Fine Ladies in a Bath
"What if we go straight through?"
Star Swirl was out of other options. Downward probably wouldn't survive the trip around the forest's edge, even if the unicorn carried her in his magic. She was still too weak.
So the only course left would be to cut across to the other side.
"That... might work," Downward conceded. She laid listlessly on the ground as she considered Star Swirl's suggestion. "It's an... old forest... shouldn't have too much... undergrowth."
"So it'll be easier than the mountain was," he finished for her. The less she spoke, the better. Especially since her breathing was far too shallow for his liking.
"It... could still... be dangerous," she gasped.
"At the moment, we don't have a choice. If there's a chance the Sisters can heal you we have to take it."
Downward gave a little grin and slowly stood up. "Feeling... a little better...can walk."
"Absolutely not," Star Swirl said sternly, his tone similar to the one he used when disciplining his daughter. "You are still too weak, so I shall be carrying you."
"Can walk." Downward stubbornly, and slowly, plunged into the forest.
Reluctantly Star Swirl followed, all the while keeping an eye on his...
Friend?
That struck Star Swirl as odd. He'd had friends as a young foal, of course, but as he aged he'd come to view such relationships as... extraneous. He had his studies, he had his student, and he had his family. What need did he have for friends?
So why was he thinking of this mare, whom he was only putting up with because of her knowledge of the Sisters' location, as his friend?
His rumination was interrupted when he heard a beautiful song coming from somewhere ahead. It was enchanting, the sound. Lilting and melodic, with a powerful resonance. He had to know who it was that was singing. He broke into a jog.
"Starry... wait!"
He ignored Downward, this was too important. Discovery awaited and any discovery, no matter how small, was worth more than friendship... right?
Any doubts he might have held melted away as he drew nearer, and he soon came to a natural hot spring. Soaking in the spring was the source of the incredible song. Star Swirl had never seen the likes of these three creatures before, had never read of anything resembling them. They were almost ponies, but possessed fins and scales in addition to equine traits. One was purple, one was a light blue, and the third seemed to be a shade of yellow. Their harmonizing stopped as they noticed their audience.
The yellow one smirked. "What do we have here?"
"Um, it's a pony. Duh."
"No- I was-" The yellow one growled in frustration and glared at the blue one.
"Fair Ladies," Star Swirl began, confident that he was not making a mistake like last time. Those were definitely feminine voices. "You know me for a pony, but I fear I've never heard of anything like you. Please tell me, what do you call yourselves? And what do you sing for?"
"That's how we control-"
"Sonata, hush!" The purple one jabbed an elbow into her blue companion's side, then started to vocalize. After a moment the jab-ee joined in.
"We are the Sirens, pony." The yellow one leaned forward with a cat-like grin. Her words, though they were spoken, seemed almost lyrical. She started to sway in time with the others. "We fled to this forest to elude the chaotic one, but since then or meals have been few and far between..."
Star Swirl found he couldn't turn away, and at the same time realized he didn't care. He wanted to stay with them, his lovely Sirens, for as long as they would have him. He trotted closer, close enough for the yellow one to stroke his mane. Oh, he loved it when she did that.
"Would you feed us, pony? Would you let us-"
She was cut off by an apple bouncing off the side of her head. Snarling, she was about to turn in the direction it had come from before she realized what it had accomplished. Star Swirl was, quite literally, shaking of the Sirens' influence. All three shrieked and were flying away before he could prepare a spell. They knew better than to tangle with a unicorn in their weakened state.
"Thank you for that." Star Swirl turned to face his rescuer, extending a hoof. "My name's Star Swirl. Some call me The Bearded."
His rescuer, an earth pony mare with a reddish-brown coat and a sandy mane, took the offered hoof. "Might be I've heard of ya, Sta Swirl. Name's Root. What were those things?"
He frowned. "They called themselves Sirens... They're going to be trouble later, I can feel it."
"Starry!" Downward pushed past a bush, limping slightly as she looked for him.
Star Swirl rushed to her side and, with Root's help, carried her to the edge of the spring. As they set the pegasus down he said, "Downward, this is Root. Root, this is Downward Spiral."
"Nice... to meet... you."
"Glad to meet ya too, Downward, though yer not exactly looking fit to travel- if ya'll will pardon my honesty."
"That's why we're cutting through the forest," Star Swirl said, and he pointed in the direction they were going. "There's supposed to be a place where she can get treated on the other side."
Root nodded. "Could be that's true, I've never been that way myself. But ya should probably rest for a spell."
"We can't risk her condition deteriorating."
Suddenly, the sun dove out of sight and was replaced by the moon- which bounced up and down in the sky like a foal.
Root simply shrugged and accepted their new reality. "Looks like Discord's made yer choice for ya. Trying to get through the forest in the dark'd be foolish."
Despite his disappointment, Star Swirl had to concede. He had never considered himself an outdoors-oriented pony, even before this little adventure had taught him just how little he really knew of the world beyond his study. So, again with Root's help, he built an acceptable fire by the spring and arranged his and Downward's sleeping mats.
Once the work was done, Star Swirl settled down to apply himself to the problem of moving a pony bodily through time. Or, rather, that was the plan.
But few plans survive contact with earth pony mares.
Root, with a running lead-up, bellyflopped into the hot spring, nearly splashing the musing magus. Smiling, she surfaced and said, "Come on in, ya two. Water's more than fine."
"Are you insane?!" Star Swirl sputtered. "What if the spring was sulfuric?"
"Well... it's not, so come on. Probably'd do Downward some good to take a soak, anyhow."
Before Star Swirl could rebut, the pegasus limped over and lowered herself in. Star Swirl sighed and gave up. There were far worse thing he could think of.
As he submerged himself, a separate thought struck Star Swirl. Imagine if the snobbish nobility could see him now. Though Root and Downward lacked the graceful edge that aristocratic mares were expected to cultivate, few would call them ugly. Oh the scandal that would grip the royal court if they saw him, a married stallion, in a bath with two pretty mares. Never mind the fact he had no intention of doing anything untoward, it was still scandalous.
His grin fell away. He missed his wife. The prettiness of his bathmates only served to remind him of how truly beautiful she was to him. He wished he could be with her, wished he could hug his daughter again.
And he hoped the Sisters were worth his inability to do so.
Another splash of water pulled him out of his head. Downward stuck her tongue out, then said, "Stop... worrying so much."
"You're right, I shouldn't be wasting such a fine bath." He turned to Root. "So, you know why we're hiking out in the middle of nowhere. What brings you to these woods?"
"My family's a buncha bakers, have been for generations, but I've never been all that keen on it. So I figured I'd try farming. Bought a few hoof-fulls of apple seeds and headed out."
"That was quite adventurous of you," Downward said as she leaned forward.
Root shrugged. "I guess. But if I can't find a place where Discord won't see me growin', well... might as well farm rocks for all the good being adventurous will do me."