//------------------------------//
// A Conducive Exchange 
// Story: The Ties that Bind 
// by the7Saviors 
//------------------------------//

Wild Evergreen felt good.

It was always nice to help out ponies in need, even if that meant getting her hooves dirty to do so. In her opinion it was always worth seeing a smile of gratitude on a pony's face when she went out of her way to lend a hoof.

At least, for those that deserved it.

When she was told to search this area for any sign of her target, she hadn't even known Little Trot had existed initially. That quickly changed once she saw the town being attacked by undead of all things.

Wild Evergreen didn't like the undead.

Of, course not many ponies did, but for Wild Evergreen, they were something to be dealt with as soon and as swiftly as possible. She was ordered not to draw attention to herself, and normally she would've followed that order to a tee. 

The attack on the town however, warranted Wild Evergreen's full attention. She wouldn't just stand by as innocent ponies were killed and eaten. So she acted, swooping in and wiping out as many of the undead as possible while she looked for the monster that caused it all.

It was safe to say the Necromancer wouldn't be raising anymore dead.

Wild Evergreen may have more or less done the complete opposite of what the boss had told her to do, but she still thought it was worth it in the end. She killed a Necromancer, she saved the town -- for the most part, she even stayed to help those suffering in the aftermath.

She was sure Frigid Gale would understand.

Still, it wouldn't have been a good idea to spend any more time in Little Trot than she did, so late the next day, she said her goodbyes to the grateful locals and flew further west.

She had been flying for quite a while when she finally spotted another town on the horizon -- this one a bit larger than Little Trot. It looked rather odd and out of place from her perspective, with strange buildings she hadn't seen before.

Wild Evergreen didn't dwell on it though, she had a job to do after all.

After a few more minutes, she reached the town gate and landed at the entrance. Upon landing, she trotted into town, taking in the odd sights around her. She had never seen such diversity in a single place like this. 

Sure, the bunker had quite a few griffons and even some diamond dogs here and there, but it was nowhere near the level of this town. Wild Evergreen found herself awed and pleasantly surprised by the fact. It was nice to see ponies and other races living in Harmony like this.

It was certainly a far cry from where she grew up, that's for sure.

She was snapped out of her musings by a pair of laughing foals and a diamond dog pup chasing each other across the road. She took a step back to let them pass and smiled as she watched them go.

"Adorable, aren't they?"

Wild Evergreen turned to see a female diamond dog approaching her from the direction of a large building nearby. She appeared to be a rather tall and old looking golden retriever and Wild Evergreen noted that she walked with a bit of a limp.

After a moment, the pegasus mare looked back towards the children who had stopped chasing each other and were now wrestling in the dirt. Her smile grew a bit softer and she turned back to the dog with a nod.

"Yeah, they sure are," she replied, "are you taking care of them or something?"

"Oh, just for a bit," the golden lab replied, smiling warmly as she eyed the children, "I'm just watching for some friends of mine while they're out."

"Oh, that's cool," Wild Evergreen replied, "tryin' to do right by your friends, lookin' out for the kids... I can respect that."

The old retriever chuckled and her expression turned to one of intrigue and amusement as she looked at Wild Evergreen.

"I take it you're fond of children?" she asked curiously.

"Me? Not really," the dark green pegasus replied, shaking her head and turning back to the foals and pup, "I just like to see everyone getting along like this... ponies, diamond dogs, griffons..." she gave a single shake of her head and chuckled slightly, "I even see a few minotaurs and yaks walking around."

"Ah, so you're not from around here then,"  the old dog guessed with a raised eyebrow, "that explains the look of wonder I see in your eyes."

"Yeah, I guess you could say that," Wild Evergreen answered slowly, "the place where I work has it's fair share of diversity, but everyone there is so freakin' dour all the time, kinda gets depressing after awhile, y'know?"

"I can only imagine," the retriever responded, nodding in agreement, "one can't be truly happy if they're surrounded by unhappy people. If it bothers you so much, you should try to get those around you to open up -- share their worries and concerns."

"Hmm..."

The golden retriever frowned in bemusement at the pegasus mare's thoughtful expression.

"Did I say something wrong?"

"Huh?" Wild Evergreen replied distractedly, "oh no, you're cool. It's just... what you're saying reminds me a little of this colt I know," she chuckled again, "he said something similar to me once."

"I see," the old dog replied, "he must be a nice young colt."

"Yeah, he's a good kid," Wild Evergreen answered with a small grin, "bit naive, but his heart's in the right place," she then frowned and looked at the retriever curiously, "say, I didn't catch your name, lady."

"Oh! Forgive me," the retriever replied, "I've been so caught up in our conversation, I had forgotten to introduce myself," she straightened up and smiled at Wild Evergreen, "my name is Tessa. I actually run the Dog's Day Inn -- the establishment you see behind me."

She stepped aside and gestured to the large multi-storied brick building Wild Evergreen had noticed earlier. It was an impressive and unique looking building with rounded windows and a roof made up of three large and somewhat flat looking slate covered cones.

Wild Evergreen whistled in appreciation and turned back to Tessa with an impressed nod.

"Looks pretty swanky," she commented, "kinda like one of those fancy inns you'd see in Las Pegasus."

"Well thank you for saying so," Tessa replied with a small giggle, "but the prices are nowhere near as high, I assure you," she smiled at the mare politely but expectantly, "and to whom did I have the pleasure of speaking to?"

"Oh, right. Name's Wild Evergreen," the pegasus mare answered, "you can just call me Evergreen."

"Very well then, Evergreen," Tessa replied with a nod and another kind smile, "are you planning on staying in Faranda Way Village for long?"

"Nah... well maybe," Wild Evergreen replied with a shrug, "it depends."

"On what, if I may ask?"

"On how long it takes me to do my job. I'm actually looking for somepony," Wild Evergreen answered, absently sweeping her gaze across the street, "maybe you've seen her."

"I see a lot of people," Tessa said with a small shrug of her own, "thankfully I have a fairly good memory for a dog my age. Who are you looking for?"

"A unicorn foal named Twilight Sparkle," the dark green mare explained, "lavender coat, indigo mane and tail with violet and pink streaks, and no cutie mark yet. She might be traveling alone, but I'm not sure on that. You haven't seen her have you?"

Tessa thought for a long moment, bringing a paw to her chin and furrowing her brow. Eventually she sighed and shook her head.

"No, I'm afraid I haven't seen anyone like that Miss Evergreen," she frowned in concern, "why the search? Did something happen to her?"

"Yeah, I guess... kind of?" Wild Evergreen rubbed the back of her neck as she tried to explain the situation to the old retriever, "from what I was told, her parents were murdered awhile back. Apparently she was so scared, her magic surged and she Teleported away from the house, and now she's missing."

"Oh, how horrible!" Tessa whispered, holding a paw to her face, "the poor dear."

"Yeah, it sucks pretty bad," the mare agreed, "but it ain't all bad. That colt I mentioned earlier? He's her brother, and I'm trying to find and... y'know, reunite them again."

Tessa slowly shook her head and muttered something under her breath before turning her attention back to Wild Evergreen.

"Well I hope you managed to find the... wait a minute," she furrowed her brow in thought, "you said her name was Twilight Sparkle?"

"Yeah, that's right," the pegasus answered, "lavender coat and all that. Why, did you remember something about her?" she asked, taking a hopeful step towards the old retriever, "if you know anything you gotta tell me."

"Well... I may not have seen the poor filly myself," Tessa answered in a slow contemplative tone, "but I did hear that a 'Twilight Sparkle' was participating in the Spring Festival we had here a few days ago. It seems she won some big event during the festival, and got quite a tasty prize for it."

"Really?" Wild Evergreen pressed, taking another step forward, "did you hear anything else? Was she alone, or with somepony or someone else?"

"Indeed she was, now that I think on it," Tessa replied with a nod, "as a matter of fact, the old stallion she was with is an old friend of mine -- goes by the name of Ancient Scroll," she chuckled, "that stallion is one of the good ones let me tell you... it's a shame I didn't get to see him during the festival."

Wild Evergreen's eyes widened in surprise for a brief second before flattening into a more neutral expression.

"Interesting..." she replied evenly, "did they happen to be traveling with anypony else?"

"Let me think..." Tessa responded, humming to herself in thought. She snapped her fingers and nodded once, "I believe a few of the festival goers that stayed here mentioned a little blue filly and an orange filly that had a rather... bountiful red and yellow mane and tail. Unfortunately I didn't catch their names, but I hope I was able to help at least a little."

"Nono, it's cool, trust me," the dark green pegasus replied with a dismissive wave of her hoof, "you've been an awesome help, I think I got all the info I needed for now."

"Oh?" Tessa responded, giving Wild Evergreen a relieved smile, "well that's good to hear. Here's hoping you're able to bring those two poor souls back together again."

"Huh?" Wild Evergreen asked in confusion, before her eyes lit up in understanding, "oh, right, you mean her brother. Yeah, I'll make sure they're able to see each other again," she stepped back and opened her wings, "anyway, I think that's all for now. It was nice talking to you, Tess but I gotta go."

With that, she took off before Tessa could reply. The golden retriever stared off after the pegasus with a slight frown of worry. Her ears perked up and she turned towards the children who were making their way back over to her. She smiled and went to greet them, but couldn't help but grimace and turn her gaze back to the sky once more.

She hadn't noticed it when she was talking to the mare, but now that she was gone, an uneasy feeling settled in her stomach -- and she began to wonder just who Wild Evergreen really was.


...Why do I suddenly get the feeling I've made a terrible mistake?