//------------------------------//
// A Lost Mare's Decision 
// Story: The Ties that Bind 
// by the7Saviors 
//------------------------------//

When it came time for bed, the fillies weren't quite sure what to do.

Trixie was fine with staying in their room with Fell Wind, but both Fia and Corona weren't so keen on the idea. Yojimbo and Rouge were also against it, so Ancient Scroll decided to have them all stay in the sitting room for the night.

Ancient Scroll had already fixed the door, and, not tired in the slightest, offered to keep an eye on Fell Wind. In the end, everyone present was unsure of what to make of the pegasus mare and her situation.

As it got later in the evening and the rest of the group had long since gone to sleep, Ancient Scroll himself sat at the desk in the fillies' room, his troubled gaze pointed in the direction of a book he had stopped trying to read awhile ago. 

Rather, he was trying to figure out how to approach the events that had recently passed, and the events that were still to come, whatever they may have been. Memory or no, the mare was still dangerous, and keeping her around might've only caused trouble.

Not to mention she was from the Outlands.

Out of the many places Ancient Scroll had been in his long life, he had never once been beyond the Celestial Barrier. Like with Runic and Summoning Magic, he had learned of the Barrier by sheer coincidence. What he had heard about the lands beyond was enough to forestall any journey he may have wanted to make.

At one point he had told Yojimbo about his discovery, and the husky had actually attempted to venture past the Barrier in a foolish bout of curiosity. It had been pure luck that he had come back from that nightmarish place soon after with only a broken arm, a few lacerations, and one working eye.

Though it had been Yojimbo's fault for going despite Ancient Scroll's many warnings, the old stallion still hadn't forgiven himself for telling the rash husky about it in the first place. 

He had known the Equestrian Outlands were fairly unknown outside of the small community of ponies living near the area, and after Yojimbo had come back, he and Yojimbo had decided to keep the stallion's discovery a secret.

And now, not only had an Outlander managed to make it into Equestria proper, but they had taken her in and now she was resting in their caravan.

What's worse, there may have been another, more unstable Outlander trotting around out there, and if these two managed to make it out of that No Pony's Land, then it was possible there may have been others that had made it as well that they may have needed to watch out for.

Ancient Scroll gave a weary sigh and closed his book before rubbing his temples in frustration.

"Rough night, huh?"

If Ancient Scroll was a lesser stallion he would've jumped at the sudden voice, but as it was, he had actually been expecting it somewhat. The spell he had cast earlier had only been a minor Sleep Inducement spell that wore off after a certain amount of time after all.  With a wry chuckle he responded to the voice.

"You have no idea," he replied without turning around, "I've only just woken up from a very stressful event, and I'm already getting a headache."

"Oh, I have an idea alright," the voice said with a snort, "in fact, I think I know it a lot more about it than you do, old timer."

"...I suppose you would," Ancient Scroll replied with a slow nod before turning to face the mare who had spoken, "and how are we feeling this evening, Fell Wind?"

"Well apparently I'm missing a huge chunk of my memory that I'm not getting back thanks to that filly, I've probably long since lost track of my very dangerous and very unstable brother, and I don't have a clue where I am... so, y'know... not too bad."

She dropped her sarcastic smirk and replaced it with a dark frown.

"How do you think I'm feeling, gramps?"

"Confused and frustrated I'd imagine," Ancient Scroll replied without missing a beat, "only natural given what you've been through."

Fell Wind snorted again and flopped back down on the cot, her thoughtful gaze shifting to the ceiling above.

"...I don't know whether to strangle that filly or hug her," the mare said quietly after a long moment, "I don't really know what happened between the facility and waking up here, and even if I were to find out, it wouldn't mean a bucking thing because I still wouldn't remember."

She sat back up and eyed Ancient Scroll seriously.

"From my point of view though, that filly saved me from that nightmare," she shook her head helplessly, "I overheard you all talking, and I know it wasn't really her that busted me out... but the memory of her saving me from what might've been certain death is still there, and it still feels so real." 

She slowly lowered her gaze to her hooves as she spoke, her mind going back to that memory.

"It's like... I know it's a false memory, but I still don't feel like it is," she scrunched up her face in frustration, "I just... can't shake the gratitude I feel towards the filly, and I've tried, believe me."

Ancient Scroll leaned back in his chair, closed his eyes, and hummed thoughtfully.

"Well," he finally replied, "it's like you said, you don't have any memories beyond that of Trixie saving you from your no doubt terrible fate. To you, that only happened a few hours ago... and now you're here."

He furrowed his brow as he returned his gaze to Fell Wind.

"I think it's more that you know you should be angry, but you just can't fully bring yourself to be mad over events you don't even remember," the old stallion surmised, "that, coupled with the immediate and visceral memory of your 'rescue' at the hooves of the filly is leaving you with conflicting emotions."

"What, are you a therapist all of a sudden?" Fell Wind snarked, "seriously?"

"I may have dabbled a bit in psychology back in my younger days," Ancient Scroll replied with a small smirk. It didn't last long and his expression soon turned solemn once more, "but setting that aside, you need to think about what you want to do now that you know the truth, and how you really feel about the situation... and about Trixie herself."

Fell Wind remained silent as she tried to take in the stallion's words. After a minute she slowly lowered her head back onto the pillow and closed her eyes. For a long time, the pegasus mare just laid there in a contemplative silence—Ancient Scroll content to wait at the desk.

"Buck it."

The mare opened her eyes and sat up in the cot before turning to Ancient Scroll once more.

"There's no use worrying about what I can't—and won't—remember," Fell Wind said with a shake of her head, "whatever happens, or whatever I end up finding out about myself or what I did, I'll just deal with it when the time comes."

"And Trixie?" Ancient Scroll asked with a raised eyebrow, "what do you plan to do about her?"

"I..." Fell Wind paused and let out a heavy sigh, "I don't know what or even why she did what she did—sure as buck ain't happy about it—but... whatever it was, it sounded like she was real broken up about it."

"That she was," Ancient Scroll replied with a knowing nod, "still is, in fact. I don't think she'll ever forgive herself for what she did to you."

"I don't know if I can forgive her either," Fell Wind agreed with a nod of her own, "but I've decided I'm not going to get mad about it. Somehow I get the feeling she wouldn't have done that unless she felt she had to."

"Oh?" Ancient Scroll replied with another raise of his brow, "and what makes you say that?"

"I dunno," Fell Wind replied with a shrug, "when I saw her in that facility, I could tell she genuinely wanted to help me. She's an earnest kid, old timer, and I just can't stay mad at her for seeing what I was going through and wanting to help me escape that. She's a foal, and foals make mistakes."

"This was a rather severe... mistake, you realize," Ancient Scroll responded, his eyebrow still raised questioningly, "most ponies wouldn't be able to just shrug off what that filly did like that."

"Yeah well... I'm not most ponies," the mare retorted with another shrug. She then frowned and looked away, "compared to what my older brother and I went through in that facility, a little memory loss is nothing. I'll just make new memories."

Ancient Scroll eyed the mare critically for a few moments before speaking again, his tone suddenly wary.

"And what are you going to do now?"

"I don't know that either," Fell Wind answered, rubbing the back of her neck, "I need to find my brother, but I don't know how long it's been since I've seen him, and I have no idea where to even begin searching."

"Why not head to Canterlot?"

Fell Wind stiffened for a second, and, realizing his mistake, Ancient Scroll went to apologize. Before he could however, the mare visibly relaxed, though her wings twitched slightly in agitation.

"Why Canterlot?" she asked, her gaze steely and her tone guarded, "what would I find there?"

Ancient Scroll internally debated continuing this line of conversation, and ultimately decided to do so, figuring it would be worth it if it helped her find her brother.

"I'm not sure if you ever got a look at the actual city—"

"I didn't," Fell Wind interjected curtly, "I was drugged and unconscious the whole time I was there."

"Fair enough," Ancient Scroll replied, raising his hooves placatingly, "but like I was saying, Canterlot is the capital city of Equestria. Not only is it where the Princess of Equestria resides in her castle, but it's also a central hub for all sorts of knowledge and information."

"And if I just so happen to run into that mare again, while I'm looking for my brother," Fell Wind finished with a dangerous smile—her slightly twitching wings giving off a faint chirping sound and barely visible electric current, "we can both get... reacquainted."

Ancient Scroll grimaced at the display, but didn't say anything. If the mare wanted to try and get revenge for what she'd been through, it wasn't any of his concern.

"Wait," Fell Wind muttered suddenly, cutting off the current running through her wings, "how do I get to Canterlot?"

"Much further east of here past the forest," Ancient Scroll replied, "once you get to Ponyville, you should be able to spot Mount Canterhorn to the north. We're actually headed their ourselves on an... errand of our own."

"Great! I'll just stick with you guys then!"

Ancient Scroll blinked.

"Ah... now I'm not so sure that's a good id—"

"Oh come on," Fell Wind pleaded, leaning forward in the cot, "just until we get to Canterlot, then I'll be out of your mane, promise!" 

Her wide eyed, pleading look faded somewhat.

"And besides... I don't really have anywhere else to go. I don't know the first thing about Equestria. Stormy and I only followed after that mare, and we didn't really pay any attention to the landmarks," she gave a melancholy shrug and looked away, "I might've known more before my memory was wiped... but..."

She trailed off meaningfully and Ancient Scroll sighed in defeat before rubbing his temples once more.

"Alright... alright, you can come with us until we reach Canterlot," he conceded, "just... don't cause us any trouble, okay?"

"You got it!" Fell Wind replied, perking up, "you won't even know I'm here. I'm a pretty chill mare once you get to know me, y'know?"

Ancient Scroll gave the dark green pegasus a flat look.

"This coming from the mare who, only two days ago, threw herself into a thunderhead and tried to kill me with a suicidal lightning attack?"

It was Fell Wind's turn to blink.

"...I did what?!"

Ancient Scroll chuckled at Fell Wind's reaction and shook his head. His smile faded and he gave Fell Wind a level look, causing the mare to tilt her head in confusion.

"You and I had a bit of an... altercation before you woke up," he explained, "I think it'd be best to fill you in on what little we do know about you now, rather than you finding out when it's less convenient for you... and us."

Fell Wind raised an eyebrow, but nodded all the same.

"Alright, whatever you say, old timer."