A Return to Home

by Mark_the_electrician

Prologue: Arrival

Celestia's sun rose above the small, yet well known village of Ponyville. Few ponies would be awake during this time, simply to prepare to open up their shops and stores for the coming business day.

A cloaked individual had arrived at the Golden Oak Library, which served as the current dwelling for the local alicorn and her dragon assistant. The cloaked individual entered the library and pulled back their hood, revealing themselves to be said alicorn.

"I taking it you didn't find anything." Came the voice of a much older Spike, who was sitting by the couch that sat in the middle of the library, reading a book.

"You could at least show some enthusiasm." Twilight said, placing the cloak on a coat rack. "Honestly, I thought you loved her."

Spike looked up from his book, annoyed by the comment. "You know that was just a crush, Twily." He then closed the book he was reading and stood up to his full height, which was now a head taller then the average pony. "And besides, I've moved on. I'm already with someone that actually reciprocates my feelings."

"So I've seen." Was Twilight's reply. "How did things go?"

"The usual." Spike answered, placing his book back on the shelf. "Fluttershy did visit often, though."

Twilight raised her brow. "Really? What for?"

"Usually to ask about our progress in finding her." Spike then gave a frown. "But recently, things have been getting.... Heated, between us."

"I see..." Twilight said, putting a hoof on her chin. "Weren't her and Rarity romantically involved with each other?"

Spike shrugged. "Not like it matters now. She needs to move on."

Twilight was shocked. "It's not that easy, Spike! Especially for Fluttershy!"

"Normally, I would agree with you." Spike said, intentionally lowering his voice. "But it's been three years, Twi. Three whole years. That's more than enough time to let go."

Twilight sighed, looking to the floor. "You really have grown, Spike."

Spike huffs. "Sometimes I question if I've grown in the right ways or not."

Twilight let out a yawn, which caused Spike to give a concerned look.

"Did you sleep at all?" Spike asked.

Twilight sighed. "No, I've been traveling all night."

Spike shook his head. "Get some sleep, Twi."

"But, don't you need the help?"

"We've held down the fort whenever you do go out on these searches, Twi. We can handle one more day."

Twilight's eyes narrowed. "'We'? What do you mean 'we'? Who else is here, Spike?"

"Who else?" Spike asked, seemingly annoyed at the question.

Twilight thought for a bit, but then her eyes widened. "Silver Spoon?" Spike nodded. "Why is she here? What about her parents?"

"She volunteered to help out, Twi." Spike answered. "And her parents are completely okay with this, so there's nothing to worry about." Spike then made his way to the kitchen. "Now get some sleep, you need it."

Twilight sighed as she walked towards the stairs that lead to the rooms. "Alright, then. I'll just leave things to you, then."

---

Some time has passed, Celestia's sun was now more or less in the center of the sky. Towards the edge of town stood a small cottage, which served as a home to a certain shy yellow pony.

"Angel Bunny! Where are you going?!" Said shy yellow pony was silently screaming, running after the little demon bunny. Said bunny began frantically pointing into the Evergreen Forest, as if to say something was in there.

"Oh Angel Bunny, you know we can't go in there, it's far too dangerous!" Fluttershy tried to reason with the bunny. But Angel wasn't having it, so he ran up to Fluttershy and began to pull on her hoof, making incomprehensible noises while doing so.

Fluttershy understood what he was saying, however, but only sighed. "Well, if there is something in there, then don't you think leaving it alone and avoiding angering it is the better solution then possibly entering it's territory?"

The bunny finally relented at this point, but still seemed to be on edge by whatever it was that was in the forest. Fluttershy noticed this, and began to pat the bunny on his head.

"Oh Angel Bunny, there's nothing to be worried about." Fluttershy said with a smile. "How about I prepare for you a nice carrot cake, as a gift for worrying about me."

The bunny seemingly forgot all about the forest, and started salivating over the thought of having carrot cake.

Fluttershy's smile only grew. "Alright then, follow me. It should keep your mind off of things for a bit." It'll definitely keep my mind off of a few things,she thought.

Angel Bunny's concerns weren't unwarranted, however, as large, green, bipedal beasts stalked them from within the forest. One of these beast grunted as it looked towards the rest of Ponyville, as if to give a command. The pack of beasts slowly made their way there, using the forest to cover their approach.

---

(Days earlier, Halidom of Ylisse, Ylisstol Castle)

"LADY CORRIIIIIIIIN!!!!!"

"Felicia?!" The screaming threw Corrin for a loop, as she immediately went on guard. "What's going on?! Are we under attack?!"

"Faceless!! There were...... There were Faceless." Felicia managed to say through breaths.

Corrin's eye's widened in horror. It didn't make any sense for them to be here, yet here they are. And as if to prove Felicia's statement, a crash was heard outside of the throne room doors, with the sounds of combat following soon after.

That was all Corrin needed for her draconic anger to flare out, as she unsheathed her Yato and prepared for combat.

"Stay close to me, Felicia!" Corrin ordered.

"Y-yes ma'am!" Felicia sputtered. While she still may have been winded from running over to Corrin, she was still ready for combat.

Corrin ran through the open doors and into the many corridors within the castle, following the sounds of combat. She finally turned a corner to see a group of soldiers fending off a few faceless, three to be exact. Corrin wasted no time in getting in on the action, as she made a glorious leap above everyone present, only to land on the faceless with her Yato breaking through the face mask and plunging into it's skull.

The dead faceless gave the soldiers a winning edge, as they now had the numbers on their side. Another faceless fell with a thud as Felicia threw a frozen dagger that pierced its heart. The last one finally went down as it was overwhelmed by the soldiers.

Finally the faceless were dead, but they were still in the rushing water.

"Where's my husband?" Corrin asked one of the soldiers.

A mercenary spoke up. "The prince is in the main courtyard with the Shepards. There are faceless there as well."

Corrin gave a quick nod. "Felicia, stay here and take care of the wounded."

"Aye aye, captain!" Felicia exclaimed as Corrin ran down the hall.

---

Rarity wasn't having a good day.

She initially planned to work on a redesign for her armor, but instead these things came in out of nowhere and started causing havoc within the castle. Thankfully, it stayed within the castle walls, but it didn't make it any easier.

She jumped out of the way of a massive tree trunk arm that was meant to hit her, and retaliated with a hard swing of her Levin Sword, releasing an arc of lightning. The magically charged bolt hit the faceless that tried to attack her, causing it to convulse and spas out before it went limp on the ground.

"LOOK OUT!"

Before Rarity could act, a force pushed her aside as she heard the familiar "ching" of a successful block of the shackled fist. Rarity turned to face her savior, only to witness a small figure dodging away from another strike of a faceless. Rarity rose to her feet, but that was when she say it, a sharp glint of light within her small savior's eyes as time seemed to have froze all around her.

"IT'S ALL ME!"

A jump in the air and a swing of a katana, lead to a strike through the face mask and a very loud "CRACK". The faceless fell on it's back as blood oozed from its head.

"You've gotten better, Sakura." Rarity remarked, sheathing her Levin Sword.

"Anything for a friend." Sakura smiled back.

Rarity looked to the rest of the courtyard to survey the current battle. There was still quite a few faceless being dealt with, and more seemingly arriving.

"The situation doesn't look good at all." Rarity remarked.

Sakura gave a sad sigh. "So many people are getting hurt.... There's bound to be at least a few dead."

"Let's hope it doesn't get to that, darling."

The voice caught both of their attention.

"Inigo." Was all that Rarity said.

"Smile, darling! It'll raise moral!" He joked with a smile of his own.

"Always with the smiles." Rarity muttered not so quietly as a smile indeed did make it's way to her face.

Inigo ruffled Sakura's hair. "And how's my sweet sister-in-law doing?"

Sakura couldn't help but smile as well. "I'm doing fine, as always." But then her smile dissipated. "I'm not sure about the others, however."

Inigo gave a knowing look. "If it's of any comfort, that right there is the last of them."

"INIGO!"

He turned to where he heard that familiar voice coming from. "I'm here, my love!"

Corrin slammed into him with a tackle hug, almost knocking Inigo off his feet.

"My love, please! This is still a battlefield!" Inigo protested.

"Blame my inner dragon for being so protective of you." Corrin said as she broke away from the hug. "I'm just glad you're safe."

"Ehem." Rarity interrupt. "M'lord, shall we?" She asked as she drew her Leven Sword again.

Inigo nodded as he drew Falchion from his hip. "As my father would say, let's finish this!"

---

The battle ended some time later, when the mages found the source of the faceless; a portal that was quickly closed. They did find a second portal, however, and it lead to a world none of them have seen.

"You have my thanks for keeping the portal open, Archimage Ricken." Said a much older Lucina with an airy voice.

"I didn't become an Archimage for nothing, my dear Exalt." Said an even older Ricken.

Lucina nodded. "Of course, your magical capabilities are beyond even the most skilled battle mages, only ever being challenged by dragons themselves."

"Thank you, your father said the same." Ricken smiled. "You have some downtime, so let your brother know to prepare to go after whatever faceless made their way there."

"I'm sure they already know, they are Shepards, after all."

---

"Is that the redesign of the armor?"

"Of course, my princess! Do you find it appealing?"

"Well, I like the purple cape, it reminds me of Nohr, in a way."

"Of course darling. That was the intention, after all."

Corrin was receiving a new set of armor from Rarity, mainly to show how she accepted Ylisse as her home, while still showing how close she is to Nohr. It was modelled after the Nohrian Hero's armor, this time with a lighter color palette. Gone was the navy blue and black, and in came a light blue and gold. A purple cape was added, with the Nohrian insignia emblazoned in it.

"Well then, don't let me keep you. Get changed into it! I'd like to see my work... Well... Work." Rarity said as she moved back towards the exit.

"Of course, Rarity." Corrin smiled. "And don't forget to get ready yourself, we'll need you there."

"Of course princess, shall I prepare supplies for the trip as well?"

"Yes, just.... Don't go overboard." Corrin warned.

"No promises, darling!" Rarity gave a smile as she darted out the door.

"Rarity! I mean it!"

"My my, darling, these doors are really sound proof!"

"Rarity! Ugh!"

---

(Later)

Rarity was with Sakura, handling the supplies. Sakura was counting the vulneraries and Rarity was inspecting her gear.

He skill with the sword was there, but what really showed was her magical affinity. She was offered to be a dark mage, but refused because she found the outfits too revealing, so she became a mercenary instead. Of course, now she dons the armor befitting a hero, and she didn't let her magic go to waste.

The weapon with an oddly shaped yellow blade was known as the Levin Sword, or Lightning Sword as it was in Nohr. The primal lighting that rested within this blade was only amplified by ones magical strength. Prince Leo has also gifted her a rather large sword that was imbued with powerful ice magic. The blade was too big to remain on her hip, so she made a back scabbard specifically for the blade.

Despite what her old memories tell her, Rarity wore these weapons with pride.

She looked up at Sakura, looking her over like an inspector.

Sakura had come a long way. No longer was she this timid meek princess who stumbled over her words half the time out of fright, much like a certain.... Pony... That rests in Rarity's memories. Sakura remained soft spoken, but each word was laced with confidence. She was sure of herself now, and that confidence led her to become more than just a healer.

Inigo taught her the sword, while she continued to focus on her archery. She never gave up healing, of course, but she now stuck to the front with everyone else, sticking by either Corrin or Inigo's side.

"Don't you find it strange?" Sakura said as she drew her Killing Edge.

"I beg your pardon?"

"This katana is called a Killing Edge, yet back home it was primarily a Nohrian weapon." Sakura elaborated.

"Ah, of course. That is quite strange." Rarity out a hand on her chin. "The same could be said about the Killer Lance. In this world it's a naginata, if I'm correct?"

Sakura nodded. "Yes. I wonder why that is."

Rarity hummed as she went back to inspecting her gear.

A pair of arms wrapped around her that caused her to tense her muscles.

"How are your memories holding, dear?"

She relaxed soon hearing the voice. "Silas, my love, don't scare me like that!" She could practically hear Silas's shit eating grin, to which she only sighed. "It's.... Harder to accept it than I thought."

"Are there any.... Similarities?" Silas asked.

"Well..." Rarity paused. "I used to be a fashionista, owning a boutique, if I recall."

"I guess that's not much different then what you do now, with all the redesigns to the armor and all." Sakura said, joining in.

Rarity only sighed. "That's as far as I want to believe. If it weren't for the beaststone that was given to me, everything else just seems like.... Like a child's dream."

"From the memories you told us about, I could see why." Silas tried to sympathize. "That does explain your affinity for magic, though."

"Always trying to find the good in everything, aren't you, love?" Rarity mused.

"Yes, go ahead. Be lovey-dovey right in front of me." Sakura huffed.

Rarity smirked. "You'll find someone eventually, darling."

"As much as I want to, I'd rather wait." Sakura then sheathed her Killing Edge. "Inigo says that I shouldn't rush things, that I'm still young enough to experience other things before I decide to jump into marriage."

"Yes, because Inigo is a shining example of how one should act." Rarity retorted in jest.

"At least he's honest." Sakura muttered.

Silence followed for after that, as the three began to finish up their preparations.

---

It was noon, and the few Shepards that were designated for the mission slowly showed up to room where the portal was being held open in.

"You know, I actually miss going on these types of missions back home." Corrin mussed.

"Ah, of course, I remember." Inigo said. "We went on these sorts of 'Faceless Hunt's' for some time after the war."

"Wasn't that job handed out to sellswords when we left?" Rarity asked.

"More or less, I remember Leo saying that the money involved was enough to get the mercenaries going." Corrin answered.

"I see."

Silas then entered the room. "Well m'lord, your friends are almost here."

"Why do I hear a 'but' coming?" Inigo asked.

What sounded like an argument could be heard from a distance, causing Silas to sigh.

"I would say 'see for yourself', but it's easier to just listen." Silas said with a sigh.

As if on cue, the voice was louder now, allowing them to hear what was exactly being said.

"How many times do we have to go through this, Owain!"

"Oh come on, Severa! You have to admit that it looked really cool!"

"I don't want dark swords flying all over the place, Owain! I'm surprised you haven't been banned from these experiments yet!"

"Research is more then just sitting around all day reading tombs! One must perform these grand experiments to figure out the greater things in life!"

"You can't figure out anything if you're dead!"

Sakura then entered the room, looking down at the floor in annoyance.

"How do you deal with them, Inigo?" She asked as she approached him.

Inigo only smiled. "That's the thing, darling. I don't."

Severa and Owain then entered the room as well, with Severa crossing her arms and a scowl on her face, and Owain with a shit eating grin.

Inigo wasted no time. "Is everyone ready?"

Everyone nodded.

"Alright, let's step through." Inigo then raised his hand to get everyone's attention. "One more thing, do your best to not reveal who we are to any locals we find unless I say so, yes?"

"We get it, Inigo! Gawds!" Severa was more then irritated.

Everyone then walked through the portal.