*Author’s Note*

Chapters 32–34 are an Entr'acte, which (if you didn't know) translates to 'Between the Acts.' You’ll notice that the Entr’acte is written in a very different format: a sequence of letters. Letters are dated the day they are sent, and snail mail usually takes about four days to be received.

Well, we’re home. The train ride was SO long. And boring. Four days on a train should be illegal. I told mom we should’ve gone to Manehattan and flown across the Celestial Sea instead—there’s a flight stop at the Griffish Isles, and with how little we brought with us it would’ve taken two days, tops. We could’ve been here on Sunday. But noooo, we had to take the long way around. I actually started reading my Equish notes at one point I was so bored.

Geez, it’s weird being back here. It just reminds me how much better it was in Canterlot. And everything I left behind there. I mean, it’s nicer than what Granny Gilda’s told me it used to be like, but still.

I miss you already, Cotton. Your clip’s still in my crest. I ran into my old friends Gavin and Garrett when we got back, and they laughed at me when they saw it. When I told them why I had it they shut up. I’ll see if I can find something like a clip here as a replacement for you.

I’ll write again soon. I know Mom and I left without much notice, so next time you see them could you tell the girls I said bye? Kind of late now, but better late than never, right?

No matter what you told me when I left, I promise I’ll come back someday. I love you, Cotton. I always will.

PS: It was easy enough to get a letter to you—there’s only one Canterlot Castle—but now you’ve got my address on the back of this envelope. I still can’t believe I forgot to give it to you before we left. When I realized it after the train left I started banging my head against the window, and I brought this to the post office the second we got back.

Thanks for writing so fast. I did get pretty worried when I woke up and realized you didn’t give me an address to write to. Daddy told me he was sure you’d write quickly when you figured that out, and I’m glad he was right. He also said that I’d have to wait at least a week before anything came back because of how long the trains would take in each direction. I was NOT happy that he was right about that, too.

Just a heads-up, my dad told me he MIGHT be able to send my letters to you with his dragonfire, but Griffonstone is pretty far. I’m going to ask Aunt Twilight to make a copy of this letter so I can send two of them, just to see if his fire can reach you in Griffonstone. If it can’t, then I’ll just stick to using the regular snail mail like I figured I’d be doing, and you’ll get this letter either way.

Anyway, I saw the girls yesterday. When they didn’t see you with me they asked where you were. When I told them you left they all got kind of pissed at first, but when I told them WHY they went totally silent. They’re all really sorry, both about your dad and because you had to go. They ARE kind of upset they didn’t get to say goodbye, though. I think they want to write letters to you, too, so I hope you don’t mind, but I gave them your address so they don’t need to wait to send their letters through my dad (if his fire even works).

Hope you’re adjusting okay. I miss you, too. It isn’t the same without you here.

PS: Aunt Luna told me I should send you some salacious photos of me. Since I’m sending one of these letters through my dad, I don’t want to risk sending them that way. There are some coming through snail mail, though. Aunt Cadance took the pictures. I’m sending a normal one, too.

Your letter from your dad got to me just fine. It got to me yesterday, the same day you dated it. I’ll admit it kind of freaked me out when a letter appeared in front of me in a burst of green fire, but at least now I’ll know to expect something like that here. It’s the only kind of mail that would come on a Sunday.

Things are okay here. It’s still weird waking up in my old room. I spent some time with Gavin and Garrett yesterday just catching up. Sounds like not a lot has really been happening the past few years. I’m honestly not really surprised. School was pretty boring here. Well, more than usual.

I’ll keep an eye out for the girls’ letters. It’ll be nice to keep in touch with them, too. Actually, I just realized, have you heard from Buzz? He’s still in juvi, isn’t he? Hope he’s doing alright.

PS: I’d love to have some pictures of you. But, uh, does ‘salacious’ mean what I think it does? Is that why you won’t send them through your dad?

I’m so sorry to hear about your dad. And I’m sorry you had to leave. Cotton’s taking it pretty hard, but she understands.

Please do keep in touch with her. You two were such a good pair, and you did so much for her. She’s totally different than before, and in the best way.

I don’t really know much about Griffonstone, so I hope everything works out for you over there. Be well, okay?

I’m really sorry about your dad. You have my sincerest condolences. I hope you’ll be okay.

I’m sorry I didn’t get to say goodbye before you left, but Cotton said your mom wanted to leave quickly, so I get it. Cotton’s really upset, but she knows you didn’t want to go.

Keep in touch with her, please. I know the distance will be hard, but even if you’re not here, Cotton needs you.

Sorry to hear about your dad. Sucks that you had to leave. Cotton’s pretty torn up, but she gets it.

Cotton really loves you, so keep writing to her. She’s going to need to have some kind of contact with you.

I remember a few things from my griffon culture assignment, so I hope you’ve got enough bits to tide you over. And don’t go getting any good-looking scars. Can’t have any chicks over there making a pass at you. Cotton told us about what happened in the clouds, so you belong to her now, got it?

…So that IS what salacious means… Wow, am I glad I opened that letter in my room. My wings shot STRAIGHT up.

Thanks for sending me the ‘normal’ one, too. I can keep that one up on my wall and not worry if my mom walks in.

PS: I’d send you a picture, too, but I don’t have any like that. We don’t have a camera here.

If you’re wondering why I even used the word, Aunt Luna told me to. She actually was looking over my shoulder as I wrote that PS. I shouldn’t have brought the letter into her room when Aunt Cadance was taking the pictures…

And yeah, Buzz is still in juvi. He should hopefully be out in a week or two. I went to visit him two days ago—I promised I would. When he asked why you weren’t with me I told him about your dad and that you had to leave, and he wanted me to tell you he’s sorry and is going to miss messing around in class with you.

Actually, Gem and Jewel were there, too. On the other side of the building. Did I tell you that Auntie Celestia sentenced them to juvi for trying to sneak up to my room at the dance? After I saw Buzz I went over there to say hello. When they sneered at me I just shrugged and said, “Hey, who’s on which side of the bars?”

…That was probably kind of petty of me, but honestly, those bitches deserve it. I know that’s not really my thing, but I guess I’m allowed to be a little, well, out of character from time to time. Daisy told me something like that once.

PS: Aunt Twilight got a glance at that PS when she copied my letter, too. I’m pretty sure she had a long talk with Aunt Luna and Aunt Cadance after that. I saw her come out of Aunt Luna’s room blushing.

Things actually aren’t all that bad. I’ve been hanging out with Gavin and Garrett when I’m not taking care of Granny. We’ve gotten back into our old groove. Tell Flarechaser that we all dared each other to go after the Idol of Boreas, but none of us did. She’ll probably get a kick out of that.

Oh, speaking of which, I got letters from all of the girls. Could you tell them I said thanks and give them my best?

Wait, Gem and Jewel went to juvi?? Ha! Nice to hear they got their just desserts for once.

By the way, this time gap with me getting your letters right away and you not getting mine for a few days is kind of weird. Maybe we should both stick to snail mail unless something urgent pops up that you need to tell me right away. You okay with that? Not that I don’t want to hear from you as soon as possible, but I sent you two letters between yours because of the time it takes for mine to get to you. I sent the second one two days ago, ~~so you probably haven’t gotten it yet~~ Well you’ve probably gotten it NOW.

If it’s easier for you for me to send letters by snail mail, I can do that. I did get that second letter afterward, so I see what you mean about the timing. This’ll be the last one I send through my dad.

And thanks. I wasn’t sure what you’d think about those photos. Glad you liked them.

It’s good to hear you have friends to hang out with. Oh, and the girls send you their best, too. I told Flarechaser what you said about that Idol of Boreas thing. She started laughing and said, “Damn right they didn’t.” Whatever that means—I didn’t ask her to go into detail. I know she did that griffon culture assignment a while ago, so I’ll let you two have your inside joke.

Oh, and actually, Uncle Discord snapped a photo of us at the dance, so I DO have a picture of you. A really nice one, too. Don’t ask how he got it—it’s Uncle Discord, so I don’t ask questions.

Sorry about the delay. It’s just… I finally went and saw my dad’s grave last week. I just… kind of felt weird for a day or two.

I just realized, I never talked to you about him, did I? The only one you saw was my mom. He wasn’t a bad guy, just kind of… distant. Guess that’s why I never talked about him. He and my mom didn’t really spend that much time together before we left for Canterlot either, so maybe something was going on between them, but I don’t know. I didn’t even really miss him as much as I thought I would while I was in Canterlot, to be honest. But now that he’s gone it’s kind of hit me like a steam engine.

Taking care of Granny has helped, though. She’s been telling me a bunch of stories, some of the stuff she did with him. Sounds like the two of them had a pretty good time together, all things considered. I mean, I would hope they did. It’d kind of suck if a mother didn’t like her son who felt like he was obligated to stay with his mother…

Anyway, I’ve told Granny a lot about you. Ever since I got your photos, actually. When they came in the mail she was wondering what they were and who they were from, so I showed her the one regular photo you sent, and she was really impressed. She said the fact that I managed to find someone like you makes me the most not-lame griffon ever. She said if she’d known we were together she would’ve made me stay in Canterlot. She’s actually tried to get me to leave a few times since then, but I don’t know where I’d live. Mom sold the house, and guarantee your dad wouldn’t let me stay in the castle. Think I could stay with Mother Matron and Tender Care? Like a live-in assistant or something? Nevermind, I’m sorry. I need to stay with Mom and Granny either way. They need me here.

Granny remembers your dad, but not like he is now. She remembers him being a ‘shrimp.’ Grover, if she saw him now… I bet she’d still call him a shrimp anyway. She said I was lucky I never got roasted. She’s not wrong.

She’s calling for me right now, and my claw’s getting kind of tired, so I’ll write again soon, okay?

Don’t worry about the delay. I understand. I had to wait a day, too. Mail didn’t go out yesterday.

I’m sorry visiting your dad was so hard. But I think it was good for you, too. A few years ago my dad told me that even after I’d been adopted into my new family, it was okay to grieve about my parents. I mean, it was different for me because I already had nine years to do it, and I was only three when it happened, but it’s good to talk to someone when it does. Don’t keep your feelings bottled up. It’ll be easier to move on forward that way. Sounds like your granny may be the right one to talk to, if not your mom. Or me, if you want.

Actually, it’s funny you mentioned Mother Matron and Tender Care. I managed to convince my dad and aunts to let them and the kids come up to the castle for a visit. Well, it didn’t actually take too much convincing, but Tender and Mother Matron were grateful all the same. They’re also sorry you had to leave, and about your dad.

Amber and Ruby asked about you, too, and when I told them you left they got really upset. I have to admit, it was actually kind of adorable. Oh, and Aster didn’t try to make a move on me. Thought you’d like to hear that.

You should’ve seen all the kids running around the castle. It was chaos Uncle Discord would be proud of. We had to send out at least four guards to try and round them all up, Bastion and Ravelin included, because Mother Matron and Tender Care were catching up with my dad in his room and finally got that break they needed. I finally got them settled in the kitchen with a batch of cookies.

Hey…would you like a batch? They wouldn’t be fresh, but I could send them in a box if you’d like.

It’d be amazing if you came back and got to have them with me, but I know family comes first for you, so don’t apologize for wanting to stay.

I think I’ll stop there for now. Let me know if you’d like another chance to eat my cookies.

And get your head out of the gutter, because I know it’s there. I just couldn’t resist.

But yes, totally. If you’re offering, I’d love a batch of cookies. I bet Mom and Granny would be thrilled to try them.

Speaking of her, Mom’s doing alright. She’s been making and selling Granny’s scones so we can keep up with our bits. What she got from the house will only go so far. She misses Canterlot, too, but both of us know we need to stay here for now. She’s talked to me about your dad a few times. I don’t know, but if that kiss from my mom before we left was anything to go by, maybe they DID like each other. That’d be super weird, huh?

Anyway, good to hear the kids got up to the castle, and I’m glad I don’t have any competition with that kid Aster. I hope Mother Matron and Tender Care weren’t mad at me. I did say I’d take care of you, after all.

Hey, how ARE Bastion and Ravelin? They still getting into trouble? Tell them I miss them. Hopefully that’ll prevent me from getting drawn and quartered if when I come back.

Talk soon. Say hi to your dad for me. The Princesses, too. Especially Princess Luna.

I hope you got the dragonfire letter from my dad this morning. I tried to time it so you’d get it a little bit earlier on the same day you got the cookies. This letter should be with the box.

I made about 20, so they should last you a few days if you don’t scarf them down. Make sure you share! And Aunt Twilight managed to put some kind of preservation spell on the box, so the cookies should actually be fresh...ish. The spell will wear off when you open it, though. Enjoy!

Nah, Tender and Mother Matron weren’t mad. They totally understood. If anyone understands needing to take care of family, it’s them.

Yeah, Bastion and Ravelin are still being smart aleks. I’m actually kind of surprised Dad hasn’t threatened to have THEM drawn and quartered, but they’re at least good at what they do.

But our parents? Yeah, I know I thought about setting them up, but now that I think about it, that WOULD be super weird… Wouldn’t that technically make us siblings? Yuck.

Anyway, talk to you soon. The aunts say hi back. And Aunt Luna laughed when I told her you specified her. Did you two do something? Did she do something to you? Or was that about the pictures?

Actually, nevermind. Aunt Luna’s an oddball, so I’ll leave that well enough alone. Unless she did something to you.

You’re hilarious. I got the dragonfire letter two days ago, but the cookies and snail mail letter got here YESTERDAY. There must have been a delay for some reason. I was totally confused when I got the letter from your dad, so right as I went to write to you yesterday asking what that message was about, the mail showed up with the box and I was like, ‘Ooooooooooh!’

Princess Twilight’s spell worked perfectly! I broke one of those cookies in half and it just MELTED. Just as good as when you made them for the kids at the orphanage. Daisy called them ‘chocolate ecstasy’ once, right? That’s pretty accurate. When I gave one to mom, SHE melted, and Granny said they were almost as good as her scones. Now THAT’S a compliment!

So hey, I don’t know about you, but school starts next week. I’m honestly not really sure what to think about it. It’ll be weird being with all griffons again, and as far as I can tell, there actually aren’t that many here that are around my age, so we’ll probably be a pretty small class. And considering that I was in Canterlot for the last few years, I might have some catching up to do if they have a different curriculum, which they probably do.

At least Gavin and Garrett should be in class with me, so hopefully it won’t be too terrible. Doubt I’m going to be able to have the kind of fun I had with Buzz, though.

Let me know how things go when school starts. Oh, and if he asks about me, tell Mr. Turner that he was my favorite teacher.

And when it comes to Princess Luna… We kind of have our own inside joke. No harm was done on either side. Let’s leave it at that.

Dammit! I thought I’d get the timing right sending that note last Monday. Oh well, at least you got them. Glad to hear Aunt Twilight’s spell worked, and it’s awesome your mom and granny like them. One of these days I might try and sell those cookies for a good cause, so knowing that they’re enjoyable from a bunch of different tastes is good to know. Thank your mom and granny for being testers for me.

We actually don’t start school until NEXT week (well, from when you should be getting this). We're starting late this year for some reason. Hope it isn’t too terrible for you, though. By the way, speaking of Buzz, he got out of juvi like, three weeks ago. They let him out at the seven week mark. The aunts said he definitely didn’t deserve all eight, but they had to push past six because of setting a precedent and junk. It’s all political stuff. He said the school sent him the rest of his work from the end of last year and he finished it while he was there. He almost did as good as me on his finals. Looks like clowning and good grades seem to go hoof-in-hoof. Or claw. Or… whatever.

Now wait, it’s one thing for you and Flare to have an inside joke, but you and my AUNT? Come on, I can’t have that. Looking forward to that story.

School started the day you dated your last letter. Grover, it suuuuuuuuuucks. Nothing like what I expected. Literally EVERYONE is all in one classroom—ten years to eighteen years old, because the younger ones don’t even start school until then—and there’s only ONE teacher. All he does is talk about all this supposedly amazing stuff he’s done that led to him becoming a teacher. He doesn’t even actually teach. He just stands up there and plays himself up to be a big shot. Guess that’s one of the things that DID change when I left. Nobody cares about school now. Like, at all. The little kids run around, most of the oldest ones sleep, and those of us in between just sit around and talk to each other. Some of them actually listen to the teacher, enough that he doesn’t get on our cases about literally EVERYONE ELSE paying no attention to him at all. I’ve basically just been chatting with Gavin and Garrett, but we’ve run out of things to talk about already.

Alright, sorry, just had to get that out. Anyway, good to hear Buzz is out and finished up everything. Keep an eye on him for me, huh? I’ll have to make up for lost clowning when I come back, since it’d go unnoticed here. You should be starting tomorrow—Canterlot usually started on a Tuesday if I remember right.

Sorry. Just like we didn’t spill anything to the girls about our first date, I’m not spilling anything about my joke with Princess Luna. You’ll have to pry it out of her if you want to hear it, and I doubt she’ll tell you either.

Yeah, classes started for us Tuesday. I don’t have any classes with Daisy or Harmony this semester, but I do have history with Flare. Mr. Turner actually did ask about you. I told him why you left and what you told me. He told me to say he was glad you enjoyed your time with him, and he’s sorry about your dad, too. I’ve got math with Buzz, but he hasn’t tried anything funny with Mr. Theorem. Yet.

Sorry to hear about your school. That must be driving you nuts. Have you tried doing something with any of the younger griffons? You were pretty good with the kids at the orphanage, so maybe you can teach them some stuff you learned here?

Aunt Luna isn’t as tight-lipped as you thought. She told me what she did—sending Nightshade to tell you to ask me out AND following us on our date with my aunt Cadance. Now it makes sense why you were so nervous when you asked me out that first time. Nothing like having a princess telling you to make a move already to get your tail in gear, huh? I’m actually happy she did that. I don’t know how long it would’ve taken for you to do it on your own, but it doesn’t matter now. She also told me what she did while we were in the movie theater. Thanks for throwing it away. Just shows how nice a guy you are that you wouldn’t go for it so soon. Even if I tried to after only a few weeks…

You know, you keep talking about doing… stuff WHEN you come back. I’m not really expecting you to… but I AM keeping my feathers crossed.

Hey, you may not have let me finish saying it, but I made you a promise. I’ll come back someday. If not to see you again, then at least to have a conversation with Princess Luna about keeping ~~secr~~ ~~jok~~ certain things between ourselves.

Huh. Teaching the kids about Equestrian stuff. You know, I guess that might be a possibility. Maybe I’ll try it tomorrow. Heck, Gavin and Garrett don’t have anything more to talk about. If that doesn’t work, I may as well just skip school and go work in the mines for some extra bits. Grover knows we can always use them around here, and the mines have been seeing a little more action lately, so I bet they could use another set of claws.

Glad to hear you’re going to give teaching a shot! Aunt Twilight was thrilled when I told her. I didn’t mention you were thinking about skipping school, though.

Oh, speaking of school, listen to this. I finally ran into Gem and Jewel for the first time since the beginning of the semester. You should’ve heard them trying to take a swing at me. Not literally. They blamed me for getting them sent to juvi even though it was totally their fault. Started calling me names, using snarky wisecracks, all the old crap they used to pull. Guess they thought I’d cave since you weren’t there. Nope. I asked if I’d lit a fire under their flanks and if their skin wasn’t thick enough to handle juvi. Got some applause for that like Buzz did last year. Honestly, I think my ‘burn’ burns are better than theirs, so hopefully they’ll finally get off my case.

So I did try the teaching thing. No luck. I tried to keep it on the down low so the teacher wouldn’t do anything, but the kids wouldn’t settle down enough to listen to me. A bunch of the other griffons closer to my age just laughed at me for even trying. They said I had a better chance of getting the teacher to actually teach us something.

When I told them what I was trying to teach, some of the older tiercels called me a pony-lover, and they did NOT mean it in a good way. But screw them. I love you.

Good to hear you aren’t letting those bitches get the better of you. I hoped they’d give up eventually. Obviously you didn’t need me at all.

Yeah, we have an iron mine here. They discovered it about five years ago, I think, and we started using the iron to make some steel for new buildings. I said it a while ago, even though Griffonstone doesn’t look that great now, it’s still much better than it used to be, according to Granny. Hate to say it, but I think I AM going to just ditch school and go to the mines instead. That’s what my dad was doing before he died, so I guess I could pick up his pick-axe, or whatever the phrase is. Maybe I’ll wait a little longer, though…

Mom also hasn’t been selling that many scones lately, so maybe I should go mining anyway to keep us covered. She can watch Granny while I’m working. Probably wouldn’t hurt for me to get some exercise other than flying, anyway. Especially after you sent us those cookies. Are you trying to make me fat?

PS: Granny’s still trying to get me to leave and go back to you. Believe me, I’d love to, but I keep telling her I can’t, not now. I think she might be getting annoyed at me.

Oh, you know, I meant to tell you: I saw my cousin Allegrezza a few weeks ago. Remember Allie? When I told her you left she was disappointed she didn’t get a chance to sing with you. I am too, actually. You two would’ve made a great duet, especially with Largo on the turntable.

I know school is boring from what it sounds like, but do you really think you should go to those mines? Is it safe? Could you just try school for a little while longer? Maybe it’ll get better?

Be careful, okay? I don’t want you getting hurt because of something stupid. It’s probably not stupid to you, but… oh, I don’t know. Just be careful, please.

PS: Tell your Granny that I’m proud of you for knowing your priorities, so she shouldn’t be upset.

So I decided to stay in school for a while longer after I sent that last letter to you.

A couple of Griffonian soldiers came into our class to talk about ‘opportunities’ in the military. They heard that our school system was basically a joke, and asked if any of us wanted to spend our time doing something ‘truly productive.’ Practically everyone my age and older decided to go with them. I asked about the Griffonian school system instead, but they said they didn’t really know anything about it because they paid more attention to their training. Either way, I don’t really have any interest in becoming a soldier.

Sorry to say, I’m not going to school anymore. I would’ve been the oldest one there, and the only one my age. I have no idea what the younger kids there are doing, but hopefully they’ve found a way to keep themselves occupied. Maybe they’re just staying home during the day.

I went over to the mines yesterday and asked about working there. Mom still hasn’t been selling much, if anything, so I think it’s the best option for us now. The mine overseers said they could offer me some time down there, but I haven’t started yet. I will next week, just a couple days. The pay isn’t ideal, but it’ll hopefully hold us over for a while. There’s only so much to do here anyway.

I guess you didn’t really have a choice anymore, huh? Please, be careful in those mines. I’m guessing that by the time you get this you should have been in there at least once. How did it go?

The military came in, huh? I guess that kind of makes sense if they knew your school wasn’t doing anything worth your time. Glad to hear you didn’t go that way, though. After we got together you didn’t seem like you’d ever want to actually hurt anyone, no matter what anyone else did at school sometimes. At least, that’s what it looked like to me. You did a good job putting up a front, but I know you’re really a softy. I love that about you.

Nothing special is happening over here. Just school stuff. Oh, except Harmony is thinking about breaking up with Strange Catalyst. And Zora-Terra waits for Flare after school every day since he graduated last year. I’ve seen Flicka Ring go over to him a few times thinking he’s there for him. I feel bad every time he pouts. It’s like, ‘Big bro took my girl.’ Am I a bad pony for thinking that’s actually kind of funny, too?

I started in the mines last Monday. The work itself isn’t that difficult to understand. One of the overseers showed me the most efficient way to get things done, then he left me to it and I basically got it right away. The work isn’t complicated, but damn, is it HARD. And they make sure it gets done.

I saw cart after cart of iron go through the place. There are a TON of griffons down there. I guess I know why they only pay so much, there are a lot of griffons to pay. I saw Gavin’s dad down there, and he told me the first day is the hardest. Makes sense to me. I don’t know why they’d need so much iron, but hey, it gets us at least SOME bits. Better than nothing.

I ended up going back Wednesday and Friday, too. At least they gave me a day of rest in between. Wednesday still felt really hard—I was still sore from Monday. I saw Garrett’s dad that day. He told me the second day is the hardest, then you get some momentum. That made sense, too. I still can’t figure out which day actually WAS harder.

I’m sorry for not writing until today. I got your letter Saturday and missed Sunday for mail, then I was right back to the mines yesterday. They’ve got me on a schedule now. It’s still pretty rough down there, but it was a little easier. Garrett’s dad was right, I just needed a little momentum. Doesn’t mean I wasn’t exhausted by the end of the day, though.

Oh, I almost forgot. Your hair clip almost came out of my crest in the mines on Wednesday, so I took it off and hung it up next to your picture when I got home so I wouldn’t have to worry about losing it. That reminded me: I never got you a replacement hair clip, and it’s been months now. I’m really sorry about that. There’s been nothing here that looks like it could work as one. I hope you got another one.

I’m actually still kind of sore, so I’m going to stop writing. I need to go take a nap.

PS: No, you’re not a bad pony. That sounds kind of funny to me, too. Guess Flick still has some learning to do.

Wow, sounds like you really had a rough week. I hope you at least got some rest over the weekend. If you’ve got the same schedule then you’re probably down there again today. My today, I mean. But you probably don’t want to talk about work.

Don’t worry about the clip, it’s okay. I wasn’t really going to say anything about it. That was kind of a spur-of-the-moment thing. I asked my aunt for another pair, so I’ve still got the same manestyle as the one in the photo I sent you.

If this catches the same mail pattern, you’re probably getting this on Friday, so I guess you’re probably working BOTH ‘today’s. Anyway, I bet you’re exhausted, so go take a nap.

Hey, tonight’s Nightmare Night, isn’t it? I remember the first year Mom and I were in Canterlot there were kids coming up to our place asking for candy and we had no idea what they were talking about. One of our neighbors explained it to us the day after, so the next year we were ready. We were the only griffons on our block, so we just got like, kind of aggressive and snapped our beaks at them. It gave them enough of a scare that they just laughed, took their candy and kept going. I remember the year after I got really into it. I wore an eyepatch like my Great-Great-Grandpa Gruff, and put some stickers up on our door that made it look like we had slashed through it. When I opened the door I started swinging my claw at the kids. Don’t worry, I always peeked through the door so I never hit any of them. Mom just kind of left me alone to have my fun that year.

I kind of wish we did something like that here, but griffons don’t care about candy, let alone actually have a place to buy it.

Actually, yeah, Nightmare Night was a blast. Daisy was hosting a costume party at her place, but I got to do something much cooler.

Aunt Luna has this tradition where she goes down to Ponyville and scares all the kids silly by ‘possessing’ a statue of Nightmare Moon and making it look like she’s going to eat them all if they don’t give her candy. That’s one way to get free sweets. She gave me a suit of noctis armor to dress up in and brought me with her. She even gave me special lenses and little fake fangs! I got one of the guards to take a picture! Check it out!

While she was doing her performance I went and visited my cousins that were around and not collecting candy.

When I went back into town I saw Aunt Luna just casually hanging out with the older townsponies. Obviously they know her well. She introduced me around town, so I now have a bunch of REALLY old friends. There’s this one old stallion with a really thick accent that Aunt Luna really likes, though. He was wearing an eyepatch and a red bandana like a pirate, and was using what looked like a wooden sword for a cane. For an old stallion, he really took the holiday seriously.

Tell you what, I’ll send you some of your own sweets. I jumped ahead in some of my homework, so I don’t think I’m going to have a ton to do this weekend. Really good timing there. I actually have a little more work I can jump on now, so I’m going to go do that.

Hope you have some room for cookies next week. I’ll make them and send them on Saturday, so I’m GUESSING they’ll get there Thursday or Friday, but with what happened last time I’m not going to assume anything. And I won’t try and send another one of those ‘incoming’ messages.

PS: I asked my dad to send this letter by dragonfire so you’d know ahead of time that something is coming for you instead of it just appearing at your doorstep. Sorry if it freaked you out.

Just the thought of you baking today is making my mouth water. Believe me, knowing that you’re sending another batch of cookies helped me power through work yesterday. I was still exhausted, but at least I get a break today and tomorrow.

I’m glad you sent that letter through your dad. And no, it didn’t freak me out, but it did catch me by surprise.

I can’t really think of anything else right now. There’s really nothing going on here other than me going to work and chatting with Mom and Granny.

Mom and Granny send their best, and say thank you in advance for the cookies, by the way. Obviously I do, too.

I’m sending this through my dad again because the cookies SHOULD be there either today or tomorrow. Should be.

Anyway, when I was done baking yours I made a giant batch of cookies for the guards. Geez, you should’ve seen it. My dad had to like, direct traffic while each guard left their posts one by one to get into the kitchen, and the next wasn’t allowed to go in until the last one got back to their post. Bastion and Ravelin somehow managed to sneak in, and when Dad caught them chewing as they were going back to the stairs he whacked them with his wing. When I went up and scolded them afterward they were just like, “Worth it.” No wonder you three got along.

11/14/77 ~~11/13/77~~

I’m not complaining, of course, but when I got back from work today and my mom showed me TWO GIANT BOXES OF COOKIES—I almost fell over! I had like, five earlier. I’m actually eating one right now, too. And have another next to me. Don’t judge me.

Thanks for clarifying in that little note not to open the second box until the first was empty because of your aunt’s preservation spell. Please tell her thank you, by the way—it works PERFECTLY. I kid you not, I totally would have taken one box for myself and let Mom and Granny split the other one.

Oh Grover, Cotton, you are AWESOME. Thank you SO much. Mom, Granny and I are getting fat and happy. Mom’s going to kill me if she finds out I snuck more, but like Bastion and Ravelin said, WORTH IT.

I wish I could send you something back, but there is NOTHING here that can compare to this. Not even in the mines. It’d be cool to find a diamond or something, but the overseers would snag it right away. They NEVER look away. Not like there’s diamonds in there anyway.

(11/14) PS: I wrote this letter yesterday, right after I got home from work and my mom opened the first cookie box. I was going to send it right away, but just before I put it in an envelope I realized I missed closing time at the post office. That’s why I changed the date at the top. It still reads like a ‘today’ letter, though. My bad.

Ha ha! I thought you might need a pick-me-up! Nothing better than cookie overload, huh? Seriously though, don’t go too nuts on them (I didn’t put any in. HA!). I tried to make enough to last you a WHILE, maybe up to Hearth’s Warming. I know that’s like, a month from now, but still. Oh, and I told my aunt Twilight you said thank you for using the preservation spell, and she got this big smile on her face before she told me to say you’re welcome.

Don’t worry about sending me something. You’ve obviously got a lot on your plate. It’s just nice to still be able to talk to you. Besides, the feather was really sweet. You have my clip, I have your feather.

So Harmony finally broke up with Strange Catalyst. She said he was getting a little, well, strange. More so than usual. So now Flare’s the only one with a special somepony. Somebuggy? Whatever. Zora doesn’t seem to have any issue when Flare wants to chill with just Harmony, Daisy, and me. Sometimes she brings him along and they just end up making out with each other. They tend to just go off on their own when that happens.

There’s really not much else going on. Just usual school stuff. Enjoy the sweets, but don’t let yourself go, okay?

PS: Just so you know… my Aunt Twilight told me that in pegasus culture, offering a feather is how you propose… I’m guessing you didn’t know that.

Uh… yeah, didn’t know about the feather. My heart’s doing this weird rabbit thing. Let’s change the subject.

So Harmony dumped the zeebs, huh? I was wondering when that would happen. They never seemed like a good match to me. Maybe she should try Flick. Ha!

You know, I just thought of something. Does Zora ever take Flare to the Canterlot hive? Flare said her parents don’t like it when they neck at her place, so do they only get to do it in public? Just wondering.

Anyway, not really much happening here, either. Just work. It’s starting to get a little brisk up here—glad I brought my hat and scarf with me. The mine is still hot, though, so it’s kind of a relief going in both directions. Either way, it’s always nice to come home to a cookie or two. YES, I’m maxing myself at two at a time so I don’t get fat. I’m serious this time. Mom and Granny keep an eye on me, too, so that helps.

I think Harmony is just kind of done with colts for now. She’s mostly paying attention to schoolwork. And yeah, Zora brings Flare to the hive. I don’t know what goes on there, but I don’t really want to ask.

Yeah, it’s getting cold here, too. I’ve been limiting my flying so my wings don’t freeze. Stay warm over there, okay? I hope the cookies are helping with that.

Sorry this letter is so short. I had a ton of work to do last night. Hearth’s Warming is coming up soon and we’re prepping for exams, but I wanted to send this off to you in the morning right away before I went to school. You may have been working today if it’s Friday, so I hope you’re going to get some good rest this weekend.

Sorry for the delay with this letter. Work was pretty nuts yesterday as usual, but it’s been kind of weird since Wednesday last week. I don’t know why, but some of the other griffons have started being real jerks. It was kind of subtle at first, but now they’re going out of their way to have nothing to do with me. I mean, we weren’t exactly sociable before, but they at least were nice enough to respond when I said hello. Now it’s just silence. Only Garrett and Gavin’s dads give me any kind of acknowledgement, and even then it’s just grunts. I’ve been trying to think if I did anything to offend anyone.

Anyway, the cookies are definitely helping. It got freakin’ cold pretty quick, but at least it’s livable.

…That’s weird. I can’t imagine what you might’ve done. Maybe the cold is getting to everyone? I’m happy to hear the cookies are at least cheering you up. Maybe you want to share a cookie or two with your co-workers? It sounds like I DID send you enough to get to Hearth’s Warming, so I bet you’d have enough…

Speaking of which, pre-holiday exams started today. I asked Aunt Twilight if I could do another study marathon with the girls like we did with finals last year and she said yes, so last night was our first night. I think I did pretty well in Equish today.

I hope work gets better. Make sure you get some extra rest now that it’s getting colder, okay? You don’t want to get sick.

Hope you did well on the rest of your tests. At least, I’m guessing you’re done by now.

Work is crazy. Mom hasn’t been selling for a while now, so I started working Thursdays, too. I actually offered a cookie to Gavin and Garrett’s dads like you suggested, and they both liked them. Maybe they’ll start talking to me with actual words again.

I know it’s next week, so Happy Hearth’s Warming. It would’ve been nice to celebrate it here, but since it’s a pony holiday the griffons don’t do anything for it, so I’ll probably just be working as usual since it’s a Friday. I would’ve tried to send you a gift, but there’s nothing here worth sending; the stores seem to be out of stock all the time. I really haven’t had any time to make you something by claw, either. Sorry.

Have a good holiday. Say hi to your dad and aunts. And the girls. Mom and Granny send their best.

Since Aunt Twilight helped again, I’m feeling pretty confident about my tests, but I haven’t gotten the results back yet.

Yeah, Hearth’s Warming is tomorrow. They’re holding the annual play in the ballroom as always, so the whole castle is decorated floor to ceiling. I even helped with the setup. Don’t feel bad about not sending me anything—I wasn’t expecting you to after all the work you’ve been doing. You still deserve a happy Hearth’s Warming, though, so Daddy and I are sending you and your mom stuff with this letter.

I’m sorry you have to work tomorrow. And if you’re working even more, PLEASE make sure you rest.

P.S.: Dad said he’s sorry he couldn’t send something more personal, but he thought his gift would be practical.

Thank you SO much for the new cookie supply. They’re awesome as usual. Your timing was actually perfect—I just got down to my last two ‘hits’ today. I’ve been giving one to each of the griffons in my section of the mine every work day, and they’ve all stopped being so distant. I swear your cookies are magic. It means less for Mom, Granny and me, but it’s worth not feeling ridiculously lonely at work.

And that’s a really nice picture of you in the Hearth’s Warming dress. That’s another one for my wall.

Mom really wants to thank your dad for the bits. Definitely practical. It would be enough that I could take a few days to rest, like you keep telling me to, but the overseers are strict about sticking to my schedule. They’d kick me out of the mine if I don’t, and even with your dad’s gift I still need to have some bits coming in after we use it up. Yesterday was my one weekday off, though, so I just stayed home and got that rest.

Actually, I just remembered. We also have Friday off for New Year’s. Not like I’m going to drink the night before, but at least I get the three-day weekend. As Princess Luna would say, huzzah!

I’m sure you won’t get this until the weekend at the earliest, so Happy New Year!

Happy New Year! I hope you had a good weekend. And I’m glad you and your mom liked the gifts. It’s good to hear sharing the cookies has been making work easier for you. Just let me know when you get low and I’ll send you another batch.

School started up again yesterday. Kind of sucks being back in class, but whatever. Holidays don’t last forever. Oh, by the way, I got all A’s on my exams! My whole family was really proud of me, but especially Aunt Twilight. For obvious reasons.

All the teachers swamped us with homework today for some reason, so I have to go. Say hi to your Mom and Granny!

Not really a lot to say this time. Work’s just been kind of crummy, even with the cookies. Well, that and one other thing.

Granny’s… having some issues. I mean, she’s alright, she’s hanging on. She’s stubborn that way. I’ve been wanting to stay home from work to help take care of her, but she’s being her usual self. She’s saying to go about my business and work without worrying about her. Either that…

Or go back to Canterlot to be with you, and leave her to let her do ‘her thing.’ I just… I can’t do it. I’m sorry, I need to stay here with her. I can’t leave her hanging, and my mom needs me here, too.

I’m so sorry to hear your Granny isn’t feeling well. Please tell her I hope she feels better soon. Give your mom my best, too, and I hope work gets better for you. I hope you got some rest today.

Is there anything my dad or I can do? For you or your Granny? Or your mom? It could take a little time, but we could always send you something if you need it—cookies, bits, whatever.

Sending these letters to each other has been kind of tough for me lately, especially after I started work a few months ago. This will probably be my last one to you. I know what I was writing in them made it seem like everything was fine between us, but I just can’t handle this long-distance relationship anymore. Look, the time we had together was great, but this is just too hard. Love can be hard sometimes, I guess.

Look, I know this is really sudden. Out of all the things you may have expected to hear from me, this probably wasn’t one of them. Vowing to come back wasn’t a good idea. Even you said it was a promise I couldn’t keep.

Umm… WHAT? You don’t really mean that, right? If this is a joke, it isn’t funny.

A Daughter and her Dragon

by Level Dasher

Chapter Thirty-Two - Correspondence (Part One)