//------------------------------//
// Chapter 5: Pictures 
// Story: The Warden: Part 2, The Crusader and The Warden 
// by FortressLegacy 
//------------------------------//

Apple Bloom took a final look around the room. Moonlight poured in through the window, and part of its pale light fell upon the nightstand beside her.

It was because of this that something caught her eye. A drawer on the nightstand was slightly ajar, and there was a piece of paper inside, revealed by the moon. Feeling a burst of curiosity, she quietly opened the drawer and pulled out the paper. Unable to make out what was on it in the darkness, she leaned over and turned the lamp back on.

Once the light had been turned on, she saw that the paper was what appeared to be a print of a portrait painting. On it was a tough, yet cheery looking stallion with a very sharp looking uniform. He was dark grey in color, with a neatly kept brown mane and a fantastic looking mustache. He only had one eye visible, which was blue in color; and over his other eye was an eyepatch. She noticed that he had numerous scars on his body, along with a wooden hoof showing from underneath one of his uniform's sleeves. His uniform was mostly white, with red trim and a sash that had numerous medals pinned to it. Most prominent though was a golden medallion that was hung around his neck, shaped like the Warden's cutie mark, oddly enough. She turned the print around, and saw something scribbled onto the back.

Grandfather, ~50 years before NM

It was a painting of the Warden's grandfather, no doubt. But what was up with the medallion? Why was the Warden's cutie mark showing up everywhere? Furthermore, what did fifty years before NM mean?

She slid the picture onto the nightstand, and noticed a few more papers inside the drawer. Despite feeling like she could fall asleep as soon as she closed her eyes, Apple Bloom could not resist the urge to investigate further. She pulled out another one.

This time, it was a photograph, a colored one at that. There was a smiling couple standing in front of a cottage in an evergreen forest. Apple Bloom noticed that the environment seemed to be very similar to the area she had found herself earlier that evening. Could the cottage be the same building in which she was currently in?

After wondering this, her attention was drawn to the two ponies. One was a brown stallion, about Big Mac's size, possessing a silvery grey mane and tail, like the Warden's. His eyes were blue as well, not unlike the stallion in the first picture. The other pony was a pregnant mare, navy blue in color with a red mane and tail. Her eyes were a deep green, like the Warden's.

Apple Bloom then turned the photo over, and there was another caption written on the back.

Father and mother, 38 years before NM

Apple Bloom smiled, the happiness displayed by the two parents-to-be spreading beyond the confines of the paper.

A thought occurred to her. The physical traits of the two seemed awfully similar to the Warden's. Were they his parents? Had she stumbled across pictures of his family?

The remark of years before NM also confused her. What was NM?

Maybe the answer lay in the next picture. She placed the picture atop the print of the uniformed pony, and pulled out another.

Yet again, it was a color photo taken in the same place. The brown stallion from before was there, along with a blue colt with a silver mane and tail, and green eyes.

Apple Bloom gasped silently. It had to be the Warden!

But something compelled her to take a closer look. For one thing, the mare from before was noticeably absent. Also, neither the father or the son were smiling, contrasting with the happy mood of the prior photo.

Apple Bloom tilted her head, and a thought at the back of her mind suggested that maybe the mother had died at some point, striking a personal note. She sighed, and turned the photo over, looking for an explanation.

Father and me, 32 years before NM

So much for an explanation into the mother's absence. But yet again, years before NM made a reappearance.

She put the photo away, and pulled another one out, the only one remaining.

Like the last two, it was taken in front of the cottage. However, there were three ponies present, an entire family! There was the Warden, grown up but also looking younger than he did now; a mare; and a filly being held by the two of them, all smiling happily.

The mare was white in color, with a yellow braided mane and tail. She was fair and beautiful in appearance, and her eyes were a piercing blue. She was smiling in a sweet, gentle manner, and Apple Bloom felt a strong motherly aura coming from her.

After pondering the mare, Apple Bloom turned her attention to the child. The filly was a shade of bluish gray, with a white mane and tail, also braided. Her eyes were green, like the Warden's. Unlike her parents, her cutie mark was visible, and naturally, Apple Bloom took a closer look. It had the appearance of an odd, upwards pointing arrow.

She recognized it: It was the same mark that was on the filly-sized armor downstairs!

Did it once belong to her?

Apple Bloom flipped the photo over, and was greeted with another caption.

Me, Edel, and Barb; 2 years before NM

She stared at the backside of the photo for a minute, pondering what in Equestria NM could mean. Try as she could, her mind was too clouded with fatigue and the aftereffects of almost dying earlier to think clearly. She yawned, and nearly fell asleep in her current position.

She shook her head and blinked a few times. Summoning the focus required to do so, she carefully slid the pictures back into the drawer, closed it, and turned out the lamp. 

Slumping back into the bed, Apple Bloom's thoughts did not take very long to start drifting towards home. She missed Ponyville dearly, despite only having been gone for only a few hours. She had been away from home before, and for much longer; but these instances were planned, and her friends or family were always near.

But now, she had been taken away from home to a place that was completely foreign to her, isolated from everypony she knew, and she wouldn't get back for a few days at the very least.

She sighed shakily and shook her head.

What a fix to be in.

Why did Sweetie Belle have to teleport her?

A spark of anger flared within Apple Bloom's chest. This was all her fault! If she weren't so eager to show off her new skill, she would be back in Ponyville, sleeping in her own bed, preparing for another day in Miss Cheerilee's class! Applejack would have Sweetie Belle's hide for sure. That would teach her to be more careful when showing off new talents!

This thought killed most of her anger in an instant.

"What the hay are ya thinkin', Apple Bloom?" She said quietly, scolding herself. "It ain't right to get angry at her just because she was excited to show me an' Scootaloo what she could do."

She sighed, her mood shifting away from anger and more towards worry.

Poor Sweetie Belle. She had to be feeling beyond awful all of this. How could Apple Bloom even consider being angry towards her? They were both dear friends, and Sweetie Belle never would have deliberately harmed her.

From the bottom of her heart, Apple Bloom hoped that Applejack didn't blow up at Sweetie Belle. She didn't deserve it, but knowing how protective Applejack could be, Sweetie Belle probably got a good chewing out.

On that note, what was Applejack doing right now? Probably tearing all of Ponyville upside-down with Big Mac, desperately searching for her. Even Granny was probably doing all she could to help look as well. 

Heck, all of Ponyville was probably searching for her! Well, with the exception of Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, that is.

At least she knew that she was being missed. There was no way she wasn't.

She sighed again, and felt a tear come to her eye as she remembered how much her family and friends loved her. Unfortunately, they were not going to find her close to home.

Still, while she was lost to them, she felt comfort knowing that she had been found, even if only by the Warden. The odds were piled against her survival, yet she had managed to survive, thanks to him.

Her thoughts then shifted solely to the Warden. Was he seriously the same pony that Applejack described as a ruthless killer who had the ability to use the princess' own magic against them?

From what she had seen since he first appeared, leaping down onto the spider from above, he was selfless, kind, and understanding. 

After all, he had saved her from that spider, brought her to safety, and provided for her; not to mention that he seemed sensitive to her plight.

His demeanor also instilled a feeling of trustworthiness as well. His presence was commanding and a bit intimidating, but he seemed kind and honest. It almost reminded her of her brother.

Oddly, the more she thought about it, the more she felt… Secure.

He gave off an aura of a pony who was protective at heart, of this she was sure.

She was in the custody of a complete stranger who made her feel safe.

How strange…

If this really was the same stallion who almost killed both of the princesses, then what in Equestria could have possibly driven him to do such a thing? 

All she knew about him came from what Applejack had told her: That the Warden was an enemy of the royal sisters, that he had disappeared a thousand years ago, and that he came back to try and kill them.

Apple Bloom never knew why he tried to kill them. She had tried to ask Applejack, but her older sister always seemed to work her way around this question.

If the Warden was really this kind-hearted, then what sort of thing could have happened for him to go after the princesses like he did? Nopony does something like that without reason. Especially not one who clearly seemed to be of sound mind and noble at heart.

Perhaps something bad had happened between him and the sisters?

Now that she thought about it, he did seem a bit… Sad.

The only expression of happiness that she had seen from him was that fleeting hint of a smile that he had after she thanked him a few minutes ago.

At all other times, he spoke in a subdued, depressed manner, and he looked as if his spirit had been dampened. After being around a vibrant, happy place such as Ponyville all her life, she couldn't help but notice the aura of sadness emanating from the Warden.

In any case, there was certainly a lot more to him than she had been led to believe.

Apple Bloom yawned, and her thoughts grew foggy.

"Ah best better be gettin' on to sleep." She murmured, remembering that the Warden told her that she was going to be woken up before sunrise.

Putting an end to her thoughts, she closed her eyes, and within seconds, she succumbed to slumber.





"What the hay do ya mean that there's no spell to get her back?! There's gotta be some sort of fancy spell 'round here somewhere!"

"Applejack, please! Summoning spells don't work unless the user knows where the pony in question is!"

"Then what about the map? Can't ya figure out where she is by using the map?"

"It doesn't work like that! It only seems to tell us where to go, not track where-"

Click!

Creeaaak.

Clack!

"I am so sorry for taking so long, darlings! I finally got Sweetie Belle to bed."

"Rarity? Thank Celestia. How is she doing?"

"Not well. She was inconsolable until she cried herself to sleep. Applejack screaming at her earlier definitely didn't help much."

"Well excuse me, but maybe your sister should've paid more dang mind to what she was doin'!"

"She was already out of her wits before you blew up at her! She did not intend to harm poor Apple Bloom, and you know it!"

"And yet mah baby sister is gone! For all we know, she could be dead! All because your brain dead kid sister of yours was playing with a power that she shouldn't have been!"

"But what kind of mare screams at a poor filly like that?! She knew what happened, and she felt positively awful about it before you-"

"Okay hold it! Both of you please stop for a moment! It's not Sweetie Belle's fault, it's mine!"

"Twily, what do you-"

"I taught her how to teleport objects yesterday."

"Ya did what?!"

"I-I've been seeing signs that her ability to use magic was greater than most fillies her age. After seeing how quickly she was able to levitate objects and use basic spells, I thought that maybe I could teach her how to teleport objects."

"What the hay did ya do that for?!"

"Applejack, it's not like basic object teleportation is dangerous. Sure, I don't use teleportation at all, but I can attest along with Twilight that when used on small objects, there is little risk involved. Plus, Sweetie Belle's ability to focus when using magic is impressive. I, for one, believed her and Scootaloo when they said that it was an accident."

"Yes, I agree. Out of all the foals in Ponyville, Sweetie Belle's ability to focus is immense. Plus, I have read about instances where sneezing while teleporting resulted in objects being sent to random locations. Such instances are extremely rare, but they can happen. Thankfully, the less powerful a unicorn is, the closer the object ends up. In Sweetie Belle's case, she couldn't have put her more than fifty miles away."

"So, you're just gonna take the easy way out by sayin' it was a freak accident?"

"Applejack!"

"Rarity, please don't. While I believe wholeheartedly that it was a freak accident, I still accept the blame for it. If I didn't teach her teleportation spells, this wouldn't have happened."

"Darling, you were only-"

"Can it, Rarity! You heard her, she's to blame for Apple Bloom goin' missin'!"

"Applejack, please…"

"Ah said can it! Furthermore, if neither of y'all are goin' to be of help right now, Ah'll just keep on lookin' for her. Let me know if y'all plan on actually bein' good friends and helpin' me out."

Clop! Clop! Clop! Clop!

Bang!

"Woah! AJ, where are you going? AJ?"

Slam!

"Oookay... She's definitely peeved."

"You have no idea, Rainbow dear."

"Twilight? Are you okay? You look like-"

"I'm… I'm okay, Rainbow, thank you. Did you find anything?"

"No… As soon as I dropped off Scoots, I searched all of Ponyville and the surrounding area until it got too dark. No luck."

"How is Scootaloo, the poor darling?"

"Shaken up pretty bad, but she'll live. What happened between you two and AJ? All three of you looked-"

"I… I'd prefer not to dwell on that, if it's all the same to you. Just give her space."

"Oh. Understood."

"What do we do now, darling?"

"It is too dark for us to be out there searching right now. At first light tomorrow, we'll start a proper search effort. I'll be leading the ground team, and Rainbow will lead the air search, if you don't mind."

"Not at all. In fact, I could probably get the Wonderbolts to help."

"I have already sent word to Princess Celestia, and she said that she would mobilize the Wonderbolts in a search and rescue function."

"Okay, cool. So what now?"

"We try to get some sleep. We have a big day tomorrow, and I doubt we will get much sleep tonight, so the earlier we go to bed, the better."

"What about AJ?"

"She's distressed right now, and I do not blame her in the slightest. Best to do as Twily said and leave her be for the time being, dear."

"Sigh… Fine. I'll be here at first light, Twilight."

"I shall be here as well."

"Alright. Thank you both."

"Darling, are you certain you don't need a friend here tonight? I know that you blame yourself for this."

"… I'll be fine, thank you. Go and get some sleep, both of you."

"Alright. In any case, don't blame yourself, darling. You were simply trying to help."

"T-thank you, Rarity… Good night…"

Clip clop clip clop.

Click.

Squeeeeaak.

Clack.