Hunter looked down as ponies in the nearby fields scattered and ran for town. Sorkeno’s lithe form landed as gently as was possible with minimal dust and dirt being kicked up. He could hear ponies calling out to each other about the golden dragon and he glanced at Twilight who looked confidently at him. He waited for the dragon to still and he pulled his hooves out of their place and he held onto the smooth golden scales as Sorkeno lowered his head to allow them to jump down to the grass. His head landed against the ground and Hunter jumped down to the ground and put up his hoof to reach for the Alicorn mare. She gripped his hoof and floated easily down to the ground to land beside him.
“We made it.” She whispered to him and he nodded to her. “I have to admit I’m not looking forward to another ten hours going back home.”
He barked a laugh and shook his head. “I tried to ask you about it but you were so sure it would be fine.”
“I know I was.” She admitted. “I am now wondering about what it will be like on the way back.”
“It will be worse.” He replied and turned to face the town.
She sighed and looked at the town with him. She smiled at the sight of the ponies as they peeked out from behind homes and businesses. “It’ll be fine. Just don’t growl at any of them and you’ll make a good impression.”
He shrugged absently and looked over his shoulder to the golden dragon who nudged them both forward. “Enjoy your time in their home, little ones,” Sorkeno said to them and nudged them forward once more.
“We will, Sorkeno.” She assured him and she tugged the Overlords armor and he fell in close behind her.
A pony trotted up to meet them, his face a mask of anger and fear that seemed to war for placement on his face. His body was heavyset but Hunter could see that it was more muscle than fat and his fur was the color of mud with a light flaxen mane. His steps slowed at the sight of the Princess of Friendship. His eyes darted from her to the armored stallion that walked with her. He paused and seemed to choose to wait for them to reach him and Twilight led the way to him.
“Princess Twilight Sparkle. Welcome to our town.” He said to her and bowed his head to her.
“Thank you.” She smiled and greeted him. “I have with me Overlord Hunter Flame. I brought him here to meet you as he is…”
“We know who he is.” The mayor said, his tone harsh.
Twilight paused and blinked in surprise at his tone. “Oh. You do?”
“Yes. Princess Celestia and Luna informed me of the land dispute you have with his kingdom and that he had come to Equestria to work on it.” He snarled as Twilight backed up a step, her flank bumping against Hunter's armored chest. “We have no interest in his rule and he is not welcome here.”
Twilight’s eyes went wider at his words and she glanced over her shoulder to Hunter who remained impassive. His face showed no sign of anger or offense at their tone. “He’s not here to harm anypony, I promise you.” She defended. “I brought him here to meet you peacefully and to see the town itself. He’s not here to harm anypony.”
“He is still not welcome.” The mayor growled but his eyes darted from the Princess to the Overlord behind her.
Hunter could see the fear that warred on his face as Twilight begged him to reconsider his stance. The Overlord remained silent as she spoke and he allowed her to try before he closed his eyes and breathed in a breath before he stepped up to stand next to her and spoke ahead of her.
“I am here to see the amount of land that has been changed due to the borders shifting. That is my purpose here.” Hunter said to him, his voice calm and self-assured.
The Mayor went quiet as the stallion spoke and Twilight looked at the tall Unicorn before she looked back to the Mayor and nodded in agreement. Mayor visibly faltered in his words and backed up a step under Hunter's red glowing gaze.
“He’s still…He’s not one of us.” The mayor stammered.
“I am not from Equestria that is true. But that is no reason to shun me before I have even begun to analyze the options.” Hunter replied, his tone remained calm. “I wish to see what has been changed and to make an informed choice when it comes to the land dispute with your Princesses.”
The mayor faltered and he could see that he had won by the others body language. Hunter said nothing more in response but he could see the mayor giving in as he backed up several steps.
“Just…keep him…with you, Princess Twilight.” He stumbled over the words as he fled from them both.
Twilight stared after the mayors retreating back as he left them behind. She looked at the Overlord who gave her a sly wink before he began to walk into the town itself. She jumped to stay at his side as they began to move onto the town’s roads and she bumped his shoulder in teasing as they walked.
“You could have helped me out sooner with that.” She teased.
“I needed a moment to see what his problem was. Once I listened for a moment I was able to say what he needed to hear to calm the situation and in the end, I got exactly what I wanted from him.”
“Which was?”
“For him to get out of our way and allow us to walk around as we wished.” He said to her. “Is that a complaint?”
“Oh no.” She said with a shake of her head. “I’m not complaining, just asking.”
“Good to hear.”
She chuckled as he walked ahead of her for several strides and then jumped to catch up with him once more. Hunter was silent as ponies stared and moved to get out of his way. He did not say anything to them and instead looked from market stall to market stall as they closed down for the night. He moved easily past them and into the main square.
“Okay we need to find the inn before it closes its doors for the night so we don’t end up outside in the cold overnight.” She said to him and he nodded in agreement with her. “Come on. This way.”
He fell in behind her as she led him down another street and toward a block of businesses. As they walked she began to look from side to side and he looked ahead of them and he read a few signs as she scanned them close by.
“Up there.” He said and she stopped as he spoke. He came to stand beside her and pointed ahead of them and off to the right.
“Oh, yup. Good eye.” She complimented and he nodded as she led him to the inn's doors.
The Alicorn walked into the business and held open the door as he walked in behind her. A pony stood behind a counter and the mare approached her and Hunter stayed at her heels. The mare stared openly at him, her expression switched from fear to uncertainty and back again. He remained quiet to allow the mare to speak to her.
“We need two rooms for the night please,” Twilight said to her.
The mare stared at her for a moment as if she had spoken a different language and then gave a stiff nod. “One for each of you?”
“Yes please,” Twilight affirmed.
“Okay. We have a few that are open and ready for use. Will you need one that is joined by a door or completely separate?”
“Joined by a door is fine,” Twilight said to her with a bright smile.
“Same bill or separate?”
“Same.” The mare chirped happily.
“One moment.” She said as she vanished behind a door.
“That was easy,” Twilight said to him as he joined her at the counter.
“Not a difficult request.” He said to her and she nodded. “But I agree that it was pretty painless.”
The mare rejoined them and paused as her eyes fell on him and she placed two sets of keys on the counter and Twilight’s magic gripped both of them and they vanished into her magic. “We close the doors in four hours. Please make sure your back indoors by then.”
“Thank you,” Twilight said to her and Hunter led her out of the inn and back out into the town. “Okay, so we can look around before we worry about getting back to the inn. I think we should check on Sorkeno and make sure he is comfortable and then we should turn in as well.”
“Sounds like a plan.” He said to her and she began to lead him back to the business district of the town.
He looked up as a loud gasp went out and a pony scrambled back away from them and lunged to get out of sight. Twilight chuckled nervously and walked forward.
“It’s fine Twilight.” He said to her, trying to ease her nervousness.
She looked at him, sadness in her eyes as she regarded him. “No, it's not.” She whimpered.
“I admit that it’s probably not what you had thought it would be. But it could be worse.” He said to her, trying to ease her mind.
“I knew they would be hesitant of you but I didn’t think they would be so frightened of you right off the bat. You haven’t done anything to deserve it. I hoped they would be a little calmer and not as likely to run away from you.” She admitted with a sigh.
“Still think they will be fine under my rule?” He asked her.
She sighed and looked at the ground as they walked. “I’m not sure.” She admitted sadly. “But I know that you deserve a chance. I did the same thing to you at first. I was so afraid of you that I couldn’t t even think about what to do. But when I got to know you it was okay and I learned that you weren’t what I was afraid of.”
“Don’t let it worry you too much. They will get over it in time.” He assured her.
“Your right.” She replied and walked forward with more confidence.
They moved through the towns square and into the suburban section. They walked down each street and he slowly grew to understand the layout of the town and he was growing more certain that if needed he could find his way around the town on his own. Time ticked past them as ponies hid from them, they started to come out at the sight of one of their Princesses but their fear came to bear at the sound of his armored hooves behind her. They trotted out of town to check on the golden dragon who looked up as they approached.
“Sorkeno. Are you going to be okay out here for the night?” Twilight asked him.
Sorkeno nodded and looked at her carefully. “Are you all right Little Princess? You seem out of sorts."
She stopped in her tracks and looked at him before she looked over her shoulder to Hunter who stopped just behind her. “I’m fine.”
“If you say you are then I will believe you.” He replied with a nod of his great head.
She looked down to the ground and then sat down heavily. “I’m just shocked I guess. I didn’t think they would react so badly to you, either of you.” She admitted and Hunter came up to stand next to her.
“Are they frightened, little one?”
“They are. They were alerted to the land dispute by others and have chosen their side. I was able to get them to calm down enough to allow me to enter the town. Otherwise, I was not welcome.”
Sorkeno raised his head and arched his neck as fire built in the back of his throat. “Are they threatening you, little one?”
“No. Nothing like that.” Hunter assured the golden dragon and he calmed once more. “If their fear grows they might act differently but I am not worried about it. I have you close by if they do anything drastic.”
“You do not have your minions with you. If I grow concerned for you I will flatten their town to find you.” Sorkeno vowed.
“I don’t think that will be needed,” Twilight said as she looked at them both. “But I have to admit I was a bit taken aback but I don’t think they would do anything against either of us.”
“If you think they might come to me and we will leave,” Sorkeno said to her and leaned his head down to nuzzle both of them.
Twilight got to her hooves and smiled at the dragon as he laid his head down on the grass. “It’s getting to be time for us to go to the inn. We’ll see you in the morning Sorkeno.”
Hunter approached the dragon and set his head against the dragon’s smooth scales and stayed still for several seconds before he moved to follow the Alicorn mare.
Twilight looked back at him as they walked out of the inn and into the morning sun. He closed his eyes for a second as the light burned and then he fell in at her side. He looked past her as several ponies were watching the pair of them closely.
“Just keep your head up and everything will be fine,” Twilight assured him as she fell in beside him.
“I’m not worried about it.” He replied. “You should try to relax a bit.” He teased.
“I’m fine.” She quickly said to him. “Am I that tense?”
“You’re wound a bit tight.” He responded. “But they seem to be either ignoring me entirely or they have now been made a bit curious about me instead of complete fear.”
“That’s good to see.” She replied and walked with him as they made their way through the town once more. “In time they will grow to care about you as much as your own ponies do. If you end up with the land I mean.” She amended.
They walked out of the town and moved to where the golden dragon waited for them. He stopped just before the dragon and turned back to the town and spun to face it. His red eyes scanned the town itself and he could see ponies as they went back to their everyday lives now that they had left the town. His ears flicked back as Twilight rejoined him and looked from the town back to him.
“What is it?” She asked him quietly.
He sighed and then looked at her. “What is your opinion?”
Twilight looked away from him and back to the town. “I’m not sure there is the right choice.” She admitted with a shake of her head. “I can see that they love the Princesses deeply but at the same time they are not willing to give you the chance you deserve. Your rule is very different than ours but at the same time there are other things that are the same.”
He closed his eyes and his own thoughts swam through his mind. He opened his eyes and looked at her as she smiled at him.
“You look so serious.” She teased and bumped his shoulder with her own and chuckled.
“I have a serious request for you.”
The laughing look fell from her eyes as she nodded to him. “Okay.”
“If you were to ask me to drop the dispute and let it go, I would.” He said to her.
Her purple eyes went wide as he finished speaking to her. He could see her mind racing behind her eyes as she stared at him. Her mouth opened and then closed several times as she considered what he had said.
“What brought this on?” She asked him, her voice quiet.
He looked away from her and back to the town. He shook his head and sighed deeply. “It’s your choice now.” He said to her.
Twilight stared at the black stallion for several more seconds as his words sunk into her mind. She looked behind her to the golden dragon who laid still and silent behind them. His eyes blinked slowly at her and she looked back forward and then to the Overlord beside her. Her mind raced with possibilities and what she could or should say to him. He had said that he was being serious and she knew that he was serious. She knew him well enough to know that he was not kidding with her. She suddenly breathed in and walked ahead and spun to face him. She raised her wings off her back and squared her shoulders, facing him as a Princess of Equestria.
His red eyes glowed back at her as he waited for her to speak. “Will you split the land with us?”
He looked at her and she saw his head give a slight tilt. His ears were faced forward to listen to her closely. “Is that your request or theirs?”
“Mine.” She assured him, a smile tugging at her mouth. “You can have the land that is before the ponies and we keep the ponies.” She said to him, willing confidence and strength into her voice. “I am asking you this for me. Will you do this, for me?”
She could see a smile tug at the corners of his mouth as a light blush went over her features. She tried to hide it but she knew that he could see it. He leaned back on his haunches and held out his hoof to her.
“Deal.”
She felt shock go through her as he waited for her to shake his hoof. She stiffly reached out to him as a smile went over her mouth. She pushed his hoof aside and threw her forelegs around his neck and hugged him tightly. She knew that as a Princess she should be professional but at the same time, she knew that he didn’t need her to be a Princess. In a way, he had needed her to ask him simply as herself. He held her close and she could feel his mane tickle her face and she nuzzled his neck.
“Then it is done.” He whispered to her and she nodded. “Diall leneor sheto moni letoi.”
She pulled back from him and looked at him, her head tilted slightly.
“We are of one mind.” He said to her as he pulled back from her.
“That’s in Dracoran?”
“Yes. It seems fitting.”
“It is.” She agreed. “What made you change your mind?”
“As time went by I found that I was not as invested in the land as I once was. I have been trying to recall why I thought it was so prized before.”
She watched as he shook his head and moved past her toward the dragon behind them. “Why did it have to be me?”
He stopped and she watched as he looked over his shoulder to her, a slight smile on his mouth. “It had to be you.”
“Why? Princess Celestia asked you to split the difference and you told her in no uncertain terms no.”
“Simply put?” He said to her and she nodded. “I don’t like either of them.”
He turned away from her and she watched as he moved away from her to the dragon. She could feel a furious blush go over her face. She stared after him and put her hooves to her face and turned away from them both.
“Calm down Twilight. It’s not like he meant anything by it.” She whispered to herself. “Just ignore it.” She said almost frantically to herself. “But…what if… No calm down, it was nothing.”
She put her hooves down to the grass and turned back to trot to the dragon. She reached them and Sorkeno looked at her his eyes laughing. She looked at the ground and then looked up as Hunter reached out his hoof to help her onto the dragons head. She took his hoof and he pulled her gently up and into place behind the dragon's head. She dared not look at him as his armor pushed against her fur and she stared ahead of them.