Fairlight - The Fortress of the Four Winds

by Bluespectre

Chapter Two - Ode to a hot shower

CHAPTER TWO

ODE TO A HOT SHOWER

As always, irrespective of how tired I was there were always jobs that had to be done before I could relax. The spirit on the other hoof was as happy as Larry, napping peacefully in the corner of my soul like some contented house cat. One that was brim full of birds too. Still, at least I was getting there. My gear was all nice and neatly stowed away, and I’d cleaned my short sword thoroughly before hanging it back up in my room just the way I’d been taught all those years ago. Dad would have been proud of me for remembering that! As for my clothing, I’d nearly ripped it all off in my haste to rid myself of the stinking blood stained things. Not only were they a constant reminder of the human world, they absolutely reeked to the high heavens. Each of us in the agency had a thoughtfully provided basket for washing and I dropped mine in there for some poor sod to clean before climbing, at long last, into the shower. My whole body shivered as if I’d been dunked into freezing cold water, from the top of my head to the tips of my hooves. Dear Goddesses… that was… so good... The hot water was beyond wonderful, the gradually building steam along with the deliciously warming sensation washing away all the filth, blood and sweat from my weary bones. I sighed luxuriantly, leaning my head against the cubicle wall and closed my eyes. I’d done a good thing today, hadn’t I? I’d saved ponies, and I’d helped put a stop to the humans’ drug and weapons making facilities. Even if there were more, goddess forbid, we’d sent a message loud and clear - Equestrians could, and would, fight back. In mind’s eye I kept seeing Scootaloo’s trusting face smiling up at me, and also Sweetie Belle’s sad eyes as she tried to smile. Celestia, Luna, what the hell had brought us to this? I think I already knew the answer to that one though. It was greed, pure and simple greed, and the ones spreading this misery had to be eliminated for the good of all before their cancer could spread any further. Before there were any more Sweetie Belle’s. I lifted my muzzle up to the stream of water, groaning as the water slowly reinvigorated my body. The human element may have been taken out of the equation, for however long that may be, but the root of it all was still very much alive here, and much closer to home. There were several immediate targets so far as I could see: Gates, Melon Patch, their boss Velvet Cream, and the watch commissioner. I wasn’t so naive as to think there wouldn’t likely be more pulling the strings somewhere in the background of course, but this was as good a place to start as any. If nothing else, I wanted to take out the animals who had murdered my family before they caused any more pain to innocents like Scootaloo and Sweetie. Dear gods, even thinking about it made me want to... I gritted my teeth and slammed the wall with my hoof. Those bastards… For what they had done, there would be no forgiveness… No forgiveness…

I let out an involuntary sigh as the warm feeling on my back began to spread, soothing away all the bitterness and darker thoughts that clouded my mind, consigning them to the oblivion where they belonged. For the first time in what felt like an eternity, I finally, finally, began to relax. Muscles I didn’t even know I had, began to loosen, my breathing slowing as my heart rate returned to what it should have been all along. Luna’s mercy, if there was a better reward than this, I didn’t know what it was. It was so wonderful, so soft yet firm, easing out all the tension and aches in my body. It was simply… marvellous. I let out a sigh and idly wondered how I’d managed to do all that with all four of my hooves on the ground. My magic was holding the soap, so how…? Ah, of course, it was obvious really. I slowly opened an eye and saw an image of three ice cubes on a firm, perfectly curved flank. The water had soaked into her coat, darkening it, her tail was stuck to her hind legs and steam rose from her back to join the rest floating up into the vaulted ceiling. I smiled to myself as the mare rubbed soap into my fur that sent an electrifying shock wave of sensation along my body. The mixture of heat, water, steam and the proximity… Dear goddesses…

Tingles looked at me through one half lidded eye. “Welcome home, hero…”

I felt my self control snap as easily as a spinster in a cake shop, urgently pushing my muzzle into her flank, smelling her, licking her cutie mark, my teeth nibbling hungrily at the neatly depicted ice cubes. Tingles gasped and dropped the soap bottle. With a shudder she began to turn, but I was on her in an instant, pinning her to the cubicle wall, my chest heaving and heart hammering in my chest fit to burst. Animal instinct warred with desire and loneliness, kicking any remaining vestiges of doubt or propriety aside in their howling headlong charge. I could feel her heart beating next to mine, her green eyes looming large in my vision, shining with wonder. Oh, Luna, she was so close I could smell her breath, her intoxicating perfume. In those heady moments the watchstallion, the agent of the princess, had simply ceased to be. My body burned for her with an intensity I never thought possible. I’d seen death in all its forms. I’d seen the wonder of life, blossoming forth from nothingness. I’d witnessed the suffering, the joy, the fear and jubilation of existence on this plane and that of the Wither World. None of it meant a damned thing. Not now. Right now, right this moment, I wanted to feel the warmth of a mare beside me. I wanted that intimacy and passion that I had been yearning for, for so, so long. I needed her… Great goddesses I needed her.

“I want you…” I breathed heavily, looking into her eyes.

Tingles gazed searchingly into mine. A little flicker of uncertainty, and then she answered with a kiss full of such passion and desire I thought I would cry out in sheer unadulterated joy. Our lips met, tongues questing and tasting each other, enjoying the long building rush of feelings that had been driving us to this moment for too long. Far too long.

Suddenly the tangerine mare pulled away, gasping for air. “Now,” she moaned, rubbing her head up my neck. “Celestia, Fairlight… Please…”

I grabbed her in my forelegs, it wasn’t easy in such a small space, but wedging myself just so I could get into position to do what hot blood mammals had been doing since the beginning of time. I closed my eyes and felt the hot rush of emotion, overwhelming warmth, and longing rage throughout my entire body. Tingles gasped and gave a cry she stifled by biting into my shoulder. The pain and ecstasy of the moment heightened my passions like a raging brush fire and there, in that simple little stall amidst a torrent of hot water and steam, we rutted like our lives depended upon it. I don’t know if anypony else was in the shower block with us, but they couldn’t have helped but hear unless they’d been stone deaf. I didn’t care either. The cubicle walls shook furiously, Tingle’s unleashed screams echoing in the tiled room until together, completely spent, we collapsed on top of each other, the hot shower water washing away the evidence of our joining.

“Oh, Fairlight…” Tingles muttered breathily into my mane. I could barely answer. It was taking all my effort to catch my own breath, and the poor mare’s legs were shaking so much she looked ready to pass out. I lay there, holding her and stroked her sodden mane until she looked up at me. “Are you alright love? You aren’t hurt are you?” she asked.

I shook my head, trying to not to laugh at the lunacy of the situation. “No, I’m fine,” I smiled. “Thanks.”

The tangerine mare frowned, looking at me curiously. “Thanks? For what?”

“For being here,” I explained gently, leaning my muzzle against hers. “For waiting for me. You’re very special, Tingles. I don’t know what I would have done if you weren’t here, and-”

She lifted her hoof to my mouth. “Shhhh, I’m here, my captain. I always will be.”

Always…I kissed her again, noting how my body was beginning to relax a little too much. An expansive yawn broke free, and despite my far from ideal surroundings, the rigours of the last few hours was beginning to catch up with me and I was in imminent danger of nodding off – that was until I heard my TED buzzing. Tingles rose to her hooves and, with a little shake of her rump, left the cubicle as if nothing had happened.

“Agent Tingles,” I heard her say. “Yes, Sir. He’s in the shower, do want me to get him for you? No… No… Understood… We’ll be ready, Sir. Out.”

I turned off the water and grabbed two towels, passing one to my partner.

“That was Brandy Wine,” Tingles explained. “He wants us to take foals back home to Ponyville in the morning, do you know anything about that?”

I nodded, scrubbing my face with the towel. “Oh yeah, I know all about that!”

She cocked her head to one side and eyed me quizzically. “Well, you can tell me all about it tonight… In bed.” She smacked my rump with a hoof and grinned, rubbing her mane with the rough towel. “Besides”, Tingles grinned back at me, “I owe you for nipping my cutie mark… ‘my lord’.”

The tangerine mare began to laugh, and I happily joined her. Our merriment was a strange counterpoint to the clinically cold white tiles of the shower block, but I didn’t much care about that. That was until I noticed a couple of ponies peering over the edges of their own cubicles, quickly ducking back down when they saw me watching. Hmm, hope they’d enjoyed the show anyway. I shrugged; it probably was time to leave though, there were enough ‘rumours’ about me floating around already. I’d heard a few over the short time I’d been with the agency, they were a pretty secretive lot by and large to begin with after all, but mostly it was simple curiosity. ‘Who is he?’, ‘What is he?’, that sort of thing. This ‘incident’ was just one more to add to the list for the gossips to chew over. I returned to my drying efforts. One final butt floss, being careful of the more ‘tender’ areas of course, and away we went, back to the waiting bed of the happiest pony in the agency.

********************

Morning brought with it a delicious array of tantalising aromas emanating from the back of my room. To my surprise, Tingles had brought a set of cooking utensils and a magically powered stove to the modest abode before I’d eventually woken up from what was probably the best night’s sleep I’ve ever had. Sizzling and popping sounds filled the room. Whatever the tangerine mare was making smelled good, really good, so much so my mouth was beginning to water already. Slipping out of the bed I wandered over a sniff, only to be be bopped on the on the nose with a spoon.

“Stop it! That’s for our trip, not for breakfast” she admonished.

The finished article was swiftly deposited into a plastic tub and the lid clicked down, blocking my attempts at a sneaky taste. Something else would have to do instead. I hooked my forelegs around her neck, kissing her ear. “I know what I’d rather have for breakfast…”

Tingles giggled and pushed me off, playfully. “We don’t have time silly. But, you know, it’s a nice place, Ponyville, and there’s always time on the way back if we need to… you know… stop off?”

I nuzzled her neck and stepped back to look at her. By the gods she was gorgeous. “You’ve put a spell on me, Miss Tingles,” I grinned. “I don’t know how you do it.”

The tangerine pegasus barked out a laugh. “Ha! Says the super magical stallion with the horn on his bonce!” She leaned forward, narrowing her eyes as she stared at my head. “It’s nearly mended too by looks of it. Come here, let’s have a proper look…” She took my muzzle in her hooves and looked closely at my broken horn. I felt a bit awkward really, I didn’t like to be reminded of it and it still twinged from time to time like a bad tooth. I suppose there was a unicorn pride thing at play here which was on an almost instinctual level with me. Busted horns usually healed if left alone, but it depended how it was broken, where the crack was and so forth. Still, it was rare to break one at all and- “Will you keep still! Good grief, Fairlight, you’re like a wriggly worm!” Tingles began to move my head this way and that. “Hmm, yeah, it looks almost fully healed to me, that’s good news. Maybe my own ‘magic’ helped it along a little, eh?” She stuck her tongue out cheekily and danced out of my reach when I tried to catch her. Ooh, that mare!

Tingles was still chuckling to herself while she packed our saddle bags, leaving me to my belated morning ablutions. Unfortunately I was far from my best in the morning at the best of times, but today it wasn’t like I had much of a choice in the matter. Getting those young ones home was a priority, and I’m damned sure they didn’t want to be hanging around the facility any longer than they had already. Ha! I knew the feeling! I turned on the tap and filled the sink, swilling some water over my face. Knowing kids, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo had probably been up for hours, buzzing with the excitement of a ‘thrilling’ sky carriage trip across Equestria. I wish I could say the same – foalsitting had never been my strong suit, and I much preferred flying under my own power than being towed along too, regardless of who was doing the piloting. Not that I’d ever mention that in front of a certain tangerine mare. To be honest I was a little sceptical about the way Brandy had spoken about our trip to Ponyville as if it was more of an unofficial holiday too, and call me cynical but I was hardly looking forward to trying to explain to the foals’ families where their youngsters had been all this time. Hopefully the parents would be too thrilled at having the foals home to be bothered about questioning us too closely, though I suppose it depended on how you looked at it. Meadow had always said I was a ‘glass half full’ kind of guy, and the gods knew, she was probably right. Putting my worries aside, a quick brush of the old teeth, a wipe over with a flannel, a quick groom, and I was feeling at least a little more refreshed than normal. Rolling the stiffness from my shoulders I leaned towards the small mirror in the bathroom. Let’s see… Huh, fancy that! Looks like Tingles was right. You could still see the crack, even if it had faded a lot, but yes, the old horn was definitely a lot better. I wasn’t sure if it would ever be back to the way it was of course, but at least I’d be able to go out without being stared at by other unicorns at long last. All I can say is thank the goddesses for hats! Yet as much as I enjoyed a neat chapeau, they did little to the conceal the rest of you. I looked at the faint scars on my face and wondered how many more I’d accumulated that I just hadn’t noticed. Good grief, I’d been injured so many times now I’d stopped bothering to check. The spirit had helped regenerate my injuries of course, saving my life on more than one occasion, but apparently it wasn’t too bothered about leaving me looking like an equine road map. Still, I couldn’t complain; it was amazingly effective at fixing broken bones and healing wounds of all descriptions, but busted up horns and other aesthetics just weren’t its forte apparently. Considering the alternatives, it was something I could live with. Anyway, I couldn’t see it very well unless I angled mirrors just so, and as a unicorn you just kind of got used to it being there and developed the ability to duck from an early age. How the hell Celestia and Luna managed with their monsters, I’ll never know. They were probably spearing curtains, bedding, and the occasional passing guardstallion on a regular basis. Mine had never been that long of course, and yes, I know there’s a joke there too, but seriously, if you had something as long as an alicorn, you’d be ducking so much you’d end up with a permanently bowed neck. Mind you, they could afford tall ceilings, so that probably helped. So no, mine was just the right size. After all, it’s what you do with it that counts. Apparently.

“Bit for your thoughts?” Tingles trotted up to me and clucked her tongue, taking up my curry comb and tidying up the areas I’d missed.

“Just wondering how we were going to explain things to the parents,” I said glumly. “It’s not like we can tell them the truth about what’s happened, is it?”

Tingles rolled her eyes. “Don’t worry about it! It’s all taken care of, trust me.”

“What, have they already spoken to their folks?” I asked.

“Nope.” Tingles pulled at a knot nearly dislocating my skull from my spine. “We’ve got a cover story. Just leave it to me, and let me do the talking, okay?”

“Yeah… OUCH!”

The pegasus clucked her tongue irritably. “Well it wouldn’t hurt if you brushed your mane properly now and again! Good goddesses, Fairlight, if you had feathers to look after you’d have something to moan about! Now hold still...”

Finally, fully geared for the flight and with my mane ‘properly’ brushed, we arrived at the guest accommodation to collect our furry cargo. I was surprised to find that most of the other ‘guests’ had already had their memories altered and been sent on their way by the time we got there, leaving the place eerily quiet. No doubt ‘cover stories’ were the order of the day for them too – poor buggers. The young agent on the reception desk looked only to happy to lead us to a side room with the waiting Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo duo, no doubt wanting to get back to her regular duties as quickly as possuble. The accommodation wing was normally only used as an overflow for visitors or dignitaries, and no doubt a job few relished. Being saddled with two youngsters was a task she apparently wasn’t too keen on either and before I had time to turn round and thank her, she’d already left.

The orange pegasus foal looked up at me curiously. “Who are you? Are we going home now?”

The ivory coated unicorn stuck close to her friend like glue, glancing from me to Tingles and back again. “Do I know you?” she squeaked.

It was like a dagger through my heart. “I don’t think so miss,” I said pleasant, “but I’m Agent Nox, and this is Agent Tingles.” My companion gave a little wave. “It’s time to take you home.”

Scootaloo looked up at us without any hint of trepidation. She really was a brave little thing, and I could see why her more cautious friend stayed close to her side. “What’s happened to us?” she asked animatedly. “We were playing by the river and the next thing, ‘Poof!’ we’re here in this place!” She looked around at the plush surroundings. “I don’t even know where ‘here’ is!”

And here we go with the lies… “You were affected by marsh gas,” Tingles chimed in. “Our agents found you there and brought you to our hospital for some really good care. But now that you’re all better, we’re going to take you back home to Carousel Boutique.” She leaned down full of smiles, “Bet you can’t wait to get back to your sister! I bet she’ll want to treat you to something from Sugarcube Corner too!”

Sweetie smiled nervously and circled a hoof. “I want to go home, Miss Tingles, but... can Mister Nox carry me on his back?” She suddenly blushed scarlet. “I… I don’t know why, it just seems… right somehow.”

Scootaloo broke out in hysterical laughter. “Sweetie’s got a crush on you! Ha, ha, ha!”

I blushed as red as Sweetie and shared a look with Tingles. Had the memory alteration not worked properly? I doubt it, but I ignored Scootaloo anyway and lifted the little unicorn up onto my back where she hung on just as she had done when we’d raced through the facility what felt like a lifetime ago.

Tingles hid her grin behind a hoof, turning away when I fixed her with a disapproving glare. “Don’t worry, Nox, I’m not the jealous type,” she smirked, adding in barely a mutter, “Bit young for you though…”

“What was that?!” I squeaked.

“NOTHING! Nothing at all!” The cheeky pest trotted off with Scootaloo, the two of them killing themselves laughing. A snort and mane shake later, I trotted off after them. Bloody mares…

The sky chariot park was almost empty when we got there. No doubt the rest of the agency were off delivering the other mares and foals affected by this mysterious ‘marsh gas’. For bucks sake, who came up with that one? Still, at least the girls believed it so that was a relief I suppose. It was quite surprising really, I’d honestly thought they’d be a bit more resistant to such a hastily concocted story, but they seemed to accept this sort of explanation quite happily. I had the feeling these two weren’t strangers to getting themselves in trouble somehow. Scootaloo especially. Sweetie and I quickly caught up with Tingles who helped me to load the girls and our packs into the waiting carriage. Almost immediately a rustle of paper caught my attention. They each had a bag of sweets which had magically appeared from one of the doctors, no doubt intended to keep them quiet on the journey. None for us though I noted sourly. They looked good too – the good doctor certainly hadn’t gotten them from the agency canteen where flavourless and bland was considered haute cuisine. Dear goddesses, when was the last time I’d eaten anything decent? I was nearly salivating watching the colourful morsels being devoured, so much so I made a promise to myself to buy some for Tingles and myself from the treat shop in Ponyville. Owned by the Cake family, their award winning goodies were one of the few treats I allowed myself come pay day when I was stationed there. Keeping in trim had always been my primary concern as a young watchstallion, but these days I was more of the opinion that ‘a little of what you fancied’ did you the world of good. If not your arteries of course. Suddenly, I was actually looking forward to getting there. Unfortunately however, things never seem to quite go according to my plans, and our trip quickly transformed into a torturous journey with hours of bored foals asking incessant questions and singing the worst songs I’d ever been subjected to. I swear, if I heard ‘are we nearly there yet’ once more, somepony was going to find themselves walking home. Knowing Tingles, that would probably be me...

My ears and head were aching like the morning after a heavy night on the wheat beer when I felt the carriage alter course slightly. Scootaloo noticed too. “Hey, Mister Nox?”

“What?!” I huffed, squeezing my temples.

“Are we ne-”

“Yes!!!” I shrieked. “Yes, we bloody well are! Please, Scootaloo, sit down and keep quiet, for the love of Celestia!”

She sat back and stared at me with a hurt expression. Oh, fantastic, now I felt guilty as well as angry! Sweetie Belle leaned across and tapped my knee with her tiny hoof. “Mister Nox?”

I let out a long sigh. “Yes, Sweetie…”

“Thanks for helping us. Really.”

I looked round at her and patted her hoof. “You’re welcome, Miss, and you too, Scootaloo.” Guilt pulled at my heart and I tried to soften my expression. “Look, I’m sorry I got snappy, girls. I’m not good with foals.”

Scootaloo harrumphed and looked away with her forelegs crossed, but I still noticed the little smirk on her face, the little bugger.

“Do you have foals, Mister Nox?” Sweetie asked.

I was waiting for that question. “Yes,” I replied softly. “She’s called Sparrow Song. She’s a bit younger than you two.”

Sweetie smiled, “Does she have a cutie mark?”

I shook my head laughing, “No, not yet. I guess she hasn’t found her talent yet, but there’s still plenty of time.” All the time in the world…

The little orange pegasus turned to me and shouted excitedly, “Hey! Maybe I can be a secret agent like Agent Tingles?! Maybe that’s my talent!”

“You know, Scootaloo, you probably could be,” I said genuinely. “You probably could.”

Speaking of Tingles, the mare called back on the TED, “Fillies and Gentlecolts, this is your captain speaking. We will be arriving in Ponyville in approximately five minutes. Our approach vector will bring us in from the east at a cruising altitude of around five hundred feet. Please observe the no smoking sign, check your seatbelts are fastened, and your luggage is secured. We would like to take this opportunity to thank you all for flying with Air Tingles today.”

“Smart arse,” I called back.

“Watch it ‘my lord’, or you’ll get it later,” came the reply.

“I sincerely hope so, agent Tingles,” I smirked. “I really do.”

I heard a loud whinny, and down we went, the girls whooping with delight as the countryside of Ponyville rushed past in a multi-coloured blur. In the distance I could see the snow capped mountains, the deep green of the Everfree forest, and heavily laden apple orchards as far as the eye could see. It was such a change from the bland brick, concrete and stone of Manehattan it was almost hard to comprehend. Celestia’s ears, how long had I been away now? Five years? Ten? Had it really been me, plodding the beat in this beautiful place? I must have been mad to leave, but of course, I knew why. The reason was buried in the cemetery beside the other members of her family… beside our darling daughter. I closed my eyes and swallowed. Despite the threatening cloud of melancholy, my heart still called out at the sheer wonder of this idyllic land. This was how a pony should live, surrounded by lush fields, fruit trees, rivers, lakes and friendly neighbours. Boring it may be for a watch pony in the first flush of his career, but this… I missed it. Dear gods, did I miss it. The wind caught at my mane, sending a shiver down my spine. I have to say it was a real treat to see the trees below us and the sky so pure and blue overhead. The pegasi sure did a good job keeping the clouds away here. Not sure why Manehattan was always so bloody wet, but Ponyville was different. It was like a picture perfect postcard of the ‘Equestrian Way’, if such a thing even existed. ‘Progress’ had a lot to answer for.

We began to slow, and I have to say it was our smoothest landing yet. Tingles’ precision flying skills were displayed to their fullest, and Scootaloo gave the tangerine mare a big ‘Oooo!’ of appreciation.

“I didn’t feel us land at all!” Sweetie Belle shouted, jumping from the carriage.

“I know! I hope I can fly as well as you one day, Miss Tingles,” Scootaloo called back over her shoulder, joining her friend.

Tingles whinnied and unhooked herself from the carriage. “You will, Scootaloo, just keep practising to get your wings nice and strong, okay?” Scootaloo nodded enthusiastically and the four of us set off across the cobbled street for Carousel Boutique.

It didn’t take long to get there, my hooves remembering the route far better than my memory ever could. It looked exactly the same as I remembered it too. Blue, pink, gold and purple told you far more than any sign could. This was the home of Rarity, the daughter of the family that owned the famous Carousel Corporation - outfitters to the gentry, suppliers of custom garments, and with price tags that could make your eyes water. In short, you didn’t go there if you need to ask how much something was. The shop itself was, naturally, immaculately clean, the outside tastefully painted to complement the interior perfectly. Even the flower boxes were smartly planted and colour co-ordinated to harmonise with the overall theme. The only thing that stood out here was a poster glue to the lamp post, unsurprisingly of Sweetie and her pegasus friend offering a reward for information on their whereabouts and safe return. Oblivious to the distress their disappearance had doubtless caused, the two girls raced about laughing, trying to pull faces like the ones in the poster. So much for keeping this low key! Right on queue the door to the boutique opened and a perfectly coiffed, purple tail backed out into the sunshine, the mare following it leaning up to lock the door behind her.

“SIS!” Sweetie Belle yelled in a high pitched squeaky voice, and barrelled into her older sister at full tilt. Not wanting to miss out, Scootaloo ran after her, jumping about with her tiny wings buzzing like a bee’s.

“Wha…! What’s this? Sweetie Belle!?” The white mare stared incredulously at the bouncing youngsters. “Where…? What…? Oh my, Oh Celestia!”

The mare, no doubt the sister, Rarity, snatched up her younger sibling and immediately began hugging the struggling creature for all she was worth, crying into her mane. Mascara ran down her cheeks in dark lines, “Oh you silly, silly foal, where have you been? Mother and Father have been beside themselves! We even had the royal guard out looking for you! And Scootaloo too of course! Oh my goodness…” She turned to Tingles and I, looking relieved yet a little worried. “And who may I ask, are you two fine ponies? Do I have you to thank for bringing these two miscreants home?”

Tingles stepped forward, “Miss Rarity? Agent Tingles, Agent Nox, Celestian Bureau of Investigation.” She held out her identity card before slipping it back into a pocket.

Rarity’s eyes went wide. “The who?”

Tingles carried on as if it were the most normal thing in the world. I was quite impressed really. “The girls stumbled into an area of poisonous marsh gas near the river,” she explained. “Fortunately our agents found them and took them in for immediate treatment. Sadly, it’s taken a few days for them to recover enough for us to find out where they lived. My apologies, Miss Rarity, I know we could have tried harder, but I sincerely hope you’re happy to have these two back home again safely where they belong.”

Rarity blinked and looked shocked. “I am! Good gracious you can’t believe how delighted I am to have them home! Oh, Agent Tingles, I’m so happy I think… I think I’m going to…” She blew her nose on a silk hanky and wiped her tear and mascara stained face. “Look at me, I’m a mess! But never mind that, come in, please. I have to thank you properly.”

“I’m sorry, Miss,” I apologised. “We really need to get going and-”

“Nonsense!” the white mare retorted lifting a hoof to forestall me. “I simply won’t take no for an answer, and neither will Sweetie, will you dear? So do come on in. A cup of tea is the very least I can offer. I’m sure it was a long journey for you after all.”

Tingles and I exchanged a glance and I shrugged. Hell, why not? I could murder a cuppa. Sweetie and Scootaloo raced in ahead of us, helping the eccentric fashion designer arrange a bevy of little cakes and tea for everypony. I had to say, this was all very civilised and certainly a cut above salt licks and wheat beers, but you know, I was never really cut out for this sort of life. To be honest I’d probably be happier working the land with an old chipped mug full of hot tea than sipping out of fancy china. Still, I have to say this was a welcome change of pace from the usual lunacy I was used to, and seeing the smile on Tingles’ face was well worth enduring a little ‘stuffiness’. And boy, could she put those cakes away!

“Are you certain the girls will be alright, Agent Tingles?” Rarity asked. “There’s no, er, ‘lasting effects’, are there?”

“Oh no, ma’am, they’re fit as fiddles.” Another cake vanished like magic. “Our doctors gave them a full check before we brought them home.”

The relief of our kindly host’s face was heart warming. “I’m so grateful to you,” she breathed delicately. “Both of you. I simply must inform Twilight as soon as possible, she’s out helping co-ordinate the search, but I’d imagine she’ll be back soon.”

“I see,” Tingles said taking a bite of one of the petit fours on the cake stand. “Can we leave you to inform the search parties that the girls are home, ma’am? I imagine with your connections, you’ll be able to contact all the right ponies and let them know.”

Rarity placed her cup on its saucer, nodding happily. “Yes, indeed! I’ll be on with that as soon as we’ve finished our tea. I’m going to contact the girls and give them the good news as soon as I can, and I can assure you this young madam certainly won’t be going anywhere for a while, either.”

“Awww! Sis…” Sweetie groaned.

“Never mind that,” Rarity sniffed, dismissing her protest with a wave of a perfectly manicured hoof. “My heart and nerves simply couldn’t take it. We’ll call round to see Applejack and Apple Bloom this afternoon, I know they’ll be overjoyed to see you two safe and sound.”

We all chuckled, watching the foals race back and forth excitedly. The thought of anypony, any human, touching them… hurting them… What if that had been my Sparrow? I wouldn’t have stopped at killing them, that was for sure. I’d-

“Mister Nox?” Rarity was giving me a concerned look. “Are you alright? You looked a little… ‘distracted’”

I held up a hoof in apology. “I’m sorry ma’am, it’s been a long day, and a long journey from Manehattan.”

Rarity nodded. “In which case you’ll be staying here tonight as my guests.”

“Eh?!” I sat up suddenly. “But-”

“It’s a long flight back to Manehattan too, Agent Nox, and although I’m not a pegasus even I can see that your friend is weary from her flight.” Rarity nodded as in affirming it to herself. “I have a room made up for guests which you are most welcome to use, unless you already have reservations elsewhere?” Tingles and I looked at each other blankly. “Then that’s settled then,” Rarity concluded placing her cup down its saucer with a ‘clink’. “Now then, when we’re finished with out tea and cakes, you two go and explore Ponyville. I can highly recommend the cakes at Sugarcube Corner and the rare art exhibit at the town hall – I’m told it’s going to simply stupendous!”

“Rare art exhibit?” Tingles asked, her curiosity piqued.

Rarity nodded. “Why yes, the ‘Star Swirl the Bearded’ exhibit. This year they’ve sent several rare and apparently genuine artefacts that belonged to the great wizard to our very own town hall. They have all sorts of stalls set up there, as well as a puppet show and magic demonstrations. Would you believe there’s even a rumour they’re going to be filming a documentary about him right here in Ponyville!” She gasped suddenly. “I wonder who’ll be making the costumes?!” The white unicorn’s eye’s lit up as her mind began to wander.

“I thought there was a travelling museum for these kinds of things?” I asked curiously. My watchstallion mind began to ponder the nightmarish amount of security needed to keep such priceless magical items safe. If the criminal underworld had the balls to kidnap foals here, I’m damned sure they wouldn’t pass up an opportunity like this.

“Why, yes dear, there is,” Rarity replied with a nod. “However, what they have are cleverly crafted copies, you understand. They couldn’t risk having the real thing being damaged or,” she gasped, “stolen!” My thoughts exactly, although they were quite clearly happy to risk them now. That said, with the amount of top end magic users here you’d have to be one hell of a burglar to even get close.

Tingles shook her head, “I think I’d like to take a look later, if that’s okay with you, Agent Nox?”

“Of course,” I agreed. “It could be quite enlightening.” In fact… I think it probably would be. And if not, there was always the puppet show.

Rarity waved a hoof. “Darling, why wait! If that interests you so much I have something here that might just tantalise your curiosity.” Without further ado the pristine mare trotted across to a cupboard and took out a small chest which she deftly unlocked with a key from her purse. She beckoned us over, and slowly lifted the lid. Inside, on a small velvet cushion, sat something I knew all too well. The small clear crystal on a long gold chain seemed to stare at me as much as I stared at it. I felt myself reaching out to it, my mouth hanging open. “I know! Isn’t it simply divine?” Rarity gushed, “I’ve had it here for polishing and was about to take it back when you arrived here with our missing duo.” To my amazement the white unicorn reached up and placed the chain around my neck, holding the crystal up with her hoof. “There,” she smiled, “A genuine piece of Equestrian history! Now when I was a young filly, my father would...”

Rarity continued to talk, her words washing over me soundlessly, fading away until they were no more the shush of waves against the shore. Memories and faces flowed through my mind in steady stream, drowning me in recollections of a time that seemed almost unreal now, and yet… so close I could almost touch them. Meadow, Sparrow, Shadow, Star Beard, Ember, Thorn… So many faces. So many names. I turned around in a circle, watching the pale glow begin to emanate from the crystal just as I remembered, brightening in intensity when I faced a certain direction.

Tingles stared at it, her wide eyes reflecting the magical light. “Fai- Nox, that’s it isn’t it? What you told me about.”

I didn’t need to say it. It was. We both knew it.

Rarity looked confused. “I’ve never seen it do that before! How in Equestria did you make it do that?”

I shook my head. “I have no idea.”

“Curious,” she said, floating the pendant back up and replacing it in the box. “I’ll have to speak to Twilight about that later, she’ll be absolutely fascinated.”

Part of me wanted to stop her, to reach out and snatch it back. Gods help me, I couldn’t stop staring at the box, at the glowing crystal nestled within. What had it been pointing to? What was it trying to tell me? By the goddesses, Star Swirl’s beacon! It was here, in Ponyville, but… but how? How the hell had it travelled from the Wither World to Ponyville of all places?! And why? I know Rarity said there was an exhibit in town, but what were the chances they’d bring this very piece? Not to mention leaving it in the care of a local mare to polish, let alone… Oh, Luna! I think I needed to sit down - my mind was reeling with it all.

Rarity cleared away the crockery and helped Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle into sun hats and saddle bags. “Swish, stylish and practical,” she announced to nopony in particular.

“Pssst,” Tingles leaned towards me out of our guest’s earshot. “You alright?”

“Yeah,” I swallowed. “Just… A bit rattled, that’s all. Come on, let’s get some air, my heads thumping.”

“Have a nice time you two!” Rarity called, fiddling with Sweetie’s frilly top.

I took that as our cue to leave. We bid our farewells and agreed to meet back at the boutique around six for tea. In the meantime Tingles and I set off along the colourful streets on our way to the exhibit, looking very much out of place in our black agency suits. Damn it, why hadn’t we changed before coming here? We stood out like mange victims in a bloody barbering contest! I was immediately on edge, watching everypony around me as if they were a potential threat, the realisation of which I found both unsettling and a little surprising considering this used to be my old patch. Unfortunately my state of mind wasn’t being helped by the fact we were drawing far too much attention for my liking, even if it was the sort of attention which meant ponies avoided you like the plague.

A hoof bopped me lightly on the side of the head. “Fairlight, will you lighten up? What’s wrong with you?”

“Huh?” I gave myself a shake. “Oh, nothing. Nothing really.”

“Bollocks it’s nothing!” Tingles hissed. “It’s that pendant, isn’t it? It’s got your head in a tizz.”

I let out a sigh. “Yeah… Yeah, I suppose. Look, forget about it. Let’s try and enjoy ourselves while we’re here, okay?”

“Hmm...” Tingles frowned at me, “Okay. But we’re talking about this later, Fairlight. I don’t want you moping all the way home. I don’t like it.”

I tried a smile. “You’re right, love. I’m sorry.”

Thank the goddess that the first place we came across was the gaudy gingerbread house which passed as the local sweet shop owned by the, rather appropriately named, Cake family. ‘Sugarcube Corner’ as it was called, was most likely the single largest cause of cavities in the region, if not the entire country. Not that any of that mattered to my partner of course. All else forgotten, Tingles rushed inside and whinnied like a little filly, darting from one shelf to another, picking up colourful boxes of cakes, chocolates and goodness knows what else. Before I knew it, she was loading a basket with more treats than I ever thought possible. Good grief, after all the cakes she’d scoffed at Rarity’s, I thought the last thing she’d want was more! I shook my head and left her to it. Looking up at the amazing selection of confectionary I could feel my heart accelerating just looking at the artery hardening goodies. I bet the dentist round here was busy...

Speaking of which, from out of the back room a yellow stallion with a jaw that looked like he could chew nails, appeared. He walked up next to me and placed a box of chocolates on the shelf with a ‘50%’ off sticker. Tingles was there in an instant, squeeing in delight as the box swiftly disappeared into her apparently bottomless basket with lightning speed.

“Anything you fancy sir?” The yellow pony asked me politely.

I looked up at the tall fellow and smiled politely. “No, thank you. I love treats, but… well, they’re all a little too sweet for me, you know?”

He nodded slowly, scratching his stubbly chin. “Hmm, yes. Yes, I do sir. Mares tend to have quite the sweet tooth in my humble opinion. More so than us stallions, certainly.” He glanced about conspiratorially. “But I’ve been trying something different lately; something that I believe will cater to our male customers perfectly.” He lifted a hoof, beckoning me to follow him into the back room. “Please…”

Colour me curious! I walked after the stallion, entering into the back room which was quite clearly a storage area filled with boxes and crates galore. Sat in the corner was a large locked cabinet from which a curiously rich scent was emanating. My nose twitched involuntarily.

The tall fellow produced a key and clicked the lock open, looking at me with a knowing grin. “A land of adventure awaits, my good sir, if you would only take that first step.”

I didn’t know whether to be excited or terrified. This chap was obviously dedicated to his craft and his sales pitch really did grab you, but… oh… Oh, wow! The smell of rich chocolate and... was that salt? I wasn’t sure, but chocolate and salt together? Surely not? But good gods, the aroma was so alluring I was salivating already.

“Are they…?” I began.

He nodded, grinning knowingly. “Try one. Go ahead, they’re nothing like anything I’ve ever made before. These have genuine Saddle Arabian pink salt, hearthside caramel, and a blend of chocolate from the zebra isles. There’s a choice of dark or milk of course, but I think you’ll prefer the richer taste of the dark myself. Here... try a milk one first so you can compare…”

Tentatively I floated one from the tray and dropped it onto my tongue. I can’t say I was a huge fan of chocolates, even as a foal. Maybe it was because they’d always been so sweet they’d been bordering on sickly, but this… this was different. The chocolate melted warmly in my mouth, the salt hitting my palate with the subtlety of a runaway freight train. Small pieces of caramel added their own sweet background to the symphony of flavour singing on my tongue. I don’t know about the herd, but this truly was heaven.

“Oh, Sweet Celestia!” I groaned, nearly fainting with the experience.

“Good aren’t they?” the yellow stallion nodded knowingly. “Would you believe my wife can’t stand them? She’s even refused to let me put them on display in the shop! However, I think you can see for yourself just how incredible these are. They’re not to everyponies taste of course, but for those who don’t have a very sweet tooth, they’re just the ticket. You know, I think I’m going to market them as something mysterious - something you ‘shouldn’t have’. Mystery always sells things in my experience. I just hope I can convince Mrs C.”

“Well I hope you can,” I said, licking my lips. Good goddesses, if these were all it took to make me feel this good, who the hell needed drugs? “How much are they?” I enquired, fishing in my pocket.

Mister Cake looked a little uncertain all of sudden. “Ah, well, these aren’t for sale yet you see, they’re samples for distribution to-”

“How much!” I pressed a little more urgently than I meant. “Please, you don’t know what the canteen food’s like in the agency, it’s like being stuck in a desert of blandness and I’ve finally found an oasis. For the love of all that’s holy, sir, I need more!”

The yellow stallion smiled and nodded, clopping me on the shoulder. “Alright my friend, you’ve convinced me. I can always make more of them can’t I?”

Oh thank Luna! I thought for a minute I was going to lose out. And here they were, box upon box of the things, plain and dark, my delicious pretties… I looked down to see my hooves shaking in anticipation.

“Try one of the dark ones while I package them up for you.”

The dark chocolate was a different experience to the milk, but oh… it was just as good! Maybe better! A slightly bitter journey of sweetness and salty goodness. I was in absolute heaven. Confectionery heaven.

“How many would you like sir?” Mr Cake asked politely,

I swallowed, all but humming with the warm feeling of having had something that actually had that magical ingredient ‘flavour’ for once. “Oh, you see that chariot out there? The big yellow one?”

Mr Cake nodded and sighed. “I’ll get a bigger box…”

********************

Kindly, and very trustingly too, Rarity had left us a copy of the key to the boutique which also meant, thankfully for my back, that we could leave Tingles’ large selection of cakes and chocolates in there for safe keeping. I couldn’t help but smile when the excited pegasus flew around me in a circle, laughing and looping through the air. Ah, chocolate, are there any problems your deliciousness cannot solve? Suddenly the happy mare swept down and gave me a big chocolatey kiss. She really did taste amazing.

“Tingles, please!” I chuckled. “Ponies will see us.”

“Who cares?” She laughed, floating up into the air happily. “Ho boy! This stuff’s great! It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.” She flew down until she was hovering by my ear. “Really warm, if you get my drift, Agent Nox.”

I did, and now with the afterglow of the chocolate and the warm taste of her mouth on mine, I was getting a stirring that threatened to embarrass me a hell of a lot more than a simple kiss in the street.

“Come on,” I winked. “There’s a place I know where we can be alone.”

The sun was high in the sky, hanging there as pure and golden as the sea of blue that surrounded that magnificent orb. Birds flew overhead, trees rustled in the slight breeze, and throughout it all a fresh scent of lush grass and apple trees tickled my nose. It was, in short, a perfect day. It was nearly always a perfect day in Ponyville; it was one of the things I remembered the most vividly about my time here. Gods, look at how I’d ended up! Why I’d ever imagined walking the beat in a downpour up to my fetlocks in filth was romantic, was anyponies guess. But what had been had been, and for better or worse I was stuck with the outcome. It was, as Pewter often told, ‘better to live in the moment than lament the past and fear the future’. And speaking of which, Tingles and I were doing just that. We walked unhurriedly up to the small wood I used to visit when I was off duty, the one overlooking the river that afforded a view no amount of gold could ever buy. From here you could see for miles: the miles of apple trees, the green fields ponies used for picnics, even the big tree I’d met Meadow under. Oh… Oh, no…

Tingles cocked her head to one side. “Fairlight? Are you alright, love?”

I nodded dumbly, but no matter how hard I tried I just couldn’t move my eyes away from that damned tree, even at this distance. In my mind’s eye I could still see her as clearly as if she were standing there now, wearing that ridiculously huge floppy sun hat of hers and smiling at me with those big lantern eyes. “Sorry Tingles,” I said quietly. “It’s this place, all the memories, you know? Look, don’t worry about it. Can I just hold you for now? Please?”

She smiled and nuzzled me gently. “Of course you can, you don’t need to ask, silly.”

And so I lay there next to Tingles, my earlier excitement ebbing away, replaced instead with a heavy melancholy that steadily pulled my heart and mood towards the abyss that I was desperate to avoid. I’d been there too many times already. Far, far too many.

The tangerine mare snuggled into me. “I’ve done something terrible, haven’t I?”

“Hmm?” I waited for her to go on.

Tingles smiled sadly. “I know how much you love Meadow, and Shadow too. And yet here I am, the new girl, wanting to spend time with you, and wanting you all to myself. I’m a greedy mare, Fairlight. I want you to be with me, yet at the same time I’m prepared to share you with the others… If they’ll let me. But I let things happen too quickly and now... now I’ve hurt you. I’ve spoiled everything, and… I’ve broken your… your heart.”

She began to shake and I caught her up in my forelegs. “No!” I admonished quickly. “Stop that right now, Miss Tingles, do you hear me? It’s me who said ‘yes’, and it’s me who will have to answer to Meadow and Shadow, not you. If they hate me, if they reject me after this, then it’s my fault, not yours. Goddess damn it all, Tingles, I can’t help how I feel. I love you and that’s that, what more can I say? What more needs to be said?”

She reached her forelegs round me and kissed my cheek. “Oh, Fairlight, I wish I could make everything better. I wish I could solve all your problems and live a long happy life together with you, without worrying about the agency, or guns, or drugs, or any of the other horrible things that keep happening all the time.” She buried her muzzle in my mane. “Do you think, somehow, we could some day? That maybe we could escape our fate and be together? Forever?”

I took a deep breath, staring at my hooves. “I don’t know about fate, love, but I hope so. One thing that’s for certain is that I’ll always protect you and do whatever I can to give you the life and happiness you deserve. You’ve brought me so much comfort, so much joy that-”

A hoof reached out and stroked my mane. “No… I don’t want you to give me anything, Fairlight. You’ve already given me much more than I could ever dream of.”

“Oh?” I looked up into her eyes.

She smiled. “Your love.”

Tingles was right on target, my heart melting away from no more than those two simple, heartfelt words. In that moment all my pain, all my grief and worry, faded into into nothingness as we kissed, embracing each other for no other reason than to bathe in the comforting feelings which only the warmth and closeness of being beside the one you love can bring. There on that hillside above Ponyville, we lay side by side, innocently bathed in the dappled sunlight that shone through the trees. I gazed into those deep green eyes and kissed her on the nose. “I love you, Tingles. I really do.” And then to my shock she started to cry, putting her hooves over her mouth whilst I reached up to gently brush the tears away. “What’s up, love? Have I said something wrong?”

“No!” she sniffed loudly. “No, you bloody idiot. It took you long enough!”

“Took me…? Oh...”

I closed my eyes and flopped back down onto the soft grass, realising how dumb I was when it came mares. Tingles had liked me for years, a crush of sorts I suppose, whereas I could barely recall ever seeing her at the watch house at all. It wasn’t that unusual of course, I was more often than not so wrapped up in my own work that some mare eyeing me up wouldn’t, and quite clearly didn’t, register at all. Even working together in the agency it had taken me a while to come to terms with not only how I felt about her, but how she felt about me too. I had an inkling of course, particularly with the way she snuck into my bed when she couldn’t sleep, but to me it was just… I don’t know. Gods, they were so confusing! The love I had for Meadow and Shadow was just as strong now as it ever had been, but Tingles was here, and there was always that nagging doubt that kept reminding me that I might never see Shadow again. At least, I may not in this life. Meadow was already waiting for me on the other side of the veil, but how she’d react to Tingles… Dear goddesses, I just didn’t know.

Together we lay in each others embrace, dozing in the cool shade of the wood, letting the day go by. There was no hurry to do anything here in this idyllic place, we’d done what we’d been tasked with doing, and now we could spend a few precious hours together in peace and solitude – rare commodities indeed at the agency. I yawned and snuggled into my mare. The evening was fast approaching when I realised I’d actually nodded off. Tingles was still asleep and moaning softly beside me, her chest rising and falling hypnotically. I nuzzled her neck. “Tingles? Come on love, we need to go. Rarity’s expecting us.”

She groaned and looked up at me. “Fairlight? I just had the oddest dream… it was so… so real.”

“Oh?” I asked helping her up.

Tingles rubbed her eyes sleepily. “Yeah, you were there with a green unicorn mare, a small grey pegasus foal and an odd dragon-like pony with eyes like little red bonfires.”

I listened intently, my ears pricking up. Was she recalling stories I’d already told her, or something else? I wasn’t sure.

“They were calling to me, telling me to go somewhere,” she continued. “I couldn’t really make it out though, it was all foggy, and covered in snow and ice too. But…” She frowned, trying hard to remember. “There were... towers? Walls too, I think - turrets and things like that. I think it was supposed to be Canterlot, but I’m not sure.”

I stopped and looked her straight in the eyes. “Tingles, can you remember anything else? What they said? Please, it’s important!”

She frowned, holding her head down as she walked. “I don’t know how to explain it properly, it was all so… so abstract. You… You were you, but not you - a pony and a wendigo. It’s hard to explain, but all of us were individuals that somehow ‘came together’ to form a single entity. We were like life itself, breathing life where there was none. Celestia feathers, Fairlight, it’s so hard to remember dreams!” She shivered slightly. “It… it was just a dream though, wasn’t it? I mean, come on, who’s called Maroc these days?”

I stopped her with an outstretched, hoof. “Maroc?! Did you say Maroc?”

Tingles looked a little worried at my reaction. “Well, yeah, or rather, you did. You were telling me to go to that Canterlot-like place with ‘you’ and everypony else. It was crazy! I mean, Meadow’s… you know…”

I neighed, stomping a hoof in frustration. Damn it all, what the hell was this? Were these some sort of prophetic dreams Tingles was having or simply her mind playing tricks on her? Of course they could be just that – dreams. But the description of the fortress… It wasn’t Canterlot, I was damned sure about that. I’d only ever seen the place in my tribal dream memories, and unless Tingles could read my mind I doubted she knew what the fortress looked like back then. And now that I thought about it, I don’t recall being so descriptive about Shadow’s eyes either.

Tingles’ eyes searched mine worryingly. “Fairlight? You’re scaring me. Please, what’s going on?”

I nuzzled her reassuringly. “I don’t know, love, honestly. I think you may have somehow picked up on memories of the spirit, or it spoke to you, or something... I’m not sure.”

“So who’s this Maroc then?” Tingles asked. “In the dream it was like he was you and you were him at the same time, sort of floating from one to another. It was really freaky.”

She had that right! “He’s my ancestor, apparently,” I said with a sigh. “He was the lord of the fortress of the four winds.”

“My goddesses, so it wasn’t Canterlot then?” Tingles looked away from me, her eyes wide in wonder. “It was this ‘fortress’ place?” I nodded. “But, why would they want me to go there?” she continued as though asking the world at large. “I don’t understand what any of it meant, or if it meant anything at all in the first place. In any case it’s all seriously creepy, Fairlight. I like sleeping at night, and having dreams like that are not something I want to have again thank you very much!”

I knew what she meant. Having somepony else’s memories, dreams, or whatever you want to call them, intruding into your own was not something to relish. I’d experienced plenty of it already, and like my feathered companion, I’d kinda hoped they were a thing of the past. “I wish I had answers for you Tingles,” I said heavily, “but I just don’t. Maybe being around me is affecting you somehow. Damn it, I was afraid something like...”

“-this may happen?” she cut in. “Yeah, probably, but I’ve made my choice and spending my time with mystical fantasy ponies is my decision and nopony else’s. Are we clear on that mister?”

“Yes ma’am,” I replied crisply.

“Good!” Tingles nodded smartly, having dismissed the whole incident with her customary level of pragmatism. “Now let’s shift tail my sexy grey stallion, cakes and other things bad for us await!”

Sounded good to me! Putting the mystery of the dreams behind us we rushed off back down the hill into Ponyville, my heart and spirits lifting as the sun began to set, bathing the land in a magnificent deep orange glow. Odd dreams and cryptic interpretations of mysterious messages from who-knew-where, could bugger off for all I cared. My life was stressful enough without worrying myself sick about things I couldn’t do anything about, especially when they affected Tingles too. No, I’d have a think about this at a later date, preferably when I had some alone time and wasn’t in such a beautiful part of the world. On the subject of which, Rarity’s home was a veritable hive of activity when we arrived, with jubilant ponies from all over the town having turned up to celebrate the safe return of the foals. Tingles immediately joined in, and before I knew it I was whisked up into the festivities along with her. Good grief, I even ended up dancing a couple of times - something I never would have seen myself doing ever again, let alone enjoying it. And enjoy it I did, revelling in the simple pleasures of good food, good music and equally good company. Some of the ponies remembered me from my days on the beat here, and I was surprised to find that I’d actually been missed. I confess it brought a tear to my eye at one point, and I excused myself to find a convenient napkin to wipe the evidence away. Nopony seemed to mind though.

Before long though, the evening began to draw to a close and the party goers gradually left for their own homes, tired, happy and contented. The missing girls were home and safe. Normality, Ponyville style, had been restored once again and all was right with the world. You know, I was really starting to relax and forget about having to go back to the agency facility tomorrow. Tomorrow… Oh, crap! I still had that bloody debriefing to give to Brandy! In all the excitement I’d never gotten around to it. I slugged back the last of my apple brandy and grinned to myself. Ah well, there’s always tomorrow…

“Excuse me, are you Agent Nox?”

A little lavender unicorn mare stood next me examining me with her inquisitive purple eyes. I didn’t pay her much attention, I was still in a muzzy state of alcohol fuelled happiness, leaning my head back against the rough stone of the garden wall. “I am, Miss, and you are…?”

“Twilight Sparkle, sir, a pleasure to meet you.”

My eyes shot open and I looked closer at the young unicorn. Damn it all, why did it have to be her of all ponies? I suppose I should have guessed something like this would happen once word got out about the foals return. The rumour-mill here was faster than a pegasus flying at full tilt, and Ponyville was one of those places where you kicked one and half the village jumped. Miss Sparkle was one of a bunch of mares that went everywhere together, even back when I was stationed here. They were the ‘elements of harmony’, Celestia’s personally chosen ponies - or so I’d heard. I’d have to box clever with this one.

“The pleasures mine, Miss Sparkle,” I said politely. “Is there something I can help you with tonight?”

She nodded happily. “Yes, there is. I’d like to speak to you in private if that’s alright?”

In private? Not a chance. “Sorry, Miss, I don’t go anywhere without my partner. It was a long flight over here, and we’re both very tired. I hope you’ll forgive me.”

“I see…” The lavender mare took a deep breath, her eyebrows raising in a manner that had my hackles going up. “So, your partner is the orange mare asleep in the corner next to the empty punch bowl, correct?”

I looked behind her and saw what was quite clearly a very inebriated Tingles, grinning idiotically with a slice of lemon stuck her muzzle. “I’m afraid so…” I smiled politely. “I’m afraid I don’t think it’s appropriate to-”

“Marsh gas.”

My ears pricked up. “I’m sorry?”

“Marsh gas,” Twilight repeated. “There’re no marshes around here, Agent Nox. No marshes, and most certainly no marsh gas. I’m sorry to say your story doesn’t hold water. Not one jot. Now, if you wish, we may continue to debate this fascinating point ad infinitum before the rest of the ponies here tonight, or…?”

“I’ll get my hat.”

Twilight made her excuses and explained that we were going to examine her books on dangerous gasses in the local area, which for some reason the rest of the ponies just nodded and agreed with as if this kind of thing happened all the time. Maybe it did. Or perhaps Miss Sparkle trotting off at night with strange stallions was more common than I’d thought? Suddenly I was starting to worry about my safety, especially when Tingles woke up and found me missing. Even worse when one of the others blabbed about my toddling off with a young mare. Mind you, looking at the state of my tangerine coated partner she was unlikely to be conscious for a good while yet. Thankfully Rarity assured us she would put Tingles to bed before she caught a chill. Meanwhile my unexpected lavender coated ‘host’ never said another word until we reached the library, which, as it turned out, was also her house. I’d been told she lived here, but I’d always thought it was just one of those rumours that country types love so much. How wrong I was. Guess she must really like books then! Inside, the little unicorn magicked over a pile of books, a plate of biscuits and a large pitcher of lemonade before inviting me to sit on the rug near the fire. This all seemed a little strange, more than a little strange actually, and I felt myself eyeing the door for a quick escape. Of course being half sozzled with alcohol didn’t exactly help matters, and any attempt to make a break for it would most likely end up with me breaking something else – quite literally. Mind you, if she was distracted enough I could-

“It’s magically sealed” Twilight said without looking up.

“Wha-?”

“I want answers, Mister ‘Nox’, if that’s even your real name.” Twilight turned a page in her notebook, scribbling something I couldn’t see. “So, let’s begin, shall we?” Purple eyes bored into mine. I have to say she was actually quite pretty in her own way, and also oddly enchanting. Mice probably thought that of cobras too, just before being introduced to their digestive tract. “I’d like to hear what really happened,” she continued. “Oh, and a word of warning, if I hear the words ‘marsh’ and ‘gas’ in the same sentence without it being in a denial of such, then the princess shall be hearing from me faster than you can say… ‘Nox’. Yes?”

I sat and nodded silently.

“Take off your sunglasses, please”

“No.”

Twilight lifted her head, clearly not expecting to be disobeyed. “Take them off. It’s rude to wear them when you’re talking to somepony, and we’re inside too.”

I sighed. “I’m sorry, Miss Sparkle, I have sensitive eyes and-”

An unexpected surge of magical energy snatched the sunglasses from my face and launched them across the room. I blinked in surprise, not least because of my rising irritation with the domineering mare, but also because it was clear from her expression that my young host hadn’t expected what she saw next. The unicorn stared at me, her eyes as wide as dinner plates.

Her next words sent a chill down my spine. “Show me your cutie mark…”

“I don’t think-” I began.

“Show me!” Twilight stomped a hoof in irritation.

Goddesses help me, I was really starting to get annoyed now. It was all I could do to keep my anger under control. So much for a happy end to the evening then! What was it somepony once said? ‘You’re having a great time, now watch some bastard spoil it’. It seemed horribly appropriate right now too. “Very well, if this will get you to leave me alone, Miss.” I removed my overcoat and placed it, my hat, and my retrieved sunglasses, next to me in a pile.

“By Star Swirl’s beard!” she exclaimed.

I groaned inwardly. It was hard to feel annoyed with Miss Sparkle, really. She was a neat little thing with innocent eyes full of foalish curiosity, and she had an adorable mane too, looking for all the world like a young school head mistress. I imagined Tingles would look nice with that style. Once I got myself away from this book loving control freak, I might mention it to her.

Twilight walked up to me, examining me like some furry lab exhibit. Placing a pair of glasses on her muzzle she made a couple of notes then began pulling out book after book from the pile beside us. “No… No… No, not that one. ‘Myths and legends’… Got it! Page thirty four… Here!” She turned the book to face me and tapped the picture on the yellowed page with her hoof. I followed where she indicated. It was a depiction of what was, without doubt, my cutie mark - a single white lightning flash.

“So?” I proffered.

Twilight tapped the book again for emphasis. “You’ve been to the Wither World, haven’t you.”

I said nothing, but watched her, watching me.

“You’re not a pony, are you,” the strange mare said as if I knew what the hell she was talking about. “You’re one of the lost tribe, the mountain tribe, the tribe of… Nightmare Moon…”

I half expected a dramatic drum roll but decided to remain silent. If I didn’t say anything then she’d eventually blow herself out. I hoped.

“But, that tribe died out,” Twilight said half to herself. She turned the book round and began flicking through the pages. “The histories show they fought Celestia in the great war and tried to destroy Equestria, and that they were...” She fixed me with a wide eyed look. “The embodiment of pure evil.”

“Oh, what a load of absolute bollocks!” I blurted out on impulse. “Miss Sparkle, I may be many things, but ‘evil’ is not one of them, I can assure you of that! And as for not being a pony, I think you’ll find my mother and father may want to have a word with you about that pile of manure.”

Ignoring my remarks she ploughed on. “If you were evil, then why would you bring back the two missing foals? And, if you were really from that tribe, you would have the power to… Oh… Oh my Celestia! Can you… Can you do it? Can you?”

My mind was reeling. She hadn’t listened to a bloody word I’d said! “Do what?” I asked irritably.

“You know...” She prodded me with a lavender hoof. “‘Change’.”

“No,” I replied emphatically. “I am who I am, and that’s that.”

“A pity,” Twilight shrugged, adjusting her spectacles. “I’d have loved to have seen that. I may have even been able to help you find out more about your people too.”

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, letting it out slowly and tried to find that pool of calm inside myself. “Miss Sparkle, I don’t appreciate being blackmailed. Whatever else you may think I am, I am still an officer of the law, and a servant of the princesses.”

She nodded, smiling a little sadly. Probably because I’d thwarted her attempts to mentally dissect me. “You’re right sir, and I’m sorry, truly.” She lifted another book up and ran a hoof over the cover. “But if my hypothesis is correct, then you may be one of the last of your kind, perhaps even unique - a remnant of a bygone age, a time I have studied and also have a particular interest in.” Twilight slid closer, picking up a biscuit. “What I propose is this: I believe that you seek answers, like I do. Mine however are from a purely academic standpoint. I swear to you, that what is discussed inside this room stays in this room.”

“You’re making a lot of assumptions,” I retorted. “I’m evil, not a pony, a member of a lost people. Am I on the right track? For Celestia’s sake, I travelled half way across Equestria to bring back a couple of girls from the town and now I’m locked up in the library being interrogated by a mare young enough to be my daughter!”

Twilight munched down a biscuit and pointed to the mirror on the wall. “Do you know how many ponies I’ve read about who have glowing blue eyes, Mister Nox?” She raised an eyebrow. “No? I can tell you - only those who have managed to travel to the Wither World. Travelled, and returned. If that wasn’t enough of an indication, your cutie mark is also referred to as the mark of that realm. Hardly anything has ever been written about the subject, unfortunately. In fact the only documented records I have ever read regarding this phenomena are anecdotal. But those there are refer to those travellers as having belonged to what is referred to as the ‘lost mountain tribe’.” She took a sip of her tea. “A tribe, I might add, that no longer exists. But you, Mister Nox, apparently do.”

“Miss Sparkle…” I felt my resolve failing. If she knew as much as she claimed to I doubted there would be much point denying it any further. “Do you know what happened to the tribe you speak of?”

She smiled, passing me the plate of biscuits. “Yes. They were defeated during the last battle with Celestia’s forces, around a thousand years ago. The time frame is a little in doubt, but the outcome was quite clear.”

I felt the spirit stir. “Do you know what your precious princess did to them?”

Twilight paused, noting my change of tone. “I… No, not precisely. The histories just say that they were defeated.”

“Oh, yes,” I said weightily. “They were ‘defeated’ alright.” I could feel a little well of anger bubbling up in my chest. “Celestia, your delightful mentor, cut them down like they were nothing: the young, the old, the sick, the wounded - it didn’t matter to her. She turned them into ash, her troops baying at them like hounds as they tried to run…” I closed my eyes. “I saw them… I… I saw what she did...” I took a deep breath and wiped my face with a foreleg. “I’m sorry, Miss Sparkle, I really don’t want to talk about this any more.” For a moment she looked stricken. I supposed the revelation that your beloved deity isn’t quite the loving and all-forgiving being you thought they were could cause anypony to question their beliefs. Whether Twilight believed me or not was another matter. The inquisitive academic in her however, quickly overrode any emotional response.

Apparently unphased by my description of her genocidal matriarch, Twilight flicked though the pages in the book, muttering to herself. “Here!” she announced suddenly. “This passage refers to the tribe and how their warriors would travel to the Wither World. It refers to it as the ‘spirit realm’ here, which is another more colloquial term for it, but it goes on to state that they would commune with the entities there. If one was deemed worthy, the two would enter into a ‘contract of the soul’, and share the rest of their lives as ‘one true being’. The spirit joined warriors were known as ‘Wendigo’ or ‘Windigo’, depending upon your pronunciation of ancient equestrian.”

I stared into the fireplace, watching the yellow flames lick around the edges of the blackened logs as they crackled and popped behind the fine brass guard. In the distant corners of my mind I could still smell the smoke from that most terrible of days, the way the fires licked around the bodies of the dead and dying, burning away the last vestiges of my people, turning even the memory of our existence into dust. Dear gods, so many had died. So, so many… I gave myself a shake and took a calming sip of my own tea. Some of what Twilight was saying was news to me of course, some of it not. Personally I just wanted to get out of there. The spirit inside me was getting fired up a little too much for my liking, excited by the way young mare was conjuring up images of the past and places I’d travelled to in my dream-memory.

Twilight continued quoting from the book, ignorant of my inner turmoil. “The ‘Fortress of the four winds’ was the regional home of the ‘Lord of the four winds’. The last of these was Maroc and his wife, the lady Arathea, both of whom died during the fighting.”

I stood up abruptly. I’d had enough of this. “Miss Sparkle, this is all very interesting but are you going somewhere with this? If not, I insist you drop the barrier on the door and-”

“You’re a Wendigo. Aren’t you.”

Oh buck me with a twelve hoof barge pole! She already damned well knew didn’t she. Well of course she bloody well did! You didn’t get to be the student of a living god if you weren’t some child prodigy or something. Hell fire, if any of this got back to Celestia I was done for! That old bitch would be after me like a whippet, tidying up one last loose end from her thousand year old massacre. It would all be done quickly and quietly too. Nopony would even notice I’d gone. Except Tingles of course, and she’d most likely end up as another ‘statistic’ too. No, the only chance I had now was the memory re-writer. I tried rummaging stealthily in my overcoat pocket for it, but naturally, now that I needed the bloody thing, it wasn’t there was it?! Shit! Neither of us had thought to bring all our kit except for the PDW’s and our identification cards, and I could hardly bump off Celestia’s pet now could I? Bloody marvellous. This was supposed to be a pleasant trip out to drop off the foals. How the buck did it end up like this?

I hung my head. “Miss Sparkle…”

“‘Twilight’, please. And your name is?” she smiled.

Oh well, in for a bit… “Fairlight. Former Captain of the Manehattan Watch, now working with the Celestian Bureau of Investigation.”

“I thought so,” Twilight said nodding to herself. “You used to work here, didn’t you?”

I sighed resignedly. “I did.”

“So, are you a Wendigo then?” Twilight asked pleasantly. I hesitated, but she dismissed my concerns with a wave of her hoof. “Oh don’t fret, Mister Fairlight, I already set up a barrier and multiple wards around my home. Nopony will hear us or be able to enter unless I let them. A little trick of my own invention.” She smiled and tapped her chest proudly.

I felt a groan escape my lips. There was no getting out of this one, was there? “In answer to your question, yes, I suppose I am a ‘wendigo’ of sorts, though not through choice. Believe me, if there was some way I could get back to being plain old ‘Fairlight the unicorn’, then I’d leap at the chance.” I closed my eyes, trying to sound as reasonable as possible. “So, if you can help me to understand this... ‘condition’ of mine, Twilight, I would be very grateful for your assistance.”

Twilight nodded sagely. “I thought so. And the marsh gas?”

“A story,” I admitted. “Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle were kidnapped by members of the criminal underworld. We got them back. And that’s all I’m going to say on the subject, so please don’t ask me any more about it. I’ve told you far more than I should have already.”

“Very well,” twilight replied. “The important thing is that they’re home, and I thank you, sir, for your honesty.”

I accepted the little unicorn’s offer of a top up and tried to make myself comfortable. This was going to be a long night. “I suppose you’ll be wanting my full story then?” I asked pre-empting the inevitable.

She clopped her hooves together. “Oh, yes!”

Tapping a hoof on one of the books, I gave her a serious look. “No notes though. Nopony can know about this, Miss… Twilight… It would endanger many of us, my loved ones and yours. I will tell you what you want to know, in exchange for your knowledge and silence. Do you accept my terms?”

Twilight looked forlornly at her notebook, but pushed it aside before turning to me with a bob of her head. “I do. And, thank you for trusting me… Fairlight.”

I don’t know how many hours went by, but I felt like I’d been interrogated within an inch of my life. The questions she asked! It was if my mind had been examined, taken apart, reconstructed, and then stuffed back in with a crowbar - Not a nice feeling at all. Eventually though, Twilight fetched a book down from a high alcove. It was old… very, very old. The pages were yellowed with age and fragile, and on the front cover was a picture of a pony with a strange hat and long beard.

“That’s him!” I exclaimed, pointing to the picture. That’s the fellow I saw on the hillside with Meadow!”

Twilight’s ears perked up. “That’s Star Swirl the bearded! You actually met him?!”

I nodded. “Well, he appeared, lectured me, left me with bugger all help and then buggered off back to wherever he came from. So if that constitutes as ‘meeting’ him, then yes, I suppose I did.”

“I can’t believe it!” Twilight squeaked. “You actually met Star Swirl the Bearded? If you did, and this wasn’t some sort of hallucination brought on by an oxygen starved hallucinatory response, then-”

“The worlds are thinnest where the berries grow,” I cut in.

“Yes!” Twilight clopped her forehooves together happily. “Abundant Flora stated in her treatise that the genus known as ‘Spirit Berries’ are said to grow in areas of particularly high background magical radiation. Due to the dangerous nature of those locations, very few studies have ever been made. This is absolutely amazing!” She pulled out a book marked ‘Mythical plants and places’, flicking through the pages until she found what she was looking for. Twilight pointed to a somewhat crudely drawn black and white picture of what was quite clearly meant to represent a bush of crystal berries. “So these actually doexist?”

I put down my cup, helping myself to a biscuit. “Yes, and they’re quite sweet too. I would recommend buying the treats from Sugarcube corner instead though, they’re a lot less dangerous.”

Twilight tittered and stretched her forelegs. “You know your thestrals are extinct in Equestria, don’t you?”

“I guessed as much,” I replied. “But I have to find Shadow somehow. I have a feeling she’s in trouble and I have to help her.”

“But you said Princess Luna’s looking for her, didn’t you?” Twilight asked. “What can you do that she can’t?”

She had a point. “I don’t know,” I said honestly. “It’s hard to explain, but part of me keeps saying that something’s wrong, yet I can’t quite put my hoof on it. All I know is I have to find her, come hell or high water.”

Twilight nodded and closed the book. “That’s so romantic!”

“More terrifying really,” I reasoned. “The Wither World is not a place to travel lightly. Stars Swirl did, but how he got from here to there and back again, I’m not sure. The empty city had a massive portal intended for armies, but it obviously hasn’t worked or Shadow would be here now. Star Beard had to ‘kill’ me to send me back here and something tells me that’s not going to work with thestrals. He’d better not bloody well try either!”

Twilight pulled out another stack of books, rummaging through them until she found what she was looking for. “Did it look like this?” She showed me a picture of an enormous city, shining like white marble. The massive raised dais in the centre was unmistakable.

“Yes, that’s it, that’s the city alright.” I frowned in thought. “But the portals I’ve seen are smaller, not much bigger than a pony.”

She turned a page. “Like this one?”

I looked down at the image of an archway. “Yes, that’s it.” I didn’t tell her that the underworld had been making new ones of their own. If her ‘mentor’ wanted to reveal that little titbit of information she could bloody well do it herself.

Twilight read on for a while in silence, giving my ears a well earned rest. Meanwhile I helped myself to some lemonade and biscuits. I have to say they were absolutely delicious and I found myself licking the chocolate off my hooves. There was no mistaking the cake’s work, even if they weren’t the salted ones I’d bought earlier.

“I thought so,” Twilight muttered eventually. “Star Swirl built a portal to help him explore the Wither World, although according to Clover the clever, this appears to have been accidental. From what I can tell he was actually trying to enter the land of the Eternal Herd.”

I nodded. “Star Beard explained as much to me.”

“The crystal you were given was one of several he had made it seems,” Twilight continued, talking as much to her pile of books as to me. “Apparently they were intended to be able to locate the nearest portal in case he got lost. The Arcanus Maleficarum says that this was particularly relevant in the Wither World due to the lack of any true day and night cycle, thus causing problems with orienteering.”

“You can say that again,” I said around another biscuit. “Anyway, there’s definitely more than one of those crystal things knocking about. Rarity had one in for cleaning earlier. It’s the one from the Star Swirl exhibit that’s on at the Town Hall.”

The lavender unicorn looked at me for a moment, gauging my body language. “I see. Well, I may be able to help you with that, but not tonight.” Twilight stared at her book in thought before adding, “I will contact you when I can, Fairlight, but first, would you… please?”

I rose to my hooves. I knew damned well what she wanted, and I also knew that if I didn’t do this not only would I be cutting off a potential source of help, I’d never hear the end of it either. “Twilight, you can not tell Celestia about this, okay? And please, be assured that I swore to protect Equestria and the princesses. Even if it is from the shadows.”

She nodded, pushing her glasses up her nose. The way she was watching me was making me feel deeply uncomfortable already, but I’d agreed to this so there was no backing out now. I took a deep breath, calming my heart, gently trickling a little flow of the spirit’s energy into my body. Any remaining effects from the alcohol vanished in that instant, replaced by the familiar sensations of cold and warmth simultaneously tingling along my muscles and spine. There too was the equally familiar sharp pain as my wings burst from my back. I barely even noticed it now, but it felt oddly embarrassing flexing standing there, flexing them in the library’s bright lamplight. I quickly folded them by my sides.

Twilight gasped in awe, her eyes going wide as she took in the spectacle before her. “Oh, my Celestia! This is… This is amazing!” She was virtually shivering in excitement now, and I was beginning to doubt I’d made the right decision to do this. “How I wish I could take a picture of you!” she continued. “You’re like a story book come to life! A unicorn with wings, but not an alicorn. They’re more dragon-like, judging by the membrane. Coat transformation, teeth elongation...” Her horn glowed as a book floated up in front of her muzzle. “But… No… Something’s different from the recorded description somehow. What am I missing?”

Different?! What in Equestria was she talking about now? She walked around me, poking and prodding, touching my wings and muttering to herself. Finally, she looked up at my horn and frowned. Mind you, at least she wasn’t yelling ‘Demon!’ at me, which was definitely a welcome change to the usual reaction.

“Twilight, can I-” I began.

She completely ignored me. “Here, this makes sense now…” The eccentric little mare tapped an entry in one of her books. “It says here there were several tribes across the world, and not just in Equestria. Your tribe, the ‘Four Winds’ as it was known, was one which was exclusively made up of unicorns. Those who completed the joining ceremony with the spirits would become the tribe’s warriors, a little like soldiers in an ant colony. Others were brought into the tribe to act as labourers, cooks, servants and so forth, but eventually even they began to adopt the characteristic traits of the tribe over subsequent generations. That is to say, the grey coat, yellow eyes and horn which were unique to the Four Winds. What seems to have made the tribe stand out however is the particularly strong ability for magic which manifested itself in this!” She tapped my horn with her pencil and sighed, “No notes, eh?”

“No notes…” I said plainly.

Twilight shrugged resignedly, then looked up at the clock. “I’d love to study you more, Fairlight, but we’d best get back to the girls or they’ll start to wonder where we are.”

Somehow, I guessed they were already doing just that. “Twilight?”

“Yes?”

“Do you know where the fortress was?”I asked hopefully. “I know it was in the mountains near the Everfree, but I can’t be certain. There’s supposed to be a cave system nearby that the tribe tried to reach when the Celestians attacked them, but where it comes out I have no idea.”

Twilight rubbed her chin in thought. “Hmmm, I’m not sure… I suspect that would be the Spire Mountains, past the Everfree forest. They’re notable for being constantly covered in cloud and dangerous for flying - even for you I suspect. The caves are probably… here.” She tapped a picture on a map of Equestria that was pinned to the wall above the fireplace. “These aren’t named in the book, but if you look closely they’re marked on the map near the swamp. They don’t have any name as far as I know. I’ll need to look that up, although I suspect nopony ever goes there now anyway… or has any reason to.”

“Why, is the area dangerous?” I said, letting the magic drain away.

“Have you ever seen a Hydra, Fairlight?” Twilight asked pointedly.

I hadn’t, but I had certainly heard of them. Mean, constantly angry, and so large they made a dragon look like a puppy by comparison. I doubted even a wendigo would willingly take one on if even half the stories were true. And why was I thinking of going there in the first place anyway? Curiosity? Tingles' dream? To find a way to rid myself of the spirit? Suddenly burying my muzzle in a bucket of punch didn’t seem like such a bad idea. I didn’t get a chance to think much more about it anyway as Twilight’s horn flashed brightly, disarming the wards and unlocking the door. A few moments later we’d left the library and were heading back across town to the boutique, and what I hoped was a sanctuary from nosey unicorn mares.

Twilight trotted along beside me, shaking her mane. Large purple eyes glanced over at me. “You’re going there, aren’t you?”

I smiled bitterly and nodded. “I don’t know. Maybe. But there’s answers there to questions I’m not even sure about myself.”

“That sounds… different,” she replied.

I sighed. “It’s hard to explain, but inside, the other ‘me’ needs to go there for some reason. Even if it is just frozen rubble. Hopefully if I can at least see it, then I can move on with my life.”

Twilight seemed a little dubious about my reasoning, and I couldn’t blame her either, but she nodded kindly anyway. “I wish I could come with you, but I can’t go against my mentor, Fairlight. I promised you I’d keep your secret and I will, but if you find anything, will you tell me? And… If you see Star Swirl again… um, can you tell him ‘Twilight Sparkle is his number one fan’?”

I rolled my eyes. “Yes, Twilight, I’ll tell him for you.”

She whooped for joy and jumped about for a few moments before settling down, a rosy blush appearing on her cheeks. Good grief!

By the time we got back the party goers had mostly gone home, leaving behind little more than empty garden furniture, a faint aroma of fruit punch, and happy memories. Those ponies that still remained were tidying away the empty plates and glasses, chatting happily amongst themselves as they worked. High above us the stars were coming out, muted slightly by the lamplight spilling from the arched windows of the boutique. The sound of laughter and clink of glasses emanating from within suggested that the festivities hadn’t quite ended for everypony after all. Twilight lead the way, pushing the door open without knocking. I followed at a respectful distance, just in case of any, erm… ‘misunderstandings’. Inside the boutique the girls were all sat around in a circle on a selection of large colourful floor cushions, happily chatting amongst themselves and enjoying a variety of drinks and snacks. They looked oddly familiar too, and quite obviously knew Twilight by the way they all smiled and waved at her as we walked in. Tingles was sat amongst them like part of the furniture, seamlessly blending into the Ponyville party scene as though she’d been born and raised there.

She looked up at us with an odd look on her face. “Why, welcome back, Agent Nox. Have fun researching your ‘marsh gas’?”

Tingles had an exaggerated look of innocence on her face, although I suspected she may well have suspected I’d been up to no good ‘fiddling with the filly’, or some such nonsense. I nodded and took a cushion next to her, murmuring so only she could hear me, “Whatever your mucky mind is cooking up, you can forget it. I didn’t do anything.”

“I know,” she whispered, picking up another cake. “I just couldn’t resist teasing you.”

I nudged her playfully with my shoulder and stretched my forelegs. “I’ll fill you in later.”

Tingles raised an eyebrow and popped the cake into her mouth, licking her lips. “Oh, I do hope so.”

A big orange mare with three red apples on her flank trotted over and shook my hoof vigorously, hopefully ignoring my burning cheeks as she did so. Damn it, she was strong! “Thank ya kindly fer savin’ our girls there, Agent Nox,” the mare smiled. “Y’all are okay in ma book and welcome ter visit Sweet Apple Acres any time yer want some good ole fashioned home cookin’, y’here?”

“I wondered where all the squirrels had disappeared to,” I heard Rarity mutter.

“What was that?” the orange mare replied, her mane bristling.

“I said I wonder where Scootaloo’s disappeared to,” Rarity smiled innocently.

The big earth mare, tutted. “Y’all gone loco in the noggin Rarity? Yer put them kiddies ter bed hours ago.”

Rarity shrugged demurely, lifting a hoof to her mouth in surprise. “My goodness! I must be getting tired, Apple Jack. Forgive me.”

I caught Rarity’s sidelong wink to me and let out a snort. Tingles, as usual, picked up on it immediately and tapped my hind leg making a ‘shushing’ motion. Trying to stifle a yawn, I wondered how long the wind-down for the party was going to take. I was so tired I could barely keep my eyes open now, thanks in no small part to spending most of the evening being interrogated by the ever inquisitive Twilight Sparkle. Unfortunately, just when it looked like the girls were finally about to make their way out, the pink lunatic of the group appeared from behind the chocolate fountain in a shower of broken pieces of frozen confectionery.

“Woweee!” she squealed. “The light really does go off when you shut the door! Brrrrr!”

“Pinkie! That’s really dangerous!” Twilight admonished.

The pink one just laughed. “Yeah, but chilled chocolate tastes soooo much better!” She proceeded to jump about like some deranged jumping bean, trying to catch the broken pieces that dropped off her fur. Good goddesses, that one wasn’t right in the head! And now that I think about it, she kinda reminded me of somepony else I knew too… that nurse at the hospital, whats-her-name…

“It’s YOU!”

I nearly shot of my cushion in fright. “Wha-?”

The pink bouncing creature cartwheeled across the room and plopped down right in front of me, staring me right in the face before suddenly pulling off my sunglasses. “OOOH! Creepy!”

Twilight shouted at her friend in alarm. “Pinkie Pie! That’s rude, give him them back, they’re our guests remember.”

Smiling cheekily, ‘Pinkie’ reached over and balanced my sunglasses on my horn, looked to Tingles, then back to me. “You look different, but you’re the same. I never forget a face… not Pinkie Pie!” She chuckled manically. “You’re the watch pony who had the green marefriend, aren’t you?” She suddenly gasped aloud. “You’re the two we saw doing ‘naughty’ things to each other by the river! Poor Twilight didn’t know what to do with herself!”

“Oh, goddesses!” I squeaked.

Tingles burst out laughing, while the deranged Pinkie rushed off waving a long balloon over her head. “It was thiiiisss biiiiiigggg!”

Buck me, couldn’t somepony control her?! What the hell was she on? “Twilight!” I hissed. “Do something!”

She gave me an apologetic look and caught hold of the out of control Pinkie Pie in her telekinesis, quickly floating her up off the ground and out the door. “Sorry everypony, sorry…!” Twilight said quickly. “Goodnight everypony, and thanks again agents Nox and Tingles. Sleep well!” The rest followed, leaving Rarity, Tingles and myself alone in an embarrassed silence.

We waved them all goodnight, watching the floating Pinkie Pie disappearing backwards through the door, several feet in the air, and doing things with the balloon I don’t remember ever having done with… Oh hell, we had, hadn’t we? That bloody pink menace!

Rarity trotted over and waved the last of her friends away before locking the door to the boutique. “I’m so sorry about that, Pinkie is a little, er… ‘excitable’. Will you two be alright sharing a room tonight? There’s a futon and spare blankets should you need them.”

“Of course,” Tingles smiled kindly. “Nox won’t mind sleeping on the floor, will you?”

“Eh?” I caught myself quickly. “Um, no, no of course not.”

Tingles and I thanked Rarity before retiring to our room. It was certainly small, most the boutique having been given over to the white unicorn’s craft, but it was neat and impeccably clean too, which seemed typical of the generous white mare.

“Sleep on the floor...” I muttered.

“Well you can if you want,” Tingles chuckled. “Or if you’re not too tired…?”

I rolled my eyes, smiling back at her wearily. I was absolutely exhausted, and I hadn’t been the one doing all the flying either. How in Equestria was she still so energetic? Was she alcohol fuelled or something? We disrobed and climbed into bed, Tingles giggling slightly to herself.

“What?” I asked, turning to face her.

Tingles grinned cheekily as she plumped her pillows. “Sorry, it’s that pink pony. That balloon of hers, ‘thiiiisss biiiggg’!” She even did the foreleg motions!

A wave of embarrassment washed over me again. “Stop it! Luna have mercy, what’s with you mares tonight?” Dear gods, I’d never live this down, would I?

Brushing aside my objections she snuggled into me. “Mmm, I don’t know, maybe somepony spiked the chocolate fountain?” She tapped me on the neck. “Turn over.”

“Huh? Why?” I muttered.

Never one to take no for an answer, Tingles gave me the sort of pleading look I’d expect from a foal wanting treats in a sweet shop. “Please? Pretty please?”

I sighed and did as she asked, quickly discovering that the mare was nowhere near as tired as I’d thought. Quite the opposite in fact. A questing hoof reached down and probed until she found her mark. All the while a sly little grin spread across her face, moonlight glinting in her big green eyes.

“Well, well, Mister Nox, what do you know… it is that big…” She disappeared beneath the sheets and a moment later, “I didn’t get many deserts tonight. I think I’ll try this one…”

A lot of kissing, giggling, and exaggerated ‘shushing’ later, we lay panting together face to face. I don’t know why, but I suddenly felt like going for a run. Despite being dead on my hooves earlier this evening, the urge to charge across the open fields, to splash through the river and shout for the sheer joy of living, was nearly overwhelming. A wave of contentment washed through me, making all of my legs tremble. To be here, here with this beautiful creature, was enough to stir any heart. Even mine. In the gentle moonlight flowing through the large window, I stroked her mane, gazing into those fathomless green eyes. Luna’s mercy, she was so beautiful.

A little while later, still in the afterglow, Tingles tapped me on the flank. “Come on love, we’d better wash up. I’m a bit sticky, and I know you are…” She smirked and clambered out of bed, pulling the sheets off me so I couldn’t escape.

The bathroom was en-suite thank goodness. It was just as well too, I certainly didn’t fancy bumping into Rarity, just in case we’d, um… ‘disturbed’ her sleep. Mind you, we’d been carefully to keep it down, but now that I was oddly re-energised by Tingles’ skilful ‘ministrations’, my mind began to turn to things it really shouldn’t have. Sadly the risk of waking our generous host was something neither of us wanted. Rarity had been good to us and it wouldn’t be right. Deliciously wicked, certainly, but not right. Returning to the bedroom, we cuddled and kissed for a while longer before finally falling asleep in each others embrace.