The Element of Laughter

by Quixotic Mage

An Exchange of Tales

(A/N: Whenever there are italics it means those are the characters thoughts. I have no idea why I wasn’t doing that before.)

The Element of Laughter

Chapter 2: An Exchange of Tales

Twilight shot a look through the window and yawned, rubbing one eye wearily. She wished there was time for a quick nap before Pinkie’s arrival since she had been up all night, writing down Diana’s story while it was still fresh in her mind. Fortunately, there would be no need to pull an all-nighter after every session with Diana. Twilight was nothing if not good at planning ahead and, once she had realized how much she would have to write, she had taken an hour to look through her library for the specifics on a very useful little spell called a dictation spell. Simply put, the spell was cast on a quill which was then tuned to a certain pony. Whenever that pony spoke the quill would write it down.

Though the spell itself wasn’t intricate it had still taken Twilight the better part of the day to set the quill properly so that it would re-ink itself automatically and push down just hard enough to write clearly without tearing the paper. She had also prepared a large, self-rolling scroll for the quill to write on. A few tests had shown the quill’s products to be legible, if not pretty, so Twilight was satisfied. She was sure it would still be necessary to go back and rewrite everything but with the quill’s version in her possession there was no need to force herself to get everything down each night.

The only thing left to do was to tune the quill to Diana then sit back and listen while it recorded. Unfortunately, Pinkie had yet to arrive and where Pinkie went Diana was bound to follow. Twilight took a second look through the window and was just about to take a quick cat nap when she spotted what, to her bleary eyes, looked like a mobile tuft of pink cotton candy. She blinked rapidly and Pinkie Pie swam into focus. The pink pony seemed to put as much effort into going up as going forward but she was rapidly approaching the library door nonetheless.

Spike had been sent out on a set of needlessly convoluted errands to keep him from wondering why Pinkie and Twilight had to be alone for the experiments he thought Twilight was performing. Alas, this meant that Twilight had to get up from her oh-so-comfortable window ledge to let in Pinkie. She shook the sleep from her eyes and stretched. Feeling slightly more awake, she trotted over to the door and opened it just as Pinkie arrived.

“Hi Twilight how are you doing you look tired are you tired I’m not tired yet but I’m supposed to take a nap so I thought I should talk as fast as possible so I can tire myself out so I can sleep when I’m supposed to isn’t this a great idea-“

Twilight closed the door. She walked into her kitchen and made herself a cup of coffee. She drank it, contemplating the beauty of her silent library. She finished her coffee and bid a silent farewell to the soon to be shattered tranquility that pervaded the room.

With the blessing of caffeine she was now as ready as equinely possible to face the hyperactive party pony going at turbo speed. Returning to the door and opening it she was not at all surprised to find Pinkie was still going strong, though what she was talking about was anypony’s guess. “So then I accidentally knocked this apple out of a tree and it hit this poor pony on his head he wasn’t mad though he seemed excited cause he ran off shouting that everything made sense and that’s how I invented physics and-“

Only a fool would have tried to halt the flood of words and Twilight Sparkle was no fool. She simply took Pinkie by the hoof, led her down to the basement, and plopped her down onto the waiting couch. The second Pinkie sat down her eyes snapped shut, her head dropped to her hooves and she started snoring loudly. Twilight couldn’t help chuckling at her friend’s antics. However, she sobered quickly for there was knowledge to acquire. Apparently Pinkie’s plan to tire herself out had actually worked, so Twilight was able to skip straight to the second part of her awakening spell.

Her horn glowed as she imbued her voice with magic and began to speak. “On the count of three you will wake-“

“I’m already awake Twilight.” Sure enough, the pink pony’s eyes were open and it wasn’t Pinkie Pie staring out.

Twilight was naturally somewhat confused by this. “I hadn’t even used any magic on you yet,” she complained, “you shouldn’t have been able to come out so fast.”

Diana shrugged. “Maybe it’s easier since it’s been done before? The power that keeps me imprisoned is not like unicorn or alicorn magic so it might operate under different rules. In any case, are you ready to continue?”

“One moment please.” Twilight’s horn glowed briefly as she tuned her specially prepared quill to Diana. She placed it on a blank page where it remained bolt upright without any help from her. Turning back to Diana she asked “can you say something please?”

“What do you want me to say?”

“Oh that’s enough.” Twilight checked the paper and, sure enough, the quill had written across it ‘what do you want me to say?’ “Great, I’m all set. Begin whenever you’re ready.”

Diana nodded and took a deep breath. “Let’s see, where was I? Ah yes, I had just been knocked out by that storm. Well, as you so cleverly surmised last time, eventually I woke up…”

***

Diana woke up and immediately regretted it. She moaned as her cuts and bruises assaulted her, each begging for attention. “One at a time,” she muttered “I’m sure I’ll get to all of you, eventually.” She took stock of her body’s condition, back to front.

Let’s see, tail, just fine. Back legs, bruised but functional. Midsection, she winced definitely a cracked rib or two. Wings, especially nasty cut on the left wing and numerous pinions missing from both. Probably were torn out by the storm. Hmm, guess I won’t be flying for a few days. Head still attached but possible concussion. She shook her head and nearly passed out as the world whirled around her. Make that a definite concussion”

Though painful, none of her injuries were life threatening and, considering the storm she’d been flying in, Diana considered herself lucky to have gotten off with all her limbs still attached.

Self inspection finished she turned her attention to the surroundings. Rough gray stone walls greeted her eyes in three directions, suggesting a cave. A view that was confirmed as she turned around as saw the cave mouth. Outside, the starlight and moonlight indicted that it was night and was just bright enough for her to make out the general outline of a few trees.

Returning her attention to the interior of the cave Diana caught signs of habitation. The most obvious was the light source directly above her head. She glanced up and saw a glowing rock of some kind nestled in niche on the cave wall. Stacked neatly on one side of the cave was a set of carved wooden bowls, plates and a few utensils. Next to the utensils she was pleased to see her saddle-bags, apparently still intact. A fire pit graced the center of the cave and, as she looked down, Diana realized she was lying on a makeshift bed of woven reeds over stone.

There’s no way I crash landed on a bed inside a cave so somebody must have brought me in she thought. Cautiously, Diana called out “Hello? Is there anypony there?”

“Oh good you’re awake, let me just finish this mixture and I’ll be right over.”

The voice had come from the shadows at the very back of the cave. She watched as a shape detached itself from the black and resolved into a dark aquamarine pegasus stallion of about the same age and slightly larger size. His mane and tail were a slightly darker blue than the rest of him while his wings were slightly lighter and, for some reason, he had them extended straight out on either side. He had a moderately handsome face with the squarer muzzle typical of colts and nicely pointed ears but his eyes were still in shadow. He trotted over and placed a wooden cup filled with a suspicious looking, foul-smelling, green liquid next to her.

“Drink this. It’s an herbal potion to help with the pain and speed your healing.” When Diana shook her head he just nudged the glass closer. “I know it smells like rotting vegetation and, trust me, it doesn’t taste any better, but it really will help.”

“I’ll only drink it if you drink first.”

The pegasus flicked his ears back in irritation. “If I had wanted to harm you I could have done so at any point in the past day and a half. Nevertheless…” He picked the cup up and swallowed a mouthful, grimacing at the taste. “There I’ve shown you it’s not poisoned. Now drink.”

Still cautious Diana raised the cup to her lips and tried to sip from it. The pegasus was having none of that, however. He flicked the bottom of the cup with his hoof, causing its entire contents to flow into her mouth. The awful taste, like three day rotted leaves mixed with bad milk, made her gag as it rolled over her tongue; but he clamped her mouth shut and she was forced to swallow or choke.

Diana glared at him as she doubled over coughing. He ignored her glare and took the cup to the still shadowed back of the cave, returning a moment later with water. Her glare lessened slightly as she drank for a second time. “Was that really necessary?”

The stallion was unrepentant. “I’ve had to drink that myself on occasion and it’s much worse if you prolong it. Besides, you feel better now, right?”

As she thought about it the sharper pains began to recede, leaving only the dull ache of a healing body in its place. “I suppose I do feel a bit better.” Diana looked up at him gratefully. “Thank you…?”

“Watchwing. My name is Watchwing.”

“Thank you Watchwing. My name is Diana, nice to meet you.” She held out a hoof to shake.

He hesitated before muttering something that sounded like “Let’s get this over with” and walked closer to shake her hoof.

They shook hooves. Diana was curious about his reticence and eyed him closely. It took her a moment to realize something was wrong with his face. She looked closer before the sudden realization hit her and she flinched away with a yelp of horror.

“Your eyes! What’s wrong with your eyes?”

Where Watchwing’s eyes should have been were two empty sockets. He seemed unsurprised by her outburst. A melancholy expression crossed his face and he observed Diana for a moment before simply turning sadly and trudging toward the other side of the cave.

Diana took a few deep breaths to calm herself and called after him. “Wait, please. I’m sorry for panicking like that. It’s just…I’ve never seen an injury like that before. How did it happen?”

The blind pegasus turned at her voice, his pained expression fading slightly as she spoke. He returned to her bedside and replied. “It’s alright, I know I’m not exactly a comforting sight, especially to somepony who’s recovering from her own injury. As for how I got this well, there’s a bit of a story to it. Would you like to hear it?”

“I’ve always loved stories. In many ways that’s why I’m here.”

Watchwing frowned. “Come to think of it, what are you doing here? I’ve never heard of an alicorn leaving their village before.”

Diana smiled cheekily at him as she mimicked his words. “As for how I got here well, there’s a bit of a story to it. Would you like to hear it?”

He smiled back and nodded. “I’ve always loved stories.”

“Okay, I’ll tell you mine after you tell me yours.”

Realizing that she really wasn’t going to fear or hate him for his infirmity Watchwing’s smile broadened. He settled himself next to the bed, took a deep breath and began his story.

“I was born and raised in a village not far from here. Apparently, even from a very young age my eyes were a remarkably brilliant shade of blue and, unlike other foals, I never cried. I just watched. Ponies, plants, sunlight, it didn’t make any difference. I watched absolutely everything that was going on around me, or so my parents told me. It was for that that I was named Watchwing, a name that seems oddly prophetic and somewhat mocking now.”

“My early life was mostly unremarkable but there is one aspect that is relevant to my current circumstances. In all the games we foals played I was the always the referee. Everypony knew that I was always watching closely and so I became the judge of the playground, if you will. When there were disputes or when bullies tried to push some specific agenda it was to me that other ponies appealed and it became my place to rebuke those who tried to twist the truth.”

“Well, anyway, enough about my foalhood. I left that behind as I grew up and was apprenticed to our local apothecary. She taught me many helpful things, including that brew you drank earlier, and she brought me to this forest sometimes to help with gathering supplies. It was good work, I loved helping other ponies and the knowledge I gained of healing herbs and plants in general has certainly been very useful to me.”

“A little over a year ago now, it was announced that Discord would be paying a visit to our town. All residents were required to attend his grand entrance and the parade that would follow. It was, as they say, a command performance so, when the day came, everypony lined the streets in preparation for Discord’s appearance.”

“The entire village was ready and waiting by the main entrance at dawn. We weren’t kept waiting long. When the sun had crested the horizon there was a flash of light, a clap of thunder from a cloudless sky, and Discord phased into existence in the midst of a sun beam. He was a terrifying spectacle. Pray you never see him if you haven’t had his visage inflicted on you already.”

“His body was solidly built and covered with a short brown fur. Each limb seemed to have been ripped from some other creature and clumsily attached to his trunk. The left leg was heavily muscled, hairless, white, and ended in a black hoof. The right leg seemed draconic; it was covered in green scales and ended in a fearsome claw with razor sharp points. His right forelimb was more like a paw and covered in a light yellow fur. The left limb was a similar color but closer in appearance to a chicken leg, though it had sharper claws than any chicken I’ve ever seen. On his back was a pair of similarly mismatched wings. One was black and leathery, like a bat wing, while the other was a dark blue and feathered, closer to a pegasus wing. Finally, his head was covered in the same fur as his body, but of a grey color instead. He had two horns, one with prongs like a deer’s horn while the other spiraled upward like a ram’s horn. And then there were his eyes, each was glowing a deep blood red, but one was no more than a speck of color in his dark face while the other was as large as an apple and blazed bright with malice. There was, above and beyond his bizarre form, a wrongness about him. The very air seemed to twist and writhe around him, like heat waves rising from a hot stone.”

“I don’t mean to dwell on his form but it’s important you have a mental picture so you can understand how odd it was that he was wearing a garbage bag. No, really; this fearsome monster of darkness chose to show himself to his subjects while wearing a tattered trash bag. There was absolute silence and complete confusion before he spoke and it all became clear. ‘My adoring subjects’ he said ‘Am I not the most radiant creature you’ve ever seen? Gaze upon the glory of my raiment, the plush fabric, the deep purples and sparkling gold lining. Is it not magnificent clothing, fit for the greatest of kings? ’ He waited expectantly for a response.”

“Well the townsfolk weren’t going to risk missing an obvious cue like that so they broke into applause, praising him and his ‘royal garment’ to the skies. He just stood there, taking it all in, with a self-satisfied smug smirk on his gruesome face. That was when I understood what the whole event was about. Discord could have changed that bag into clothes fit for a king with no effort at all; instead, he made us sing the praises of a garbage bag. It was about power of course, about proving that even without magic he ruled us completely.”

“I was so angry. It was no different from the bullies back on the playground, trying to use their superior strength to lord over anyone smaller or weaker. I hate that. I hate the idea that might makes truth, so I did the only thing that I could think of: I shouted as loudly as I could ‘Discord’s wearing nothing but a trash bag!”

“Silence fell immediately and all the ponies between myself and Discord parted hurriedly, revealing me to his gaze. He had me brought forward and placed at his feet. In an almost jovial tone he spoke, supposedly to me, but really to the watching crowd. ‘Surely I must have misheard this pony. He couldn’t possibly have truly said that I, the regal Discord, am wearing a trash bag. I must have misheard but and, because I am a kind and benevolent ruler, I will give him a chance to correct himself. Well, little pony, am I not wearing a splendid garment, one worthy of my glory?’”

“The correct answer was obvious and I probably should have given him what he wanted and in the hopes of escaping with my life. But I just couldn’t say it. He is nearly omnipotent, he could remake the world at will, but, until he did, I would not deny the evidence of my senses at his whim. It was the only form of defiance I could think of. So I took a deep breath and shouted so the whole crowd could hear. ‘Your garment is indeed worthy of you, Discord, clad as you are in refuse!’”

“The silence grew deeper, where before ponies had simply been quiet now they were frozen in fear. Discord reached down, picked me up and held me with outstretched arms before the crowd. ‘You see this pony? This pony’s eyes have betrayed him, they have made him see things he should not see. So I will do him a favor, I will remove these traitorous orbs from his face.’ I scanned the crowd and saw my parents’ worried faces. I saw my master, the apothecary, sneak away down an alley. Then he turned me around and my last sight was his hideous face, alight with a mad glee as he reached out and pulled the eyes from my head.”

“The pain was excruciating, I really can’t describe so let’s just say it was painful and leave it at that. Discord kindly waited until I stopped screaming before finishing the sentencing. ‘Consider yourself banished. If anypony should help you they will face the same fate. You have one hour to leave the village before I start pulling other things from your head. Oh that’s right, you can’t even see which way is out. Let me help you there.’ He raised me to me feet and pointed me toward the nearest village exit. ‘Now you can’t say I never did anything for you.’ He laughed and everypony laughed with him. I stood, blood running from my ruined eyes as my entire village offered up Discord’s Prayer at my suffering.”

Watchwing fell silent, his face a rictus of pain and rage. His breathing came faster and faster as the memory whipped him into a fury.

Diana grew concerned as he slipped further out of control. She knew she needed to calm him down but life in her tranquil village hadn’t given her any experience dealing with this kind of emotion. Finally, out of desperation, she reached out with a hoof and stroked his mane. “Enough” she whispered, gently but firmly. “Enough. It’s long past. Let it go.”

He stiffened at her touch, startled out of his waking nightmare. Then he realized where he was and all the air seemed to rush out of him. He sighed and the fearsome expression melted from his face. “I’m sorry.” He said hesitantly. “I haven’t talked to anypony at all since that day. I often thought it would feel better to have spoken of all this to somepony… anypony. But…it’s hard…harder than I thought.” He drew in a ragged breath and let it out.

Less afraid that Watchwing was losing control, Diana withdrew her hoof. Still, her concern showed in her voice as she responded. “You don’t need to finish if you don’t want to. I would never have asked to hear your story if I’d known how difficult it would be for you.”

Watchwing took another deep breath and shook his head regaining a measure of composure. “It is better having somepony else, an outsider, hear what happened. The telling has simply proved harder than I expected. I would like to continue, if you don’t mind listening. The worst of it’s over anyway so I might as well finish.”

Diana nodded her assent so Watchwing resettled himself and continued with his tale.

“I had no other option but to I trudge blindly forward; hoping that Discord had pointed me in the right direction and hating myself for hoping it. The sounds of the resumed parade and the terrified, cheering ponies fell behind, but I barely noticed. I felt the cobblestone road turn to dirt beneath my hooves and I knew I had reached the end of the village. Something I couldn’t indentify settled around my neck. My confusion lasted a moment before I felt my master’s hooves gently turn me in a different direction. She spoke softly. ‘The satchel around your neck contains a mixture of herbs designed to stop the bleeding of your eyes and prevent infection. You’re facing toward our usual entrance to the forest, remember my lessons and you might survive. I sorry I don’t dare do more. Good luck’”

“She was gone before I could reply, before I could thank her for being the only one to help me. It took about half an hour before a small but noticeable decrease in temperature told me I had reached the forest’s shady branches. I took a moment to apply the herbs to my empty sockets and was gratified to feel the pain lessen slightly.”

“I wanted to rest but I knew my survival depended on finding food and water. It shouldn’t have been too hard I thought, since I’d spent so much time in the forest’s outskirts. But, without eyes, I had no way to orient myself and every root and low-hanging branch became a painful tripwire. I wandered, stumbling and falling over every obstacle, hoping to come across a pool or stream through sheer luck.”

“Well, my luck was notoriously absent, probably saving itself up for one perfect moment. I found nothing to eat or drink for two days. Honestly, I don’t know why I kept going; it seemed impossible that I would find some way to survive alone in the woods, without my eyes. But I every time my legs buckled I thought of Discord and I knew that every second I survived I was defying his expectations. Even if he would never know, I still did and it was enough to help me keep placing one foot in front of the other, for a while anyway.”

“Finally, at the end of my strength, I stumbled into this very cave and collapsed. It should have been by end but every bit of luck I’d ever have must have gone into making sure I collapsed at that exact position. Look at closely at the walls of the cave, notice anything special?”

Diana looked around in confusion. So far as she could tell the cave’s walls were perfectly ordinary and she said as much.

“Oh come now, look closer, anything at all come to mind?”

A second look revealed nothing new so Diana guessed the only thing she could come up with. “The walls are slightly concave?”

“Exactly! The walls are concave so, if you happen to be at precisely the right spot, they’ll bounce back any sound or, say, the wind generated by a collapsing pegasus. There’s a spring of water at the back of the cave so that particular breeze returned with a slightly different feel to it, like I was flying into a cloud. It took me a moment, in my delirious state, to understand just what I’d felt. However, I am a pegasus after all. I know that a cloud means water. Since I was on the ground I knew it had to be an actual water source.”

“I crawled forward, nose first, not daring to hope that there was really water nearby. There was though, I felt it run across my muzzle, cool and wet. I drank deeply and felt my strength return with every swallow. No longer thirsty, I raised my head and felt clarity return to my thoughts. The memory of a second breeze recalled itself to my mind. I realized that there had been a small mushroom shaped part of the breeze that had returned earlier than the breeze surrounding it. That meant that there had to be mushrooms nearby. It took a few moments of scouring the cave with my nose to the floor but I found the mushrooms and devoured them. Hunger and thirst satisfied for the moment I realized I had found both relying on this wind sense, without needing my eyes at all.”

“It took many long months but I finally got the hang of using my wings to see. I keep them spread out and constantly make very small motions to send out pulses of air. Those pulses reflect off of anything nearby and return to the highly sensitized air current detectors at the base of each wing, giving me a good idea of my surroundings.”

“It isn’t perfect but it’s allowed me to survive in this forest. I live from day to day; testing my ‘vision’, gathering food, and exploring the forest occupy my time. Quiet and unchanging, such is my life and I am glad to have it.”

Watchwing fell silent once more, calmly this time, his tale told to the end. Diana waited a moment; to be sure he had finished, and then spoke to him. “Thank you for telling me. You were brave to stand up to Discord as you did and the way you taught yourself to see again is incredible.”

“Honestly, I was foolish and lucky respectively. A braver pony would have known when to remain silent and an unluckier pony wouldn’t have collapsed in just the right spot. It’s kind of you to say so though. And thank you, for listening.” Watchwing smiled up at her and Diana smiled back.

“Well I guess it’s my turn now…” Diana started to say. But she was interrupted halfway through by a huge yawn.

The blue pegasus just shook his head. “You’re still recovering, so we should save it for tomorrow. Truth be told, I’m a little surprised you’re still awake.”

Diana’s eyes narrowed in suspicion as she fought off another yawn. “I just woke up after sleeping for a day and a half. Why wouldn’t I still be awake?

Watchwing scuffed the ground with one hoof and carefully avoided her gaze. “I might have put a little soporific in the water I gave you” he admitted, sheepishly. When the expected angry response was not forthcoming he looked up apprehensively, only to find Diana’s eyes fully closed and her breathing slow and regular.

He stared at her for a moment before smiling. “That was absurdly fortuitous timing. I guess I’ve got some luck left after all.” Still smiling he picked up the empty cup and walked to the back of the cave to wash it out, before stacking them neatly next to the other silverware, or woodenware as the case may be. His home put in order Watchwing grabbed a spare reed blanket and draped it over Diana’s sleeping form. Then, satisfied that his patient was resting soundly, Watchwing curled up next to the bed, closed his eyes, and allowed himself to drift off to sleep.

***

Diana’s second return to consciousness was far more gradual than her first. She slowly swam up through the layers of sleep, shrugging them off like warm coats at the end of a cold winter. At the last layer she paused, letting the remembrance of previous events wash over her as the forgetfulness of sleep retreated. She didn’t rush; she just waited and watched as everything fell into its proper place. It took a few moments for everything to come together, but at last she was ready to wake up. One eye cracked open and regarded the cavern.

“Ah, you’re up. Good. Breakfast is just about ready. I took the liberty of using some of your supplies, I hope you don’t mind.” Watchwing was standing over the lit fire pit, stirring a cheerfully bubbling pot from which a delicious odor was emanating.

A second eye popped open and Diana yawned as she crawled out from under the blanket. She stretched her hooves out in front of her and winced as her ribs reminded her that they were still miffed about the whole landing in a tree thing. Ambling over to the still bubbling pot Diana sniffed appreciatively. “I don’t mind you using my supplies if you can make them smell this good. What’s in there anyway?”

“About fifty different varieties of plant. It took forever to get the right proportions to make it taste good. I call it my little-bit-of-everything stew.” He lifted the ladle from the pot and took a small sip. “Mmm, it’s just about ready, grab us bowls and I’ll serve.”

A pink glow lit Diana’s horn as she reached out with telekinesis and grabbed a pair of bowls. Strangely, instead of drifting over to her as she had intended, the bowls shot overhead and slammed into the cave wall opposite them. Diana gave the bowls a confused look. Telekinesis was the most basic spell any alicorn learned, one she had been able to do without thought for years, why would it give her trouble now?

Watchwing looked concerned by this. “Try it with a little less power maybe?” Diana nodded and grabbed the bowls again, using a fraction of her previous power. This time they obeyed her summons exactly as they were supposed to.

The two ponies shared a look and shrugged simultaneously. Investigating this mystery could wait until after breakfast. Without further incident Watchwing ladled generous servings of the stew into their bowls and they both dug in.

Each evidently believed that eating was a serious affair so silence reigned until they had both licked the bowls clean. They sat quietly for a moment longer, letting the meal digest until Diana began to speak. “Thank you. Not just for the meal but for everything. I didn’t realize it last night but dragging me in here during a storm and taking care of me while I was unconscious couldn’t have been easy. It’s a lot to do for somepony you don’t know. If there’s any way I can return the favor…not that I have a lot to offer at the moment but I’d like to make it up to you somehow…” she realized she was babbling and allowed herself to trail off.

Watchwing shook his head. “You’re welcome of course, and there’s certainly no need to repay me. Besides, I owe you an apology. What I told you last night wasn’t something I should have burdened a new acquaintance with, let alone one who was still recovering. I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. You needed to tell somepony, and it made me feel safer, knowing the type of pony you are.” In response to his skeptical look Diana leaned forward and spoke earnestly. “I mean it. Sure it was frightening when you got that angry, but it was understandable in light of what had happened to you. Besides, there was no way you could fake that anger and anyone who’s that angry at Discord is a friend of mine.”

He nodded slowly. “Alright, let’s put last night behind us. In any case, I would still like to know what you’re doing here. Though, I think it’s more important that you start rehabilitating yourself first.”

Diana quirked an eyebrow at him. “Rehabilitating?”

“That’s what my master always called it.” He shrugged. “Whenever anypony was injured she would make them exercise as soon as they were able to. It’s been two days since you even walked for an extended period of time, some movement would do you good.”

That made sense to her. Back on the farm Diana had learned the importance of working evenly to keep muscles from getting sore. Flying in a storm and then not moving for two days was certainly not an even distribution of effort. “I guess I am a little stiff.” She bounced to her feet and started trotting toward the exit. “Besides, I can’t wait to see what this forest of yours looks like. You coming?” she called back over her shoulder. Bemused by his companions sudden burst of energy, Watchwing stood up and followed at a more leisurely pace.

Diana emerged from the cave into a sunlit grass-filled clearing twenty meters wide. The bright sun warmed her cave-chilled flesh, even as she shaded her eyes against its light. Ringing the clearing were a species of tree she had never seen before. They were tall, tall enough that their canopies were a decent flight away, and wide enough that her entire wingspan wouldn’t even reach halfway around. Each tree had numerous branches starting at around halfway up and spreading out randomly from there. As she looked further out it seemed that the trees grew taller the farther they were from the clearing. However, a second look revealed that the ground sloped upward in all directions. Turning around she realized that the cave was, in fact, a huge collection of freestanding rocks in the center of a depression in the forest.

It was an idyllic place, no hint of danger anywhere. The leaves fluttered lazily in a light breeze, creating playful traceries of light and shadow on the forest floor. There was one spot though, that didn’t seem to fit with the peaceful ambiance of the place; one tree’s canopy had a large hole in it and there was a pattern of broken branches below until it stopped at one particularly sturdy looking branch.

As she contemplated the anomaly Watchwing came up behind her. He followed her gaze. “Admiring your handiwork?” he teased.

Any potential feeling of remorse for altering this peaceful place flew out the window at his words. Diana stuck her tongue out at him and cantered off around the clearing, greatly enjoying the startled sound he made as she left him in the dust.

The blue pegasus caught up a moment later and they cantered round the clearing in a companionable silence. They did a second circuit at a gallop and then slowed to a walk for their third. Diana stretched her wings out and flapped experimentally. It was painful, but not unduly so. She kept spreading and flexing her wings as they circled around. Working the kinks out of them felt wonderful, even if the cut on her left wing still burned every time she moved it.

It was so peaceful in the clearing. There were birds chirping in the background, warm sun, and soft grass. It was truly restful. It was…boring. Sure her recent life had been more eventful than Diana expected, but eventful was far more fun than the monotonous life she’d led on the farm. In a way, it was reassuring that she didn’t want to go back. She was proud that her resolve was unshaken either by the obstacles she had faced or the uncertainty before her.

That didn’t change the fact that she was still bored though. Well, there was an easy way to remedy that particular problem. She turned to Watchwing. “Are you still interested in why I’m here? Because, if we’re just going to walk, I think I can handle walking and talking at the same time.”

“Oh, you can? I would love to hear but I didn’t want to push you so soon after you woke up.” He face was the very picture of innocent concern.

Well, thought Diana, I must meet sarcasm with sarcasm. “I can, in fact, walk and talk. I was merely holding back because I was afraid you couldn’t walk and listen at the same time.”

“Well have no fear on that account. I will listen with the utmost attentiveness.”

Diana shot him a look but Watchwing studiously maintained his deadpan expression. “I guess I’ll get started then.”

So she told him of her dissatisfaction growing up on the farm, her plan to leave, and the long hours spent preparing while everypony else slept. It’s kind of fun, she thought, telling somepony about everything I did. Sort of like bragging but it’s all true. As she came to the escape attempt, and the subsequent pursuit, her good mood soured. Everything had just seemed to go wrong and it had frightened her. Still, it was nothing I couldn’t handle then, so talking about it now shouldn’t be that hard. She kept the rising tide of painful emotion out of her voice as she proceeded with her story. But, when Diana came to her confrontation with the captain, the emotions overpowered her. The memory of those feelings, the rage, the bloodlust, surged up and silenced her.

Watchwing turned toward her, concerned by the sudden silence, and saw tears on her cheeks. He wrapped his wing around her and nuzzled her gently as she cried, not speaking, just holding her.

She cried for a long time, letting out the stress of escape. At last, when she was all cried out, she allowed the knowledge that her escape was complete, that she was well and truly free, to wash over her, a balm to her pained psyche.

A sigh followed as Diana wiped the tears from her eyes. “I’m sorry. It’s just…I had never felt anger like that before. I really would have killed the captain if she’d continued to stand in my way. Bloodlust was not an emotion I was aware I could feel and now that I know…it scares me.” Her voice rose as she spoke until she was practically shouting. “What if it happens again? What if I kill somepony? I don’t want to be a murderer!”

“Then don’t.” His response was calm, measured, he spoke as if it were the simplest thing in the world.

She neighed in frustration and stamped her hoof. “It’s not that simple!”

“Isn’t it? From the way you described your combat you could have kept attacking after you injured her and she probably would have died. Instead, you stopped and gave her the chance to back out. That doesn’t sound like somepony who’s out of control to me.”

Diana thought about it. I guess that’s true, I did manage to hold back, even when I wanted nothing more than to hurt her. And that injury I inflicted is the only reason I got away, after all. Maybe this can be managed, controlled…Maybe. She looked over at Watchwing and offered a hesitant, watery smile.

He smiled back. “See? Just trust yourself, you aren’t a cruel pony. I may not have known you for long but even I can tell that much. It’s not as if you’re going to go out and harm others for the fun of it right?”

A firm nod met his questioning look. “That’s right. I’m not going to kill anypony.” Diana shrugged off his wing, though she still stayed close. “I’m not going to become a monster that easily.”

“That’s the spirit! Now then, what about the rest of the story, what happened next?”

“Nothing much left to tell. I got caught in that storm and stayed aloft for as long as I could before crash landing here and blacking out.”

They had finished their exercise for the day and moved into the shade of one of the nearby trees to rest. Diana’s muscles felt pleasantly tired from the exertion and she was slightly out of breath from talking and exercising at the same time. Watchwing was also nicely winded and enjoyed the respite. They sat quietly for a moment, relishing the cool noontide shade.

Finally, he turned to Diana and asked the question that was on both of their minds. “So what’s next for you? Where will you go now that you’re out?”

She shrugged. “I don’t really know. Wandering sounds good to me right now. Maybe see if I can’t find out something more about Discord like I promised Granny Pie I would. The problem with that is we alicorns are the longest lived of the four pony races. So if something is barely remembered by the alicorn elders then it’s pretty unlikely that any other pony is old enough to remember anything useful.”

An idea sparked in Watchwing’s brain. “Why do you have to ask a pony? There are other creatures out there that live much longer then we do.”

“Did you have something specific in mind?”

“Well, this forest is pretty old. Hay, most of these trees probably predate Discord. Why don’t you ask a tree?”

Diana stared at him with an are-you-really-that-stupid look before her instinctual sarcasm took over. “Oh what a brilliant idea! I don’t know why I didn’t think of that. I’ll just give it a try right now.” She turned around and addressed herself to the tree they were resting under. “Excuse me Mr. or Ms. Tree. I was wondering if you could tell me anything about Discord? Anything at all? No? What a surprise.” She turned back to Watchwing and was about to return to ridiculing him.

Query the sheep and the shepherd responds.

Diana shot to her feet, desperately searching for the source of the voice. It had seemed to come from everywhere at once booming forth and echoing in her mind. Seeing nothing out of the ordinary she turned her ire on Watchwing. “What the hay was that! Are you trying to scare me to death?”

Not bothering to hide his amusement he replied “I told you to ask a tree, it’s your fault you didn’t believe that it would talk back.”

She snorted in disbelief. “There is no way that was a tree. I want to know how you pulled that little trick.”

“Honestly, it’s no trick. There is a creature that lives here, a spirit of the forest, if you will. It watches through its trees and it can even speak through them, though with great difficulty.”

In the face of his certainty Diana felt her skepticism fading. “So it lives here, in this clearing?”

“Not exactly.” Watchwing seemed to struggle for the right words, trying to explain something that he didn’t fully understand. “In one sense it exists simultaneously everywhere the forest extends. It can detect everything that goes on near any tree in the forest. In another way it only truly exists at its central node in the forest’s heart. From what I’ve been able to gather it can speak to beings like us more easily there.”

“How did you even find out about it?” Diana asked.

Watchwing gestured toward his empty eyes. “It was curious how I managed to live without my eyesight. Knowledge is very important to it because collecting information is really all it has to occupy its time. We made a deal, I would explain how my wing-sight worked and it would keep an eye on me, alerting me when I was near anything dangerous. So far it’s saved my life a couple of times and certainly made things much easier than they would have been.”

Diana nodded slowly. “So when you suggested I ask a tree about Discord you weren’t joking huh? Well let’s give it a shot.” She addressed herself to the tree once more. “I apologize if I was rude before, it didn’t occur to me that you could actually talk back. I’m genuinely curious though; do you know anything about Discord?”

A brook burbles but cannot quench until you reach its banks.

“Well I’m going to take that as a no.” Diana sighed. “Back to square one I guess.”

Watchwing shook his head. “That wasn’t a no, that was an invitation to come visit.”

“How do you figure?”

“It represents the brook. You can hear it speak from here, but you have to go meet it to get anything useful out of it. It also implied that it can quench your thirst for knowledge. In other words…”

“It might know something after all!” Diana jumped to her feet in excitement. “Great! I’ll go there now, which direction is it in?” She started pacing on the spot, eager to be on the move again.

“Hold your horses. This isn’t something you can just dash off to.” At his cautioning tone Diana reined in her excitement and listened more closely. “It’s a three day hike to the heart of the forest and that’s assuming you can avoid any and all danger along the way. Besides, you’re still injured. I’m not letting you go anywhere until your wing is healed.”

At the last sentence Diana’s eyes narrowed angrily. “You’re not going to let me go anywhere? Who do you think you are, trying to tell me where I can and can’t go?”

Her accusation hung heavily between them in afternoon air. Finally Watchwing responded, speaking very carefully so as not to provoke her further. “Perhaps I spoke poorly and for that I apologize. I’m sure you’ve heard the old saying ‘if you save somepony’s life you become responsible for that life.’ I would greatly regret it if you lost your life by being too hasty. How about we make a deal then?”

Diana’s anger lessened but her caution was still readily apparent in her face. “What kind of deal did you have in mind?”

“Simply this: If you stay here until you are able to fly again I will guide you to the forest’s heart. We’re friends now, the forest and I, and I can hopefully help you avoid the worst dangers. Besides, I would like to meet this sentient tree as well. Do we have a deal?”

An unpleasant suspicion flickered in the back of Diana’s mind. Why is he being so kind? I crashed into his quiet life two days ago and since then he’s gone very far out of his way to help me. I could maybe understand taking in me and providing some medicine while I was injured, but going on a three day trip just because he doesn’t want me wandering off alone? That seems odd. It’s not like I have a choice though. I don’t know where I’m going so I still need him. I’ll just have to watch him very very carefully.

Diana blinked and realized she’d been staring off into space for the past few minutes, meditating on her choices. Watchwing was watching her, waiting for her decision. She nodded. “Alright, you’ve got yourself a deal.”

They shook hooves. Then Watchwing spoke in a mock serious tone. “Now that the trivial problems have been resolved we have a topic of the utmost importance to discuss.”

“And what might that be?”

“What we are going to have for dinner, of course.”

They smiled at one another and walked into the cave to prepare their evening meal.

Comments

[Quixotic Mage]

Well here's chapter two. I tried to slow down a bit while keeping it exciting. Please let me know what you think.

[Bridgebrain]

Perfect pacing. Slow, but not tedious. Very interesting character, Daredevil almost, but with his own sense of self. I also like our new cryptic tree. Speaking in riddles always entertains me
There was a small typo somewhere, but I seem to have lost it. I'll keep looking. If you see it before I do, its in the first 8th horizontally. (Don't ask me why I remember pages like that lol) [|][][][][][][][]

[Bridgebrain]

Seems this is what I was thinking of:
Less afraid the Watchwing should be "that"
I also found "spiraled up like a straightened" slightly off. I know where you were going with it, but its a logical contradiction.
Next, comma before so in "actually worked so Twilight"
Lastly, it seems to me that this would extend past one page, so how the pen would replace the page should be mentioned. Its not really an issue, but those of us who think too much will get a moment of fridge logic.
Keep up the excellent work, I really do enjoy your writing style :)

[Quixotic Mage]

297709
Thank you for your kind words and for catching those typos. I really appreciate both.

[FanOfMostEverything]

A genius loci. Or possibly an Ent. Very cool.

Things are progressing at a most enjoyable clip. I look forward to more.