash shouted. “There aren't that many storm clouds, like, any kind of cloud, even put together, in all of Equestria! Weather factories can't produce that much at once!”

“They cannot, indeed,” Princess Luna replied over the screeching wind. “In the event of a malfunction – or sabotage –, a factory like Cloudsdale might unleash a town's worth of storm, but this was not the work of mortals.”

Rainbow Dash swallowed. “How much does it cover?”

Twilight's gaze went to the floor, every word hammering a nail in her heart. If they had any pity for her, they would remain silent.

A soft, white wing felt on her back, and the poor mare wished to lose herself in that contact. But the words kept coming, albeit gentler. “All of Equestria. Perhaps beyond, we haven't been able to confirm it yet. Its sheer size makes it impractical.”

“You want us to take down the guy who did that?” Rainbow pointed at the rumbling sky, a rare trace of doubt visible in the flutter of her wings.

“Was the sun failing to rise in the sky less impressive?” Princess Luna deadpanned.

“Noooooo! That's just because Dashie's a big weather mare, and she knows all about the process. So she's super close to the tons of efforts it takes to make a thunderstorm, and this is one BIIIIIIIIG thunderstorm. It'd be like showing me a pudding the size of Canterlot! I'd be impressed too!” Pinkie Pie dropped on her back, mimicking Rarity and her dramatic poses. “I'd be staring too... and I'd slowly move closer...” Her blue eyes glazed over, and her tongue rolled over her lips. “Mhmmmmm, pudding.”

For a moment, nopony knew what exactly to make of her analogy, which was best represented by how far Princess Luna's eyebrow had disappeared into her maneline.

Then, Princess Celestia let out a gentle chuckle, and tension drained from the room. “Well said, my little pony.”

“Y-yeah,” Rainbow admitted with a small blush. “More or less what she said. The guy doesn't actually scare me. A-and I sure as hay don't want to do... whatever's Pinkie thinking right now.”

Said party pony had taken to hugging thin air, whispering something about various dessert flavors. Her wild gestures got a surprised 'eak' out of poor Fluttershy, who dodged a passing pink hoof.

It almost seemed, for a split second, as if there were only reunited for a casual meeting, something peaceful and quiet. Almost, they allowed themselves the thought, but Princess Luna's mane flared suddenly, and all hints of lightness faded from her posture. Her head turned to the wall, her gaze seeing beyond. The line of her brows lowered, and the Princess of Dreams looked back to her sister in alarm.

“Tia, I feel members of the delegations awakening as we speak. No doubt their guides have sensed the disturbance and now wish for answers from us.”

“Time is of the essence then.” Princess Celestia frowned, and a small scroll levitated from the nearest table. “Twilight, please, go to the train station and embark immediately for this destination. From there, you should be able to sense Ventus Vinco’s magic and pinpoint their location. I believe the detection technique you used against King Sombra in the Everfree should allow you to find our wayward royals.”

Twilight stared at the scroll as if it would turn into a poisonous snake. She made no movement to pick it, magically or manually.

“I understand that you wish not to face him like this.” For a split second, Princess Celestia ceased to be a royal princess, a mare with legendary grace and composure. It was as if she had been stripped of it all, and remained but a simple, living mare. “On the name of my Mother, I swear it, my dear Twilight. I would never ask this of you without being absolute certain that it was the last resort for a peaceful outcome.”

And the pleading, begging tone of her mentor broke something in her. Never. There had never been a time in her life before, when Twilight could have imagined such a pained, desperate expression on Celestia's face. Her hoof rose without her knowledge. She'd been split in half. All of her past, her memories, her devotion, her love, demanding that she had already solved her beloved teacher's request. But her hopes of future closed their eyes, and refused this.

An orange hoof reached for her. She looked to her right and saw Applejack offering her a reassuring smile. Her soft forest green eyes held an unspoken promise. Twilight glanced behind them, to her other friends, and all of them shared the same look of trust, and the same promise. They would be in this together, and they would do everything for her. It was not her burden alone.

Twilight's horn sparked to life. The scroll slipped inside her saddlebags.

They were startled then, when the door shook and rang with the shock of metal. A stallion in armor peeked his head through, his a look a subservience, and he bowed low before speaking. “Princesses, sorry for the interruption, but the representative of the minotaurs demands to speak with you immediately.”

The royal sisters nodded to each other. “Tell them we required a few more minutes to prepare ourselves.”

Swiftly, Celestia turned back to her subjects.

“Ventus Vinco has faced both my sister and myself in battle and escaped, leaving this curse behind to keep us occupied, do you understand?” The Ruler of Equestria looked them all in the eyes, and the mares felt no choice but to nod in response. “You must go now, my little ponies. I pray that you will find the right path and that you will all return to me safely.”

And in all their heads echoed the worries she spoke not. There might not be a right path. There might not be a peaceful outcome. On their necks, on her head, the Elements felt heavy.

Every single one of my limbs were made of lead. I just knew it. I'd be spontaneously punished by the Elders and they had seen fit to bestow on me the heaviest damn legs this side of Eternity. Every step dragged in the sand, which made me damn careful not to erase any of the lines traced so far. The rock held within my magic stayed steady, but that would not matter if I screwed up otherwise.

The cape hummed lazily on my back, its touch like almost boiling water around my neck. Its power was needed for me to even stand. Eric had washed the wounds and the bloodied spot on my fur, but that was skin deep. I'd been pretty damn reckless with this power boost. If I wanted to fuel the spell matrix... With a tired sigh, I glanced at the shimmering wall orbiting around the luxurious bed.

The sound bubble had resisted the trip. Thank Harmony for small miracles. It might have been the only thing to go off without a hitch tonight. That brought a frown to my face. Nothing was over yet, but there still had been so many things gone terribly, and I could not deny that the lines traced in the sand scared me. They would send us away. Once it was completed and we – mostly me and the cape – had provided the energy, the three of us should... no, would be home, normal, human again.

My hooves dug into the sand as I tensed. Things would be fine. They had to be.

I felt my ears tick at a few words I caught from Canterlot. There's no going back now. I faced Celestia and Luna. I tried to suffocate them both! I... My hooves almost looked red in the dark. They were. I could almost see blood dripping from my fur. Elders... I tried to strangle my cousins. Maybe I don't–

Something wet and squishy hit the back of my head, and it burst. Cold, muddy water slid over my mane and my neck, making me shiver from horn to hooves, and with a gasp, I inhaled the salty stuff.

“What the…?” I sputtered, spitting out sea water.

“You looked like you were ready to mope again,” came a very smug voice from my right. Thadal. Eric, same guy. He was there, outside the edges of the barrier, so satisfied at the sight of my wet bangs falling in my eyes. “Stop that, Sam. That’s not the guy I know. Too much of a wimp.”

I bared my teeth in a dangerous smile. “Oh yeah?”

“Yeah,” he shrugged, not at all intimidated.

The cape on my back lashed out. “I guess the one wearing the dangerous artifact of power isn’t who I thought. How strange,” I said with faux nonchalance.

“Tough words coming from the golden colt,” he laughed, and cleared his voice before raising it in pitch. “Please no, don't try to seduce my cousin! She'll be very angry!”

Oh, it is on.

Thadal's lopsided grin widened as I lowered my head. “What's that? Are you going to a–?”

He didn't get to say the rest. An invisible hand of air picked him from behind and flung him backward, right into the sea. He had ample time to open his wings, for what little that changed. More water splashed while I surveyed the proof of my superiority.

“Had your fill, pony of little faith?” I taunted, grinning before poor, poor Thadal who trotted out of the sea dripping wet. “Do you understand who you're dealing with now?”

“I am no puny mortal to be cowed by your oh so long horn and your flappy flappy wings, Sam!” He stomped, the waves behind him rising higher. “Behold! Neptune Art: Water!”

A great shadow would have risen, darkened my sight and my coat, if this had not been night. I only heard the torrents crashing and swirling together under his control, as they ascended higher than they could. And the rushing sound pumped adrenaline in my veins as the wave crashed down on top of me. And wind struck back. And again water swept the sand under my hooves.

And despite the soreness of my bodies, the muted pain in my muscles, I laughed. The whole thing was surreal, yet so familiar. So right. There was no world hanging on our shoulders, we held no sword of damocles. It was just us, being idiots and friends with the power of nature in the same breath until we collapsed onto the sand, our abs hurting from laughing too much.

We stayed that way for some time, two stallions just lying on their sides, catching their breaths next to a world changing spell. Not that unusual, from the perspective of an alicorn, to be fair, but we were also the extra human part. And even the spirits of Order could not boast often about creating – or more often thwarting – such complex runes with two open spots and one with a sleeping colt in a bed in it.

It's just us, I thought as I looked down on my hooves and the corners of the cape.

“You…” I coughed, throat hoarse, and tried to swallow the slow, creeping cold in my throat. “You can still go back, Eric , you know?”

He stared.

My heart beating faster, I started spewing my thoughts, quickly, frantically. “I-I... I sprung this on you, out of the blue and then there was Luna and I just reacted instinctively, but if-”

“Sam.”

“-If you don’t want, you could go back and say I forced you to follow. It’s the truth too. You said ‘yes’, but this was really sudden and if now you feel this is too much, it's okay, really. I wouldn't mind, I'd understand, it's... I…”

“Sam,” he repeated, more firmly. “I'm not leaving you. I chose to come.”

And that knocked the fight out of me. I deflated, and curled up a bit on myself. “I just don’t want to ruin yet another one of my loved ones’ life.”

Thadal looked taken aback, all sternness gone from him. His eyes searched me for some answer, one I did not know if I possessed. After a moment though, his left wing unfolded and hid his face. “Celestia asked me to watch over you, you know?”

Huh. I blinked. “Did she, now?”

“Yeah,” he said as he leaned his head back against the sand. “She wanted me to remind you the value of true friendship, so you wouldn't give in to your inner demons.”

So that's what it was, I thought back on the gala. They had indeed been conspiring behind my back and it was indeed for my own good. But then again...

“Wow, she really miscalculated that one,” I snickered.

A second later, my mind caught up with my words. I froze. We had fallen silent, with only the sea breeze for background noise, and my ears rang loud. I was red in the face. Had I really said that? It, wow, I might as well as blamed him for this whole debacle.

On the spot, I opened my mouth to apologize, but a sandy hoof pushed against my lips. Erk.

“Nope. Listen, Sam. For real. No tuning me out because it clashes with your version of reality.”

I cringed, and my ears flattened against my skull. Ouch.

He saw my reaction, clearly, and grimaced. Sheepish, he ran a hoof on the back of his neck. “Err, that came out worse than intended. You’re not that bad.”

“Gee, thanks.”

“Yeah, moving on.” He glanced away. “Look, the point… the point is that you’re my friend and to me, that means I follow you when you do stuff. It’s crazy, isn’t it? But I haven’t had many friends before and I want to keep the one I have. So, yeah, sitting down in a cell next to you and planning the next time we do it is alright with me.”

I snickered. It was too strong an urge. We had done that before, once, in that other life. Alcohol didn't agree with me no matter the place. And Eric... ah, not far behind.

A hoof cuffed me on the shoulder, and I let out a very stallion-like whine. Eric didn't have to hit that hard! But the spark of mischief in his eyes told his true, begrudging feelings of amusement.

“Hey, pouring my heart out, right on this Elders forsaken beach, Sam. I was being all loyal and friendship master class about sinking to your level even back then!” He threw his hooves in the air, like he wanted to reach the clouds overhead. And slowly, they fell back to his sides, his gaze more distant. “Even all this alicorn stuff, all those times back between the stars and the planets, that plane of existence that’s really sort of freaky… It counts too. I mean, I don’t really know if it happened, but we both remember it, right? And well, even there, we were friends.”

Something prickled at the back of my eyes. Bastard! He just had to say that! “B-because you tricked Reality into believing that.”

“Yeah.” He tried to shrug nonchalantly, but the blush on his face ruined the effect. “I liked the idea.”

His words sank in, and I had to close my mouth, stay silent for a moment. I... wow, Thadal – Eric – had liked the idea of being my friend that long? Some childish part of me wanted to cheer at that, just jump in the air and grin and do something stupid with him, like dare a dragon to a drinking contest or steal a piano from a minotaur or arrange his secret marriage to Luna.

My grip on him tightened into a hug. “You know I’m probably considered on par with Nightmare Moon now, right?”

I had to ask, one last time. Some part of me didn't want to believe that.

His tail flicked, but the rest of him stayed considerably calm. “Yeah, but I’m the one that told you to get into second gears.” He scratched his chin, pensive. His lips twitched upward. “You’ve been here longer, I know you looked into it as best you could, or at least asked those that knew more. So, if this is what it takes and you’re willing to do it, then I’ll move my fuzzy rump and give you a hoof.”

“…You realize– ” I started, lifting a hoof.

“I do,” he cut in immediately, a small grin on his face. “I said that on purpose. Figured that's what you were picturing anyway, you stupid horse.”

I pulled my lips in a dubious pout. That was mostly the pride though, 'cause... well, he had been right. I'd have said the same without actual irony. So, in a way, I certainly was horse enough. Plus, considering what I had already done... yeah, fair enough, I've been a moron.

“Fine. Let’s go be evil.”

The Last Mask

Each breath came out of my chest ragged, short. We were almost done. The drawing has been completed. All the runes were finished, to the finest detail. All that remained was the well of power.

That seven pointed star in the sand was slowly becoming the geometric form I hated the most.

Staring at it, gritting my teeth to kick myself into bearing the burden, I just could not help but think of a blood transfusion. It prickled just beneath my skin. Every passing second made me dizzier. I only wanted it to be over soon.

This was like looking at a bath being filled drop by drop.

I dug my hooves deeper into the sand. Steady. Magic trickled down the air over the well, a stream of golden sparks. It was not at all like pulling teeth. I could tell myself that. Not like pulling teeth and gums and jaw together at all. Steady.

A gasp to my right pricked at my focus. Something else I would have ignored, but I knew his voice too well.

“Eric,” I called when he stumbled to his knees. The light on his horn fizzled out, and I rushed to his side. “Eric, give it a rest!”

“I can still...” he mumbled, but his eyes were unfocused.

“Buck that.” A hand of air gently cupped his chin and lifted it. Yeah, he wasn't doing too hot. Drool dripped from the side of his mouth. He didn't even seem aware of that. “Take fifteen or twenty, whatever. You look about to pass out.”

“But I...”

I shot him a stern look. “Eric.”

With a sigh, he relented and let himself drop down unto the sand. The very small smile that inched on his face while his eyes closed made my chest pang with envy and worry both. Damn, I hoped he hadn't pushed himself too far. We'd be going back together, or not at all. That much I swore.

I waited until his breathing stabilized, slow, steady, before turning back to fueling the spell.

The star laid completely inert. My head swam underwater, my body ached all over, but there had barely been any reaction yet.

This isn't working, I realized with a gulp. We wouldn't finish it in time at this rhythm. Tom might...–- Somepony would be chasing after us. Celly's wards kept me off the place they held the meeting, but as soon as they came out, the Mane Six started talking. Until Twilight told them not to speak of it.

There wasn't anypony for five miles around this beach. That much I knew, but the Everfree had been a pretty big forest too. And there had been distraction in there. Here? Not so much.

I had to try something else. The safer option wasn't one any longer. A grimace on my face, I rose my hoof to the clasp that held the cape on my back. With all my heart, I focused on the warmth of memories from that starry realm.

They were fake, but every actor involved knew them. Shared and accepted by everypony as truth, did the lie really hold no value?

Father. I imagine you have been informed of who we are by now. Maybe you even hate the idea of us, changeling children, creatures of Chaos nested in your heart and memories. But… but I would beg a favor of you.

He had been smiling. When Tom had rushed to see him, he had grinned just like we usually did.

He had looked heartbroken when I rejected him.

I let out a shaky sigh. If I could take that back… J-just to spare Father the pain, I would. It had helped nopony then. Just gave the poor stallion more pain to deal with. He hadn't deserved it.

Father, give me strength. It is my first and last true request out of you. Give me strength to overcome the veil between the worlds. Give us a choice.

Under my hoof, the fabric shifted. Its ends curled, tightened into knots. Ripples of brighter red ran across its surface, like pulses of blood. It ran through me, a jolt of power, and a wave of unease gripped at my throat.

“You would ask this of me?”it seemed to ask.

“It's a form of love.” I strained to smile as the magic seemed to clamp down its grip on my veins. “Wasn't I always this insolent, Father?”

It came flooding. The weight brought me to my knees; burning, seething power forced itself into my body. Furious. Impetuous. It was not a tame strength given. It asked, Are you able? Are you willing? and it raged at the doubts in my mind.

I spat out blood.

Are you willing?

One look to Thadal dozing off sufficed.

The floodgates closed, and the cape lashed back. I smirked. A brush of my hoof wiped the blood from my chin. There was a spell to fuel. There was power to give back, and I did so wholly.

I poured in the lies, the words that had rewritten the laws, the words that had twisted the world into this, the words that had imprisoned us, the words that had been the stallion this Equestria knew. I poured in the very essence of Chaos through the well, into the spell, into the gateway home. I poured, and poured, until Father's presence became faint. Until the world felt distant, hazy.

A thought passed by. A memory as fragile as a flower's petal, drifting to the wind. There had been flowers, bushes and hedges. Grass and stone. Water. There had been laughter.

Gone. A hole in my memory. A day in Canterlot, some part of it, blanked out. An emptiness to gnaw on the back of my head, with mandibles of unlight.

I snarled. Almost!

This had to be done! No matter what was taken, I would give until its impassive stomach burst and we were shown the way home! I would not–

Water splashed into my face. The sudden cold snapped me out of my concentration, and I could now feel the hoof pulling at my shoulder, and Eric calling my name, “Sam! Sam, they're here!”

When did he…? And the thought was pushed down, as I felt six more ponies breathing, close by.

Buck!

I whirled on myself, twisted to face the Mane Six, glaring down, their Elements shining like stars in the dark of the night. My mind turned blank. Clop! There'd be no time.

The colors of the rainbow gather as the mares lifted into the air and stared us down with eyes that were stars in the night. My heart pounding in my chest, I attempted to gather the power to snatch Thadal and Calx away in a breeze. I fell to the ground with a cry, my body rejecting my effort to abuse it further. There was nothing I could think of that would save us now.

Yet the magic stuttered and fizzled.

Not all six of them were ready.

Under mine and Thadal's baffled eyes, Twilight broke apart from her group of friends.

She shook her head. “I can't… Not like this.”

My heart skipped a beat.

“Twilight?” Rainbow Dash said, echoed by the others.

She stayed steady against their questioning looks. Her hoof went to her chest, then she repeated a familiar gesture. Her heartbeat slowed even as I could feel her feathers shake on her wings.

“Ventus, tell me.”

I clenched my jaw shut. Too suddenly, I wanted to see the rainbow of ultimate doom strike me down instead. It'd scare me less than the doubt in her gaze. The affection was still there, Elders be good and cruel – they alone knew how much I longed for her still –, but the hint of steel in her poise promised me it could change.

I did not want to hear it, she did not want to speak it. “What are you doing? Why do I need to treat the stallion I love like Nightmare Moon or Discord?”

I sighed. Beside me, Thadal stood tense. The other mares waited but a signal to fight.

They jumped, one of them yelped, when I appeared right in front of them, my hoof outstretched to touch the necklace before me.

The Element of Loyalty came ablaze like a second sun.

I stared right into Rainbow Dash's eyes, the crimson light obscuring half her face and mine. Her startled look morphed into a glare and she suddenly pushed me back, her head just under my horn. “Get back!” she hissed.

With a gust of air, I reappeared in my original position on the beach. But now the mares looked at me with doubts in their eyes.

“That's the gist of it,” I said with a falsely nonchalant shrug. Inside, my muscles screamed at this abuse of power. It'd take a few minutes to replenish my magical reserves at least. Unless I felt like bursting another few vessels through Father's cape.

Judging by the cyan mare's glare, it might become a necessity. Her back already began to arch, like an animal ready to pounce. What had it felt like for her, to have me touch the Element of Loyalty and making it shine so? From the way she bristled, I guessed Rainbow Dash sincerely felt the need to kick my ass now.

She might have, if Twilight's wing hadn't suddenly stretch across her path. Blinking, Dash silently mouthed a question to her friend. But Twilight's eyes hadn't left me yet. She searched over my mask, through it, what was the truth this time.

“Why?” she rasped, her voice scratchy and lost. “That wasn't an answer. Don't hide, tell me.”

Every instinct in my body screamedthat I gallop to her side and swoop her off her hooves into a gentlest hug. How the impulse felt sweet, as my mind provided me with memories of our time past in the library, my sides against hers while we read the cheesiest adventure novels.

The thought to deny it all flashed to the front of my mind.

“We’re doing this because to do anything else is to abandon the ones that need us most,” I said, and every word was clawed out of me. “I… I can't not do this, Twi.”

Her crown came alight and died out in the next beat. It had been a soft pulse, almost a heartbeat, seconds before it had shattered. Twilight's eyes misted over.

My legs started shaking.

“Who needs you that badly, dear?” Rarity asked suddenly.

Yes, I thought. Anypony. I'd answer anypony, but Twilight. “The very sames I've nearly forgotten. My parents. They need Tom and me back. Tom… misses them too.”

Pain flashed on Applejack's face. For the briefest instant, it was painted as clear as day, but soon nothing of it was left. She, as well as the others, looked at me with a hint of pity, and confusion.

“You forget them?” Pinkie tilted her head to the side, and her tone, though innocent, made me flinch.

“B-but...” Twilight suddenly stuttered, her eyes going wide. “That would mean… Only what isn't real… the spell is filling in...”

You would understand, Twilight. It never takes long, you clever mare. Now, if I could tell her that without choking...

“Sam...” Thadal stepped forth and motioned for me to let him. I gave a quick nod. “Girls. We weren't always alicorns. We used to be something else, and we didn't want to come here in the first place. Tom used something no one could have predicted would be genuine, and he disappeared from our world.”

I averted my eyes, lest the girls decide to show compassion. The knot in my throat was already too big to risk kindness breaking down my barriers.

“Sam… Sam saw it first hand, the despair and the agony that it was for his family, so he decided to go after Tom and bring him back. He didn't plan for things to escalate, but they did, and the spell nearly tore him apart. When I came here, I had trouble recognizing him, and his appearance was the least of it.”

My head split apart as memories flashed before my eyes. A moment on the streets, just before our new home in Ponyville, when Thadal had been disguised and he had first asked, 'Sam?'. Colors, less vibrant, leaping out of a rift through a world nonsensical. Brown feathers on a solid wing, brushing my mane out of my eyes as I struggled to breath. Cool water, washing off flakes of my own blood off my coat.

And looking up, I could see the ghost of those memories in the strong posture he had, in the absence of those little twitches that betrayed human habits. Thadal looked the part of an alicorn as he talked to them.

Quietly, I said, “I'm sorry, Eric.”

He startled, and looked back to me with wide eyes, almost guilty. “You… Sam, you don't have to apologize. I really get it.”

Not for long, I hope. You'll be fine soon. “I'd wish for you not to… It should not have been necessary for you to help me.”

His expression turned playful. “Well, you do have me. So it works out in the end.”

I doubted that. With a shake of my head, I gestured toward the heroines still waiting for their leader to decide whether to magically blast us or not. It could, I'd like to say, go better.

“This is all done in devotion toward your parents, Ventus Vinco, yes?” Rarity cleared her throat, a quick gauging glance toward Twilight. “What will happen if you succeed?”

The other mares turned a curious glance toward her, as if they wondered about her motives, or her reasoning. Rarity herself didn't seem overtly curious about the answer, only my own.

Smart. And if I had had the guts for it, I would have lied. But Twilight still stared, and with her gaze alone, demanded honesty.

My head hung lower.

“We'll be gone, forever,” I said in a hushed whisper. “There's probably gonna be a big backlash. Like trying to separate colors when paint has already been mixed. Maybe it'll screw up absolutely everything. I'm not sure. It might happen or not.”

Thadal's heartbeat accelerated. I could hear the sand shift underneath his hooves as he tried not to squirm. My wings clamped against my sides. The idea did not sit well with him, clearly.

Nor with anypony. Rightly so. They all looked varying degrees of sick, shocked or disgusted.

“What? You think we deserve it?!” Rainbow Dash asked, her temper flaring. “Is that it?! Somepony pissed you off?!”

Oh wow.

“No…” I chuckled, yet it was the furthest thing away from funny. “Not even close. Ponies aren’t evil at all. The most you get are a few jerks here and there. No, it’s just me.”

The mares stared as if I'd been particularly melodramatic. Even Rarity seemed carefully dubious, and Twilight… the less said about the typical sarcasm she held, the better.

Right. They had trouble buying it. Apparently, the storm clouds ahead didn't do the trick. Not when faced with us.

Something like a smirk wormed its way onto my lips, and I turned my thoughts to the cape on my back. Its fangs still sunk into my back, the power still poured into the open wound, but it was not nearly enough…

Yet.

“Don’t be fooled, girls. Us two?” I pointed my hoof at Thadal, then toward myself, ignoring the look of unease that twisted his expression. “We’re Evil. With a Capital ‘E’. I get that this is unusual for you. Hay, civil discourse with the guys you're supposed to bring in can't be too common, but I'm telling you the truth. It’s not the cackles, the depravity, or even just the scary looking part, though I guess I can have that last one down,” I added as I unleashed just a bit of power into the air.

Lightning crackled at the tip of my feathers, white cold streaks running on my golden fur as traces of cold. My sight became veiled by a pale grey filter. Burning ice crawled over my skin.

“It's a bit more simple than that. What we’re doing…” I let out a low sigh, a cold cloud bursting out of my mouth. “We’re putting our needs in front of the lives of millions. That, ladies, is the root of evil. That is why I am a villain. I'm selfish.”

The air around me settled, and my coat returned to its usual golden color.

The ice merely sank in under my skin though. I was struggling not to throw up. “Celly and Luna probably told you the truth... It really is that monstrous to go back the way we are hoping to.”

More than anything else, my nonchalance set them off. They glared at me in outrage, all of them.

But none of them harder than Rainbow Dash. Applejack and Twilight together barely restrained her. “You would sacrifice us all for your sake?! You'd destroy thousands of families just like yours so you can be safe?!”

Cannot hesitate. Cannot falter. Not anymore. If it is not now, it will be never. “Yes. That is what I will do, and that is why you are here to stop me.”

“You bet we're gonna stop you! All this time, you were playing us? Playing Twilight?! I can't believe any of us ever gave you the benefit of the doubt!” She snarled, and nearly struggled her way out of her friends' grip. “We should have sent you packing on the very first day! You don't deserve her, you never did. You're a monster!”

There was a moment I could not reply to that. A silent moment, where it was easy to accept Rainbow Dash's accusation. I'd thrown it at myself often enough.

But it wasn't time yet. And, thinking on Thadal or Calx, the fires of anger stoke back my strength.

"Then say it."

The mare frowned, suspicious. “Say what?”

I narrowed my eyes at her. “Say what you ask me to do. Say: 'Ventus Vinco, I want you to sacrifice the lives and the happiness of your loved ones for us'. Come out and look me in the eyes while you give me that order. Tell me I'm a monster for wanting them happy and safe!”

The girls paled under their fur. Even Rainbow Dash backed up a step, a pained grimace twisting her mouth. Oh, she still had thunder in her eyes, and soon, likely, she'd gather her wits to buck my rump. But put on the spot, asked to defy the very element she embodied for what was right, it shut her up well enough.

I scanned over the rest of them. Twilight and Rarity looked torn. The want was there. The impulse nearly ran through their legs, through their lips to form the words, but they couldn't. The very idea seemed abhorrent to Fluttershy and Pinkie, who refused to meet my eyes, their ears drooped to the sides of their heads.

And then... then Applejack stepped forward, a resolute expression on her face.

“Yeah, okay. Ah’ll do it.” She gave me a long, knowing glare, the green of her eyes a harsh unmoving emerald. “Sounds like you need to hear it.”

It knocked the wind out of me. What…?!

“You need to let go. If there ain’t any right way to save ‘em, if yer just delaying, it’s never gonna help. After, well… then what? Goin’ on your merry way, knowing what you did… Ain’t so easy, let me tell ya. Ah’ve been there when t'was my turn too.” She chuckled. “Okay, maybe not that far, but give me credit, Ah was just a filly back then.”

I was shaking my head, denying, refusing to hear this. It couldn't be possible. Applejack had to be lying. That thought made a bitter laugh rise from the depths of my lungs. The Element of Honesty, right. She... she had to be lying.

“There is no way,” – I stomped, angrily, hastily, twice, thrice, the cold whispering again – “There is no way you can be saying that! You can't mean that!”

Why did my voice sound so broken?

Applejack grabbed her hat and brought it to her eye level. A very small smile tugged at the corner of her lips then. She looked back, sadness evident in her gaze, but not overwhelming. “So… sorry, sugarcube, but yeah, Ah’m gonna ask you not to risk a world to save yer parents. Ain't right, no matter how much you missed 'em and the other way around.”

For a split second, for the moment I stared into the saddened indulgence of Applejack, I felt all the air leave my lungs, as if forced out by the strongest kick in all the realm.

Honesty.

The orange light burned at every strand of fur it touched. I felt as if stripped of my every reason, every thought. The masks cracked and broke, splinters falling to the ground. And Greater Magic refused me the comfort of this lie. Not one broken through Honesty.

Even as I backed away from her, from the necklace she wore, I almost chuckled.

It's always been this way in Equestria. Honesty scared the crap out of me.

A hoof snaked around my own, forcing me to lean on the shoulder of this taller stallion. I wouldn't have fought it. I didn't. I... Thadal's presence glued together the broken pieces.

It is wrong, and I knew it before! The thought came with renewed anger. She smacked the Truth into me… The cape on my back clamped on my shoulders, the power at its command forced me straight up. But it doesn't change anything. I cannot falter now.

“Thanks for that,” I whispered. As Applejack leaned in further to better hear me, a glimpse of hope in her eyes, wind blasted her back.
The girls jumped into actions, Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash flying in to cushion her fall while the rest stepped between me and her. Applejack shook her head, unarmed, a bit dazed, but ready. Twilight looked back to her just for a second, and when she turned to me, her glare shone in the darkness.

And still, I could detect hints of unease in the twitch of her legs or her tail. Anticipation, perhaps? Or, hopefully, hesitation.

“It’s okay,” I told her with a half-smile. “You tried reasoning with us. You shouldn’t be ashamed to jump into battle when the peaceful option failed.”

“Yeah?” Rainbow sneered. “Your pal doesn’t look so hot about that!”

I froze, and my attention turned to him. “Eric?” I called.

He quickly looked away, then back to me, his feathers ruffled.

“It's... nothing, just stuff sinking in... I never really figured I'd be one of the villains, you know?” Thadal chuckled, but everypony could tell how forced it was. He turned to the others, still wearing the same sheepish smile. “But, I know what isolation does to a pony, no one could deserve... and... and in the end, he's my friend, you know? I've known him a lifetime and less than a hundredth of that as well, and... he is my friend. Even if... if that's wrong... Somepony's got to be in his corner, somepony's got to stand by him. Ventus isn't that bad of a stallion.”

“That one’s a lie,” I pointed out. No use in lying about that now.

A hoof smacked the back of my head. Ouch. I did not protest however, not with how he glared.

“Stop. Hurtful words are not a small matter!” he hissed, and something deep in his eyes shook me. For that skip of a single heartbeat, Eric never looked less like my alicorn friend. He blinked back faster, his cornea reddening, and his words now strained, “If you hear them all the time, you'll start to believe them. Especially if you're the one saying them.”

My mouth closed. There was no lying to that, not in front of this… this hurt. It made my heart swell with rage, it made me want to hurt those that had dared, but mostly, it turned the anger inward. I hadn't noticed. When had my best friend become so unhappy? “...Eric? Who did that to you?”

He winced, as if he had not meant me to understand. He shrunk on himself. This was not Thadal. This was Eric, and the through struck me, what did a return to Earth really mean to him?

“Eric, you can t–”

A wave of warmth washed over my fur and plucked the words out of my mouth. Twice now tonight, the light of a rainbow had filled me with dread. The Mane Six stood in half a circle, their Elements piercing through the night with insolent ease.

Smart. We stopped paying attention to them too long. Nothing could really stall the girls any longer. They'd only tolerate so much when Equestria was at stake. Now that we'd shown we weren't going to falter, that we were set in our way… well, the only rational response to that involved the Elements of Harmony when the enemy looked elsewhere.

But what could we do? I might manage to transport both Thadal and Calx away in short order, might even manage to make the trip myself if I acted fast. The spell though… we'd have to start over from scratch, and I could not afford that much power drained so quickly. Twilight had already proven able to detect me in a certain radius, and Celly and Luna would have worked enough with all the diplomatic envoys to send at least one of them to hunt us down with the guards. This one was our one and only shot at this.

But what could I do then?

“Stand back!” I flung Thadal back with a snap of my wing, but he snorted and pushed back.

“You think I'm letting you take the blame alone?” He grinned, wild like his father. “Think again, Ventus! We're in this one together.”

“No, we're not! You're only doing this because I asked you to. It was my idea!”

Not quite, but nopony needed to know Thadal's actual level of involvement. If this failed now – and it couldn't –, he'd have a chance to get away with it. He could… hay, he could apologize to Luna. Court her, if he felt suicidal. He'd have a life, whether we'd fail or succeed.

So, with still a flicker of hope in my heart, I focused and threw half of my strength at the core of their power. The brilliance would have blinded me, had I had eyes this way. The light alone would have seared my shadow off this plane of existence. But I became the air swirling near the Bearers. I conjured a trick so cruel it left me near sick. And I needed only two words.

“Twilight, please...”

The Rainbow shattered. The prism of light fell into pieces, chunks of each color disintegrating. A shockwave pushed both us stallions a couple of feet back, its power rippling over my fur. It was done. Twilight's Element refused her. On top of her head, the crown emitted naught but a faint glow.

Thadal stared, his jaw nearly touching the sand. “Huh?”

“That's not possible!” Rainbow cried out.

“Something must have gone wrong,” Rarity said at the same time.

“I… it felt just like before...” Fluttershy mentioned, glancing at one of them.

She got the right idea too.

“Your heart wavers, Twilight,” I said, and her face went chalk white.

Her crown floated down from her head, glowing a familiar shade of pink. Twilight's eyes reflected the star atop the Element of Magic, and she stared deep into it. Silent questions danced behind the faint stars in her gaze. No answers were given. The Element stayed inert, and Twilight swallowed back the betrayal of her own nature.

The sight of her this lost pulled the words straight out of me. “You don't actually want to do this, do you? Twi, to use the Elements of Harmony, you have to make that choice. You can't be forced to use them against your will.”

Twilight's head snapped up, her mouth hanging wide open in disbelief.

Well, it was not everyday somepony told you why you failed to use some holy artifacts, for sure. By all the Elders, I should keep my mouth shut, but there was more time to buy, and I just could not help show a smile as sad as fond to her. “You still care, don't you? Us meeting was a special thing, I realize that. Elders, I still love you… We've… we've worked through some heavy baggage to be together, didn't we? And the result, Skies Above, we knew it worth the pain. As if… as if there was some greater purpose to us getting stuck in Equestria…”

The words brought a blush to her face.

Had it been in our letters to one another? Had it been a conversation? She had looked to me for guidance, on a subject I was wholly inadequate to guide anypony. But, as anyone – especially a company marketing toward children – would know, you could teach through showing bad examples.

The smile turned bitter. “But alicorns never get what they want in Equestria. All this power at the tip of our horn or hooves or feathers, and what did it bring? More duties. Maybe I was intended as a lesson for you. I don’t care enough about 'our' subjects. All those citizens that call us princes, none of them have a clue. Royalty lives a life of luxury wrapped in sacrifices. Celly gave up a thousand years with Luna in order to protect their subjects. I don’t have that courage; I won't give my soul to the dual throne of Canterlot!” I shouted, anguish too transparent in my voice now, too real. They had dismissed me before, on those grounds. “My family’s the most important thing to me, and nothing will push me to sacrifice it!”

“But…” Fluttershy cut in gently, “they are your family.”

She was not Kindness. I would have laughed. No mare could ever be called kind after saying that. No mare had the right… in so few words, to make the world spin and my guts churn. She threw me in a lake of ice, struggling, drowning. Guilt. The emotion at the center of it all, the thing that came to mind when I recalled Celestia's tears and her body wrapped flames. It was a nameless, gnawing, snarling guilt.

I don't have a right… The thought came laden with fury. Not them. I'm Samuel Miller, an imposter, a changeling child, a fake! My duty is to others!

“THEY'RE NOT!” I roared, every hidden hints of rage exploding outward. My voice echoed over the beach and the in-lands and the seas, thunderous, murderous. They cowered. “DON'T YOU GET IT?! I HAVE TO CHOOSE WHOM TO LOVE AND WHOM TO THROW AWAY! CELLY, LUNA, MOTHER, FATHER... THEY DO NOT NEED US! THEY CARE, BUT IF THEY LEARN…. IF THEY REALIZE WHAT WE ARE… THEY...”

I faltered. The thought crashed on me with all its weight.

“They'll be able to throw us away.” I laughed. I could do nothing else, lest I cry in front of them all. “It's fake...”

It all started in that throne room, with a slip of the tongue, a passing resemblance to the one we could call Father now. The tabloids could have speculated forever about our relations to the Princesses and never get it right. The whole thing was a lie shared throughout the world.

“Keeping this charade… how many are hurt just by its presence?” Thadal's hoof tensed against my shoulder. “It's better if we're gone...”

They might leave. Coyote and Raven, Cernan, Minos… Those diplomats would return and report that words of our stay were exaggerated, merely a visit and nothing more. Tensions would be allowed to fall after a brief moment of fear. Better a false alarm than an escalation.

The others stared, rendered silent. It had not been defused. They stared at one of their own, their desire to help blatant.

“So... that's it then?” Twilight asked slowly, her tone strangely even. “You picked your friends and... your family?”

She paused, her breath itched and shallow.

She steadied herself, as I did. “Fake.” And then, then she looked me in the eyes, truly, with those beautiful purple irises wavering with tears. “Did... did it really mean so little?”

Her bodies racked with sobs. It left her stumbling, it left her to near fall in the hooves that went to support her, but she tried so hard not to. Her face betrayed her focus. She would not be a slave, not even to her heart.

Her friends looked as righteously pissed as they should. I could feel the Elements on their necks blazing and pushing to be unleashed.

Well, I hadn't reached this clusterfuck by doing the thoughtful thing. And the sight of Twilight, my poor mare, crying so? By my own doing? They could not have expected me to stay away. The distance between us vanished. My cheeks brushed against hers, still so wonderfully soft. Twilight tensed, in surprise rather than fear, then she leaned against me. We could pretend, maybe, for a few precious seconds, that nothing threatened our relationship. Not my screw-ups, not her friends looking ready to bite my head off.

And on my back, the cape twitched, not with power, but with a warning. I ignored it. I ignored all those signs, for nothing truly mattered outside of her.

“Little? It meant the world to me. You made me happy, Twilight. Even when this place brought me to the lowest, you pulled me back. Do you understand that? I don't want to leave you…” And the thought, as wild as sudden, struck me. Fervently, I pulled back to fully gaze upon her, and hope. “If I asked you… to follow me, to come blazing through the barrier of worlds and to make me yours forever… Would you?”

Everything shifted around us. Neither Thadal nor the Bearers understood what to make of that. I could tell some of the latter already reconsider what they knew, at least in part.

But that barely registered. I looked only at Twilight.

And never before had she looked so frightened. Not in front of the Nightmare, nor the Elder of Chaos… not before Sombra and his mastery of fear itself. Those were different and their grip on the heart were loose when one was surrounded by friends. But this?

It was the look I saw in the mirror. The fear of one terrible thing: choice. I'd turn it on her, with just one sentence. Now, the break-up relied on her, and it shook her to be the one to pick.

“Will you follow me?” I whispered, our mouths nearly close enough to touch. “Please…”

Sam, you heartless bastard. You spineless swine.

I did not deserve her. I never did. Everything had been a manipulation, everything still was. Even when she pulled me in, when she managed to conquer my heart in truth, how could we ever be sure it wasn't still manipulations on my part? I did not even remember how not to.

But I wanted Twilight to be with me. I wanted to share my life with that silly mare. I wanted to wake up to the smell of pancake and old books, and kiss her over the maple syrup. I wanted a cool night, the two us cuddling under a blanket and observing the stars. I wanted her so badly...

If there had been one pony able to convince me to stay…

Twilight Sparkle, Alicorn of Friendship, librarian-extraordinaire, and the one mare I had come to love purely, turned away. “No.”

There goes my heart. But even inside my head, that joke sounded hollow. Twilight's rejection felt like a blade of ice lodging itself in my chest. Expecting it only made for a bitter aftertaste. I could only barely keep my expression neutral while she pushed me away.

“I can't!” She shook her head, and her horn lit up with a blinding strength. “This isn't about just you and me, Ventus. This isn't even about my friends or my family! This is the lives of everypony, and everyone, that lives in Equestria and beyond. To turn my back on all those innocents is wrong!”

“Well...” I swallowed, my breath a shudder. Right. Right, wild fever dream. No way to even know if it had been possible. And, for fuck's sake, I just couldn't help the sheepish, foalish smile on my face. “I did say I was evil, Twi...”

She stomped. “There can't be a compromise on this, Ventus. You must stand down! This is too much to even risk!”

“Yeah!” Pinkie jumped in. “Think about it! Bladey wouldn't want that, would he?”

The others added their own pieces, but I barely heard beyond Pinkie's words. I risked a glance back to the spellcircle, and saw him turn over in his sleep, a leg kicking in the air. He looked better.

Earlier, he was crying.

Ice crawled over my heart. He had been crying in his sleep.

I spat out the words as if they were venom. “Be silent for a moment, will you?”

Blissful silence fell over them. Their mouths still moved – Pinkie's at a breathtaking speed –, but they might as well be gaping fishes. I was not in the mood to be lectured about what my family would want. Scowling, I leveled a challenging hoof at them.

One answered. A burst of purple light broke the spell apart, and Twilight turned a defiant glare to me.

“You showed me a lot, and I studied the rest, Ventus.”

My tail flicked. All too true. It went both way.

For me, at least.

“Thadal! Call on the little ones!”

“Got it!” he nodded, and the sea behind us rose.

Water slid off the shells, washing off algae and sand off the creatures that came forward with the clicks of armored legs. One struck the sand next to me, and I glanced at the spike of white shell still glistening with sea water. The others looked up in horror, Thadal with fondness.

Five more clicked their way around us.

Giant crabs. The smallest looked as big as a house.

“That’s the ‘little ones’?!” Rainbow Dash cried out, her face the very image of indignation.

Thadal pulled a sullen face. “The ocean's a pretty damn big place, you know...” he muttered under his breath.

“Of course they are, Rainbow Dash! You should see the kind of gigantic horrors he’s got in his body!” I said with a gigantic grin, poking his shoulders teasingly. “Hay, the Leviathan’s pretty much the world’s biggest tapeworm!”

Thadal jolted, and turned on me, his horn dangerously pointed. “What?! Like you’re any better, Ventus!”

I laughed, daring him. If he wanted to play that game, fine. With one wing, I gestured for him to bring it. And so much levity just vanished for those few instants of bickering.

Thadal snorted. “Ziz more or less bitchslapped you the last time you tried to contact it!” The bastard smirked. “And it made you cry!”

For a split second, I felt my head burst into flames, images and sounds replaying as if I'd live them. When I came to, beads of sweat pearled over strands of my fur.

I held back an incredulous scoff. “Did you just twist reality to humiliate me?!”

Oh, the grin on that jerk's face. “Yup. Made you cry.”

I spluttered. “I was just forty! That doesn't count! Besides, what kind of King of all Birds says neigh to a little colt that just wanted to play?!”

“No idea,” he said with a not-so-innocent shrug. My hoof twitched with the desire to punch his face.

...Okay, so maybe this wasn't very serious, but you do not pull that shit in front of somepony's marefriend!

My gaze slid over to them, the silly worry itching at the back of my head. I just knew I'd die of embarrassment if she laughed or something like that. Somepony was giggling.

My ears folded on top of my head, as I hid a wince. Pinkie Pie held a hoof to her mouth. Thank the Elders the others weren't affected. They blinked.

“They’re just trying to distract us!” Rainbow Dash shouted.

They broke out of their daze at the command, now posed for battle.

Well, damn, I was hoping for a couple more minutes without fighting. The weight of the cape on my shoulders had not lessened yet. This wasn't going to be a fun struggle.

“True,” I sighed, “but if you're so eager to fight a bunch of giant crabs...”

Dash sniffed, then launched herself at the nearest crustacean in a burst of rainbow colors. I did not have time to react. Neither did the crab as she bucked it right under its mandibles. The strike nearly lifted its legs, its body falling back with an ominous sound.

Oh, right, she bucked a dragon in the jaw too...

Dash's celebratory cry cut short when a pair of pincers swung at her. As she dove, it sliced into the tip of her tail, strands of rainbow hair struck on the pincer.

The second one froze before it hit her.

“I'll cover you!” shouted Twilight, her horn shining.

“Gotcha!” Rainbow replied and zipped around Thadal's creature. The others did not join in.

Seven at once? My eyebrows disappeared under my mane. That was quite a feat, to perform a telekinetic paralysis on that many giant creatures. She would be that good. Of course, I thought with a puff of pride.

“Eeyah!” cried out somepony, and I snapped back down to earth in a panic.

The white hoof brushed off against my mane, just barely.

She's fast! I thought as I jumped back with a strong flap of my wings. I'd hope to put back enough distance without using up any magical power. But to my dismay, Rarity charged right through the sand cloud, her right hoof pulled back for another strike.

It flew forward. Instincts pulled magic into my horn for a blasting spell. It'd be too late. I watched as the white hoof struck, and sunk into a floating ball of liquid.

“Huh?” We blinked.

The surface of the water shimmered, then turned to steam. With an ominous whistle, it splashed us with the strength of an explosive.

Thadal stepped beside me, his face illuminated by a grim blue glow. “It's the two of us, Rarity.”

“We're four, silly!” Pinkie giggled as she hugged him from behind.

He neighed in shock. Again. And it sounded suspiciously like a filly. I would not let him let this live down. That was a promise. Made me cry, my plot!

Rarity paused, then rubbed a hoof against her cheek. She took in the sight of the smear of make-up on her leg with a frown. “Oh, I don't think I'm going to like fighting you, darling.”

Pinkie either thought he had been tortured enough or that he was just not comfortable. Regardless, she performed a perfect flip and landed into the sea under the applause of an invisible crowd.

No clue how she did that.

But once she was off, Thadal stopped panicking like a bronco horse, and aimed a pained look at Rarity. “It's… kind of a mutual sentiment.”

And with a dainty laugh, she charged, “believe me, you don't have a face for make-up, darling!”

Thadal spluttered some more, and the sea suddenly rippled with higher and higher waves.

“Is this all an act?” questioned Applejack while Fluttershy helped Rarity dodge a crashing wave.

Looking back, I smirked. “No, but I’ve been told actions can have more than one purpose.”

“Like?”

I shrugged, and cautiously circled around Applejack, just as she tried to do with me.

The important thing was that neither of us got knocked out before the spell could be cast. That was, if they didn't choose to use the Elements after all. There was no way I could keep Twilight from picking the right option in the end.

Unless I could fool the girls in how much time left there was.

I dodged the first tentative buck she aimed at me, and jumped back before the Element of Honesty became burning again.

I could do that. I had a lot more mobility than Applejack, wings oblige. She wouldn't catch me.

So long as Eric's fine too… And just as the thought came to me, I caught wind of a cry of panic, so close, and so familiar even AJ's head snapped around.

Fluttershy's legs were reaching out of a receding wave, and both her friends were rushing into the water after her. Her image was already hard to make out from this distance, but I heard her clearly, and the moment she broke out of the surface.

Her words were small, quick and frantic. "Help!" she begged. "Pinkie! Ra--..." Gargles.

Alone, in the dark, with the waves about to carry her off? I'd panic in her place too. My heart had gone up in my throat at the broken shout of her friends.

Only Rainbow Dash had a good chance to catch up to the fast rip current. She was also trying to get out of the grip of a crab. The light surrounding it had flickered and faded at the panicked cries from every one of their friends.

And still Fluttershy fought desperately to get her upper half out of the water, to spread her wings before she was carried out too far to regain any footing.

I heard her cough out water.

I heard her calling help too weakly for her friends to hear, even as they tried to swim close enough to catch her.

I heard her cough “Oh Ce-... lestia...” as if falling into despair.

But the waters stilled around her. When one moment she had been struggling against the current, now Fluttershy's body rested on a fine
film of solid water.

“Huh?” She blinked at her hooves.

Thadal looked down, gritting his teeth. The waves almost seemed to freeze in place. He did not react as Rarity's blue magic mixed with another, purple, and carried Fluttershy out. Even his breathing had stopped.

“Fluttershy, dear, are you alright?” she called, her mascara running over her cheeks.

The worst part…? Thadal looked as green as her. A fleeting moment, his eyes wandered back to meet mine, and he winced.

“Don't worry about it. It's fine,” I told him over the distance. “Just stall them as long as possible.”

He nodded, but as he turned, Pinkie's party cannon blew up in his face.

...Sorry.

The stray thought helped me, at least, as I heard the galloping hooves on the sand just in time. Snarling, I whirled around and stood tall enough to stomp my attacker.

Applejack met my blow head-on, rearing just in time to catch my hooves in hers.

I glared daggers into her eyes, pushing as hard as I could, feeling her legs shake but not giving in. Applejack could have been a tree stump rooted into the ground for all the difference it would have made.

But her lips pulled into a snarl, and she hissed over her tears, “It’s a show…”

“What…?” I grunted and willed my legs to freaking overpower her already!

Applejack wasn't budging an inch. “Twi's on the money. Yer putting on a show. S’all a lie.”

I felt a block of ice fall into my stomach.

“We ain’t the ones yer tryin’ to convince with all this 'woe is me and Ah'm evil'.”

Growling, I felt power crackle at the tip of my horn. “And who else is there to convince here?!”

The pleasant, familiar warmth of Twilight's magic washed over us again. The gust of wind that had been on the verge of sending AJ flying spluttered and died. In my chest, my heart skipped a beat, and frustration turned into a new fire. I would get that mare to shut it!

With one wing, I struck at her exposed belly. The wind nearly knocked out of her, AJ sidestepped.

Just as I tried to pursue, two orange hooves flew toward my face.

They grazed me. Applejack's blow carried a lifetime of applebucking on its back, and I could only phase out of the way too late. The hit rang through my head like a bell, muffling sounds around me a second too long. Dizzy, I only noticed her again when she rammed into me. Pain arched throughout my right shoulder.

“Ye don't believe it. Not that much.” She jabbed with renewed strength, so much I felt myself fall back. And her eyes stared through me, piercing emeralds that pulsed with Honesty's light. “Come on, the girls and me? We saw the big leagues. Yer heart's really not into it. Even Ah can think up better ways to fight back. He just pulled Shy OUT! This thing's not a little temper tantrum though. If it works, s'all on yer head, the people that suffer. And they're not just shadowy things to imagine. They're very real ponies, that don't deserve this none!”

Her words baffled me so much I nearly gave out.

“Do you honestly believe I'm not aware?!” I shouted, pushing back in a frenzy. “Me? Of all ponies?! I hear them! I hear them all!”

My horn pierced into the rims of her hat, and my glare bore into her. The fur on her forehead crackled with ice, crawling near her shocked eyes as I showed her who I was.

“I hear them in their beds, on the streets, in the air, between the trees and under the mountains. Everyone. They mumble about the fear of a night terror that Luna's too busy to stop. Right this instant. The evil in the air's clinging to their skin, even if they don't get it. They whisper their love to one another, thinking that no one hears them in their bedchambers. They cry in their cradles. They make so much noises, how could I ever forget that they are all alive?!”

In spite, I reached deeper inside me, and caught a few words mid-sentence.

“I love you so much, Peach,” came out of my mouth with another stallion's voice. And higher, “No more than I love you, Crops.”

Applejack blanched.

“Mama, I had a bad dream...”

Her face contorted in fury.

“Oh, Shield Breaker, will you ever look my way?”

The Element of Honesty lit up, casting the sand in its eerie orange glow.

“We'll manage, Blossom, we always do.”

My hooves slammed into the ground, and a shockwave ran across the beach. Applejack skittered back, but I was already there, behind her, gusts of wind slamming into her legs.

“Big Mac snores a lot, doesn't he?” I spat, just for her to hear. “Like thunder in the house. But Bloomie's just always turning and turning, and the bed creaks over Granny's head. Her stories are even more interesting when she's asleep!”

Cold wind pushed against her. Her teeth gritted together, Applejack slid on the sand, but still pushed forth.

“Did you know your granny once threw an apple so hard at a manticore it ran away screaming? Because I do!”

Blood trickled down her chin. Her teeth had sunk into her lower lips, and the look she sent me screamed of murder. Every step she took thundered; my most violent blasts did not throw her back. She grunt and stumbled but ever still closed the distance between us.

The words were spat in between gritted teeth, “Yeh don't have the right to know that.”

“Well, I bucking know, Applejack! I know, I know, I know! THEY ARE ALL ALIVE AND THIS IS GOING TO KILL THEM AND NOPONY KNOWS THAT BETTER THAN ME!”

The wind howled. Cold northern air took on the shape of a timberwolf and threw itself straight at Applejack. She would not have the time to dodge.

But there was a brilliant flash of purple light, and to my horror, Twilight jumped out, her horn pulsing with power.

The wolf died out with a whimper, killed by two alicorns at the same time.

“If you do know, Ventus...” Twilight whispered, her voice burning and her tears searing, “if you do know, then please, remember.”

The beam hit me straight on the horn.

My sight flashed white-hot. The magic speared through me like a bolt of lightning, spreading to every inch of my body, and my legs gave out. I would have fallen if not for three pegasi suddenly helping me stand.

That wasn't possible. No, literally. They wouldn't have known about this, and even less wanted to get involved in this.

But I still saw what I saw.

“Thunderlane? Cloudkicker? Flitter?”

My coworkers laughed at my confusion. “Come on, Cloud. Don't be such a drag. We've snuck in a little liquor behind the boss' back. It'll be fun.”

“You're not here.” I closed my eyes and shook my eyes. “This is a spell. This is not real. This is a spell, it’s not real.”

The voice that replied wasn't theirs. It was haughtier, with a faint accent, close to Celly's. “Of course not, then you'd have to take responsibilities, right?”

The unicorn that turned his head away with a scoff of disdain could not be here. He'd never… if only because it was me here.

“Blueblood?”, escaped my control regardless.

The saddened blue eyes weighed on me, just the span of a heartbeat. Then, they morphed into something icy, and he strutted away.

My legs carried me despite myself. I chased after him, even if he'd already faded into nothing. I ran as if I was in a dream – I had to be, right? – and I came upon a hill favored by the afternoon's sunlight.

There was a filly.

“Violet…”

She hugged a little alicorn doll closer to her chest. “You're gonna leave too, aren't you?”

All air left my lungs. “I… it isn't like that. There… there will be other ponies, I promise...”

“But you're gonna leave like they did. I'll be alone, right?”

The ground opened under me. I was falling, their faces swirling around me, laughing, accusing, longing. I was falling.

I was Fallen. The orphan leaving orphans behind.

“ENOUGH!” I shouted, and the world around me shattered into glass. The sun disappeared and hid behind the familiar darkness of the storm. I wasn't staring an orphan in the eyes, admitting my cowardice and my betrayal.

But they stayed with me all the same. Elders, that terrible guilt had wormed its way to my heart, and now my ribs contracted with each breath. Erratic. Irregular. Shallow.

Oh, this one reeked of Celly. Maybe not her order, but maybe an idea planted in Twilight's head. T-then again… she did have a tendency to try to undo brainwashing this way. Was that it then? A desperate attempt to purge the bad out of me through happy, happy memories?

It was so hopelessly naive, kindly so, but Twilight looked at me not three paces away and I could tell from the way she bit her lips, she did hope that. I'd seen the same expression, when she had been experimenting and doubting her success. But here and now, it was me, fighting against her alone. Applejack appeared in the corner of my eye, rushing to help a pinned down Rainbow Dash, while the crab itself stood frozen in a purple aura.

The last of Twilight's memory spell faded. “Ventus...”

And she asked with her eyes, stop, come back to me now.

“I can't!” I shouted and stomped. The cape lashed so hard my knees buckled. “I can't let them down!”

The power snaked out of me, siphoned straight into the circle. Joy and panic struck me in equal measures. A shiver ran down my spine, as the weight of my body seemed to increase drastically. My head hung low, fatigue covering me in chains of lead. The pained grunt that escaped me betrayed too much of my physical state. Anyone but the girls would have taken advantage of that.

Not Twilight. Not even if we hadn't been dating, she still wouldn't have. It was written all over her eyes. And it chilled me to the bones. Would another enemy take advantage of this in the future? What would she give to save everyone?

“You can barely stand.”

The circle began to glow with an unearthly sterile light. The sight filled me with a strange sense of dread. Soon, it would be time.

I glanced back at my marefriend, putting in more bravado than I felt. “You're not even trying, Twilight.”

She stepped closer, her eyes pleading, her words coming with a conviction and a faith that made me hesitate. “You won't do it, Ventus. I know you won't. You haven't gone crazy, you're not a different stallion than a few days ago. You showed me the truth about you last night.”

I shrunk back. We had said a good deal of things then. We had confirmed that we had both been fools playing with an emotion far stronger than our rationalities. And, the alcohol helping, I had stripped away a layer of Prince Ventus.

...She would forgive me, wouldn't she? If I stopped here. Twilight's gaze promised me that. It'd be such a sweet thing.

“Twilight,” I growled, and forced myself to glare. “I loathe myself because, in spite of knowing how wrong it was to manipulate you, I still did it all. This is not different! Don't be a blind fool! You're smarter than that! You've always been smarter than that!”

“That's it!” she shouted back. “You're always telling me to think for myself!”

Snarling, I took off. A beat of my wing swept the beach with a gale. Sand rose up, covering the land with a small sandstorm that hit every one of the Mane Six. Their cries intertwined, fast enough that I could not tell whom had been thrown off their hooves.

A sizzling, shimmering glint pushed the air behind me in a sudden burst. Twilight's breath tickled the back of my neck.

“Even when you are manipulative, you sabotage yourself when it comes to me.” Her legs closed around my shoulders, so very gentle, so loving that I stilled. “You told me. You still love me. You do this despite your true feelings on the matter, Ventus. But you don't need to.”

Twilight's legs held nothing.

I reappeared mere wingspans to her left, shaking.

My voice broke. “I have to! It's what a good brother does! It's what a good son does! What I want doesn't matter!”

Twilight shook her head. It wasn't true. Not to her. Perhaps not to the others either.

She circled around me, flapping her wings fast enough to react at a moment's notice. What other spell was she preparing behind that calculating gaze. I could feel the energy gathering near her horn.

I could feel my muscles ache almost painfully.

“It does matter, Ventus. And I will show you, and convince you before this ends!”

But the threat that came next wasn't hers.

“Out of the way, Twilight!”

We turned, and I saw beneath me the cone of air surrounding the flyer. A spot under my skin tensed, as if stretched. Dread only flashed at the center of my mind while the colors of the rainbow burst through the night.

A blade of nothingness cut right through my right shoulder, just before Rainbow Dash barreled into my sides. I felt my body nearly fold against her hoof, the sudden acceleration shuffling my insides around. My wings couldn't stop the fall. Winds wheezed at my ears, mere seconds before the world exploded into the cold water of the sea.

Bubbles escaped my mouth and my nostrils by the dozens. My body seized under the agony it was put through. I flailed, digging through the currents uselessly. I had no idea where up and down could be. A veil covered my thoughts.

But at some point, the water stilled around me. A familiar power animated it, and an invisible hand lifted me upward. For a split second, I felt almost calm, home-bound. For a split second.

I broke through the surface roaring. She had dared! The thought burned at the front of my mind. She had used the very magic that allowed pegasi to fly to strike at me. She'd use my blood to hit me!

I was above her, looming. Icy winds swirled at the tip of my feathers.

“Flight is done by my will, Rainbow Dash.”

Her strike passed through a ghostly image of me, almost looking green through the golden shade. She twisted around, wild looks searching for where I'd reappear.

The cold reached her wings first.

I hissed the word, and carried it throughout the skies. My will reached into the currents, into the winds and all heard the order and faltered. “Fall.”

Rainbow Dash bucked, exactly where I would have been, had I been of flesh and blood. The momentum near pushed her into me, but she suddenly sensed the wrongness. Her eyes widened in panic. The ground began closing in. Her wings still beat.

Rainbow Dash fell. Inexplicably, she fell. She did as she had done most of her life. She tried the postures, the gestures, the tricks, perfectly even. None of it mattered. Even she could feel the missing piece that had been stolen from her.

There was nothing she could do. In the last moments, she closed her eyes and winced.

I almost laughed.

Light surrounded her and cushioned her fall.

Twilight landed right next to her. “Rainbow! Are you alright?”

But the pegasus flailed out of the magical grasped, not even reaction as her body fell to the ground with a dull sound. She already stood up. Her wings flapped frantically. What little her body lifted only came from her own jumps.

“I… I can't fly!” she rasped, her face crumbling into fury and despair.

It was my turn to land. No matter how delicately though, it still felt like murder on my shoulder.

“Not as long as I still draw breath in this world!” I sneered, then grinned. “Do you want me to leave now?”

“No, but I sure want you to die right now!”

The words that should have been my reply drowned out in coughs of blood. The mares flinched. I could only stare at the spots of red on my fur.

That… that wasn't Father's power.

With a gargled shout, I crumbled to the ground. Pain had speared through my back, and grew stronger every second. Muscles in my body seized, and spasmed, and convulsed. Fears screeched at the front of my mind, but only one rang through.

This was not an attack on me.

The waves froze. Gushing water, sea foam and droplets, all of it captured in perfect stillness. I could not remember a wronger sight. This… this was a form of death. The world was movement and this was the sight of a corpse. In horror, I stared and fought against the unbearable pain that nailed me here.

“E… Eric...”

Thadal pawed at his chest, his mouth wide open in a silent cry of wordless agony.

Stop…

I could not move a muscle. Every inch of me could have been of stone, and still capable of moving more than me.

Briefly, I could feel nothing of the power bearing down on me. It felt as a cut. A strike of a scalpel. There was a wet, sickening plop, something to fall on the beach.

My wing… I thought numbly at the sight of the golden feathers floating down. The cross-shaped scar on my chest ached. Such a familiar sense of dread.

“Ventus!” Twilight's horrified scream hurt me more than impending doom could have.

I'm not what you should turn your eyes to.

Wounds of that nature spoke of a rift into the skies.

The blanket of storm clouds had as gaping a hole as the joints that used to attach my wing. But above us shone a white radiance that struck terror in my mind. For where the sun was the warmth of life and day, this was a sterile light. A ray that accepted none but itself and that cast a shadow darker than night of everything it touched.

And at once, it came ablaze in flames of azure blue. At the center of it all was a shadow of light, nearly a familiar shape.

Blood sprayed from my mouth in a red mist. Oh, I definitely had something broken in my lungs. Perforated, maybe?

The shadow in the flames moved.

And we were so close too… I struck the sand. Damn it all.

I felt the pressure built into my throat, as a hoof pushing on my trachea, right the very second He came through the Veil.

He spread his wings and covered the skies with the sight of a thousand feathers. Each one the size of a cloud. Each one promised a vision. I saw and felt and lived a thousand punishments and a thousand rewards through the sight of him.

I laid panting on the ground, sweats pearling to the ends of my fur, and my chest rose greatly with each too short inhalation.

His head peaked through the cloud, and he lowered it to bestow us with a gaze that was fire and ice. The whitest snow held not the purity of his fur, nor the shimmer of light that pulsed in his blood. His fury restrained, his jaws tensed, Judicium held the traits of a stallion, truly, but I had never seen one less remarkable. His head alone could have eclipsed the celestial bodies in the skies, and even at this size, I could see nothing of imperfections or crooks or irregularities. I would not be able to recall it later, I knew.

Judicium took his first step.

His right front leg majestically landed on the frozen sea, and violently slipped left. The fiery titan stumbled face first into the water.

The explosion of steam was something to behold as well. Not nearly as majestic however.

Now, the eight of us remained perfectly silent.

“WHAT THE FUCK?!”

Couldn't have said it better, Eric.

I would like to have a clue about what was happening indeed. My brain was just now starting to catch up with the fact that Judicium had tripped during his grand entrance and it did not compute.

“Ah! Good one, Dissy! A classic!” Pinkie howled between two bouts of laughter, waving around a giant yellow thing.

That is a banana peel.

I felt, in the back of my head, the new rip in the air that formed, and so clearly, I heard the sound of a zipper opening swiftly.

Had my mouth not already been half-full with blood, me biting my cheeks so hard would have done the same. Of course, he would be here too now.

“I did say I would repay you, didn't I?” rang his hated voice.

I stubbornly looked away, refusing to even glance where I knew he was floating, arms crossed, a third hand stroking his beard and a fourth, a fluffy cat. Discord's timing could not be a coincidence.

That smug bastard… I couldn't even wheeze out that much, and the thought fled from my mind as fire flashed before my eyes.

A white hoof came down on the sand, and every grain froze so completely they remained in midair. Even the voices that I heard seemed to dampen in his presence.

Judicium stood near us, exactly as tall as Discord.

“Lord of Chaos.” His voice rang out in perfect monotony, every syllable, every sound, even. Toneless. I'd never heard heard anything as alien as that, a voice like a machine, through the living. I would probably freak out more if Discord hadn't made him look like an idiot a second ago. “You will step aside and deliver the false children to our custody immediately.”

Discord threw his arms in the air, all four of them. Somewhere in the distance, a chunk of earth shot straight into space.

“Oh my Me, are you always ON, Judy? I mean, of course you are, but why? Old friend, it's just sad.”

“I care little for your opinions, Chaos.” White flames reduced the fake arms into ashes. The Elder of Order did not react to Discord's indignant cry. His icy blue gaze drifted aside. “Your time will come. Mortals shall not suffer your madness much longer. For now however, there are greater concerns than your petty behavior.”

I was frozen. My heart hammered in my chest, faster than ever. I had no doubt whose behavior was worth Judicium's time and I wanted nothing more than to disappear, to fade into the air and leave. But… Thadal… Calx…

I'd rather confess myself a monster to the Last Judge than even entertain the thought of leaving them.

And Judicium had pierced through the Veil to bring back balance to the land.

He had the power to do so.

The air near him rippled, unstable, shivering as if steam erupted from his very skin. It was not so. Judicium Frigus's mere presence broke apart the world as easily as Discord's. The spasms of my muscles were the wind currents coming into contact with him, and stilling.

“Ventus Vinco, Samuel Miller, I have come for you and your kin. Justice calls your name.”

It brokered no protest, no reply. It was as much a statement of fact as calling the sky blue. I envied and feared that confidence in equal measure. Would the girls listen to him?

And through that terrible fear, I chuckled. Spittle of blood flew out of my mouth, and if I had had the strength, I might have even stared the Elder in the eyes. The errant thought had seized around my heart like a balm. “Don't you know? I have no name.”

On his face, near his mouth, the highest I could look up to, I saw flicker something ugly. The strangeness of his body language faded. He seemed to become alive… and shaking with rage. The pressure of his gaze lessened, but only as the proximity of a hoof would, drawing back as if to smack me. Each of my remaining limbs flattened against the sand, and all that I was felt minuscule, truly insignificant in the face of his power.

“You have already usurped the alicorn legacy!” His voice thundered beyond the skies and the seas, and I could hear nothing else, no matter how strongly I wished it. “Do not presume to reject it as you would a clothe you no longer fancy!”

In spite of that, I mustered a grin. “Was it a lie though?”

On my neck traced a phantom line, and my chin felt as if resting on a block of wood. It would take an impulse. The guillotine would chop my head off.

Phantom, the line, for it never came to pass either.

Twilight had stepped forward. “Please, wait! I… there is still–”

“Twilight Sparkle,” he said, and with that alone, she started to withdraw. “You have been a just and worthy mare for much of your existence. It is no time for you to fall prey to the Chaos of Pandora. You know what must be done. And if your hooves falter, your next duty is to let another do what is necessary.”

A giant red mallet hit him square in the muzzle.

“Oh no, this is much too interesting for you to interfere. The drama, the heartfelt declarations, the boldness, the heartbreak! This is where life goes out in its glorious gritty greatness. When Acheron bargained with Vitam, it was all for THIS!” Discord spread his arms wide, gesturing toward Twilight and I, toward Eric, toward the unconscious crabs on the sand. His grin seemed truly joyous then, but it shifted with a new sharpness. “And You. Will. Not. Interfere!”

A brilliant flash of white light blinded us, and when I could blink away the dots floating before my eyes, neither Elder remained.

All of my strength left me. I was so fucking tired of this crap. Could I not hop on the road to damnation without a thousand ponies lining up to smack some sense into me? I…

I just wanted to go home. No more.

No more fear for my life or that of those I care about.

No more ancients beings that chose our lives for us. No more.

No… more...

“Well, that was…”

Trying to stand was a bad idea. The blood squirted out of the gaping hole where my wing had been connected.

“Fuck, Sam.” Thadal grunted, his left hind leg slipping into the sand as I nearly collapsed on him. “Let... let me, I'll stop you from losing blood.”

“D-don't...” I tried to push myself off him, but his wing firmly kept me in place. “Keep your strength, we'll need it soon. We're almost done, Eric...”

“You're almost done for. That wound will kill you,” Thadal whispered, his voice rumbling with anger. “You're half dead already!”

“Doesn't matter if we cast the spell in the end.”

His grip on my shoulder tightened, and I let out a strangled cry. Blue light surrounded my wound. “We won't get to that point at the rhythm you're losing blood. Hold still!” he hissed as I tried to get free. “Is this your way of giving up, Sam? I'm not letting you die that easily!”

I bit back a scathing reply. Giving up?! I'd… after everything… after rejecting every offer of redemption thrown our way…

Power came surging from the wound, and the wind danced. Every crook, every joint, done through the curve of the air. A cool feeling settled over the wound, before I stumbled against Thadal, imbalance by the new weight on my side.

“There...” I panted. “Good as new.”

Thadal grinned despite his anger. Yeah, that might have been his aim. When the light from his horn got to the rest of my injuries, he almost hummed to himself.

“Have you forgotten us?” Rarity asked, unimpressed.

The rest of them had begun forming a half-circle around us.

Eric flushed beet red. “Huh-well...”

“To be honest...” I snorted. “...can you blame us?”

I laid my head back into my friend's shoulder. Just for a second. I'd be able to… Soon, I would be...

“Why aren't you taking advantage of this?” I asked.

“You're injured...” Fluttershy was the first to say.

“Super badly. Blood loss is no joke, Sammy. When my Papa Pie got injured in the rockavalanche of last summer, my sisters had to donate some of their blood to help him survive!”

“Well...” I let my gaze wander to their forms. “It's kind of the point of fighting us, isn't it?”

“Not this,” I heard the whispers, and winced. “Not this way, Ventus.”

It was all Twilight could do to stop herself from treating the rest of my wounds on the spot.

I wanted to laugh, to let out all that bitter venom out in as derisive a sound I could make. Those girls. Those precious, kind-hearted heroines. They didn’t get it, did they?! They pitied and cried over me... They thought me too little a threat to seriously consider. Would our bonds of friendship and love not suffice to stop me?! I'd never dare, right?! If not the goodness of my heart, then the wounds I'd just gotten?!

There was so much MORE I could do.

For each things I couldn’t do – save them –, there was – nothing that matters – five more I could. A bit of diverting to make the clouds overhead strike them with lightning. A wall of air completely impenetrable to keep them away. A solid, invisible construct of air to snap bones and nerves... If I had wanted it, it would have been foal’s play to

Kill

Kill.

Twilight.

Kill.

The Bearers.

Kill.

Kill the Equestrians. Thunderlane. Blueblood. Violet. Celestia. Kill the others. Kill Order and Chaos. Kill the threats.

Kill.

Them.

All!

It’d be easy, said the voice that was cold and darkness in my head. Finish one of the mares off. The one I liked the least. A good molding of air to snap somepony's neck. Swift, before anyone could react. Then cast the spell. The imbalance would do the rest. They’d be unable to use the Elements. There’d be nothing to stop me, us.

It’d be easy.

“Prince Ventus, please don't. You're almost dead on your hooves!” exclaimed Rarity.

“Let us help.”

Fluttershy.

“Come on, we'll forget it if you just surrender and give me my wings back, deal?”

Dash.

“Hey, Prince of Water over there... don'tcha think ye'd be a better friend by letting us help him the right way?”

Applejack. Honest, down to earth Applejack, her words enough to make Eric flinch strongly.

“Come on! We'll take care of big meanoe pantso over there too. No worries!”

Easy. Easy. EASY!

“It's not too late,” Twilight said softly.

I could hear Caelum's laugh, his glee, his triumph, when he had looked down on the frozen corpses. And he had felt free. Free!

...But I hadn’t even tried yet.

Why does it matter? Why do you hesitate, Sam?

“I...” the rest of the answer drowned out in another cough of blood.

The voice did not relent. If you aren’t prepared to kill them, why do this at all? Do you think they’d survive what you want to do? Do you think they’d survive an Unraveling?

In that instant, their fates flashed before my eyes. What would it be like, if the laws of the sky, land and sea suffered a backlash of pure Chaos? Blueblood trapped under a mudslide. Thunderlane sucked into the winds of a tornado. Twilight–

The air ignited. Dust covered the beach from one side to another, as I screamed and trashed and refused, forever refused, to consider how Twilight...

I could not bear it. I could not bear to see them dead. Not any of them, least of all her.

Then how will you ever save Mom and Dad, Sam? How can you ever do it without the proper sacrifice? What was the point of all this?

“...Do it.”

Thadal’s eyes bugged out of his skull, and so did those of the others. With two words, I had cast silence upon them as surely as with any spell. More so. They could not weave a counter to that.

“What?!” came the strangled cry of one Twilight Sparkle.

It should have wrenched my heart out of my chest, but I did not even react. I had died on the inside. This… this whole madness, it needed to end. No more masks. No more faking. There needed only a cold hard truth.

“Blast me. Do it, use the Elements of Harmony and defeat this threat like you did the others.”

The shout came with a staggering force. “Sam! You can't!”

The very ocean shivered on the impulse, and I looked back to the one that deserved to hear this the least.

“That's it... I... I just can't… Eric.” I closed my eyes, struggling to keep my breathing even. The words carried to him and him alone, hushed, shameful. “I can't kill them. This is what it would take to succeed. I can't kill them.”

Thadal stepped back, his eyes glazed over in sadness, and understanding. He would not intervene. He would let me make my choice. To him, this might have been the point all along.

I still didn't have a clue on what I'd done to get as good a friend as him. If the Elders were good, he'd find somepony worth the friendship the next time.

Taking a deep breath, I steeled myself for what was coming. It'd probably hurt like Tartarus. I might never be freed from whatever imprisonment it'd unleash on me. That thought made me flinch, but it was nothing to fight against anymore. There just wasn't a place for a monster like me in this world.

The Elements were slow to activate this time…

Puzzled, I looked up to them, all six of those radiant mares, bathed in the morning light as even my curse to Luna faded away. They remained immobile.

“What are you waiting for?” I demanded, a spark of anger igniting in my chest. “Why are you hesitating now of all times?! This is it, you've won! Do it! ...DO IT!”

...And they still didn't gather with the Elements. For a split second, Rarity diverted her gaze away from Thadal and Rainbow Dash urgently called after Twilight, but the mares still didn't gather.

The crown on Twilight's head laid dormant and inert.

Fluttershy's and Pinkie's necklaces were flickering with a dying light.

Still the Elements didn’t ignite. Still they refused, they pitied and did nothing!

The skies above roared as the dark clouds seemed to reach for the ground. In that split second, lightning struck, and my voice bellowed above the thunder. “DON'T YOU REALIZE WHAT I JUST ASKED YOU TO DO?!”

What I hadn’t realized before however was that my storm clouds had gradually dissipated – not reaching, breaking – , blown away or dispersed by the explosions and the lack of power I could afford to put in them. It had made the beach bathe in new light. It had allowed somepony to stir from their slumber.

The bubble should have silenced most noises.

I still should have heard the bed creak and the puzzled groan that came out. I should have heard the mumbled noises, the incoherent grunts that came with his awakening. But I hadn't.

“Sam?”

The crimson eyes that stared at me burned me worse than Judicium ever could.

“Tom...” and I could not say anything else.

Did he hear everything?

Did he hear me say I wanted it to end? That I could not do it, even for him?

Traitor.

My breath itched in my throat, and I backed away. I scrambled away from my worst fear coming to life. I had done it. In a moment of weakness, I'd given up on them for my own selfish needs.

In the back of my mind, I heard something crack.

How dare you? growled the man I used to be. HOW DARE YOU?! YOU PROMISED HIM!

I promised to take him home. Did I forget his sadness? Did I forget his tears in the dark, his cries for our parents to be back? “What would you do if his happiness was at stake?” I had asked, and the answer had been clear as day. Anything. Everything.

Too weak.

A true big brother would have done it. Someone who cared about him would have. Thadal had followed me down this path of Tartarus without hesitation. Why… why hadn't I been able to do the same?!

Because I could remember a lost filly smiling at me. Because I could remember the pride in my chest when a silly prince felt unworthy despite saving a whole town through his bravery. Because I had found love and friendship with too many ponies not to care.

Because I could not kill any of my family, and this silly, stupid stallion had a bigger family than he had dared admit.

Betrayer. Oathbreaker. It was all your parents asked of you. Just to be there. And you couldn’t even be bothered to care. You gave it to strangers! See that? See that in Tom’s eyes? It’s his trust being betrayed. It is everything you promised not to do, not to be.

The crack spread from horn to hooves. With a low hissing screech, it widened through the corners of my mind. I had failed him. I had failed him so thoroughly. The promises made struck, the oaths, the sworn words, struck and struck again until it all came crumbling down.

Traitor.

I wasn't good enough for you, Tom.

“Sam?”

Thadal – Eric – my friend – looked at me in concern, but without judgment. Perhaps it was hope, the sliver of light that seemed to gleam in his eyes then. His hoof brushed against my shoulder, tried to support me, but he retracted it, uncertain.

He didn't judge... that was the worst part. He didn't begrudge how utterly I failed everyone that mattered.

Father, you must be so ashamed...

Hot molten magic poured into my veins, gathered at the tip of my horn. Thadal's body vanished and reappeared in his place in the circle. The words died on his lips. He merely looked down at himself, at his new position, and the question came from Tom.

“What's going on?”

Lightning struck, its light blinding and its noise so loud as to shatter everypony's trance.

The girls broke away from their puzzlement. They gasped. They saw, and the realization was terrible, the proponents of the ritual almost completed, missing but one thing.

Me.

Grinning, my eyes cold.

I sprinted. My hooves beat against the sand of the beach, each step bringing us closer to Equestria's devastation. The girls gasped again, a second shocked enough to freeze, and so much time in just that.

I galloped. I ran, because I could not turn to air. They truly might not have the time to react. It was all so clear to me.

Rainbow Dash's wings flapping uselessly, her first instinct to block my path herself. Rarity calling the others to use the Elements, true panic oozing from her voice void of its usual accent. Fluttershy closing her hooves over her necklace, praying. Pinkie and AJ holding Rainbow back, so the Elements could be used. And Twilight, crowned, crying.

Her Element ablaze.

A rush of warm air washed over me when the circle in the sand was but three steps away.

Something like a smile twisted my lips.

Twilight and the others were finally ready to use the Elements. They would do what was necessary for their own, just like I had wanted – and failed – to do for mine. Each shade of colored light cast their power over the beach, glowing as would a second sun in the middle of the day. They wouldn’t be able to stop anymore.

But I could.

There wasn't time for the ritual to trigger. I'd have needed to put down my hooves in the circle and speak the spell. There would never be enough time for this. All I could do was stop outside the barrier we had erected ourselves.

At the very least, I wouldn’t endanger anypony else if I was turned to stone. I alone deserved that fate.

I cast one – last? – look to my little brother, whom upon sight of the rainbow light had jumped off the bed and galloped to the wind barrier. His hooves beat upon the frontier between us, his calls for my name tearing off something inside me. That much, I never wanted him to be made a witness to. I'd dry his tears, I'd make him smile again… I'd give him our parents back, if it hadn't been linked to so much bloodshed.

“Close your eyes, Tom…”

My hooves dug deep into the sand when the Elements struck. It didn't hurt. I could even manage a smile, strained. That little lie turned the light harsher, burning. The fragment that was Father in the cape seized, its power rushing in a desperate, futile, effort to protect me. Still now...

“I… I…” Gritted words, half chopped by the effort to hold it back, just for a few more seconds. “Sorry. I failed you. I failed everyone.”

The mask broke apart, splintered from top to bottom, and the power of the cape vanished. Father's voice became quiet to me.

The light surrounded me.

I saw a shadow.

And knew no more.

Father? Came the first thought, and together with it, Mother?

There had been an alicorn. My consciousness clung to the image that had been shown to me. A little colt, staring up a tall and regal alicorn. Their coat had been a piece of the clearest day sky, covered in stars as if night had fallen over it. Their mane and tail had been light, broken down. Their mane had been the light.

A name flashed in my mind, and I awoke with a gasp.

“HARMONY!”

My cry echoed through nothing. Black emptiness stared back.

A point twinkled unto the horizon. The most meager of light, a flickering flame atop a candle. And from it span everything. Waves upon waves of colors flooded my sight, washed over me. First yellow, then red and orange, violently shoved aside by blue, overtaken by purple.

Shapes formed by their clashes, joining in on the violence, sometimes

For a split second, the colors merged together, stopped their senseless fighting, and the shape almost looked equine. I stared as a horn formed at the tip of a forehead the color of a clear blue sky, and from it, the whole color spectrum emerged. The explosion rippled through the air, the land and the water, and blasted apart the Chaos.

I fell backward, suddenly aware of silly things like balance and body. The world of Chaos tilted under-over me, until I collided knee first into a solid bloc of violet.

A groan escaped my mouth as I remembered what pain felt like. And quickly, memories of mere moments ago came flooding back.

Sorry, Thadal. I really hope they don't blast you too.

“You wouldn't deserve it,” I sighed, disheartened, before letting my gaze wander to my surroundings. “Why am I back here? Why did Harmony…?”

Well, I have just been hit by their holy artifacts in the mortal world.

It figured that I would be left stranded somewhere like this. Back to where I came. The place of birth of the Ventus Vinco side of me. The Chaos Realm.

...And in my birthday suit too.

I had no clothe, but I wasn't quite furless either. Patches of golden hair covered some of my limbs, some spots of skin while other remained naked. A small tingling spark seemed to just run over my skin, itching like mad.

But try to scratch with a fingerless hand. Or a fingerful hoof.

The grimace that naturally came to me stopped when the twist of my lips sent a jolt of pain through my cheeks. The bones weren't aligned right. Elders… running my palm over my face felt like a bumpy ride. A very bumpy one. Hard to tell where the nose started and where the muzzle ended.

A shape on the ground took on a reflective silver for the briefest moment, to be helpful. I winced at the image it gave out, and a sordid laugh echoed around me.

Alicorn-human hybrids were by far the most hideous creatures I had ever seen. Yeah, I could see why even non-sapient colors would mock me. There was sin against nature, and then there was what I was. Some bone structures, some organs and some colors just did not agree with one another.

Eh, I did consider myself to be neither one or the other. Guess I was more right than even I had thought...

“Hello, little cutie,” said a voice like the chime of a thousand bells.

My tail twitched, and I whirled on myself to face the voice. I fell flat on my face, quite at the right moment to see how the power of those few words carried through a dimension as alien as this one.

A rush of colors, beneath me, changed through pulses, flowing as fluids despite not existing as matter. Slowly, they slid off the surface I was standing on, revealing a sail of leather the dimensions of a house. Despite myself, my legs moved to carry me away from this sudden change.

But five pillars, bone-like and linked between each other by barriers of the same material, rose from the sea of colors and cut off my escape.
It would have been futile, regardless of my lack of coordination. The skies tilted sideways, then back into places. With one thing different, beneath the massive rising columns of colors.

That was a head.

Blue, but a luminescent, pale shade. Translucent, allowing glimpses of a skull too perfectly round for a truly living creatures. And eyes, eyes that were suns, or stars, two circles of yellow light. They rose as the head rose, beyond my perch, looming over me with all the weight of their radiance.

A leg-arm tried to shield my eyes, but the sheer volume of matter displaced by the giant's stand forced it away.

Beneath the jellyfish-like head hung a reptilian jaw, a forked tongue slithering out and back in in a blink, enough to lick the air – and it sent a pang of pain throughout my limbs, as if a cold and slimy thing had seeped inside me.

I… I could barely see under its giraffe neck. The thought to lean over the edge of its palm where I looked no bigger than a bug did not register. Even holding onto those towers – fingers –, I could not...

In response to the giant's appearance, my mind abruptly shut down its higher functions, leaving a single intelligent reply. “What.”

“What a sexy creature you are, Ventus.” A thin bat-like finger ran up my chest to just under my chin, while a shiver went down that height till it reached my feet. And yet, the great glowing eyes betrayed nothing of the discomfort they could witness. Rather... her voice seemed filled to the brim with amusement. “You wouldn’t consider staying in the Chaos Realm with me, would you?”

“You being…?” I let my voice trailed off, racking my brain for more information on this… well, being, but I came up with nothing. My guts were screaming, my instinct was flaring into high alert, yet I could not tell why I felt suck familiarity toward her.

“My name is Pandora Chaotix Elena Relentel Schpritza Ragnarok Nana Ot.”

Something went off in my brain.

“You just strung a couple of names along, didn’t you?” I deadpanned.

A strange sound echoed, and to my shock, I didn’t feel the familiar sound waves running through my body. The noise echoed, somewhat strangled and highly crystalline, with even a metallic taint to it. I… that was the closest my brain came to associate it.

Another shiver went down my spine.

The serpent jaw moved again, and the chime of bells suddenly resembled a whale's melody. “Shouldn’t you be too worried about the fact that a goddess of chaos holds you in her paws to be a smartass, little alicorn?”

Yes, intellectually, I should have been terrified to be at the mercy of the being who had started the whole ‘Order vs Chaos’ conflict. But somehow, in my heart, there was nothing but a sea of peace at the thought of her power over me. The core of the spell hadn't disappeared. I was still, deep down, a child of Chaos. The truth however was that it wouldn't have mattered regardless.

I had tried. I deserved whatever I would get for that, whatever they decided it to be.

But I had tried, and the thought was equally comforting and strangling.

Raising my deformed arms up, I made a show of putting them well in Pandora's line of sight. “You know, I didn’t think I still qualified as an alicorn.”

“That’s an interesting question, Samuel.”

Perhaps. I could admit the hideous reflection I still had in mind did make me curious.

“Who…” No, no that wasn't quite right, now. “What am I? Everything I’ve ever heard or seen tells me that I’ve gone against everything alicorns are meant to be.”

Her head tilted, just a hint, but at her size, the whoosh of air threw me back several feet back.

“Are you so sure?” she asked, and in my mind conjured the image of a mouth full of fangs. “The spell my little brother used creates an alicorn and retroactively modifies history to fit its target in the books and memories of the world. Once it is done, the spell integrates itself into your very soul, and fades off. What of it doesn't qualify you, your brother or your friend?”

An ancestral indignation rippled through me, and my words seemed laced with a fire not my own. “Alicorns are creatures of Order!”

Pandora gave pause. Her soft luminescent eyes bore into me, seeming to ponder the sincerity of my statement, or my knowledge of the truth. “They’re creatures of duty.” She spelled out the word as if foreign to her. “Of a single-minded goal that they all chose, if only by their conditioning. And you chose differently. You lost your grasp on your True Name, and you rebuilt yourself into this shadow that clung to what you were perceived as. You chose a duty unlike any alicorn before you. Because you used to be human.”

“Do I really qualify as that?” I bit between my teeth.

She spoke slowly, “Do you?”

I frowned. Parts of me thought she was simply curious, but something in her tone made me lean toward a sincerity unlike her brother's. Truth never befell Chaos. Compassion and sympathy however had been born from her actions.

The reflex to lie returned, but I refused. Not here, not after everything. “I’d… I’d like for my parents to see both their sons come back as what we were before we left. I don’t want the changes be nothing but a reminder of our disappearance to them.” The idea pushed a laugh out of me. Had I not told the exact opposite of that to Eric? “So I guess the answer would be... I don't know, but I hope so. Enough for them to be appeased. Let them think me changed by the experience, but still their son. I know Tom still can be, given the chance.”

“But not you?” She asked, and when I shrugged helplessly, the lightness of her voice left. “So you do not care to be human for yourself.”

“I was willing to become a monster for this – and I’m still not sure I haven’t become one just because I failed. It’s why I could risk Reality itself to bring us back to them. I threw that all away for their sake. It’s all that matters to me anymore.”

Pandora became silent. For a time, if such a thing mattered in her realm. I could not feel my heartbeat nor my own breathe in this place. But she paused and the skin on her head took on a purple hue.

“Is it?”

Two insidious words. Doubts.

My last moments in Equestria forced themselves back to the front of my mind. The defeated confession, the bristled anger, my last manipulation. And the lie came with such ease, “Yes.”

The sting of the orange light ran across my skin and my fur. Was there no rest for me, not even after I had been exiled through Harmony's power?

“What of your alicorn parents?” asked Pandora with a wry tone. “Are they not worthy of your devotion as well?”

“Of course they are.” I rolled my eyes at such an obvious question. “They put up with me for four hundred years, give them a medal.”

“I would, but I have a feeling that they would not like a medal given to them by me.”

“...Please don’t make puns,” I deadpanned. No, this was just too surreal. Beings as vast and unchanging as Eternity should not be making bad puns.

Pandora raised a delicate eyebrow she didn't have, somehow, the resemblance in that gesture with Celestia's startling me silent. “Joy and laughter are mine to do with as I please, Samuel. It is my present of Harmony, as Honesty was Judicium's.”

I did not see that... “Please, no more of this regardless.” I gave a helpless shrug. “Not everyone has the same idea of what is funny. You made sure of that, didn't you?”

At this, Pandora seemed thoughtful, and, if her jaw had not been a snake's, I could have sworn it would have formed an incredulous smile. “You have quite refined your manipulations, haven't you, Samuel?”

I gave a mocking bow and lost balance as my hoof failed to fold as my foot did. There, splayed in the palm of her hand, I sighed and rolled onto my back. “You made it possible. I played on what emotions I knew were in some ponies, hid my own under facades and the like until there was nothing behind my own face, Great Mother.”

The great pillars of leather and bone shivered, the vibration reaching my bones, and a single one slowly folded. Its shadow first obscured my chest, then my face and I stared as the lone digit delicately pushed the tip of my muzzle-nose. “You truly are a child of mine. My little brother gave me a truly heartfelt present in this.”

The corners of my mouth twisted into the beginning of a snarl. “Do not...” I choked and the words came again in a lower, darker growl. “Do not praise him for this.”

This time, I was certain she had smirked.

“Should I praise Magnus and Atonie for raising the shadow in your memory?”

I almost felt them, lingering over my cheeks, the nuzzles they had given to the little colt I had been. Perhaps it had been real. The Spell had always only followed the most probable path. It would have happened.

Yes, Pandora, praise them. They deserved better of me.

“They are pained about this, Samuel.”

The muscles in my jaw tightened. I know.

“Why do you call me that?” I looked back to her, seemingly calm.

“Are you genuinely curious or do you simply wish not to delve on certain things?”

It reminded me of Celestia, the curt cutting strength of her words. She was not afraid to demand that I look through my own heart. She knew it better than I did.

I shrugged as if that was not the most insolent thing to do to your literal deity and liege lady. “Both, I’ve learned there is often more than one reason to do something.”

Her reply was short and unforgiving. “Ignoring pain does not make it go away.”

I hid the pinch of my heart with a clumsy grin. “But it does make it easier to deal with.”

“No. It doesn't,” she said, her voice harsh and colder than the heart of the windigoes' power.

The ground beneath me shook, her palm trembling with the root of Anger that birthed within the Elder of Chaos. The colors of the realm stilled, and turned from the most vivid and explosive colors to a grim gray. And they darkened further, from the gray of steel into the shades of the storm brewing within and without Pandora.

The realm of madness, of change, immobile through the will of Emotions.

The shine of her eyes pierced right through me. My knees gave out.

And she spoke further, each sound sharp as if trying to claw at my skin and strip me bare. “Had you succeeded, the tear in the fabric of that realm would have caused serial earthquakes, tornadoes, tropical storms, sandstorms and tsunamis. Fifty-two towns would have been at a direct risk of being destroyed. Twenty-six more would have been at risks of collapsing in that vacuum. The instability could have caused an economical crisis in the four dominant nations, Equestria included. The ripples would have carried throughout the rest.”

I know. Stop talking, please, I already know.

The immensity of it had been laid bare to me before. I did not need the details on how and when. The bottom line had been that any number of innocents could be stricken dead purely because of me. The names had not mattered.

“I could hear them, Pandora,” I whispered. “I told Applejack the same thing. It's as if no one believes that I grasped what I was doing. I could feel them breath. I could differentiate each one by scent alone. Most thinking creatures lives within my true form.”

Even that, Pandora took away. “You did not grasp what you were doing until the very end. To bring any soul to Vitam Mortem is an act beyond pure rationals. You must come to term with the primal emotions within you first, one way or another, and you refused.”

The sight of her blurred, and a choked sound was all I could form. I should have been able to. They needed us to come back. If it meant killing

Violet.

Twilight, Celestia, Blueblood, Thunderlane.

Luna, Rarity, Applejack, Rumble.

Spike, the Cakes' twins, Scootaloo.

Anypony, anygriffon, anything, anyone.

I should have been able to do it. Caelum had it right. Fracture your soul, then assassinate the obstacles without hesitation.

But he lost, didn't he? replied the part most me.

“When he cried, when he said he missed them… I just could not ignore that. I never could. My memories were in shambles, our past was a guideline at most, but Tom... Tom was the one person I swore I would never let down. If it had been his survival on the line–” Equestria would be ashes.

“You would have gone ahead.” Why that part alone seemed not to displease her, I would never understand. “The core of Chaos, the part of the spell fused within your soul, it would have been consumed. You were right in that. You would have lost most of the parasitic memories, as well as those they had latched onto. On the other hand, your friend and your brother would have reached your world mostly intact, though I believe Calx Iugum would have been rather distressed by your state of being. His memory would not have failed him. You would have saved him indeed. He would have hated it.”

I could not even begrudge the sarcastic bite in her words. The horror behind her words had struck me speechless. It would have been as I had promised, saving him regardless of what it would do to me. But the cost of it, shoved onto Eric and Tom? My atrocity, their burden?

The thought sickened me.

“Sending him alone or with Thadal Fragor,” Pandora added in the tone of musing, “well, he would have made the trip. You, however, would never. And he would understand why. The glimpse of the mortal world still slip throughout the frontiers. He would have been witness to your demise.”

How many times would she force me to imagine Tom's sorrow? “Why… why do you keep telling me this?”

She went on, dismissing my question without a notice. “You could have spent more time gathering power, extracted a promise out of a centaurian warlock to siphon chaotic magic out of my brother and fueled the Spell. Judicium would have stopped you before you could do anything. Or your marefriend, whichever found you first.”

The world shook again as her right shoulder turned, and within view came the arm of a dragon ending with a hand like the one holding me. I stared, my guts twisting, as the impending shadow blotted out much of the sky, and one bone-like appendage closed the distance between us.

Pandora's voice rang like a chime again, and it was not without pity, “You were right. There was no path that led to a victory. Not from that point on.”

The tip of her finger plunged into my forehead.

I felt no pain.

I blinked and saw Pandora's misshapen face still looking down, a hint of melancholy to her gaze. Her right arm had fallen to the side.

Wait, why do I think it's 'fallen'? She only used the left to hold me so far, there's...

I…

She was talking. Pandora had been talking to me. When did I fall on my ass? I was standing, and we were…

Words failed me. I could not find any, and I shot a puzzled, baffled look to my patron deity. Pandora remained silent, for a time. Her serpent's jaw lowered, and out came a sigh. Little of her was known to me, but I could recognize the look of the guilty. What did she do?

“Pandora,” I called again, wary.

The tall tower-like fingers around me clenched slightly. “...I have had a talk with Harmony, Samuel. And though it saddens me to admit it, we agreed that some feelings must run their course, then be calmed down. Doubts and guilt have been guides to you. No more.”

And on the cue of that solemn declaration, the air shifted. Chaos subdued, subject to the greater will. It required nothing but a thought of her, and the towers that were her fingers tilted inward. The colors parted at the tip of each one, yellow breaking for the trails of sky blue. Shades within shades swirled, and spread beyond their place into the rest of the realm.

A shiver made every hair on my body stand straight up. “W-what are you doing?”

“You've lost doubts. There is still another. I take no pleasure in doing this…” Her eyes narrowed. “...But there are no other options for you. Alicorns were not meant to be like you. They should not be of Chaos. There is too much turmoil in your soul, Samuel. Human or alicorn, of harmony or of chaos... it should never be so. This conflict is tearing you apart, and innocents you should safeguard with it. One side must run its course, then fade.”

Her leather skin rose up around me, walls of flesh to ensnare me. The second my naked wing brushed against it, fear burst through my mind. She wouldn't kill me, but she would kill a part of me. She said she would force me to be at peace, to forget one side… but which?

Would I stop caring about Tom? He stood at the root of this, but I couldn't! I had to look after him! It was my responsibility, he was stuck in Equestria without our parents. She couldn't make me abandon him! ...Could she? That sliver of doubt alone crushed the remainders of acceptance I had toward my fate. But my frantic, panicked looks around gave me no way out. Pandora held me in the palm of her hand. I never had the option in the first place.

“Pandora, don’t do this!” I begged. “Please, stop!”

The last of the light faded out as her hold closed over me with a deafening thunderclap.

And in the encroaching darkness that soon engulfed me, a part of me noticed the great irony that even Pandora herself could be made to act against her feelings. It was the last conscious thought I had before I heard her voice echo and fade.

“Good luck.”

What took hold of my senses first was not the sudden anchor to my body, the feeling of standing on solid ground instead of the maddened realm's liquid land… it was the plain-looking bed right next to me. It wasn't a bed for an alicorn.

I let out a quiet chuckle, half of it sobs… Are you so cruel, Pandora?

She sent me back on Earth.

And not just anywhere either. This was our home, our fucking home!

Things blurred for a moment, vertigo pulling at my head and my arms. This was way too much… after everything… This was too akin a dream, it couldn't be real. Not Tom, not Eric, but me?!

I lost my balance, the floor seeming tilted suddenly. Purely on reflex, I put my hands in front of me, but I needed not bother.

My whole body went straight through the wall. The room slid past my eyes as I stumbled into the hallway, one knee to the floor. Slowly, I brought my hand up, and stared. Was that… a trace of green over my palm? Right… right where the motif was green, on the wall behind my hand.

A bitter taste filled my mouth. I was not home. Not truly. An apparition, perhaps?

Of course not… Why would I have been rewarded?

I took one good look around me, and with it, absorbed everything about the sight. There was nothing to my eyes that could confirm this was indeed home, if not the longing feeling that had seized my chest.

Is this my punishment? To live home as a shadow and see what I failed to save?

Or a breeze. Maybe. It seemed the kind of irony – the poetic justice – brought about by the Elements of Harmony. A moon for Luna, a statue for Discord. Air for me. But there lacked something… something disquieting, I could not put my finger on it.

But I forgot about it on the spot as my ears caught the noise of dishes dropped in a sink. For a moment, I stared ahead, down the hallway – left, I remembered that much. A strange apprehension ran through my veins, my heart thrummed to disbelief and hope. But my legs carried me there all the same, running.

I had had a dream of this kitchen. A figment of memory, of the same narrow chairs, of that big brown wooden table, of the counter and the dripping of black coffee into a heavy cup. And my presence then had felt less a dream than this was. At the table sat one that had not turned at my approach, lost to her woes.

A figure shrunken on herself, black of hair, a raven black, the same as Tom's. She looked so small, so unlike the last of what I remembered. Before the loss had set into her as lines carved on her face. I did not remember so many wrinkles near her eyes, around her mouth.

“...Mom?” I croaked, and the word died out without an answer.

No, she would not have heard me. I sat down through the chair's back, looked at her and she didn't notice. Her eyes merely fixed her trembling hands, and the little white bottle in their grasp. I swallowed at the sight.

The cork unscrewed with a loud 'pop'. A round green pill fell into her hand.

Mom frowned.

Another pill fell off the shaken bottle.

Three or four or five or six. She tilted her hand and the bottle toward one another quickly, her brows furrowed together, her gaze steely and focused entirely on those little things in her palm.

How many was she taking?

“Mom… Mom, please...”

I swallowed thickly as I stared at this shadow of my mom. Even with so little left of her image, I knew... I just knew how low she had fallen because of our disappearance. She'd never been the sturdiest, what's with her petite frame, but there had been strength in her.

What strength she had took on the form of little green pills.

I couldn't… I could never accept that! Not for her or for him. I did this to them.

“Mom, Dad, I… I’m really sorry. You must think I’m the most unworthy son to ever walk down the earth. I wanted… I wanted to glue our family back together, but I ended up destroying it beyond repairs. I… I tried. I know it means very little, but I tried my very best. It just… wasn’t something within reach. I'm sorry. We're not coming home.”

My words fell in silence. I would have spoken more, if I hadn't needed a moment to push down the knot tying my throat.

Dad's back remained facing me, his large arms describing slow motions as he scrubbed plates in the sink. Nothing changed. Dismay gripped me. So this was how things would unfold, eh?

Pandora, you cruel bitch.

“It’s the last time we talk; I think I know why too. I… well, I may have gotten into trouble to do the right thing and it completely backfired on me. Remember the frog incident? Well, yeah, sorta like that, but with less fire-extinguishers and more evil from beyond the stars.” Feeling like such a little kid again, I just couldn’t help scratch the back of my head. Could ghosts blush? “Long story short, I made a really big mistake to help Tom – and Eric too, though that part you might not care as much –, but I probably just ended up putting myself in real danger.”

A knot of pain tied up my tongue. How gentle the words I used, so little like the true horror of my choices. I had… I had tried to get us back here by risking the lives of every single living being in a whole dimension. W-what kind of… of person was I?

A monster… And an idiot who wanted his family back.

“This… I got hit by the Elements of Harmony, sorta like the Death Star of the pony world, except with less death and more friendship. There was this thing in the middle of the rainbow – it looked like an alicorn, but I don’t think you know what that is – and I got to see you too…”

Invisible tears started drizzling down my eyes.

“It’s kinda easy to see why, too. Gotta give some people closure, that’s what Pandora meant. Make it a bit more attuned to Harmony. And… and… it’s pretty damn unfair that I’m the one that gets this chance. Out of everyone? Really? I-it should have been Tom…”

My body felt so heavy. My head hung low, too low for me to see them. All I could see was the lines of dark and light brown wood that made up our dining room table. And even those had started to blur.

Tom… What would happen to him now? He had centuries of foalhood ahead of him, and it was impossible to send him back on the Astral Planes with Father and Mother. Though not as strong, the Chaos within him would block his way back to them. The Elders would see to that.

This was our only chance to be all reunited. And it wasn't going to happen.

Because I failed. Because I gave up.

And the thought came to me, unbidden in self-loathing, that I had traded my family's happiness for those of strangers. A bitter chuckle rose from my lungs, and I stretched my neck against into the chair's back to look at the ceiling. For all those lives. Isn't it the better thing? Wasn't it right in the end?

The memory of Twilight's smile brought forth a twitch of pain in my chest. It was something empty, tasteless and Elders, I didn't want it. Remembering what couldn't be led to this disaster. For a split second, it was almost enough to make me want a second chance.

“Bladey wouldn't want that, would he?” repeated Pinkie's shaking voice.

“Of course not,” I growled, dropping my head into my hands. “The little brat would never accept harm on the innocents. Why do you think he hates bullies so damn much? He's just that kind of boy. I didn't want to tell him, because I didn't want him hating me!”

You'd burn every bridge, lil' brother. You'd hate me and yourself for letting it happen, if you're feeling down. And that, I won't allow. Not for you... nor them.

I cast a solemn look over my parents. “I love you.” They did not react. “I-I love you all s-so much! Please... please, listen. Just this once...”

Cold started to seep through my feet. And it was climbing up my body.

“I can’t tell you two enough how much I love you! I was trying… Sometimes I lost sight of this, but I really was doing everything I could think of to get Tom safely back here, s-so we… we could be a family again.”

Nothing. The clock kept on ticking, tick, tock, tick. The water fell lazily into the sink, rinsing a plate of its bread crumple. Dad didn't look back. No word. Silence. And the sensation struck me at my soul; it was the first time, since becoming an alicorn.

My eyes fell on my right hand, which I turned and rose over my head. It shielded me not from the kitchen’s light bulb radiance, my hand’s transparency more than enough of a reminder of what I was. Who would look at a ghost?

It finally hit me in full. I barely resisted the urge to sniffle, to sob and just cry for them to see me, hear me, touch me. They were there, right in front of me, I could feel the heat of their bodies, but a wall stood between us, unbreakable. I wanted to hear them one last time, to replace that memory of their screams with something peaceful, something… something happy…

And they would never even know I’d been here…? This was too cruel. Their one chance! And they would never realize.

Pandora, more time! Please, give me more time!

I stood with such strength my chair fell backward, and I drove my fists into the table with a burning desperation. “Let them know, Pandora!” I struck again, harder, the table shaking on its legs with the blow. “In the name of children lost and families shattered, for broken love and lost chances, I will become your servant now and forever if you do this for them!”

The clock ticked, the dour morning songs faintly echoed from the living room, and I sank to my knees. What little courage I had summoned broke apart again.

“…Please, I'll give you everything,” I begged. “They never deserved this despair.”

But I did, whispered a harsh voice in the back of my head. This is my punishment. The last chance thrown away, the last of my hopes crushed.

And gently, I began to drift away, the feeling of my body already dulling. The shape of my hands wavered as ice crawled upon my legs. I could not find the will to fight it anymore.

It was alright.

I deserved this.

“Samuel?” said a voice to shatter that idea.

The voice of a woman, but not Pandora's.

She... she was looking at me.

Everything came pouring out.

“I’m here, Mom! I’m so sorry I was so harsh to you! I should have been stronger! Instead, I ended up blaming you! But you’re not at fault! I never thought that for more than a second when I was the single most self-centered piece of trash on the planet! Tom longs for you every day and so do I! You’re our mother and we’ll never stop loving you! I just hope you can one day forgive me for doing this to you! So please, please, don’t give up now! Forget the lies I was weak enough to speak and fight. You can’t give up! You’re stronger than that!”

There was a scrambling noise, small and barely worth notice, but in the oppressive silence that reigned upon the house, it felt the crackling of thunder, cascading in the bouncing of half a dozen pills.

Mom let out a short cry of surprise as she stood, her eyes wide – and so shortly brimming with light. Her bottle of pills had fallen to the side on its own.

From her perspective.

I nearly didn’t hear it, frozen as I was, with one phantom hand lying through the bottle and the table. That word. Broken. Hoarse. Asking so many things.

“Linda?”

Dad had turned and I saw what he had become, what our disappearance had done to him in turn. His cheeks were marred by an unkempt beard, eating at the roughness of his traits. Bags dug dark lines under his eyes, but the ones he trailed on Mom at the moment were vivid, alert.

Hopeful, as they flickered to the spilled medication on the table, and Mom’s lack of attempts to get them back. The hint of a smile that nearly came to his lips broke something in me.

I can't stay. A precious too few seconds were given to me – them –, but no longer.

The coldness was already reaching my waist. My limbs were gone beneath that point. I would fade away, I imagined.

I didn’t want to leave them! Not again! Not so soon! My hands kept going through their bodies. We were literally inches away from each other and they were still beyond my reach!

I'd be gone, and they would never know we were alright. They'd never see Tom again. He'd never...

Tom's tears-stricken face flashed into my eyes and I fell onto my knees screaming. Why?! Why couldn't I have done it?! It should be him here!

“Sam…?”

I looked up so quickly I felt pain spear through my neck, above the faint lullness that was reaching my shoulders. He had stumbled on the word, alert as if he had heard me.

“Dad, you can’t blame yourself for this! Not even gods could bring us back and you were a goddamn better inspiration for me too! When I needed to be strong, it was you that came to mind! You were the best father we could ask for! I’ll make sure Tom grows up into the kind of man you can be proud of!”

His eyes flickered to me, the last of sleep fading away as my ghostly presence seemingly affected him.

“I'm so sorry... I failed you both. I failed Tom and Eric and you and... and this is goodbye.”

“James...” Mom called, as if needing help believing.

My senses dulled and my parents’ forms became blurry, but my heart was burning with a mad hope. I had to say it; I had to get through to them! “Be happy! Please, come to love and appreciate life again! We’ll be fine! We’ll keep each other safe and happy! I’ll do everything in my power so he remembers you, so he grows up like he would have with you! And he’ll be happy! Just promise me you’ll do the same! Promise me you’ll try!”

The cold crawled up my eyes. Things were fading into the darkness. I could no longer see them.

I fought against it, struggling like a madman for just a few more instants with Mom and Dad. A sense of weightlessness hit me, my feet no longer touching ground, a pair of claws around my midsection pulling me back.

I threw my arm forward, just for one last chance to reach to them. “WE LOVE YOU!”

My hands brushed against nothing, the cold reaching the tip of my fingers with one last tingle, one last sensation before it ended.

And in the boundless abyss that swallowed me, the miracle happened, in but the echo of a few words whispered together.

“We love you too.”

Light came.

The Nameless

They floated down to the ground softly, carried by the last of the Elements' powers. The powerful light faded, and on the beach, the rays of dawn bathed them with what should be hope.

As her hooves settled in the sand however, Twilight felt struck by the sensation of emptiness around her. A presence she hadn't known existed until then had left a void around her. Frantic, she twisted around, glancing at her friends who had just reached the ground.

And they noticed how things had turned terribly wrong.

Their lips were moving, but she heard nothing. Their hooves stomped against the ground, her breaths came out ragged and short, her heartbeat still so strong she would have thought it deafening, but she heard nothing.

She tried to shout, as loudly as she could. Nothing came, but the rising panic submerging her. Right where she was, surrounded by her friends, the only true thought to emerge was the oppressive, dominating, all-compassing fear of being alone.

The silence was putting a world between them. When her hoof brushed against Applejack's shoulder to hug her, half her mind revolted against the hole where she should have heard fur stroked. The warmth, she clung to, a lifesaver.

She could not hear her own heartbeat.

The only thing around them was an oppressing silence, and the realization left her breathless.

“I hear them, Twilight.”

The words she had heard had been silly, just a bout of gossip between Roseluck and Daisy. But she had marveled at the sounds she heard simmering under the skin of her lover. And Ve-… he had been embarrassed, so amusingly red in the face, tail twitching.

Tears threatened to spill from her eyes.

And a shadow fell across her fur and the sand.

It should have been over, she thought. All of it. Everything was over. Her thoughts almost fractured in that instant of panic. It should have been over. They had used the Elements and protected Equestria from another threat.

But the mare she was refused, and the horn on her head came alight with strength to rival the sun.

Sand came crashing down into a shimmering pink wall, the shockwave running across its whole surface as it poured back into the beach. Tremors climbed up her legs, and her friends, she realized, felt it. Fluttershy and Rarity jolted and turned around in shock, only just now realizing the danger that had nearly befallen them.

Twilight stared as the grains slid on her shield. Something in her broke. Another spellcaster, she would have tried, instinctively, to feel through the magical signature the strength and weaknesses. But this one, her heart refused. She already knew.

“I'm sorry,” she said, unable to even hear it.

Sand pulled back from them, a faint blue light washing over it, and twisted limbs emerged covered in claws. Eyes that were hole and shadows fixed them with a hateful glare. The monster in the sand seemed to roar, its jaw pulling back so low it reach the ground, its fangs curved to bite. It lunged.

Twilight flinched as it struck her barrier. Mute pain spread from her horn to her head, each hit pulling further into her reserves.

Her friends gathered closer, their fur coming into sight, their hooves trying to support her. Hovering, Dash shouted futilely, her hoof pointing at the sea, and the tingling at the base of Twilight's neck told her as much as she needed to know.

Pulling power from further within, she shot a swift beam of magic to her shield, its shape curving into a bubble like her brother had done so many times before.

She braced herself. For the worse. For the mourning in the spell.

Torrents washed over their heads, casting them in shadows as had the clouds and the sand. Yet the darkness cleared and the light returned without a harm on them. They saw the liquid overhead swirl and pulse and swallow the sand monster.

“Huh?” she meant to say.

Wet, the creature moved in jerky motions, its sand lumped in muddy balls that fell off its main body. It gave off one final cry, one last fruitless strike, and crumbled in the silence.

Twilight first of them stared in shock.

Calx was struggling in Thadal's grip, his wings beating, his horn spewing sparks and bolts. The stallion bit on the colt's horn and the sand finally stilled. Calx bucked stronger, no longer attempting spells or curses. He half-lunged at them, still held too firmly to escape, and he spouted every silent accusation with the very tremble of the ground beneath them.

His tear stricken eyes glared at them all, crimson in fury and sadness.

He fought back as a demon possessed. He fought as nothing else mattered than hurt them as they had hurt...

Ventus.

The name came with a sense of startling clarity.

O-oh Celesta, had they killed him?! The thought struck her with horror so deep, and she recoiled. The Elements… the Elements wouldn't kill him, could they? They had spared everypony else, they wouldn't strike Ventus down so callously!

But if he asked… And the horror sent her mind spiraling. For that split moment, he had grinned with eyes like Nightmare Moon's, he had taunted and provoked them, and every restraint they might have had shattered in the face of disaster.

She could almost feel her crown tilt on her head, a thick red liquid oozing into her mane, her eyes.

Ventus had stopped. Near the edge of the spellcircle, he had stopped and talked with his brother yelling for him. She'd want to take it back, but the power of the Elements had already filled her body, had already flung itself forward. Eager.

Ventus' fate had been sealed the moment the light touched his back. There would be nothing to save him from the Harmony. Still he had seemed at peace. Content to be stopped. Content that his wrongs could be righted by those he harmed. And his mouth had moved in so familiar a shape she had read what she could not hear.

“I'm sorry.”

Her knees buckled. It was too much. She had done her duty. Wouldn't they all be so proud of her? She had done what a princess do and struck down whomever stood against Equestria! She had done it, were they proud?!

She nearly slung the crown into the sea. Damn them, damn him. He'd been content!

And too suddenly, with a noise like a bubble popping, her senses opened again to sounds.

The world span. She could notice once more the cool breeze drafting over the ocean, and the cries of her friends, bursting forth as half-formed statements. From the half-shouts, she heard shock, sternness, relief and joy. Sadness seeping and horror pending. The noises around her brought life rising and she marveled, marveled for just the feeling of grains of sand ground together by their weight.

And there felt the brush of a gentle wing against her cheek.

Something she remembered, something she had loved.

Her head snapped right to the downward slope of the beach, and she saw him as her friends did. They trotted closer to the alicorn splayed over the sand, whose coat had returned to a shining golden color. His eyes were closed.

“SAM!” A small blue cannonball dove into said alicorn’s sides, crying without restraints.

The bearers of the Elements of Harmony, on the other hand, dared not move. The presence of the colt at his sides pushed them back. His weak pounding on his brother's shoulder felt like stabs to them. They'd done the right thing, they could not have done anything else, but for that young colt, that answer would be an insult.

So they stood back and watched, one of them with tremors in her wings and her guts.

Quickly enough, as if awakened by the sound of his brother’s voice, Ventus Vinco opened his eyes, their azure green color reflecting a great confusion.

A flicker of light within flashed, and with it, his entire features seemed that of a stranger. His right front leg moved from underneath him. He brought it to eye level, and he stared at the tip of his hoof, flexing it in little movements, as if to reach for something he did not find. His lips formed a word, a name, all in silence.

His expression collapsed, tears gathered near the corner of his eyes. Then, she noticed the strangest thing, on the twist of his mouth. It almost looked as if… he wanted to smile. But if he meant to, Twilight would never know, for his shoulder shook from another of his brother's hit and Ventus looked down. His wing closed over Calx's back. Only then did her lover come back to life.

“It's okay, Tom. I'm here. I'm okay.”

“I thought… I thought you were...” the colt sobbed. "...gone."

Gone.

I had been. For the longest and the shortest time, truly. I had never even moved, it seemed, except maybe to collapse. But here and now, Calx cried out the fear of losing me. At least this wrong I could correct.

“I'd never leave you alone, squirt. Come on, you know that,” I whispered into his mane.

“T-they hit you with the Elements...” he buried his face deeper against my chest, still so shaken. “Why'd you…? You let them!”

His hoof struck again, hard enough to make me wince. I deserved that. I deserved that and a good deal more, but not now.

“I'd gone too far, lil' brother. It was better that way.” I lifted his chin with the tip of my wing, and smiled, sheepish. “Hey, I'm not too hurt. It's fine. The Elements… the Elements do as they need. I'm okay.”

“Need what?” Calx sniffled, his gaze intense. He trailed after lines in my fur, almost as if he could see the difference newly made. “What did they have to do?”

“Teach me something,” – seal something – “...important. Really, really important.”

A lesson about fear. A lesson about doubt. The Elements forced themselves in and cracked open the darkest recesses of my mind, the part parasited by the visions conjured by Sombra. What I had seen and refused to acknowledged. What came back in moments of anxiety. What told me happiness here was unacceptable.

Two bodies… one male, one female… both were slightly above the ground… a rope…

Strangled noises… a little twitch, but no struggling… a willing choice… one last wheeze…

But this darkness, this… this nameless horror, it couldn’t affect me anymore. Not now, not ever. I knew. The light had chased all fears out of my heart. My mind was finally at peace. The last words we ever spoke to one another were the ones that mattered the most.

Next goal: finding out how to perform the memory spell and giving that to Tom, I thought, gently stroking his mane. That doesn't involve the Elements. It's not a power to tempt.

Struggling, wincing in pain, I leaned forward, bringing my mouth closer to my little brother’s ears, and, from the deepest part of my soul, summoned what little strength I had left to speak.

I whispered four little words, the most precious words in the world, with two voices not mine, and saw the tears pool under his eyes once more. Softly, my hoof brushed against the top of his head, my wing held him as Father would have.

Calx recoiled, staring with wide eyes and mouthing their names without even realizing. It dawned on him, through the shock and the disbelief, what such words would mean, spoken so.

“We…” he choked. “We're not going back, are we?”

The lie jumped at the front of my mind. I turned to that, first and foremost, faced with the sadness seizing my little brother. But I promised. I promised I'd raise him myself into a good stallion.

And good stallions don't lie.

Without a word, I shook my head.

Calx fell on his rump. He seemed so small then. Just a little boy. Not the kid that tried to play it tough all the time, the one that stood before everypony else, ready to take charge and make the most of it. Just… a little colt that understood he wasn't going to see his parents again.

His wail pierced my heart. “I’m sorry! I’m sorryyyyyyy!”

I hugged him close. I brought him against me so the swelling in my throat would not overwhelm me. His pain I felt with such ease, a bleeding wound in my chest and his. He cried, louder, without any restraint or shame. The sadness was so much deeper than that.

“I-I-I didn’t w-want thaaaat!” He sobbed and choked as he held me as strong as he could. “Just… just wanted to have fun here! N-not… forever...”

“It's not your fault.” I told him, and I willed him to believe it. If Harmony was good, it'd let my little brother live without a guilt like my own. “Squirt, it's not your fault.”

He threw back his head to scream. “Mom! Dad!”

“We love you too,” I said again, the exact same tones, the voices distinct.

They were the only words I could give him. He would remember them, he would know them so well the memory would never leave him, not once throughout the centuries. He was loved. By them and by me. Tom would always know.

Again I told him, with their voices, then mine. “It will be okay, I promise.” Again, with soothing strokes on his back, with the most precious words, I told him. “We'll make them proud.” Again. Again until his sobs became weak hiccups, and he sagged against my shoulder, spent.

I wanted nothing more than to do the same. To curl up and forget. I would, once this was over, when we were no longer in the aftermath of a Fall and a purification. They had kept a distance, out of respect, or guilt, but it would not last forever.

I risked a glance at Thadal, whose presence felt the closest.I could have asked him, if I hadn't been able to stand. Too loyal. What did it get him?

And, my voice thick with emotions, I offered him as private an apology I could give. “I'm sorry it was all for nothing.”

Thadal's lips twitched, and became like a small subdued smile. It wasn't happy, nor sad. Just… a smile for me. He nodded, and with that relieved me of half my chains. At least he wasn't lost to me yet.

But others… I thought as I heard a mare take a deep breath and step forward. It was, of course, the one I felt the least ready to face.

“Twilight...”

She frowned at me, her expression carefully guarded, wary of what I might read of it. She was not wrong to do so, but it made my chest heavier and my mood plummet deeper.

Time to face the music, I suppose.

But my heart skipped a beat as a burning wind ran across my fur. I only had time to understand, to see how the few stray clouds that remained in the sky held immobile. My instincts screamed.

He appeared between two blinks, clad in his immaculate white, looking less a battle-hardened warrior than a prim and proper judge.

A sudden breeze pushed Tom behind me, hiding him as best as possible.

Really? He had to come back so soon?! Shouldn't a clash between Elders be a bit more catastrophic and long-lasting than that? Then again, Discord.

As if sensing my puzzlement, Judicium spoke with the hints of a frown. “The Lord of Chaos escaped the moment he sensed the Harmony's power at work.”

My ears ticked at that. Perhaps I had imagined that, but through his tone, through the singular vibration of the words he spoke, I sensed disappointment.

“D-Discord?” risked Fluttershy to my astonishment. Her whole body shook, but she had still stepped forward. Her. Before an Elder.

I wished I could see Judicium's gaze then, but he had turned. Something about the stillness of his person though… Every inch of him remained unmoving, if not immediately ordered, yet, this time, I could not help look at those limbs and wonder why they seemed stiff with more than simple Order.

“He is relatively unharmed,” Judicium replied with a rumbling tone. “You may pick the pieces of his bodies near the Griffon Peak later, if you so desire. He'll stop playing dead eventually.”

The mares turned quite green at that, with the sole exception of Fluttershy herself, who nodded. My eyebrows shot upward near my mane. That wasn't quite what I expected of her. She glanced back to the others, and the Mane Six tensed, still uncertain about this alicorn.

“Do not fear, bearers. I have no ill will towards any of you,” he said in a calm monotone. This, I could believe of him, and the tilt of his head showed deep respect that made my eyes widen. “You are deserving of great rewards for your actions. There are many who owes you more than can be given, by all except me.”

His head turned to each of them in turn, barely a moment stopping to take in each of their images, and his feathers shivered.

“May you find great fulfillment in this, heroines.”

What words of protest they had died out, and my own refused to be formed at the sight of Twilight and the others.

For all of them seemed different. Not in what or whom they appeared to be, but the most startling impression gripped my guts. None of them stood in the way they had when Judicium first looked at them. They had changed before my eyes, without me noticing.

The mares looked… stunned. Surprised, shocked, bewildered. Clearly, I was not the only one confused. For in that split moment, they looked at one another, their eyes asking 'did he also give you…?', and the unease was plain on their faces.

Applejack even called out, “Hey, wait a minute, yeh didn't nee–”

Judicium's head turned, and the rest of Applejack's words cut short. Though, not through any natural means, nor even her will. I'd gotten all the experience I could ever need at telling, and those weren't words she had cut herself off. People's breath went on nonetheless, sometimes a hint of a wheeze as the vocal chords still vibrate. This… this was a stillness so like Judicium, so much as if time itself stopped.

“Alicorn of Wind,” he said, deliberately avoiding the names I had lost. “The time has come for your judgment.”

I forced my breathing to slow down. This'd make it the third time an Elder judged me. A quick glance around gave me little hope that I could dodge this bullet. The sea itself had frozen as surely as Thadal and the others. Waves stood standing, splashes of seafoam suspended in midair.

The time for my judgment indeed.

“Get it over with.”

Judicium took a single step toward me, and the power that radiated off his skin made my fur stand straight. “You have deliberately tried to leave this world through means that would be catastrophic for every other creature left behind. You did this by stealing an artifact of power in the middle of a delicate political situation. You were stopped, in truth, by the arrival of the bearers of Harmony.”

What could I say to that? It was the truth. That was it. The whole truth. What made me claim evil as my nature. They should not have been needed. It should not have taken me remembrance of ponies I liked to have stopped in a project that could threaten so many innocents. But it had.

I lowered my head in penance.

“You were not alone in this,” Judicium continued, and my blood chilled.

“You will not,” I ground out. “I am the one you are after.”

Judicium's voice did not change. “His sins are his to bear and his reasons, just as well, unless he chooses to share them with you.”

I shot up to my hooves and glared. “I don't care what you think, Judicium, I will not let you!” Hot air shifted around him, and the impression that shone from his fiery eyes were a warning. “It was my idea! I did it. I got him to help me, not the other way around. I'm the one that thought of this plan. I am the one that wanted to use the spell.”

For a moment, the alicorn said nothing. Then...

“You lie.”

Cold settled in my stomach. Could he… could he really know?

Judicium closed the distance between us, looking down at me from his full height. He must have been a head taller than Celestia. And his gaze felt like twice her sun and her anger. “You did not want to use the spell in the end. You wanted them to use the Elements of Harmony on you. You wanted it to be over, one way or another. If your bluff had not worked, you would have stood in that circle and waited, until your brother looked at you and the time to choose tore you further apart. You think perhaps now that you would not have done it, but Chaos is everchanging.”

“I knew the girls would use the Elements! They're heroines! They would know what to do when it came down to the right thing! I trusted them!”

“And if Thadal Fragor had followed your cue and activated the spell for you?”

I staggered. The idea of it, how arrogant not to consider… the… What if he had done it? The words clawed at my mind, whispered with a voice like Caelum's. What if Thadal had seen me unable to take that weight, and tried to help me? “I...”

“You considered every life worth the risk of ending this pain you bore. You reduced them to nothings in the name of your Emotions,” and Judicium spat the word, spat on Pandora and her touch, his wings coming ablaze and his eyes clouding over with a dark blue swirl.

For a split second, on the spread of his wings, I saw things as they were meant to be. No alicorns, no spirits demanding answers in Canterlot's ballroom, no threat of the Fallens reborn. I saw… I saw mortals live, and it was beautiful.

Beautiful, and threatened. Threatened by the impulse of one pony, going to speak to another and declare love. Threatened by anger in royalty, when logic dictates calm. Threatened and tainted by the power of an Elder most despised.

“You hate her,” I whispered, and some part of me that had listened to Caelum grinned savagely at the pause it gave an Elder of Order. “You hate that Pandora left her mark on you. She gifted you with righteous anger. There is Chaos in you and you kn-”

The tip of the blade pushed against the skin of my neck. Its metal red, its touch searing, the sword promised an excruciating agony if I dared move. Whatever else I meant to say I bit back. The weight of Judicium's gaze made my body heavy.

But the blade faded away, a single feather on his wings sprouting back.

I looked up, sweat rolling on my spine. “Why?” Not that I am not grateful, but.

“You do not lie,” he forced out in chopped words. For the first time, I could read on his blank muzzle traces of a sneer. “Honesty was my gift to Harmony and I will not harm you for that act itself. Never.”

“If not for this, then for the rest. You've accused me and I don't think I can deny it in the slightest. The cape was on my back, the spell was written with my hooves and my horn. So what do you intend to do with me now?”

“Tartarus,” he said, and with that made the ground beneath me threaten to swallow me whole. “The Prison of Immortals will welcome you, once a year.”

Just as my mind near buckled from the shock and horror, it caught on to the last of his words. “O-once a year?”

“You will not forget.” His glare bore into me as a thousand deaths made one. “Harmony gifted you with peace, as is its purpose. Mine differs. You have committed wrongs that must not go unpunished. You have acted out of love and selfishness together, and both still lingers behind your eyes. When Charon and Styx challenge your brother, how low will you fall?”

I averted my eyes, else he would know. I suspected he already did. Indeed, Pandora had. “Haven't I suffered enough?”

“Pain is not a license for wrongdoing. Had your friend Thunderlane claimed Calx Iugum's life in defense of Rumble's, you would not permit it, nor would you claim it enough that he suffered beforehand. You would call for my cruelest punishments to befell him, rightly so.”

I flinched back, curling my wings against my sides more tightly. The air around the beach felt colder, through no dark powers other than the single image in my mind of a grey stallion and his own little brother. Thunderlane would call for my blood. I'd call for his if our positions were reversed. Some things…

Some things could not be forgiven.

“You will not forget. You are immortal, Alicorn of Wind, and for as long as one who was threatened by you on this day lives, your punishment will continue.”

His last word rang like a chime, and throughout the air, I felt the shiver of nature itself. I stood alone in front of Judicium. I stood on a frozen land amidst frozen ponies, waiting for what I knew was inevitable.

Those were my last instants of freedom, if they could be called that. How long would my punishment even last? The disasters might have struck anywhere in this world. Dragons were amongst the longest living mortals. The eldest had lasted ten thousand years.

Spike will live ten thousand years.

Spike...

Spike will live ten thousand years. A choked noise flew past my lips. Horror clawed deep inside my chest and struck my straight at the heart. For a second, I thought I would throw up, the sheer monstrosity of it turning my stomach over. Spike, the cool little guy, Twilight's brother, Tom's friend, will live ten thousands years, and I would have taken that away!

“Kindness is a virtue of Harmony. You and I are not kind,” Judicium said, and I knew myself an open book. “Every year, you will be called by the chains of the underworld, and you will answer from the rise of the sun to the fall of the moon. Every year, you will understand further what you sought to destroy, in the name of Love no less. Remember, child, remember and let the Truth dawn onto you. Only then will you conquer your torment.”

His hoof struck the sand, and I knew my sentence given.

Cold slithered up my legs, caressing as the coils of a serpent, digging into my muscles and reaching for my bones. I fought my rising panic as the light crawled up my barrel, around my neck, and every muscle in my body had tensed, waiting. The frigid chill sliced into me. Parts of me seemed to break, to fall to the ground while a grotesque mannequin stood.

The world flashed red and black, and dark and damp. I saw fire freezing and ice burning, fangs of stone biting into my flesh and a pale grey light sicken my sight until all naught of beauty could be found. Cries I had never heard before shattered my eardrums, raw and rasping of agony untold. Barks rose to silence them, and those that weren't fell short under a noise of flesh torn apart. Three heads loomed, and an acre liquid dripped from three mouths snapping at me.

I saw Death that never came.

I stumbled forward into a fur that was white and unmoving. Cold sweat slid the curve of my brows, my breath too short to inhale anything. Despite my blurred sight, I let my eyes travel skyward toward a stallion's burning blue eyes.

“It is done.”

His wings pushed me back, though without roughness. One feather that was blindness for the voyeur forced my muzzle down, and with that, I noticed lines of silver cutting through the gold of my fur.

“Oh...” I said with a voice that sounded muffled to my own ears.

The patterns in my fur were of chains. From the tip of my horn, to the sole of my hooves, links of silver-white fur spiraled over my body, as if my bindings had discolored parts my coat. No part of me had been left unmarked, and my steps might drag into the ground to lift the chains and weight off the underside of the land.

Ponies would be puzzled. Spirits would understand on sight.

“--ed to do that!” said Applejack's voice.

With a startle, I remembered the others, and they did me, following Judicium's presence.

Blinking, they stared, doubtlessly taken aback by the sudden change of esthetic of my coat patterns.

From behind me came a voice younger than most.

“Sam?” Tom asked, sniffling and rubbing at his eyes still. “What's with the fur?”

“It… that's…” The words would not come. How could I even tell him that? Here? In front of Twilight and Eric?

My mind caught up with that, and I remembered I had looked away from Judicium. Too slowly, I turned to warn him, to get him to leave or to shield him myself.

Thadal was staring back, his eyes wide in shock. Fear weighted in his gaze, understanding, regretting. His hoof, outstretched, fell back to the ground quietly, while he offered an awkward smile. It was so much like him… And I caught sight of a tuft of darker fur on his cheek. The line cut through his fur, up to his ears and his eyes. Not a chain, but a mark all the same.

Guilt spread through me, fully, so fully I nearly looked away. Judicium had passed his sentence on Eric too. And I hadn't been able to do a thing to help him either.

This was just another one of my failings. If I hadn't gotten involved, he wouldn't… Elders, they wouldn't force him into Tartarus as well, would they?! I… I did this to him...

“Are you a monster?” Judicium cut in, and I felt my heartbeat quicken. “I care not for labels and words you choose for yourself. I know what you are.”

The chains around me seemed to tighten.

And then, Judicium paused midstride, as if struck by a thought, startingly alive in that single gesture, “So do you, for that matter.”

I had no answer to that.

May he leave now, I thought. Justice had been served. I could look forward to a life as a stallion, and put all the rest behind me. He only needed to leave.

In that last moment, Judicium seemed to glance toward Tom, but my wings flared and obscured my brother from that fiery sight. That justice was not for him, not for a foal. Discord's words had struck true, it was the caretaker that was to blame when a child injured themselves on something dangerous.

And Tom was already punished far more than the crime warranted.

Judicium's blank gaze stared, unyielding.

Rage poured into my veins as Father's power had before, burning, agonizing, and with strength to make my sight turn red. In that moment, I saw with clarity myself, unafraid of yet another Elder, standing before him and daring him to even hint at it.

“No living creature will ever say your name again if you try to harm my brother, Judicium Frigus. Be certain of that.” I pointed my hoof straight at his face, fear broken down by the surges of protectiveness curling around my heart. “Your business here is over. Leave. You may be Justice, but I can teach you vengeance.”

Nothing in Judicium's prudent expression changed. Not the line of his brows, not the pull of his lips or the target of his glares. But my chains rattled, and the cries of the damned were like whispers in the back of my mind.

Knots tied my guts well-together.

And every ounce of magic that remained in me prepared to unleash my curse. Elders, my plot! I'd stop him if it killed me.

But the first move… it wasn't Judicium's. It came with a flurry of deep, earthy brown and a wingbeat that carried the scent of the sea. Thadal landed a hoof's length away, the mark upon his face twitching while he looked at the Elder of Order.

“Don't!” I shouted, anger flaring at what that idiot was thinking!

Thadal grinned back, shrugged off the weak push of air I could muster after the Elements drain, and bumped shoulders with me. “You still haven't gotten it, have you? Gee, Sam.”

To make matters truly explosive, I felt Tom's breath jump behind me, just as he tried to dart forward.

“Get back!” I hissed while I attempted to push him back with my hind leg. “Bucking hell, this ain't the time for you guys to be morons!”

The little squirt, of course, circled around my legs, trying despite my best efforts to get in front of us. “You're not letting him hit you again!”

I would have been touched – hay, proud even – if this wasn't bucking Judicium.

My jaw snapped and closed over his tail. Ignoring his startled yelp, I pulled back and lifted him in the air, well intent on forcing him away from the trigger-happy Judge-of-Everything. “Back,” I grunted between my teeth.

“Hey!” rose another voice, this one raspy and harsh. As one, us alicorns turned back to those almost forgotten and saw a mare with a ruby-incrusted necklace and a pair of cyan hooves crossed over her chest. “We might not know the whole thing between you guys, but we're not okay with you going after the little guy either.”

Rainbow Dash, I could kiss you!

Twilight, Pinkie, Rarity, Applejack and Flutershy stood firm behind Rainbow, their stare aimed at Judicium, their Elements' gem glimmering in the dawn's light. A silent challenge radiated from the mares, and the sight of them united without a hint of doubt left me nearly gaping in awe.

Something in Judicium's posture shifted. A hint beneath the cold and unmoving exterior. The air around his knees trembled, as if he wanted to kneel. Slowly, his head dipped down in acknowledgment of their wills.

The gaze of blue flames flickered to me. Not to Calx, not to Thadal. Me.

“You are right, my business has ended. Yours, however, begins,” were the last words I ever heard of Judicium before he faded. And yet, despite the immense relief, I stared at the spot he had stood upon.

Had that been a smirk pulling at the Elder of Justice's lips?

I still pondered the thought when Applejack came by and got me to follow them back the way they came. Calx fell to the ground with an indignant yelp. Twilight's magic flashed pink.

The Wind and the Sea later washed away the circle of runes, as if nopony had ever set hooves there.

–

The heat was suffocating. It tainted the room with a faint red veil, truly fitting with the finery hanging from its stony walls, bouncing off the leather covers of the massive tomes that fitted the shelves. An unlit candle on the chest in the corner of the office wobbled, unstable. In such circumstances, truly, I could wonder who in the Lands Below had seen fit to gift this room with a chimney.

I shifted in my seat, the cup of tea before untouched, my hooves rubbing against the pale markings on my fur. Only half of it due to my unease towards them. Quite frankly, my stomach turned at the simple thought of my presence here, in the rays of her sky-lit mane, and the beads of sweat that rolled on the back of my neck did not help at all.

“It seems to me as if we are destined to keep having these meetings in my office, Ventus.”

Celly took a sip of her steaming hot tea, and her features seemed serene, if only for a small time.

Despite myself, I smiled at her words.

“You know, I was about to make a quip about that myself.” I held back an awkward chuckle, though my tail flicked to the side before I could stop it. Buck me, this is like being in front of Mother again. “W-well, enough of that, go on, when is the public lynching going to happen?”

She raised a delicate eyebrow at this, utterly unimpressed.

“You have caused a great deal of chaos, Ventus, that much is the absolute truth. Some of our more powerful guests noticed, indeed, the troubles you were up to last night. In fact, most of the spirits you met hours before came straight to us.” And there came back the absurd sensation of smallness that came by being scolded by her. At some point, sometime, Celly had to have been a mother. She isn't wrong though. What an impression that must have left on Coyote and Raven... “They did not know any of the details, though they speculated you wished to make a display of your power after they had bruised your ego. Luna and I managed to calm their tempers in due time, but I know for a fact Minos still believes you a hot-headed youth.”

The knot in my guts untied and a genuine grin showed on my face. “You don't say? Me? Hot-headed? What, did he say stubborn too?”

Celly. Choked. In her cups.

Glorious.

Blueblood had been right, I could indeed get Celestia to snort in her tea and other such undignified reactions. Hot damn, I would abuse the crap out of this power!

...If I ever got to speak so casually with her again. That thought crashed the valiant good mood that had tried moving me, and I let my smile fall as Celly composed herself. It might be the last time. For all I knew, one of those folded scrolls held a decree of my exile to the Griffon Kingdom.

My heart ached in my chest. If… if at all possible, I would want for my relation to Celly to survive. It did not seem very likely, but that childish little wish felt a soothing balm on my heart.

After a moment of silence, I said, biting my lips, “you didn't answer me though. Those are only the powers behind the foreign dignitaries. What of the rest? What do the ponies of Equestria think of me and Thadal now?”

Celestia lifted an asinine magazine from under the pile on her desk and slid it over to me. “You've been voted First on the Teen Hearthrob top ten list for two of Equestria's Letters publications.”

My mouth clamped shut loudly.

...What?

When had ponies taken that picture of me pouting?! A-and that other one, that was at the ball, and… okay, yeah, I'd been wandering the gardens after Celly had made her request. That would explain the melancholy. Still, there is shallow and then SHALLOW! How could anypony ever focus on my looks instead of… of...

In the corner of my eye, I caught hints of her magic's golden shine as it lifted her teapot and tilted it. My mind so blanked, I could not help but focus on the sound of liquid swishing and swirling in the porcelain receptacle. So… so relaxing, and…

What the buck?

“Unfortunately,” and Celestia spoke with much mirth, “you have only placed fourth in Cosmare's rankings. Their demographic is, of course, slightly older than your average fans. They think you too young.”

No. A strangled noise came out of my throat, stopped short by the realization. And I could not believe her. She… she... “You haven't told anypony yet.”

Did she want me to announce my Fall myself? Nothing else made sense. Was I to stand on the balcony overlooking the courtyard and say 'almost killed you all, sorry, kaythanksbye!'?

“No,” Celestia confirmed rather casually. “Besides the obvious few, your actions were kept a secret from everypony.”

“I don't deserve to just–!”

A booming burst of light snapped the words in half. My mind screeched as heat washed over my fur, and it took everything I had not to run. Shades of fires seemed to dance in Celestia's mane and the look she cast upon me seared through my flesh as surely as Judicium's had.

“I care little about what you believe you deserve, Ventus!” she snipped, and I flinched. Her tone grew gentler. Patient, enough to calm my maddened heartbeat. “I have spent a thousand years ruling this country, and some principles of Order I find… counterproductive. Some things must be kept hidden for the greater good. Do they deserve to know? Certainly, but that alone does not justify the very dangerous political upheavals that would push onto my country, Ventus. We claimed you as our close relation and if your actions were made public, they would demand more than we could afford to give. Thus, the truth shall be kept quiet for their sake.”

I… I could begin to understand better. Yet my gaze darted to the silver chains embedded into my flesh.

Celestia's eyes followed mine, and she nodded. “Spirits will understand these marks upon your fur, but mortals won't, not so easily. You have already been punished by Judgment and healed by Harmony. Do you believe me a vindictive mare to add to that?”

Once, the question would have stung. I knew her better than that, and I believed she knew me. Her purpose was different. Let it be quiet. Let the evils lay to rest and no longer torment the days. And she was right, my guilt did not warrant endangering anypony else. But what I saw was the anguish behind the fires, the sorrow in the light, and such suffering sprang from my doing. No, no I did not believe her a vindictive mare, but I believed her a mare, not just this distant figure on a throne.

“I… I hurt you, Celly!” I struck the ground, feeling the throes of this familiar and foreign anger. “I spat on the chances you gave me. I abused your goodwill, and you sweep it under the rug! How?! How can you let yourself be hurt with impunity?! That's not right!”

Celestia reached for my hoof and grasped it within hers. Her sweet and gentle touch brushed upon the markings on my fur, and yet that little sent jolts of electricity up my limbs.

She seemed sorry for that, her mouth forming a small, saddened smile. “I believe you have already shown your willingness to atone.”

“Why?” I repeated, a weak whisper. “I rejected everything you did for us.”

“You did. And I understand why you did it.”

It broke my rage, splintered it with a strength that left me wavering. Scorn, anger, hatred, I'd take them instead of this… this kindness, this generosity. Why? Why was it that everypony I wronged showed themselves so understanding? We had fought mere hours ago! I tried to strangle her!

“Celly...”

“Mayhaps I wish I could have done the same, so long ago.” My eyes widened at the confession. Celestia's banishment of her sister had been praised for centuries as the epitome of her duty. Magister would have had a seizure hearing this. And judging by the suddenly knowing light in her magenta eyes, she had guessed my thought. The hint of a smile lingered briefly, and disappeared in a sigh. “No, do not worry for the Teacher. It would ultimately be a lie, but I have dreamed of it, dreamed of being put on trial for trying to protect Luna. I did my duty, but for a long time, I regretted it. The first few years… I was a bitter mare.”

I laughed at how ridiculous that sounded. That was one thing I could not picture her as. “Obviously, you got better.”

She smiled with the inkling of amusement in her eyes. “So will you, Ventus.”

I blinked. She got me there. I wanted to laugh. Short and to the point, with words I could not deny so easily. Whelp. She could still run circles around me in our conversations. And such familiarity brought back a warmth in my chest.

“I'll work on it.” It should be scary, but a mute feeling at the back of my mind didn't allow me to delve too deep. The future was the future. I would worry of it when it came to pass. “So, if not a public execution, what am I to do?”

The corners of her mouth tightened at my jape. Quite as far as I could remember, there hadn't been one in quite a few centuries. But, well, first time for everypony. Celestia however did not rise to the occasion, not this once, and instead glanced to the opened skies outside.

“It is a great shame, but you have been fired from your job on the weather patrol.” She slid a scroll on the desk toward me, and I unfolded it with my telekinesis. “There was an emergency summon for weather ponies all across Equestria, to fight the storm that blanketed the land.”

I blinked back in shock. The thought of my job had stayed so far in the back of my mind that I had quite forgotten it might have been on the line. To be fair, the possibility of my head rolling on the floor or just being given as an offering to a couple of power-hungry foreign authorities to do as they will… well, it may have overtaken my concerns of showing up on time at work.

Taken my shock for a need for explanation, Celestia spoke with a neutral tone, “Cloud Circle failed to report for duty, failed to answer any summon and was nowhere to be seen during the whole crisis. It was compounded when you didn't show up the following morning for some disaster relief.”

My eyebrow rose in suspicion. “There wasn't any property destruction, Celly.”

A small smile tugged at Celestia's lips, and I found myself wondering what thought danced behind her eyes. She leaned back into her seat, one of her wing flicking toward the sole window of her office. The clear blue sky contrasted well with the memories I had of mere hours before.

“That is the amusing thing about mortals, you will find, Ventus.” Her magenta gaze darted toward a tapestry depicting ponies and griffons warring. “In the time it takes you to blink, they will have grown used to the kindest luxuries. And you will find yourself doing everything in your power to keep it that way.”

“So, it's more hysterics than anything?” I laughed, because well, I could actually imagine my now ex-boss' face at the mere thought of uncontrolled weather. Hay, now I felt even worse for Thunderlane and the others. What a shitty night that must have been...

“The exact words, as you can see yourself,” she pointed out half with humor, “were that you couldn't be relied on during crisis time despite it being a staple of your contract. Nopony were hurt in Ponyville, except a few pegasi that got sprained wings it seems.”

“Alright, I see why he'd do that,” I sighed. No use to fighting the point. Who would come to my defense knowing I had created the weather disaster in the first place? “Where does that leave me?”

“It leaves you with something of a fresh start.” To my puzzled frown, she answered, “There will likely be an announcement that you have publicly renounced your claim as a prince of Equestria, letting you take the status of normal citizen in exchange for all the privileges and responsibilities it entails.”

I recoiled in shock. Had… had Twilight talked to her? She must have. This… the way she said it, I could only see the truth of it.

Celestia knew what that meant to me. She knew, and she kept her face carefully neutral.

“In the eyes of the foreign powers, you will become equal to Thadal Fragor, meaning that they will seek to gain your allegiance, and if not that, then your neutrality. I trust that you will not plot against your country.” Twice, remained unsaid.

I could not begrudge that. I could not even be annoyed, as the emotions threatened to choke me. Elders, that mare, she… she still cared. The chains on my fur felt lighter as the weight they had asked me to shoulder waned. I looked at her, truly looked at her for the first time since this conversation had started, and she nodded. Do you always forgive so freely, Celly? Truly?

“Since you are now free to do so, I am pleased to inform you that the Royal Guard is always looking for new recruits. They have already accepted your candidacy, and expect you to show up by the end of the week.”

The scroll unfolded before me, and I saw in plain ink my name signed on the bottom of the contract. The rest of the terms merged together in a somewhat shambled mess. Terms and agreements, conditions, salaries. I had a few years ahead of me to fulfill it without possibilities of promotion, then stay on reserve.

I snorted, grinned and rubbed my eyes, because there was the cousin I knew. Everything so neat. So elegant. Tidied up for all ponies to just jump into place and do their part. I wasn't out of her grip so easily. Only a fool of a ruler would let an alicorn slip past them. Well-played…

And yet, my amusement was not hers. Something of sadness flashed in her gaze. It must have been a tiring game to play. Mine had been, and it was so much smaller than hers. Why did she seemed to ask for forgiveness with that silent look? Didn't she get it? I understood her reasons! I hated them, I never wanted to follow them, but honestly, I could see the weight of a kingdom on Celly.

“Celly, it's fine.”

She did not meet my gaze. “Calx Iugum will be allowed to keep studying in Ponyville. I understand he has made friends over there, including with dear Spike.”

The room suddenly became icy. I forced the words out of me, at great efforts, as if to delay a reply that would shatter what little remained of my world. “...Will we be separated?”

“Ventus...”

Panic seized my heart, and I stumbled forward, one hoof on her desk, every inch of me shaking, to better plead. “Please, Celestia, I can't leave him. I promised I would–”

I flinched at the taste of scented soap pushed against my lips. She looked over me with a serene smile, her wing extended and her feather tip almost tickling my mouth. “You will only be as separated as you will allow yourselves to become. Our training regiments may start at the break of dawn, they do not extend till dusk. For cadets, at least. If you wish to make the trip every single day, there will be nothing to stop you.”

I almost burst out laughing. She had that much right, of course. Canterlot wasn't very far from Ponyville. It'd take me perhaps ten minutes to make the trip, tired. That simple thought sent relief washing over my every limbs.

I breathed out a sigh. The royal guard. I could work with that. My temper probably would get me in trouble once in a while, but that'd be on me. And if by some miracle I learned how to keep it in check, then all the better.

Elders knew it got me into troubles an awful number of times.

I can live with that… I thought, with a strange sense of marvel to it. I could live with it. I could actually look toward the future and see something free of the fear of failure and the constant threat of corruption.

My mind supplied me with an image of a bunch of chitin-covered equines, and a bunch of guards tied by lumps of goo. Alright, so maybe a little corruption and failure, but those don't really compare.

Sensing that our purpose here had been mostly accomplished, I gave Celestia one last look.

“What about Thadal?”

She sighed. “I cannot quite make the same offers to him than to you, seeing as I would like to preserve his image of a non-affiliated alicorn. He has received some strong suggestions, but I cannot force his hooves. You may advise him on what to do. I believe he might need some help grasping the influence our species inherently possess.”

Solemn, I nodded. We would figure something out. He had many paths opened to him, a good deal more than I did. His involvement had been hidden far better, as it was not his power that clouded Equestria's skies. Between the two of us, we'd find something he could appreciate.

“I'll take my leave.” I rose from my cushion, and hiding the amusement a thought brought me, “You probably have a whole lot to deal with today.”

Her eyes widened, if only at the sheer audacity. Coincidentally, one of the cushions collided with the back of my head. The efforts it took me to restrain that childish cackle…

It'd be fine. I would serve my time, here and in Tartarus, and it'd work out. Tom would keep his friends, have fun around Ponyville and the rest of Equestria, grow up a fine stallion that would make everypony proud.

I gave my words.

The door to Celestia's office closed behind me with a heavy turn of metal. Colder air filled the antechambers, likely from the lack of Celestia radiating heat all around. And yet, a chill climbed up my hooves at the sight of one dark blue mare rather.

Luna glared. The blue of her eyes had darkened to shades of the late night. Hints of magic swirled near the end of her horn, but no spark ignited it. Her lips trembled. In indignation? In regrets? What things she had to say she wouldn't share with me.

And the part of me that remembered the lance of ice sinking in my shoulder to the sound of howled accusations kept my mouth shut. So silence remained between us, awkward and thick on our coats till Luna had enough.

She huffed and smacked me in the face with her tail when she left. That, at the very least, had the merit of telling me where I stood neatly.
Rubbing the tip of my muzzle, I tried to ignore the trace scents of blackberries. That detail struck me as quite silly, and yet my mind lingered on it. That wasn't something I expected to learn about her, or anything at all. Luna and I had never attempted to get closer. Indeed, our only interactions had been forced. But we were cousins too, our blood relation the same as between Celestia and me.

Maybe there could have been something…

With a sigh, I made my way out of the antechambers, nodding as I passed by the two stationed guards. Likely aware of the changes, the two returned the acknowledgment, but without quite the fervor they had toward royals. Strangely, that did made a little claw pinch at my heart.

“Good day, sirs.”

They grunted a reply, and I was off into the hallways with the painted windows' light for sole guide.

The Castle felt quite empty for this time of the day. Of course, the number of voices I could hear in its sheer vicinity contradicted that feeling pretty thoroughly. With so many ambassadors visiting, the serving staff had devolved into a well-oiled, hysterical machine.

I had been part of it, in a way. Being shoved at the top hadn't done great favors for my sense of self-importance, it seemed. At the very least, I had treated them well. I could only hope Blueblood would…

For a moment, I stayed silent, my ears twitching. Then, I walked at a slightly faster pace, grinning.

“You will sit down and take the ten minutes I requested to rest. As my personal attendant, your obvious fatigue is unacceptable. And I tire of those imported Swish cheese crackers, eat them.”

So that hadn't been a complete waste. It would probably be smart not to be in his line of sight for some time. He did have some measure of control over the guards, and I did not fancy kissing his hooves all that much.

Not for the first time, I surprised myself with a pang of regret at losing my status in Canterlot. Things were changing. It was fine, things were changing, as was natural after a botch attempt to get everything back the wrong way.

Still…

I came to a spiraling flight of stairs. Without missing a beat, I entered it, letting its shadows wash over my fur and the chains. The slivers of light that filtered through the few windows made every line of silver so much more obvious, made every one of them whisper a day just to my ears. And yet, that distraction did not affect my balance. How easy this trot was. Had I tried this on my first day, I would have fallen face first against the stone every two steps. The simple motion made quick work of the stairs themselves, but pulled a few stray thoughts further from the back of my mind. I almost wasn't allowed to peek there, but the truth was that it did not move my heart. I had yet to admit it to the others.

I only remembered the light. In my mind, the small kitchen deployed from my memories, everything in place, both of them looking back to me, to my outstretched hand. And the words, the precious words again.

But… beyond that? I knew of my past with Tom and Eric. Calx. Thadal. The names still shambled. I was careful to keep to the human ones, even if they evoked far less to me than them.

No part of me at war, but I had yet to claim a name for myself. I… I could do that later...

“Little corny.”

My legs froze. Elders' sake... where did he come from?! The beginning of a snarl pulled at my mouth, and I pushed it down at great efforts. Yet that spark of fire waited, an illusion of calm ready to take over at any second.

Discord's mouth crushed a handful of popcorn. “I really do look forward to your groveling.”

I rounded on him, the fiery impulse pushing words out of my mouth before I could stop them. “I will not grovel before you!”

He stared nonplussed, hovering above the ground, his back against a window. The halo of light gave him a shadowed silhouette.

Discord chuckled, snorting behind one hand, lifting the other high above my head. The guard's helmet shone in the midday light. He tilted it just so, and I flinched back when the golden reflection blinded me.

“I never said you would grovel before me, little corny.” He shoved the helmet onto my skull, making me flinch. “I foresee a great deal of groveling through the muck in your future. Whether it be before a big musclebound stallion or a sweet librarian, you better find protective gear for your underside.”

He blinked out of reach as my horn swung right where his paw had been.

“Testy.” He snickered. “Aren't you going to say 'thank you' after I distracted dear old Judy?”

My mind buckled on the sheer audacity. The idea was so outrageous!

I sputtered, “Y-y-you did it so I could not hate you!”

But even to my ears, that sounded a feeble excuse. The words were a golden plate intended to shield my pride, what little righteous anger I knew I had access to. And yet, gold was a soft and unsteady metal.

Discord's grin stretched even wider. He ran his claw along the underside of my chin, the sharp tip pulling a minute droplet of blood. “No, I did it so you could not hate me without feeling guilty about it. The girls would not have had a chance to use the Elements if not for me.”

My heart skipped a beat, images of the rainbow coming down again, and Pandora and… and h-home…

My hooves dug into the stone, as the guilt and the anger warred inside me. “You're infuriating! You're just twisting the truth around to manipulate me!”

A flash of white light blinded me. The weight of the helmet on my head disappeared. But, blinking back dots of blindness, I noticed that Discord was holding a black pot. Okay, I saw where that was going. No need to conjure a kettle from nothingness to illustrate the point.

“Oh buck you to Friday and back...” I waved a hoof in the hope he would get the hint. He could just up and leave and get eaten by a bugbear for all I cared. But no. He was Discord.

Oh, he relished in my anger. The troll. “I did say I would pay you back.”

My legs stilled. He was staring at my back. I could feel his gaze on me. Curious, wondering what I'd do. He loved to be surprised. Wasn't it the whole point of the spell? To create delicious chaos he would only be distantly responsible for? Well, on that level, I could admit I delivered.

“Point taken...” I patted his shoulder as I passed him by. He had no words to that. And even less so when I added, “Thank you for your help.”

Anger was overrated anyway. It didn't change a thing in the long run.

“Huh,” he muttered. His paw stroke his chest, where, presumably, his heart might be. For good measure, he pulled out something lumpy and black, which then pulsed with a slightly stronger red light. “That's odd.”

“Just take it, Discord!” I called back as I left him to his miniature existential crisis.

Could I just be left alone? Tom and Eric probably were worried sick right now, waiting to see if I would get the proverbial banhammer in the muzzle. Only the thought of being mistaken from an escape attempt prevented me from leaving at a full gallop.

And perhaps, the hope that they would have left by the time I arrived. My ears ticked with the presences of their whispered words, ones that I wished I could ignore, but they were straight in my path and…

“You forgave Discord, didn't you? You forgave Luna. Why can't you forgive him?!”

My pulse beat against my temples. You don't need to do that!

A door slammed.

I turned around the corner.

Six mares stood right in front of the chambers that had been assigned us.

I very nearly made my way back to Celestia's office. I could not do this. Pandora's laugh, I could not! But Pinkie's swiftness knew no equal, and she pointed straight at me before my legs could move.

“There he is!” she said, and the others snapped to attention.

Though Rainbow Dash and Applejack seemed ready to give me a piece of their minds – and the others' eyes held much the same accusation –, Rarity, on cue from Twilight, led them away from the hallway.

Not that far though, I noticed with a small grin as their hoofsteps stopped abruptly after taking the first corner.

Quickly enough, that bout of joy shriveled up, as one glance toward Twilight's face made me wince. “Twilight...?”

Her gaze pinned me in place, looked at me as little more than a stranger.

There were so many things that came to mind. So many things to tell her, in the span of so little, I could not get my mouth to open, not my tongue to move. From the treachery to the manipulation, how much had I twisted what she held dear? What was there to say then? In truth, perhaps there could only be one.

“I'm sorry.”

Twilight stared. Just a moment, the depth of her eyes seemed like a sky of stars with the very spark of magic.

And her hoof came down on the ground hard. She trembled, and flinched back when I hesitantly reached for her. Then, in the linger of her eyes, in the shards of steel that appeared, it became a truth of crystal clarity.

“I forgive you,” she said, quickly, almost ashamed. Other words wanted to come out. Berating, perhaps, for the fire that seemed to take hold of her. Anger, anguish, something so troubled, and she only said “I forgive you” without warmth.

My heart sunk.

She turned her back to me, but not without a tear.

And I… I could not chase after her. I could not force her to wait. The last of her dark purple tail disappeared around a corner, my eyes trailing after her.

I stood alone.

“Fair enough.”

Epilogue

Before the end: The Boy in the Dark

Bucking plot, Sam would have said… then told him “Horseapple! Don't repeat that around Mother, squirt, or I swear!” Usually, that sort of thought made him giggle, but he really didn't want to these days, and Sam, well, he was the whole problem.

They'd talk about the Elements of Harmony. Tom had been ready to yell at them all for what they did to Sam, so they'd sit together in their living room, with Eric helping retell the story. It had been okay, until he'd said why he had let the Elements hit.

“Because if we had managed… if what we did worked, our friends here might have died.”

Tom hadn't gotten it. It just had been impossible. In that one moment, his big brother had looked like a stranger.

“T-then why did you try in the first place...?”

Tom had seen through the fake smile then. It was one of the worst Sam ever put up. It was sad all over, and he might as well have cried – not that he would, cooler than that an' all.

“Because Mom and Dad missed you. And you missed them.”

Sam had been right. It got even worse after… well, when he'd been told they wouldn't get back home. It was impossible.

He felt a bit empty when he looked around and he remembered Mom or Dad weren't going to be there. Once in a while, he just… he wanted Mom to tuck him in or to play with Dad. Sam did both. He did everything, tried real hard, but it wasn't the same...

He missed them…

But if he cried, Sam showed up, all concerned and nice and… and… he didn't like making his big brother worry. Felt really unawesome when he saw the bags under Sam's eyes. The mornings, it was just Eric. Sam was always in Canterlot by the time he woke up.

Even he could tell it was getting bad.

The chains that dumb guy had drawn all over Sam's fur sometimes changed a bit. Like they were tighter. He hated how they looked around Sam's throat. He could swear it would twitch and squeeze whenever.

He hated those things. What gives?! They were so unfair!

When it looked like more silver than gold, Sam disappeared for the day, and it was Eric that looked after him during that time. He'd almost told him, when Tom asked. It was obvious from the look on his face that he had wanted to. In the end though, the colt had been sent back to bed without an answer.

The next week, Sam got nightmares. Bad ones.

They didn't think he heard. T'was hard not to, but he'd pretend to stay asleep. Sam had whispered something like “Damn, I hope I didn't wake him up.”

When Eric had argued about telling somepony, a therapist or hay, maybe even Celestia if that was what it took, Sam had argued about the money and the trust that required. Tom had been angry. It was stupid! Why wouldn't he just want to get better?! He hadn't jumped in though, 'cause, okay… the money thing. It was his fault a bit, maybe.

He'd told them, Celestia and the others in Canterlot. “If Sam's not a prince, I'm not a prince either!”

Their cuz had nodded, and he'd dropped down the title or whatever it was. The money hadn't felt very important. Diamond Tiara had looked at him weird after she heard of it. He was sure she was gonna be mean about it, but she never really said anything. That was good, 'cause he hadn't been in a mood to let it slide.

He had real important stuff to do.

It was his turn to save his brother. No matter what it took.

Aftermath one: The Prince of Fools

He felt like such a fool.

He was one.

That morning had been one of the most surreal in years. The night before, he had been enjoying an evening with the bearer of Generosity. They had spun over the dance floor, before Princess Twilight's dragon assistant had requested one out of his partner. He had bowed out, and allowed it despite his want for more.

Going to bed, there was nothing making him think the world would turn upside-down yet again.

He distinctly remembered waking up, feeling hopeful that Lady Rarity might accept to have breakfast with him in the royal dining hall. Granted, she would have been invited regardless, but if he could ask her first…

His guards informed him that she, as well as the rest of the bearers had left during to night to fight a threat to the kingdom.

And his fr--… mentor had been the threat. The gaudy cape Prince Calx had showed up at court with, stolen. The stars hidden by storm clouds as far as the eyes could see. Disasters possibly ravaging his beautiful country.

His cup of tea had exploded against the wall. His favorite one even. The guards hadn't reacted to his threats of demotion for such defamation of the royal family. The answers hadn't changed despite all his royal blood.

“You lied!” he accused, and he wasn't sure which pony he meant.

The Alicorn had left the docks the very same day. It hadn't returned till a week later, when the whispers had finally made it clear they wouldn't leave his mind.

It always seemed to have been the same words.

Not a good stallion. Not a good prince. Not a good pony. He had claimed it many times, and it had always felt true to him. Before in regard to his unseemly arrogance and behavior, after… well, there really was no need to illustrate the thought further. They were keeping him hidden again, and this time he wasn’t exactly sure where they’d sent Ventus Vinco.

He nearly slipped into old habits. He did, somewhat. The engineers were the victim of his frustrations for the first two days, then they sat him down and talked.

“A prince can be afraid. A prince can feel lost.”

What did you know about being a prince? You were never one.

He was following the teachings of a monster. He should have stopped. Truly, it had been proof of his rightfulness all along. He’d seen it, from the very beginning, him, not his aunts, not his cousin, and certainly no other noble!

But one of those same engineers had saved his life. The gratitude he felt had not dimmed in the slightest, and no, he could not pretend that treating any of his employee like they were beneath him appealed to him.

He really should have stopped acting as he was, Blueblood mused once more, helping a maid steady a shelf with a little burst of magic. He then dismissed her words of gratitude, though not unkindly, perhaps a few words of advice if he could be so qualified. It would be a shame if she were so injured.

His princely blue eyes trailed after her, trailed after the smile in the corner of her lips and the hoof over her chest, and he shook his head.

He really should have.

But he was a fool.

Aftermath two: The Betrayed Mare

He was often there in the middle of the street, little beads of sweat making his coat glisten as he trotted. After some time, she had noticed his frame growing thicker, bulkier, not unlike Shiny when he first entered the guard. It made her giggle back then, when her father started complaining that his son would be bigger than he. Now, there was no laughter to be heard. The way her heart turned at the sight… it was so unfair, she thought.

Everyday of the week. Everyday with the same colt in tow. Sometimes, she could hear the younger one complain about school being boring, with perhaps a more legitimate claim to this than most. One of his essays lied on her desk waiting for her corrections. It was fascinating, in a way, how in-depths his knowledge of the soil and rocks went. Pinkie's sister had given a glowing review to his essay on rock farming techniques.

What would Ventus tell her about the skies if she asked…

Every time the urge came, her mind went to a dance above the clouds. The touch of wind over her fur, stroking her face, her chest, her wings. He would show her the world from the eyes of a true alicorn. He would whisper it to her with his deep, gentle voice.

But she never left the library when he crossed the street.

Every time, he looked both happy and sad. He smiled, all the time, rivaling even Pinkie Pie in that department, but it didn’t always reach his eyes. Most of the time, they held a strange emptiness, a piece of him gone missing. Ventus Vinco seemed still so lost.

But he tried when somepony looked his way. Ponies smiled back, but a few would hurry along the way. It wasn't always a convincing smile. Mostly, from what she could tell, the genuine ones he kept for Calx and Thadal Fragor. And Thunderlane, surprisingly enough.

She didn't want to know what she would do if he smiled her way.

“C-come on, Twilight! You love him, don’t you?” She startled, and rushed to hide the blush that Spike did notice. “You were looking at him again! So why don’t you try to talk to him? He’s still there!”

“I can't, Spike. You know what he did!” Her voice lashed like a whip, harsh, sudden. “I can't trust him. I can't trust...” Myself, she almost said.

Twilight turned to her books in a flurry of purple feathers and fur, her scowl as if set in stone. The base of her horn, right where her crown was meant to rest, burned. It had taken a word. Just his voice. And the greatest magic in the land had been subverted.

But you knew he was not serious.

His eyes had scared her that night. No, not serious, not inflexible. But angry, terrified, disgusted. And once, once so cold that her heart had seized in panic that, maybe, maybe she had misjudged him. She had known the truth of it too late, when he stopped short of ever reaching the circle.

The Elements of Harmony could have sealed him away. It could have taken a thousand years before Ventus was allowed freedom again.

He played her into blasting him.

“Give up, Spike. It is over between us. We've had to choose, and we did. There's nothing more to it.”

“Yes, but… don’t you love him?”

Celestia be good... The memory of their only night together still haunted her. While their kisses had felt like whirlwinds at times, they had lain in tenderness. Slowly, gently, both of them too scared they might lose one another otherwise. They had been one. His warmth lingered over her skin, his voice husky in her ears.

He asked her to weight it against her family, her friends, herself.

“Will you follow me?”

And she saw Cadence again, radiant, Shining by her side. And the announcement… The hoof on Cadence's belly reminding her of the precious, priceless lives that could have been lost. If they hadn't showed… If they had been late...

“I… I have to prepare for my appointment with the yak prince, Spike. Princess Celestia told me his people are very proud, and I cannot insult him by refusing to entertain his courtship, at least.”

Her little brother frowned, his arms folded over his chest. “That wasn't an answer.”

No, it hadn't been. Talking, speaking, telling, listening… They were different things now. She would never be able to quite forget what it meant to verbalize a thought now. There would always be a chance, there would always be the possibility of him hearing.

Her throat tightened, but even she could not pinpoint why. It would have been prudent, wise even, to place wards, to study the phenomenon until it could be understood under all its forms. Oh, yes, it would have been wiser, smarter and all around practical, to simply reply with a few written words. She didn’t have many to give back to her little brother.

It would have been a far wiser alternative.

Her eyes finally leaving the window and the outside, she turned to him and sighed.

“Yes, I do.”

Not staying longer to see the slitter of hope in her little brother’s eyes, Twilight trotted back to her room and locked the door.

Aftermath three : The Childless

A small box, amidst shredded brown paper, lied between the driver’s and the passenger’s seat. On the grey leather, it contrasted strongly, its cover showing a collection of characters of pastel and flashy colors.

The bearded man let his pale blue gaze wander over the childish forms, fingers clenched over the package's buyer address. He had looked it over, suspecting perhaps a mistake in the delivery. But the name that he had found through the website had reminded him of the same young man, begging to be listened to.

‘Season Four’

“Come on, Linda. We have to be there early if we want to get to my sister’s apartment. The movers' truck will not wait forever.”

His wife startled, looking back from the now empty living room to him. Her coat closed well over her form, she rose her hand behind the door frame.

Linda Miller placed her finger on the switch, lingered, and darkness filled the house.

Author's Note

That's it. It's over...

Whew... so much emotion here. And just a vague feeling of emptiness. It's the first time I finish a story that isn't a one-shot, and that I don't want to write a sequel yet. I have actually written the whole thing, from start to finish. It took a long time, but it is done.

Sam's story is over, guys...

Was it up to standards for you?

Disappearance

“You’re crazy, Sam.” She giggled. “You know that, right?”

“Well, maybe.” I took her hands, bringing her closer to me. “Is it crazy that I want to kiss you?”

She giggled again, with a light rose coloring her cheeks. Slowly, she freed herself from my grip, sending a pang of disappointment in my chest.

“Yes, but I like that kind of crazy.” She leaned closer, cupping my head into her hands.

My eyelids started to drop, my attention entirely on her pink, soft lips.

I felt some heat rise in my chest, as my heart started to go wild. At this distance, my senses were starting to get overwhelmed by new details about her. Her hair brushed off against my shoulder, soft and carrying a sweet flagrance of flowers.

“Sam…” she whispered.

“What?” I replied, breathless.

“SAM, WAKE UP!”

My eyes shot open. I was sprawled across my bed.

“M-Mom?”

There, she was, in all her morning glory, hair disheveled and wearing her night jacket.

Okay, I was really pissed off. She wasn’t that adamant against me bringing a girl home, right? Even in my dreams, I couldn’t date, because of poor naïve Tom who’d be traumatized?

The little squirt better not have finished the cereals again.

“Get out of bed, now, Samuel!” my mother hissed at me, with incredible urgency.

I blinked. I hadn’t noticed, but she looked off. This was a Saturday morning, right? I hadn’t forgotten any events like hosting a football game viewing or something… Why did she seem so frantic?

“W-what’s wrong?” I asked, getting out of bed.

“Did Tom tell you about going off somewhere this morning?”

I thought back to our last conversation and, while it had contained lots of exchanged ideas, recalled no such thing.

Well, except…

“I hate you! I wish I didn’t have to see you ever again!” he had said. At the time, it had slid off my back…

Darn it! Now my guts were twisting around with guilt. Super.

“N-no… why?”

“Because we can’t find him anywhere!” she screeched.

My stomach churned.

“W-what?” I asked, staring at her with wide eyes.

“He’s not in his bedroom. We looked everywhere. You know how he is in the morning. Even worse than you!”

I was going to let that slide, because, for God’s sake, was this actually happening?

“Have you called Johny’s parents?”

“Of course I did! They didn’t see or hear anything about him, neither did Jonathan.” She put her head in her hands, muttering curses under her breath. Not just any curses either. The kind I would have never expected to hear from her, the kind that would give me a verbal smack down if I ever used around Tom.

This was bad.

“He's… I bet he’s just playing outside in the park…” I placed a hand on Mom’s shoulder, doing my best to sound comforting.

Is it possible to sound like something you need yourself?

“Y-your father’s already out looking…” Her eyes dropped halfway, reflecting no light. Her face was pale… she seemed about to pass out. “T-this can’t be real…”

Breathe, Sam. Breathe, pull yourself together. Mom needs you right now. I took one more deep breath.

“Look, go sit down in the living room.” I gently started guiding her out of my room. “Let me put on a shirt and then we’ll call the police. Okay?”

She nodded quickly, looking down and rubbing her eyes. I trailed her off, just to make sure she was doing good on my suggestion. After a turn to the left, she entered the living room, just as I had asked her to.

Pacified, I took another deep breath, trying to calm down my maddened heart and pushing to the back of my mind all the crazy theories that were already springing out of nowhere. Then, I opened the drawer and picked the first shirt I saw.

He’s just playing around. Maybe even pulling a prank on us, I told myself.

He had done it before. Well, not that way, but when he got pissed, Tom would pull pranks on me. This ...this was probably it... right?

I quickly rubbed my eyes, chasing off any moistures that might be there. I… I wasn’t worried. This wasn’t real.

Just playing outside…

Now decently clothed, I walked out of my room, fast paced, and went straight toward my mother. She was sitting on the couch, staring at pictures. Oh Mom…

She did not react when I plumped down right next to her. She kept staring.

“When did you realize he wasn’t in his room?”

She stayed silent.

I frowned, uneasy. It was hard not to glance down at the picture. I knew I ought not to. It would be too painful…

“Mom…” My tone grew more insistent.

Still nothing.

I sighed. She was making this even harder. Steel yourself, Sam. I stared very intently at her, still, pained face, and opened my mouth to speak up, when…

“I realized he was not in bed an hour ago.” It was quiet, almost a whisper, yet I heard it clear as day.

“A-an hour ago?” I stammered, the reality of this hitting me like a train. My head started spinning. “Y-you didn’t wake me up earlier…”

“I…We… it… it was too unreal…” she said quickly, slightly apologetic.

It made me feel strangely empty, as if a void had popped up in my chest. Slowly though, it seemed to be replaced by a nauseous feeling.

I kept on a neutral voice.

“It…he’ll be fine, Mom.” I patted her back, but she did not seem very responsive. “I’m sure Dad will come back with him and we’ll just share a good laugh over that silly fright.”

Mom did not say anything. She pinched her lips together, her eyes never leaving the picture.

Without listening to reason, I glanced to where she was looking. Instantly, my heart squeezed with pain.

Family picture. She had to pick up a family picture.

Even after I looked away, the guilt did not die down. The image had been seared into my brain. I knew that one by heart anyway. This was just a painful reminder.

Christmas photos. Me, Tom and Mom, all sitting down with presents on our knees, with the little squirt openly excited and barely stopping long enough for a picture. Dad had had a field day just making us wait and pretending the first few pics were not good enough.

Darn it…

“I… I’m calling the police.” I stood up, without waiting for her to react. I had a feeling she wouldn’t be doing any of that soon.

It didn’t take long, picking up the phone and call the police station. Figures. If there was an emergency, then they would have to be quick, asking who was talking an’ all that… still… It went well… I guess…

“I… this is about…” I almost choked on the next few words. “…a missing kid…”

“Sir, can you give us a detailed description of the child?”

“S-sure, it’s my brother.” I paced, growing restless. “ His name’s Tom Miller. He’ll turn nine in a month, he’s a bit small, maybe four feet three inches, white skin, black hair, brown eyes, weights something like sixty-five pounds… he’s got a beauty mark on his right shoulder… he…”

I turned to my mother.

“What was he wearing the last time you saw him?”

No answer. She seemed transfixed.

My face started to turn white.

With a shake of my head, I chased off my treacherous thoughts, refusing to be distracted.

“Last time I saw… I think he was wearing a blue t-shirt of Superman with a pair of black jeans.”

My mind was more focused on his crunched up, red face. We had been yelling a bit. I was almost surprised Mom hadn’t start blaming me. Don’t jinx it, Sam.

“My mother was the one to realize his… d-d…”

The voice at the end of the line promptly offered me some rehearsed lines about taking my time and powering through the trial. They needed to know.

“…That. She said an hour ago…” My voice hitched up in my throat. Fuck, I couldn’t do this much longer. “We can’t find him anywhere and he’s not at his friend’s house. They haven’t seen him in days…”

I swept up a tear. Why was I crying? This was not real. I was just doing this to reassure Mom. Wait till we find you, Tom. You’re going to need ice for your butt after you’re done with the spanking of a lifetime we’re giving you.

“My father left for other places we think he might be. H-he’s checking the park…”

My knees started shaking. I gripped the doorknob for some support. It didn’t do much. Anytime time now, my legs would give out under me and I’d pass out…

Not real, this is NOT real.

“Yes… we’ll be waiting for your call. Please, be quick.” Not that they need to be. Tom’s fine. Hiding somewhere to freak us out… My hands were shaking when I ended the call.

Mom was still staring blankly at that photo. In the background, our clock was ticking, producing the only noise in the otherwise silent room.

The scene was eerie.

“They’ll come to... to get some pictures.” A slight nod of acknowledgment. Thank crap for that. “It should take five to ten minutes…”

For a second, I found myself unable to think of what to do next. A part of me wanted to stay and help her, but another was pushing me to rush out of the house and start looking for Tom.

“I… You should change before they arrive,” I whispered, almost with shame, before running out of the living room.
I couldn’t stay. I couldn’t greet police officers telling me they’d find my missing brother. It would be real.

The little squirt’s not missing! It’s only been an hour, he could have just decided to talk a walk outside and buy candy at the convenience store!

So I started looking for him around town.

“Sorry, Tom, I’m busy…”

“But you’re always busy! You never take time to play with me anymore!”

I could hear a pin drop.

A heavy silence reigned over the dinner table. The atmosphere was dark.

Tom was nowhere to be found.

I picked halfheartedly at my spaghetti, not feeling very hungry. Even if the smell was enticing, I could not wrap my mind around food at the moment.

Neither could Mom and Dad. My hard work would probably end up in the garbage can, left untouched. I wasn’t going to blame them. Both of them looked horrible, in their own ways.

Well, they were always different, even in their physical appearance. Mom had dark hair, brown eyes and a petite stature, while Dad was a tall blonde guy with the clearest blue eyes. Aunt Diana always thought it was funny how that extended to me and Tom too. I was the blonde guy and Tom was the dark-haired midget. Apparently, Mom had recessive blonde genes. Hurray for Biology classes!

“Linda…” Dad’s voice rumbled, a great deal more subdued than usual. “They are going to extend the searches region-wide.”

At that, she muffled a sob. That noise reached inside me and twisted my insides.

I put down my messy fork and stood up. If I heard more, I might start bawling my eyes out. That stupid little squirt! Where was he?!

“Sammy,” Dad rose his voice, if only to be heard. “I’m going to drive around town again.”

I understood what he was saying. I nodded.

“James…” Mom closed her eyes, mouth twisting into an ugly grimace. “Please… you have to bring him home.”

I dropped the plate. My hands just gave out. This is real. This is real. This is real!

Tom was missing. We called everywhere! Nobody had sighted him all day! No teacher, no friend, no neighbor. The last person to see him was Dad and that was when he hushed him to bed!

The police had searched the whole house from the roof to the basement and we gladly let them, heck, Mom had practically begged them to just so they could find him napping in a closet somewhere! They found nothing. Not even traces of breaking in!

Had he run away? That couldn’t be it, right?

I opened the faucet, forcing the water to come steaming hot, at full capacity. Droplets even splashed across my face, making me flinch a few times. That didn’t matter much, my cheeks were already wet with tears.

It can’t be be-because… no…

I rinsed my plate like a robot, not paying attention to any detail here. I was stuck replaying our last fight in my mind. It always ended with the same words.

“I hate you! I wish I didn’t have to see you ever again!”

And every time it stung more and more…

Was he still angry? Was he in pain? Was he sad, afraid, terrified, begging for his big brother to come save him?

I gripped the corner of the sink with enough strength to make my palms hurt. Breathing was hard, with an overwhelming sense of guilt crushing my chest. T-this was my fault.

I was supposed to protect him. It was my responsibility!

My body started to burn. I… I wanted to kill the son of a bitch that took Tom! God help me if I was left alone with whoever was responsible for that. I already knew what I’d do to them.

Sobs were what brought me back from my dark thoughts.

Turning around, I was treated to the sight of my mother, resting her head against her arms on the table. With a low whine, she whispered his name once more. I could tell though, that her cheeks were dry. She was already out of tears.

Dad was already gone or else he would have been by her side already. He probably ran outside not to show his pain. He once told me that’s what a man does. I wasn’t strong enough to do that.

It tore at my heart to see her like this. S-she might not have been the happiest person in the world, but she had never broken down before. Just one more slap in the face, telling me this was all too real.

“C-come on, Mom,” I said, trying to get her to stand up. And then what? What can I possibly say to make her feel better? “You… I think you should rest.”

She shrugged off my hands, as if I was a stranger. It hurt, but I could not leave her alone. Not like this. For the sake of love, if I ever left her in that state and she…

NO! That can’t happen! She’d never-!

“Just go to bed, Mom,” I pleaded, voice cracking with my own pain. “I’ll give you your sleep medicine. I swear on everything you want that we’ll wake you up if- as soon as they find Tom.”

Her eyes met mine. They were so red it was almost comical, if, you know, my little brother wasn’t missing. I was fairly sure mine would soon gain that shade too. Give or take an hour or two.

After a small staring contest, Mom finally stood up, mechanically reaching for her plates.

“No, let me take care of that,” I assured her as I gently pried her hands off it. “Just go get some sleep, okay, Mom?”

“T-tell me wh-”

“I swear.” I added, more forcefully.

We exchanged no more word beyond that. Quietly, she made her way to her bedroom while I went to retrieve one specific bottle of pills in the bathroom. She said nothing when I handed it to her, nor did she answer my “Good night, Mom”.

Once I had turned off the light and left the room, my feet became heavy. I never dreamt of the day I would need to comfort my mother this way. It simply had never happened before. Now I just felt drained.

It got worse when I turned around the corner. On the other side of the hall was Tom’s room. The lights had been left on.

For a moment, my mind screamed against going anywhere near his room. I don’t think I can handle that. My legs carried me there regardless.

Warily, I pushed the door open, trying my best to stay calm. It wasn’t easy.

His room was messier than usual, due to the policemen’s presence, no doubt. I had followed them in, if only not to give the little squirt reason to scream they had touched his stuff.

It did not prepare me for this.

His room… was empty. There was a void where he should be. The whole thing felt out of place not knowing if he’d ever occupy it again.

Whatever possessed me, I could not tell, but I walked deeper into Tom’s bedroom. I just let my gaze wander – or was I simply lacking the strength not to? –to his shelf, toward his closet and onto his bed sheet.

I stroke off the pillow, which was covered by a Shining Armor pillow case. Dad refused to buy any other. He said they were too girly.

Can’t exactly argue with that, Dad. I smiled for a second, but quickly it turned into a sigh.

When I had first been caught red-handed looking at a My Little Pony episode by Tom, of all people, I had seriously expected endless teasing. To be fair, that was mostly what had happened, until I picked up the little prick and forced him to watch the whole thing with me.

I thought that was a nice ironic punishment for being so darn annoying. I hadn’t anticipated him to like the show. Hypocritical much?

So, yeah, I was a closet brony to everyone but my family and one friend, and I had brought my little brother into it. Surprisingly, he was more intense about it than me, even if he shunned every episode without Rainbow Dash, Applejack or Pinkie Pie, his best ponies. The formers for “bucking butts” – you have no idea how mortified I was when I heard him say that with Mom in hearing range – and the latter for being funny.

Now I wished I had just given him one of my traditional noogies and sent him off instead. These days, he wanted us to do stuff together and it was always about ponies. Problem was, while I like ponies, I was not that big of a fan of playing that with my little brother and his endless godmoding.

My hand brushed off against a rougher surface on the pillow. Curious, I stripped the thing off its pillowcase, only to find a sheet of paper, colored a bit clumsily.

Yeah, I knew that one.

Blade DarkBlaze, his alicorn original character.

“I’m telling you, Sam, he’s the most awesome pony since Rainbow Dash!”

“Yes, he is, Tom,” I whispered, picking up the drawing.

It was completely overpowered. A young prodigy amongst alicorns that wore an ancient red cape of discordian magic. Marine blue coat and black mane, crimson red eyes, personal apprentice to Princess Celestia in all things of divinity.

Yeah, I could bear with it at first, but it got old fast. It was one of the reasons I was so reluctant to do stuff with him these days.

It was what sparked our fight yesterday.

Suddenly, it was as if that drawing was burning my hand.

I fled the room, barely taking the time to turn off the light like I had intended to. The sheet of paper slowly glided to the floor, slipping under his bed.

The house was devoid of noise now, except for the occasional click from my laptop’s mouse.

I was surfing on the web, trying to get my head off this disaster. It was hardly working. Tom and I have similar interests, mostly because he kept coming up to me whenever he was bored. He always expected me to introduce him to some new show, which was unfortunately what I could do with practiced ease.

At the moment, I was reading up on some commentaries on the newest My Little Pony episode, which I had completely forgotten till now. As it turned out, apparently, it was not that big of a loss. Opinions were generally negative about it.

“New character out of nowhere…” I muttered, skimming among the comments. “Completely destroyed the dynamics of the main character… badly designed on top of everything… Damn, they messed up good or what?”

That was about the time my eyes caught up with a peculiar line.

“An alicorn out of nowhere? At least Cadence had a great introduction.”

This tugged at the back of my mind. A bad presentiment came over me.

“He was just like a really stupid OC…” I gave a weak laugh at that comment. Wow, that hit way too close to home. “Oh, for freak’s sake, listen to me. I must be about to pass out from fatigue. It’s almost as if I had thought…”

I stopped.

T-t-this was just ridiculous. I couldn’t… I couldn’t actually think…

Hand shaking, I moved the browser toward the first streaming link I could find. Waiting for it to download probably turned into the longest two minutes of my life.

The appeasing feeling that accompanied an opening of My Little Pony did not come this time. I was trembling, prey to a stupid idea that would not leave me alone!

The screen turned from a black square to a greatly animated Ponyville. The scene depicted Twilight meander the streets with a saddle bag full of books.

“Twilight!” Spike suddenly ran to her. The little thing seemed out of breath. “Y-you have to see this! You won’t believe it!”

“What’s going on?” Twilight asked, concerned about her assistant’s behavior.

“Can’t explain! Just follow me!” With that, the Spike ran off, to her obvious shock.

Seconds later, they ran into a crowd of ponies, gathered around the town hall. In the middle of the ponies, I spotted Derpy, for a split second, which I thought was pretty awesome.

Then I heard it.

“Eeyup, ponies! You are not dreaming!”

That voice…

Neither Twilight or I could see the one possessing it. The camera was stuck on Twilight and the bookworm certainly did not have the muscle strength to power through an actual wall of ponies like that one.

“Huh, Twilight…?” Spike gave her a flat look. “Your wings.”

At the remark, she looked incredibly sheepish and blushed. “Oh, right, sorry. I’m not quite used to having two extra limbs yet.” She flapped them, accidentally nailing the poor dragon in the face for good measure.

“Just take off, would you?” he grunted.

She did not need to be told twice. With a majestic start, she flew off a dozen feet in the air, getting a direct view of the podium and who was standing behind it.

Twilight’s jaw dropped.

So did mine.

“This can’t be real…”

Reunion

I could hardly think. My mind was foggy, boiling with naught but righteous fury. With each maddeningly strong heartbeat, my vision would jump. It was hard to focus, on anything but Tom.

My chest should be light and my hope, flaring. I should be unable to put one thought in front of the other with just the joy of seeing him in the flesh.

But he was in danger. There was Pinkie, holding a tied up Tom. He was trying to get free.

A cheerful voice echoed in my head. “We twist the hooves!”

I would not let her hurt him.

“I told you to let him go!” I snarled, lowering my head, horn pointed toward them.

Them. The Mane Six.

They were all looking at me, a mix of shock and defiance on their features. Fluttershy and Pinkie were the only two not assuming an aggressive stance.

The pink mare was just tilting her head in confusion, but not letting go of Tom. He looked uncomfortable, but worse, scared. His eyes had widened, but the iris had shrunken to dots. He had stopped squirming. He was curling on himself.

“Who do you think you are?!” Rainbow challenged, flying a few feet in front of her friends.

I saw her body, broken in half. I felt an urge. I wanted.

“Let go of my brother!” I shouted.

“S-Sam?” Tom’s jaw dropped.

“Brother?!” The other six exclaimed at the top of their lungs. Pinkie even dropped him to the ground.

Instantly, the world blurred, as an impulse went through my legs and made me dash forward. I was by Tom’s side in the second.

O-oh God… it was him. T-the little colt was looking at me with total shock, but even behind that pony’s face, I could recognize the Tom I had grown up with. I took in his features, his blue fur, his black mane, which incidentally was just like Tom’s haircut back on Earth, heck, his red eyes weren’t the same, obviously, but they looked at me the same way they did before.

The way my heart swelled with joy, I thought it would explode. It made me so dizzy I almost fell over. Relief came crashing down on me with the weight of the ocean.

“I…It’s really you…” I whispered, my voice hitching and cracking.

At the sound of my voice, something changed in his expression. The shock turned into doubt. “Y-you really came after me?”

It was as if he had hit me with one of his magical boulders. No… probably harder than that. My eyes stung with the creation of tears.

“Tom… of course I did. I’d never abandon you,” I whispered, nuzzling him.

Tom leaned against me, searching reassurance and truth. In response, I could only drop down and brought him closer with my hooves. Warmth seeped through the contact. It just felt so right that when my tears fell they carried no sadness or bitterness.

“I missed you…”

I felt a surge of heat go through my horn and the restraints around Tom expanded harmlessly. At their breaking point, they simply broke down into confetti.

Now free, Tom jumped further into my embrace. “I missed you too, Sam.”

My heart squeezed. Now that we were back together, the things I hadn’t allowed myself to think came surging back to me. I had done it. I had actually travelled to another world, dimension, whatever… to find my little brother.

And had I been slightly off about it… we would have never been reunited ever again.

My muscles contracted a bit harder, reaffirming the truth that Tom was here, that this wasn’t a dream I’d wake up from. I will never let this happen to us again, Tom. I swear. No one will hurt you. I swear.

“Is anypony else here confused?” The unmistakable Rainbow Dash asked, exchanging glances with the rest of her friends. “Anypony?”

That second one was completely unnecessary too, if only by the height at which Twilight’s jaw was hanging and that was without mentioning the size her iris had shrunken down to.

Her eyes twitched.

Fascinated, still in the other’s hooves, Tom and I stared at the poor gal whose face seemed to undergo a wide range of emotions.

“IS THERE A SALE ON HORNS AND WINGS GOING ON?!” She shouted at the top of her longs, her horn discharging a bolt of purple lightning. The stray magical bolt exploded into the sky, harmlessly, sure, but not without making noise comparable to that of a firework.

Holy crap…

“Huh…Twi?” Applejack poked her side with a timid hoof, eyes shining with worry. “You okay there, sugarcube?”

Said alicorn’s tensed expression slid off her face quickly, with her dropping her head a little. With a groan, she closed her eyes. “Sorry, girls. It’s just that this whole ‘New-Alicorn-in-Town’ business really got on my nerves and now there’s another one coming out of nowhere!”

“Oh, no worries, Twilight dear.” Rarity aimed an understanding smile at her. “Everypony can be subjected to a little stress now and then. There’s no need to apologize, really.”

“Well…” Rainbow Dash cut in, looking pensive.

Her friend’s glare stopped her rather quickly.

“What? It’s true.” She shrugged.

“Yes, perhaps,” Rarity replied with a cautious glance at Twilight. “However, the real point is that Twilight is right. We know virtually nothing of Blade and even less of this newcomer.”

Hearing these words were all the mares needed to truly focus their attentions on me, on us.

Shrugging off six pairs of eyes staring intently in our general direction, I stood up as if it had been a perfectly natural course of actions for me. Tom seemed the most confused at my actions, as I placed myself between him and the rest of the Mane Six.

Though I affected to project a calm aura, my inner self was all but. Oh crap, oh crap, ooooooh crap. What do I say? What do I do? This wasn’t part of the plan, which, by the way, wasn’t very well thought-out either. All right, plan? Grab Tom and run to the nearest portal. Why is there a portal in that scenario? Arrrrrrh, I have to choose something now! Something against the hate. Something to take away the hatred of Tom’s character.

“My apologies, my ladies,” I bowed my head, speaking with a more collected and respectful voice.

“What in tarnation?” Applejack blinked, confused by this turn of event.

“I suppose you mean the contrast between my earlier attitude and that I have adopted right now?” Great, I defaulted to noble speak! Now I’m stuck with that! Still, as before, I let nothing of my inner turmoil filter through this new façade. “Well, I will admit to overreacting when I saw my baby brother tied up and obviously trying to get out of strangers’ hooves.”

They all grimaced. The way I had painted the scenario, they did come out as kidnappers.

“Right… Sorry about that.” Twilight looked away, a very uneasy smile on her lips.

“No, no.” I waved a hoof nonchalantly. “It was a misunderstanding… I hope?” I added and put a great emphasis on this.

“Oh, yes.” Fluttershy nodded. “The Princess has asked that we bring him to her, but he was not very cooperative. We really meant no harm to Blade.”

Here’s one chance to do some damage control.

“Blade? Who is that?” I asked, tilting my head.

The atmosphere shifted drastically. I felt it in the air. Rarity was the one that expressed her dismay the most openly though, and she did so by biting her bottom lips gently.

Heck, I had really confused everyone, because I hear a bit of ruffling and shuffling behind me. I could guess without looking that Tom was dancing on his fe- hooves…

“Did you not say he was your brother?” Applejack narrowed her eyes at me.

I feigned recognition and let out a laugh. “Oh, he used that name again?”

Crap, I hope that laugher sounds real! My eyes went from one mare to the other, trying to gauge if any of them would call me out on my obviously badly strung story.

“What are you talking about?” Twilight tilted her head, not amused by the situation.

I turned around to Tom, who was trying and hilariously failing at an innocent, angel-like whistle. Really, the shifty eyes were all but giving up.

Doing my best to sell it, I ruffled Tom’s mane, briefly savoring the reassurance that I had indeed been reunited with my little brother.

“You’ve lied again, haven’t you?” I sounded more amused than displeased, mostly because I had no negative feeling whatsoever aimed at him for the moment.

Sheepishly, my brother turned colt crouched down to the ground, making himself appear as small and vulnerable as possible. In his eyes though, I could see the light of incomprehension.

In a moment of weakness, heart tugged by the sight, I leaned close enough to whisper for his ears alone. “Just play along, Tom.”

“We’re still waiting for you to start making sense.” Rainbow’s voice sounded as if she was rolling her eyes.

When I looked back to them, she was indeed the one with the biggest frown and the only one with her arms crossed over her chest.

“My baby brother does not think his name is cool enough, so he came up with an alias.”

“But Saaaaaaam!” Now you find your voice, eh, bro?

“You have lost your coolness privilege the moment you ran away like that without telling anyone first, baby brother.” I chuckled, which was actually sincere this time.

“No fair!” Music to my ears, Tom.

“Right.” Dash gave us a flat look. “So his name is Tom and yours is Sam? Mares, alicorns have the strangest names.”

While I pretended to appear mildly bemused by her remark, inside I was sweating. Right? Human names? The bronies will rip us apart if I let this go. “Oh, those? No, those are nicknames.”

“Nicknames?” Twilight repeated, clearly doubting my words.

“Yes, it is a rather long story, one that involves a few extra-dimensional beasts and I wouldn’t want to bore you.” Casual and smooth, keep talking like a stuffed up noble, don’t break character. And I really shouldn’t say things like that around Pinkie Pie. Better continue before I start a disaster. “I am Ventus Vinco and this is my little brother Calx Iugum.”

“Come again, Sugarcube?” Applejack tilted her head, very confused.

I chuckled softly as if I was amused, though I felt none of it. I was much closer to panic. WHERE DID THAT COME FROM? “Yes, that is indeed how most ponies react, hence the nicknames.”

A sharp pain erupted in my right hind leg, making me flinch and grit my teeth together.

“Sam!” A force hit me again, though this time, it wasn’t as strong. If anything, that felt like something bumping into me.

A blue bundle of fur ran past me. With a brief moment of panic, I recognized the sniffing noise. Tom was scowling, tears of frustration starting to gather in his eyes. He was already trying to zigzag between the girls.

That is SO not the time to throw a tantrum, buddy, I thought. However, in my chest, a bubbling fear had already replaced the annoyance. Every inches of distance he managed to put between us was an inch toward another separation. And through the panic, something else pierced. Anger. “Oh no, you DON’T!”

Again, without a true control of my body, I moved. My legs pushed at the ground with more strength than I thought I had and lifted me in the air. The images of the Mane Six briefly scrolled past me, as I jumped past them, pinning Tom to the ground on my very first try.

“LET ME GO!” He screamed, flailing his limbs uselessly, but that plea fell in the wrong ears.

I would have none of this crap. Not now! “No, I am not letting go!” I snarled, pressing down on his hooves hard enough for him to be completely stuck.

Amazingly, Rainbow Dash had the guts to move toward us, mouth pressed into a thin line. “H-hey! That’s a little much, don’t you think?”

“The last time I let go of him in that state of mind, he traveled to another dimension!”

I heard them gasp; I did not care. My attention was entirely focused on my little brother who seemed to really need a good scolding.

“LET GO! I DON’T WANT TO LISTEN TO YOU!” Tom screamed louder, growling now that he was not in any position to do more.

Somewhere in the back of my mind, I heard a dam break. This was one of those straws, the ones that break the camel’s back in half and put him in the hospital for surgery, only for the medics not to find any anesthetic before the operation.

Things blurred. The edges of my vision were not very clear cut anymore. A fog of rage was stretching and distorting those limits. Heat spread from my horn to my mouth and sparks danced into my throat. When I spoke, the volume was deafening.

“DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA OF WHAT KIND OF HELL YOU PUT US THROUGH?! DO YOU EVER STOP TO THINK HOW IT MIGHT MAKE ME, MOM OR DAD FEEL?!WE’VE JUST SPENT A WEEK LOOKING FOR YOU EVERYWHEREAND YOU’RE STILL TRYING TO PULL THAT KIND OF STUNT THE SECOND YOU DON’T GET YOUR WAY?!YOU ARE A SELFISH, SPOILED BRAT! GROW UP!”

Silence fell after that last bout of yelling. It wasn’t a pleasant silence either.

Heavy.

Dark.

Uneasy.

Internally, I felt my inner demons fall asleep, appeased by this outburst. My fury faded away with them, melting and leaving just an empty lifeless void in its place.

My breath was short and fatigue seemed to have mad my legs heavier, but I could not focus on that. Underneath me, a colt was looking at me with wide eyes shining with tears. His body had started shaking, with a little sob escaping his mouth the next moment.

The sound clawed its way to my heart. It tore apart that veil of indifference. It filled it with horrified dismay. What have I done?

“T-Tom…” I whispered, voice cracking with the overwhelming guilt.

I did not get to see or hear his reaction though, as something suddenly barreled into me. My eyes never leaving Tom, glimpses of pink nonetheless flashed before me, mainly from the general area of this new pain. “You big meanie!”

Urgh… Pinkie Pie?

Hooves grabbed each side of my face and forced to my left. Blue irises stared back at me and there was no joy in them. “How could you say such awful things to your own brother?”

“That was mean.” The words had been soft spoken, but there was mistake in the sternness behind them. The simple fact that a pale yellow pegasus was hovering over Tom, protectively, was enough to kick up my guilt another notch.

I knew who she was protecting him from. I heartily approved.

My little brother, however, decided he needed no pony’s protection and ran off, the Mane Six hesitant to follow suit.

“TOM!” I screamed, calling desperately for him to stop. He ignored it completely. Not that I would blame him…

I… I think I’m going to be sick.

No words left my lips, even as I choked on my breath after many unfruitful attempts. It was pointless, my throat had already constricted too painfully under the weight of my guilt.

What am I doing here? What am I doing?!

Prickles of pain spread in my eyes. It stung. It hurt to feel them water.

My shoulders hitched as I closed my eyes in shame. Bitter tears fell down from my cheeks, splashing the ground monotonously.

How could I…?

I felt as if the world had started to crash down and burn. I had spent so much time and energy focusing every aspect of my person toward protecting Tom that I could not even understand my own actions now. I had hurt him, in the worst possible way.

What am I doing? I stared at my hooves, held in front of me. What kind of monster…?

Applejack sighed. “Come on, gals, we have a foal to catch. Again.”

The rest of them nodded, with the exception of Twilight. She, of them all, seemed the most hesitant. “…Go. I’ll catch up with you later.”

Seconds later, stampeding hooves indicated the departure of the other five.

Hers steps were much more light, making me wonder how calm she was. I did not look up to satisfy this curiosity.

“Ventus, right?”

That required no answer.

“I am sorry for what you went through, sincerely.” She took another step closer and her voice seemed incredibly humble. I could not understand. “It must have been horrible.”

I wished I could have ignored her words, but they rang true. This was not a fake display of sympathy. Those words carried weight.

“I do know what it is like to almost lose your little brother because of a fight. I remember the anger I felt when I found him back, buried beneath the endless relief toward his safety.”

“W-where are you going with this, Princess Twilight?” I asked, miraculously able to call forth enough decorum to keep up the accent. But really, who cared at this point? I was fairly certain I had blown it in my rant anyway.

“I want you to know that it is not the end of the world. There are still plenty of chances for you to mend those broken pieces.”

You have no idea how much I want to believe you, Twilight. Even then though, the words were enough of a soothing force to lift my mood a little. Just a little.

“I… thank you for your kind words, Princess.” The words came off as chopped and anguished. Hopefully, she could grasp my own sincerity. “Especially since you took time off your mission to tell me this.”

“Well, that is not totally true.” She looked away, smiling sheepishly. “My mission probably changed by now anyway.”

I did not see that coming. “I beg you pardon?”

“…I really think you should accompany us to see Princess Celestia too.”

Oh dear…

Liar

Breakfast passed uneventfully. No great disturbance came to break the calm and relaxed atmosphere that had taken over the dining hall. I suspected this was the norm rather than the exception.

I, for one, found it hard to remain on my guards while everypony else made small talk and exchanged gossips. Even the close proximity to Blueblood did not disturb me all that much, as the prince had chosen to ignore me the best he could, essentially forgetting I existed until one personally reminded him of me.

On my other side though, that old stallion from the other day was still patiently trying to get Calx to mind his manners more. More surprisingly, the old noble certainly did not seem very bothered by his lack of progress nor by the blatant unwillingness he should have expected from my little brother.

Really, at most he was sending endearing looks to Calx and ruffling his mane when he said something particularly memorable.

I decided I liked that old guy.

Still, there had been an endeavor I wished to pursue, if only to clear my mind of guilt. To achieve that goal, however, required at least one course of action.

And judging by the unusually silent and formal attitude of the Ruler of the Day... I might not succeed in such matters. Twice before, I had stopped myself at the last second, judging the moment inappropriate, rightly so at least in one occurrence.

However, I could hear the clock ticking; with each passing moment I hesitated, a greater pressure befell me. Soon enough, it had turned into a boiling pit of confused emotions, tearing me apart with desire to speak and fear of incurring my cousin’s anger or disapproval.

Somepony had to have noticed the dozen times I glanced at Celestia. That slight show of paranoia did not deter me, though, and as such, I was the first to notice the Princess standing up to take her leave.

“It is time for me to begin the morning audience.” She rose to her hooves, her splendid figure almost shining under the daylight filtering through the windows. “I wish to all of you a pleasant day.”

Following a little nod of acknowledgement, the white alicorn turned around, intent on quickly taking her place on her throne and start another day of service for her little ponies. That sight, the one of Celestia walking away, her back facing us… it sent a jolt of distress through me.

I couldn’t let my anxiety stop me!

“Princess Celestia!” I called, scrambling to my hooves. “I have a request to make!”

Every pony in the room paused in their previous activity, be it gossiping, eating or carrying plates, even, or rather especially, the Alicorn of the Day.

Slowly, she turned toward me, while I ran up to her.

“…Yes, Ventus?” She asked as soon as I had stopped close to her.

At this distance, the bigger subtleties of her tone and her traits were noticeable to me. Her expression was carefully guarded, not unlike the one I showed them every day, if only much more perfected. While I couldn’t tell what she was thinking, I knew her benevolent smile wasn’t quite sincere.

My voice wavered slightly in the face of this fact. Hopefully, not too much… “I would like permission to access a certain section of your archives today.”

She raised one delicate eyebrow at that. “Might I ask for which purpose such an access should be granted to you?”

A cold mass of ice seemed to form inside my guts at her question. This… I knew was an impulse, a whim mostly, to offer myself some measure of comfort. Calx and I… were trapped here, for as long as the Elders deemed fit.

And the Sam part of me really hates it. “In essence, it would be most purely a gratification of my curiosity, though one our relatives might find useful. I wish to find out how deep the understanding of magic is among your subjects, Princess.”

The mentions of our common relatives triggered something within her; that much was evident, seeing as her lips had clasped into a thin line instantly.

“I see…” She replied slowly.

I fought back the urge to gulp audibly.

“Had you already chosen a field of study to focus your efforts on?” Celestia asked, sounding far more casual than I felt her to be.

“My… intentions were toward the… Anathema section of your royal library.” I looked away, feeling uneasy under that evaluating gaze. “Princess Sparkle mentioned the subject in passing yesterday and I found myself intrigued.”

Glancing back to her, I saw her lips move, silently mouthing the name of the section again.

Please… I mentally begged, a part of me dying to seek the answer to my questions.

A few seconds passed, during which a debate seemed to take place within the Princess’ mind. Quickly though, a tacit understanding of my intentions passed between us. From the moment I had mentioned the name of the pony I would seek knowledge from, it had been crystal clear to Celestia.

Her posture appeared slightly more relaxed following this exchange, although it had not become void of caution.

“What of your little brother? I do not believe his character suitable for an access to our archives to be granted, not unless I wish some destruction to take place.”

Sad but true. “I understand.” I nodded. “My intentions were to find Miss Pinkie Pie and ask her the favor of watching him for the duration of my studying. Her previous interactions with him were positive, greatly if I might say so.”

“Very well, shall you manage to ensure your brother’s caretaking elsewhere, then you might enter the Anathema’s archives for the purpose of studying.”

“Thank you.” I bowed, feeling a disproportionate wave of relief crash down on me.

My emotions… weren’t quite as weakened as I had first estimated…

As Celestia left, for real this time, I noticed a shaking in my shoulders and a twitch in my tail. Had I really been so nervous? Or was this anticipation as to what I might discover?

As if a remainder of the stakes, Twilight’s words echoed in my mind.

“Anathema: the fourth Archmage and the second female one, born in the seventh century following the start of the Solar Monarchy, contributed to ponykind’s knowledge by scientifically dissecting four entire branches of magic.”

But at the moment, I was truly concerned about only one.

The aroma of tea filled her nostrils, comforting and reminiscent of her most cherished sessions with her mentor. Such memories were an excellent way for her to start a new day, as it filled her with a new energy.

The warm vapors rising from her cup simply enticed her appetite furthermore. Giving in, the purple mare dug in her hearty breakfast with a smile.

At her sides, Fluttershy and Applejack were both enjoying their own meal, conversing on minor subjects and inquiring about the other's previous day. It appeared that no matter where they went, some form of troubles followed them, even in the Capital of Equestria.

“Ah’m telling you, gal, Rainbow just up and went there to pick a fight with this huge stallion, something about him bumpin’ into her!”

“Oh no… that sounds dangerous.” The shier mare placed her hooves in front of her mouth, trying to hide a fond smile rather than the horrified grimace the other two expected.

“Ye mean for that other guy, don’t yeh?” Applejack’s eyes shone with amusement.

Unfortunately, Twilight had chosen that moment to take another sip of her tea and the remark had made her snort into her cup.

“Whoa there, girl. Careful not to choke,” the farmer replied, grinning.

“Yes, it is definitely too early for us to save somepony’s life,” Fluttershy added, in an unusual display of playfulness toward their roles.

“I-I’ll do my best not to-”

The doors to their private dining room were slammed open, almost brutally, revealing a white figure poised to attack. “Twilight!”

“Huh?” The alicorn turned around, blinking in surprise at her friend’s shrilled call. “What is it, Rarity?”

“My, I am shocked and appalled that you would use my absence to advance your own nefarious plot!” The white unicorn ran into the room, a hoof over her chest, almost ready to faint on her special couch.

“You had a nefarious plot?” Fluttershy asked, blinking in surprise.

“W-what? No, I didn’t!”

“Oh yes, you DID!” Rarity interjected, voice losing all sense of refinement and tainting itself with indignation and ham-tastic drama. “See the proof of your betrayal!”

From… somewhere, a scrunched up magazine floated up to their levels, surrounded by a beautiful blue magic.

Applejack’s eyes narrowed as soon as she got a better look of it. “Wait, isn’t that the tabloid that keeps spouting nonsense about Twi? Didn’t we all agree to stop reading it?”

“Yes, we did.” Twilight raised an eyebrow in annoyance. “I had to supposedly dissolve my personal army in secret not to be secretly vaporized by Princess Celestia when she found out I secretly wanted to overthrow her… apparently.”

Applejack threw her hooves into the air. “Then why in tarnation do you have it, Rare?!”

“Oh, that is…” The unicorn suddenly struggled with her words. “NOT THE POINT! LOOK!”

Obediently, the three friends leaned over the table where the magazine lied.

“Prince Ventus in love with…” Fluttershy read out loud, before squeaking when the apparent identity of his lover became apparent.

“Twi?” Applejack looked up, confused.

“B-bu-but I don’t… we… I mean… that’s… EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEH!”

She stared into a blank space, mane suddenly disheveled and cheeks much darker than usual.

“Twilight?” The pink-maned pegasus flew up to her friend, waving a hoof in front of her face.

“Oh dear, I broke her, didn’t I?” Rarity muttered, looking a bit taken aback by this drastic reaction.

“Yeah, an’ Ah’m sure yer proud of yerself too!” Applejack crossed her hooves, scowling.

“Well, I certainly didn’t mean to!” The poor mare’s lips quivered. “I’M the one that should be emotionally devastated. I didn’t even get the chance to talk to this new prince that he is already taken by one of my best friends!” And with that, she dramatically dropped down onto a pile of cushion.

“Look at her!” The cowpony pointed at the frozen alicorn. “That looks like an evil love-stealing mastermind to yeh?”

“Darling, I never used the words ‘evil love-stealing mastermind’…” Rarity rolled her eyes, muttering a few words about how much of a drama queen her friend could be.

“It’s what it meant!” Applejack slammed her hoof against the table, eyes narrowed.

“Fine, I’m sorry. It was just the disappointment speaking.” The fashionista apologized, but without much success.

Twilight remained desperately immobile. To the point they decided perhaps it was best if they gave her time to process. In the meanwhile… well, they could… talk?

“You… hum… you like-like Prince Ventus, Rarity?” Fluttershy shyly asked, curling on herself.

“Well, yes, I do. You cannot say he is not handsome. And you know the saying ‘Mane of gold, heart of gold’.”

The cowpony seemed about ready to just give up altogether on all that nonsense. “His mane is white, Rarity. It’s his coat that’s golden.”

“Same difference.” She huffed. “The point is I believe he would make a fine coltfriend. He does seem to get along nicely with his little brother, even if he makes a few mistakes here and then. It’s always a plus when a stallion knows how to deal with children.”

“Meh, he’s a little thin to me. I’m into stallions with more meat on their bones.”

All three mares blinked, momentarily confused by the sudden jump in the conversation by one they hadn’t even known to be listening.

“Dashie?” Fluttershy looked up, taken aback.

Then, the words started to register as well.

“Consarnit!” Applejack stood up, glaring right through her rainbow colored friend’s skull. “Is that the reason you always take nap in mah orchards? To ogle mah big brother?!”

“W-what?!” She strongly shook her head, though her movements became slightly skittish. “Noooo. Way! I’m way too cool for that.”

Eyes half-drooped, the rest of her friends all exchanged unimpressed glances.

“Okay, girls, I’m back!” Twilight shouted, life returning to her features. “I think my brain exploded a little, but I should be fine now. I rebooted. WHAT DO I DO?! I’m NOT ready for LOVE, yet! Wait, I’m not in love anyway! But what if I fall in love for real?!”

“Oh, leave everything to me, Twilight. He’ll eat in the curve of your hooves in no time.”

“Eating in my hooves? B-but I’m not even sure I want that. Besides, that sounds kinky!”

Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash backed off, feeling a ball of unease suddenly expend in their stomach at the sight of their unicorn friend. For a split second, images of timberwolves had flashed in their minds.

“Oh darling, you have so much to learn.”

Glaring, Applejack leaned closer, whispering into her ears. “Weren’t ye supposed to be ‘emotionally devastated’? Yer sounding mighty peachy if ye ask me!”

“I got better.” Rarity replaced her mane, a look of determination shining in her gaze. “Besides, this is just too much fun!”

My eyes darted from one shelf to another, taking in as much information as possible. The style of architecture was quite different from the Star Swirl’s section. While the other wing of the archives were seemingly dedicated to his work on time magic, this place was dedicated to another archmage altogether.

The air itself shimmered with magic, greenish in color. There is something deeply ironic about being the Alicorn of the Wind and still finding some atmospheres to be heavy.

To be fair, the orbs of light floating everywhere would likely put off more than one pony. I simply happened to see these… things and understand some of the law of magic at work. Frankly, I was impressed.

Slowly, I made my way up into a pair of spiraling stairs, my initial inquiry revealing nothing of interest in the first part of the Anathema wing. Logically though, what I was looking for was quite complex, so it might only be found in the upper levels…

Undeterred, I made my way up there, hooves clanking against the metallic stairs with each step. I simply followed the lights. It was akin to being surrounded by fairies… even if the knowledge of these was rather blurry in my mind.

No matter, that is quite beside the point. I stretched my neck as I passed under the threshold of the new floor.

The upper levels weren’t as intimidating. Physically.

My fur stood on its ends as soon as I took one step in. A mystical force had gathered in this place.

I shook my head. “Don’t be ridiculous, Ventus. You’re an alicorn… Act like it.” Right. I’m an alicorn. Riiiiight. I couldn’t deny it. ...Where is all this stuff?

The first book my eyes fell on had the kind of title that referred to the object of my researches.

‘Dimensional Travel: An Exploration of the Advanced Mechanisms’

“Well, that sounds promising…”

It was what I had decided. As myself, whether it was a new sense of self or not, I had had… issues with my current situation and, while I still did, the fire was not quite as strong, or even all that present…

That did not mean I would accept such a turn of events so easily. If only for the knowledge that I did try…

The book floated out of its shelf, moving almost lazily toward me. It left me with the distinct impression it somehow mocked me.

Or I’m projecting my issues on an inanimate object. I’m the one in control of its speed.

Feeling exasperated with myself, I let out a resounding sigh, sitting down at a nearby study table. The book now opened on its first page, I leaned over it.

“Well, look at what we have here!” A voice recognizable amongst all rang to my ears, mocking and childish. “A new alicorn pal!”

Frozen in place, I stared blankly ahead of myself, consciously avoiding to turn around and see the source of that noise. My coat seemed to be trying to stand on its ends from the simple aura seething out of his body.

“Come oooooon, don’t be rude. That would make it five in five.” Amazingly, that sounded somewhat like a petulant child, but I did know a lot about that…

Deep breath, Ventus. Deep, deep, deep breath! I pictured Mi Amore, standing next to Princess Sparkle and making the soothing motion.

Calmly, I rose to my hooves once more, closing my eyes and turning around.

“It is an honor to meet you, Lord Discord.” My front legs folded as I lowered my head into a respectful bow.

The library seemed to have fallen silent. Too silent. If somepony tried to produce a sound, it wouldn’t even work, that much was a certainty.

Hesitantly, I glanced upward, toward the floating god. His appeared to be quite the subdued pout. The sight, though mundane in a rather twisted way, stirred up inside me a violent desire to beat his face to a bloody pulp. Luckily, my poker face was nearly perfected. My expression was that of profound respect.

And in a bizarre way… I probably did feel like that on some level.

The Spirit of Chaos and Disharmony certainly wasn’t expecting my reaction, it seemed. “Well, that’s a first. Since when do cornies like you act like you I am your master? Sure, go ahead, feel free, but I’d like to know.”

“Don’t be mistaken,” I said sharply, straightening my posture. “I do not consider you my master or anything of the sort. As an alicorn, I am bound by duty to demonstrate proper respect to an Elder, regardless of my personal feelings in the matter.”

“Yeeeeees… ‘Duty’, you say?” The draconequus slithered in the air and circled me. I had to actively fight the urge to shiver. “But there is something different about you.”

My heartbeat accelerated.

“I’m afraid I do not-”

“Oh yes, you do.” He cut me off, stopping a few feet away from me in midair. “You know precisely what I am talking about. And judging by the look on your face, it’s not something you want to actively advertise.”

“You are mist-”

A finger snap later, no sound would pass the barrier of my lips, regardless of my attempts to do so. Discord suddenly seemed to have grown taller, more imposing…

“Ventus Vinco.” The words rolled off his tongue with a strange sensation of… power… of overwhelming presence. My senses were all but screaming at the madness crawling under my skin. “How about you show me proper respect by telling me the truth?”

I looked away, feeling a little faint, my body burning with both shame and fear. This could not happen. I couldn’t… I couldn’t say it.

“T-that is…” My tongue was tied… “I cannot tell you that.”

The voice of reason in my head sounded suspiciously more like Sam than Ventus. What if THEY hear me? What if someone caught wind of it? That lie is too precious to give away, Discord…

“Oh, now you’re just doing it to irritate me!” The draconequus pouted and glared, leaning against a shelf of book. Said shelf proceeded to giggle.

“That… is none of your business… sir.” I refused to look at him. Cold sweat was running down my spine just thinking about what he could do.

“Oh, but what you are hiding feels quite chaotic and that IS my-” He stopped, freezing in place, releasing a few dozens firework from his left ear. Then, he was inches away from my face. I promptly had a quiet heart attack. “Ho-ho… is that a string of reality I see hanging from your feathers?”

A strand of light manifested at the tip of his claw, glowing softly. Stranger yet, Discord decided to pull on it, just give it a tug, I suspected.

I felt my consciousness stretch toward his paw!

My legs started shaking. Dots were appearing in front of my eyes, clouding my vision with dancing patches of darkness. I… don’t hear words… My brain was thoroughly refusing to take it much longer.

His claws ran through my mane, sending a small signal of pain and many more of shivering disgust. W-what is he doing?

“How interesting. There are plenty of these all over you, almost like a…”

I neighed in fright when he exploded into a mad bout of laugher. In every literal sense of the term.

Wings fully expanded, in a careful balance on my hind legs and heart beating like crazy, I stared with wide eyes at the empty spot where Discord had been. Trying to get my breathing back to normal, amongst other things, I dropped down on all four, eyes still fixated on the site of his vaporization.

“You’ve been a naughty alicorn, haven’t you?”

I turned around lightning fast. He was there, standing in all his glory, arms crossed behind his back and sporting a knowing smirk. Listening purely to my instincts rather than the rational part of my mind, my expression turned defiant and my mouth ran by itself.

“I will not listen to you lecturing me about ‘naughtiness’ after your actions!”

“Ah, there it is.” The draconequus rolled his eyes, then snorted. “I also like how you didn’t deny it.”

I took a hesitant step backward, wings slowly folding back in place. The defiance had not yet left my features though.

“I ask, with all due respect, that you leave this issue alone.” I bit my cheeks, before adding… “Please.”

His face twisted, seemingly with annoyance, but there was something else…

He raised one finger at me, stopping at an awkward height, his shoulders tensed and his face crunched up as if he was…

…Holding back?

“Alright, alright.” His chest lifted up seven feet in the air, out of a petulant annoyance I could only guess. “Apparently, not prying too much is one way to show that you respect a pony’s privacy and their general person.”

My jaw dropped.

“I… huh… what?”

The draconequus frowned, crossing his arms over his chest. “You made an effort, somewhat. I guess I can make one as well.”

“I…” The words stayed stuck in my throat. That had taken me completely by surprise. “What were you hoping to gain, coming here?”

The Spirit of Chaos and Disharmony shrugged. Shrugged. “I don’t know. I was just curious. Someone or somepony has been hijacking the Source for the past few days.”

His yellow eyes almost bore a hole into my skull, from their sheer intensity. Part of me expected them to shoot lasers and disintegrate me on the spot.

It made speaking considerably harder.

“I… cannot answer that. I’m… not even sure I know… the answer you seek.”

“Let me give you a friendly advice: are you – oh dear, I’m actually doing this and it’s not even half bad… – hum… what was I saying? Oh yes, that’s the one thing. Do you not know the answer? Or do you refuse to acknowledge the fact that you do know?”

Something in my heart hardened. My eyes narrowed into a glare. “I’d appreciate if you followed on your own statements. Drop it.”

Discord swatted the cold air blowing from the nearby windows away with a swipe of his tail, rolling his eyes at me, again.

“Why don’t you take a deep breath, my little corny? Here, let me offer you one shot at remembering the truth you buried away. Make of that what you will.” His fingers were posed ready to snap. “I’m leaving you alone after that, Pinkie Promise.”

My breath hitched. “W-what are you-?”

I heard the sound of bone against bone, I reflexively turned my head away from a blinding light.

W-where… that’s… my old world…

The bed… the small desk… heck, the laptop… those things were all mine. I was in MY room.

I felt… I wasn’t relieved. I wasn’t overjoyed nor horrified. My senses were troubled, my perception of things muddled by some unknown force.

My ears picked up some noises, loud but muffled. It was… familiar though. Distantly, I tried to get closer to the source of the noise, hopefully getting a better understanding of the situation at hand… hoof?

However, that plan soon crashed down to hell and deeper. Nothing happened. Even as my consciousness seemed to return, that my focus sharpened toward this simple goal, the evidence remained: I couldn’t move.

My blood froze in my veins when I heard the sound of a plate breaking. The sound was so distinct, so unmistakable, that it seemed to literally pull my mind straight toward it like a magnet.

My heartbeat seemed strong enough to make my vision jump.

More screaming. A muffled impacting sound.

“HAVE YOU GONE MAD?!” WHO IS IT?! WHICH ONE OF THE TWO?!

The screaming intensified and every word cut right through my soul. They were all carved in burning letters into my brain. The argument was simply going back and forth, with each party progressively losing their restraints. Until…

“I-I… I HATE YOU!”

The nightmare ended.

I was splayed across the floor, one wing extended, legs scrambled and my mane falling into my eyes. The situation seemed not unlike any other morning, especially if the day before had been exhausting. Yet my body felt cold, absent was the comforting warmth of a bed.

I was but a disoriented alicorn lying on a stone floor. I definitely felt more Sam than Ventus too. At least though, my visitor had left.

Discord was gone. It was probably a good thing, because my first thought toward him was to rip his face off.

T-they… Mom and Dad are falling apart…

I was alone in the library again, as I had requested of Princess Celestia. Like it had been just before Discord’s interruption.

I stumbled forward, limbs heavy as if I had been swimming or exercising for hours on ends. My front hooves bounced against a hard form on the ground and the sudden change in my balance made me fall.

W-what was that? I wondered, blinking away the confusion and the blurriness. Then, I saw it. Just a simple carved stone, with the following words written on it: “Do you know Prench, mister?”

I DON’T CARE ABOUT THAT!

There were people, real, tangible lives being put in jeopardy by my inaction. There were some that suffered because of our disappearance and giving up on them, condemning them to that kind of end without trying with all my heart was simply… evil.

For goodness’ sake! They’re our parents! It doesn’t matter how LONG they were, how MUCH effort, it wasn’t a contest of quantity. I knew they loved us, I knew… well, perhaps not quite as much due to my previous failures with saving Tom, but heck, THEY LOVED US AND THAT’S ENOUGH REASON FOR ME!

I launched myself at the book lying on the ground.

Rumours

“Come on, Bladey!” She urged him, gently biting and pulling on his wing when he stopped moving. “We have to defeat the evil coalition of moral guardians that want to destroy our bakery!”

It was a silly game, kinda girly too, but he liked it. W-whatever, he’d just tell his big bro that it was something more epic. Not like Ventus called him out on that often. He was just really gullible sometimes.

Then again, Sam always looked down at him with the same smile whenever he recounted his day to him.

The pulling sensation in his wing disappeared.

“Bladey?” Pinkie asked, a little surprised.

Tom wasn’t quite sure why he had stopped. They were about to win, obviously, so it was not like he was trying to dodge a magical ray of lightning aimed at him or something. At least, no broccoli had been used so far. Nopony would sink that low, fortunately.

“It’s okay, Pinkie…” He replied absentmindedly, looking up, a cold pit of uneasy in his stomach.

“Are you sure?” She insisted.

“Hu-uh.” He nodded, but did not take his eyes off the sky.

Calx folded his wings against his body. The sky looked a little bit too gloomy today. It was kinda gloomy…

Sorta depressing, if you asked him.

To put it mildly, I was depressed.

It… well…

I sighed, letting my head hang low.

I probable looked miserable and that had to be an irreparable offense to nobility or whatever, but I honestly could not care less about their opinions. Though the impact of my hooves against solid rock made a noticeable echo, nopony had bothered coming up to check on me yet. I was… partially grateful for that.

The testing had been meant to… well, find a solution, discover a way, ease my fears, ANYTHING... but I had been left with more questions than answers.

And I was not the only one.

“W-what will happen when…? Could that be just… a characteristic of reality warping spells?”

The alicorn shook her head, still frowning. “N-no, the process is normal, but this is too strange.”

“W-what is?” I asked, feeling my heartbeat accelerated with fear.

“It didn’t disappear the same way as it should be… It’s only when I removed it from your body that it started to truly disappear. Normally, it should have already been disappearing when I pulled it out. The timing doesn’t make sense…”

“B-but what of us? What’s going to happen when the spell fades completely? Will there be adverse side-effects?”

“I… I’m not…” She sighed, looking torn. “L-listen, I need time, plenty of it, to analyze everything. Just… just return to your brother’s side in the meantime.”

Twilight didn’t have any idea either. She had simply shooed me out of her lab, a very pensive expression on her face. That kind of result was simply disheartening.

Even with her help, I was no closer to finding a way home. Without at least some dedicated scholars to guide me, my own researches about dimensional travel seemed doomed to fail miserably.

Magister really screwed up by not giving me more knowledge of different schools of magic.

No, without Twilight, this was not going to work and I couldn’t go back to her so soon...

I would follow up on her suggestions though, as they were sound ideas, truly. However, before that, I had to get my thoughts into order or I might not make a very nice companion for the rest of the day.

It wouldn’t do to darken anypony else’s mood with my gloom. An aching part of my heart seemed to stretch toward the sky. With the maids quietly commenting on the terrible feeling of emptiness they got watching the normally blue endless space over their head, I had been able to quickly deduce that my goal was already in jeopardy.

The Alicorn of the Wind could influence the sky itself. Who would have thought?

Calm down, I thought while taking as deep breaths as I could afford to. Just think of positive stuff. Anything will do, so long as I look happy. Things are pretty crappy right now. I know I’m equally Sam and Ventus at the moment, but there is no guarantee that will remain the same with time. There are apparently traces of that dimensional travel spell still on me, which both Twilight and Discord noticed.

I felt my heart sink.

Oh for freak’s sake! I was trying to cheer myself up! But apparently, I was doomed to fail at everything. Even seeing the bright side of things…

“HAVE YOU GONE MAD?!”

The bright… side…

“I-I… I HATE YOU!”

My wings twitched.

This wasn’t… I shouldn’t focus on that memory. It was so painful it made me want to forget altogether about… If I did, I wouldn’t be able to… I wouldn’t…

My thoughts were too confused at the moment. It seemed as if my chest was a pot of boiling and freezing emotions tearing me apart one contradiction at a time.

I wanted them to be okay, I wanted them to be safe. That, at least, was unchangeable.

I’ll do it right, Mom, Dad. I allowed myself to breathe a sigh of relief. It was still important to me. It still mattered on a gut level. I swear to you, I will find a way back home for me and Tom. We’re not abandoning you.

Slowly, the promise washed away some of my fears and doubts.

“Alright… smile, Sam,” I whispered.

I did. The corner of my lips twitched upward, slightly, but they did. It was technically a smile.

I didn’t need anypony else to tell me that it was not good enough. I’d more than likely make my little brother cringe if I showed myself like that.

And if there was anything the little squirt shouldn’t be given, it was more reasons to worry, especially about me. I didn’t deserve that kind of concern as long as we were still trapped here…

Come on, a bigger smile. Put yourself in the mood. You have to do it… for him.

Images of my little brother flashed into my mind. Ranging from the silly to the cute, my brain could summon so many good memories of him, so many times I was just happy, that the inner darkness vanished instantly.

I broke into a grin.

A spell later, the hallway I had been walking in was empty and the curtains were moved by an inexplicable draft of wind.

He was nervous.

This was new.

Him? Nervous? It was simply unconceivable to every single reasonable pony in Equestria. He was the epitome of nobility; he could not be doubting his capacities of making small talk with the castle’s servants, right?

Then, why were the words stuck in his throat?

The mare was working quickly and efficiently – as she ought to –, just in front of him, baby blue body partially obscured by his sumptuous bed and the clothes she was intending to take to the laundry room.

He did not find her especially pretty, nor did she look that much older than him. Nothing about her was remarkable and that was the root of the problem.

If he spoke now, well, he might shoot his reputation in the hoof. There would be nopony ignoring his humiliating choices in an hour if he went through with his plan. It wasn’t so much the words he wanted to speak, but rather who he would be endorsing by doing so.

C-could he do it? Could he brave all traditions for the sake of being… the sake of what? Being a better pony? He was already an excellent example of noble stallion!

“You are nothing more than a spoiled brat!”

“G-good job,” the words flew out of his mouth before he could stop them.

If possible, the stallion paled in horror. He hadn’t meant to do that!

Oh sweet Auntie Celestia, he had done it. Now he would be the laughing stock of the whole Canterlot nobility. Now everypony would think he had put credit in that infuriating alicorn’s words!

It was too late for him to take back his words. The maid had completely frozen, hearing his compliment. Her mouth hung wide open, almost comically.

“I’m… sorry… I didn’t quite catch that, your Highness…” She declared, composure broken and hesitation betrayed by her every gesture.

Normally, he would have reprimanded her severely for not only implying something there, but also for not paying attention in the first place. Instead, nothing of that scatting reply came out, only a pitiful stuttering could be heard in his royal bedroom.

“I… I s-said… ‘G-g-good… job’… that is all…” Heat crept up his cheeks, coloring them brightly.

“I… thank you graciously, your Highness, for your kind words.” She bowed deeply, as was proper decorum. Unfortunately, her expression remained that of a pony suddenly being transported in an Equestria under Discord’s thrall.

“It… it is simply a most sincere observation of your work, Mare.” The prince looked away, wondering if it was not too late to do some damage control and save his reputation.

Oh, if Fancy Pants hears about it, he will not cease bugging me about those ponyist events and his public endorsing of mules and donkeys to stop unfair treatment in their working population.

Okay, if he was honest with himself, Prince Blueblood might understand the sentiment and the attitude was fitting for a noble soul, let alone a rich stallion like Fancy Pants, but as prince of the kingdom, he had more important duties.

“What makes you so much greater than another pony that would have followed the same path, growing up?”

His bitterness squeezed his heart. It was too much. Those accursed words would not leave him in peace. Not for one second. Whenever he acted as he always did, they started echoing in his mind again, causing a strange feeling of emptiness at the level of his heart.

“What is your biggest dream?” would always be at the front of his mind. Of course, it would be followed by a scathing “No, don’t bother. You’re right. It is irrelevant. It is quite unlikely that you will ever succeed in achieving it, whatever it might be.”

The white stallion’s head was feeling heavier than it should. He was weary of this nonsense that kept assaulting his senses.

He couldn’t tell what he wanted anymore…

“R-remember that I do appreciate your work…”

The maid hurried off with a few words, leaving him alone to ponder this familiar sensation of solitude.

His figure was cowering behind a bush. The sight of his blue coat shaking so should have sent distress signals all over my brain. However, I could feel his breath through some extra sense in this form.

He was snickering. Hardly an attitude one adopts when shaking in fear, if you ask me.

With a grin, I held back from manifesting, enjoying the invisibility of being one with the wind. Not only would this allow me to get one over Calx, but another part of me just… wanted to fade away. Just turning into a gust of wind and roaming through the sky seemed like a pretty appealing option to me.

Eh, maybe one day, when he’ll be all grown-up and won’t need me.

I entertained the thought, shutting down all attempts at acknowledging this would mean I had failed to keep my promise by watching as Tom tensed, ready to pounce.

A second later, a high-pitched voice rose from behind a statue. “Bladey?”

From my position as a spirit in the air, it was child’s play to see the tensing in his muscles, indicating he was geting ready to pounce.

Chance! I quickly leaned forward, right next to his ear. “Boo.”

He jumped three feet in the air, letting out a yelp of complete surprise. The sight had me snickering, finally allowing myself to become flesh and blood again.

“Sam!” Tom shouted, swirling around in shock. He looked equal part crossed and happy.

I guess I have that effect on ponies.

“There you are!” Pinkie jumped over the bush, smiling. “Mare, that was a good hiding place. I’ve been looking for a whole ten minutes! Phew, and I almost lost too.”

“Hey! I didn’t lose!” The little colt’s eyes narrowed, his voice suddenly sullen. “Sam surprised me.”

“Oh, Sammy Good?” Pinkie said, apparently just now noticing me. “I didn’t even know you were playing with us. Ooooooh, I’m so excited.”

…What?

“M-Miss Pie,” I stuttered. “What did you call me?”

“Oh, I heard the girls say you had abducted Twilight, so I was worried at first, but then they also said it was okay, because it was really romantic and stuff. I even heard Rarity say you were good, but I already wanted to call you Sammy, ‘cause it really rolls off the tongue well, so I figured ‘why not both?’.”

All to her little speech, the hyperactive mare didn’t notice how I had focused entirely on one part. My eyes twitched. Please tell me you didn’t say the forbidden word in front of Tom.

His devilish smirk was all the confirmation I needed. “‘All romantic and stuff’, eh, Pinkie?”

“Hu-uh,” she exclaimed and nodded enthusiastically, blissfully oblivious as to what she had just unleashed. “Rarity said her romantic senses had like… really really started tingling, in overdrive even.”

“Are you sure that’s not just you? Sounds like a Pinkie Sense to me.”

“Yup, pretty sure.” She shrugged.

So did Calx. I had a feeling the protest had been more a token than anything else. As further proof of this theory, his evil gaze fell on me, his mouth twisted into the kind of smile the shark gives to the innocent trout.

Getting sidetracked by the analogy here. And how did I come to think of myself as a trout?

I was suddenly visited by a powerful urge to facepalm myself into oblivion.

Right, where was I?

Tom took a deep breath, and that was how I knew Tartarus was unleashed on me.

“Sam’s got a girlfriend! Sam’s got a girlfriend. Sam’s got a girlfriend.”

Ah, yes, the chanting, the abomination that some moron had one day invented to give annoying kids ammunition and fuel to become the most annoying things ever. What I wouldn’t give to inflict a thousand tortures on that being, human or pony or whatever…

This… this is like chewing on aluminum paper while giving a bath to a strangled cat that is scratching a blackboard over the sound of a fire alarm.

As it stood however, the inventor of the wretched thing known as singing had long died and I was stuck in the middle of an imaginary circle, on the edges of which my little brother jumped up and down, scanting the unbearably whiny noise.

Then, it got worse.

After a moment of observation, a light of interest lit up in Pinkie Pie’s eyes. “Hey, this sounds like fun! Can I join?”

Hearing that, my indignation flared. “Miss Pie, you ca-!”

“Sure.” Tom instantly agreed.

“YES!” The pink mare jumped ten inches in the air.

Before I could blink, shout or generally express my disagreement with this new arrangement, they both started skipping all around me, with a frightening unison.

“Sam’s got a girlfriend!” They chanted.

I felt like my ears would start bleeding at any given time now. That, or I would have used my magic to destroy all air and thus all sound. For the sake of not hearing them, it would be worth it to destroy this world’s atmosphere.

“Sam’s got a girlfriend. Sam’s got a girlfriend.”

Urge to destroy the world: rising.

“Stop,” I said, sounding so calm it was surreal.

They ignored my warning.

No mercy then.

Heat coursed through my being for a brief moment, before focusing into my horn and lit it up with the glow of magic.

As it so happened, they were both in midair at the same time, legs happily folded under them temporarily. This was precisely what I needed to strike.

With a flicker of my horn, they both instantly noticed a change. The first of the two was Tom, whose leg muscles contracted and relaxed several times without noticeable change in posture.

“Huh? My legs are all tied up,” he muttered, squirming in position to get out of that invisible jam.

You can try, but it won’t work, Calx. The air underneath you is solidified and will simply carry you around for a while.

“That is so neat!” The high pitched voice was shaking with pure joy. It grabbed my attention quite easily.

…Pinkie looked quite similar to a sitting duck, gliding through the air not unlike a giant pink chicken either. A giant excited chicken that gushed over this new thing by babbling and spinning her neck to keep up with me.

…That was strangely in-character for her and, surprisingly enough, sent a shiver down my spine.

Stupid as it felt though, I could not stop myself from jumping ten feet of air and opening my wings wide when she suddenly appeared underneath me, right between my front legs.

Heart beaten at an accelerated rate, I stared at Pinkie while she giggled at my reaction. Damn it! I knew she could do that already! How did that take me by surprise?!

“You should have seen the look on your face!” Tom shouted, hollering with laugher.

Annoyed, I dropped to the ground and let gravity do the same to them. Neither was properly prepared and I hid a satisfied smirk at the simultaneous thud their bodies made hitting the ground.

I used the opportunity of them being both down for the count to make my next point.

“Now, listen and understand what I am saying, Tom. I will not repeat it.” The grasp of another spell lifted him up to eye-level. “I am not in love with a pony.”

Parts of me screamed that this was a false reassurance.

At least, I knew I could not deny a physical, purely physical and nothing more, attraction, which was due to the fact that I had spent four hundred years with that kind of ideal of beauty in my brain.

“Come on, Sam. That’s the reason you’re all gloomy and stuff, right?” The odious little squirt grinned, giving me that look. “Twilight didn’t want to kiss you?”

He yelped when I unceremoniously dropped him to the ground.

“Tom.” I breathed deeply to calm myself and not let the burning rage just take over. “I am currently contemplating how to get you back for this, you understand, right?”

He tensed, but otherwise showed no signs of unease through his arrogant demeanor. “Bring it!”

“You will learn that I have had plenty of time to learn all brotherly wrestling techniques from hell, little brother.” My attention zoomed in on his slightly shaking figure. “You are on the verge of learning them with your body.”

To see him about ready to run for his life quenched at least half of that thirst for glorious sibling revenge. In light of this satisfaction, the muscles of my legs relaxed, visibly.

The fear of retaliation away from his mind, Calx was free to act his normal obnoxious self again. Heck, the impish way he muttered to himself implied bad things about my future. But hey, I could take on everything the little guy would dish out. I taught him everything he knows.

“Hey Sam, I wanted to ask you something!” Pinkie Pie piped in, breaking me out of my contemplations.

With a grain of apprehension, I turned to her. “Yes?”

“Where does the nickname ‘Sam’ come from? I mean, your name’s Ventus Vinco and I can’t, for the life of me, figure out where it comes from.”

Taken aback, I took a second to compose myself, thinking on how to reply to that without revealing something compromising.

“Well…”

Pinkie’s face crunched up, with her teeth stuck together and her eyes locked into a panicky light. “Gniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii-”

“You okay?” Tom asked, as I blinked, baffled.

“-iiiiiiiiiiiiiii- Ve- Nope, got nothing.”

I stared. Tom stared as well. We exchanged a glance and both decided not to say anything of this, most likely vowing to forget it.

“Let’s just say those nicknames come from a while ago and involve dimensional travel and noodles.”

“OH!” The pink mare jumped on her hooves. “What kind?! I love noodle!”

“To describe them would be outside the realms of reason,” I said, deadpan.

“Awww.” Her ears drooped, sending a pinch of guilt in my chest.

“You made her sad!” Calx pouted, jumping to her side instantly.

I would later feel shame at the only thought going through my head at the moment being only a deadpan “Seriously?”. Heck, it even pissed me off. She could afford being sad over noodles while I had to suck it up and pretend everything was fine? Urgh…

He kept up the glare.

I would have too, had it not been for the part where I had promised to make this a good day for him. That, however, did not prevent me from rolling my eyes. “…Fine, I apologize for not being able to describe a particular kind of noodles from outer spaces.”

It was as if a switch had been turned on. Instantly, the mare was on her hooves, looking the happiest in the world.

“Oh, thank you!” She threw her front legs around my neck, hugging me like I had suddenly told her that ponies all over Equestria wanted to throw her a party. “Just the fact that you apologized means a lot. Usually ponies don’t bother when they say I’m not making sense.”

My heart sunk in my chest a little. Well, I needed something to make me feel guilty today…

“But you know what would really cheer me up?” Again, her whole expression lit up with anticipation, which had me mentally cower in apprehension. “If we got to visit Canterlot itself.”

“Y-you want to visit the city?” Strangely, the thought didn’t bother me. A part of me was however surprised I had not even contemplated that yet. “O-outside the castle’s ground? Are we allowed to do that?”

“Why wouldn’t you be? You’re not prisoners of anything.”

Oh, of nothing at all, if we exclude Equestria itself.

Nonetheless, I could not allow these thoughts to surface, lest somepony caught on. I affected a humbled, embarrassed façade. Scratching the back of my head with my hoof, I offered the pink mare a sheepish grin. “Well… I… believed the possibility nil without any guard to accompany us, but there wasn’t any instruction on what we were allowed to do… or anything else for that matters. I-”

The blue face of a colt suddenly filled my field of vision, as a double pressure on my shoulders indicated he had literally jumped on me. “Does that mean we can go visit Canterlot, Sam!?”

“…I guess so.” I gently threw him off, desperately trying to find an issue with that course of action and not quite finding one that would not suddenly break Tom’s spirit and squash it into pieces.

Of course, the two’s immediate response was to cheer and jump in the air.

“That sounds really really nice! I heard they have the highest quality cuisine. This will be great. We’re going to spend lots of time together down in Canterlot. I bet we’ll have lots and lots and lots of fun there.” She proceeded to let out this really cute and weird snort-giggle mix, before looking up at me with wide innocent eyes. “What could go wrong?”

…When you put it that way…

Escapism

Loud laughter filled the room. The throaty deep sound carried well, echoing and bouncing off the wooden walls of the small room we were crammed in. The air seemed heavier with it, but not… not in an entirely unfriendly manner. A few candles and lanterns placed strategically illuminated enough of it, creating an atmosphere of secrecy, as backward as that could be when there was so little space to move.

If anything, the enclosed space ensured that the ponies inside had to become closer, both physically and metaphorically.

A burning furnace in the emptiest corner and a circle of stallions exchanging stories made up for a very homey atmosphere. It was comfortable, sitting as part of that group of ponies, even if the heat had some fur damp with sweat.

And the beverage did flow. Going from hooves to hooves, there was a pint, full of one worker’s personal favorite, being exchanged by everypony. Each time, they emptied it; each time, they filled it again. Before long, it stopped in front of me.

Cautiously, I eyed it, taking in its shape and volume, but more importantly the beverage it contained.

Nonalcoholic cider, they said. It would make sense, considering where we were, but I had a rather limited trust in stallions I had met about two hours ago. Pranks and hazing rituals were certainly a possibility. With so many expectant eyes falling on me though, I had little choice on how to receive their approval.

Without a moment’s hesitation, I grabbed the handle with my hoof and took a swig. The liquid quickly went down my throat without trouble and the dreaded heat spreading from there simply didn’t come.

About six voices cheered on me for about another three seconds, before I slammed the pint against the wooden crater and let out a spectacular burp. Then, their cheers doubled.

And, of course, Tom was rolling on the floor, holding his sides.

“Now that’s a prince I can get behind!” An old unicorn claimed, chuckling, his favorite pipe in his hoof. “None of that froo-frooey nonsense I keep getting from those stick-in-the-muds!”

“YEAH!” Two brown stallions hollered, Daybreak and Sunrise, proud of their blue overalls and their caps and not afraid to show them off to the poor, stuffy, traumatized prince sitting between them. He had covered his delicate ears as best as he could, one hoof occupied by a flask of cider.

The borderline battle cry got the ‘brownies’ one more recruit in the form of one overly excited colt. It wasn’t that surprising when his first reaction to them had been something among the line of ‘You two look like a pair of brownies’. With but that cringe worthy remark, Calx had set up the bar for how badly he needed to unwind.

His day of study was over and he intended to make full use of his free time. All of his hyper behavior… focused in a short period of time… Celestia’s plan might end up backfiring dangerously.

“You won’t believe what they say when we want to eat!” Calx yelled. “They won’t even let me choose what I want, just because ‘It is not the proper moment to enjoy such treats, Prince Calx’.”

“Cry me a river.” I rolled my eyes and patted the poor thing’s back with the tip of my wing, to his annoyance.

“Hehe,” the oldest engineer chuckled, stroking my brother’s messy mane. “Those are fools if you ask me. What’s in a life, if you can’t choose to enjoy it?”

Images of a few humans flashed in my mind, but I shook them off. Now wasn’t a good time for this. Luckily, none of the mechanics had caught on to my reaction. In fact, the attention was turned toward one of the other two princes.

The youngest pony of the bunch, who seemed to be barely out of his teenage years, stepped forward, emboldened by the companionship he was witnessing. “What d’you think of that, your Highness?”

Blueblood’s eyes were begging me to help him out of this one, but the correct answer was so obvious that he deserved no intervention. Then again, it was Blueblood. He was making efforts, that could not and should not be denied, but darn was he dense when it came to people skills. It was logical though, when one considered how little he had needed them before.

Finally, he answered, with but a semblance of regality. “W-well, my good fellow, I think there is a place for decorum in Canterlot… I mean, you wouldn’t want to offend Princess Celestia, right?”

Only that last part had allowed them to let it slide. Be it as it may, nopony really wanted to disappoint her, even for something as trivial as unrefined manners. So they just grumbled a few words under their breaths, the ambiance sobering up quickly.

Passable way to reply, if a bit political, Blueblood, but that could have been a lot better.

“BUT who cares when we’re not in Canterlot!” He added hastily, getting the mood back on track somewhat. “We’re just between stallions!”

Better. I nodded, approving his reply.

As if a weight had disappeared from his shoulder, his posture became a bit more lax. After I had given him the advice to mingle with his staff more often, Blueblood had responded with almost abject terror.

“Because you think they will suddenly forget me ignoring or belittling their work for years?!”

Funny how his ability to accept his previous behavior as arrogant beyond belief had a direct correlation with the amount of pain he might expect otherwise.

“The small steps, Blueblood. The small steps…”

So there he was, stuck between two stallions with stature and body mass approximately equal to his, obviously wishing to be somewhere else.

Hey, you’re the one that wanted this…

Luckily for us both, none of the workers had really picked up on what Blueblood was most likely thinking. In fact, they seemed to be enjoying themselves just as much as I did. Heck, the youngest pony in the room just stood up and looked at his much more elderly counterpart.

“Now then, Steam Salvo,” the teenage worker said with a grin, holding out an open hoof. “I believe you owe me a few bits.”

The room descended into silence, very, very, attentive silence. There were bits involved and a debt to be paid.

The old pony blinked dumbly, then spoke with a mix of incredulity and stern anger. “What are you flapping your gums about, Patchwork?”

“You said a week ago and I quote ‘the day I meet a noble that doesn’t snob me is the day I give you all seven bits’. Now, I may not be reading the situation right, but those princes over here are definitely not snobbing you, so fork over the bits.”

The pipe that had been held in the old timer’s mouth fell to the ground. It made a small thud when it collided with the ground, but in an otherwise completely silent atmosphere, it almost seemed to detonate.

The brownies stood up as once, in another remarkable show of synchronization, quickly addressing the elderly pony and demanding that he honored his words.

Now the look the old pony was sending me was definitely less than benevolent. Tough luck. In fact, you’ve barely even lost. It’s lucky for Patchwork that Calx’s around, otherwise, well, it wouldn’t count.

With a grumble and an impressive number of profanities that had Blueblood’s cheeks reddening, Steam Salvo handed them their money, his face crunched up in a stern glare. Amusingly enough, it made his wrinkles thrice as prominent. It lost a bit of its impact because of this.

“Don’t be like that, Salvo,” the young worker chuckled, not impressed. “When you play, you must be willing to lose.”

Except when the stakes are too high. Then anything is fair game.

The light that appeared next in the old stallion’s eyes had me thinking of predators like the timberwolves. Salvo wasn’t done with this. “Now, who’s up for some poker?”

Patchwork confident and easygoing attitude evaporated on the spot. “No way, Mr. Salvo! No way!”

“Eh,” he laughed. “Sounds like one youngster’s got no balls. What’s wrong, sonny? Afraid you’ll have our bits taken away?”

“Hey! If there’s a game going on, I want in!” One of the brownies – Daybreak, I think – stepped forward. The other scoffed, whispering something about ‘suckers’ and just moved to the further corner, where the firebox was.

Now Patchwork seemed torn. On one hoof, he clearly didn’t want to be part of a game where he might lose the money his smartass mouth had earned him, but peer pressure pushed him to seek acceptance from his colleagues.

“Hey, I want to play too!” Calx yelled, effectively killing any chance for the young stallion to back away from the challenge. “You too, Sam!”

Now, not that seeing how the game would unfold with him wouldn’t be a story for the ages, but there were other factors to consider, such as the fact that we were broke and living on charity at this point. Plus, I’d rather not see my baby brother try his hooves at gambling.

Since he would not listen to reason, I went with the simple truth. “We don’t have any bits to bet, bro.”

“Nonsense, Prince Ventus,” Blueblood interjected. “As part of the royal family, you do have access to certain funds…”

Oh buck you, Blueblood.

“Great, so that’s five players!” Salvo cackled, tapping his front hooves together.

“F-five?” Blueblood repeated dumbly.

Ah, serves you right! This was getting fun now. They wanted to play poker with their boss. Said boss was also trying to fit in. Who would be losing or winning the most?

“I’m glad you want to join us, Prince Blueblood,” Daybreak grinned, slapping a friendly hoof into the noble’s back.

The resonating smack that followed had me silently chuckling. Oh yes, this had been a great idea. “So it is settled. A five pony game?”

“But…” He sneered, not amused. “Oh fine! I will play this com-… this game.”

His slip-up went unnoticed, or so I was inclined to believe until I noticed Steam Salvo’s slightly raised eyebrow. His gaze remained unflinching on Blueblood, who was trying to sit more comfortably by the crate which we served as our table. He looked about ready to demand his bits back from the others…

“I’ll be the dealer.” The old timer grabbed a deck of cards from his pouch. “Those hooves have seen a lot of decks go by in their days.”

A few snickers followed, prompting Calx to look at me questioningly, to which I only replied with a shrug.

“You princelings know the rules?” Salvo asked, shuffling the cards with great dexterity. I doubted my magic could do the same, so with my hooves…

Now jumping up and down with excitement at the idea of a game, Calx nodded enthusiastically. “Yup! Sam taught me!”

At that, Patchwork glanced my way, seemingly confused or perhaps a little outraged. He didn’t have time to ponder however as the old stallion’s skills were true. With a few swift sleights of hoof, Salvo had served each player his cards.

Faking some interest in the game, I looked down at my hand, four out of five being black cards and making two pairs. Aces and eights…

It had been a while since I last played this though… Looking back, well… I came up with a blank. I had no idea when I had last played this… Did I ever try my hooves at poker before? Yeah, Calx said I taught him, so I must have...

Said little colt certainly didn’t look the part of an experienced trainer though. First, Calx tried to pick up his cards with his hooves, clumsily clenching them together and dropping two of them. With a yelp, he scrambled to hide them with his wings jealously. The glare he sent Patchwork for laughing only served to bring a paternal light to the eyes of Salvo and Daybreak.

Golden light engulfing them, his cards floated up to his grasp again, well hidden from the sight of cheaters. As soon as they were secured, he grinned to me. “Thanks, Sam!”

I smiled. “Anything for you, little brother.” Literally.

The others, getting a bit bored with our interactions or simply wishing to get on with the game, started placing their bets and exchanging cards.

“Huuuuuuuh… two cards?” He looked up to me, with a grimace.

“I dunno, squirt.” I shrugged. “It’s your cards.”

“…I guess three then!” He declared, throwing them against the crate and tapping its side to ask for his new cards.

Stoically, Salvo indulged him. Then, just as he looked to the cards he had been dealt with, for a split second, Calx’s mouth twisted into a grimace, before he panicked and tried to look inconspicuous. Far too late, a confident and bashful grin appeared on his face.

Blueblood and the others smirked, doing their best not to look at him and show even more clearly that they had seen through his bluff.

As for me, I decided to fold, my thoughts centered around the princesses reaction, had they known we were betting money we didn’t have. Then again, something felt off about this round. I couldn’t put my hoof on it…

My withdrawal proved wise a minute later, when Daybreak showed off three Unicorn Prince.

A strangled, inaudible gasp prickled my ears. The noise, betraying shock and pain came from the only unicorn in the room. Truly, had his coat been any other color, Blueblood’s would have paled drastically.

The intensity of his stare was abnormal as well. It seemed to have zoomed in on the paintings of the Unicorn Prince, which strangely resembled him, if only a little older… say… one generation older?

A cold hand gripped at my guts, my own image superposing itself to the white stallion’s.

All to his victory, Daybreak hadn’t noticed Blueblood’s reaction, nor did Patchwork and Salvo, both grumbling it was only the first round.

Not wishing to bring more attention to what was happening, I jumped on the first distraction that came to me. “What about you, little brother? Can you beat three of a kind?”

The second he broke into a grin, Daybreak knew he had been had.

“Who’s got a Royal Flush?” He happily threw down his cards. “Me!”

We stared. All of us, without exception. Heck, Blueblood was probably grateful from the distraction, or would be once his jaw was back in place.

And if there was a thing Calx wasn’t, it was humble. With a hoof to his chin, faking to muzzle on his thoughts in the most adorable way, he looked us all in the eyes. “I guess I’m too cute and clumsy to know how to play, huh?”

Now the spirits were starting to heat up.

After four more rounds of this though, the emerging tendency was as hilarious as it was awesome. With a little stretch of the imagination, it was quite easy to summon the very thoughts that had to be crossing the others’ minds at this very moment.

My guess? They could not believe that the little hyper colt currently bouncing in his seat was steadily taking the lead in a game of poker. For all my ability to put on a perfectly neutral mask, I just wasn’t that good at making gambles…

Calx, on the other hoof, really knew how to mess with adults. He did it all the time and certainly had the imagination to pull it off.

And I wasn’t bad at getting in on the act either. After a minute of staring at his honest-to-Elders puppy eyes of doom, I smirked. With a little magic, I slammed my cards against the crate. “I fold. No way I’m getting sucked into your little game.”

Daybreak and Salvo’s gazes alternated between us with disbelief. Blueblood, having already folded, stared at me intensively.

Exchanging glances, the remaining two stallions folded before being made fools of again.

Of course, that time, it turned out that Calx’s cards were pitiful.

I can’t believe that work. Wasn’t it obvious?

“Now, wait just a minute, tha-”

We all jumped in our seats when a booming metallic sound cut them off. In his corner, Sunrise had kicked the firebox while laughing his rump off, rolling on the floor and wiping his tears.

I like this guy.

“There you go, squirt.” I ruffled Calx’s mane, which he took in strides, looking at the bits he was accumulating and fast. “That’s another way to bluff. Classic two-pony con.”

Daybreak and Salvo glared at me, to which I replied with an innocent smile.

“What? I only didn’t want to lose against him. I completely misjudged his hand. That’s all.”

The insults they grumbled under their breaths had me almost admiring their creativity. Granted, had they known I could hear them no matter how quietly they said it, they probably wouldn’t have voiced them, ever.

Quickly though, the game returned to normal, with exchanges of cards and most players being very wary of Calx’s skills now. However, my heart wasn’t to poker anymore. My attention kept shifting to the world outside, each turbulence shortening my attention span. The open sky was calling to me; I couldn’t ignore it much longer. This was it.

“If you’ll excuse me, sirs,” I said, my voice shaking and my legs growing unsteady. “I will check how things are on the deck.”

“Huh… ‘kay, Ventus.” Calx didn’t even look up from his cards.

With one last chuckle, I took my leave, the others sending me their good wishes for the rest of the evening.

Once the door of the engine room was closed, I let the mask slip. It hadn’t been particularly tedious, as the general atmosphere had been quite relaxed in the first place, but I was starting to really resent having to fake everything I said.

The image of Calx floated in my head.

ALMOST everything.

Very un-regal, I grimaced at the steps leading to the upper levels. The wood creaked beneath my hooves, producing a grating noise with each step in the stairs I was taking. Within a minute, I had reached the door leading outside, but my patience was spent.

In front of the opening toward my domain, my heart stilled, a faint glow of magic ensnarling the doorknob. Fear held my magic in place, my heart growing nauseous with the idea of exposing myself to the sky, to diving so deep into my own concept…

My mind wandered elsewhere.

I remembered the deck had seemed to be of decent length when I had first set hoof on it, reaching approximately that of a house. From afar, it had seemed quite ordinary, almost like a botched job. From up close though, one could easily infer the fact that it had been a deliberate design. In all appearances, the airship had a military rigor and almost Spartan rigidness.

Quite different than what I had expected of Blueblood. It wasn’t anywhere near as fancy as the one Rarity had gotten the chance to ride during one of her stay in Canterlot. While recently cleaned and polished, which told me how little the ship was used, it still remained remarkably austere.

‘You don’t cheat about your cutie mark’ indeed. If there is one thing a pony should be honest about, it’s that, huh?

Makes me wonder about mine…

I shot a glance to my backside, toward the mark adorning my flanks. It was in the same veins as Celestia and Luna, simply a symbol of my nature as an alicorn. Still, today, the curves and the spirals of this pale blue held more fascination than usual. To have your destiny marking your body… it almost sounded arbitrary. It sounded like a law.

Who am I kidding? It’s just a butt tattoo. I chastised myself. It doesn’t matter. Once we’re back, it’ll be just one more thing left behind.

The world grew cold as I realized where my thoughts had gone.

…‘Left behind’? W-when did I start thinking like this?! Since when do I think of anything here worth missing?! SINCE WHEN?!

My head spinning, I felt my mind grow out of control. Images, sounds and memories came by too fast to be registered, too fleeting to be remembered. Panic was starting to take hold of me.

My name is Sam. My name is Ventus. My name is what I choose it to be. We’re not staying here. WE’RE NOT STAYING HERE!

Without thinking, I twisted the doorknob and ran outside.

Instantly, the disorientation hit me, making me stop.

I knew my words had been true when I had explained it to him, I knew that, but the difference between knowing and experiencing it was one that could never be overstated.

My legs failed me, causing another burst of pain where my head had hit the wooden planks. Flames and illness had exploded in my chest. I was exposed to an unmaking reality. It shouldn’t have been possible, not for an alicorn as young as me to do this. Fear struck my heart, as I came to wonder if I hadn’t been too foolish in my arrogance and this desire to maintain a mask.

Unable to stand, barely able to move, I remained still, at the mercy of my own concept. The winds struck at breathtaking speed. Each one was like a blade, striking at me fast and hard, or at least it tried to.

No, that was wrong. It… it wasn’t exactly… hitting me, nor was it really moving around me… it… my own knowledge of language failed me in this occasion. My more human side in particular was completely stumped. T-there wasn’t a word for this. Not in Sam’s – my – vocabulary. There simply wasn’t a human word that could accurately describe the slow loss of your soul in your environment.

Left with little strength, I couldn’t move, not yet, but I could still see. In the distance, the sun was setting, coloring the horizon orange and red. Over the rails, a few clouds drifted, sometimes over, sometimes under the airship. There was no denying this beauty, how it created aches and soothed the dread filling my limbs.

“This was a moronic idea…” I muttered, panting and sweating.

Gritting my teeth, I forced myself to focus on this identity rather than its essence. I repeated the mantra, I told myself who I was.

I am Ventus Vinco. I am the wind. I am Sam Miller. I am the air under the sky and the reborn concept of wind. I am human in mind, but not in body. I am an alicorn and a concept, but not a pony. I am Sam and Ventus.

Slowly, the unease receded. It changed, from an overwhelming pressure over my whole being to a scream in my ears, one that couldn’t be silenced.

Over that, I barely detected the screeching of the door’s hinges. Without looking, I already had an idea of the identity of this new pony. After all, the engineers weren’t going to leave their posts and Calx would have thrown the door open with much more confidence.

“So, how is your attempt at mingling going, Blueblood?” I called for his attention, stopping the noise of hoofsteps behind me.

Building up my strength to put out a calm front, I breathed in and out a few times, regretting the foul impression spreading in my lungs with each inspiration. Then, only after I felt I wouldn’t throw up, I turned around to face him.

“T-this is ridiculous…” He shot a nervous glance to the door behind us. “They are so uncouth I feel my fur stand on its ends just hearing them speak. And don’t get me started on the smell in that room! My airship will need to be disinfected and cleaned up when we get back.”

Mentally, I rolled my eyes. Four workers in a small closed-off room, with a heater somewhere… What kind of smell were you expecting? Besides, some nobles can be worse with how thick they lay off their perfumes.

Sadly, my true feelings had to be squashed, and a more diplomatic answer came out instead. “I can’t really deny they are rough around the edge, but what of it?”

“’W-what of it?!’ Their behavior is simply disgusting. You imitated them!” The thought seemed to give him a small aneurysm. “I cannot believe you would forsake all your manners so quickly for a few workers!”

His words struck a chord, hitting the fiber of my being I had thought dead.

Hiding a newly born anger had luckily become an easy exercise for me. “But it was fun while it lasted. Didn’t you feel accepted by them when you tried to see it from their point of view?”

Hearing this, the prince’s abrasive attitude subdued and he shrunk on himself shamefully.

“Tell me you at least tried…” I felt my mouth twist with disbelief, almost scoffing.

Parts of me were really irritated that he’d made me lose my time, but the rest... strangely, it was disappointment that shone through. When had I started placing so much faith in him?

“Don’t be so condescending all the time, Blueblood.” I shook my head, letting out a disheartened sigh. “That’s one of the first lesson you ought to learn.”

Behind me, Blueblood’s breathing hitched.

“S-sorry…” His voice came out hoarse, prompting me to look back to him. The more time he spent with me, the less well-off it seemed to be for his physical appearance. Muscles in his legs were shaking, betraying his nervousness, and the despair in his eyes struck me as pitiful. “J-just how am I supposed to connect with those ponies? We’re nothing alike.”

Only then did the truth dawn on me. It wasn’t for a lack of trying, rather than a simple inability to see where to start.

“True, but the same could be said of you from their points of view. Once they saw you weren’t going to condescend and belittle them, they accepted you. Do you at least see it?”

“I-I suppose… if one were to exclude… s-some truly ghastly moment… it was fun, for short periods of time!” Even as he said it, he seemed to grow more excited, childishly so. “T-they were… very… accepting and friendly.”

It made me grin. “Well, then, you’ve got one proof that a pony’s shell makes not for their value or their nobility. Does this rationalization help you consider them worth your time?”

Sadly, my guess turned out correct. He did look less reluctant to talk to them again. Somewhat encouraging was the internal debate I detected within him.

“But that still does not tell me how to connect with them!”

“Turn it around. Be accepting and friendly in return, without the judgmental eye. Keep up the appearances and don’t let your differences slip between you. That’s the basic for a socialite, isn’t it?”

His mouth, opened to protest or question again, clamped shut.

There, that ought to keep him busy just stewing on that. Maybe now I’ll get a moment to think of more urgent matters, like how to-

“I could not help thinking…” His voice came out loudly, again, making me drown a puppy in my head to vent the sudden rise in frustration. “They will want a raise, won’t they?”

Okay… strange question… “Do you think they deserve one?”

“I… I do not know… They have been doing their jobs well and I have been paying accordingly. If we become more civil, do you think they’ll expect… I mean, if we come into contact more often, would they not expect me to use my moneytary status to... That is how the high society live. Friends means more favors and power, financial or political.”

As ridiculous as the idea was, I felt saddened by how empty he made his life sound. Darn, it had to suck to be raised in such an environment.

Unaware of my sudden empathy, he went on, pensive and introspective, to the point I seemed to have vanished from his field of vision. He was thinking out loud. “There wouldn’t be much harm in giving them a raise… I never cared much for money itself.” Briefly, he paused, before his eyes widened in horror. “M-my status… was so much more important… is. Ventus! I do not think I can actually stop caring about my station!”

I know I’m supposed to be a well of wisdom and what’s not, being four centuries old or one and a half decade, but shit, this isn’t easy... I never thought about this stuff before! It was self-evident to me!

“Being proud… of your origin… of who you are…” I placated my hesitations behind a kind smile. “I don’t think it’s something inherently bad. Truly, it will depend on how that translates to your relationship with other ponies.”

For a moment, Blueblood looked so relieved, so thoroughly comforted, that I wavered. Something akin to warmth had grown in my chest. On impulse, I trotted the distance separating us and gently patted him in the back.

“You’ve seen today that ordinary ponies can be just as good, competent, hardworking and friendly as ponies of higher status. Superficial factors might change, but not the worth of the pony itself.”

“But…”

“Just keep trying,” I said firmly, a hint of steel and cold filtering through my behavior.

Silence was the only thing passing between us. There was no room for discussion anymore.

“You taught your little brother how to gamble?” His voice was a mixture of indignation and amusement.

Almost no room.

I snorted. “Shut up. It kept him busy.”

As it keeps the poor stallions stuck with him downstairs. Briefly, I prayed the Elders wouldn’t be unfair to the workers, as they were good ponies at heart.

“I was only wondering.” Blueblood raised a roof over his chest briefly, feigning repentance and humility.

That’s about as convincing as the CMC’s talent show.

In spite of the annoyance of his questioning, I actually grinned. The ambiance had lightened tangibly with just these few words.

“The breeze is quite pleasant at this altitude, at least at this time of the year.” The white stallion looked over the safety rail, hazarding his gaze to the earth below.

From his perch, I knew he could see the entirety of the fields separating Ponyville from Canterlot. The sight seemed touch him, as a small and childish grin appeared on his lips.

His voice turned into an excited whisper. “A-amazing! It has been months since I was given the chance…” He gulped down, though it seemed to have stemmed from excitement rather than stress. “The world below seems so different from up here. It’s so much more... refined.”

“There is no denying that.” I nodded.

“Though perhaps it is a bit cold.” He shivered.

Cold wind… I glanced to the side of the ship, an extension of my mind warning me about an anomaly. Somehow, the
presence of another, unwelcomed but so very familiar, being so up high was clear as day to me.

Without a second of hesitation, my head turned precisely toward said flying creature. At a moment’s notice, it accelerated, flying directly toward the airship. From this angle, the unmistakably equine traits of the monster only served as a remainder of the horror behind its existence.

“He tore apart his soul.” Luna’s scream echoed in my mind as a warning.

A piece of Caelum Ourobos’ soul. Perhaps a fragment of soul that should have been mine. And it was drawn to me. A windigo had come to me!

It cut through the gusts of wind like they were nothing, exhaling air cold air to create white smoke. Its cries of blind hatred started echoing, creating an uncanny version of a whinny that had my blood curdling.

I was looking straight in its eyes. The admittedly great distance did little to minimize the impact of such a sight. Behind the swirling white light, there was an instinctual truth hidden. I knew what it was. It knew what I was and the instant that the spark of recognition danced between us, a whirlpool of impulses drowned the rest of my being.

A wave of desire and affection flushed through my thought process, leaving only the connection between the two of us and reducing my capacity to reflect its most basic level.

MINE!

The wind spirit recoiled, turning on its tail and diving away from the airship. It left a trail of cooler air behind, a few snowflakes forming in its wake. Clearly, it tried to put the most distance between us.

A foolish and pointless gesture.

The entirety of my being focused entirely on the windigo, I took a few steps forward, as to make sure I would not lose sight of its form. How could I?

It was a part of me, right? Then why was it flying around?! I wanted it, violently!

With a stomp of my hoof, I put the entirety of my greed in one single mental command. Come. Back!

As the windigo faded in a panicked shriek, memories started to pour in my brain. I was completely unprepared for the thousand sensations that split my head in half. Unlike the reality warping, the assault didn’t feel like I was remembering something, I was shown somepony else’s life. It filled my brain with thoughts that weren’t mine.

A plethora of blood… so many ponies, dying… so stupid… why aren’t they listening to me?! I’ve thrown away my home for you! WHY AREN’T YOU LISTENING TO ME?!

Just as suddenly as the images had been summoned, the world was back to its vibrant, brightly colored state. There was a small exception to this though. I felt as if my chest was burning with seething fury.

“Prince Ventus, are you alright?” The fool stepped closer to me, stabilizing me with a strong hoof. “You staggered for a moment.”

“I… I am-”

Against my will, my body leaned more strongly into his hold. My legs had no strength in them; I couldn’t stand, I couldn’t breathe. My chest was heaving, so loudly those broken pants of mine just filled my ears.

Die.... Die... Die... Die... Die... Die... Die... Die... Die... Die... Die…

The corners of my eyes burned with cold so extreme it would stripe one’s flesh off their bones. I wanted to share the feeling with whoever would cross my path. Just share my pain and my hatred!

However, just as I started focusing magic in my horn, my neck twisted enough for something else to catch my attention. Painfully, the dying sunlight reflected against my retina. With just that, I was reminded of the princess waiting for her nephew to come back.

Mercilessly, I squashed those urges of violence. I can’t… too dangerous right now…

Slowly, with great hesitations, I forced myself to stand on my own four hooves, refusing any help from the unicorn prince. Judging from the wide eyes and the twitches of his tail, it wasn’t by any choice of his that I stood unsupported.

“What happened!? You were looking in blank space one moment and, the next, you collapsed!”

For a second, I could not think of an appropriate answer. Instead, my mind had focused on an information he had revealed to me. So you didn’t detect the windigo’s presence? Better not disillusion you then.

“Sorry about that. I’m afraid being so up high in the sky does affect me in ways I couldn’t predict,” I explained with a weak smile.

Oh yes, certainly not what I had predicted.

At another time, I would have noticed the sincerity of his worry or the truth behind the concerned look he shot me, but I was too busy contemplating what had happened. That windigo had disappeared without even physical contact between us. All it had taken was an honest desire to get it back.

The cogs of my mind were already turning at full speed. Now, this is very interesting…

Guilt

I first awoke to an unearthly noise; deep, rumbling and translating an insatiable hunger. My hunger.

Tentatively, I raised my eyelids, but quickly closed them shut in pain. A ray of light was shining down precisely on my face. Urgh… Thanks Celly.

I stretched my whole body, shivering with satisfaction whenever I heard and felt popping noises in my articulations. Slowly, just… taking as much time as I felt like, I got on my hooves and yawned. My mind still half drowned by drowsiness, I blankly looked down at the crispy sound that came from under my hoof.

Fortunately, that was only a piece of wrapping paper, as opposed to one of the books we had borrowed from the library. Thus, I would live to see another day, if I survived cleaning up this place first.

This is going to be Tartarus to clean up, I thought as I scanned the room and the entirety of the disaster at hands. It wasn’t pretty.

And this was how my weekend was going to start... Joy.

For a second, I let my desire to go lie down and relax take hold of my mind. Ponyville was already wide awake. There were plenty of noises to tell me so. It hadn’t really mattered earlier. Not even the rooster at Sweet Apple Acres reached more than a corner of my mind this morning. Not Pinkie’s rapid fire speeches about the qualities of the Cakes’ most sumptuous pastries either. Not even… the two or three clients of the Sunrise Café that gushed about the taste of their croissants.

My stomach rumbled again, stronger than ever.

…Alright, I’m doing this after breakfast.

My attention then turned to the little colt that was conspicuously absent from the trash of the titans that was our living room.

“Tom?” I called loudly as I made my way around the debris and into the kitchen.

It did take a short moment for him to reply, his voice coming from the other end of the hallway. “I’m here.”

“Are you hungry?”

“I already ate some oatmeal!” He shouted back.

As if to confirm his story, my gaze fell onto a bowl dropped in the sink with the rest of our silverware, some smudges of his breakfast still sticking to its sides. With a shrug, I stepped back and went to glance at the inside of our fridge, intent on getting something substantial in my stomach. I was famished.

With a small smile, I grabbed eggs and some milk. Quickly, I turned around and grabbed some pans, all with some pockets of airs I conjured up. With the haze of sleep slowly receding from my mind, I put up eggs to fry in a pan. A pinch of salt and pepper flew through the air next, sprinkling my soon-to-be breakfast.

It wasn’t sophisticated – and could probably be one of the furthest thing away from sophistication –, but the salty smell that hit my nostrils, the grilling noise of the butter on that hot surface, it had me nostalgic in a way the fancy plates from Canterlot couldn’t. Of course they couldn’t. The delicacies the chefs there had been a surprising and pleasant experience, for sure, except it didn’t ring of… home…

And for once, when I thought back on it, I didn’t see an infinite amount of stars and concepts. How would I? There was no need for such trivialities back there. It was only on mortal worlds that they suddenly became a necessity. At least for lesser beings like Calx and me.

Still, as I slid the eggs out of the pan onto a white plate, there were sounds and images coming back to me. I remembered a cozy atmosphere and a scatterbrain, energetic voice over the radio, filling up the kitchen. Calx, younger, was on his chair, bouncing impatiently for the food he so strongly craved. Once, Dad even placed a hand on his shoulder, forcing him to stay still for more than a second. I had made a smartass comment that got him to pout, and the back of my head still remembered the reprimanding smack it had gotten in response.

Just as the sight had gotten my brother to chuckle back then, the same sound escaped my lips this morning. A pleasant warmth settled down in my chest, one that made my muscles relax and my mouth turn into a silly grin. With my mind at peace, I sat down and took a bite of my breakfast, taking just that little time to myself.

The egg crumbled easily under my teeth, shooting up a line of yoke onto my tongue. Again, memories came to me, reminding me of a time with much more simple issues. It had been a lot easier on my mind back then. My responsibilities weren’t crushing as they felt nowadays.

Is that how Mom and Dad felt? Were they always this… afraid?

Mom and Dad…

The faces were blurry. Their traits… were not quite as precise, as real as the rest of them.

My fork hovered away from my closed mouth, immobile. Slowly, my brows furrowed together, while I stared at the silverware held only by my will.

Their faces… are blurry.

A sudden whistle was enough to get me to focus on the present once more, and I poured myself an admittedly useless cup of coffee. Those weren’t having any effect on me for some reason, other than filling my bladder. At least, it made for a good distraction from the gnawing feeling in my guts.

So, on today’s agenda… I fought the shaking in my hind legs, only to hear a few nervous clops against the tiles of our kitchen floor anyway. Fixing some mistakes, a bathroom, and possibly spending time with Twilight.

Just as I was putting some order in my thoughts, I felt somepony clear their throat in front of our house, which was followed by the sound of a hoof knocking on the door. Intrigued, I made my way into the hallway, having my cup follow me. Then, with a push of my hoof, I unlocked the door and allowed it to spin on its hinge.

If there ever had been a guardian angel looking out for me, it had probably acted at that very moment, as luck would have it that I hadn’t been taking a sip from my coffee cup when I opened the door. A small disaster had thus been averted when I recognized the cheerful and nervous alicorn in front of me.

I hadn’t done a spit take of hot coffee on my newly declared marefriend. Thank the Elders for small miracles.

“Hello there!” She said casually, with an innocent smile on her face.

“P-Princess Sparkle!” I stuttered, clumsily getting into my role of shy unicorn. “I didn’t realize you would be here this early… o-or even today, really.”

For a moment, she looked positively nonplussed. No doubt she had expected a more confident stallion to answer the door. With the few passersby in the street not that far away, I dared not break character. Fortunately, Twilight did see were my gaze had gone seconds earlier and she seemed to make the connection. Her eyes lighting up, she caught on to the meaning of my actions and explained further.

“I came for your brother’s tutoring lessons.” She sniffed once, taking in the smell of the cooling eggs left in the kitchen, and glanced at the cup levitating beside me. “I hope this isn’t a bad time?”

“Not at all,” I said, stepping out of the way and grinning. “I’d be honored to receive your visit.”

With a faint blush, Twilight made her way past me, her fur almost brushing against mine in such a narrow hallway. The touch was faint, just enough to bring attention to the proximity of our bodies. Ignoring this either deliberately or innocently, she continued her way inside, with me closing the door and following in tow. There was a flaw in that plan.

From my point of view, the inevitable thing I would see was her rump, her beautifully shaped rump, marked by the curve of those flanks and responsible for the sudden explosion of warmth in my face. Her tail, of this intriguing combination of purple and pink, swished back and forth like a pendulum that demanded my attention. It took a lot of willpower to avert my eyes, my gaze naturally coming back to it every few seconds or so.

Thankfully, a distraction soon came to get my mind out of the gutter.

Arrived at the intersection between the living room and the kitchen in the short few instants it took to get there from the door, Twilight briefly stopped. As the host, it was obviously my job to guide her in the right room, but a burning embarrassment prevented me from speaking.

If she turned left, she’d enter the kitchen and I could call Calx to stop her from ever finding out. To her right was…

For the love of the Elders, DON’T look in the living room!

Of course she looked to her right.

“That’s…” She stopped and glanced between me and the disaster zone, eyes widened. “…quite the mess.”

“Bachelor’s place,” I said, blushing from horn to hooves, my tail flickering. “I… didn’t have time to pick up after us…”

“And the lance stuck in the chimney…?” Twilight pointed, one eyebrow raised.

“Hum… colt’s games?”

She smiled, but not quite in her usual way. It was halfway sly, with a hint of knowing showing through her eyes. It seemed indulgent, at the very least.

“I guess that’s kind of my fault. I showed up unannounced after all.” Her body language however betrayed none of that regret. By the way the corners of her lips first twitched upwards, I would guess this was more amusing than anything else. Nonetheless, a note of embarrassment did appear in her speech next. “It’s just that… since you said you could hear everything… I just figured…”

“Other than the fact that I try to give mortals their privacies,” I started, causing her to wince to my own regret. “…Well, even if I can hear it all, I need to give it a minimal amount of attention, which does involve being awake. And as the cup of coffee may attest, I haven’t been up that long.”

Her natural curiosity acting up, she took a step toward me, ears perking up.

“Late night studying?”

Of course that would be your guess, Twi.

“Hum…” Do I tell her?

I was used to keeping secrets by now. It just came to me more of a second nature than anything now. It didn’t have to be needed; it would come to me before the truth had even showed the tip of its muzzle.

One look at her sincere desire to know was enough to make my decision.

“Well, I do not think it qualifies.” I grinned sheepishly, scratching the back of my head. “I just helped somepony go to bed.”

“Oh, I see what you mean.” She chuckled. “Spike sometimes has trouble falling asleep.”

You poor mare. At least, Calx’s a real log once you managed to put him to bed.

Speaking of the devil…

“Oh, hey Twilight!” He barged in the kitchen, startling Twilight with his complete lack of subtlety. No doubt he had heard her knock at the door and wanted to know what was going on. “How’s it going?”

“I’m doing well, thank you. What about you? Did you sleep well?”

“Great! Had a sweet dream too. Sam makes a nice pillow I betcha can’t wait to try,” he added as a joke, making a blush spread to Twilight’s cheeks. “Plus, last night was awesome. And I had a really awesome idea to show Spike!”

Letting none of the reason for her blush apparent in her tone, she gave him an amused smile, patting the top of his head. “I’ll be sure to mention it to him.”

Clearing her throat, Twilight put on a more formal attitude, illuminating her horn with magic. From her saddlebags, a few books flew out, encased in a purple aura, and floated up to the table in the middle of the room.

“Now, can you just get a quill and some paper? Your brother asked me to help you with your studies, so we’re going to work together on finding what you could be learning next.”

“Awwwww, for real?” He pouted, ears drooping.

All indicated that he would start acting up soon.

Refusing to let him act like a brat in front of Twilight, I took the matter in my own hooves. Stepping in front of him, I made my voice ring with a stern warning. “Calx. Do as she says.”

“Fine…” He mumbled under his breath.

“Go get your stuff, and don’t pretend you forgot it at school, I picked you up myself yesterday.”

His attempt preemptively foiled, he didn’t make much of a fuss, instead leaving the room while dragging his hooves against the ground.

I shook my head and turned to Twilight with a reassuring grin. “Foals.”

Fortunately, my words seemed to have an effect on her, squashing the unease I knew was coming back. All because of an understandable assumption about the way I heard ponies. When something inconvenienced her, there was this twitch under her eye.

At the moment, her face remained a mixture of carefulness and relaxation. There was still some awkwardness at us being together. Looking closer though, underneath her eyes, I could see dark rings starting to form.

“Are you okay?” I asked, gently lifting her chin with my hoof to make her meet my gaze. “You look a little tired yourself.”

“Oh, it’s fine…” Her mouth twisted in a grimace and a stifled sound came out, to her dismay. Obviously, her sleep hadn’t been as fulfilling as Calx’s or mine, yet she started waving a hoof in front of her face. “Just didn’t sleep as much as I would have liked tonight. I’m used to it, I do that all the time when I read up on some fascinating subject.”

I could not help feel a pang of worry in my chest. She had already said she had had trouble about Celestia’s assignment. Was it just some studies like you said or…?

“You could have just remained sleeping, Twilight. There was no need to exhaust yourself for us.” I leaned closer, placing a hoof on her shoulder. “We would have made time for you later, and we can still do that if you want to rest. We didn’t have solid plans for today.”

Other than… well, one thing.

To my surprise however, she didn’t blush in the slightest, nor did she take the slightest offense to it. Outwardly, at the very least.

“Oh no, I promise you, it’s fine.” She waved a hoof dismissively, smiling. “As Spike put it, I really needed to do something else than work on my current project.”

“And I’m the nice distraction?” I asked with a smug grin, leaning in to nuzzle her neck.

For the first few seconds, she reciprocated, sharing this soft, warm contact with me. Only after she had stolen my gesture of affection did she break it apart and give me a look that was a mixture of embarrassment and teasing. “Technically, it’s your brother I’m visiting.”

“Ouch, right in the ego,” I said, mockingly placing a hoof over my ‘broken’ heart.

To my joy, her blush faded slightly, hiding less of her natural color. A smile suited her just fine, in my humble opinion. It gave a spark to her eyes, a certain luster that got my heartbeat to accelerate.

Listening to my instinct, I leaned forward, closer to her…

“Aw crap!” A childish voice shouted and made us jump. “You were being all lovey-dovey again, I bet.”

Of course, it wouldn’t be a romantic moment without the little squirt barging in at any moment.

Twilight’s face turned an interesting shade of purple again.

“Sit down.” I motioned sternly toward a cushion around the table. “And remember what we said yesterday.”

Rolling his eyes, Calx set his school stuff in front of him and plopped down on a cushion. And stared. At us both.

Clearing her throat, Twilight settled down next to him, careful not to accidentally bump into him. Then, once she was comfortable, she opened one of her books and whispered some words to herself.

And Calx was still staring at me.

Realizing that I had been standing around doing absolutely nothing but stare at Twilight, I glanced around the kitchen. “I-I’m going to make something. Would you like some coffee?”

“Tea, if you have some,” she asked politely, not noticing the grimace Calx made at her words. One hoof to his throat and exaggerated gagging motions, the little brat had no intention to make anything easy around him.

Without a word, I forced a juice box in his hooves to shut him up. It worked, even if Twilight raised an eyebrow at seeing him gulp down juice she hadn’t seen him with just a moment ago.

“You’re in luck.” I chuckled, levitating a small pouch with a green label from the nearest drawer. “This came with the royal guard uniforms.”

Casually, I filled a teapot with hot water and set it to boil, not realizing the inner turmoil I had just caused her.

“A… a royal guard uniform?” Twilight asked slowly, her cheeks strangely turning a darker shade of purple.

I waved a hoof toward the living room. “Celestia sent them to us, as a gift, I suppose.” A poisonous one, but a gift nonetheless.

“And… have you tried yours?” She sounded deceptively casual – well, she tried to –, as her gaze fell on the box with a surprising intensity. There was almost some sort of… desire piercing through her words.

“Oh?” I could not help but grin at her, eyes locked with hers as I flared my wings just for a second. Subtly, I puffed my chest, perhaps showing off a bit. “Would you like me to?”

Shrinking on herself, her voice so quiet Calx might not have heard it, Twilight squeaked an unbelievably timid ‘yes’.

“Well, there is no harm in showing it to you.” Smiling, I left the room and entered the living room, where a giant cardboard box lied open.

From the other side of the wall, a childish snicker reached my ears while I was levitating the helmet. Of course Calx would find this funny. It was unclear to me though whether he was laughing at the situation or just me goofing around a bit too much. He wasn’t talking. Then again, neither was Twilight. I could tell, however, that her breathing was a little faster than normal. That kind of thing helped boosted my motivation to say the least.

It wasn’t the first time I put that armor on. It had come up yesterday evening and it had, sort of, served its main purpose. Nonetheless, I still had to take some time to figure out where each piece was meant to go.

It was only when the helmet was the last piece standing that I stopped being so mechanical about it. Voluntarily putting extra weight on my body had me fidgeting to no end. My hooves were simply dancing. Naturally, my whole being was meant to be virtually weightless, and at least for most purpose it was. In comparison, this thing was heavy.

It did not help that my flanks were still exposed despite so much metal weighting down on my torso and upper back. The discrepancy just added to the alienation.

Urgh. I’m being silly.

My annoyance fueling my magic, I slammed my helmet on perhaps a bit too forcefully, and was rewarded by a throbbing pain at the top of my head. Blinking, I tried to stay standing, with my vision now restricted around the edges.

I just wanted to facehoof.

Letting out a sigh, I closed my eyes for a second, willing myself to look less like a dork. After taking a deep breath, I stepped inside, head held high and posture straightened under Twilight’s scrutinizing look.

“O-oh, that’s not the standard armor…” Her voice trailed off, with her gaze growing distant as she obviously looked back on some old memories. With a brother in the royal guard, I expected her to have seen her fair share of armors.

“Mine’s like the others,” Calx declared, somewhat sullen.

“Well, a golden one would look silly on me, wouldn’t it?” I twisted around a bit, glancing at my own body. “Gold on gold is… too much, as they would say. I suppose this one fits with my mane.”

Absently, I ran a hoof across my forehead, stretching a few pale silver-like strands into my view. By any reasonable estimation, they matched the color of the armor Celestia had sent us. That she was both thoughtful and mischievous with her gifts sent a small spike of stress in my brain.

“What do you think?” I asked, turning to her, just in time to catch sight of her eyes intently looking at my flanks.

Caught red handed, she was quick to start rambling, with her face radiating more heat than the pan I had fried my breakfast in. “O-oh, I wasn’t staring! Not at all… My eyes just naturally followed up on the movement of your own gaze. It’s a muscle reflex as the brain subconsciously tries to fish for information. I-I swear, I even have some books on the subject! I’m sure that it’s even in one of the biology encyclopedia I brought with me!”

Instantly, her muzzle was in her books, half of dozen of them lying flat on our table while two or three levitated around her head. So preoccupied with focusing on her research and not on my body, Twilight didn’t even realize she still hadn’t given me a clear answer to my question… Her face was kept resolutely on the work spread across the dinner table, with no indication that she had any other word for me.

Still, her silence was pretty telling.

I could feel the air around her wing shaking with some tiny flexes of her muscles. It sounded like she was fighting some stiffness around that area. Now, I would offer her a massage to help her relax, but that was probably moving a bit too fast. Not to mention that Calx was here as well, so it really wasn’t the time.

Still, call it vanity, but damn if I didn’t want to parade like a cocky bastard at this moment. My mouth was threatening to break into a smug grin. It felt pretty awesome to have this effect on a mare. Who’s a sexy stallion? This guy!

Victory dances aside, there was a goal to be accomplished here, which involved getting a way to get Calx to spend his time in school constructively. For that, he would need Twilight's help, or at least somepony's of similar education level. However, since she was the only one to know about our secret at the moment, it really was the best choice for us. We'd have to set this mentality aside to get anywhere...

...And said studious mare was doing her very best not to have anypony notice how hard she was pinning for the image of me in a guard uniform.

Sweet Celly, Twi is just so freaking cute!

It was simply hard not to start teasing her about it.

Surprisingly quickly though, Twilight placed all her emotions in check, getting herself to focus on Calx. With what seemed to be a procedure copied straight from one of her book, their conversation started like an interview. She was talking gently to him, even if there were bouts of eagerness filtering here and there whenever he got her to look for references on a subject. More importantly, her sincere interest and respect for his knowledge was winning him over. He seemed to be genuinely excited about the discussion they were having.

The look on Calx’s face made me smile.

I knew you were the right choice for this, Twilight… I thought, feeling a soft warmth settling down in my chest.

Quietly, I stepped outside the kitchen, muting the noises my armor made as I moved. I had no intention to disturb them when things were going so smoothly. It was only once I had left the room that I turned into a breeze and let the plates of silvery metal fall soundlessly to the ground.

This sounded like a good time to clean up the living room. Perhaps that would help redeem Twilight’s opinion of me a little. So, rolling up some imaginary sleeves, I started to move some stuff around, starting with the lance that was still stuck in the chimney. A simple yank of telekinesis did not seem to do the trick, and infiltrating the gap between the bricks and the metal seemed a little overkill.

Standing on my hind legs, wings expanded for some balance, I closed my mouth onto the long handle sticking out. While I tried to ignore the taste of wood on my tongue, I bit down on it harder, and started to pull.

The first try only served to block a nerve in my neck.

Tartarus!

The second ended with me almost biting my tongue when I slipped.

Luna’s plot!

No, seriously, I was not going to be defeated by a lance, for buck’s sake! With a rage fueled cry of anger, I threw myself at the weapon, closed my wings around the handle and pulled with all my might.

Aaaaaaaand… done.

There, I thought with a strong exhalation. One thing done, a truckload more to do to get this place back to a livable level. Wouldn’t want to spend too much time in a place as messy as this, right?

That mental comment gave me a pause. It… sounded a lot like I had made up my mind about our situation. Like I had made a decision…

But, the thing was, I’d never stopped to think of this as a choice. It had always been a question of success and failure, never of looking at alternatives and picking the lesser of two evils.

If I were given the choice… would I prefer to stay here?

To my resigned horror, the first sentiment that passed through my heart wasn’t an instant recoil. That blasphemous thought hadn’t set me ablaze with indignation and anger. It had only been a fleeting pause, a few sparks of happiness and the hope that our situation would simply continue to grow better. Denial wasn’t even an option. T-there were… there were things I liked about Equestria.

The ponies, for starters. A small part of me insisted on the stupidity of that feeling, that it shouldn’t have been real. Somehow, with the distance I had first placed between them and me, with the then strong feelings of hatred and disgust, I should have been far from making bonds with anypony. It was much more likely that I would make some enemies, that a few ponies would appreciate me and that the vast majority of the world would be indifferent anyway. As irony would have it, I could not name half as many ponies I disliked as the ones I did appreciate. It was an interesting cast of stallions and mares, alicorns, unicorns, pegasi and earth ponies. But, clashing suddenly with the rest of my memories, amongst those were also the fading images of two guilt-ridden humans.

The effect was instantaneous. A wave of cold washed over me. And the thoughts died.

No, my tone grew sober, practically void of emotion. I would not. It’s not a choice I could make.

Slowly, I looked down, eyes half-closed with a peaceful resignation. There was nothing to make me change my mind, not Twilight’s affection, not the others’.

Then why am I still pretending that this could be real? Why do I care to maintain this fruitless lie?

Too suddenly, I became acutely aware of Twilight presence in the other room. S-she was still talking to Calx. Her voice was traveling through me, like any other ripple of noise, yet that one hurt… It made me uneasy, something close to shame.

The room was spinning. My breath came out faster, stronger.

I needed to leave this place. Now. J-just… put some distance between us for the time being… To dull the sound they were making.

“Alright, you two, I need to go do some shopping.” I called, making a grab for my saddlebag. “If you need anything, you can call for me. I’ll hear it.”

At my announcement, two heads peeked out of the kitchen, eyes lighting up with curiosity.

“There was something that needed your attention this early?” Twilight blinked, frowning and glancing around the house in search of an obvious missing object she might have been blind to before.

“Yes.” I let out an exasperated sigh, then sent a mild glare toward a sheepish Calx. “Our bath was the subject to an unfortunate accident.”

“Oh.” She blinked, eyes wide open. “Of a nature similar to the typhoon that devastated your living room?”

I felt my ears flatten against the back of my head, just as I averted my gaze. “You can ask my brother for details on that. N-now, I really need to get going.”

After a quick goodbye, they returned to their work and I took the opportunity to make a swift departure.

Once outside, I allowed myself to breath more deeply. A gentle breeze was brushing against my fur, cooling down the worst of the heat generated from the sunrays. The atmosphere was calming, typical of a small town like Ponyville, really.

Feeling my heartbeat slowing down, I felt that I could start my trip to the plumber. Honestly, I didn’t truly know where to find such a pony, but if worst came to come, it would be easy to ask anypony.

Projecting a calm exterior, I resolved not to elaborate on the other directions my brain had spun these ideas. There was a question at the front of my mind that I didn’t have either the courage to formulate or to repel. It was a fairly simple thought, perhaps trivial on some level.

With my head slightly turned to my left, my eye could catch a glimpse of the shadow of a city on the mountainside. Despite me, my steps came to a halt, and I fought a shiver going down my spine. Celly, have you found anything yet? Are we any closer to going home?

I didn’t ask her. Not… not yet.

Not yet…

Canterlot Castle was, as always, buzzing with activity. A constant flow of ponies and other creatures entered and left it every hour of the day. There was never a dead moment in the siege of Equestria’s royalty, even less so since the return of Princess Luna and the restoration of the Night Court. As such, it was a rare treat for either alicorn to find the time to breathe and relax once their work had begun. Through some stroke of luck, however, the Alicorn of the Day had managed to, so far, enjoy her meal in peace.

It was all about to change, brutally.

“Princess Celestia!” A mare cried as she barged in, out of breath. The court did not even have time to reprimand her for her lack of decorum, since the servant had sprinted toward her target the instant she entered. “This message has arrived from the embassy, just now.”

“Thank you, Silent Praise.” The ruler nodded her head, taking the scroll with a flicker of magic.

For a few seconds, most of the nobles feigned a lack of interest in their princess’ business, finding themselves absorbed in their meals, tea or important documents. The complete lack of conversation betrayed their intention far too clearly however. Everypony was focused on the sovereign of the Equestrian nation.

As it so happened, Princess Celestia’s porcelain cup had been raised to her lips, from the force of a habit a thousand years old, when her eyes first fell onto the accusation of mass brainwashing of children from three different countries.

Spraying as a mist of transparent green liquid, in a most exquisite display of aerodynamics, splintered by the glitter of light refracting into each droplet, her tea travelled all the way from her mouth to the face of a most unfortunate unicorn noble, Prince Blueblood.

Dripping wet, his mane sticking into his eyes that could still see the gasping nobles surrounding him, it would have been generous to describe his state of mind as “fuming”. Somehow, someway, there could only be one pony to have orchestrated this. Justice demanded that he started plotting for Prince Ventus’ swift demise immediately.

No, on the other hoof, a slow demise would be much more fitting. Agony could still be debated but was strongly considered.

I was nervous.

There was something that had started tugging at some corners of my mind after our visit at the hospital. Hearing Thunderlane’s words to Rumble had reminded me of some things, a lot of which hadn’t held any weight when my soul had been more fractured. With some of my empathy back, I couldn’t look back on everything that I did without flinching, and most importantly... well, somepony else would benefit from this lesson.

At my side, Calx was pouting, obviously unhappy to be there. When I had first mentioned it to him, he had reacted somewhat poorly. It had taken me pulling some tricky cards to convince him. At least, he would be here to see it.

We were currently waiting in front of a pair of impressive wooden doors, ones that served as the entrance to a three-story house with the most expensive looking ornaments in all of Ponyville. A few seconds ago, I had knocked, and heard some ponies on the other side hurry off to answer. They were close.

Slowly, the door crept open, enough to let the head of an aging mare through. Unimpressed, she glanced at us both with a slightly inquisitive look.

Enough to prompt me to speak, at the very least. “Hello, my name is Cloud Circle and I wanted to know if it was possible to talk to the head of this household.”

“Do you have a rendezvous scheduled?” She asked in a monotone tone.

“Not at all.” I shook my head. “We were hoping to catch him during an off moment, to be honest.”

At this comment, the mare looked us both from head to hooves, either unimpressed or bored out of her mind. No doubt she couldn't tell who we were. It had to make a somewhat intriguing message to bring back to her employer. Well, maybe, I was banking on that.

“I’ll go see if he wants to meet you.” She brought a hoof down, turning around in the same motion. “Wait here.”

I nodded, doing my best not to appear too green. The tension in my guts only faded away once the maid had left. It didn't, on the other hand, make it any less awkward. Calx’s eyes were fixed on the gardens, his mouth forming a thin line. Internally, I sighed.

You're not going to make this any easier, are you?

It wasn't pleasant to see him like this, but this time, I really could not relent. Not this time.

To my relief, the sound of a lock being undone came to my ears, and I turned back toward the house. Just in time to see, behind the richly decorated black panels, a middle-aged earth pony greet us, as he quickly reajusted his cravate and vest in places. “Hello, sirs. Is there something I can do for you?”

“Mr. Rich?” I asked with a little uncertainty. “May we enter?”

“Yes, I have some free time ahead of me…” He let his voice trail off, a little confused at our presence, I would guess.

“Glad to meet you, Mr. Rich,” I said, extending a hoof for him to shake. “My name is Cloud Circle.”

For a second, his expression remained carefully measured. Then, I could see the understanding in his eyes, and he gave me a small but polite hoofshake. “Aren’t you the new member of our weather team?”

Wow, the guy knows his ponies… “Yes, and this is my little brother, Feather Dust.” I forced my head down with a hoof, into a sheepish position. “There was something I needed to discuss with you. I promise you not to waste your time.”

“Enter,” he said, stepping aside, albeit with a note of suspicion.

Without wasting a moment, for fear either he would change his mind or Tom followed his desire to be somewhere else, I gave my little brother a telekinetic push and made him follow me inside. Quickly, however, the use of magic grew unecessary, as he simply trotted ahead, examining our surroundings.

Where the royal castle was a giant of stone, this was its wooden brethren. A decorated carpet softened every step taken, cushioning our hooves comfortably each time, its red coat reaching toward the walls. Tapestries whispered stories to the ears of each passing pony, something mystical from a time before my birth. They formed a saga, a woven message that led others toward the different parts of the household in a waving ochestra of arts. I could not help but remember the previous weeks, of the many times we had walked into a place like this one. And in Calx's eyes, I saw the same nostalgia that I knew my gaze held.

A cold blade stabbed my guts at this, for the knowledge that he did miss Canterlot as well. The guilt was mine to hold.

But others could not be concerned with this, and Filthy Rich quickly guided us to a cozy room, where some dark brown couches and a sophisticated table ornated with a black bowl of fruits awaited us.

"Here, the second salon should do nicely." With a gesture of his head, he invited us to sit down, and, as soon as we had done so, Filthy Rich turned his attention to a passing maid. “Tulip Garden, could you bring something to drink for our guests?”

The green mare turned her head toward us, her chin slightly raised in a silent question.

Catching on, I smiled timidly. “Some coffee would be nice, black.”

She gave me a simple nod, her stance still half bowed, then sent a glance toward my little brother, whose attention had been captured by a glistening apple.

Sighing, I poked his shoulder. "Do you want anything to drink?"

Finally noticing the attention the maid was giving him, Calx blinked in surprise. “Huh… d’you have hot chocolate?”

“I'm afraid not, young colt.” She shook her head. “Would you like some orange juice instead?”

“Sure.” He shrugged.

"Very well," the mare said, and left the room.

Things... stayed silent... I wasn't quite ready to speak, not with the threat of that maid coming back at any moment.

To my surprise, Filthy Rich stood and trotted up to the middle of the room, precisely where Calx had been staring. My heart started beating faster, as I wondered if he hadn't been somehow offended by his lack of subtlety. But his traits that had so far seemed to present only caution softened, and he picked the fruit to offer it to my little brother. "Here, you might as well have been eating it with your eyes. I have been in enough meetings to know what it is like to wait while food is resting in smelling range."

"Thanks!" Calx wasted no time with formalities and only offered a grateful grin before digging in.

Filthy Rich's simple reaction was to ruffle his mane.

Yeah, I think it will be alright...

It was not long until the maid had come back with each of our beverages and had placed them accordingly across the table.

“Thank you, Tulip,” Filthy Rich told her warmly. “Now, if you would please leave us alone and warn Minute Method not to interrupt us...”

“Of course, Mr. Rich." She bowed. "I will be tending to the gardens.”

My eyes trailing on her, I waited until she had disappeared to talk. However, our host got the better of me.

“Now then, Mr. Circle, what did you want to meet me for? Does this concern the weather patrol?”

Feeling a little heat in my cheeks, I glanced to the side. “The matter at hoof is simple, but quite sensitive, I would say.”

I-it'll be alright...

Fighting back a last minute spark of reticence, I rose from my seat. Under the confused look of my interlocutor, I extended my wings and shattered the illusion. Instantly, a wave of magic rippled over my fur, like a delicate touch that ripped a piece of clothing too tight over my skin. Golden yellow replaced the darker shade of orange, and I stood exposed.

“You!” The stallion almost lunged at us, really. I had seen his muscles tense. Through great self-control alone, he managed to stop himself and spoke with a hiss. “What are you doing here?!”

I bit back a flare of anger, speaking as quietly as I dared. “We came to apologize.”

The stallion stopped dead in his track, taken aback. “I’m sorry? W-what did you just-?”

“That night was a horrible event that I wish had never happened.” I lowered my eyes, willing myself not to fall prey to this icy feeling in my guts. There was a part of me that hated this, that felt humiliated to bow before this pony, however right it should have been. I only stared back once I thought the feeling would not be visible in my behavior, albeit my voice had grown quiet. “This is my peace offering to you. We are supposed to be hiding from the media for the time being, as our cousin Celestia ordered us. However, you are now in the known. If you reveal our identities, then we will come into fire for my disobedience of her orders, the journalists will chase us and you will have had your revenge for our actions.”

For a moment, the brown stallion said nothing, his expression frozen while he tried to process my declaration, just like Calx tried to, his jaw dropped down to an extreme. But more seconds passed and Filthy Rich still hadn’t spoken.

I felt a twitch of fear at the thought that I had overestimated my abilities to read ponies, that he would use that knowledge against us and ruin every effort Celly had put into it. It was a gamble, and a very serious one at that.

“It…” Filthy Rich’s expression then lightened with a softness I hadn’t expected. “It would be very ungracious of me to refuse an offer for peace such as this, Prince Ventus.”

Before I could even think, my hind legs had given out, making me fall down on my rump with the knowledge that I hadn’t screwed up. I hadn’t realized how badly the idea had scared me before this very instant.

“I accept your apologies. And present my own.” My own eyes widened in surprise. “At that time, I was defending my daughter and may have overstepped the line.”

Listen to us now… A mental chuckle rang through my brain.

“I don’t believe you were the only stallion acting in defense of their family that night, Mr. Rich. Believe me when I say I understand what you were going through. I certainly will not hold it against you either.”

With those few words spoken, the tension between us seemed to have dissipated. The atmosphere in the room had lightened, throwing away the overprotectiveness we had both proven ourselves capable of and leaving only the traces of our goodwills.

“Then, since the blame is shared and our apologies mutually accepted, let us put the past behind us and try start over again.”

I stared for a few seconds at the hoof offered, then took it. Unlike our first hoofshake, I put the strength of an earth pony in it, as did Mr. Rich. An unspoken agreement passed between us, between the sincere warmth and firmness of this contact.

“You are a good stallion, Mr. Rich.” I breathed a sigh of relief, smiling.

“Those are kind words, my Prince, but I’m afraid somepony has yet to express their opinion on all this.”

Yeah, I was afraid it might come to that...

As he said it, we all became aware of a quartet of light hooves moving through the hallway next to the salon. Without even a knock, the door was spun on its hinges and let in a pink filly.

“Daddy! Have you see-?” Her voice died in her throat as soon as she noticed us, her eyes going wide with shock.

Strangely, however, it wasn't on my true appearance that her attention seemed so focus.

She was looking at Calx, with her face turning red.

S-she’s can't be…? Twice?!

Using her silence as an opportunity, Diamond Tiara's father sat her down next to him, explaining the situation at hand. His words were soothing, comforting to a fault. In return, the filly was surprisingly attentive, even if, from times to times, her gaze slipped back toward my brother. Her eyes seemed to be... almost watering.

On my side of things, I was whispering quickly to Calx not to blow a casket again. We had come to be nice, even if it was mostly me doing the talking, it was not the time to antagonize them again! Yet his frown did not recede at all.

By this point, Filthy Rich had reached the end of his explanation.

“Princess?” He gently coaxed an answer out of her, placing a fatherly hoof over her shoulder. “What do you say to that? Will you keep the secret?”

For a fleeting second, I could have sworn her right leg had hesitated to go over her heart. Her breath had hitched.

“F-fine!” She raised her muzzle high in the air, doing her best not to appear shaken. “But only if Blade goes on a date with me!”

“WHAT?!” Calx shouted, almost snarling.

Oh the little bitch… I thought, only to feel a wave of shame hit me when my eyes went back to Filthy Rich.

“Diamond Tiara!” He growled, sounding distinctively unhappy.

Unfortunately, her bravado seemed to have resisted her father's ire, as she proceeded to point at herself with the fake making of a victim.

“Well, it’s only fair, right? I just wanted to spend time with him before he started yelling, like, for no reason at all!”

Strangely, I found that her words lacked their usual bite. It wasn’t that snide, high pitched mocking tone of hers; there was a note of… pain, this time. Her last words, especially, had echoed of a wounded pride.

“Why would I want to go on a date with you?!”

“Oh my gosh! I can’t believe you!” She shouted in frustration, rearing angrily. “Why did you have to be such a pretty colt?!”

Calx opened his mouth to retort angrily, but suddenly stopped, his eyes widening wildly. What she had just said started to register for him, and Diamond Tiara froze just as abruptly, her cheeks coloring a darker shade of pink.

Mr. Rich and I were just staring.

“I-I… ” She stuttered, looking around for any desperate distraction for the fact that she had admitted to crushing on my brother.

It might have gone better if Calx hadn't decided to snort humorlessly, a sneer on his face. "Are you kidd-?"

I had silenced the sounds too late. Just as I had glanced at my brother, who seemed shocked by the lack of sound coming out of his mouth, there had been a high pitched gasp.

The pink filly had disappeared in a blink of an eye, running away to her room, or so I guessed.

“Diamond Tiara!” Her father shouted after her, though his voice was laced with worry this time.

And since we hadn't hit rock bottom just yet, things got worse in the form of Calx rushing outside through a window.

"T-... Feather Dust!" I yelled, but too late.

The salon's only occupant were just Mr. Rich and me now.

...This has gone well, I thought, my tail twitching once or twice.

“I-I... ” I shot an apologetic look at Filthy Rich. “I’m sorry. I didn’t think this would happen.”

“N-no, it is fine, Prince Ventus.” He shot a pained look in the direction his daughter had run off. His gaze was understanding, if not a little disappointed. “I was also quite surprised at their reactions. I think they simply weren’t ready yet.”

“Y-yes, you’re probably right…” My eyes went to the window, as if I would somehow catch a glimpse of orange by pure luck. “I will try to smooth it over with him.”

"We should talk more later. I will speak with Diamond Tiara."

Exchanging a nod with him, I faded into the air and went after Calx. All to this dismay though, there was a piece of disappointment toward myself. Had I been too naïve, too hopeful? It was a dangerous trend to allow this much weight to a simple wishful thought.

Why did I think this could work?

The shedding of my mortal body should have sent a pulse of satisfaction through my whole being, yet no such respite could calm the growing worry in my guts. Oh, I had no doubts that I would find my fleeing brother. It was not even a question. The flow of his pegasus magic flashed akin to a star through the sky. No, what I feared were the whispers, the voices of darkness that sometimes sang to me, the reflection of my eyes in a golden plate and the bloodlust calling, what I feared was the untamed anger I had within me, and that would push me onto a dark and solitary path. Truly, nothing could have horrified me more than what I had started to realize.

He was following my hoofsteps.

Panic seizing my heart, my thoughts almost came to a screeching halt. Within seconds, a sphere of wind had encased Calx, and he was back in our new home.

I reappeared in front of him in a gust of wind, almost throwing him off his hooves, but he held his ground. The glare he sent my way spoke volume about his current state of mind.

"What did you do that for?!" He stepped forward, brazenly defiant, wings shivering. "I didn't even yell! I'm not going to just do what she tells me to, okay!"

“This isn’t just about Diamond Tiara!” I almost yelled, my emotions running thick within my veins and carrying forward with every word coming out of my mouth. "You don't have to do anything she says! I wasn't setting you up on a date!"

“Liar! She didn't even hear half of what I said!”

My voice snapped like a whip. “Tom, listen!”

“I don’t wanna!” He struggled, squirming to get out of my grip, no doubt to go sulk somewhere and grumble about the unfairness of life in general.

Yet, I could not fault him for that. I knew precisely how well I’d react in his place, and that was why I could not afford to let him leave before I had a talk to him. With so many thoughts dancing in my head, a mute pain had started panging at my chest. It made my voice sound broken. “This is important. Please…”

Startled, Tom froze, rendered cautious by my unusually shaken words.

“W-what is it, Sam?” He asked, frowning, but not without an undertone of fear. “You don’t… you don’t sound like you…”

“Because this is not something easy to share with you. What I’m about to tell you is something all alicorns must come to terms with, all of us. Look, what happened back with Diamond Tiara, that was just me trying to help you, because it's different for us. Sometimes, it is learned through experience; sometimes, it is simply wisdom; but more often than not, one alicorn has to impart that knowledge to another.”

I could feel his excitement. It was there, under the surface. Though another part of him dared not hope, for he could still read my unease.

“Little brother…” I said, swallowing what seemed to be emptiness. “You have to make amends. For us, more than anypony, it is crucial that we don’t let grudges guide our actions, and that we make peace with those that offend us. You do not want to live with the weight of untold regrets.”

“I don’t regret it!” He shouted, his previous offense resurging in what he doubtlessly saw as an attempt from me to manipulate him into accepting Diamond Tiara’s offer.

It was like looking in a mirror… Days ago, it had been Celestia in my horseshoes, looking down at a stubborn youth that was on the verge of making such a terrible mistake, all for the wrong reasons.

Who are you to tell him that? Dark whispers echoed in my head. I felt cold… colder than I had ever been since coming to Ponyville. You are even worse than him in that regards… It’s always like this with you, Ventus. You look down on so many other ponies… but you never realize how much lower than them you are. He is following your example, lash out and forget. Who cares, right? But now, once more, you want to be the preacher, the one that is pure enough to teach the right path. Who ARE you to make such claims?!

And I felt myself unable to deny their words. Yes… to deny… I was completely unable to form a proper defense to my own depravity. It was the truth.

But that did not matter!

I AM HIS BIG BROTHER! I shouted back to the darkest echoes of my mind. What does it matter if I can’t do what I preach?! That’s on me! It’ll be my suffering, MY downfall! But that’s not what being a big brother is about! It’s not about the path I take, nor the mistakes I make. It’s about him! It’s about making sure he will be safe, that he will not have to carry this burden. You can be damn certain I will sooner impale myself with my own horn before I let bullshit like moral high ground stop me from helping him! Now, be silent before I purge you away like the plague you are!

The chill faded away, leaving only Calx and myself in our home.

“And in a hundred years, bro? In three hundred?! In a thousand?! IN TEN THOUSAND YEARS?!” My voice boomed, making him jump at least a feet in the air.

With a long sigh, I shook my head. I was too reeling from this argument that had taken place in my own mind. Slowly, my breathing returned to a normal pace and I became confident my tone would be soft enough.

“You’re not the same as you were thirty years ago, Calx! Are you sure you will never feel differently about this? Never, ever, ever?”

His previous snarl had all but disappeared. On his face, there was but a pensive grimace and a reluctant admittance. He didn’t like what I was saying and I feared, deeply, that he’d refuse to listen further. Then, his gaze fell to the ground, as his eyes shone with an uncertain light. He was listening, even trying to understand, to see beyond his own childish mentality.

Seeing this, air returned to my lungs as I let go of the breath I had been holding. I was proud of him for that. “Every living thing changes with time, even creatures like us.”

“But… Sam…” He called, his voice so quiet…

For a second, I closed my eyes, strengthening my resolve to go through with it. It wasn’t just about Diamond Tiara, it was something painful, and something I had to do to protect him. My role as a big brother had never felt so hard to accomplish before.

With one hoof, I lifted his chin, asking that his gaze met mine. Sorry, Tom…

The words were coming off chopped, as my strength started to betray me. “But we won’t die. The years will go on and the two of us will still be able to walk the plains of this world without ever experiencing the blights of old age. Others… others are different, Calx. Most will die long before you’ve become an adult alicorn.”

His breath hitched; his grip on me tightened. None of the signs of his sudden sadness could escape my sight, and each one was seared into my brain. They burned at the back of my eyes, made it harder to focus when all I wanted was for him to smile again.

But I couldn’t! This was too important! I could not let him learn this lesson by himself. Once it happened, it would already be too late!

“Every life is so fragile… so precious… that the most tragic events could happen at any time… And at that time, it will be far too late, Tom.”

My eyes started to sting. In spite of my will, the faces of past beings had started flashing in my mind. In more than four centuries of existence, I had already failed so many… To the rules and to my mistakes… Some memories were already harassing me.

“Sometimes, there are no second chances. S-sometimes… you never get the chance to correct a wrong… and all you will be able to do then, is endure… endure until even their bones have become dust.”

He hiccupped… and my fur started to feel damp at the level of his face.

“So, Tom, you need to think back on your actions. Do you really think it is worth it to hold grudges like that? Remember that some of the things you do will have lifelong consequences… and we have a very long lifespan…”

With a sniff, he managed to look up, albeit his eyes shone with the tears he had already shed. His voice sounded lower than usual, tainted with confusion and desperation. “I…. huh… I don’t know, Sam…”

My whole being threatened to be torn apart at the pitiful image he presented. An absolutely foul taste seemed to fill my mouth, turning this pain into a deep self-loathing.

I… I had… done what was necessary for him… and Elders… it had been the most difficult thing I had ever done.

Almost shaking, I leaned forward, offering a comforting nuzzle he returned strongly. “I understand. Don’t worry. I know it’s a lot to take in, Calx.”

He stayed still, only occasionally rubbing his head against mine, almost like he was searching for something. I could only hope that whatever it was, he found it in me.

Slowly, after he stopped clinging to me, I broke away from him, enough to lock my gaze with his.

“Just promise me you’ll think about it.”

“Yeah…”

“Good,” I said, voice raw while I rubbed his mane gently.

Still, his image, sitting on his orange rump with his head down, gripped at my heart. Already, there were regrets assailing my conscience. I knew it was becoming more than necessary to teach him that, but…

Neither of us enjoyed it.

The best thing to do was probably to take his mind off it for now, and speak with him about it again at a later moment.

So… what could I use as a distraction then?

“Twilight?” I whispered.

I was rewarded with a satisfying squeak of surprise. “V-Ventus? Is that you?”

“I was thinking of finding a great adventures series for Calx to read, tomorrow. I will doubtlessly need some help searching for the right books. Do you believe you could spare some time?”

“It’s my job,” she said, so deadpan that I could picture a perfect eye roll from it alone.

My lips turning into a smug grin, I chuckled. “Then it’s a date. We’ll be there this afternoon.”

“Date?!” She dropped her books to the ground, then there was the cry of fear from Spike and crumpling paper. Luckily, from what I could gather, the baby dragon had managed to dodge the incoming tower of paper. And loudly complained about it.

Having Tom meet up with his dragonic friend should help them both.

This should be fun.

The sheet of paper burned in his hands. Almost literally too.

The palms of his hands were sweaty from the stress and they were radiating heat. At the moment, however, his gaze remained fixated on the fan attached to the ceiling. And one question always returned to the front of his mind.

Was he really willing to try this?

Sam was his friend, his parents were on the verge of collapsing, but he w-was… he was scared! Scared of what this thing he held within his grasp might mean. Scared that it might actually be true.

It seemed silly, almost stupid in its childishness. That didn’t change anything.

If it happened to be true, i-if… if he really had found a way to follow those two into Equestria…

Then what was he supposed to do?

There had to be a reason they weren’t back yet. Sam… Sam had seen exactly how badly his brother’s disappearance had affected their parents. He’d witnessed it firsthand.

And made it worse… Eric couldn’t stop himself from thinking. H-hopefully not intentionally.

The second that thought had crossed his mind, he wanted to kick himself for it. H-how could he think something like that? His friend had never acted in a way that could make him think like that! He’d never been intentionally malicious!

E-except… His mind supplied him with an abundance of imagery, all born from the typed words on the dull white font of a forum thread, all of them vivid, sickening and downright terrifying.

No! T-that… that had to have been a one-time deal! And it was done because he thought they were wishing harm on Tom! Sam cared about his family! It was even more of a reason to believe that… that…

His lung seemed devoid of air now. From the moment he had formulated the thought that they were in Equestria to this very moment, there had been an unstated fear holding him back. But in his mental arguing, he’d put his apprehensions into words, and that alone had given it a dreadful grip on his emotions. There was this emptiness in his stomach, that served only to amplify the slow chill that was crawling over his skin. All over him, except for his hands. They still held the knowledge of the ritual needed to make the trip.

A one-way trip, Eric could not help but believe.

Maybe not, he could be wrong and there were other conditions to a safe return from Equestria, once one had used the spell, but… just in case…

Could he take that chance? Could he actually risk his whole life on Earth?

If he were to leave Earth behind, to leave everything and everyone he cared about save for that one friend of his, what would he be left with?

His mind wandered, to places both comforting and disheartening. His life goals? They would be pointless. All he had worked for would be rendered useless. He’d have to throw that away. He’d leave his home behind too, this sensation of stability and comfort he had needed for so long. It would be strange, he knew, not to have this constant with him anymore.

His friends… well, Cassandra was already gone. She wasn’t answering any of his texts for some reason…

Eyes going down, his chest panged with throbbing sadness. It was as if their friendship had faded away at the same time as Sam.

Sam…

He tried – dear Lord, he tried – to push away the hateful blue eyes that he kept seeing, that were even more haunting now that he had seen a glimpse of what was behind them, but it did not come to him easily. Other memories flashed in his mind, some in classes where Sam had chuckled quietly after a great piece of snark from Cassandra, some of them just of his voice over an Internet connection coming from his own headset, yet one lingered longer than the others.

The warmth of a phantom hand seemed to seep into his shoulder, where his friend had placed it once before. T-that evening, he’d been heartbroken, and his friend had just been there. It was all he had wanted at the time, and Sam had been the only one to actually give it to him…

I-it seemed the most treacherous betrayal to dare hesitate! S-shouldn’t it be his turn to be there for his friend?!

Still the parts of him that remembered the little boy he once was were scared, scared of being alone again and scared of leaving her alone the same way Sam had left his parents. He wouldn’t wish that void on anybody! But…

It scared him, damn it!

The Millers’ images were tainted gray in his mind… They held no life anymore. All he could think of when he summoned back his memories of his last meeting with them was of broken silhouettes. He could not see them as they had been, not even in that brief spark of anger.

What would Sam think if he knew his thoughts? What would he react like if he knew he hesitated to help?

Even with a tight knot in his throat, Eric still couldn’t make his decision. It wasn’t just his life that would change!

“Mom?” He called, looking into the kitchen. “C-can I talk to you?”

Seconds later, he heard some ruffling clothes. “I’m in the living room.”

Recognizing the silent order, the teen hurried off to meet her, only to stop himself in the doorstep. His mother was already standing, armed crossed over her disheveled blouse.

“What is it?” She asked, her eyes expressing a weak annoyance and an unpleased resignation.

All of a sudden, the words Eric had chosen deserted him, leaving him with a blank and a tightened throat in front of his mother.

“I-if… if I were to leave…” He felt his voice weaken, and his shoulders fall. He could not keep his eyes on his mother any longer. His cheeks were burning with shame. “Y-you see… There’s this ‘project’ I want to do, badly, but i-it would mean that I… that I could be gone for a while. I… I don’t want to hurt you, Mom, but this is pretty important. It could change some people’s lives.”

Silence fell. He expected it after making such a heavy statement. But his desperate plea was met with less sentimentality than he would have thought. His mother stared intently at him, taking in another breath of smoke, before letting it loose with a few drawling words.

“You want… my opinion on that?” She left the question hang in the air, looking up at an angle, her cigarette held precariously. For a moment, her lips remained unmoving, seemingly frozen in a mulling pout.

Eric felt his anxiety grow, unable to see what she was thinking. He’d never been able to.

Her eyes narrowed, if only a little. “You’re planning on doing that for a friend of yours?”

For a second, he hesitated, shocked that she knew about this, then nodded swiftly.

"Look, Eric." Her hand paused halfway, leaving her cigarette hanging downward. A thin line of smoke continued rising out of it, like a thin curtain separating them. "You're not a kid anymore. You may not be of age yet, but that's just numbers. You don't need someone to hold your hands throughout your days."

He… he didn’t know what to think of that. Some corner of his mind wanted to be proud that she saw him as an adult, but, at the same time, he couldn’t help notice how she seemed to lack that same pride. He should just… roll with it, as usual.

“I’ve tried bringing you up to be a man like your father.” She sighed, her eyes showing a hint of true sadness for the first time since they had started talking. “God knows if I’ve succeeded, but he was a man. What he did, no one could have demanded of him. That never stopped him, because he made that choice himself.”

In that instant, her gray gaze seemed not to see him. However, before he could formulate the thought, the spark returned in her eyes, and gave them a cutting edge.

“So, at the end of the day, this big project of yours, it is your decision, and it's a decision that you, as a man, should take by yourself and for yourself, and not for others.”

For a second, Eric felt something contract in his chest. He couldn’t have wished for a better sentiment from her, it was what he needed to hear from her, yet… it really bore down on his mind how little it seemed to touch her. And, as if she could read his thought, her next words all but confirmed it.

"Not for me." She shook her head slowly, speaking with a neutral tone. Then, gently, she brought her hand into a fist, and poked her son in the middle of his chest. “For yourself, Eric.”

For a moment, he did not know what to think. He could only stare at the fist against his torso, that conveyed those words of confidence and a bit of comfort to him, even as it started to retreat away from him. She had told him to make his own choice. In a roundabout way, she trusted him.

Finally, he smiled, his shambles of thoughts becoming undone with every word of hers that soaked in. The hesitation within him was gone, completely, and he steeled himself into his decision. “Thanks, Mom.”

The Breaking of Chains

The white stallion frowned as he watched the clouds of smoke rising from the train’s chimney. The fumes were growing thinner, invisible in the last remnants of the twilight. From his position on the balcony, he could hardly tell how many ponies had got off the train. What mattered was the tingling sensation at the base of his horn. A subtle change in the air made his fur stand.

Closing his eyes, he fought to squash the instincts of a soldier rising in him. This was not his station anymore, and tonight would not require that kind of work from him. There would be many here being entertained by the Princesses, certainly, but a far more important goal had to be complete. Urgh, he hated this. He was not done to play the part of the courtier.

“Shiny…” called a soft feminine voice.

“Hm?” The Prince of the Crystal Empire hummed, turning to face his wife. “What’s wrong, sweetheart?”

Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, her body draped in a vaporous dress, her mane cascading around her face and shoulders, eyed him with a hint of worry. “Do you feel that?”

For a short moment, Shining Armor had to shake his head and fight back the bout of desire that had been born at the sight of her. Blushing more out of embarrassment than anything else, he glanced between her and the sight of the city below.

“You mean the arrivals?”

“No, I meant something that’s already…” she paused, unsure, then sighed and relented. “Oh, it’s probably nothing, love.”

Shining Armor was ready to speak up in protest – leaving a possible security concern out of mind was a disaster waiting to happen –, but as he tried, a gentle strawberry-scented feather pushed against his muzzle. The words died out, becoming nothing more than weak protests with a vaguely whine to them. In his defense, his wife’s nuzzles were refined into an art form.

Her hooves ran over his shoulders, light and delicate, until it seemed they stopped over a hardened muscle. With expert technique, Cadence’s horn lit up and a small field of magic massaged the area.

“You’re so tense, Shiny. What are you nervous about?” She frowned. “We’re barely part of the ceremony tonight.”

Shining Armor sighed, barely resisting the urge to roll his eyes in defeat. Leave it to his kind and attentive wife to notice.

“It’s not that, sweetie. It’s about Twiley. She’ll be here tonight.”

The princess’ brows furrowed together. “I fail to see how that would make you nervous. In fact, I would think this would be something that should cheer you up.”

“Well…” Shining Armor pawed at the ground nervously. “Remember what we talked about with Twiley when she visited us for Mother’s Day?”
The couple exchanged a meaningful glance, and the stallion’s eyes briefly darted to his wife’s stomach.

“It’s about Celestia’s cousins, isn’t it?” Cadence said, and knew, by the way her husband scowled, that she had hit bull’s eye. “Shiny, you can’t protect her forever! If she has a coltfriend, then you should acknowledge that as a sign that she’s coming out of her shell for good and does not need protecting anymore.”

The way Shining Armor sullenly crossed his front legs over his chest was positively childish. “My offer to harm him violently still stands.”

“Stop making that joke,” Cadence hissed, glaring this time. “You know it makes Twilight even more nervous about her possible relationship when she thinks you disapprove. Remember how it was for us at first?”

The proud former captain winced, ears flat on his skull. “I know, I know…” He grimaced and leaned in for a kiss. “I just can’t help it. Every time, I get that burn in my chest thinking about it. He better do his best to make her happy. As for the rest… nopony’s going to give Twily any trouble on my watch.”

Cadence sighed. “Why do I get the feeling you’re going to put your trailing training to good use?”

Shining Armor grinned, eyes lit up, and he nuzzled his wife more intimately than he would dare once the guests had arrived. “Feminine intuition, sweetie.”

“Oh hush you,” Cadence said without heat as she pushed him back. “It’s starting.”

Together, they turned toward the great hall’s doors, held wide open for the occasion, and awaited the official beginning of the festivity. Around them echoed the voice of the herald slowly going through the list of guests as they stepped in.

“Presenting the Honorable Baron of Hoofington, Sir Soft Metal and his wife, Brow Beat!”

We arrived into the antechamber via personal escort. None of the stone-faced guards had said a word other than to answer our questions, which were few besides the obvious ‘where are you leading us?’. Where Celestia wanted us to be was equally obvious.

Thadal, Calx and I were currently waiting in an annex not too far away from the ballroom. Though a bit on the small side of things, its imminent luxury was a good enough remember of the castle we had left behind. The tapestries alone depicted an epic battle between ponies, griffons and some sort of shadowy creatures. Celly’s radiant form oversaw the battle, raining down rays of light on the enemies, flying side by side with a crowned griffon. The significance of this particular scene in what was a waiting room for diplomatic meetings was not lost on me.

With a smirk, I imagined how Celestia used that kind of reminder to subtly influence the ambassadors that came her way. With so many years as a ruler under her belt, she likely had one of these for every occasion. Now then, I wonder what she means to tell me, right now…

The smirk on my face slid off as I gave that question more serious consideration. Despite myself, I found something comforting at being put into this situation again. That was how things were in Canterlot for me.

Tartarus! For somepony who couldn’t figure out what his true self was, it was ironic how familiar this place felt to me now. The walls of our quiet little house in Ponyville never gave out the same vibe. Everything was adequate back there, but it wasn’t the same. It felt… good to be back. Granted, it was under the illusion, but it was still a great deal than being chased off the side of the capital.

Cutting through all that, Calx suddenly tugged at my leg nervously. “Huh, Sam… is Dad around?”

For a second, his words struck me speechless. Of course! Quickly. I put on a sad smile for him. “I’m afraid not, lil’ brother. I can’t hear him anywhere.”

Calx looked down, his cheers lost, and I pulled him closer to me. Their absence had grown more palpable where the rest of our family lived. Ignoring the emptiness where my heart should be, I held Calx, all the while my mind swirled with questions.

This was not actually Father, but it certainly felt the same. It was the same power that clung to every fiber of his being, only… more diffuse. But why were we getting this vibe now? Why not before? What had changed since the last time we were around? The answer to that was distressingly simple. Me. Calx. We were the one that was different. It had been a learning experience, being away from Celly’s authority. I wouldn’t throw curses around, I wouldn’t privately contemplate a few murders; I had changed. The windigoes were gone and Caelum’s shadow had been dispelled from the recesses of my mind. I was whole.

And this…

Flashes of crimson red, the very same shade as Calx’s eyes, came to mind. His voice, his powerful build, the look of hurt and guilt mixing on his face.

Father…

“We’ll see him soon,” I whispered in his ears. “It shouldn’t be long now.”

Hooves shuffled closer, and I caught a glimpse of brown fur. “He’s right, Tom. Together, your brother and I are going to find a way back, so don’t worry.”

The grip on my leg weakened, and for that, I shot Thadal a grateful look. He seemed embarrassed at that, rubbing at the back of his head and blushing, and he started trotting around the room. His gaze went to the chandelier and the paintings of famous ancestors, but his eyes were unfocused, and I noticed his tail flicking to the side twice.

He swallowed and asked the empty air, “Why did she invite us all here?”

“I believe I can answer that.”

The light flashed.

Both my brother and I quite suddenly returned to our original appearances. Strangely however, Thadal still looked like an earth pony. In that split second, I saw the realization hit him as it hit me. There weren’t many ponies that could do that.

Smiling despite myself, I turned around to greet the Sun Princess.

“Celestia!” Tom galloped straight to her and closed his legs around her neck.

For a very short and amusing second, Celly’s eyes widened with shock. The air of solemnity she had held had been crushed in one fell swoop. Her smile, however, told us she didn’t mind much.

“Have you been doing well, Calx Iugum?” she asked, brushing his mane with the care of a mother. “Is Ponyville to your liking?”

“Duh, best place ever!” he boasted, then blinked and added sheepishly, “Like Canterlot, y’know, your place’s nice…”

Celestia chuckled at his blatant salvation attempt, playing along while Calx tried to whistle and failed. “My, I am glad to see you have appreciated your new home.” Gently, she put him down on the ballroom’s floor and rearranged the little bowtie on his neck with a spell. “I do hope you will enjoy tonight. Balls are not usually to a foal’s liking, but knowing you were coming, I took the liberty of organizing a few things.”

Calx perked up, and even I had to lean in out of curiosity.

“What things?”

Celestia’s smile grew mischievous, and she gestured toward the open doors behind her. From there, we could see the castle’s gardens. Just outside the great glass windows, a few colorful balloons floated around, tied to some of the decorations. The staff’s words about the chocolate fountain and the historical play both pleased and worried me. This might turn out to be the greatest and worst idea Celestia ever had.

Judging by the gleaming amusement in her eyes, she probably knew it. “A few games and plays, though which ones I will not tell right away. A surprise is better, isn’t it?” she added with a wink.

“Hay yeah!” Calx shouted, rearing on his hind legs. In a second or so, he would bolt out of the room to enjoy the many, many fun games laid out before him.

“Ahem!” I loudly cleared out my throat, and he fell face first on the ground.

“Whaaaaat?” he whined.

“Aren’t you forgetting something?” I cocked a skeptical eyebrow up. “Hint: it comes from your mouth.”

“Err…” He grimaced, then looked up pleadingly in an blatantly fake angelic manner. “Can I go, pretty please?”

“No, that’s not what I meant… Though I’m glad you at least figured that out.” I rolled my eyes, nudging him toward a certain princess. “It’s not something you should tell me…”

Calx quickly looked between me and Celestia, and I saw things click in his head.

“Oh! Yeah!” He grinned and turned toward our cousin. His forelegs closed onto one of her front legs, as he flashed her his most grateful smile. “Thanks, Celly, you’re the best!”

I chuckled. “There you go. Now have fun, but don’t get in trouble.”

Calx lost no time with a taunt, every pore of his being oozing the confidence that if he did do something to get in trouble, he wouldn’t be caught. Sometimes I wished he could tone it down, because from the look Celestia sent me, she got the message too.

Smiling very widely, a bit of pain cramping up my facial muscles, I said, “He’ll figure out his manners eventually.”

She remained impassible for another moment, her face unreadable, until she reached and patted my cheeks. “Oh, but I do not mind at all, Ventus. Youthful energy is a wonderful thing.”

A memory of a bunch of screaming restaurant employee came to me, accompanied by loud snickers and boastful statements. And then, death. We’re still banned from that place too.

“Most of the time,” I deadpanned.

Eric snorted behind me. Clearly, he recalled some of the more… creative incident of our past. Hopefully not too many. And with even better luck, he wouldn’t mention them and create a few memories. That spider would be in my nightmares for a long time.

“Oh, but whatever incidents you have in mind, my young cousin, those are the spice of a long existence. I can assure you.”

“Not to be impolite, Princess, but can I ask you why we’re here. Your package more or less did not include anything.”

“I’m afraid part of the reason this ball is happening at all is political. I would hope to bolster trade agreements with other countries while the dignitaries are there. Our fields are as fertile as ever, and I believe we are making a few breakthroughs when it comes to art and aeronautic sciences. The reminder of our value as an ally in times of peace is rather precious at the moment. As for you specifically, Thadal, I must say your presence is simply an invitation extended in goodwill. You may simply meet with the guests and enjoy yourself.” She gestured to the door with her wing. “You are free to mingle while I discuss a few things with your friend before the ball starts proper. Remember to follow my instructions, however.”

My ears ticked at that. What instructions? Her explanation hadn’t included any…

Unfortunately, Thadal only gave a short stoic nod, looking anywhere but toward me, and trotted out of the room. Celestia and I both looked after him until he reached a few groups of ponies to mingle with. In the back of my mind, I swore something fierce. Those two kept a secret or two from me.

It was hard not to sigh at the cosmic irony. How do I like them apples?

“So… Celly?” I asked, keeping my voice even. “What exactly did you wish to talk about now?”

As Celestia’s eyes turned serious, I grew aware of the many things that she could want to talk about concerning me, Tom or Eric. Us being Alicorns of Chaos being at the top of that dreaded list.

“I had a few requests to ask of you.” Celestia sighed, and I perked up in interest. Requests? “Now, I am uncertain as to how deep your connection to my student goes, but I will ask you to refrain from drawing attention to your couple tonight. The situation is… delicate.”

My heart sank in my chest as I imagined, no, knew that Rarity had worked tirelessly on a new dress for her and she had to be stunning in it. To take that away from me just made the evening’s lights dimmer. Perhaps we could have spoken a bit about her latest work… I could have thanked her in person. She had never been one for formal events, but if I could have led her on the dance floor…

All a moot point, really.

Celestia sensed my disappointment. “I am sorry, Ventus, but both your status as Equestrian Royals make this bigger than your enjoyment of the evening. Truly, refrain from interacting with Twilight unless you can keep it formal and proper.”

I really wished I could keep a better poker face. We were just starting to really take it to a new level.

“…Regardless, it might become irrelevant, as my next request will take quite a bit of your time. You might not be aware of this yet, but some people outside our borders have grown curious about you.”

Actually, I do know, now. I almost said so, but I held my tongue. That was fair play for her blatantly keeping things from me with my friend.

Celestia continued, taking my silence for curiosity or consideration. “Now then, I believe that there are a few people you might need to go talk to as soon as possible. They are quite curious and they have a few questions for you. I, of course, expect you to be on your best behavior.”

I did not miss the hint of sternness in her last words, nor did I imagine the slight squeeze of her wing over my back as she led me through the ballroom.

Lethargy weighed her steps down.

From the minute the letter had arrived, she had run herself ragged trying to accomplish the impossible. Through some brilliant stroke of good luck, inspiration had only been more fertile under duress – a rare thing for her. The result? Six more ball-worthy dresses to her name and on her friend’s backs.

They shone as six miniature suns of good taste amidst a sea of extravagant and only occasionally well-designed suits.

In an hour or two, she might feel rested enough to appreciate the compliments her friends were getting on their attire.

Ungracious as it was, Rarity wanted only the opportunity to slip away unnoticed for some time, just enough to get her energy and savvy back. It would not do to embarrass herself or others through an ill-constructed comment she would not have made in less… tiresome circumstances.

So, of course, the first thing that happened was her bumping into somepony just as she was leaving the gardens.

“My apologies,” she said on auto-pilot, quite up to the point she heard the reply, and whom the deeper voice belonged to. “Oh.”

A small smile tugged at the corners of Prince Blueblood’s mouth. “Miss Rarity. What a nice surprise.”

“Likewise…”

It was all she could think of. Even her voice sounded out of it to her ears. Oh, this was a disaster! She would faint on the spot if she had the energy.

As proof, Prince Blueblood eyed her with sincere concern, and she did not start to hyperventilate hysterically. Her pose remained as graciously still as possible, for movements sent twinges through her legs and shoulders.

“You seem… slightly less alert than usual, my lady.”

“Oh, this…?” she asked, waving her hoof aimlessly. “Oh no, do not be fooled. It… it is… something… refined, very common… in Canterlot…”

The prince’s eyebrows shot up, a few twitches shaking the corner of his mouth. In her addled mind, she could not quite put a hoof on it, but she hoped that a former crush of hers wasn’t currently fighting his amusement at her lack of refinement.

A very practical part of her started planning her exile to the Badlands on the spot.

“Ah, you got me, Lady Rarity,” Blueblood surprised her with a pleasant smile. “Recent events have let me unable to catch up with the latest trends in Canterlot. In fact, I wanted a moment to myself before mingling with the rest of the, ahem, ‘refined’ ponies, to better observe and mimic them.”

She caught the meaning and gratefully used the opportunity to sit on the magnificent cushions placed there by the staff. While the prince imitated her, she could not help but gaze at him with a critical eye. Her inner gossip and her attention to detail did not allow her to let these things slip by. “Am I wrong to believe that those ‘recent events’ have something to do with your airship, my prince? Or that those same events included trivial things such as heroism?”

Blueblood’s face colored a nice shade of pink, pale enough to be difficult to notice from afar. Her words seemed to have taken him out of his element, as he stared awkwardly, so far from the image of the confident royal stallion he projected. Sadly, Rarity realized that it may have been the closest thing to a genuine compliment he had received in quite some time.

“Thank you,” he said in a hoarse whisper.

Without a word, Rarity gently reached for his shoulder with her hoof. “Do keep your composure, darling. It would be unbecoming to be seen gawking next to a simple seamstress.”

“Heroine,” Blueblood replied with a bit of heat, stomping. “Lady Rarity, you were at the center of it all. I was merely part of the backup and it was the scariest experience in my life.”

The romantic in her swooned. Music to her ears. A veritable symphony. If only they were deserved.

“Oh no, I was merely following my friends,” Rarity objected, shaking her head. “Twilight’s lead was a greater factor than my contributions. Why, Applejack and Rainbow Dash were positively impressive in terms of sheer determination, as was dear Fluttershy in facing her fears so bravely. And, as always, there are no words to precisely describe what Pinkie Pie does either, but I feel quite inadequate in comparison to them all.”

As she looked back to him however, Rarity realized that Blueblood’s eyes had widened and he had grown speechless. Briefly, she tried to readjust her dress and accessories, certain that in her carelessness she had thrown something in disarray. Oh, her looks must have been unworthy of the aristocracy gathered, and he most of all must regret ever sharing words with her!

But her nervous hooves were stopped when an ocean blue aura held them down. With gentle care, the magic made her garments slid over her fur into their correct places, exactly where they had been before her minor breakdown. And all through this, the prince had never stopped staring at her with such alien wonder. His voice trembled, and the hushed whisper barely reached her ears. “Was I always blind to such graciousness?”

Her head started spinning, fire exploding across her face. Her hooves shot to her chest, hammered heartbeat throbbing through her veins. “P-Prince Blueblood!”

“I…” He seemed to realize their position, and he moved back, his horn no longer glowing. “My apologies, Lady Rarity. I did not mean to overstep my bounds.”

Still seeing foalhood fantasies parade before her very eyes, Rarity took a deep breath. “None are necessary, my prince. My fatigue must be clouding my reactions.”

Together, they pretended that, of course, it had simply been a normal reaction overblown by an unfortunate but understandable lack of rest from an overworked seamstress. A falsely comfortable settled between them as they gathered their wits under the eyes of a few nobles and merchants also using the gardens to exchange pleasantries. Within moments however, the tension had left them, and the silence grew more amicable.

Smirking, Blueblood suddenly spoke on the tone of conspiracy, “Do you know what is starting to become ‘en vogue’ here? I give it to you straight: tangerine orange and magenta.”

Her mind buckled.

“No…” Rarity gasped. “You must be joking.”

The prince chuckled, a suave sound to her ears. “Tell that to my personal tailor, Miss Rarity. Spinning Wheel has insisted that I commissioned such a monstrosity for grand occasions like this one.”

“Oh, I shall have a few choice words with them, Prince Blueblood. Believe me, I shall.”

They laughed together, a short moment of camaraderie passing between them and staying after they had both calmed down. In that moment of silence, the two of them seemed to have reached an understanding of sort. There needed no more word to be said, and Rarity leaned against the prince’s fur to rest.

Blueblood’s smile turned pensive. His eyes flickered briefly to the ballroom, then to her dress.

“Prince Blueblood?” Rarity asked, a delicate brow lowered. “Is something troubling you?”

“Well, not as such, no,” he said, and his gaze glinted with amusement. “However, I would very much like it if you would do me the honor of a dance.”

He was faced with a dilemma: he could make a detour to see the servants serving some hors d’oeuvres and risk missing Rarity… or he could go the very close-by dessert tables and get a bit of fondue.

His claws stroked his chin slowly. If he were to pick some fondue, well, he knew it was going to be absolutely delicious. The big problem was that it could make a sticky mess of his hands or his suits, and nopony wanted their knights in shining armor to look like they had no table manners, least of all Rarity.

On the other hand, the hors d’oeuvre looked to be made of three different kinds of lettuce and a bit of rutabaga…

His nose wrinkled, Spike discreetly ran to the dessert table and grabbed a handful of sweet, chocolate-covered fruits. The perfect crime! Now to quickly satisfy his dragon appetite before his princess walked by…

“Spike?”

All four treats flew into his mouth at the sound, his cheeks puffing out. But that hadn’t been Rarity…

The little dragon blinked, swallowing his chocolate treat, then looked around himself in vain. Nopony seemed to have called him. The second call however made him glance up at his friend who was standing atop a statue. “Calx? What are you doing?”

“I got bored of the comedic act. It’s a bit too kiddie-friendly for me,” he said while making airquotes. “But hey, it’s really cool that you’re here. I didn’t know you were gonna be around.”

The alicorn colt landed right in front of Spike, grinning, and they hoofbumped.

“Almost didn’t come either.” The little dragon sat down on a cushion, letting out a big sigh of content, wriggling his toes. “My feet are killing me. I’ve been running around all day giving letters to the girls and helping Rarity.”

Calx snorted. “You were making dresses?”

“Hey!” Spike blushed, crossing his arms over his chest. “I was just helping the most amazing mare in the world. She just happens to be a dressmaker and she was making dresses.”

“Sorry, sorry.”

Spike quickly brushed it off with an absentminded reply, his eyes already glazed over with fantasies of the most beautiful mare in the world. The green of his eyes quickly turned pink, and the irises took the shapes of heart.

Seeing his friend placated, a sly predatory grin appeared on Calx’s face. All to his lovestruck daydream, Spike did not notice and took the sweet innocent tone at face value, “Do you know how to sew then?”

“Do I? Pffft, it’s easy.” Spike rolled his eyes, boasting a confident smile. “I even know how to make a double stitch. Rarity told me it’s a hard one for beginners too.”

For a brief moment, he naïvely thought that his claim had impressed Calx. After all, Spike had nearly exploded with pride when Rarity had taken the time to compliment him on his work, even when she was running herself ragged trying to finish everything. Unfortunately, Calx was not. Spike deflated when his friend collapsed on the ground laughing.

A heavy blush colored his facial scales. “It’s not that funny,” Spike grumbled.

“Alright, sorry,” Calx said, and to his credit looked sincere. “Just thought it was kinda funny. You hate girly stuff.”

“Yeah, but I love Rarity so it’s fine.” Spike picked a few strands of grass from the grass and split them in two without looking. “Just doing my best for the one I care about, y’know? I do plenty of boring stuff for Twilight too, but she’s like a big sister and a mother rolled in one.”

His friend said nothing.

“Calx?”

The colt blinked out of his thoughts, suddenly jumping to his hooves and squirming like he had trouble standing still. “Oh, huh, yeah, sorry. Yeah, I get you. You’re cool.”

He held out his hoof, to which Spike was only too happy to answer with a high five and their secret hoofshake. Maybe it was a little childish, but it was theirs! And the thought made Spike’s chest heat up with more than just dragonfire.

Calx was his friend, not just a shared friend with Twilight. He-

“You!”

The two boys turned in unison toward the source of this new shout. Neither knew quite what to make of the pink filly glaring them down, barely a few meters away.

“What are you doing here?!” She snarled. “This place is for refined ponies! Not brutes like you!”

“Says the bully!” he shot back.

Diamond Tiara flinched, sending nervous glances aside. Nopony seemed to have noticed, thankfully. Stomping, she butted head with the prince. “Stop saying that!”

He met the challenge. “Stop being one!”

“I’m not!”

“You are! And the day you stop being one, I’ll stop calling you a bully too!”

Her face twisted into an ugly sneer. “Oh yeah?”

Calx did not hesitate. “Yeah! I’m not liar!”

“Well, I’m not a bully! I’m Diamond Tiara, a refined filly that will grow up to be rich and famous! I’m a much better pony than you are! ”

Calx’s wings flared with his temper.

“Prove it!” he shouted, standing up.

“Huh… guys?” Spike timidly tried to interject. The adults were starting to turn around and stare. Not that he was worried that words might get out and reach somepony like Twilight or Rarity or even Celestia, but… Okay, he really was worried.

To his despair, the two foals were locked into a death glaring contest, foreheads pushing against the other’s, and Tartarus would probably become a snowy mess before either of them backed down.

Calx’s snorted and pushed back even harder. “I bet you can’t even make a friend here even if you try real hard!”

Whatever words had been in the filly’s lungs died out, her jaw hanging low and her eyes wide as if she’d been struck. She slid a few hoof lengths in the grass, before gathering her wits back and pushing the colt off.

“I can’t?! ME?! Y-you’ll see!” Diamond Tiara’s face turned a darker shade of red. “I will make so many friends… I’ll be so nice that ponies will side with me over you! Then we’ll see who laughs in the end!”

“Guys…” Spike repeated, with a bit more urgency in his voice. There were three noble-looking ponies over there whispering, and he was pretty sure it was about them…

They didn’t hear him.

Calx’s grimace turned into a cocky grin. “Cool, come at me whenever. With all your friends. I’mma be there waiting.” He pointed to his spot, shrugging. “I’m not worried about… what? Two ponies?”

On the filly’s face, a frown cohabited with a widespread blush. At that moment, she truly hated being so weak as to let her body dictate her reactions to his displays of confidence.

“I’ll show you! Y-you’ll see!”

“GUYS!”

The two stilled, ears flinching, and they looked to the side.

Spike, now well the center of attention to two riled-up foals, blushed under his scales and tried to keep his voice even. “Err… no, you two went on too long. I was going to ask you to keep it down, but it’s kinda pointless now.”

Diamond Tiara raised a single eyebrow, her face an illustration of skepticism and deadpan. She seemed instants away from a scathing reply.

Calx, his eyes still locked on the filly, glared. Did she think she was going to put down his friend in front of him? The muscles in his jaw tensed, the beginning of a snarl twisting away at the friendliness he usually showed. Through some effort, he managed not to explode, and instead whispered hotly, “No, you know what? We can do this right now.”

“R-right now?” Diamond Tiara asked, voice faltering.

“Yeah.” He grinned. “What’s wrong? Can’t do it?”

She closed her mouth shut and glared. Its strength slid off the colt’s back, who gestured for her and Spike to get closer.

The three children gathered in a small circle, waiting for any onlooker to look away. When he was truly satisfied they could not hear the content of this super-secret meeting, Calx began explaining what he had in mind. Surely enough, the thought both thrilled and worried Spike, but he squashed it to listen to the end. At that point, Calx had spread his front legs in the air, and expected the applause. Diamond Tiara was quick to burst his bubble him.

“This is stupid! They’ll never let us get away with it!” she deadpanned.

“What? Scared you can’t do it?” He stuck out his tongue, prompting Spike to wonder if he really was older than every other foal around by decades.

Whatever maturity he lacked, the tactic seemed effective as Diamond Tiara’s eyes narrowed on him.

“F-fine!” She growled. “I’ll find friends and we’re going to crush you right here, right now.”

With a haughty huff, she raised her nose in the air and turned around. The two boys watched her leave the gardens, right until the point she accosted a very richly dressed couple and their filly. After that, Calx seemingly lost interested, trotting toward the buffet.

It took a second for Spike to catch up, and when he did, he had a confused frown on his face. “…Okay, what happened, Calx? Diamond Tiara said she’ll be nice and make friends with others.”

“Huh, yeah. She said that. Like she can.” He waved a dismissive hoof. “Maybe if she stopped being mean, but she’s not going to. Eh, I bet she’s not even going to come back.” He levitated two pieces of chocolate from the buffet and offered one to his friend. “But hey, if she does, you’re gonna have my back, right? T’would be fun.”

“Yeah…” Spike agreed a bit reluctantly. He was still looking around for somepony to tell them they were going to get in trouble for making such a ruckus. Except most ponies and non-ponies just pretended they hadn’t seen it. It was weird…

Not even when Calx had gone directly to a white unicorn colt following his parents did they react, beyond a polite greeting. He was free to waltz around and pitch his plan to the newcomer, who looked hopefully to his parents. Both nodded a bit numbly, fake smiles on their faces, and the newly formed trio started trotting to find their next recruit.

“Alright, come along, Captain Noble Origins,” the prince declared to his companions, one hoof pointing at the sky. “We’ve got an army to create.”

His words would have had no greater effect if he had announced a second Hearth’s Warming Eve. The white colt looked so excited he might spontaneously combust. Twice. “This is so cool! Mother and Father never let me play like this! I can’t believe they said yes!”

“Oh, Captain Noble Origins, we are going to be so awesome tonight that it’ll be written in history! Every single one of you noble foals will remember tonight as the best night ever! Oh, and thanks to our secret weapon, aka Spike the number one dragon, we are sure to win!”

Spike had to admit it to himself, it was actually pretty nice to have somepony look at him like Noble Origins did then. He might have bragged about his hard scales or his fiery dragon breath when the colt started asking questions in rapid fire. The impressed ‘whoaaaa’ that came in reply was music to his ears.

The second and third foal reacted the same way, and suddenly, when Calx let it slip he was even older than them, it did not matter. They just looked at him like a leader for their game.

The second Calx came back with a fourth foal in tow, there was no contesting it. He had been made into the second-in-command and everypony was fully satisfied.

Blushing, Spike held out a paw and clasped his claws over his friend’s shoulder. “Wait, Calx. I have to ask… Are you doing that on purpose?”

His friend paused in his little recruiting operation, tilting his head to the side. A blatantly innocent grin stretched his mouth. “Doing what, Spike? This is all in good fun.” He reared on his hind legs and shouted. “Come now, my Legion! We have a treasure to protect!”

It was something she would never admit to Rarity for fear of being the subject to another rant on the marvels of high society, but as she walked by decorations worth more than a year of her earnings, Applejack started to feel a sour and bitter taste slip on her tongue. She had never been a gal for the frou-frou and the superfluous, and consarn it if this place didn’t feel like both. She got the importance of looking good to your business partners, that much was a staple, and this was the Princesses’ castle, the heads of Equestria themselves. Still, that didn’t make her feel more adequate, the farm mare in a pretty dress.

She allowed herself a more sincere smile as she trotted to the gardens, where a more earthy scent greeted her. There had been a reason she had set up her stand outside a few years back. Coming back now, well, it did give her a strange feeling of nostalgia. Hard to believe a mare like her would have gone on to do so much big stuff for her country.

Just then, in the middle of her recollection, a strong smell of cinnamon and apples reached her nostrils and her stomach rumbled. Time to hit the buffet! she thought with a smirk. The smirk got bigger when her eyes laid out on the apple-tastics treats that her family had provided for the event. A private contractor contract. That was going to rack some bits in this time, a lot more than trying to compete with a free buffet. A small part of her had protested that getting royal favors like that wasn’t entirely fair, but the princess had made a mighty fine argument in her letter. And Big Mac, ever the practical stallion, had mentioned they couldn’t really afford not to take a catering contract these days. So they had worked triple in order to harvest enough to supply the castle for the night. Just thinking about it made her stomach growled twice as loud.

“Alright, alright, yeh beast,” she chuckled and eyed the pastries.

Her choice ended up being the fritters Granny had perfected. Licking her lips, Applejack reached for one that glistened particularly well under the moonlight. The slightly hot treat in her hoof, she moved to give somepony else the chance to grab some grubs and bumped into some tall brown stallion.

“Crap,” the stranger said, seeing his treat splatter on the grass.

“Whoa, mighty sorry ‘bout that, stranger.” She quickly tilted her hat to him. “Shame about them fritters. Granny really put her all in it today. Here, yeh can have mine. Didn’t bit it yet, promise.”

Despite her stomach’s renewed growls, she held out her fritter for the stranger to pick, but he barely paid it any attention.

“Applejack,” the brown stallion said, his eyes wide.

All of a sudden, he didn’t seem to be that concerned about the lost fritter anymore.

“Eeyup, ya know me?” Her eyebrows lowered in a thoughtful frown. Had she seen that pony before? He looked somewhat familiar…

“Ah, huh, well…” He rubbed the back of his neck, sheepish. “I heard about you, a lot. Elements and all that.”

Oh, that would explain it! She chuckled, thinking back to a few times where she’d wish that had happened. “Eh, funny. Ain’t often ponies have. Something the princess said about the trappings of fame, Ah think.”

“Oh,” he said, as if the statement had shed light on a question of his. “D-do you mind?”

“Mind whut?” Applejack cocked an eyebrow and held a teasing smile. “Not being extra famous? Meh, pal, Ah’ll tell yah, Ah saw what it did to Shy and Ah wasn’t impressed. They can keep ‘em fame, Ah’ll be back on my farm at the end of the day. Nothing more, nothing less.”

“I see,” the stallion said, eyes widening as if he realized something. “You’re a lot more modest than I gave you credit for. I think it would bother me if people I saved never gave me any recognition.”

“Yeah? And who are yeh?” she asked, fiddling with the silk tie on his impeccable suit. “Y’all look pretty fine to me, though Ah coud have sworn s’not the first time we meet. Name?”

Blinking, the stallion opened his mouth, but stifled the first sound that came out. Applejack couldn’t make out what he said, but she sure as hell noticed the very strong shade of red that spread across his face.

For some reason, the slip-up made him glance toward the ballroom, where all the big shots were still in. When he looked back at her, she thought he might want to dig a real nice hole to hide in forever. “…Raincloud?”

“Usually, ponies know their names when Ah ask,” she deadpanned, fighting hard not to smirk.

One eye twitching, ‘Raincloud’ smacked his hoof into his forehead, producing a noise loud enough to make Applejack wince in sympathy.

“Oh Tartarus…” He hung his head low. “How in the name of God does Sam manage to do this?”

“Sam?” Applejack repeated, her eyes growing wider before suddenly narrowing into thin lines. “Not a lot of ponies that use that name. Less so that act this suspicious. Y’ain’t an alicorn though… What gives?”

The stallion sighed, muttering something about being killed by his friend and Princess Celestia simultaneously. With a remarkable detachment toward impending doom, he looked at her like he wanted to be anywhere else. “Don’t let my lack of horn or wings fool you, there’s more to me than these hooves alone.”

Stupidly, she felt the urge to poke around his forehead, just for confirmation of the horn she now knew had to be hidden somewhere. Unless it was a transformation thing? She wasn’t sure, though who knew when magic was involved?

In the end, Applejack simply shook her head and judged him from head to hooves.

“So yer pals with the princeling Twi’s pinning for? That right?”

“Yeah…” ‘Raincloud’ sighed, glancing around. “I just wanted to come help him. He’s my friend and I figured I could help, give him support or something like that. Just… you know?”

“Eeyup, Ah reckon Ah do.” She nodded, then punched his shoulder in a friendly matter. “Yer a good guy. Ah was almost afraid yeh’d be one of those changelings fellow, but doesn’t seem like it. Not sure if prince love-colt really needs help, but Ah like ya.”

‘Raincloud’ smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “He does, but I don’t think he wants to admit it. He’s scared.”

It took a second for Applejack to swallow that revelation.

“Yeah? Didn’t look like it to me.” A grimace twisted her mouth. She did not like where this conversation was going… “Ah suppose he keeps it all under wrap well?”

“Sorta?” He shrugged, then bit his lips. “S-… Ventus tries to, but when he blows up, it’s never pretty. Like, it scares me a bit, knowing how far he goes when he’s really pissed. There’s just too much underneath, and it all boils over so he doesn’t think clearly enough.”

Briefly, Applejack looked back on her admittedly few interactions with the golden prince. He’d been guarded, that much she remembered, but had he really looked like he was hiding stuff? Sure he had been sort of… fancy, but that was more the Rarity kind of polite. Though… though being in this ballroom, it reminded her of the last time…

Princess Luna had come for a quick hello, greeted everypony, but when she’d look at her lil’ cuz, her warm look had briefly morphed into a glare of disdain. And just before that, she’d seen the flicker of fear in his eyes. It hadn’t last, but it had been plain to see because he had thought nopony had been looking his way.

Applejack felt the temperature drop a few degrees. “What is he scared of?”

‘Raincloud’ let out a long suffering sigh. “Remember that time Applebloom tried to deliver apple pies on her own?”

Her expression darkened. “Eeyup.”

“The fire swamps are dangerous places, full of monsters and hazards. It takes just a misstep to be horribly injured… And she didn’t know her way around,” he spoke with a distant voice, as if the words were escaping him, and the images flowed freely in her head. The noxious air that bubbled underneath the surface, the fire, the chimera. Applebloom. “It could have gone horribly wrong…”

Her hoof came down on the tiles with a booming crack. “What’s yer point?!”

The stallion jumped, startled, but she couldn’t quite bring herself to care. Her heart had crawled up to her throat.

He seemed to realize what he had done, his eyes worryingly going over her stern expression. “I… sorry, I just wanted to explain… When you realized she had put herself in danger… He’s always feeling like that.”

Applejack’s eyebrow shot up to her mane, struck silent. For a second, she tried to imagine herself in those horseshoes, back in the fireswamps, only this time it would stretch on for days and weeks on end. It made her legs weak.

“Dang…”

“Eeyup,” ‘Raincloud’ nodded, his voice grim. “So I need to figure out how to make him see it’s not quite the fireswamps here. He’s just been too hurt to see it before.”

Silence fell between them. Around them, nopony seemed to have noticed their intense conversation, all to their talks of trade agreements and political alliances. Applejack’s lack of true notoriety was all too apparent when ponies walked by her to get to the buffet without even a glance her way. More surprising to her however was the frown she noticed on the stallion’s face when they did so.

An easy smile found its way on her face.

“Y’know, Raincloud,” she drawled mockingly, patting his shoulder, “yer a good guy.”

To her amusement, the stallion blushed from his mane to his neck. “T-thank you, Applejack,” he said with a small smile. “I think I’ll be going now and let you enjoy yourself. It’s your night after all.”

He inclined his head to her and made to leave, his blush starting to recede. After the first few steps, he stopped, a sturdy orange leg pushing against his barrel.

“Now wait a sec here. Maybe Ah can help. Whatcha gunna do about yer pal?”

“I don’t know.” He shrugged, worry flashing in his eyes. “I’ll think of something. It’s why I’m here.”

“Ventus is in a dangerous place right now,” she had said. “I fear that if he is not reminded of what is precious, of friendship and family, then he might become one of the Fallen. Please, Thadal Fragor, help him.”

Tonight. Was. PERFECT!

She loved how the wind slapped her bangs and stroked her whole body. Always had. The cold whipped her blood into a frenzy every single time. It made her feel as if the world was at her command. But what mattered the most this time was the good-natured encouragement shouted at her from her left. The glimpse of the blue and yellow uniform made her wings pump faster than they ever had before. This was her big chance! She had the moves, she had the looks, the style, the technique, the speed! Nothing could shake her stance! By the end of this ball, she’d be promoted to-

Confetti.

Her brain lapsed for the shortest moment, as the stream of high speed confetti flew right in front of her face. The absurdity of it all slapped her out of her daydreaming ambitions, and she frantically turned mid-manoeuver to slalom around the bits of red, green, yellow and pink confetti. Behind her, she heard the shout of warning and panic.

Her heart hammering in her chest, she rolled over, spinning down to make it look as intentional dangerous as possible. The ground was closing in on her dangerously fast. She could not mess this up, or else her career as a stunt flyer might end with two flattened wings and more.

Not yet…

Pegasi dove after her, hollering her name.

Almost...

Ponies looking up shouted in panic.

Now!

She pulled back with all her strength, her muscles screaming in hot pain, her wings perfectly still. The grass scrolled down her sight, hedges of the labyrinth taking their place briefly, before all she could see was the Princess’ night and the stars. The weightlessness hit her hard at the top of her loop, almost enough to make her dizzy, but she cocked a grin to the pegasus above. Her tail flickered, she dove backward and flipped. Her four hooves touched down at the exact same time hard enough to lift dust.

Stunt completed.

Despite herself, she let out a long sigh of relief. Made it, she thought. It was only a few seconds later, once that burst of adrenaline had dried up and her legs started shaking, that she searched and found the pink source of her impromptu stunt.

“Pinkie!” she almost snarled after zipping to her place. “Did you just shoot your party canon at me in front of the Wonderbolts?!”

Pinkie seemed nonplussed, and confused, by the accusation. A pedestal appearing out of nowhere, she rested her chin on her open hoof and looked pensive. “Did I? I thought that was the foals. They tripped when they tried to aim.”

“The… foals…?” she repeated, glancing around.

“Mhm.” Pinkie nodded. “I lent it to the thieves so they could break apart the guards’ mud wall.”

Rainbow blinked, still trying to process it, as the pink mare in her deep burgundy dress leaned in to whisper, “Just between you and me, I think Bladey’s cheating a little with that.”

Shaking her head, Rainbow glanced around in hope of seeing the bright pastel blue cannon. She had no idea what was going on, but she had heard ‘thieves’, ‘cannon’ and ‘foals’ in the same sentence. So it was only logical that she be wary, and thus her slight tuning out of her friend’s ramblings about the rules was a lesser evil.

She did indeed spot the cannon, somewhere in the melee. Of foals. There were a bunch of foals galloping around the gardens with half of them wearing party hats and the others running away from them.

Oh.

In the corner of her eyes, she spotted a pink filly leading a lesser hatless group atop a small mud hill. “Come on, maggots! Do you want our enemy to win?! I thrive for victory and so do you! I won’t be able to rub it in his smug face if you don’t hurry up!”

“Oh, it’s not his face you’ll need to rub…” came a distinctively evil voice. “It’s yours!”

Before she even had the time to shout a biting comeback, the highest rampart broke down, falling into pieces. Each block lost its solid form, becoming almost liquid and sliding down the hill at high speed. Her dress seemed to only have a few more seconds to live, but it was not to be, one of Diamond Tiara subordinate diving to take the brunt of the mud for her. The beige colt fell on his backside and let out a cry of agony.

“I am sorry, commander…” he said over deranged laughter that came from atop the hill.

Now Rainbow Dash thought she might be dreaming. “Is that… Spike with a moustache over there?”

“Eeyup!” Pinkie giggled. “I had a spare one lying around in case-”

“-of moustache emergency. Yeah, I can see that.” Dash finished on reflex. Alright, that was actually looking a bit cool. Shame the CMC weren’t able to come. They probably would have loved playing this one, especially the mudslide. Except Sweetie Belle. Her sister would strangle her for considering that.

Fortunately, it looked as if even injuries wouldn’t be a deterrent. A small banquet table had even been requisitioned and transformed into an emergency nurse office, ran by a very familiar pegasus. At the moment, she was tending to a youngling holding a scrap of tissue, a needle between her feathers and all her maternal care directed solely at the crying filly.

“There, there, sweetie,” Fluttershy cooed, kissing the sniffing filly on her forehead. The stitch seemed invisible, hidden in the folds of the dress. “It’s all better now. You can go back to play with your little friends. Just be a tinsy bit more careful, okay? I’m sure your parents won’t be mad.”

Swallowing a sob, the foal nodded and returned to the game. Very soon, the rest of her comrades brought her back into the ranks of the thief army. Rainbow Dash lost sight of her after that.

In part because of the pink hoof that moved in front of her eyes. “Dashie? Do you want to play with us?”

“Pinkie!” she hissed in a low voice. “I can’t be seen playing a foals’ game with the Wonderbolts around. They’ll think I’m too childish to be a Wonderbolt!” Her hooves grabbed Pinkie’s shoulders and started to shake her. “Heck, they’ll think I’d rather become a babysitter than be a Wonderbolt! They’ll ask me to fly their kids around while they put on shows all over Equestria! And you want me to play Guards and Thieves?!”

Pinkie Pie, eyes wide, mouth shut in a thin line, hazarded a timid “Maybe?”

A strand of fur suddenly tingled at the back of her neck. The air pressure changed ever so slightly, as it always did when pegasus magic was used.

“Wait, who’s playing Guards and Thieves now?” some stallion called from behind her. “Not that I’m complaining, nice move there.”

Oh.

No.

No, no, no, no, no, noooooo! She wasn’t ready for this! They’d guess, they’d know! It had to be written on her face!

She twisted around at impressive speeds, smiling as widely as physically possible toward Soarin, who eyed her, bemused.

“Haha, yeah, I’m awesome, but a foal’s game? Noooooo, me? No, noooo, I don’t do foals’ games. I was just talking to my good friend… Pinkie Pie!” She grabbed her friend by the neck and pulled her into a ‘hug’. “Remember her? National hero, Element of Laughter and baker.”

“Hi, Soarin!” the pink party pony piped up from under Rainbow’s sleeves. “Nice to meet you!”

“You as well, Miss… Pie?” His eyes glinted with interest. “Say, you wouldn’t happen to know… well, it’s in your namesake, so I assume…”

There was a strange ‘Pop’ and Rainbow was only holding air. In the time it took to look down, her friend was already standing in front of the Wonderbolt and going on about her favorite caramel pear pie recipe. She blinked again, and it seemed as if the stallion had run his tongue over his lips. Nah. No way.

“-so that’s how you get to Sugarcube Corner, Mister Soarin. Can’t miss it!”

“Great, I’ll be looking forward to it. Gingerbread house on Ponyville’s mainstreet. Shouldn’t be too hard to find.”

Rainbow landed right next to him, breathing hard. Her brain had more or less given up, and she was operating on pure adrenaline. This was one of her chances. She couldn’t actually miss it over foals’ play!

“Oh yeah, I can show you that, Soarin. Heck, I can show you lots of things.” She pointed to her flexing wings. “These babies can pull a mean turn. Heck, I’ve been working on – and I don’t mean to brag –, and I think I can do a pret-ty decent Tempest Brigadier.”

To her eternal glee, Soarin whistled low. The friendly smile on his face really made her heartbeat quicken. “Really? Never heard of a rookie that could do it before. Keep it up, Rainbow Dash, and I might just see you flying side-by-side with me and Spitfire one day.”

She came this close to letting out a supersonic squeak. Only unequine efforts let her keep a cool head in the front of that bit of praise.

“Ohmygosh!”

She slammed her hooves over her mouth, under the curious gaze of both her friend and her idol. Too much, she chastised herself. It was not the time to lose it. Cool as a cucumber! Cool as the breeze and winter wrap-up clouds!

“Eh, I mean, meh.” She held her hoof and examined it under every angle, as if she wasn’t pointedly trying to show that one of the coolest pony in the country wasn’t a big deal compared to her. “Thanks, or something.”

Nice save, Danger Dash. Just keep playing it cool.

Once upon a lifetime, there had been questions as to how alicorns like Celestia and Luna could ever be anything less than world’s rulers with their dominion over the cycle of the day and night. Such a power should have cowed every other government, right? Well, apparently not and the reason why… The answers were now staring me down with hostility and barely concealed contempt. A very uncharacteristic chill washed over my spine as I swallowed nervously.

The cloven hooves clicked before me, and pulled back with the swift and gracious pulse of the muscles rolling beneath the white fur. I could barely tear my gaze away, I could not fight the images flashing before my eyes. Within the curves of the coat were carved pine trees, the shades, the shape of the land, and knots were pinecones, ready to burst and spread new forest. When the thin legs moved, the forest became another, each strand as a thread of silk in a tapestry. Animals ran, from the smallest insect to the mightiest giant, all between the trees and the body of Cernan.

Two sharp spikes of wood brushed past my cheeks as he lifted his head. He eyed me in silent contemplation, as one would expect from the Marvelous Deer, Guide of the Forests. Shades of green and brown danced beneath the black of his eyes. So many questions were asked of me then, that I found it easy to bend the knees and bow in turn.

“So very young,” rumbled a thunderous voice, and my heartbeat quickened. “So very naïve and blunt.”

I looked up, flinching in the face of the stern glare aimed my way. Minos, Father of Bovine, urged Cernan back with a hoof, prompting the deer spirit to eye him curiously.

The tiles beneath my hooves trembled as Minos stepped forward, and stopped just inches away from me. Hot air brushed the fur of my face with every one of his breathes, and every inch of the great bull radiated a burning power. I felt tiny, a colt at most, in the face of the oversized bovine glaring me down.

“Bold, bold child, if you thought your attempt would go untraced,” he said softly, yet every word seemed like thunder.

I resisted the urge to flatten my ears against my skull and clenched my jaws. This was not the time to fold. They knew, they were aware of what I had done. Some of it, at least. For the shortest moment, a part of me wondered what the intrusion had felt like. Had they known more than the sudden shrilled screech of their senses as a spirit entered their domain?

Time to find out, I thought, putting on a somewhat shaky smile.

“I assure you, honored guests, that any harmful intentions you lend me are simple misunderstandings. That night my intents were merely t-”

The rest of my words died out, even as I formed them and spoke them. Croaks came out instead, the caws of crow and raven echoing into the air. My heart jumped in my throat, another one. Bipedal, cloaked. Smaller than me.

A seething mass of black feather looked at me from its shoulder, bore its eyes into my skull. Darkness swirled, the shape of a beak barely visible as a long raspy croak racked at my eardrums.

“How…?” the figure asked and reached forward with two shriveled red arms. The claw-like paws closed over my shoulders, the dry grip grating over my skin. “How would we know, if you are indeed speaking no falsehoods?”

I wanted to back away, but the hands held firm. I searched in me for the words, for the blatant reassurance that I needed. “W-well, as part of the Equestrian Royal Family, I am meant to be representative of the state in some function… which implies that any failure to disclose the truth now is a mark against my cousin.”

Pain twisted in my shoulders.

“Lies. Not a cousin…” they said, and my heart stopped in my chest. “Less so a son… You are nothing of The Sky-Fire’s kind.”

But those were not the words I heard.

You are Chaos, the twin spirits were saying. Burning, cold, uncaring child. Unpredictable, dangerous.

From beneath the hood, I felt the eyes of Coyote tearing at my golden mask. The trickster knew lies too well. Its speech unfolded again and what it said echoed differently in my mind.

There are no bonds between you and her. She could not truly care for you, not for any one of your own. She is no kin of yours. She’s not being kind, merely pragmatic.

I tried to imagine it. I actually tried. I recalled the times she had been playful, the times her hugs had calmed me down, I remembered the whispered words of pride, and I tried to imagine it being a lie. Every gesture, every little thing, emptied of its meaning, and the kindness in Celestia’s eyes dried out until her gaze was Caelum’s.

No. It could not have been so!

I refused to imagine Celestia’s kindness as a lie!

Anger churned in my chest as I took a step forward, looming over the hidden figure, and what was on my face only met the bare qualification for a smile. It showed teeth.

“Now, now, you’re the one spouting lies, Coyote and Raven.” The entity stilled under the accusation, a fire lit behind its amber gaze. The challenge only made my words come down harder, spoken tense and loud. “Celestia is part of my family, and I will not hear you insult her any longer on that matter by calling her a liar in her own castle. Many would be appalled to know you have done so, would they not?”

The muzzle tipped outside of the shadow of the hood, scrunched up, black lips pulled up. Fangs were hinted at, glistening in the orange light of candles, and the claws on the entity’s paws twisted.

“Lying child,” it said in a hiss.

Of course, Coyote and Raven was right. But since when were politics a matter of truths? Appearances mattered far more.

“As I was saying…” I said, easily affecting an apologetic tone. “I have yet to truly grow into my power, and at the time, acted on an impulse of kindness rather than thinking it through. I respectfully apologize for the fear my actions might have caused you.”

The paw clenched, and droplets of a shining red fell to the ground by the trickster’s side. The crow cawed, looking me dead in the eyes, and cawed again, a deeper croaking noise that sounded wrong. Not a word, but a meaning.

Fear, it said, and fear seized my heart. In the back of my mind, I could almost hear a hiss and a cry for crystals. Fear, it said. Darkness that surrounded me, engulfed me.

And then, it was gone. In the blink of an eye, I was back in the ballroom, surrounded by the spirits of other nations.

“Could you do it again?” A calm tenor voice rang.

Blinking, I turned to Cernan, realizing that those had been the first words he had ever spoken to me. The Marvelous Deer awaited an answer, so silent and immobile I had to remind myself I was not looking at a statue.

A shake of my head cleared my thoughts. “I… I suppose, but it would be difficult and I do not feel like it would be good for my health to attempt it anytime soon.”

A concession to get that bastard trickster to calm down and untie the twist in its panties. In political speak, that was as good as a promise and an admission of their rights. The trickster spirit noticed, as it seemed to relax somewhat under its cloak and the terror drilled into my mind eased up.

Whatever reply it intended to make would never make it however, as two words flared up above all noises in the ballroom.

“Princess Luna!”

As one, every single guest turned toward the edge of the dance floor.

Oh.

That was all my brain could come up with. No word, no clever lie, no warning. In that split moment, it felt as if my mind had gone blank at the sight of Thadal kneeling before my cousin.

Ponies and non-ponies gave a wide berth, their curiosity lit aflame by the sheer volume of the Royal Canterlot Voice in close quarter. But that small spark ignited and spread like wildfire as more and more guests realized that Thadal had both horn and wings.

His eyes flickered to the assembled people around the two of them, a confident grin on his face. A hint of tenderness softened his features as he looked upon Luna, and what he was doing hit me like a freight train.

NO!

Too late. Of course, too late.

“I, Thadal Fragor, Alicorn of the Tides, Heir to Wilderness and Regent of the Seas, ask for your hoof in marriage. I wish to become your husband from this day, till the end of days.”

Without exaggeration, I could honestly say that everywhere within hearing range of that statement had suddenly become eerily silent. Ponies and non-ponies alike stared with unblinking eyes and unhinged jaws.

The air where I stood had suddenly grown difficult to breathe in, so thick and heavy it had become with pure power. I felt submerged underwater in a boiling pot. Anger radiated from every wrinkled of Minos’ scrunched up face. My eyes remained glued to his hooves, with a rapid, frantic prayer playing over and over in my head. Do not paw. Do not lower your head. Do not paw, do not lower your head. It’d be an incident. An international incident, which nopony wants to see. Minos, for the love of my parents, do not start things up!

I thought my heart would explode as I became aware of the sound of clopping hooves. At the moment, my body had been submerged into icy water, but then I realized that Minos’ hooves were still all on the ground. Looking up, I saw the crowd parted open strong enough to throw a few guests to the floor while a tall and richly dressed minotaur broke through the oppressing silence.

The minotaurean ambassador fell to his knees before the baffled Princess of the Night, and I knew from the frantic look on his face this was going to be tragically hilarious.

“Princess Luna, Lady of Dreams, Diarch of Sacred Darkness, I wish to present a request on behalf of the minotaurean people and my own. In the light of the Sun and the Moon, we would unite our people together and usher an age of great prosperity, if you would only accept the hoof of our Leader in marriage.”

The thunderous declaration broke the charm that the crowd had been put under. From the dais near where Celly had been standing, a large griffon took off to throw himself at the minotaurean ambassador and slid right in front of Luna, sinking to his knees as well. Before he had even opened his beak, many were shuffling through the assembly to break through. His voice thundered.

“Princess Luna, Warrior-Maiden of Night, the Griffon Empire offers Gilbert Tailwind, second son of the emperor, as concubine for your pleasure, in hopes of strengthening the alliances between both our nations.”

Another pushed his way to Luna and spoke grandiloquent words that meant roughly ‘will you bang our king/leader/emperor, pretty please?’, while my poor cousin showed the world her interpretation of a deer in headlight. The resemblance was disturbingly strong. Likely, the affection she had so long craved for was being handed to her in perhaps a bit too powerful an avalanche as no foreign diplomat seemed ready to be the one that had not solicited an alliance with the Princess of the Night while quite literally everyone else had.

Literally. Everyone. It looked as if a third of the people in the ballroom had assembled to prostrate themselves before poor Luna. Even the obscure little ones were offering now.

“Princess Luna! Please accept the offer to marry the Warlord of Unicornia! He will offer you riches beyond imagination and your children shall inherit a growing kingdom!”

The words made me pause and blink. The boldness of that pony. Were that sort of proposition made in a less frantic circumstances, that would have been an insult to her status as a ruler of Equestria. Fortunately for everypony, that one was drowned within the many more that flowed.

“Princess Luna! Please!”

“Princess Luna!” they all shouted in a frenzy, piling on themselves and the words of others.

Their oh so precious façade as highly civilized beings crumbled into pieces. Tiny, tiny pieces. Flashes of light erupted from every corner of the room, paparazzi revealing themselves without shame in the chaos. This kind of incident was worth getting thrown out. Already, the shouts of Shining Armor and another high ranking officer beckoned the guards to get things under control.

I could have laughed if I hadn’t wanted to scream. This was more or less turning into exactly the next best thing to a worst case scenario. Or so I thought.

In the middle of the chaos, I caught sight of the one that had caused it all, his form mostly hidden from me by the larger minotaurean ambassador. But there was cause for concern with what I could see – what little I could see, both his eyes.

They were not on Luna.

They were on me, and they were stone amidst the sea. There was no panic in them, albeit a bit of unease. He may not have seen the escalation coming, but he was focused and he could weather the greatest of the storm. Thadal’s lips made a confident smirk.

You’ve got to be clopping me! I thought with a sudden chill seizing my guts.

“E-excuse me…” I muttered to the spirits around me. “I have to go.”

None of them moved to stop me. None gave any indication they might have even heard. They seemed to be looking purely at Luna, awaiting her reaction, her choice. Luckily for everypony, she still didn’t seem to know what to say beyond an earth shattering “BE STILL!”

Most attendants closed their eyes and ears as an understandable defense mechanism. I used the opportunity to spirit Thadal away.

“Did you notice she didn’t say no?”

Of all the paths I could have seen this conversation go down, this was not one of them. No, seriously, we were in the middle of a dark corner of the castle, somewhere far from the ballroom and the first thing he told me was that? How was I supposed to react?

Unfortunately, Thadal took my silence for an agreement, and he showed a lopsided grin.

Elders!

“S-she didn’t say anything!” I sputtered, hoping to get through his thick head. “You’re lucky she was too stunned to react. Did you even notice the mass hysteria that caused?!”

Thadal winced, his smile losing its luster, his ears flat on his head.

“Well, okay, maybe that was a little boneheaded…”

“A little?!”

“…A little boneheaded. But come on! Princess Luna. She’s awesome.” Some red went to his cheeks, and he looked away, his tail flicking to the side. “Plus, I never really noticed about how well her mane contrasted with her coat before. Did you see the constellations before?”

“Focus, Romeo!” I punched his shoulder a bit harder than necessary, the adrenaline oblige. “What the fuck?! Why did you do that?”

Eric did not flinch. He did not back away. He did not apologize.

He looked at me with warmth, grinning and more confidence than I knew him to possess. “Because you needed that relief.”

I recoiled, stunned. T-that couldn’t have been it! Did he really do that for the sake of a good laugh?!

Pain exploded in my forehead as my hoof smacked it hard. A happy idiot. Thadal was a happy idiot!

“Are you insane?! Do you realize what might happen to you?!” I wanted to bite some of his mane off. “You went after the single most popular non-Mane Six character and proposed to her as a joke?!”

“Yup.” Thadal grinned, so smug the air frizzled around him. “And I’m still there, aren’t I?”

“You’re lucky she didn’t stomp your face into the ground! It was literally the first thing you ever said to her! Do you not think before you act?! Don’t you realize that this is real!?”

The idiot tried to pinch his legs. With his hooves. His embarrassed little smile made me bristle. “Okay, I might not be able to prove it, but I know this is not just a dream. It’s real. And I’m still here, even after I asked Princess Luna’s hoof in marriage. Sounds like one rabid fanbase isn’t quite as vicious as you figured, eh?”

I felt the ground crumble beneath my hooves.

“W-what?” I croaked.

Thadal’s lips parted into a proud grin. “I asked for Luna’s hoof in marriage and I’m still here. Right? What do you think of that?”

“W-why wo-” My throat tightened and my eyes widened. I… had he…? I couldn’t wrap my head around it! “What are you saying…?”

“I’m saying…” He paused, placing a gentle hoof on my chest. “That you don’t need to be so scared of them all the time. You needed proof and I gave it to you. You’re not going to disappear if you piss off a hypothetical group of fans a world away.”

I could not meet his eyes. Not anymore. If I did…

If I did, I might know he was telling the truth, I might find the confirmation to a terrible fear of mine, and I did not know if I could take it. A bundle of chains covered my mind, keeping a single thought captive and ever present, and even it could feel the dangerous blow Thadal had just dealt to its restraints. The metal links were brittle now, fragile as glass and a brown hoof hovered just overhead.

“…Why would you do something like that? We’re just friends… You didn’t have to risk your life on a gamble…”

“Hu-uh…” He rolled his eyes. “Obviously, you need a lot more help than you’re willing to accept right now. It just happens that I am willing to go over your fat pig head and provide the help unsolicited, free of charge.”

I heard the stomp, and the breaking of chains.

“T-that…”

A quick bump on my shoulder cut me short.

“Shut up, Ventus, and listen for once. It’s about time you did.”

There was something in his grin then. His breathing slowed down as he closed his eyes to focus. The air around us trembled, a softer type of power filling it. Every little inch it covered was a drop of warmth poured onto me. Chimes and notes floated around us, summoned through an ancient and most fundamental power.

In the space of an instant, faster than I could comprehend, something appeared over him. A greater being, somewhat the shape of an alicorn and nothing like it. It had looked at me, with a care that I saw reflected in my friend, then faded away. Afterward, Thadal’s eyes opened, shining with Magic, and he started to sing.

~A true, true friend helps a friend in need…~

“You’re not…” I said, eyes wide.

His grin then showed all his teeth, and his leg shot up to catch me by the shoulder.

“I am,” he whispered, just before he belted yet another line.

~A true, true friend will be there to help them see ~

~A true, true friend helps a friend in need…~

~To see the light that shiiiiiiines –

“You bastard…” I cried, but I could have laughed. That only made him sing louder. In fact, he added some steps to the singing and started shaking his flanks. It was growing stupider and sillier by the second, yet I would not do a thing to stop it. Soon, my voice joined the chorus.

We were both complete idiots and we ended up on our back, lying down as the last of the magic died and we wiped our tears.

Ah, we’re going to die. If a conflict doesn’t erupt, it’ll be Celestia strangling us with her mane. I wouldn’t put it behind her at this point.

Sniffling, fighting to salvage what little remained of my dignity, I found the strength to chuckle. “C-come on, let’s go back before they think I killed you in defense of my cousin…”

“You would never hurt me,” he said in a singsong voice that was all too smug.

“Oh no, I would never. Which is why I would kill you now, quickly and painlessly, before somepony got their hooves on you,” I explained with a hint of mischief. “Luna and Celestia are going to be pissed. You might have just caused a diplomatic incident.”

And now the consequences of his brilliant plan were dawning on him.

“Oh crap…”

My best friend, ladies and gentlecolts! Are we not two peas in a pod?

“Let me do the talking,” I had said.

Impulsiveness ran in the family, no doubt.

That was the thought I nursed as I felt the pull of Celestia’s magic drag me through the room. On the way, I got to see some of the toppled chairs and tables. A few ponies were cleaning out, while most of the guests were pretending that the incident hadn’t happened. Celestia didn’t give me the time to observe more however. A bit abruptly, we trotted to the stage. I suspected she could not afford to be out-of-sight right now, or there would be hell to pay from that perceived conspiring. The risks I imagined in that considerably shrank as her horn glowed faintly, and a faint outline in the floor cut off sounds to reach further.

It was difficult to tear my attention from that. The particles of air and magic interacted so strangely at the frontier. The barrier only reacted if the air came from our side. This was the kind of spells I should be trying out next…

…Celestia was still glaring at me.

…Sighing, I hung my head and turned to face the thunders. You owe me one for that, Eric… Okay, that’s not true, but you better be appreciative! Not every day that somepony had the privilege of feeling the temperature rise from sheer proximity with the Sun Princess.

So, the prodigal cousin returns to his place on the line of fire.

“Whatever you’re going to say, I just want to point out first…” I took a deep breath and remembered those times when she had comforted me. This was my cousin, not the immortal ruler of Equestria. “T-the tides follow the moon. It’s a part of the natural Order. There, I said it…”

It was no lie. I just hoped she would misinterpret that truth.

Celestia needed not even speak up to explain how much she wasn’t buying it. The flat look on her face it all, and made me shrink on myself.

“Well, this answers my question, Ventus. I am guessing this was not done purposefully, likely not with your input if I read correctly,” she asked me, and I nodded frantically. “Unless, of course, you consider it fair play in return for not being allowed to dance with Twilight.”

My brows furrowed together and a bit of inner fire ignited. Despite my best effort though, my tone still came out as more sullen than I would have liked. “I am not that petty, Celestia.”

Unfazed, she replied, “You have been before.”

That shut me up quickly. It stung, to be honest. Celly wasn’t usually this blunt. Subtlety was her game, though in my case, that hadn’t worked out so well. Perhaps that was why.

“If I swear to you that it was not in any way a vengeance of sort, will you tell me how badly things will go? Is there something I can do to salvage it?” I could not help the way my thoughts immediately went to Calx, Thadal and Twilight, all of them in the same room with the foreign spirits. An itch crawled under my wings. How fast do I need to grab them and leave?

To my surprise, Celestia sighed and looked at me with a certain fondness.

“Sometimes I forget how much you worry…” The tip of her feathers gently brushed the back of my head and neck. A single stroke seemed to have been enough to force the tension out of me, and I suspected something deeper than simple contact. Her expression turned stern, though not unkind. “In truth, Ventus, I do not know the extent of the damages done to our political standing. Your friend at least had the presence of mind not to announce himself of Equestria, so that accusation will be moot. On the other hoof, quite a few of our neighbors have suddenly undusted the marriage proposals they had been sitting on for years. It might just be the solution to this impasse. A well-chosen alliance might bolster relations that had grown weaker in the passing years.”

A sudden thought made me frown. “Have you chosen somepony for Luna then?”

Celestia chuckled. “I truly doubt anyone in this world might be able to choose for my sister. Would you be the one to enforce the decision? Poor groom, wouldn’t you say?”

I completely failed to rein my amusement, snickers shaking my form as images of the dignitaries from earlier all showed up in my mind, cowering before the eruption of Luna’s anger. An impressive number of them declared their desire to do something less stressful than marry an unwilling Princess, such as trying to steal an ancient dragon’s treasure or attempting a new world record in free-falling without wings or parachutes.

Celestia settled a hoof on my shoulder, getting me to calm down somewhat and wipe my tears.

“Luna will make her own decisions. She is my equal in the eyes of the Equestrian Law. If I can, I will hopefully be able to guide her choice away from the more reckless options, but ultimately, I will not have control over this.”

There! That was what my mind had ticked on before. “Then, who else might be required to marry?” My heart squeezed as I realized the possibilities, and my voice grew weaker, “O-other than Luna, who else might…?”

“I wonder…” Her gaze wondered off in the distance. What memories of her long existence played out then? What her memories brought forth made the light in her eyes dim. Resignation weighted every syllable. “Your friend hasn’t announced his fealty to Equestria and I will push the delegates to accept that version of events. As I said, it will make him more sought after, but our relations with others will not worsen unless Luna agrees to the match. As for others… I believe that marrying me to one or the other foreign power would be a mistake. My long history as this country’s leader would give a much too great weight to any single alliance I could secure. No one else would remain our ally, considering any marriage to one perceived as lesser than me like the worst of insults. It would be seen as favoritism and they would fear the sway it could exercise on me.”

A futile if understandable fear. There was no way in Tartarus Celestia could have her emotions played against her duty. Her sister’s turn hadn’t been enough. She would not give in so easily. Celestia would definitely fight a threat to Equestria, one way or another.

Even if I’m the threat.

As soon as that thought had been created, I could feel its pull on me. It made me sick to the stomach to consider it, but it was certainly a possibility. It made the impending question harder to ask, as I began to saw the trappings in the shadows of her words.

“So, if it cannot be you or Thadal…”

Celestia’s voice strained. “There are a few unwed members of Equestrian Royalty that could strengthen our alliances, but I think they would be seen as too little, in comparison to an immortal alicorn…”

My heart sank. I could only choke out a few words in protest, “But… there aren’t any other celibate alicorn that could…”

Please no… We… we had just accepted one another…

“There would be three of age in the best case scenario.”

“Celly,” I pleaded, voice raw. “You can’t do this…”

“Ventus, I promise you that neither Luna or I will try to break up your relationship to Twilight unless it becomes an absolute necessity. However, in return, will you promise to do what needs to be done for the sake of Equestria?”

My hooves felt nailed to the spot. I could not move. Her words had become as binding as dozen chains. She was looking at me in earnest, hopeful in spite of the sadness that radiated from her. Ever the dutiful alicorn, Celestia. As kind as she was cruel in that.

I could not say it. I could not. Never. I… this was beyond me. I could not sacrifice my love for Twilight in return for the safety of strangers! If I spoke now, I would not be able to take back my words. A dark thing nested in my chest, protectively curling over my feelings for my marefriend.

Celestia’s inquiry remained without answers.

“I understand that it might have been too much to ask of you so quickly,” she said not unkindly. She withheld contact this time, perhaps reading that it would be insulting. There was a moment during which she hesitated, and I caught a glimpse of her age then. In her eyes, there were centuries of choices like this one repeating tonight. A single sigh of hers carried it all and so many more stories. “Regardless of methods and motives, this was not how I envisioned this evening to unfold.”

In that, I noticed a faint accusation, but not toward me. Her gaze seemed aimed back to the ballroom, to where this disaster had started, and Thadal’s image flashed before my eyes.

A surge of protectiveness rose within me. “Right… and who should be blamed for that?”

Surprised, Celly turned back to me, her mouth becoming a thin line. The faint curve of her brow rose, and I sensed a rare emotion in her: indignation.

“Did you tell him?” I asked, speaking more clearly. “Did you make sure to tell him the reason why another alicorn in Equestria would make things a lot worse?”

For once, Celestia’s expression flickered with regret and annoyance. The corners of her mouth curled into a grimace, and twice she looked at me without a word. One of her little ponies would have begged for forgiveness already. I just faced her steadied stare with my own.

There was a lesson to be learned by more than just me this time.

Finally, she nodded slightly, acknowledging my point as much as she could in public.

“I suppose you have heard of this through your power,” she said, smoothly transitioning to another topic. “Was this something you picked on recently?”

I shot a glance to my left, where I could feel the burning gaze of a fox-like spirit and its winged companion trailing after us. Had I considered them, she asked? Had I ever wondered about Coyote and Raven, or Minos, or Cernan? Of course not. Half of the knowledge had only recently been shoved into my brain. The rest… it had been buried beneath darker rubbles.

“No…” I forced myself to look her in the eyes then, to reflect the inquiry with as much honesty I could ever show. “Discord gave me a crash course on this yesterday. I did not consider those repercussions at all before.”

She looked down, to her golden horseshoes and the motives of equines on the floor. Her voice barely reached my ears, almost hidden in-between the words of the crowd, and it was said with a tone I had never heard from her before. “…What did he tell you?”

“That we’re screwed and that we better get used to Equestria.” The name brought a quiver to my whole body, and I fought to steady myself. The glance I shot Celly then held an unspoken challenge. “Was he wrong?”

Did I even need to ask at this point? We had sat there, speaking of possible marriage alliances and long-term political moves. At which point did that imply a swift return?

Celestia looked away, and I disappeared in the crowd.

For the longest time, I mindlessly mingled with the aristocracy. My mind swirled with the words of both Thadal and Celestia. They were so heavy, so dangerous, that I felt grateful for the comparatively meaningless banter I exchanged with the guests. My sudden departure left the whole Canterlot reeling from the hole where its princes were supposed to be. Or so they explained high and low, on every possible angle, disregarding that we hadn’t been around for very long. We hadn’t done anything spectacularly meaningful either. But to hear them, they wept bitter tears until tonight.

Let them, I thought, feeling vindictive. Go on about missing the occasion to suck-up.

The worst part? They actually did.

“My apologies, sirs, milady.” I nodded to them with gritted teeth. “I am afraid duty calls me elsewhere.”

Their gazes lit up with the clear hope I remembered their names and would repeat them to either of my cousins. Not in those circumstances, I didn’t.

Breathing a sigh of relief, I quickly trotted through the assembled guests, feeling a sudden urge for a familiar face. The only one that I could currently keep a clear track of was Calx, and he was playing something epic in the gardens. He didn’t seem to need a bummer like me right now. As for Thadal and Twilight, their voices did not join the crowd’s.

Where could they be?

The lights in the ballroom suddenly dimmed, the flames of the candles strangely withholding their shine. The conversations in the room stilled, stopped by the darkness falling over the guests. Instead, hushed whispers spread around, all of them asking about what was going on.

A ray of light shone down on the stage, abrupt as the flick of a switch, and all the guests could see Celestia trotting at the front of the scene to address them.

“Tonight is a special occasion,” her voice rang clear, perfectly audible no matter where one stood. “Tonight, we are gathered to celebrate another victory of the bearers of the Elements of Harmony. Together, they have defeated a new foe that had arisen from the depths of the Everfree Forest with the intent to overturn Equestria. Those six mares have prevented that.”

An appreciable silence followed her words. A few ponies near me gulped.

Celestia, radiant in her spot above the crowd, continued her praises.

“Citizens of Equestria, esteemed guests, I bid you all to applaud the heroines that have once more saved our country from the monster that tried to wrestle it away from us.”

From beyond the spotlight, six shadows stepped forward and the light widened to show them all. Everyone in the room could see them in their dresses, confident, nervous or relaxed. In that moment, they looked everything they were meant to.

Another voice boomed, deeper and rougher. From the other end of the stage, Luna trotted on, clad in a shroud of the blackest night. “For their acts of bravery and selflessness, the Dual Thrones have seen fit to bestow them with the highest honor our nation possesses, in addition to a boon of their choosing. We thus invite you to welcome the first holders of the title of Harmonious Knights in three hundred years.”

“We invite Applejack, bearer of Honesty, to step forward and receive her reward,” Celestia said.

The farmer looked a touch uneasy at being honored first, a faint darker shade of orange on her face, but she made her way to the front all the same.

The Princesses called them one after the other, alternating between day and night to honor the Mane Six. Each of them bowed graciously before either diarch and polite applause followed every time.

For having been somewhere near the middle of the fray of battle, my clapping was far more sincere than most. Those nobles and merchants couldn’t wrap their heads around the danger the girls had faced. I had had a glimpse, and my admiration of them had only grown.

At last, all but one of the mares had been called up, and Celestia’s expression reflected tenderness and pride.

“And, leading them in cooperation with our finest commanders, Equestria’s newest princess and a mare very dear to my heart: Twilight Sparkle.”

This time, a short moment of silence followed Celly’s call, almost as if ponies were gauging the leader of the Elements. Applause came again, but I saw in many a noble’s eyes that they were intrigued. And those were only the most insignificant of reactions.

When Twilight stepped at the front of the stage, the magic in the room shifted. From the foreign delegations, the power resorbed, fled to be hold more closely. Every alicorn, every outstanding mortal would have felt the immense unease of the spirits assembled before the youngest alicorn.

I was nothing to them, but a youngster that wielded his power with the subtlety of a drunken star beast. Twilight… Twilight was the bearer of the Element of Magic, she was the leader of their group and she commanded a power beyond even an Elder like Discord.

Pride burst into my chest. The Mane Six were heroines in the greatest meaning of the world, and the entire world knew it.

This is your moment, Twilight. You and your friends have proven yet again that mortals are greater than those above give you credit for. Did you hear Celestia? That was her declaring that you are her pride and joy. You’ve done it.

So overwhelming was the emotion that I could not stop myself, and I sent a whisper to her.

“You are more than worthy of the crown on your head, Twilight.”

Surely enough, to hear my voice so close to her startled her, but she faltered only a second. Her eyes scanned the ballroom, looked between all those applauding aristocrats, and found me. As our gaze met over the crowd, as a subtle smile lightened up her anxious traits, Celestia’s request came back to me.

She didn’t want to break us up, I knew she was sincere about that… but she might. And when that happened, what of us?

Twilight may love me, but I can’t ask her to defy Celestia. Even if… The thought made my legs heavy. Even if she would… it would hurt her so badly to act against her mentor. How could it be worth it for her to stay with me then? We could run, it would literally be a breeze, but it would mean abandoning her friends, her family, her beloved teacher and her country to a mess she could have prevented.

Celestia and Luna led Twilight away from the stage, beginning another speech on the importance of friendship, cooperation and good relations. I tuned it out, torn at the choice before me. Parts of me wanted to rush at her side, to hold her and never let go. We would whisper sweet nothings to each other, gentle reassurances and beautiful promises. We would kiss, we would make love again and we would never separate, politics be damned!

But another thought stopped me cold. She chose me because I was convenient candidate. I was supposed to be a safe choice in love, something to help ease her into her role as a princess. I was not a choice she would need to fight for.

Royalty doesn’t marry for love. There were duties to the station.

She loves me…

I love her.

The beast inside hissed furiously. It lashed out at empty targets, futilely trying to grasp at the lock I was placing over it.

It’s not enough. If we keep it up, she’s going to suffer.

I saw her, tears streaming down her face, kept at an equal distance between me and everypony she ever cared about. In that daydream, there was a moment of hesitation for her, but that was likely my vanity speaking. And if it wasn’t… then… the best thing…

The noble Prince Ventus would have let her go. That was how her fantasy would have gone, but the creature in me wanted to bind her and bring her to my side. And that was why I made my choice.

I’m not worth the cost of keeping, Twilight.

I left before the end of the ceremony. If I kept looking at her, I wouldn’t be able to do this.

“It’s over!” Eric cried out as he let himself fall over his bed. “Why did nopony tell me how exhausting a ball was?”

I snorted, which was not something very wise in my current position. Blue feathers bristled at the sudden blow of air, and I felt trails of dirt splattered over my muzzle. Grimacing at the taste of mud, I spat out the loose feather and ran a towel over my tongue. I suddenly had a lot of sympathy for our parents. I’d been a bit of a crazy kid too when I was Calx’s age.

Didn’t stop me from pestering him about it. Big brother privileges.

“There,” I said, patting his head condescendingly, “all preened like a good colt. Next time, you’re doing it yourself.”

“Awww,” he whined and pouted. “But it’s so much better when you do it…”

I gave him a flat look. “You’re more than old enough to take care of it on your own, squirt. Now, bathroom then to bed.”

Puffing his cheeks, he sulked his way into the bathroom. At least, he did it in silence. That was already a good day as far as putting him to bed would be.

Allowing myself a sigh of relief, I leaned my back against the wall, feeling all the weight of today’s events crash on me. It felt as if it had lasted for weeks on end. Nearly over now. Without looking, I let my magic pull out my tie and drop it on a drawer. I almost didn’t bother with my suit, but the thought of waking up with it on my back won out in the end.

I sighed again, once those trapping bundles of fabric came off. Damn it, I really wasn’t made for wearing clothes anymore. So much better in the buff.

My newfound freedom however would not be celebrated just yet, as I noticed an annoying detail coming from the bathroom.

“Are you brushing your teeth in there?” I asked with a warning voice. “I’m not hearing any brushing...”

Calx’s voice came out half-muffled, as if he was biting on something. “’M doin’ it…”

Grunting, I rolled my eyes and trotted toward the bathroom. He had better be telling the truth.

No water seemed to be running, but as I stepped into the doorframe, I saw his toothbrush held between in teeth, the toothpaste splattered on a few of them, but that was of no interest. The scolding words died out in my throat as I saw what he was doing. Was he squinting his eyes at his own reflection?

“What are you doing, squirt?”

His reflection looked at me with a thoughtful frown. His red eyes acknowledged me, but they returned to him just as quickly. “Trying to remember what I look like.”

I nearly fell over. My hoof had slipped on the doorknob. Through some great stroke of luck, he didn’t see it.

“I dunno why...” he spoke slowly, articulating each word like he was testing them to his own ears. “I just feel like they shouldn’t be red.”

If I thought back hard enough, I could see a little boy, Tom, as he had been before. Mostly… m-most of his face was there, all committed to memory. B-but… as for the color of his eyes when he was human…

I was drawing a blank.

They could have been blue, brown, green, gray. I could just as easily swap the colors in my mind, and none of them jumped at me. None really seemed to be inherently right. The only thing that stuck was the very same crimson I had seen for a little over sixty years now.

Yet, that was also the very color I knew was wrong. Were my eyes different than they are now? It seems like such an insignificant detail…

“They’re…” The words got stuck in my throat. It was hard to speak. “They were brown… L-like Mom’s.”

I don’t even know if I’m lying…

“Like Mom’s…” Tom repeated slowly, more focused than ever.

Was he trying to remember what she looked like next?

A flurry of emotions ran through me then. The word alone had brought the images of an alicorn and a woman, the latter a blur. And yet, of the two, she was the saddest. It almost made me choke, yet the strongest thought at the front of my mind was that I hoped he didn’t ask me.

I’m a coward.

He didn’t ask. After a time, he put back his brush, spat out the paste and the water. As he stepped down from the stool and started to trot out, he suddenly slowed down, his eyes going wide for a second. His steps stopped right before me, and he seemed almost timid.

“Sam?” he called, his voice small and his confidence smaller.

I swallowed, desperately trying to appear somewhat calm. “What is it, Tom?”

My little brother pawed at the ground, swallowing. His tail flicked to the side, and his wings clamped on his sides. He seemed shrunk on himself, like he was not sure if he could do what he was about to. “I was thinking… We’ve been in Equestria for a while…”

I froze.

“Are we going back soon?” he completed his inquiry in earnest.

Faking every inch of confidence I put into it, I winked. “I can always do a Pinkie Promise if you want.”

The prospect made his whole face light up. He nodded and even stomped for good measure.

Making a bit of a show of this, I performed the gestures firmly, my back straight and my voice solemn. “Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eyes!”

And with one hoof over an eye, I grinned to the lil’ squirt, who grinned back. Of course it would be enough to reassure him. I was the one making the promise, and big bros didn’t fail their words.

Feeling the accumulated fatigue aching in my limbs, I got him to get into bed. He did so without too many protests, to my relief. For good will’s sake, I stayed close enough until his eyelids were too heavy to keep up.

Peace only truly started to come back once I could hear soft snores coming from the bed. Started, only. Behind me, I heard the quiet sound of hooves clopping against stone. Each step was hesitant, cautious. “Sam?” came the whisper.

Quickly, I surrounded us with a sound barrier. Once satisfied, I turned to face Thadal, who seemed to want to be somewhere else.

He hung his head, guilty. “I heard what you and Tom were saying…”

“Oh,” I said slowly. I wasn’t sure what else there was to say. That hadn’t exactly been private, but at the same time, I didn’t like the idea of him seeing us like that. “I imagine it was reassuring for you. That was a promise I intend to keep.”

The dryness of my tone made him flinch. I regretted it the very next moment, but too late. Thadal had taken a step back, and he had looked away, a thoughtful frown on his face. He bit his lower lips, ears drooped, sheepish.

“There’s something else you should know... before…”

I only nodded, hoping to come across as encouraging despite the way my heartbeat had quickened.

“I know I should have said it earlier, but I didn’t know… I was afraid what it might do to your resolve. It’s not about your parents, I swear!” he quickly added when my face fell. “It’s something you ought to consider, w-w-well, maybe not consider. I-” He looked down, shaking, and whispered it all at once. “You’re… the police is looking for you…”

The words seemed to repeat in the darkness. “The police is looking for you.”

My brows furrowed together. “As a missing person, I would at least hope they are – or were – searching…”

“N-no… you don’t get it.” He shook his head, jaw clenched. For a moment, I saw raging waves in the depths of his gaze. “They found out… about the hacking, the thievery, the death threats… They realized it all happened right before you were last seen. They think…”

Ignoring the nausea rising in my throat, I closed my eyes. My head was starting to spin, the words were indistinct, until I noticed they had stopped coming altogether.

Thadal had paused, and I felt him hesitate, his breathing uneven. He swallowed, took a step closer. His voice trembled, but he still said it, “There’s a search warrant for you as a possibly dangerous individual. They think you might have been serious.”

“I was.”

Thadal shook his head. His lips formed a silent ‘no’. He looked almost a child then, moreso than even Calx, whose sleep remained so far undisturbed. If blocking his ears had helped, I thought he might have done it.

“You weren’t serious! You couldn’t have been serious about that!”

My tone was gentle. “Eric, you trust me too much… I’m not… I was never a very good stallion…”

“You’re a human, Sam!” His hoof came down on the ground hard. “You came here because you feared for Tom’s safety and you… you did some bad things, but you are not bad!”

Why and how? Those were always the questions. Somehow, I had a gift for befriending people that were too good for me.

“I don’t really recall what I said or did, but I know that I meant it.” I forced my gaze to meet his; I held it as I added, slowly, “All of it.”

“I don’t believe that, Sam.” He gulped down, blinking hard before fixing me with a challenging stare. “I know you. We’ve been friends for longer than most mortals in this world have lived. If you try to tell me you’re all bad, you can give up right away because you won’t convince me. You’ve always cared for those around you.”

And it’s precisely why I was serious back then, I wanted to say.

But that was not what I did say. It was not what he needed to hear.

His strong stance had started to falter, a flutter in his wings and his legs. Parts of him clung hard to what he knew of our previous lives. He had known Sam, as I had been, and in truth, he was right that I hadn’t been a terrible person. But he hadn’t known me at my worst, and that was something he could not reconcile with that young man.

I couldn’t force him to give up those fragments of before.

The smile I showed him was genuine, the thanks I gave as well, and we hugged, one leg around the other’s neck. His eyes shone with pure relief, and this deception I wouldn’t feel guilty for.

“Get some rest, Eric,” I told him, and after a moment of hesitation, he relented with a sigh and a ‘goodnight’.

He would need the rest, I feared.

Tomorrow, they’ll come for you. The diplomats, the petty lords and ladies, they will want you. An alicorn, even as young as us, would be too big a prize to ignore and you don’t have the protection of Celestia behind you.

A chill that had nothing to do with the night’s air washed over my coat. Too suddenly, I was aware of the breathing of the minotaurean ambassador in the West wing of the castle. I could feel the high pitched whistling of air as it moved through the beak of the griffon chancellors, the rumbling snores of the few bison, the peaceful breathes of Unicornia’s warlord prince.

Any of them could have wished to get a hold over Thadal. A few of them… I knew were not the most moral fellows.

My breath got stuck in my throat, and I shot a worried glance at Thadal, who was climbing into his bed. What will they do to get you?

I could almost hear Caelum’s whispers again. It felt as if I would, if I truly wished to. The shadows on the wall swirled on the whims of the few lit candles left, and their shapes looked vaguely equine by moments.

If it were him… there would be ice and death.

If it were him, but I am not him. I never was.

I shook my head and sighed. Perhaps it was time for me to go to bed. With that in mind, I trotted to the nearest candle with the intent to put out the light.

The flame was weak, having devoured most of the waxed rope already. Soon enough it would die. It struggled frantically against the simple nightly wind that entered through the balcony. The sight of it made my stomach churn.

I had seen this pattern of fire before. It was burned into my memories, a single moment of relief when an unnamable fear had been lifted. Through the haze of pain, I had seen a circle of fire and a pupil, before it had flickered and died to fight off another transgression.

My gaze went to Thadal’s room, the description he had given of his burns now at the front of my mind. How long did we have left? The slightest hint of Chaos would probably allow him passage now, and we were in the middle of a period of political unrest.

I blew out the light with a thought, a bittersweet smile on my face. We had always lived on borrowed time.

Thoughts of sleep were now far from me. The ticks and the tocks of the clock on the wall resonated in my ears, each the step of a fiery alicorn-like creature nearing on us. Its eyes shone with a glee that echoed those of yellow eyes and red pupils. It would be the same, and in that image, it turned on the colt that hid under his blankets.

Ice filling my veins, I twisted my neck hard enough to get whiplash, the lines of fantasy and reality blurring. I almost saw Judicium, a shadow hovering before my family, but there was no one. Relief came, but it fell short, for I noticed something else.

Tom squirmed in his sleep. Whatever dream he was having, it wasn’t a good one. I moved closer to him, sat by his side and ran a gentle hoof through his mane. Mother did this to us before, when nightmares replaced the dreams. The grimace on Tom’s face faded, but he still trembled.

Frowning, I carefully climbed next to him, then laid my wing on him. The added warmth made him jump at first, but he rolled over on his back and almost relaxed. With a feeble groan, he grasped at my wing and held it against his chest. His hold sent twinges of pain through my right side, so tightly he clung to it.

“Mom? Come back, please…” he cried out weakly. “I-I promise I’ll clean my room, please…”

My heart shattered. Elders Above, please no!

“Don’t cry, Tom…” I whispered. “We’re going to see them again, remember?”

“You lied, lied, lied and lied some more.”

“What would you do, for Rumble’s happiness?”

“It feels right, Twilight.”

“I promised…” Droplets dampened the sheets underneath. “I… I Pinkie Promised you. How could I… how could I ever let you down? I’m your awesome big brother, r-remember?”

You deserved better from me.

A boiling shout of anger, of pure self-loathing and contempt threatened to tear me apart. It rose and rose stronger, closing its grip on my throat slowly, a inch closer with every thought, every instant that I had taken to forget.

YOU DESERVED BETTER!

It felt as if hours had passed when his hold on me became loose. Letting go of him was the most emotionally draining thing I had had to do tonight. I left a piece of me with the lingering heat on that bed.

Silently, I trotted to the drawer we had chosen to throw our stuff on, sparing a glance to the adjacent room. Eric’s breathing was slow and steady. A breeze raised my previously discarded suit to eye level.

My determination faltered when I recalled that scent of lavender and ink, that little something that was Twilight.

Without a word, I forced a small amount of magic to course through my horn, and from the sole pocket in my suit, I levitated a folded scroll. Letting out a shuddering breath, I looked down upon that single piece of paper, on which a complex spell circle had been traced. The ink still looked at its darkest, fresh, no older than a day. In truth, it hadn’t been even half that long.

It was not meant to last. Royalty doesn’t marry for love.

In the end, I really had manipulated Twilight’s feelings for me.

Within the dark confines of Canterlot Castle, a lone remote hallway waited patiently to the rhythm of four beats of metal against rock. Its entrance itself was a secret, kept hidden by a single branch of the Royal Guard, of whom the commander obeyed only to the Captain or the Princesses. It had remained a relatively peaceful post to be stationed at, until recently, when Princess Celestia had made an addition to the collection guarded.

Dire warnings had been told and the security had been increased yet again. That night more than the others, with so many guests in the castle, their mission was of the utmost importance.

The lowest level, the deepest, was illuminated by the faint glow of runes and that of a single pony’s horn, the owner of whom faithfully patrolled the length of the corridor, watching.

Moved by an instinct refined by years of service, the stallion suddenly turned on his hooves and faced the hallway. His horn’s glow grew brighter and the shadows fled away from him, until he could see the stairs leading out of the vault. There was nothing, not even a mouse to squeak and run under a hole.

But the guard’s frown did not fade, and he stepped toward the stairs. There was somepony around, he was sure of it. His horn’s aura became like a star. The shape of a stunning spell appeared in thin air. It did not help. As the sensation reached its peak, he felt a breeze stroke his coat. In that split second, a sound, almost equine, faintly rang to his ears.

The guard pony’s legs gave out under him. He fell in a silent clank of metal, hooves pawing at his throat. A desperate plea barely made it past his mouth, but nopony heard it. His eyes closed slowly.

My hooves materialized next to his body. The air gathered into my form, and I levitated a key from the guard’s belt. My hold was unsteady. Despite the frantic beats of the stallion’s heart, I still felt on the verge of throwing up. For a few seconds that had stretched far too long, I had seen the absolute fear and desperation in that pony’s eyes.

And to think I had contemplated it before…

I clenched my jaws so hard they hurt.

The key floated up to a nearly invisible lock on the wall, and an audible ‘click’ followed.

The door opened to a cave wide enough for an ancient dragon, whom the stall air within reeked of dust and humidity. Wrinkling my muzzle, I hurried inside, my hooves falling steady on the rocky slope, all the while unable to shake the impression of being an intruder to the vault itself.

I followed the path dutifully, my senses screaming whenever my hooves got too close to the edges. Magic tingled at the tip of my wings simply from being in this room. The electrifying feeling reached deeper whenever I trotted past a pedestal or another. From the corner of my eyes, I could see artifacts of great power, and I gritted my teeth, a voice not unlike the windigoes tempted me to stay and look. Surely, there was something of use in here.

“No.”

I had a purpose. A real purpose. For the first time, I saw things clearly. I had hoped for some solution to fall from the sky, from a quick and easy fix that would harm nopony.

There was no such thing. The only way out would be carved in blood and sweat.

I stopped before an unassuming chest, wooden with iron joints. Unremarkable by any mean. Yet if I made a single step closer, every single layer of protective spells that separated us would flare back to life.

Regrets and anger seeped from the invisible lines on the ground. The magical power within was a furious beast just waiting for the occasion to unleash all its pent-up fire on the unwise.

But beyond that, there was a calm and warm power.

“Father…”

A soft weight fell onto my outstretched hoof. Something like silk slid across my leg, stroking my fur in a way that felt almost conscious. I felt myself still in the sight of the crimson piece of fabric.

This is it.

My breath shuddering, I lifted the cape and tied it around my shoulders.

Strength carried me.

The World became mine to see, to hear and feel at every level. I was across the oceans and above the lands at once. Seas of green blades and fields of rolling waves scrolled past my sight in an instant, and stayed with me. All sounds came to me, from the faintest of whispers, inaudible even to their speaker, to the grandest, loudest roar that shook worlds apart. They were all of me, belonged to me, all winds, all movements of air, all across, all.

The skies were mine in their entirety. I was the skies to look upon every single life below. The light filtered by my skin, the meteors disintegrated by my heartbeat, all life contained underneath myself.

I soared and soared higher, parts of me detached by the climb, attachments to a mortal existence breaking, until all that I was barely understood its own name. And, at the height of the wonder, agony tore it down into pieces.

I stumbled forward, coughing. Red mist sprayed from my mouth, tainting the floor and my right leg in spots of blood. A wet coppery taste filled my mouth. My throat burned. My lungs burned. My whole body was devoured by the power surging through me. Every inch of me fought with the intrusion of this foreign, alien magic.

Father’s magic. Order.

Chaos and Order never mixed well, and this cape on my back was Order in its purest form.

We never were your sons, Father. This is all usurpation, and the thought pierced through the veil of pain. Back then… back when I had seen him for the first and last time, I had denied it. I had been right.

And for this stallion to desperately long after strangers through a twist of fate… it seemed to me an insufferable joke.

It’ll stop soon, Father, Mother. I will reverse this, and you will be freed of this fake bond.

My legs shook as I pushed myself to stand straight. Short panted breathes made my chest heave, and I fought so hard to calm the frenzied heartbeats in my chest, feeling the tides of Father’s power washing over me. The pain was growing steadily easier to keep under wrap, the initial spike hitting its low. I felt stronger, much stronger than I had the right to be, and only had burns across my back to show for it.

We could use this kind of power to go back. With Thadal’s help, we might have enough to reverse the spell and go home.

Home…

When the word hit me, when the reality of our return dawned on me, I felt overwhelmed by a terrible combination of joy and regret.

I heard the hoofsteps before the voice had even arisen. Curses rang through my mind as I turned slowly, and saw a mare wrapped in light and flames.

“Ventus,” Celestia called with a voice that was harsh and unforgiving as fire, “what are you doing here?”

Ice gathered near my hooves.

Steady. I took a deep breath. Steady, no more turning back. This is it.

“It’s exactly what it looks like. I’m taking back my father’s…” I stumbled over the word, guilt grasping at my throat as I did. “My father’s artifact.”

Her eyes narrowed, and the air between us distorted. “How did you manage to get past the enchantments?”

“The cape broke them itself.” A low bitter laugh rumbled in my chest. “My father’s magic resonates strongly with my will, it’s that simple. I am his eldest son, after all. This artifact is meant for his blood.”

Celestia’s frown deepened. The flames at the tip of her tail flickered. “This artifact was not meant to exist in this world, Ventus.”

Neither were we, but here we are…

My eyes quickly went to the great doors, closed behind Celestia. My heartbeat hit a peak, as I struggled to maintain an amicable mask over my face. “I did not answer you back then, Celly.”

For the shortest moment, the impending sense of doom lessened, curiosity taking a weak hold over Celestia’s mind. I was all too happy to oblige, willing more power to flow through me in the meantime.

“You asked me, after the events at The Royal Crown restaurant, who I was.” I chuckled, strangely serene despite the situation. “I finally have an answer to give you.”

Celestia almost seemed friendly again, less of an irate minor goddess and more of a kind teacher.

“I’m a desperate child way over his head, a fallen alicorn, something that should have never been part of this world, a brother, a friend and a son; the answer has many facets and I haven’t even named them all.”

“Nopony is a single word, Ventus… Every choice we make molds the ponies we are a little bit more, our mistakes and our successes equally.”

Except this isn’t really your mistake.

“Sorry. It’s really not your fault this time, Celly,” I said, and her eyes widened. Flames faded. “I swear it, on the Powers Above, the Depths of Tartarus and the Binds of the World. You have nothing to feel guilty about. You’ve been good to us, better than you needed to be. You’re… you’re a little like a big sister or an aunt.”

I choked on the last words, the heartache tearing me from the inside. If there could only be one little kindness for me to give, let it be this one.

“There is literally nothing you could have done to help. Nothing at all.”

Celestia stared.

In that gaze, I saw longing, hope, a terribly selfish wish. She wanted it to be true. No words could ever express it, not in the way her eyes spoke to me then. In all her years of existence, they had been her dearest wish. How many times had she recalled Caelum? Luna? The countless ponies that had lived and died before her? And the smallest part of her had always hoped to be freed of the guilt.

But it had never come to pass. She had shouldered it all, year after year, and weathered it on her back, the responsibility hers by choice. And just like that, the deepest glance I ever had into Celestia’s soul ended, her resolve steel once more.

“That is only because you only see one solution, Ventus,” she shouted, her voice hoarse and her tears threatening to spill over. “You believe only in one path for your happiness and that of your own, but that is not true. There is kindness in you, love still. I know you can see it. What you were before changes nothing to what you are now. You only need to stop before the line is crossed.”

Here, on the verge of the fall, the temptation to stay had never been the strongest. It had never held such a pull on me. I stared into the abyss, the thinnest barrier keeping it at bay, and my hoof on the lever. Behind me, the light held an incomparable shine.

The truth was easy: I could be happy in Equestria.

I looked at Celestia and smiled. “I’m sorry. It’s not just my happiness at stake. There is only one solution.”

There was no coming back. We both knew it.

Blinding flame rose to encircle us.

“Ventus, I will not let you do this to yourself.”

Howling winds screeched.

I whispered, “Thank you for everything, Celestia.”