Happy Adventuring, Twilight!

by Pennington Inkwell


Reunion

[[Author's Preliminary Note: SOOOOO... due to some small discrepancies concerning the entirety of the time-space continuum, I've actually rearranged the events of this story so that "Carnival Cat vs Pennington Inkwell" doesn't take place until later. (Those of you paying attention may have noticed a slight paradox between "Whipstitch," "Happy Adventuring," and "CC vs PI." If not, see if you can find it!) So, long story short, I need to get through a few more events and chronology in this story before the continuation is applicable! (Specifically, the changeling invasion of Canterlot! After that, I can link Carnival Cat into this plot line!

This should be really helpful, considering that this is my favorite story, and while the break to work on Carnival Cat has been relaxing, I've been really eager to get back to it! My publishing rate has plummeted since I came to college (If any of you are at BYU, look me up!), and I simply need something to get me back into the general swing of things.

Long story short: GUESS WHO'S BACK??]]
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Twilight was hopping up and down with excitement as the train from Canterlot pulled in to Ponyville Station. She'd gotten Pennington's letter this morning stating that he and Moonstone were finally coming back to Ponyville, and she had nearly screamed with excitement, dragging Spike to the train station with her. Pennington's letter had mentioned a "surprise" for her, and Twilight had arranged for a surprise of her own for him.

She watched the ponies stepping off of the train with eager anticipation, eyes scanning left and right, trying to spot the familiar blue coat. As pony after pony stepped off the train, however, Twilight didn't see him, and her ears began to droop low against her head. Suddenly, she felt a tap on her shoulder. Turning around, she found herself staring straight into Pennington's face.

"You look like you're waiting for someone, Miss..." He smirked.

"Pennington!" Twilight cried with glee, jumping up and hugging him, wrapping her hooves around his neck. It had only been a few days since she had last seen him, but the full impact of the past months had finally struck her, and she gripped him tightly.

Finally, we're both back home, safe and sound...

As Pennington held her close, the two of them didn't move for several minutes, Twilight burying her face in his shoulder, trying to hold back the tears. She inhaled deeply, drinking in the warm scent. He smelled fresh and clean, as if he'd just stepped out of a bath, and his warm body seemed more comforting than it had ever been in the past. Once again, she remembered how secure she felt with him.

"Hey, Twilight, lay off on the romance, would ya?" Moonstone's slightly indignant voice chirped from below. "He's still having problems with-"

"Let it be, Moonstone. I think I can take it..." Pennington said quietly. Twilight shivered as she felt his voice vibrate through his chest, a trait more noticeable in males than mares.

"I missed you..." She finally let go, stepping back. "What took you so long?"

"Well, just pushing my limits, risking my neck, making sure my hooves could still stand up to the rigors of adventuring!" Pennington winked, obviously joking. Twilight took a moment to look at the stallion with a more analytical eye. Ever since they had left Ponyville so long ago, she hadn't seen Pennington when he wasn't tired or under some kind of stress. Looking at him now, after this short period of rest in Canterlot, he seemed completely reinvigorated. There were no rings under his eyes, his tail couldn't seem to stay still, flicking from side to side with vitality, and he was sporting a cheerful grin that seemed to take up his whole face. He didn't hold himself with the same tense air, but was completely at ease, perhaps for the first time since they had met. His coat was full and shining, and his hooves were practically polished. Even his legs showed no sign of their previous injuries, whole and covered in his regular fur. It was like looking at a brand new, shiny version of an old toy, completely untarnished by use.

"Luna made absolutely sure that her student was ready to begin his task, and that meant a few days of relaxation..." Moonstone scoffed with a joking smile. "If you ask me, that looked like the first good night's sleep you've had in a long time."

Twilight looked at Moonstone, joining in on the joke. "You mean you got him to sleep? All I could do was make him sit still and close his eyes for a few seconds!"

The two shared a chuckle before Twilight turned back to Pennington, who was reaching into his saddlebag. After a few moments of fiddling around, he finally pulled out a small box. It was long and narrow, obviously holding a necklace, and he passed it to her.

"Surprise!" He winked at her again, and Twilight was surprised to find that she was even happy to see his brash overconfidence back again. Looking down at the box, then back up at him, Twilight slowly pulled off the cover. When she looked inside, her breath caught in her throat. Inside was, indeed, a necklace of relatively simple design, but still beautiful in its craftsmanship. The majority of the length consisted of a golden chain, but was periodically accented by slightly thicker cylindrical portions. Each of these portions had a pattern of circles engraved on them, reminding her of the holes in the changelings' bodies, and in the center of each piece was nestled a tiny ruby shard, catching the light and reflecting it back out again.

"Pennington, how did you-"

"Well, I had to find something Moonstone and Spike wouldn't find irresistible, so I went light on the gems..." He smiled, this time earnestly, rather than the crooked half-smile usually slapped across his face. "I wanted something special, for our first adventure together..." Silently, the necklace began to float in the air with a light-blue aura, undid the fastener in the back, and looped itself around her neck, fixing itself in place as he re-fastened it.

"But- this is-" Twilight was still shocked. "How much did this cost?"

"Does it matter?" He whispered, stepping closer.

"He went to the bank and took out about 300 bits..." Moonstone muttered.

Twilight's eyes widened, and Pennington shot Moonstone an angry glare.

"Pennington, I can't accept this! That's far too expensive-"

"For the mare who saved my life?" He shook his head. "Twilight, trust me, if it was too much, I wouldn't have bought it for you."

"It was my fault you were there in the first place..." She looked to the side.

"No, it was your brilliance that kept me careful. It was my recklessness that put me there..." He placed a gentle hoof under her chin, lifting her face to look into his eyes. "Twilight, do not dare to blame yourself for what happened! Your conscience is completely clean..." Twilight felt his eyes looking straight through hers and into her heart, and his words eased her guilt.

"But, it was my idea... The changelings, and the hive!"

"No, your story was your idea. Living it was mine." His eyes were soft, as if acknowledging the power they held over her in their gentleness. Even as they held eye contact, Twilight could see tears beginning to well up in the corners of his eyes. "Promise me you won't blame yourself for this... My stupid idea has already caused you enough pain. I could hardly bear it if you kept hurting yourself because of it!"

Twilight felt her eyes beginning to burn with tears, and she lunged forward, once again embracing him for comfort, as much his own as hers. The two remained silent for a moment, each trying to wash away the others' pain.

"Fine... Neither of us takes the blame, then?" He whispered, his hoof gently brushing through her hair. Twilight could only nod, her cheek rubbing against his chest.

"Well, then... Let's stop making this such a sad reception!" He lifted his tone with effort, trying to make the mood as joyous as it had been only a few moments before. "Come on! I think that there's some ramen back at home calling my name!"

Twilight chuckled, wiping away the tears with her hoof as she stepped back again. "Well, I have a surprise for you, too! But it's not here! We're going to have to go to Fluttershy's cottage!"

Pennington gave her a quizzical look, then a smile. "Twilight, you didn't have to-"

"Pennington!" Moonstone shouted, finally grabbing the attention. "Can you cut it out with all the sappy lines and get on with it? In case you hadn't noticed, taking your time isn't doing any favors..." She pointed down at his legs. Twilight followed with her gaze, and was shocked to see small trickles of blood, one or two per leg.

"How could I not?" Pennington rolled his eyes. "It's not exactly painless..."

"What- I thought he was healed!" Spike interjected, looking at the other dragon for an explanation.

"Well, he still isn't supposed to push himself when it comes to affection! Too much love or too much stress will open up the old wounds, at least for the next few weeks... After that, they shouldn't open again." Moonstone crossed her arms. "But he's always to carry bandages, just in case. Doctor's orders!"

"Lily's orders!" Pennington rolled his eyes. "It's nothing, Twilight. Just a temporary price to being with you, one I'm more than willing to pay!"

Twilight shook her head, letting out a long sigh. Of course, Pennington's restoration also renewed his complete disregard for his own well-being. Leading the way, she picked up Spike with her magic and set him on her back. "Well, I hope you're well enough for a surprise!"

Pennington paused for a moment, caught up watching her tail swing back and forth. After only a couple seconds, however, Moonstone had jumped up onto his back, not-so-gently digging her claws into his skin to steady herself.

"Ow!"

"Watch it, lover boy..." She whispered. "Changeling or no changeling, you need to keep your head on straight..."

Pennington shook his head, snapping out of the momentary trance. "Right. Sorry..." He muttered, trotting to catch up with Twilight.










All was quiet as they entered Fluttershy's backyard, a place that Pennington had only seen in passing before on his way to the Everfree forest, with only the exceptions of a few soft animal noises. There was a small table with a steaming kettle and two small cups and saucers. Moonstone and Spike were inside, with Spike describing for her what it's like being Twilight's assistant. They both had actually seemed excited to finally see another dragon when they first met, but they had each constrained themselves around Twilight and Pennington.

"Pinkie Pie wanted to throw you a 'Welcome-Home-and-We're-Glad-You're-Not-A-Changeling" party, and once that pony gets an idea in her head, she's worse than you are..." Twilight smiled. "So, I asked Fluttershy if she would be willing to set us up with a little quiet time to brace yourself."

Pennington smiled, blushing a small amount. "You... you're setting up a party for me? Who would come? I mean- here in Ponyville, I don't have many friends..."

"Well, Rarity seemed to remember you being really nice, and of course Pinkie Pie thinks of you as her friend!" Twilight was surprised at the fact that Pennington seemed to surprised at the idea of having friends in Ponyville. She knew that he didn't get out much when he was actually IN town, but even a recluse needed a few friends! "Whipstitch is insisting on coming, she said that she was going to make 'something special' for the occasion, and Rainbow Dash still hasn't thanked you for that VIP pass! Fluttershy is actually still here, but she's going, too!" Twilight raised a quizzical eyebrow. "Even Bon-Bon and a few other shop owners are going!"

Pennington chuckled. "Ponyville's small-business owners have a little network. I hope Bon-Bon brings some of those caramels I like so much..." He licked his lips before pouring tea in first Twilight's cup, then his own.

Twilight smiled, happy to see that, in spite of her first beliefs, Pennington had plenty of friends in Ponyville. "Well, not to mention, most ponies in Ponyville wouldn't want to miss one of Pinkie Pie's parties, so there will be plenty of other guests!" She paused as she took a long sip from her tea, enjoying the herbal scents washing through her senses. "You're not spending your first night in Ponyville alone!"

This seemed to strike Pennington, who put down his cup on his saucer.

"What? Do you not like the tea?" Twilight asked.

"Oh, no! Mint is one of my favorites! It's invigorating... It's just..." He paused, looking at the cup in thought. "I've felt really alone for a while... especially without you around. My friends understand me, but they don't understand that, at the end of the day, it's always just me dragging myself back to my study, all alone, praying that I wake up able to move..." He shuddered. "I feel alone a lot, Twilight... But..." When he looked up again, he was smiling. "Now I'm not! Not when I'm with you! You understand me, and you know what I go through... When I'm with you, it feels like that gap that leaves me so lonely is filled!" He looked away again, turning his head to the cottage. "Moonstone is going to be with me at almost all times, so I'm never going to have an emergency and be alone, either. She already knows everything about my sleep paralysis, and she's going to insist on sleeping in the same room as me..." He chuckled as he finally turned back to her. "My dad has a policy... To always leave things better than when you found them. I'm definitely better than when you found me, Twilight. I finally feel whole again."

Twilight blushed, feeling her heart pound under the sudden affection.

"PENN! WATCH YOUR LEGS!" Moonstone's voice echoed from the cottage, more annoyed than cautious. At the warning, Pennington slapped his forehead.

"I'm fine, Moonstone!" He shouted in reply before shaking his head. "It's like she has some kind of sixth sense..."

Twilight finally giggled, releasing the tension that had been building in her chest under his praise.

"I'm not kidding! Every time I'm misbehaving, she'll call me out about it!" His mischievous grin as he continued only made Twilight laugh more, and he quickly began to laugh with her. "She once caught me from almost a full block away in Canterlot! I found a shop that sold ramen, and I snuck over while she was looking at some jewelery with me! Just as I was checking out with a few packages, I heard her shouting at me from across the street! 'Those aren't a meal, Penn!' she said!"

Twilight was almost doubled over with laughter. Apparently, Luna had found someone finally capable of even keeping an eye on Pennington when her back was turned! After a few minutes of laughing, Twilight looked over and noticed a large group of Fluttershy's critters standing nearby, watching them with curious eyes. Pennington seemed to notice, as well, first looking at them, then Twilight, eyes begging for an explanation.

"Oh! I've been working on a little bit of magic for Princess Celestia, lately, and it turns out that it's quite amusing for them! I promised that I'd give them another telekinetic ride the next time I came over... Do you mind?"

"Not at all! I love watching you do magic!" Pennington smiled with a sweeping motion of his hoof, requesting her to proceed.

"Twilight!" Suddenly, Fluttershy came running out of her house, obviously panicked. "Please, be careful! Don't hurt them, please!"

Twilight continued talking, even as her horn began to glow. "Fluttershy, I promise, they'll be just fine! I've done this dozens of times before! You've seen me levitate an entire library's worth of books in a neat and organized fashion, there's no need to worry! They'll be fine, I promise!" Fluttershy gave her a short, threatening glare, then stepped back, nibbling at her hooves with anxiety. "I've been trying to replicate that spell of yours, too, Pennington! Being able to create objects out of magic could come in really handy. I mean, the armor alone saved both our lives! But no matter what I try, it doesn't seem to work..."

"Well, I'm not surprised, it's a very unique technique. Zecora actually taught it to me when I was first starting my adventures in Everfree! She told me, 'Traveling light here is no laughing matter! Carrying tools will only make your bag fatter!' The spell is used in places where resources are scarce to replace constructing tools. It's apparently an old zebra tradition, passed down through shamans in her tribe. In the past years, though, they've been thriving so well, they didn't even need it, and it was almost lost!" Pennington smiled, materializing a spoon from magic to stir his tea, obviously showing off. "She might teach it to you if you ask nicely..." He trailed off as the animals began to float and circle through the air above Twilight's head, like a slow-motion juggling act. "That's fantastic!"

"I hope so! I'm going to be showing it for the delegates from Saddle Arabia!" Twilight's grinned, happy that she was showing off, as well. After a few minutes, Twilight finally lowered the critters to Earth again, and they immediately began to crowd around her, cheering for more. "Not today, guys! But if Fluttershy says it's okay, then maybe we can do it next time!"

Almost immediately, the crowd moved to Fluttershy, who still had her face hidden out of fear.

"Twilight!" A familiar voice screamed as Rainbow Dash zoomed in on the scene, crashing into Twilight and tackling her to the ground. Pennington was up on his hooves in an instant, but relaxed as he recognized the pegasus. "Twilight, come quick! It's an emergency!"

Twilight shot Pennington a nervous glance, to which he replied with a nod.

"Spike!"

"Moonstone!"

"Time to go!"