//------------------------------//
// An Unwelcome Surprise  
// Story: Innocence Lost 
// by Granite 
//------------------------------//

It had been two days since the night at the dig site. Almost three, since it was currently one in the morning. Since then, she hadn't seen much of the archaeologist. She assumed he was in the forest. Fluttershy was up most of that night. Most of her animal friends were asleep, except for a few owls. She wasn't tired, she usually stayed up fairly late. 

Most of the lights were off, except one lamp and the red hot metal of the running stove which was boiling a pot of water so she could make pasta. She was sitting on the couch, reading a book under a blanket. Normally this would be her relaxation time, but tonight was different for several reasons. First, the wind had picked up, which made the Everfree Forest and the surrounding households a bit spooky. The wind howled like an animal. Trees seemed to take a eerie reaction, lazily scratching windows and letting leaves loose, and making residents jittery. Fluttershy was no exception. But she had lived through countless nights like this, and she had become rather accustomed to the windy night aura.

The main reason for her unease was Granite. She was on the fence about her feelings for him. She liked him. A lot. But she was totally clueless about where to go from there. She had a hard enough time getting to know ponies in a daily basis, but she had never really attempted anything beyond friendship. There were certainly stallions attracted to her, after all she was a model for some time, but she always denied any romantic advances. Her shyness was just too overwhelming. But now she was the other end of things. She liked him. But was it the other way around? Granite had been nice to her. But she remembered how easy going he was with Pinkie that first day. How he played off Rainbow's abrasive greeting. How he clicked with Twilight's princess problem. Maybe he was just...tolerant...of everypony...not just her.

She slumped down into the couch as her thought started to run rampant. She was talking out loud now. "Maybe Rarity could help. She at least knows more about relationships. Then again there's no way she could keep it quiet. She gossips way too much to let this slide under the radar. Last thing I need to be is a public conversation piece."

Her rant was interrupted by the timer for the stove. She got up quickly and turned the heat down a little so the bubbling water didn't spill over. She emptied a box of noodles into the pot, then set the timer again. 

She paced the kitchen for the ten minutes it took for the pasta to be ready. The timer went off , and she drained the noodles into a strainer. It made the room a little warmer. She fixed herself a bowl, and sat down to eat. She didn't get very far before she was stopped by a scratching sound from the other room. She ignored it, these nights it was probably a tree branch tapping on a window. Then it came again, and again. It was louder than what she was used to. 

She got up, thinking she left a window open or something. But when she got the the main room, the scratch came again, from the door. She stood for a moment. This was actually a common occurrence for her. Animals came knocking during storms, looking for shelter. She looked though the peephole to check. She gasped as a large, reptilian eye looked back at her. She hadn't seen anything like that. Maybe a dragon, but this was much too small for that. She slowly attempted to crack open the door, but she opened it too far, and the creature pushed her aside as it fumbled into her house. Then it was yanked back by something. A leash around it's neck. 

Fluttershy just took a few steps back. This was confusing. It took her a few seconds, but she cleared her head and opened the door all the way. Granite was at the other end of the leash, flapping his wings hard in the opposite direction, slowly dragging the thing out of her living room. She was less surprised than she should have been. Granite didn't know that all animals eventually made their way to her. Granite hadn't even seen her, because he had his eyes closed in exertion for what seemed to be a difficult wrangling. 

Fluttershy simply steeped out of the way onto her porch. She took a moment and looked at the animal. It was large and definitely a reptile, but no like any she'd seen before. It stomped around on two legs, three clawed toes on each foot. It had a narrow body and arms with three fingered hands. The hands had wicked looking claws on the fingers. It's tail was long, nearly doubling it's body length, and all down the length of it were small, dark green spines. It's neck was shaped like a winding "S", and at the top was a saurian head. It was typical for a reptile. A long snout with large, beady yellow eyes with the classic vertically narrow pupil. It also had finlike frills on either side of it's head, colored bight scarlet, a deep contrast do the dark green hide.

Fluttershy noticed something else. It had sharp teeth. Which of course meant it was a predator. Granite yanked once more, which pulled the animals back out of her house. The bipedal lizard stopped right in front of Fluttershy. She held her breath. She was nervous, but not scared. She yelped quickly. The thing didn't attack. Rather, it just stood there, sniffing her hooves. Then it licked her with a blue forked tongue. Then it prodded back to Granite, who was panting from the effort. 

He looked up while still panting. "Hi...there...Rassalif...isn't dangreous...and he...wanted to say...hi."

Fluttershy cocked her head. The big lizard also cocked it's own head, mimicking her. "Who's Rassalif."

Granite stood upright now. "The lizard. My pet. He's a Basilisk."

Fluttershy was more confuse now. "Basilisk? I've never head of them. Is it tame?

The lizard started making low hooting sounds as they talked. It reminded her of a cat purring. "Yeah he is. They don't live in Equestria. At least not anymore. They were relocated to the Draconian Isles hundreds of years ago, so nopony know what they are anymore." Rassalif sat down while they talked, curling his tail around his body. Granite absently stroked his head, and he closed his eyes in response. "He's very smart for a reptile. Training is easy for the guard there. They're used as pursuit units, but they form a unbreakable bond with their handlers. Think of him as a big, scaly, police dog."

Fluttershy had heard of the Isles. It was an tropical island chain off the south east coast of Equestria, apparently the homeland of the Dragons. Very few ponies ever went there, and those who do rarely came back. But not because it was dangerous. There was a maximum security prison there, where Equestria's most wanted were sent for banishment. Fluttershy started to think again. If this Basilisk was from the Isles, then Granite must have been there at some point or another. She thought of that navy blue stallion at the party. How he pegged Granite with hatred. It was no coincidence that Granite and him showed up at the same time. 

Fluttershy voiced her concerns. "That blue stallion...."

Granite stopped petting the lizard and looked at her with a more serious expression. "Yes. His name is Sideswipe, and he's an escaped convict from the detention center there. My dad is Commander Cobalt, head of security there. I used to live on the island with the soldiers. Rassalif was my tenth birthday present, and he's been loyal since he was a hatchling. Since my dad can't come out here, he asked me if I could track him down. I don't want to. My dad and I have never been on good terms, and I'm no solider. But it is a big problem. In exchange dad agreed to give Rassalif back to me permanently. Basilisk can hunt down prey from miles away. He'll have no problem tracking down Sideswipe."

Fluttershy tensed up. Rassalif was tracking a wanted criminal, which lead him to...

She stammered. "So...why are you here?"

Granite paused, then looked at the open door. "Because apparently Sideswipe's been in your house."