//------------------------------// // A Night to Remember // Story: Just a Little Batty // by I Thought I Was Toast //------------------------------// Apple Bloom, Sweetie, and Scoots had been sneaking glances at my flank all day, and I had no idea why. Bloom was doing it now. I could see her looking—brow furrowed, lips pursed—out of the corner of my eye. Before that had been Sweetie, a thoughtful scrunch to her face, while Scoots didn’t so much stare as buzz her wings excitedly every time she looked out of the corner of her eye. It made me squirm a little as I did my schoolwork, the periodic feeling of my hackles rising distracting me from reading my textbook. “Psst!” I glanced up to see Diamond point between me and Bloom, gesturing silently for… something…. I tilted my head to the side, and she rolled her eyes, gesturing even more exaggeratedly. My ear flicked a few times before I shrugged and held a hoof to my ear. She sniffed imperiously, grabbing a pencil and paper, and I snuck a covert glance at Miss Cheerilee to make sure she was still busy with whatever work she was doing. Oh, no…. Miss Cheerilee’s quill was flying at the speed of Rainbow Dash—a sure sign that somepony was going to have a bad day when she hoofed back their homework. She looked haggard, one hoof massaging her temples as she worked, so it had to be bad. Thwap! As I was distracted by our teacher’s bloody massacre, something smacked me right in the back of the head and fell to the floor. I turned and glared at Diamond momentarily—she could have warned me, after all—but she was busy glowering at Apple Bloom, who was staring at my flank again. Bending down to pick up the piece of paper, I snuck one last glance at Cheerilee. She was still busy, so I took a deep breath and took the plunge. Opening Diamond’s note, I became her accomplice in breaking the rules. “What’s up with Bloom and the others? —DT” Hay if I know. I tossed Diamond’s note back to her, booping her right on the snoot in payback. She broke off from glaring at Apple Bloom to pout at me. Picking up the note, she pouted even more when she saw I hadn’t written anything back. Her head tilted to the side, and she gestured between Bloom and me again, so I just shrugged. We’d find out what was up at— Brrrrring! Speak of the sun witch, and she shall appear. Guess it was time for recess. “I don’t know about this, Diamond.” I trotted after my friend as she hurried towards the tree the other Crusaders had gathered under. “It feels too confrontational.” “If it makes you uncomfortable, then we need to deal with it now!” Diamond snorted. “Honestly! They should know better! I have no idea why they—” “Hey! Night! Diamond! Silver!” Apple Bloom broke from conspiratorially whispering with her fellow founding Crusaders to wave us over. “Come on, already! We got big news and even bigger plans!” “Hey, Bloom! We’ll get there when we’re good and ready!” Diamond paused, rolling her eyes. “Acting like nothing is wrong,” she muttered under her breath. “Even they can’t be so dense as to not know how rude they were being.” Silver shrugged. “You know how they get when they’re really excited, Diamond—common sense right out the window.” Diamond grumbled unintelligibly the rest of the way to the Crusaders. “Alright, then,” she huffed as we reached them. “What’s your big news?” “Gabby’s coming for a visit next month!” Apple Bloom hopped from hoof to hoof. “Got a letter in the mail and everything!” “Gabby?” I tilted my head to the side. “Who’s that?” “She’s a friend of ours from a while back.” Sweetie sighed and smiled. “Yeah, a griffon friend!” Scoots pumped her hoof. “All claws, and talons, and beaks. She’s totally awesome and great at helping ponies find their calling just like us!” “We even made her an honorary Crusader.” Bloom nodded. “I remember her….” Silver hummed. “It was like you three trying to get your cutie marks all over again.” She shuddered. “There was tree sap and pine needles everywhere….” “Hey!” Scoots buzzed her wings. “Don’t knock it! Both you and Diamond know how fun it is!” “That doesn’t really explain why you were all staring at Night’s flank,” Diamond muttered darkly. “Huh?” Apple Bloom blinked. “Oh, yeah, that!” She blushed a little as she turned to me. “Sorry if we made you uncomfortable, Night, but the girls and I were talking about Gabby on our way to school, and you kind of came up—being the only other carnivore we really know. One thing led to another, and it kind of dawned on us that we never actually asked you how you got your cutie mark.” “Yeah!” Sweetie chimed. “Honestly, I feel kinda bad about it! Back before we got our cutie marks, we basically asked everypony we met!” “It took you forever to ask me,” Diamond sniffed. “Uh, Diamond?” Bloom arched her brow. “I know! I know!” Diamond huffed. “I don’t count.” “I wouldn’t say that.” Apple Bloom shook her head. “I mean, without you coming to us for help we wouldn’t’ve gotten our marks, right, Scoots?” “Yeah.” Scootaloo nodded before turning to me. “Still, everypony here already knows our cutie mark story. We should be talking about yours. With you wanting to be a guard, I bet it’s full of all sorts of excitement and danger!” Scootaloo’s eyes sparkled as she buzzed her wings. I squirmed at the attention, which only made Bloom, Sweetie, and Scoots unleash their big puppy dog eyes on me. I glanced at the crescent moon on my butt—nestled in the crook of two thestral wings—to try and avoid their weapons-grade gazes, but it was too late. “Guys… that’s not fair!” I rustled my wings, sneaking a peek to see if they’d stopped. Their pouts had only intensified, making me feel like I’d kicked them. “Alright, alright… just stop looking at me like that!” “Night, if you really don’t want to—” Sweetie started, her pout still in place despite what I said. “No, I’m fine telling you about it, really….” I poked at the ground. “You’re just being a bit—” “Obnoxious,” Diamond huffed. “Obsessive,” Silver tsked. “—excessive.” My ears folded back a moment before I gave everypony a small smile. “You’ve been looking at me like you’re gonna eat me all day, and I’m the carnivore here.” The Crusaders opened their mouths to apologize, but I just shook my head and settled into the shade of the tree. Everypony gathered around me—Diamond and Silver flanking me for support—while I looked to the wide, white sky above me and hummed in thought. “Okay, so it all happened a few months after Princess Luna came back…” Dad and I walked up to the gate at a steady pace, his polished armor glinting in the moonlight. It took everything I had not to canter ahead and into the castle, but I was a good little soldier and I would— No! Dad, what are you doing?! Don’t stop! I scrambled to a halt as Dad paused to nod at the guards. My frogs itched as I stared past them to the white-grey walls of the castle. Looking up, I saw its spires spearing into the heavens. I fought the urge to hop from hoof to hoof, failed, and felt my neck burn black as Dad gave a rumbling chuckle. “Evening, rookies.” The two guards remained still and unmoving for the most part, but their muscles tensed at the greeting. If I squinted, I could catch a tiny grin chiseling itself out of their faces. “Yes, Gibbous, she is adorable.” Dad patted me on my withers. “How’s the wife?” There was no response other than the tiniest arching of the left one’s brow. “Oh, really?” Dad’s laughed boomed through the silent night. “Perhaps you shouldn’t have snuck that bag of salt into the break room, then? Two weeks of late morning kitchen police was the captain going easy on you!” He shook his head as the guard on the right blinked. “That’s great news, Shadow! I’m happy you two are taking the next step forward.” The left one flicked his ear. “Oh? Morning’s doing fine. Thanks for asking. I think the difference in schedules might be finally getting to her, though. We see so little of each other….” Both guards’ ears bent back a few millimeters. “Nah, it’s fine.” Dad smiled wistfully. “Sometimes I think about switching back to the day shift, though. Night’s not a baby any more, after all.” I paused in my antics to stand tall and puff out my chest. “Yeah! I’m a big filly!” Both the guards made a double blink at me and Dad—definitely the most emotion they’d shown all night. “Well, I did fall in love with a day dweller.” Dad chuckled and waved to the guards, leading me inside as they continued to blink bemusedly. “Of course I’m a little batty.” Finally in the castle, I may have gleefully screed to the heavens. “We’re gonna see Princess Lu-u-na!~ We’re gonna see Princess Lu-u-na!~” I bounded about looking every which way. Up. Down. Left. Right. There was just so much to see! Maybe it wasn’t that different from last time, but last time there hadn’t been a Princess of the Night! “Screeheehee!” I did a flip. Then I did another. “Night.” Dad lightly stomped his hoof, and I was instantly standing at attention. He squinted at me as I quivered in excitement, before giving a very tiny sigh and a microscopic smile. “At ease, soldier.” “Sir, yes, sir!” He nodded tersely to a couple more guards who were stonely watching us—blank of face, staring straight ahead—and strode through the main door into the castle. I shook in place behind him, trying my best to mirror his stride as we made our way towards the throne room. “We’re gonna see Luna~ We’re gonna see Luna~” I hummed to myself as we approached the big, fancy doors, quickly stopping when Dad turned back to look at me with a furrowed brow. “Right….” I sucked in a breath. “Professional and proud. I am a guard.” With immense effort, I stopped quivering, and saluted Dad. He watched me for a moment before snorting and continuing past the doors of the throne room. “But I thought…” I forced myself not to pout as Dad led me through several more halls and archways. As we approached a much smaller, simpler door with a single guard standing by about a minute later, he began to slow, his posture stiffening. He turned back to glance at me one more time—the tiniest smile on his face—as he opened the door and ushered me through. The guard to the side winked as I was nudged towards the curtain blocking the other side. “Wha—” I squeaked as Dad pushed me through, looking to the right and left to see the giant doors from before, and a currently empty throne. Glancing back, I saw Dad smirking from the nearly invisible door, concealed by a tapestry and some drapes. “Side door for castle staff.” He entered after me and nodded to the solitary guard before the throne. They gave him a quick salute, and trotted off as he took up his shift for the night—me standing next to him as still as I could manage. “Why’s there only one throne?” I glanced back a few times at the sparkly metal seat. It reflected light far more flashily than a nice silver throne would have, so it must have been… gold? That couldn’t be right. “Where’s Princess Luna’s?” Several seconds of silence. “Dad?” I looked back up to see my Dad had turned to stone like the other guards. “Oh, right….” I turned forward and resisted the urge to fidget. A good guard could stand still for hours, so that’s what I was going to do. Yep. Standing still. For hours. With no princess. Where was Princess Luna? It had to have been, like— Wait. Really? Only six minutes?! What happened to all my practice?! I was better than this! My eyes trailed up to look at the clock on the wall again—perfectly hidden from the rest of the throne room by banners and tapestries. It teased me with its painfully slow movement, each quiet tick faintly carrying through the empty throne room. Taking a deep breath, I blew it out noisily through my nose. My nostrils tingled a little as they flared, and I flopped my ears a few times as I shuffled from hoof to hoof. I. Can. Do. This. “Guard, attend Us!” The throne room doors whooshed open, slamming into the walls as a blue alicorn filly strode imperiously into the throne room. I began to vibrate in place as the thestral guard following The Princess Luna came in to pile several cushions he was carrying upon the throne. Luna ascended to take her place upon it. The guard she had brought saluted and backed away to take up the post on the other side of Dad, while I continuously peeked at the Night Mother. She was… frowning… heavily. Her scowl darkened the room like a thunderstorm, and her eyes flashed like lightning. Maybe I shouldn’t ask her if I could join the Night Guard right now? She looked more angry than the sun witch that one time I stole her nightly three a.m. slice of Death by Chocolate. Yeah…. Now seemed like a bad time…. She’d probably sentence me to extra school or something. I’d ask her later. Maybe after court. Although, she’d probably be swamped with ponies then, so— “Finally, We can start with this farce.” Princess Luna glowered at the clock as it struck one a.m. “Court is now in session! ...session! ...session!” Her voice echoed back from the halls. Wait. Court was starting now? I blinked and looked up at the clock even as I forced my head to stay still. But there was nopony lined up outside the door! Why wouldn’t anypony be here for the bestest, most wonderful, amazing and talented princess now that she was back?! Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. The clock quietly assaulted my ears in the empty hall. One minute. Two minutes. Five minutes. Fifteen. After half an hour, I was fidgeting so much I could have had fleas. “Where is everypony?” I whimpered. There was a sharp inhalation from Dad beside me at the question, but he still kept as still as a statue. His eyes flicked from side to side—between me and Princess Luna. The ruler of the night shifted her stormy gaze to me and blinked. I blinked back, still pouting. “They—” she boomed, and my ears fell flat as I took a step back. “They…” A silent sniff accompanied a much softer voice. I had to twist and strain my ears to catch it. “They do not care for Our court, little one…. As it has always been, so shall it always be. The ponies of Equestria seek Our sister’s aid before Our own….” Dad exhaled just as quietly as he stopped holding his breath. “But— But— But—” I looked up, eyes wide. “But you’re Princess Luna!” The princess’ frown deepened. “Yes, and Our sister is Princess Celestia.” “But she’s the sun witch!” I squeaked, pouting up at her. “And most ponies are day dwellers.” Had she just smirked when I called Celestia a sun witch? If she had, it had been quickly buried back beneath her scowl. “But what about us?!” I stomped a hoof. “There aren’t even any thestrals here!” ”Ye no longer need Us, little one.” Definitely a wistful smile this time. “The thestrals of today have grown independent in Our absence. We are most… proud… of you all for that—both your determination and your loyalty.” “Huh?” I blinked before shaking my head. Didn’t matter. There was still nopony here. “But—” “Night….” Dad shook slightly as he ground his fangs together. “Please, stop.” “But—” “Nightingale Mooncrest, I did not bring you here to argue with the Princess,” Dad rumbled quietly with a deep, gravelly growl that made me mewl and shrink in on myself. “Peace, Tempered Mettle.” The best princess ever smiled at me and hopped down from her throne to hold a hoof out to me. “Foals are wont to speak their minds. ‘Tis something We have always loved about them.” Her smile widened as I cautiously poked my head forward to nuzzle it. “You— You know my name, Princess?” Dad’s voice shot up a few octaves as his jaw dropped. “We know all the names of Our Night Guard. Ooof!” Princess Luna looked up at Dad, and I took the opening to pounce the filly-sized princess with a hug. Protocol be darned, she needed one right now. “Is that so surprising? It is the least We can do for those who swear their lives to Us. Indeed, thou and Crescent Axe—” The other guard sneezed, but was otherwise still as a rock. “—have been such stalwart protectors that it would be an insult not to know your names.” Oh! Oh! Now was my chance! “Well, I promise to serve you!” I pulled back to salute my soon-to-be commander-in-chief. “All you have to do is let me join the Night Guard!” “Night….” Dad had picked his jaw up off the ground and was stoically rumbling again. “We talked about this….” “What?” I tilted my head to the side. “I’m not trying to get out of school! I just want something to do! The Canterlot Junior Guard does all its stuff during the day! I need to get real training somehow!” Princess Luna hummed, arching an eyebrow. “Thou art a bit young to be inducted, sadly. Is thy life as a squire truly so unsatisfying, though?” “She’s not a squire. She’s my daughter.” Dad puffed his chest out just a little. “Even more reason to make her so, then!” The Princess’ volume momentarily jumped. “Dad can make me his squire?!” I started vibrating in place. “Why didn’t I think of that?!” “No! No, I can’t!” Dad shook his head. “I’m not even a knight!” “Princess Luna can make you one!” I turned the puppy-dog eyes on at full blast. “Pwease?” The other guard grunted, squeezing his eyes shut, but Princess Luna smiled, ruffling my mane. “He is of noble lineage.” She nodded. “Should he wish it, We can make it so.” Dad fidgeted. “Well, I don’t wish it, so—” “Please please please please pleeeease!” I turned my weaponized cuteness on him. “Sir?” “Morning is going to kill me for this….” Dad started massaging the bridge of his muzzle. “So that’s a yes! Yay!” I did a flip before dancing on my frogs. “Screeheeheeheehee!” “It isn’t a yes, Night. I will talk with your mother. No promises.” Dad frowned, and I quickly snapped to attention. “Sir, yes, sir!” I saluted. “Huzzah!” Luna bellowed, sweeping Dad into a hug. “At last, something to do besides this farce of a court! Thou canst give Us thine answer upon the morrow, and We can make it so! Much wisdom have We on the training of squires! We would be remiss to withhold it from thee! Friend Tempered, we shall forge thy daughter into a most glorious knight of the night!” “F-friend?!” Dad squeaked, turning darker from lack of air. “Indeed!” Luna stomped a hoof and the floor cracked. “Come! We can even begin now, in case thy spouse cannot be swayed! Surely thou canst approve one lesson without her input?!” “Eurk!” Dad choked in the Princess’ vise grip. “Oh, Our apologies.” Princess Luna dropped Dad, her volume shrinking to match her blush. “What say thee, Sir Tempered Mettle?” “I—” Dad bit his lip. Hard. He looked back at his fellow Night Guard, who gave the smallest of shrugs, before he sighed and put his guard face back on. “If that is what you wish, Princess.” He bowed before rising to salute her. Luna wilted for a second, making me frown at Dad, but then she shook herself and smiled at me. “Come, then. We shall work to tune thy posture like a fine instrument.” “Really?!” I beamed up at the Princess even as I scrambled back into position by Dad—who had gone still as a statue again. “‘Cause I’ve been practicing that!” Dad coughed, and I looked up to see him staring straight forward with a stoic face. Oh. Right. That. I schooled my expression and breathed deeply a few times to stop vibrating. Princess Luna walked around me slowly, squinting at me with the same ferocity I gave butterflies when I was hunting in the park. My stomach tossed and turned at the attention, but I kept myself as still as possible. Tensing my muscles, I resisted my hind legs’ attempts to fidget and quiver, and I stood as tall and proud as my little filly body could. It was somewhat ruined with Dad’s towering presence beside me, but I still gave it my best shot. “Good…. Good….” Luna hummed and I almost broke position to do a flip. “Thy stance is perfect, and thy head stands tall. Thy muscles are a little tense, but it is quite clear that thou hast been practicing on thine own.” She smirked. “There is more to the job than standing still, however. A true Night Guard must be steadfast enough to remain vigil in even the most trying conditions.” “Princess?” I flicked an ear but otherwise managed to keep my head upright and looking straight ahead. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see the Princess prowling. Her wings raised like a bird of prey about to strike, and then she— “Have at thee!” I nearly jumped out of my skin as she descended, but held firm in the face of the charge. Her feathers hit me in the side, softly sliding under my ribs and down my legs, assaulting all my weak points. I couldn’t stop myself from giggling, but I did manage to stay standing—twitching and fidgeting and buckling under the might of the moon. Only when she stopped did I collapse to the ground, panting. I glanced at Dad to see him and the other guard still standing perfectly at attention with only the corners of their mouths slightly upturned, while Princess Luna now giggled beside me. “An excellent attempt, young Nightingale, but thou must improve thyself shouldst thou seekest to join Our Guard.” She turned to face Dad with a predatory grin. “Watch and learn how a real soldier must hold themselves.” “Princess?” Dad gave a gravely squeak, still as still as a statue. “Do not worry, Tempered Mettle. A true guard has no reason to fear such a simple test of character.” The Princess pounced, and Dad braced himself for the feathery onslaught. Biting his lip hard enough to draw a tiny trickle of blood, he was a stoney mountain amid a feathery storm. He did not budge. He did not flinch. He hardly even breathed. I watched on in awe as he refused to move an inch, and even when the Princess hit Mom’s favorite tickle spots, he simply tensed—turning from a mound of rock into a lump of tempered metal. After a good half an hour of this—I kept track of the clock—the Princess finally ceased her assault, and Dad gave a mighty exhale. He gulped down air, letting a tiny quiver finally run through his body, but he didn’t even seem close to collapsing like I had after only a minute. “Behold!” Luna bellowed, raising a hoof to the heavens. “The stamina and stoicism of Our Guard! Able to shrug off even the most dire wounds and torture to continue on in their duty!” “Screeheeheeheehee!” I cantered up to Dad and hugged him. “Teach me! Teach me! Teach me! Teach me! Teach me!” “All in due time, young Nightingale,” Princess Luna chuckled. “When We have finished with thee, thou wilt be able to walk off a spear to the chest as if it were nothing.” “Yep….” Dad rumbled under his breath. “Morning is going to kill me….” “A spear to the chest like nothing? Awesome!” I squeezed Dad’s foreleg as tight as I could. “I’m gonna be a squire!~ I’m gonna be a squire!~” “Only if your mother says yes.” Dad allowed a frown to slip past his stony face. “We have heard stories of thy spouse whispered by the other Night Guard,” Princess Luna huffed. “If she is half the mare they fear and admire, then We imagine she will proudly support her daughter going down this path.” “Permission to speak freely, Princess?” Dad furrowed his brow and bowed his head. “Of course.” Princess Luna nodded. “There is a difference between being supportive and being recklessly encouraging.” Dad looked up with fire in his eyes. “Glory and I would love nothing more than for Night to follow in our hoofsteps. She’s certainly responsible enough and dedicated enough to make the Guard.” He glanced down at my beaming face before shaking his head. “At the end of the day, though, she’s still just a filly. Putting her in the Junior Guard is one thing, but making Night an actual squire is something else entirely. I… I don’t think I can agree even if Morning somehow does.” Wha— Huh— What?! Betrayal! “But Daaaaad!” I gave a squeaky shriek. “You said you would!” “There’s more to being in the Guard than heroics and helping others, Night!” Dad snorted and stomped a hoof. “There’s discipline and honor—” “—and pain!” I finished with a hiss, stomping my hoof in kind. “It’s about being willing to sac— sacri—” I stumbled over the word. “It’s about being ready to give yourself up for everypony you care about! Grandma Moonshine already gave me that speech!” “Do you really know what that means, though?” Dad rumbled like thunder. “Because I’m sorry, Night, but I find it hard to believe that you truly understand. It took me until a few years after I got my cutie mark to fully appreciate your grandma Moonshine’s speech.” “I do, though!” I looked at the ground, tears streaking down my cheeks. “Tell him, Princess!” Princess Luna shifted beside me, but said nothing. Dad put a hoof under my chin and lifted it to gaze deeply into my eyes. “Look me in the eye, and tell me, then. What does being in the Guard mean to you?” “It… it means doing what’s right, even if it’s scary….” I muttered, looking down. “I know there’s a chance that someday you and Mom might head to work and not come home. I know! It’s hard for me to talk about, so I don’t, but that doesn’t mean I don’t understand!” I shook my head out of Dad’s grip and buried it into his chest. “I get it! Really, I do! That’s why I want to be in the Guard! Every night and day, you and Mom walk out the door and do the bravest thing I can think of—even if nothing happens to you!” I looked back up to see Dad looking down, a wistful smile on his face. “I—” I bit my lip. “I just want to be as brave as you and Mom…. I want to be brave enough to do whatever it takes to help my friends and family.” “Oh, Night….” Dad swept me into a bone-crushing hug. “I’m so sorry. Sometimes I forget just how much more responsible you are compared to me at that age.” “So you’ll make me your squire?” I sniffed into his foreleg. “I still need to talk to your mother—” “Aww…” I kicked the ground. “—but, at the very least, you can be my unofficial squire.” “Princess approved?” I looked at Luna. “Princess approved.” Luna nodded, smiling. “We wouldn’t dream of holding thee back from thy newfound calling.” She gestured to my flank—all tingly and warm and sparkly? “No way!” I looked back to see a pair of thestral wings cradling a crescent moon. “Dad! Dad! Look! I got my cutie mark! Mom can’t say ‘no’ now! I’m meant to be a guard!” There was a rock slide turning into an avalanche as Dad’s chuckles turned into roars of laughter. He boosted my giggling form on his back, and we flew around the throne room, screeing in glee. After a few laps, he crashed into the other guard and pulled him into a one-sided dance. “Come, Crescent! Join them!” Luna bellowed. “We believe the current phrase is ‘shake thine booty!’” The guard’s left eyebrow twitched. “Shake it! We command thee!” “Woah….” The Crusaders were looking at me with starry eyes. “So, you’re like, actually a knight or something?” “Mom thought squirehood was a bit much.” I sighed, poking the ground with one hoof. “It would have been really cool, though.” “Totally!” Scootaloo had the most sparkles. “Y-you don’t really think you’re gonna…” Diamond trailed off, strangely subdued from my story. “Nah.” I shook my head. “Dad says I’ll have it easy. At the rate the Elements are going, every evil in Equestria is probably going to end up bound, resealed, or reformed at least twice by the time I finally get into the Guard. Pretty sure there won’t be any super evils left to, you know… kill me….” I squirmed a bit. “Although, I might get tasked with watching the reformed ones…. I really don’t want to watch Discord.” “Oh, he ain’t that bad,” Apple Bloom chuckled. “He helped us out on a few of our more… intense cutie mark runs. Actually, he’s pretty fun when you get to know him.” “No thanks.” I shivered at the thought of how much tree sap that probably involved. “I don’t want to—” The schoolbell started clanging and I looked to the schoolhouse to see Miss Cheerilee standing by the door with our homework. “We’ll talk later.” Quickly packing my lunch up, I trotted towards the classroom. “I’ve got eraser cleaning duty before class starts. See ya in a few!” “See ya!” everypony chorused back. The hungry sun glared down upon me as I ran from the shade of the tree for the school, but I barely felt it next to the warm tingle on my flank. It really had been too long since anypony had asked.