Where Night Meets Day

by _Medicshy


Home Away From Home

Cheerilee sat alone in the dark kitchen, staring at the headline from that morning's paper. She hadn't had any time to react before school, but now that class was finally done for the day she'd been able to give the lead story her full attention. 'Equestria in Ruins! Lunar Secession is Realized!' the title declared, with a picture of Scootaloo leading a retinue of ponies as they escaped the Royal Guard.

It was madness. Her little Scootaloo, that scared little filly she'd taken home and kept safe... It hadn't been that long, had it? She couldn't be so big. This couldn't be real. And yet, the photo stared at her, accompanied by rumors of guard movements and ponies gossiping fearfully in the streets. It had followed her everywhere, but it didn't strike home until she saw it for herself.

Tears ran down the aging teacher's face, counting all of the times she'd fallen short as a mother. When Scootaloo had been lost and hurt with all that talk of monsters, when her little filly had a foal much too soon, all of the times where her work had gotten in the way, where she had questioned her ability to raise a filly as a single young mare... This was proof that they were all founded. The mare she had raised, who she had been so proud of when she'd been made Captain of the Guard, had just betrayed Princess and country and started a rebellion...

What mother had ever done so poor a job?

From the doorway a soft sound was heard, a little voice, timid and sad. “Mom, are you alright?” The tiny silver pegasus had been watching for a while now, not sure what to do with her mother so down. She'd never seen Cheerilee cry in sadness once, the earth pony very careful about where she'd shown her weakness. To the little pegasus with no cutie mark, witnessing this was a sign that something was wrong in the world.

If only she had any idea how right she was. “N-no, sweetie. Mom isn't alright. Mom's... I'm worried about your m-... sister...” Seeing the confusion on Silver's face, Cheerilee motioned for her to come over, showing her the newspaper.

Silver looked at the paper for a little while, frowning as she tried to figure out how it had hurt mom. It had her big sister on the front! That was good all the other times it had happened. But even if she didn't know the words, the headline didn't sound good. “Did big sis do something wrong?”

“Scootaloo... She's...” Cheerilee froze at the innocent eyes of the filly before her, wondering if there was a good way to explain. How do you tell somepony that young that their world was about to be turned on its ear? “She helped a lot of ponies do something just... horrible.”

Silver held onto the paper, looking at the picture again closely. “They don't look like bad ponies. And big sis is awesome! If she wanted to do something, it can't be too bad. We can ask her when she comes to visit at Hearth's Warming!”

Cheerilee sniffed, the tears flowing as she tried to figure out how to keep the real news from her 'daughter'. “She won't be coming on Hearth's Warming, Silver. I don't think she'll be able to come visit again for a very, very long time.”

“Oh...” Silver's excited smile from her previous thought faded quickly, her mouth going into another pout as she thought about it. It didn't take long. “So you're crying because you miss her?”

“I already missed her... I'm crying because I've...” She sighed, feeling something fall out from the bottom of her heart. There was no hiding it. “I've failed her. I've failed both of you.” Something had broken inside Cheerilee at Silver's question, like a little dam in her heart had sprung open, and she sank to the floor to be closer to Silver and hug the little filly while she spoke. “I am so sorry for everything I've done wrong, all of the attention you've been denied... I'm sorry for every morning when I look into your eyes and see her and the biggest thing I failed to save her from. I wasn't good enough to be her mom... I'm not good enough to be anypony's. I'm so sorry...”

Cheerilee hugged Silver close to her chest, running a hoof lovingly through the little filly's mane while tears rolled from her cheeks, landing in that soft purple hair. However, as those small hooves squeezed into her side, returning the gesture, Cheerilee realized she wasn't the only one crying. She looked down only to see Silver's eyes looking back, her mother visible in every inch of them. “Don't cry, mom! You're the best mom in the world, better than any other mom I've seen! I know I'm too shy and sometimes I don't do good in my classes, but I'll try harder, momma! I will! Just... please don't send me away.”

Cheerilee's eyes went wide with shock. “Why would I send you away?”

Silver's tears kept coming, but her eyes continued to shine with worried hope as her words came spilling out. “I know I'm not the filly you want me to be. I know I wasn't even wanted. I was a mistake. And that's why big sis doesn't talk to me and doesn't write... She ran away because of me. Same as dad did, leaving you all alone and sad and Ididn'tmeantomakethathappenI'msorry!” Silver pulled her face into Cheerilee's chest, a wet spot forming almost immediately on the fur there.

Cheerilee shook her head in horror, appalled by the things Silver thought about herself. “Nonononononono... That's not it at all!” No wonder the little filly was so shy if she thought just existing had caused all of this. Her hoof returned to gently stroking Silver's mane, now trying to soothe the crying girl. “Silver Lining, you've got it all wrong. You are the most precious little filly any mother could hope to have. And even if you weren’t planned for, you were by no means a mistake. You were a choice, a gift! And on top of that, you let Scootaloo see what she really wanted to do with her life.”

She softly lifted Silver's chin so that they were looking at each other, trying to dry both her tears and her 'daughter's'. “When Scootaloo looked into those eyes, she saw herself and the things she had lost sight of. She left, not because she hates you, but because she loves you, and if she stayed, if she even talked to you too much, she might have never left. She loves you more than you will ever know, and she misses you every day, even if you don't see it and she's too busy to make it clear.

“As for your dad... I can't say much about him except that I'm glad you didn't meet him. After what he did to Scootaloo, I can only say he was a horrible stallion, and you're much better off for not knowing him.” Cheerilee let go of Silver's chin and looked to the kitchen floor, closing her eyes. “And as for why I'm sad... It's like I said, I thought I'd failed you both. I don't see what Scootaloo has planned, or what drove her to do it, and that frightens me to no end. And you... I somehow let you think even for an instant that you weren't wanted, and for that, I did fail you. But I promise with all my heart that I will never fail you again.”

Again Cheerilee felt the squeeze of small hooves as Silver hugged herself against her mom. “You didn't fail me, mom. You really are the best, kindest, most wonderfullest mom in all of Equestria, and I'm gonna be the best daughter you could ever hope for!” Cheerilee opened her eyes, now seeing the tearless determination glued to Silver's face as she looked up at her mother. Cheerilee matched it instantly, returning the hug her daughter was giving her.

“You already are.”

The bright morning sun swept its way over Equestria, bounding off of the fluffy snow and bringing just a little warmth to all of the sleeping wintery land. And, as it had for years, it launched through Flora's window, aiming directly for her eyes, only to be foiled by a heavy comforter drawn over her entire body. It had been trying to get her moving for nearly an hour now, but to no avail. For the first time in its long history, it had failed to rouse the industrious mare. She had finally defeated the sun.

On some other day, Flora might have celebrated or even noticed her victory. Under any normal circumstances she might even have cared about the heat building up in the direct light or the smell of the omlette congealing on her nightstand. But today, with her eyes redder than her mane and a wet spot under her right cheek, she remained firmly curled in a ball on her bed, wishing the day would just disappear.

She'd been having a similar wish for most of the night, and for much of the evening before it, borne straight from the icy chasm that had formed in her heart. She had been sad before, even felt crushed by the world when she heard about Newsprint's death, but it seemed a dull ache compared to this. Of course, it was how she expected to feel after the effects of the wintry dagger Jazz had shoved in her back and twisted, and yet it was so much worse than she could have imagined. Maybe, if she was lucky, somepony else would come along and finish the job.

But nopony did. For a moment she'd thought one such assassin had arrived, but it had turned out to be her mother, trying to fix a missing limb with a bandage and some kind words. When Rose had come in, Flora had been furious for the mare for even thinking she knew what she was going through. How could she? Her love hadn't betrayed her! Hadn't looked her in the eyes and spoken to her like she was worse than scum!

But now, with twenty minutes of silence and quite a few more tears soaked into her sheets, she knew how wrong her thoughts had been. No, Rose hadn't experienced the same, but her love had disappeared without a trace, leaving three young ponies and all the consequences of his actions to fall on her shoulders. It was a completely different kind of betrayal, far less upfront and much more lasting. Flora no longer blamed Rose for any of her actions those first few years... She didn't even blame her for the sulking she'd been doing a few months ago. If Rose had felt anything like Flora did now, she had just gained the full admiration of her aching daughter.

And, due to this realization, Rose had accomplished something that Lord Tirek, at the moment of his near triumph, couldn't have done with all the power under his command: she convinced Flora to get up and face the day. So, even though her hooves felt like iron and her throbbing head was filled with haze and berating thoughts, Flora managed to shove the covers off of her body and slump onto all four hooves on the floor. With a tired glare at the window and the happy light streaming in from it, Flora pulled herself up, standing in a slouch and ready to see what tortures the world held in store.

The first was the dish next to her bed. While it might have been somewhat appetizing when it was prepared so long ago, now it was cold and thick, looking more like something she'd spew from her mouth than something she'd put in it. Knowing her thoughts were harsh but not caring enough to get past the initial berating, Flora picked up the plate and opened the door to her room, feeling the cool air of an empty house sweep out the warm heaviness she'd been stewing in.

Her hooves dragged on each step as she made her way to the kitchen, feeling the happiness in the house from the night before. Where was the stale, depressing gloom her mother had built up for so many years? The one time she would have enjoyed it and instead she was assaulted by the aura of joy...

Standing at the kitchen sink, she had to stop and think about her next action. She wanted to just leave the plate there, but that was just a little too rude for her taste, no matter how tempting it was. With all of the unwashed dishes, she could properly compost the meal and clean things up, but that required a level of effort her leaden hooves refused to allow today. Torn between the two decisions, she was saved by the feel of a freezing wet nose bumping into her left flank.

Moments later the begging had ceased, Dot was happily chewing away at the bonus meal, and the dirty plate was tossed onto the others while Flora considered a more appropriate snack at the pantry. The first thing her eyes landed on were a pile of apples, still fresh and juicy, from Sweet Apple–

With the offending fruit sliding down the opposite wall in a pulpy mess, Flora grabbed a pear from the stock and walked from the kitchen, grumbling loudly. If any of her plants had been fruiting in the greenhouse she might have left without any sort of snack, but after her accident with the rapid growth of the zap apple tree seed, she'd been lucky to only lose her produce section and not any of her long term projects. If one of his trees had damaged my crystal bush... she started to growl in her head as she made her way back upstairs.

Once in her room again, the same room with the same posters she'd wanted to get rid of for years, she scowled at the snowy windowsill outside, knowing it would be cold out there. She found the small watering pail and took care of the plants in her room, then reached for the desk, only to find her hoof tapping down on empty wood. She was about to start looking around when she remembered where that long-held accessory was now. “He can keep his bucking kerchief,” she apparently said to the closet as she dug through it. “I don't want to see the thing anyway.”

She dug through the closet for a little while longer, then growled in frustration, slamming the door shut, unable to find the ear muffs or scarf she'd tossed in there years ago and forgotten about since. As she turned to look for her hat, her bed called to her from the corner of her eye, its draw magnetic for her poor leaden hooves. But as much as her messy cover called for her to crawl beneath it again, promising the world would stop this time, she fought it, jamming her hat on her head, jamming the pear she wasn't really hungry for into her mouth, and walking down to the front door. Swallowing the slightly bland pear that might as well have been chalk for how much she cared about its taste, she grabbed her keys from the door, feeling them hanging loose on their string around her neck as she stepped out into the world.

Flora wasn't four steps from the door when she was already regretting her decision, the snow around her ankles chilling her heavy hooves. And just as she reached the next street corner, a cool draft pulled against her fur, particularly the exposed area around her neck. The keys immediately became bitingly cold, chilling her with every step as they jingled lightly against her chest, the only sound in the air besides the snow crunching underhoof. Despite her mother's promise that ponies would be going about their lives, the streets were completely clear, even the market seemingly shut down due to weather.

She turned at another street, gazing down the long, empty road to her greenhouse. It was so far away, and the plants could survive a day without water... They'd probably be good for a week, really, maybe more since she'd treated them so kindly previously. With the chill in her hooves working its way up to her knees, Flora turned on the spot, allowing her cold hooves to drive her decision making as well. Before she could actually move, however, a flurry of snow flew up into her face as Silver landed quickly in front of her, her excitement spilling over into her quick motions.

“Flora! Glad I caught you on your way home. Did you know there's another pegasus in town?” Flora opened her mouth to say something, feeling the energy sapping out of her as she watched Silver bounce in place, but any response she had was trampled by Silver's enthusiasm. “It's true! I saw her while I was getting rid of a few unruly clouds from the morning snowfall. She was walking towards the castle with a unicorn, chatting away about... something. I dunno, I couldn't hear, but still! A pegasus in Ponyville! Where do you think she's visiting from? Where do you think she's staying? I wonder if she'd help out with the weather next week. I'm supposed to put together a blizzard and I just don't know if I'm going to be able to without pulling a few all-nighters...”

“That was my sister, Silver, so you could just come over and ask.”

Silver's jaw dropped. “That was Wind Key? The little twerp we had that epic paint war with at the clubhouse?” Flora gave a tired nod. “Wow... You know, I thought I almost recognized her. Must have been the bandana and the ear muffs. Almost made her look like she had your mom's mane on as a wig.” Silver chuckled a little at that, but it died off with Flora's apathy toward joining in. In the silence that followed, Silver suddenly got a very puzzled look on her face. “Wait, didn't she go over to the other side after Cloudsdale fell? What's she doing back now? And who's the unicorn she's with?”

Flora was starting to shiver from the cold, her head low to the ground as, more and more, her thoughts were returning to her sad, lonely, but impressively warm bed. “I don't know, she'd managed to show up before I got home last night. Her friend had some sort of trouble on the other side and they both came over... I didn't catch much after I finished welcoming her back. I was... out of it.”

Silver nodded. “I can see why. You look terrible, Flora. Did you get any sleep at all last night? Or did your duet get a little out of hoof?”

Another icicle lodged itself in Flora's heart and she glared at the friend that had reminded her. “That's definitely one way of putting it...”

Silver took a step back from the thick barbs in Flora's voice, realizing she was missing something big. Only a brief moment of looking Flora over let her pin the problem. “Wait a second... You're normally headed to the farm right now. Where's your violin? For that matter, where's your kerchief?” Silver's eyes met Flora's for the briefest of moments before Flora looked away. Immediately the tone of Silver's voice went from inquisitive to caring. “What happened? What's wrong?”

Flora was very tempted to stomp off home and forget this whole thing had happened, but she remembered her mother's advice. There was no friend closer to her than Silver, especially right now. Silver deserved to know. The question was, would Silver side with Jazz or her? “We had an argument yesterday afternoon. He said he was going to give me his orchard and go join the war, I said he was crazy. We yelled at each other for a while... He started saying all sorts of stupid things about the war, and when I told him the war was stupid he called me a traitor and 'some fool coward pegasus'... I didn't stick around after that.”

“No...” Silver sounded heartbroken, or she would have if Flora wasn't the one giving the perfect example of what that voice actually sounded like. “You two were adorable together! But if he's talking about traitors and cowardly pegasi, I really hope you didn't just walk out in a huff.”

Flora shook her head, smiling a little grimly despite herself. “I may have bucked him across the greenhouse...”

Silver smiled back, throwing a hoof around Flora's neck and pulling her into a sidelong hug. “Thatta girl! Knock some sense into the guy. That must've set him straight.”

“Maybe, but...” Flora sighed again, remembering the trial getting home was the night before. “I left the violin and his kerchief behind and told him he was the one canceling our duet. Since he didn't stop me or come after me... I'm pretty sure we're broken up.”

Silver shook her head, giving Flora an encouraging hug. “If he's gonna act like that, it's probably for the best. Maybe when all this is over he'll see what he gave up and come crawling back.” The words brought Flora a little bit of hope, but they couldn't budge the sadness that had a hold on her face. Seeing that, Silver just smiled, shaking her friend gently to get her out of her stupor. “Hey, you want me to walk you home? I know this awesome recipe for kettle corn that'd go great with a board game. It'd go good with a movie too, but we'd have to head to my house for that, and I'd have to convince mom to set up the projector...”

Flora shook her head, looking down the street at her original destination. Her hooves weren't feeling nearly so cold anymore, but she knew a good place to warm them up. “Actually, I was going to my greenhouse. I'm running a little behind on my day.”

Silver nodded, taking the hint. “Ah, well, I'll just leave you to it. But I can come back in a few hours, or meet you at your house and find something to do. We should have a girl's night, just you and me, if you're up for it.”

“Maybe we can plan it out once we get in the greenhouse.” Flora started down the street, unsurprised when Silver started to take off behind her. She also wasn't surprised when Silver reappeared in her vision, hovering just above the snow and looking completely perplexed.

“Wait, did you just say what I think you said?”

Flora gave Silver a warm smile from the bottom of her heart, a piece only warm thanks to Silver's efforts so far. “I said we could talk about our plans in the greenhouse.”

Silver gasped silently, her forehooves covering her mouth as she held her breath, certain her ears were playing tricks on her. She'd thought she'd taken the hint, but maybe she'd just been inventing it this time.

Flora laughed at Silver's antics, the simple act feeling so good after her night and morning without it. “Yes, that means you're invited in. Just don't repeat the cactus incident and this might not be the last time.” Silver soared into the air in a giant loop before doing a long corkscrew turn to meet Flora at the greenhouse door. Flora shook her head at the display, but inside she couldn't even pretend to regret it. Even if there was a cactus incident repeat, it was worth it for her best friend.

She unlocked the door, pushing it open wide and stepping into her secondary home, the familiar feeling immediately comforting, lifting her spirits and energizing her with the sight of all of the life around her. Silver came in right behind, entering it as though it were some sort of ancient sacred grotto, not a small plastic building outside the back of a florist's place. Silver even made it a point to hold her wings close to her side after she almost knocked over a tray of freshly planted seeds, only barely keeping the pots from smashing on the dirt floor.

This was entirely missed by Flora, though, who was staring at the crystal bush in the center of the room in wonder. It might have been her tiredness or the cold having some adverse effect on her addled mind, but it seemed like the long stagnant plant was taller and fuller than it had been the day before. As she got a closer look at it, she heard a whistle come from behind her.

“Woah... You'd never guess it was winter with all the flowers in here. And it's so warm!” Silver walked around the room, looking at all of the plants lined up on every surface and near every wall. Only once she completed that and looked towards Flora did she notice the centerpiece of the room, letting out another impressed whistle. “Is that your secret project? The one you got your cutie mark from?” She walked closer, examining one of the perfectly square, green-tinted transparent leaves before looking curiously at something. “Hey, what are these little bulby things?”

Flora ran around the crystal rose bush, delicately lifting up the leaves to get a better look. As soon as she did, she held her breath in wonder, sure she had to be dreaming this. “It's a flower bud. It's finally going to bloom!”

Silver was impressed and lost all at the same time. “You mean it hasn't bloomed before? You've been growing it for years, and all the other plants look amazing.”

Flora shook her head. “It hasn't had a single blossom since the day I grew it and got my cutie mark. In fact, it's barely grown at all in almost eight years...” She had no clue what had stopped the plant's growth, but it had halted without dying, still taking in water and sunshine but never getting any larger. It had gotten to the point where she had stopped taking measurements of its height after two months without any growth. But she knew the plant was magical, and magic did as it would, with or without her input. For it to be flowering, something must have changed.

“So why's it growing now?” Silver asked, her own curiosity overlapping with Flora's

That is a very good question.”

“I don't know why you're so mad, Wind. We sort of expected this,” Steam said as she trotted lightly on the snow beside her pouting pegasus friend. “I mean, really, with all of the Ministers of Friendship gone and the nation in the middle of a war, why would they still be doing tours of the castle?”

Wind's scuffed her hoof on the ground, kicking up a small flurry of annoyance as she went. “Because it's a national landmark! It's not like they closed the Timbucktu Museum of Modern Machinery down for the war!”

Steam took a step sideways, looking at Wind strangely. “Yeah they did. It shut down a couple years ago because it wasn't getting enough business and the town didn't have funding.”

Wind stopped, looking at Steam incredulously. “Really?”

“Yeah.”

The pegasus visibly slumped, her hooves sinking deeper into the snow as though a weight had been added to them. “Great! It's not like that place was super awesome and making me feel there was more to the world than the front lines...” Her hooves dragged as they walked past the fountain in the center of town and entered the market district, but as soon as they crossed some invisible line she was back to her happy walk, the weight gone. “Oh well, not our problem anymore. We have a gem grinder to test and you have a shop to be amazed by.”

“Don't worry about the gem grinder. I didn't think they'd let us cut up the castle anyway, but I'm sure it'll work just fine when we do find something to use it on. If only we'd thought to test it in the caves...” Quiet descended like snowflakes, gently coating the pair as the walked through the serene silence of town. In the city, no matter the weather or situation, there were ponies everywhere, and even nature had its own rustlings and noises to fill in the space, but none of that could be found in Ponyville, sleeping under its blanket of snow.

Steam shivered as her hooves crunched along, making her try to hold her ears against her head to keep them warm in her puffy mane. Now that it wasn't being dedicated to hide her horn, her mane lay lower on her head, a bit more like a cloud and less like cotton fluff piled in the center. Despite its body, it didn't do much to stop the winter chill. “How far are we from your mother's shop?”

“Just a couple of blocks,” Wind said as they neared a corner. Rounding it, Steam found Wind's wing being held in front of her face, the pink ear muffs hanging from the tip. “Here, I don't really need them right now.”

Smiling, Steam picked up the accessory in her magic, sliding it comfortably on her head with one smooth motion. If it had been another blizzard like they'd run into out in the wild, she wouldn't have dared do anything to make her friend collapse again, but since Wind didn't seem too bothered, Steam wasn't too worried. She was ready to transfer her scarf at the first sign of shivers, though.

Steam's preparations were unnecessary as, a few minutes later, Wind came to a stop, turning to the building next to them and motioning to it. There was a sign above the door, worn a little by the years, but still brightly proclaiming in delicate script that the building was 'Rosewater.' Wind motioned for Steam to open the door, speaking as she did. “Here it is! Rosewater! The best perfumery outside of any city, and probably better than a good few in them.”

“I see why there weren't any display windows,” Steam said as she looked inside at the bare bones store. The sign on the door had read open, but with the rows upon rows of nearly empty shelving it was hard to believe. The air even had a musty smell to it. Not the array of beautiful, sometimes overpowering smells one would expect from a perfume shop, but the smell of a place once loved that had fallen into disuse. Still, if the delicate crystal phials on the shelves were anything to go by, the place must have been amazing in its heyday.

Wind filed in behind her friend, looking around with a slight frown on her face. “Mom always used to be worried that the madness around Ponyville would break large windows too often to have them installed. I can see your point too, though.” She walked over to the counter, hopping over it with a flutter of her wings before turning the knob and revealing the back room. “Mom! We're here!”

“Wonderful! Come on in, I was just lining up the supplies.” The voice was barely a whisper by the time it reached Steam heading towards the counter. The voice must have been buried somewhere deep in the back room, for it filtered out in a metallic sound that immediately got Steam curious. Wind had already entered the room by the time Steam reached the door, but the sight beyond it stunned the unprepared unicorn in her tracks.

Brass pipes spanned the ceiling and much of the floor, creating a complicated network as intricate as a spider's web. These ran between large brass vats, mostly boilers attached to and powering machines Steam couldn't recognize at a glance. Unlike the last room, this one smelled of woods and fruit and flowers, the smells of ages seeping from the very floor. It was powerful, even when a glance to the side of the room showed materials were low.

Even though they showed no real decoration, the machines themselves were made with tender love and care. That much was obvious. They were all custom, hoof built from scratch, with each rivet carefully placed and each weld thoroughly considered. From the delicate fixtures and faucets to the gleaming edges of the valves and gauges they all bore the mark of true dedication. A dedication that had faded only recently, where pipes had rusted or busted and the slightest patina of neglect removed the sheen from the machines. There were patches of new metal on some of the machines, but all of them showed much wear and tear.

Steam's attention was brought back when she was bumped to the side, almost falling over from just the simple tap. She looked over to see Wind smiling impishly. “I hoped your reaction would be something like this.”

Steam walked around the nearest boiler slowly, running her hoof over the smooth metal, the brass from her own shoe causing it to ring. “Who built these?”

“That would be me,” came Rose's voice from behind Steam, causing her to spin around. In the center of the room, with the piping overhead like a weaved metal ceiling and the machines all evenly spaced around, there was a work table, at which sat the older earth pony looking at a large sheet of brass, a few more at her side.

Steam looked impressed, wondering after the delicious cooking of the morning and the night before how many skills Rose actually had. “The craftsmareship on these things is amazing, if a tad dated by today's standards. The dedication you show in these is remarkable, and that they have kept through so many repairs just shows that it's been being done by a master.”

Rose waved the compliments away with a hoof, a blush spreading on her cheeks. “Oh, no, no, it was simply necessary to do what my cutie mark was telling me to do, and I followed it as best as I could. The designs I took from the Royal Perfumery in Canterlot, scaled down, and I only added a few machines as technology tried to advance past me. I'm really not very good with metal, just dedicated to the scents these things can create.”

Steam smiled, inwardly glad to have finally made Rose the one feeling slightly uneasy even as she looked at the mare in awe. “Well the dedication certainly shows.” Taking a quick scan of the damages and the tools Rose had set out, Steam's wide eyed gaze narrowed a little, her face becoming more serious. “This damage could be fixed in a few hour's work, but I'm afraid you don't have everything you need. Where is your welding torch and how are you cutting the brass?”

Rose sighed at the question. “I was just asking myself that second question. I ran out of fuel for both the welder and the cutter some time ago, I guess, and I must have been operating on luck since then. But that has run out, it seems, and it'll take forever to get a refill on the gas canisters.”

“You know, Steam's crazy good at welding and shaping things with her magic. She made a surprising amount of pieces for the Ready Wings right on the spot.” As soon as the words left her mouth, Wind went quiet, almost looking angry with herself.

Rose didn't notice Wind's turmoil, instead looking impressed by Wind's comment. “Really?” Rose asked as she looked at Steam. “You did all that? Those wings look truly marvelous, particularly if they fly like you and Wind said. Though I'm surprised you were able to do all of that with brass, considering its anti-magic properties.”

Steam seemed much more surprised than anything else as she shook her head, a blush now appearing on her cheeks. “Oh, well, I don't know about all of that, but I did have to do quite a few of the last welds and cuts with my magic once Wind couldn't use all of her tools. But my special talent is as much in enchanting brass objects as it is in building them.” She tapped the tip of her hoof nervously on the floor, making her brass slipper clink off of it. Rose seemed curious, but didn't press any further. However, after a few moments in silence, Steam continued of her own accord. “If you'd like, I could try to do the fixes for you. It might take a day or two running solely on magic, but I would be more than happy to help.”

“If you would be willing to help an old mare out, you could take all the time in the world...” Rose smiled warmly, though it faded into a smirk rather quickly. “Well, not all the time, since I should really be sending out the orders by the end of the week, but at least a few days.” She placed down the brass sheet she'd been holding, looking more than a little relieved that the work wasn't going to be in her hooves. “Would you require any help? It is my shop, after all, I should probably at least lend a hoof.”

“It's fine, uh, Rose,” Steam looked a bit awkward using the name, but managed to recover well. “I'm not sure how much of your time wouldn't just be spent sitting around waiting, and I'm sure you've got more important things to do.”

A bemused smile made its way onto Rose's face. “I'm sure, too...” She walked over to the door to the shop, turning around to see Steam already focusing on one of the broken pipes, the unicorn's magic wrapping around the space and lighting it with the golden glow. Rose then turned to Wind. “Is there anything you'd like to do, dear, since your friend is preoccupied?”

Wind hesitated, looking at Rose, then at Steam, who looked back, wondering why there was worry on the pegasus' face. “I think I'll stay here for a little bit, if that's alright?” She seemed to be asking that question to Steam as much as Rose, and Steam nodded, still confused by her friend's behavior. “I promise I won't get in her way,” Wind finished, looking solely towards Rose.

The older mare's faint smile faded slightly. “Alright, then. See that you don't. Lock up if you leave, I left the key on the workbench. I'll be at home if you need me.” Rose closed the door behind her slowly, leaving the two refugees alone in her shop.

As soon as the door was closed, Steam spoke, though she continued to focus on the metal she was shaping. “You know, I don't have anything for you to do, either. It'll mostly just be you watching me shape and weld things.”

Wind sat down next to the workbench, smiling as she did so. “That's fine. I've always enjoyed watching you work. I just hope you don't mind the company.”

The brass sheet fell to the ground as Steam turned to Wind, analyzing her friend. “Okay, this is weird, what is wrong with you today?” Wind started to respond with an 'I don't know.' but Steam cut her off. “I mean, you've been acting weird ever since we got into town! You've been all smiles, but it's more than that. You're... guarded and edgy behind that grin. So what's up?”

“There's nothing wrong, really.” Wind looked Steam in the eyes and it was immediately apparent that she was lying.

“You can't just—!” Steam started, but she stopped, remembering all of the times she'd done the exact same thing to Wind. Wind had never pushed her into answering, it really wouldn't be fair for her to do the same. “Never mind...” She picked up the sheet of metal in her magic, working out the dents before suddenly giving it over to Wind. “Could you finish curling that into a pipe? I know you can't cut or weld it, but if you could get the shape and curl the rest of it into three more that'd speed up the process.”

Wind looked a little surprised by the task, but as soon as she was given it she went to work, using the tools Rose had left behind and her own knowledge to the best of her abilities. Meanwhile, Steam focused her attention on the more minor patches, starting by removing a nearby valve and sizing up some metal to replace the fixture.

A few silent minutes later, as Steam was welding the piece in place, she started talking again. “It must be nice to be home after so long away. And your mother was so thrilled to see you last night.”

Wind snorted as she continued shaping pipework. “Yeah, the parts of town that are still open are lovely.”

Sparks flew from the heated metal beneath Steam's horn, but she wasn't paying it more attention than it needed. “The war hasn't been kind anywhere, it seems. But at least the ponies here aren't trying to kill us.”

Another snort, followed by a hammer striking the brass sheet a little too forcefully. “Not openly, and so long as we stick to the ground and keep our heads down, we'll be perfectly safe.”

Steam blew on the newly attached fixture, futilely helping it to cool before she moved to another small weak spot on a different machine. “Well, I spent five years keeping my head down, I'd say I've gotten pretty used to it by now. Though I suppose I will miss walking through my own apartment with my head held high after a job well completed. Though that was only really a feature of my last few months there.” Her horn lit up again, starting the slow process of cutting out a patch from the sheet of brass. She'd gotten a lot of practice with this over the last few months thanks to Wind, but it was so very different now that she wasn't also maintaining the silence spell or fighting with her own mane. Just these few minutes of work felt surprisingly liberating.

Unfortunately, Wind wasn't feeling the same way as she flew up to the broken pipe, trying to eyeball the angle she'd need to turn her work. “Maybe you can give me some pointers. I never was very good at keeping my head out of the clouds.” Wind's voice lowered to a mutter, but it bounced off of the metal in the room, still managing to reach Steam clearly. “It's the reason I left this place to begin with...”

The magical aura slicing through the metal stopped as Steam popped her head out from behind the boiler she was working on. “So, I don't think I ever asked. What brought you to Timbucktu? Was it just looking for your father?”

Wind sighed loudly, letting out some of the frustration of her work. She'd always had issues with machinery larger than her hoof. “Do you really want to know? Because my search for dad was the main reason, and I never even found him.”

Steam ducked behind the boiler again, continuing work on her cut. “I am curious. I'm sure part of it was because they were driving the pegasi out of the empire like they were driving unicorns out of the Republic, too. But your mom seems like she'd have gone with you if not for your sister.”

“It's not Flora's fault mom didn't go. It's my brother's.” The hammer came down sharply, pinging the pipe directly into shape, but the noise echoed through the room.

“I didn't know you have a brother.”

“Had.” The hammer fell again, piercing the silence that immediately fell around that little three letter word. “You saw that helmet in the corner of the dining room, right? The Battle Beneath Cloudsdale, Division 17, less than a week out of training.” Again the hammer fell, its impact resounding and furious. “Newsprint had no reason to be there. He'd been drafted, and though he had multiple reasons not to go, my father's 'betrayal' included, he went anyway so the Guard would get off of mom's back.” Clang! cried the hammer, forced through the motions whether it liked them or not. “And it wasn't even an enemy that killed him. It was his own side, raining fire on the battlefield, on a city under their control! Just to wipe out a force less than a quarter the size it had sent!” CLANG! the hammer raged, not caring if it created or destroyed with its strike. “He was my best friend! The kindest stallion anyone would know! And in an instant he was gone, not even a puff of smoke to remember him by!”

CLANG! CLANG! Cla-clunk. the hammer stopped, the fuel behind it gone as the young mare holding it breathed heavily on the brass plate. “What kind of nation would do that to its own?” Clang. “What kind of leader would ignore the warnings of their friend? Would call him a traitor even as they went to war with their own kin?” CLANG. “What kind of Princess would hunt down and prosecute any pegasus that didn't leave her lands after they sought retribution for the destruction of their oldest city?!” CLANG!! “NOT THE KIND THAT I WOULD EVER WANT TO BE UNDER!”

The hammer swung again, bending the brass it had been shaping and sending the whole sheet crashing to the ground. It was soon joined by the tool, slipping from Wind's hoof as she sat tiredly at the workbench. “I pleaded with my mother and my sister, I tried to convince them to come with me, to find dad and help set this whole thing straight, because there had to be a mistake. There just had to. But mom wouldn't leave after Newsprint's ‘noble sacrifice,’ and Flora couldn't bring herself to leave mom all alone. So I went without them, galloping over the border and never looking back. And I searched, through Manehattan, through Trottingham, all up and down the coast...” She sighed. “I don't even know what rumor brought me to Timbucktu, tired and hungry... I have no clue how my luck brought me to Clockwork, and I really don't know what made me stay in the city, but... I was happy, for a while. I had found a new dream and even found a place to work on it. Since chasing my father had done nothing, maybe, if I stayed in one place, he'd come find me...”

She sighed. “But he didn't, and now I'm here, under Celestia's hoof once more, with nothing to show for it but the friend I dragged out of her home and the perfect apology to my mother... What should have been a triumph of engineering turned into a pitiful whimper for forgiveness. Maybe it would have been better for me to fall that day...”

“Don't you dare even think that.” Steam came out from behind the boiler, her eyes tearing up from her friend's story, but her face fully focused after what she'd just heard. “I already apologized for my stupid words in the mountains and I'm still sorry they ever made it out of my mouth, but don't you even think for a moment that you'd be better off dead. I have never once truly regretted catching you and I never ever will.”

“Why did you catch me?” Wind asked, her curiosity fighting against the defeat on her face. When Steam looked blindsided by the question, Wind made it clearer. “You had just spent five years hiding your magic and yourself away from anypony, especially one of the crazy pegasi that would have killed you... and yet you caught me, a pegasus you didn't know and had never spoken to. Why?”

It took Steam a long time to answer, and not because she didn't know the answer, but because she didn't think Wind would like to hear all of it. However, after everything she'd just been told, there had to be a give and take... She had a lot of giving still to do, no matter how much it would hurt. “Honestly, if I had known you were a pegasus, I might not have. After everything I'd been through, after all of the torment, the hiding, being driven from my home, only to be forced to hide in it once more... I would have let a pegasus fall, like they had done to me.” Her eyes were hard at the memory, replayed in her head so often it could no longer bring her fear.

It could only remind her of the wonder she had discovered the next morning, watching the sun rise over the glittering city, and with that she shook her head, the hardness of her expression gone. “But at that time you weren't a pegasus. You were a pony, one who had just soared over the tree tops in the most fantastic invention I had ever seen, like a lighthouse shining in the darkest storm. I was captivated by those metal wings, and when they broke... I couldn't let the creator of such beauty die, no matter what happened to me as a result.” She looked sheepishly at the ground. “I thought I'd put you down and get away to hide from the renewed hunt for a unicorn. I never thought you'd fly after me, and in my wildest dreams I never would have thought you'd be so kind, especially now that I heard about your brother. I would have thought you would have hated unicorns!”

Wind had been about to hug her friend, but at that last sentence, she stopped in her tracks, backing up slightly. “I can't hate unicorns. Unicorns didn't start this war or kill my brother, even if they sent the killing blow his way. The nation, the system itself, is corrupt... not like in the NLR. They might not look much better, and some of the things they do are downright horrible, but... the system is fine, it's the ponies that are the problem there. But ponies can be fixed, or taught, or simply worked around. You can't work around the government when it falls apart. No matter how many patches you place on it or fixes you try to splice in, if the underlying system is corrupted through, it can only be fixed when it is torn to the ground and built anew.”

Silence reigned over the two, holding the possibility of any manner of things. Each of the young mares looked at the other, reading the way they held themselves, their every movement, just waiting for something to slip and more to fall into light. However, after heavy seconds of the standoff, it ended simply with Wind reaching for her dropped work and beginning to bang out the dents the floor had made. “Luckily, we don't need to do a full repair on mom's shop. Just a patch job.” She smiled as she lifted the work to examine it, catching Steam's reflection still staring at her. “With work like this, you'd think mom's cutie mark was for engineering machines, not scents.”

Steam continued to look at Wind's face in the reflection. She saw the too-wide smile, the projected confidence, the way Wind's eyes would waver with worry, all so subtle many ponies would have missed it. Even Rose, after those years of separation, might not have caught the signs, but Steam could read them loud and clear. Slowly she walked up to Wind and, looking at the slightly startled face in the reflection, wrapped her arms around Wind from behind, pulling her into a warm hug. “You don't need to pretend for me, Wind. I don't blame you for what happened.”

The metal hit the table with another clatter as Wind tried to spin around and do anything in reaction to the affection behind her. “I didn't—”

“No. You didn't know what Clockwork would do. You didn't even know what I would do when you came looking for me, but that time in Timbucktu, cramped with you in that little apartment, those were the happiest days of my life.”

“But—”

Steam only squeezed Wind tighter, nuzzling against her cheek lightly in appreciation. “But they do not compare to the time that has come since. Even through the hardships, through the stress and the fear, you were there with me, supporting me as I saw and experienced things other ponies could only dream of. There are no words to express how much that time meant to me except for these...” She gently spun Wind around to face her, keeping her hooves on Wind's shoulders and smiling warmly as she looked the conflicted pegasus in the face. “The journey is over. You don't need to keep hiding behind a fake smile. I only want to see a real one.”

A brief impulse hit Steam then, causing her to pause and blush, but mentally she pushed it aside. This moment was too important for awkwardness. “So let it out. I am here for you, just as you've always been for me. Even if we’re chased all the way to the zebra lands, that isn't going to change.”

It seemed to take a moment for the words to actually reach Wind, but when they did the effect was immediate. Tears appeared at the edges of her eyes, and though she didn't say anything, she did lunge into a hug with Steam. There were no words, there were no sobs, just a constant gentle squeeze of gratitude that carried on and on, which Steam was glad to return for as long as it was needed.

Eventually, though, the moment and the silence grew awkward, causing Wind to pull away, though she still smiled at Steam. “Thank you” was all she said, and all she needed to say, before she picked up the piece she'd been working on once more, being much more careful with the hammer than she had been previously.

Before Wind could get too carried away, however, Steam spoke once more. “You know, I was serious when I said I could do the work on my own. You could still go and catch up with your mother, if you'd prefer.”

Wind thought about it for a moment, placing the completed piping on the worktable and looking around the room. Apart from a little dust and a few patches, it hadn't changed since she'd left. She really wouldn't gain anything from staying here. And yet, when her eyes fell on Steam, she could only shake her head. “No, I think I'd rather stay here. Mom and I will have plenty of time to catch up, and any project done alone isn't nearly as much fun.” She then stood up, saluting Steam playfully. “So what's the task, boss?”

Steam smiled, thinking of the list of damages she'd have to fix, then comparing it to what Wind could do without tools. With a slight pout, she shrugged. “I dunno, I'll think of something.” She had no clue what could be done by the pegasus, but it really didn't matter. Who said she had to do anything but sit there and smile?

As long as Wind kept smiling, Steam was sure the time would just fly by.

Rose fussed about the kitchen as the sun began to set, moving between the various parts of the dish she was preparing and frowning slightly as she did. Cooking wasn't the issue, and neither was that she was doing so solo, as she often did. It was more that she wished she could have come home and done... anything at all.

She was feeling unnecessary again, a bad sign this early in the winter season. Already her garden was sleeping, nestled beneath its blanket of snow, and when she'd come home, ready to offer support to her down daughter laying in bed, she was almost a little disappointed to learn her earlier speech had taken. Of course, knowing Flora was recovering and out and about was wonderful, but it had left her feeling like a carriage with a missing wheel, wandering in circles and waiting for somepony to set her right. Finally she'd taken to reading to distract herself. Unfortunately, after a couple dozen pages, she realized she had not only read the book before, but that the book had been one written by her husband, and that brought up a completely different set of feelings she didn't want to think about right now.

It had taken her a long soak in a therapeutic bubble bath to let herself relax, and with the approach of dinner time, at least she could still be a good mother and round the day off well. She was just putting the finishing touches on it when she heard the front door open, bringing with it a stiff breeze and two sets of hooves. Knowing the food would have to cool, she walked out into the living room, talking as she went. “Dinner is cooling down, and I went for something a little weird, but I was feeling fancy and there were some...” Her thought trailed off as she saw Flora next to a pegasus, but not the one she had been expecting. “Silver! Long time no see! How are you this evening?”

Silver Lining smiled warmly, tapping the snow off of her hooves before shutting the door. “I'm doing great, Mrs. Rose. How are you?”

“Just fine, thank you.” Rose never had been able to get Silver to break that naming habit, but she wasn't going to start complaining about it now when she saw Flora's tired eyes looking surprisingly excited. “I'm glad to see you took my advice, Flora. It seems to have already done you wonders.”

Flora nodded. “The crystal bush is getting ready to bloom! I have no clue what caused it, but when I went in today, it was budding!”

Silver rolled her eyes, but smiled anyway. “She wouldn't stop going on and on about the thing and refused to leave the place until she'd measured everything about it and was sure it wouldn't grow in front of her. Eventually I went and got a deck of cards and made some popcorn while I was waiting.”

Silver's commentary did little to stop Rose's excitement for her daughter. “That's great! I knew that you would eventually get it to grow again.” She gave Flora a hug, then motioned to the dining room. “Well, now the stuffed mushrooms feel more like a fancy celebration. Did you see your sister anywhere?”

Both of the younger mares shook their head, with Silver being the one to actually speak. “I was coming over to say 'hi' to the filly and ask her a few questions. You mean she isn't here?”

Rose frowned. “She must still be working with her friend in the perfumery...” She considered the options quickly, then went over to the closet, getting an ivy green scarf and a matching set of snow shoes. “Since you two just spent all day out there, I'll go and get them while you set the table, okay? I'll be back soon.”

“Are you sure you don't want me to fly over?” Silver offered as she backed away from the door, unfurling her wings for emphasis. “I could get there and back faster'n you can say—”

“No, it's quite alright. I could use the walk anyway,” Rose said, pulling open the door and bringing the night air into the house. “It won't be very long at all. And I'll let Cheerilee know you're staying over for dinner on the way back.” With a smile that nopony could argue with Rose closed the door behind her, stepping out into the crisp winter's night.

Walking into her shop a few minutes later, she was disappointed to find it dark and cold. She wasn't sure what she expected, but if they were hard at work, surely the heat of it would have carried over one room. As she rounded the counter to the back room, it was one of a very small number of times she wished the soundproofing wasn't so good. It kept the sounds of the machinery away from the customers, but it also meant she couldn't hear something crashing down until the last second. That had been a real issue when Wind had gotten to flying age... Hopefully her little filly hadn't done nearly as much damage while unsupervised this time.

Rose had to squint as she pushed the door open, the light beyond seeming dazzling compared to the darkness in the shop. She soon found out, however, that it would have been dazzling even on a bright sunny morning as all of the boilers and machines on this side of the room were polished to a mirror shine. The first mare she saw inside was her own bewildered self, but after walking around the boiler, she was able to see the two she had come to collect hard at work. Steam's face was skewed in concentration as she tried to fit a pipe she had crafted into the place a damaged one used to reside. Meanwhile, Wind had managed to get her hooves covered in oil and her wings covered in wax as she performed maintenance on the few moving parts of the older machines and shined their exteriors to show their quality. Even as Rose watched, Wind was testing a previously squeaky valve, her wings gliding over the machine behind her and slowly bringing it to the same shining level as all of the others.

The first to notice the older mare was Steam as she walked towards the workbench in the center of the room, preparing to begin the next repair. She smiled and waved Rose over as she started to talk. “Welcome back! I hope you don't mind, but I saw a few more issues than just the repair jobs you were setting up for, so I thought I'd work them out while I was here. I did my best not to alter anything, but there were two pipes that had pretty much dented together and could have caused a problem, so I ran them around each other.” She pointed into a corner of the room that six different brass tubes all knotted around each other. It was quite easy to see the two new ones wrapping delicately around the others. “I should hopefully be done by the end of tomorrow, though I could possibly finish it all tonight if I really worked at it.”

Rose's eyes widened as she shook her head lightly. “There's no need for working too late, dear, you've already gone above and beyond. And it seems Wind had quite a lot more to do than you thought.”

Steam looked over at Wind, who nodded back, a large smile on her face as she tried to wipe off the oil on her hooves with an equally oily rag. Letting Wind clean herself up, Steam talked for her. “Yeah. Originally she was helping me shape things, but when it came down to the actual repairs, there wasn't too much she could do. It was her idea to start polishing and doing more common maintenance, though, since everything was being worked on anyway. A cake of wax and a bottle of oil later and it all should be running like it did the day you made it.”

Rose looked around the room once more in disbelief. “Even in all its glory it never looked this good. Thank you so much, Windy.”

Wind blushed slightly and rubbed an oily hoof on the bandanna covering the back of her mane, leaving a smudge. “Oh, it was nothing, mom! Had to do something to make up for suddenly appearing on you. Though I might send Steam out the next time I need to go to the market for more grease...” She was starting to look slightly dour when her stomach rumbled, announcing to everypony in the room that it must be time to eat. At that, she suddenly realized the purpose of her mother's visit. “So, how late have we been working? I completely lost track of time.”

“The sun's already set. Don't tell me you haven't eaten since breakfast...” Wind didn't have to tell Rose for her to know. She sighed theatrically. “Oh well, I guess it's a good thing dinner is waiting at the house. Both of you go there and wash up. I'll lock up and be right behind you.”

“Okay, we won't get started without you.” Wind said as moved carefully across the room, trying hard not to touch anything and transfer her mess anywhere else. Steam giggled softly at this, putting on her ear muffs and scarf before opening the door Wind was desperately trying to will open with her mind. With a quick wave to Rose, both mares left the back room, and the soft tinkling of a bell outside told her they left the shop soon after.

Rose wandered between the machines, taking in their shine with a sense of awe and pride. How had she forgotten how nice these were in all these years? How had those two done so much in so little time? If it looked this good down here, how nice could a little help make storage?

That thought stuck with her, though it soon turned into another one, one she'd save until after dinner. Right now she was holding things up, and there was no excuse for that. Grabbing her shop key from the workbench, she turned off the lights and left Rosewater, locking the store behind her. After a quick trot to Cheerilee's to tell her the evening's plan, she made her way home, ready to get dinner started for real.

Even with the delay the group dinner went quite well, made all the more lively for the extra pony at the table. The work of the day was lively on all ends, though the winning conversation topic was definitely Flora's budding flowers. She discussed her theories at length with Rose and Steam, both of whom were quite interested, though for different reasons. Steam couldn't help but wonder if a crystal topiary would need their gem grinder or just normal shears, while Rose had visions of a new line of luxury perfumes dancing in her head. Flora's head was still largely full of fuzz at this point, but she pressed on, glad to have an eager audience to bounce her theories off of.

Meanwhile, Silver was doing much the same with Wind, talking about upcoming weather plans that would go much smoother with four extra hooves. Wind wasn't the best weathermare, but she was more than willing to help. With that out of the way, Silver had another point of curiosity only her fellow pegasus could answer, asking about life on the other side of the border. Silver didn't regret her decision, but that didn't mean she couldn't be curious about the freedom the other side offered. And, from Wind's accounts, it did sound wonderful, at least until the incident with Clockwork came into play. It just went to show, even the most beautiful roses had thorns.

A long and definitive yawn brought the conversations to a halt, with Flora needing to go to bed, far too tired from her lousy sleep the night before to stay awake. With her exit she took Silver, who needed to get home before Cheerilee got too worried that something had happened on the way back. Wind and Steam were feeling tired as well, so they were both contemplating their own beds when Rose's thought from before returned, prompting a question from her. “Steam, would you like a better bed than the couch?”

Steam shook her head, though she did give a sidelong glance at Dot sitting innocently near the table. “No, the couch is fine, and I don't want to impose, I told you.”

Rose waved the idea away. “It's not imposing at all. You see, before I lived here, I had an apartment over the Rosewater distillery, and I believe I still have everything needed to make that a proper guest room, if you'd like. It would put you closer to your work tomorrow and let you sleep without distractions, if nothing else.”

Steam looked surprised by the offer, not having even thought of going upstairs while she was working at the other building. A whole apartment would be an upgrade from a couch, particularly with her complaints about losing her own. “Oh, well, if you have the space I suppose it'd be foalish not to accept. Though the morning trip for breakfast could be a killer...”

Rose smiled. “I'm sure something could be figured out. I'll get the shop key and we can go set it up.” Rose did as she said, getting her cold weather clothes and the shop key and meeting Steam at the door. She also met Wind, who seemed to be slightly hurt by what Steam was telling her.

“Wind, you did enough earlier. You don't need to come along. Just go to bed, your mom and I can handle this.”

Wind's ears drooped a little, but she nodded. “Oh, alright... I'll see you tomorrow?”

Steam nodded, smiling warmly. “Yup! We've got a few things to finish up, and then we'll just have to figure out something else to do.”

Rose opened the door to the outside, watching the snow flurry through the air. “I'm sure you'll think of something. Let's go.”

The trip was cold, silent, and uneventful, with the most interesting thing being the snowflakes on their backs melting as they walked through the polished distillery. Upon reaching the stairs, Rose started talking. “Now, the upper floor has been mostly used for storage for years now, but with the low stock I doubt there will be much left up there. I know I left a bed and a few books and magazines, and I know that the lights still work.” Reaching the top of the stairs, she motioned to the door next to her hoof, flicking on the switch as she did. “The bathroom is in here, there's a small kitchen there, if you feel you want to cook your own meals at some point, and as far as I'm concerned, you can use this space for as long as you like. Or, if it's too much, you can go back to the couch with nothing held against you.”

Steam reached the top of the stairs and looked around, the old paint still keeping its sandy color even though the walls were otherwise bare. There was a small table, the makings of a kitchen, and a little bookshelf next to a bed on the far side of the room behind a small dividing wall. She let out a little laugh when she finished looking it over. “This place is bigger than my Timbucktu apartment, and that wasn't free and didn't come with its own bathroom... or rooms.”

Rose chuckled as well as she walked over to the bed. “Yes, well, city living may be more frantic, but more rural areas definitely have their perks. For all your help and all you've done for my daughter, feel free to think of this as your home away from home.” As she got near the sheets, she noticed a few things felt... off. The rug was slightly askew, and there was a book left out on top of the bookshelf, something Rose tried very hard not to do if she wasn't reading it, and she hadn't been in here reading in quite a long while. On top of those, the bed seemed... used. It was all made quite well, but there was something about it that felt off. Rose noticed it, but didn't say anything, fixing the sheets with a small motion before testing out the mattress. It still held its shape. “This should do the trick, I hope it's good enough.”

While Rose was working on the bed, Steam had picked up on the oddities as well, though it was much harder since she didn't know what 'normal' would be in the apartment. Still, with the thought that somepony might have been staying there recently, Steam found herself wondering what had become of 'Homeward Bound' since they'd arrived in town. She hadn't caught a single sight of him... If he wanted to finish this as quickly as he'd promised Lady Rarity, he was going to have to step up his game.

Steam sat on the bed, immediately sighing with relief at how much softer it was than the couch. “This will be wonderful, Rose. Thank you so much for all of this.”

“It's my pleasure, Steam. Do have a good night.” Unbeknownst to either of them, they both had imagined the same pony in the room, messing with the sheets and managing to leave without a trace. As Rose descended the stairs, she remembered the pony she'd spent so much time in that building with. Ink Well had said he was close. Just how close was he? What was it he had planned?

Only time would tell.