//------------------------------//
// This Again 
// Story: The Olden World 
// by Czar_Yoshi 
//------------------------------//

To Maple's dismay, the journey to the Water District entrance Gerardo had located was once again uphill. She was hardly out of shape, and had the natural good stamina inherent to earth ponies, but a full day spent on her hooves, constantly carrying either a heavy crate or a large filly in which breaks were minimal and she had ascended the better part of a huge mountain proved taxing. Panting lightly, she forced herself to keep pace with an eager Gerardo, trying not to stumble.

If the griffon himself was tired, he didn't show it, proudly and efficiently leading the way through the city streets. The crowds began to die down as they passed, thanks to a combination of the late hour and the approaching outskirts of the city.

Most families would be inside, eating their dinners together. Maple's thoughts on the matter still hadn't settled from her conversation with Starlight, though the rational side of her brain knew dwelling on it wouldn't prove useful then and there. Hopes and goals for the future were fine, but she had enough on her plate as it was, first and foremost making sure her two friends didn't wear on each other. After the delivery, she told herself. In the event that Gerardo's crates truly were urgent, it would be best to get them out of the way as soon as possible, and if they weren't, doing so would still be an act of good faith. They could discuss everything once they lost this excuse to be busy.

Suddenly, a shadow flitted over her eyes, causing her to blink and pull up... and realize that Gerardo had stopped immediately in front of her, and was looking around. "My load feels oddly heavier," the griffon remarked. "Can any of you..." He looked up, and Maple followed suit.

Lounging atop Gerardo's crate, where there definitely hadn't been one before, was a pegasus... if pegasi had featherless wings, leafy ears, and slitted eyes, that was. "Woah, look who it is!" She grinned down with a fanged smile, green mane kept out of her face by a black beret. "You guys are those bandits from earlier!"

"Who...?" Maple squinted up at the crate, drawing a blank.

Gerardo met her gaze more evenly. "Please get off my crate, Admiral Valey."

"Hah! Wow." Practically slithering down the side of the box, Valey landed on all fours, blocking the road with her posture. "You actually remembered my name without me asking. Good job, Birdo."

Gerardo's brow furrowed. "Ignoring the irony of that statement, to what do we owe this meeting? By my own last check, you cleared us to travel in this district yourself."

"Bad luck." Valey shrugged, taking a step around Gerardo, closer to Maple and Starlight. "I spent most of the day haunting that wacky pancake pegasus, but he eventually got kinda boring. Then I happened to run into you guys, and thought, 'hey, cool bird! Maybe I'll go bother it instead!'"

"I am a griffon," Gerardo imperiously began, before Starlight cut him off.

"No you didn't," she accused, pointing a hoof. "You didn't just find us! You were following us in the museum! I saw you watching me!"

"In the..." Gerardo blinked. "What? And I was not informed?"

"Meh. You got me." Valey spread her forelegs wide, shaking her head and hovering. "I lied. Pancake got boring hours ago, so I tracked you down. Pretty easy, when you can smell the kid from across the city." She pointed a rear hoof at Starlight, keeping her forelegs folded in front of her.

"Hey!" Maple defensively set down her crate and moved in front of Starlight, shielding her from view. "She doesn't stink!"

Valey shrugged. "Hey, whatever floats your boat. For real, though, I did see him lurking around this place not too long ago, so watch your backs. I don't trust that guy any more than you should trust me."

Maple scowled, but Gerardo tilted his head. "Would the implication of such a phrase not be that we should trust that pegasus, should we happen to see him...?"

Ignoring him, Valey did a backflip in midair. "So, are you gonna tell me your names, or do I get to name you myself like Birdo?"

"If I may..." Gerardo raised a talon, looking somewhere between wounded and annoyed.

"I'm Maple," Maple answered, glaring defiantly at the batpony, "and this is Starlight."

"Cool, cool." Valey nodded. "So... what's in the boxes?" She prowled around behind Gerardo, nosing at the crate Maple had dropped and making a face. "Ew, mud. You guys are weird."

Gerardo puffed up defensifely. "For your information, mud appears to be a regular occurrence in the Earth District, and I would strongly expect you to know that. Furthermore, the contents of these crates is classified, and I'm afraid I cannot tell you."

"Eh. I know there's mud." Valey shrugged again, flicking her tail at Maple as she turned back to Gerardo, running a wing over the crate. "I know a lot of things. Basically everything, actually, since I get paid to stick my nose where it doesn't belong." She turned again and glared at the box. "Except what's in here. And I really wanna know."

"As I said, I would very much rather you didn't ask," Gerardo insisted, far more force in his tone than his word choice. "I'm not going to tell you!"

Valey squinted sideways at the crates, tilting her head so far her beret nearly fell off and she had to catch it with a wing. "Can't ask, huh? Well, since you didn't say anything about guessing... is it contraband? Contraband..." She hummed, holding her chin. "Snails. Yup. That's my guess."

Maple's eyes crossed. "Why would anyone even try to smuggle snails? That makes no sense."

"Neither does hiding something from someone who can kick all your rears into next week, or have you arrested on the spot," Valey countered with a shrug. "It's like you actually have no idea who I am. To be honest, this is the most refreshing thing that's happened to me all day."

"You're welcome?" Maple gave her an odd look, but didn't press. The words didn't seem hostile.

"So, random question!" Valey perked up, jumping on the box and flopping lazily, one foreleg dangling over the side. "Mangoes or bananas, which do you like more? Or any other kind of fruit."

Gerardo looked suspiciously at her, but Maple shrugged. "Mangoes, I guess? Pineapple is kind of special. Why do you ask?"

"Well..." Valey stared off down the cliff wall, the emerald canopy of the Earth District looming in the distance. "I was going to go steal some fruit for dinner, but lately there's this new accountant working for the higher-ups who has a really short fuse when it comes to robberies, and he's so fun to mess with that I've been getting carried away and bagging more than I can eat just to make him blow his stack. Mind if I dump the excess on you guys instead? There's no need to be wasteful..."

"What value of 'dump' are you referring to?" Gerardo asked, narrowing his eyes.

"Hah! You're good." Valey pointed a foreleg at him, backstroking through the air. "Anyway, I'll take that as not minding. Smell ya later!"

She flipped into a dive, soaring off toward the trees so fast that the tips of her wings left minute vapor trails in her wake. The trio peered over the street edge, watching her depart, and in a matter of seconds she was gone.

Gerardo shrugged. "Well, that was acceptable. The entrance is just ahead. Let us make haste!"

Behind him, Maple hoisted her own crate back onto her back, checked to ensure Starlight was still by her side, and stepped onward, following the griffon further up the stony road.