The Adventures of the Elementals

by AutoKnight01

Nature in Canterlot (Part 1)

When school got out that day of the special guest lesson, the three Cutie Mark Crusaders went over to give Cryo a personal thank you for the lesson. The ice mover was more than happy to hear three of the kids in the class say that to him personally. He and Pinkie Pie however both got a bit uneasy when they heard the three fillies talking about fighting a full grown dragon to try and get their cutie marks. Apparently that part of the story got to them a little. So it was a good thing Applejack and Rarity forbade their little sisters from hunting down a dragon of full growth. So the kids tried something else.

Soon enough, the next day came along and all through the morning and afternoon, things were pretty normal. It was right about 4:00 PM where the true events of the day began.

At 4:00 PM a train was pulling in to Canterlot. It’s departure point was Ponyville. When the train stopped, the doors opened up and ten ponies walked off. A baby dragon was hitched on a red unicorn’s back. The only two not present were Applejack and Terra.

“Would you now please tell us why we’re here and why we’re spending the night?” Rainbow Dash asked Twilight and Pyro.

The reason she asked those two was because they were the ones who dragged everypony else away from what they were doing at the time to hop a train to Canterlot.

“Yes I do wish to know myself.” Rarity agreed with Rainbow. “I was working on a very important order when you came in to my shop.”

“So what’s goin on?” Cryo asked.

Pyro and Twilight walked a few steps so they were in front.

“We’re sorry we interrupted what you all had planned for today. But there’s a reason we’re here.” Twilight assured them all. “Pyro? Would you care to explain?”

The inferno red stallion gave a small nod then addressed his friends.

“Earlier today, Twilight received a letter from Princess Celestia. The letter said she wanted a status report on how we have all been doing in the past ten days. She asked if we could come to Canterlot and give the report to her personally and that she would provide accommodations for all of us.”

It was a royal summons. For most of them that sounded like a pretty good reason.

“The princess sent you a summons in the middle of the afternoon?” Agua asked. “Couldn’t this wait until tomorrow?”

“I was curious too, Agua. But she said she wanted to see us. She sent me a second note just a minute later saying it was urgent we came today. But she didn’t say why.” Twilight answered the blue stallion.

That only made him and the rest of them even more confused.

“So…she sent you a letter telling us all to come here today and that it was urgent. Are status reports urgent to her?” Gem asked.

“I…I don’t know, Gem.” Twilight spoke again. “But this is Princess Celestia we’re talking about. If she says something is urgent, then it must be urgent.”

Her logic there was pretty solid. If the most powerful pony on all of Equestria sends out a summons for no good reason other than saying it’s urgent, it’s best not to ask questions.

“Well this isn’t how I planned to spend my evening.” Agua groaned. “Talking to the princess over how things are going just sounds boring.”

“We figured some of you may have that attitude.” Twilight interrupted.

Now everypony other than Pyro and Spike were lookin at her confused.

“The letter didn’t say ALL of us had to go and talk to her.” She went on. “Pyro and I agreed that the two of us would go give the report to Celestia while you all go out into Canterlot and have fun.”

Hearing that made nearly all of them smile a bit. That sounded WAY better than just sitting around and talking about what they’ve been doing for the past days. They do that enough already as it is with each other. Going around Canterlot with no plan at all seemed like a nice change of pace.

“Besides, I think it might do you some good to be away from Ponyville for a while, Agua. Considering the terror you caused at the beauty spa yesterday.” Twilight pointed that comment to the blue stallion of water.

“Oh come on. It wasn’t that bad.” Agua retorted.

Those four words did not fly with Rarity. It wasn’t that bad. What a lie that was.

“Agua, you got mad for no reason at all and flooded the whole place with the water from the pool.”

“Hey there was a damn good reason. I warned that chick not to touch me. Did she listen? No. I do NOT like getting touched. ANYWHERE.”

And thus began another round of listening to Agua being a jerk and Rarity trying to argue with him.

“I think you should consider yourself lucky I vouched for you! I could have just as easily let all the blame fall on you instead of talking to Aloe and Lotus into letting it pass! Had it not been for me, you’d be back there right now giving massages to sixty five year old ponies to work off the debt! Do you have any idea how much money you cost Aloe and Lotus? The poor dears might be in debt after this!”

“Oh stop drama queening!” Agua shouted back. “It was just water! How much damage can water possibly do?”

“You cracked ze walls, Agua. Water can rot out ze building’s support structures eef not treated.” Typhoon answered.

Typhoon was actually repeating herself from yesterday right after they had left the spa dripping wet. That was when Fluttershy learned Typhoon had an affinity for architecture.

“Usually repairs like zat can range up to one thousand beets.” Typhoon accented the word “bits”.

“And you’re telling us you’re not going to TRY and say you’re sorry to Aloe and Lotus?” Rarity snapped.

Even though Agua’s mostly angry, it’s not who he is. There’s more sides to him than just a hydrokinetic jerk. He just has a hard time showing them.

In this case, his argument was beaten due to the fact that he didn’t have a good one. So he let another side show.

“Alright look.” Agua began. “During the years I lived in the rock we all took turns in trying to get our hooves on some money so we could get some food. I know a few places that I’m in good with. I’ll try to get some work and send every bit I make to the spa chicks. Sound good?”

That was maybe the last thing Rarity expected to hear come from Agua’s mouth. He didn’t give a smart remark or insult or anything of the sort. He actually sounded like he was being a sincere and not all that bad pony.

So strange.

“O-okay.” Rarity replied. “That’s…very thoughtful, Agua.”

“See? I can be a nice guy.”

“If only that nice guy would stay.” Rarity commented under her breath.

That was a bit too far a reach in her mind. Then Pyro spoke.

“Here’s the game plan. Twilight, Spike, and I will give our status report to the princess. The rest of you just go on into the city and enjoy yourselves. I think after what we’ve all been through, we deserve it.”

“Hey this works out perfect for me and Gem.” Rainbow said. “Let’s hurry up, Gem. If we get to the stadium early, maybe we’ll see the Wonderbolts practicing.”

Back when Gem saved Rainbow’s life at the welcoming party, the cyan pegasus got tickets to a Wonderbolts show as her way of saying thank you. And as luck would have it, the show was in Canterlot and about to start in an hour.

“Okay. We’ll talk to you later!” Gem said to everypony as she and Rainbow headed off.

“Bye, Gem! Have fun!” Typhoon shouted.

“We will!” Both Gem and Rainbow shouted.

As those two disappeared off into the city, everypony else decided to leave as well. Agua and Rarity went off on their own direction. Pinkie, Cryo, Typhoon, and Fluttershy decided to stick together while they went out. That left Twilight, Spike, and Pyro alone to head for the castle. It wasn’t a long walk but they did have a few minutes to converse.

“Kinda nice not having to teleport.” Pyro commented. “Never knew how relaxing trains could be.”

“Teleporting is handy at times. But the way YOU teleport can be…a bit nerve-wracking.”

“No it’s not. You’re just afraid you might throw up.” Spike assumed.

“Well I don’t like throwing up. It’s gross and the leftover taste is AWFUL.” Twilight confessed.

“Yeah I hear ya.” Pyro agreed. “Nasty business puking.”

“Wait. I thought you couldn’t get sick.” Twilight thought.

“Getting sick is when your body is infected with a disease. Throwing up is a bodily function. There’s a difference.” Pyro corrected.

He did have a point. Puking can even be induced by oneself. So in a way, it’s not REALLY being sick. It’s just making one’s self FEEL sick to the point of upheaval.

“But….if you’re ever around Terra when she’s sick and she’s about to hurl….RUN. You run fast, you run far. Because it is NOT pretty.” Pyro advised.

“Uhhh…noted. Speaking of Terra, why didn’t she come again?” Twilight asked forgetting the reason.

“I don’t really remember.” Pyro answered. “All she said to me was…it’s a personal matter.”

“Hm.” Twilight couldn’t figure out what could be so personal she asked to stay behind. “Well I’m sure she’s okay.”

“Why wouldn’t she be? Although she’s still Alamantian royalty, she’s about as much a fairy princess as I am.”

The metaphor was clear. Terra is a girl but she’s is not in any way a girly girl.

Upon arrival to the castle, they were met with no opposition this time. They were let in right on the spot and waited patiently for the Princess to arrive.

While they waited, the others proceeded to follow Pyro’s and Twilight’s plan and just enjoy themselves. Cryo, Fluttershy, Pinkie, and Typhoon were walking around and looking in the windows of some of the stores and stands in the streets. But mostly, the two Alamantians were too busy admiring the city of Canterlot itself. Typhoon having an eye for architecture couldn’t help but ogle some of the finer crafted buildings.

“I heard this place was big. I just...never really knew HOW big.” Cryo commented.

“You mean you’ve NEVER been to Canterlot before?” Pinkie asked with a gasp.

“No I have.” Cryo confessed. “I used to dance on some of the street corners to make some money here in this city. I just never really took notice to it before.”

“Dancing for money?” Fluttershy asked.

“Some jobs were hard to come by.” Typhoon replied. “We had to do whatever we could to make money so we could get some food.”

“Some months were better than others but we got by.” Cryo added. “I mean one time I was seriously thinking about lowering myself to prosti….sweet Skaldi is that an antique shop?”

His eyes brightened and his smile grew big. The three mares followed his line of sight to a store that was indeed an antique shop. One of the females grew the same smile Cryo had. That one female was Typhoon.

Almost as if they were in a trance, the two Alamantians approached the store with their partners in tow. The bell handing from a thread on the door chimed as the door opened and closed. The shopkeeper behind the counter looked up at the ring of the bell. He was shorter than most stallions seen around and had a bit of a chub in his belly. His coat was dark green and his mane was flat black. His cutie mark was a bag of money. He wore dark glasses so his eye color was a mystery.

He saw four ponies walk in and approached them immediately. Well…mostly he approached Typhoon.

“Why hello there, little miss.” He said with a strange low voice. “Welcome to my shop.”

Right off the bat Typhoon did not like the shopkeeper’s smug tone. Neither did Fluttershy or Cryo. Pinkie however didn’t really take that much of notice.

“Take a while to peruse around.” He said. “If you see anything you like, say an object or my address, just let me know.”

With that he turned around and walked off leaving Typhoon incredibly repulsed, and Cryo pissed off that somepony treated his sister like that.

“Talk about making a bad first impression.” Cryo growled.

“That…that wasn’t very nice of him.” Fluttershy whispered.

“Do you guys wanna leave?” Pinkie Pie asked finally sensing the other three were a bit uncomfortable. “There are plenty more antique shops in Canterlot.”

“No, eet’s alright, Pinkie.” Typhoon insisted. “We’re already here, we might as well look around.”

They did just that and they were sure to steer clear of the creepy shopkeeper. There were many things in there that did interest them. All four of them. Old ceramic vases, wall décor, dinnerware, furniture, chandeliers, and more. The shopkeeper may be a jerk but his store is filled with tons of awesome stuff.

While Pinkie was closely admiring the pattern on a metallic candle holder, her partner had taken notice of something else hanging from the wall.

“Whoa. Hey. Hey Ty! Come over here. You gotta check this out.”

Wondering what it could be Cryo was so interested in, Typhoon and Fluttershy walked over and pointed their eyes in the same direction Cryo had his set on. What Cryo was looking at turned out to be…

“A stick?” Pinkie muttered.

It sure looked like a stick by first impression. The object was made of wood, thin, at least 65 inches in length, and it appeared to be plated in a few areas of some metallic material.

“What’s so special about that stick?” Pinkie asked.

“Zat ees not just any steeck, Pinkie.” Typhoon’s smile was so wide she almost looked like a schoolgirl with it. “Zat is an Aero Tribe staff. Alamantian made. Some of ze great wind movers use staffs like zis to channel their power.”

So that’s what caught her so much. That staff was from her very tribe. Made to make some of her techniques more powerful.

She had to have it. But she had zero money to spend.

“Ah. You have quite an eye.” The creepy shopkeeper saw Typhoon looking at the stick and walked over to them. “I found that little baby in a walk one day on my way to Trottingham. Don’t know what it’s used for but from the markings on it, I could tell right away it was valuable.”

Typhoon’s face towards the shopkeeper turned cold. But the stallion didn’t notice because he wasn’t looking back at her.

“So what do you say, little missy? You interested in buying?” he asked.

“I’ll get back to you.” Typhoon answered flatly. “And never call me zat again.”

“You got it, feathers.” He winked at her as he walked away.

Once again, she was repulsed by his vulgarity.

“What a creep.” Cryo muttered.

“Typhoon, if you want, I could buy that for you.” Fluttershy offered. “I have enough bits to afford it.”

“No, Fluttershy.” Typhoon firmly responded. “I will not allow anypony, including myself to pay for zat staff.”

She almost seemed like she was mad for some reason.

“But why, Ty?” Cryo wondered curious why she would pass it up.

“Because he’s lying.”

Typhoon’s words earned her the shocked faces of her other three present friends.

“What? He’s lying?” Fluttershy asked her partner. “How do you know?”

“I read hees mind.” Typhoon confessed. “He didn’t find zis staff. He went to Alamante years ago and stole eet from a wind mover. I refuse to pay for an item zat was stolen. Especially if eet came from MY tribe.”

“So…what are you gonna do?” Pinkie asked.

Typhoon had a plan cooking in her head. But she needed to think more about it.

“I’m working on eet.” She answered. “Come come. Let us check out some more shops.”

That did seem like a good idea. With that weird shopkeeper, leaving would make them clear of his sight. Soon enough, they were off to find another shop to browse in.

Over at the Canterlot Arena, the whole place was slowly starting to fill up with ponies who had all purchased tickets to the same event. The Wonderbolts night show. Two of those ponies were the cyan rainbow maned pegasus and the dark purple and black unicorn plasma mover.

As they found their seats that matched the ones on the ticket, they took a moment to view the sky up above them. It was now the darkest shade of blue and a few stars had popped into vision.

“These are the best seats in the house.” Rainbow commented. “We have good views from all angles. Can I get tickets or what?”

“I’ve always wanted to see these ponies performing.” Gem softly said. “Thanks for bringing me, Rainbow Dash.”

“Hey it’s no prob, Gem. After what you did for me back at that party, I owe you big.”

“This show, and your friendship, is thanks enough, Rainbow.” Gem insisted.

Rainbow smiled at the unicorn and looked upwards and to the right.

“They usually make their entrance from the northeast. So keep your eyes in that direction.” Rainbow Dash advised.

The response she got to that was not words. No. It was more like a weird gurgling bubble sound. Loud too. Rainbow turned around to see Gem frowning a bit. Then the gurgle came again. That time Rainbow realized where it was coming from.

Gem’s stomach.

“I take it you’re hungry.” Rainbow said.

The unicorn nodded.

“Sorry. I haven’t eaten a lot today.” Gem replied.

Rainbow had prepared for things such as this. When it comes to a Wonderbolts airshow, she takes every precaution possible. With her, the pegasus had brought a saddlebag filled all sorts of things. Cushions to sit on, blankets in case it got a bit nippy, binoculars, and a jar with the 16th letter of the alphabet written on the front of it in permanent marker. Gem was a bit shocked to see that one.

Finally Rainbow Dash fished out what she was looking for. A small bag of bits to spend. Using her mouth, she tossed it to Gem who caught it in her magical grip of electric purple.

“Go get yourself something to eat, Gem. The food in this stadium is AWESOME. So go nuts.”

Gem smiled as her stomach growled again. Then she hurried off to make sure she returned before the show started.

Within the center part of the city, the ponies of generosity and water were there inside a tea shop getting a drink. Rarity had to fork over the money to pay for Agua since he was in possession of zero money. But other than that, things were going…shockingly well.

Rarity was surprisingly having a peaceful time with Agua. He wasn’t getting angry or trying to beat anypony up for looking at him funny. He tends to do things like that quite often. But not today. Rarity just couldn’t put her hoof on the reason as to why he was doing this.

As they left the tea shop, they began to converse.

“You know I gotta admit. Compared to the tea I’ve had from Alamante that stuff almost measures up.” Agua said.

He and Rarity had just exited a tea shop where the tea was in fact quite tasty as Agua said. The way he said it though was a bit odd.

Are you saying Alamantian tea brews are better than Equestria’s?” Rarity asked.

“Have you ever HAD Alamantian tea before?” Agua asked right back to her.

To that, Rarity could only shake her head “no”.

“Thought so. Anyway, I knew this guy back home in my village, Zen was his name. It was short for something but it was too weird I can’t remember what it was. He had his own tea shop near the beach. Best cup of tea you will EVER drink. Don’t matter which flavor”

“Sounds rather delightful now that I think about it.” That was it. Rarity couldn’t take it anymore. She had to know what the hell was going on.

“Okay, Agua I have to ask. What is it with you today? Ever since you came to live with me you have been nothing but a huge pain in my flank. And now all of a sudden today you turn into…well this.”

Agua gave a slight groan half expecting that question to pop up.

“I’ve seen how the others are with THEIR partners alright? I just thought..well maybe you could have something like that with me.” He answered.

“Well how come it took you this long to come to that?” Rarity asked.

“I have a lot of personal shit going on with me, Rarity.” Agua replied. “A lot of shit that I’ve kept locked in my head and I intend to keep it there.”

“Well….are you sure that’s healthy? Why not just talk to somepony about these things?”

“Talk with who? A therapist? I’m flat broke. Plus those guys always charge up the ass for just one hour at a time.”

As crude as he put it, Rarity had to admit Agua had a point. There were some therapists out there whose prices were just ridiculous.

“Well…what about me?” Rarity dared to ask. “I know we haven’t known each other for very long, but we are partners and we do live together. Albeit you live in a pond outside my actual house but it’s still within the property lines. And you come in to eat and use the bathroom.”

She wanted so badly to just be the least bit close to him. To understand him. To find out why he’s…the way he is.

“I appreciate the offer, Rarity.” Agua was honest in that. “But things have happened to me in my past. Things I’m not sure you would understand. It’s just…by Poseidon’s beard.”

Agua’s teal green eyes had locked on a pony. Not just anypony. A female one he considered to be very VERY attractive. His hoof pulled Rarity close to him and the other hoof pointed forward.

“Rarity. That girl In the white. And the pink. With the sexy eyes. Who is that?”

White, pink, and sexy eyes really weren’t a lot to go on. So Rarity had to follow Agua’s line of sight to get a clue. She shortly spotted the girl he was talking about. It was someone she knew.

“Her name’s Fleur De Lis.” Rarity informed her partner.

“She nice?”

“Of course.”

“She single?””

“No.” Rarity said that with a firm tone to make a point. “She’s married to Fancypants. The most important business pony in all of Canterlot.”

“Married?” Agua repeated. “Hm…challenge accepted.”

Agua proceeded to walk towards the front door of the building Fleur walked into with Rarity behind him.

“You mean you’re going to make a move on her even thought I just told you she’s married to somepony else?”

“Yep.”

Rarity hung her head down and groaned.

“….aaaand he’s back.” She muttered under her breath.

As Agua went through the door of the place, Rarity looked up to see exactly what place it was. The sign’s words brought horror to the unicorn.

It was a beauty spa. The best one in all of Canterlot. Yesterday Rarity figured out Agua and beauty spas DO NOT go together.

“If he floods this one, Rarity…just sneak out the back door.”

She figured as long as Agua’s in there trying to make a move on a girl, she could at least get a full spa treatment and compare to Ponyville’s. So she went inside and hoped for zero percent chance of floods.

Meanwhile back at the castle, nothing had changed. Pyro, Twilight, and Spike were still outside the princess’s chamber waiting to be let in. They had no idea what was going on in there. But whatever it was, it had to be important to keep Celestia’s attention. While they waited, they tried to find some ways to keep themselves out of boredom. The most interesting way was when Spike suggested breathing as much fire as he cloud onto Pyro’s face to see if the stallion would feel anything. Of course Twilight was shocked her number one assistant would even think of such a thing. But the real surprise was when Pyro agreed to do it.

So for twenty minutes straight, Twilight sat in total confusion as she watched Spike take in deep breaths and blow as much fire as he could right into Pyro’s face. The red unicorn felt nothing. Spike didn’t even get a single wince or cringe out of him. Twilight watched this hoping to Celestia that not all guys were like this.

Finally, after nearly two hours of waiting, the doors to the princess’s chambers finally opened up. Not even a few seconds later did the princess of the sun herself walk through those doors and stop on front of Twilight, Pyro, and Spike. Twilight and Spike bowed their usual way while Pyro bowed his usual way. Bipedal and front hooves together.

“Princess Celestia. How nice to see you again.”

Having the utmost respect for his culture, Celestia gave Pyro a bow right back in the same fasion.

“Hello to you as well, Pyro. Twilight, Spike. Good evening.”

“Good evening, Princess.” Twilight greeted her mentor.

Wasting no time, the princess got right to the point.

“I’m sure you are wondering why I summoned you here at such an odd time of the day.” Celestia looked out a near window and found she needed to correct herself. “Or rather in the night.”

It was now fully night time. The stars were shining bright with a near full moon overhead.

Pyro and Twilight wasted no time either. They got straight to it.

They proceeded to tell the princess of everything that had been happening in the past two weeks. Everything in Ponyville had been quiet and free of any sinister activity. Everypony was getting along more and more with their partners. Though Agua and Rarity were a bit of an exception to that.

“Well I’m sure in time, they’ll learn true harmony from one another.” Celestia positively said.

“Harmony? From Agua?” Spike repeated. “I think we have a better chance of Rainbow Dash cutting off her own wings.”

Pyro being a wise young pony was rarely seen laughing. But that comment had a little something to it because he gave off a few giggles.

“Trust me. I all of all people know how difficult Agua can be. But he means well.”

“Maybe you should try telling that to Terra.” Spike suggested. “You know, before she picks up a house with her bare hooves and sets it down on top of him.”

“A house? Bare hooves” Twilight thought Spike was being silly. “Oh Spike, I know Terra is a strong pony and all. But I don’t think even she can lift up things like houses with nothing but her hooves.”

“Actually she can.” Pyro corrected.

This is where Twilight was once again confused and Pyro felt need to clarify.

“Terra is a master at moving earth. But she does have another ability. She has muscles. BIG muscles. She can lift things up without using her powers. All she needs to do is just get a good grip, lift, and bam. Super strength.”

“Ah yes. I have been to Alamante many times. Super enhanced strength is a very common side effect amongst the Geo Tribe. In fact all of the tribes have their own interesting side abilities.”

“She’s right. Agua for example. He can breathe underwater. Gem can see in the dark with no assistance from magic or her powers. Cryo has that immunity deal like I do. And Typhoon…well..she’s a telepath. But I think she’s alone when it comes to that. As for me, I can fly.”

That last one caught Twilight a bit off guard. As well as her dragon companion.

“You can what?” Spike asked for him to repeat it.

“You didn’t hear me wrong, Spike.” Pyro assured him. “I have the ability to fly.”

The lavender unicorn that was his partner shook her head refusing to believe it.

“You know, the last time I checked, unicorns without wings CAN’T FLY.”

The look in her eyes told Pyro she wanted a demonstration.

And he intended fully to give her one.

“Check again, Twi.”

One small movement from his hooves was all it took. All four of his hooves became engulfed in flames. Then his back two started to pour an excessive amount out. A few seconds later, it seemed to intensify. Then the next thing Twilight saw baffled her more than anything had ever baffled her before.

Pyro’s hooves lifted off the ground.

The lavender mare couldn’t believe it. The unicorn that was her partner was floating in front of her using nothing but fire from his bare hooves. His horn didn’t glow one bit. As he lowered himself to the ground, Twilight stuttered a bit before Twilight was finally able to speak an actual word.

“H….how?”

“You’re a smart girl. Take a few moments and think.”

She did just that. The unicorn mare put her brain into overdrive thinking of how Pyro’s flight abilities were possible. Celestia loved seeing that look on her favorite student’s face. Watching her think was one of the joys of being her teacher.

Finally, after about a minute of pondering, Twilight cracked it. She looked at her partner with a wide smile and pointed her hoof.

“Jet propulsion!”

“Exactly.”

Twilight’s face beamed hearing she was right. Spike however was still in the dark.

“Huh? I don’t get it.”

Twilight explained.

“It’s easy, Spike. Somehow Pyro is able to use his pyrokinesis to manipulate the flames that originate from his hooves and control the intensity and pressure therefore making him capable of ascension.”

Not one word of that was able to register into Spike’s brain. Hoping for a better explanation, he turned his head to the red stallion. The look on his face was a clear indicator that he needed simpler words. Pyro was able to provide them.

“I can use my flame powers to turn my hooves into rockets.”

“Oooohhhhh. Now I get it.”

An annoyed Twilight gave a small grumble. This sort of thing happens to her too often. Celestia gave off a small giggle seeing Twilight’s face like that.

“Oh don’t be upset, my faithful student.” She said to the young mare. “Your knowledge knows no bounds.”

It always made Twilight feel better to hear encouragement from the most powerful pony in all of Equestria.

“Yeah well in all honesty, I’d rather have a unicorn that flies for a partner than a pegasus who can reads minds.” Twilight commented.

Of course she was referring to the blonde pink pegasus that was the element of wind.

“Between you and I, Luna still feels a bit nervous when she sees Typhoon.” Celestia said.

“Really? Didn’t Ty apologize to her at the party?” Pyro asked.

“Oh she did. And it was a very good apology too. But Luna and I have never met a pony with such abilities like your sister. It still confuses us as to how she has them.”

“To be honest, your majesty. I think Typhoon is even more confused.” Twilight said. “She says she has no idea where her telepathy came from and that she’s the only pony in her family to ever have it.”

“But nevertheless it does come in handy sometimes.” Pyro added. “And let me tell you something. Being a master of the mind, she makes one heck of a therapist.”

“I wouldn’t doubt that.” Spike commented. “Bet she’d make a lot of money.”

Pyro was going to say to Spike that Typhoon had no interest in being a therapist. Before he could, a royal guard came over to the princess and whispered something into her ear. After he was done, Celestia looked down at her three visitors again.

“Oh I am so sorry for this, but something requires my attention. Please give me a minute.” Celestia said to them.

“Of course, princess.” Twilight responded.

With a nod, Celestia walked off with the guard at her side. As soon as they turned the corner, another guard walked in. One Twilight recognized. This guard was wearing different colored armor than most of the common unicorns around the castle. White in his coat and blue in his mane and tail, his cutie mark was a knight’s shield with a pink star inside it very similar to the star Twilight has on her own flank.

Twilight smiled upon seeing him and when he saw her as well, he did the same.

“Twiley!” he shouted out his nickname for her.

“Hi Shining Armor!” Twilight ran up to him and hugged the stallion.

Shining Armor. Pyro recognized the name. This was Twilight’s older brother. She had spoken quite well of him and all that he has accomplished. Wanting to meet him up close, he approached the two as they finished their hug.

“What are you doing here, little sis?” Shining Armor asked.

“Oh just visiting.” Twilight answered.

“And giving a tour.”

That little add on was brought to them by the red unicorn who had just walked up to them with Spike on his back.

“Hey Spike.” Shining Armor waved to the dragon and Spike waved back.

Then Shining Armor looked into Pyro’s eyes.

“And you are?”

Twilight immediately remembered her manners and introduced her friend.

“Oh. Pyro, this is my older brother, Shining Armor. Shining Armor, this is Pyro. He’s a friend of mine.”

“Nice to meet you.” Pyro extended a hoof.

Smiling, Shining Armor grabbed Pyro’s hoof with his own and shook it firmly.

“You too. So are you just friends with my sister or is there anything romantic going on?” he asked.

Both Twilight’s and Pyro’s faces dropped upon hearing that question.

“What? No of course not.” Pyro answered.

“There’s nothing like that between us, Shiny.” Twilight added. “He’s just a friend and I said I’d show him around the castle.”

“Suuuuuuuuuure you are.” Shining Armor replied with a clearly intended teasing tone.

“Oh Shiny stop it.” Twilight said a bit annoyed.

“Oh lighten up, Twiley. I’m just teasing.” The captain chuckled as he looked at Pyro again. “So, tell me, how did you two meet?”

He froze. If he told Shining Armor the truth it would only mean having to tell him everything about the Nightmare Moon thing and the possible threat to Twilight’s life. The quick glance Twilight gave him said she didn’t want him to know either. So he did the only thing he could think of that didn’t sound awful.

He stretched the truth.

“I’m a visitor from the far east.” Pyro said. “Twilight offered me a place to stay while I get situated in Ponyville.”

“Really? How interesting.” Shining Armor didn’t seem to mind that a guy was living with his younger sister. “I take it Twilight never mentioned me, huh?”

“Actually I’ve heard a lot about you from your sister.” Pyro corrected. “Captain of the Canterlot Royal Guard and husband to the princess. Quite impressive.”

“Well thank you.” Shining Armor replied.

Pyro gave a small nod to gesture back to him.

“So….Pyro. Interesting name.” Shining Armor then looked at the stallions flank. “Interesting mark you’ve got too.”

“Uh…thanks.” Pyro muttered.

“What does it mean?” the guard captain asked. “What exactly do you do?”

Once again the truth was stretched like a rubber band.

“I work with fire. A lot of fire. LOT’S of fire.”

“Okay I get it. You like fire.” Shining Armor got the point. “Not a really surprise. With those colors, you look like a walking flame yourself.”

“All natural.” Pyro felt need to add that for some reason. “Some people think I dyed my hair for show.”

“Yeah I get that. Back when I first joined the guard, I got ripped on a lot because everypony thought I highlighted my mane. I mean come on! Does this look highlighted to you?”

Shining Armor bent his head down in front of Pyro so he got a good view of his mane. After taking a good look at it, Pyro spoke to him.

“Do you REALLY want me to answer that honestly?” Pyro asked.

Shining Armor just groaned.

“No.” he mumbled as he leaned back up. “Dammit.”

“Hey don’t feel bad about it, Shiny.” Twilight tried to comfort her brother. “Your mane is fine.”

“And besides, you wear helmet most of the time so who cares really?” Spike tried to help in making him feel better.

It really didn’t. He just decided to let it pass for now. That was a good decision seeing as how Celestia had just walked back in and taken notice of the captain’s presence.

“Oh good. Shining Armor I see you have met, Pyro.” Celestia said. “I trust you two are getting along ?”

“Of course we are. Why wouldn’t we be?” Pyro asked.

“Oh I just need to be sure things go smoothly here, Pyro.” Celestia asked. “You can never be too sure of something.”

None of them had any idea what she meant by that. But they paid it no mind. Shining Armor was easily turned away from the subject when another mare entered the room. And this mare was there just to see him.

It was another alicorn. Her coat was pink and her mane was comprised of golden yellow, magenta, and purple. The same with her tail. She was just as big as Shining Armor and Pyro. She walked up to the former and gave him a quick peck on his lips.

“Hey you.” She muttered.

“Hello yourself.” He said back to her with a smile.

There was only one who was still in the dark here. Lucky the white stallion noticed it.

“Oh uh, Pyro, this is my wife, Cadence.” Shining Armor gestured to the mare at his side. “Hon, this here is Pyro. He’s visiting from the east and he’s staying at Twilight’s place in Ponyville.”

“Pleasure to meet you.” Pyro bowed his head a bit.

Cadence upon seeing his face, she gave a small gasp. Then she put her face closer to his as if she were examining for zits or something. Needless to say, personal space ceased to exist for a brief moment. And Pyro really didn’t like it.

“Uh…why are you looking at me like that?”

She sure took her sweet time in answering.

“It’s just…I feel like I’ve met you before.”

“Can I look like someone you know…but from a bit of a farther distance?”

Finally something snapped in Cadence’s mind and she backed away from him.

“Oh I’m sorry. That was a bit rude of me wasn’t it?”

“Eh it’s no big deal. I’ve dealt with ponies who were much ruder than that.”

“Really?” Cadence asked.

“Yeah but…let’s not get into that.” Pyro did NOT want to get in on that subject.

Being an Alamantian he had been subject to a lot of racism over the years. He did a good job of hiding. But there were still some that knew on sight what he was. And boy did he and his siblings get an earful at times. Experiences he wasn’t very fond of, and he did not want to start talking about them again.

“If you say so.” Cadence agreed to not go there.

So now it was Princess Celestia, Princess Cadence, Shining Armor, Twilight, Pyro, and Spike all in a group chat. As that went on, things were getting a bit…steamy.

Quite literally they were.

Over in a certain beauty spa, Fleur De Lis had just entered the hottest room in the place. Soon enough, the experience that room brought people began and she entered bliss.

The sauna of the joint was filled with heat and steam just like one should prefer. And Fleur was loving every second of the feeling on her body.

Even though she was in bliss, she of course still had her sense of hearing. The door gave off a slight creak as it opened and closed. Maybe all the steam from years and years of sauna time wore out the hinges a little bit.

Through the steam, Fleur couldn’t exactly tell who it was. All she could see was a silhouette. She watched the shadow walk close to her and sit down not too far from her. Wanting to be friendly, she decided to speak.

“Why hello there, darling.” She greeted thinking this other pony was a female like herself. “Enjoying a girls day out now are we?”

“Well it’s a day out alright.”

Fleur’s face dropped right there upon realizing that was indeed not a mare. But another stallion.

“And right now I could see it turning into a day with a girl.”

She could hear. She just couldn’t see who it was. Then suddenly and strangely, the steam all moved out of the way and the two ponies were able to glimpse each other. Fleur saw a young well built stallion still in his teens looking at her with dark teal eyes. His dark blue mane and light blue coat were dripping wet with steam water. Though wet, Fleur came to the conclusion the look went well with him for some reason.

That did not however change what he just said. And it turns out he wasn’t done.

“The name’s Agua.” He greeted himself slyly. “And I’m hoping to make more than just your acquaintance.”

It didn’t take a genius to realize exactly what those words meant. Fleur decided to pump the brakes right there.

“I have a marriage with another stallion.”

“Well I have an erection caused by you. It’d be a real shame to waste it wouldn’t you think?”

The unicorn turned her head away in disgust, revolted by the way he said that. As if he were proud. And his confident smirk, that only made her even more revolted.

“You sir are no gentlecolt.” She shot. “If you don’t leave I will call security.”

She was dead serious. As much as Agua wanted to make a move, he didn’t want to be brought to the castle in shackles.

“Fine.”

He got up to leave. But right before he got to the door…

“Here. Have a bit more.”

He raised his hoof right at the bucket of water that was given to Fleur and waved. Some of the water streamed from the bucket and onto the hot pile of rocks by itself. As another cloud of steamed formed from the pile of rocks, Fleur took notice of what just happened and did the math in her head. When she came to the answer, she was amazed.

“Wait a minute.” She called.

He halted right in place.

“You’re…an Alamantian water mover?” she muttered.

Agua never answered her. Instead, Fleur’s mouth turned up into a very devious smirk.

“I’ve never been with a water mover before.”

Agua knew the seductive tone and smiled showing all his teeth. He then turned around and approached Fleur so their noses were barely millimeters apart.

“Well then my dear, allow me to make your first time something you will never forget.” He whispered.

As they began to do some certain things in that sauna, a hand made of water arose from the bucket near the door, and pushed said door shut and locked it. Then the window became caked with steam making vision inside the room impossible.

Canterlot truly is an interesting city. But while all this was going on there, the other two earth ponies of the group were off doing something entirely different in the Everfree Forest. The forest is a place that nopony dares to go inside in the dead of night.

Those ponies apparently haven’t met a yellow mare by the name of Terra.