The Perfect Partner

by HAKDurbin

Chapter 1

It’s been many moons since the Storm King’s defeat at the Battle of Canterlot, and Tempest Shadow has been much better for it. Since that time, she has been traveling around the world to spread the news of his defeat. It was a long and tiresome journey considering how the Storm King's reign was long and spread throughout lands unknown to Equestria and their allies. Many were reluctant to believe that they were free from the tyrant, especially when the words were coming from his second-in-command, but Tempest was able to prove her claims. She even helped some countries adjust to living independently, such as the land of the storm creatures, the homeland of the Storm King.

But even though her travels led her far from Equestria, she found time to visit her homeland now and then. She kept in touch with Princess Twilight Sparkle, she rekindled her friendship with some of the ponies from her hometown and took part in stopping Queen Chrysalis, Tirek, and Cozy Glow from taking over Equestria. Later, she attended Princess Twilight Sparkle's coronation when she became the ruler of Equestria. But she never stayed for long, for she had been away from Equestria for so long that her homeland felt alien compared to what she has seen or experienced beyond the country.

But still, Tempest was content with how her life changed for the better. With each place she went to for her quest, she felt as though her soul was becoming more whole. No longer was the mare focused on her desire to fix her horn. She was on a better path to help others, and she became proud of the pony she had become. But as time went on, she began to realize that she didn’t know what to do next.

This was what was on her mind as she rode the train to Mt. Aris. Queen Novo, the leader of the hippogriffs, decided to create an annual holiday to celebrate the Storm King's defeat. She invited creatures from many lands who were under the king's rule to come and celebrate. Even Tempest, much to her surprise, was invited to join the celebration. The dark orchid mare was hesitant to accept the offer but decided to go since she would be celebrating with creatures she befriended since the Battle of Canterlot.

Her thoughts were interrupted when she felt the train slowly come to a complete stop at the station. When Tempest came out of the train car, she was instantly in awe of how the area changed. The beach had become a port where the Hippogriff Navy dwelled, and the hippogriffs interacted with the seaponies from Seaquestria. The mare couldn't believe how the desolate place became a place for creatures to live together in peace.

"Tempest!"

Tempest turned her head to see the smiling face of Princess Twilight herself. The unicorn smiled back as she walked over to hug her friend, whom she had not seen since her coronation.

"Oh, it's so good to see you," Twilight said.

"It's good to see you too, Twilight," Tempest said as they broke the hug. "How's ruling an entire kingdom treating you?"

Twilight huffed and said, "Oh, you know. Spike and I are learning to take it one day at a time."

"That's good to hear," Tempest said. "Speaking of Spike, are all of your friends here too?"

"No, they're looking after Equestria in my stead," Twilight answered. "We just had this year's Friendship Festival, so they're staying to clean up while I help the hippogriffs set up here."

"That's a shame," Tempest said. "I was hoping to see them."

"Well, it can't be helped when the official day of the party is the day we stopped the Storm King," Twilight said.

"That's true," Tempest said. "Still, they saved the world with you. It only makes sense that they should be here for this occasion."

"Not just us, though," Twilight said. "Don't forget that Capper and the pirates helped too. Not to mention you were the one who saved us from the Storm King turning us into stone."

Tempest frowned and said, "I don't think what I did was something that really determined the fate of the world."

"I think it is," Twilight said. "You risked your life to protect us. Who knows what would have happened to Equestria with the Storm King still around? Besides, you're doing so much now with your travels, right?"

Tempest winced and looked away from her friend. Twilight's smile disappeared, and she asked, "Have things not been going well?"

"Oh, no. Everything has been going great," Tempest said quickly.

"Okay, so what's the matter?" Twilight asked.

Tempest hesitated before she sighed and said, "I just finished with my quest."

"And why is that a problem?" Twilight asked. "I thought you would be glad that every creature knows that the Storm King is gone."

"I am," Tempest said. "But now that my task is done, I don't know what to do now."

"Oh, is that it?" Twilight asked with a smile. "Well, you could come back to Canterlot with me or stay with Starlight in Ponyville if you want."

Tempest shook her head and said, "I appreciate the offers, Twilight, but I don't want to stay in Equestria."

"Why not?" Twilight asked.

"Because I don't belong there," Tempest answered. "Don't get me wrong, Twilight, I love seeing you, Spike, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, and the others whenever I visit, but I've always been a pony who travels from place to place for as long as I can remember. Whether it was trying to fix my horn, serving the Storm King, or spreading the news of his defeat, I've always been a traveler with a goal. Now, I have no other task to complete, but I don't want to stop moving."

"Sounds like you want to keep traveling for the sake of traveling," Twilight said.

"Yes. No. Kinda," Tempest said. "What I want is a reason to move forward. I want to have a purpose. I don't know what that could be, but I doubt it will be somewhere in Equestria."

"You don't know that," Twilight said. "Equestria has a place for many creatures in some way or another. Maybe you just need to find what that could be for you."

Tempest sighed again and said, "I don't see how it can."

Twilight frowned as her friend looked up at the sky in thought. She wished she knew what else to say that would encourage Tempest, but there was nothing she could say that she didn't say before. She let out a sigh, accepting that what Tempest wants is something that she had to discover for herself.

"Hey, let's not worry about that, right now," she suggested with a smile. "The festival is tomorrow, so you have a whole day to unwind and celebrate with creatures who are happy to be free like you are."

Tempest kept staring at the sky for a moment before she turned to Twilight with a small smile.

"You're right," she said. "I should take this time to be happy like everyone else."

"There you go," Twilight said. "Come on. Queen Novo wants to talk to you about something for tomorrow night. I think you'll like what she's going to ask."

Tempest's smile grew, interested in what the ruler of the mountain wants to talk to her about, and started following Twilight. Meanwhile, a stallion with moderate gamboge fur and pale yellow mane and tail with a steak of white was also exiting the station. He wandered through the beach in awe as though it was made of gold, happily watching hippogriffs set up for the festival. He took a deep breath to smell the fresh salt-water air before he said with a grin, "Look out, Trenderhoof. This is going to be a trip you will never forget."