The Path We Walk
Chapter 5:
Aegis had taken a room near the top of Twilight’s castle and for two days he did not leave it. Twilight went to the door more than once to ask if he needed or wanted anything only to receive the same polite decline each time. On the third day she asked her friends to come to help as she was running out of ideas.
“He’s been up there for two straight days.” Twilight informed as she paced. “He hasn’t eaten or had anything to drink, it’s like… he’s given up.” She sighed in thought. “This isn’t a run of the mill friendship problem, his relationship with Princess Celestia is so complex and I can’t even imagine how he feels right now.”
“Easy Twilight.” Starlight held her shoulder to stop her pacing.
“She isn’t wrong Starlight.” Rarity regretfully admitted. “Just hearing what he said the other night was heartbreaking… much less living it.”
“Well, he doesn’t seem to be willing to talk to me.” Twilight looked over her friends. “I had hoped maybe one of you could get through to him.”
“We’re willing to give it a try Twilight, it’s just…” Applejack let out an unsettled breath. “I don’t have any clue on just what to say.”
Rainbow Dash hovered and crossed her forelegs. “Yeah, I mean, we’re not exactly experts on relationships here.”
“I say we let Fluttershy handle it.” Pinkie Pie proudly raised Fluttershy’s hoof.
“Me?” Fluttershy asked.
“Well yeah!” Pinkie pulled out a photo of her and Discord. “I mean, you got through to Discord so this should be no problem.”
“Oh my, well… I suppose…”
“Let me!” Spike suddenly spoke out as he hopped from his seat on the table. “I’ll do it.”
“Spike?” Twilight eyed him unsurely.
“Just trust me Twilight.” He sped past them and headed up the stairs with a look of determination on his face.
“Well, I wasn’t expecting that.” Starlight noted as the girls looked to each other in confusion.
“Hello?” Spike said as he neared Aegis’ door. He took a deep breath and opened the door without knocking. As he stepped inside he saw Aegis sitting near the window, his eyes set solely on whatever he could see through the glass. “Uh… hi.” Spike said as he stepped up beside him. “It’s me, Spike.” Aegis didn’t respond. “You know… Twilight and the others are really worried about you, you think you might want to come down and at least have lunch or something? I make a pretty mean potato cake.” He laughed awkwardly but Aegis remained silent. With a sigh, Spike flew to the top of the dresser; sitting on the edge and clasping his claws between his dangling legs. “They don’t know what to say to you because they don’t really get how you’re feeling, but I do.” He looked over and saw that Aegis’ eyes had slid over to him. “What I’m going to tell you has to stay between us, Ok?” Spike fidgeted in hesitation. “When Twilight and I first came to Ponyville, well that was the day I first met Rarity.” He smiled as he recalled the encounter. “From the moment I saw her I knew that she was something special and somepony I wanted to be closer to. For a long time I couldn’t even talk to her without breaking out in a sweat but she was always so sweet, even when I was acting like a complete doofus.” He started kicking his feet out in rhythmic fashion. “Eventually we bonded and I tried to do everything I could for her. If she needed something I went and got it, if she asked me to do something I did it… there wasn’t anything I wouldn’t do for her.” He grimaced as he ran over the events of the past. “Although, that did lead me to accidentally getting her cursed by a book that made her go on a decorating rampage.” He let out an embarrassed laugh. “Point is, I just wanted her to see that I would always be there for her no matter what… to know that I… you know… loved her.” He saddened greatly. “But, after a while I realized something. No matter what I did or what I said she was always going to see me as her baby dragon friend, and yeah, technically that’s true but… I’m not a baby.” He smiled lightly. “But, I know I can’t change any of that and I’ve accepted that I’m never going to be able to be more to her than what I am now.” His claw balled into a fist. “For a while I was angry because it just didn’t seem fair to me. I actually started avoiding her a bit and she noticed, she knew something was wrong but I couldn’t tell her anything. It was too embarrassing and I felt ashamed.” He opened his claw and looked down at it. “After that though I realized what was even worse than not being able to have the relationship I wanted, and that was the idea of losing her friendship.” He finally looked back to Aegis. “That’s how you feel about Princess Celestia isn’t it?”
Aegis turned his head to the tiny dragon. “Yes.” He responded after a long pause.
“Well, if a “baby dragon” can move on then you can too, right?” Spike grinned.
Aegis actually laughed and rose to his hooves. “I suppose so.” He extended his wing to the dresser, Spike jumped on and walked up to his back. “Your story is safe with me Spike.” He looked back at him. “And you have my vow that I shall never look upon you as a mere child.”
“Really?” Spike smiled. “That… means a lot, especially from somepony like you.”
Downstairs, the girls continued to idle. They perked up though as they heard heavy hoof steps coming from the stairs. Applejack looked up and saw Aegis coming down with Spike perched on his back. “Well I’ll be.” She offered the others a surprised smile.
Twilight hurried to the bottom of the staircase as they stepped down. “Aegis.”
He bowed. “Princess, I apologize if I made you worry.”
“It’s alright, really.” She waved her hooves back and forth frantically. “It’s just that you weren’t ever leaving the room or eating or anything so I just got a little scared.” She looked up at the proud dragon on his back. “But I see Spike was able to help.”
He glanced back at Spike with a smile. “Spike reminded me that one cannot move forward while lying still.” Spike jumped from his back to the top of the end table. “His words are beyond his years, it would serve well to heed them more often.”
“Are you feeling any better now?” Fluttershy asked.
“As well as can be expected, Lady Fluttershy.”
Rarity went to him and set her hoof to his leg. “What you went through was absolutely tragic, so we understand. But it’s important that you know that we’re here for you darling.”
“Thank you, Lady Rarity.” He tipped his head to her. “Even so… I simply do not know where to even begin. My purpose in life was to be there for Celestia and to help lead her elite guard against Equestria’s foes.” He shook his head. “Now, I have neither.”
“Well first things first.” Twilight said boldly. “Accepting that today is a new day and starting from there. First off, if you’re Princess Celestia’s friend then you’re mine too, so just call me Twilight.”
He looked at her unsurely. “If… that is your wish, Lady Twilight.”
“Second, you need to eat. Thinking on an empty stomach is no way to go about things.” She turned back to her friends. “Applejack, Pinkie Pie, think you could whip us up something in the kitchen?”
“Now that is something I can handle.” Applejack nodded as she headed for the kitchen.
“Good thing I brought my emergency baking supplies.” Pinkie noted as she somersaulted after her.
Rainbow Dash flew over and tapped Twilight’s shoulder. “Hey, it’s a great day outside. Why don’t we set up on the terrace?”
“Great idea Dash.” Twilight nodded.
“Cool, come on Shy.” She grabbed Fluttershy’s hoof and sped off.
Aegis watched the girls as they scattered. “You needn’t go through so much trouble for me, milady.”
Rarity laughed dryly. “Trouble? Darling, this is normal for us.” She motioned for him to follow. “Come now dear, while the others are getting things ready, why don’t I show around the castle proper?” Aegis followed her after an approving nod from Twilight.
As they left, Starlight hurried over to Spike. “Spike, what in the world did you say to him to get him to come down?”
“Oh, uh...” he shrugged. “Just bro stuff, you know, guy to guy.”
“Well I’m impressed.” Starlight admitted. “Good job.” She turned back to Twilight. “I’m going to help outside, otherwise your patio is going to be nothing but fuzzy animals and racing stripes.”
“Good idea.” Twilight laughed. As Starlight went off she went to Spike with a tender smile. “You told him about Rarity, didn’t you?”
Spike twisted his lip and nodded. “Yeah well… after hearing about what happened to him it was all I could think about, so I knew how he was feeling.”
Twilight set her hoof to the top of his head. “I’m very proud of you Spike, I know it mustn’t have been easy opening up about that to somepony you’ve just met. Plus, it seems it was just what he needed to hear.”
“Thanks Twilight.” Spike smiled.
“Come on, let’s go catch up with the others.” She turned and Spike hopped on her back.
“Wow, after riding on Aegis I never realized how short you were.”
“Hey!” She glared back at him.
“I’m kidding!” Spike defended.
Applejack and Pinkie Pie put together a pretty impressive spread on such short notice. The group gathered outside under a bright sun and a cool breeze to enjoy themselves. Having been indoors for so long, the air felt refreshing to Aegis; even though being under the sun reminded him of Celestia. The girls made an extra wide spot for him at the table and he took his place beside Twilight.
“Dig in y’all.” Applejack said as she sat.
“Hey Aegis.” Rainbow Dash called his attention through a mouthful of food. “You should know that Cloudtrail is already improving a lot since you had that talk with him.”
“That is good to hear.” Aegis felt good knowing that something positive came from his display.
“Yeah, Rainbow Dash told us all about your, uh… demonstration.” Starlight laughed.
“Anypony that can leave Spitfire speechless is the real deal.” Rainbow Dash added.
Fluttershy smiled across the table at Aegis. “It’s a shame you couldn’t have been here for the water transfer.” she giggled. “I’m sure it would have gone a lot smoother.”
“I imagine it would be nice to use my ability for more than just combat.” Aegis pondered the idea. “Although I must admit I am not useful for much else, milady.”
“Oh don’t be silly darling.” Rarity scoffed. “You simply haven’t tried to venture into other things yet, so how can you be so sure?”
“Rarity is right.” Applejack concurred. “I bet you would make one heck of a farmer.”
Rainbow Dash let out a discontented grunt. “Really AJ, that’s a waste of good wing power. He should totally try out for the Wonderbolts.”
“Actually.’ Twilight intervened in the inevitable argument between the two. “I was doing some thinking while you were up there Aegis. How would you like to work at the school of friendship with us?”
“Oh my, that’s a great idea.” Fluttershy applauded.
“Yeah!” Pinkie excitedly agreed. “The students would get a kick out of you.”
Aegis gave Twilight an uncertain look. “Lady Twilight, I know nothing of teaching. Likewise the only things I am familiar with are battle, pain and loss… hardly things to pass on to children.”
Twilight shook her head. “The school is about teaching all creatures the values and lessons of friendship as well as how to better themselves and their views of the world.” She looked up at him with excited eyes. “Your story is an inspirational one and you have traveled to nearly every corner of the known world. There’s a lot you can teach the students about how to be the best versions of themselves that they can be.”
Starlight offered him an approving smile. “We’ll all be there to help too, so you won’t be going it alone.”
Aegis weighed the option in his mind. “I cannot say I am wholly certain of the idea, but I will try, Lady Twilight.”
“Great!” Twilight beamed with anticipation. “I’ll get you a copy of the rule book.” She elbowed him. “I wrote it myself you know.”
“This calls for cake!” Pinkie Pie yelled as she hurried back into the castle. She soon emerged wheeling out a massive cake. “Okay everypony, dessert time!”
“Uh, that’s a bit much don’t you think?” Applejack asked as she beheld the towering confection.
“Well, Aegis is a biiiig stallion, so he needs a biiiig cake.”
“Can’t argue with that logic.” Spike said as he readied his plate.
Pinkie Pie whipped out a plastic cake knife and ran in circles around the cake, expertly slicing pieces off and sending them flying neatly onto plates. Aegis watched the feat with a hint of surprise, as Pinkie screeched to halt she licked the frosting that had accumulated on her face.
“Your jovial nature belies a soldier’s skill, Lady Pinkie.” Aegis noted.
Pinkie giggled and smiled. “Not quite sure what you said, but thanks.”
As the meal concluded, Spike set himself to the dishes. Aegis went to the edge of the terrace and looked out over Ponyville.
“So.” Starlight walked up to his side. “Think you might be able to call Ponyville home?”
“I… would like to, Lady Starlight.” He took a heavy breath. “All I can do is keep moving forward until I see what I find.”
“I know the feeling.” Starlight nodded as she reflected on her own past. “I reached a point where I thought I had lost everything, but Twilight and the others proved me wrong. Truth is, ‘everything’ is a word that gets thrown around way too much. It encompasses not only what we know but also what we don’t, and we can’t lose things we haven’t found yet.”
“Wise words, milady.” Aegis looked down at her. “I see why Argent was so fond of you. You are much alike.”
“Really?” She asked with a deal of surprise.
“He asked me once to stand at his side and look into the distance. He asked what I saw and I told him I saw the horizon. Disagreeing, he said that a horizon is merely a perception limited by our senses. He said that the world always expands beyond what we perceive and to accept a horizon is to accept a limitation on what is possible.”
“Whoa.” Starlight absorbed the philosophy contained in those words.
“He is far deeper than he lets on.” Aegis laughed. “Even so, while his words are inspiring I do not fully agree. In reality, there are limitations on what is possible. An earth pony cannot fly, a pegasus cannot use magic… those are truths.” He closed his eyes in thought. “My life has been nothing but limitations, imposed on me by nature and society alike. I found my way to where I am now not by aspiring to the dreamlike possibilities of what the world could be, but by accepting the world as it was and doing what was necessary to reach my goal using the means and resources at my disposal.”
Starlight mulled over what Aegis said to her. “I can’t say one of you is right and the other is wrong, honestly you both sound right but you’re claiming opposing ideology.” She looked up at him quizzically. “How did you two get along so well?”
“I think he enjoyed having somepony to argue with.” Aegis smiled. “He was so well learned and articulate that everypony accepted whatever he said as truth. I was the only one that every questioned him and forced him to continue improving his own life philosophy. As for me… well, aside from Celestia he was the only one that truly never feared me. He spoke to and interacted with me in ways nopony else dared to or felt comfortable with.” He looked out over the town again. “In a way, as you said, our differing philosophies are both correct. I befriended him because the reality of my situation was that he was the only one I could become close to, and he only became close to me because he did not see my size and strength as an impassible horizon.”
Starlight smiled in amazement. “You two really are something else. I think you’re going to do just fine as a teacher.”
Starlight’s words made Aegis warmer to the idea. That night, after the others had left, he accepted a copy of Twilight’s rule book to look over before he accompanied her to the school the next day.
Aegis was always one to be up early in the morning, but he was surprised to see Twilight up at the same hour. He found her assembling her bags near the door to be ready for when they headed out.
“Lady Twilight.” he greeted.
“Oh Aegis, good morning. How are you feeling?” she asked.
“Better, milady.”
“Are you ready for your first day on the job?” She asked with a keen smile.
“As I shall ever be.” He said with moderate confidence.
They went to the kitchen for breakfast and soon a groggy Starlight and Spike joined them.
“Ugh, morning.” Starlight said through a heavy yawn.
“Morning.” Twilight set a bowl of Morning Oats cereal before her as she plopped into a chair. She lazily lifted the spoon with her magic and crammed a spoonful in her mouth.
“I see which of you the early riser is.” Aegis laughed mildly.
“Ha ha.” Starlight laughed mockingly. “When you’re controlling a town of brainwashed ponies you can make them wake up whenever you want, I got used to sleeping in.”
Spike grabbed a muffin and headed for the main hall. “I’m going to get started on the watering, I’ll see you guys later.”
About two hours before class started they made their way to the school grounds. Aegis was impressed by the grand schoolhouse that Twilight had commissioned. While Starlight began her morning preparations, Twilight took Aegis to her office and went over the basic curriculum and the class hours. The others soon arrived and began readying their class rooms and student’s followed not long after. As Gallus, Sandbar, Ocellus, Yona, Silverstream and Smolder took their seats and pulled out their books, Twilight entered the room and called their attention.
“Good morning everycreature.”
“Good morning Headmare Twilight.” They responded in unison.
“I have a surprise today, you’re going to be having a guest instructor.” Twilight raised her hoof to calm their murmurs. “I expect you to show him the same respect and courtesy that you have been with all your other instructors, I have a feeling you can all learn a lot from him which is why I selected the six of you to be his first pupils.” She turned to the door. “Aegis?” Aegis entered the room, hardly fitting through the doorway. The students fell stone silent as he took his place beside Twilight. “This is Aegis, he is… well, was a part of the royal guard’s elite. His experience and knowledge of the world expands beyond even mine.”
Aegis looked over the group. “It is good to meet you all.”
“Well, I’ll leave you to it Aegis. I’ll see you all during lunch hour.” Twilight left and Aegis went to the podium at the room’s head. On it he saw a selection of books that Twilight had provided. He looked at them for a silent moment before turning his head to the window. After a minute of thought he turned his eyes back to the students. “Follow me.” He headed for the door and went into the hall.
“Okay.” Sandbar said unsurely as he and the others rose.
“Um, aren’t we suppose to remain in the classrooms except for field trips and other planned activities?” Ocellus asked.
“You want to argue with him?” Gallus asked in return.
“Um… no.” Ocellus answered meekly.
Aegis led them outside the school and around to the western field. “Form a line students.” Aegis instructed. The students lined up before him and he stood at their front. “Lady Twilight has told me that this school was designed to help you be the best version of yourself you can be. While her passion for the written word is admirable, what I have to teach you cannot be found in pages.” He observed them all closely. “As you can see, you are all vastly different from one another. You are of different kin, with bodies, minds, powers, abilities, histories and cultures that are unique to you. To be the best version of yourself, you must truly understand the depths of each of those facets. A simple place to begin is by observing your own strengths and weaknesses. I have little doubt that you all have existing prowess, a natural inclination towards the innate abilities your respective kinds call their own. I can easily tell you your strengths.” He looked to Gallus. “Gallus, as a griffon you have impressive flight on par with pegasi as well as the added benefit of opposable talons which increase your ability to manipulate your environment. You also have especially strong eyesight and your feathered body gives you increased resistance to wind and rain.” He looked to Yona. “Yona, as a yak you have great strength and a body as durable as the mountains. You also have excellent resistance to extreme cold and other harsh environments that would bring others to their knees.” He looked to Silverstream. “Silverstream, you have the ability to change back and forth between your hippogriff and sea pony forms at will, giving you command of the sky as well as the sea. Like Gallus, you also have opposable talons and your kinds’ time as sea ponies has given you intimate knowledge of the oceans of which no other creature is privy.” He looked to Ocellus. “Ocellus, a changeling with the unique ability to mimic the shape of any creature she has beheld for herself. Also, despite your smaller frame, your changeling carapace is far more durable than most basic armors.” He looked to Smolder. “Smolder, as a dragon you command a great deal of power. Strength, flight, fire breath and a body that can withstand heat that would melt base metal.” Lastly he looked to Sandbar. “Sandbar, as an earth pony you are connected to the land with the ability to unlock a great physical strength if you choose to develop it. From your permanent file I saw that you are extremely easy going and not one to contest situations. I imagine that you are often the voice of reason in your group?”
“Well I don’t know about that.” Sandbar shrugged.
“No, he’s totally right!” Silverstream excitedly agreed.
Aegis stepped closer to them. “I am sure the things I have just said are of no surprise to you and are all praises that your family, friends and elders have repeated to you more than once. That is not uncommon as they are all indeed things of which you and your kin should be proud. However, I will now teach you the first and perhaps most important lesson of developing your full potential. Knowing your strengths is necessary, but even more so you must know your weaknesses. This time, I want to hear from you, what are your weaknesses? Gallus?”
Gallus was taken aback by the question. “I don’t know… I’ve never thought of myself as weak.” A cross look filled his eyes as he felt a tad insulted at the insinuation.
Aegis let out a short laugh. “I did not say you were weak, I asked you what your weaknesses are.”
“Isn’t that… kind of the same thing?” Silverstream asked in confusion.
“Not at all.” Aegis shook his head. “Being weak is a state of mind and body, a weakness is merely an area in which you do not excel. Even the strongest creature has weaknesses.” He looked to Gallus again. “Would you like to try to answer now Gallus?”
Gallus let out a discontented huff. “Well, I’ve always liked sports but my mom said when I was young I would get hurt a lot when I played. Griffons never really played rough sports, we mostly focused on flying games but I liked playing other types of games too. I’ve gotten more careful with what I do which actually kind of sucks.”
“Do you know why that is?” Aegis asked.
“Not really, I just figured there was something wrong with me.”
“Griffons are closely related to other avian species as they have hollow bones.”
“Say what now?” Gallus asked with renewed interest.
“A griffon’s hollow bone structure is what allows your kind to excel at maintaining high performance flight at extremely high altitudes. Your kind was born and raised in the highest peaks of the world and as a result your lungs adapted to the lower oxygen levels. Your bones allow for your lungs to expand much farther to give your body what it needs to sustain activity. A consequence of this is that your body is more susceptible to high impact damages than a pegasi’s which has a sturdier pony frame.”
“Seriously?” Gallus scratched his head. “Wow, that’s… good to know.”
“Indeed it is.” Aegis nodded. “As you now see, a weakness does not detract from who or what you are in any way. In fact, knowing it makes you stronger than you were before.”
Yona hopped up and down. “Ooh, Yona next! Yak best as knowing weaknesses!”
“Very well.” Aegis smiled and allowed her to continue.
“Well, Yona no like water much. Also get really tired when it hot outside, Yona much prefer winter time.”
“That stands to reason Yona.” Aegis agreed. “As I said, your thick coat makes you resistant to cold but it absorbs water like a sponge and causes your body to easily overheat.” He turned his attention to Sandbar. “Sandbar, what are your thoughts?”
Sandbar thought for a moment. “Well, you said I was easy going… I am, but mainly because I really don’t like confrontation. I mean I always try to keep things peaceful but if something bad breaks out, I kind of feel like I have to get away from it.” He rubbed his left leg against his right knee. “Not really the kind of pony who’s a big help in the long run.”
“You have a peaceful nature and a good heart. Not wanting to witness or fall into violence is as natural to you as swimming is to a fish.” Aegis surmised. “While that may make you a liability in certain situations, it will also make you vital in others. You are a natural diplomat.”
“Whoa, that would be cool.” Sandbar said with a smile.
‘What of you Ocellus?” Aegis looked to the young changeling.
“Well.” Ocellus thought hard. “Unlike Yona, I actually don’t like the cold that much. I did some research on the pony history of changelings that said that cold makes our bodies harden and become brittle.”
“Very true, excellent work.” Aegis praised. “I can tell you this as well, while your ability to change form is impressive, you must always be aware that the actual mass and strength of your body does not change in direct proportion. You are still young and petite, as such, should you change into a creature such as an owlbear you would not have the precise weight and strength as a real one. As you grow and mature, the proportion will increase as well, but always bear in mind that your assumed forms will never be as powerful against an original.”
“Oh, that didn’t come up in my research at all.” Ocellus admitted.
“Silverstream, what of you?” Aegis asked.
“Well, I’ve been told I’m ditzy but frankly…I don’t see it.” she giggled.
“You don’t?” Gallus asked, making the others break into laughter.
Silverstream jumped up and did a loop in the air, hovering over her friends heads. “Well, I’m just excited all the time. I’m experiencing so many new things now that I can travel on land.”
“As it stands, little is known about hippogriffs.” Aegis informed. “But your sentiments are reflected in your file. I would say that your greatest weakness at the moment is your innocence. You see so much wonder in this new world that you easily overlook danger, mostly out of your lack of experience.”
‘Don’t worry, we keep her out of trouble.” Smolder said proudly as she pulled Silverstream back to the ground.
“Which finally brings us to you.” Aegis turned to the young dragoness.
“Well, not to disagree with you teach, but dragons are pretty well…”
“Pride.” Aegis cut her off.
‘Wh... what?’ Smolder asked indignantly.
“Dragons do indeed have much of which to be proud, but over time that pride has become so engrained in dragon culture that it consumes you.” He saw the upset look on Smolder’s face. “I mean not to insult you, merely to give caution. I have battled many dragons and the one mistake they all made was underestimating me. Pride makes you sloppy and careless, two of the most dangerous things a creature can be in any situation.”
“I...” Smolder began but let out a sigh. “I guess you have a point.”
“Smolder, the fact that you are at this school and have made such diverse friends is a testament to your openness. As a dragon, what you do here will be very important and you will be the one to set the example for your kind. Carry that responsibility well.”
Smolder smiled and stood tall. ‘Thanks, I will.”
Aegis nodded and stepped back. “Knowing, understanding and accepting your weaknesses will set you on a path to truly making yourselves better. Sometimes, the bravest thing you can do is acknowledge what you cannot. Remember, no creature is invincible, no matter how powerful they may seem. As Lady Twilight often reminds you, the power of friendship is a great one indeed. Individually, you all have strengths and weaknesses, but together those strengths cover for the weaknesses of the others. As you are all so diverse, the potential you have when the six of you unite may perhaps be of the strongest ever known.” Aegis’ words made their hearts fire up and they cheered.
As Aegis’ class time came to an end he led the student’s back inside the classroom. With five minutes before the bell they began gathering their things and readying their lunches. Twilight entered the room and eagerly looked to Aegis. “So, how’d it go today?”
Aegis glanced at the students. ‘Quite well actually.”
“That’s great news, we knew you would be a natural.” she smiled.
“Appreciated, Lady Twilight.”
The bell rang and they started to move towards the door. Silverstream flew up as she noticed them. “Mr. Aegis!?” She called, also grabbing the attention of the others.
“Yes Silverstream?” He turned back.
“You’re… coming back right?” she asked.
“Yeah, you can’t just leave us hanging now.” Sandbar noted.
“Giant pony best teacher!” Yona added.
Aegis saw hopeful looks on all their faces. “Of course.” he nodded. “I still have much to teach you.”
“Alright!” Gallus cheered as he high fived Smolder.
“We’re really glad to hear that Mr. Aegis.” Ocellus smiled sweetly.
As they stepped out into the hall the students bid him farewell for the day as they hurried to lunch. Twilight smiled up at him brightly. “Seems like you had a big impact on them. I guess this means I don’t have to ask if you’ll be staying on.”
“No Lady Twilight, you do not.’” Aegis said with quiet smile.