Sludge returned to the Dragonlands quietly but with hope. Sure his attempt to hustle the whelp Spike hadn't worked out, but for a couple of days? He had lived the high life. The con worked. He just needed another opening.
But that was a problem for tomorrow Sludge. Now, he had to get some sleep with his fluffy new pillow from the castle.
And so Sludge faded off to sleep.
He awoke in the middle of the night to a strange sound: the quiet creaking of wood.
Turning over and turning on a light, he found the source: a rocking chair by his bedside with a pony in it. A pony with a baseball bat across her lap.
Twilight Velvet stopped rocking. She lifted the bat in her magic. She looked at Sludge - alone with her in the cave. And she said four icy words.
"You hurt my boy."