You're Being Hugged, Harry

by David Silver

17 - There and Back Again

Harry stepped off the train. "Wow..." It'd been a while since he saw so many smiling pony faces moving about, many of them shiny and crystal. "Say, sis?"

Flurry caught up at his side. "What's up? Welcome home!"

"Good to be here... But I forgot something. Why is it most ponies here are all sparkly, and we aren't, and neither is mom or dad, while I'm at it. You'd think the rulers of shiny ponies would be even more shiny, right?" He nodded at a sparkly stallion wandering past.

"Silly." Flurry danced in front of him. "We're not from here, you especially, but none of us. The empire was stuck out of time and space, remember? After they got back, Celestia decided Cadance was the one for the job and sent her here to princess it up. You, on the other hoof, were lost in the snow until the tsuki found you, so you're not sparkly either. Neither of us are from here, so no sparkles, except special occasions."

He'd been there for no few of those. "That's always neat... Ack!" He had been grabbed, Arnavon getting a hold of him and Flurry at once.

"We should go say hello. Your parents will be so happy to see you both." He released them to point at the shining palace. "And I have a letter to write."

"Letter?" Harry resumed his forward movement through the streets of the city he had known for so long before going off to learn magic. "Who to?"

"My family." He pointed off into the snow, in the direction of the other tsukis. "They will be excited too. Maybe some will even visit, that would be nice. Oh." Just remembering, he dropped to all fours and was suddenly gone, bounding through the air in tremendous leaps that carried him towards the palace rapidly. they didn't allow him to stretch his legs so much in the human world, being an owl, but he had no excuse not to enjoy it in the pony land.

And he only tripped twice on the way! Better than he had worried would happen.

"Arnavon," called Cadance with a smile. She was a good princess, able to spot the difference in one tsuki from the next easily, unlike many ponies. "Welcome back. We missed our local author. But if you are here..." Her eyes wandered past him even as she was hugged, an event she knew was coming. "Harry is here too?"

"He sure is." He twirled around her, using the arm around her as a swinging point to point witht he other hand. "Right down the street."

"I hope you will forgive me. I'm quite happy to see you, but you I see once in a while already, Arnavon. It's been... too long since..." There he was. Her eyes sparkled as she hurried forward, descending the steps to meet with Harry, the two hugging fiercely, with Flurry joining in the embrace without resistance. "Oh, it's so good to have my foals in my hooves." She sat back, looking them over. "Have you grown?"

Harry laughed at that. "It hasn't been that long."

"You say that, but you are a growing colt, and this is exactly the time when you grow the most." Cadance looked to Flurry. "Has everything been calm?"

Flurry saluted. "No trouble while I'm on the case."

"At least, no trouble she didn't start herself." He and Flurry shared an exchange of extended tongues. "She's been good overall though. I didn't expect you to send her."

"Send her? That's... being generous, Harry." Even with Flurry shaking her head wildly, Cadance went right on explaining, "She was worried about you and insisted I allow her to come. I would get no peace until I agreed."

"Human magic!" Flurry blurted. "We've learned so much of it. I learned some too, by the way. It's weird! I think they use the words to make up for not having horns up here." She pointed up at her horn. "I bet Twilight could translate their spells to unicorn spells properly. Not my specialty."

Harry chuckled softly as he went in to touch his snout to Cadance's in gentle affection. "Good to be back. How's dad?"

"Your father is busy watching the guard. You know he was captain of the guard before we we married, and he still is now, basically. It's his calling. Still, he will be delighted to come home and find you waiting for him." She turned in place, her wings partially extended. "Arnavon, I didn't mean to brush you aside like that."

"It's alright. You haven't seen Harry in forever. I see him every day, so I don't get as excited."

Harry leaned in towards Cadance from the side. "He's lying. He gets just as excited at the end of every day when I come back from class."

Arnavon colored swiftly. "Do not!" he whined out, looking around a moment before he cleared his throat. "I should write that letter. Later!" And with a great bound, he was gone.

Their family was reunited, and the empire held a festival to celebrate the occasion. Not that ponies needed much prodding to hold a party at much any good news. Food, drinks, and festivities were had. "I missed you all so much." Flurry nodded at her friends, a yak male and a dragon female. "The human world is alright, but it's not here."

The yak tossed his mane, a bit longer than most yaks. "No yaks, so can't be that good."

"About that..." Flurry grinned at her prideful friend. "They have yaks."

"They do?! Maybe not so bad... You meet them?" He sat up at this discovery. "Want to meet them."

"No you don't," she confidently denied. "Their yaks are dumb, like don't even talk dumb. They have ponies that dumb too. All the animals on their world are dumb, which puts the humans on top. Lucky them." She rolled her eyes. "They think they're all that, but they have no competition. They wouldn't have lasted with that attitude on this world." She tapped the ground with confidence.

The she-dragon laughed at the idea. "Imagine that... if you were the only one around, at the top." She puffed a bit of fire. "Sounds fun..."

"It isn't." Flurry leaned towards her scaled friend. "Imagine a dragon everywhere you wanted to be. Everywhere, all of them sure they owned the place as much as you did. So many dragons you had to make rules about what dragons could do since otherwise you'd all go nuts."

She cringed as the situation was described. "Ick, um, nevermind... So you were learning magic stuff, right?"

"Now you're talking!" Flurry began eagerly describing the magic she learned. That the humans didn't want her to know it seemed to only add to the appeal of it.

---

"Harry!" Shining Armor came close quickly, one hoof out to capture Harry in a firm hug. "It's been way too long! They keeping you in shape?" He poked and prodded his colt. "Not too soft. Thought you might be going doughy at that magic school."

Harry pushed him away with a laugh. "You went to a magic school too!"

"Well, yeah... But then I went to a very physical school, and you haven't done that." He glared at Harry, but couldn't hold it, goofy smile returning. "I'm so glad you're back! How's it been, being so far away from us?"

"I missed you, and here... and all of it, but I'm learning so much." He sank to his haunches. "Good and bad... Dad, you had a shadowy nemesis before, didn't you?"

Shining perked his ears. "Um, technically twice. So go ahead, hit me. I'm here for answers."

"Twice?" He skewed an ear aside. "Alright, so, this... shadowy figure tried to attack me. You heard about that, right?"

"Arnie came to the recue." Shining clapped his hooves in one firm stroke. "He's a good tsuki. Most of them are, come to think. Did he show up again?"

"Thankfully not!" Harry straightened his coat, only realizing just then that he was still wearing his school uniform. "Oops, anyway, about that guy. He really wanted to hurt me, maybe even... end it."

"I know that feeling... The first shadowy creature I dealt with wanted to suck me dry of all emotions and leave me a husk afterwards. Uh, the second just wanted to take everything I had and maybe use me as a slave, if he thought of a use, or thought it'd amuse him. Neither were good creatures, not at all... But you can't let fear control you!" He pressed a hoof to Harry's chest. "I'm proud of you, already facing such large challenges, and winning, with the help of your friends. It's not like my friends didn't help me. In fact, if not for my sister, the first one would have gotten me. Hm, actually, she was there for the second one." He leaned in. "What I'm saying is that looking for help with these things? Totally normal, and it sounds like you already have your special friend."

"I do? Who?!" Harry looked around as if they could spot that mysterious benefactor at any moment.

Shining cupped Harry's cheeks, stopping his turning. "Arnavon. He went with you to be your friend and stopped you from getting hurt. He won't let you. And you have Flurry heart. My sister saved me from my shadowy nemesi, looks like you're taking after me!" He burst into merry laughter at that. "And she's ready for the task. I fear for their sake if they try to get past her."

Harry left with far less certainty. "She sure does seem... eager. Feel like she may get me in trouble... Speaking of that, next semester they're going to teach me things about keeping magic creatures, like her, in line. Am I going to get into lots of trouble when I get back home?"

Shining Armor raised a hoof with a hm. "Well, if we're being honest... yes. But that doesn't mean you shouldn't handle your business anyway. I understand, as your father." He leaned in suddenly. "But mother will not see it that way, so expect some amount of scolding." He winked a bit dramatically.

"I won't be mean to her promise." He sank in place a little. "I do like her, even when she's a brat. She's my sister! Even when she's tugging my tail, she's still that, and I do, you know... love her..."

"I thought you did." Shining turned in place. "Now, you've been learning nothing but magic, so I call dibs on you for the day. We're going to practice!"

"Magic?" Harry kept up with his march easily. "I'm ready."

"Oh, not magic." Shining chuckled softly. "Maybe a little shield work if you'd like, but mostly physical. You can practice magic at your fancy school. Today, you work with the guards, and we're going to put you through the paces."

Harry groaned with suffering, but he was still smiling a little. Shining was his dad. It was hard to be entirely angry with his attempts to be a good parent.

---

"Arnavon!" A heavy thud announced the arrival of a large tsuki at his window. "Arnavon! Is good see." He hopped down, the leader of the tsuki, Toby.

Arnavon scrambled to his feet and rushed the other tsuki, the two crashing together like two firm waves that turned into a brief wrestling match of dominance, even if neither side seemed upset that the other was there. They were laughing even as they pulled and squeezed, trying to tip the other.

Toby proved more capable of the act, pinning Arnavon down and nipping at his neck, a clear sign of victory, but still no ire will was between them. "Tell me! All. Tell please."

"I will, I will!" Arnavon wriggled out from under his superior. "I saw so much! You won't even believe it."

"I trust." Toby sounded more like he was assuring Arnavon of his faith.

Arnavon laughed at the misunderstanding. "We'll see." And so began his story of his visit to Hogwarts. You've already read this story.

Author's Note:

Welcome home! We are not done. This is just the end of a chapter really.

Everyone is very happy to be home though.

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Comments

[Booster Spice]

Prolog Wrap Up?..

[tsaukpaetra]

Heh, just wait until they get into creature husbandry. Flurry will be conflicted as heck!
Arnavon soon to kickoff a renaissance in the Tsuki sphere of knowledge!