The Night's Fangs

by Cavenerd20

Chapter 5

Princess Luna was lying in bed on her back, wings spread out on either side of her. Her neck rested against the pillow, head tilted back to expose her throat, the tip of her horn touching the wood floor behind her. Kneeling next to her bed was a creature with sunken red eyes, pale shrunken skin like a cadaver’s, and gleaming, needle-sharp fangs. It resembled a bald ape, but when it moved it was with a grace and power akin to a large predatory cat. On the other side of her from the creature, Twilight Sparkle lay on an identical bed in an identical position. The creature hissed softly as Luna emitted a tiny moan, and then slowly, almost lovingly, lowered its glistening teeth to her bared throat, lifting her to itself at the same time. It nuzzled her just under her chin, and then fastened its jaws around her neck, though it was careful to avoid piercing her carotid artery. It then began to kiss at the wounds it had created. It released her, after a short while, and licked the wounds, which immediately ceased bleeding. It held her close in what was clearly a hug, and said to her, “How was it, my princess?”

She smiled anemically at the creature, her eyes dreamy and unfocused, and kissed it on the cheek. “It was wonderful,” she said, nuzzling it, “as indescribable as you said it would be. Thank you, Master.”

The creature then turned to Twilight. “Are you ready, my little alicorn?” Twilight nodded, eyes closed, and the creature lifted her throat to its mouth. It bit down, and a slight whimper escaped Twilight before being overtaken by a moan. It released her from its jaws, and said, “Did you like it?”

She nodded, and said, “It was amazing. Thank you so much for sharing this with me, Master.”

Philip’s eyes flew open, but he remained absolutely still. He had been dozing on his mattress near the doors to the girls’ rooms, his newly acquired knife hidden underneath his pillow, until the bizarre dream had woken him. It was not like the werewolf dream, where he had been revolted by the events; instead, it had seemed almost pleasurable. But that isn’t possible, he thought to himself. I couldn’t actually be…could I?

All of a sudden, he heard muffled footsteps creeping towards the door. Stiffening instantly, he slowly reached under his pillow and gripped the handle of the knife.

The footsteps grew closer. Twilight mumbled in her sleep but did not wake. The sound of hooves on the carpet reached the doorway; Philip could hear four pairs, meaning two ponies. The door opened silently, and he heard a voice.

“What’s Philip doing on the floor in Twilight’s room?”

He felt a wave of relief; it was a very familiar mare’s voice. Another familiar voice quietly chirped, “I dunno. Maybe he wanted to cuddle but didn’t want to wake them up?”

The two ponies stepped over him, making their way towards the bed where Luna lay on her back, her hind leg twitching as she snored. Philip had wanted to warn the others, but they had eventually agreed that informing the others about the assassination attempt could wait until morning, since the Talons did not seem to be targeting anyone other than the princesses. This, however, was too golden of an opportunity for Philip to pass on.

The security in Twilight’s castle is practically nonexistent, he thought as he noiselessly crept up behind the two intruders. He had mentioned this to the two princesses before they went to bed, but they had both brushed it off. Neither one believed an assassin could actually enter Twilight’s castle, and both believed that as long as they slept together, no one would dare attack them and risk the wrath of the other. They were wrong, and Philip knew it. Now he could prove it. It’s time I showed them just how effective an assassin can be.
Creeping up behind the two, he grabbed the second pony first. Quickly placing a hand over her mouth, he drew two fingers of his other hand across her throat before she could scream. He felt her lick his hand, and responded by gently tugging her ear with his other hand. Then, before she could make a sound he released her, grabbed the other pony and drew his fingers across her throat. This time, however, he let her scream.

“AAAAHHH!”

“Rainbow Dash!?”

Luna and Twilight shot up in their beds as Rainbow Dash shot into the air, screaming at the top of her lungs. Pinkie Pie dropped to the floor, tears of mirth streaming down her cheeks.

“What was that for?” Rainbow yelped, staring wide-eyed at Philip.

Turning to the princesses, he said, “Still think we don’t need better security?”

The two mares still in bed leapt from their mattresses just as Spike turned the corner and almost skidded on the carpet outside the door. “What just happened?” the baby dragon asked.

“Nothing, Spike, go back to bed.” As the youngest member of the party left, Philip turned back to the princesses and said, “I think I’ve made a good case, don’t you?”

“What do you mean, Philip?” asked Luna, tilting her head cutely to one side. Philip blinked; he was suddenly reluctant to ruin her illusion of security. He knew, however, that it was better his friends realize this way rather than the hard way.

“Well, for one thing, Rainbow and Pinkie snuck up on you without waking you. It’s a safe bet there will be agents in the Talons who are trained for infiltration, and they’ll be even stealthier.”

“Maybe,” said Twilight, “but I still think that they’d never risk hurting one of us and waking the other up.”

Philip sighed and patted her head, smiling a little sadly at her. “Rainbow,” he said, turning to the mare in question, “did you notice when I grabbed Pinkie and ran my fingers across her throat like I did with you?”

“Uh, no,” said Rainbow, lifting an eyebrow, “I didn’t notice, but what’s your point?”

“I made a slashing motion across her larynx. You were barely a foot in front of her and you didn’t notice me grab her, and you were awake. If I had used a knife I could have slashed her vocal chords and you wouldn’t have known I was there until I grabbed you. A trained assassin can cut the throat of the person behind you, and you won’t even turn around. Do you really think they couldn’t do it while you were asleep?”

There was absolute silence. Then Rainbow said, “well, yeah, but how do we know they’re still around? They might have skipped town after the Timberwolf thing fell through!”

“One of them tried to stab me in the neck as we were walking back to the castle,” said Twilight in a small voice, head bowed.

“Oh geez, Twilight, are you okay?” asked Rainbow.

“OmigoshthisisterriblepoorTwilybearweneedapartySTAT!” babbled Pinkie Pie.

“…She just called you Twilybear,” said Philip, perplexed.

“We are alright,” said Luna. “Philip struck him with a garbage can lid and knocked him back into the alleyway where he had been hiding.”

“He got away, but I got his knife,” said Philip, holding up the blade. “I managed to dent the trash can lid, so I think I got him pretty good. The fact that he dropped this knife makes me think he had an accomplice who got him out of there before I could grab him.”

“I guess you’re right about the security, Philip,” said Twilight. “I’ll need to start thinking about getting guards posted at my castle.”

“I’m not so sure,” said Rainbow, looking at Philip.

“What are you unsure of?” asked Luna, a puzzled frown on her face.

“I think I get what Dashie means!” said Pinkie. “Philip knows a lot about assassins, and he’s good at being one! I bet if we were really assassins he would have gone all-Pow! Blam! Kickity! Punchity!”

“Actually, I would have just run the knife across your throats instead of my fingers.”

Pinkie got quiet at that, and Rainbow blanched. Twilight turned slightly green, and Luna looked oddly touched.

“I find it quite gratifying that you care enough to kill for us, dear Philip,” she said. Philip looked at her; her mane waved in the gloom of the night, stars twinkling like the depths of the sky above them. He strode over to her and wrapped her in a hug.

“Let’s get some rest,” he said in reply, “we have a big day tomorrow.” Turning to the two newcomers, he said, “Pinkie, could you go get Spike? Rainbow, can you help me get an extra bed?”

“Why?” asked Rainbow, as Pinkie bounced off down the hall.

“I’d rather we were all in the same room tonight,” said Philip, “and I thought it might be a good idea for you and Pinkie to sleep here. Assuming Twilight has no objections?”

“Not at all,” Twilight responded. “In fact, maybe we should invite the others to sleep over tomorrow; there’s safety in numbers, after all.”

“Good idea, Twilight,” said Philip, as Pinkie pulled somehow pulled Spike’s entire bed into the room by herself.

Rainbow and Philip carried another bed into the room, which she agreed to share with Pinkie. The four ponies and the baby dragon hopped into bed and were soon fast asleep. Philip, however, slept only lightly, keeping one ear open for the telltale shuffling of hooves on carpet or the tiny creak of an opening door or window. If Rainbow and Pinkie had gotten in, so could the Talons, and Philip would be ready when they did.

---

It was just before eight when Philip awoke again.

He rose, careful not to wake the sleeping mares, and snuck noiselessly down the hall to the library. He stretched, noticed the time and sighed; his dream last night was yet another thing to report to Celestia. He tried to read a few more books, but the odd details of the dream intruded constantly. He read through perhaps three pages before finally deciding enough was enough and crossing over to the reading pit. He sat down and crossed his legs.

Okay, lotus position, breathe nice and deep…OHM…OHM…OHM. He allowed all his thoughts to subside, breathing slowly in through his nose and out through his mouth. He felt the worries and pent-up emotions of the past few days flowing slowly out of his body. His mind became as calm and as tranquil as a perfectly still pool. That’s better, he thought, but I wonder where I learned to meditate like that? He shrugged mentally; it would come in handy later, at the very least. Suddenly, he once again was forced to suppress a snarl as memories flooded his mind’s eye.

A wizened old man with yellowish-brown skin and a long, white beard sat with his legs crossed underneath him, a younger man by his side. Both wore long yellow robes with burgundy accents, and both had their eyes closed. The mountainside around them was perfectly still, and the only sound was their breathing. Without opening his eyes, the old man said to the younger, “It happened again, did it not?”

The younger man, also without opening his eyes, said, “Yes, Guru.”

The older man sighed. “No one should have to bear your burdens,” he said. “You had done nothing to deserve what was done to you. Do not feel that you need to hold on to your anger, especially not at yourself.”

The young man sighed, then said, “I know, I know; if I was still a monster I would not feel so awful.”

The old man nodded. “You must learn to forgive yourself, my youthful old man.”

Then the memories shifted.

A peaceful, tranquil scene surrounded young men in straight lines, moving through a series of poses in the courtyard of a large temple. An ancient man walked up to the largest, a man who was far taller than the others. “You are doing well,” said the old man, “did it happen again last night?” The young man nodded, and the elder sighed. “We cannot hope to teach you anything more than you have already learned,” he said. “I think it best that you go on a journey, to try to find the answer.”

The man turned fluidly, and bowed to the elder. “Thank you, then, Sifu,” he said, “I hope you live for many more years. Not too many though,” he said, smiling sadly. “I wouldn’t want you going mad as I did.”

Philip’s eyes opened. I don’t know what that was, but something tells me there are things in my past that I won’t enjoy remembering. He sighed. Well, he thought, smiling, now I have something to do. He rose from the floor and began to go through the forms he had been practicing in the memory. He was careful to breathe slowly and deeply, feeling the flow of his energy. This is great, feeling my qi flow so freely, he thought, not questioning where the word ‘qi’ had come from. He emptied his mind of every thought, every feeling but that of lucid tranquility. Sliding from one form to the next, he focused on his hands, willing a ball of qi to form. He felt it, and began to float it around himself as he moved.

Spike entered the library a half hour later to find Philip balancing by his large toe on the tines of a fork, the other end of which was sitting on the floor. Ten spherical distortions in the air were floating around him in a ring. Spike looked away; and then whipped his head back around to look again. Philip had already dismounted the fork, however, and the spheres had vanished. “Uh…” said Spike. Philip just blinked at him. “I’ll just…send this letter,” said Spike, indicating a letter resting on the table. He picked it up, and incinerated it with his fire breath. It went out the window and swirled away in the direction of a distant mountain with a city on its side.

“Writing a letter to Father Christmas, Spike?” inquired Philip.

“Father who?” said Spike.

“I have no idea,” said Philip, smiling warmly at the dragon, “it just seemed like the thing to say.”

Just then, there was a knock on the front doors. “Coming!” shouted Twilight from her room. She trotted down the stairs and opened the door. Standing there was Applejack.

“Mornin’ Twi,” she said, “Ah just wanted ta tell ya that Fluttershy asked if Philip could help her out instead o’ me. She said if it’s alright with him, ta just head over ta her house. If’n he don’t show up by nine, she’ll assume he ain’t comin’. Ah just dropped by ta tell ya Fluttershy could probably use the help more’n we could at this point.” She chuckled. “A couple’a cousins dropped by unannounced, and decided ta help us today, so we’ll be finished ahead’a schedule.”

Philip smiled at her, having come down the steps with Starlight. “Alright, I’ll be sure to go over there. Twilight will need to give me directions, though.”

Twilight, however, was packing a saddlebag with books. “I think I’d rather come with you,” she said, “Fluttershy can be a little shy, and it might help you both if a close friend of hers is around.” She grinned mischievously. “Anyway, I want to see if any more of your memories come back.”

Philip smiled and said, “Some already did.” He then told her about his back-to-back flashbacks, and she wrote them down on a piece of parchment.

“I’m keeping a report on what I can learn from you,” she said, “because you’re the only subject I have to observe. Also,” she added, smiling again, “I like to know as many things about my friends as I can. I feel it helps bring us closer.”

Philip returned her smile and thanked her, then clapped his hands together and said, “I’m ready to go when you are.”

“I will go as well,” said Starlight, the corners of her eyes crinkling in a smile. “Fluttershy is a dear friend to me.”

“I’ve got weather patrol,” said Rainbow, racing out the door suddenly, “so I’ll catch you all later!”

“I have to sit for the Cakes,” said Pinkie, bouncing out after Rainbow, “so I’ll see you all at the speech!”

The three remaining mares and their strange friend stepped out the door, and Applejack returned to her orchards while the others traveled to Fluttershy’s house. Soon they were leaving Ponyville, and not long afterwards they came upon a cozy looking cottage. It had a roof made from green leaves rather than thatching, and had chicken coops and bird houses aplenty. The pathway led across a small stream, over which a charming bridge was build. Numerous bird feeders hung about the area, and there were small holes in the stream banks for rabbits, otters, and beavers, among other things. Philip found himself wondering if Fluttershy had received and cared for the wolf yet. I hope she didn’t give Fluttershy too much trouble, he thought.

As they approached the cottage, they noticed that all the animals were hiding. “I’m sure it doesn’t mean anything Philip,” said Twilight, seeing Philip’s expression. “Besides,” she continued, smiling, “I know one animal who won’t be scared of you at all!”

“And who would that be?” asked Philip.

“Fluttershy has a pet rabbit named Angel,” said Twilight, chuckling. “He’s not afraid of anything, really. He’s kind of mean, even to Fluttershy.”

“Rabbits are surprisingly vicious,” said Philip with a chuckle.

They reached the Dutch-style door, and Twilight knocked. “Who is it?” said a voice.

“It’s me, Twilight,” she said, “and Philip and Starlight are here, too. We came to see what you needed.”

The door opened just a crack, and Fluttershy peeked out. “Oh, hello,” she said, letting them in. The interior of the cottage was homey, with chairs and sofas, along with a coffee table. Philip had to duck a little to get through the door, but only a little. “Thank you for coming,” said Fluttershy. “I was worried, after what happened last night. With the Timberwolves.”

“That isn’t all that happened,” said Philip, and he recounted the attempted assassination to her.

“Oh my goodness, that’s terrible!” squeaked Fluttershy. “Is everypony okay?”

“We’re fine, Flutters, but we’ll all need to keep a sharp eye out for unusual behavior,” said Philip. “In the meantime, though, we’ve got to keep living our lives. Making us afraid is what they want; if we let fear run our lives, we let them win.”

There was a moment of silence, as they processed what Philip had just said so causally. “I could not have said it better myself,” said Starlight, smiling serenely.

“…You’re amazing, Philip,” said Fluttershy, staring in wonder at him. “I feel better just by hearing you talk.”

“I’m glad to hear it,” said Philip, gently stroking her cheek. “So what do you need help with.”

“First I need to give my friends’ pets their checkups, and then I need a little help with a new arrival or two. There’s a falcon who doesn’t want to let me near his wing to relocate it, and I need someone to hold him while I do that. I also need someone to hold a wolf while I treat her sprained paw.”

Starlight smiled wryly. “I remember that wolf,” she said, “and I sincerely hope she is well-fed enough that she will not try to eat me this time.”

Philip grinned. “She won’t,” he said, “You’re a pack member now.” Starlight raised an eyebrow at that.

Just then, a white rabbit hopped out of what Philip assumed was the kitchen, brandishing a stopwatch. “Late for a very important date, are you?” said Philip. The rabbit turned…and looked right at Philip with an expression of stark terror. Philip thought that look was familiar, but could not place where he had seen it. The rabbit rushed over to Fluttershy, picked her up, and carried her up the stairs in a display of incredibly disproportionate strength. “Et tu, Angelus?” said Philip sadly. Suddenly, he felt the tell-tale sensation of another flashback.

A village was being ransacked. Blood and fire were everywhere. Men in wolf skins were carrying bundles of goods back to a long, sleek wooden ship docked in the nearby bay. Villagers were screaming, and the wolf-clad men were shouting battle cries. One man in particular was hewing village men left and right, his broadsword dancing with unrestrained bloodlust. Suddenly, he felt a knife skating across his thigh, barely a scratch. He swept his sword to the side…and stopped just short of decapitating a boy who looked to be no older than twelve. The boy looked up at the man in stark terror, as though he was…a monster, thought the man, and is he wrong? The man dropped his sword in horror. I’ve become exactly what they thought I was, he thought, and exactly what I promised myself I would never be. With a cry of rage and anguish, the man ran through the night, not seeing where he was going or caring. All he wanted to do was run faster, until he could outrun the horror tearing through his soul.

Philip snapped back to reality. He was curled on the floor, with Fluttershy, Starlight and Twilight looking at him in concern. He rose, and calmly said, “Which way is the bathroom?” Fluttershy pointed, and squeaked as he rushed in the direction she had indicated, a crack of displaced air left in his wake. Immediately there was a horrible retching sound, and a splattering. A moment later, Philip emerged from the restroom, looking rather disheveled. “That…was the worst flashback yet,” he said tensely, panting.

“Did you just throw up?” asked Fluttershy. Philip nodded.

“That one was a lot worse than the others,” he said, “and hopefully the worst I’ll have.”

Twilight took out her scroll and said, “Do you want to talk about it?”

“Maybe later,” said Philip, “right now I think I’d like to just lose myself in some work.” Starlight and Twilight nodded.

“I know how that feels,” said Starlight, as Twilight put away her notes.

They went into a back room, where Winona and Opal were waiting along with a tortoise, a baby alligator, and an owl. Angel was there as well, looking at Philip as though he was the grim reaper. The moment Philip entered the room, Winona started yapping her head off, Opal darted under the nearest chair, the alligator began to make an odd squeaking noise, the tortoise retreated into his shell, and the owl flew between Philip and Twilight hooting up a storm.

“Well,” said Philip, a note of resignation in his voice, “I can’t say I expected anything less than full-blown panic.”

“Um…” said Starlight hesitantly, “…the crocodile does not seem to be afraid!”

“You hear that squeaking sound?” said Philip. Starlight nodded…then grabbed him with all four legs as Pinkie Pie suddenly appeared next to her.

“Hi!” said Pinkie, “I’m here to see if Gummy’s ready to go yet! It must be so boring, waiting for his checkup, so I brought him some magazines to read!” She immediately produced several alligator-themed magazines from her mane.

“Gummy’s calling you, Pinkie,” said Philip.

“He is?” asked Starlight, bewildered.

Philip nodded. “I suppose so. That call is supposed to be for his mother, so I guess that’s Pinkie Pie.”

Starlight looked at him in wonder. “So even the crocodile is frightened of you?”

“Alligator,” said Philip, “you can tell because his snout is broader and more U-shaped than a crocodile’s would be. And yes, he’s scared.”

This time it was Twilight that looked at him in wonder. “You noticed the difference already?” He nodded.

“So now what?” said Twilight.

“Well,” said Fluttershy, “I suppose we could try to relocate that falcon’s wing…oh, dear.” The falcon was sitting on top of a nearby wardrobe, trying to stay as far away from Philip as possible.

“How are you to help, Philip?” inquired Starlight. “All the animals seem to fear you too much to come near you.”

Philip looked thoughtful for a moment, and then his expression became one of determination. “I show them they don’t need to fear me,” he said, “starting with that falcon.” He sat down in the middle of the room, staring up at the falcon perched on the wardrobe. Then, to the amazement of the ponies, he began to hum a tune. Then, he began to sing.

As Philip sang, the animals began to calm down, especially the falcon, which looked awestruck. Philip rose from his position and approached the wardrobe. He hummed the tune for a little, and then sang the rest; as he did, the falcon came to the front of the wardrobe and stepped onto his now outstretched wrist. He ended the song with the falcon perched on his wrist as if they had been friends for years.

The mares were stunned. His voice had been amazing, and the animals were no longer trembling in fear. They seemed cautiously optimistic, and willing to give him a chance. The white rabbit was looking at Philip as if unable to believe he had been frightened of this strange new creature.

“Wow,” said Twilight finally, “I had no idea you could sing. And so well, too.”

Philip shrugged. “I dabble,” he replied.

“Um,” said Fluttershy, “Opal might need some more convincing.” She was right; Opal was still hiding under the chair. Philip thought for a moment, and then took off his tattered shirt, which he was still wearing from yesterday. He poked it under the chair, allowing Opal to smell it. As he did this, he looked at her, and slowly blinked. She smelled the shirt, and then blinked slowly back, eyes half open.

“There,” said Philip, “she’s feeling a little better now.”

“Goodness,” said Fluttershy, “I had no idea you were so good with animals.”

Philip smiled at her. “Thank you, Fluttershy,” he said, “I appreciate that. Now,” he said, turning to the falcon, which had perched on his shoulder, “let’s see about relocating that wing.”

The falcon nodded, and allowed Fluttershy to take hold of his wing. As she did, she asked Philip, “What was that you said earlier about angelus? If you don’t mind my asking…”

“That was…Latin. What I said was, ‘you too, Angel’?” said Philip. The bunny, Angel, looked at him strangely.

“Um, what’s…oh, right, amnesia.” Philip nodded, and that seemed to satisfy the rabbit.

“Okay,” said Fluttershy, “this might hurt a bit.” The falcon squawked.

Philip chuckled. “Don’t worry,” he said, “you’re a tough little falcon; you’ll be fine.”

He held onto the falcon while Fluttershy quickly pushed the falcon’s wing back into its socket. The bird squawked again, but almost immediately calmed down when Philip placed his hands over the sore joint and focused his newfound qi. The falcon chirped at him, and Fluttershy said, “Oh! He says it doesn’t hurt anymore! Thank you Philip, I didn’t know you could do that!” The falcon flew back to his perch, and then saluted Philip with a wing. Philip smiled and returned the gesture.

“I may need to try that myself,” said Starlight. “Perhaps singing will help me, too.”

Philip cocked an eyebrow. “Have some animals that are scared of you?”

“Ponies,” said Starlight sadly, “Perhaps singing would convince them of my benevolence.” Philip stroked her mane, humming a tune that came to him unbidden.

“Philip…” started Fluttershy, “what was that song you were singing about? It was very beautiful.”

Philip smiled and raised an eyebrow. “Guess,” he said. “The lyrics should give you a clue.” Fluttershy thought for a moment, but shook her head. Figures she wouldn’t be into that, thought Philip. Starlight’s face, however, suddenly lit up.

“Falconry!” she cried, “the song is about falconry! And the hunter is the falcon!”

Philip nodded. “Yes, it’s a song sung from the point of view of a falcon.”

“Do you like falcons, Philip?” asked Starlight.

“Somewhat, but my favorite birds are…” Suddenly, a black bird flew into the room, and a gray wolf limped in after it. The bird perched on Philip’s head, and the wolf approached Starlight with its back partly arched and its tail half-tucked. “…Ravens,” finished the man.

“Oh,” said Fluttershy, “do you know each other?”

Starlight chuckled a bit. “Yes, dear Fluttershy, we know this wolf. She attempted to hunt me and Philip was forced to repel her.”

Fluttershy gave the wolf a stern glare. “That was not very nice, miss wolf. Say you’re sorry.”

The wolf whimpered an apology, looking at Starlight with sad puppy eyes. She gazed at the creature with a cool expression for a moment, but then cracked a grin. “Aww, who could resist that face,” she cooed. The wolf raced up to her as quickly as its injury would allow and licked her cheek.

“As for the Raven,” said Philip, “we’ve never met.”

The raven croaked. “He says you’re cool,” said Fluttershy, “and that he has a feeling that if he follows you he’ll ‘get good eats,’ whatever that means.”

“Oh boy,” sighed Philip, looking perplexedly up at the raven, “it’s never a good sign when a carrion bird thinks he can get a square meal by following you around.” The girls giggled at that.

The wolf yipped at Fluttershy, and she said, “Oh my, you don’t say…”

“What is it, Fluttershy?” asked Starlight.

“Um,” said Fluttershy, “apparently this wolf didn’t know she could get food here. She had been separated from her pack in a fight with a manticore, and sprained her paw.”

“Called it,” said Philip. That got another chuckle from the mares.

“Where’s Pinkie?” said Starlight, looking around.

“She left gummy his magazines and ran off mumbling something about chimichangas with cherries. She should make cherry churros or something,” replied Philip. He turned to Starlight, and said, “You seemed calm confronting that wolf, Star; I thought you’d be more frightened.”

She smiled. “I was with you,” she said, “so I knew I would be safe.”

Philip was taken aback. “You…trust me to protect you?” She nodded, smiling. “I…I’ve never had anyone trust me like that…” he said, looking down at her. “I may not remember most of my life before now, but…I don’t think I was ever seen as something safe before.”

“You protected me before,” said Starlight, “so I know that if I need you, you will protect me once again.” Philip stared at her, a wondering expression on his face, before giving her a great big hug.

“That means a lot to me,” he said.

“…This would be so much more profound if that raven would get off your head, Philip,” said Twilight, eliciting a laugh from the others.

After wrapping the wolf’s paw for extra joint support, they gave the other animals their checkups, Fluttershy hovering around with a stethoscope. The raven, having tired of ornamenting Philip’s head, began following after them, as did the wolf.

“We should name you,” said Fluttershy, looking at the wolf and biting her own lip. “How about… Nibbles?” The wolf made a gaging noise. “No? Okay, what about Fluffy?” The wolf flopped down and covered her eyes with her paws, whimpering.

“That bad, huh?” said Twilight.

“Oh, dear…” said Fluttershy.

“…Angrboda?” said Philip. The mares, along with every animal in the cottage, looked at Philip with open mouths.

“Where did that come from?” said Twilight.

“I don’t know,” said Philip, “let me think.”

He closed his eyes, his brow furrowed, and pondered the name for a moment. “She was the mother of…Fenrir,” he said.

“Who’s Fenrir?” asked Fluttershy.

“The biggest, meanest, most vicious wolf in the world,” said Philip, snapping his fingers. “He was bound to a slab of stone with an enchanted silken ribbon called Gleipnir, and a boulder was pounded into the earth as a peg. This was because it was prophesized that he would one day kill Odin, the king of the Norse Gods.”

Fluttershy looked skeptical at this. “Why would they need to use enchanted silk? Wouldn’t rope do?”

Philip shook his head. “Fenrir was massive, Fluttershy; his open mouth reached from the ground to the sky. His sons Skoll and Hati were always chasing the sun and moon across the sky, trying to eat them, and at the end of the world they were supposed to succeed. Afterwards Fenrir himself was supposed to break free and kill Odin. If I’m remembering correctly, which is a small miracle in itself, the Norse culture was very warlike, so the leader was typically an excellent warrior; on top of that, Odin had a spear that would never miss its mark. Killing him would be pretty difficult.” The wolf actually rolled over on her back and whined at this. “I’ll take that as a no,” said Philip, “and frankly I agree.”

“…I’m going to have nightmares about that thing,” said Twilight, wide-eyed. Starlight flinched at the word ‘nightmare,’ and Philip placed a comforting arm around her withers. She gave him a thankful, if nervous smile in return.

“So,” he said, “what about Freya, or Griselda?” The she-wolf shook her head side-to-side.

“Rose Tyler?” The wolf gave another head shake.

“…You’re Lupe, aren’t you?”

This got results; the she-wolf’s eyes lit up, and her mouth fell open to let her tongue hang out. She panted excitedly and bounced on her paws. “I’ll take that as a yes,” said Philip, “now what’s your name, raven?”

The raven flapped its wings once, and squawked again. “He wants you to name him,” said Fluttershy. “He says your names for Lupe were ‘happenin’. Whatever that means.”

Philip stared at the Raven for a moment, and then said, “I’ve got Huginn, Muninn, Waldron, and Wolfram.”

The raven cocked his head and croaked. “He wants to know what the names mean,” said Fluttershy.

“Well, Huginn means thought, Muninn means memory, Waldron means mighty raven, and Wolfram means wolf-raven…I guess that’s a yes for Wolfram.”

The raven had shot into the air at hearing the meaning of the name, and was croaking excitedly. “He loves it,” said Fluttershy. “Oh Philip, look how happy he is!” The raven landed on Philip’s shoulder and pulled his ear good-naturedly.

“I think he likes you, Philip!” said Twilight with a smile.

“Do you, now?” said Philip. “Well you’re welcome to stay with me as long as you like, Wolfram. “

They finished giving the animals their checkups, and Fluttershy offered them lunch. The others were hungry, but Philip did not eat very much. Afterwards, Fluttershy told them she would not need any more help for the day, as she was finished with the truly difficult work and would only be shopping in the afternoon. As they left, Wolfram flew into the air and circled high above, while Lupe trotted gaily along beside them.

“So what now?” asked Philip. “Applejack doesn’t need me today, so I have nothing to do but the speech until tomorrow.”

Twilight gasped. “We haven’t prepared your speech! You need to recite it at least fifteen times before you deliver it!” She grabbed him in her magic and pulled him along with her as she raced to the castle, Starlight rushing to keep up.

Comments

[SilentMech]

You know, Wolfram is going to be important now, right? Also, Lupe is freaking adorable when she is relaxed and calm.

[Cavenerd20]

5682034 Planning on it, but sometimes I forget about them. Although, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle sort of forgot about Mrs. Mortimer when he was writing "The Hound of the Baskervilles," so...yeah, I'm planning on using them some more.

[SilentMech]

5682156 What happens, happens. If you can't write them in, then you can't get them in.

[Epic Brony 4 Life]

5682156
Fuck it, I give up! I have absolutely no idea what the shitting hell this guy is! First, I thought werewolf, for obvious reasons. Then I thought he was a mage with werewolf ancestry, because of more obvious reasons. Now you drop that dream at the start, which hints at him being a vampire of sorts. I am literally out of ways to make any of that work. I will now read this with my brain turned off, just like I had to with Kill la Kill and Guyrenn Lagunn.

[rikusorasephiroth]

The names you went through for the raven were Celtic, but I'm not familiar with the spelling, so I'll assume either proper Celtic, or a different dialect to the Gaelic I know.
My Gaelic is a dialect unique to Down in Northern Ireland.
Family connection and all that.

[Cavenerd20]

5685038 Are you sure? If so, i need to find a new source for names. Wolfram is supposed to be either Swedish or Teutonic, and Waldron should be German. The other two are Odin's ravens, so I guess those are Norse.

[rikusorasephiroth]

5686603 Celtic is a break-away language from Norse, and Gaelic broke away from Celtic. Most people really only know the difference if they've taken the time to separate the individual aspects.
Also, again, I'm really only familiar with one dialect of Gaelic, and when 'mannin' means memory, you can see how it developed from Norse.
...
And when I wrote that, I forgot to dis-include wolfram, but it was near on 4am.

[chrismonteith]

not bad

[Cavenerd20]

5876498 Care to offer any advice? I actually posted this partly because I wanted feedback so I could improve my writing.

[djponyfl]

Will this story be getting an update any time soon?

[rikusorasephiroth]

Update?

[outerjay]

so .... you should do more its realy good or if yyou dont want to do more of this one or are stuck on it maybe do a new one cos you are god at this.