//------------------------------// // The Adventure Begins // Story: Love Can Be Different // by EvelynMonroe //------------------------------// It was a warm and beautifully sunny day as the radiant sun beamed its rich, life-giving rays down upon Ponyville. The sky was a deep aqua blue with the occasional group of white clouds floating aimlessly across the horizon, all gently being guided by the summer breeze that caressed the land below. It was a perfect day for anypony to be outside. "So, what do you think?" asked Twilight, as she sat patiently on her picnic blanket just outside her tree house awaiting her sister's response with an eager but excited look on her face. Cadence took a moment to savor the exotic and strange flavor of the tea, smacking her lips together ever so slightly. "Wow, this is delightful Twilight!" she responded, with a slight look of shock mixed with pleasant surprise on her face. "You made this yourself?" she questioned as she levitated her cup with a pink magical aura to take another sip. "This recipe isn't my own, it's quite a rare one in fact." Twilight paused for a moment as she refilled her own cup. "Zecora taught me it the other day through one of her old dusty recipe books. I actually happened to stumble across it buried underneath a pile of old scrolls while digging through her library.. with her permission of course." twilight added with a small chuckle. "Well Twilight, I have never had tea quite like this before." she said as she levitated the cup back up to her nose, pausing for a brief moment to breathe in the exotic scent before continuing. "I have had my fair share of experience with herbs over the years, especially those with medicine, but the scent of this one is unfamiliar.." she finished, taking another sip as she pondered the strange aroma. "Zecora and I actually hoof-picked all of these herbal ingredients deep within the Everfree Forest believe it or not." Twilight said as she recalled to herself how difficult it was to decipher which was a herb and which was a crazy plant that wouldn't hesitate to bite your hoof off in a heartbeat. "Some of these herbs I have never seen before until Zecora showed them to me, which is probably why you don't recognize the scent. On second thought, you won't recognize a lot of things when your in a place like that!" Twilight said with a light-hearted laugh. "Ahem.. ONLY you and Zecora?" spike interrupted as he glanced over at twilight with arms crossed, tapping his foot gently on the ground as he recalled the nasty side-effects he went through when he accidentally touched the strange blue flowers that one time. Twilight could not help but crack a smile at his cute display as she playfully rolled her eyes. "And Spike helped too." she finished, as she looked back down at her pet dragon who was now beaming with a sense of accomplishment. This cute exchange suddenly reminded Cadence of what it might be like to be a parent. Technically Spike was adopted but that doesn't take away the strong motherly bond that resided deep within Twilight's heart for her pet dragon. She could not help but begin to think about her own future.. a future family with Shining Armor. "It's always nice to see you two getting along so well." Cadence spoke up, as she glanced over to Spike with a smile on her face. "Spike, I remember when you were just a baby dragon" she said as she reached over and gently squeezed his cheeks together in a playful manner. "You have grown up so fast!" "He still is a baby, aren't you Spikey Wikey?" Twilight added with an evil grin. Her last comment caught Spike off guard causing him to suddenly jump backwards. "I am NOT a baby Twilight! I mean as a dragon technically yes.. but.. but I age a lot slower than others!" Spike said, burning with embarrassment. Twilight and Cadence only laughed lightly to each other over his reaction. "It's not funny you guys!" Spike retorted, clearly irritated now. "Relax Spike, I was only kidding. If you were a baby then do you really think I could trust you with all of those grown up responsibilities? Like.. writing the letters to the princess.. or organizing the library.. or pet-sitting for Fluttershy.. or even going on 'dangerous' adventures with me?" Twilight said in a reassuring tone. "Shes right Spike, remember when you were the one who helped us save the crystal empire? Without your help I would have never gotten to the crystal heart in time.. and I am truly grateful for that, little one." Cadence finished as she pecked a friendly kiss on the baby dragon's cheek. Spike was rendered speechless as he fell backwards, paralyzed from her kind gesture as his heart began to race a mile a minute. "Is he OK?" Cadence asked Twilight with a confused look on her face. "He always does that, just ask Rarity." Twilight responded, laughing at the situation. Cadence took a quick glance up at the sun. Judging by it's angle towards the horizon she could estimate it was roughly around four o'clock, just early enough to be able to fly back to Canterlot before night fall. She averted her gaze away from the sky and glanced back over to Twilight who was still watching her. "Don't let me keep you any longer Cadence, you need to be able to make it back to Canterlot in time.." Twilight paused for a moment with a sad look on her face, but quickly shook it off. "It was really nice to see you again." Twilight finished as she wrapped her arms around her sister in law with a loving embrace. "It is always a pleasure to see you as well Twilight." she responded, returning the gesture with a firm hug of her own. Their hearts grew heavy with sadness but they both knew it was only a temporary feeling of departure, they would eventually get to see each other again. "I will try to see you more often okay Twilight?" she said as she gently brushed away a forming tear in her sister's eye. "I will bring your idiotic brother next time too." she added with a chuckle. Twilight could only laugh at that last comment as her sadness quickly left her. "Sounds great Cadence, I will definitely be looking forward to it" Twilight responded, happiness now gleaming in her eyes as they finally broke away from each other's embrace. Just as Cadence was about to take flight, she paused as a question suddenly crossed her mind. "Before I leave Twilight, I have a question for you if you don't mind me asking." she said, now turning back around to face her. "Sure, anything Cadence, what is it?" she responded. "Zecora's herbal book you mentioned.. I would like to study it for medicinal purposes. Do you think she would let me borrow it?" she asked. "Absolutely! Especially for a cause like that. I'm sure she would be more than happy to lend it to you Cadence." "Excellent! I will head over there tomorrow to pick it up then.. err" she suddenly cut herself off, forcing herself to avert her gaze from Twilight in anticipation of her dumb question that she was about to ask. "Umm.. Where exactly does she live in the Everfree Forest again?" she asked in a slightly nervous tone while rubbing her hoof behind her head. Twilight lightly chuckled to herself at her sister's question. "Well it's a little hard to explain.. but I'll tell you what Cadence, why not take Spike with you?" Twilight asked. "He knows the way around the Everfree Forest like the back of my hoof!." she finished, with her hoof raised in the air. "What?! I can't.. I mean, you see.. well I.." She was struggling to find an excuse as Twilight cut her off before she could finish. "Before you make your decision just hear me out. I will be in Manehattan for the next four days to help out Rarity in her upcoming clothing line. It wouldn't be until close to a week before I arrive back in Ponyville to be able to take you there myself.." "Well, what about your other friends Twilight? They must know where Zecora lives right? I'm pretty sure they have journeyed through the Everfree Forest alongside you more than once." Cadence added. "Well.." Twilight continued "You see.. Spike has been coped up in this house for quite awhile now. He really needs someone to bond with other than myself, and who better to bond with than the best foal-sitter i know! And Besides.." Twilight continued. "I've noticed hes taken quite a liking to you, I think you guys would have an amazing time together!" she exclaimed. Cadence realized that her sister really was sincere about this idea and to let Twilight down was the last thing she wanted to do. The more she thought about it, the more appealing it began to sound. After a quick moment's pause, she exhaled a sigh of defeat. "Alright Twilight, I will take Spike with me." "Oh thank you thank you, THANK you!" Twilight gleefully exclaimed, throwing her arms back around Cadence. "This is a great thing you are doing for Spike! If you ever get too caught up in your royal duties, just remember, you can always drop him off at Fluttershy's if you have to. I'll let her know in advance in case you two decide to swing by." she finished, now with a big smile on her face. "Okay Twilight, I will keep that in mind." Cadence said returning a smile as she gently broke away from her hug. "Did you hear that Spike? Aren't you excited!" Twilight said in excitement as she turned around to face the baby dragon. "Um, Spike?" Twilight questioned. Somehow he was still lying on the ground, completely oblivious to what was going on around him. "SPIKE!" she shouted, snapping him out of whatever trance he was in. "IT WASN'T ME! Err... Yes Twilight?" Spike responded, shaking the daze out of his head as he stood up quickly at attention. Twilight and Cadence both looked at each other for a moment before focusing their attention back to the baby dragon. "Spike, you're going to spend the next week with my sister Cadence. She needs help navigating the Everfree Forest tomorrow so I expect you to be on your best behavior, understand?" Twilight asked with a raised brow. "A whole week? With royalty? With.. with Cadence?!" Spike was clearly nervous. "But won't I get in the way Twilight?" "Please do not worry Spike. You won't get in the way at all. In fact.. I want you to come with me." Cadence reassured him, gently nudging him with her nose. "Do.. do you really mean that Cadence?" He paused for a second. " I.. I will be the best assistant that I can!" he said proudly. "Good, now run along you two. You don't want to be traveling when the sun's down.. especially with all the spooooky ghosts." Twilight said in a ghostly tone tying to scare spike. "Hah! I'm not afraid, not with Cadence here! She'l protect me no matter what!" Spike said in a assured tone as he looked over at the other princess with a nervous look. "R..Right Cadence?" he said shakily, his confidence wavering the more he thought about those ghosts. "Ghosts?... Twilight, why must you scare the poor dragon with such silly stories." Cadence questioned with a raised brow, clearly seeing that spike was struggling with this issue. "It's not my fault Cadence, Spike just really loves to read those kind of books in my Library." She responded as she paused to think about her answer for a few seconds. "Well, maybe it is my fault to a degree.. but who doesn't love a good ghost story at night every now and then!" she said, politely defending herself. Cadence walked over to spike and draped her wing over his body in a protective gesture. "I am a master at protective spells Spike. Whatever monster that comes our way, it will have to go through me first. Nothing is going to harm you.. not even those pesky ghosts you keep hearing about." she reassured him in a confident tone. "Those ghosts sure can be pesky, eheheh.." Twilight laughed nervously, knowing she may have contributed a little more than she had realized to Spike's problem. "Alright my new and faithful assistant Spike, hop on!" Cadence said as she lowered her body to the ground. Spike did just that as he climbed on top of her with ease. "I'm ready when you are Cadence!" Spike responded excitedly, eager to partake on the new adventure that awaited him. "Stay safe Spike" Twilight said in a worried tone, but deep inside she knew that her baby dragon was in good hands. "Don't worry Twilight, I'll be fine." he reassured her. Cadence spread her beautiful wings, giving them a few test flaps in the process. They were a vibrant pink, lightly accented with a gentle violet shade. "Don't forget to hang on tight Spike, I don't want to have to bust out an aerial maneuver to catch you if you fall." She jokingly added. "Not to worry! When your used to hanging on for your dear life to a flyer like Twilight, hanging on to anything else will be a breeze!" He responded, shooting a devilish grin towards Twilight. Twilight paused for a moment from that last comment, catching her slightly off guard. "Touche.." she said, glaring angrily back at her dragon. Cadence laughed at their exchange before propelling herself off the ground with a powerful flap of her wings, sending a light gust of air into Twilight. "Goodluck in Manehattan Twilight!" Spike shouted as his voice trailed off into the distance. Cadence, along with her new teammate Spike, venture off into the distance towards the mighty city of Canterlot. Unbeknownst to them, their greatest challenge is yet to come. -.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.- The night was calm as Princess Luna rose the majestic moon into the sky. Stars were now shimmering throughout the midnight atmosphere, the air was cool, it was a very tranquil night as the Everfree Forest lay just below, sleeping soundlessly. Deep in the forest lied an old beaten down shack nestled safely in the shrubbery of dense trees and exotic plants. Very few knew about this place as it was once a vendor for powerful potions made by using ingredients from the forest nearly centuries ago. Over time, natural causes had worn down this once proud structure to what it is today, a crumbled badly damaged heap of mess. It would seem vacant to anypony at first glance, however that was not the case this night.. "Do not worry my little Kainen, Mommy is here for you.." the changeling mother said in a gentle, comforting tone as she held her baby in close with a loving embrace. She took a moment to scan the room they were in. The wooden walls were badly damaged as you could clearly see outside through the many punctured holes. Dusty old furniture was stacked in random places along the walls. Crumbled piles of debris lay scattered throughout the house, making it difficult to walk in certain areas. This was not an ideal place to call their home but they had no choice, they were forced to live here.. hiding in solitude in fear for their lives. "I just don't understand.." she softly spoke to herself. "Why must they hunt us, why must they try to kill us in cold blood?" She was now cradling her baby in her arms, observing Kainen's cute features. His tiny white fangs, his fragile blue opaque wings, his dark scaly skin, his cute deep blue eyes. He was precious to her as she gave him a loving nudge with her nose ever so gently. "We do not all serve Queen Chrysalis.. why can't they just understand?" A tear formed in her eye as that painful memory of the past came flooding back into her mind ever so vividly. Their old home had just recently been attacked by a organized fleet of stallions from the Royal Guard. She remembers how she fled the scene with her child in panic as her mate stayed behind to fight off the guards in order to give them just enough time to escape. "Just like you said.. if anything bad happens, that I will meet you here my love.." They both knew of this hideout, however she began to fear the worst for her mate as he had not returned in over a week. Each and every day without him continued to eat away at her. Thinking about the memory again suddenly filled her with hurt as anger and hatred now burned bright in the changling mother's heart. "Those equine scum!" she hissed loudly, accidentally scaring her baby in the process causing him to become upset. "Shh.. shh.. don't cry little one, mommy is sorry." she said as she lightly draped him over her shoulder, gently patting his back. She waited a few moments for him to calm down as she glanced back toward the doorway with an eager look as if her mate would walk through at any second. "One of these days Kainen.. you will make a name for us changelings." she said, speaking faith into her newborn child. "You will never have to experience the life that your father and I have so painfully struggled through." She walked over to her baby's basket sitting on a dusty old table near the corner of the room. It was a makeshift basket, made out of sticks twined together with the strong vines of the forest. The bottom of the basket was covered with moss to add a gentle cushion. "You will be the one my son.." she said as she gently placed him inside his cradle. "You will be the one to end this war.. to unite us all.. I can feel it in my heart." she finished, planting another gentle kiss on his tiny nose. A few hours passed by as fatigue slowly began to catch up to her. "I probably shouldn't stay up so late.. but it's just so hard to sleep with all these worries on my mind." she said as she walked back over to check on her baby. He was sound asleep as his gentle breathing was just barely audible. She watched him for a moment as he slept. "Oh how you resemble your father so strongly Kainen.." She averted her gaze away from her child and glanced out the window towards the moon. "How I miss him.." she finished as tears began forming in her eyes. She looked back over to her son one final time. "Sleep tight my little changeling, you will need it for tomorrow." she finished as she walked over to her makeshift bed and forced herself to go to sleep. -.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.- End of Chapter 1... Proceed to the next chapter...