//------------------------------// // Injuries // Story: The Study of a Winning Pony // by Ponibius //------------------------------// The Study of a Winning Pony Chapter 13: Injuries After confirming that it was indeed okay that Lyra had left without paying—Cloud Kicker had assured me that Lyra had some sort of arrangement—we left the Sun’s Flank to make our way to the lake near Ponyville. The lake was an artificial construction, a result of the dam that had been built near the town, and it took a little bit of time to walk to.   I gave Cloud Kicker a smile as we walked through the nighttime streets of Ponyville. I felt a very mild buzz from the hard cider I drank earlier in the Sun’s Flank. It was probably good that we had left when we did. I could have gotten into all sorts of trouble if I had gotten any more alcohol into my system. Cloud Kicker looked to me with a smile. “So, you’ve been enjoying the night thus far?’ I thought about that for a moment before answering. “It’s been ... okay.” Cloud Kicker frowned at my less than enthusiastic reply. “I hear a ‘but’ in there.” “But...” I took a long breath before continuing. “Well, I didn’t want to make a scene back there and speak up. But if I'm going to be honest, you made me uncomfortable in the Sun's Flank too.” Cloud Kicker winced. “I did?” I looked her in the eyes and nodded. “Yeah. I mean you started flirting with me in there, after everything that happened already. Then you nudged me to watch you kiss Lyra, and asked me about my sex life...” I couldn’t bring myself to continue and I let out an annoyed groan. Cloud Kicker stared at me for a minute before applying her hoof to her face. She then proceeded to smack herself on the forehead a few times. “Feeeather,” she hissed. “It’s all just now hitting you?” I looked at her evenly as I let what she had done this night sink in. “I’m going to be honest and say I’m not exactly thrilled right now.” “I think I caught a case of the stupids or something.” She ran her hoof through her mane as she let out a long sigh. “I dunno. I think I was trying to find a way to get you comfortable with me, when I should've been acting in a way that would make you more comfortable instead.” “You think?” I shook my head as I tried to gather my thoughts. “You know the old saying about the definition of insanity, right?” Cloud Kicker glumly looked down at the ground as we both continued walking along the road. “Well, I was trying something a bit different. I guess. Maybe. A little.” She sighed. “Guess I need to try harder, right?” “You don’t say?” I snarked. “I'm trying really hard to not just walk away here, and give you a real chance.” “Yeah.” Cloud Kicker let out a low groan as she rubbed her forehead. “I think Lyra being there caused me to backslide into old habits. That’s not an excuse,” she quickly added. “Just an explanation for why I messed up. It’s just, Lyra’s been going through a rough spot lately, and...” “And?” I pressed, trying to get her to expand on whatever was going on with Lyra. She shrugged. “No offense, Twilight, but I’d rather not give out all the dirty details of Lyra’s personal life. You can ask her if you want the story. Doesn’t really matter anyway; I should’ve known better, and I’ve nopony to blame but myself for feathering the whole situation up.” Cloud Kicker trotted up to stop in front of me. “Okay, new rule: no more banging talk or flirting. None of it, at all, without your express permission.” I gave her a scrutinizing look. “Sure you can even manage that much?” Given what I had seen from the nymphomaniac I had my doubt about this promise of hers. “Ow.” Cloud let out a snort. “Believe it or not, I can.” I walked past her to continue along the road. Memories of all my previous encounters with Cloud Kicker filled me with more than a little bit of doubt. “I'm going to need a bit of evidence to believe that. Sorry.” Cloud Kicker trotted after me to keep up. “Well, fine. Let's talk. Ask me about something other than my sex life. I do have a life outside of banging, you know.” I was tempted to just go back to the library and do everything I could to forget about Cloud Kicker. Unfortunately, that stubborn streak of mine kicked in—the one that makes me drive forward despite setbacks like having many large and heavy objects fall on me while trying to study Pinkie Pie. I had to wonder if I had some sort of deep psychological need to torture myself. “Alright ... so, how's work?” I asked. Cloud Kicker gave me a friendly smile. “Going pretty good. The usual weather stuff. Oh, but I'm leaving town pretty soon. Going on a business trip to Cloudsdale for a while.” So we had gone five seconds without reference to banging. So far, so good. “What's the business trip for?” “The big annual weather worker conference in Cloudsdale.” Cloud Kicker’s smile became brighter. “Rainbow's sending me in her place.” I considered that for a moment while we passed a couple other ponies walking down the street. “That sounds important. Wouldn’t that normally be a thing Dash herself should do? ” I knew Dash could be a bit on the lazy side where her work went. She was a bit infamous for her tendency to nap while on the job. I had to wonder if Dash was skipping on some of her duties just to spend time with the rest of us to watch the dragon migration. She didn’t exactly make it a secret that she didn’t like anything that sounded like a work related meeting. Her avoiding her duties and dumping it on one of her co-workers wasn’t an idea I particularly liked. “Normally would, yeah. Rainbow can't make it, though.” She puffed out her chest. “So that's on me this year. Should be fun, even if I'm not much of a fan of Cloudsdale.” My head tilted at that last bit. “Don't like Cloudsdale much?” Cloud Kicker looked out ahead of us for a long moment before answering. “It's always seemed too ... pegasus-y.” “How so?” I asked. “Kinda hard to put into words, really.” She scratched behind one of her ears. “I just like places where you get all the different types of ponies.” “Fair enough,” I granted. “I suppose you're used to more cosmopolitan locations like Canterlot?” According to my records, she had lived most of her life in Canterlot, in addition to other locations throughout Equestria. Cloudsdale had struck me as, to put it diplomatically, monotonous in its nature. Canterlot may be largely a unicorn city, but the other breeds could easily be found among its population. Cloudsdale was not so accessible to non-pegasi for obvious reasons. “Yeah.” Cloud Kicker shuffled her wings in apparent discomfort. “Plus, if you wanna get picky, my family did kinda get run out of there a long time ago.” I remembered that the Kicker Clan had left Cloudsdale under less than ideal circumstances in the lead up to the Lunar Rebellion. The war hadn’t exactly made the Kicker Clan welcome for a long, long time.  “Ah, I guess that might be a bit awkward. Though that was ... nearly nine hundred years ago?” Cloud Kicker looked intently down the street we were walking down. “Yeah. It's not like it really bothers me or anything. Ancient history. It's just...” she trailed off with a shrug. “I think it’s quite fascinating really.” I smiled as I remembered some of old history lessons back in school. “Some historians argue that history is driven entirely by historical factors, environmental factors, and trends in exclusion of the role independent ponies might have in historical events. I think Shadow Kicker’s decision to lead the Kicker Clan’s exile and the events leading into the Lunar Rebellion show otherwise. It’s my argument that the war would have gone very differently if Shadow hadn’t decided to side with Princess Celestia during the war. Likely Equestria would have ended up significantly more fractured than it is now.” Cloud Kicker bit back a laugh and snorted in amusement. “You really sound like an egghead when you do that, you know?” “What?” I stomped a hoof against the dirt road, feeling a lecture coming on. “This is important stuff. The Lunar Rebellion was a formative event in Equestrian history.” “All I’m saying is that it’s nice to see you passionate about something. That’s a side of you I really prefer seeing. It’s much more natural then, well...” She scuffed a hoof in the dirt. “Me making you uncomfortable.” For a moment there I was worried she was starting to flirt with me, but it seemed that actually wasn’t her intent given the lack of innuendo or sexual comments sent my way. So I decided to just remain silent. That seemed the safest path at the moment. “Anyways.” She shook her head. “Really, I agree completely that the Lunar Rebellion is important. It is how my family ended up in Canterlot, after all. Shadow’s memoirs are almost required reading once you get old enough for them. At least for me they were.” My lips pursed at that bit of information. “So you’ve read some history?” “I wouldn’t call myself a historian, but yeah.” Cloud Kicker ran a hoof through her mane as she grinned. “Military history is a required course in West Hoof, plus the stuff you pick up in general education, and then a book here and there when something caught my eye. Big surprise, I know a bit more than the average pony about the Lunar Rebellion.” “Nothing wrong with that,” I assured her. “It’s always good to know at least some history.” I let out a derisive snort. “Based on how everypony acted during the Summer Sun Celebration a few years ago, you would swear that nopony knew that Luna and Nightmare Moon were real ponies.” Cloud Kicker chuckled. I supposed it was good that ponies could laugh about what had been one of the most terrifying nights of our lives. Certainly better than the alternative if I had failed that night. “Yeah, most ponies just don’t care about something that happened a thousand years ago.” “They should.” I let out an annoyed growl. “I’ve seriously considered setting up a historical book club or something to help ponies learn.” “I think I’d be interested in something like that as long as the reading was good,” Cloud Kicker said. “Really?” I asked, unsure if I quite believed that. “Banging isn’t the only thing I do, Duchess.” She quickly trotted around a pair of ponies that had walked in between us as we walked along. “Blossom and I hang around and just do stuff, just like you and your friends. Same with Dash and a few of my other friends. I enjoy an evening spent bowling, going on a picnic, or whatever else as much as the next pony. And history is a subject that’s kinda interesting to me. So your book club sounds like something I’d at least give a shot.” “And what would you like to read about?” I wanted to see just how sincere she was about this. Cloud Kicker rubbed her chin as she thought my question over, and then a sparkle lit in her eye. “I wouldn’t mind reading Shadow’s memoirs again. Been years since I read them last. At least everypony else would get a kick out of them.” “I’ll have to consider that, actually.” I didn’t remember ever reading that memoir in the past. I made sure to put it on my mental list for books I wanted to read someday. The talk about the Kicker Clan and the Lunar Rebellion made me curious about something. “So ... would you mind if I asked a bit about your family? “Sure. Just one request.” Cloud Kicker gave me a serious look. “Let's avoid the topic of your brother and my dad.” I nearly tripped over my own hooves at the nature of the request. “Um, okay. I hope at least asking you why would be alright?” She sighed and shook her head in a gesture of frustration. “It's just ... look, they competed for the top job. I think we both have our biases as to who deserved it.” My eyes widened in realization. I hadn’t been involved in the politics of picking the latest Captain for the Royal Guard, but based on what I had heard, it had been a hard fight to see who would be Equestria’s chief general. Given how involved the Kickers were with the Guard, I could easily see how my brother beating Cloud’s father might be a sore spot for her. “Oh, I see.” I looked down at the dirt road. “Yeah, that could make things awkward then.” Cloud Kicker nodded. “Yeah. We don't need an argument over that on top of everything else. Your brother seemed like a nice guy, but...” “Right, and I don’t want to say anything negative about your father.” I blinked as a sudden realization came over me. “Wait, you know who my brother is?” Thinking back, I couldn’t remember telling Cloud Kicker about my brother. “Well, it'd be more accurate to say I know who Shining Armor's sister is,” she said with an amused grin. “I was a freshmare at West Hoof when he was in his last year. Plus, I've run into him once or twice when he and my family had business.” “That makes sense.” I hadn’t really considered that Cloud Kicker might know my brother. I briefly wondered what type of business he and the Kicker Clan might have had other than strictly work-related matters. In any event, I decided to go with a safer conversation point. “So how is your family?” “Well, aside from Mom and Dad's problems, they're doing great,” she said in a stilted manner. I felt my ears wilt as I remembered that Cloud Kicker’s parents seemed to be going through marital problems. At least, if the way Cloud Kicker and her mom’s reactions were any indicator. “Oh ... right. And Alula?” That instantly brought Cloud Kicker out of her dour mood and made her grin. “Little brat's doing great. She's actually staying with me right now. She's a good kid.” That perked my interests a bit as we started to pass the outskirts of Ponyville. “Does she stay with you regularly?” She shrugged. “Off and on. Mom and Dad can get busy with Guard work, so they let me take care of her. I don't get as much time with her as I'd like, so its nice.” She looked at me with a grin. “Hey, you should come by sometime and see her.” “Maybe,” I said, thinking the possibility over. “Come on, you’ll get to see a new side of me.” She nudged me in the shoulder. “Not like I’m going to talk about any of the forbidden topics when my little sis can hear.” “I’ll consider it for later,” I said neutrally. My mind was still far from made up on how much I wanted to forgive Cloud Kicker after everything that had happened. I decided it was best to change the topic. “Must be nice having a younger sister.” “It has its perks,” Cloud Kicker agreed. “Must be nice having a big brother too.” I smiled as old memories of Shining Armor returned. “Yeah, we get along. Haven't seen him in a while though.” I shrugged. “It’s been hard to see him at times. Considering he is in the Guard, and sometimes has to move around Equestria on different assignments. Being Captain of the Guard keeps him even busier.” Cloud Kicker grunted in agreement. “I can imagine. Dad's busy enough without getting the top job.” I realized we were stepping into territory that Cloud Kicker wasn’t comfortable. “We ... better go to a different topic. We're getting kinda close to what you said you didn't want to talk about earlier.” “Yeah, a bit.” She gave a slight shrug to me before looking back to the road leading out of Ponyville. “So ... what's the deal with you and Rainbow?” “Our deal? We're best friends.” I wondered what she was getting at. “Well, yeah. Just...” she trailed off, not finishing her thought. “Just?” I prodded her. “Well, I dunno. I guess it bugs me a little.” Cloud Kicker’s wing shuffled uncomfortably. “You and Rainbow.” My head tilted in confusion as I turned to look at her. “How does Dash and I being friends bother you? You probably spend at least as much as time as I do with her, given you work with her.” “Well that's just it,” she protested, her tone taking on a hint of irritation. “Don't take this the wrong way, but Dash and I were friends for years before she even met you. So what makes your friendship so ... super-magical?” “Um, I don't know. It's just our friendship ... just clicks.” I shook my head as I tried to figure out a way to put my feelings into words. “It's hard to explain. I don't even have a friendship like you have with Dash to compare it to. Not one that’s lasted for years and years except with my big brother.” “Yeah?” Her wings shifted and she turned away from me. “Just seems kinda ... cheap, almost. That some pony can come outta nowhere, and in less than a day she's super-magical friends with Rainbow.” I carefully considered what she was telling me. Was she actually jealous of me and my relationship with Dash? Hurt even? Could friendship with one friend seriously hurt the friendship with another? I remembered how all of Dash’s new friends had hurt her friendship with Gilda, so it was certainly possible that Dash spending time with me and my other friends was affecting her friendship with Cloud Kicker. “I'm ... sorry,” I apologized. “I had no idea I was driving some sort of wedge between you two.” “It's not a big deal.” Cloud Kicker didn’t look at me as we continued down the road, passing by trees along the way. “It's just ... yeah. Ever since you came here, she's had less time for me.” “I don't really know what to say to that,” I told her. Cloud Kicker stopped in the middle of the road. “D'you think if I'd been there, I would've...” She sighed, poking at the ground a bit. It took me a couple of second to realize what she was getting at. She wanted to know if she could have become an Element if she had been there the night of Nightmare Moon’s return. “I ... there's no way to say,” I admitted. “There's too many factors that go into how the Elements work. Even with the time I've had to study the Elements of Harmony, I still don't fully understand them.” “Yeah.” She sighed as she look out into the nearby woods. “Would've been nice to get one.” “This is something you actually care about?” I inquired. She nodded slowly. “A little bit, yeah.” I never really considered that somepony like Cloud Kicker would want to be an Element. It just didn’t seem to fit a pony like her. Granted, my friends were an oddball band upon reflection. “Why? I mean, being an Element isn't exactly the safest thing in the world.” “I'm okay with unsafe. I did once plan on joining the Guard.” I wondered if this was related to her not joining the Guard. That could go a long way towards explaining why she would want to be an Element. Saving Equestria would probably have gone a long way towards improving her standing with her family. I walked up to face her. “Then why is it important to you? You want to play hero along with the rest of my friends?” “Well ... yeah, kinda.” She shuffled her hooves. “I mean, Rainbow and Fluttershy are my oldest, best friends. Of course I'd wanna be out there helping them.” I felt my curiosity rise when Cloud Kicker said that Fluttershy was one of her oldest friends. Thinking back, I couldn’t think of a single time I had seen the two of them together. Fluttershy never even talked about Cloud Kicker of her own volition. Had I been missing something? “Didn't work out that way.” I looked up at the moon, and Nightmare Moon’s old prison. I had to wonder about all the factors that went into the night that changed my life. “Granted, that was a chaotic night.” Cloud Kicker let out a long breath. “Yeah, things got pretty crazy. I was trying to hook up with family, see about ... well...” “About some of the things that happened in the town hall?” I remembered how a couple of pegasi of the Royal Guard had been struck with lightning when Nightmare Moon first appeared. Had any of them been among Cloud Kicker’s family? Cloud Kicker started walking down the road again, and I walked up along side her. “Yeah. The Guard was mobilizing after Nightmare Moon came back, and I am technically in the reserves. So I was running around trying to get orders while you guys saved Equestria.” She sounded unhappy with how things had gone that night. It must have been a scary night for everypony when Nightmare Moon had returned, and how much more so for those who considered it their job to protect Equestria? “It's not like you did anything wrong,” I tried to reassure her. “You couldn't have known what we were doing.” She gave me a sad look. “Yeah, but still...” “Still what?” I stomped a hoof. “You tried to do what you thought was right.” Cloud Kicker scowled. “I wasn't there for my friends when they needed me. You were. Maybe that's the difference.” Part of me couldn’t believe I was defending Cloud Kicker against herself. “Cloud Kicker, that's ... I don't think that's fair to you.” “Yeah?” She shook her head. “Guess not. Still feels that way, sometimes.” “Not that I was exactly perfect that night. I didn't even want anypony else to go with me and risk getting hurt. I thought I could retrieve and use the Elements of Harmony by myself to stop Nightmare Moon.” I shivered at the memories of some of the things we had went up against that night. “All I probably would have done was have gotten myself hurt or killed if I had my way. I was lucky everypony insisted on coming with me.” “Well, good thing Rainbow stuck with you.” There was a short pause before Cloud Kicker looked at me seriously. “I would've too.” I arched an eyebrow. “You would have stuck with the crazy unicorn who just arrived in town, raving that the only way to beat Nightmare Moon was to go out into the scary forest to an abandoned castle to retrieve some ancient, all-but-forgotten artifact?” That was probably another reason I hadn’t asked anypony for help. Even I had to admit that my quest to find the Elements of Harmony was a stretch. I wouldn’t even have attempted something so dangerous if not for the dire circumstances. Cloud Kicker chuckled. “Okay, when you put it like that ... no, probably not. No offense.” We walked down the road for a bit before she continued. “But if Rainbow believed in you, I would've.” Was Cloud Kicker really serious about that? Going out into the Everfree Forest wasn’t exactly for the faint of heart. Truth be told, I didn’t really know enough about her to know for certain. I wasn’t exactly sure I even wanted to think about how she would have acted on the night of Nightmare Moon’s return. The image of Cloud Kicker flirting with Nightmare Moon was ... interesting.  I let out a huff. “I think what you did was reasonable, like how most ponies ran home with their families.” I couldn’t find much fault with Cloud Kicker wanting to hook up with her family in an emergency. Can’t say I wasn’t tempted to run back to Canterlot to my family. “Yeah.” She shook her head and sighed. “But I'm supposed to be a protector of ponies, not ... you know.” “A weather pony in some backwater town?” I blurted, instantly regretting how harsh it sounded. I may not have had a high opinion of Cloud Kicker, but directly insulting her wasn’t the way to deal with my negative opinions of her. Cloud Kicker winced. “Yeah. That.” I ran a hoof through my mane. “Sorry, that came out wrong.” “Nothing I haven't thought myself,” she said morosely. “So why haven't you joined the Guard then?” I asked. “It sounds like something you regret.” Cloud Kicker ducked under a branch that had grown over the road. “I'd probably just freak out again. Or make a mess of it. Hay, I ran off the first time.” I frowned at that answer. What was it about her that made her say she wanted to be in the Guard and be an Element of Harmony, but then run away on her graduation day at West Hoof? “You don't like the idea of being in the Guard? Something about the Guard seems to bother you if you’re reacting like this.” “It’s not that. It’s just...” Cloud Kicker snorted in frustration. “There’s a lot of a stuff that goes into joining the Guard. Family traditions and all that being one of them.” “Right, that would be hard to break from,” I conceded. “Going to West Hoof and joining the Guard is kinda a lifelong commitment. Kinda too late to say ‘oops, I changed my mind,’ when it’s graduation day,” she said bitterly.   I put a hoof on her shoulder. “I think I can understand that. I know how hard it can be to deal with high expectations. I’ve kind of lived my entire life under them. It can be a lot of pressure to live under.” I tried to not to think too hard about how I had panicked over being late with a friendship report once. “Exactly.” Cloud Kicker let out a harsh chuckle. “How's that look in your study?” “A report is supposed to be neutral in its presentation,” I stated. “It's not supposed to ‘look’ a certain way.” She gave me a serious look. “Yeah, sure. But every report has it's conclusions.” “I ... haven't quite made conclusions yet.” I didn’t really want to tell her what I was inclined to write in my report. Cloud Kicker looked at me with a hopeful smile. “That so?” I answered her in the most neutral manner I could. “It's best to gather all possible data before making a final conclusion.” “Fair enough,” she said. “So am I giving better data now?” I nodded. “Little bit, yeah.” This was certainly going better then the interview I had with Cloud Kicker yesterday. There was another extended period of silence between us as we continued walking along the road to the lake when Cloud Kicker finally broke it. “Do you know why I am ... the way I am?” I frowned as I considered the question. “I have no idea, honestly. You’re ... a bit different than most ponies I know.” Cloud Kicker stopped in the road to face me with a serious expression. “I know it's a hazardous topic, but ... don't you think that's a problem, when it comes to studying me?” I stopped walking to face her also. “What do you mean?” “Okay, feel free to not want to answer this.” She rubbed at her face for a moment before continuing. “To be blunt, how can a pony who doesn't know the first thing about sexuality understand a sexual being like me?” I gave her a deep scowl, not particularly liking where this topic was going. “I think I understand enough about the basics for the purpose of an academic study.” She shook her head. “You don't understand why I like having sex. You just told me that you don’t really understand why I am the way I am.” I let out an exasperated sigh. “It's no great secret that intercourse is physically pleasurable.” Cloud Kicker’s ear flicked. “You think it's just a physical pleasure thing for me?” “That’s my working theory,” I told her flatly. “There's more to it than that,” she said with deadly seriousness. “A lot more. Like love, for starters.” I rubbed the back of my neck. “Okay, so it can be more. It’s just that it always struck me that you were just looking for a good time, not anything deeper. The problem is that I think you and I have a different understanding of what love is.” “Oh really?” She gave me a narrowed eye look. I fell back on familiar academic ground to make my argument. Perhaps outlining our differences on ideas like love would help us understand each other better. “What you seem to define as love seems a lot more casual than what I would normally consider love. Lets take your relationship with Lyra as an example: that strikes me as a relationship built on physical gratification between the two of you.” “I love Lyra,” she said in an annoyed grumble. “As a friend or as a lover?” I asked. Cloud Kicker gave me a flat look. “Both.” “Would you ever consider marrying her?” I demanded. Cloud Kicker’s brown furrowed into a scowl. “No, she's with Bon Bon.” I let out a sigh that I hoped was more patient than annoyed. “Sooo, what? Lyra has a deeper relationship with Bon Bon? Loves her more? I'm not sure I see where your relationship with Lyra is going.” Cloud Kicker nodded. “Well, yeah. Lyra and Bon Bon love each other on a whole different level.” I rubbed at my face. The dull throb in my head was building quite nicely by now. “So where does that leave you?” “Loving them,” she said firmly. I shook my head and continued down the road, the lake now in sight. “Then what does sex have to do with any of it?” “It's a good way to show love.” Cloud Kicker trotted to catch up with me. “But it’s not the only way,” I looked back to her as I trotted along. “I love my friends, but that doesn't mean I'm sleeping with them every chance I get.” “Well yeah,” she agreed. “Different ponies, different ways to love. Hay, I love Dash, but we've never banged despite being friends for years and years.” All I could do was shake my head. “You're right, I just don't really understand this aspect of you.” I was pretty much convinced by this point that I was never really going to really get Cloud Kicker. Her understanding of love, sex, and romance just seemed alien to me and how I understood those concepts. “It's complicated, and hard to explain.” Cloud Kicker gave me a serious look. “Okay, can I ask you a slightly sensitive question? It ... is kinda related to the stuff you said you didn’t really want to talk about, but I’m serious when I say I want to understand you better. I think this is related to me really understanding something about you. If you don’t want to answer, just say so and I’ll drop it. Just like that, and I’ll never bring it up again.” I considered the question for a moment. Cloud Kicker could ask about anything. I was pretty sure she wouldn’t ask anything to set me off. In the end I decided I could just not answer if I didn’t like the question. “Is this a serious question?” “Yes,” she said firmly. “I wouldn’t be bringing it up at this point if I didn’t think it was important.” I closed my eyes before nodding. “Okay, I’ve been probing into your life, so I’ll let you do a bit of the same with me. Fair’s fair, but I’m cutting this off if you abuse it.” “That’s reasonable.” Cloud Kicker drew in a long breath before continuing. “What is it about the the whole sex and romance thing that bothers you? It’s one thing to say you don’t like something, and it's another to deny a part of yourself and never give it a shot—especially something as important as this. What I’m trying to figure out is which one it is for you.” “I-I don't know.” I shook my head and looked down at the dirt. “It's ... just not for me.” “Why not?” she asked gently. “I don’t think it’s physical contact that’s bothering you. Honestly, you mostly just seem like you're not quite sure what to make of romance and sexuality. No offense, but I'd bet every bit I have that you don't have anywhere close to enough experience to really know that it's not for you.” I sighed, watched the dirt road pass as we walked over it. “It’s ... complicated.” I felt her press reassuringly against my side with her wing.  I considered just not answering at all, and telling her that I didn't want to talk about it. But I was growing tired of dancing around issues with Cloud Kicker. There was the chance that explaining one or two things might convince her to act in a way I approved of.“ Can you promise not to go around talking about something to everypony?” Cloud Kicker gave me a supportive smile. “I promise.” I took a long breath to steady myself. This was personal information I didn’t like to go around talking about, especially in Ponyville. As a general rule, I didn’t like to talk about myself or sound like a braggart, and what I was about to tell Cloud Kicker was pretty important to me. “A big reason why I don’t get into romance is because I'm a ... noble. Countess of Derbyshire, to be specific.” Cloud Kicker shot me a cocky grin. “Kinda figured you were. I mean, the Sparkles are a big, old name.” I looked at her with a skeptical frown. “Wait, you knew?” Cloud Kicker guided us towards the edge of the lake. “I didn't know your exact rank or anything, but...” “Ugh!” My hoof met my face as I just realized something that I should have realized a long time ago. “But you do know who my mom is?” She nodded. “Yeah, duchess of something or another.” “And that’s why you keep calling me ‘duchess’?” I asked. I really should have seen that one sooner. Shame I had completely dismissed what a nymphomaniac weather pony might actually know. I had hoped I had done a good job of hiding my nobility status here in Ponyville, I had all but forgotten about it half the time myself, but it seemed that wasn’t something so easily put to the side as I had hoped.   “Pretty much.” Cloud Kicker smirked at me. “Also because you’ll always be noble to me.” Her smirk quickly became a pained frown. "Sorry, that sounds kinda bad now that I think about given ... everything." I felt slightly dizzy. I wished I could blame it just on the hard cider I drank earlier, or the terrible pun Cloud Kicker just made. It had only been a couple mugs. I wasn’t exactly sure why I was feeling so upset that Cloud Kicker had already known, or at least guessed, I was a noble. Maybe it was the flirting she had just done on top of everything else. It had been a long night. “Can we sit down or something? I need to ... ugh.” “Yeah. There's a nice spot right up here.” She guided us to a comfortable grassy spot right there by the lake, and plopped down on her back. I sat down next to her and smirked. “Making yourself comfortable there?” I had asked the question to delay having to elaborate on the topic we had just touched on. “Yeah.” Cloud Kicker looked at me with a goofy grin. “Comfortable beats the alternative.” “I guess.” I looked up at the starry sky, staring at its many pinpricks of light as I gathered my thoughts. “So, about the noble thing. It's one of the reasons why I haven't done ... any of the things we're talking about.” Cloud Kickers eyebrow cocked at my statement. “Your family a bit old-fashioned? 'Cause that doesn't really seem to fit with what I've heard...” She winced, probably as she realized what she had said about my family. “Um, no offense, but...” I frowned deeply at her. “What do you mean, 'doesn't fit with what I've heard?'” A mixture of confusion, anger, and curiosity fought to dominate my emotions. “Well...” She shifted uncomfortably in her lying position. “Don't take this the wrong way, but your dad does have a bit of a reputation in Canterlot.” “What type of reputation?” I felt anger starting to win the contest for dominance over my emotions. “Is this the usual Canterlot rumor mongering?” Given how important my family was in Canterlot, it wasn’t exactly surprising that my family had a number of rumors floating around about it. The rumors about my relationship with Princess Celestia alone were enough for me to justify not listening to them. It was easier to just discount anything involving my family. “Well...” Cloud Kicker coughed before continuing. “Lemme put it this way. I'm about ninety-five percent sure I've banged your half-sister.” My brain stopped working for an indefinite period of time. When it got around to processing information again I found myself staring at Cloud Kicker slack-jawed. “W-wha...w-what?!” I had a half-sister? No, that was impossible. Dad would never cheat on Mom. Cloud Kicker had to be wrong somehow. There were a dozen possible explanations I could readily come up with. Cloud Kicker nodded slowly. “Like I said, I knew Shining Armor at West Hoof. Not like that!” she added hastily before I could say anything. “But if you stand her next to Shining Armor, you'd think they were siblings.” I forced my spinning thoughts to the side, making myself think about one thing at a time. I wished the buzzing in my head would go away already. “You're certain ... about this half-sister? That I have one? That’s a lot for me to just suddenly accept.” She nodded slowly. “When I say they looked exactly like each other...”  Cloud Kicker sighed and shook her head. “Never mind, it was probably just a coincidence. Bet you could find a dozen DJs in Canterlot who look like your brother.” “You said you were ninety-five percent sure. You're either certain or you aren't.” My voice had taken on an accusatory tone. She could not just throw an idea out there like that only to withdraw it. She leaned back away from me. “It’s not like I had any reason to find out...” “And her name?” I growled. Cloud Kicker’s ears wilted. “We ... didn't exactly get around to exchanging names. Or if we did, I forgot. It was a one-time thing years ago.” I groaned loudly and threw my hooves into the air. “Figures. That's just ... great to find out. All of it. And the fact you can’t remember the name of the pony you’re just about convinced is my sister, the one you also slept with, just puts a cherry on top of everything.” I had a feeling my parents and I were about to have a very uncomfortable talk, if Cloud Kicker was right anyways. Cloud Kicker could easily just be leading me on a wild goose chase.  I felt one of my eyes twitching. “Cloud Kicker, if this is one of your jokes...” I briefly considered just how far I could toss a pegasus with my telekinesis. Based on the quick math I did on my head, taking into account my lifting and throwing power, a pegasus of above average height and weight, and current wind speeds, whether said pegasus would clear the lake or not depended on where I threw her, and her form upon me tossing her. Cloud Kicker held up one of her hooves in front of her. “I'm not messing with you.” She actually sounded dead serious. “Just saying ... well, it’s kinda well known that your father does staff his office with young, attractive mares.” I didn’t like what she was insinuating. Even if his office staff at the palace consisted almost entirely of attractive, intelligent, young mares, that didn’t mean anything. “What about it? That ... that doesn't prove you’re right. He says he just like to help young mares out at the start of their careers in Canterlot. That’s all.” Cloud Kicker gave me a flat look. “Dad isn't cheating on Mom! He would never do anything like that!” Cloud Kicker did an unconvinced shrug. “Twilight, if random ponies on the street know about it, your mom does too. I’ve seen your mom, and she doesn’t strike me as the oblivious type.” She rubbed at the back of her head and sighed. “And it's not cheating if she's okay with it.” My brain was having trouble processing this. Cloud Kicker had to be wrong. She must just have been listening to those rumors that had been around since I had been a filly. “But that's ... why would they .... no...” My ears wilted as I stared down at the grass. Cloud Kicker flinched. “Sorry, I figured ... I mean, it's pretty common talk all around Canterlot. I thought you already knew.” “Why would Mom be okay with something like that? Assuming it's even true?” I just couldn’t imagine a strong mare like Mom just accepting Dad cheating on her. Could it be possible that she was fine with it? Why? My parents seemed happy with one another. So why let Dad sleep around? This didn’t make sense to me. My prospects of my next conversation with my parents were getting worse by the minute.  Cloud Kicker sat up from her lying position. “Like I told you before, relationship dynamics can be weird in Canterlot. It kinda happens when marriages can be more about politics and money than love.” She shrugged. “So ponies find alternatives to make them happy.” I tried to think my way through this. There had to be logical explanation for what I was hearing; I could just dismiss what Cloud Kicker was saying, but I couldn’t think of a good reason for her to lie like that. “But ... Mom and Dad love each other. They say so.” “And I love Derpy ... and Lyra, and Bon Bon, and Raindrops, and...” She trailed off, probably realizing we would be there for a while if she kept going with that list. “Well, you get the picture.” I shook my head. “I-I'm not sure I can accept this.” There was a long silence as the two of us didn’t look at one another before Cloud Kicker stood up and sat down next to me. She opened her wing for me and I got up to walk a few steps away to sit back down again. “Sorry, but I just don’t want you touching me right now.” Cloud Kicker winced and put her wing back at her side. “Sorry, just ... trying to be there for you.” She applied her hoof to her face. “I don’t get it. Your parents really never talked to you about it? I mean ... Twilight, don't you think it's pretty messed up that I know about this and you don't?” All I could do was stare at Cloud Kicker before finally turning away. Had my parents really not told me everything about their lives? Had they lied to me? Protected me? Been too ashamed to tell me? I wouldn’t exactly be the first child in Canterlot to find out that her parents had found alternative relationship dynamics to let them be happy. As Cloud Kicker had said, many nobles married for reasons other than love. A big part of me wanted to dismiss Cloud Kicker’s claim, tell her off, and dust my hooves of her. The problem was that I honestly wasn’t sure what to think after all this information had been dumped on me. She looked like she was telling the truth, and I knew I wasn’t the most socially savvy of ponies. I wanted to review all the facts available to me and see if there had been anything I had missed with my parents, but the facts were spinning around too quickly for me to put them together in a logical fashion. They just spun and jangled around at random in my head. Cloud Kicker sighed and applied her hoof to her face. “Sorry, I probably should've just kept my mouth shut.” I rubbed at my face, trying to put facts together. “Well, one of the following possibilities are likely true. One, you're just wrong. Two, you're lying. Three, I'm so blind I can't see what's in front of my face.” I felt a stab when I thought about the last possibility. Was it possible I had missed something important with my parents? Cloud Kicker was silent for a long moment before speaking. “I wouldn't lie about something like this. That would be beyond cruel, and you don’t deserve something like that.” I stood up and started pacing around and did the only thing I could think of given the ridiculousness nature of the information I had been given. I loudly groaned out my frustration, and then groaned again. “See, this is pretty much exactly why I don't want to get into any of this messy relationship stuff.” Cloud watched as I paced back and forth. “What do you mean?” I spun Cloud Kicker’s direction. “Okay, so hypothetical situation: as a noble, someday I'm going to have an arranged marriage, right?” Cloud Kicker nodded slowly. “I wouldn't be surprised if your family nudges you towards somepony. Arranged marriages are pretty stupid. That might be my Kicker bias talking, though.” It wasn’t very surprising she held that sentiment. The Kicker Clan were notable for having a strong bias against nobility. As was the case with Cloud Kicker’s mother, anypony that wanted to marry into the family had to abandon their title, and none had accepted a title offered to them by Princess Celestia. “We talking arranged marriages? Ignore them,” I heard somepony say from directly behind me. I nearly jumped out of my horseshoes and quickly turned to see Lyra. She gave me a sheepish grin. “Oops, I guess I did kind of sneak up on you two, huh?” She levitated up her lyre for me and Cloud Kicker to see. “Sorry I took a while. Tried to sober up.” Guess that confirmed my suspicion that Lyra had a few more drinks than I had seen back at the Sun’s Flank if she said she needed time to sober up. “No worries, Lyra.” Cloud Kicker walked up to stand by Lyra. I bit down on a comment about leaving without paying for her drinks earlier, but decided to go with the more pressing matter at the moment. “And how long have you been overhearing our conversation?” I asked suspiciously. I considered asking Lyra to leave for what had been private talk, but the cat seemed to be out of the bag by this point. Besides, I didn’t want Lyra to turn right around and gossip around the town. “Just heard that last bit,” Lyra said. “But really, forget that noble arranged marriage horseapples. It’s lucky that my parents don't care about all that stuff, thank Goddess. And even if my parents told me I couldn't be with the pony I loved, I think I'd probably very easily disown them.” Cloud Kicker put a hoof on Lyra’s shoulder. “Sweetie, it’s not always that easy when it comes to family.” I turned away from Lyra and looked out at the lake. “I’m not just going to disown them, Lyra. Maybe your family's opinions don't matter to you, but mine do to me.” I raised a hoof to my face and let out a sigh. “It's not like my parents are going to marry me to some jerk I can't stand. Most likely I'll get a list of suitors, I get to pick from the list, and then we go through a courtship period to make sure we're compatible. That’s how it usually goes.” “That still sucks.” Lyra plopped her rear down next to Cloud Kicker. “What if you find somepony not on that list? What then?” Cloud Kicker sat down and wrapped a wing around Lyra. “Then she's in a bad spot.” I shook my head, still looking out at the lake. “That’s why I don't plan on putting myself into that type of situation.” “Oooh.” I could feel the realization coming upon Cloud Kicker. “So you're scared you'll fall for a pony you can't have.” I laid down on the grass opposite of them. “Yeah, pretty much. It’s best for me to not get involved with other ponies to avoid that problem.” “What?!” Lyra hustled over to me and her muzzle was almost touching my own. “You can't do that! If you find somepony you think like, then you go for her.” She paused for a second and blinked. “Or him. I don't know your preference.” I put a hoof on Lyra’s muzzle to gently push her away from my comfort zone. “That's not fair to the other pony. What do I tell them? That I can’t really commit to a serious relationship with them? I love them but I can't marry them?” I shook my head. “I can't do that to another pony.” Cloud Kicker lied a foreleg across Lyra’s withers. “Lyra, sometimes it's a bit more complicated than love conquers all.” “Love can conquer all,” Lyra grumbled. “It should conquer all...” Cloud Kicker gave Lyra a gentle shake. “Yeah, but she's got her family to think about too.” I fixed Lyra with a serious stare. “Right, a lot of important political deals go on with marriages like this. Frankly, I'm probably worth quite a bit for a political marriage.” That much was certainly true. Little things like belonging to an important noble family, being the personal student to Princess Celestia herself, and being the Element of Magic added up. Under the right circumstances, my family could gain a great deal from my marriage. “If her family won't let her marry the pony she loves, then they're...” Lyra grumbled something under her breath. “Stupid, they’re just stupid.” I stomped a hoof into the grass. “My family is not stupid, Lyra! You have no right to say that about them.” Lyra winced away from me. “Sorry, sorry... Look, when ponies get in the way of love, it makes me mad, okay?” It wouldn’t have surprise me if Lyra belonged to a lesser noble house. Many of the lesser houses didn’t hold enough financial or other incentives for a pony to keep up with them, and would readily abandon their title to marry the pony they loved. If that was the case with Lyra, then it wouldn’t be as big of a deal if her house went extinct. It was a common enough occurrence in Equestria. My house wasn’t likely to pass into the history books if I abandoned my title, given that Shining Armor was the principal heir of House Sparkle, but it could still hurt my family a great deal. That wasn’t something I was going to do lightly. I put a hoof up to calm her. “It’s fine, really. It’s not like I can't find a special somepony with how things work. Plenty of nobles find love among one another. While not a large group statistically to the rest of Equestria, the absolute number of nobles is still significant. I could very well find somepony of sufficient rank and availability to marry.” Cloud Kicker glowered at Lyra, “I love you, sweetie, but maybe you shouldn't talk so lightly about a pony abandoning her family. If she doesn’t want to get romantically involved with anypony because of family, then that’s her choice. I may not agree with it, but at the end of the day that’s her decision.” Lyra’s ears flattened, and she looked down, guiltily. I found that to be an interesting comment from a pony who had abandoned the family business. Granted, that didn’t mean she had outright abandoned her family, just their occupation. I made a note to ask Cloud Kicker a question along these lines in the future. I groaned loudly. “See, I can't even talk about this without ponies getting upset!” Cloud Kicker shifted over to lie next to me. “How about we change the subject? I think we’ve said all that’s going to be said about this.” Lyra and Cloud Kicker exchanged a look before Lyra gave me a serious nod. “It's fine, Twilight. I'm just a silly pony.” I rubbed at my face, happy that the conversation was moving away from a topic I did not like to talk about. “Yeah. It's ... fine, Lyra. It's my problem. You don't need to worry about it.” Lyra laid on the ground a little bit opposite of me. “I feel I do because I consider you my friend. I look out for my friends. Especially about their love lives.” That comment made me raise an eyebrow. When did Lyra start to consider me a friend? We had just met earlier that night. Also I wasn’t exactly wild about another pony who I had just met taking an active interest in my romantic prospects. Perhaps she was somewhat like Pinkie Pie, in that she took an active interest in everypony she met? I took a long breath to make sure I was calm before I spoke. “You’re concerned, I get that. Obviously this is an important topic to you, and I respect that. But this is my decision to make, and I’ve made it.” Lyra’s ears drooped slightly but she nodded. “Yeah, okay. I don’t like it, but I understand.” There was a moment of silence between us before Cloud Kicker spoke. “Twilight, we're friends, right?” That question almost caused me to jerk. “I can’t really say we’re friends now.” I shrugged. “I guess we could be friends someday. Anything’s possible.” Lyra shot me a skeptical look. “You guess we could be friends someday?” I felt a twinge of annoyance at that comment. “Lyra, don't push her too much, okay?” Cloud Kicker gave Lyra a firm look. “She’s had a rough day already.” She rubbed at her face with a hoof. “And that’s in no small part because I’m messing this up. Sorry, Twilight.” Lyra rubbed at her mane. “Yeah, sorry ... I'm being bad tonight.” “It’s ... fine. Sorry, I'm still not great at the friendship thing.” I rubbed at my eye. This was turning out to be a long day for me. “What I meant was that saying somepony is a friend is a big deal to me. So I don’t just throw that term around, and right now I need some room.” “For what it’s worth, Lyra and I consider you to be a friend.” Cloud Kicker glanced at Lyra and she nodded in agreement. “And since we're your friends, we care about your happiness.” Lyra gave me a reassuring smile. “Mhm.” She started to pluck away at her lyre, creating a soft melody that complemented the environment nicely. I let out an annoyed huff. This night really could have gone better. “Right, and ponies want their friends to be happy. I understand where you’re coming from.” “Yeah.” Cloud Kicker guided my head to her chest. “So ... I really hope you are happy and continue to be happy.” I turned my head to look up at Cloud Kicker. “Of course I am. Like I said, I have a lot of reasons to be happy.” Sure, everything might not be perfect in my life, but that was true of everypony. Cloud Kicker ran her hoof through her mane. “Having a lot of reasons to be happy isn't the same as being happy.” Lyra kept strumming away at that song absent mindedly. “Yeah, there can be that 'block' that prevents you from being truly happy.” I snorted. “Okay, now you're both nitpicking. Yes, I'm happy. I've never been more happy minus some of this recent craziness.” “Alright, if you say so, Duchess.” Cloud Kicker sat next to Lyra and draped a wing over her. “Really, if you want me to back off for a few days and let you—” “Well, well, well, what do we have here?” I heard somepony sneer. Lyra’s playing ended with a sudden off note, and I lifted my head to see a pair of large earth ponies walking our direction. I frowned at the two ponies that were ruining what was becoming an enjoyable night out by the lake. “I think it’s that feathin' whorse, Sticks” the dark blue earth pony mocked, pointing at Cloud Kicker. Cloud Kicker blinked and looked up at the two of them to give them an even stare. “You two really want to move along.” Lyra shot the two of them an annoyed scowl. “Yeah, get out of here, you jerks.” The yellow earth pony’s mouth turned up into a nasty grin. “Oh, and why should we?” “Ooh, I'm shaking in my horseshoes, Stones.” The one called Sticks shook his knees in a mocking gesture. I looked to Cloud Kicker with a raised eyebrow. “You know these two?” “Just the local town bullies,” Cloud Kicker said quietly. “I had words with them a few years ago, when they were harassing Derpy. Thought they took the hint about messing with me or any of my friends, but it looks like they’re as dense as always.” She stood up and spoke up loudly enough for everypony to hear. “And they’re ruining what's been a very pleasant evening, so far.” Stones walked a little closer to us and sneered. “Yeah, I’m sure we’re ruining the whorse bucking her two whorse friends.” Listening to the two of them I could hear them slurring their words. My suspicions were quickly confirmed by the smell of alcohol that came with their close proximity. Lyra stood up and looked between the two bullies with a scowl. “Yeah, just a couple of plotheads.” She lowered her head and spoke in a low voice, waving a hoof in front of her nose. “And they’ve been having a few more then they can handle, if you get what I mean.” “You wanna say that to my face!” Sticks stepped up so that he was almost muzzle to muzzle with Lyra. Lyra snorted loudly, not backing down from the stallion. “It's hardly worth the effort.” “You better shut your mouth, horn head!” Sticks roughly shoved Lyra back. Lyra, for her part, looked at Sticks with an unimpressed look. “Okay, you guys really need to back off.” I stepped up to little closer to the offending duo. “This is getting silly.” I really didn’t like bullies, and these two weren’t exactly improving my opinion of them. I certainly wasn’t going to let a couple of small town thugs intimidate me. Cloud Kicker let out an exasperated sigh. “Let's just go somewhere we can have a little privacy, shall we?” “What’s the matter, whorse!?” Stones gave Cloud Kicker a hard push. “Don't do that, Stones,” Cloud Kicker said with deliberate calmness. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed her dig her hoof into the ground and scooped up some loose sand. “Let's not do anything stupid.” I put up a hoof to Sticks and Stones in a calming gesture. “How about you two stop being a couple childish bullies and back off. This isn’t school and you’re not intimidating us. So how about you two get out of here?” I didn’t like the menacing scowl Stones gave me, and I started to wonder just how far these two really were willing to push things. “Twilight, Lyra, could you come over here?” It wasn’t so much question as a gentle request in a heated situation. The two bullies didn’t look like they were willing to back down, and the tension was escalating much faster than was comfortable. I turned my head to nod a confirmation to Cloud Kicker when there was a sudden movement out of the corner of my eye. I wondered what that blur approaching my head was—right up to the moment it collided with my face. My vision exploded into stars when Stones sucker punched me. The next sensation I got was of myself lying on the ground, the world covered in more stars and jerking around in my vision. “Big mistake!” Cloud Kicker kicked up her forehooves and sand and dirt flew into Sticks and Stones’s eyes. Each of them let out cries of pain and surprised and started pawing at their eyes on reflex. I noticed through my star-filled vision Lyra’s hand spell grab onto Sticks’s mane and start to yank on it. Sticks alternated between rubbing at his eyes and swinging his forehooves wildly in Lyra’s direction. Lyra quickly backed away from the wildly swinging stallion. Her movements were far from a practiced soldier, but plenty to keep her from being slugged. “Com'ere ya puke-covered whorse!” Sticks screamed.   Cloud Kicker dashed past Stones as he tried to get the sand out of his eyes. She bucked out and one of her hooves hit Stones in the groin. Stones let out a yelp of pain that was a significant number of octaves higher than his normal speaking voice and fell to the ground, clutching between his legs. I started to wonder why I was continuing to lay on the ground when Cloud Kicker and Lyra were in trouble. I tried to move but dizziness and nausea kept me in place. I rubbed at my wet cheek and wondered how it had gotten wet to start with. I withdrew my hoof from my cheek when it stung painfully and looked at it, finding it smeared with a red stain—blood. Cloud Kicker galloped to stand between Lyra and Sticks. “Lyra, go get the gendarmes!” “Gotcha!” Lyra nodded and started galloping off somewhere for some reason. I wasn’t sure, I just wanted the mounting pain in my head to stop. Sticks blinked a few times and his lips peeled from his teeth in a snarl. “Buck you, Cloud! Buck you to feathin' Tartarus!” he yelled, spittle actually flying from his lips. Cloud Kicker crouched down into a fighting stance, wings outstretched. “Alright, Stones. Two options. Either lie down on the ground and wait for the gendarmes, like a good little colt, or this gets painful for you.” Sticks growled in a manner that made him sound more bestial than a pony. “I said buck you, Cloud! It’s payback time for that stupid lightning cloud!” Cloud Kicker slowly circled Sticks and stared at him intently. “You do realize you just assaulted Princess Celestia's star pupil, don't you? Do you have any idea how screwed you are?” I was hurt and knew it. I wasn’t quite sure how badly, but the situation wasn’t going to be helped by me just lying there on the ground. I moaned in pain and tried to roll onto my stomach. All that did for me is make the world spin around wildly, and I fell back to my side. Stupid spinny world. Sticks’s slow and plodding steps towards Cloud Kicker became hesitant and then stopped. “Huh? Y-you're lyin'! It’s your word against ours.” “Geeze, I wonder who they'll believe?” Cloud Kicker said mockingly. “The town ne'er-do-wells, or the Princess' personal student and the pony who's probably related to at least one of them?” Sticks took a cautious step back. “You're just chicken. Ya know we can take ya!” He glanced over to Stones, whom seemed content to moan in pain and clutched at his nether region. Sticks lunged at Cloud Kicker. He struck out with a right hoof in a straightforward strike, but Cloud intercepted and parried the blow to the side. She followed the parry up with a uppercut to Sticks’ throat. His eyes bulged and he held up a hoof to his throat as he gasped for breath. Cloud Kicker sidestepped to position herself at an angle to the struggling Sticks. She threw a precisely-aimed punch at the foreknee that Sticks was using to support the upper-half of his body. There was a crack of bone and Sticks tumbled to the ground, gasping and spasming painfully. She backed up slowly from Sticks and Stones and over to me. “Duchess, you okay?” I moaned pitifully. Another attempt to try and get up resulted in the world spitefully spinning on me. “What ... Ugh...” For some reason I couldn’t get my brain and mouth to cooperate for whatever I was going to say. I’m sure what I was going to say was important, whatever it was. Cloud Kicker looked between her crippled opponents. Each were lying where they had fallen wailing pitifully. She lay down next to me and started looking me over. “Don’t worry, it’s going to be alright. Just lie still for me, okay?” I gave up on trying to get up and rubbed at my wet cheek, and it burned at the touch. “What’s ... You okay?” I felt sick and wanted to throw up. Either that or just close my eyes. Cloud Kicker groaned in frustration. “Buck, looks like a concussion.” “Twilight. Twilight!” She lifted my head up and I looked at her. “Look at me. Stay awake. The gendarmes will be here soon!” “Cloud...” I moaned. She lifted me up to her chest. “Yeah, what is it?” “Why ... can’t I see ... with my right eye?”