//------------------------------//
// Chapter 3 
// Story: Rust In The Breeze 
// by Twisted Brew 
//------------------------------//

Rusty's naked reflection stared back at him through the now steam-filled bathroom. Looking clean and refreshed, if only a touch malnourished as well, he ran a hand through recently cut hair. The texture was different from what he had grown used to over the years. The once greasy, disheveled mess had been trimmed down to a manageable, and somewhat stylish, length. It resembled how he used to look, but with a nice little Rarity twist. She always had to spice things up a little...

    The small, colorful stone hanging around his neck caught his attention for a moment. He'd been wearing it for so long, he hardly ever noticed its presence unless he's bathing, which wasn't something that happened as often as he would like. Seeing it always made his stomach turn. Part of him wanted to take it off, but he didn't feel he was ready for that quite yet. He needed more time...

    Glancing down, he spotted the small pair of scissors and a razor that Rarity had kindly set out for him upon his request. After wiping down the mirror to see himself more clearly, he took the scissors in his hand, opening them before pressing it against his cheek and closing the blades. They came together at a slow pace, slicing off an uncountable number of hairs that would fall into the sink bowl. He repeated this process several times in different spots, aiming in multiple directions, and changing the angle every so often to be sure he had shortened every last hair on his face. With the hairs shortened to a decent length, he set the scissors aside and grabbed the razor. The small blades glided gently through his features, cleaning up the edges and eventually making him into something that looked somewhat presentable. Setting the razor down, he slipped his fingers into short stubble that went down the side of his head from his hair to his chin and over his lip.

    Rusty could remember a time that seemed almost forever ago, when Ryan would whine and complain about never being able to grow a beard. He could only imagine how upset his younger alternate would be if he saw him now. That thought brought an amused grin to his face. His thoughts went toward a more sensitive topic, leading him to begin wondering about his family. His smile fell as he made a silent prayer for their safety. He knew Steel Hoof would keep them going, but he couldn't help but worry.

    "Oh, Rusty~" Rarity's voice sang from behind the door. "Could you come downstairs for a minute, darling? I have a surprise for you!"

    Yanking his sights from his reflection, Rusty washed all of the hair down the drain and went to put on his clothes. He was confused to find that they weren't where he left them. Looking around, all he could find to cover himself was the towel he brought in before his shower. The decision was made for him as he grabbed the towel hanging on the wall and tied it around his waist to hide his lower region.

    Rusty made his way downstairs, holding the towel so it wouldn’t come undone and fall off of him. It wasn't hard to find the unicorn that had called him down. She was standing in her workshop at the back of the boutique, his clothing held in the air by her magic as she gave them a once over with a disgusted look spread across her face.

    "Rarity?" Rusty inquired, earning the fashionable unicorn's attention as he stood before her in nothing but a towel. "I kind of need those."

    With the flick of her wrist, the clothes were tossed into a pile in the other direction. "You most certainly do not!" Rarity said, sounding like a parent telling their child that they didn't need a soda before bed. "No friend of mine is going to walk around dressed in rags! Especially ones that filthy."

    "They're...kinda the only clothes I have..." Rusty confessed a little anxiously.

    "Not anymore!" Rarity announced in a sing-song voice, her horn lighting up as a new set of clothes levitated in front of the human. "Seeing how your previous wardrobe is rather... Well, gross, to put it bluntly, I decided to throw together a little something for you."

    Rusty really should have expected this, having known her for so long. Hanging from her magic, not even a foot from his face, was an entirely new outfit. It consisted of four pieces: A pair of faded black shoes, socks, a nice pair of dark jeans, and a faded, long sleeve, red shirt that doubled as a hoodie. It even had the large pocket on the front.

    Reaching out a hand, Rusty grabbed the shirt out of the air to look over it. It had a large black design on the front of three nails standing beside each other with the pointed end of the middle aiming up, while the others went down. He ran his fingers over the soft material, not letting a single detail go unnoticed.

    Rarity eyed the human with concern. She did not fail to make a nice outfit TWICE today! "Darling, is something wrong?" She asked a little self consciously. "If there's something you would like me to change, I could—"

    "No... It's just..." Rusty almost didn't know how to react. It's been nearly a decade since anyone's given him something, just because. With his family, they had to focus only on the necessities. They couldn't risk spending money on frivolous gifts or tokens. "You really didn't have to do this," he continued, looking at her with glazed eyes. "Thank you..."

    The sincerity in his voice caught Rarity off guard a little. It wasn't as shocking as the drinking thing he told her earlier, but it was still unexpected. "U-uh...Of course, darling!" She managed to say, feeling like she wasn't even in the presence of the human that used to live within spitting distance of Ponyville. "It was my pleasure. In the name of fashion, nothing is ever too generous."

    Without another word, Rusty walked toward Rarity with purpose and wrapped her in a hug. The unicorn was taken back by this at first, but was quick to return the gesture. It goes without saying that she missed him. She and her friends were devastated when they heard about what happened to him. Having him back would have been nice, but something about how he is now made it so much more pleasant. In a way, she was alright with how things turned out. She couldn't exactly say it was preferred, or that she was happy about it, but she's happy that he's happy.

    Rusty broke the hug, quickly reaching down as his towel nearly fell from his body. "Whoops! Sorry about that," he said with a nervous chuckle. "I'm gonna get dressed real quick."

    "You do that." Rarity replied with a smirk, watching as he collected the new clothing and practically jogged into the dressing room.

    With him taken care of, Rarity could now get back to-

    "Rarity!" A deep sounding voice called out from her front door, followed by a few firm knocks. "You home?"

    Rarity was sure she turned her sign to 'Closed' shortly after Rusty arrived. She looked over to the window beside the door, confirming that she had indeed done that. If that was the case, then who could possibly be at her door, and why? Taking a chance, she walked over and peeked through the peephole to see who was on the other side. Recognizing the pony in question, she backed up and opened the door for him.

    "Good afternoon, Big Mac!" Rarity greeted with a smile, making sure not to open the door completely. "Is there something I can do for you?"

    "Howdy, Rares," Big Mac greeted in response, flashing his own smile in return. "Ah was just happenin' by and figured I'd stop to check up on things," he explained, glancing through the door suspiciously before leaning in close and whispering, "Azure told me 'bout that weirdo who stopped by. Is everythin' alright?"

    Rarity had to force out a laugh, and a rather unconvincing one at that, waving off his concerns. "Oh, Mac, I assure you: Everything is fine. No pony here, but me, of course." Big Mac seemed unconvinced, making the unicorn suddenly feel very uncomfortable. "I uh...If you'll excuse me! I don't mean to be rude, but I have so many orders to fill and I simply cannot put them off any longer—"

    There was a crash that came from within the boutique that caused Rarity's ears to fall flat against her head. Having assumed the worst, Big Mac shoved his way into the house. "Rarity, get out of here!" The stallion announced as he marched deeper into the boutique. "Ah'll take care of this..."

    "Mac, wait!" Rarity yelled, closing the door and running after him. She came to a stop when she realized that it was too late. Rusty was on the floor no more than a few feet from the farm pony, lifting himself up slowly. "Oh dear..."

    Rusty lifted himself from the floor, pulling up on his new pants and buttoning them. "Sorry about that, Rarity." He began, turning to face the unicorn. "I lost my footing and I sort of..." His words trailed off into nothing as he locked eyes with the large stallion in front of him, a panicked looking Rarity standing not too far behind this brick shit-house of a pony. "Mac?" The pony and the human remained locked in a gaze that never seemed to end, both feeling lost and not knowing what to say.

    That's a big boy...You might wanna start running...

    Though Rusty's fight or flight instincts screamed flight, he remained unmoved. His old friend was in no better a condition. There was nothing but pure, uninterrupted silence as the stallion and the human stood across from each other with Rarity standing anxiously behind Big Macintosh.



    Do you think he's still there?

    "I'm not sure..." Azure whispered a response to the voice as she stealthily made her way to the boutique. hiding behind bushes and houses in case she happened to come across the pony she saw earlier. "I sure hope not."

    Even if he is, I'm pretty sure Big Mac will have him flattened into a pancake by the time we get there.

    Azure knew for a fact that if that weirdo was still lurking around Rarity's, Big Mac would indeed pound him into next week with one hit. That was the whole reason she told him in the first place. After informing her mother about the creep, said mother taking off like a bullet to make sure her friend was okay, the young pegasus figured that a little backup couldn't hurt. Hence why she quickly made her way to Sweet Apple Acres to find somepony that could easily break another pony.

    Applejack was nowhere to be found, but that hardly mattered once she found Big Mac coming out of the barn with a few empty baskets over his shoulder.

    Though she was positive that the combined efforts of her hot-headed mother, and a bulky stallion like Mac, would be more than enough to settle this, she wanted to be sure that everything was alright. This led to her current mission: sneaking back to the boutique to be sure her plan was successful. With as much grace as a filly covered in leaves and twigs could have, she made her way to the home of Rarity undetected by the populace. In time, she caught sight of the Carousel Boutique and maneuvered her way around to the back.

    Don't go inside. They might hear you come in.

    Nodding, Azure got down and crawled over to a window in the back. Staying low, she was able to remain hidden beneath the glass. Her movements were slow and calculated as she positioned herself so that she would be able to peek over the edge. From here, she could see into the laundry room and a bit into the end of the main room. This rendered her mostly blind to what was happening inside. However, there was one thing she could see. It wasn't easy from this angle, but there was definitely somepony in there and it wasn't Rarity.

    Azure had to lean in and squint her eyes a bit to make out the figure. For a moment she thought that she just wasn't seeing it clearly. That was until somepony else entered her vision. It was still difficult to make out, but she could easily tell that Big Mac was there and he was holding somepony up, his arms wrapped firmly around the other's form. What she couldn't figure out was who the pony was he was holding. If their feet hovering off of the ground was anything to go by, they were shorter than Mac. She also noted their yellow hair. Not much else could be seen until they were set down by the tall stallion. 

    Once down, Azure saw Rarity's head peek out from behind Big Mac. She couldn't hear what she was saying, but her lips were moving and they eventually turned to the side and walked away. Having spent more than her fair share of time in the boutique, the filly deduced that they were going into the kitchen and once again was on the move. Repeating her earlier tactics, she slid beneath another window and peeked over the edge to keep an eye on things.

    From this particular spot, Azure could see things much easier, but was still deaf to their words. So many questions were going through her head as she watched the trio move into the kitchen and take a seat at the table. Like 'Who was this pony? Why were they hugging Big Mac? Was this the same pony that showed up earlier? Were they friends with Rarity? If so, then why did Rarity freak out like she did?'

    What is going on with his face?

    That little comment pulled Azure out of her thoughts, causing her to focus her sights on the mystery pony. Only, it wasn't a pony. It had no muzzle and, judging from its face, very little fur. Some facial hair, yes. But, virtually no fur. "What in the..."

    Azure has learned a lot, both in school and through the occasional lectures she got from Twilight. She knew about the different races and species that lived in Equis, and some beyond, but couldn't recall anything that looked like this. On top of that, something about this thing looked off, like it didn't belong here. But at the same time, she couldn't help but feel a little bit of something else. She wasn't sure what it was, but it left a strange hole in her chest that was begging to be filled. It was like something inside of her wanted to go up to him and...

    Lowering herself from the window, Azure turned around and pressed her back against the wall. Something felt off and she couldn't pinpoint what or why. Still though, she's more than a little curious about Rarity and Big Mac's strange looking friend. Whatever he is, he's not from around here. That much is obvious. Maybe there's a way to figure out what he is and where he came from?

    There's probably an entire book on his species. And I think you know just the mare to go to when it comes to books.

    Azure's ears perked up at that, immediately dropping stealth-mode as she got up and started flying toward the castle. As she got into the air she noticed that it was starting to get late. The sun would likely be setting by the time she got to the castle. Though pretty lenient on most things, her mother didn't like it when she stayed out too late. This left her conflicted on whether to go home and wait for tomorrow, or to make a beeline for the castle to sate her curiosity...

    Ten to one, Mom's already passed out on the couch. I think we're good. Besides, it's Twilight! What's the worst that could happen?

    "I really don't like it when you say that." Azure said with a hint of anxiety in her words. But, it was a fair point. Twilight was one of her mother's best friends, even if they are rather distant. If worse come to worst, she's sure that the princess of friendship would be more than willing to let her stay for the night and tell her mother that they were reading all night.

    With that in mind, Azure adjusted her wings and went straight towards the castle.



    "It was him!" Applejack snapped, slamming her fists into the large, crystal map.  "He was there, standin' right in front of me with a crate on his shoulder!" She argued in an attempt to convince a skeptical Twilight, and Starlight, about their not-so-dead friend. "Ah saw his hand, his face, those eyes... He's still out there! He's gotta be!"

    "Applejack, please calm down." Twilight pleaded, now worried for her friend's well-being and even her mental health. "I'm sure you thought you saw Ryan, but you—"

    "Ah did see him!"

    "—But you know, as well as I do, that it wasn't him!" Twilight shot back, hoping to break this illusion that Applejack created while in Appleloosa. "Are you sure you were drinking enough fluids while you were there? It wouldn't be hard to believe that you—"

    "Ah ain't goin' delirious, Twilight!" Applejack said through gritted teeth, fed up with her friend being in denial about there being even the slightest possibility that Ryan survived. "Ah know what ah saw... he was there... he looked right at me..."

    Starlight looked back and forth between the two awkwardly, unsure of how to go about handling the situation. She decided that it would be best for her to get the heck away from this mess for a few minutes so they could both calm down. "Maybe I should go make us some tea."

    Applejack's eyes followed Starlight as she left the room, soon returning to meet the alicorn's stoic gaze. How come she doesn't believe her? Why won't she listen? She won't even consider her words. The farm pony knows for a fact that she saw Ryan out there. It couldn't have been the heat, or dehydration. She could recall the encounter so clearly. It couldn't have just been in her head...

    Twilight eyed the farm pony, her expression becoming weak and solemn. "Applejack, I'm no happier about it than you are," she began, her tone matching her features. "But you were there. You saw what happened. He's gone..." Each word hurt her just as much as it did her friend. "Princess Celestia felt his energy vanish that night. There's no doubt about it."

    There was a painful silence as Twilight's short, blunt explanation came to an end. Applejack's head fell into her own hands, propping it up just above the large table. They remained still and quiet for what felt like forever. Before long, Starlight returned to the forefront, holding a small tray with three tea cups resting atop of it. The unicorn placed the tray on the table before taking a seat, levitating a cup to both herself and the two other ponies.

    Applejack didn't so much as glance at the steaming, hot beverage in front of her. Rather, she remained in her current position as her mind became a powerhouse of confusing thoughts and emotions. The silence continued on, even as the two remaining ponies sipped from their respective cups. For the alicorn and the earth pony, this was a heavy and toxic silence. For Starlight, it was just awkward.

    Clearing her throat, Starlight managed to capture everypony's attention, if barely from AJ. "So... aside from that whole thing, how was your trip?"

    Applejack let out a sigh. "Fine," she responded in a flat tone. "Just work, as usual."

    Nodding, Starlight tried to hold the conversation while also keeping the topic away from the deceased human. "Did you visit any of your family while you were there? I heard they have quite the farm, despite the conditions."

    "Ah don’t mean this in the way it's 'bout to come out." Applejack clarified, not wanting her friend to think she was legitimately mad at her. "I just don't feel like—"

    "Hello~" A younger sounding voice called out near the entrance to the throne room. The mares all reacted the same, turning their heads to find the source of the voice. "Anypony home? I have filly scout cookies!" Again, the mares reacted similarly, their bodies becoming tense as they started to recognize the voice of Azure not too far from them.

    Twilight quickly rose from her seat, giving Applejack a surprisingly stern glare. "Not another word about what you thought you saw until Azure is gone." She said in a rough tone, her voice not being above a whisper. "Understood?" Applejack, though upset, kept her emotions in check. She nodded, confirming that she wouldn't bring it up again, so long as the filly was near.

    With that taken care of, Twilight started making her way to the doors leading out to the hallway. "We're in here, sweetie!"

    Starlight's eyes followed Twilight to the doors. There she opened the large double doors to reveal the small, blue filly with her hand raised, looking ready to knock. The unicorn's gaze shifted to Applejack, whose head was now resting on the table, her arms crossed and entrapping her head, keeping her face hidden from the rest of the world. Letting out a sigh, the light purple mare was forced to endure more silence as she went about trying to enjoy her tea. The only thing she could really pick up on was bits and pieces of the conversation between the princess and the filly.

    "It's awful late for you to be out, Azure." Twilight said, shooting the filly an inquisitive look. "Is there something you need, or your mother maybe?"

    "There is actually!" Azure began, "I saw this creature earlier and I was wondering if you could help me figure out what it was."

    Twilight's eyes lit up a touch at this. "Oh! Why didn't you just say so?" It was common sense at this point that the princess loved to share her knowledge on various topics. Especially to younger crowds that were willing to learn. "Come on! Let's take a seat and we can try to figure out what it was you saw."

    Azure followed Twilight into the throne room. Her eyes soon found the earth pony she was looking for earlier today. At first, she was tempted to go up and ask her where she was. However, the farm pony didn't exactly look like she was in the talking mood.

    Is she even awake?

    A thought for later, Azure concluded. Right now, her goal was set and she had to focus on it if she was going to solve this little mystery. With her attention back on Twilight, she stayed on her tail until they reached the thrones, picking out a throne right beside her. Once they were seated, the alicorn's horn started to glow. Several books appeared on the table in front of them, each likely containing information on the multitude of species all over Equestria. Some even further out.

    Twilight looked over the large assortment of books before turning her attention to Azure. "Okay, what exactly are we looking for here?"

    Azure reached a hand up to scratch the back of her head. "I'm not really sure..." She began, trying to think of how to go about their search. "Could I just… describe it to you?"

    "Of course you can!" Twilight responded with glee, eager to teach. "Let's start with something simple then: What body type did it have?"

    Azure wasn't sure what she meant by body type. Her best guess on how to answer was simply, "Well, it was a lot like a pony."

    At the young pegasus' words, Twilight worked her magic on the books, removing those that would not have creatures that fit the description. "Okay, so it resembles a pony. Let's try to expand on that."

    "Expand?" Azure asked with a confused look.

    Twilight corrected her mistake here by clarifying her meaning behind the word. "What similarities does it have to a pony?"

    "Oh..."  Azure said with a wide eyed look, feeling a little dumb for not catching on to the meaning. "Well, it's body was similar to a pony, but different too. It had a lot of the same things we do; Two eyes, one mouth, hair, arms, legs, hands, feet. No horn or wings though."

    Twilight continued to listen while simultaneously removing a small number of books from the table with her magic again. "Alright, that helps a bit." She started, getting a little excited for the next part. "Now, what makes it different from ponies?"

    "Okay, this is where it gets weird!" Azure added before going on with her description. "It had no fur! Like, at all!" The filly didn't notice this, but the number of books disappearing suddenly grew just from that. "Some facial hair, yes. But, no fur. And no muzzle either. Just this small thing that came out a little above its mouth."

    "It's eyes were kinda small too." The two mares on the sidelines were suddenly paying very close attention to Azure now. "Not like teeny-tiny, but smaller than a pony's." Twilight's list of books was growing smaller and smaller by the millisecond. She was so focused on trying to figure out what Azure was describing that she didn't notice a very curious looking earth pony leaning toward the filly.

    "Hey, sugarcube." Applejack greeted in an odd tone, "Where exactly did you see this thing?"

    "Applejack..." Starlight cut in, venom clear in her voice. Applejack ignored this as she waited for an answer.

    Azure didn't hesitate as she turned her attention to the farm pony. "It was at Rarity's house." She simply replied, though her natural inquisitiveness kept her from ending it there. "Where were you earlier?"

    Applejack blinked a few times, confused by this. Was Azure looking for her? "Ah just got off the train from Appleoosa this mornin'. But, ah've been here all day." She answered, honestly. "Why do you ask?"

    "I went out look for you when that weirdo came to Rarity's."

    Twilight started to pull her focus from the now remarkably low number of books. There was a questioning look on her face as she looked over at the filly. "What weirdo?"

    Azure looked back at Twilight and shrugged. "I don't know," she began, "I couldn't see his face. He had a really big coat on and his hood was covering it."

    Applejack's eyes narrowed as this nagging voice in the back of her head continued to call out the obvious. However, she needed to be sure. "You wouldn't happen to 'member the color of that coat, would ya?"

    "Applejack..." Twilight growled. Once again, the harsh muttering of her name was ignored.

    Azure placed a hand to her chin and hummed as she tried to remember. "It was kind of a reddish color, but not?" She answered, not entirely sure how to explain it. "I'm not sure. It was really faded, so maybe it was just old, or dirty...or both."

    The pieces of this puzzle were far past being connected as Applejack rose from her seat with determination and marched for the exit. "Ah told you..." She muttered, her voice becoming louder as she walked further away. "Ah told you! Ah know what ah saw! Ah knew it!"

    Azure flinched at her reaction, watching with wide eyes as the farm pony left, only for Twilight to get up and start chasing her. "Applejack, stop!"




    "Goodbye, darling!" Rarity called out with a wave, closing the door as Big Mac left. A deep sigh escaped her as she leaned against the wooden surface. "That went far better than expected."

    "You're telling me." Rusty said from across the room, looking over his new outfit in a nearby mirror. "That was actually really nice." He added with a smile, said smile falling as he thought about the other ponies he's yet to confront. "I can only hope the others are as accepting..."

    Rarity's relieved look became solemn at his words. It's hard for her to imagine what he's going through right now. It must have taken a lot of courage for him to come back after all this time to make things right. She can only hope her friends will be as forgiving as well. "I'm sure they'll be very happy to see you."

    "I hope so..." Rusty continued to look over himself, using his reflection as a distraction from his paranoid thoughts and fantasies of what was to come. All of this fear, added with the extra confrontation earlier, has taken a lot out of him. "I think I'm gonna go ahead and call it a night." He said, submitting to his mental exhaustion. "I imagine the spare room is the same as always."

    "Of course it is, darling." Rarity confirmed, putting on a brave smile for him. "You go on ahead and get some rest. I shall see you in the morning."

    "Thanks, Rarity." Rusty ended it on that note, leaving the mirror and climbing up the stairs to get some shut eye. He'd be lying if he said he wasn't eager to sleep on a bed for the first time in the past decade.

    Rarity watched in silence as her human friend ascended the staircase, soon turning her attention toward the kitchen. After all that's happened, she realized that she missed a meal. The sudden churning in her stomach was also a friendly reminder of that as well. Little more was needed to kick her into gear. Fixing herself something small to munch on, her hunger was mostly sated. As she went to dispose of the remains she noticed that the bin in her kitchen was nearly full.

    With a bit of magic, Rarity tied off the bag and replaced it with a fresh one. Still holding the full one in her magical grasp, she walked outside to dispose of it. As soon as she had set it in her usual pick-up spot, she heard a voice call out to her. It didn't sound close, so she started scanning the area with her eyes. Eventually she found the source. The very angry, red flannel clad source.

    "Applejack?" Rarity questioned, squinting her eyes to help make out the familiar earth pony with an equally familiar alicorn following close behind her. "Applejack, darling! Is something the matter?"

    "Yer darn tootin' somethin's the matter!" Applejack shot at her, marching aggressively toward the boutique. "Y'all got five seconds to tell me where he is!" She all but yelled, now at a stop with her face nearly pressed into the unicorn's. "And why ya didn't tell any of us that he's still alive!"

    Rarity's entire form seized up at this, her mind trying to decipher how she had figured it out already. No pony else knew he was here, aside from Big Mac, but he wouldn't say anything, so who could it have been?

    "Start talkin'!" Applejack yelled, this time a little louder.

    Rarity couldn't find the words in her to answer, only being able to let out a few squeaks and the occasional, 'Uh...' in response.

    "Applejack!" Twilight yelled after her friend, breathlessly. Finally reaching the mare she was after, the alicorn was forced to stop and catch her breath. "You need... to calm down... I'm sure this is all... just a big misunderstanding..."

    Turning her attention to literally anything else, Rarity went to aid her worn out friend. "Twilight, are you alright? I can get you—"

    "Don't try ta change the subject!" Applejack snapped, pulling the fashionista's attention back onto her. "Yer gonna answer me right now, and yer gonna answer honestly! Is he here?"

    Though everything inside of her was screaming for her to lie, Rarity couldn't bring herself to do it. The sigh she let out was as defeated as the expression on her face. "Yes... he's here..."

    "Ah knew it!"

    "That's impossible!" Twilight nearly yelled, taking a deep breath to recompose herself. "He can't be! Celestia couldn't find his energy anywhere! There's no way he survived that fall!"

    "I'm goin' in."

    Rarity felt her heart skip a beat as those last words left Applejack's mouth. If she went in there and snapped on Rusty, he might leave again and never come back. He took a huge risk coming here, putting his new life on the line just to make things right. Ryan could overlook this, but Rusty wasn't like that. It was all about to be ruined because one of her friends...

    Anxiety and nervousness was kicked to the curb as Rarity took on a much more offensive approach, stepping in front of  the cowpony to stop her from going into the boutique. "You most certainly are not!"

    Applejack's hands tightened into fists, her teeth gritting response to being cut off. "Rarity, I ain't gonna say this twice. Get out of mah—" There was a loud smack as the unicorn's open palm struck the side of her face. Twilight remained in the background, watching in near horror at her friend's actions. The farm pony turned her head back, a look of shock etched across her features. "Y-you just..."

    "Shush!" Rarity hissed, causing both of her friends to flinch. Raising a hand, the unicorn pressed her index finger into the mare's chest. "Now you listen here, missy! I was courteous enough to be honest with you when you asked if he was here. The least you can do is offer the same courtesy when I tell you that you are not to bother him!"

    "But—"

    "No buts!" Rarity snapped, removing her hand from the pony in front of her. Silence was all that followed after this, allowing her to calm her nerves some. "Look, I know how you are feeling right now. Believe me, I do. But charging at him like a yak isn't going to solve anything." She explained, silently praying that her words would get through to her. "Applejack, this isn't the same human we once knew. I know it sounds absurd, but he's someone completely different now; Someone who has finally found their place in the world. He's finally found a way to be happy!"

    Applejack agreed with Rarity on one thing for sure; That does sound absurd. "But he's hurting inside, darling! He knows that what he did was wrong and he wants nothing more than to make up for it all." The earth pony's anger started to melt away as she watched her friend's eyes begin to water right in front of her. "And he's scared right now, of us! He doesn't know how we will react and it's terrifying to him."

    "If you go in there like this, he will leave us. He will leave and, this time, he will not come back." Even through Rarity's melancholy, the anger she still felt started to show once again. "And I will be damned if I allow that to happen!"

    There was another round of silence, Twilight being the one to break it this time. "Rarity, are you sure it's really him?"

    Rarity visibly relaxed, wiping the tears from her eyes. "I've spent the last several hours speaking with him. No pony knows us the way he does. There isn't a shred of doubt in my mind." Her gaze shifted back to Applejack, who was still trapped in a state of shock. "I'm so sorry, darling. I didn't mean to react the way I did. He's not the barbaric man he used to be. He's much more sensitive than that now. I don't want to scare him away... I don't want to lose him again."

    Rubbing the sore spot on her cheeks, Applejack finally submitted. If Rarity was right, and Ryan had changed, then this probably wasn't the best way to approach him. Of course she was mad about the whole thing and it hurt her to know that his death was pretty much a big fat lie to her face, but another part of her felt happy to know that he was still alive and well. It was a very confusing set of emotions for her to face. She honestly didn't know whether to be upset or overjoyed.

    Twilight appeared to be unconvinced. In her mind, it simply wasn't possible. There's no way a creature that can't use magic can stay hidden from the princesses, especially for that large amount of time. Still though, if Rarity truly believed it to be so, then maybe it was him. They never did find his body after all...

    "I'll admit, I'm a little skeptical..." Twilight spoke calmly, once again killing off the silence. "It's not that I don't trust your judgement, I just find it hard to believe that he not only survived a fall like that, but managed to completely disappear without a trace. If you can find out how he managed to elude the princesses, then I might feel a little more comfortable accepting it."

    Rarity nodded at this, now fairly curious about it as well. "I'll be sure to ask him in the morning, darling. Right now, he's exhausted and he needs his rest."

    "When can we see him?" Applejack asked, sounding much more at ease, if also a touch guilty.

    "I'm not sure yet." Rarity answered as if confessing to a crime. "He's in a fragile state right now. This was supposed to be a slow process. But from the looks of it, I may have to convince him to open up sooner."

    Now came the part that Applejack found rather difficult to mention. "Does he know about Azure?"

    Rarity cringed at this, knowing it would come up sooner or later, but unable to prepare herself for it. "I haven't told him about her yet." She painfully admitted, "As I said before: He's scared and very fragile right now. I don't know if he's ready to handle something of that caliber."

    Applejack let out a sigh. It didn't seem right to keep that from him, but at the same time, something like that might destroy him if he truly is as sensitive as Rarity claims. "We're gonna have to tell him at some point." She said, "He has the right to know about his daughter."

    "We will, I promise." Rarity's words did little to ease her friend, this much she could tell. "But right now, we have to focus on making him comfortable enough to come out of hiding completely."

    "Do you know when that will be?" Twilight asked, mostly out of her desire to know if this was all true.

    "I cannot say for sure." Rarity answered, "The most I could do is help ease him out a little faster. But I don’t want to force him."

    This wasn't the answer Twilight was hoping for, but it made sense to her. "I understand..." Before they could move on, there was something else the alicorn was rather curious about. "What has Ryan been doing all this time?"

    "You'll have to ask him yourself. It's quite the story, if I do say so myself." Rarity said with a small smile. "Also, He prefers to go by the name Rusty; Rusty Nails."



    "Holy crap..." Azure whispered to herself, her eyes wide and mouth agape as she listened intently to the conversation from a nearby bush.

    Did you hear what I just heard?

    Tears were building up in the corner of the bright blue orbs in Azure's head. "He's alive... and he's here..."

    Girl, if you do not wish for a million bits right now—