Living Mark of Courage

by Moowell

Clearing

"That's... a big tree," Epona commented. The clearing itself was large, but in its center stood a willow tree whose trunk was as thick as a standard Ponyville house is wide and taller than several Sunset Manors stacked on their sides. "Ah've never seen anything like it."

Mirror Child looked at her curiously before Epona pointed. Suddenly her jaw dropped.

"No way... That's the Willow of the Everfree," Mirrors gasped. "They say that under that tree's branches is the single most peaceful place in Equestria. Not even Manticores will hunt the creatures found there. How did I miss that earlier?"

Epona looked out at the menagerie of animals that populated the region. Many different species of bird roosted and built nests in the tree's branches. Squirrels, rabbits, and other small creatures were abundant near its base, even as snakes and lizards slithered by. Dangerous beasts such as Manticores and Cockatrices also made a home in some areas, completely ignored by what would normally be considered prey.

The flora was just as diverse as the fauna. Berries of all sorts grew in hedges near the perimeter, acting as a sort of boundary between the clearing and the rest of the forest. Flowers covered entire regions of the ground in a wide array of colors, creating a tapestry of life and beauty for the animals to play and sleep in. Grasses and fruits also grew within the confines of the clearing, providing plenty of food options for the herbivores.

However, there was one region where no animal ventured closer than several yards away. A dense fog covered that relatively small patch of land, rendering it's earth invisible to the naked eye. "Why aren't any animals over there?" Epona asked.

"I don't know, but if its dangerous even under the willow's branches, I'm not going anywhere near the place." Epona nodded agreement. "Anyways, finding this place was probably the biggest stroke of luck we could get. We can stay here until it's time to go back."

"Ah wonder when that'll be..."

"Don't worry. We'll just stay long enough for Trixie to think we're actually doing something, and be back home in a couple days tops."

"Well, if it's all the same to you, I'm going to wait outside," said a third voice.

In an instant, Mirror Child was a wolf again, peering everywhere with her lupine eyes yet seeing no one. "Who's there?!"

"Hahaha! I simply love the look on your face! It speaks volumes about instinct and the fear of the unknown." Wisp floated casually from Epona's mane. "However, your fears are unjustified. I am merely a small black wisp of cloud."

"Oh! Mirrors, meet Wisp. He's been with me since Ah went into the Diamond Dogs' lair."

"And you never once thought to introduce us! You, my dear Epona, are a horrible host." Wisp moved in toward Mirrors' muzzle and sat on it. "Don't worry, though. Even without your hospitality, I've learned quite a bit by watching from the sidelines. For instance, last night Mirrors was dreaming about being with-"

A great orange claw grabbed the cloud and mashed him into the ground violently before he could finish his sentence. "You've been watching me in my sleep, you disgusting vapor?!" She pounded the dirt repeatedly to grind him into it. Epona just sighed.

"Calm down, Mirrors.," she finally said. "He's just a cloud. It's not like you're actually hurting him."

The cloud twitched and coughed. Mirrors glanced at her before punching the ground one last time and reverting back into a pony.

"Anyways, Why are ya staying out here alone?" Epona asked.

"Something about being around cute furry animals doesn't sit right with me," Wisp replied as he slowly reconstituted himself. "I have this completely irrational fear that the little angels are actually demons in disguise."

"Works for me! Let's go, Epona." Mirrors pushed Epona through the hedge barrier. As they passed through to the other side, the region immediately fell silent. Epona blushed a little when she discovered all eyes and ears trained on them. Mirrors kept pushing her until they reached a relatively uncrowded area. "Phew, all that running made me tired! I think this is a great place to sleep, don't you? Nice and peaceful." She forced out a yawn and stretched, then curled into a ball and closed her eyes.

Epona stared with confused brows at Mirrors, but a moment later her adrenaline wore off and she yawned as well. Soon, she was curled up on the ground, sound asleep.

*****

Mirrors closed her eyes and stretched her neck from side to side. Ever since she woke up, she had a twinge that refused to leave her in peace, like a needle poking her in the spine. Not that the herd of bunnies which had seen fit to climb her sides made things any better. She felt odd whenever she looked at them, as though she weren't viewing foodstuffs, but they were. Was the wisp right about-- she shook her head. There was no sense in entertaining that train of thought.

"Shoo! Go away, or I'll eat you!" she cried as she grabbed another off her back, desperately restraining herself from throwing it. She turned into a wolf, growled low, and bristled every hair across her back in an effort to scare them off. It was a little disconcerting to see them stare levelly back at her. Unfortunately, something about this place made it impossible for her to actually take that first bite.

"Maybe ya aren't intimidating enough," Epona mused with a smirk.

"Not intim-!" Mirror Child howled at the sky in rage. A few moments later, she turned toward the outside. "Tch. I'm gonna go hunt. If I stay here another minute, I will disturb this clearing's 'peace'!" Mirrors bounded up to boundary. "You gonna tag along? Or are you gonna stay here with those half-bites?" She glared at the bunnies again with similar results.

"Ah think Ah'll stay here. It's been a while since Ah could just relax. Have fun out there!"

Mirrors leapt over the hedge as Epona waved good bye, then sprinted off into the woods. Now this was living! The wind rushing through one's fur. The calls of a hundred different creatures, all waiting to be conquered. The smell of fear wafting toward one's muzzle as she neared her prey, then the warm red spray of life leaving its body. The thrill of the hunt... This is what Mirrors craved and loved more than anything else in the world. Much better than watching furballs stare at you without any respect for the food chain.

As the moon passed overhead, she pointed her muzzle skyward. This was another thing she loved about hunting: watching the day's sky. Out in the forest, where no torches flashed and no fires burned, each and every star could be seen clearly beside their larger cousin. Constellations such as Ursa and Canis, which were bright enough to be visible even within a city or a village, simply blazed with light against their dark background. The beauty of that sky made the interims between kills that much more enjoyable.

She also noticed that her neck pain was gone.

A slight tingle in Mirrors' fur brought her attentions back down to the ground; something magical was approaching. She crouched low to the ground and waited for her quarry to appear.

"Mirror Child? Oh Mirrors, darling, where are you?" She groaned inwardly. Of all the creatures she had planned on seeing, that creepy little cloud had been on the 'avoid' list. "Ah, there you are!"

"What do you want, cloud?" she growled.

"Just a little company from my dear friend's dear friend. Is that too much to ask?"

"You want company? Then leave me alone and go join your 'dear friend' in the zoo." Mirrors pointed her nose back toward the clearing.

"I would if I could, but I can't, so I won't. That's why I've decided to join you."

"Oh, right. You're afraid of the rabbits. Well, I can tell you from personal experience that they aren't demons in disguise. Even if they have no respect for the food chain..."

Wisp shook from side to side. "As amusing as that would be, that's just a story I made up on the spot. I literally can't enter that clearing." Mirrors cocked her head to the side. "Aha, I've made you curious, haven't I?"

"A little bit. Why can't you get in, and why didn't you tell Epona the truth earlier?"

"You see," Wisp began dramatically. "That tree and I had a sort of... friendship in the past; however, due to certain events critical to world history, our bond was severed!" Wisp breathed a deep, pitiful sigh. "Truly a tragic tale, don't you think?"

"A tree... and a little black cloud... had a thing?" she asked. Somehow, she got the feeling that Wisp's story needed to be taken with several grains of salt.

"My dear wolf, don't be silly. You make it sound like I've always been a little black cloud! No, there was a time when I was much more than what you see before you today."

Mirror Child leaned in close. "Were you a big black cloud?"

"I think that's enough about me," Wisp suddenly said. "Let's talk about you, Mirrors! How did you become a lycan?"

Mirror Child's head and shoulders sagged a little, almost imperceptibly. "Don't change the subject... You still haven't told me why you lied to Epona."

Wisp sighed. "There you go again, assuming something that simply isn't the case. I have no obligation to tell her anything at all, much less the truth."

Mirror Child leered at him. "What are you hiding, Wisp?" The two stared at each other with unflinching gazes. Seconds passed, then a minute, then another. It seemed that neither party would break the silence between them, but Wisp finally lowered.

"Why did you leave the clearing? You had an abundance of food readily at your jaws, yet instead you chose to hunt outside."

"I..." she started, but her words got caught in her throat. "I, just, didn't feel like being cooped up in there. It was too peaceful," she replied after a moment. Wisp merely shook.

"Hah! I don't believe that for a second," the little cloud retorted, and Mirrors huffed. "I think something inside was, shall we say, uncomfortable about the place. I don't mean like the bunnies from earlier. More like a little niggling feeling in the back of your skull screaming at you to get out."

"Shut up. I'm a wolf surrounded by prey! Why would I have a feeling like that?" Mirrors looked away. "Stupid cloud..."

"You know what I think?" he asked, slowly beginning to circle around her. "I think something forced you out. Something you have no control over. Some irrational fear that made you unable to stay any longer. Made you want to run and never turn back."

"I said shut up!" Mirrors barked, fur bristling.

"That's why I can't go in. There is a magic here that prevents me from getting inside simply due to my nature. That same magic affects you as well, to some degree, because of your nature."

"And just what do you know about my nature, hmm? What do you think you know about me?!" she raged, growling and barring her teeth, ready to spring on Wisp and tear him apart.

"I know that you're a wolf," he replied evenly. "I know that you're a wolf and that you didn't start that way, which brings me back to my question: How did you become a lycan?"

Mirrors paused and allowed herself time to think about Wisp's question.

"...I'm going to hunt."

She bolted into the forest, leaving him behind. She ran and ran, trying to drown out his words echoing in her ears with the rushing wind. When she reached the gap, she cleared it effortlessly. When she heard the bray of timber wolves nearby, she paid them no heed as there was no way for them to catch her unhindered. She ran until she spied a deer, then she sprinted even faster. It didn't even have time to lift its head before she was holding it down with her great orange claw and thrusting her jaws into its throat, but the kill did little to clear her head.

So she ran.

*****

When Mirrors finally returned to the clearing, she saw Epona parading around in a bird mask while playing her ocarina. She had amassed a troupe of animals, including several dozen rabbits, a flock of small birds, a couple cockatrices, and even one of the manticores, in a line behind her like a giant game of follow the leader. Those who weren't actively participating were listening and bobbing to the steady march. It almost seemed like the tree itself swayed to the rhythm.

She poked her head over the brush, closed her eyes, and waited for a few moments. A slight, almost undetectable pinch started to form in the back of her neck. When she pulled back again, the pinch faded into nothing, as though it had never existed.

"Epona!" she called from the edge. The parading filly paused and looked at her. "It's time to go!"

Epona nodded and put the ocarina away, then began walking toward her. However, something made her stop and look back at the tree. A few moments later, she pulled out a small pouch and hesitantly gave it to one of the squirrels, which darted up into the tree's branches. When it returned, the pouch was bulging slightly, as though it had been filled with something. Epona paused for a moment, staring into the open pouch, then glanced up at the tree and nodded. Finally, she put it away and made her way to and through the berry barrier.

"What was that all about?" Mirrors asked.

"The animals liked the parade so much that they gave me some seeds. Look at how many I have!" Epona held up her seed satchel.

"Great. When we get home, you can grow a garden. Now hop on. While you were playing, I was finding the way back home. Trixie's probably wondering where we are." Epona climbed up onto Mirrors' back and equipped Snowshoe. "All set? Then let's-"

"Don't forget about me!" Wisp cried as he quickly floated into Epona's mane.

"Empress forbid we leave you behind..." Mirrors grumbled. "Anyways. Epona, I'm gonna need your help getting back across the gap, so whatever you did last time, do it again." She pointed her nose away from the clearing. "Let's go home."

Comments

[Starcat5]

Why isn't this in one of the Zelda Groups? Here, let me fix that.

[Stoneificaunt]

Love the Bremen mask.

[Moowell]

3480689
Not yet she's not

3480674>>3480973>>3481390>>3481893
I'm sorry for the wait. It's just taken this long to actually figure out where it needed to go after the end of part 1.

3521534
Why, thank you!

3521577
Always made me happy parading around with cuccos, dogs, and stalfos in tow. There will be more of it later.

[GMZ_Casper]

...Well, this chapter had just revealed a few shocking surprises, that for sure. This is rather an interesting and subtle plot twist I had just read. Can't wait to see how that will play out in the future.

Short C&C:
epona paused for a moment...
> Capitalize 'epona'.

[Moowell]

3522885
It's true that she doesn't have the medallions. They would be way too powerful in this stage of her journey.

3522982
How did I miss that? Thank you, and fixed.

[Phazon_Corrupted_Unicorn]

Another great chapter, filled with mystery and intrigue. Can't wait for the next one!

[Moowell]

3524427
Why do you say that?

[Professor Donger]

3524430 I have no idea but this story is great. btw is there a chapter after 25? because my favorits are saying there is

[Moowell]

3524472
Currently, there are only 23 published chapters I'm not sure why your favorites would say there are more than that