New Endings, Old Starts

by David Silver

130 - Agents of Amity

Comforting spotted a specific chicken on her way. She touched the ground and reached out a hand. "Who's a pretty murder hen?"

The cockatrice hopped up onto Comforting's offered arm, clucking at her and cocking her head sharply in the way birds tended to do. "You don't live very far away, do you?" Not that the cockatrice had many words to share with her, but both of them seemed to enjoy sharing friendly words and motions. They were friends, even without that communication. "It's hard to be as spooked by the Everfree knowing you're here."

The cockatrice had a name, Comforting was sure of that. What was it... "Edith." It had come back to her. "Nice to see you again, Edith." She offered a snout and got nuzzled and nipped lightly by the murder hen. "You're too cute! How did Silverstream ever let you go?" Still, it was the right thing to do. Edith wasn't a domestic animal.

Did ponies deal with domestication the same way? Comforting didn't really know, but it felt right enough to gently set Edith down, pat her one last time, and leave her to scurry off into the bushes. "Good luck!" With that lucky meeting complete, Comforting dashed off to her real target, touching down within sight of Amity's clubhouse of a form. "Hello!"

"Hiya." That wasn't Amity. Smolder emerged from the clubhouse, descending to greet Comforting. "You like flying even more than I do, and I like flying."

"Smolder." Comforting came up at a skipping jog to the taller teen. Being a biped, she had height easily to overtake Comforting. "What are you doing here?"

"This is our clubhouse." She waved back at Amity. "So we come here sometimes, ya know? You come around? You want to take a room?"

"Nah..." She was comfy at home, with Fluttershy and Screwball. "But thanks."

"So why are you here?" Smolder leaned in with a smirk. "I got an excuse."

Oops. "It's a pretty clubhouse," lied Comforting. "Also I saw Edith."

"Edith?"

"Silverstream's cockatrice?" Even if saying she 'owned' the wild creature felt off. How would one put it better? "She was living her best little murder hen life in the Everfree?" She hiked her thumb back at where the meeting happened. "So I said hi and we caught up, as best as you can do that when neither of you talk the same language."

"Crazy." Smolder fired a thumbs up at least, approving of the meeting. "I never met them, but she did do a report on it. Don't tell her, but I might have fallen asleep during it. No fault on her, just not my thing. Hey! Since you're here, you can tell me, what is your thing, besides being kinda nice to everyone."

"What's yours?" Comforting counter-challenged.

"Since you asked." Smolder crossed her arms. "Being the #1 dragon around! Sorry, Spike. Learning cool stuff. Hanging out with friends." She curled a finger to point at Comforting. "That counts you. Getting good grades even when they don't expect me to."

"Who doesn't expect you to?" Did she have to give someone a talking to?

"My dragon pals." Smolder rolled her eyes. "Most of them think I'll super fail out. This 'isn't a dragon's thing'. They're waiting for me to give up and go home, but that isn't happening!" She winked at Comforting. "We dragons are super stubborn sometimes, and this is one of them. Not giving up."

Comforting lifted up to put their eyes on even level. "You're not stubborn."

"Then what am I?" Smolder looked ready to declare victory on the matter.

"Determined. Stalwart." Comforting counted on fingers as she went. "Trustworthy. Reliable!"

Smolder grabbed Comforting by the top of her head and ruffled mercilessly. "Those are just funny ways of saying stubborn. Heading back to town, wanna fly with me?"

"I just came from there!" A ready excuse, she hoped, to not fly away from Amity.

"Suit yourself." Fortunately, Smolder didn't pry harder. "Have fun." She flipped her wings out and took flight over the Everfree, headed back towards Ponyville.

"Thank you." Amity emerged with a mild smile. "She is not yet entirely aware of me. She may never be."

"Amity!" Comforting rushed up to hug her dear friend who looked like her old self. "We have things to talk about."

Amity returned the hug gently a moment, no words needed before she slid back to her little hooves. "About Celestia?"

"About her," agreed Comforting. "But not just that. We can start there."

"We can start there." Amity considered with a far gaze for a moment. "She has done nothing wrong. I have no desire to lose her as an agent. It was not my choice, Friend Comforting."

"So don't." Comforting swayed forward and back in place. "She doesn't want it and neither do you, so why do it?"

"I wasn't asked." Amity reached to poke Comforting in the belly. "Neither of us were. But what can we do now? I am not connected to her, as once I was."

"You can talk to her." Comforting pointed up towards the distant Canterlot. "Like you do with me. She's used to getting letters already. Send her one."

"She might confuse it for something Spike is sending. I would be confusing her. Never has she gotten a letter from me." Amity stepped in place with obvious uncertainty. "I don't wish to be a source of chaos."

"Even harmony spirits can be a little chaotic sometimes." Comforting leaned in. "But we can avoid it this time, and I know how."

"Do you?" Amity's features brightened. "You are full of ideas. Please, share."

Comforting clapped her hands in one meeting. "Easy! We make a letter, you and me, and actually send it by Spike. Then there's nothing to be confused about. We can warn her that you can send letters that way too, so the next time, she's ready for it."

"The answer is so simple, now that I've heard it..." Amity's little horn glowed as she conjured a parchment and quill to write busily on it with. "Dear Princess Celestia..." She smiled as she wrote. "This is the first time I wrote those words..." And many more words followed it, until she angled the parchment towards Comforting. "Your turn."

Comforting grabbed the floating paper and read over it quickly.

Dear Princess Celestia,

Hello, my name is Amity. I am exchanging letters with my friend, Comforting Shade. She is the one you retrieved from the astral plane. But she is not the focus of this letter. You are, and I. I am the presence that guided you these many years. Due to a mistake on my part, my connections with most of my agents was severed. I am attempting to reforge at least this connection. If you address a letter to me, Amity, then I will take it instead of it proceeding to Spike. Likewise, future letters will be sent from me directly. Here is Comforting Shade.

Comforting inclined her head. "Um... You covered all the important things. I'm not sure what I should write..." But, she tried anyway.

Hi! Comforting here. Thank you for rescuing me, and sorry for making a mess. It's at least partly my fault you and Amity got cut off like that. We're working together to fix that.... ......

She frowned at all the periods she was dotting the page with.

Sorry, I don't write letters a lot. I do talk with Amity in a way like this, but I send her smily faces like this 😄

Comforting actually drew the smily face in, quill scratching on the paper.

As a sort of shortcut? Sorry, getting distracted. Thank you for bringing me here. I love it in Ponyville, and in Equestria in general. Thank you for being a great princess.

She offered the paper back to Amity who rolled it up with her magic and sealed it properly. "Now we just need to have Spike deliver it. Can you do that?"

"I can." Comforting snatched it right back from the air. "Anything else before I do that?"

"One thing." Amity brought her hooves together quietly. "Play."

"Play?" Comforting tilted her head at her younger self. "Play what?"

"Play. I never got a chance to be young." Amity fell back to all fours. "Please play."

Comforting thought that over. "I wanted to play a lot when I got the chance again... I'd be mean if I was upset at you being the same." She went for a nose-touch. "So yes. Let's deliver this and I'll be right back!" With a shared grin between them, Comforting vanished to just before Twilight's castle. "One delivery!"

She skipped/danced up the steps and rapped on the door. "Hello!"

"Hey." The door swung open to reveal Starlight. "Comfie! With a letter?" She could see the hovering and sealed scroll. "What's that for?"

Comforting grabbed the scroll to wave at Starlight. "I was hoping to ask Spike a favor to have this delivered to Celestia, if he's up for it?"

"Oh, sure." She turned in place. "Spike," she shouted inside. "Comforting needs you." She turned the rest of the way around. "I'm sure he's on the way, but you have to tell me what that's about."

Starlight was not very in the know... "A friend of mine just wants to send her a letter." That was all true! "It should make them both happy."

Starlight snickered. "Oooo, a fan? I bet she gets a lot of those." Her color of magic popped around the scroll, casually snatching it. "But who are we to judge? Spike?"

"Yep?" He pushed the door open further, letting them both stand in it easily. "Hey Comforting." He waved at her with a smile.

She returned the gesture. "Hiya Spike! Can you send that to Celestia, please?" She pointed at the scroll in Strarlight's arcane grip. "Just a letter."

"No big deal." He puffed a little fire, sending it away in a cloud of sparkles. "Ta da! Spike, postal dragon." He rolled his eyes. "I have other uses, you know."

Comforting tapped at her cheek. "Well! Wanna play with a foal?"

"You?" Spike peered at Comforting curiously. "Sure, why not? You like comics? I know some good ones for a filly."

Comforting crossed her arms. "Can you believe Luna wouldn't call me a mare?!"

Starlight recoiled. "Oh... Oh... That sounds like Luna. You were a mare before. I doubt going chaos spirit changed your mind." She offered a hoof. "If it helps, you're still 100% mare to me."

"Welllll..." Spike wobbled a hand. "67%sh mare? Good enough." He snickered softly. "So, give me a sec to grab some comics." He dashed inside on his hunt.

Comforting grabbed the offered hoof, hugging Starlight by the captured arm. "You're a good pony, just to remind you."

"Aw." She colored faintly, but pulled her arm back all the same. "Flatterer. Now, why the sudden urge to play with Spike? Don't get me wrong! Spike's pretty great. If you want to hang out with him, sounds great. Just curious is all. You seem to prefer the company of teens, so I'm a little surprised, is all."

"Spike's great... But it's actually about another friend of mine. She's a filly, and she wants to play. So... I thought, since I'm here, and Spike is feeling a little used, I'd bring him along and we can all play and have fun." She got all that out with barely a breath, as if she needed to speak it all before she stopped.

Starlight slowly inclined her head. "Huh, alright then. If they like comics, Spike'll have what they're looking for. I hope you all have a blast." She leaned in. "Now, you're you. I know you can... do what you want, mostly. So I don't have to tell you to vamoose if you want."

"But I wouldn't," gasped out Comforting. "They're both hoping to have fun, and they're good people. I want them both to have a great time."

"Here!" Spike rushed out with a box of old comics. "Alright, where to?"

"This way!" She grabbed Spike's hand and yanked him between frames to where he needed to be, a chapter away.

Starlight blinked at the empty space that once held the two. "I will not get used to that..." No magical sparkle or sound. They were just gone. "Have fun." She closed the door and headed inside to other business.

Author's Note:

Spike and Amity? What could possibly go wrong here?

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Comments

[uis]

Did ponies deal with domestication the same way?

They have dogs and cars

[David Silver]

11633787
That doesn't explain how they go about it.