//------------------------------//
// chapter 4 
// Story: A Bounty to Fight 
// by NightSugar pone 
//------------------------------//




Soon after Star was done cleaning herself up and counting up her bits she was escorted to a holding cell in the upper parts of the building, and she didn’t even this about fighting back for a second. Soon after she got to her cell she asked if she could have a quill and parchment to write a letter on, but the guards only gave her parchment and a small bottle of ink and said that if she wanted a quill she could pluck out one of her own feathers. She quietly grumbled at her misfortune at being considered a criminal but did not complain, instead, she pulled one of her older down feathers and began to write away.

Dear Sapphire

It's your mother, and I know it has been a while since you've seen me but believe me, I’m not in any trouble. However, I do need you to tell the rest of the team that I’m in the gryphon Kingdom, you also need to tell grandma this. I will write to you as often as I can but I might be kept busy at some points, so don’t worry if it takes me too long to send you another letter. And as always my little sea turtle, I love you and trust you, please take care of yourself for me.

Sincerely
Star Fall
PS. keep your aunt out of the house, I know you love her but she’s more trouble than you’d want to deal with on your own.

when she was done she used her wings to air dry the ink, before folding it up and handing it to one of the guards outside.

“Send this to 27 Oakville Lane in Ponyville, and thank you for the parchment and ink,”
she faked a pleasant smile and the guard took it wordlessly before walking away.
but now that Star was alone she decided to back away from the door and practice her fighting moves, a right kick and an uppercut here and a spinning kick there and she felt more than ready for another fight. That was until she heard the guard return to take his place by her door again, except it wasn’t the same guard. this puzzled her a little bit but she didn't bother to question it.
I might be in here a while so I might as well make conversation with anyone I can get.

“Hey there, how are you doing today?”
That sounded terrible, note to self. don’t sound as corny next time.
Star thought to herself as the guard began to look about as if he thought that she was talking to someone else he didn’t see, but the hall was empty.

“Uh did you mean me?”
he asked hesitantly, and star leant on the bars as she stuck her hooves through the open holes they made. 
This seemed to catch his attention enough to make him look at her, and she nodded to him with a relaxed smile on her face.
“Well, it's been alright I suppose, not much happens when I’m on duty, but you are the first criminal who decided to talk to me, though,”
Star sighed and shifted her hind hooves so she was more comfortable.

“It wasn’t  on purpose you know, it was a mistake when I didn’t know how to control myself, I would go back and change things in a heartbeat if I could,”
the memory of what happened came back in a flutter of flashes and she shook from the sad chill she got. the guard seemed to sense her sadness and sighed as she continued.
“I do honour you gryphons, though, and I’m not willing to fight any of you guards, I deserve every part of my punishment and I’ll take it even though I didn’t mean to do what I did,”
the guard went quiet, he hadn’t expected a killer to have so much honour and accept such a horrible crime even though it had come out of a mistake so far in the past, it was new for him.

“Why, though? like you said it was a mistake and that you would change it if you could, why wouldn’t you just try to escape?”
Star no longer kept eye contact with him and instead stared into the empty cell across from her as she spoke.

“Because it would be dishonourable, he would have wanted me to fess up to my crimes and mistakes, I would never just run from it because it would still be there and no matter how fast I’d run I’d never truly escape from it,”
she looked at him and their eyes met,
“Take a lesson from this and never run from a punishment, no matter how hard you want to it won’t help to go out the same way a coward would,”
with that, she moved away from the bars and lied down on her cot, and pulled the thin blanket up to her chest before slowly falling asleep. leaving the once uncomfortable guard to his thoughts.