Ch.16 - Found You
"So, dark wood trees, huh?" Sky asked.
"Yep."
"You'd think they'd come up with a more interesting name. What was the wood used for, exactly?"
"Offices, floors, chairs, tables, you name it. Apparently they were in style for a few years." Midnight snorted, sending some of the water still left on her muzzle flying.
Just like the Everfree, the forest around Hollow Shades had wild, untamed weather. Unlike Ponyville, Hallow Shades had no weather team. There was almost no point when nopony would fly over the forest, day or night, and at night everypony stayed indoors, which meant that when a storm front rolled in, like it had today at dusk, all they could do was weather it. There had been debate about whether to suspend their night operations but Midnight refused. "It's the perfect time for them to sneak out for something, especially if they know where food is," she told them. So, she, the thestrals, and Arina were all out in the soup, trying to spot a kirin foal in the rain and between lightning flashes. In hind sight she realized the irony in trying to find a kirin in better conditions for it and worse ones for them.
One bit of consolation was that her mother had finally gotten back to her after waiting for a day and a half. Her grandfather had indeed cut these kinds of trees once, simply called dark wood trees. They had a magical property of absorbing nearby light, making the area around them darker. It had been in style for a few years after a noble had used a lot of it in creating a retreat in the woods.
"Yeah, because that's what I want when I have to wake up to go to the bathroom: not being able to see well enough even with a flashlight or candle," Midnight muttered.
"Nobles are weird," Sky agreed.
Midnight sighed and scanned the street below them again. Two days and three nights they'd been in Hollow Shades and they were barely any closer to finding the kirin than they had been when they arrived.
Actually, she had to admit that Arina had seen an animal carcass by the tree line last night but something had snatched it out of sight as she watched, so she'd understandably scurried back into the cover of a house. And at the market that day Spread Eagle had seen somepony bolt into an alley when he and the others had been questioning the locals at the market near the end of the day. All he could tell was that it was a brown mare, but not the mane color and not the cutie mark. Not the best description to go on but it did give them a pony of interest to look for. It would have to just wait until morning.
So here they were, stuck under a lean-to on a house's roof in a thunder storm still looking for the kirin. If nothing came of this night or the mare in the morning, Midnight was going to use that bag of gems as bait like she said. At least she had a warm bed and curling up with Squeaks to look forward to. Curled around the filly safe under her wing; Midnight would feel loads better.
She was just thinking about calling it a night after the up-teenth gust of wind blew yet another spray of rain into her face when she felt a familiar pressure behind her eyes. Closing them, they immediately flashed open again but with a different view. No longer was she on a rooftop looking over a street but hanging off the side of a house, trying to stay out of the rain while three objects raced down an alley. She focused on the smallest one in the lead. There was a flash of lightning and the small shadow became a blur of orange.
'Follow them!' Midnight mentally shouted to Arina as she bolted up, almost knocking over the lean-to in her haste. She'd never felt so excited in her life.
"Wha-!?" Sky yelped.
"Found them!" Midnight yelled as she shot off the roof, ignorant of the rain and wind.
"Wait!" Sky shouted after her, quickly giving chase.
But Midnight couldn't wait. After years and years of thinking she was the only one of her kind, here, finally, was another kirin. The only thing tempering her excitement was that two other, larger shadows had been following it and it didn't look like the young kirin was playing tag.
As she flew over the buildings her vision became split. Arina, using her two main eyes to focus on the chase, had used her two smaller secondary eyes to try and look for landmarks for Midnight to follow or to spot the adult kirin herself, thus giving her a direction to go.
Just as Arina skittered around the corner of a building, Midnight saw herself shoot by overhead. Turning sharply, she nearly hit a chimney as she turned down the alley Arina was in. "Flare!" she shouted as she flew past the spider. She could see the shadows herself now.
Not long after Midnight had gotten Arina, she'd gotten hold of some custom flares for the spider to use in case their connection was somehow severed or there were others besides Midnight out with her. The flares, though small, would be easy for the three thestrals to hone in on, leaving Midnight free to continue the chase.
She followed the shadows around another corner only for it to come to a dead end. Midnight pulled up and looked over the scene as another bolt of lightning lit up the area. Seeing all three figures clearly, her excitement turned to fear and rage and she hurtled down, fangs bared.
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Her heart pounded in her ears as she shot around another corner.
'Stupid, stupid, STUPID!' she yelled to herself as she tried to pay attention to where she was going. She should have NEVER gone back to the old farm for a third time but chicken just tasted so good and there was a bunch of them still there! She didn't think some of the wild dogs would be there, they hadn't before, but three had been there this time, had seen her, and went tearing after her.
By some miracle she'd made it back to town and thankfully she'd lost one when she dropped the chicken she caught. Now, though, she could feel herself tiring. Cooped up inside all the time had not given her the endurance she needed right now and her only hope was to somehow get out of sight of the dogs. The rain would hide her scent from them and after they'd gone she could make it back without any more trouble.
She made another turn and any hope of escape ended as she ran into a dead end. Skidding to a halt against the wall, she looked around franticly for a ladder, trash cans, anything that could get her up and away from her pursuers long enough to maybe hop back down and head back the way she came.
Nothing. Not even windows to throw pebbles at and get somepony's attention, even if she got in trouble for it.
The two dogs came around the corner and, seeing their quarry stuck, slowed down to catch their own breath. The chase was over, they could take their time now.
They moved forward slowly, a flash of lightning illuminating their prey. They'd feed well tonight.
Just before the dogs pounced, something huge and black SLAMED down in front of the filly, cracking the cobblestones beneath it and ROARED in the dogs' faces, making them yelp and jump back.
Stunned, the filly looked up at the large thing that had come between her and the dogs, then there was another flash of lightning. The intruder had the body of a pony but was much larger, had large, leathery wings, and a tail similar to hers but that ended in a large blade. She had what looked like a unicorn horn on her forehead and large fangs that she was baring at the dogs. It was another dragon-pony like her.
And she looked pissed.
The two dogs had recovered and the lead dog began to growl again, quickly followed by the second. The adult dragon-pony growled back, her body and wings moving to block her from the dogs' view while her tail arced up to bring the tail blade to bare. Both parties stood there for a few more seconds growling at each other, then the lead dog pounced at the dragon-pony, jaws snapping. The dragon-pony reared back, flashing teeth and smacking the dog into a wall with a hoof. The second dog jumped forward as well, but the dragon-pony turned side-ways and swung her tail at it, catching it in the shoulder with the blade and slamming it into the other wall. The first dog came back and tried to bite the exposed tail but the dragon-pony whirled around and bit down on the back of the first dog's neck. The dog yelped and tried to bite back but the dragon-pony simply lifted the dog up off the ground and slammed it full force back down. It drove the dog into the ground a few more times, smacked it against the walls for good measure, then sent it to the ground once more where it let it go. Just when it seemed that was the end of it, the dragon-pony opened her mouth and blue flames gushed forth, enveloping the dog in the powerful blast and illuminating the alleyway in a bright, blue light. She burned the dog for a full five seconds before stopping, the air now reeking of burnt fur and cooked meat. Taking a few breaths, the dragon-pony looked at the second dog that was just getting back up. Seeing what happened to the first, when they made eye contact the second dog yelped and ran out of the alley, limping on the leg with the deep gash in it.
The dragon-pony watched it go for a few seconds before visibly calming down, her wings and tail becoming more relaxed. After another few seconds she turned around and the two made eye contact for the first time.
They studied each other, neither speaking. Finally, finally somepony just like herself and she couldn't think of a single word to say to her. She just knew it had to be something epic, something important, something to symbolize this historic meeting.
"Hi," the older dragon-pony finally said awkwardly.
"Hi," the filly said back, just as awkwardly.
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"'Hi'? You finally meet another kirin and all you can say is 'hi'?" Sky asked.
"I didn't think violently killing a dog would be how we would meet," Midnight whispered back before taking another bite of her dog leg. The spider, three thestrals and two, TWO, kirins were back up at the lean-to, collecting themselves. Seeing as the dog was dead and they hadn't had any meat for a few days, Midnight and the thestrals had decided not to let the carcass go to waste. It was already partly cooked anyhow and the storm had finally blown out into a light drizzle which wouldn't get the meat sopping wet and ruin it.
Midnight looked back over at the kirin filly. Her name was Ember and she was bright orange with black belly fur, yellow eyes, and had a black mane with bright green tips. Her tail was just like hers without the tail blade with the black belly fur continuing on to it and a tail mane similar to the one on her head. The two biggest differences where the two large horns jutting out of the top of her head and her front legs ending in dragon claws rather than hooves. The horns started off as black as her mane at the base, faded to dark red about half way up, then ended in bright orange at the tips. Her claws were similar to Spike's in number and she held her bit of meat the way he would have.
And she was a talker.
"Dog meat is really good! Do you have it a lot? What's the best part? Is the liver good? I like chicken liver." At least she seemed comfortable, judging by how fast she was tearing through her dog meat between questions. It was rather off-putting to be bombarded like that since at first it looked like she was going to be as meek as Squeaks. Her subsequent freak out over meeting another kirin had changed that idea quite quickly and Midnight was kind of glad about that. It made it a lot easier to get her to come up to the roof tops with them so they could talk with her in relative privacy.
"Slow down," Midnight told her, resting a wing on her back as a bit of motherly instinct kicked in. "You're going to give yourself hiccups talking and eating that fast."
"Sorry," she said, taking one big bite and chewing it for a few seconds.
"Not a problem," Midnight assured her. "Actually, before I answer your questions, maybe you could answer some of mine?"
"Sure!" Ember nodded excitedly.
"Then first, are you living here with anypony?"
Ember nodded but her ears also wilted a bit. "My mom but please don't tell her I snuck out! She told me not to and she'll get really angry if she finds out."
Midnight exchanged glances with the thestrals. "What will she do exactly?"
"Yell that I'm not supposed to go out and put me in the corner for a while." She huffed. "It's so boring! Even more boring than being stuck inside all day long."
Midnight let out a sigh of relief. If that was all she was worried about then Ember's mom was the kind of pony they'd want in Ponyville. Actually, her having a mom made how they moved forward a bit more questionable. Had Ember been living alone out here then Midnight would have simply scooped her up and taken her back home, end of story. Ember's mom might not want to leave town and certainly wouldn't want to be parted from her daughter. Well, they'd figure that out when they got to it. "Another question: were you born in this town or did you and your mom move here?"
"Moved here," Ember said. "We were in another town called Troton but Mom brought us here after somepony saw me. I don't know if we were anyplace else before that." She looked back down at her food, not feeling so hungry anymore, then found a wing draped over her.
"It's not fun, not being able to let anypony see you, is it?" Midnight said sympathetically.
Ember shook her head. "I just want to go outside sometimes."
"Well, now you'll be able to," Midnight said, "just like me."
"You mean you'll help me sneak out at night!?" Ember asked, jumping up happily. "Awesome!"
"No, I mean outside during the day with ponies and only after I've had a talk with your mom," Midnight clarified.
Ember stopped celebrating. "Oh," she said, then looked up at Midnight with wide eyes. "You go outside with other ponies!?"
"I do indeed," Midnight said. "I've even been to the big cities, like Baltimare, and Van Hoover, and Manehattan, and Canterlot, just to name a few."
"Wow," Ember said, awestruck. "And ponies weren't mean to you?"
Midnight's smiled wavered. "Not as much as your mom might have told you they would be. When ponies are scared someone they love might get hurt, they might exaggerate the truth to make sure they're careful."
"Oh," Ember said, looking down at her meat thoughtfully before yawning quite widely, showing off her own set of fangs.
Midnight shared a knowing smile with Sky. "Well, it is rather late for a filly your age to be up. How about I take you home?"
Ember nodded. "But you have to take me back to my window so my mom doesn't find out."
Midnight nodded. "Understood," she said seriously, lowering her body. "So, care to hop on?"
Ember's eyes grew large again. "You mean fly!?"
"It's faster than walking. Never done it?"
Ember shook her head. "Mom says not to try it in the house because I could break something and I only go outside when I really want some meat."
"Well, hop on," Midnight said. "I guarantee you'll want to do it yourself once you've got a taste. I'll be back," she told the others. "Get some rest and tell Squeaks I'll be back soon. Arina, you come with me."
The thestrals nodded and took off. Arina climbed up to her perch on Midnight's head and they took off as well.
"Who's Squeaks?" Ember asked after she pointed out which direction her house was in.
"My daughter," Midnight explained. "She'll get worried if I'm not back soon."
"She's a kirin too!?" Ember asked excitedly.
"No, she's a thestral like the others but she's very fun and kind," Midnight said. "You'll meet her tomorrow."
"Okay."
The flight to Ember's house was a short one but Ember did catch the flying bug like Midnight had predicted. "That was fun!" Ember said as they landed outside the house she indicated, one near the edge of the forest. "Can you show me how to do it tomorrow when you come over?" she asked, her own wings beating rapidly.
"Flying takes time and a lot of practice," Midnight told her. When Ember slumped at this, she continued, "however, I'm still teaching Squeaks how to fly so you might be able to learn with her."
"Really?" Ember asked and when Midnight nodded the new spring in her step made her almost literally bounce around to the back of the house. "That's my room there," she said, pointing at a window overlooking the woods on the second floor. "Mom let me have it since she didn't think anypony would look up at it."
"If you can't fly then how do you get in and out?" Midnight asked, looking for something like the emergency ladders homes in Manehattan had or balconies like in Ponyville.
"The gutter," Ember said, pointing at the scraped and dented metal running down the side of the house and right past her window.
"Yeah, I'm not letting you climb back up that," Midnight said, picking her up and taking off again, coming to a hovering outside the window. "This should be better."
Ember reached out and slowly pulled the window pane up, both kirins wincing as it squeaked. When it was opened all the way Ember crawled inside and Midnight hooked herself onto the sill with her forelegs and plucked Arina off her head with a wing. "Keep an eye on things," she told the spider, who saluted and climbed up to the house's eves.
With her limited night vision Midnight could make out a bed and what looked like a small toy chest as she looked around the room but that was about it. Granted, Squeaks only had a night stand and bookcase more but the room still seemed rather barren and it bothered Midnight. It looked more like just a place to sleep than a bedroom.
"Do you want to come inside?" Ember asked. "We can play a game before you go."
"I don't think I can fit," Midnight said. "Besides, you need to get back into bed before-"
The door to the bedroom slammed open and a light flicked on.
"EMBER!" a brown and green mare yelled. "I TOLD YOU to... never... go..." she trailed off at seeing the second, much bigger kirin outside of the window.
"Hi," Midnight said, grinning awkwardly. "Okay, so, before you scream..."
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"She sounds almost as sweet as Squeaky," Eden said after Midnight had finally gone through the whole story the next morning. Excitement at meeting a new kirin had kept her up most of the rest of the night and in truth she was only running on about three hours of sleep. A giant yawn similar to Ember's was testament to that.
"Perhaps we could visit when you've been more rested?" Sun suggested.
The yawn finished, Midnight shook her head. "Not on your life. I'll sleep plenty when we get back to Ponyville."
Speaking of home, Sapphire should be writing them back by now. The letter Midnight had Honey write saying how their search had been successful would be circulating with all their friends and may even have made it to the princesses. Chief Night Stick certainly knew by now, Midnight having sent Hazelnut to let him know their search was over.
"Speaking of heading home, what's the plan now?" Dancer asked.
Midnight didn't answer. It was a question that had been bothering her ever since she'd gotten back to the inn. They'd see Ember and her mom today, then... leave? Ask them to move to Ponyville? Would they ask her to move to Hollow Shades?
"One step at a time Dancer," Eden said, saving the kirin from having to come up with an answer.
"And you said she has claws instead of front hooves?" Mixer jumped in.
"Yes Mixer," Midnight groaned. "And again, you'll see her when we get to her house and you can make all the observations you want."
"Yes but does she breathe fire? How is her night vision compared to yours?"
"Doctor," Eden interjected, "I'm sure all your questions and more will be answered, like Midnight said, when we reach Ember's home. Until then, why not look around and enjoy this beautiful morning? The world seems to be waking up brighter today."
"Is she nice?" Squeaks asked.
Midnight smiled. "Completely," she told her. "I think you two will get along like two bats in a cave."
A few more minutes' walking found them at the doorstep to Ember's home. "Alright," Midnight said as they approached the door, "Ember's mom is expecting us but I think they'll both still be overwhelmed by so many of us dropping in on them at once. Let me do the introductions, give them a few minutes to get used to us, then keep the questions to one at a time." She looked pointedly at Mixer. "As Eden pointed out, let's take this one step at a time and see where the day takes us."
Midnight knocked on the door and a moment later it opened a crack. "Yes?" a mare answered, her dark green eye peeking out from the crack.
"Hi again," Midnight said, waving, trying to look as meek as a foal herself. "I've come back with the others, if this is a good time that is."
"Oh, yes, hello," the mare on the other side of the door said, opening it further and examining the other ponies. Ember's mother was a dark brown earth pony with a dark green mane, tail, and eyes and her cutie mark was a couple of red and white mushrooms. "These are the friends you were talking about?" she asked.
"Yes," Midnight confirmed. "Forest Floor, may I introduce Lady Eden Rose of House Rose Thorn and her two personal attendants Blade Dancer and Sun Singer."
"An honor and a pleasure to meet you," Eden said, bowing slightly. Dancer and Singer did the same.
"It's... nice to meet you, too," Forest said, not sure what else to say. The older kirin hadn't mentioned that one of her friends was a noble mare.
"And this..." Midnight said more hesitantly, "is Dr. Puzzle Mixer from Princess Celestia's school for Gifted Unicorns."
"Vice-head of the science department and specialist in genetics," Mixer added. "Tell me, does Ember stash her kills here at home?"
Forest blinked at him while Midnight's smile became strained.
"He's just excited," Eden said, seeing that Midnight was closer to biting him than anything else. "He's writing a book on kirins; the first in over a thousand years I believe."
"Kirins: A Reborn Wonder of the World," he pronounced proudly, like a father giving the name of his first born. "I already have quite a bit of information on wyvern-type kirins but with Miss Rose's son missing, Miss Ember is the first dragon-type I can interview!"
Forest looked at Eden. "You've had foal that was a... kirin?" she asked, trying out the word.
"Perhaps," Midnight interjected, "we could continue inside? Things might look a bit off with all of us standing here on your doorstep."
"Of course," Forest said, stepping back to let them in. A professor from Princess Celestia's personal school, too? And she apparently walked over with them, so she wasn't afraid of ponies either, even in this town. His blunt question barely registered.
"And this," Midnight said once they were all inside, "is my daughter Squeaky Wings."
"Hello," Squeaks said with a reserved hoof wave.
"Hello," Forest said back, returning the wave and studying the foal. She wasn't a normal pony, not with the leathery wings, slit-pupil eyes, and ear tufts. That said, she acted like a normal filly. Just like Ember.
"Is, ah, Ember here?" Midnight asked, looking around. "I just thought that with us coming and all..."
"She's upstairs in her room," Forest said, her voice becoming more stern. "Grounded, as I'm sure you know from last night."
Midnight's ears went flat. "Ah, right."
Then Forest smiled. "That being said, I think I can suspend her punishment for a bit."
As Forest made her way over to the staircase to call Ember down, Midnight took the opportunity to look around at the home of another kirin. The inside of the house seemed much larger than the outside would lead one to believe at first glance, then Midnight realized it was because there was so little in it. There were the basic amenities such as a refrigerator, stove, sink, kitchen table, a couple of chairs, and a coffee table, but otherwise it hardly looked like anypony actually lived inside of it. No pictures, no nick-knacks, nothing that really made the place personal. It made Midnight frown; the apartment she lived in growing up at least felt like a home. To Ember, this must seem like just some place she and her mom lived.
A loud thumping down the stairs signaled Ember's arrival. "Hi Midnight!" she said, skidding to a halt in front of the older kirin.
"Good Morning. Sleep well?" Midnight asked.
In answer, Ember let out a large yawn, her fangs clearly visible. Mixer was already scribbling away in his note book.
"Cover your mouth when you yawn," Forest told her. "It's impolite to show guests the back of your throat."
"Sorry," Ember said, trying her best to look abashed while still grinning broadly at Midnight.
"Well, it's obvious we both got the same amount of sleep," Midnight chuckled before introducing Ember to everypony.
"Is he the kind of doctor that uses needles?" Ember asked, backing away from Mixer a little. "Needles sound scary."
"No," Midnight said quickly, cutting off the unicorn before he could say anything, "he's not that kind of doctor, are you?"
"Uh, no, no I'm not," Mixer said when he saw Midnight's fangs in the smile she gave him and the tone of her voice.
"And finally, this is my daughter Squeaky Wings," Midnight said, a genuine smile returning as she indicating the thestral filly next to her. Midnight was proud to see that Squeaks wasn't hiding behind her legs and was even stepping forward.
"Hi," she squeaked.
"Hi," Ember said back, seeming unsure about what to do next.
Midnight realized that this might be Ember's first time meeting a foal her own age. To her growing pride in Squeaks, the bat filly made the next move.
"Do you like coloring books?" she asked, puling one partly out of her saddle bags.
Ember nodded and looked up at her mom pleadingly.
"Go ahead," Forest said with both a sigh and a smile.
Ember's smile was from ear to ear and she hurried Squeaks over to the kitchen table.
"Why don't we all have a seat," Midnight suggested. "I'm sure we all have questions for each other and we might be here for a bit discussing things."
"That sounds fine," Forest agreed.
"May Sun make us some tea while we talk?" Eden asked, nodding toward the maid. "Forgive me, but I haven't had any yet this morning and Sun makes an excellent cup."
"Actually, I don't have any tea," Forest apologized, not sure how the noble would take that. "Just coffee. I can run out and get some..."
"Nonsense," Eden said with a wave of her hoof. "Coffee might be better anyhow. I think we all need a bit of caffeine, especially after we heard that Midnight had finally found Ember." Eden shot Midnight a coy smile and the older kirin rolled her eyes.
"So..." Forest said as they sat down. She looked over at Mixer who had sat down next to Ember and was busy scribbling in his note book as he looked her over.
Midnight, seeing this, grabbed him with a wing claw and yanked him away, setting herself between the foals and him and growling at him. "I swear to the makers," Midnight growled, just audible.
"I understand this must all be overwhelming and unprecedented," Eden said, trying to pull attention away from the professor, "but please understand that these are unprecedented circumstances. Ember is only the third kirin in all of Equestria so we're all very excited to meet her as well as yourself."
"Me?" Forest asked.
"Yes. Raising a kirin is... well, not hard, per se..." she gave Midnight an apologetic frown, "...unique I think is the best word. Without any other kirins around, I imagine you have a lot of questions about how best to raise her and if you're doing the right things for her."
Forest slowly nodded. "I'd be lying if I said that wasn't the truth."
"Which is why we mothers of kirins have to stay together, to learn from one another and form a pillar of strength for our children," Eden continued. It sounded like she was going to go into a speech like she had at the hybrid gathering.
"Right," Midnight said, beginning to think that Eden might not have been a wise idea to bring along either. "It just seems important with so few of us that our families all know each other."
Forest nodded again. "So, you're really just here to meet with Ember? You just want to get to know her?"
Midnight nodded. "I know it might seem weird but she's the only other kirin I've ever met. I'd like to know more about my kind, even if she's only a foal still learning about the world herself."
"Okay," Forest said, seeming to relax some more, "so where do you want to start?"
"The beginning is about as good a place as any," Midnight said. "Why don't you tell us how the two of you came to be here?"
Forest took a deep breath. She hadn't had anypony to really call a friend in over a year so talking about herself wasn't something she was used to any more. She reminded herself that here was another kirin, a creature just like her daughter, who just wanted to know about another of her kind. She believed Midnight about that now.
"It was about eight, nine years ago," she started. "I was living in my hometown, Pumpkin Plains, up along the northern border of Equestria, with my parents. My special talent is mushrooms, where to find them, which ones to eat and not to eat, how to grow them. Well, I was out collecting some one day when I ran into a dragon."
Eden reached across the table and placed a hoof on Forest's. "It's alright dear; you're among friends here. You don't have to say what happened next; I went through the same thing myself."
Forest blinked. "Wait, but Midnight said Ember's the only other kirin she's ever met. You've given birth to a kirin as well?"
"Yes dear, although he was taken from me when he was born." A frown momentarily crossed her face but it was quickly replaced by a determined smile. "Even so, I'm fully committed to being the best mother I can for him when he's finally found and friend to both you and Midnight's mother."
"So you fell in love with a dragon, too?" Forest asked. "Or was it... what was the other thing Dr. Mixer said?"
"A wyvern," Midnight said, eyeing Eden. "And Eden... well, the father of her foal is indeed a dragon, but..."
"But..." Eden said slowly, staring at Forest. "... are you saying that this dragon didn't... didn't force himself on you?"
This time it was Forest's turn to look shocked. "No! Spine would never do anything like that!"
Eden sat back, both Dancer and Sun at her side and holding her comfortingly.
"Oh, makers," Forest whispered as she realized what Eden had gone through. "I'm so sorry, I didn't know!"
"No, I'm sorry for presuming like that," Eden said softly.
Midnight reached over to her with a wing. It had been pretty forward of her to assume such a thing but with her own experience being the only pony-dragon mating she knew of until now, how could she not?
"I'm glad you cared for each other," Eden finally said, forcing a smile. "I assume Ember looks just like him?"
"Yes," Forest said carefully. "Except for the spines running down his back, she looks just like him. I suppose it's the same with you and your father?" she asked Midnight.
Midnight waggled her hoof in a so-so motion. "Kirins sired by wyverns have certain qualities about them that are more determined by what tribe their pony parent is from." She pointed at the horn on her head. "Case in point, my mom's a unicorn so I was born with a horn but my wyvern blood cancels any magic ability I might have had. Ember's father is a dragon, so she reflects what he looks like for the most part." She shrugged. "Princess Celestia told me that's how things were with the kirins she once knew, so it stands to reason that it would still be the same after all this time."
"Wait, there's been other kirins?" Forest asked and Ember looked up from her coloring book.
"There were; they all died off fifteen hundred years ago," Midnight clarified, frowning.
"Oh."
"So, things obviously got interesting between you two," Midnight said, getting back to her story.
Forest blushed. "Yes. First we were friends, then we got closer..." the blush deepened. "After... afterwards, he told me he had to leave with his mother: they were moving to some place that had more gem stones. I had no idea that a pony and a dragon could have a foal together, so we sadly said our goodbyes and I thought that was that."
"Until you found out you were pregnant," Midnight supplied.
Forest nodded. "I panicked. I knew my parents would be furious so I managed to convince them to let me move out to live with an older friend who had already moved to another town. They only agreed because they knew her and I had already talked about moving out and making my own way in the world; they saw it as a safe first step. Thankfully I was already moved in by the time I was really starting to show and Minty didn't press when I didn't want to say who the father was. I managed to get to the doctor's on my own when my water broke so only me, the doctor, and the nurse knew what Ember was. I told Minty that she was a sickly foal and that the doctor said the fewer ponies that got close to her, the better. That's how I was able to keep Ember hidden for the first six years." She sighed, her eyes becoming wet. "I know that sounds horrible, to keep her locked away since she was born but I was so scared about what others would think of her, how they would treat her." She looked Midnight square in the eyes. "I was wrong, wasn't I?"
"My parents agreed to keep me hidden after I was born," Midnight sighed. "My dad convinced my mom that Equestria wasn't ready for a kirin and they had more resources at their disposal to work with. I will admit..." she looked over at Ember, "I wasn't treated very kindly out in the world. Ponies did see me as a... an oddity..." She took a deep breath. "But at the same time I was looking for ponies to be scared of me. If I had gone around undisguised, perhaps I would have made real friends sooner. I think it's best that we think the best of ponies first and see what happens; I've been pleasantly surprised when I follow that advice."
Forest nodded. "I thought that if my parents wouldn't like her, then strangers would treat her even worse. I didn't even trust Minty." She sighed regretfully.
"So, how old is Ember now?" Mixer asked, trying to get something while there seemed a break in the conversation.
"She'll be eight at the end of the summer," Forest told them.
"So what made you move here?" Eden asked.
"Ember started getting... cravings," Forest said.
"She wanted meat," Midnight clarified. "We all know kirins eat it, so don't be shy about it."
Forest winced but nodded. "I suppose so," she agreed, remembering what Midnight was. "She snuck out one night and a neighbor saw her. Again, I thought the worst and when Minty was out of town I packed everything up and came here. I heard that Hollow Shades was a pretty private place, so I thought it would be a great place to just disappear to. I guess I was wrong." She gave them a small smile. "She's also had cravings for something else but when she tries to explain it to me..."
Midnight pulled a sack out of her saddle bags. "Gemstones," she said, setting it on the table and pulling out a sapphire. "Nothing to compare it to, so she couldn't have understood herself." She popped the sapphire in her mouth and chewed, then passed the bag to Ember. "Try some."
Ember eyed the bag, then reached in and took out a few. "I can eat them?"
Midnight nodded. "Yep. I bet they're just what you're looking for.
Hesitantly, Ember popped one in her mouth, chewed, then her eyes lit up and she swallowed. "Can I have some more!?"
"Have as many as you like," Midnight chuckled. "This is my own personal supply."
Forest eyed the large bag nervously as Ember took out a claw full. "Ember, one at a time," she admonished the younger kirin, then turned to the older one. "That's a lot of gems."
"A couple of bites a day are usually enough," Midnight said, understanding what Forest was getting at. "And I actually brought these to give to Ember. I have more at home so it's fine."
"Your special talent must be finding gems if you have so many," Forest said. "That or you own a gem mine."
"Actually that's one of my friend's talents; helps her with her fashion lines. That and I get some from the princesses every month," Midnight clarified.
"Okay," Forest continued, processing that. "So why do the princesses give you gems once a month?"
"It's some kind of policy or program they set up," Midnight said, looking uncomfortable. "Any kirin in Equestria gets a supply of them monthly since not all of them are going to have a mom who works for the biggest modeling agency in the country and can afford them on her own."
Forest blinked at that. "I... see," she finally said. "So Ember will get gems every month now?"
Midnight nodded. "Once we tell the princesses we found another kirin, they might even make special arrangements to provide you with other aid."
"I see," Forest said, not sounding very happy about that.
Midnight's ears and wings wilted slightly. "I know it sounds like a hoofout," she said, "But at the very least I'd urge you to take the gems. My mom worked herself ragged sometimes to buy them for me and she has a high-paying job.
"And after you tell the princesses about her, are you coming back?"
Midnight's ears flattened against her skull. Suddenly she knew where Forest was going with this. If she was honest with herself then what she really wanted to do was invite them both to live in Ponyville, possibly even move in with her. She'd seen how the ponies of Hollow Shades looked at her and Squeaks and didn't believe for a second that Ember would be accepted or even be able to make friends here. On the other hoof, how selfish would it seem for her to even ask them to do that? Then again, this didn't seem like home for them, did it? She didn't want to just come in and take control of their lives but...
"I... I do have an idea," Midnight started slowly. "It's rather forward of me to ask this but..." Eden's hoof laid itself on hers, stopping her.
Eden gave her a nod and turned to Forest. "Hollow Shades isn't really home for you, either of you, is it?" she asked bluntly.
Forest sighed and shook her head. "No, it isn't."
"And I think we can all agree we're all thinking about what's best for Ember in the long run." Both Forest and Midnight nodded. "Then what I believe Midnight is trying to ask in the most polite and inoffensive way possible is if you would consider moving to Ponyville with her? The two of you would be surrounded by a very supportive community, Ember could openly go to school and make plenty of friends, and Midnight and her mother would be there anytime either of you needed them and they you. I think it's a win-win situation, don't you agree?"
"Is Ponyville really such a great place?" Forest asked, looking back at Midnight.
"It is," Midnight said. "I've never seen anyplace else so accepting. I think, I KNOW Ember would be much happier there even if I wasn't living there. And I think it would be better for both of us if we lived in the same town; perhaps even in the same house? I have plenty of room."
Forest's face flushed with color, this time out of indignation. "I've been able to support myself and Ember on my own. My job here may not pay much but we get by just fine."
Midnight wilted. "N-No! I didn't mean... I'm just thinking that it would be even easier to ask me things if I was just downstairs or in the other room rather than across town! I've got enough space in the front now that you could set up your own business if you wanted to!"
"Can I ask what your current employment is?" Eden asked, trying to calm the situation.
"I work as a part-time cleaning mare," Forest said, calming down. "My special talent is everything mushrooms. Where they grow, which ones are edible; I had a small business back home and in Troton but with the forest here off limits I had to figure something else out."
"Well, there are plenty of mushrooms in the Everfree," Midnight told her.
Forest looked past Midnight to where Ember and Squeaks had gone back to coloring. Ember was grinning more than Forest had ever seen before and she was just coloring in a book. No, she was playing with a foal her own age for the first time in her life. If Midnight was right, she'd have many more friends to play with if they moved to Ponyville with her. And she'd been so excited last night after meeting Midnight for the first time, somepony just like her, how much more accepted would she feel having Midnight close by, helping to guide her? Hollow Shades wasn't for them; ponies here were suspicious of other ponies simply stopping through for the night. Ember would never be truly accepted here.
"I'll think on your offer to move in with you; that's all I'll say about that for now" she said, "but as for moving to Ponyville, I can certainly say we'll be doing that as soon as possible.
Midnight visibly relaxed. "I didn't want to seem like I was trying to push you and Ember into something..."
Ember gawked up at her mom. "Really!?" she asked.
Forest nodded. "If Ponyville is even half the place Midnight is making it out to be, and her living there, I think we'd both be a lot happier living there then here in Hollow Shades."
Ember continued to stare at her mother, then at Midnight, at Squeaks, then back at her mom. Without warning she rocketed around the table and tackled Forest, hugging her tight. "Does that mean I can go outside!?"
"Yes, it does," Forest said, returning the hug and trying not to let her happy tears show.
Midnight smiled, feeling her own eyes beginning to get wet. "Being the only one of your kind is a special kind of lonely. I know that if a kirin had been around when I was younger and told me they came from a place that would accept me for what I was, I would have begged my mom around the clock for us to move there."
"What about your father? Didn't he also think it was best to keep you hidden?" Forest asked.
The smile turned into a frown. "My father left when I was two and I haven't seen him since. I think if there had been another kirin around, he would have done everything he could to get us to meet."
"I'm sorry," Forest said. "At least you got to know yours."
"I'll find him one day," Midnight said, pulling out of her funk and smiling again. "And when I do I'm going to bite him so hard for not coming back they'll need surgery to remove me."
That actually got them all chuckling.
-----------------------------
"So your special talent is becoming a wyvern?" Ember asked, staring at the mark on Midnight's flank.
"Yes, and it's rude to stare at another kirin's butt," Midnight said with a smirk. The group laughed as they continued through town towards the police station/town hall.
It had only taken about a half hour for Ember and Forest to pack everything they wanted to take with them on their first trip to Ponyville. The furniture would be moved out later when they found a place to live there. Things would be better for them in Ponyville and that sentiment was further justified by the looks of fear the other townsfolk were giving her and the ones of confusion and sometimes disappointment sent Forest's way. Thankfully Ember was too wrapped up in asking Midnight and Squeaks about themselves and Ponyville to notice and Forest kept up a look of dignified indifference. She wouldn't have to worry about what they thought for much longer. A quick trip to collect the solar guards Midnight had brought with her and start the moving paper work at town hall, then over to the inn so Midnight's party could pack their own things and then it would be off to the train station and from there to Ponyville.
"I think when we get back I'll round up Scarlet and we'll hunt down a deer to celebrate," Midnight continued, licking her lips. "Wait until you try the fried deer steaks she made for my birthday. And my mom's fruit salad pancakes. And a seafood platter from Long Line's."
"Sounds like we should send Sapphire a letter to start getting a party started," Eden chuckled.
"Might as well; Pinkie will be throwing one regardless," Midnight agreed.
They found Hazelnut, Wild Mane, Blackberry, Dandelion, Spread Eagle, and, surprisingly, Honey, all milling about the area outside town hall when they arrived. Night Stick came out as the others gathered around.
"So, this is her is it?" he asked, inspecting Ember for himself. She wilted a bit at his stare and Forest moved between them.
"Well, I don't know what we were all worried about," Wild Mane said, "filly looks like she could take on a timberwolf herself." This set off another round of chuckles and Night Stick nodded.
"So, now that you've found her, what will you do?"
"We've decided to move to Ponyville," Forest told him. "I think it'll be better for us in the long run."
"We'll be leaving as soon as she's squared away with town hall and we get our own things together," Midnight told him.
Honey stepped up and cleared her throat. "Actually, we'll have to make a detour before heading home," she said, hoofing Midnight a letter.
Eyebrow arched, Midnight took it. It was from Sapphire and she read it silently to herself. It was a short letter and she was frowning when she was finished.
"Problem?" Hazelnut asked.
"Hopefully not," she said, her voice becoming a whisper. "To be honest I was half hoping something would happen out here so I could see you five in action; now it looks like I will." She looked around at the rest of them. "AJ seems to have gotten herself into a jam and I need to help get her out of it. First Sergeant Hazelnut, can you and your group help us out a little longer?"
Hazelnut nodded. "It won't be a problem."
She looked at Ember and Forest. "I can send you with Honey and Squeaks back to Ponyville if you want."
Forest shook her head. "Any friend of yours is a friend of ours; we'll do what we can to help."
"Yeah, let's show 'em what kirins can do!" Ember agreed.
Midnight sighed and smiled. She couldn't shake these two now if she tried and she didn't want to. "Alright then. Everypony, get your things together; we're heading for Dodge Junction!"
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I remember Oliver and Company, my family really enjoyed that movie...
Very nice chapter, good work.
Thank for the update!!
Crap now i have to wait for Forest and Ember to get to Ponyville. I really want to see the interactions and moments that Forest will have by coming to a more welcoming town. And the CMC will just love Ember.
Celestia help us all.
They could ask Spike to search for Some when the dragon migration comes past. Although, maybe the Kirins will go too? Either way, an interesting development! Curious to see how this will develop now
cant wait till Ember is inducted into the pillow knights and to see what they all get up to.
And in a few more years Rarity and Spike will be having a kirin of their own!
Dash will want to watch how it's done. She's a perv like that.
a super good chapter and i love Ember and how innocent she is.
i cant weight to see how things progress from hear.
8391790
They will get much cuter. And we will squee.
Now we need another filly kirin and the 2nd version of the CMCs will be complete.
... Hope Ponyville could survive them.
8391963
if they get any cuter, I will be squeeing from the grave
8392113
You and me both man.
*reads authors notes*
It's interesting how things and plans change when writing a fic, isn't it?
Sweet ending, and next chapter we get to return to the craziness which are the Element Bearers. I'm wondering how Midnight will react to AJ's reasoning for not wanting to go home? I'm expecting either a slap upside the head or at least a scolding.
8392400
Ahhh yes "Hi" truly the most epic of words, made up of a simple yet elegent combination of two letters to create a truly epic greeting that shows how relaxed one truly is no matter the situation
Maybe temporarily, but I feel doing that long term isn't the best choice for the narrative.
Am I mistembering or do Kirins need BOTH gems and meat to survive? I thought I remembered it being one or the other from Midnight's childhood and here it seems like Ember needs both meat AND gems in order to not feel weirdly empty.
8393698
That's why Ember is sneaking out so much; the influx of meat helps stem the want for gems. Midnight had (relatively) easy access to both growing up; gems from her mom and a lot of pigeons and rats with the occasional stray. That and her father was around for a few years to help her and Summer. Ember didn't and while meat is easy to understand neither she nor Forest would know that gems are food. Midnight did her three-month experimental fast while she was a young teenager, which really wasn't the best time to try that.
At Ember's age it isn't essential she has gems, but it will be soon.
Yay! More Midnight goodness!
So glad to see more chapters of this. I love this story and its predecessor so much.
EMBER IS ADORABLE AS HELL!
Such a treat to read, the wait is horrible a few days after a new chapter.
SCREEEEEEEEEEEEE
I just read story 1 and all 16 chapters of this in less than a week!
I can't wait for more!!!
the only spelling issues I noticed
but beyond that this was a good chapter
Ok so author guy is the town of Hollow Shades a reference to this?
https://www.fimfiction.net/story/292825/hollow-shades
It's uncanny how similar the town is, both in name and setting. I was half expecting the Wraith to come out and cause some trouble.
Oh wait I just read the note, darn. It's still a really good story tho...
8447015
No, it's on the official map and I just wanted to use it instead of coming up with a whole new town. That and other fanfic depictions generally run it about the same.
8448587
Is the next update almost ready?
8455156
Obscene hours at work, my cousin's wedding, and a cold have kinda ground my writing to a halt right now but things should get better soon.
Holy shit! didn't know you updated this story till after leaving that comment about your change in life then clicked on your name.
I love that this is back.
NO PONY BREAKS A PINKIES PROMISE!
derpicdn.net/img/view/2015/8/5/951199__safe_screencap_pinkie+pie_the+last+roundup_angry_animated_pinkie+promise_solo_you+pinkie+promised.gif
Ok I don't know if this was posted before or after shadow play but hollow shades is in the second half of that
9222233
After but I already had my own set idea of the town long before that episode
Hmm, I wonder what little Ember's special talent will be...
Another thing to look forward to
Pun intended or no? Either way is funny
Loving the story, really am. Oh and I think you would like "A Journey with bat pony" (or An Journey, haven't read it in long while) its description of hallow shades is pretty good
I've been meaning to ask about that cut antagonist subplot. I don't remember if I read it somewhere or if these are assumptions, but I think the owls were supposed to be related to some kind of force, possibly evil, living in the woods. Am I remembering wrong?
11242108
I'm sure I said something to that affect somewhere (either in a buried blog post, on that failed Witching Hour Group on here, or just in a comment somewhere) as there are several other cuts ideas this story has had (Screwball actually having a real role from early on in the story, for one thing). However, if I did say something to that affect, I can tell you right now that, while it was cut, it's been pasted to later on this season, with now what looks like a whole chapter being made to cover the aftermath after I sat down and really thought about it.
It would probably fit pretty nicely in homes owned by thestrals though
"Hi" is usually a good conversation starter, I don't see what the problem is
I started to re read the series because of the romance of Midnight and sapphire