//------------------------------// // Journey // Story: Breezie Journal // by Silent Strider //------------------------------// “Aaand quicksand. Check!” Twilight looked back at the papyrus and pencil she magically made out of leaves and coal, keeping them away from the rivulets that were flowing from her mane. They would revert back soon, but it felt good to have a checklist for a change. A dripping white unicorn paced around the campfire, sitting in front of Twilight while attempting to comb her mane back into it’s usual shape with an artesanal, if not lovely, comb. “You could have warned us a little earlier, darling.” she pointed down, beyond the clearing, where a clean brook  flowed a couple pony heights below. “Thank you for finding this river, though; I couldn’t have continued with that disgusting muck on my mane.” “I couldn’t help it, there were s-snakes down there!” Twilight offered Rarity a sheepish smile. “And, as I recall, you were fleeing too fast to hear any warning.” “Well, I couldn’t stay there with those icky snakes!” “Oh, they are not icky.” Fluttershy arrived carrying a basket full of delicious looking fruit. “They even helped us find food!” At her side Pinkie Pie was carrying a similar basket on her back while munching something. She swallowed with an audible gulp and smiled. “You have to try this, it’s delicious!” “Uh… “ Fluttershy placed her basket on the ground and approached Twilight. “I don’t want to bother you, but are we close to the exit? I’m starting to think waiting for next year might not be such a bad idea.” “Well… “ Twilight opened the journal and flipped through it’s pages. “It’s hard to say. Bluezephyr took a few days to go from where we are to the Breezie Kingdom, but he was often going in circles. If we keep going this fast, we should reach the exit tomorrow. I just hope the wyvern nest he described has been abandoned after all those years.” Applejack stopped weaving a rope and looked at Twilight. “What in tarnation is a wyvern?” “It’s like a small dragon -” Twilight was interrupted as Fluttershy dove into the ground, trembling. “Dragon!” “Don’t worry, “ Twilight covered Fluttershy with a wing. “They are very small for a dragon, not much larger than a pony. And they don’t breathe fire. Perhaps you can even befriend them!” “Well…” “Come on, Fluttershy, this is just like camping!” Rainbow Dash in front of the campfire and reared, the light leaving flickering sinister shadows in his face. “Hey, how about some campfire stories?” Rarity and Applejack looked from Rainbow Dash to the cowering Fluttershy and said in a chorus, their eyes going wide: “No!” At her house, Flitter was pulling book after book from her bookshelf. “Where is it? I know I’ve seen it somewhere.” She stopped, looking down at the piles of books on the floor of her living room. Her chin suddenly lifted. “The box!” She zipped to her bedroom and, hovering, looked at the top of her wardrobe, where an old wooden box lay. Blowing away the dust, she opened the lid and smiled when she saw the book penned by her ancestral. “There! Now I can -” There was a knock on the door. And then another. Hastily closing the box, Flitter back to her living room and opened the door. On the other side was a small purple dragon, his eyes red, his crest listless. Flitter felt a pang of guilt. “Spike! What happened?” The small dragon sniffed. “Twilight is still missing, and Princess Celestia doesn’t know where to. I know you already told Princess Celestia and Princess Luna everything you know about it, but don’t you remember anything else? Please?” Flitter stepped outside and looked around; nopony in sight. She pulled Spike inside, closing the door. “Spike, can you keep a secret?”