//------------------------------// // Return to Ponyville // Story: A New Life // by Lunafan1k //------------------------------// Deep within the Everfree Forest the various animals and monsters were just beginning to recover from the taint that had poisoned their home. Many had died already while others had been able to overcome the effects, but a few fell to madness. The forest was filled with the sound of angered howls and barks mixed with pained yelps and whimpering that accompanied sounds of breaking branches. These all originated in a clearing in front of a large cave, where a large pack of Timberwolves fought against their alpha. The leader of the pack had gone mad, his body dripping the black sludge of the taint as he turned on his own and crushed them between his jaws. They leapt up and latched onto its neck and legs, sharp teeth crushing the wooden body. The alpha howled in pain and rage before charging into the stone of the cave, crushing a few of the smaller wolves. The alpha twisted around and ripped off the third Timberwolf, its growls dying with a yelp as the alpha severed its spine. The broken and dead Timberwolves around him glowed an eerie green as their remains joined with the alpha, healing his injuries and making him larger. Before long he was large enough to easily eat the members of his former pack in a single bite, increasing his size and might even more. A young trio of the remaining pack ceased their attempts to attack the alpha, now growing fearful for their lives as their other kin quickly fell before their mad leader, watching helplessly as their pack mates were easily reduced to a pile of twigs. The trio turned tail and fled, the only goal in mind was to survive as the alpha chased after them, the forest silent save for the howls of the mad alpha. The train managed to arrive in Ponyville without issue as it announced our arrival with a shrill whistle. Faina looked out the window as the train slowed to a stop; she was looking around at what she could see of the town from her limited vantage point of the seat’s window. “It seems really small.” She commented. “Well unlike Canterlot or the cities on the coast like Manehattan, Ponyville is rather small, but it’s more welcoming than the larger cities and we all take care of each other.” Twilight said as she strapped on her saddlebags. “I like that idea, reminds me of our clan, the one for all kind of thing.” She said. “Oh! So what type of leadership and culture do the Thestrals have?” Twilight asks, flipping to a new page in her notebook. “Well I think I said we have a council, and then each member has one to three ponies who oversee various aspects of the clan. For example, my Grandfather is one of the elders, the eldest actually, and our clan Fang generally specializes in combat and security. So my job is to oversee various security operations, such as keeping an eye on the monsters entering our tunnels, making sure outside threats are re-directed or taken care of, and investigating any major crimes. Other elder assistants have similar jobs to their own fields, like ensuring the mines wont collapse and mapping out tunnels to keeping track of repairs and ensuring we have materials to make what we need. All of this is to ensure the prosperity of out clan.” Faina detailed. Twilight was nodding along and writing in her notebook furiously, even as she stood to disembark the train. “Fascinating! Tonight we really need to go into more detail; did you bring any books with you?” “Just a couple, mainly about the history before we sealed ourselves off, the history of the mine itself during the isolation, and one from Elder Fay detailing our more religious aspects regarding our god.” “God? What god? The closest there are is the princesses, but they aren’t gods.” Twilight said. “Well, he’s not a god as in some mysterious deity; he’s more like an extra planar fire elemental, or something. Elder Fay tried describing what he is a few times but it makes my head spin. I’ve spoken with him a few times actually, his last request was for me to summon him when the princesses are near, something about them owing him a drink. Anyway let’s go see the town!” She said as she stepped off the train. Twilight shook her head and followed shortly after. Rose and I trailed them as they stepped out back onto the platform. I looked around; it hadn’t changed much from the last time I was here. Just like as we left, the station itself had more than a few ponies crowding the platform, both coming and going. I turned to the others, “So, where to first?” “Why don’t we stop by the hospital and check up on Zecora?” Twilight suggested. We all nodded our consent and headed out. As we walked there were a few ponies that would smile and wave while others would simply go about their day without issue. We skirted along the edge of the busy market and soon found ourselves back in front of the familiar building. “Oh! Hello there!” The receptionist said as we all walked into the front entrance. I raised an eyebrow, I didn’t recognize her and apparently the others didn’t either. She was a light blue unicorn with a blue and white mane and had bright blue eyes. “Are you all here visiting a friend?” Twilight stepped up, “Yes we are, my name is Twilight Sparkle and these are my friends. We’re here to check up on Zecora.” The unicorn hummed and flipped through some papers for a moment, looked up at Twilight, then flipped a few more papers. She bit her lip and ducked out of view as we heard a drawer open and more ruffling sounds. This continued for a few minutes before she popped up smiling nervously. “Um, what was the name again?” She asked. I chuckled as Twilight face hoofed. “Zecora.” Twilight said, spelling it out for her. “Oh! For some reason I thought it was with a CV or something. One sec!” She slipped out of sight and opened another drawer, this time coming back up with a file and was reading through it quickly. “Right, says here she’s awake now and was moved to room 105…” she looked at a map of the first floor for a moment, “Through that door on the right!” She said, pointing to the left at the Emergency exit. She frowned before checking the map and flipping it the other way and pointing to the left now, “Left side that door, sorry!” “Are you new?” I asked. She smiled politely, pausing a bit as she looked me over, “Sorta, I’m here on an internship from Canterlot for some school credit, I’m actually going to be a dentist but I get credits for working in any medical office. And it pays well. It’s my first day.” She finished with a grin. I nodded, “Keep up the good work!” “Thanks Mr… Guy!” She smiled for a moment. “I’m Colgate by the way.” “Sigma!” I said. “And this is Rose, Twilight, and Faina.” “Hi!” Colgate said. “What happened to the other mare?” I asked. “Oh, I’m not sure, I was told she fell ill but the rumor going around is that a visitor really freaked her out pretty badly and the poor thing is too shaken up to come in.” Colgate said sadly. “That sucks. Well I hope she feels better!” I said. “Me too, thanks!” she waved us off as we headed through the door. Rose whispered to me, “Do you think my appearance freaked her out so badly?” “No way! She probably just got sick.” I assured her. “Well regardless, let’s go check up on Zecora and see if Fluttershy is still here.” Twilight said as she headed to the room on the left. We all followed behind in the hall, finding the door to room 105 on the left just as Colgate said. Twilight knocked twice before opening the door and heading in first. The room was spacious, well it would be if not for the overabundance of gifts, cards, balloons, and flowers all wishing for wellness and a quick recovery. “Ah friends of mine, I welcome you to my room, though I am feeling quite fine.” I looked to see the striped pony on the bed, looking far better than she did at the top of the tower when I grabbed my book from her. “Well you look more alive and less completely corrupted!” I said cheerfully. “Ah, I see. Of you, Fluttershy has told much to me. Please do not take my words as bull, for I am quite thankful.” She said, she was about to say more but I interrupted her. “Can you not do that? I have no idea what you’re saying.” I asked. She chuckled, “If my rhyming causes you stress then I will refrain from doing so.”* “Thanks!” I said. “Wait, you mean you don’t have to always speak in rhymes?” Twilight asked. Zecora shook her head, “Of course not, but you never asked.” She said with a coy smile, causing Twilight to simply gawk at her. Zecora tuned back to me, “As I was saying, I am very thankful for helping me in my time of need. I don’t recall much of what happened after I was taken, but from what Fluttershy told me…” “Yea it was pretty bad, but hey! You’re back now, so it’s all good.” I said. Zecora nodded and looked to Faina who was adjusting her cloak and fanning her wings a bit, “And what of your new bat winged friend? My tribe told stories of such ponies, those with the wings of night prospering under the moonlight.” Faina ground her teeth for a moment, “I’m not a bat, I am a Thestral, and to my knowledge we don’t have any records of stripy ponies. Those tales probably refer to those hailing from Hollowed Shades; a few are training to be a part of Luna’s guard by my understanding.” Zecora chuckled, “And I am no pony, I am a zebra from the savanna tribes far to the south and over the seas.” “Neat!” I said. “Wow, really? For some reason I just thought you came from the other side of the Everfree!” Twilight exclaimed and teleported onto the bed. “Can you tell me about your homeland? What’s it like sailing in the sea? What other stories do you know?” Zecora raised a hoof as she chuckled, “Perhaps at a later date we can speak of it at length.” Twilight blushed and hopped off the bed. “Now, I think I owe somepony a great apology.” She said with a sad smile to Rose. She stepped forward so Zecora wouldn’t have to strain to look at her. “Hello… You are a lot less intimidating now that you aren’t controlled by dark magic.” She commented. Zecora sighed and took her bony hoof in her own, “Please, there is nothing that can redeem me for the great atrocity I have committed, my ancestors are shamed by my actions… the desecration of all of your people’s slumbers… there is no greater crime in my tribe, for I have stolen your souls from Elysium, no doubt bringing the wrath of the spirits upon me.” Zecora’s eyes began to water as she brought Rose’s hoof to her forehead. Rose looked on sadly before she sighed, “Worry not, friend, none of our souls were taken from Elysium. All of those revived were lost souls, those whose lives were lost under great stress and the casualties of war. The city was destroyed by the Nightmare a thousand years ago, and though we don’t remember it, our spirits lingered in this world. You are helping to free us from our prisons, to fulfil the rest of our lives, to help us find peace.” She chuckled, “Besides, Gia already exerted her anger against your evil form for corrupting the forest.” Zecora lifted her head, her face wet with tears as she gazed into Rose’s sunken eyes with hope, before slowly smiling and pulling the mare into a gentle hug. “Aw!” I said with a smile, she’s being adorable! They broke the hug a moment later and Zecora wiped her eyes, “Will you remain in the hospital for long?” Rose asked. “Yes, I’m still rather weak in the knees at the moment, but I should be back on my hooves in another week.” Zecora said. “Sweet! We’ll take you to see everyone at the castle then!” I said with a grin. She chuckled, “I’ll look forward to it.” Twilight cleared her throat, “Well we’ll let you get some rest, and do you know if Fluttershy went home?” Zecora nodded, “She said she had a few animals still sick from the taint, it’s much weaker but it’s still making the creatures ill. It pains my heart that I cannot be of more help to her, to the forest.” I walked up to her and booped her nose, “Just take it easy, it was an accident and we’ll be able to help clean it up in no time!” She chuckled, “Then I’m glad there will be plenty of others to help clean up. Fluttershy tells me that Pinkie and Applejack have been helping those at the castle for the last few days with little rest, I’m sure they would be relieved that you are all back so soon.” “Thanks Zecora, we’ll take it from here. You just focus on getting some rest. Come on everypony, let’s catch up with Rarity and see if Dash is back yet before heading to Fluttershy’s.” Twilight said as she led us out. “Oh! And can we get some food too?” Faina asked. Twilight chuckled, “If Pinkie is still at the old castle then I’m sure she has more than enough snacks and catering to go around.” “Onwards to snacks!” I declared, earned a few chuckles. We traveled from the hospital down an adjacent street, word must have gotten around as there were more than a few stares but nopony screamed and ran, they mostly looked at Faina with unease. At least they didn’t fear Rose and I as much, I chalked this up to the possibility of rumors of my heroics. “Wow, everypony here is really skittish.” Faina commented. “A lot of scary things happen in Ponyville, being so close to the Everfree Forest. Plus you are completely new to them; it will take some time to not outright fear you.” Twilight explained. “Why is that?” She asked. “Well… The ponies here are pretty xenophobic, they used to run and hide from Zecora thinking she was an evil enchantress. Right now they are probably trying to determine if they should run or not because of your eyes or longer ears. Plus you’re with me, so they probably know you’re safe to be around. I wouldn’t show your wings just yet though, they might panic for real and stampede through town convinced that a vampony is controlling my mind and they are all going to die.” Faina just gave her a flat look. “You’re making that up. Nopony is that stupid.” “They aren’t stupid, just…easily terrified.” We stopped in front of a strange circular building. There were a large number of odd decorations and posters plastered over every surface and then splashed in a mountain of glitter and cleaned with perfume. “Guah! What is this place!?” I gagged, feeling my throat closing as my senses were assaulted. “This is the Carousel Boutique! It’s Rarity’s home and store.” She said, ignoring my suffocation. “She creates all sorts of clothing from dresses to gowns and casual wear for ponies from all over, she even has a few celebrities and nobles interested in her line.” “We don’t really have much for fashion, but I would be interested in seeing what she can do.” Faina said. “And I wish to get another dress like the last one, and maybe a matching one for my sister.” Rose added. “And we need a new suit for dear Sigma.” I gasped dramatically from my place on the ground. “Alright, let’s all say hi.” Twilight said as she opened the door. I dragged my hooves as I followed the others inside, but luckily the interior wasn’t flooded with the smell of that perfume. “Feeling better?” Rose asked. I nodded, “It smells fine in here, wonder what happened to the exterior for it to smell that bad?” Rose shrugged as another voice called out to us, “Welcome to Carousel Boutique, where everything is-oh! Twilight! You’re back so soon, and with a new friend!” Rarity exclaimed as she came out from a back room. She was wearing a pair of ruby glasses and had a few odds and ends floating in her aura. “So what brings you to my little corner?” “We’re showing Faina here around town before meeting the others at the old castle, and… well…” Twilight looked back to us and motioned to Rarity. “Prince Blueblood… He was working with an evil being who had sent demonic hounds after us in order to get its hooves on Sigma’s book. While we were fighting them off, he broke into our room and tore everything to shreds looking for it; including the clothing you gifted us.” Rose said sullenly. I patted Rose on the back to help comfort her, but a weird grinding sound turned my attention to Rarity. She was positively seething with rage, grinding her teeth back and forth so forcefully it made my own teeth hurt. “Whoa, calm down Rarity, I know you don’t think kindly of him but he’s now in the custody of the royal guard for high treason, I’m sure they will be able to get some information out of him.” Twilight said, attempting to calm the unicorn. It wasn’t very effective, “That… That… Scoundrel! That uncouth excuse for royalty!” She yelled, “He will rue the day he dared to assault the highest of fashion! The atrocity he has committed will bring about a social end to his name! His children’s children will cower in their beds for fear of the monster he has brought upon himself! All because he…” Her yelling died out as she started to sob, “My beautiful dresses! Ruined! Tarnished! Oh, what would they think when they hear that royalty rejected them in such a horrible way!?” “Easy there Rarity, I’m sure this won’t reflect negatively on your reputation.” Twilight said, trying to calm her. It took some time, but eventually Rarity managed to calm down enough to regain her composure. “Apologies darlings, sometimes I become… overcome.” I shrugged, “It was kind of funny, you should do plays.” “Ha ha, yes… So! Who’s your new friend Twilight?” I was astounded by Rarity’s ability to change the subject so fluidly! “Well like I said before…” Twilight waved a hoof to vaguely refer to Rarity’s emotional breakdown, “Her name is Faina, she’s an ambassador for her clan up in the northern mountains and she was interested in seeing some of your works.” This earned a gasp from Rarity, “Truly!?” Faina nodded. “Then you shan’t be disappointed! It’s been a while since I’ve worked with darker colors but I’m absolutely sure I’ll make you the perfect dress for all your ambassador work! TO THE WORKSHOP!” Rarity declared as she pointed to a back room. We paused and gave her a look, “Ahem, this way, please.” Rarity amended with a deep blush. Rose chuckled as we all filed into the back, “Yes, she does have a flare for the dramatic. I have to agree she should perform in plays from time to time.” “I’m afraid I wouldn’t have the time, between my current work load and setting up a four pony quartet anyway.” Rarity said as she started pulling out different colored fabrics. “A quartet? A singing group?” Rose asked. “Absolutely darling, there are more than a few ponies in town with wonderful signing voices, I’m hoping Fluttershy would like to join us but I’m afraid the poor dear would be too terrified. Would you be interested in auditioning?” Rarity asked as she got everything ready. Rose smiled, “I think it would be wonderful to be part of a song group, I would love to audition!” “Perfect! I’ll let you know once I have the dates worked out.” Rose grinned back at me and I smiled back, I bet she will be the best singer! Rarity pointed to a raised dais, “Alright Faina, go ahead and strip out of the cloak and hop onto the platform there!” Faina nodded, “Alright, give me a second.” Rarity’s smile became more and more forced as Faina continued to remove far more gear and equipment than we thought she was wearing. She removed the cloak, a pair of saddle bags, followed by a pair of large belts with multiple pouches, a rapier, a small buckler that covered her chest, a vest, a shirt of shiny chain mail, an undershirt, and then her gauntlets and what looked like socks that were under the gauntlets. She placed them next to the other weapons. Once she was undressed she shivered, flapping her leathery wings a bit. “It’s really cold in here…” She commented as she hopped onto the platform. Now that she was absent of her coverings we were able to see her cutie-mark, a simple dark splotch. Rarity glanced from the stack of gear and equipment to Faina several times, eying her wings a few times as well. “Well… It’s not very often I meet a client so well… equipped.” “I’m wearing extra because it’s cold outside the mountain.” She said, ruffling her wings against her sides. “Her clan basically lives inside a volcano; she explained that they are all accustomed to extreme heat.” Twilight explained as she lit her horn. A soft aura encased Faina and faded into her fur, causing her shivering to stop. “Ah that’s better…” She said. “Thanks!” “No problem! I’ve never had to use my heating spell on a warm day before, but I’m glad it worked!” Twilight exclaimed happily. I spoke up, “What’s you’re mark mean?” She glanced back at her cutie-mark, “It represents my talent for blending into the shadows, and some say I become completely invisible but I think their eyes just don’t work as well in the dark.” “Neat!” I said with a grin. “Well let’s get started then darling.” Rarity said as she started tracing every inch of Faina with a small tape measure. “So, you and your clan are living in a volcano in the northern mountains? No relation to the bat ponies from Hollowed Shades I presume?” “Just a distant one, back when the tribes were at war. There might be other clans too though, don’t really know. We are Thestrals, hot blooded miners with a high tolerance for alcohol, skin made of iron and steel in our bones.” She grinned toothily. “Wow, that’s amazing! How did you guys to that?” I exclaimed excitedly. “… It’s a metaphor for our mining culture.” Faina said. “… Ohhhh, well why didn’t you just say that then?” I asked. Rarity interrupted our conversation, “That’s all I need for measurements, let me just compare a few colors to your complexion. I assume you’re not wearing any makeup or artificial coloring?” “No real reason to, and most of the clan isn’t too interested in dressing up, but I’m interested to see what we could gain from it, at least for formal events and meetings. Fancy fabrics tend to get torn or burst into flame in the lower areas.” She said as Rarity held up a few light fabrics that seemed to clash harshly with her grey/blue fur. “I see, then you must have heavier, thicker fabrics to withstand such abuse, like your cloak and vest?” Rarity asked, holding up some shade of orange and a shade of yellow. “Bah, those won’t do.” She muttered. “Yea, troll hide is very durable.” She said. Rarity paused, a light grey fabric held in her magic, “So that is real leather then…” She shook her head and resumed her work, “I’ve never worked with the real kind, just the synthetic leather but I am told they are very similar to work with.” Faina shrugged, “I wouldn’t know.” Rarity nodded her head, “Well I think I’ve got a good idea for the colors, and I have an idea on a design that will bring out the elegance expected of a foreign diplomat. Hmm…” She held a hoof to her chin, “I’m a tad busy with other work orders, but I should have it finished by the day after tomorrow, along with Rose and Sigma’s outfits.” “That’s fine, I don’t think I’m going anywhere for a while yet.” Faina said. Rose pulled Rarity into a squishy hug, “Thank you!” Rarity hesitated a bit, but soon hugged her back. “You are very welcome! And I must say, you’re beginning to fill in rather quickly. Drinking lots of fluids?” She nodded, “Mostly water and soft food for now, I expect I’ll be rather soft until the new tissue grows in. That’ll be fun, peeling away all the old long dead flesh…” Rose looked mildly disgusted at the idea. “I doubt it’ll be as bad as the other day after breakfast.” I assured her. Rose nodded as Faina looked between us, “You guys are weird. I thought she was recovering from starvation or something.” “Oh, sorry for not mentioning it, but I’ve been dead for the last thousand years. I think I’m doing rather well.” Rose said with a grin. Faina chuckled, “Yea I’d say so. So based on listening into your conversations, I gathered that some book of magic went nuts and possessed Zecora who raised a city of undead bringing them back to life with their souls and they are slowly healing to actual living ponies?” “You are a good listener.” I said and turned to the others, “I keep forgetting that she’s with us.” “It’s what I do.” Faina said with a smug look. “And falling for runic traps.” Rose jabbed with a smirk. “Well excuse me for not being versed in magical traps. I should have trained more with the unicorn thestrals. Oh wait, we don’t have any.” She responded sarcastically. “Well I’m sure Princess Celestia or Princess Luna can teach you after you finish your diplomacy stuff.” Twilight assured. “Well I suppose, you never know when it could save your life.” Faina said as she hopped off the platform and started getting dressed in her gear. “Great! I’ll send her a letter so she can schedule a lesson. For now though, did you want to drop off some of your gear at my place so you’re not carrying it around all over? I can use the spell to keep you warm pretty much all day, it’s not that hard to cast.” Twilight asked. “Sure, most of this is just to keep me warm anyway.” She commented. I was a bit amazed at how quickly she threw everything on, it would have taken me three hours to figure out what goes where but after only a few minutes she was dressed just as she always was. “You made that look easy.” I commented. “Well, when you need to respond to an emergency you learn how to gear up quickly. So, where’s your little hut?” She asked Twilight. “I think you mean house, but my house is a bit of a surprise.” She said with a smile. “Come on, I’ll show you.” Twilight led the way as we all followed outside, “I’ll see you all late-URK!” Rarity said as she stepped outside and started coughing. She glanced at the exterior walls of her shop and sniffed them for a moment, “SWEETIE BELLE!” She screamed, “I TOLD YOU NOT TO USE PERFUME AS A CLEANING AGENT!!” We quickened our pace to steer clear of the angry mare. I looked back in time to see a second story window open and a white unicorn filly climb out and into the branches of a nearby tree before bolting off in the opposite direction, presumably Sweetie Belle trying not to get caught. As we walked I tried to recall if there was anything about Twilight’s house that was amazing, but once you got past the fact it was basically a hollow tree the amazement wears off a bit. “Oh!” I suddenly remembered something! “She’s got like a million books!” “Wow, that’s a lot, Twilight do you have a hoarding problem?” Faina asked with concern. Twilight turned bright red, “What?! N-no! I just love books! It’s a… Hobby! No, I’m an academic! I need them! Besides, it’s only seven hundred twenty-four thousand eight hundred fifty-two books! That’s nowhere near a million!” “Just have over two hundred seventy-five thousand to go then?” Rose asked. “Yep! Just you wait, within the next few months I should have-hey!” Twilight quickly caught on to her almost admitting her hoarding problem, much to the mirth of Rose and Faina. I didn’t quite get it, but I smiled along because they were happy. “Well I’m sure such an avid collector has them well organized.” Faina chuckled. Twilight cleared her throat to regain a bit of composure, “Yes, every third Wednesday we re-shelve the library for a deep cleaning, sorting, and re-shelving. Then about every day we have re-shelving of returned books and general upkeep as well as a number of other very important chores. Luckily I have Spike, my Number One Assistant to help me out.” “Spike is a lizard!” I chimed in. “Don’t let him hear you say that, he’s a baby dragon. Actually don’t mention the baby part, he gets upset.” Twilight warned us. “A baby dragon? Now that is something I need to see. It’ll kind of tie in with our religion as well.” Faina said. “Could your god be a dragon?” Twilight asked. “Sort of, it’s complicated. I’ll explain it later when we have time.” Faina shrugged. We eventually arrived in the shade of the tree home that Twilight lives in. Faina gazed upon its majesty; it’s unique and humble appearance easily disguising the arcane secrets held within its earthly confines. Faina’s eyes seemed to waver at the sight of it, her mortal mind failing to comprehend- “It’s a tree.” She said, interrupting my descriptive narrative. “And a library.” Rose added. “Doesn’t wood burn really easily?” Faina asked. “I was thinking you lived in a cavern or a stone hut or something because you have a dragon assistant.” Twilight seemed deflated almost, like she was hoping Faina would be excited or something. “Well, I used my magic to make sure it’s fireproof…” “Cool, as long as I don’t burn to death in my sleep it should be fine, I’m not a Cog so you don’t have much to worry about.” She shrugged. “What do you mean by cog?” Twilight asked as she opened the door for us. We walked through the door and set our bags aside, Twilight fitting them into a shelf by the door as Faina explained. “One of the families of the clan. The Cogs are those well versed and specializing in inventing new things, like pick axe and armor designs, our mechs, the drills, and pretty much anything else. My friend, Gaige, is a cog and her workshop is just a mess but her mind is brilliant. She said she was working on something special for me when I left but wouldn’t say. We can go into more detail later though.” “Sounds like a plan, Spike!” Twilight called out. A moment later the little guy peeked around the corner, “What? I’m busy!” “I just wanted to introduce another roommate for the time being, you can go back to reading your comics after that.” Twilight said. “Alright, fine.” Spike waddled out from around the corner and true to Twilight’s prediction, he was holding a colorful book of some kind, most likely the comics Twilight referred to. “Spike, this is Faina, a Thestral from the mountains north of the frozen wastes.” Twilight introduced, motioning to Faina as she was undoing the straps. “Hi there!” I’m Spike, Spike the Dragon! If you need anything just let me know!” He cheerfully declared with a smile. Faina tossed the cloak and the warm padding aside and stretched out her wings as she smiled toothily at Spike, “Hey there! Aren’t you just a cutie?” Spikes grin fell; he started to sweat as his pupils shrunk in fear. Faina was about to ask something but before she could, “VAMPONY!” He screamed and bolted out the library. “… Really?” Faina asked the empty space Spike once stood. Twilight face-hoofed, “I’m sorry, I should limit his exposure to those comics.” “I think we should find him quickly so he doesn’t cause a panic in town.” Rose suggested as she peered out the door. “I think he headed in the direction of the apple farm.” “Oh good, he must be heading to AJ, she’ll be able to calm him down before he does something silly.” Twilight commented as she hung up Faina’s gear. “Ready to go?” Faina was wearing just a chain shirt and her gauntlets, leaving her wings free to flap about as they please. “Yep, let’s show him what a real ‘vampony’ is all about!” She said with a sinister grin. “Please don’t, we’ll be up for weeks because of the nightmares you’ll give him.” Twilight said as she grabbed some more writing materials and switched to a lighter bag. “What if we build a smaller house just for him outside so his nightmares don’t wake us up?” I suggested. “Like a dog house?” Rose suggested. “Spike isn’t a dog!” Twilight retorted. “Yea, that would be weird.” I commented as we headed out the door to hunt a dragon.