//------------------------------//
// Chapter 31 - Dragon Mail 
// Story: Quest For Harmony 
// by destinedjagold 
//------------------------------//

	I've lost track of time. I forgot how many hours I spent on lying on the bed of the Apple family's guest room. During that time, I'd barely seen the orange mare. The only times I saw her was when she was delivering us something to eat. And now matter how hard I try to come up a conversation, she brushes it off and moves out of the room. Damn, maybe the knowledge of her brother with Twilight is really bothering her too much.

At one point, Spike became sleepy and crawled beside me. His quiet snores made me fall asleep as well, which I welcomed, and I hoped to be able to talk to Luna through dreams or whatever, but I didn't dream anything, to my disappointment. I guess this means I need to go back to the old castle to talk to Luna there. She is trapped inside a gem-thingy. Maybe her magic's being drained, or she needed to recharge? Inter-dimensional communication, I think, is not a simple task to do. It must really require quite a lot of mana or whatever. Sigh... Oh well. At least I have a goal to achieve.

After I'm satisfied that I'm quite rested, I sat up and stretched my pony body and waited for Spike to wake up. As soon as he did, we went downstairs, ate some food, said our goodbyes, and he hopped on my back as I began to walk towards the Everfree Forest through the apple orchard. I didn't get the chance to say goodbye to Applejack though. None of the ponies in the far knew of her whereabouts. I felt a bit sad to leave without telling her where I was going, but I don't want to waste time.

After a few minutes of going through the forest on this annoying path I'm taking, I spotted a familiar blue bird. It chirped and landed on my head. I didn't bother getting rid of it, even though I was already feeling a bit annoyed. After a few more minutes, I finally understood why the bird was on my head, chirping. It was kinda letting the forest animals know that I'm no threat, 'cause I saw a hungry-looking wolf, but walked away from me. Huh, I guess Fluttershy did a good job training the forest animals here. I just hope that the big ones like manticores and hydras won't harm me as well.

As I was slowly working my way in crossing this scary rope-bridge, I have thought of how unfair I was to tell the ponies in Ponyville about the unicorns. Sure, they are a bunch of...uh, yeah, but not all of them are like those. Like that Boulder guy. Hm... His name really suits for an earth pony than a unicorn though... As soon as I reached the end of the bridge, the clouds decided to let out a small drizzle. I think I need to hurry up if I don't want to get soaked, if ever this weird weather decides to make a heavy downpour.

Too late, I guess. It was already raining too darn hard, and the wind is strong and cold. I was just thankful for the trees around the path I'm taking, for the leaves shielded us a bit from the rain and the wind. The path was getting wet and slippery, so I needed to walk with care. No rush.

Hm. I wonder how this voice within me can send me messages through my phone back in my world. Magic, maybe? But how? I'm...er...He's an earth pony. Earth ponies can't use magic. At least, that's what I think. Huh, that very thought reminded me of something... "Hey Spike," I suddenly said, breaking the silence.

"Yeah?"

"How were you able to send me that message?"

He blinked, confused. "What message?"

I rolled my eyes. "You know, the message where you told me that you hope everything back in my home is okay because things here are crazy..."

"Oh," he spoke a bit shyly, scratching his head, "that. Well uh. I just wrote on a paper and sent it to you."

"You sent it to me?" I asked with an arched eyebrow. "How is that even possible?" I asked out loud.

Spike however, simply shrugged as we came out to the large clearing, where the old castle stood in the center. "I don't really know. When I send letters, I just need think of the pony who gets them."

"That's it?" I stopped in my tracks and turned to see him with a very unsatisfied look. I ignored the rain and the wind and the awkward looks the bat-winged pegasi ponies were giving me. Receiving an annoyed glare from Spike -- who was unsuccessfully shielding his body with his small claws from the rain -- I sighed and went inside the castle. Once inside, the bird flew off to somewhere while Spike crawled off of my back. Damn, I'm soaking wet. Aw well. I tried to shake my entire body, mimicking how a dog does it. After I was done, I was rewarded by a venomous glare from my purple dragon companion, who was soaked even more. I flashed him a sheepish smile.

---

Fluttershy wasn't around, and so were the crusaders, and Applejack was not here as well. No one seems to mind my presence though, so I grabbed a white gem, which was faintly glowing, before Spike and I went down towards the chamber where Luna is. After we reached the gloomy chamber, I placed the gem near the stairs, since Luna's gem-prison-cage-thing was glowing enough light for Spike and I to see things clearly.

"Luna can only communicate with me if I'm asleep..." I said in a low voice as we climbed up the elevated platform on the center of the chamber. I sighed... "Unfortunately, I'm not sleepy...yet..."

"Me neither..." Spike replied as he scratched his head. Suddenly, his features lit up as an idea sprang in his head. He excitedly spun to face me with a cheery smile, and he completely ignored my confused frown. "Maybe I can send her a letter!"

Huh, not a bad idea. I did received his message when, if Spike was...er, "I remembered you told me that I was turned into a statue..." He blinked in confusion, making his cheerful smile fade, as he nodded twice. "How did I became a statue?"

He rolled his eyes. "Gee, you're asking a dragon about magic and petrification." He crossed his arms and stared at me lamely. "What's next on your ask the dragon list? Love advice?"

I glared at him. He really didn't have to do that just to make a point. "Okay, I'm sorry," I sighed, shaking my head slightly. We then stared at Luna's calm features. She really looked so peaceful inside. "I guess we need a paper and pen, huh?"

"What's a pen?" he turned to me with an arched eyebrow.

I shrugged. "It's an item we use for writing back in my home."

"Oh, I got that covered." He smiled. He lifted a claw, and spat a tiny flame, blackening the tip of his nail of his pointing finger.

"Er...okay? I guess we just need some paper then." I said with a small smile, but he replied with a burp, summoning green puff of smoke, and formed into a scroll. He picked it up with a grin.

"There's a traffic of scrolls that Twilight has been sending me," he chuckled as he opened the scroll. He rolled his eyes after reading the contents, and tore the scroll, dividing the part where there's written texts and a blank area for him to write. I took the written part that he discarded on the floor and read the contents.

Spike, you are so dead if you don't come back with that crazy earth pony.

I felt a bit offended. "Hey, if anything," I snarled at the piece of paper as I stomped it on the ground, "you're the crazy one Twilight! And not me!"

"You got that right," Spike chuckled. I looked at him after I was calming down, and I saw him; ready to write. I nodded and flashed him a smile.

"Anyway, you ready?" He nodded, and I took a breath and stared at Luna. "Dear Princess Luna. It's me, J...Gold Blitz, and I've decided to try and find out how to get rid of those black clouds."

"You could have just asked the pegasi ponies to do it." Spike whispered as he wrote. I ignored him.

"But I don't have the slightest clue on how to do that... So I guess I'm asking for your help on that part. Sincerely, Gold Blitz." I turned to the purple dragon and smiled as I nodded. He rolled the scroll and exhaled some green fire, and the scroll was completely turned to ashes, and flew towards Luna. It vanished as soon as it touched Luna's crystal case. I was about to sit back when Spike suddenly jumped in place.

"Whoa, that was quick." He said before burping green puffs of smoke, and it swirled in the air in front of him before turning into a scroll. He managed to pick it up before it fell on the ground. Opening it, he arched an eyebrow. "This is the very same scroll we sent her."

I smiled at him as I stared at the letters on the back of the scroll. "Turn it around," I suggested. He did, and chuckled shyly.

"Ahem, yeah... Dear Gold Blitz. We thank thee... Thee?" He shook his head slightly. "We thank thee for helping us, but it pains us to tell you that we don't know how to 'get rid' of the black clouds hovering above the lands." Spike scratched his head. "Well, that wasn't helpful. Ahem. But I am certain that our dear sister knows-" I froze "-of a way to purify it, or 'get rid of it', in your words. We are thou certain that..."

Whatever Spike was saying was no longer reaching my ears as my brain became too busy repeating the very same thought of going back to Unicornia, just to talk to Celestia...

Spike finished, rolled the scroll, and chuckled nervously at me. "Y-yeah, we're not going back there, are we?" After he got no reply from me, he sighed. "We're dead..."