The Little Pony Legend: Shadow of Ronin

by MyEcho4

Ten Years Later....

Ten Years Later….

*(~)*

Darkness. That was all that she could see. She looked around to see where she was, but all she could see was a void of darkness. The girl was tall, brown skinned, around 6'1, probably in her mid-twenties. She had cyan eyes, dark brown hair with a white/blue streak going down the front and additional dark blue and teal streaks on the back. She had a pair of blue feathered wings on her back which transcend into a light tan color, matching her skin. She was wearing a short sleeve t-shirt when sweat pants, confirming that she was in her pajamas. Her name was Korra, The Avatar and Princess of Equestria. The Princess Avatar was now looking around in this void, trying to figure out what's going on.

"Hello?" she called out, "Anyone Here?"

"Maybe…" a voice called, "Maybe not."

Korra whipped around and got into a fighting stance, she tried to bend fire, but found out it didn't come out.

"Don't worry I mean no trouble."

"Who are you?" she said still in a fighting stance, "Show yourself!"

"Oh I will...in due time…."

"What are you talking about?"

"In due time…" after the mysterious voice said that a bright light started to come forth, blinding the Avatar, making her cover her eyes.

(~)

Korra jolted up from her bed with a gasp and started breathing heavily, sweating like she was in a sauna. Hearing the gasp, a young man sat up in the bed as well. The male was a white skinned gentlemen with black hair with a streak going at the side that looked liked a flame. He also had on a white t-shirt with gray sweat pants. His name was Mako, Korra's husband. He woke up to see his wife drenched in sweat.

"You okay?" he asked concerned.

Korra looked at Mako, seeing the worried look on his face. She quickly gained her composure with a couple deep breaths and waterbended the sweat off her face. "Yeah, I'm ok." she said, giving a small smile.

"Was it a nightmare?"

"No, no just a weird dream."

"So, in other words, Nightmare." he said playfully. He then wrapped his arms around Korra while giving a pouty face, "Do you want Papa Mako to rock you back to sleep?" he said. Before he knew it, he was drenched in Korra's sweat and getting a playful punch in the arm. "I deserve that."

"Which one?" She said crossing her arms, "The puddle of sweat or the punch in the arm?"

"Touche." he said while getting out of bed. "I'm going to wash this sweat off."

"Just don't wake her up."

"Now why would I do that?" he said as he walked towards the bathroom.

Korra got out bed and walked towards the balcony of her castle to get some fresh air. She looked into the stars high up into the sky, with the bustling city in the background, reminiscing the past. It's been five years since the events with Kuvira and her army. Soon after Republic City was rebuilt, Peace returned to the united worlds. As for the Team, they all went their separate ways, but still kept in contact of course. She wanted to feel happy about the peace, but deep down, she missed the adventures she had with her friends. That was basically how they all met in the first place, adventure and action, and also a magic book. But now being a Princess, Avatar, and a mom, she has long tried to put this in the back of her mind, but for some reason, she couldn't. She wasn't the only one going through this, Mako even missed the adventurous days with his friends. But now he had bigger responsibilities. He's a Father, a royal Prince and the Chief of the Republic City Police. He became the Chief, several years ago when Lin, the previous one, retired. They could bet you that all their friends missed the crazy days of fighting bad guys, or ponies, saving the world, stuff like that, but they all moved on, knowing that evil may not come around for quite some time. I mean, come on, it's been seven years. But another thing was on Korra's mind. That Dream. What did it mean?

"In due time." she whispered "What does that mean?" Her question was put on hold when she saw something up on top a cliff on Air Temple Island Squinting her eyes, she tried to get an idea on who was up there, but all she could see was someone, or something in a black cloak and a animal beside it. "What the-"

"Mommy?"

Korra quickly spun around to see a young girl behind her. The girl was probably around 7 years old. She had lovely violet eyes, a mixture of blue and red, and had light tan skin like her mother, dark brown hair, darker than Korra's with additional pink and violet streaks. She had on a small pink night dress with the symbol of the Light Spirit, Raava on the front. On her back was a pair of small tan colored wings with pink tips on the feathers, probably the size of her arm and a star shape on her forehead. Her name was Iris. She looked up at Korra with eyes of concern, just like Mako did. Speaking of which, the firebender walked up behind her.

"Iris." Korra said, "What are you doing up at this time?"

"The sky's awake." she said pointing to the sky "So I'm awake!" she said, pointing to herself.

Korra smiled at her daughter's response. It's been 7 years since Korra and Mako had their little bundle of joy. She was Korra's most prized possession, and she would do anything to keep her safe from harm, until she was old enough that is. She didn't really want to be one of those overprotective parents, like Tenzin. She brought Iris up to her height and gave her a kiss on the cheek.

"Well, the sky's saying you should get back to sleep." she whispered, putting her back down. Hearing footsteps, she saw Mako walking to the door, and Korra gave him her evil eye. "Go on back to bed, sweetie." she said to Iris, "Mommy needs to talk to hot head over here. I'll tuck you in after." she patted Iris on the back and she ran back to her bed, not before looking at daddy.

"You're in trouble, again." she giggled and went back to her bed. Korra then looked at Mako with her arms crossed and a angry glare on her face.

"I thought I told you NOT to wake her up!"

"I didn't, all I did was go to the bathroom and when I went to go check on her, she was gone! She must've heard you wake up."

Korra pondered at this. She did wake up all of sudden. Must've been in the hallway or something.

"Alright, as long as you didn't." she said Mako then looked at her while she looked up in the sky. He placed a hand on her shoulder.

"You alright?"

"Yeah." she said with a sigh "It's just-"

"Let me guess, the peace and quiet?" Korra looked over at her husband, shocked by his correct guess. "Me too." he continued "But look on the bright side, there's finally peace in the world. Sure there's the occasional triad robberies, and a few rebellious spirits, but compared to all the other big bad's we've faced, those are a walk in the park. Overall, things are pretty good. You're at least happy about that, right?"

"Of course I am." she said "This is what we've been trying to achieve for years. I guess, sometimes I just yearn for a bit of excitement now and again. Don't you at least miss those days?"

"Well, if you remove a bending/magic titan vacuum cleaner and a dictator that almost took your life, the psycho uncle and dark spirit from the equation, then yes. Yes I do." he then held Korra close to him, letting her touch his warm chest. "But like I said, it's peace, just like you wanted. We have a daughter, we have our friends, we have a nice home. We don't need to get ourselves hurt and her worried." He said looking at her cyan eyes. "But who knows, maybe a new threat may come back, and we'll be ready for it."

Korra smiled at him she was glad she had someone like him around.

Mako then yawned. "Well we might as well go back to sleep, big day tomorrow."

"Right. Almost forgot."

"You need some more time out here?"

Korra looked back up in the starry sky and smiled at the firebender. "Nah. Besides, I promised Iris I'll tuck her in."

Mako then gave a thumbs up "Alright, just come to Papa Mako when you're ready to be tucked in."

Korra giggled, ruffling Mako's hair before placing a soft kiss on the surface of his lips. Korra walked behind him to go tuck Iris in, completely forgetting the figure was still up on the cliff looking over the castle. After two went inside, he let out a sigh.

"So she's the 'Princess Avatar'." the hooded figure said. The creature growled at the word, the figure shushed it and petted the creature. "Let's see if she stands up to her title." with that, the figure literally melted into the ground at slithered away followed by the creature.

(~)

Korra gently pulled the blanket just bellow Iris's chin and kissed her daughter's forehead. "Good night, sweetheart."

"Mom?"

"Yes?"

"Before you go, could you sing that song one more time?"

"Which one? You have so many favorite songs."

"The one you always sing."

Korra smiled and sat beside her daughter, stroking her hair and sang a lovely ballad tune.

Heart, don't fail me now

Courage, don't desert me

Don't turn back, now that we're here

People always say; life is full of choices

But so few would even dare

To see how the road can seem so long

How the world can seem so vast

Courage will see you through

Heart, we're trusting you

Cause your journey…

Has begun

Iris smiled. Listening to her mother sing was her favorite thing in the entire world.

Somewhere down this road

Magic is awaiting

Years of dreams, just can't be wrong

Arms will open wide

You'll be save and wanted

Finally home where you belong

Cause, starting here, your life begins

Starting now, you're learning fast

Courage will see you through

Heart, we're trusting you

Now your journey

Has begun

….

Home, Love, Friendship

There will always be a place for you to return

Home, Love, Family

This is the place where you belong

One step at a time

One hope, then another

Who knows where this road may go

Soon, you'll play your part

On to make your future

Things your heart will always know

Sing your heart's song

The road might be long

But it will lead you to back to me

Courage will see you through

Heart, we're trusting you

To bring us home…

At last

Iris let out a yawn, sleep already succumbing her and she closed her eyes. Korra placed one more kiss on her forehead before turning off the light. She took one more glance at her child.

"Love you, sweetheart."

Once the door closed, Iris slept soundly, only for her brows to suddenly twitch and she turned her self around in her bed. Images flashed before her eyes, images of her family screaming, a dark creature laughing evilly, and a strange blue fox with a symbol on its forehead, before finally seeing a shimmering sword being pulled out, its silver surface reflecting bright colors in the midday sun, before finally she saw the sight of shimmering wings and the beautiful harmonizing of a siren-like voice. The distressed princess finally got a good night's sleep.

(~)

It was a beautiful sunny morning...well partly cloudy with some morning fog. Two fishermen, a man and a pony, were out trying to catch some morning fish. The two were quietly waiting for a bite, but nothing was coming. The pony groaned.

"It's been hours since our last bite." he said "And it's been even longer since the last catch!"

"Calm down, Early Bird." The old man said "Not everything needs to be rushed."

"They call me Early Bird for a reason, Shai." said the pony "I wake up early and catch early riser."

"Make that two reasons why." the man said under his breath.

"What was that?"

"Nothing."

The pony sighed, finally giving up, "Well the sun is almost up, let's just head back to port." the pony said pulling up his rod, "Another day with barely no fish." he started to head back to the boat when something happened that surprised him. A fish fell from the sky and landed right in front of him, flopping around gasping for air.

"What the-?" Before he could finish, two more fishes landed on the deck, one on each side of him. He then turned around to his friend.

"Wow, old timer!" he said quite surprised "Looks like the fish are really attracted to yo-" when he turned around, he saw his fishing buddy frozen in place. Looking into the sky, pointing pointing upward.

"What is it?" Early Bird said, quite confused about what he was pointing at, when he saw the old timers hand pointing upward, he followed it up and saw something that drained the color out of him. Up in the sky, there they saw a giant ball of fish trapped in a orb of water. They couldn't believe what they saw. And the crazy part was it was right above their boat. Overtime, fish found a way out of the bubble, but ended up landing on the deck. The two looked at eachother, jaws dropped at this sight. After sometime in the air, the water bubble simply popped and all the fish came crashing down on their boat. Thankfully it didn't sink or break apart. The deck was filled to the rim with cargo and soon after, two heads popped out of the pile of sea creatures. Early Bird spat out a fish while Shai took one off his head. They looked around in disbelief at what they saw.

"All this fish can last us for a whole season!" Early Bird said still in disbelief, right before he laughed with happiness at this wondrous site. "It's a Miracle!" He said between laughs "Who did this?" He said joyfully.

"Aye." Shai said looking upward with a grin. "There's only one person who could do some miracle like that."

Early Bird was confused at what he said, but when he looked up, he was amazed at what he saw. Above them was Avatar Korra, happily flapping her wings and looking down at the two fishermen.

"Heard you guys were struggling out here for some time." she said.

"Can't thank you enough, Princess!" said Early Bird with a salute.

"Thank nothing of it, just happy to help out. Will I be seeing you gentlemen at the parade later today?"

"You know it!" Shai replied excitedly.

"Great! Have a nice day, boys!"

"Thank you again!" the two said while waving farewell. Korra smiled and zoomed off into the sky heading towards Republic City. The two waves at the princess as she blasted off over the sea. Shai then looked over at his friend and flashed him a grin.

"Told ya you need to be patient."

The human alicorn zoomed across the morning sky. Taking in a breath of fresh air, the Avatar smiled with glee as she flew in the sky. She flew down to the ocean, placing her hand in the crystal clear water, letting the liquid flow through her fingers. Things couldn't be better.

Beats of drums filled air as Korra started to sing.

('Two Worlds by Phil Collins from Tarzan)

Oh, oh, oh,

Oh, oh

Two worlds

Oh, oh

Two worlds one family.

Ooh A paradise I call my home

Where we are are blessed with love

A simple life

We live in peace

The Princess flew down to the bay and let the water rub pass her fingers as she continued singing.

Feel the melody keep playing in on

Two worlds

One family

If you trust your heart

And let Faith decide

To guide these lives we see

So many years have come and gone

But even so, love still remains

A perfect life

We live in peace

She flew around the skies and did some loops.

We raise our heads up

Lift high the loads

Take strength from those that need you

We build higher walls

Build strong the beams

When we work together

No danger can break us, no

She then hovered over the crystal clear water and saw a reflection of her and her daughter, Iris.

No words describe a mother's joy

No wounds can keep from my heart

My dream come true

Begins with you

Somewhere something is calling for you

Two worlds

One family

Trust your heart

Let Faith decide

To guide these lives

To guide these lives we see!

Two worlds

One family

Korra landed in a specific area, where people and ponies were working with nets and decorations for the floats. Citizens, airbender, and ponies were hustling about, putting up decorations, setting up tables and chairs. They were all getting ready for not one, but two events happening that day. Korra started walking around, greeting people people while searching for one of her friends.

It didn't take long for her to spot the purple anthro alicorn pony with long beautiful dark blue hair with a magenta and violet streaks. She wore a sleeveless tank top with a teal collar with her cutie mark on the front as well as dark purple pants and purple boots with her cutie mark on the top. On her left arm she has a purple scar that looked like a flame going up. On her cheek, she had a six pointed magenta star with five smaller stars surrounding it.

"Twilight!" Korra called out running over to her. Turning around, Twilight smiled and rushed to hug her friend. Twilight Sparkle had married her long term boyfriend, Flash Sentry, and the two were the proud parents of a beautiful daughter.

"Korra! I'm so glad you're here."

"Sorry I'm a little late." Korra apologized after ending the hug, "I stopped to help a few fishermen with their catch. So, how's progress."

"Things couldn't be better." Twilight levitated her clipboard and held it in her hands. "So far, we've already got six of the main floats done and ready, and just need a few finishing touches on the last few. The orchestra is warming up right now with Fluttershy, Rarity is working on the costumes, Applejack and the rest of the Apples will be arriving soon with the food, Pinkie Pie is in charge of decorations and fireworks, and Rainbow Dash is with Mako, Flash and the police. Oh, and Tenzin and the airbenders are at City Hall getting ready for the Airshow."

Korra whistled, "You've certainly been busy."

"And now that you're here, we can get things done even faster." Twilight said. She then noticed one of the workers moving a statue in the wrong direction. "Oh, Mr. Ping! That's where the band's going to be!"

A old man turned around with confusion. "Then where else are we supposed to put this statue of Avatar Wan?"

"It's supposed to go to the left hand side, right next to the floral arc, opposite White and Leilani's statues and beside Raava's."

Mr. Ping looked over at the direction before giving a thumbs up, "Alright boys, You heard the Princess. To the entrance!" Two large men groaned and picked up the large statue of the team and started carrying it over.

Korra tapped on Twilight's shoulder, "Hey, Twily, did you by any chance have…I don't know, a weird dream last night?"

"Not particularly. Why?"

"Well, it's just…" Korra stopped herself. She questioned if now was really such a good time to be talking about this kind of thing, especially given the amount of work that needed to be done. "You know what, nevermind."

Twilight lowered her clipboard, placing it on top of a cardboard box. "Korra, what's wrong?"

"Nothing. It's fine, forget I said anything."

"Come on A.K. I know you better than that." Twilight placed a hand on Korra's arm. "What's wrong? Did you have a another strange dream?"

Korra sighed in defeat. "I didn't want to worry you. It wasn't a nightmare, but it made no sense. It felt like someone was trying to contact me. I don't remember much, really. I thought maybe if you or the girls had the same dream it might mean something important. If it was it would be affecting you guys too."

"Well, I don't recall having have any dreams last night to tell you the truth."

Korra chuckled, "Yeah, it's probably nothing. I have been feeling kind of a yearning for the nostalgia of saving the world, so it was probably just my subconscious at work."

Twilight looked at Korra with concern. "You sure."

"Yeah. Forget I even mentioned it. I don't want anyone to be stressed out today." the Avatar playfully ruffled her friend's hair. "Relax, this is a happy day, remember?"

Twilight laughed, removing Korra hand and tracing hers through her now messed up hair. "Yeah, okay, okay."

"Speaking of which, are Bolin and Asami here yet?"

"Bolin's still held up at the factory, but Asami's here with supervising."

(~)

"A little more to the left, now a little to the right. A little more….Perfect." Shouted Asami as she supervised the workers placing the roof of the Canterlot Castle model. The beautiful Sato industrialist was now happily married to Bolin and had two wonderful kids. A son named Hiro (in honor of her father) and a daughter named Mai.

"Alright, great job you guys. This one's all rest and ready to go." she said, while checking off stuff on her clipboard. "Oh, the fireworks. Are the fireworks all set up yet?" she asked one of the workers.

"You may want to ask Pinkie Pie!" said one of the female workers adding the finishing adjustments on the float while the other drove it forward.

"Okay." Asami replied, "Has anyone seen Pinkie Pie by any chance?"

"I'm right here!" the hyper pink anthro said as she popped up behind Asami, causing her to let out a terrified yelp.

"Pinkie, what did I tell you about sneaking up on me like that!" Asami exclaimed, rather annoyed.

"Sorry, just wanted to let you know all the fireworks are accounted for and ready to launch when ready!" Pinkie Pie said, saluting to the woman, while wearing some a sombrero on her head.

"Great, thanks." Asami said, returning to her clipboard.

Pinkie Pie blinked, her eyes darting back and forth, as if waiting for something. "Uh, aren't you going to ask why I'm wearing a sombrero out of nowhere?"

"Not really." Asami replied casually, still looking down at the clipboard.

"Oh." Pinkie blinked again and removed the sombrero from her head. "Okay then." she then smiled happily when she noticed a familiar tan winged humanoid approaching them. "Oh, look it's Korra! MORNING KORRA!" she shouted waving her hand in the air getting her attention, nearly making Asami deff in the process.

"Asami! Pinkie Pie!" Korra greeted her friends with a hug.

"Hey, sis." Asami said with a big smile, "About time you got here."

"Sorry about that. I got sidetracked. Korra then looked around, taking in all the decorations in the streets. "Wow, this is looking amazing."

"It should." Pinkie Pie said, "It only took us like seven months to get everything! You have any idea how hard it is to make floats that fully capture the essence of all of our adventures?"

Korra chuckled, "Hard to believe it's been 10 years since we've all met." she said, reminiscing of the day they all became Team Avatar Harmony.

"Yeah. One minute we're trying to convince Twilight to stop opening a book. Then the next were face to face with you." Pinkie said, looking back on that memory long ago. "Good times. Good times."

Asami nodded in agreement, "Yeah, but in all honesty, as much as I miss the old days, it's kind of nice to finally relax and just be normal for a change."

"What is normal anyway?" Korra asked jokingly, making Asami and Pinkie Pie laugh as well. The three friends turned their heads when they heard the sound of a drum roll. The Equestrian Guard and Republic City Police Force were marching into position with Mako, Rainbow Dash and Flash Sentry at the front.

"Ready….Halt!" Mako shouted as they stopped in position. "At ease". Mako and the group left position, walking over to the girls, giving Korra a kiss. "Hey, beautiful."

"Hey, hot stuff." Korra greeted, kissing him back.

The sound of a car horn sounded and a familiar earthbender walked out, "Sorry, I'm late. Just got back dealing with some last minute shipments." he happily walked up to his wife, greeting her with a kiss.

"About time you got here, Mr. Sato." Asami said with a sly smile.

"Sorry to keep you waiting, Mrs. Sato." Bolin said, smiling and kissing her once more, the happy couple laughed while wrapped in each other's arms, almost as if they were love sick teenagers again.

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes and addressed to the rest of the police. "Okay, take five you guys. I'm gonna go get a drink before the parade starts."

"What's with you?" Mako asked.

"Nothing. You know this "lovey dovey" stuff gives me cavities."

Korra gave the anthro pegasus a sly smile, "Oh, like you and Soarin never get all mushy?"

"Don't start with me." Rainbow gave Korra a deadpan stare, "We've only been on a couple dates, but it's nothing serious. You know me, I like to take things slow."

The others couldn't help but burst with laughter, especially Flash Sentry. "Right! Rainbow Dash, fastest flyer in all of Equestria, taking things slow. That's rich-OW!" Flash let out a faint squeak after Rainbow punched him in the gut and walked away to get her drink. "You know what, good on you. No need to rush into anything."

Korra softly shook her head, "Cut her some slack. She's new to the whole dating scene."

"I'm just glad Soarin is the patient type." Mako said, crossing his arms, "Of course, if he tries anything I'll remind him why Chief Beifong chose me to be her successor."

"Honey, do you always have to interrogate every guy the girls date?" Korra asked, "First it was Flash, then Double Diamond, and let's not forget the filed day you had with Cheese Sandwich."

Pinkie Pie shivered at the memory from when Mako went all "protective big brother" on her boyfriend when they first announced they were dating a few months back.

"Don't remind me." said the pink anthro pony.

"Well if I don't do it, who will?" he said.

Korra only rolled her eyes playfully and wrapped her arm around his shoulder. "Oh, Mako. I can't wait to see you handle Iris's teen years."

(~)

Speaking of Iris, the couple's only daughter giggled happily while she played with her two cousins and her best friend. Her cousins were Hiro and Mai Sato, Asami and Bolin's children. Hiro was the oldest, a white skinned boy with green eyes, just like his father and shinny raven hair. He obviously got the natural shine from his mother. He was a very handsome six-year-old boy, and no doubt he would be a heartthrob once he became a full grown man.

Mai was his little sister by one year. She was the most precious little four-year-old anyone had ever seen. Her naturally curly raven hair flowed gracefully behind her as she ran. Unlike her brother, she had amber colored eyes, similar to her uncle Mako. Her parents suspected she would grow up to be a firebender like him, and she was already showing small signs of it.

The third girl was an adorable alicorn pony. Her coat as peach pink with matching wings and horn and her cutie mark resembled a blue flame with sparkles around it. She had midnight colored hair with magenta and blue streaks. She was a child protege, already receiving her cutie mark at such a young age.

Her name was Princess Akari Blaze, daughter of Twilight Sparkle and Flash Sentry. Her name meant "light" or "glimmer" and it was indigenous to Korra's world. Since Iris was named after an Equestrian flower, her parents wanted to name their first child after something indigenous to their friend's homeland. Just like her Mother and Aunt, her and Iris became very good BFSF (Best Friend Sisters Forever) over the course of the years. She is very protective and loyal to her sister and would do anything to keep her safe, even at her young age.

They also had a fifth best friend named Gallant Steed, son of Starlight Glimmer and Sunburst. He was an aquamarine colored unicorn colt with pale aqua markings on his hooves and his forehead. He had crimson hair with orange outlines and striking dark blue eyes. He didn't have his cutie mark but he was determined to get it one day. He also had a certain crush on a certain pink alicorn. He tries his best to hide it, but its proved futile.

The five children happily chased each other around Air Temple Island. Gallant and Akari were in their pony forms, most likely so they could outrun their two legged friends.

"Can't catch us!" the alicorn princess giggled, seeing Hiro and Mai chase after them.

"No fair!" Hiro cried out, "You've got four legs!"

"Get moving, slow pokes!" Gallant called out and he and Akari picked up full speed. They ran across the gardens, starling several air acolytes and airbenders who were taking a stroll. Despite their game, the children continuously laughed.

"We're catching up to you!" Mai said. She suddenly noticed a shadow loving over her and her brother. Looking up, she saw a familiar silhouette soar above and swooped down, tackling the two ponies to the ground in a giggling hep.

"Hey! We agreed no flying!" Akari said, now being pined down by the winged human.

Iris laughed, "Well, you guys cheated too." she said right before her two cousins jumped on them all, trapping the ponies.

"Ha! We got you!" Hiro said victoriously. The children laughed and rolled off of each other, spreading their backs onto the ground in a giggling hep.

Iris sat back up, her laugh was slowly dying when she caught glimpse of something not too far away. While her friends continued to laugh, the young princess squinted her eyes and approached whatever it was that stood behind a tree.

It looked almost like a fox. A blue colored fox with a crescent moon collar. It stared at her with shimmering eyes, a curious little thing.

Seeing Iris suddenly disappear, her friends followed the princess who flew over towards the creature, which ran behind the bushes. "Hey, wait!" she called out.

She chased after the creature, only to collided with another person. He was an eleven-year-old boy, going on twelve, with dark brown hair and green colored eyes. He was white skinned and wore traditional air acolyte clothing. He rubbed his head and helped the little princess up.

"Iris, what happened?" he asked. "You okay?"

"Yeah. Sorry, Rohan." Iris apologized with a bow, to which Rohan shrugged it off.

"Don't worry about it." he said as he picked up the book he was reading, which flew right out of his hands when she crashed into him.

"Hey, did you…see anything?" Iris asked.

"Like what?"

"Iris!" Akari called out, changing into her anthro form to check on her friend. "Are you okay?"

"What happened?" Gallant asked, he too changing into his anthro form.

"I thought I saw a fox but…it disappeared." Iris replied.

"A fox?" Rohan asked, "That's impossible, there are no foxes around here. You were probably just seeing things." said the young airbender, ruffling Iris's hair a bit, much to her annoyance. Rohan was always like a big brother to Iris, which made sense considering his father was once her mother's airbending teacher, so their dynamic came naturally that way.

"I could have sworn I saw it." the princess insisted, right before a red furry fire ferret landed on her head from a tree branch.

"Pabu! There you are!" Hiro called out and his family pet crawled up towards his master's child's shoulder, his wet nose tickling his cheek. "Were you trying to sneak some bluebell berries again? You know they make you gassy."

"Well, that solves the mystery." Rohan said before getting back to his book.

"I know I saw it." Iris said in a half whisper.

"What's the big deal?" Mai asked, "Why do you care so much about a fox?"

"I don't know it…it looked like something I saw in my dream last night."

"Again?" Akari asked, "Iris, this has been going on for months now."

"I know, it's like a movie in my brain every night. I thought it was just a weird side effect of watching those Nuktuk movies." She and the other kids let out a shudder at the mere mention of that name. Well, all except for Hiro, who just so happened to be the biggest Nuktuk fan around.

"Hey I thought you said you liked those!" he said, his feelings a little hurt.

"Maybe you should ask your mom about it." Mai suggested, getting back to the subject at hand. "I mean, she is the Princess Avatar."

"I guess. But, I didn't want to bother her with the party tonight and all. Plus, you know how "freaked" out she gets when my powers act up."

"But, in her defense, you did make a pretty big hole in the wall." Rohan said, not taking his eyes off the pages.

"I was three!" Iris protested, "Besides, my powers haven't done it in a while." her wings and shoulders dropped in depression. "I haven't done anything since then. Why is magic so complicated?"

Akari placed a comforting on Iris's shoulder. "Hey, don't worry about it. You're still learning."

"Easy for you to say. You got your cutie mark already."

"So what? I'm still learning. And if my mom has anything to say about it, she'll never stop reminding me that." Akari said, rolling her eyes, making Iris laugh. No matter what, she always found a way to make her friend feel better.

"And look on the bright side, if you never get your cutie mark at least you're still a princess." Hiro said, only to have his sister elbow him in the stomach. "Ow! What? What did I say?"

"You're not helping, Hiro!" Mai exclaimed in annoyance.

Rohan then noticed his older sister, Jinora approaching them. "Hey, kids."

"Hey, sis!" Rohan greeted his big sister, whom he admired greatly.

"I just got a phone call from your parents. You guys ready for the parade?"

"YEAH!"

(~)

The city was as dusty and busy as she remembered. the blue fox leaping from roof to roof, sniffing the air. If there is one thing she loves about this city is certainly the smell of tasty foods from restaurants and vendors The creature smiled and wagged her tail to see a man selling said delicious looking fruit. She jumped downwards and stopped in front of the stand, wagging her tail happily. She lifted a paw and began to whimper like a puppy dog. The man behind the stand swooned.

"Awww! Aren't you just the cutest little fox spirit?" he cooed. "You hungry little one?" the fox nodded her head and waged her tail, lifting her paws upwards like a begging pup. The man happily took some of his fruit and placed them into a bag, handing it to the fox, who took the goods in her mouth.

"Free of charge. Happy Harmony Day!" he waved as the fox flew away with her food. The blue fox leaped on the rooftops before entering a window into what looked to be an abandoned room, where a cloaked figure sat in the corner, reading a book. The fox dropped the bag onto the floor.

"Works every time." she muttered. "Even if that word was used. Hey, Nova. I brought us some lunch."

"Thanks, Chi." her friend replied, not even bothering to look up. a purple aura surrounding an apple and landing in his hand.

The blue fox looked out the window, seeing all of the children and their parents walking down the streets excitedly. Chi's fox ears lowered in sadness and turned back to her friend. "Aren't you going to watch the parade?" she asked. the unicorn was silent. The only sounds that came from his was the flipping of a page and the crunch from the fruit he'd taken

Chi groaned, "Oh, come on! It's supposed to be this big event."

"Chi, you know I'm not much of a party kind of guy."

"I know, but-"

"If you want to see it, that's fine." Nova continued to do so, while Chi looked back and forth from the window and back to Nova.

Nova was startled when he felt the fox rest beside him. "Nah. I'd rather be here with you anyway."

A small smile formed on Nova's face and he petted her head.

(~)

Far away in the outskirts of the bustling city, there a was small cave between the mountains. The outside of the cave looked pretty small, but deep inside it was like a fortress. A red skinned anthro unicorn man walked upwards along the staircase reaching a door. He wore a long waving cloak. His cutie mark was on his left hand, resembling two crescent moons in the shape of a galaxy.

Opening the door he saw a male pony, dressed in a black cloak with a red streak going along the edges of his coat and coming around the back of his jacket having strange designs on it. He was gazing out the window carved out of the cave until he heard the door open and someone entered his chambers. The figure bowed to the male and began speaking.

"Master, the heroes are about to begin their festivities." he said to the hooded figure. There was silence from the pony, still gazing out the window. "Should I go down there and disrupt it?" he asked but received no answer. "Ronin…"

"Do you feel it?"

"Pardon?"

"Do you feel it? The Light. It's everywhere. For ten whole years, I've been wandering the world, desperately awaiting the day when I could finally snuff it out. I've watched helplessly as the light continuously prevails over my beautiful darkness." He said, stomping his foot in anger, before turning around and revealing his piercing yellow eyes, his face still blackened by darkness. "And I hate every minute of it!" He growled, and his companion only stood there, taking only one step back. A furry animal, who stood beside him, was tempted to growl but stopped himself when Ronin calmed down, giving a soft chuckle.

"I guess it shouldn't be anything new for me. After all, even while I was imprisoned in that mirror I was still living in someone's shadow. Ironic when they should be living in mine."

He turned to face his companion, "Now, after all this time, that's all about to change. No longer will we be living in the dark, old friend. Soon, we will show these light bearers the true power of darkness. Soon we will be rid of Harmony, Friendship, and Love forever. Soon we will be…"

"Victorious. " his companion finished.

"Yes, my friend. Victorious. And you will become the leader you were always meant to be, isn't that right, Kage?"

"Of course. It's what I've always wanted."

"Indeed. Now, about what you said earlier."

"Ah, yes, I was saying..."

"I heard you before." Ronin said putting his hand up in the air, silencing him, "I wouldn't bother with those little princesses if I were you. I have a much more important task for you."

"What is it?"

"I want you to head to Canterlot Castle…and retrieve it."

The red unicorn gasped. "Are-are you sure, Master? Your powers are still returning and-"

"My weakened state the past several years may have made it dangerous for me to even go so much as within two feet of my treasure. But now, my power is strong enough to wield it. And once I have it again, I will obtain my full power at long last. I'd retrieve it myself, but you are much more nimble than I am right now. Besides, like you said, everyone is too busy with their "festivities""

"But what if, you know....."

"I trust you will know what to do. Now go."

"Very Well." Kage bowed before his master and left, leaving Ronin to himself once more. "Soon, this unified world will feel the wrath of the shadows. Nothing will stand in my way and I will finish what I started all those years ago." and with that Ronin turned around to prepare for the evening. He knew for a fact that Nova would not disappoint him. Unlike last time.

(~)