Chapter 11

Some hours after their arrival to the Everfree, the Changelings, Phebe, and Black Star gathered in the throne room. Artemis had some announcements to make, so all the others stood in a circle around him. “First of all,” he proclaimed, “we've had no signs of Guardians in the area. For the time being, we are safe, but like in Dodge, it is possible for them to find us again. Be vigilant. Second, we gathered a significant amount of water for drinking, bathing, or whatever we need. Since a river is close, we have a limitless supply.” A quizzical expression hit him. “We've had limitless water wherever we go. In the Badlands, we had the wells, in Dodge City, we had the waterway, and here, we have the river. The Providing One has provided for us... again. Anyway, use as much as you need.” He chuckled. “Thirdly, we have little for food. There is some growing in the forest, but it won't last us too long. Fortunately, Black Star has volunteered to go into Ponyville and purchase food for us.”

“Wha-what?” Black yelped ,nearly falling over. “When did I agree to that?”

“Just now.” Reform winked at Star. “I still have the money which we earned in Dodge. It'll get us through a week, I believe. We'll have something else arranged before our week is up, though.” He nodded. “Fourthly, if you find anything that would seem useful in this castle, let Phebe or I know. Since we don't have our supplies anymore, we'll have to put to use whatever is in our surroundings. Lastly...” Sobriety came over him. “We are in a war. I don't know if that had been said yet, but I say it because we are not fighting under hopes for peace.” He glanced at Black giving a distinct acknowledgment of his presence. “If we get the chance, we will destroy the Guardians. Remember our fallen brothers and sisters. Some of them may still have intact bodies in the Badlands, and the only hope of saving them is by killing the Guardians. Therefore, no restraints, and no mercy. Am I clear?”

Black shouted, “Yes!”

The others said nothing; therefore, the leader repeated, “I said, am I clear?”

This time everyone chipped in, “Yes!”

“Good. Dismissed.” Promptly, the Changeling advanced to the fellow who claimed to be “part-dragon.” Phebe walked over to him as well. “Would you be able to stop in town this evening? To make it there before the shops close, you'd have to leave now.”

Black laughed. “I can get around a lot faster than you think. I mentioned a bit of that before...” After shaking his head, he spun around in a circle. “So, Ponyville, eh? I've been there before. I didn't have a name back then, but some of them will recognize my face.”

“Will that be a problem?”

“No, but may I bring Phebe with me?”

The pony shirked back. “Why would I want to go?”

With a scowl, Artemis added, “More than that, if the Guardians are there, they'll recognize Phebe. You could lead them here.”

As Black began to speak, some sternness wrapped itself around his words. “Phebe, I wasn't asking if you wanted to go. I have my reasons for bringing you. Artemis, there is one slight problem with sending me in the first place.” A playful chuckle escaped his mouth. “Without getting into too much detail, I had a direct confrontation with that one... Guardian. Hm... what's his name? Vick, I think.” Phebe went wide-eyed, and Artemis gawked. As both of them readied to speak, he interrupted, “It was near Dodge, shortly after the battle took place there. So, I don't think they know to look for us here—at least, not yet. Anyway, in that encounter, I made my presence known, and I also established in his mind that I was his enemy. I also gave him a little incentive to fear me. So... in other words, the Guardians would recognize me too.”

Already knowing Star's character traits, Phebe didn't bother to ask for an explanation as to why he confronted Vick. He probably wouldn't give one, and at that, if he did, he would probably make a riddle of it. Artemis frowned significantly, but he didn't object either. Black's methods were Black's methods, and they couldn't change what he had done or what he would do. “Why bring me then?” She asked.

“As I said, I have my reasons.”

“You're not going to tell me, are you?” Eyes rolled. “Whatever. Artemis, I don't see any harm in going.”

“I don't like it,” her future husband asserted, “but I'll trust you on this, Black. Of anyone, I know you'll take good care of her.” He turned about. “I'm going to explore the castle. Don't be out too late, kids.” Before the two could reply, he flew away.

Wasting not a beat, Phebe addressed Black, “If I go, I'm going to have to hide my element. The last thing I need is for the other six to see that I have one too. I would rather keep it on my person, though.”

“All right. I got a saddlebag awhile back. I'll go get it.” He disappeared into thin air and, moment later, reappeared carrying a tan saddlebag. “There.” He threw it over her back. “Put your element in there now. I'm going to transport us there with my magic. And, let's try to avoid Pinkie Pie, if we can.”

As she nestled away her precious necklace, she questioned, “Why?”

Black's gaze turned aside. “Uhm... well, I broke a pinkie promise, and she doesn't take too well to that.” He gave a dumb smile while scratching the back of his head.

Unamused, she retorted, “So, that is why you want me to come.”

He chuckled nervously. “Maybe.” Her only remaining response was to smack her forehead with her hoof. Then again, she did believe there to be some other purpose for her to tag along; Black wouldn't waste Phebe's time simply because one mare didn't like him. Perhaps, he wanted to spend time with his “daughter.” “Anyway, time to go.” He put his hoof on her withers. For a moment, darkness surrounded the both of them, but when that darkness faded away, they ended up in the middle of an apple orchard. “Sweet Apple Acres.”

Phebe blinked. That's how he moves around so quickly. Something nagged out her, though. Was that dark magic he used? Hm... A lot could be said about the use of dark magic, and how that would call into question the character of the user. However, she let it go entirely. Knowing Black's shaded past, he could have learned some unsavory spells in the lower times of his life. Adding to that, knowing his character, regardless of the method he learned the spells, he would not let them go to waste in the present due to their negatively-perceived nature.

Refocusing her attention to her surroundings, she recognized that they stood atop a hill in the orchard surroundings by trees in full bloom. White, pink, and magenta flowers overflowed the field, the scent of sweet nectar fragranced the air, and the voices of two ponies flushed into their ears. Phebe and Black Star turned to the direction of the voice and saw two Earth Ponies walking towards them. One possessed an orange coat, blonde mane and tail, and a cowpony hat, and the other wielded pink—lots of pink. In fact, besides her blue eyes and balloon cutie mark, she had only pink coloration.

Phebe knew both of them. Applejack, who had the hat, owned the land of Sweet Apple Acres, and Pinkie Pie, the pink one, was a close friend of Applejack's. Up to this day, she had not met Applejack, though she had seen her before. She had talked with Pinkie before—that is, as much as one could talk to a hyper-active pony.

When the two groups of two made eye contact, silence latched onto the environment. Not even a breeze whistled through the leaves of the trees. Phebe wanted to see what Applejack and Pinkie would do, so that's why she said nothing. Though, curiously, Black seemed speechless. Normally, nothing could keep him quiet. Given the anxiety revealed by his expression, she knew it had to be pretty bad.

Then Pinkie burst, “You!” she said harshly. “You broke a pinkie promise!!!” Suddenly, she entered into a gallop charging towards Phebe.

“This is going to end well,” Black retorted sarcastically. Clearly, she was after him. One might think Black would sidestep the oncoming pony in order to circumvent harm, but he did not. Pinkie plainly bowled him over and following that, pinned him to the ground. “Hi Pinkie,” he spoke casually.

“I made two parties for you, and you even pinkie promised to be at the second one.” Frustration filled up her tone. “YOU DIDN'T SHOW UP TO EITHER!!!” Having expended much of her oxygen supply, she began to huff heavily. Nonetheless, she managed one more word. “Apologize!”

“I am sincerely sorry, Pinkie.”

As if flipping a switch, her demeanor transformed from disgruntlement wrought with yelling and anger to joy wrought with cheers and smiles. “Okay!” She said happily and bounced over to Phebe. “Hey, you look familiar. Do I know you from somewhere?”

“That don't matter,” Applejack interjected. “I'd like t'know just why yer wanderin' about mah farm.” She gazed at with suspicion.

After getting up from the ground and dusting himself off, Black replied, “Yes, about that. Uhm... it's a long story.” Initially, he didn't look her in the eyes, but after a couple sentences, he gathered enough guff to to do. “We'll be leaving, but first... we need to buy some food. I know you sell primarily apples and apple products but we'll take whatever you have.”

“Uh-huh.” She gave some thought to his proposition before saying, “All right. We certainly don't mind the business 'round here. Just don't be snooping about my farm again, if ya don't mind.”

“You're Phebe!” Pinkie burst. “Oh-my-gosh-oh-my-gosh. You disappeared before I got to throw your party. Oooh! Now I can use all those ideas I had.” She started hopping in circles around Phebe. “I'll make cupcakes with two eyes—a bright yellow one and a gray one.” She crashed to a halt and examined the unicorn's face. “Wait, you have two yellow eyes now. You face is all normal too. Well, except your tooth. Did somepony stick apple pie in your eye to make it change color?”

I hate this. Phebe shook her head in disapproval. “I don't want a party, and I'm not staying. Also, yes, someone did stick apple pie in my eye.” She turned to Black. “Let's go buy the food. I don't want to stay here too long.”

“Right.”

The four of them trekked to the farmhouse which Applejack lived in. Once they got to the front door, Applejack inquired, “Ya already said ya don't care 'bout what we sell ya, but are ya sure ya don't have a preference?”

“Not really.” Black's head twisted left and right. “Whatever you have is fine. I'll need enough to feed fifteen people for two days.”

The jaw of the farmer fell. “Well, slap me with some jam, that's a lot of food! Got a family to feed, do ya?” He nodded, and she grinned. “We have enough. Pinkie, would ya give ma hoof and help me gather the supplies?”

The pink one squealed, “I get to help Applejack sell her food!” The two of them traveled to the barn.

Phebe looked to Black. “I don't remember Artemis giving you money.”

He shrugged carelessly. “He didn't, but I have some of my own. It'll cover what I asked for, I'm sure.” Since the two Earth Ponies would need some time to get everything together, Black figured he would sit down and relax. “I'd rather use what I have first. I need less than the Changelings do, and I have more freedom to go where I need to. Thus, if I need food, I can go somewhere distant and get it safely. Besides, the Guardians are afraid of me.”

“Ah.” Speaking of Guardians... “I know you have your secrets, but would you mind sharing what happened when you talked with Vick?” I'll be lucky if he does, but worth a shot.

“Hah, it's not much to talk about, but why not?”

Phebe's head tilted sideways, hoof touched cheek, and mouth hung agape; Phebe didn't expect that he would bother. “All right. Start from the beginning.”

“Okay.” Black looked up to the sky lethargically. “Well, after I left Dodge and before I came to the castle, I spent some time in Dodge Forest. I discovered a small base of operations for the Guardians. There were a good thirty of them, and Vick was their leader—no surprise.” Pondering the event, he paused looking at the ground and putting a hoof to his chin. “Let's see. Without all the meaningless details, I confronted them directly and had a heated conversation with Vick. He didn't like me much, so he tried to kill me. After I teleported out of the grasps of one of his soldiers, they were a little frightened. I took that opportunity to work my magic—no, not real magic. You know what I mean. In short, I spooked them real good. Hopefully, it will keep them away for a little while, but I'm not confident that it will.” One of his typical cackles leaped off his tongue. “I don't like Vick at all. When I don't like my enemy, watch out. I can be mean. You don't mind, do you?”

“No.” Nothing about his explanation stood out to her. As eccentric as he was, she expected him to do what he said he did, and after his show of strength in the library, she decided not to be surprised by him anymore. “All right.”

“How about you?”

“Hm?”

“What's your story behind the Element users?”

“Oh.” Her head sank. “Well, there isn't one. I came through Ponyville once but only to get to the Everfree Forest. I wanted adventure.” And to get away from my foolish deed. Her mouth scrunched to one side. “Of the six of them, I only met Pinkie before. I saw the others, but nothing more. I didn't get my Element until after my brief visit, and I haven't been here since. And... that's it.”

“I see.” He stood up and turned around. “Someone is coming.” He was correct; a purple unicorn was trotting down the dirt road which led to the farm house. “It's... her.” Wondering what he meant, Phebe eyed him. “Twilight Sparkle,” he muttered.

As Twilight neared, she grinned and said, “Hello. How are you today-” The moment she recognized Black, she swiftly backed up. “Physician!?” Wondering why she called Black Star that, Phebe cocked her head, but since she wanted to see where the conversation would go, she didn't bother to inquire. An exaggerated sigh left Twilight's mouth as her head sank and a unamused expression fell upon her. “You know, Rarity just recovered from your last visit.”

“Right...” Black lightly frowned. “I'm really sorry about that. That was a complete accident. I'm not usually that klutzy.” He scratched the side of his head before continuing, “I won't be here long. As soon as Applejack and Pinkie Pie return with the food I purchased, I'll be on my way. In the meantime,” he spoke while motioning to Phebe, “I'd like you to meet Phebe Hoshana, my daughter.”

“Your daughter?” The inquisitive purple pony glanced back and forth between the two. “I don't see the resemblance.”

Phebe corrected, “Adopted daughter, and I still haven't agreed to being adopted. Besides, he adopted me less than a month ago.” She shook her head briefly. “Regardless, it's nice to finally meet you, Twilight.” Head bowed. “I've heard a lot about you.”

“From Physician?” Her head motioned to the stallion.

“Actually, no. You've just been at the forefront of Equestrian news a lot.” Mentally mulling over the details of Twilight better known adventure, she grinned. “Let's see... stopped Nightmare Moon and Discord, and you were vital for the defeats of Queen Chrysalis and King Sombra. Not to mention, you wear one of the Elements of harmony, and you're the star pupil of our nation's leader.”

“Oh right.” She blushed and smiled nervously. “What about you, Phebe?”

“Well...” Being ever aware of the cargo in her saddlebag, Phebe absentmindedly rolled her shoulders. “I grew up as a farmer.”

“That makes sense, you being an Earth Pony and all. You must be good at irrigation or something.” The purple Unicorn lifted her hoof pointing out Phebe's cutie mark. Phebe gave pause as she said “Earth Pony.” After a moment of thought, she realized that her broken horn was probably hidden underneath her mane.

Squinting one eye, Phebe corrected, “I'm actually a Unicorn, but unfortunately, my horn broke.”

“Oh my!” Twilight gasped while putting a hoof to her mouth. “If you don't mind my asking, how did that happen?”

“Timberwolves attacked me in the forest recently.” Hoshana parted her mane to reveal the broken horn. “Black... er... Physician rescued me from them.”

“Wow.”

“Yup.”

At that time, Pinkie and Applejack rolled out two carts full of food. “Physician, we have your yum yums!” the prior shouted boisterously.

“Oh good!” Black hurried over to them. “Applejack, we don't have anything to carry the goods with. Would you mind if we borrowed your carts? I can return them tomorrow.”

“Hm...” The farmer cogitated her decision. “I don't know ya, so I don't know if I can trust ya.” Moving away from the cart, she came up close to Physician and examined him. “Pinkie, Twi, ya both met him before. Is he trustworthy?”

“Yes!” The bouncy pony chimed, but one brief glare from Twilight changed her mind. “Well, maybe, sort of yes, but not really. Probably but probably not. He did miss those parties even when he said he would come.”

Carrying a disgruntled tone, Sparkle added, “He destroyed a set of Rarity's dresses, and he lost one of my books.” All the while, Black's demeanor sank. “Sorry, Physician, you're very kind, but-”

“I get it.” The only stallion eyed all the mares around him. “Heheh, being surrounded by a bunch of beautiful ladies sometimes causes me to be distracted.” Phebe rolled her eyes; she knew his statement had no relevance whatsoever. He was simply pulling his antics again. Surprisingly, the comment didn't strike any of the other three. “Oh come on. Nothing? You guys are boring.” He pulled the needed money for the food. “Anyway, Applejack, I'll need to work something out to bring those supplies home. Would you mind leaving them here?”

“I can deliver, ya know?”

“No thanks.”

“Ya positive?”

“Yes.” He gazed up at the sky. “Daylight is burning, so I have to hurry into Ponyville to purchase a cart. I know where I can get one.” Turning to Phebe, he said, “Let's go.”

“Okay.” She didn't have any need to question his lead. For the time being, he seemed to be know what he was doing; then again, his shenanigans in Ponyville made her wonder a little bit. Inquiries would be made later.

As the two of them made for the road, Twilight accompanied them. She told them, “I'll follow you through the town, in case you cause another incident.” Where one might expect Black to sigh and shake his head disapprovingly, he instead smiled strangely enthusiastically. Seeing his significant grin, she went slightly wide-eyed and inhaled deeply. Twilight was not completely comfortable with his strangeness. Phebe made note of it.

The three came to Ponyville Square and went to a nearby shop. “This is it,” Black Star said while pointing to a sign. “Let's hope they have what we need.”

As he opened the entrance, Twilight, as kindly as possible, returned, “Just don't break anything.” After he had gone in, she turned to Phebe. “If you have a moment, I need to ask you something.”

“What do you need to know?” Phebe turned to her fellow Unicorn.

“Do you trust Physician?”

Phebe anticipated a question like that since Twilight's distrust of Black Star was so obvious. She smiled and nodded. “I do. During some of my darkest times, he made sense of what I couldn't, and he comforted me when I didn't deserve to be. He has saved my life too...” She paused a moment to consider what Twilight knew. I wonder if news has come this far yet. We'll find out. “Did you hear what happened in Dodge City?”

Twilight became gloomy. “Yes...”

“Did you hear what...” Hoshana was ready to say Black Star again. That will bug me for awhile. Why Physician? Where did he get the name? She restated, “Did you hear what Physician did in Dodge City?” Without saying a word, the other shook her head slowly. “He saved dozens from injury and potential death. I was a witness to his activities, and I saw how much he cared for the lives of strangers.” Phebe thought back to something Black had said recently. “I don't just care about you and the Changelings. I care about Equestria and its people.” That would explain why he strove so hard to save the residents of Dodge. “He is strange, and sincerely, I wonder about his methods sometimes. Still... he has the right heart.”

Thud! The door of the store swung wide-open. The back-end of a cart cumbersomely rolled out, and then came Black carrying a second cart behind him. After getting both outside, he came to the two mares. “I'm ready to go. We can go pick up the food and be on our way.” Phebe nodded, but the other was dazed. “Twilight?” She snapped to attention.

“What-huh?”

“Are you all right?”

“Yeah.” She nodded forcefully. “You have what you need. I'll... trust you to make it back to wherever you're going.” Before leaving, she let a small smile take over her expression. It was earnest. As she made her strides away from the two remaining, Black stared longingly towards her; he was then lost in a daze. Phebe watched him intently but said nothing. “Anyway, let's go.”

~~~~~

After returning to Sweet Apple Acres, Phebe and Black Star loaded their carts, marched to the edge of the Everfree—out of sight—and the later teleported the both of them back to the castle. They ended up in the throne room. “I'll go get Artemis,” he said.

“Wait.”

A heavy sigh escaped his lungs. “I'm not in the mood for questions right now, and I'll be busy after we get this food packed away.” A certain hopelessness constrained his speech. Phebe was completely taken aback; she didn't expect a reaction like that. Even as he walked away, she noticed his hoofsteps were sluggish.

Wow. I don't think I've ever seen him that way before. she commented mentally. I'll give him some space. In the meantime... She eyed the delectables in front of her and took in a good whiff of their delightful scent. Her stomach rumbled. Hungry. Without even thinking, she grabbed a bite-sized fritter and stuffed her face with it. Immediately, her taste buds screamed. Crabapples, that's delicious! Before anyone else showed up, she downed three more fritters. Hopefully Black won't notice.

Soon enough, the Changelings arrived, though Black Star was not with them. While happy to see the Changelings get fed, she worried about Black Star. Something was definitely off—more than usual. For the time being, she unfortunately could do nothing. Not only did she have food to put away but also Black could go anywhere to. The likelihood of discovering his location was extremely low. Regardless, she would search for him later.

When the Changelings began to cart off the food, Phebe followed. They took the supplies to a kitchen area inside the castle. There, the cabinets and tables were falling apart, and all the surfaces were dusty, but a stone fireplace had been cleaned out and cleared out. Additionally, the Changelings added a wooden door to it.

As she inspected the door, one said, “We're not done with it yet. We have to add a wooden floor and shelves.” The Changeling pointed to some of the shelves that they had ripped apart. “We'll put the food away when it's done.”

“Okay,” another replied and nodded. All but three of the Changelings left, and soon after so did Phebe.

They have became resourceful. she thought as she left the kitchen. I'll check the library. Concern constrained her to check for Star. The only place she might find him was the library, for if he wasn't there, then she wouldn't have a clue where else to search. Though, as she strode towards the room of books, weariness rolled into her. Her eyes began to snap shut of their own volition. “Ugh,” the grunt leaped off her tongue. It's been a long day.

She arrived at her destination. She discovered Black Star carefully re-shelving the books that he had dropped before. The shelf, however, remained on the floor. “You are here.”

“Of course I am.”

“And... you're okay?” She questioned while drawing closer to him.

His face scrunched into a bewildered expression. “Why would you ask that? I am fine.” He smiled gently. “And... you don't look fine. In fact, you look exhausted.”

A groan came out. “Thanks for noticing,” she responded while rolling her eyes.

“I'm not tired, so I'll be up awhile. You, on the other hoof, need sleep.” He hopped over to a long table in the center of the room. For whatever reason, he tipped one of the chairs backward. Somewhat confused by his actions, she eyed him for a moment, but in a few seconds, she understood. Two smaller shelves slid away from each other thereby revealing a secret room. “There are beds in there. Get some rest. I'll be scouring the many many books for information on the Guardians.” She didn't argue with him and went straight for the beds. Soon enough, she plopped onto the top of one and clamped her eyes shut.

As if to intentionally spite her exhaustion, a plethora of thoughts clambered through her brain, and they wouldn't let her drift away. The day provided much information to process, and she hadn't yet wrapped her mind what all was going on. A greater variety of incidents had occurred today than even on days that the Guardians had attacked. Thus, she found difficulty into concentrating her mind on any one thing. Sleep was the hardest of all to focus on. So much for sleeping. Thoughts of Black Star soon riddled her mind, for they permitted the greatest curiosity. Physician? Why is he called Physician? Her heart began to increase in its rate, and her body found itself uncomfortable. Fine, whatever. She hopped to her hooves. “Black Star,” she called out. “I have a question for you.” When she came out of the room, Black waved to her from a nearby chair. “Why do Pinkie and the others call you Physician?”

“Oh. That.” He put aside the book he had been reading and motioned for her to pull up a chair. She did. “It's not a name. When I met them, I didn't have a name, and I didn't feel like coming up with one.” He wagged one hoof in the air exaggeratedly. “So, after my intention to help Equestria and its people, I wanted to come up with something benevolent for them to call me—a title. At first, I was thinking of going by Doctor, but meh, that's overused. Thus, Physician is what I have them call me. In light of the name you gave me, I am actually Physician Black Star. That's it, really.”

“Physician Black Star?” Her voice reverberated in a groggy fashion. I'm still so tired, but I don't know if I could sleep if I tried. “Okay.” She desired to know more details about his past; nevertheless, she refrained from asking due to the nature of his responses. She didn't want to depress him. “So, have you found anything yet?”

“I've only scanned through three books. What do you think?” The question came out overbearingly exaggerated and directed.

“No?” She wasn't sure; he was still as puzzling as ever.

“Actually, I did.” He snickered momentarily. “Got'cha, didn't I?” She was too tired to care. “Right... to the matter at hoof, I found something interesting.” He yanked a small letter from his chair and gave it to her. As she looked at it, she noted the quality of the paper—worn, faded, and flaking. “Obviously, you can't read half of it, but look at to whom it is addressed and who wrote it.”

“Hm?” Her eyes drifted to the top of the first page. Deciphering some of the faded words, she read aloud, “Love... Hypatios...” A word came before “love,” and, assuming the phrase was a greeting, that word was “my.” Another word came after “love” and another after “Hypatios”: although, those were completely undecipherable. She skipped to the last page and found the closing and signature. “...Marriage, Princess Cel...” Overflowed with surprise, she lashed out, “Princess Celestia?!”

“Yup.” He laughed. “I read the contents of the letter. As best I can tell, Hypatios was her fiance, hence the reference to marriage at the end. I'm guessing she wrote, 'to our future marriage” or something to that effect.” She returned to letter to his grasps, where he scanned the paper again. “Curious, isn't it? If she was engaged, why isn't she married now? In fact, I've looked into several ancient history books, and I saw no mention of her engagement nor her marriage, if she indeed had one. Interestingly enough, she included her ruling over Equestria in this letter, so she was reigning over Equestria at the time she wrote this.”

“Huh. I could not have imagined.” She scratched her head. “From what I've heard and the little I've seen, she seems so self-satisfied. I never imagined she would be one to seek out relationship.”

He wagged his hoof to show or disapproval. “Well, were you not surprised when I mentioned I wanted to be married?”

“Perhaps. I don't remember.” Her shoulder rolled into a shrug. “Besides, Celestia is much older than you.”

“Doesn't that prove my point? If I, who is that much younger, can appear self-satisfied despite my desire to be married, how much more one who is older than me—one who has had centuries more of life to learn to hide their deep longings?” Another one of his characteristic laughs followed. Once he recovered, he picked up the book he had been reading before Phebe had gone to bed and come back. “I found the letter on the floor,” he said while skimming through the front page. “It must have been on the shelf that I knocked over. I'm guessing it was hidden.” His hoof drifted to the top right corner of the literature and, soon enough, gently caressed the paper to the next page. “She was going to send it to Hypatios, but something stopped her. I'll assume whatever kept her from sending the letter was the same thing that kept her from getting married. My best guess is that he died. Heh... poor Celestia.”

“Ouch...” She cringed. For a moment, she imagined Artemis' life essence being taken away by a Guardian. How depressing. She discarded the thought. “Celestia had a lot of burdens placed on her. She had to fight off Discord and King Sombra to defend her people, and then after that, she had to banish her own sister. And, supposing you're right, she also lost the one she loved. Despite her loses, she had a nation to run all by her lonesome.” A grand deal of respect for her nation's leader welled up inside her heart. “Wow... how did she not break?”

“Or did she?”

“Huh?”

“Nothing.” He slammed shut the book. “That makes five books finished. I'm getting a lot of intricate information, but nothing really helpful yet.” Phebe's head tilted the side, for the last she knew, he was on the second page that book. She decided not to be amazed by this, though. Extraordinary was Black's normal anyway. “You should sleep. You're whipped.”

“Yeah...” Without any further discussion, she returned to the bed. Before she even hit the pillow, unconsciousness consumed her.

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The Rise of the Guardians and the Fall of One Hero - TrinityDragon

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