//------------------------------//
// The Hero Returns 
// Story: The Immortal Dream 
// by Czar_Yoshi 
//------------------------------//

I stood in a waiting room high in the palace of the Crystal Empire, surrounded by benches, pillars and crystalline potted plants, staring in disbelief at the mare I was supposed to find halfway across the world, in the opposite direction I had just been going, weeks or months to the east by boat.

She noticed me staring, and started to stare back.

"...Starlight?" I guessed.

"That's my name," she said, sounding just a little uncertain. "You know where Twilight is? Did she leave you to wait for me, or something?"

My ears rose hopefully. "Starlight from the north?"

Starlight's eyes widened in alarm.

"I thought you would be on the Catantan Peninsula!" I said, my heart racing, feeling utterly surreal. "I've been looking for you, but-"

Starlight's horn burst with teleportation magic, and in less than half a second she was gone.

"But..." My hoof fell. What?

The guards, too, looked surprised. "Starlight?" The one who had escorted her in looked around.

I wasn't sure who to look to for an explanation, and no one seemed to be forthcoming... except Nanzanaya. "Aha! Was that the target of your quest?"

"Where'd she go?" I asked anyone who was willing to answer.

"Beats me," the guard said, taking off his helmet and scratching his head. "You know her from somewhere? She looked at you like you were a ghost."

"I've heard of her," I frantically admitted, reality starting to catch up. "How well do you know her? Is she prominent in this city? Where would she go?"

The guard looked a little taken aback. "Woah there, slow down! Aren't you with the Snowport delegation? Also, just to be certain, you haven't seen Princess Twilight, have you?"

"Twilight was just here," Leif said from behind her magazine. "Something came up and she had to leave. No idea when she'll be back."

The guard gave her a suspicious look. "Something came up?"

"Heading to Snowport with some others from the delegation to search for Celestia," Leif said, part of my brain noticing that she never used the princesses' titles."

The guard frowned. "She just sent me to go fetch Starlight... Huh. You know, Shining Armor is never this fickle."

"Guess not," Leif said, going back to reading, not even questioning who Shining Armor was.

"Excuse me," I pressed. "Where did you find Starlight? How hard would she be to find again, and where is she likely to go? And do you have any leads at all on why she did that?"

"Maybe." The guard squinted at me. "Look, I know you're a dignitary, but if someone in Princess Twilight's immediate circle decided they want nothing to do with you badly enough to teleport away, I'm not sure I should be helping you find them..."

I got to my hooves, eyeing the elevator. "Would you stop me if I wanted to go ask around about her? Maybe carouse at the party a little?"

One of the other guards stepped up and whispered into the elevator guard's ear. He nodded in response.

"Sure," a third guard said - it was getting hard to keep track of which was which. "Either of you ladies want to come too?" He glanced at Nanzanaya, Leif and Mother. "Sorry we've had to keep you all waiting, here."

Nanzanaya was glued to my side. Mother had fallen asleep. Leif just raised an eyebrow and held up the magazine. "Mind if I borrow this?"

A guard tilted his head. "Well, I don't see why not..."

"Guess I'll come keep an eye on you." Leif stretched, sighed, and joined us, though I got the feeling she was talking more to Nanzanaya than me.

"Affirmative," the elevator guard said. "Right this way, if you please..."





The party was still going full swing when we made it outside, a gentle breeze blowing through the wide plaza in front of the tower. My thoughts were all jumbled up; there were dozens of questions I should have been asking - questions of Leif, questions of Nanzanaya, questions of the guards - but all of them were squished down beneath thoughts of the mare I had just seen. Leif was even looking at me like I was supposed to ask her something, though...

I started walking, only to stop abruptly when I nearly ran into someone. It was Procyon.

Procyon silently motioned for me to find a nearby alcove, presumably so we could talk without looking ridiculous, and I nodded. "Hey, err..." I glanced at Leif and Nanzanaya. "How badly would you mind giving me a moment alone, just really quick? I need to... get my thoughts in order."

Leif gave me a flat look. "I remember you being a much better liar than that."

I felt, once again, like I had been slapped.

"If you've got something to do, go do it," Leif said, waving me away. "But there's... Ugh." She rubbed her face with a wing, the magazine clasped under her other. "Right now, what is your number one, highest top priority?"

"That was Starlight," I insisted. "You saw her. She was right there!"

"And?" Leif watched me.





For a few minutes, Halcyon was frozen. And then her mask slipped off of its own accord.

Faye winced, the emotional force of the party buffeting her like a jubilant storm, her emptiness roaring in her ears, begging to devour it, to become that celebration and have that celebration become her. The usual distant smattering of stars she saw when assuming control was instead bright and immediate: a cloud of pinpricks of light, one in each pony, easily identifiable in the herd of revelers. There was a reason she never wanted to take her mask off in public. Many reasons, actually... but chief among them was this, and now it had happened without her bidding.

Without Halcyon's bidding, either.

"You," she grunted, pointing a booted hoof at Leif, trying to focus through all the voices begging for entry to her mind. "Go investigate why Starlight might have ran away. Find a way to find her again, contacts or relations or something, but don't approach or do anything to spook her until we know more. You." She moved her hoof to Nanzanaya. "Assist her in every capacity. My judgement of character has been taken advantage of before. I want others to get a look at how you operate too. All clear? I need to sit down for a moment, I'm not feeling well."

Leif nodded in judgemental approval. "Smart. I'll be back when you need me."

Nanzanaya seemed to consider this... then left along with Leif. "We'll be back!"

Immediately once they were gone, Faye bolted, running through the streets away from the party in search of a place where her head was quiet, Halcyon's green gem tucked surreptitiously into a pocket on her coat. It was difficult, though; the streets seemed to carry the celebration's echoes like pipes, preventing it from ever going further than the back of her mind.

Eventually, she stopped, panting, after clambering up onto the roof of a squat house. She sat down, pulled out the mask, and stared at it.

Procyon floated up out of the ground.

"You," Faye said, giving her only half a look. "You were there. You sensed something was wrong too, didn't you?"

"...Yeah," Procyon said. "What happened? My link to our body isn't as strong as yours or hers. She was acting erratic, and then froze up all of a sudden."

Faye just stared at the crystal. Then she tensed, let her bracelet flicker...





...And I was a ghost.

My mind felt like it was made of cheese. "What...?"

"Slow down," Faye said. "Don't do anything. Something happened to our setup, here, and we need to fix it before worrying about anything else. Because that was not the place where I wanted to be randomly forced to take control."

"What happened, anyway?" Procyon repeated.

I shook myself out to clear my thoughts. "Feels like... I was thinking about Starlight..." My thoughts finally started to crystallize. "This feels like when my bracelet got stuck thinking about reaching the next town," I said. "When it was hard for me to think about anything else. Did that happen again? I... can't really think of other things to think about, right now."

Faye frowned, holding out the bracelet and flashing it a few times. "No, I think this is more mundane than that. This is a problem with you, not one that extends to the rest of us." She looked up. "You're not trying to avoid thinking about what Leif said in the waiting room, are you? Recklessly throwing yourself into your work to avoid dealing with the consequences?"

I froze up again.

"Looks like that's it," Procyon sighed. "I think... it's time we had a talk. About who we are, and who we're going to be going forward. If Starlight really is here, and we can find her again, this is going to be a major turning point in our journey, assuming we don't scare her away permanently."

Faye looked unsettled.

"Like I've said many times, I'm content to take a back seat," Procyon went on. "I've mostly been leaving things up to the two of you, being a happy spectator. Apparently, there's some bad blood between me and Faye, Halcyon has preferred more to take her side, and I'm more than content with that arrangement. But if Leif is right about Corsica - and I think she is - then something needs to change."

Faye's brow was overcast.

"You agree with me." Procyon pointed at her. "I was listening, during that conversation you had in Snowport. You resent getting dragged up front to smooth over Halcyon's relationship shortcomings. It's not an arrangement that works for you." She pointed at me. "It's not an arrangement that works for you, either, who wants to keep Corsica as a friend. You're so fearful sometimes, when it comes to sharing information and trusting others, and so fearless at other times, like just now, when you launched into your full story with Starlight and scared her away in two sentences."

"Remind me again," Faye grunted. "Were you the one who was advocating for Halcyon to go digging into our secrets and embrace our past, or against it? I recall you being so inconsistent on this front, I gave up trying to imagine how a part of me could have gotten that way."

Procyon frowned. "Last we properly talked, being a changeling queen was still a big secret. Things have changed."

"You bet they have." Faye stared at the ground. "I feel like I have less control than ever. Sometimes, I even have to come up front now to protect our interests. Even though that was supposed to be what I wanted. To have someone else to do it all for me. But now I can't entirely let go."

"Is this because I coaxed you back into having a bigger role in our life?" I hesitantly asked.

"Yes," Faye said bluntly. "But it's not your fault. If I had wanted you to be different, I should have just made you different. This is the lot all three of us have to work with."

I looked away. "That talk you had with Corsica. Was Leif...?"

"Telling the truth about not everything being perfect?" Faye answered. "Corsica would say so. I think she's feeling shut out, or left behind by our quest. I don't really understand it perfectly myself. But... do you remember that day, in Ironridge, when we abducted Coda from her airship and had a fun day around town?"

I nodded. That was a memory I had buried, along with the rest of my interactions with Coda, until I could find a way to save her.

"That day felt perfect," Faye wistfully mused. "Our thoughts were one, there. It felt normal, like we were just part of an eccentric, normal family. I think being able to live like that should be our ultimate, end goal. With Coda, with Corsica, with Ansel and everyone else we care about. Don't you?"

Procyon looked her up and down, and eventually gave a small nod. "I was wrong about you. You have changed. The you I left behind was an empty husk, just there to control our body and be a fallback for Halcyon while she grew into the role. Someone who just wanted, like I once did, to fade away."

Faye reddened just a little. "Oh. Well, I..."

"I think it's a perfect goal," I said, nodding in remembrance. "And... that's what we're trying to get Starlight's help for. To save Coda. But what do I do about Corsica?"

"I don't know." Faye shook her head. "It's my fear you're being paralyzed by when you try to talk about that. Residual bonds from when you were made. It was me who gave you the instinct to hide all the time, to live under a mask and never say what you were really thinking. Or maybe that's just a consequence of how our split works. What's clear to me, though, is that even if we're the same pony inside, Corsica doesn't see us that way. Talking to me, for her, wasn't the same as talking to you. It's you she cares about. Not the rest of us."

"I wish I could help," Procyon said, staring off into the distance. "But if there's a way to let me take control of our body, we haven't found it yet... not that we've looked very hard. I somewhat doubt there is, though, simply because I was fully erased, while Faye only became a recluse."

"What should I tell her, though?" I asked. "Let's say I'm in control next we get a chance alone. What does she want to hear? I've..."

I didn't want to admit it, but I had put that aborted conversation so far out of mind, I couldn't even remember what Corsica was pressing me over when I handed over control.

"Do I look like an expert on relationships?" Faye's backwards ears fell. "Remember how well Corsica and I got along when it was just me in our body. Or how well I did with Ansel. You were always far more of a people person, even if you thought of yourself as an awkward nerd. If anyone should know what to say, it would be you."

"Or Leitmotif," Procyon pointed out. "She's looking out for us. I've been following her around occasionally, and her excuses for staying with us are flimsy. She claims our ether crystal research could help her find Chrysalis, but you remember our ill-fated return trip to Icereach. Odds are ten to one Chrysalis is currently either there, in Yakyakistan, or with their army, wherever it is now. Anyone serious about tracking her down would be looking there, not on the other side of the most impassable border in the world."

Faye nodded. "And it shouldn't be hard to see that the fault plane research hasn't been our top priority for a while."

"Yeah," Procyon said. "But she's still here. Maybe she just cares about us. If you asked her for advice, in person, she might have something a lot more gentle to give."

I thought about that.

"Or you could ask absolutely anyone else," Faye pointed out. "The ponies in this city are currently in a fantastic mood. I bet any number of them would be willing to offer friendship advice to a stranger right now, purely out of the spirit of communal unity."

"And Twilight Sparkle is the Princess of Friendship," Procyon added. "I don't know how you earn a title like that, but she'd be a fraud if she didn't have anything to say about this situation."

I blinked. "Didn't Leif say Corsica was with her right now?"

Faye nodded.

"Then maybe she's already giving some advice on how to deal with me," I sighed. "Anyway. I'm... sorry for freezing up, back there. I guess I let myself get tunnel vision to avoid dealing with the more immediate problems."

"I'd say no worries," Faye said. "But try not to let it happen again? When you break or shut down, I actually get forced into control. Remember, you're still separated by nature from some of our senses as a changeling queen. Part of my resistance to taking control in public has to do with... that."

"Actually," Procyon cut in. "Have you noticed anything different about this city, compared to the others we've been in, on that front?"

Faye nodded. "It's impossible to miss. It feels like the streets themselves are conduits for emotion, like the organ pipes on Coda's throne." She looked back towards the tower in the distance. "I wonder if a substantially skilled or knowledgeable changeling queen could use this entire city as a funnel in the same way, collecting the thoughts and feelings of everyone living in it."

My ears stood up in alarm. "Do you think that's currently happening?"

Faye shook her head. "I doubt it. We've seen what ponies look like when they get too drained before, and it looks exactly like getting emotionally tired the normal way. But these ponies aren't tired. If anything, they're much more intense and vibrant than normal, like they're being amplified instead of drained. If we somehow gorged ourselves on this... Well, there would be a lot to take."

My thoughts went back to Coda, and how she tried to use her own stores of flattery and false love to contain the windigoes in Ironridge. Maybe a changeling queen souped up on something more powerful...

"And even if we did take it," Faye pressed. "First off, we'd have to figure out how. Second, it would probably make us enemies of Equestria. And third, I'm not sure we could do it while retaining our sense of self. You felt what it was like to be suffused with purely our own determination to reach Snowport. How could we possibly contain the power here and expect any better of a result? If we tried to use it, we'd be less likely to gain the power of the city than we would be to become an avatar of the city."

I shuddered. That was a compelling argument to remain the changeling queen of nothing, and never have an emotional store aligned with a force, feeling or cause. Even if it meant not making the most of the power we had been born with, my identity was all I had.

And losing it wouldn't mesh well with my goals.

"Right," I said, floating closer and straightening my back. "I'm... ready to take over again, if you want. And I promise I won't freeze up this time."

"Priority check," Procyon said. "What will you do if you find Starlight?"

I nodded. "Be maybe a little more discreet."

"And find Leif," Faye added. "I don't know if you were aware enough to remember, but I sent her out to find why Starlight ran away, and where she is now."

"And what about the zebra?" Procyon asked.

"Nanzanaya?" I rubbed the back of my neck. "I've got no clue. She knows stuff I'd really like to know, but I guess it's not relevant to my bigger goals... I guess that's second priority, then. Can't get too distracted."

"She's trouble," Procyon said. "If you want to know how much... Well, you'll find out soon enough, I'm sure. But I think hanging around with her is going to get you into more things than it will get you out of."

That wasn't reassuring.

"Alright," Faye sighed, reaching a hoof toward me. "Here you go."

I closed my eyes, ready to accept being stuffed back into my body.





Some time later, I was back at the outskirts of the party. Procyon was out scouting, but I got the impression she wouldn't be too far away: even if we hadn't formalized it, that last conversation felt like making peace between ourselves. Maybe she would take a more active role in our life, now.

My thoughts were once again free and working smoothly, even if I still didn't know what to think about Corsica. I had more just given myself permission to kick that can down the road, rather than paralyze myself on it now.

Instead, I turned my focus toward the party, which seemed to be centered on the same tiny dragon standing on a fountain and telling stories I had spied earlier. Curious, I edged closer, getting the attention of a stallion near the edge.

"Hey," I said, loud enough to be heard above the din. "Who's that?"

"Spike the Brave and Glorious?" The stallion nodded up at the dragon on the pedestal. "He's the hero of the Crystal Empire! Multiple times over. Big sensation. But if you didn't know that, I'm guessing you must not be from around here? Might be more likely then you'd know him as Princess Twilight's scribe."

I glanced at his sparkly, glittery, holographic fur, and then at my own drab noir overcoat. "Safe guess. Any chance he does autographs?"

The stallion looked thoroughly pleased at my eagerness to join in the hype. "Oh, well, sure, once he's talked for long enough! Last autograph line closed about an hour and a half ago when he switched to this tale, but I'm sure he'll open a new one before long if the demand is here! Now grab a seat and get in close. I've heard this one before, and he's just getting to the good part!"

Multiple autograph lines at the same venue? An hour or two of distance was enough to rekindle demand for a second one? I glanced again at the little dragon and nodded in respect. That took a pretty dedicated following. Or maybe just a fan base who had nothing better to do for entertainment.

Or a cult, like Coda's. Hopefully not, though.

I shadow snuck my way through the crowd, figuring that if Twilight's inner circle was relaxed enough to be handing out autographs and carousing at parties, it probably wouldn't be impossible to strike up a friendly conversation with someone in it, and learn more about Starlight. Somehow, the crystal ponies seemed to detect that I hadn't heard Spike's stories a million times before, and generously made room for me near the center of the pack.

"Now, running up a spiral staircase that tall takes work," Spike was narrating, munching on a bag full of colorful gemstones, sitting casually on the head of a fountain statue that, I now realized, depicted himself. "And even Spike the Brave and Glorious has a finite amount of stamina. So, I wracked my brain, and I said to Twilight, 'Hey, Twilight! Why not use a gravity spell so we can fall up the staircase?' And just like that, we were falling up, and rode the underside of the stairs like they were a greased ramp, all the way to the top!"

He tossed another handful of gemstones into his mouth, and while he chewed, he took a moment to survey the crowd. His eyes fixed on me.

In fairness, I did stand out a little...

"Hey, uh... You, with the wings!" Spike pointed at me. "You want to be my stage hand for this next part? Usually I get Rainbow Dash or Fluttershy to do it, but they're at the castle for something. Whaddya say? Chance of a lifetime..." He grinned and flexed.

I blinked, realizing I was being asked to do a job that likely involved flying. "I, err, actually don't know what that entails..."

Spike tilted his head at me, speaking with his mouth full. "Wait, seriously? This is your first time here?"

I nodded.

"Wow. Okay. I thought I didn't recognize you." Spike shrugged. "Wow. Um, did you just get here?"

I nodded again.

Spike stood up on the statue. "Alright, I hereby call a vote of the people! Should I, Spike the Brave and Glorious, carry on with the conclusion of my story, or should I restart from the beginning? I wouldn't want to, um, actually spoil anyone who hasn't heard it before. Just in case it's actually as good as I think it is."

The crystal ponies looked legitimately consternated by this. A pink earth pony with no holographic fur and an unreasonably poofy mane bounced up in the background, yelling, "Twilight would never forgive you if you did!"

Spike's crest fell.

"Maybe an autograph would suffice?" I asked, tapping my forehooves together.

"Oh! Sure. Autographs are easy." Spike started climbing down from the statue. "I know my table was somewhere around here..."

The crowd didn't dissolve, but they didn't stand at attention either, as if they were used to Spike spontaneously starting and stopping like this. True to the stallion's word, several ponies had already lined up before he even found his table, and the little dragon made his way through the line in short order before finally getting to me.

"So," he said, leaning on his hands. "Where's my newest fan from? Or, uh..." He lowered his voice. "Were you trying to discreetly get my attention about something? You do look kind of important."

"I'm part of the Snowport delegation, if you know what that is," I said, figuring it would be safest not to mention the north for now. "And I'm just trying to have a good time. But if you're free to chat, I'd love to? Seems like you know your way around here."

Spike regarded me curiously. "The Snowport delegation? Is that those diplomats Twilight got called away to deal with?"

I nodded. "Yeah. I did see her in the castle, at least."

"Really?" Spike frowned. "Huh. If you're here, that means she's probably finished with you, but I haven't seen her anywhere. Oh well. Welcome to the Crystal Empire!"

I smiled. "Thanks. Any chance you'd mind me as a shadow for a bit? I don't really know what I'm doing here, or who the good folks are to meet around here."

Spike chortled to himself. "Oho, well, if you're looking for the right ponies to meet, I know just the crowd. Come on, follow me!"





This was certainly going more smoothly than last time, I reflected, now that I was being smart about it and not barreling in headfirst without thinking. The place Spike led me turned out to be a confectionery stand, staffed by an orange earth pony mare in a straw hat and selling all manner of baked goods that reeked of apples. Several other ponies were there too, including a white unicorn and the pink poofy mare from earlier, all of whom notedly lacked the crystal sheen. The pastry seller, though, I couldn't shake the feeling I had seen somewhere before...

"Howdy, Spike," the familiar mare said, nodding at him and me. "Who's this you've got with you?"

"One of the bigwigs Twilight had to go meet," Spike explained. "Figured I'd give 'em the good old tour, you know?"

"The pleasure is all mine," the unicorn insisted, extending a hoof. "I'm Rarity."

"Halcyon," I replied, bumping her dainty appendage with my dirty boot and earning a slight recoil.

"Name's Applejack," the familiar mare added. "And feel free to take something on the house." She pointed around at her apple cart. "Wouldn't want any dignitaries to get less than the best we've got to offer."

"And I'm Pinkie Pie!" the poofy mare insisted, looking me up and down with big, baby-blue eyes that reminded me faintly of Kitty. "Nice to meet you!"

"If I may ask," Rarity cut in, before I could say anything in reply. "That's a very distinctive set of fashion you have there... Is there any chance you're a fellow fan of Shadow Spade?"

I blinked. "Never heard of them. I mostly made this myself to avoid attention, but they've kind of..."

Rarity's eyes glowed.

"Now now, Rares, let's not get so carried away we don't give her the chance to speak," Applejack said, motioning for Rarity to stand down. "Anything we can do for you? Wouldn't want you to have nothing to do, especially if you've already finished your business with the Princesses..."

I rebounded. "Nothing wrong with a little vacation time. You talk about the Princesses like you know them personally?"

"We're only Twilight's first, bestest friends," Pinkie Pie promised, leaning in. "Why? Are you looking for embarrassing personal details you can use as leverage in important negotiations?"

I took a step back. "Well, not exactly-"

"Or maybe you're trying to learn all her phobias so you know exactly the right things to say to get through your discussions most productively!" Pinkie tapped her hooves together. "Ooor maybe you're a harbinger who's got some epic, nation-shattering secret and you're just trying to get to know us a little before begging and pleading for our help with it, which is kind of silly because of course we'd help you anyway, but how are you supposed to know that? Or maybe you're not even a diplomat at all, and are an undercover author trying to do field research into how we live, so you can write bootleg stories about us and share them with all-"

Applejack forcibly closed her mouth, throwing me a sheepish expression. "We're an eccentric bunch. Sorry about that."

I earnestly laughed. "Well, I can see you're not all uptight. You are nobles though, right? Or something close? I heard someone say you had titles..."

Applejack blanched. "Noble? About as far from it as you can get, I'm afraid. Unless you count being friends with Princess Twilight. Honestly, though, what with how she got promoted, I wouldn't be surprised if nobility works real different wherever you're from."

"We do have quite a few titles, though," Rarity cut in. "Perhaps you're thinking of the Elements of Harmony?"

Perfect. That was what I was hoping for!

"Oh, I have heard of you!" I told them. "At least, as a group. Are these all of you? I heard there were others, like Fluttershy and Starlight?"

Applejack shrugged. "Well, Starlight's not an Element, per se, but we do know her. Fluttershy is, though. Both of them were down here up until a while ago, but left to go to the castle when some guards came to see 'em. Rainbow Dash too. What are the odds you just missed each other on the way down?"

"Pretty high, sounds like," I chuckled. Another success: they knew Starlight, and talked about her like a casual acquaintance. "I guess they haven't been back yet?"

Spike glanced around. "If they have, I haven't seen them. And I've been keeping a pretty good eye on the comings and goings. Speaking of which, I should probably get back to my fan club. You all good, here?"

"Sure seems like it," I told him. "Thanks for the introductions. I'll definitely see you again before I leave."

Spike saluted and wandered away.

"So," Applejack said once he was gone. "What brings you to the Crystal Empire? Or is it dusty official business? Forgive me if I'm being presumptuous, but you don't strike me as a bureaucrat."

"I hate bureaucrats," I said, making a show of sticking out my tongue. "It might be a little... sensitive, though. I wasn't just asking if you were nobles to make small talk. I mean... are you close enough with the powers that be that I should be talking to you, if there was actually a problem I'm here because of?"

Rarity chuckled. "Darling, we're basically Equestria's on-demand problem-solvers. If it's not a matter to be solved with laws and money, and is big enough to bring to the attention of the Princesses, I'd bet you anything we'll be involved in the fixing somehow."

Was that so...? "In that case..." I hesitated. "How many places are there I might accidentally make you freak out if I told you I was from there, and not Snowport? Just in case the Snowport thing was a cover. To stop ponies from freaking out."

Applejack screwed up her brow. "Freaking out about where you're from? What do you take us for, some kind of high-and-mighty aristocrats? I was born on a farm and raised on a farm, by parents who were born on a farm and raised on a farm, by grandparents who settled that land and built that farm with the sweat of their brows.

Rarity, however, looked thoughtful and slightly concerned. "...When you mentioned knowing Starlight's name..."

I gave her a sheepish smile. "Is there anywhere she might freak out if I happened to say I was from?"

Rarity's ears fell. "Oh dear."

"What?" Applejack gave her a look. "What would...? Oh."

Rarity lowered her voice. "You're from her village, aren't you? Way out east of here? No judgement, darling."

I blinked. "To the east? Oh, so she does have ties to..." I shook my head. "Actually, I'm from the north."

Rarity and Applejack looked at each other.

"Nailed it," Pinkie Pie whispered under her breath.

"Yep," Applejack said, taking off her hat and holding it over her chest. "I'm guessing you up and said that to Starlight without a word of warning, didn't you?"

"How bad would it be if I did?" I hesitantly asked.

Rarity shrugged. "Frankly, you'd have to ask either Twilight or Rainbow Dash, since they're the ones who actually know her best. All I've heard has been second-hoof, but apparently the idea of someone coming and looking for her hasn't been something she's been looking forward to. Apparently, she's had a beastly time of it up there a long time ago, and hasn't been looking to go back... not that it's my story to tell, of course. Now, frankly, as a concerned friend, I have to ask: you're here. You knew her name. You're looking for her in particular, aren't you?"

I sighed. "If I can't find her, or can't get her to listen, I'll make do without. But, yeah, I am. Now that that's on the table, is there any chance you can help me find her again? And... talk to her without spooking her into fleeing?"

In the back of my mind, I suddenly realized: Leif had been there when Corsica gave her 'full report' to Twilight. She would have known all this already. And I asked her to go and figure it out for me, and she left instead of telling me what she already knew... Was she trying to make me figure this out for myself?

"Well, I do have the stall to run..." Applejack pointed to her wares. "How about I keep an eye out for her around here, and you three go check places she might be in the city? And you check back in here in an hour if you haven't found her yet."

"No need," Pinkie said, striking an odd pose and focusing on the base of the tower. "My expert intuition says she's... that-a-way."

The moment she said it, I caught a faint glimpse of lilac and purple through the crowd. "Handy intuition," I breathed.

Sure enough, in a matter of moments, Starlight appeared once again, looking ever so slightly frazzled and like she was deliberately seeking out her friend's pie cart. When she saw me, she immediately froze once again.

Maybe it was because she had already seem me once before. Maybe it was because this time, she saw me in the company of her friends, and knew that even if she could run from me, they weren't running. But, slowly, she came closer.

Looking at her, I didn't get the impression of some legendary hero, as Ironridge had told it. I also didn't get the impression of someone who was broken or beaten down beyond the point of return, as my limited experience so far in Equestria had indicated. Aside from the faint tingling in my eyes when I looked at her, she looked like an ordinary pony who had just been threatened with a conversation she really didn't want to have.

Probably the same way I looked when confronted by Corsica.

"Hey... girls," Starlight sighed, stepping up to the other Elements and ignoring me.

"Guessing you've already had a run-in with your visitor?" Applejack asked.

Starlight closed her eyes, then looked at me. "Fine. Get it over with."

Don't mention being from the north again, some part of me suggested.

Put everything on the table at once, another countered. No surprises left over. Best to only get her to agree to something once.

I ignored both of them. "Don't worry," I told her, creating a new plan on the fly, going purely with what felt right. "I'm not here to ask you to go back."

Starlight listened, and didn't say anything.

"Up in the north," I said, "they say you once killed windigoes. I need you to teach me how to do that too. So I can... save a friend who's counting on me."