The sound of a pair of curtains being pulled apart woke Emerald from his slumber.
Which was funny, because-
His eyes snapped open, and he leapt to his hooves, reaching under his pillow, intent on grasping the dagger he kept hidden there, only to grasp nothing.
The disappearance of his hidden weapon startled Emerald into full wakefulness, revealing that he was not, in fact, in his bed, in his room, in his house.
Instead, he currently stood in a massive bedroom, perhaps as large as his entire living room and kitchen combined, with golden and white walls, ceiling, floor, the latter of which was covered in an equally large velvet rug. It was furnished with a proportionally sized bed and canopy, which was lined with the aforementioned curtains, which were just as white as the room, lined with gold along the bottom as well. The bed was covered in a massive blanket the same style as the curtains, causing the blood red and gold pillow to stand out astonishingly well.
All that aside, he recognized this room. It had been the one that Mother had given to him when she'd first taken him in.
Despite the feelings of nostalgia, as well as the sudden surge of gratitude he felt towards Mother, his focus was instead on the form of the grinning griffon in his room, curtain in claw.
"S'bout time you woke up, Emerald," Gustave mocked, "And here I was thinking you'd be the first one up and about with all of us around." Emerald stared at his brother for a moment, then sighed.
Figures that Gustave would end up being a morning griffon. Though, to be fair, he didn't work the ungodly hours Emerald had found himself settling into, so could he really be blamed for it?
On that note, Gustave probably didn't know about his newest hours if he was going around like this.
But, Emerald wasn't complaining, and, to be frank, he wouldn't even if he'd had any. Though he didn't get much sleep, more often than not, he did sleep well whenever he did.
Still, his work schedule had instilled a very strong appreciation for his sleep, and it was taking more self-control than Emerald would admit to using to prevent himself from attacking Gustave on the basis of not letting him sleep longer. It certainly didn't help that the beds at the castle were criminally soft.
After the Gala last night, and even after Mother had found them all hanging around Doughnut Joe's, the nine of them had taken the moment to have a small party of their own to make up for those who hadn't had as much fun during the Gala. Unfortunately, Emerald had initially underestimated how horrible of a time Rarity and Applejack had had, and even further underestimated the lengths the other mares would go to make it up to them.
As it was, they'd spent nearly four hours last night having fun at the doughnut shop, which cut heavily into Emerald's accustomed schedule, as well as many of the other's schedules as well.
Once it was clear that most of the group had nearly fallen asleep standing up, they'd decided to retire for the night, with Mother thankfully offering to let them stay at the castle for the night.
Surprisingly, however, Spike had insisted that he and Sparky spend the night at their parent's house, since they didn't often come back to Canterlot since their initial move, and might not get another chance for awhile. Sparky, who'd been hesitant at the idea, eventually agreed when the others got involved and practically forced her into going.
That left himself, Pinkie, Fluttershy, Applejack, Rainbow, and Rarity to head along with Mother back to the castle. She'd then personally led them each to their rooms for the night, though had asked them to please be quiet if they decided to stay up longer, as there were a few others she'd offered to house for the night.
Apparently, one of them was Gustave.
A groan from behind him caused Emerald to blink, before turning to face the sudden noise. There, he found Trixie of all ponies lying in the same bed he'd just left, curling further into herself as the light from the open window fell upon her.
And Trixie seemed to be another.
Emerald scowled slightly, the faint scent of alcohol finally reaching his nose. He must've been quite tired to sleep through Trixie stumbling into his bed smelling like that.
"Why'd you wake me up, Gustave?" he decided to ask, turning away from the groaning form of his sister. He rolled his eyes,
"C'mon Emm," he began, shaking his head as though it was obvious, "There's five of us grouped here in the castle today! That's more of our group together right now than in the past six, almost seven, years!" he snapped, but the smirk on his face didn't fall, "Are you telling me you want to miss that?" he then asked, rhetorically.
Emerald rolled his eyes,
"Yeah, yeah, I get..." he blinked, and shook his head, "I'm sorry... did you say five?" he asked, his eyes scanning Gustave's face, "Who the fuck is the fifth?"
That didn't make sense. Trixie, himself, Spitfire, and Gustave. Those were the only ones he knew were here, and he knew he hadn't seen any of the others!
Iron Will would've stood out way too much, Starlight would've immediately panicked and started hunting for one of them, and knowing her... unfortunate lack of care for anyone else, she'd probably start slinging spells around if she got panicked enough, and Sapphire was busy with... whatever it was she was doing, and Thorax couldn't fucking disguise himself anymore!
So who the fuck could he have missed?
Gustave stared at him for a few seconds, then scoffed, and shook his head,
"Figures you wouldn't know. I was pretty shocked myself," he admitted, then frowned as his eyes moved onto Trixie, "... I'm gonna have whip something up to help her, aren't I?" he asked, though it was clear he wasn't expecting Emerald to provide the answer.
Trixie's resulting groan gave them both the answer.
Gustave sighed,
"Alright, you drag her down to the kitchen, while I work on something to ease her oncoming nausea and headache."
-----
Emerald wasn't sure what it was that Gustave cooked up. It had an ugly brown colour, and appeared to have the same thickness as mud. Though it had lacked a smell of any sort, Trixie's look of unadulterated horror when she took a drink of the stuff didn't paint it as tasting any better than its appearance suggested.
Despite that, Gustave had been very clear that she had to drink the whole thing for it to work. Unfortunately, Gustave wasn't the best liar, and had ended up giving himself away with the massive smirk on his face and the inability to look either of them in the eye when he said that.
Still, Emerald had to commend Trixie for downing a grand total of half the damn thing, before she bolted and threw up in the sink, which quickly wiped the smirk from Gustave's face, and ended up placing one on Emerald's instead.
A glass of spare cider later, Trixie was finally feeling better, having emptied the contents of her stomach apparently helping.
Jokes aside, it seemed that Gustave's remedy had worked. Somehow.
Oh well, not like Emerald cared. He'd never touch alcohol, so there was no point in knowing how it worked.
"Alright, now that I don't feel like dying, what's going on?" Trixie asked, glaring at the two of them through lidded eyes, Emerald shrugged,
"Apparently, Gustave thinks the four of us should spend the day out in Canterlot together."
"Five, Emerald, the five of us," he corrected immediately. Trixie blinked,
"Five?... Who the fuck's the fifth one?" she asked, mirroring Emerald's earlier confusion, "I haven't seen anyone other than you two and Spitfire," she added, causing Gustave to sigh irritably,
"Faustdammit you two..." he groaned, holding his head in one of his claws, "It's Thorax!" he snapped. Trixie stared at him for a moment, before laughing,
"Ha! I know I was drunk last night, but there's no way in Tartarus I'd've missed the panic him showing up would've caused!" she joked, smirking confidently, "Just fuss up, Ave, you're a shitty liar." Gustave growled,
"He was in disguise you moron! Of course there wasn't a panic!" he snapped, "He came up to me last night before I headed to bed, and showed me!" Emerald sighed, and cut in,
"Gustave, you know Thorax can't disguise himself. He doesn't have... you know," Emerald finished lamely, feeling a stab of guilt at the reminder. Gustave nodded, though he still seemed somewhat irritated,
"Yeah, I know. That's why I was pretty damn stunned when a changeling walked up to me last night," he said, putting very heavy emphasis on the last part. Emerald sighed,
"Alright, alright... then take us to him," he said, "If he really is here, then that's fantastic, but if he's not, then we get to make fun of you more," he added, smirking, "It's a win-win, really."
Trixie laughed.
Gustave didn't.
It didn't take long for them to be on their way once more, this time though, they seemed to be heading towards the Guard's training grounds. Knowing Thorax, if he was indeed at the castle, it would be his most likely hangout.
Eventually they made their way through a set of doors leading outside, and found themselves in a large clearing, devoid of any plant life aside from some random patches of grass strewn about.
Littering the field were various clumps of fur, the occasional bundle of straw, and, rarely, a weapon of some kind. That was, of course, if you ignored the thirty or so guards milling about the field, either conversing with each other, or sharpening their skills against a straw dummy or another guard.
Few of them were wearing armor, though the majority were wearing what Emerald recognized as weighted vests. Unfortunately, his skilled eyes managed to spot the weights labeled on each, and found that none of them were wearing anything higher than an extra ten pounds.
Shame.
Must be either the Royal Guard, or Solar Guard, then. No one in the Lunar Guard would dare wear anything less than forty extra pounds, lest Luna get on all of their cases.
...
He'd have to see if he could convince Mother to do the same with her Guard...
She always was a bit more relaxed when it came to this kind of thing. Understandable, considering that there hasn't been any real conflict in Equestria for nearly a thousand years.
The Facility aside, of course.
Tossing those thoughts aside, Emerald set about scanning the crowd, finding Gustave and Trixie doing the same from beside him.
"I don't see him," Emerald noted quickly, not finding any sign of the semi-familiar bug-pony, which caused Gustave to scoff,
"He's in disguise, remember?" he asked. His remark earned a heavy scowl from Emerald, who turned back to him, a fire in his eyes,
"He. Can't. Disguise. Himself," he snarled through his clenched teeth, "Why are you so stuck on that?"
Rather than be offended, or even put off by Emerald's unusually hostile reaction, Gustave merely smirked, and nodded towards a pony that was approaching them.
Namely, the pony who had assisted Rarity last night.
"Ask him yourself."
Confused, Emerald turned to the red and white stallion, who had finally stopped, just in front of him.
There was a look in the stallion's eyes. A sort of.... hunger as he stared back at Emerald, a predatory grin splitting his face.
A glint of steel.
"Found you."
And the stallion struck.
Twilight stretched her hooves far above her head, the final dredges of sleep being forced away as her body was flushed with the sound of popping joints.
A smile lit up her face when her eyes opened, revealing the somewhat familiar sight of her old foalhood room, looking almost the exact same as it had been when she left, right down to the papers and books on her old desk, laying messily next to an old pair of glasses, which she hadn't needed for quite a long time now.
The room wasn't big, and a stranger would be hard pressed to imagine it as the room of a young filly turned teenager. Unlike most fillies, she'd never been interested in dolls and dresses growing up, aside from her favoured Smarty Pants doll. So the shelves and desk one might expect to see toys or poorly, but happily, drawn pictures were instead filled with books more at home in a college student's room, and various notebooks filled with her old thoughts and difficulties when it came to spellcasting. Those old things were filled to the brim with ideas and theories as to why certain spells worked the way they do, how to make them better, as well as noting down the ones she'd had a hard time with, and how they had gone wrong, to be presented to the Princess at a later date.
Not only that, but her room was practically spotless, with the messy desk being the only exception. Her old closet, which had some old dresses that her grandmother had gifted her, was painstakingly organized by size, colour, and what events she'd be likely to wear them too.
Also, more books.
In fact, a good portion of her room had been dedicated to holding as many books as possible without making it difficult to move around. The walls were scarcely visible behind the bookcases that had been placed in front of each one, every visible shelf filled to the brim with a different tome of some sort. Also painstakingly organized by author, size, and subject. Not in that order.
Just about the only thing in the room that could paint it as a young foal's, were the fake stars on the ceiling, each one acting as a faint nightlight, lovingly placed there by her parents when she had been scared of the dark.
She'd been pleasantly surprised last night to find that they still worked, even after all this time.
Twilight smiled wider, and even let a giddy giggle escape her as she ran her hooves across the old star themed blankets she was laying under. The bed was a bit small for her, which had been expected, but it still held all the warm memories she'd made over the years.
Of comfy nights cuddling with her Smarty Pants doll. Of late night study sessions, lasting into the early morning. Of nights spent getting absorbed into a thrilling novel of some sort, only to fall asleep, dreaming wild, wonderful dreams of the worlds she had just been reading.
All those memories filled her with warmth, a warmth not too dissimilar to the ones she felt from her new friends, but still distinctly different.
A faint smell caught her nose, breaking her from her daydreams. It was sweet, and wonderfully familiar, to the point she nearly faded into old memories.
Luckily, those same memories reminded her exactly what was to come, and they spurred her out of bed quite quickly. She paused for a moment, then proceeded into the bathroom to take care of some morning needs.
Once she'd showered and brushed herself, she rapidly made her way downstairs, coming face to face with the sight of an entire breakfast spread out across the kitchen island.
Pancakes stacked worryingly high, bowls of oatmeal laying to the side, eggs and hay bacon lying on scattered plates, and a large pitcher of orange juice beside a carton of milk. And lastly, a large bowl of various fruits for the family to pick and choose from.
It was a spread of foods that she hadn't had the pleasure of seeing for five years now, ever since she moved into the Canterlot Library when she was sixteen.
There was a clatter of dishes from inside the kitchen,
"Oh! It's so wonderful to have you and Twilight back for a while!" a warm, loving, and familiar voice spoke from the kitchen, "Your father and I have been so lonely without our little foals and drakey!" the voice cooed, followed by an audible 'Mwah!',
"Ugh, Moooom!" she heard Spike whine, though she could hear the smile in his voice,
"Oh don't be so dramatic, Spikey! Can't your dear mother show a little affection for you every now and then?"
Feeling far too excited to hear her wonderful mother's voice again, Twilight decided to make herself known,
"Morning, Mom!" she called, sliding around the island to find Spike and her mother working on the dishes.
Twilight Velvet was a beautiful mare with a silky gray coat, a straight, striped white and purple mane and tail, with a set of light sky blue eyes, and a cutie mark of three purples stars. She was a thin, but well developed mare who could have easily passed for her sister despite being in her mid-forties. She boasted a dazzling and near-permanent smile, an optimistic attitude, and a unfaltering level of support and love for her family despite whatever difficulties they faced, which were few and far between. She was truly a mother that Twilight was lucky to have.
Although, a part of her mind couldn't help but notice how attractive her mother was. A set of fair, pretty features, a taut stomach, and well rounded rear that she knew still drew stares from the local stallions.
She felt a surge of inadequacy as she looked at her still gorgeous mother.
She needed to step up her training if she ever wanted to look as amazing as that.
Emerald might not notice her if she didn't.
She blinked at the sudden thought, but found that it sent a tidal wave of motivation coursing through her, urging her on!
"Twily!" Velvet suddenly cheered, rounding on her in an instant, and nearly leapt forward, wrapping the younger mare in a tight, almost crushing, hug.
Right. Her mother was also very affectionate.
She'd honestly forgotten.
Still, despite the nearly painful hug she was receiving, Twilight happily returned it, though it was a bit awkward due to the angle Velvet had wrapped her hooves around her.
"Hey Mom!" she grunted through the squeeze, "Its great to see you again!" she pulled away, a brilliant smile on her face, though her eyes darted around for a moment, "Where's Dad? He's usually helping you set the table," she asked, tilting her head.
Velvet just smiled at her daughter,
"Your fathers out grabbing Shining," she explained, returning to the dishes, "I'm so excited! All three of my little babies are coming home!" she gushed, giggling happily,
"Mooom!" Spike whined, "We're not babies! I mean, Shining's the Royal Guard Captain! Twilight's an Element of Harmony! And I'm a tough dragon!" he explained, like it was the most obvious thing in the world. Velvet just giggled, and rubbed his head affectionately,
"Oh I know, Spike, but you'll always be my little babies!" she countered, her smile never faltering, and turned to Twilight, "Even if you save Equestria, you'll stay my baby, got it?" she asked playfully, pointing a soap covered hoof at her. Twilight smiled, and nodded,
"Of course, Mom," she relented. Velvet nodded, as if she knew exactly how the argument would end, and turned back to the dishes once more, when-
"We're back!" a voice called from the front door, followed by the sound of the door hitting the wall, "I forgot we replaced that."
The mares and dragon all perked up at the familiar voice,
"Night Light!"
""Dad!""
A stallion soon stepped out into the living room, his dark blue coat slightly ruffled, even slightly obscuring his two opposing moons cutie mark, and his usually brushed, darker blue mane was equally mussed up, though his copper eyes were sparkling with a hint of mischievousness, likely due to whatever caused him to look so ruffled in the first place. Aside from that, he was a rather thin unicorn stallion, not boasting any eye-catching muscle or an attention drawing physique like her mother. His personality, on the other hoof, was bright and filled with laughter, though not to the same degree as, say, Pinkie.
Twilight doubted anypony was on the same level as Pinkie.
"Hey everypony!" her father, Night Light, called to them, smiling sheepishly, "Looks like you're all up and about bright and early, just like always, eh?" he asked, directing that last statement to her and Spike. Twilight smiled,
"Yep!"
"Yeah..." Spike echoed, though less enthusiastically.
Velvet brushed past her and Spike, before eagerly wrapping her hooves around her longtime husband, who grunted, but smiled, at the tight hug.
"Hey honey," he greeted her in return, before she mercifully let go of him, before she suddenly whacked him on the leg, "Ow!" he whined, jumping back, "What was that for, dear?" he asked, pouting at his wife's narrowed gaze,
"You were busy wrestling with Shining again, weren't you?" she asked, "That's why you were taking so long," she added, nodding firmly at her husband's wide-eyed gaze.
Unfortunately, for him perhaps, another pony slipped past him while he was distracted.
This pony was yet another unicorn stallion, with a two-tone blue mane and tail, an ivory coat, and a pair of baby blue eyes. Both his mane and coat were ruffled like their father's, though it was only in patches, like he'd stayed behind to try and pat it back down. He boasted a cutie mark of a sparkling shield, with a bright purple star in the center.
"BBBFF!" Twilight cheered, racing forward to embrace her Big Brother Best Friend Forever, who was caught by surprise at the sudden appearance of the purple pony.
"Woah!" he cried, stumbling back a bit, before chuckling and returning the embrace, "Long time to see, Twily!" he said, and looked up, spotting Spike hanging back, "And hello to you too Spike," he said, smirking, before gesturing him to join the hug.
Spike perked up, and did just that, rushing forward to hug his leg, which was about as much as he could reach.
"Well," Velvet suddenly spoke up, "as adorable as this little scene is, the food is getting cold!" she called, "C'mon everypony, eat up!"
The promise of the warm food, lovingly cooked by the resident matriarch, was more than enough to spur everyone in the house into shooting towards one of the seats at the table, with a miniature competition between Spike and Shining over who could get the seat closest to the pancakes first.
While they were busy shoving each other around, their father happily stole the seat for himself, not a shred of guilt on his features.
Once the two of them finished messing around, and dejectedly made their way to their seats, they all tucked in.
The food was wonderful! Every bite was full and delicious, and every single moment she spent in the company of her beloved family served to drown her in the many, many amazing memories she'd had growing up, doing this very activity every morning of every day.
To finally have yet another breakfast with her family...
Gosh, she'd never realized just how much she had missed it.
Though, a part of her couldn't help but note one, little thing...
Despite being made with better ingredients, and by a more experienced hoof, Twilight found herself preferring Emerald's pancakes over her mother's.
It was an interesting revelation, one that had her smiling a mite harder than she had before, if that was even possible at this point.
"So, Twilight," Night Light began smoothly, wiping his mouth with a napkin, "the Princess hasn't said much, since we wanted to hear it from you," Velvet perked up immediately, "but how's life in Ponyville coming along for our little Twily?" he asked, smiling over at her.
Twilight straightened at being addressed, though she ignored the use of the old nickname, for now,
"Oh it's wonderful!" she gushed, smiling brightly, her excited demeanor seemingly taking her family, save Spike, off guard for a moment, "I met the most wonderful ponies and made the most wonderful friends! Not to mention I'm learning so much about friendship in the process!"
"That sounds amazing!" Velvet chirped, "Go on! Tell us about them!" she insisted, leaning over the counter as much as she could without touching the food, a wide smile on her face.
Twilight giggled at her mother's antics, feeling warmth at seeing them once more,
"Well, where do I start?" she asked herself, before nodding, "First of all, is my friend Pinkie Pie," she began, smiling, "She's extremely hyper and unfailingly optimistic. She's the town's resident party planner, and I swear that mare can barely go a day without eating something sweet. She's actually a baker at the town's bakery, Sugarcube Corner!" she said.
"Sugarcube Corner?" Velvet asked, "Wow! Sounds sweet!" she gushed,
"Very," Night Light agreed, though less enthusiastically, "a little too sweet, maybe?" he added, smiling sheepishly. Velvet rounded on her husband immediately,
"There is no such thing as 'too sweet', Nighty!" Shining laughed at the byplay,
"C'mon, what about the others, Twilight?" he urged her, smiling at her. She nodded,
"Okay, next is Applejack! She's a hard worker at the local farm, Sweet Apple Acres! She might even be a harder worker than you, Shining!" Twilight teased, earning a chuckle and scoff from her older brother, "She's also a very honest pony, but stubborn to a fault as well," she added, recalling the disaster that had been Applebucking Season, "Very stubborn, but she loves her family more than anything else!"
"Sounds like she'd fit right in!" Night Light joked, though there was some sincerity in his tone of voice nonetheless. Twilight nodded in agreement,
"Absolutely!" she said, "Then we have Rainbow Dash. She's a really competitive pegasus who dreams of being in the Wonderbolts someday. She's loyal as can be, and never fails to put her friends first!" she boasted slightly, "Though, she's a bit full of herself, but I suppose it's pretty justified with how much she trains and how good she is at maintaining the weather around Ponyville," she added, smiling.
"She sounds like a good friend," Shining said.
"Yeah! And after her is Fluttershy. She's the sweetest, nicest pony I've ever met!" Twilight exclaimed, "But she's also painfully shy. She's very quiet and tends to spook easily, but I've never heard of anypony being better with animals, not even the Ponyville vet!" she said, sparking a memory, "Oh yeah! I can't believe I nearly forgot, but I got a pet owl too!"
Her family blinked at that, followed by Shining laughing,
"An owl?" he asked, "That definitely sounds like something you'd get!" he teased, "With how often you stay up all night, you would need a pet that'll stay up just as late!"
Twilight responded to her brother's comment by sending him a fervent glare,
"I'll have you know that Owloysius is a fantastic Number Two Assistant!" she defended her dear feathery friend,
"And he better stay the Number Two Assistant..."
"Hmm? What was that Spikey?" Velvet asked her youngest,
"Uh, nothing!"
Night Light rolled his eyes at Spike's obvious deflection, but turned to Twilight regardless,
"So? Any others?" he asked, taking a sip from his juice, Twilight nodded, her previously peppy attitude back up and running,
"Absolutely! After Fluttershy, there's Rarity, and she's-!"
"The prettiest and most amazing unicorn in the world!" Spike suddenly interrupted, though his usual dreamy tone implied that he hadn't been entirely aware of it. Despite that, he blinked rapidly, and seemed to suddenly recall exactly where he was, "O-or so I've heard! Y-yeah, I, uh, hear that around town a lot..." he trailed off, flushing scarlet.
Her mother's eyes began to sparkle as she looked at Spike, bearing an all too familiar gleam in them,
"Oh?~ Does my little Spikey have a crush?" she asked, her voice, perhaps, a little too sweet, before she suddenly grabbed the young drake, and pulled him into her chest for a bone-crushing hug, "Oooh! Tell me everything! How old is she? Is she pretty? Is she nice? Does she like hugs? What does she look like? Ohoho, tell me!" she gushed excitedly.
Twilight watched Shining scoot away from her, a haunted look in his eye.
This was exactly why she had been so immensely glad that she hadn't asked her mother for advice. If she found out that Twilight had a crush on somepony, she'd, well, do that!
It had been amusing, back when she'd first done it to Shining, but after the third time it had happened it had become a little more scary.
Even so, it had never occurred to her that she might be in that position.
She stiffened suddenly.
What if Cadence found out?
Oh, Cadence, her favourite foalsitter in the entire world, and a mare who she honestly wished she could see more often-
-was even worse than her mother when it came to romance.
That was one of the reasons that she'd been repeatedly called to watch Twilight when she was younger, as she had later found out. Not only was she around Shining's age, meaning Twilight would probably be more comfortable with her, rather than some even older mare she didn't know, but she got along a little bit too well with her mother, and occasionally spent hours talking about whatever love story the two of them happened to be reading at the time.
Her father had found the whole thing funny, but often stayed as far away as he could whenever it happened.
She was torn away from her thoughts when Spike finally freed himself, and darted over to Shining, hiding behind the stallion's stool. This, unfortunately for Shining, brought their mother's attention onto him, and the apparent trauma he still suffered from caused him to freeze in place.
Him. Captain of the Royal Guard. Frozen like a statue. Not because of a monster many times his size, but because of a mare a full head and a half shorter than he was.
She wondered if Emerald ever had moments like this with his family.
A momentary image of the same stallion, usually appearing so indomitable, cowering before the tiny form of an irate Wisp caused her to smile.
But, as funny as both the image and the scene in front of her were, she needed to finish telling her family about her friends first!
"As I was saying," she said, bringing all the attention in the room back to her, though Shining's sigh of relief was not missed by anyone, "She works as the local seamstress in town, and her designs are absolutely amazing!" she praised, "And not only is she one of the most skilled designers I know-"
"And the only one you know..."
"-but she's also a very thoughtful and generous pony!" she said, then frowned, "She's even given me and the others free dresses on occasion, just because we're friends..." she added, "I... actually feel a little guilty about it, sometimes," she admitted, "is that normal?"
"Uh, yeah," Shining said, shrugging easily, "I mean, friendship is all about give and take, right? You just don't feel like you're giving anything in return, right?" she nodded, "Well, then you'll just have to ask her," Shining suggested simply, "There's no point in worrying about it when the answer is right in front of you."
Twilight regarded her brother for a moment, before nodding with a smile,
"You're right, Shining! If I just... talk to her about it, then I'm sure we can sort things out!" she proclaimed, happy at the simple solution.
"Well, all your friends sound like wonderful ponies, and I'd love to-" Velvet tried to say, but she was cut off,
"B-but I haven't talked about all of them yet!" Twilight interjected quickly, pouting slightly. Velvet blinked, and shared a strange look with Night,
"O-oh!" she gasped, "I-I'm sorry, Twilight. But the Princess only mentioned that you had made five friends!" she said, then smiled, "Well, I suppose nopony ever said anything about not making new friends. Alright then, tell us all about her!"
"Well, his name is Emerald, and I haven't known him as long as I've known the girls," she began, ignoring the sharp look Shining was sending her, as well as the interested gleam in her mother's eye, "He's a nice stallion, though he can be pretty rude sometimes. He's got a good heart though, I can tell. He actually works with Pinkie as the bakery's cashier, but he came to town because he's a member of the Guard, just like you, BBBFF!" she exclaimed.
Shining blinked in surprise,
"He is?" he asked, his previously sharp look fading, "Emerald, huh?" he hummed to himself, before frowning and shaking his head, "I don't know an Emerald. And believe me, I make sure to know as many of my guards as I can," his sharp look returned suddenly, "Are you sure he's a member of the Guard?" he asked, narrowing his eyes. Twilight blinked in surprise.
Her brother didn't know Emerald? But... but Emerald said he knew Shining!
Then again... Shining is the Captain, so it wouldn't exactly be hard to know him.
"W-well, yeah! Princess Celestia said so herself!" she defended him immediately, which only served to make her mother narrow her eyes, a rather predatory smile appearing on her face.
Shining deflated at the news,
"Oh..." he said, sounding almost... disappointed for some reason, "He's probably in one of the other Guards, then."
"Other Guards?" Spike asked, looking up at his elder, confused, "Isn't there only one?" Shining straightened his back out, and spared a glance over at the rest of his family. Night Light and Velvet didn't seem too interested, but were still paying attention, but Twilight was staring straight at him with an all too familiar gleam in her eyes, and he suspected the only reason she hadn't grabbed a quill and pad was because they weren't allowed at the table.
"There are three Guards," he began, then frowned, "well, five if you want to get technical. The Royal Guard, where I'm Captain is the lowest, and largest, of them. The Royal Guard is sent out all over Equestria to deal with smaller threats and domestic situations, and you'll find most First and Second Ranked guards there, but I know a few Third Ranks. The Solar Guard and Lunar Guard are the next step up, each one run by one of the princesses after Princess Luna's return. They're usually stationed in Canterlot to protect the castle, but they sometimes get sent out to provide back-up to the Royal Guard if necessary, and are mostly dominated by Third, Fourth, and the occasional Fifth Ranks," he explained, then sighed, "And the last two are the Elite Solar and Elite Lunar Guards. They are stationed directly under each princess, and they contain the best of the best. They do whatever the princesses tell them to, really. They're mostly filled with Fifth Ranks, but you'll find plenty of Sixth Ranks as well. You'll also find the Champion sitting right on top of both."
Twilight blinked at the veritable wealth of information spewing from her brother's mouth, which was not a common occurrence.
Ranks? Elite Guards? Champions?
"Ranks?" she decided to ask, a certain Soldier coming to mind, "But... I thought the Guard used Titles?" she asked, causing Shining to blink,
"You know about Titles?" he asked, sounding surprised, before he smirked, "And here I thought you weren't interested in anything about the Guard. I mean, I used to try telling you everything about it, but you always blew me off for some dusty old book of yours," he teased lightheartedly, then nodded, "But, yeah, we use Titles. The term Rank, just refers to the general level of a Title."
That... didn't help at all.
"Uhh... what does that mean?" Spike asked in her stead,
"Well, there are three Classes that a Guard falls into, and each Class has five Titles, which are equal to each other based on the level, and called Ranks. Like, the first Title in each Class is equal to the other two, and so is the second, and third, and so on," he said, and sighed, "It's... kinda boring, really."
"What are they?" Twilight asked immediately, undeterred by her brother's lack of enthusiasm, which caused him to sigh fondly,
"Shoulda known you'd want to hear all about it," he muttered to himself, "Alright. It goes like this. The first Class is the Knight Class. From lowest to highest Rank, it goes: Soldier, Fighter, Warrior, Veteran, Knight. The next Class is the Sorcerer Class, going: Apprentice, Mage, Wizard, Conjurer, Sorcerer. After that, it's the Assassin Class with: Shade, Specter, Shadow, Spy, Assassin. Each Class has its own fields that Guards specialize in, like, anypony in the Knight Class specializes in weaponry and strength, Sorcerer Class Guards lean towards magic combat, both for and against, and Assassins tend to specialize in stealth and speed."
"Wow son," Night Light said after a moment of silence, "I'm surprised you know all this stuff. You never were interested in reading that much when you were younger," he praised, causing Shining to laugh and rub the back of his head,
"Oh, it's, uh, not a big deal," he said, before turning red, "I, uh... had some motivation..."
"Who was she?" Velvet asked instantly, only making Shining blush harder,
"Wha- Wh-who said anything about a she?! I certainly didn't! It's not like Cadence promised to go out with me when I-!" he abruptly cut himself off mid-sentence, freezing in place, "... Aw, dammit."
""YOU'RE DATING CADENCE??!!""
And thus, Shining Armor found himself on the receiving end of an interrogation, courtesy of an excited sister, and an even more excited mother.
Night Light simply shook his head fondly at the scene before him, taking another sip of his juice.
Just like old times, he mused.
*CLANG* *SHIING*
The shrill echoing of blade against blade rang through the clearing.
*SWISH* *CRACK*
A battle between titans unfolded before the wide-eyed gazes of the many spectators.
*CRASH* *BOOM*
Blurring green and vanishing red clashed against each other, each one vying for another strike against their opponent.
Emerald ducked under a swipe from one of his opponent's daggers, spinning around to deliver a violent kick to his open chest. The red stallion, however, avoided the strike by a hair's breadth, and lashed out with his second blade, scoring a thin, shallow cut along Emerald's back leg.
Undeterred by the superficial wound, Emerald brought his spear back, jabbing the butt of the spear into his opponent's jaw, staggering him for an instant.
The instant proved more than enough for Emerald to right himself, and bring his hoof to bear, smashing it against the same spot he'd just struck, knocking the stallion backward.
His opponent had only a moment to react as his spear was swung, the long weapon easily reaching him despite the distance now between them, forcing him to counter by swinging both his daggers upward, sparks flying as the blades made contact.
He growled as he was forced back by the strike, but even so, Emerald could see an almost feral grin lighting his opponent's face.
Why don't you ask him yourself?
Could it be...?
"Thorax," he intoned, curious about his adversary's reaction. He was mildly surprised, to find the stallion's grin fall, replaced by a more honest smile,
"Long time no see, Emm," he said, then lunged forward once more.
Now aware of his opponent's identity, Emerald allowed himself to relax minutely.
Of course, he blocked the downward swing of Thorax's dagger's, the sharp steel biting into his spear's shaft, with similar ease. Thorax's movement restricted for a moment, allowed Emerald to twirl his spear, sending Thorax's dagger spinning from his grip. Momentarily off balance by the unexpected move, Thorax was left with little ability to block the heavy kick Emerald delivered straight to his chest, the added momentum from rapidly spinning around fueling the strength behind it.
Thorax grunted as he collided with the stiff ground, but rolled back to his hooves in an instant. He had no time to breathe, having to bring up his lone dagger to deflect the one Emerald had saw fit to return to him, its blade causing sparks to fly for a brief moment. This instant of distraction was more than enough to allow Emerald to charge forward, spear at the ready.
He thrust it forward, before it came to a near instant stop, inches away from Thorax's eye, its tip glinting in the morning light.
They stayed like that for a moment, before the quiet thud of Thorax's lost knife hitting the ground broke the silence.
"Damn... you haven't slacked one bit," Thorax praised his elder brother, before scowling, "Guess I'm not as good as I thought. I came for a challenge, but all I got was a slaughter." Emerald smirked, and lowered his spear, before tossing it back to the Guard he'd temporarily stolen it from,
"I wouldn't say that. You got my leg pretty good," he said, indicating the still bleeding wound, "Any deeper and I doubt I'd be able to move as quickly."
"Well, it wasn't. A little thing like that is almost nothing in a fight," Thorax countered,
"Even a little thing like this could kill an experienced fighter. You know that," Emerald returned with ease. Thorax chuckled,
"Yeah, if it's in the right spot," he agreed, then narrowed his eyes at Emerald, "But an experienced fighter knows how to counter that little issue," he argued. Emerald nodded, then dropped the subject, turning instead to another, perhaps more pressing, one.
But first...
"Let's head inside. I haven't eaten yet, and a spar like that sure works up an appetite, wouldn't you say?"
-----
"So, your disguise," Emerald began, biting into an apple, "How the fuck are you doing it?"
The four of them had left the training grounds behind, though Emerald and Thorax were mostly oblivious to the wide-eyed stares they'd drawn from the Guards in the area, something that both Trixie and Gustave found funny.
They had returned to Emerald's temporary room, now laden with a bowl of fruit to share, and proceeded to sit down, facing each other.
Thorax smirked, and brushed his fur covered chest,
"What? This old thing?" he asked, before a pillar of green fire erupted all around him, and vanished just as quickly.
In his place, rather than the red and white stallion he'd just been, Thorax was revealed as a large, pony-shaped creature, with a black chitinous exoskeleton, large, orb-like turquoise eyes, reminiscent of a large bug. Above his eyes was a set of ragged looking pieces of flesh that acted as his ears. Trailing down his neck was a large fin with a few holes in it, which matched the fin-like tail he bore. A pair of insect wings were folded along his back, further adding to his bug-like appearance. A set of pearly white, inch-long fangs jutted from his maw, passing his chin. Adding to his distinctly non-pony like appearance, were the presence of multiple holes in each of his legs, letting any who saw fit peer straight though to the other side.
On his front legs, however, were a set of small, silver daggers, with a pair of holsters hooked in and around the holes in his legs, allowing him to carry them with ease.
However, perhaps the most eye catching feature he possessed, was the jagged stump of a horn that no longer belonged to him.
Emerald's eyes locked onto the stump, the sole reason he'd never believed Thorax to be able to disguise himself, feeling a pulse of rage echo within him.
A permanent reminder of what He had done to them.
A reminder of failure.
"Yeah, I don't blame you," Thorax said suddenly, breaking Emerald from his dark thoughts, "Honestly, I never thought I'd use magic again."
"Can you?" Trixie asked, leaning forward attentively.
"Oh fuck no," Thorax replied easily, stumping the three of them, "I'll never be able to cast another spell for as long as I live, not unless I get my horn back, of course," he added, and smirked, "But, it turns out, the disguise spell that changelings use is as intrinsic to changelings as breathing fire is to a dragon. Its literally a part of who we are, and it can never be taken away," he concluded, leaning back against the bed, his hooves cradling his head.
He paused, however, and sighed,
"Still, it would be nice to cast magic again. I mean, with all the Love I collected last night, I must be nearly as magically empowered as the fucking pony princesses," he said, and frowned, "Er, I think? I never really learned how to tell, since, you know... I kinda can't do anything with it," he added, and shrugged, "Eh, Mother can teach me if I ever take back my horn from that bitch," he snarled, clenching his fangs angrily.
"I'd pay to see that fight," Gustave joked,
"I can think of thirty others who would as well," Emerald cut in, smirking, before it fell for a moment, "Mother?" Thorax waved his hoof almost dismissively,
"The Changeling Queen, Chrysalis, saw fit to directly adopt me as one of her brood," he paused, "Well, I say brood, but I'm really the only one in it. The others starved," he said. His face was lax as he said, but his tone was sufficiently dark enough to portray that sentence in a different light.
"Still, she's a good Mother," he said suddenly, eyes drifting to the ceiling, "She occasionally treats me like a newborn grub, hovering over me like I'm about to crawl off a cliff, but she sometimes recalls that I'm the Head Brute."
"Brute?" Gustave asked. Thorax hummed to himself for a moment, and shrugged,
"Our Hive is made of a couple different castes. Scouts are the ones who infiltrate outside territory first, determine its relative threat level, and decide whether it's worth the risk to send in some Hunters or not. Hunters infiltrate the area and hide amongst the populace, foraging for Love. I gotta tell ya," he said, smirking, "Hunters are some damn good actors. I'll let ya in on a little secret, even," he leaned in, "the famous romance novelist in Equestria, Love Bug, is one of our Hunters," he said, sounding immensely proud, though it died when it didn't get any sort of reaction from his current company, "Aw, what?" he asked, "You lot don't know Love Bug, then?"
"Nope."
"Not at all."
"Doesn't ring a bell."
Thorax slumped,
"Dammit..."
"You sound pretty disappointed," Gustave noticed, "Does this 'Love Bug', mean something to you?' he asked, grinning. Thorax blinked, and chuckled,
"Nah, never met her," he said, "But I have read some of her books," he admitted, then laughed, "Every changeling in our Hive has read her books. We take Pride in what we do, and we support our hivemates just as well," he smirked, then shrugged, "Anyways, back on topic. After Hunters, we've got Brutes, who are basically just the Hunter's bodyguards. We help forage for Love, but we mostly focus on keeping them safe, and, sometimes, scouting out new targets. And lastly there are the Drones, who tend to stay behind at the base, and make up the majority of our forces. They mainly guard the new broods when they hatch, and maintain the whole place, with the Queen directing them herself. Our Queen, like your pony princesses, is pretty much a combo of all the types put together."
"That was quite the look into changeling society," Emerald remarked blithely, causing Thorax to shrug,
"Eh, that's just my Hive. I have no clue how other Hives work," he admitted, then smirked, "Besides, it's not like we're planning anything," he added with a far too honest smile.
Emerald's brow raised, wondering what his younger brother was playing at.
Just as he was about to bring it up, however, Gustave surprised him.
"Welp, let's go do something," he said, standing up and heading to the door.
Emerald was left sitting there, blinking in surprised silence at the absolutely out of nowhere response,
"Huh?" was all he could reply with. Gustave shrugged,
"What?" he asked, "You got your answers, now I want us to grab Spitfire, head out, and do something fun for once in our damned lives," he demanded, "I don't get days off as often as I'd like, you know!"
"Sounds fun," Trixie agreed, popping the last grape into her mouth, before standing up with a stretch, "Where to?" she asked. Gustave turned to her, partially ignoring Emerald and Thorax heading out the door, presumably to hunt for Spitfire,
"The Shopping Center. I'm sure there's something there for the lot of us to look at."
"Hey, Shining?" Twilight asked, sparing a few glances at the shops as they passed by, though most of her attention remained on her BBBFF,
"Yeah Twily?"
"It occurred to me just now, but you never mentioned what the Sixth Ranks were," she said, "You only went up to the Fifth Rank."
She watched, idly curious as Shining grimaced once she pointed it out. She doubted her brother had intentionally left information out, he just wasn't the kind of pony who did that sort of thing.
"Right, sorry, guess I forgot," he apologized with a smile, and straightened himself, "Well... the Sixth Rank is kinda strange, really. There are only three of them, and they're sort of a combo of each one. First off is the Hunter Class, which is like a mix of the Knight and Assassin Classes. There's the Battlemaster Class, which is a mix of Knight and Sorcerer, and lastly is the Ghost Class, which is obviously Assassin and Sorcerer. The only Class higher than those three is the Champion Class, which is a mix of, well, all of them," he said, "Unlike every other Class, which there can be any number of them, there can only be one Champion at a time, and the Champion is a Title meant only for the single greatest fighter in the entire kingdom," he chuckled, "Apparently, whoever it is, is supposed to be a better fighter than even the Princesses, though I'm not sure how that's possible," he admitted, smirking.
That was... wow...
The Champion.
The single greatest fighter in all of Equestria...
What kind of pony would they be?
Twilight could imagine them now. A mountain of a pony, with powerful, bulging muscles capable of crushing rocks into dust. A massive weapon befitting their intimidating physique, strong and heavy enough to cleave through metal as if it wasn't even there. Powerful spells cast left and right, each one strong enough to level entire towns into rubble!
She felt herself swallow a lump in her throat.
An individual like that?
She hoped she never met this... Champion. She wasn't sure her heart could take the shock.
In fact...
"Who's the Champion?" she asked, glancing up at Shining, noticing Spike staring up at him in awe, but, much to their surprise, he shrugged,
"Nopony knows," he said, glancing at her with a half-smirk, "They've been keeping it secret ever since a new Champion was announced, which was about three years ago.
She frowned at that, feeling just the slightest twinge of unease at that.
Fortunately for her, before she could dwell on the thought any longer, a wonderfully familiar voice caught her attention,
"Twilight!" came the loud, happy shout, just before a blur of pink appeared in front of her, the life being crushed out of her shortly afterward.
"Hey, Pinkie," she squeezed out, her voice muffled by the party pony's hug, before she managed to pry herself away from her grip, "What are you doing all the way out here?" she asked, tilting her head curiously.
There was no way Pinkie would just come all the way out here by herself, so-
"Twilight!" another voice called, this one strong and accented, just as Applejack came into view, "Good ta see ya out an' about. I'd'a thought the two of ya would've stayed home with yer folks," she said, sounding both surprised, and actually a little proud. Given Applejack's pride in her own family, Twilight didn't feel too surprised. She smiled at her,
"As nice as that sounds, my Mom and Dad had to head out for groceries, so Spike, Shining, and I tagged along," she said, and perked up, "Oh! Where is everypony else?" she asked, scanning the area around them, "I can't wait to introduce all of you!"
Her excitement was met with laughter from the two earth ponies,
"Well, I ain't too sure where Rainbow's gone and gotten herself, but Fluttershy an' Rarity are lookin' 'round in one o'them boutiques they like so much," she said, and shrugged, "Somethin' 'bout a bunch'a 'fancy pants', or somethin'. It's been a while, so they're prolly on their way back by now," she glanced at Pinkie, who was walking around Shining with narrowed eyes, leaving the older stallion looking nervous and slightly amused, "I've jus' been tryin' ta keep this one from gettin' 'erself in trouble, like last night," Applejack added, sending Pinkie a slight glare, to which Pinkie replied with a sheepish grin, and an apologetic shrug.
Applejack had not been happy about her cake getting ruined last night, but thankfully everything had been dealt with quickly, and the worst of their moods had all but faded by the time they'd all made it to Doughnut Joe's.
Twilight gave the two mares a slightly unsure smile, but eventually shook it off,
"What about Emerald?" she asked,
"Huh?" Applejack replied, before perking up, "Oh, uh... I dunno," she said, shrugging, "Pinkie an' Fluttershy couldn't find him earlier."
"Yeah!" Pinkie added, "And we looked everywhere too! The Gardens, the kitchens, the bathroom, the throne room, the-!" her mouth continued to move, yet no sound passed through her lips, leaving Pinkie woefully unaware of the silencing charm that Twilight had placed on her.
She waited for a moment, then released the spell,
"-en Rarity suggested that we head out for a trip around Canterlot! And of course we all thought that that was a great idea!" she cheered, "We got to see a bunch of cool stuff too! There was this one shop selling paint, and another selling food, and another selling really good cupcakes, and-!"
She was charmed once more, allowing Twilight and the other's a moment of blissful silence.
Then Rainbow Dash appeared.
"Hey girls!" she called, landing right next to them with a very loud *THUD*, "Oh, hey Twilight," she added once she spotted the lavender unicorn, before frowning, "I've been all over this stupid place and I can't find the damn weather factory! Seriously, what's with this place?" she asked.
"Canterlot doesn't have a weather factory," Shining said, cutting Twilight off before she could speak, as well as drawing the group's attention to him, "The Guard takes care of the weather. It's one of our constant duties in the city," he explained.
"Aw, what?" Rainbow asked, "That's lame."
"Why were you looking for a weather factory in Canterlot?" Twilight asked, regarding her friend curiously. Rainbow shrugged,
"Eh, I don't head out of Ponyville often, and the only factory I've seen is the one in Cloudsdale, where the Ponyville Weather Team gets our clouds and stuff. Figures this place wouldn't have one though. I haven't seen a single pegasus around here, just a bunch of unicorns," she added, glancing around, a slight frown marring her face. Twilight nodded,
"Yeah, Canterlot is mostly populated by unicorns, and a lot of the schools and shops here tend to cater to unicorns more as well, so pegasi and earth ponies don't stay often," she said, frowning, "It's... kinda unfair, but with cities like Cloudsdale, which can only house pegasi, and Trottingham where the population is mostly earth ponies, I... guess it evens out."
Rainbow huffed, but shrugged,
"Eh, whatever. This place is too stuffy for me anyways."
Part of her wanted to argue with that, and tell her friend that Canterlot was a wonderful place to live, but, she didn't exactly have a lot of memories of exploring the city, seeing the sights, or anything that would really help her with that. Most of her memories involved her family, school, the princess, and the library.
"So, who's this guy anyways?" Rainbow asked, eyeing Shining curiously, with a hint of suspicion in her eyes,
"Oh!" Twilight gasped, "This is Shining Armor, my BBBFF!"
"""BBBFF?""" her friends chorused, confused,
"My Big Brother Best Friend Forever!" she explained with a wide smile,
"""Oh..."""
She ignored the unsure glances of her friends, a speck of white and yellow at the corner of her eye catching her attention,
"Rarity! Fluttershy!" she called, waving her hoof around, causing the two mares to hone in on her location, "Over here!"
"There you are, darling!" Rarity gushed as they approached, "Why, Fluttershy and I just visited the most wonderful little boutique here in Canterlot! You'll never believe who owned it either! Why, none other than-!"
"Fancy Pants?" Twilight asked, smirking as Rarity's mouth froze mid-sentence, "Applejack mentioned you went to see his boutique just a bit ago," she explained, perhaps a tad sheepishly. Rarity's mouth closed with a 'hmph!', but she still smiled,
"I see. Well, you won't believe this!" she bragged, "Fancy Pants actually recognized me!"
""""He did?!"""" she gasped, with Rainbow, Pinkie, and Applejack going the same, "That's amazing!"
"I know, I know," Rarity agreed, "It's perfect as well! He and his wife, Fleur de Lis, are two of the most well known names in the fashion industry, and with them being even aware of my designs is sure to boost my sales by a wide margin! My dreams of opening shop here are one step closer!" she gushed, her voice squeaking in her excitement.
Twilight smiled as she watched, Rarity's cheer practically as infectious as Pinkie's.
"Oh! Goodness, I just remembered," Rarity said, calming down as she turned back to Twilight, "Why ever are you out here by yourself? I would've imagined you'd be spending the whole day with your family, Twilight." She giggled,
"Well, I am!" she said, then gestured to Shining Armor right beside her, "Rarity, this is my older brother, Shining Armor!"
"Ah!" Rarity breathed, facing the older stallion, "So you're this Guard Captain of a brother she's mentioned, eh?" she asked, before giving Shining a light bow, "Well, it's wonderful to meet you, Mr. Armor," she said politely. Shining chuckled, and rubbed the back of his head,
"Oh, well, there's no need to be formal about it. It's great to meet all of Twily's friends," he said, his eyes glancing over each of the five mares before him, though they lingered slightly on Fluttershy when she ducked away from him, "It's good to know that she's made some friends after all," he teased, lightly jabbing Twilight in the side.
"I had friends before!" Twilight argued, her cheeks going red as she glared at her brother. He chuckled,
"Yeah? You never talked about them," he countered, "And besides, you were up in that library of yours so often, I'd be surprised if you even remembered their names!"
Twilight froze at that particular jab, before turning away with a huff,
"Whatever," she pouted, causing her friends to laugh along with him.
Almost involuntarily her eyes started scanning the crowd around them now that her attention was off of her friends, searching for that glimpse of green she was beginning to expect, but, to her disappointment, there was no sign of Emerald. Not in the immediate area, anyways.
She wondered what he was doing, right about now...
Well, whatever it was, she was sure he'd be fine. After all, it's not like he was going to get hurt here in Canterlot, right?
Emerald blinked, feeling a strange shiver travel up his spine for a moment. Not only that, but the wound on his leg, now fully wrapped in bandages, suddenly started stinging more than usual.
That... couldn't be good.
"You okay, Em?" Trixie asked, spotting his momentary pause with almost practiced ease.
The four of them had finally nabbed Spitfire, surprised her with Thorax's reveal, then promptly dragged her off for whatever Gustave had in mind for the day. As it was, they were now gathered in the shopping district, each of them idly glancing through the various windows at what was available.
"Hmm... yeah," he said after a moment of thought, "Just a... feeling, is all."
"A feeling?" Trixie asked, her brow raising, "Because that makes everything clear." Emerald shrugged,
"What?" he asked, "I'm not a damn expert on 'feelings', ya know?" he shook his head, "Besides, a bunch of weird stuff has been happening since I got stationed in Ponyville, and, frankly, most of it is... strange to me," he admitted.
It was true, really. Since coming to Ponyville, he'd been feeling... better, for lack of a proper term.
He wasn't sure how to explain it past that, however. His eating problems had... disappeared. His sleeping schedule wasn't the best, but it was much better now that he had an actual schedule. And not only that, but, making... friends with those mares made him... happier than before.
Waking up each morning, regardless of how little sleep he might have gotten, was almost exciting now. Everyday seemed to be a new, miniature, adventure where those mares were concerned. He never knew what would come, and... he enjoyed it.
It was funny. To think that he'd originally come to town thinking of the whole thing as a waste of time and effort, only for it to evolve into something... more than a mere job. Oh, to be sure, his job was what was keeping him in town, and he'd leave it in a heartbeat if necessary, but, he knew, it wouldn't be pleasant, or even easy, to just up and leave one day.
It was heard to even think about, too. The thought of one day leaving his... friends behind. Rainbow, Fluttershy, Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie... Sparky.
He wondered...
Would they forgive him for leaving?
Or would they hate him for it?
...
Whatever. Now wasn't the time to ponder that.
That could wait for if-... when he left.
Trixie's raised brow didn't fall in the slightest,
"Uh, huh," she said, but didn't press further, "Anything catch your eye?" she asked instead, looking around the closest stores.
Emerald spared a glance a the shop she was currently looking through. Some magic joint, he guessed. Like cards, saws, boxes, fireworks. Just plain old stage magic. In other words, Trixie's bread and butter.
But it meant little to him, in the end.
"Not particularly."
She regarded him plainly,
"Really?" she asked, brow rising once more, "Not even one?"
Emerald shook his head, even as he cast his gaze around further, his eyes on the hunt for... something, even if he didn't know what.
A nearby door, one that led to some culinary shop Emerald didn't bother glancing at, suddenly burst open, the irate form of Gustave stomping out, followed behind by a distinctly amused Thorax, who was in his 'Peppermint' disguise.
"'Stainless', she says, 'Heat conducting', she says," Gustave grumbled, "That pot couldn't conduct heat if a dragon fucking breathed on it!" he growled, "And the stains! The fucking stains! And she had the gall to lie to my face like that?!"
"Sounds like you're having fun," Emerald remarked sarcastically, earning a snort from Thorax,
"Fuck off," Gustave snapped, "Let's move on to the next block. It's bound to have shops BETTER THAN THIS PIECE OF SHIT STORE!!" he said, shouting that last part back at the door he just exited, before huffing and brushing past Trixie.
Thorax smirked,
"I'm having fun," he said, more to himself than any of them, then began following after Gustave.
"Huh," Spitfire said, clicking her tongue, "Haven't seen Gus get that pissed in a while." Trixie sighed,
"Well, better follow him and make sure he doesn't kill anyone," she muttered, already trailing after the two males, with Spitfire laughing as she followed as well.
Emerald regarded his retreating family with... intrigue.
They were so... different. It was only natural, after all, it had been six years, seven now, since they were freed from the Facility.
Yet... why did it feel as though he remained the same?
He had changed since then, he knew. He was... better, less... broken than he was back then. The few friends he had made, combined with the lengths his Mother had gone to repair him, and he knew he was better than he used to be.
But at the same time, he hadn't changed much. His job was still a very high priority, and he knew he'd follow that until the day he died. No matter who surrounded him, or how deeply they somehow managed to burrow into his heart, he'd end up ripping them out just to continue working as he always had.
Had he always been so stubborn?
...
Yeah, he had, hadn't he?
He would leave one day, and nothing would change that.
And yet...
He didn't want to.
...
Emerald shook his head, ridding himself of those horrid thoughts.
Why was this bothering him so much today? What was it about this day that was making him so... conflicted?
His heart hurt.
Whatever. It would all just... disappear once today was over.
With that oddly chilling thought in mind, Emerald jogged to catch up with his family before they got too far ahead of him.
-----
Twilight smiled as she sat down, almost vibrating in her seat as everyone else sat at their seats around the table.
Her parents had finished up their grocery shopping earlier than they'd expected, and had ended up meeting up with the group, allowing Twilight the perfect opportunity to introduce her family to most of her friends.
Of course, they couldn't just do that in the middle of the street, that would be both rude to the passerby, and generally rather annoying for them as well, so they'd all decided to head to a nearby restaurant to continue the introductions.
Twilight didn't recognize this 'Bonne Cuisine' place, but, judging by the name, it was likely a good thing that she hadn't.
Thankfully, it had an outside section that they could all sit in, though sitting at a large table out on a balcony was, perhaps, a little nerve-wracking at first.
Still, as Twilight watched her friends and family tentatively begin speaking to each other, she couldn't help but smile happily.
"So, Twilight's told us a little about you all," Night Light began simply, "Nothing too much, just a bit about what you do and a little about your various personalities. Has she mentioned anything about us?" he asked, not quite noticing how Twilight stiffened,
"Nope!"
"Not all at."
"Nothin'."
"No, sorry..."
"Not a thing."
She shrank in her seat as her parents sent her a pair of disbelieving looks, coupled with a raised eyebrow or two.
"Uh, hehe?" she laughed nervously, "It, um... never came up?"
"Well," Rarity spoke up, "She did mention a little about her brother, but I'm afraid the subject of you two, well and truly never came up," she defended. Her father smiled and sighed, though her mother actually drooped slightly,
"Our Twily never talked about us?" she asked, her lip sticking out, "But-but-I tell everypony all about my little foals!" she whined, pressing her hooves to her cheeks,
"W-well, why don't we fix that?" Rarity asked, looking rather stunned by the mare's reaction, something Twilight found a little funny.
"That sounds wonderful," Night Light said, nodding sagely, before his eyes lit up as the waiter came by, "But first, we should order our food. I don't know about you all, but I'm quite hungry!"
"Wha-dear!" Velvet said, "We just had breakfast an hour long ago!" Night Light smiled innocently at her, his eyes drifting over to Shining and Spike,
"That's right, although I didn't get much thanks to a certain pair of bottomless stomachs, now did I?" he asked, causing the two males to chuckle sheepishly.
It didn't take too long for the ten of them to order their food, though Twilight did struggle a bit with the nearly-unreadable cursive on the menu, before settling for a small plate of rose-petal pasta. Though, she noticed that neither Applejack nor Rainbow Dash seemed particularly enthused about the menu either, and Pinkie had just stared at it for a minute as well, her eyes not even moving.
Aside from her parents, only Rarity seemed to have zero issues with anything on the menu, since even Fluttershy and Shining had faltered for a moment when laying eyes on it.
"Well, now that that's done, why don't we begin?" Night Light asked, "I think it's only fair we each take a turn asking a question, so that we don't start talking over each other, right?" he asked, looking around to make sure no one disagreed, "Great! Now... since you seem so excited, how about you go first?" he offered, smirking at Pinkie.
"Okay!"
Pinkie straightened up in her seat, mile wide smile in place, and began to talk.
And talk.
And talk.
And talk.
At some point, Twilight was certain that her words had ceased to be actual words, and instead became an intelligible steam of sounds that had only the vaguest resemblance to speech.
Topics she ended up speaking ranged from how amazing Sugarcube Corner was, to how she found it weird that chickens 'laid' eggs. After all, chickens didn't actually lay them down after all, because it would look silly for them to pick up the eggs before they were even there and just lay them down, especially because they didn't have hooves, or claws, or talons, or-
It was probably because of her many, many little rants growing up, about books she read, assignments she'd been given, spells she'd cast, combined with the slight lisp she had when speaking through her old braces, that her parents were able to calmly listen throughout Pinkie's entire tangent, even offering the occasional comment that lined in perfectly with whatever topic she'd somehow landed herself on, without so much as a change in their expressions.
Would she have to deal with this kind of thing if she ever had foals?
Well, if she did, then, at least she'd have the father alongside her, just like her mom and dad had each other.
Unfortunately for her, the thought ended up conjuring a few... questionable images in her head.
Mainly images involving herself and a certain thestral in some rather compromising positions. Positions that would later yield a foal or two.
She held the images for a moment, realized exactly what it was she was imagining, turned red, and promptly shoved them into the back corner of her mind, begging them to please not come back.
Not in public, at least.
Thankfully, it seemed that her parents were too busy indulging Pinkie's chattering to notice her lapse in attention, and her other friends had already stopped paying attention. Even Shining had given up.
"-and then he ended up in the hospital! Can you believe that?!"
Belatedly, Twilight realized that at some point their food had arrived whilst she'd been lost in thought.
"Well, considering how, ah, irritable I was during my pregnancy, I'm not surprised Mr. Cake needed a quick checkup for his hoof."
"I think it was a little more than irritable, Velvet..." Night Light muttered,
"What was that?" Velvet asked, in a far too sweet manner, causing her husband to stiffen,
"Uh, nothing dear, nothing at all..." he said, immediately cowed.
"Hmm?" Rarity suddenly broke the minute silence that followed, looking up from her half finished plate, "Oh, did Pinkie finish speaking?" she asked, "My, I didn't realize," she said, before clearing her throat, "Well, now that she's all done, why don't we finish those little introductions, shall we?"
"That sounds lovely," Velvet said, smiling as she folded her hooves under her chin, "Why don't you go next after that riveting little conversation?"
"Of course!" Rarity gushed, and cleared her throat once more, "Well, as you already know, My name is Rarity, and I work at my own boutique in Ponyville, a darling little place called The Carousel Boutique!" she said, pride evident in her voice, "I've been making dresses since I was a little filly, and I always put my heart and soul into each and every one of my designs, all of which are utterly unique, might I add!" she boasted, leaning forward slightly, "Bringing out the beauty in each of my dear customers is truly a magical feeling, and I hope to bring my designs up to Canterlot one day, where my designs can stand alongside the wonder of the likes of the best!"
"Really?!" Velvet asked, sounding surprised, "You run your own business? That's amazing! I'm sure your designs are magnificent!" she said, then frowned, "I wish I could see some of them..." she lamented sadly. Rarity blinked,
"Oh?" she breathed, "But... didn't you see the dress Twilight was wearing last night?" she asked, causing her mother to blink,
"Well, yes, but-wait-" she blinked rapidly, before almost shooting up in her seat, "You made that dress?!" she blurted, eyes wide and jaw hanging low, "I was certain that was made by Hoity Toity! That dress was gorgeous! It reminded me a little of Violet's dress in The Untouched Rose!" she exclaimed dreamily. Rarity blinked, looking strangely stunned,
"T-The Untouched Rose?!" she stammered, "Y-you read Love Bug's work too?!"
Oh no.
Oh no.
Oh no.
Her mother was bad enough, adding Cadence to that list had been a nightmare, but not Rarity too!!
Twilight watched on in horror as her mother and former best friend began conversing back and forth, sounds leaving their mouths yet holding no meaning to her by any stretch of the words.
Even her father and Shining were staring at them, looking a little put out by the new, frightening development.
"Welp," Applejack began, smacking her lips slightly, "we ain't gettin' them back any time soon, are we?" she asked.
"I'm afraid not," Night Light answered, "Velvet always gets like this whenever she meets anyone who likes the same books she does," he said, glancing at Twilight, "A trait I'm sure our daughter inherited as well," he added with a smirk.
Twilight flushed slightly,
"Daaad!" she whined, but it went ignored as he turned to Applejack,
"Well then, while those two have their little party over there, why don't you tell us a bit about yourself?" he suggested, then glanced at Velvet, "I'll fill her in on the details later."
-----
Twilight let out a calm sigh as she embraced her mother one last time.
The brunch had been nice and pleasant, and she didn't think it could've gone any better than it had, if she was being honest.
Well, aside from Emerald being there was well, but, unfortunately, that couldn't be the case.
"You take care of yourself now, Twilight," Velvet said softly as they parted, giving her daughter a warm smile, "I'd rather not get news from the Princess about you getting hurt, alright?" Twilight nodded,
"Of course, Mom. I'll be just fine," she assured the older mare. Velvet bit her lip, and sighed,
"Oh, my little filly has grown so much," she breathed, closing her eyes for a moment, "It really does feel like just yesterday I could find you sitting around the house, reading those books of yours, your cute little glasses falling down your nose every few minutes," she lamented, her eyes flickering open, "I wish you could stay longer."
"I do too, Mom," Twilight said, "But I should be heading back to Ponyville. I'm the local librarian, after all. What would all those ponies do without me to help them check out their books?" she asked with a rueful smile, "Besides, you'll always have Shining around! He might be in the Guard, but he can visit you a lot more often than I can!" she tried cheering her up, though it didn't seem to do much.
"I love Shining," Velvet said, "Really, I do, but things just aren't the same without all of us together again."
"I know."
"Well," her mother breathed, her voice hitching in her throat, "You should be heading off now, don't want to miss the train, right?" she asked, her horn lighting up, a small, purple saddlebag floating from behind her, until it rested on Twilight's back, "Here's that dress of yours, as well as Spike's suit. Don't want to forget those, either," she said.
"Thanks, Mom," she said, smiling fondly, before she spared a glance towards the sky, gauging the sun's position, "I'll try to visit again soon," she added,
"Totally!" Spike interjected, "It gets kinda boring in Ponyville sometimes," he added, causing Twilight to laugh,
"Boring?" she asked, raising an eyebrow, "I wish!"
The two of them laughed for a moment, waving their mother goodbye as they made their way through the city.
Today was nice, but it was far from over, after all.
Reaching the train didn't take long, and seeing their five friends, and Trixie, waiting for them only served to brighten their moods.
Ponyville, here they come.
Emerald sighed, feeling the air wash over his airborne form.
Today had been... nice. But for some reason, it felt better now that he was away from them all.
He had enjoyed spending time with them, enjoyed seeing them again after so many years had passed. Enjoyed the feeling that came with the knowledge that they were okay, that they were doing even better than he'd initially expected.
So why did he enjoy leaving them behind even more?
The thought of seeing them made his heart light up with joy.
The thought of being back in Ponyville, with the girls, made his heart light up with more joy.
Was that wrong?
Was that... okay?
It didn't make sense to him. Family should be the closest thing to his heart. The thing that brought him joy greater than anything those mares should've been able to bring him.
And yet....
And yet there was something about those mares that, even now, seemed to draw him closer to them. Closer than he was with his family.
It didn't... it shouldn't be like this.
So why did it feel so right?
What was it about them that had him feeling so... connected?
Fluttershy was family. Pinkie was a friend. Rarity was a tentative friend. He didn't speak with Applejack, but he knew the two of them got along well enough. He might not hold any love for Rainbow Dash, but he could agree that she was a good pony.
And Sparky...
Sparky...
She'd captured him in a way that no else had managed.
She'd captured his heart.
Not only that, but he'd spent the better part of a year getting to know all of them, and while he certainly didn't know anything too important, it was still of an amount that he couldn't help but feel attached to them.
...
On the other hoof, what did he know about his family?
It hurt to admit, physically hurt even, but...
He didn't know as much as he'd like.
Hehe, yeah... yeah, that was right.
He didn't know what the other twenty-two of them were up to. He didn't know how their lives were going.
He certainly didn't know where they were all born. Didn't know how they all got their marks.
Didn't know about their pasts beyond the Facility, didn't know their dreams, their hopes-
-didn'tknowtheirfamiliesdidn'tknowtheirhobbeswhattheylikedtoreadwhatanimalstheylikeddidn'tknowdidn'tknowdidn'tdidn'tdidn't-
HE DIDN'T KNOW ANYTHING.
HE DIDN'T KNOW THEM.
HE.
KNEW.
NOTHING.
Emerald gasped, his eyes snapping open, taking in the strange sight of the clouds rising past him.
For a moment he couldn't comprehend what was happening, but soon his instincts lit up like a bonfire and told him, quite plainly, that he was falling to his fucking death!
His wings snapped open, catching him abruptly, and rather painfully, bringing his unplanned free-fall to a halt.
What the fuck happened?
One second he was cruising the air without issue, the next his entire world had shifted, and he'd, evidently, fallen unconscious.
...
Just like his little... fit from before, minus the muscle spasms.
He needed to get examined at Ponyville General, he needed to know what was wrong with him.
Once was happenstance. Twice was a coincidence.
He wouldn't let there be a third time.
Ponyville, here he comes.