Cadance led Tempo along with a bright smile. "I told my friends all about you."
"Good things?" Tempo hastened to Cadance's side. "I only just learned things recently. We haven't even talked about them."
"About this brave pony." she bumped against Tempo gently. "--who rescued me, and did amazing magic."
Tempo felt heat rising. "Once... I couldn't do it again. I don't know how."
"And that's okay." Any problems there, Cadance didn't see. They emerged from the castle to a grassy clearing with other foals. They spotted Cadance and Tempo and waved in unison. "There's my friends now. Hello!"
A colt sat up. "Hey, Cadie. Tempo? Heard about you."
A nasally sounding filly nodded. "Nice to meet you. I heard you fought some bad ponies."
"And it was brave," noted a thinner colt. "Brave and amazing! I wish I coulda seen it!"
Tempo shifted awkwardly under the sudden attention from Cadance's curious friends, smiling hesitantly. "It, uh, wasn't really a fight," she murmured. "More like an accidental magical surge. I don't even know how it happened..."
She scuffed a hoof across the grass, memories of those confusing moments still a bewildering blur of desperation and protectiveness swirling inside her.
Cadance just grinned, giving Tempo an encouraging nudge. "You saved me from the bad ponies and that's what matters! However you made that awesome teleportation spell explode out."
The colt, Glyph, leaned in eagerly. "Would have loved to see something as awesome as that! Can you teach us the incantations? I've always wanted to teleport further than across the room."
He flicked his short tail, magic lighting his stubby horn as if ready to start practicing that instant. The snooty filly rolled her eyes but looked anticipatory too.
Tempo flushed, wings ruffling up under her cloak self-consciously. "I wish I could show you," she admitted, "but I was kinda just wildly making stuff up to escape at the time. No idea if I could do any of it again."
She dared meet Cadance's gaze, worried she'd be disappointed in her new sister's magical uncertainty. "Sorry to be such a letdown compared to the story..."
Cadance just slid closer and hugged Tempo. "It'll come back, I'm sure. You're still new." She squeezed Tempo tighter. "Love you... But, oh, did I show you the stick fort?"
She bounced away. "This way."
Tempo blinked rapidly, her sister's easy affection catching her off guard as it often still did. Then she hurried to follow the energetic filly, glad for any distraction from uncomfortable scrutiny, even if that meant...playing with sticks?
The stick fort proved to be little more than a lean-to constructed of long sticks leaning against the wall of the castle. Tempo touched one and it threatened to fall ovre. "Not very... secure."
Glyph huffed. "I told them that!"
Cadance pouted, arms crossing. "I didn't see you fixing it. Tempo, do you have ideas? You're full of great ideas."
Was she? Tempo turned her thoughts inwards, trying to find some kind of idea. Something good...
She wanted to protect Cadance. Cadance wanted a little fortress. Protect.
"Right." Tempo reached out and brushed the sticks, horn glowing as she almost soldered the sticks to the ground. She reared up and repeated it for their connections to the wall. They were no better looking, but they were far more secure. "How's that?"
Cadance's eyes widened. "Wow..."
"Woah," agreed Glyph. "You're a natural! Okay, no excuses! Show me how to do that one. You just did it. Please!"
Tempo blinked in surprise as the other foals gazed at her handiwork with impressed expressions.
"Oh, um, I was just reinforcing the structural integrity," she mumbled, scuffing a hoof self-consciously. Hardly an impressive feat compared to long-range teleportation.
But Glyph practically vibrated with excitement beside her. "You made it way sturdier with just a glow! Come on, you gotta show me how you shaped the magic so perfectly."
Cadance edged over to gently bump Tempo's shoulder. "See? You have lotsa special talents just waiting to come out, sister." Her grin widened. "Ooh, I know - you can help us make the fort bigger!"
She gestured across the clearing where a few small boulders dotted the grass. "We can use those rocks to build the walls up solid. But they're too heavy to move..." She blinked pleadingly at Tempo.
With the way both Cadance and Glyph gazed at her so hopefully, Tempo felt her reservations melt away. She was still figuring out so much about herself - perhaps she had underestimated her capabilities. And helping Cadance expand her little fort did sound gratifying...
"Okay, stand back everypony," Tempo announced, horn lighting up brighter. She focused on the nearest boulder, picking it up and floating it over to hover beside the fort. Though heavy, it felt almost natural manipulating its bulk psychically.
"Let me just fuse these into the walls..." She concentrated, melding the rocks seamlessly to the wooden frame. Soon a solid, fortified structure emerged from their efforts, just wide enough for the foals to fit inside.
Cadance's eyes shone. "It's perfect!" Before Tempo could react, the exuberant filly had tackled her in an ecstatic hug. "You're the best sister ever!"
Tempo flushed under the wave of affection, wings fluttering shyly. Creating magical constructs gave her a deep sense of satisfaction, and Cadance's unconditional praise warmed her heart.
"What's this?" barked an adult voice. Peeking out of their fort, they saw a guard scowling at them. "You're in so much trouble!" He pointed at the fort, and the wall it was attached to. "When Princess Celestia hears about this..."
Tempo's eyes widened as... Well, her heart didn't quicken. She didn't have one, but she could feel the tension. Had she ruined everything? "Please... I didn't mean..."
Cadance hugged her silently crying sister. "Don't be mean!"
The guard flinched back. "Mean?"
"Mean!" shouted Cadance, glaring at him. "She's still learning what she can do... and what she can do... Just... Just tell her."
The guard rubbed awkwardly behind his head. "Oh, um... Okay. Tempo?" Tempo looked up at him. "You are not allowed to make modifications to the castle. Do not do that again. Okay?"
"O-okay," got out Tempo weakly, shuffling her hooves together. "I'm sorry."
The guard smiled gently. "It's alright. Can you..." He pointed to the little extension Tempo had made. "Can you put that back where you found it, please?"
Tempo nodded hurriedly, blinking back anxious tears. She lit her horn again, levitating the boulders off the expanded fort walls and replacing them in their original grassy spots.
"I really am sorry," she mumbled. "I was just trying to help make Cadance happy." Her ears drooped. "I didn't know it was wrong..."
Cadance hugged Tempo's legs, gazing pleadingly up at the guard. "It's my fault too! But she wouldn'tve done it if I didn't ask for help with our fort. Please don't tell Auntie Celestia!"
The guard rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. "There's no need for all that now. Just remember - no more castle modifications without clearance." He looked from one sad filly face to the other and sighed. "Tell ya what...how bout I show you the old fort in the barracks yard instead?"
He turned and beckoned them to follow towards the lower ramparts. There a collection of weather-worn towers and blockades stood, made of wood and stone. "All yours to play soldier ponies in if ya promise to leave the real castle walls alone from now on. Deal?"
Cadance gasped excitedly to Tempo. "This is way cooler anyway! Come on, let's claim the big tower!" She grabbed her sister's hoof, all woes instantly forgotten as she frolicked towards the crumbling but charming structures, their new domain.
Tempo followed gingerly behind, nerves still jangling from nearly getting them in monumental trouble. But the guard's warmth had left an impression on her - he cared more about understanding her intentions than punishing a foalish mistake. Maybe there was still hope an oddity like herself could find a place here too...
She stepped through an arched doorway into the spacious tower keep, gazing around at imaginary battles long faded now. Cadance's smiling face peeked out of various broken windows. "Our new fort!" the filly declared happily, and Tempo couldn't help smiling back. She may still have much to learn about restraining her powers, but at least she'd always fight to protect this precious sister of hers...
Glyph climbed to the very highest point. "I call this Fort Bravery!" He assumed the bravest stance he could think of. "Soldier Tempo!"
Tempo blinked, looking up at him. "I'm a soldier?"
"You are so long as you're in this fort." Glyph giggled with building warmth. "See to the repairs." He pointed at where little cracks had been forming. "I know you can do it, and we have permission, so no trouble this time."
Cadance stuck out her tongue. "She's my sister, don't boss her around."
"She's in the fort, she has to follow soldier commands." Glyph rolled his eyes. "That goes for all soldiers."
"Well..." Cadance got a scheming smile. "Then that goes for you too. Soldier Glyph, put up the flag."
"We don't... have a flag?"
Cadance raised a brow. "Then you'd better get one, Soldier Glyph. Soldiers have to follow orders."
"Yes, Ma'am," he deflated, defeated by his own logic. He scurried off in search of that flag.
Tempo giggled quietly as Glyph scampered off, before turning her attention to the crumbling fort walls. She lit her horn, magically sealing cracks and reinforcing weak points with smooth new stone.
Soon the tower stood firm and proud once more, flags flapping merrily from the ramparts where Glyph had managed to erect makeshift banners. Tempo gazed around their handiwork with satisfaction.
"All repaired for your approval, lieutenant," she reported to Cadance with a playful salute. She found herself settling comfortably into this fantasy role, a loyal soldier ready to bolster their company.
Cadance beamed, scampering over to inspect the fortifications. "Excellent work! Ah, but we must plan our defensive strategy as well." She leaned in conspiratorially. "I heard tale of a fearsome monster roaming these very woods."
She gestured to the shadowy trees encircling them. "As my second-in-command, we must protect Fort Bravery at all costs!" Splaying her tiny wings imperiously, she glared out at the forest like a commander sizing up enemy terrain.
Tempo instinctively moved closer to the filly, scanning the treeline for any sign of threats. "Don't worry sir, err, ma'am!" She lifted her chin. "I won't let anything happen to you or our noble fort."
She knew it was just foalish games, but some deeper part of her thrilled at the chance to be Cadance's protector again, phantom foes or no. If they were an imagination, Glyph showed no hint of it, glaring out at the thousand threats that faced them. "I say we should practice! We won't fight them off without being good fighters."
Cadance put a hoof to her chest. "I don't want to fight. Why can't we talk to them?"
Tempo inclined her head. "If they are monsters, it will be hard to... talk, sister."
Cadance's face fell at Tempo's matter-of-fact reply. "But Auntie Celestia says we must always seek peace before conflict," she protested.
She scuffed a hoof, glancing between Tempo and Glyph's determined expressions. They were ready to imaginarily battle whatever crossed their path, while she still clung to her ideals of harmony.
"What if the monster is actually nice and wants to be our friend?" Cadance tried hopefully. "Like in my favorite book where the little dragon just needed some love..."
She trailed off at their doubtful looks. Young as she was, the seeds of her talent for spreading love already showed in her endless faith and compassion.
Tempo stepped over to gently bump her shoulder. "You're right, we should give any new creature a chance," she conceded gently. "But we also need to be able to protect this place if needed. I promise though..."
She met Cadance's eyes. "I'll always try talking first before attacking. Okay?" It was the least she could do for her peace-loving sister.
Cadance's ears perked up. "Promise?" She held out her hoof eagerly. Tempo hesitated only a moment before twining their hooves and mirroring the motions of an oath. If it put that sunny smile back on Cadance's face, promise much anything...