Part one chapter 1-4

(prologue)

It was about midday, and just as the sun began to slide into the highest point in its celestial arch, a lone seabird drifted lazily over a living painting. Below its pearly white wings, golden ribbons of sunlight danced lazily between a wash of fresh, green leaves. Each leaf stirred to the gentle whims of a cool ocean breeze casting the ribbons of light over pure, white sand below, making a pristine beach sparkle like an ocean of the purest diamonds as an endless stretch of the clearest rolling blue waters made sure they never lost their gleam…Except today, a thin line of shallow imprints rand down the beach towards the shoreline, marring the once unspoiled beach like a scar snaking down a once beautiful face.

The scar was soon noticed by a pair of bright blue eyes which followed it down towards the swirling white foam. They grew wide when their gaze reached where the sea and sand met.

“Look!” their owner called, his voice young and full of surprise “there’s his footprints…”

Kneeling down next to the trail, the boy let his gloved hand rub across his hair line, stopping at a short tuft that was tied to look like the tail of a wolf. Then slowly, the hand fell away from his brow as he cast one last lingering glance towards the ocean at the point where the footprints abruptly disappear under the white surf, making his face twist into a thoughtful scowl. “The trail ends here…”

Three other pairs of young eyes absorbed the scene and they all followed the same gaze of the boy, all of them ending at the surf, and all of them trying to make sense of what they were seeing.

“So…” One of them spoke, this time carrying the soft tone of a young girl “He went for a midnight swim and never came back?”

“Maybe he was captured.” another voice suggested, one also belonging to a young girl, but the tone it carried betrayed just how often this event has happened in the past; even though it also carried a deep spark of worry which twinkled in her eye as she spoke.

“I don’t think so.” the boy answered sharply, his blue eyes covered the prints in a calculating gaze. “There’s no sign of a struggle.”

The last of the group’s female members crouched down next to him and placed one hand across her knees while being sure to leave her feet still firmly planted on the ground. She was the shortest of the group, and also the youngest, but her voice carried the most conviction as she spoke. “I bet he ran away again.”

“Nu uh,” the boy was quick to shoot her down, “He left behind his glider and Appa”

The ease at which her explanation was shot down caused the girl to place her palm across her cheek as she let her elbows rest on her knees. “Well what do you think what happened to him, oh sloothy one?” she asked with a sharper tone as she waved her other hand for emphasis.

“It’s pretty obvious.” The boy said, crossing his arms as he rose to his feet. “Aang mysteriously disappears before an important battle; he’s definitely on a spirit world journey!”

Letting his eyes close confidently the boy raised a finger into the air as he waited expectantly for sounds of agreement from his group members, but his own confidence was soon shot down by the one other boy in the group.

“If he was, wouldn’t his body still be here?” the other boy stated, his tone betraying that he was slightly old, as well as being slightly taller than the first one. As he spoke a hand idly flicked at a long fringe of hair, which ran down his face concealing a deep burn that covered almost the whole of its left side and stopped just above his mouth.

The first boy’s confident expression deflated, along with his argument, as he let out a simple but disappointed, “Oh yeah… forgot about that…”

“Then he’s got to be somewhere on Ember Island,” the blue eyed girl interrupted with sudden, yet subtle, force in her voice, “let’s split up and look for him.”

The others gave a swift nod, all of them pulled back into reality by the sudden conviction her tone carried… Which was then undermined, not a second later, when the youngest girl rushed over and clung onto the scarred boy’s arm.

“I’m going with Zuko!” She asserted with a wide grin, and then she paused as she noticed the awkward silence that had descended over them all. “What?” She asked innocently as she clung to the limb tighter, “Everyone else went on a life changing field trip with Zuko, and now it’s my turn”

At first, ‘Zuko’ didn’t seem to acknowledge the girl that was clinging on his arm like it was a lifeline; neither did he seem to the confused looks stretched across every other face there. But when the girl tried to pull him closer to affirm her conviction the height difference between them meant she only served to pull herself forward him, making his face light up with a bright red hue as an innocent, but victorious, grin threatened to split the girl’s face in two.

While this was going on, the two older girls just looked on at the pair as their now raised eyebrows threatened to reach their hairline. But soon enough, they both just shrugged before slipping away quietly. Meanwhile, the other boy soon followed their example and took his leave as well.

And then there were two…

Wordlessly, Zuko set off along the beach, with the girl following soon after as he covered a nearby treeline in a critical gaze, before darting back towards the shoreline. But, when his eyes scanned around for a third time, they caught sight of the girl still walking a lot closer than he expected her to be…or were comfortable with.

Taking a cautious step to the side, Zuko raised an eyebrow as his voice took on an even, but suspicious tone. “…What’s this about?” he asked as his eyes went back to the treeline.

In response to his question, the girl’s smile only grew as she crooned back, “I told you. Everyone else got there life changing field trip,” She suddenly pointed a thumb into her chest, “and now I get mine.”

Zuko’s eyes flicked back to the girl and he watched as her light smile twisted into a devious grin.

“But if you would have preferred to go with Katara again, I understand.” She said in a sly tone.

His yellow eyes narrowed but he quickly shook his head and pushed the comments out of his mind as he returned to scanning for Aang.

‘After all, how hard could it be to find one kid with an arrow tattooed on his forehead?’ he asked himself, but the thought didn’t make him feel any better… He’d lost track of how many times he’d asked himself that same question since the day he’d first gotten his scar.

“Hey, I can understand if you don’t want to talk about it,” The girl spoke up again, her voice dripping with fax innocence, “but hey, I’m right here if you want to talk about it.”

In his mind, Zuko told himself not to take the bait- not to say anything in case it invites any more distractions… but it seemed his mouth had other ideas.

“Toph…” He said in a tired voice, “we’re wasting time…” he stopped a second before he corrected himself. “No! You’re wasting time, please just help me look for Aang or be quiet.”

Zuko braced himself for her answer, waiting for whatever witty or sly comment she was about to sling at him. But surprisingly, instead of giving any verbal jab, the girl only let out a sharp huff of air and uttered a simple “fine” before she grabbed hold of one of one of his loose sleeves and dragged him away.

For the next few minutes, Zuko continued along the beach in silence, the girl trudging a short distance behind him, all the while casting his eyes in random directions, hoping every fleeting shadow and spur of movement was the boy they were looking for. Soon, a group of upper-class looking houses filled his gaze, and as he drew closer, Zuko felt the frown now sitting on his face lifted slightly -if only so he could scrutinise them faster.

The buildings sat atop a group of small, grassy embankments, each one seemingly littered out randomly in front of him. A simple, wooden pathway connected them all, ending in a small set of wooden steps. And surrounding them all was a collection of strangely well-kept gardens.

The question of who could actually maintain those gardens on his family’s “abandoned” island passed by Zuko’s mind, but he pushed it aside because, for some strange reason, he suddenly felt his eyes drawn to one of the paper like windows.

He studied the seemingly innocuous patch of white paper and thin wood before deeming it a waste of time. But just as he was about to turn his eyes away, he found them held there by a faint shadow. It cast itself across the white paper and then darted across its surface, leaving Toph to let out a surprised grunt when the boy she was clinging too suddenly took off towards it.

After pausing for a moment to collect herself, and after letting out a silent growl, Toph took off after Zuko. As she did, she noted that he wasn’t heading for the wooden stairs. Instead, he was clambering straight up the side of the steep embankment. Not really being a fan of anything made of wood herself, Toph didn’t pay the act a second thought and moved to follow Zuko’s lead.

Running straight up to the hill’s base, she struck her foot against the ground and a crooked stone pillar erupted through the grass, launching her onto the precipice above.

Landing with a dull thud, Toph paused as her feet soaked in her surroundings. The thin layer of healthy grass under them blurred her awareness for a brief second before she pushed her feet into the earth below.

She noted that Zuko was still trying to claw his way up the embankment, the realisation making her suppress a snort of laughter. But when he reached the top and tried to climb over the fence between them, the dam broke, and a roaring snort of laughter surged forward as one of Zuko’s shoes snagged on one of the loose posts, sending him flat on his face with all the grace of a Goatsloth.

Zuko’s ears began to burn as he became aware of the mocking laughter and he quickly clambered back to his feet. He watched, through narrowed eyes then he watched as Toph follow his lead by simply walking through the remaining fence posts, knocking each one over with a strike of her foot as she reached them.

Trying to ignore the sting of his wounded pride, as well as the smug grin squatting across the girl’s face, Zuko took a quick glance at the house’s paper window which sat within a simple wooden door.

“I thought I saw something.” he muttered quickly, sensing the question as he reached out for the doors rusted handle.

“Yeah,” Toph replied coyly, “could it possibly be the person that lives there?”

Zuko let his hand fall away from the handle and he shot Toph a cold look… Then he let the glare fall away as he remembered the act was all but wasted on her, so he simply let his eyes settle back on the fallen fence posts as he spoke. “Every house here belongs to my father.” He said curtly “There shouldn’t be anyone in there”

He turned back just in time to see the girls ears perk up, “So, if someone is in there it’s probably Aang!” she concluded.

Zuko gave her a swift nod and reached for the handle of the paper door. And, after fumbling with it for a few seconds, he narrowed his eyes, drew his hand back and drove his foot forward while letting a streak of flame follow suit.

The door only managed to give off a sharp, whining crack before it was turned into a splintered heap, leaving Zuko to walk into the room. A satisfied grin perched itself on his face as he swatted idly at the thin layer of dust now covering the front of his trousers.

Slowly, Zuko brought his head up and let his eyes study the vacant room. The dank, grime covered walls stood defiantly against the time weathered against them as thick, murky air touched his nose.

But just as the murky smell threatened to smother his attention, a sudden jab in his back pulled his attention away. Flicking is head around, he found Toph leaning coyly against the doorframe, but he quickly turned his attention back to the room.

“And if the door was locked, how did he get in?” she asked in a shrew, sarcastic tone.

Without even turning around, Zuko answered, all the while doing his best to match the girl’s shrewd tone as his eyes continued to idly scan the room. “He could have walked through the unlocked door and locked it after him.” he asserted.

“And he would lock the door why?” Toph shot back, deepening her tone but humouring him as she crosses her arms and leant coyly on the door frame.

At first Zuko, left the question unanswered. At the moment, the room had a stronger hold over his attention, but it wasn’t long that he realised that in the moment, he wasn’t searching for Aang in that dark, murky air, but for a way to speak the words he was struggling to hold back.

A silent sigh escaped his throat, “Aang doesn’t want to face a hard truth. So he’s hiding from it like some kid.”

Again, the air around them went quiet, but just as he was about to turn around, Toph spoke.

“He is a kid, you know,” She said in a tone uncharacteristically soft for her, and Zuko couldn’t help but notice she didn’t contradict the statement, “and I don’t think anyone really understands where he’s coming from. The only thing he really has left of his people is what they taught him… and everyone is just expecting him to just drop it like an old bag.”

“Well yeah…” Zuko shot back without missing a beat. “This isn’t some monk’s dream world where everyone can get along with everyone else just like that.” he asserted with a snap of his fingers. “Why do you think the air nomads detached themselves from the world in the first place? The real world doesn’t work like that, so they got away from it to live in there little fantasy and deep down, Aang knows that.”

When Zuko finished, he waited for Toph’s response, but all she offered was an indignant snort as her once sly grin returned, “Good thing Aang isn’t here to hear that.”

“And what would he do?” Zuko asked with genuine curiosity, “Wouldn’t Airbending at someone just because they said something you don’t like go against what they taught him?”

“The fact is,” Zuko continued, “the only reason Aang believes that in the first place is because the monks drilled it into him when he was too young to question it… and now they’re gone, he can’t bring himself to admit he was indoctrinated.”

Toph let out another snort-like laugh as she slapped Zuko across his shoulders. “Yeah and someone from the Fire Nation would know all about indoctrination, wouldn’t they?” she jabbed sarcastically, followed by another slap.

Zuko knocked her hand away with a snarl, “Yes I do.” he snapped in a grim tone.

Toph just let out a quiet sigh, “He just believes in giving people a chance.”

Zuko wanted to snap back with another quick answer, but the way she said that made him wonder if she actually believed it. So after letting out another sigh, he spoke again.

“And how many chances has he had already?” He asked, the question carried by much softer voice. “My Father isn’t just going to suddenly turn good on us, and Aang knows that…If waging war on the world, burning his own son, and trying to wipe out the whole Earth Kingdom wasn't enough, how many chances will he get?”

“I don’t know.” Toph shrugged. “How many did they give you before you surprised them?”

When he heard that, Zuko felt his face grow heavier as it donned its usual frown, but this time, the solemn expression held a hint of silent contemplation.

He seemed to fight with himself for a long moment before throwing up his hands in defeat. “Well then,” He snapped as he walked away through one of the dust covered doorways, “we might as well head back so we can start looking for those old baby pictures…”

As Zuko passed through the doorway, his voice began to be muffled by the old wood and manky air. Toph just followed softly without another word, all the while wearing a smug grin as a little medal of her victory.

Slowly, they began to move through the house, identical room after identical room passing them by as Zuko worked hard to maintain his ignorance of the various murky shapes that littered the floor by not stepping in them. But after catching a small chandelier made out of years old cobweb, that ignorance ended with a sickening squelch…

“ARGH!!!” he yelled, jumping back, burning whatever it was he stepped in with cleansing fire. “Aang! Aang! Stop being stupid and come out already!”

Zuko’s yell echoes through the murky air before it was washed out by the sound of a small stool being reduced to splinters… then that too was washed out by the familiar sound of sarcastic laughter.

“Knew he wasn't here…” Toph chided as she sauntered across the room and over the remains of the table.

After watching her pass, Zuko pinched the bridge of his nose as he fought the tantalising urge to break more furniture in the name of catharsis… like burning that group of fluffy cushions at the end of the room… the ones Toph was sauntering over too.

To his credit, Zuko tried to yell out a warning, but the call had barely passed his lips as Toph dropped down into a group of cushions and a sickening squelch filled the room.

A chilling silence descended around them which left Zuko to watch on as Toph suddenly went rigid where she sat.//
For a second, there was no reaction, but then the girl’s face slowly began to twist into a look of shocked repulsion and she all but leapt up out of her seat and clung to the celling, the cushions following suit.

Throwing his head back, Zuko avoided finding out what one tasted like, and he felt a silent shudder run through him as a pillow struck against the wall with a dull splat… then slid down a few moments later.

Toph let out a girlish sequel, ‘one Zuko would probably never hear again… if he ever hears anything at all’ as she started hopping around the room, slapping at the back of her trousers each time getting nothing but a stronger smell of dank for her trouble.

“What the heck is this stuff?!” she yelled, while trying to futilely dislodging the wet and yuck which clung stubbornly to the back of her legs.

Zuko just let out another tired moan, all the while doing his best to crush the bridge of his nose with his fingers.

“These buildings have been empty since my family use to come here when I was a child; you’ve just sat in years of damp and rotten cloths...”he said slowly, and even though part of him felt some grim satisfaction from saying that… the tail of the dead elephant-rat he neglected to mention quickly made the satisfaction die.

“Oh great! Now what!?” Toph growled, trying to stop the grimy cloth sticking to her skin, only to find it wasn’t cloth she was holding onto… “Urgh, that’s it. I’m going to find Katara.”

“No!” Zuko barked through gritted teeth, “We don’t have time for this, we’re supposed to be looking for Aang, not wasting time doing laundry!”

“Well, what do you want me to do?” she demanded, still fighting with the wet cloth and flicking some to where Zuko’s voice was coming from.

“I don’t know…” Zuko barked again, while avoiding the fowl spray. “Do you still have your Fire Nation disguise?”

Toph gave a sharp nod while she still fought against the patch of damp slowly spreading down the back of her legs as Zuko took hold of her free wrist and began to pull her to the door.

The trip back to the Fire Lord’s old house was a quiet and, much to Zuko’s eternal thanks, uneventful one, with only his now burning urge to simply leave the girl and continue looking for Aang himself being the only thing that served to distract him. But after that, the time spent waiting for Toph to change was beyond tedious. Apparently, blind people take even longer to get ready than sighted ones, and he just pushed that thought aside along with the ever growing list of distractions.

After what seemed like a small eternity, Zuko watched the door of his old summer home slide open and Toph sauntered out of the building. And when he saw her cocky gait and sly smile, he almost had to strain against his building urge to instigate another time wasting argument with a snide comment, but he’d finally learned to listen to the little voice that told him when something was a stupid idea. Zuko just turned around and began walking back down the path all the while uttering a silent prayer that they could recover the time that had already been lost.

As they continued retracing their steps back down the beachfront, Zuko made a silent promise to block out any and all future distractions. Which was hard seeing as his companion had not stopped talking since her feet touched the sand, though thankfully, it seemed Toph was oblivious to the fact she was being ignored, but that little blessing proved to be a double-edged sword as her voice began to seep back into his attention.

“And then when I was nine, I ran away again…” her story droned on, making Zuko utter a reactionary “Uh, uh” in reply.

“I know I shouldn’t complain. My parents gave me everything I ever asked for… But they never gave me the one thing I really wanted… their love. You know what I mean?”

Her tone pleading and sombre, but all the while he actually did listen Zuko found himself having to fight to urge to sarcastically mention his own father… or how the sun always got in his eyes. But in the end he decided against it.

“Look,” he said, turning to face Toph, and even though he tried to keep his tone even Zuko couldn’t help the slight edge that found its way to his voice, “I know you had a rough childhood, but we should really focus on finding Aang.”

Turning away again, Zuko pushed back on down the beach, but the sand under his feet slowed him down enough to catch a weak, disgruntled voice come from behind him.

Letting another sigh seep through his teeth, Zuko cast a quick glance over his shoulder, if for no other reason than to see if Toph was still following him. She was but now her head hung even lower than usual as a cold atmosphere of gloom all but radiated from her… one he could see even though she was trying to hide it, and when he turned back Zuko made a silent promise to make it up to her… but after they find Aang.

Toph herself didn’t really know how to feel, and any hints that betrayed her mood where completely subconscious. At first, she thought the joke about Katara was the problem. It would go with what the others have said around a campfire before Zuko actually joined the group, namely how he’s supposed to be easy to “back into a corner”. But after a few more moments of pondering, she remembered something specific. She was talking about her parents just before this “mood swing” started… and she found that revelation burned at her.

The whole reason she wanted to talk to Zuko in the first place was that… out of everyone in the group, she thought he should be able to sympathise with her. Aang was a monk and never had any parents if she remembered her tutoring correctly, while Katara and Sokka still had their dad.

But, before she could finish her musings, Zuko turned sharply and began walking back towards another one of those manky houses. A little before Zuko reached them she caught up to him, an urge to break the awkward silence… and to not have to deal with that dank air again urging her on.

“So,” she poked cautiously, “tell me again why we’re bothering with these old houses when Aang’s footprints lead out to sea?”

Zuko let out another sigh, though it didn’t have the same acidity as the one before. “Because, in case you hadn’t noticed, Aang has a habit of running away from his problems. And seeing as he left Appa and his glider behind, that means he is probably still somewhere on the island.”

“Aang won’t miss the comet.” Toph interrupted. “He probably just wanted some time alone. He’ll show up when he’s ready.”

“I’m not so sure…” Zuko replied, lowering his eyes to the floor. “Isn’t that how he ended up frozen for one hundred years in the first place?”

“Yeah, but…” Toph tried to argue… but whatever she was trying to say died before she could even say it. “Yeah…” she finished.

They passed through another tired looking doorway and the room they found on the other side was nothing special, just the same grime smothered walls and dank, musty smell. Once they were home to the palace’s servants, Ozai had always made it a point for anyone serving the royal family to expect the same luxury they worked in… after all, a servant who is offered a taste of the same luxury they proved would be less inclined to risk what they had by threatening the hand they feed.

Zuko stepped further into the old, murky room, striding over the dust and displaced floorboards which offered a glimpse at the supporting beams below it. Every so often, his eyes would follow the cracks that ran along the paint which still clung stubbornly to the walls.

“Well, come on…” he commanded, grabbing Toph’s sleeve he lead her into the room.

She followed at first but after about four steps she stopped dead “Naah,” she asserted quietly, “I think I’ll just wait outside.” She finished, already turning back towards the door.

“No,” Zuko said as he grabbed her sleeve again, “We’ll get done faster if we split up and look in different rooms. I’ll take the top, you look down here.”

Toph waved her hand back over her shoulder dismissively. “Sorry, Zuko, you’re on your own with this one.”

“Why?” he asked simply but with a lingering tone.

“Because I can’t Earthbend wood… “, Toph stated matter of fact, her heel striking lazily against the floor for emphasis. “So I can’t see in there, I’d be about as useful as you if you walked around with your eyes shut.”

“Fine.” Zuko relented “But don’t wander off to far… and keep an eye… err, foot out for him while you’re out there…”

Toph answered him with a cheery, if not sarcastic, “Can do” before she took another step towards the door. Her foot met the wood, a sharp crack rung out as the air froze in both of their lungs.

Zuko’s head immediately snapped around to find that Toph had frozen on the spot. The girl only dared seem to move her toes, pressing them down on the wood with a touch lighter than Aang could ever manage, as her ears twitched, searching for another crack.

When no sickening crack followed, she slowly dared to move again and began to lift her foot from the ground, pausing a moment to let out the breath she was holding…

CREEEEAAAK…

Only for the floor to give way under her at that very moment, and a second later, she was swallowed by a black void underneath.

Zuko could only stare as the girl disappeared. The lack of a scream trapped him in a shocked stupor as he looked on widened eyes. Only a sickening thud three seconds after she disappeared served to liberate him from his stupor, and he did the first thing he thought to do and he yelled impotently at the hole where the girl once stood. “Toph!?”

A moment passed by without any reply and Zuko feel a swell of dread rise up his throat.

“Toph!?” he tried again, his voice stained by the same dread.

“Toph, are you ok!?” he yelled into the black a third time, and for one long, agonising moment he only had silence for his reply until finally…

“Yea…I’m fine,” Toph called, “The ground broke my fall.”

Zuko let out another sigh, but this one wasn’t fuelled by frustration but a deep swell of relief….

CREEEEAK

Only for it to disappear not a second later….

“Toph…”Zuko called out in a distant tone, “Are you sure you’re ok? What’s down there?”

“Nothing hurt but my pride…” she answered, “But this whole place is made of wood, I can’t see anything down here.”

Strangely, Zuko noticed her voice quivered slightly, but he just put it down to the shock wearing off.

Then, another deafening crack shook Zuko out of his thoughts, and he has just enough time to yell out a warning before most of the floor collapse under him.

His feet met the ground first, rewarding him a stab of pain and sickening crunch as they did. Gritting his teeth, Zuko straightened his back and slowly began to wander into the dark as his eyes scanned around impotently. The silent hope he can stare through the darkness bearing no fruit.

“Toph?!”

“Here!” Toph’s voice echoed back through the darkness.

Zuko pushed further into the black, and he was just about halfway through cursing his luck when he literally held the answer in his hand. The true amount of time it took for him to realise this Zuko would never freely admit, though it wasn’t a number that helped his pride by any means.

Holding up his right hand, Zuko poured heat into a single spot of air until a small flame came to life. He let a steady heat flow into it and a dull circle of yellow light reached out into the darkness.

His eyes still strained to make use of the light and initially the black all but seemed to dismiss it as an insult. But soon enough, his eyes adjusted and he at least had enough light to make out the small circle around him.

“Toph?” he called out again and got another distant “Over here” as a reply.

He continued on for a little while, wading through the darkness when a small glint of gold caught his eye. Assuming that it must be Toph, he began rushing forward.

The dim light caught something else, and Zuko felt his heart almost leap out of his mouth when he found a pair of milky white eyes staring back at him. His momentum betrayed him, along with his legs, and his head gave a loud crack off the rotten wood as the two greeted each other like old friends.

“Took you long enough,” Toph deadpanned.

Zuko’s only response was to let out a pained grimace as he rubbed the back of his head as he worked to put his feet back under him where they belong. Toph meanwhile, stumbled over to him and clasped onto his arm when she found it.

“I take it you haven’t found a way out of here?” Zuko asked her.

“No,” she snorted indignantly, “I found nothing but more stupid rotten wood.” she growled. “But I can hear something strange, almost like running water.”

Toph took a slight step back, swivelling herself around slightly while her ears scanned…“That way!” she called and pointed to her right.

Zuko ducked as the limb rushed passed him, the flame sitting in his hand flickering as he did making him scowl again. Taking a step back, he grabbed hold of the limb and pulled the girl in the direction she dictated.

At first, he was suspicious of the claim, but it wasn’t long before Zuko could hear the water himself. He followed the sound with new found fervour, dragging the girl behind him as they headed towards its source, as the light from the small, handheld flame caught the sides of many more short wooden crates. His expectation built as Zuko weaved his way through the maze of crates, while trying to guide the blind girl on his arm through the mass of wood that was more than happy to lay claim to their balance.

After stepping over one final box, Zuko sat Toph down on its lid as he moved closer to the sound of running water, investigating.

As he approached, the light from his hand began to bounce back to his eye, but only in faint spots, and only holding a fraction that of their source. Drawing closer, the light then flicked off a steam of water that flowed sharply into a pool below, the yellow light spreading across it surface like a swarm of firefly’s as he loomed over it.

There was something strange about this pool, some odd sense of danger hanging around it; one Zuko couldn’t quite put his finger on it but that all but screamed for him to turn away.

While Zuko was scrutinising the pool of water, Toph was quickly growing bored with the silence, and when clicking her tongue had stopped proving a distraction she decided to break it.

“You find the water yet hothead?” she yelled in a shrill tone

Zuko shrank at the sound and ground his teeth as his hand barely avoided plunging into the crystalline pool.//
“Yes” He seethed as he pulled away from the edge “It’s just some fountain...”

Indeed it was a fountain, and the site of it invited a moment of calm nostalgia to wash over Zuko as he remembered the carefree days he’d spent in the palace gardens. while the one in front of him seemed much smaller than the palace fountains back home, it still seemed large enough to step into.

In the centre of the pool a lone structure stretched upward and curved in a way that reminded Zuko of an auger shell. The top of which curved over at the sides into four green slate archways which hung down to touché the fountains bowl. And the whole thing seemed to be covered in a single intricate mosaic, with the majesty of what it depicted penetrated the dust even if the subjects of the tiles couldn't.

Swiping his hand over the bowls edge, Zuko peeled the thick layer of dust away, revealing the image of a small air bender and a small sky bison standing together. And he felt himself grow lost as he peeled more and more of the dust away...

As Zuko’s wandering eyes stared at the fountain Toph, for no reason other than the boredom that began creeping into her bones, started to familiarize herself with the crate she was sitting on...

‘Wood’ she thought as she drummed her heels against its side, the word echoing in her mind with a bitter taste. Weather it was the river village they spent over a week in, or the hose they were trapped in for over a month in Ba-sing-Si, or just the hour she spent in the wooden cell as bait, the familiar texture sparked a burning hatred in her.

She tapped her knuckles across the wood as an in impotent act rebellion against the foul material the box had the nerve to be constructed of. But as her hand made contact, instead of meeting the disdained material it fell through a gap in the crate’s lid… to find yet another disdained material within.

‘Ah paper’ she thought with the same amount of scorn. Just like wood paper was just one more constant reminder of her blindness. Fortunately though, this was one reminder that could easily be tossed aside...

Back at the fountain, Zuko’s musings were shattered as a peace of scroll hit his foot. And when he plucked it from the floor with a scowl, the twinge of annoyance he felt quickly gave way to curiosity as he tried to decipher a strange incomprehensible language that it seemed to be marred with...

Then he stopped and he turned the thing the right way up….

Unfortunate though, even right way up the scroll still refused to make any more sense. The words were legible, yes, but they seemed to form some strange, pointless sonnet.

“Zuko?” Toph Called, breaking his concentration again “What are we still doing here?”

“Where did you get this?” he asked in return, still eyeing the scroll.

“Get what?” Toph questioned in confusion as Zuko turned to wave the paper in front of her face…

“Get what? She repeated.

“This scroll” Zuko barked, waving it again.

Toph just let out a light snort and slapped the crate with her hand. “Found it in here…” she said idly “Feels like there’s a few in there too, plus some animal skin bags, what's it matter?”

Zuko didn’t answer; instead he just walked over to where she sat, pulling her too her feet, he beckoned her to sit on the fountains edge before his hands found their way to the crates lid.

With a sharp grint Zuko pulled the lid free and stared into its confines, idly shifting the loose shavings of wood as he did.//
Inside the crate sat a group of leather bags, most of which seemed to be sealed but one laid half open with a large mass of scrolls spilling out.

Zuko, Looked over the bags, and the soft glints of what he thought must be identical crates hidden in the darkness and felt his stomach knot. Suddenly he didn’t feel so secure being a fire-bender in a wooden room surrounded by crates packed with old, dry scrolls. But in the end his curiosity won out and, with a little more care than before, he reached for a large book that sat half buried in the wood shavings and laid it across the crates lid.

At first glance the book didn’t seem to be of much importance. It seemed to be a journal account of some air nomad, but at the same time something stopped his eyes from wandering away.

Sown in gold thread across the books cover was the same phrase he found on the scroll and the fountains itself.

‘In this water you will not find your reflection, only yourself…’

The strange words made Zuko pause for another short moment, as he moved his eyes to peer into the water.

When that moment passed and still nothing happened Zuko gave a dismissive shrug and let the scroll fall back into the bag. Then, taking a seat on the fountains edge, he brought up a hand to his forehead as he tried to figure out just where he could look for Aang next.

The sound of the water helped to soothe his nerves and, as his thoughts wandered, Zuko found his eyes passed over the scroll… specifically, its strange message.

In this water you will find not simply your reflection, but yourself…

Take heed- as Life holds many paths and most of them lead you to wisdom.

But be warned, wisdom always comes at a price. And, like always in life, when the first step is made there is no turning back. Not until the price is paid.

~Enter young but emerge old, with many fantastic stories yet untold~

“Well, that makes no sense” he thought out loud as his face scrunched up in bitter confusion... an action that had become all but habit since he joined the avatar and his friends.

Lowering his eyes back to the fountain Zuko noticed the strange writing around its rim; a list of names around its edge, one of them Zuko recognised as the golden trim on the book.

“Hey! Earth- bender to Zuko!” A sudden shout filled his ear and Zuko’s head flicked up to find Toph wavering at him.

“Weren’t you the one who was nagging that we should be looking for Aang?” the girl scolded in a snarky tone but her frustration meant it came out almost like a shrill whine.

In reality Zuko agreed with her, but he found his eyes pulled back to the scroll.

“Yes I was” he replied without looking back up. “But something about this Fountain seems strange, the air nomads keep mentioning something about harmony… and…the elements but I can’t make it out.”

“And that’s more important than finding Aang why?” Toph pressed in the same snarky tone.

“Because, I have this weird feeling it might lead to something that could help Aang… You know besides him growing up.” Zuko droned before suddenly putting the scroll under Toph’s nose

“Here, look for yourself” Zuko commanded...and suddenly found the air leave his lungs as a sharp pain dung into his ribs.

The scroll fell from his grasp and onto the edge of the fountain, draping halfway across Toph’s slender knuckles. Feeling the sudden unexpected touch of paper, Toph’s hand moved to grasp it, but all that happened was the errant scrap of paper shifted and slid into the fountain.

Spurred on by a flash of instinct Toph’s back twisted sharply, and with her legs still in place, her hand shot into the water to grab at the scroll. And after a small amount of idle splashing her grip made contact and she pulled her arm back...

Except... the scroll didn't come back… and neither did her arm….

With an annoyed snort, she twisted herself on her seat and cupped her other hand on the rim believing her first failure was through her awkward position and the leverage it denied her.

This time her arm did move but something strange happened as it did. Just as it began to pull back a strange pressure began to build around the limb, and the feeling only grew across her skin until it was too painful to pull back any further than an inch.

The sudden need to relieve the pain caused her to push forward and she found the cold sing of the frigid water up to her elbow.

Meanwhile, Zuko was too busy clutching his ribs, while also trying to stop the annoyed thoughts from taking control of his own arm, to notice what was happening. But his ignorance soon ended when a startled yelp filled his ear, bringing with it a stab of pain.

He seethed and twisted around to yell something back, but the urge died when he found Toph awkwardly slumped over the fountains edge. The sight of it almost made him forget his anger and he can’t help but let a weak chuckle escape his mouth.

“Don’t laugh you idiot! help me!” Toph screamed, the sudden force and desperation of the cry shook Zuko out of humour and straight into confusion he rushed over to her.

When he reached her side Zuko scoured the water for what could be wrong with the girl but his eyes couldn’t find anything, and he was just about to back up and ask when her free arm slung itself around his waist and all but pulled his balance out from under him.

“Urgh! my arms stuck!” Toph yelled as she racked her arm tighter around his waist, making Zuko brace himself as he peered over the side.

The earthbenders arm was about elbow deep in the glistening waters. Then his yellow eyes caught something which made his jaw all but hit the fountains edge.

The water in the fountains pool slowly began to climb its way up her arm, something the young earth bender obviously detected as she let out another startled yelp. And Zuko was shaken even more as the once single stream of water began to branch out into clear spinally vines as they crawled up her arm… and towards her face.

Toph started screaming as she began writhing form side to side. The action almost knocked Zuko into the pool himself. But, after snagging the ledge with his free hand, he finally managed to snap out of his stupor, and just in time for shock to turn into horror when he saw Toph give one last panicked shout before she was dragged completely into the water.

Without even thinking Zuko lunged forward, plunging his hand into the water after her, and when his fingers found some of the cloth they almost pierced it as he clutched to it for dear life.

A thin hand began to claw at the skin on his arm and Zuko lurched back to try and free the girl from the waters… only for his hand to stay where it was.

He gave another desperate heave, then another, and another, before his strength finally waned and his elbow gave a final aching groan of discomfort as he was dragged into the water himself.

And then, with a final deafening splash, a deathly silent descended on the room, leaving nothing but a small ripple to spread across the pool of water as a clue that anyone was ever there.

…

(Chapter 2)

At first, Zuko couldn’t feel anything….

There was no light….

No sound….

The only thing he had was the faint ring that Toph’s final pankied yell had left in his ear...

And then, like a flash of lightning, it all came flooding back…

A panicked scream bounced off the walls of an aching skull…

The points of a thousand, icy, needles sank into burning skin… and their icy touch bit into bleary eyes as their lids slowly pried themselves apart, allowing thin streams of light to coast past an unfocused gaze...

A knife made of molten iron pierced his chest as hands threw themselves to his face to stop him from drawing in any of the dark icy water. His head swung left and right as a pinked mind tried desperately to peer into the vast, cold, nothing that surrounded him...

Then, a spark of inspiration lit up the darkness, and with a cringe of effort the last few wafts of air were set free from his lungs.,,

Bleary eyes fixed on the writhing spheres in the desperate hope of following them to salvation as the burning knife drove itself deeper into his chest, but purpose drove him on as they floated... down… and past his feet...

His lungs drove him to follow them, striking away the instinct that yelled that he was only swimming further towards his own end.mm

Just as his vision began to blur, a glimmer of light caught his eye. The apparition skipped across a silk like sheen and his limbs gave one last desperate, burning, effort to quicken his pace. And at the moment his lungs felt like they would give way he tore through the water’s surface.

In that moment the air tasted sweeter than at any point in his life, and as he savored it, Zuko almost sank back under the waves as relief washed over him….

Then the sense of relief was ripped away again by a single panicked thought.

‘Toph’…

In a rush of panic Zuko’s burning eyes darted left and right, scouring every inch of the glass like sheet of water that sounded him. But each time they ended at the empty strip of white sand encircling the mirror like pool of water.

A pang of dread shot down Zuko’s spine, and with as deep a breath he could take, he lunged back under the water. The frigid waves seemed to grab hold of his limbs, weighing down every movement and pull the very air of his lungs, but he dragged his way down until he was left floating amongst the cold void, facing an almost solid wall of darkness.

The same burning knife found his chest again, but he ground his teeth and ignored it, focusing instead on the veil.

A small glint of light caught his eye. To his left a small group of bubbles Shone as they rose out from the black, slowly creeping up towards the surface, and without even a though Zuko threw himself towards the spot they rose from.

He pushed on further into the darkness until a sudden jolt of force freed the last of the burning air from his lungs. A flash of panic pushed Zuko’s hand which rushed forwards and found something brush against it.

It was Toph… she wasn’t moving.

Wrapping the inside of his elbow under her chin, Zuko started all but clawing at the space above him as he pulled himself back towards the surface.

When he finally reached it, the sand was strangely warm, and the warmth clung to him as the sand gripped to his now damp clothing. But the pestilent grit wasn't something he had time to dwell on as he dragged Toph further away from the glass like pond.

Falling to his knees Zuko grit his teeth as he found some sharp pebbled hidden under the white sands and he coughed out any water that made it past them. Time began to slow down again, but as the moments dragged on his weak feeling of victory slowly seeped away when his eyes flicked back to the girl who was still lying limp on the sand.

Her skin felt icy and the hand he put to her face felt no sign at all she was breathing.

Helplessly Zuko pulled at his hair as he desperately tried to summon the countless hours of ship safety his uncle forced him to endure, but none of the lectures of his old iron ships medic would return to him…

Well, none but the most awkward…

Raking his fingers through his hair Zuko prayed the pain would let him remember another lesson, any lesson, but all he got was a hand full of loose hairs.

With a final, futile yell, Zuko Slammed his hands on the breach. Then, reluctantly, he moved his way over to Toph. Slowly turning her over he pinched her nose before sheepishly lowering his face to attempt mouth to mouth, and after only the first breath he put his ear next to her nose, he found no reaction and he moved to try again…Only to reel back as a sting of pain washed over every other thought in his mind; all except a sickening crunch that filled his ears and the cloud of dust that followed after.

The dust filled his eyes and one sting bled into the other making Zuko roll backwards as hands his spring up to his face.

With his hands all but lodged against his face Zuko didn’t see Toph Jump up to her feet, but he did hear her now shrill voice.

“What do you think you’re doing!?” She demanded.

Despite the pain, or more likely because of it, Zuko felt something boil over in him

“I thought you drowned!”Zuko spat as a trickle of blood ran down his arm; something that brought even more venom to his throat. “I was trying to do something the ship’s medic taught me that would help!”

Zuko heard a soft thump as another rock dropped to the ground. “What ship?” Toph asked as her face scrunched with confusion.

Blindly, Zuko stumbled to his feet; the hand still fixed over his face causing him to miss the flinch Toph gave the sudden moment

“Before you joined the group...” he grumbled in a low, seething, tone that was only slightly less muffled by his hand “I was chasing Aang with the warship I was banished on… My uncle always made me go to the medics ‘man overboard’ speech.”

When he finished Zuko peered through a small gap in his fingers and saw Toph shift nervously.

slowly she wiped her mouth one last time her hand found its way to the back of her head.

“So…” her voice sounded strangely timid “you weren't trying anything, you actually thought I drowned and was trying to help…” it was more a statement then a question.

“Yes” Zuko almost snarled, his hand still over his nose.

The answer made Toph cringe again as she began to rub the back of her head.

“Oh… Err…. thanks.” She said with a flat nervous tone, one Zuko didn't pick up on.

With a dismissive snort, Zuko just walked straight past her and took his hand away from his face for just a second. Then he snapped it straight back when he felt a line of blood run down his face.

As he passed her, Zuko felt Toph put a hand on his shoulder to stop him. He span around to shoot her a glare, even though he knew the gesture would be lost on her, but really he didn't care, it was more of a reactionary thing. But before Zuko could snap at her Toph held up her other hand which held the small ‘now worse for wear’ scroll.

“Just, err… just remembered I had this” she said pushing it under his nose. The offered scroll knocked against the hand clasped over his nose, which earned her another snarl as Zuko snatched the scroll from her grasp.

Taking his hand away, and cursing the line of warmth running down his face Zuko opened the parchment and let his eyes cover it for a moment…

Then another moment passed…

There was a third awkward pause then Toph’s ears strained to catch something Zuko murmured under his breath. Then her ears strain the opposite way from a sudden cry of rage that died to the sound of a far off splash.

Toph drew in a breath to ask what the matter was but a wisp of smoke caught her breath and she let out a choked cough.

“So…” she asked casually after the cough left her throat, her curiosity pushing through her confusion. “What it say?”

Strangely, as soon as she asked that Toph a sudden pressure come over her, like a twinge right in the back of her mind. It wasn't intense but it caused her to take a step back out of pure instinct.

If she had sight of her own Toph would have known what having someone ‘glare through you’ feels like, but being blind as she was meant she was left at a loss for the sudden feeling that crept up her spine.

“It said...”Zuko said with the low, almost hollow tone “Don’t touch the water in the fountain…”

…

For the few, long, minutes that followed the beach was still. Zuko had chosen to bury himself in the bag of scrolls that were themselves now half buried in the sands in front of him. He’d only just realised that the bag had been around his waist when he was dragged here, and so was dragged along with him. And he probably wouldn’t have at all if he hadn’t thought scroll he threw didn’t fly as far as it should have, and wanted to know the reason why.

For those few minutes Toph hadn’t disturbed him at all, in fact it actually felt like she was trying to avoid his attention. Not that Zuko really cared right now, he was too busy working through the seventh out of the nineteen scrolls that he found within the leather bag.

What he’d read so far on the small pieces of parchment was, in a word, disturbing. At first it seemed like nothing more than gibberish, but as he read on they began to paint him a very clear, yet absurd picture; Like assembling a puzzle, only to find a picture of armadillo bears playing Pi-shoe.

Actually, armadillo bears would make more sense to him than the still borderline gibberish he was digging through. Each scroll was covered in either a series of obscure instructions, strange illustrations, or simple math problems. And most if not all of them were also covered in notes which, to his astonishment, made even less sense than the scrolls themselves.

But, worst of all was the book….

It was definitely a journal written by an air nomad, but if that was true then it must have been the diary of a crazy person. Worse still, only a few pages actually seemed to be legible.

Again his eyes passed over the scribbles in the silent hope he missed something.

9818-BSC

So, I've been told to keep a journal when I’m on my journey and I've got a week to wait so I might as well practice. A few of the masters keep asking me if I’m sure this is what I want- which isn't ominous at all'- but the others keep saying that I made my choice and now there’s no turning back.

Zuko’s eyebrow rose as his frustration once again gave way to curiosity.

Ok, two days to go and I can’t help but check my supplies for the hundredth time. Master Ya’u has dragged me away so I thought I’d just write this.... The truth is I’m worried. The masters say I shouldn't be, but I can’t help it. None of them will tell me what will happen on this journey, only that they all have taken it and I must as well if I want to be a master alongside them. I know they’re all my elders ‘by a very, very long way’ and I can’t resist the chance of being the youngest master, but like I said I’m worried. I haven’t told them but I know four people have gone and never come back.

Zuko’s eyes passed over a few more entries before a later one caught his eye.

I can’t believe it!... I just can’t belive the masters tricked me!!!!!!!

It’s been two months since they lead me to that fountain and this is the first time I've had chance to write since then.... Truth is I thought I lost this book in the river and I can’t begin to describe some of the things I stumbled across in that time.

Here’s a quick summary of what happened… I nearly drowned in some stupid river. Then I tried swimming back the way I came, only to end up walking across the water like it was stone. Then I staggered around some stupid forest for three days. Then I spent the rest of the time hunted by strange creatures... The good news is I've gotten a chance to write this because I finally killed the stupid thing hunting me! In fact I’m sat atop the thing as I’m writing this. It’s just something I thought to do to calm down.

I’m not going to spend too long describing it. Picture a big twisted sabre-toothed moose-lion, but half the size and without the horns. Think smaller back legs and nothing but teeth at the front….in a single word, think ‘Ugly’

I’m sat on its shoulder with my feet on its head, atleast I think it’s its head, it’s where the teeth are anyway ‘which are alot by the way’.

I didn't even think it had eyes at first. At least not until I tried to sit up here and put my finger through one of them. Turns out it has a lot of small eyes all over the front and side of its head. 'Oh and by the way, the gunk from one stinks and I bet it’s going to stain my sleeve…'

On another note this thing was really hard to bring down. It was fast, way too fast to hit and almost too fast to avoid. But the scary thing was the stupid thing was toying with me! It spent all those weeks baiting me, not letting me sleep day after day as it slowly drew closer to where I slept before it finally tried to run me down.

That’s what scares me the most. It could have just ran up and tried to eat me but it didn’t. It kept goading me, taunting me. It’s like it wanted to break me before it killed me. Thank the spirits I got lucky though.... now that I think about it, what I did was desperate and stupid. But it also gives me an idea, and if it works, I will have a surprise for anything else that’s waiting for me in this stupid place- Which is good because something tells me I’m going to need whatever edge I can get. Good news is I have the scrolls now and I need to get moving if I want out of here, but I nee

Unfortunately thats all Zuko could make out, the rest of the entry was obscured by a large black stain. So, with a disappointed sigh, Zuko let the book fall back into his lap before turning towards the bag of scrolls.

Reaching into it slowly he rummaged around for a moment before pulling his arm out along with a single worn scroll.

At first the peace of rolled up parchment had nothing that screamed significance, at least not until he remembered a page he flipped passed in the book.

On the scroll, just poking through another black stain, was a crude illustration. Two circles with one inside the other and two lines at the edges connecting them.

After placing the book back down Zuko turned his attention to the scroll once again. It had a larger version of the illustration across its cover, and from what he could gather it was a crude drawing of earth. Water and land mass was there, along with crude mountains and trees, however, studying it only for a moment made Zuko think something about it was off.

On the outside there were the mountains, the trees, the oceans, but those same crude illustrations also littered the inside as well. He couldn't help but scrunch his nose at what the scroll seemed to be proposing, and he would have dismissed it in an instant If not for the niggling memory of how he escaped the water. And that admission made the memory buzz at the back of his mind like an errant spider-fly.

The buzzing drove Zuko to stare at the scroll for another long moment before his attention was finally pulled away by Toph.

“You finished now?” she asked sharply, her voice regaining its true confidence, even if the caution still lingered. But, It seemed the girl had picked up on his change in demeanour and decided she had been ignored long enough.

Zuko didn’t answer and felt Toph grab him sharply by the arm and yank him to his feet.

“Zuko come on, have you forgotten Aang? We have to get moving!” Toph commanded as she pushed him further away, only to stumble after four steps as Zuko stopped dead -something not many people could make her do.

“Wait... I have to check something…” Zuko muttered at a volume that even Toph’s sensitive ears a hard time making out.//
As he continued on, Toph just let out an automatic “What was that?”

To her chagrin, Tophs question went ignored, leaving only the sound of Zuko’s footsteps on the sand to accompany her on the backs as Zuko pulled his arm free and began walking towards the water.

she crossed her arms as the footsteps continued, “Feel free to fill me in at any time!”

Zuko ignored her again. Stopping at the water’s edge he plucked a small stone stone from the sands. Then, with a flick of his wrist, he sent it into the air and watched as fall towards the water, hitting it with it with a small splash.

At the sight Zuko couldn’t help but let out a relieved sigh.

Smiling to himself he tucked the scroll into the bag and walked back to Toph.

“Ok” he announced with growing confidence “we got here this way, I say we swim back out to the fountain.”

“Nope”…

‘Nope?” Zuko asked, confused. Then his question turned into a demand “What do you mean nope? You’re the one who keeps reminding me of the time limit and you’re right.”

Zuko stopped, his tone suddenly losing all the weight it had, leaving it a soft monotone “Tomorrow Aang has to face the fire lord and we have to get back and find him before then...”

with that finished, Zuko waited, but Instead of the response he was hoping for, Toph stood her ground with arms still crossed and when he reached out to pull her towards the water she answered with a sharp slap across the wrist and a much more commanding “NO!”.

Another snarl escaped Zuko’s mouth and began to walk towards her. “Come on, we can swim out to the other sack that’s still out there and go under… that lake was nowhere near as bad as the North Pole, just take a deep br…” Zuko's speech was cut off as another sudden *THUD* came from beneath his feet.

Once more Zuko found himself on his own back. His head shot forward and he stared dumbly at the large rock protruding at his feet.

Letting his anger creep into his tone once more Zuko jumped to his feet with a growl. “Now what’s wrong?” he couldn’t help but yell, making a point to get a good footing before letting it out, hoping of his stance would give his voice more force.

“I’m not going back in that water” was the girl’s simple reply, one that was punctuated by another stomp of her foot.

Zuko mumbled something incoherent as a reply, although the words, ‘stupid’, ‘spoiled’ and ‘brat’ could be heard in it somewhere and he pinched the bridge of his nose, cringing when it let out a soft click and moved under his fingers.

His nose was the final straw and with it Zuko simply turned around and began to walk away towards the water, letting a calm if not venomous ‘Good riddance’ sound behind him as he threw a hand in the air.

If Zuko said the temptation to just leave the girl never crossed his mind, then he would be lying. But he had a simple hope that listening to him swim out there, and maybe hearing him duck under the water for a moment if he felt cruel, would provide more incentive than his foot alone could.

In a weaker moment he couldn’t help but picture what her face was as he walked away. At first he pictured it being cold as she waited to call his bluff. But the mental picture of her staring dumbfounded as he turned his back gave him a sense of satisfaction; more than Zuko wanted to admit.

But soon enough something felt off and Zuko’s daydream was broken by a single thought.

‘Shouldn’t I have reached the water by now?'

Zuko stopped walking and looked down. And when he did he was greeted by his own reflection.His scarred face stared back at him with a perplexed expression. Then, with a quick glance behind him, Zuko saw the shore a small distance away... with the mirror like water between it and his feet.

It was impossible to believe, and yet, there it was, and Zuko felt a creeping chill run up his spine as his eyes dumbly drifted to his feet.

With a flick of his foot a small splash of water was sent into the air.

Almost like clockwork, Zuko slowly bent his knees and lowered a hand into the water, only for it to be stopped as if a sheet of glass was laid just below the surface.

Standing back up with the same distant pace Zuko took a faltering step forward, followed by another and then one more, his destination being a second small bag which was floating motionless not far away.

“Zuko?” he heard Toph’s voice from the shoreline, her voice was sharp and full of confusion, and he turned around with an automatic. “I’m here”

His eyes drifted back to the bag “I just have to do something” and without waiting for a reply Zuko took the bag in hand all the while the niggling feeling buzzed in the back of his mind as his hand met the old animal skin.

-‘I nearly drowned in some stupid pond. Then I tried going back in, you know to swim back the way I came, but I just ended up walking across the water like it was stone.’-

Again those words drifted across his mind and an icy chill followed them. His throat felt dry as he turned around slowly and began his short trek back towards the shore, this time adopting a much quicker pace.

When he reached the sand once again he ignored whatever Toph was saying and dropped to his knees while tipping the bag over making another group of scrolls fall onto the sand.

Zuko let the empty bag hang off his shoulder as he rummaged through the other in search of the book. A search that only lasted a few seconds before a jab in the arm made him drop the bag and a deadpan whine of “Are you listening?” fills his ears.

Zuko shot back a cold “No” and went back to the bag.

“Well I’m trying to apologise, but if you are going to be a jerk I won’t bother.” Toph shot indignantly, but still Zuko wasn’t listening.

Toph scrunched her nose at the lack of an answer, “Fine whatever let’s just get the swimming over with….”

He still didn’t answer…

“Zuko!” she yelled jabbing him in the arm “I said let’s get it over with!”

Toph almost recoiled when her hand was slapped away and she stood stock still when Zuko gave a reply

“Were not swimming back” he said in a hollow tone, one that made Toph pause.

“Well, why not?” She demanded, lifting her arms for emphasis “I said I’m fine with it.”

Zuko didn’t even shift his attention away from his search as he answered, “Because, if I’m right we have much bigger problems at the moment…”

Toph recoiled again; not likening the edge in Zuko’s voice. “Bigger than Aang going missing just before he is supposed to fight the fire lord?”

“Yes” was his instant reply. “If I’m right we’re stuck out here”

“Stuck out where?” she asked.

He didn’t answer and the air almost turned stale when a long silence followed.

“Well." she said after another moment “what do you think we should do then?”

He knew she expected a snappy or wise answer, but he didn’t have one he was still trying to wrap this whole thing round his head.//
“I’m not sure…” he said honestly.

“What do you mean you’re not sure?” the girl all but shouted in his ear “We have to get back. We have to find Aang. And we have to do it before tomorrow. So point us in the right direction already!”

Zuko snarled again, the way she said it almost sounded like she thought he didn’t know that.

“I mean, I’m not sure. Don’t you think what happened there wasn’t a little bit strange? Well I do and if I’m right we have bigger problems at the moment than were Aang is.”

Zuko let out a sigh as he continued. “If I’m right then we aren't going to get back by then anyway and we’ll be lucky if we live long enough to try and get back at all”

“This isn’t funny Zuko…” Toph warned, her voice was almost too low to hear but he wasn’t joking.

Zuko just shook his head and softened his tone.

“Look. I’m sorry but that’s the way it is.” He stated “Right now I don’t have a clue where we are, but I know something is wrong here and I need some time.” he made sure to leave out the book because really he wasn’t sure if he believed it himself... But after all that had happened he needed to think. “We’ll just have to find somewhere to get our baring and hope to meet with the others tomorrow.”

Slowly Zuko stood as he continued his speech “You and I know Aang can do it and he’s already realized he can’t just run from his problems for too long.” He said that with conviction, but, in truth, he didn't really know if he was trying to comfort her or convince himself.

Shaking his head Zuko moved to put a hand on her shoulder but stopped himself. “What I say we do is climb that mountain over there.” He pointed to the towering rock not too far away. “We might be able to find a town. That will solve at least one of our problems… So, for the moment, let’s just focus on finding where we are.”

Zuko stopped and waited for Toph’s reply, but unfortunately all his little speech did was make the girl lower her head solemnly. She didn’t freak out, which was good, and at this moment Zuko was inclined to take what was given… he just needed some time to collect himself.

After that a calm silence fell over them both, one Zuko actually welcomed as he tried to think… The mountain couldn’t have been more than three miles away by his guess, but it was almost nightfall before Zuko touched the foot of it.

Their damp clothing had slowed them down and invited the cold bite of the wind while the sun tried to blister it. But he was finally there and he told Toph to create a cave a small ways up.

He noticed that for some reason Toph didn't question this, but again he didn’t question a good thing. He just figured she was just going along with what he said because she had no better idea herself. But at the same time part of him couldn’t help but wonder if the news was just starting to sink in.

When he told Toph to beat a cave out of the mountain face Zuko could tell the girl welcomed the chore, even if it was only for the cathartic release it brought her. But when the task had been finished and they sat around a small fire he couldn’t help but notice the girl hadn’t moved, or said a word while he started sifting through the scrolls…

And that’s how it stayed until he set down the book and told her to get some sleep...

…

(Chapter 3)

Royal palace- Equestria– Canterlot

Since her return Princess Luna’s ‘adjustment’ to a modern Equestria has been a… ‘Rough’ one to say the least. Almost every single hour she had since her release had been spent playing ‘catch-up’ with the frankly depressing number of changes the last 1000 years banishment had left waiting for her.

Some of these changes were mundane enough; others however were just plain alien to her.

One such change was an apparent new foe that had since risen in her absence. But unlike most of Equestria’s foes this one was not some large rampaging creature. This foe was tiny, so tiny in fact that they cannot be seen with her royal eyes.

She’d been warned that this new foe lurked everywhere, just waiting for her to drop her guard so they could strike. Even her own subjects now spent all day and night in battle against this foe and a new type of guard had even been created just to combat it…

The royal maids…

Although Luna had to admit, when she saw them going about the castle the ponies didn’t scream ‘warrior’, but that may be accounted to the effect she also has on Celestia’s guards, let alone most ponies? The fight against the dreaded ‘germs’ as they were named also created many new rituals for her to follow in her ‘nightly’ life. Some of these new actions where mundane enough, others... not so much…

How sitting waste deep in a small body of water for an hour served to frighten these creatures away still eludes her, but it was her sister’s wish and as princess she would do her part to protect her kingdom.

Apparently, these creatures could be detected by the ‘maids’, and while she didn’t believe this at first, the time where one such pony saved her life convinced her otherwise.

Just before nightmare night she was eating her new favourite food when it dropped unceremoniously to the floor. Like any time previously she immediately picked it back up and went to return it to her royal mouth; the current threat slipping from her mind for just a moment

‘But that’s all it takes for them to strike…’ she quickly reminded herself.

She was saved from the waiting creatures by one of the cleaner’s timely warning, and as soon as she learned of their plot Luna immediately threw the foodstuffs against the wall and sent a blast of magic against them, ensuring that nothing was left of the little beasts but a smoking crater. It was a rousing victory against the beasts despite her short time home.

However just as she was celebrating her victory her sister came with some rather grave news, apparently her punishment for her time as Nightmare moon was to continue and she was to be condemned to the castles torturer once every six months… Like a lot of things in her thousand year absence, the royal torture had changed their names, but she knew the type of pony who took a job like that.

It seemed the ‘dentists’ as they were now called also had plenty ponies to practice on before they got to her, as it was mandated that every pony, even young foals, must report to them at least once a year to maintain compliance…

And yet ponies believed she was a cruel monster…

Luckily for her, Luna was able to bribe the torturer with certain ‘pleasant' dreams...

When this deal was stuck Luna had wondered why the mare didn’t just ask the lead mare to buy the mating rights of the stallion she was interested in if she likes him so much. But it turns out that was yet another thing that had changed since her absence.//
A thousand years ago the ‘head mares’ carried a family's bloodline and it was common place for them to sell colts born to the member of lower mares to the members to other herds. The system made sense to her; the mortality rate was high, even without the stallions dying as a result of protecting the herds from the worlds many dangers and the remaining ‘good stallions’ were hard to come by. It was found the best way of securing a good one was to slip their head mare some bits.

It did leave the cultural stigma that stallions where lesser, existing only to breed, work or die for their herds. She, and her sister of course, as the rulers of the land were seen as the ‘head, head’ mares of Equestria in a way… a notion she always welcomed personally but her sister did not…

Celestia had always denounced the entire practice as barbaric... but at the time that only meant she didn’t keep her own herd gagged and blindfolded all of the time.

But, it seemed that in the end her sister got her way… as usual… and the stigma had all but disappeared. The primal need for a stallion to protect their herd remained, but it means most try out for the guard at some point with almost all of them turned away. The best of those accepted were chosen as a royal guard. Well ‘best’ being a relative term because, despite all the praise her sister gave them, Luna couldn’t help but think the ponies of today are a lot softer than she remembered. Perhaps the two things were related?

Another thing that was strange is the gender ratio is still numbered at almost eight to one… She would have thought with no stallion having to die to protect them it would even out before her return…Unless it had but a few rooms have gone… unchecked….

…

Luna shook her head. She had always thought that she’d become far too introspective since her return; A habit born from a thousand years of having nothing to do but think and make sand castles on the moon.

Well, in reality she was ‘asleep’ for the entirety of her imprisonment. And unlike some of the rumours she was not possessed by some evil ‘nightmare’ or ‘demon’, it was her alone… after a hundred years’ worth of jealousy and inequality.

The truth was, one night she just couldn’t stand it anymore and she asked her sister if she could keep the night sky just through one day. Celestia had refused and they had an ‘argument’ about it… an argument involving magic blasts and string noodles if memory served, but it was an argument none the less, not some titanic war.

In the end it was the elements themselves that bestowed the punishment on her. She had only wished for her subject’s to appreciate her night; at the time she wasn’t aware that her action would ultimately lead to the death of the world, but Intentional or not, the elements saw the threat and they still did what they did.

The elements are as harsh as they are pure in the protection of harmony, and above all else they are dangerous when corrupted by negative emotions.

She should have been trapped in her namesake permanently and she would have been, if not for her being as powerful as an Alicorn, and the spells weakening after her banishments thousandth year anniversary; And then it only happened because the elements had no one to bear them.

The thought of trying again had passed through her mind after her release, and in a way it still does every so often, every time she wades through one of her weakest moments.

She was nervous when she was released, but when her hooved had touched the soil of her birth right again, after so many years, all of her doubt had vanished. The elements were no longer wielded by any and when she got to the throne room her sister put up no fight at all.

She believed that Celestia had finally relented, and only asked that she did not harm any pony. Luna had agreed and followed her sister’s wish.

Then those six mares stood to oppose her.

Staying true to her word Luna did not attempt to kill them, or try to do anything other than take them out of action, but little did she know the elements would rise again and allow the six mares to defeat her.

The elements have always worked in strange ways…

This time instead of imprisoning, or even destroying her, she was stripped her of her power, and by all accounts her age. When the smoke had cleared and she stood in front of her sister it was almost like the last thousand years never happened; well except for the mark it left, the legend of Nightmare moon.

The mark of the banished princess...

Most would see her position as a second chance. She says whatever pony dares to utter that has never been rendered to what’s essentially a foal again. She has memories of who she was but those memories had blurred and strained as if she is remembering a dream from long ago. And if that was bad enough, this cultural gap only made her feel more like a foal.

She was just glad Celestia was able to speed up the process somewhat. She just couldn’t live without the glittering sky like mane she had come to love.

Despite all this, the time gap didn’t bring Luna only confusion and misery. Instead some of the changes had brought her wonder and awe. In her absence Equestria had bloomed like a flower. Huge cities that never slept had grown from the tiny settlements she and her sister had ripped from discords claws...Though, part of her couldn’t help but wonder if that blooming was because of her removal and not in spite of it…

Most staggering of all was the fact that her entire venture of eternal night was in fact pointless. Ponies all over Equestria now seemed to appreciate her night of their own accord. The creatures that used to lurk within it had been pushed back and so ponies aren’t as afraid to step outside under the soft, silvery glow of her moonlight...

It was just a shame the night those ponies grew up with wasn’t her night…But still, the chance was there and walking through a bustling city in the moonlight had brought her the purest elation…. And a very stern talking to when she had lost a ‘sum’ of the treasury upon her discovery of ‘gambling’.

It wasn’t her fault! she had cried, the other ponies cheated!

In the end she was happy though. To put it simply, they aren’t likely to ever cheat a princess again…

Her only wish was that the stories of her hadn’t spiralled out of control over the years. Ponies no longer shunned her night, but they shunned and feared her now instead…

But that was then and this night, this night, would change all that…

Tonight was her first night running her court since her return. And this night ponies would come seeking aid with their problems. And she as princess would be more than happy to answer their call.

So here she sat, in a tall. and to be perfectly honest uncomfortable, court room chair as she patiently waited for the first attendant to enter and-

wait there’s one!

No, no wait, false alarm…

Luna calmed herself again; all the while she couldn’t help but repeat the mantra she created based on her sister’s instructions.

‘Ok think about what Tia said…’ she began ‘Today’s ponies react well to a gentler approach. If you want them to be a friend simply treat them as a friend’

She recalled Celestia rapidly following that with “but not like a close friend, just a friend” before finishing. She repeated this to herself, as another thought crept into her mind… just as the first pony entered the courtroom.

‘But what if I seem too soft?’ she thought, straining the too ‘… they might try and take advantage of me’

Then and there, Luna made a promise to never let that happen, just as she was brought from her thoughts by the sound of hooves on the marble floor.

Luna’s concentration must have shown on her face, and at the way the unicorn in front of her suddenly lost all momentum to her stride she concluded that her ‘thinking face’ must not be the friendliest one she has ever donned.

“State your business…” she announces out of instinct, and then she grimaced as the pony shrank back slightly

‘… Ok, Tis not the best start, but at least she has her volume and grasp on modern wording has improved.’

The waiting pony took a deep breath and began her… speech….

***

As pony after pony came by laying out their ‘problems’ princess Luna couldn’t help but reinforce her previous thought, the ponies of today indeed seemed a lot softer than before her banishment… and this hunch only proved stronger as the night went on.

Ponies arrived asking her to sort out even the most trivial affairs. In her most tired moment she even began to wonder if Celestia started to do all the thinking for their subjects- on top of bringing about the day and night during her absence… and that left her with a question.

How the hey did she survive?

But out of all the ponies that had gnawed at her patience, the worst were the unicorns… so, of course, it only stood to reason that out of the eighty audience requests- a small number seeing it was her first day- at least sixty of them were unicorns, and not one of them came with anything that couldn’t be figured out by a foal with half a brain.

Luna had hoped against hope that she could be seen as a mentor and earn her subjects admiration. She did not ask to spend all day coddling them like a lost foal… like her sister always does. After all, sometimes if a Pegasus wishes to soar, all they need a little push…

Incidentally, for some reason, Luna had found herself banned from Canterlot flight school, but that’s not important now.

She caught the foal by the way.

But it seemed that Luna was doomed to the unicorns petty ‘problems’ because one thing she learned was why her ponies seemed so different in how much they relied on her sister, and it turned out it was because of where they chose to live.

The unicorns for the most part live in Canterlot and so are never too far from her sister. And because of this they get caught up in their own little world of posturing and hoof licking… simply put, they never grew up because they never had to.

For a moment Luna had wondered if that’s why her sister had sent her student away. Maybe she didn’t want a possible element bearer to fall into such things…

On the other hoof, when the few Pegasi that asked for an audience spoke, it was always for a reason that related to weather management… schedules, reports or such, it was boring and held a tedium that made her all but long for the dentists but at least it didn’t make her weep for the future.

The earth ponies on the other hand where seldom seen. This was for the simple reason that most earth ponies lived on the outskirts of Equestria where they worked cultivating the land and growing crops from it for others to settle later on. This gave them a natural independence and In so should one ever bring a matter back to the castle it was most likely one worth the two day train ride to speak it.

But there was one interesting unicorn case that was brought to her attention, a theft case apparently, and Luna was never one to tolerate theft. Normally earth ponies would call such matters to a local official but seeing as this pony had a contact with the crown he was brought here.

***

Just outside the courtroom a smallish unicorn was trudging his way towards the great wooden door. Two guards were present at either side, serving to guide him towards his eventual fate.

The pony himself wasn’t really anything to look at, and by that he didn’t scream criminal, but in the end that served his special talent… at least that’s what he always tells himself anyway.

His mark was the only thing that would draw an eye to him; an undone padlock, with a key made of the same colour of his magic. A mark he’d received it when he managed to ‘break’ into his own house as a foal when his parent’s accidently locked themselves out.

Normally this wouldn’t have been considered a huge feat, but his parents could be called many things, including paranoid, so of course it would require a special talent to break into the best security system money could buy. And it also meant he grew a very lucrative career out of it.

This wasn’t from stealing any good’s mind you but from becoming a renowned ‘trial by fire’ ritual for any and all security systems. Having the ‘light touch seal of approval’ has almost become a get out of salesmanship free card for retail security systems. But of course that also means whenever something goes missing it’s always his door the guards knock on first; especially when he visits anywhere ponies don’t really know him.

So here he was, standing in front of the princess, yet again, and all because he went to visit his sister and had the luck that somepony lost something and decided he must be the ‘obvious’ cause. It was a dance he had done many times, to the point that after a while the guards no longer bother cuffing him. He even wound up on Celestia’s Christmas list after the fifth time it happened and the guards even took to making little wages with him if they can guess what he will get accused of stealing next after the ninth.

But, despite the strange monotony of it all, as he drew closer to the throne Light touch couldn’t help notice that something was off. First of all the new night guard apparently didn’t get the memo as there were no jokes filling the hallways as he walked, just the jingle of cuffs that sat on his front hooves, and as he pondered this little slip he turned the corner and saw something that would assure him many future grey additions to his dull brown mane.

Sat there, wearing a look of pure contempt, was not Celestia but her sister Princess Luna.
‘Oh buck me…’

When he was stopped by the guards Light touch risked sparing a cautious glance up towards the princess, but the action only meant he had to suppress another shudder when her frown deepened.

‘Oh sweet Faust why me?’

...

Meanwhile, Princess Luna was studying the unicorn as a feeling of distaste passes through her mind, one that only deepened when one of her guard began to read out the charges.

“The unicorn, Light touch, stands accused of… ‘Theft of a valuable possession’- One rare moon stone belonging to that of the Lula moon family, estimated worth forty thousand bits. Cost taking into account sentimental value”//
“So what do you have to say for yourself?” the princess asked, a bitter sharpness seeping into her tone, one that made the pony it was aimed at cringe again.

“Princess…” Light touch replied weakly, almost squeaking. “If you would just ask your sister I’m sure you…”

“Silence!!!” the princess commanded, her voice all but shaking the windows “I am quite capable of attending to this matter without my sister intervening… and theft of such things is a serious crime”

The princess allowed herself a moment to regain her composure before she turned back to the guard and spoke again, this time in a more controlled tone, “Was the item recovered?”

“Yes princess it was…” the guard answers in an instant.

“Very well...” Luna said, the edge in her tone dulling somewhat “In light of that fact I shall be lenient” she paused to look over a sheet of paper.

“Light touch shall receive… five lashes for theft of valuable property…”

When the sentence was read some of the guards look around confused. Light touch could only cringe again.

‘Five lashes?!!!’ he screamed in his head ‘Oh Faust!!…. Wait… what are lashes?’

He pondered the question for a moment as another guard moved to Luna’s ear.

The princess paused herself and leaned over for a moment while taking in what the guard was saying…

“What? Are you sure?

The guard whispered again

“Oh very well…” she conceded with a huff to his unheard argument. “In light of new laws that have ‘supposedly’ been passed by my sister. And in light of the fact I have not enough time to research them before this court finishes, I will transfer this case to my sisters court in the morrow. Please take him away until then.”

With the announcement the guard’s each gave a brief nod and begin leading the pony away, the pony himself making a promise to find that guard and buy him a drink when he can.

With the matter concluded princess Luna leant back into her throne as she let out a quiet sigh. ‘Great’ she moaned inwardly ‘yet more things to learn… Who would have thought laws of all things would change as well?’

Despite her musing, luna’s thoughts were suddenly interrupted when the next item on her schedule came to her attention- Dream Walking, and the realisation washed away every ounce of bitterness that the pony had left with her.

Dream walking was one of the few things that made her subjects shunning of her night somewhat bearable. It gave her purpose she had thought long since lost...Plus she had often asked herself what better way to wash away her title as nightmare moon than by providing relief from nightmares themselves?

All in all it was a perfect duty for her, and entering the magical realm that surrounds pony’s dreams was just as simple as she remembered it. So with a pleased smile Luna once again undertook her ritual of seeking out and correcting unpleasant dreams…

‘Let’s see…

Nice…

Eww…’ She let out a shudder. The first night she returned to her duty she’d stumbled across one of those kinds of dreams… and instantly made a mental note under ‘Never again’.

Luna just stepped back away from the dream cloud and continued on her search.

Nice…

‘Oh look Twilight sparkle is having a nightmare about failing a test… again!’

Luna had once delved into such a dream before, many times in-fact, and every time had tried to ease her sister’s student her efforts were for naught… Frankly it got to the point she would rather deal with the ‘never aginas’ then the constant trivial visions of her sisters student.

Letting out a frustrated sigh she expanded her search, and a moment passed before she noticed something strange.

Floating there was a churning black dream cloud; its misty form morphed and shuddered as flickers of lightning arched from it randomly. And, In that moment two things were apparent to the Alicorn.

One, this was a nightmare, and two; this was not the dream of a pony.

Normally such dreams are out of her jurisdiction, but tonight was a slow night and the dreamer was currently in Equestria, even if it was on the edge. So, with a slight feeling of titillation, Luna pushed herself into the dream cloud, noting that it took considerably more effort than usual, but she managed to get through in the end and when finally inside she let herself absorb the environment before her.

Beautiful, rolling, green fields stretched across to the horizon and stop at the base of a colossal wall. The great mass of stone reached high enough to block out her sister sun and the sight made Luna spare a moment to silently admire whatever creatures could craft such a thing.

Taking one more moment to admire the stone structure Luna finally turned her head away towards the horizon. Out there, a group of small dots grew steadily larger as they seemed to be steadily approaching her, each one casting a great, looming, shadow over the land below them.

As they approached one of the shapes proved itself distinct from the others. A large golden head of a bird sat at its front and the princess simply looked on in cautious intrigue as a strange creature slowly walked across its metal brow, shedding a long cloak as it did so.

As the discarded cloth fell away the sky began to turn a deathly red, as if the colour was flowing from the creature’s very limb. The mass swirled and gathered into a ball of glowing fire which passed over the metal beasts and the strange creature pushed one of its forelimbs out in front of it.

A blinding flash followed and Luna sucked in a nervous breath as a wash of heat rolled over her face and an inferno shot from the creature’s forelimb leaving her to watch in mute horror as more fire followed from the other metal beasts and headed towards the great stone city.

Just before the fire reached her, the landscaped flashed and the rolling hills that once stretched out in front of her began to peel away, unravelling into long strings of colour which arched and weaved together into another scene; this time distorted and convulsive…

…One of the strange creatures stood facing down two others, glaring at them both under a scared face.

With cold eyes it glared at the smallest of them, whose own eyes widen as it jumped back, just in time to avoid a blast of fire sent towards it…

… The two begin to fight, ripping at the very elements themselves to rend at each other before the scarred creature sent a whisk of flame severing long tendrils of water to free another of its kind….

…The eyes of the smallest creature began glowing bright as it slowly rose into the air… but with a sudden flash it is struck down by a bolt of lightning…

… The scene changed again. The scarred creature now walked down a long corridor, one that was covered in a rich tapestry of gold decoration, and as it reached a warped version of Celestia’s throne room. It stopped, slowly bowing before the one creature sat in the throne positioned within a large roaring fire…

… The larger creature stood, slowly rising from the golden throne, its movements commanding and possessing an aura of finality. With deafeningly silent steps it walked over towards the bowing creature, passing through a beam of light drawn in through a window.

Luna gasped as the light peeled back the black obscuring its face, revealing it to be the same creature that stood atop the metal beast.

Then, with one final gasp the vision was snuffed out, leaving the princess to stare into the lonely black void as a single thought echoed through her mind

‘I have to tell Tia!!!’

***

Back within the throne room the guards stood next to their princess, ever ready to perform her will at a moment’s notice. They all gave a cautious shift when the Alicorns eyes slowly began to lose their glow, making one of the higher ranking guards moved to her side.

The guard saw Luna turn to him, and he let his head rise in attention… but then, much his shock, instead of uttering a single word, the princess suddenly shot out of the throne room leaving the very air to rock him back in her wake.

As soon as the guard recovered they all look to the one stood at the side of the throne, each one looking to him with expectant eyes expecting a reason for such an event.

All the guard could do was shrink under the gaze of the other guards before their eye forced him to mutter the only answer that would come to his head.

“little filly’s room?”

…

(Chapter 4)

Within a warm dry room a single pony slept while wrapped in sheets woven from the finest silks, and attop a bead made by only the finest of crafters. The great irony behind this was the very duty that provided the wealth that allowed such things always served to rob her of any opportunity to utilize them… At least that's how she always saw it, and it was a fact that had tugged at the sleepers patience many, many times.

But fortunately for her, a certain younger sister’s return had brought her many joys. A long lost and beloved family member was one of the biggest. While the fact her work load was almost halved as a result was one of the smaller, but still much appreciated, joys because she finally could dare to have the time for a good nights rest.

Tonight had been especially good to Celestia, not only had it sought to grant her sleep but the welcome rest had also come with one of her favourite dreams as well. And as the Freudian images swirled through her head Celestia couldn't help but hug her silk pillow. The grip tightening just as her favourite part was about to roll around... just in time for her to be ripped from it by a loud banging on her door.

Cracking an eye open half way Celestia cast an annoyed glare at the door. She waited for a moment for another knock and when she decided enough time had passed her eye drift closed again.

*BANG *BANG* BANG*

Just as her eyelids had met the knocking returned, but louder this time and she let them crack open once again.

Slowly pulling her head from her pillow the princess turned an ear towards the door, hoping to pick up an echoed conversation coming from the other side, and even though she couldn't make out the words from the volume alone she could tell it was a pretty heated one. So, with a tired, and long suffering sigh, she shook her head and shifted into a dignified position, ‘meaning she shoved a small stuffed toy under her blanket and out of sight and wiped a line of drool from her face.

Just as soon as she was 'presentable' a flash from her horn removed the seal on her door and one of her royal guard slipped into her chambers as the golden light dissipated.

As he entered the chamber Celestia noted that the guard had made a point to close the door behind him. Swiftly making his way to the bed then lowering his head, almost to the floor, in a respectful bow

“I take it Equestria is on the brink of disaster…” Celestia asked the guard, her tone softly implying that it had better be. But the guard merely blinked once with a look of apathy present on his face.

“Princess” he began is a lifeless tone “Apologies for the disturbance, but it was something unavoidable.”

“So that’s a yes…” Celestia droned in a way that seeped through the calm mask her face normally maintained.

In response the guard closed his eyes and shook his head slowly before looking back at her with a tired look.

“Situation ‘L’ your highness.” He said.

When Celestia heard that a deep frown formed on her face. It was a very rare sight but there it was none the less and the guard had to draw on his training to resist pulling out a camera there and then. It was an urge that stemmed out of a little bet made with the recently restored Lunar guard- simply put A thousand bits will go to any-pony who could bring a picture that showed Celestia without her motherly like smile.

Letting the opportunity, as well as the image of all the shiny new things the bits could have bought him slip by, the guards mind returned to why he was there in the first place. More so they returned to the princess that sat in front of him.

“Sorry your highness” he added quickly.

The princess gave a quick nod. “This isn’t like the shower incident is it?” she asked with the same exasperation seeping through.

“No princess” the guard answered quickly “She wouldn't tell me what the problem was, but she believes it to be of the utmost importance… enough to threaten me if I did not break orders and wake you.” The guard trailed off.

Celestia decided to give one last attempt to salvage her sleep. “And you are sure she believes the matter is truly important?” she asked this time in an almost pleading tone.

As if to answer her question a sickening boom filled the chamber as her bedroom door was reduced to splinters. The ringing in their ears lasts a moment before it was drowned out by a piercing shriek

“Siiiiiisteeer!”

The guard slowly lowered a protective hoof form his face and fixed Celestia with the same apathetic look as before.

“That is the impression I get your highness”

Celestia allowed herself a quiet sigh. Then she dismissed the guard with a quiet thank you and made sure her face donned her normal benevolent guise.

The guard gave a nod in turn and, somewhat subtlety, lunged to the left to avoid the night princess on his way out.

From Celestia’s point of view, the guard seemed to be replaced by her sister in the literal blink of an eye and the sharp change made her crane her neck back in surprise.

“Sister!” Princess Luna shouted again, this time right in her face with a volume that make Celestia scrunch her eyes closed.

“Yes Lulu?” she asked in a cheerful tone, not bothering to open her eyes. Which proved to be a smart move as Luna’s volume seemed to increase with every word following

“Sister I was performing my duties and something horrible has happened!”

By the time she was finished Luna’s face was almost touching her sisters, though Celestia didn’t respond further than letting out another sigh

“I’m sure it will be fine Sister. Now tell me what it is that troubles you”

Luna opened her mouth again but a hoof stopped her

“Less volume…” Celestia finished

Luna gave a sharp nod and closed her mouth, pausing for a moment before opening it again, just to be interrupted by her sister yet again.

“Tell me LuLu, how was your first…. ‘Night’ running your court?” Celestia asked, hoping the change of topic would take the edge out of her sister’s eyes.

To her credit, the attempt seemed to work and the smaller Alicorn’s eyes softened almost like a flick of a switch before she releases a frustrated groan.

“Honestly sister I don’t know how you put up with some of them… they are nothing like the ponies I remember. I dare say they wouldn't last a day in the old world. You really should do something.”

Celestia smiled at her success. “I suppose that is true. But how would I ever go about doing that LuLu?” she asked with a falsely innocent tone.

In response to the question, Luna eyes half closed and her voice took on a deadpan tone “You could stop coddling them for one… return the title of nobility to a requirement that actually means something… simply put, they need tough love sister, they need to be tempered rather than pampering, like you have been doing.”

“Oh?” Celestia asked raising an eyebrow “and should the same apply to you sister? How much progress would you have made if I had applied such methods to your... adjusting?” A sly smile followed; one Celestia reserved only for her sister.

“That’s not the same and you know it” Luna shot back, striking the floor with her hoof. “My difficulties are stemmed from my absence. Theirs was brought by your apparent change in attitude.”

“And that dear sister is the point you should know better than any pony” Celestia said softly “Times have changed and we must change with them or risk being left behind. While I would be lying if I said some ponies did not test my patience too, I am honestly surprise you have not utilized the change for your own benefit yet sister” Celestia finished in a mock puzzled expression, one that only earned a pout form her sister.

“I want the respect and admiration of our subjects. I don’t want to spend all night wiping their snouts.”

Celestia smiled another patient smile, and donned her best teaching voice “Like I said LuLu, times have changed; since we used the elements to purge the land of chaos, ponies no longer need to compete with the horrors of the world just so they aren't trampled under them. And one thing it had brought me is the opportunity to let my mane down slightly, I’m not as young as I used to be” she shot her sister a smirk “or you technically are now.”

“A curse in more ways than one” Luna muttered “But could your age be why you now always send those six mares at Equestria’s problems, rather than solve it yourself? Like you would have when I was at your side?”

At that Celestia almost ground her teeth while suppressing a growl- something her own guard have gone their entire lives without seeing. “I do not throw them at every problem sister.”

“Yes you do.” Luna almost sang in soft drone “It’s a good thing I didn't see those six mares you threw at me as a threat. Honestly I thought you only did that to buy time for your real plan… I pitied your little pawns enough to only attempt to scare them away, rather than smear them over the trees.”

To Luna’s surprise Celestia didn’t take her verbal baiting, instead the white alicorn just smiled at her. A smile Celestia knew always grated on her nerves.

“And the reason you scare ponies is still a mystery to you LuLu?” Celestia uttered with a soft laugh, which earned another pout from her sister as she continued. “First, I only send them to contend with matters that require the elements, you know this. Secondly I have the utmost confidence in my faithful student and I know the elements well enough to recognise a potential bearer when I see one. Third I merely took her under my wing to steer her in the right direction. And fourth; we have already had this discussion many, many times before.”

“That is another point sister;” Luna asserted “the ponies of our time would not take so kindly to such… manipulation. Like your previous student for one.”

Even though Celestia managed to let the bait roll off her shoulders she couldn't help but let the image of Star-swirl pass by her mind, and just how different her former student was from Twilight

“I do not manipulate, Luna” Celestia asserted, her tone growing a touch more serious “I merely offer my guidance and wisdom- which ponies more often than not simply choose to follow. I have told you why I have my student study lessons on friendship rather than just magic, it is so she may succeed where Starswirl ultimately failed.”

Luna shook her head “Do not be confused sister; my quarrel is not with the fact ponies accept your wisdom. It is with the fact they have become dependent on it. You are ignoring the obvious future problems, moral or otherwise, that your plans for your student will bring. But I wonder, When did young Twilight ‘choose’ to seek your approval to such a degree she could be driven to use an illegal spell on most of that small town she lives in? And all so she simply wouldn't be late with an assignment?”

Celestia frowned once more. “My student’s heart is in the right place; even if she has some… inadequate abilities in coping with potential failure. But that is what her other lessons are for and even if I did admit to ‘manipulating’ her as you said, which I am not and do not. Would you not admit yourself that the power and potential she possesses should be kept under a close eye, lest she be corrupted by them or others seeking to abuse them?”

“Yes I do” Luna nodded, “which is another reason I question your willingness to burden her with such crisis”

“As opposed to coddling her?” Celestia raised an eyebrow, her smirk quickly returning before it turned serious once more. “I agree with a lot of what you say sister and you know I would not do anything that wasn't necessary. I consider her my own blood but no matter how I wish otherwise she is now burdened with the element of magic and the power that such a thing possesses. The one blessing she has in that regard is that she need not bear it alone. She has her friends and I needn't remind you such magic is the most powerful we know of.”

Celestia gave her sister a soft smile as she finished. Then her eyes perk up.

“Now, I trust you didn't wake me just to discuss my student. What was it you wished to speak to me about?” Celestia asked, poking her sister gently with a hoof, and as if she flicked a switch again Luna’s eyes regain their edge.

“Faust I almost forgot!” the younger Alicorn half shouted, causing Celestia to scrunch her eyes closed once again, but this time her smile stayed put. “While performing my nightly duties I have learned something most grave, sister...”

“You finally figured out the secrets of the microwave?” Celestia chirped, before receiving a soft-ish hoof to the shoulder.

“This is serious sister, in the realm of dreams I saw… fraternization with chaos.” Strangely, as soon as she said that, Luna could swear that she saw her sister become nervous.

“What kind of… fraternisation?” Celestia asked almost guiltily

“The intimate kind sister.”

Celestia’s face looked as if she had bit into a lemon “And where did you sense this dream?” the sun princess asked carefully gritting her teeth while waiting for her sister’s reply.

“On the outskirts of Equestria” Luna said gravely.

Celestia cringed

“Sister my fe… wait did you say the outskirts?” Celestia asked quickly and when Luna gave a confirming nod she gave a sigh of… ‘Relief’… one Luna didn't give it a second thought too.

“Yes Tia. It appears we may have to send your student and the elements into danger once more.” Luna said coyly before her tone strengthened “On the outskirts of Equestria I discovered a dream… a strange dream from a strange creature.”

“Strange How?” Celestia dared ask.

“I sat in front of a great a wall, one higher than our very castle itself… then three great beasts, with strange twisted faces made of metal approached it. A smaller being stood atop one of them and bathed the ground below it in a fire greater than that of all but the most ancient dragons. Even worse, it laughed at the destruction, it even seemed to take pleasure in it.” Luna said with closed eyes.

Now she had her sister’s attention.

“Then I saw smaller beings of the same kind fighting, rending the very elements to strike at each other before one of them was slain.

“Then I saw one of creatures bow before the one spreading the destruction. It was the creature that is here now.” Luna looks back up at her sister who only closed her eyes in thought before speaking.

“Are you sure this being is evil sister? You just said what you saw was a nightmare. Are you sure that you know the true context, perhaps this was a dream of what it feared could happen? You did say it was a nightmare.” Celestia reasoned.

“Yes sister I am sure, even though most of those dreams were relived memories it wasn't the dream itself but what I sensed about the creature. This beings heart holds rage, hate and cruelty. Even worse it seems to embrace such horrors, going so far as to draw strength from them.” Luna stated

Celestia’s expression dampened. “So how do you think we should approach this sister?” she asked coldly.

“What do you mean, Tia? Is the answer eluding you or do you seek to test me?” Luna asked indignantly.

Celestia just smiled again.

“If you wish to call it a test, then so be it. I am simply curious to hear your approach to this matter. You are a rightful ruler of this land. So… what will you do sister?” Celestia asked with a raised eyebrow.

Luna’s eyes drifted away from her sister and towards the floor for a moment of concentration. The sudden inquiry drained her confidence somewhat but after only a second she looked back up with conviction. “I…” she paused again before narrowing her eyes “I will summon the guard immediately, brief them on the creature and then engage it before it can reach any place populated by our subjects.”

“And how will you instruct them to combat a foe you know nothing about?” Celestia asked in a curious tone.

“Cautiously” Luna replied, “We have the advantage of terrain. We know it better than the being will. We have more resources and we have the time if need be, so there is no need to risk our ponies lives.” Another pause for breath interrupted Luna’s speech and allowed her to check her sister’s expression. To her disappointment her sister’s face hadn't shed its usual mask so she continued. “I know for certain it’s an elemental of some sort with control over fire. So I will fight it where it will be weakest and where we are strongest…. I will attack at night and I will order the Pegasus guard under my command to create storm clouds over it. This will reduce its fire’s potential for collateral damage and I will keep my guards out of its range. When that is done I will have my guard rain spears down upon it, or use my own lightning if necessary as I saw one of their kind fall to lightning myself. Should it attempt to flee then every use of its fire would only serve to lead us too it and all we would have to do is keep up the pursuit until it is exhausted and we run it aground.”

As Luna finished her sister mulled over all she had said with a slow deliberate nod… “A plan worthy of credit, but a flawed one sister” Celestia says softly, her words earning a frown from Luna as she continues. “I commend you for your caution and your attempt to account for likely weaknesses, but that is where the flaw resides sister. It is based on too many assumptions.”

Celestia stared into her sister’s eyes.

You assume it only has manipulation of fire. You assume you can keep out of its range. But mostly you assume it is alone.” She paused to let the implication hang in the air.

“If this being has hostile intentions it would make little sense for it to arrive here alone, not unless its power would render it vulnerable to only the elements themselves. But the biggest assumption you make- is the one you make about its intentions…. Can you honestly say you would judge that a pony would be worthy of execution based on one dream alone?”

“It was not based on the dream sister” Luna is quick to correct “the dream made me aware of its presence; it’s the creature’s intimacy with chaos and reliance on hate, anger, and cruelty as drives that condemn it in my eyes.”

Celestia smiled once more “You know I used to hold such opinions sister, and about our neighbouring races no less… when we have chance remind me to teach you about Equestrian’s first contact with the griffon dominions. But one lesson I will share with you now is that I made a similar mistake then and it nearly caused a war.”

Celestia paused to look into her sister’s eyes again “If this creature is here to attempt peaceful contact and we act in aggression, based only on prejudgment. Then we are only inviting the very hostility you wish to quash, and on a species wide level. Not only that, but to condemn before any actual crime has even been committed isn't our way sister, it is against the very ideals of justice and friendship Equestria was founded upon,”

When she finished Celestia didn’t bother with her usual smile but Luna didn’t break her gaze either, instead she simply responded with a quick question of her own. “So what will you have us do sister?”

“I will try and set up the game in my favour” Celestia began “I will alert the elements and prepare the guard. The best case scenario will provide us the advantage of choosing where the place contact is made.

“However,” Celestia continued “should there prove to be insufficient time then we must be able to react at the fastest possible moment, where ever it is and whatever it’s, or their, intentions may be… Just remember sister, clarity and context is vital. We must not act based on assumptions. What we could perceive as threatening may be looked back on as a cultural misunderstanding. But we also must be ready to protect our subjects from this or these new creatures, or more so we must be ready to protect them from our subjects.”

Luna flashed her sister a gentle smile, although it appeared to be more like a smirk “It seems that thousands of years have done wonders for your wisdom, Tia. I never could have pictured you without your impetuousness.”

Celestia gave her sister gave a smile in return “Equestria would not have lasted so long if I didn't change now would it?” she jested

Luna offered another smile to her sister, but face soon turns solemn again “And if those creatures are hostile?” she dared ask.

Celestia smile turned into another sly grin

“Well if that is the case, I believe you said something about ‘smearing on the trees’?”

Luna couldn't help but let out a soft laugh

“But” Celestia continued “let’s put our effort into stopping that from happening… it is as I would say their move sister, and now I must ready mine. Now if you’ll excuse me it appears I have some letters to write.”

Princess Celestia watched as her sister gave one last smile and turned towards the door, but as she watched her leave, she couldn't help but sigh again, even if it was only a mental one, as she realized the lack of sleep her sister’s night suddenly promised…

…

Part two chapter 5-10

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(Chapter 5)

It wasn't long before Princess Luna found her way back to her sister’s royal bedchambers, and as the younger Alicorn drew closer to a large oakwood door, the long empty hallway she left behind began to fill with soft echoes as steel covered hooves lightly met the polished white marble lining the floor.

Just as one of those hooves reached out for a looping bronze handle, a crack of light caught her emerald blue eye; one that couldn’t help but make the Alicorn freeze for a second before the faintest of grins began to pull at the side of her muzzle.

Now, Princess Luna was many things. She was an Alicorn, a princess and equal ruler of Equestria, and so, the basis that all her subjects strive to be. But, despite being all of those things, the small sliver of light also proved that, in her heart, Princess Luna was still just a younger sister…

Softening her hoof steps, the royal Alicorn couldn’t help but arch her back as she began to creep with a catlike prowl towards her sister’s door. All the while she made doubly sure to avoid a small gored hole in the door-frame. The gored hole served as a testament to the last time the impulse drove her to try and peek into her sisters room…. though the less she’d ever have to say about that day the better.

Craning her neck, she pressed the side of her face to the crack of light, hoping to peek inside the room before her presence was betrayed. She moved her head slowly, and as she did her eye found a vacant interest in a few things that it passed over in search for her older sibling; a table covered in various parchments and disposed quills, the floor which was littered with discarded snack wrappers, and her sister’s bed- which was, as usual, all but covered with discarded clothing.

The state of the bed made Luna release a silent scoff. In all the time since her return she’d never seen Celestia wear anything but that same old, tired, tiara and golden necklace that she had worn when they both first assumed Equestrian’s throne. And yet, despite this fact, Celestia’s bed always seemed to be covered in discarded clothing.

‘Surely, she couldn’t possibly have worn the same thing every day for the last thousand years, could she?’

Shifting her head one last time, Luna caught the glint of what she was searching for; a quill held in the air by a soft golden glow… Followed by a large pink eye staring right back at her…

“Hello sister.” a soft called from inside the room, and once again with a small thump Princess Luna found herself pulling her horn from a new hole in the door-frame.

The wood gave a soft, groaning crack as the horn was pulled free, and Luna gently pushed the door open and stepped inside with a nod and as much dignity as she could muster.

“Sister”

The older alicorn just gave her younger sister a knowing smile as she adjusted her perch on a large silk cushion; a cup of tea was settled on a table next to her, and as she moved the cup to her lips a small a small wisp of smoke left with a flash of gold and left the room.

Luna’s muzzle twitched back as the wisp of smoke twirled lazily in the air and past her chin before heading out through the window, leaving the younger Alicorn to stare at her sister with a puzzled expression.

Celestia seemed to ignore the glance. Instead she lowered her now empty teacup and let a knowing smirk spread across her own muzzle “Thank you for not destroying this door LuLu,” she said, her voice holding a slight mirth to it, “The staff ponies did a magnificent job on it, and in such a short time too… How long do you suppose it would take them to replace the wardrobe if I were to… drop it?”

With that last question Luna could almost hear the nerve twang in her head and she covered her older sister in a cold glare.

“Sister!” She snapped “How can you sit there so calm? Doom could be clawing at our door as we speak and you’re sat there making jokes!”

Luna kept her sister held within the cold glare, but as she looked on the anger she felt slowly faded away into confusion when she only found her older sister looking back at her with the same calm expression she always wore. And that confusion only grew when the white Alicorn looked straight into her eye and spoke a single word.

“Strawberries”

“Excuse me?” was really all Luna could offer as a reply

Celestia let out another long sigh and took another sip of tea. “I have been playing this game for over a thousand years, sister… and in that time I have learnt that if you can only look at these things with the utmost seriousness it will drive you to eat your own mane… incidentally mine tastes like strawberries.”

Luna stared into her sisters deep, pink, eyes and when she couldn’t find any ounce of sarcasm, or mirth, in Celestial’s voice she scrunched her muzzle and covered her older sister in a contemplating frown.

“How long?”

“Twenty seven years” was Celestia's instantaneous reply “And I had to wear a wig for three years afterwards.”

Celestia let the seriousness fall from her face, and gave her sister a gentle smile. But, Instead of finding a look of amusement, or even a look annoyance like she was expecting, her mirthful glace was returned by one that seemed almost grave.

“So” Luna started, her tone matching her glare “Now I learn the true pain of my banishment” a sad twinge filled her voice “I never got to see you in such a state during the years I was gone.”

“Now Luna, I’ve already apologised for that five hundred times” Celestia shot in, a twinge of panic seeping into her own throat.

“I remember no such apologies” Luna chided as she turned her head away in an overly dramatic fashion “All I remember is the day you were convinced that you were destined for a cutie mark in mane styling… and the school day that followed after you tried earning it.”

Luna gave a soft shudder, one that couldn’t help but make her older sister let out a soft giggle.

“Well,” Celestia interrupted with a soft, cooing tone “it seems you have at least learned to lighten up a little…” then she offered her sister another warm smile before it twisted, once again, into a sly smirk “Now shoo please, I have more letters to write.”

Luna scrunched her nose again “I see no letters,” She announced with a haughty, if not confused air in her voice “All I saw was you playing with smoke.”

“No LuLu,” Celestia shook her head softly “I have written over seven letters and sent them on their way with a spell. You caught me sending letter number eight.” She paused so she could cast her sister another smirk “I, for one, prefer a subtle and light touch…While you have undoubtedly been busy scrambling every pony in your night guard.”

“I like to scramble the ponies…”Luna mumbled with a flushed face. One she quickly tried to distract from with another question “but tell me, what it this spell you spoke of earlier?”

“Just something I picked up from having young Spike around.” Celestia answered, and once again Luna found an eyebrow drawn towards her mane.

“Young Spike?”

Celestia’s paused as her eyes filled with a glint of nostalgia, “You know? My faithful students little dragon assistant…”

For a moment Luna raised an eyebrow again, before her own eyes filled with realization. “Oh yes… Pray tell, how did she manage to tame a dragon? I wished to ask her before, but I felt it would be an inappropriate question to ask.” This time her tone was genuinely curious, which made it all the more annoying to her when Celestia just shrugged the question off.

“That’s another story, but the short version is; when she was a foal my student had to hatch a dragon egg as an entrance exam to the school for gifted unicorns.”

“That sounds a little strange…” Luna commented, hoping her narrowed eyes would be seen as a sign of curiosity rather than annoyance.

“That it was.” Celetia agreed with a swift nod “I didn’t know it at the time but the school board did not care for young Twilight’s, as you would say ‘Commoner background’ so they set up a task they thought Impossible as her entrance exam.”

Strangely Luna couldn't help notice an almost sour tone seep into her sister voice as she told her tale. And the presence of that uncharacteristic tone ensured that what Luna though was a jab at her went unacknowledged. Instead the younger alicorn raised a hoof to her chin and let out a thoughtful hum.

“And hatching the egg earned her a place there?” Luna asked with half-hearted curiosity.

“No” Celestia replied sharply, “When she hatched the egg she earned the annoyance of the school board. When the dragon suddenly grew to adult size and she inadvertently turned those stuck up snobs into potted plants I took her as my personal student”

A genuine smile spread across Celestia's face, but just as soon as it came the smile was replaced by a solemn frown

“Then I learned the truth so I dismissed the board and let Twilight take Spike under her care.”

When she heard that, Luna narrowed her eyes at her older sister. “And you thought that was wise?” she asked in a tone that all but left a bitter taste on her tongue “To leave a dragon of all things in the care of a filly?”

“No, I didn’t” Celestia admitted then met her sister’s narrowed eyes with her own “but I also couldn’t bear to simply cast the baby dragon aside. Not merely because of their kinds’ reputation alone… and seeing as Twilight would have to move into the castle with me anyway I permitted her to keep him.”

When she finished her tale Celestia couldn’t help the warm smile that spread across her face, and it was a smile that Luna couldn’t help but wear as well.

“And the entertainment that having a young dragon in the castle would bring had absolutely nothing to do with it I trust?” The younger sister asked with a roll of her eyes.

“That was merely a bonus,” Celestia admitted as her smiled widened a little “But it was never even close to the true reason. And in all the time he was here I was never sorry I let him stay.” Celestia’s words died and one of her hooves move to rub a suspicious looking spot on her left forelimb, “Admittedly there were… difficulties that had to be overcome… but overcome they were and he and Twilight are almost like siblings now…”

“Difficulties like his latest birthday?” Luna asked, before she shrank back when her sister shot her a look.

“And how would you know about that?” Celestia asked with a slow… but falsely dangerous tone.

“It is no fault of mine that you journal just happened to fall open to a page which mentioned Spikes latest birthday.” Luna offered Celestia her best innocent smile. Though the slight undertone of smugness it held seemed to be something Celestia could pick up on so Luna quickly added “Is it really true that the mayor wishes to take certain ‘precautions’ on the date of his next birthday.”

“It is.” Celestia confirmed as a slight glint Luna couldn’t place touched her eye. “Though I’ve already stated that such things would not be necessary

“But, to answer your earlier question, sister; Young Spike’s ability to send and receive letters developed with my aid. When he was a little older I enchanted his dragon flame so that I could send messages to Twilight…” Celestia turned her eyes away with a quiet grumble “and when he suffered his first cold I discovered that the spell worked both ways”

Luna smiled “Let me guess- you got a face full of boiling soup?”

“Lukewarm soup” Celestia corrected as her lips held the ghost of a smile “Dragons wallow in molten rock to groom themselves, yet for some reason Twilight always blew on his food before she gave it to him…”

Luna smiled again, “And would you care to share some of these stories with me?”

“Of course,” Celestia all but sang as she gestured for her younger sister to sit next to her. “I can do that while I write young Twilight her letter.”

……….. (A few minutes later)

“And when he discovered his taste for gems he started chasing the nobles around the castle…”Celestia laughed, pausing her story only so she could take in a small gasp of air and wipe away a tear from her eye “I still can’t help but smile whenever I picture him plodding after that one poor mare, shouting ‘Num nums’…”

Luna couldn't help but feel a smile tug at her own lips, but soon enough something clicked in her mind, “Num nums?”She dared to repeat.

“It was Spikes first word” Celestia clarified with a dismissive wave of a hoof “You see his forked tongue meant that it took longer than it would for a foal to learn to speak and ‘num num’ was his word for food.” Her smile grew a little wider “The mare probably thought he meant he wanted to eat her. The look on her face when he caught up to her but took and ate her broach was priceless! Poor thing didn't know if she should be relieved or enraged. ”

Now Luna couldn't help but become infected with the mirth that now all but held her sister, and she was almost fighting back tears while she tried to utter her next question

“So you just send these letters through his dragon flame and he passes them onto Twilight?” Luna asked when the laughter finally subsided, which earned another nod from Celestia. “And you don’t think it is a little early to send him such letters seeing as you will meet them at noon?”

“Are you kidding LuLu? Young Spike is always delighted to help his ‘big sister’”

…

(Chapter 6)

Under the silvery glint of a thin sliver of moonlight a small purple and green dragon let out a groan as a claw began to haphazardly scrape at a thin layer of sleep that clung to his eyes. When he was finally able to pry them open, the tired orbs found themselves aimed straight at the nearest window, and the sight they found only made him let out another groan.

“Ohhh, come on, the sun’s not even up! She could have waited until I have to be up anyway but noooo.”

As it happens, Celestia wasn't the only one who was blessed with pleasant dreams that night. And nor was hers the only dream that was interrupted just as the best bit was about to roll around. And, as he tried to shake the fog out of his head, the little dragon could only shoot a defiant look at the letter that dared interrupt his sleep, as he idly considering simply throwing it away and burying his head back under his warm blanket.

He made a point to fix the offending piece of parchment with harsh eyes as he pictured it flying through the air. It wasn’t early enough for him to forget it was a wasted gesture, but it made him feel better and that’s what counts.

But, in the end, Spike knew Celestia never sent a frivolous letter- at least not this early in the morning anyway- so he gave the offending scroll one last lingering glare and a murmured warning.

“Fine, I’ll read you myself, but if you aren't important then you’re going in the desk drawer”

He found a strange solace in raking a claw through the wax seal and the satisfying rip it gave off, and then, with practised ease, Spike flicked the letter open with the other claw and gave a lazy sniff as he began to take in the words written on it.

It only took a second of reading for Spike to conclude that opening it was the right choice and his tired eyes gave the scroll one last defiant glare… and one last murmured warning.

“OK, you win this round, but don’t get cocky”

With the piece of parchment duly warned, Spike set to work on freeing himself from the warmth of his bed, but not before he muttered a silent prayer that the glare he could have sworn the scroll gave him back was only his tired mind playing a trick on him.

Unfortunately, when he set to freeing himself from the warmth of his blankets Spike found that the task soon proved to be something easier said than done. You see, all dragons have a natural aversion to the cold, and in this moment the night air might as well have been ice raking across his scales and after struggling futility against his blanket, Spike wanted nothing more than to curl up and go back to sleep.

But, on the other claw, no amount of blankets and cozy warmth could silence the little voice in his head that promised nothing but bad things if he did so Spike did the only thing that came to his mind.

“Twilight?… Twilight!?”

The call came out as nothing but a faint whisper. Truthfully, despite waking Twilight being the very idea, a small subconscious fear of waking his ‘older sister’ smothered the volume just a little bit. Spike more than knew that Twilight wasn’t technically his ‘older sister’ but the memory of what happened the last time he woke her up too early had more than convinced him that the same brother sister rules applied… suffice to say, it didn’t end well.

Eventually though, Spike’s annoyance squashed this inhibition and he called out again, and this time it came out a little louder and was punctuated with a sharp tug of Twilights overhanging bed sheet.

He let a moment pass then repeated the action but all that he got from both attempts was the same still silence.

Deep In the smallest, and darkest, space at the back of his mind something told Spike to just set the bed on fire and take it from there…and something else in there almost wanted to listen. But, in the end, the love of his older sister won out- Helped more than a little by the fact he didn't want to find out if and where she would bury him if he did- she’d threatened it once, admittedly in an indirect way, but at this moment in time he was too tired to remember if it was a joke or not and like always when it came to Twilight it was always best to play it safe.

In the end though, the answer seemed to just pop into his head and Spike slowly fumbled his way out of the basket with his blanket wrapped around himself like it was a protective shield between him and the cold; though he did find himself letting out a sharp, snake like hiss when the scales on the soles of his feet met the cold floor.

His eyes slowly creaked open again and he let them drift up the side of Twilight's bed. And when he did Spike couldn't help but let out another hiss like sigh. “It’s too early for this.”

Mustering what little strength his body would allow, Spike began his grand journey up the side of Twilight’s bed… well climbing up the side of Twilight's bed felt like a grand journey at this time in the morning and he’d dare anyone to try it without calling it something similar. But after a minute of climbing, and muttered words Twilight would probably not like to hear him say, the brave little climber peered over the top the mattress… only to find the bed was completely empty.

‘Urgh it’s going to be one of those days’.

…

A few minutes later Spike peered down the lonely hallway at the end of the library, and as he did his previous fears had all but turned into an unwanted promise.

At the very bottom of long hallways the dull glow of a burnt out lam spread out across the bare wood leading down into the libraries basement, and as soon as he spotted the orange glow, the little dragon spotted something all too familiar.

With a little more urgent spring in his step, Spike quickly trudged back up the stairs and pushed the princess’s scroll under his pillow before heading back down into the murky hallway.

As he sank deeper into the murk, Spike idly rolled his forked tongue over his teeth in a futile attempt to remove a bitter taste of damp that always seemed to hang in the air at this hour. It was one of the many quirks that made him silently question the whole ‘making a library out of a living tree’ thing. Sure it was a cool thing that it could be done at all. But, after the novelty wore off, and all the oohing and awing ponies had gone home, he was the one who had to deal with the little differences the building had because of it.

Just like he expected, Spike found a patch of purple held within the orange glow that filled the basement walls. She was sat at a small desk in the murky darkness, with nothing but a small oil lamp seeping a faint yellow glow outward to catch her eyes and the edge of her horn. And the longer he stared at the scene the louder a number of warning bells chimed within Spikes scaled head.

The first bell started ringing when his eyes spotted the papers which all but covered the floor. The second bell was the steadily growing pool of ink oozing from the ink vial lying on its side. But the loudest bell sounded when he caught a glimpse of Twilight herself.

A craggy and unkempt mane hung limply over a sunken face. Her fur was matted and bloodshot eyes sat under heavy purple bags that almost seemed to hang down over her cheeks. The bloodshot orbs shone with a dim, almost manic edge when they caught and eerie glow given off by her horn.

At first, Spike just stood there like a cornered rabbit as he took in the scene. Then silently he wondered if he should just turn around and go back to bed or if he dared to ‘poke the sleeping dragon’ as it were. The irony of it made him let out a soft chuckle.

Unfortunately, instead of venting some of his growing nervousness, all the weak chuckle did was betray Spike’s presence, and the dragon almost choked on his breath as the two bloodshot eyes darted his way and bored straight into his own.

Despite himself, Spike couldn’t help but shrink a little under the fierce gaze, which was made even worse by the shrill yell that followed immediately after the book Twilight ‘held’ within a purple glow swung around with her glare and collided with one of the many towers of books squatting on her desk.

“Spike!!!” the mare shrieked “You just ruined everything! What are you doing up at this hour?”

Said dragon flinched at the words, Twilights tone was just as rough as she looked, not that he would dare say that, instead he rubbed one last piece of sleep from his eye and crossed his arms.

“Err…” Spike murmured in deadpan way “you woke me up with whatever you are doing… Just what you are doing?”

It was a lie, yes, but Spike thought it would be better to wait a moment before he dropped the letter on his ‘older sister’. You know, because of the manic eyes?

Said manic eyes continue to bore into the dragons deep, slit, purples, even If her face did soften a little- in fact the mare looked at him as if he’d just asked the most obvious question in the world.

“My Studies Spike,” Twilight asserted while matching the same deadpan tone “What do you think I’m doing?”

“Well from the noise you were making it sounded like you’re trying to fight the books not read them” Spike paused for just a second to silently appreciate what he thought was ‘witty comedic gold’ before something in his head clicked. “Wait, Twilight, you’re still studying?”

“Of course I am Spike” the unicorn was quick to shoot back “I can’t stop when I’m so close to learning something”

‘Yep, definitely a good thing I didn’t just jump in’ Spike mentally confirmed with a quiet shudder.

“But you did get some sleep right?” he asked in a hopeful, if not deeply sceptical tone; a hope that died completely when Twilight's hoof met the back of her head and she rubbed sheepishly at her fur.

“Well…”

All the dragon could do was let out a long suffering groan, before he tried to muster his best ‘lecturing’ tone- something born from all the times he had been on the receiving end of one.

“You have to stop this Twilight. I can let the odd all-nighter slide but I’m not convinced you have moved from that desk in two days”

Spike’s grievance with the unicorn was a legitimate one. She had planted herself in that spot two days ago in the hopes of categorizing her friendship reports in order of ‘how important the lesson was’ and, needless to say, trying to categories an abstract and all around relative thing like ‘friendship’ would have given her trouble even if she hadn't then gotten the idea it would mean playing favourites between her friends.

But, much to Spike’s annoyance, Instead of the guilty expression he was hoping for a bemused grin spread across Twilight's face, and what she said next only served to make his previous irritation return with gusto.

“I think you’re forgetting who the baby of the house is, my little assistant”

Unlike his own attempt, Twilight's little jab got the reaction she was aiming for and she donned a smug grin when her assistant gave a pout, one complete with a tiny speck of smoke that left his nostrils- something that she’d always thought was adorable’

“Hey I may be a baby dragon” Spike snapped back with ‘pure draconic fury’ “but I’m only six years younger than you, remember?” and his words were followed by another pout as he stamped one of his small clawed feet on the floor… making nothing but a soft thud was given for his trouble.

When she saw the reaction she wanted, Twilight's bemused grin twisted into a malevolent one as she couldn't help but push a little more “Aw is little Spiky getting all cranky, does baby needs his beddy-by? I promise not to disturb him again”.

Her ‘baby voice’ hit its mark and she had to hold back a giggle when he shot her a look of pure venom and hissed in a tone he hoped the unicorn couldn't hear then he pointed to a nearby mirror
“I’m not the one who looks like they need ‘beddy-by’” the dragon hissed again in the most condescending tone he could muster.

Twilights bloodshot eyes followed Spikes claw towards the mirror, and when they did it took a moment for the mare to recognize the pony staring back at her; not that she wanted too. Even when she blinked twice, the strange unicorn refused to remove itself from her reflection and her eyes moved back to the dragon that was now standing with his arms folded, his face still holding a look of pure venom.

“Point taken” she offered in a deadpanned tone “OK, ok, don’t get your scales in a bunch, Spike. As soon as I finish up I will go to sleep.”

“Oh no you don’t” the dragon shot back raising a claw, and before he finished the dragon began to walk around towards the table.

Twilight watched intently as the dragon stopped at the desk and began to rummage through the littered pile of scrolls.

“Spike what you are doing? I’d just started sorting those again” Twilight snorted, but the dragon continued his rummaging though he spoke without even looking up at her.

“Twilight, you remember what happened the last time you let yourself get worked up like this.” The dragon answered. It was more a statement then a question and it caused her hooves to wave dismissively while she shook her head.

Twilight’s eyes shot open as she realized where he was going with this. “Its fine Spike… I’m fine, see?” she stuttered while gesturing to herself with a hoof.

The gesture proved to be an impotent one, and Spike plucked a single scroll from the jumble, and as he did, Twilights face changed to hold a look of confusion as her assistant gave a shrug and threw the scroll over his shoulder before looking through a loose group of them that lay on the floor.

For just a moment, Twilights anxiety melted into an annoyed scowl “Spike!” she said in a scolding tone “what are you doing, and what have I told you about making a mess?”

Spike slowly pulled a quill and sheet of parchment from the assorted, and yet strangely organized, pile.

“First,” he quipped in a hardened tone “I’m the dragon who has to clean it up” then his tone softened “But I’m skipping ahead Twilight. I remember what happened last time you got like this so I’m going to give the princess a heads up in case you do something crazy.”

The dragons’ words made the unicorn’s ear twitch and Spike had only half a second to jump to the side as a purple blur leaped towards him.

He couldn't help but cringe as his ‘older sister’ bounced off the nearby bookshelf and straight into the wall behind him, but the collision didn't seem to slow her down at all seeing as she bounced back onto her hooves almost like her head was made of rubber.

As soon as she was on her hooves again, the mare turned back to her assistant with an almost desperate tone, and her plea to not send it would have been followed by another leap, but she stopped when she saw Spike rolling up the now finished scroll.

The dragon’s slit pupils locked with panicked ones but Instead of leaping at him again, the mare started to creep forwards with a posture like that of a prowling cat.

As she crept further towards him, Spike moved his feet slightly apart in a way that he hoped mimicked the way Rainbowdash did if she was about to confront some huge dragon. Again the irony wasn’t lost on him…, and as the purple mare approached, the dragon let the parchment sway slightly from left to right in an almost taunting manner.

Twilight’s eyes followed the scroll diligently as it swayed from left to right and she crept ever closer and she was just about to pounce Spike inhaled deeply and held the scroll in front of his mouth and the mare froze on the spot.

“Spike” she warned “just put the scroll down and everything will be ok”

Admittedly, her words might have actually worked if she hadn't raked them out of her throat... or been moving closer when she said it. But she did and instead of lowering the scroll even an inch, Spike inhaled once more and brought it closer to his mouth, his eyes silently daring Twilight to take another step.

“Spike, I promise, I’m fine… “Twilight asserted one last time. To emphasise her point she waved a hoof in front of herself again. The limb passed in front of a pair of bloodshot eyes, unkempt mane and strained, crooked grin. “See, fine”

The mouth of the dragon slowly closed, but the scroll didn’t move an inch from his face “That’s what you said last time Twilight” he said cautiously.

“Yes but this time I am ok” Twilight asserted again as she took another step forward.

Spike flinched and sucked in another deep, warning, breath.

“Spike,” Twilight warned in return with a harsher tone “the princess won’t thank you if you disturb her royal duties for no good reason.”

Spike scoffed “better than her being annoyed at me for letting you brainwash half the town again, Twilight”

“Spike I won’t ask again. Please. Give. Me. th….”

“No Twilight” Spike snapped suddenly, the force of it made Twilight flinch back “I know there’s something wrong with you, because you’ve forgotten that you could have just taken this” he paused to wave the scroll in front of Twilight’s face “with your magic after throwing me aside like a sack of…”

Spike didn't get to finish what he was saying. Instead the dragon was only able to let out a startled yelp as his limbs snapped rigidly to his sides, leaving him, and the parchment, to float stock still in the air. And when he tried to say something but also found that his teeth were stuck together, Spike did the only thing he could think to do and glared at the unicorn who smiled manically at the scroll suspended in front of her face.

A moment passed and a bloodshot eye twitched over to his, giving both of them meeting for a fraction of a second. But that fraction seemed to be more than enough as the smile Twilight held slowly fell away and Spike gave another yelp as the glow around him went away with a loud pop.

Letting out another grown Spike rubbed an aching spot on his tail before climbing back to his feet.

“Maybe you’re right Spike” he heard Twilight confess with a sigh, “… but first let me just take care of this!”

Spike looked back up to see that the creepy smile on Twilights face had grown all the way to her ears as she took hold off the scroll with her teeth and began to rip it up like a dog, leaving little shreds to float through the air before settling on the floor.

Spike just kept staring, and a moment later Twilight’s eyes flicked back to his. They stayed locked there for a second before they broke away and lingered on the scraps of paper that littered the floor.

“OK Spike, you win,” Twilight said with an embarrassed sigh “Just let me just help clean up this mess then I’ll go to bed”

“Its fine Twilight” Spike answered “I can handle it, you go to sleep”

Spike never was one to be humble in victory ‘not against Twilight anyway’ so when she gave a nod of agreement and started plodding her way towards the stairs he felt like he was on a roll so he couldn't help but slip one last comment in

“I don’t even know why you let yourself get worked up like this, Twilight. The princess already said you only have to write her a report about friendship when you learn something new”

Unfortunate, the feeling that he was on a roll all but fell away and a chill shot up his spines as Twilight stopped dead in her tracks and flicked her head around suddenly as her eyes filled with a pleading twinkle.

“But that’s just it Spike” she said in a tone that matched the pleading look she was giving him “if I leave it to long the princess might think I’m not looking hard enough and that I’m not worthy to be her student and…”

Spike’s claw met his face hard enough to loosen a couple scales “I’m not even going to bother Twilight” the claw left his brow and moved to point at the unicorn’s bed once more. “Please, just go sleep now you can freak out in the morning.”

As Twilight disappeared up the stairs, the warm feeling of victory returned to the dragon, and Spike couldn't help but let yet one more comment slip just before he snapped his claws over his mouth “You should be happy Twilight you only ever seem to learn a lesson about friendship when some big disaster is about to happen...or has already happened”

Spikes eyes snapped closed as he waited for Twilight to come barrelling down the stairs to offer a retort, but fortunately it seemed Spike had been blessed with his first bit of good luck that morning when no sound at all came from the hallway.

Maybe Twilight didn't hear him, or maybe she just ignored the comment, either way Spike didn’t really care. And, instead of pushing his luck any further, the dragon simply turned away and started walking toward his own bed while wearing a sly grin on his face.

Taking a final step towards the covers, he stopped to twirl a small roll of parchment in one of his claws, the same one Twilight thought she shredded’ and as he did his triumphant grin almost reaching his Spines.

He gave it one last triumphant twirl before it disappeared in a puff of green flame.

“And that’s why they call us the wisest of all creatures.”

…

(Chapter 7)

Back within the cold gloom of a shallow cave, Zuko leant towards the edge of a small, flickering fire pit. The dying flames offered a welcome touch of warmth that stretched over his face like a blanket and served as a much needed shield against the damp cold that bit at the back of his neck as tired eyes continued to bore down at the Air-benders tome nesting awkwardly in his lap.

At first, the weight of the journal had offered Zuko an odd sense of comfort, but as the night droned on and one hour had bled into another the hope of finding even the single glimpse of a clue within its pages had begun to fade and die. Now that hope was no brighter than the last of the embers that lingered in the fire pit, and his tired eyes only offered him a final dull sting as the cold gloom of the cave was slowly peeled away by the mornings light.

Letting out a tired sigh, Zuko brought a hand from the book and towards his face, hoping he could at least rub the ache away from the weary orbs, but the limb didn't even make it past his nose before it quickly snapped back down again as a sudden gust of wind seemed to take hold of the tome and threatened to rip it from his lap like the clawed hand of an angry specter.

With a soft, fading moan, the winds icy fingers seemed to fall away from the tomes old, dry pages and began to snake their way further into the cave. Tired eyes couldn’t help but follow a group of dimly glowing embers as they were carried into the air by its icy grasp and were left to float and dance within the caves lingering gloom.

One of the embers gave a final, defiant twirl as it slowly began drifting its way back to the floor… and when it wandered into a glassy stare and touched the surface of a milky white eye, Zuko felt a cold shudder rise within him as Toph let out a shudder snore and rubbed lazily at the offending spec.

Peeling his attention away, Zuko settled his own eyes back down and began glaring at the old dry parchment, hoping he could at least glean a few words though the layer of dirt that stained the lettering. Unfortunately though, the action only confirmed that nothing more than a handful of them were at all legible, and Zuko brought the books covers together again with a tired sigh.

For a moment he just let his gaze rest on the tomes cover and ran a finger over the cracked, dry animal hide as idle thought made him wonder why an Air nomad would own such a thing. But then that moment passed and he pulled back the cover again, though this time it was the rear one.

He didn’t know if it was a product of his tired mind, or just blind hope, but he figured that if the diary was in that room in the first place then the writer had to have made it back at some point, and if he had any amount of luck at all then she would have written about how she did it. Sadly though, that hopeful thought had soon withered along with the rest, and after flipping back the twenty fourth page, Zuko was all but ready to throw the thing in the fire pit.

A hand pulled back, and just as he was about to shoot forward, Zuko felt something brush against the back of his collar. In the moment his tired mind brought about images of an intruder and his eyes snapped around after them, but when he did the aching orbs found only the same empty gloom as before.

Slowly, annoyance gave way to curiosity and Zuko let his eyes wander around the cave. They reached out from one cave wall to the other before something in Zuko’s his mind twigged and he lowered them to the floor, and as soon as he did all the anger they held seemed to all but fade away.

Lying on the ground just behind him was a loosely folded piece of parchment… and when his hand reached out and opened it the anger that was once in his eyes gave way to a soft twinkle.

It was a map… admittedly It was crude to the point of appearing like it was drawn by someone with a broken hand, but Zuko couldn’t help but almost feel his lips curl back into a faint smile. The page it sat on seemed to be barely marred at all by dust, and despite its obvious crudeness, it looked like it had been touched up periodically, and each time with an ever more steady hand as details were added layer after layer while several other parts were scratched out.

Instantly, Zuko felt his eyes drawn to the most detailed part of the illustration, and when he did he couldn’t help but let his cracked lips curl back into the ghost of a weak smile. The words, ‘way home’ were scratched above a small X and desperate the small part of him that tried to crush the new embers of hope, the crude little drawing gave Zuko one thing at least, another addition to his list of short term goals.

When he was traveling on his own, Zuko had learned a phrase that had served him very well. That phrase was ‘you can last three minutes without air, three days without water, and three weeks without food, and a wise man never reaches out for one so far that they lose their grasp on the others.’

Based on this, Zuko’s current lists of goals were- one, find water. Two, find food, and now, thanks to this little scratching, find a map that he can compare to the one in this book…

With a cautious hand, Zuko pulled a loose piece of parchment free of the leather bag, folded it, and placed it over the page that held the map. It wasn't much, but it was a path to follow at least, and as he stared into the caves last lingering patch of darkness he was already thinking about something that just mightn’t fulfil all of those goals.

At one point in the night, the weight of Zuko’s eyelids had pushed him out into the cold night air, hoping the cold would lighten them even if it was a little bit. And while that hope proved to be a hollow one, a small collection of lights, dotting across the desert sands, had almost made him smile when he first saw them, because, like a light in the darkness, they offered the promise of something to follow.

There was a town down there, and the sooner he found it the sooner he would find out where he was and the sooner he could get back.

Rising to his feet and with a sudden lightness to his heels, Zuko began walking towards the mouth of the cave. But just as his shoe met the dirt in its third step the cave’s gloom rang with a deep snore. The sound of it made him freeze and, with a sudden twitch, his eyes flicked around to meet a familiar glassy stare that reached out to him from a pair of milky white eyes.

With a tired sigh, Zuko let himself fall back against the cave wall as another snore filled the cave. For a second he’d almost forgot the Earth-bender was even there, and with another tired sigh he let his eyes drift back into the last lingering patch of darkness that clung to the caves deepest wall.

If he was being completely honest, Zuko would have to admit that, in that moment at least, the thought of waking her with a sharp ‘tap’ in the ribs had crossed his mind, but in the end he decided against it- if only for the difference of what he would call a tap, and the ‘tap’ she would probably give in return.

So, after resigning himself to wait, Zuko let his mind wander as the dank cold began to seep back into his eyes. Just like the night before, the loose moss which littered the cave wall seemed to take on shapes and forms as they were sculpted by his tired mind. And despite how random the images always seemed to start as, once again Zuko found himself looking at an image he couldn’t bare think about for long; Aang standing in front of the Firelord… his father.

Letting out a sigh Zuko lowered his eyes away from the cave wall. Honestly, in more than one of his quietist moments since joining Aang he’s wondered if it was the right thing to do. Every time he thought about it, he couldn’t help but scoff at the eerie familiarity of it all and worse, he couldn’t help but feel a twinge of worry whenever he pictured what would happen when that kid stands in front of his father… just like he had and more than once he couldn’t help but let out a silent scoff at the bitter irony of it all.

The final, driving thing that steered him into to joining the avatar and his group was the memory of his father forcing him, a thirteen year old child, to fight a fire duel, and how he’d coldly defended the action when he’d been questioned on it…. Yet, Zuko had to wonder if that wasn’t exactly what the world, and him by extension, were expecting Aang too do.

Ever since the day he was banished the look in his father’s face was forever burned into Zuko’s left eye, and every time the thought crossed his mind, he couldn’t help but picture Aang having a similar moment’s hesitation, one brought on by all that ‘goodie, goodie propaganda’ the monks force-fed him… and a moment is all it would take….

Zuko let out another sigh as a hand found itself rubbing at a different ache that dwelled behind his eyes. In that moment the cold morning wind seemed to carry Ozi’s voice as the memory of the ellipse passed through his mind yet again. The tone it held as he decried the fact his own son wasn’t going to kill him, himself…

Despite the fact it was always unwelcome, the thought always made Zuko utter something with an airless, silent murmur…‘He almost sounded disappointed…’ And In the quiet and the gloom Zuko couldn’t help but wonder if he made the right choice on the day of the eclipse or if should have finished the Firelord off himself and been done with it….

It seemed so simple to him back then, and the same thought process that had been going through his mind as he walked away passed through his mind again. Taking down his father would have only opened up a power vacuum that would rip the fire nation apart as every possible heir to the throne fought among themselves… or allow his sister to just swoop in and snatch the throne for herself… he honestly didn't know which would be worse.

But now that he thought about it from the other side, Zuko couldn’t help but wonder if that would have been the better option than praying that some twelve year old kid had it in him to do what he had the chance to do so easily but didn’t. Just like a coward would. … Just like what his father accused him of being.

Zuko let his hand fall away as he pushed the thoughts away. In the end, no matter what happened he at least had to try, even if it was only so he could throw himself at his uncle’s feet and beg for his forgiveness. And that thought alone was enough to make him stand up and gather the book and scrolls back into the bag.

Giving a quick glance over his shoulder at Toph, Zuko began wondering what best way he could wake the girl up. The same thought of a gentle tap crossed his mind again, and was quickly pushed aside for the same reason as before.

Instead, Zuko did the next best thing that he could think of… and he picked up a handful of pebbles and began flicking them at the earthbender one by one.

The first two pebbles didn't do anything but bring out a deeper snort from the girl, and the third bounced of her shoulder and caused a hand to flick into the air lazily before it lowered itself to scratch her stomach in a rather undignified way.

Zuko’s face soured at the sight and his hand flicked around suddenly, the remaining pebbles were flung into the air all at once and the whole lot of them found their mark and bounced off the girls head and he flinched back as a hand twitched up towards her nose and instead found a glassy grey eye.

Toph let out a hiss as she jolted up into a wilted sitting position. “Sokka?” she hissed again, half-heartedly as she continued to rub at her face.

Zuko didn’t offer answer; instead he turned away and moved towards the pile of effects he’d stacked along the cave wall.

“Zuko?” Toph called to him as she lowered herself back on her side. “Urgh, what time is it?”

“Suns just come up” Zuko answered, matter of fact “and we have to get moving”

Zuko reached out to where his swords leaned up against the cave wall and placed them within in the leather bag so the handles were left just sticking out the end. With that done he turned on a heel and began walking towards the sunlight.

As he passed Toph let out a tired murmur as she pushed herself back into a wilted sitting position, “Yea, Yea, fire lord, I got you…” she muttered again.

“No…” was all Zuko said in the same cold matter of fact. And he let the word hang in the air.

“Oh?” Toph answered with a surprised voice, then her expression sank as something seemed to click “Oh…so, the thing with the fountain really happened?”

Zuko could help but notice that was more of a statement then a question, so he replied with a simple and solemn “Yes…But there is some good news.” He continued with a slightly lighter tone “I was looking outside last night and I think there’s a town out there somewhere.”

“Is that it?” Toph asked with a hard, but almost fragile voce.

“No” Zuko continued, “I think I’m on to something. I just need to find a map and we can get out of here.”

“Yea” Toph replied with a weak scoff, which then turned into a weak laugh “and it will be as simple as walking down there to find it invaded by flying shrimp.”

Zuko went quiet as the words seemed to strike a nerve, but what Toph thought was his reaction to something he didn’t understand was in fact brought on by a memory. A memory of what the air bender had wrote.

“Sorry,” Toph interrupted obliviously, “I just thought I should say something Sokka would say”

Zuko slowly raised his only eyebrow and he couldn't help but ask the question- even if he didn't really care about the answer. “That’s something Sokka would say?”

Toph let out another weak laugh, “Actually, he said ‘killer shrimp’. When we got into Ba-Sing-Se he said that it was too easy. To be fair he was kind of right. But, you know, there were no shrimp. Just brainwashing, evil Earthbenders… and your sister…”

“Yea, well,” Zuko replied without thinking “whatever is in that town can’t be worse than that, right?”

For his inattention, or his attempt at humour, Zuko suddenly found himself rubbing a new sore spot on his arm as Toph let out a snort.

“You just had to say that didn't you?”

…

A few moments later, Toph and Zuko stepped the suns light, only to step back again when a sharp and bitter wind seemed to cut down into to their bones. And a moment seemed to pass before they let out a tired hiss and both stepped out, with gritted teeth, back into the sunlight.

As she left the cave Toph felt a sudden, and odd, urge to scrunch her blind eyes closed as a warm glow met her face, but the action was something that went unknown to Zuko as he continued outwards into the sun before he stopped at a sharp drop just at the mountains face to glare at the valley below.

After a moment, Zuko dragged his eyes up and over the horizon, stopping at a faint speck on the distance “Towns that way I think…” he said with a distant tone.

“You think?” ‘Toph asked bitterly.

“Fine…”Zuko scoffed “The town’s that way” he repeated with a pointed finger before he paused and looked back down into the valley “But the first problem is, how we are going to get down?”

Toph let a moment pass before she let out an amused huff of air and knocked Zuko to the side. Lifting her hands above her head she slammed them down to her sides while her knees bent halfway. When she did the ground below let out a loud groan as the side of the mountain crumbled away into the head of a long, snaking, staircase.

Toph wore a sly smile as she turned around and crossed her arms mockingly, silently waiting for a sarcastic remark. None came; instead Zuko simply walked passed her and the sound of his feet hitting the stone steps almost spoke to her as loudly as the silence.

The others really weren't there, she wasn't ignoring it until now, in truth she didn’t have too because up until this moment it just didn’t seem real to her and when that fact finally sank in Zuko noticed that Toph had started walking with a hand over her eyes, though he merely thought the wind was getting in them….

Silence seemed to hang over them as they made their way down the steps and when they finally reached the bottom of the mountain the coarse sand they found got different reactions from Toph and Zuko.

While Zuko was almost enjoying the loss of the wind and added glare of the sun, Toph could only trudge on as memories of the first time she was lost in a desert drifted through her mind-none of them pleasant ones. Worse still was the fact she didn't even have the others with her this time.

Zuko meanwhile wasn't ignorant to his partners change of demeanour; in fact a part of his mind kept chastising him for not saying anything to help, but really what could he say? And if there was something he could offer as comfort, it was doing a damn good job eluding him.

Their silent trudge continued, and the almost deathly weight of it left them with only their own thoughts for company, but, as if to provide the final touch to their misery, just as they reached the crest of one of the barren dunes Zuko spotted something he was dreading, the glint of waves and sound of water…

‘The river’ he thought

Taking a long moment to look out across the much larger expanse of water, Zuko couldn’t help but wonder just how he was going to get across. Then he had an idea; well it was a hope more than anything and he put a foot onto the water… and ended up knee deep in the river.

‘So much for that…’ he thought bitterly.

After pulling his foot back onto the sand, Zuko let out a sigh as he shook off the icy damp that soaked down to his bone. After let out another sigh he took a quick glance back over his shoulder at Toph.

The Earthbender was sat at the water’s edge, her knees were up against her chest as her head leant into her arms.

For a long moment Zuko fought with himself to say something, but in the end “We've got to cross.” was all he could manage.

As he tried to ponder her reaction, or lack there off in this case, Zuko couldn't help but ponder something. Was Toph’s seemingly complete lack of body language because she was born blind, or was it because she is just that kind of person? If she really could ‘see’ with earthbending did she just chose not to use body language herself, or did he just not know what she meant by ‘see’?

For a brief second, he wondered if it would be like him trying to explain to her what colour was… but after that second passed that question moved aside in wake of another one….If Toph was born blind then how and why does she do that sly smile? And how did she even know to smile at all?

After a short while Zuko’s mind began to wander again, this time though he couldn’t help but wonder what would be different if he’d been stuck with one of the others… and when he did his thoughts slowly grew more and more bitter…

As Zuko glared out over the water, he didn’t notice as Toph moved from her seat and stood silently at the water’s edge… at least until a small earthquake knocked him onto the sand.

With a barked yell, Zuko’s head shot around in time to see Toph lift her foot off the sand before it came down again. Where it struck a wave of sand began to roll forward like a wave before solidifying across the service like a bridge which Toph stepped onto without a word.

With a silent scowl Zuko rose to his feet and began towards the land bridge, and after a few moments they both seemed to settle into a silent rhythm where they would take a few steps and pause as Toph made the bridge stretch out a little further with a stomp of her foot.

When they finally reached the other side, Zuko heard a faint sigh come from Toph, and he paused for a second to watch as she curled her toes in the new stretch of dry cracked dirt and let out a contented sigh as she did.

With a shake of his head Zuko took a glance back at the bridge, just in time to see it be worn away by the rivers current and the sight couldn’t help but make him blink.

...

…

(Chapter 8)

It was a new morning in ponyville, and just like every other morning before it, the glowing warmth of Celestia’s morning light washed over the very tips of its buildings and made each one gleam like a candle as Luna’s night gradually made way for the start of a brand new day.

Slowly, the town began to bloom under its light like the petals of a flower, and the market soon filled with the cheerful banter of ponies as each one stopped at their doorways to give a quick stretch and bask in the warm glow before they stepped out into the crisp morning air.

Like always, the morning hours slowly wound away with a leisurely ease, and each building began to stir until only one was left draped in the same stillness it held the night before.

Ever pony that passed the plate-like windows held within the bark of a tall tree passed by a set of closed, golden curtains and this remained so even as Celestia’s sun began to near its highest point in the sky. But, soon the sun rose high enough to find a crack in those curtains and its light began to seep into the stillness within it.

Still held within the warmth of her cosy bed, a small, purple unicorn began to stir weakly as a single stream of golden light washed over her face. She stirred again as a strange, shrill whine filled her ear and made it twitch, but the disturbance was soon washed away by her dreams as she tried to savour what felt like the best night sleep in a long, long time.

Suddenly a sharp pain shot through her forehead and ripped through whatever veil sleep still held over her, and Twilight’s deep purple eyes shot open- only to be snapped shut again when they met the stream of sunlight.

With a grown, aching hoofs moved to shield her eyes…but strangely their owner found a sharper ache rush through them as they pushed against something and fell back limply against the mattress.

She tried again, but her effort met the same resistance and a twinge of tired frustration causing her eyes to snap open, and this time she grit her teeth while they adjust to the light.

The second the orbs stopped burning as if they were filled with glass, Twilight shifted her eyes and let them scan for anything strange, but all she found was a the long woollen blanket laid over her.

She tried to move her hooves again and the limbs filled with another shooting ache as they strained under the sheets, but still the cloth refused to give way, and when she grew tired of struggling within in her mock straightjacket, Twilight let out a sharp groan and began to reach for her magic.

The magic began to flow through her horn but her concentration was ripped from her as another sharp pain shot through it… And just as she was about to lose her composure a voice filled her ears.

“Ah Twilight, you’re awake…” it said with a strange, almost reserved cheeriness.

Twilight cringed under the sound of the voice, it was distorted by her weariness but it still held a painful familiarity, and, after snapping her head to look off to the side, Twilight found a wide grin stretched across the face of her dragon assistant who was standing just off to the side of her bed.

With a sigh Twilight let her building frustration fade away, “Hello Spike.” She greeted evenly before her eyes slowly narrowed at the little dragon “Did you just flick my horn?”

“Maybe…”was all Spike offered as a sheepish reply, one he seemed to try covering up as he quickly pointed across the bed “Breakfast is on the table, it’s your favourite, pancakes.”

“Oh thank you” Twilight said with a warm smile and she tried to get up again, only to remember a particular annoyance and the lingering twinge in her horn didn’t feel like it was going away anytime soon. So, swallowing her pride she let out a sigh and readied herself to ask her assistant for assistance, but when she looked up at him with a shy, gaze Twilight found an almost proud look on his face, a look the unicorn had seen more than once before.

“Spike…” Twilight asked in a slow, warning tone “what have you done?”

At her question, Spike seemed to give a slight flinch, one he tried and failed to cover up, and Twilight was just about to speak again when the dragon let out a very slow and weak murmur.

“What was that?” Twilight repeated with a scolding tone

“I might’ve… sewed your blanket to the mattress…”Spike admitted with another weak mutter, all the while becoming very interested in his toes. But to the dragon’s surprise, his answer didn’t get any real reaction from Twilight, apart from a slow nod.

“Oh you did? Well that’s good to know… Did anything in particular possess you to do that?” Twilight asked with a type of eerie calm that made the dragon flinch again.

“Err”’ he murmured in a way that seemed to be stalling for time “The… Tea you got from Zacora…”

“What about it?” Twilight asked as she couldn’t help but notice a single bead of sweat run down the purple scales on Spikes neck.

“Didn't you listen to what Zecora said? It can cause sleep walking- and last night I found you trying to dissect your own raincoat…. Plus you were kind of muttering about dragon heart string and I got kind of nervous, so…here you are…”

As soon as he’d finished speaking, Spike seemed to shrink under Twilights calculating gaze, but, strangely, the flinch wasn’t born out of the discomfort that comes with telling an obvious lie. The really interesting part about the dragons story was only the bit about the Tea itself was actually a lie, and even though Twilight didn’t know this, the dragon couldn’t help but mentally pat himself on the back for having the forethought to ask Zecora if the sleeping powder he got from her had any side effects, as well as chastise himself for not sewing Twilight in her bed straight away… Honestly that would have honestly saved him a lot of hassle- and a trip down to the market later for a new jar of mustard, but the less said about that the better.

Twilight glared at her assistant as she tried to find any tells that he was lying, but little did she know that hours of faking interest in his sisters rambling had given Spike a poker face that could rival princess Celestia’s, and, when she found no other emotion on his face but embarrassment, she just gave a nod with one final warning.

“I’ll be sure to check that with her later.”

“Ok Twilight, do you want your pancakes now?” Spike asked as his voice regained it’s usually cheer, and Twilight couldn't help but smile as she looked over to the pile of food which sat waiting for her on the desk.

She stared at them longingly for another second before the smile fell from her face and she looked back towards her assistant,

“You want to let me up?” she asked with a mirthful jab

Spike offered a smile and a quick nod before jumping off the bed. Several twangs followed and the blanket began to slacken.

With a sigh of relief Twilight sat up and began to stretch the aches from her forelimbs- all the while silently noting that, in a strange way, if it wasn’t for the ache she would have thought it comfortable in an odd way.

Turning back around, Twilight found her assistant standing there with the pancakes in his claws and as she began to eat, the unicorn couldn’t help but feel her announce be washed away by the savoury sweet taste of the pancakes.

“You better not have ruined my bed Spike” she warned with a mouth still half full “How do you know how to sew anyway?”

Spike merely shrugged at the question “With all the time I spend around Rarity I was bound to pick something up”

“Right of course.”

With that said Twilight went back to her breakfast. Normally she might have given it more thought but... they were really good pancakes.

As Twilight was enjoying her food, Spike decided this would be as good a time as any to say what he needed to and he jumped off from the bed, “Oh Twilight, I almost forgot” he chirped as he walked over to his basket and Twilight’s eyes followed the young dragon as he grabbed a scroll and got back onto the bed.

“The reason I woke you up is because you got this”

With a flicker of magic the letter opened and was held in front of her eyes… before giving way for another piece of pancake. And while Twilight's eyes were fixed on the parchment, Spike lazily began to pick at a piece of thread trapped under his claws.

He worked on it for a few seconds before his patience gave way and he opted to simply chew the thread out, but when he opened his mouth he suddenly found a taste of pancakes and a twinge of pain in his snout and when his mind caught up with him he realized he was now laying on his back with a mouthful of mostly uneaten pancakes.

Letting out a pained groan, Spike clawed away the plate which was lying over his face, and when he did the dragon righted himself and was just about to say something when he found himself under a pair of all too familiar purple eyes that were, once again, lit by the same manic edge.

“What?” he asked dumbly “I didn't even sneeze on them once this time…”

His ignorance only seemed to make Twilight's stare intensify.

“What were you thinking?” the mare snapped and the sudden shout broke Spikes curious thought of how much sharper Twilight's teeth seemed to be than usual.

“So the pancakes aren't the problem?” Spike murmured as he moved his claws over his eyes to shield them from any more spit.

For just a moment the sharpness left Twilight's eyes and her voice gained a softer hum as she murmured “Actually you outdid yourself on those…” but he didn't have time to smile at the compliment because the edge was soon back “But why didn't you tell me about the letter from the princess!?”

“Err…I just did?” Spike offered dumbly as he began to back away, in that second he could swear Twilight growled at him.

“Ok then, let me rephrase that question. Why are you only telling me now after making breakfast, when the princess will be in Ponyville in just an hour to see me and my friends about something important?”

Ok that was a growl. “Because…” Spike offered quickly “you hadn’t slept in two days and when I finally… persuaded you to sleep you started sleep walking. I remember you telling me about sleepwalking once… About how you aren't supposed to wake them so I had to wait for you to stop before I could wake you… Err you know, because of the tea?”

Twilight looked like she was about the growl again, but instead she paused. She did remember telling him that and the fact her assistant remembered something she taught him almost made her annoyance melt away, almost.

Spike realized he still hadn't made the sale and was quick to continue “Don’t worry about it Twilight, I gave the others a heads up already, they should be here in about half an hour and then it’s another half an hour until the princess gets here. You still have plenty of time.” And not so quietly he added “And you have no idea how hard it is to find Pinkie pie when you actually need her for something.”

That seemed to do the trick, and when her mood simmered down Twilight couldn't help but look at the ruined pancakes with a mournful expression. This expression shifted back to Spike and she held it on her assistant for a moment.

Spike seemed to pick up on the meaning behind the look, and decided on a little payback and summoned a voice as sweet as he could muster “Sorry Twilight, no time for that now you have to get yourself ready, remember?”

From the next face Twilight pulled, Spike concluded that the mare caught onto his tone. And that suspicion was confirmed when Twilight looked up at him and said “How about a hay sandwich and I won’t tell Rarity about you misusing a needle and thread” so, after a moment of thought, he just gave a half smile that seemed to say ‘Deal’

…

One hay sandwich and one frantic morning routine later, Twilight found herself pacing near the library door, anxiously waiting for her friends.

As she passed back and forth Spikes eyes followed her short path, all the while periodically flashing back to a piece of parchment in his claws.

“So, one more time please, Spike” Twilight said as she passed the dragon one more time.

“Making the beds?”

“Check”

“Food cleared and dishes done?”

“Check”

“Table washed down?”

Spike just rolled his eyes “You did that, so, check”

“Books cleared?”

“Again you, so check”

Twilights tone grew a little meeker “Mess in the library cleared up?”

“Check, now all we have to do is waiting for the others to get here…” Spike finished and turned his eyes up from the parchment and over to the doorway.

About twelve seconds passed and Spike began tapping his foot on the porch step “Any time now…” he murmured and a few more seconds passed and he began jutting a claw up towards the porch. “And now… now… Oh come on what’s keeping them?”

Twilight raised an eyebrow at the dragon. “What?” she chimed in with an amused smile “you expect them to arrive on cue or something?”

Spike scowled up at her before throwing his hands up in the air “Fine, but I’ve done my bit so I’m going back to bed.”

Twilight gave a thankful nod to the passing dragon and continued to pace for a few minutes after he’d left. After a few more minutes passed, she went back into the library herself and reached out for a small kettle with her magic.

Just as the metal bottom of the kettle left the counter, three loud thuds from the door nearly made her lose her grip on the handle, and she was just about to yell over her shoulder when she remembered her assistant announce that he was going to bed.

Setting the kettle down, Twilight turned towards the door, but a half-hearted “on it” interrupted her and she caught the site of a scaled tale plodding towards the door.

When the door opened, Twilight found of tired magenta eyes flicked down to bore into the dragon before their owner pushed their way into the library.

“So, short scales, care to tell me why Pinkie was jumping on my bed while shouting about some big meeting Spike said everyone has to go to? What’s so important to make me get up so early?”

Spike seemed to murmur something under his breath about it being almost noon before he placed the Princesses letter on the end rainbow dashes muzzle and blew a huff of smoke in her face before simply turning on his heel and walking away, and Twilight chose that moment to enter the library just in time to see rainbow standing there, the scroll still perched atop her nose and a thin layer of soot slightly obscuring a vacantly surprised expression.

“Oh hello rainbow dash” Twilight greeted obliviously, before she noticed the letter still sitting on the end of her nose and with a flicker of purple light she brought it into the air and gestured for rainbow dash to follow her into the library.

“What’s with Spike?” Rainbow asked.

Twilight’s eyes shifted to the dragon, just as he passed through the doorway, and she turned back to her friend with a slight smirk “Oh, his night sleep was interrupted… more than once actually and he IS a dragon after all…”

“So I’m not the only one?” Rainbow mumbled quietly.

“No, Rainbow” Twilight replied “Spike sent for all six of us to be here… didn’t he tell you that?”

That caught Rainbows attention and even if it was for only a brief moment her face softened and Twilight took the change of expression as her cue.

“The princess will be in ponyville in about half an hour” Twilight said matter of fact and not a second after saying it the mare could already see the questions seeding themselves in her friends mind- plus the fact her normally outspoken friend was just looking at her meant something was stirring.

“No, Rainbow,” Twilight said, deciding to answer one of them before it was asked “I don’t know why she’s coming. But she wouldn't send a red lined message if it was just a casual visit…” Honestly, Twilight thought her reply was a little sharper than it could have been, but that was done purposefully in the hopes of catching the burst of questions she expected to come flooding out of her friends mouth. But, unfortunately, she found her attempt only seemed to add another spade full of earth to the hole she’d dug herself into and she realized her mistake a second too late.

Twilight just folded her ears to her head, which proved to be the right choice in the end as the promised verbal assault started. And while she couldn't hear what Rainbow dash was saying, the fact she could ‘feel’ the words on her face was enough reason for her to praise that decision.

Seeing that she had a little time to waste, the purple mare let her friend ramble and she found she only had to close her eyes twice to protect them from the mare spraying her words ‘a much lower number than usual’ Twilight noted. Rainbow dash must have taken past criticism to heart.

The thought left her mind just as her friend finished her ramblings and she found her staring at her with the same expectant expression as before.

“Sorry Rainbow Dash, I still don’t know why she is coming, but she said she could only talk about it with the six of us so it must be very important.”

For a moment Twilight worried that she’d only added more hay to the fire but the expression on Rainbow Dash’s face didn’t change, much to Twilight’s gratitude.

She was just about to ask her friend to grab something from the kitchen when Twilight’s words were cut off by a blast of wind left by Rainbow dash suddenly speeding off.

It took Twilight about five seconds to conclude what Rainbow was doing; those five seconds spent staring at the empty the Pegasus had left behind, and she almost allowed herself a slight smile as she backed herself into the library.

Making her way back towards the kettle, Twilight grabbed a cloth packet of herbal tea; one that was ‘a great cure for headaches’ according to the zebra she got it from, and something told her she will need it.’

As the dried tea leaves fell into the water, Twilight's attention was pulled away from the kettle and towards doorway, where her dragon assistant now stood, and when she saw the look on his face she couldn't help herself but say something…

“I thought you were going to bed, Spike?”

The glare the dragon offered almost made Twilight take a step back, and the dragon let out another huff of smoke as he turned away “Do you honestly think I’m going to get any sleep at all today?”

The fact the question was all but spat at her made Twilight blink; in fact there was a time doing something like that would have earned him a talking too, but in-between that time and now she had learned a dragon will always be at least a little grumpy when they are tired. It was just a simple matter of biology.

So, based on this little fact, all Twilight said in reply was a simple, if not still sympathetic “no” and she went back to the kettle as she continued to talk “The other girls will be here in a few minutes; that is if I’m right about why Rainbow Dash flew off. I think I better clear my schedule while I have the chance. What day is it today?”

“Tuesday…” was the dragons reply and Twilight couldn't help but shake her head as she poured herself a cup of herbal tea.

“Of course it had to be a Tuesday…”

(Chapter 9)

Toph let out a sigh, and kicked at one of the loose stones that sat within the cracked ground at her feet. Almost five hours had passed since Zuko started their little trek, and by the time the second hour had rolled by any hope she’d held of finding the town had dissolved into a fleeting one. Now, the only real thing that drove her forward was the simple fact that Zuko kept going forward, and all she could do was blindly follow whatever fleeting hope he still held.

Stopping for a second, she let out a hiss like breath through her nose and kicked at another loose stone. A heavy silence hung in the air, and while it was first started by Zuko’s cautious insistence, after the fourth hour had rolled around that small seed had grown into a vast, choking canopy that all but threatened to smother them both. She’d considered simply breaking it, but most of the time had been spent of thinking of something she could say. At first she wanted to ask how long Zuko planned to drag her through this stupid desert, but there was something that stop the comment from coming out.

The longer she followed him the more Toph noticed that something seemed off about Zuko. Every step he took was sudden and seemed to carry an odd tension too it, like the strain she could sense in metal just before it snapped, and honestly she didn’t want to risk it being herself that causes the boy to snap… after all, if he did and she had to knock him all the way back to the fire nation then he wouldn’t be able to lead her back there…

With a final kick at a loose stone, Toph set off again, and was left with only her own thought to keep her occupied. She took another few steps and each one brought the same, grating sound of parched soil being ground up between her toes. At first the fact her feet had found something other than loose sand on the other side of the river had given Toph a slight, but much needed, reprieve, but, as time wore on she found that she had only exchanged one annoyance for another.

Toph let out another breath and began to shift her toes as the biting wind moving across the tops of her feet. That annoyance had already cost the girl her fire nation shoes, but even if the action proved to serve no purpose than to add yet one more annoyance to grate at her nerves, it had at least given Zuko a moment’s pause as a sudden cry of rage had torn him from his own thoughts and he turned around just in time to see a pair of shoes take to the air and fly off into places unknown.

But footwear aside, Toph had long since regained a certain appreciation for her fire nation disguise. Apart from the loose whisper that still hung around her feet, the bitter winds didn’t follow them down the mountainside, only the blistering sunshine had and the thought of how much more she could be suffering if she’d been stuck out here while wearing her usual clothes was almost enough to make her thankful for the… ‘Mishap’ that had forced her to change in the first place- well at least when compared to how much more she would be cursing the idleness that drove her to grab for the older clothes in the first place.

But, in the end, any grievances the elements offered Toph paled in comparison to what her own mind was doing to torment her, and after five hours, even on her numbing nerves it was starting taking its toll.

Questions of what her friends where doing swirled in the girls head, or more specifically, what the fire-lord could be doing to them- and as the myriad of unwanted thoughts bounced of every side of her skull, Toph couldn’t stop one nagging thought from returning to her mind.

The Fire-lord’s son was walking not too far in front of her, and between the heat of the sun and her own frustrations her mind couldn’t help but keep returning to that point.

In her more childish moments, she even wondered if he could have gotten them stuck out here on purpose, and as she’d wandered down the line of thought, she even wondered if Zuko actually had something to do with Aang’s disappearance, and he was going to pick off the rest of them, one by one, starting with her.

Honestly, a simple glance at Zuko’s face would have quelled these thoughts in Toph’s mind. But her lack of sight robbed her of the chance to look at the scar on his face, and what that scar meant, so the errant thoughts had festered in her mind for a long while.

In the end though, these thoughts didn’t really lead to much, they almost served to cushion the girl from the one thought that plagued her the most, the one thought she wouldn’t even think about not thinking about- that this whole mess was probably her fault. Just the possibility of that alone made a boulder drop in her stomach and every step only made it grind painfully against her ribs.

Meanwhile, Zuko was safe from such thoughts- In fact, not one thought of home had passed through his mind for the better part of an hour… Not to say that it really had a chance to because something else was stealing his attention away.

About half way through their trek, Zuko had used his firebending to scare away some small lizard like thing from his path, and ever since then Zuko had become more than aware of a strange feeling, like a pressure, in the very back of his mind.

At first, Zuko had thought it was a symptom of the dire situation he found himself in- but that thought had died when he’d passed under a stretch of shade given by the overhanging branch of a cactus. Now he knew the cause of that feeling, and knowing it only seemed to make it worse.

The sun felt wrong, and every moment he spent in its light made that thought repeat in his head.

Being a firebender grants a person a natural connection with the sun, and simply being within its glow empowers them. But the glow he was now under almost felt alien to Zuko and Instead of the constant warmth that would wash through him as he was used to, this one was directional, focused, if not somewhat weaker as a whole. It was like the difference between being submerged in warm water and having drops of boiling water fall on you one at a time.

But, really, the strangest part was how it seemed to affect his firebending itself. Instead of being a steady glow that he could feel rise and fall in his chest, now he found it flickering wildly like a candle that was caught in the wind, brightening and dimming with an almost random air.

At first he’d thought it was simply that being dragged out here had made his old anger return…but, that thought that had been quelled when he left the suns light for the shade and he found the strange feeling had died almost instantly and had brought him back to that same thought... The sun just felt wrong.

After a while, and with a lot of concentration, he’d managed to suppress the unwanted burning by focusing on the glow he received from ‘the masters’, but the whole experience couldn’t help yet one more lingering unease taking root in his mind that served as one more thing to weigh it down…

Out of the corner of his eye, Zuko gave a quick glance back to the girl that trailed just a few paces behind him. The more the previous night had worn on the more he couldn’t help but see her face whenever he wanted to picture anything he could blame for whole mess. He was sure that kept those thought to himself though, but at the same time, for all Zuko knew, Sokka wasn’t lying the time he said the girl’s earthbending was so good she could read minds.

With a shake of his head, Zuko pushed that train of thought away and brought his eyes back up to the horizon. He panned them slowly to his right and stopped at the protruding form of a dead tree.

‘Ok,’ he thought with a determined air ‘now, all we have to do is go to the top of that ridge and follow it down there… or was it that ride over there?

Zuko slapped a hand over his face and let out a tired hiss. But, fortunately for the both of them, just as he began walking towards the tree he’d frankly picked at random, he found himself stumbling across a much needed lifeline… Meaning, he found himself spitting out a mouth full of dirt.

With a silent curse, and after regaining his footing, Zuko turned to glare at what it was he tripped over. Lying on the dirt was a thick bar of metal. It held a dark grey colour and had a twin running parallel to itself with a small space in-between that held short planks of wood which were laying perpendicular under the bars and created a steady pattern that stretched out further then he could see.

With a snarl, Zuko pulled back his foot and it collided against the closest bar a deep clang… followed then by a low cringe of pain.

Zuko pulled back his foot again with a deeper snarl, when the sound of Toph’s voice cut in behind him.

“Well, that’s weird.” She muttered in a thoughtful tone.

The thought made Zuko flick his head around to face the girl, “What do you mean weird? That there’s a useless piece of metal just laid out in the middle of nowhere?”

“No, not that” Toph replied as she leaned down to touch the metal with the tips of her fingers, and after a moment she lifted her hand and let her knuckle rap across the same spot causing a higher ping then when Zuko ‘hit it’

“It’s metal, obviously, but it’s really long, I mean really long.” Toph said absently as she starched a hand out as if to emphasise the point.

After letting his anger simmer down again, Zuko slowly knelt down and seemed to study the strange metal bars. In reality the boy was nursing his sore foot, but didn’t want to admit that and the second it stopped aching he looked back to Toph “What is it?” he asked.

“How should I know?” Toph shoot back as she threw her arms up in a shrug, “but it looks like there are two of them and they go of further then I can feel, that’s all I got.”

Zuko let his eyes followed the metal line as it stretched past where the elevation of the ground obscured it from him, and a glint in the distance confirmed his suspicions and he looked back to Toph “It might have something to do with the town… I say we follow it.”

“Sure, why not?” Toph moaned as her arms fell back to her sides “We’re lost anyway so why not just follow the strange metal lines and see where they go?”

As Toph set off to follow the line of metal Zuko paused for a moment as her comment confirmed another one of his suspicions in regard to his firebending, and he had to choke back an angry lick of flame that tried to escape his throat before he stood up, coughed out a weak huff of smoke and began to follow.

As they followed the metal line Zuko couldn’t stop his mind from towards what their purpose might be. It started as silent appreciation of once again having a straight ‘path’ to follow, despite not knowing where it was leading him, and ended when he wondered about who actually put them there.

They reminded Zuko of the stone slides in Ba Sing Se that the trains would slide across, and that thought sparked a quiet hope that they were going in the right direction to finally find that town.

At first Zuko found his eyes almost fixed on the bars, it was almost as if he expected them to disappear if he pulled his eyes away, but eventually the need to see if Toph was still around grew too much to bare and he flicked his eyes up and caught the girl still walking a few paces in front of him.

Zuko was just about to flick his eyes back down when he stopped dead in his tracks. Something strange seemed to catch the very corner of his left one. When he tried to focus on It, Zuko had to strain slightly as his normal and scarred eyes gave him slightly different pictures, but he definitely saw a small thread of black which snaked into the air…

‘Smoke’

‘It was smoke…’

He didn’t believe it at first, but there it was and even if it lasted only a moment Zuko felt his lost hope spark, and grow, inside him and he quickly readied himself to shout after Toph.

The words were just about to leave his throat when the girl suddenly turned around to face him, and even though a sour dominion seemed to radiate from the girl her voice suddenly took on a strange lightness to it, “You see something?”

The sudden question made Zuko pause, at least for long enough for the time Sokka tried to convince him that Toph could read minds to pass by his mind again and the sudden intrusion of the memory made Zuko all but forget about the smoke in favour of a single question… “How did you know?”

Toph just waved a hand dismissively “You stopped dead for a second, then your heart sped up, so did you see anything?”

“Err… yea I think I found the Town.” Zuko stuttered for a second as he tried to put meaning to what Toph said, “And what did you mean when said ‘your heart sped up’?”

Toph just gave another dismissive wave of her hand and clicking her tongue before saying “Earthbending” as if the word would answer the question all on its own.

Zuko’s eyebrow slowly began to drift towards his hairline, but he didn’t comment on it. Instead he turned towards the smoke and set of walking again.

Toph shared the moment’s pause as she waited for an answer, and when none came she let out a scoff, cracked her limbs and began to follow.

As the two continued on, Zuko’s pace grew increasingly slow; Toph assumed he was subtly trying to lessen the gap so he could say something and a momentary impulse almost drove her to slow down as well in petty revenge for the lack of an answer before- but her curiosity soon squashed that impulse flat.

“So,” Zuko said with a weak murmur “seeing as we are stuck here… for the time being at least, I was wondering about your earth bending… You know, Uncle said I need to think things through more, so if any problems are going to come up it would be better to know about them now.”

Toph let out another scoff, if it had been any other day she probably would have poked Zuko about that, especially with the way he seemed to be dancing around with his words, but the memory of the last five hours of crushing silence didn’t make the jab seem worth the possibility of inviting it again. So, she let side of her mouth slip back into her usual grin, “Well I was born blind, and my parents always treated me like I was helpless. So…”

“Sorry” Zuko suddenly interrupted “But I asked about your bending not your life story…”

Toph let out an indignant huff of air “Fine. Aang wanted an earthbending teacher and he got the world’s greatest earth bender” she finished with a matter of fact tone.

At the girls response Zuko couldn’t help but scoff silently ‘he should have asked for the world’s most humble one’ he thought, but he could at least keep it to himself and Zuko found his own thoughts were soon drowned out as Toph seemed to have slipped back into her monologue.

“… and then I met the badger moles, they don’t talk, but they are really good teachers.” The girl rattled on, and on, and on…

“I’ve never met one…” Zuko interrupted again “I just need to know the basics of your earth bending, for starters how does the whole ‘being blind’ thing work into it?”

“Well” Toph gave a slight pause to gather her thoughts “I kind of ‘see’ with my feet in that I sense the vibrations in the ground and it lets me know where everything is.”

Zuko suddenly cut in with a half curious, half accusatory tone. “If you were born blind how you can say it’s like ‘seeing’ if you’ve never actually seen anything to begin with?”

Toph scrunched her nose at the question. “Well, you’ve never ‘seen’ with earth bending before so how do you know it isn’t?”

Zuko found himself recoiling at the barked reply, but after the surprise wore off he let out a groan and softly rubbed his forehead “That’s not what I meant. I’m trying to find any problems before they come up. So, is there anything everyone else can do and you can’t that tends to causes problems?”

“I can’t see” Toph asserted lazily, and Zuko’s palm met his face again, this time a lot more forcefully.

Zuko suppressed another hiss and his next question was asked through clenched teeth, “No, I mean the difference between your way of ‘seeing’ and everyone else’s way of seeing. Are there any times its caused problems?”

“Oh, well, I can’t read, but that doesn’t cause many ‘problems’”

“I already knew that, but we’re getting somewhere” Zuko said with a softer tone, and then it grew thoughtful “What about things in the air, can you ‘see’ them?”

“Nope” was Toph’s simple reply “and I don’t really do Ice, sand, wood- or anything other than earth… But sand’s not as bad as it used to be”

‘Finally’ Zuko thought to himself and he tried to categorize his other questions into some form of order. “I’ve seen other earthbenders move rock without actually having to touch it, can’t you do that?”

“No… how am I earth-bend when I can’t sense the earth?” Toph asked as if she was talking to a slow person, and Zuko just gave a nod and thought about his next question.

“Ok, how about you start talking?” Toph asked suddenly, and Zuko couldn’t help but give an instinctive question as a quick reply.

“Well, about how much firebending stinks” the girl clarified with that sly smile “I’ve whooped enough firebenders to give you a list myself, but I want to hear you say it.”

Honestly, Zuko couldn’t tell if the question was serious, or if just another of her attempt to bait him. But he did know one thing that mightn’t satisfy her as a reply,

“Defence” Zuko said simply “the only thing firebending can really defend against is other firebending. Its why fire nation soldiers wear armour, and why I carry duel swords.”

“Question,” Toph interrupted “Why do firebenders usually stand still like idiots when they’re finished attacking?”

Zuko stepped over a plank of wood in the strange path they both were following, “Fire-bending comes from the breath” he recited from memory “and because they have no real defence, the main idea in firebending is to strike as hard and fast as possible. To take out your opponent before they have a chance to strike back. If they were just standing there it probably meant that they ran out of breath or were trying to control it. It also allows them a chance to steady themselves for a second attack if they need one...”

Zuko let his answer fall away into the open air as he began to shuffle some of his own around in his head. “Is there anything you can do that the others have found really useful?”

Toph paused in thought for a moment, “Well I can tell if someone isn’t telling the truth. You see, when people lie there’s a physical reaction, and I can usually pick up on that, except when that person is your sister.”

Toph had given the answer in the same matter of fact tone, and to be honest, that didn’t really surprise Zuko…The part about his sister anyway, and even though he wasn’t really convinced that Toph was telling the truth, but he figured that, if she was, then Azula of all people would probably be immune to it….

“Anything else?” Zuko asked.

Toph put her hand to her chin and clicked her tongue before another grin marked her face.

“Metal bending” she said suddenly as a swell of pride filled her voice.

“Metal bending…?” Zuko repeated with a deadpan tone.

“Yep;” Toph answered with a swift nod “invented it myself. Like I said…worlds. greatest. earth. bender.”

Suddenly Toph’s mood seemed to take a turn and she stopped walking and crossed her arms over her chest…“Wait, haven’t you seen it yet?”

“No I haven’t…” Zuko replied “what about this lying thing, how does that work?”

“You don’t believe I can do it, do you?” Toph asked as the pride all but seeped out of her tone, only to be replaced with a sly one.

“I’m not saying that. I’m…” Zuko tried to reason and Toph clicked her tongue at him

“I can tell you’re lying…" she said with a rising tone "but if you’re not convinced then hows’ about a demonstration?”

Coming to a sudden stop, Toph stood with her arms crossed and she spread her feet slightly apart as the smug grin spread even wider across her face.

“What happened between you and Katara back in Ba sing Se?” she asked in an oily tone.

Much to Toph’s amusement Zuko reacted to the sudden question by choking on the air in his lungs

“Nothing” he sputtered out

Toph began to shake her head slowly, “Nope, you’re lying Zuko” she announced “From the story’s the others pass around when they get all introspective and junk, it seemed you always seemed to capture Katara first. Why is that, Zuko?”

Zuko managed to catch the bark of denial that he nearly released on impulse, he only concluded that letting it out would have only encouraged the girl, “I think we’re getting distracted.”

Toph’s amused grin all but dissolved as Zuko turned around and began to walk away. And when she started to follow, she couldn’t help but feel that her shoulders were heavier, which caused them to slump at her sides.

Toph shook her head as she continued walking, and after a few steps a faint buzzing filled her ear. The strange sound made her twitch slightly, and she couldn’t really make it out, or even settle on the direction it was coming from, but it was still there.

She rushed to catch up to Zuko and in her moment of pondering, she hadn’t noticed that he’d all but stopped dead in his own tracks as soon as he’d reached the very top of a long sloping ridge.

“Zuko…” she called out as she continued walking over, but Zuko didn’t move so started to move a little faster.

“Zuko!” she all but screamed his name this time, but the boy doesn't even flinch.

Just like that, what was left of her frail nerve gave way, and Toph rushed over and grabbed hold of Zuko’s arm.

She was about to pull it back but she noticed something else that made her anger twist into worry.

“Zuko… your heart is about to jump out your head, what do you see?”

Once again he didn’t respond and the next sound Toph herd was the clang of metal as Zuko’s swords felt to the ground.

“Come on Zuko you’re weirding me out!” she tried again, but Zuko still move, even as she yanks on his wrist.

“Zuko!” this time, finally, it works and Zuko let out a shuddering breath before his head slowly turned to face the girl.

“You ok hothead? You kind of zoned out there for a while” Toph said with the same annoyance seeping into her voice…

“I’m fine” Zuko said half-heartedly “I’ve seen the town but I thought I saw something…” he let out another breath, “Come one, it’s probably just the sun getting to me… ”

As she followed Zuko down the slope, Toph could swear she heard him murmur ‘at least I hope it is’ at the end of it…. But more than anything, she knew he was lying.

Now all she had to do was figure out just what the boy was lying about…

…

(Chapter 10)

Twilight Sparkle found herself staring into a cup filled with lukewarm tea. The glistening image of her own reflection shuddered randomly as it’s seemed to be trying her best not to pass out…

The last time they’d met, Princess Celestia had made it a point to suggest that her student may have a small problem with anxiety… So… after Twilight had once again regained consciousness, her mentor had- after the assurances she wouldn’t be ‘holding her back a grade’ passed on some of the breathing exercises that had served her well over the many years of pretending interest in the rambling of the Canterlot nobles.

When she’d returned from Canterlot, Twilight couldn’t help but feel ridiculous about the whole thing, so she decided to take matters into her own hooves, so to speak, and wound up hearing about this particular tea blend Zecora liked to make.

Strangely enough, while on the way back to the library, she’d also noticed that Spike was trying, and failing, to hide a small blue vial from her attention, but she didn’t give it much thought at the time, she had been far too busy readying herself for any ‘surprise test’ that mightn’t have been coming and while she never did learn what that vial was, what she did walk away with, though, was a very special blend of calming tea, which was good because, not even a few hours ago, Princess Celestia had sent a red ribbon letter right from out of the blue.

For just a second, her eyes flicked back up to the clock hanging on the wall, and they narrowed as her ears took in the constant droning ticks that diligently and annoyingly informed her of every single second that passed as the memory crept steadily onward. She sucked in another five long, exaggerated, breaths and the corners of her vision began to dim slightly as continued to stare at the clocks face. The princess would be here any minute and she was still sitting in the wake of Rainbow dash storming off. And now she was starting to wonder if the mare had just gone back to bed…

Giving her third cup one last stir, Twilight let herself become lost in the pleasing aroma, before it finally drove her pull the cup to her lips, and of course the window chose that moment to fly open with a loud crash.

Narrowly avoiding a face full of the scalding hot liquid, Twilight glared over to the window and spotted a familiar rainbow coloured blur overhead. And after casting one last pitying glance at her tea, and with one glare back at the trail, she let out a pained sigh, narrowed her eyes and downed the tea in one stubborn gulp.

With heavy, but relieved, hoovesteps, Twilight began to make her way toward the public part of the library. As her head poked through the doorway she found each of her four other friends giving the fifth a death glare as the recipient of it calmly sprawled herself on the nearby couch with her legs crossed and blue forelimbs behind her rainbow coloured mane.

Twilight smiled as she continued into the room, a smile which faltered slightly when her friend’s glares turned towards her.

Nervously, she tried to soften her smile even more and tried to recall what she had planned to say…

“elo ery ony” She tried speaking, but paused when her friends glares immediately turned into concerned frowns.

Twilight frowned; suddenly the impulse to down her entire cup of scolding hot tea in one gulp didn’t seem like such a smart thing to do. But at least now she also learned that it held some other medicinal properties because it didn’t feel at all like it had been burned.

Twilight looked back up to her friend with a timid smile, but, despite this obvious setback, it appeared that her effort still served its original intention, because the harsh expression on her friend’s faces had disappeared at least. Well, except for one.

“Twilight dear, you haven’t been rushing your tea again have you?” asked the other unicorn of the group.

The only answer Twilight could give was a slight nod of her head as she shot a timid look off to the side. She brought her eyes back up and was about to try speaking again when she was suddenly interrupted by a different, shrill, voice which made everyone who heard it grit their teeth.

“OH, OH, what type, what type!!!?”

Pinkie waved her hoof in the air for attention, and as the question hung for a moment the other ponies in the room passed nervous glances between them, each silently begging the others to not utter the obvious question that mightn’t follow.

“Well what difference does it make?”… But it turned out one didn’t share that glance…and they all gave a silent, and sarcastic, thanks to rainbow dash. Before quickly, flattening their ears against their heads when they heard Pinkie take in a sudden gasp of breath.

“Well duh,” she started in a surprisingly quiet voice. “If she did that with some types of tea we would be rushing her straight to the doctor.”

Everypony paused as their ears sprang back up, ‘Hmm Pinkie making sense, that’s a new one’ was a thought they all seemed to share, but then, Twilight’s own thought was shaken when two big blue eyes fixed on her,

“Was it green, or was it glowing? Or both, oh we don’t have much time…” their owner chirped as she started to pull Twilight towards the door.

‘Well that was nice while it lasted’ Twilight thought sarcastically before she shook a certain ‘pink’ ache from her head and pulled herself away.

“No Pinkie, we don’t have time for this” was what Twilight tried to say…and to her annoyance pinkie's smile grew

“e on’t?” she asked in that sing song voice, purposefully mushing her own words.

“No! We don’t!” Twilight shouted, but she didn’t bother trying to say anymore. The attempt only seemed to make the annoying smile grow even further across her pink fur and really it was to early in the afternoon for this.

With one last annoyed growl Twilight turned to her assistant, the glare she gave him getting his attention straight away. “Sarw em”

The poor dragon didn’t even dare moan. He knew what she meant despite how much he didn’t want too. So as Twilight walked out of the library room all Spike could do was give a weak smile as he suddenly found himself under the harsh eyes of four ponies.

“So, err… How did everyone sleep?”

…

One soothing, and cold, drink courtesy of a certain zebra, along with the thought of how they got on in the past without said zebra, later, Twilight walked back into the room just in time to save her dragon assistant… who was juggling for some strange reason that was lost to her.

She approached the large sump like table in the centre of the room and tapped her hoof against the smooth wood before clearing her throat. “Sorry about that everypony”

“What is this about, Twilight?” one of her friends cut in, and while she expected such a question when Twilight turned to try and answer it she stuttered for a second when she found it had actually come from fluttershy.

“Err… well, yes, you are probably wondering why I called you all here and the truth is, I don’t know.”

Instinctually Twilight folded her ears to her skull, and this turned out to be a reaction she didn’t regret as her friends seemed to launch into a tirade of angry shouting.

With another meek smile she held up a hoof to quiet them and began to speak again. “What I mean to say” she clarified “is the reason you are all here is the princess asked me to gather you all here. But before you ask, sorry, no, I don’t know why but the princess will be here in a few minutes so we will all find out.”

“And just how long will this take Twilight?” came a sharp question wrapped in a Southern drawl “I’m apposed’ to help with the farm today, not only that but Applebloom offered to help in my place, do you know what could happen?”

That thought made everyone in the room cringe, but as usual Twilight was the first to have an explanation.

“The princess has her own business to take care of as well, Applejack. She wouldn’t be coming here if it wasn’t important.”

Applejack opened her mouth to say something before a pink hoof was suddenly stuffed inside it.

“Well, why don’t you ask her” a sing song voice announced followed by another pink hoof that pointed over Applejack and into the air.

Seven pairs of eyes darted up to stare through a nearby window to find a golden chariot gliding slowly to the ground. The glint from its golden shimmer was joined by five smaller ones, as five ponies in golden suits of armour caught the sunlight as they passed by the town’s clock tower.

Behind the golden one, a chariot comprised of pure black and purple touched down while surrounded by a myriad of night guard that were clad in their own, darker, more aggressive version of the royal guard’s armor.

When both chariots touched down the princesses sitting within them stepped onto the dirt. They gave each other a quick glance before they started towards the library while some of the day guard broke off to disperse a slowly gathering crowd.

As the element bearers looked on, a blue elbow met Applejacks ribs lightly and a whisper filled her ear “looks like it is important, the princesses never brought the whole shebang with them before.”

After she said that, Rainbow paused. Although it was said partially as a joke she couldn’t help but form a little knot in there stomach, one the others shared. It was true, the princess never thought to bring the guard with her, well not this many night guard, and never night guard in the day. Something must be wrong.

If Twilight noticed the guard she did a very good job of hiding it as she ran out of the library and over to her mentor. Luckily, the guards knew who she was and apart from a few twitches of the younger members they offered no resistance.

Reaching the coaches Twilight lowered herself into her usual, low, bow. Then she quickly did it again when she noticed Princess Luna standing at her side.

As her chin was on the floor, Twilight felt a hoof ruffle through her hair and she looked up to see her brother holding a smug grin on his face.

“Shining Armor?!” Twilight asked with a startled yelp “What are you doing here?”

Shining Armor only raised an eyebrow at the question, before his expression shifted into a look of faux hurt. “Well it’s good to see you too, Twily” he said with as much faux hurt he could muster.

“Not what I meant.” Twilight said errantly “aren’t you supposed to be ruling the Crystal Empire with Cadance?”

The smile on shining armor's face shrank slightly, but it didn’t disappear, instead the ridge of his brow became slightly harder as he nodded “Yes, but I convinced the princess to push back my… reassignment from captain of the Royal Guard.”

“To prince of the Crystal Empire?” Twilight interrupted and when Shining Armor's smile grew again the action only made the worry on Twilights face grow.

“Yes” Shining smiled oblivious to the change in mood “Does that mean I get a bow too?”

For a second, Twilight couldn’t help but let a smirk grow across her mouth despite her worry “That depends,” she said “ are you still the older brother I always caught singing into a mane brush when he thought no one was around?”

Shining armors eyes shot open and he glared at his younger sister in false anger, “Oh, if we’re going to play ‘who has the most embarrassing family story’ I think you know who would win Twilly. Remember the whole mess with the cat from next door?”

Twilight's own eyes opened to the size of dinner plates “We promised never to speak of that again.” she shrieked.

“That we did” Shining armor chuckled before his expression suddenly became curious“…Did you ever give mom her favourite mane brush back?”

“No, I burned it, and bought her a replacement” Twilight said looking away.

Shining armour nodded “And how, exactly, did the mustard fit into it?” he asked and Twilight glared at him “Or the push mower?”

“This counts as speaking about it” Twilight snarled and her brother held up a hoof in defence.

“Ok, ok. But, to answer your question, I was just about to head off to the empire when I got word about this whole thing and I asked to postpone my reassignment until it’s sorted.”

“Then this is really bad...” Twilight murmured quietly and she noticed the same look of worry spread to his face.

“No not bad, just risky.” Shining interrupted “We’ll explain everything in the library; I just hope you or your friends don’t have anything planned for today. Because it looks like they will be disappointed.”

With that said Shining armour took hold of his sister’s head and began rubbing a hoof in her mane.

Twilight let out a laugh before pushing her brother away “Ok, but you can tell Applejack.”

“Why, will I get an ear full?” he asked

Twilight chuckled “No, you’ll probably get Two”

…

To Twilight’s credit, It only took five minutes to get her friends to just sit in the library and wait for everything to be explained. Well it was one minute for everyone else and four minutes to get pinkie pie to sit still, which was still admittedly a record seeing it usually takes much a much longer time and in some cases rope, to do the same thing.

A couple guards were sent to Applejack’s farm to help out with her being absent; strangely they actually drew straws to decide who would go. Applejack took offence too this initially but then they explained the reason behind it. Apparently ‘Granny’ smith Apple had a bit of a reputation for ‘going after’ guards when ponyville had been founded, and the reputation hadn’t waned even after all this time and when she actually thought about it from there perspective she couldn’t blame them anymore, or dare think about it at all for that matter.

So here they are, sat in the library, waiting to find out why the elements. Both of the Princesses, Twilight and her friends and three squads of royal guards all shifted uncomfortably within the cramped space of the library’s main room.

Needless to say Twilight's stomach was doing back flips.

At a nod from Celestia, one of the day guards stood in front of the group. He was a pegasus just like the others Celestia brought with her, except he held a pointed stick in one of his folded wings and had a strange mark on his helmet. The guard nodded to another guard at the end of the room and a small projection screen was lowered before the lights went out leaving only the screen illuminated with a faint glow spreading outward.

“Now to business,” the guard said in a gruff but strangely young voice, I sounded almost like he was putting it on a bit. “This will act as a refresher course for the guards here. But I have also have been asked to bring the element bearers up to speed.”

The guard pony nodded in the direction of Twilight and her friends, and Twilight watched as the guard began altering the length of his stick he held in his wing.

Suddenly Twilight frowned and leaned over to her brother “Why couldn’t the princess just tell us what’s going on herself, like she did with Discord?”

“Because the royal guard wasn’t involved with Discord; that was a matter for the elements.” Shining said in a displeased tone, it was almost as if he was reading from a script he didn’t like “This however is a matter for the guard so it follows guard protocol” he smiled again “Besides these briefings are kind of his thing you know? And the princesses don’t want any guard’s talents to feel neglected.”

Twilight nodded slowly, and her attention drifted back to the lecture as the slide was replaced with a map.

“… Had made contact with the dream here.” The guard pony’s lecture drifted back into focus as he pointed to an X on the projected map “The dream itself has led her to become concerned… the least of which is the fact no such being has been encountered in known records.”

Suddenly a blue coloured hoof shot into the air “Wait, Wait, Wait” it owner interrupted and every pair of eyes in the room turned towards it source.

Rainbow dash lowered her hoof and let out a sharp sinker “So… you’re telling me we are all here because Luna stumbled across some strange dream, of what, some alien?”

The guard glared at Rainbow dash, not liking the fact he was interrupted, but then let out a breath through his nose and answered the question

“From what I know miss, that description seems accurate.” He said matter of fact and Rainbow Dash sat back down with a dull thud…

“Now...” the guard didn’t get to continue as a pink hoof shot into the air. “Err, yes?”

“Chocolate or vanilla?” the owner of the pink hoof asked with almost childlike glee

“Excuse me?” the guard asked with a deadpan tone

Without losing even a speck of energy, the cotton candy pony jumped up onto her seat and threw her front hooves in the air. “For the welcome party of course” Pinkie explained matter of fact “Do aliens like chocolate or vanilla cake better? Or would they prefer cupcakes?

The guard stuttered something unintelligible before he took a short step back and looked over to the princess in a search for guidance. When he found only her usual motherly smile, he turned his attention back to the pink pony in front of him. “No pony has been called here for a welcome party.”

The pink pony let out a disappointed sigh before she was taken by a soft blue glow and sat back down next to the white unicorn projecting it.

“Then why have we been called here, pray tell?” the white unicorn asked in a way that seemed to be her outwardly trying her best to frame the question as politely as possible while still pressing it.

“If I could just continue?” the guard asked absently as he looked around the room “Thank you, now from what he have learned, we can make several weak conclusions. One; the term ‘alien’ isn’t suitable based on all the baggage the word has so we will be using the term ‘visitor’ for the moment. Two: it is the princess’s intentions to make contact with the ‘visitor’ before it encounters any pony settlements. Three: while its dreams have created some concern, the ‘visitor’ seems to be traveling here alone, which would not be prudent for any hostile intentions unless it is extremely powerful, which is why the elements bearers are present. They will not be making direct contact with the visitor. Instead they will be present only as a last measure should the creature prove hostile and should it also prove too powerful for the princess and their guard to handle.” The guard paused to take in a breath “And, Four, this is all only contingent on the ‘Visitor’ traveling further into Equestria it may very well turn around and walk the other way. Should that happen and the visitor pass into another nation, then we’ll have to pull back and wait for the international counsel.”

Once again a pink hoof jutted into the air, but a purple one moved in front of it and the guard let out another sigh. “This is not school, but, yes?”

Twilight lowered her hoof and turned to a yellow Pegasus in the group who gave her a wanting nod

“How do you know this ‘visitor’ will be hostile enough to warrant using the elements on them?” she asked, trying to word the question as evenly as she could.

The guard clicked his tongue “We don’t, not necessarily, which is why the princess hopes to make contact first. But, based on Princesses Luna’s testimony, and Equestria’s past history, we are merely taking precautions.”

“Past history?” Spike asked while holding up a claw.

The guard opened his mouth to say something but was interrupted.

“Well there is a ‘theory’ that the changeling species are not actually native to Equestria,” Twilight said in a way that sounded like she was reading from a textbook “but are, in fact, what’s left of a society of ponies from an alternate Equestria which suffered some sort of catastrophe. But it’s not even a hypothesis really.”

The guard twitched as if he’d been slapped. “That theory is supposed to be classified, how do you know about it?”

Twilight smiled nervously “I err... I helped create the changing detection spell after the wedding.”

The guard just rolled his eyes. He turned back to the board and opened his mouth again, but stopped when he noticed the pink hoof in the air once more.

“Yes?”

“So it is a welcome party” Pinkie asserted cheerfully “You’re trying it to welcome it here, right? You know? Hello Mr. Alien visitor, welcome to Equestria, please don’t eat our brains.”

The guard blinked again and looked over to the princess for guidance, but again, he only found her looking back at him while wearing an amused smile.

“As I was saying” the guard sighed and shook his head “Should the visitor leave Equestrian borders then we will still be able to make contact as long as it stays within neutral territory, but that means we may have to compete with any other groups who know about it and wish to make contact first…”

The guard stopped and pressed something on the stick held within his wing, making it retract into itself with a sharp click, “Now are there any questions?” he finished and looked around at the forest of steadfast eyes.

He glanced around until he spotted a claw in the air, and the dragon it belonged to waving it, hoping to gain his attention.

“Yes?” the guard asked as one of his eyebrows disappeared under the ridge of his helmet.

“Can I come?” Spike asked in a chipper tone and one of the guard’s eyebrows almost knocked the helmet off his head. Once again he looked over to Celestia for guidance and as usual she just held her normal smile, but this time she seemed to take in a soft breath to speak.

“Sorry spike” Twilight cut in to what Celestia was about to say “this will be far too dangerous”.

Spike twitched, and looked like he wanted to say something in reply, but the number of eyes staring down at him froze the words before they even made it past his teeth. Instead he just got up from his seat and ‘casually’ pulled Twilight into the kitchen.

“But Twilight” Spike whined with a hushed but pleading whine “a chance to meet a real life alien” he said the word with begging eyes which he fixed squarely on Twilight making her sigh.

A snort from outside gave him a moment’s pause and he peeked out too see the guard glaring at him “Visitor” Spike was quick to correct. “A chance to meet the visitor, please can I come?!?”

“Spike weren’t you paying attention? We won’t be the ones who are meeting it, the guard and the princess’ are. The elements are just to be there in case they are needed. And if they are need then it will be too dangerous. ” Twilight said with a drone, but her warning did little to wane the dragons pleading eyes.

“But come on, you leave me in the library all the time, the only time I tag along was when you went to the crystal empire.” Spike argued, as his tone suddenly shifted from pleading to annoyed.

Twilight’s own expression followed and her face donned an annoyed scowl “And look how dangerous that trip turned out to be”

“Yes and look who saved the day that time? You could need my help.” Spike chided as his expression shifted from annoyed to triumphant.

Twilight’s eye twitched “But didn’t you say that you like to sleep in, and I can’t help but remember you spending this whole morning being cranky from being woken up?” admittedly she was trying to shift the arguments track seeing as the last one led her to a wall.

“And you are really bad at picking up on sarcasm.” Spike droned back before his expression shifted into a smug one. “But I guess you’re right. I’ll just tell the princess I can’t come along because I’m too dizzy from when you threw that plate of pancakes at my head.”

Twilight's eyes shot open just like the little dragon wanted. His ‘I’ll tell the princess on you’ was a tactic he’d threatened to use many times back when they both lived in Canterlot, but when he used it before It was always a desperate last ditch effort that ultimately fell through. This time though, it seemed he had her.

“I already said I was sorry Spike…” Twilight tried to cool her assistant but all it earned was a puzzled, if not offended, glance from the dragon.

“No you didn’t” he replied with a snippet tone “You asked me to make you some more pancakes…”

Twilight’s ear twitched again and she let out a soft rumble, “Fine, you can come, but you don’t take so much as a single step off my back.” She conceded with the same unhappy grumble.

Spike’s eyes lit up “You mean I get to go! Thanks Twilight!” the dragon cheered and he rushes back into the library leaving the unicorn blinking dumbly as he left.

Even though her face held a blank expression, inside her head Twilight was shouting. She knew he just played her and more so he knew rushing over to Celestia meant she couldn’t say anything else on the matter.

But on the other hoof, as she snarled inside her head, a small part of her couldn’t help but feel at least a little twinge of pride towards her assistant. She had often left open little holes in her own arguments in the past, just to see if Spike would ever pick up on them. She couldn’t help it. And now here she was after he found one on his very own and used it against her. Her ‘little assistant was learning’. But on the other, other hoof that feeling of pride was the smallest part of her mind, the rest was screaming at her to not mess it up next time.

After taking a deep calming breath, Twilight ventured back into the library. And as she passed through the doorway, she couldn’t help but feel the weight of everyone’s eyes on her skin as she silently concluded that the kitchen wasn’t as private a place as Spike would have thought… though, maybe that was the point.

Immediately, she whipped her head around to Celestia, silently praying that her mentor hadn’t heard the whole thing, and she was more than relieved to see her seat empty. When she looked back across the room she noticed some of the guards had sly grins, they were probably some of the ones who’d seen Twilight and Spike’s past arguments in the castle, in fact she even saw one of them grumpily pass on a small sack of bits to the other.

The guard who held the sack of coins smiled at her almost thankfully as Twilight used whatever dignity she had left to push her chin into the air as she walked passed him… only to grit her teeth as she walked right into the table.

After the room settled down somewhat, the guard holding the wooden stick let out a sigh at the sceptical before he stood back up straight.

“Ok, refresher course is over; we’ll be departing in five minutes.”

…

chapter 11 part 1

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(Chapter 11) part 1

The town of Appaloosa…

Nestled within the centre of a vast expand of lonely, barren earth lays the humble form of a single, small, settlement…

Sitting on the very edge of the boundaries of its home nation, it’s a town born of nothing but loose plans and hopeful ambition, and made real by the true defining trait of its populace; hard work.

Yet, despite the fact that barely a year had passed since the rim of a ponies hoof had first disturbed its soil, a reputation had grown around its walls like a jungle vine, and that strange reputation came in a single word; ‘vintage’.

If you ever asked, a visiting pony would probably spin you a long tale about how the settler ponies that lived there yearned for the simple life, and continued followed its call ever further out into the yet unknown world, but the truth was. This cause of this reputation was a harsh desert wind that would grab hold of any loose sand or stone and batter anything that dared to stand in its way. And while most buildings would stubbornly try and cling to their sheen with the same stubborn resolve as the ponies that lived there, after only a week of standing against it, the once shining walks would soon be stripped of their once youthful appearance, leaving only worn and cracked paint behind.

Some of the towns visiting ponies had noticed this little quirk, and would often spend a silent moment wondering at the townspony’s habit of repainting the whole town every other week. But, for the ponies who resided here, the hard work it entailed brought on a sense of pride; and the reputation it earned them for being stubborn was not too unwelcome either.

It seemed that throughout the entire town, this rule held true. And any eye that looked towards it would find the same stretches of cracked paint and worn colour, unless of course that eye were to stumble across a lone building sitting just over the railroad tracks…

Unlike the others, which had seen the tip of a paintbrush not three weeks ago, this building stood out among its kin because it all but glowed under the light of the sun, and while, like all the others, it stayed true to the ‘quaint and minimalist aesthetic’ that the town was well known for, this building’s interior also held certain grandeur that made it seem almost alien to the ponies which lived there.

Walking through its doors would offer a sight that would often steal the breath of a local pony. Lines of deeply polished tables reached out between the walls, each one shining against the light casted down by a number of large sickly sweet scented candles hanging firmly within the gentle hold of numerous, intrigue metal frames. The smell of the candles loomed in the air as the sound of the flames flickering against the wax complimented the silence…. A silence disturbed every few seconds by a curious squeaking sound coming from behind a very long table that sat at the furthest end of the room…

Just out of sight, a young earth pony sat with her back to one of the building’s many ornate windows, fumbling slightly with a glass as she tried to manoeuvre it towards an old tattered wash cloth held in her teeth.

Cradling the glass with the delicacy and care a mother would hold a filly; the mare set to work and began gently caressing its rim with the edge of the cloth. She stayed like this until several minutes passed, then, with a slow and cautious air, she held the glass up to the light and twisted her hoof as her eye scanned the glass for any imperfections.

When she was satisfied, the glass was slowly lowered and a smile as it was softly placed with three others under the counter.

Letting the cloth fall to her hooves, the mare licked the taste of the washcloth from her lips and smiled softly to herself.

“Well, that’s four down” she whispered, gently holding onto the same smile… a smile that faltered only slightly when her eyes moved towards the work table full of identical glasses “ and just that many to go”

With a soft sigh, another glass was taken into her hooves and the mare began to hum softly to herself through the rag in her teeth.

“Sweet Peach!!!?”

The mare flinched as a sudden, ear splitting, yell sent a ripple through the small white bonnet atop her head… and a second later she snatched the glass she was just cleaning back out of the air.

With a panicked eye, the mare began to look towards the opposite end of the room and flinched suddenly when they reached the door. Looming just at its wake was a pony, and not just any pony. This pony happened to be her boss, and he was wearing the same usual scowl that it seemed every boss was required to wear by law.

“What are you doing?” the grey pony sharply asked as he seemingly tried to glare a hole through the glass monocle fixed securely in his frowning bow.

The mare gulped softly and noticed her throat was a lot drier than it was a moment ago, “I’m just doing what ya told me too,” she replied with a soft, but still slightly forceful, tone as set the glass down on the counter with a soft ‘tink’ “‘clean the glasses ready for the afternoon rush’”

That answer only seemed to make the stallions frown deepen. “That didn’t mean that’s all I wanted to be done by then” He chided as a hoof found the bridge of his nose “and it’s ten, o’clock and you've finished...” lowering his hoof, the stallion’s eyes flicked to the underside of the counter before returning to the mare “Four, four glasses done ready with that many left.”

The mare gave an offended look and clutched the glass she was holding to her chest “I’m just making sure they’re fit for ponies to drink from is all; just like ah should”.

Again the stallion’s frown seemed to deepen, despite how impossible the act seemed to Sweets eye, and he gave a long sigh and brought his hoof back up to the bridge of his nose. “Yes, ponies, working ponies who won’t give a dog’s ear if the glass sparkles, just so long as it’s not dirty…. The same Ponies that should be able to do that five minutes ago. Now, please, just make the glasses ready for those pony’s lips rather than the princess’… and be quick about it!”

With that, the stallion turned away, leaving sweet peach watching nervously as he was summoned back to whatever dark and evil place boss ponies liked to lurk until they sensed another excuse to yell once again… at least that’s where she figured he went. Maybe they all got together in some big room of evil where they discussed how better to torment their workers… If they did, then she sure as sugar felt sorry for whatever poor pony did her job over there.

Sweet Peach gave a soft shudder as she let the mental image softly drift away. And after letting out a soft sigh, the mare shifted her attention back to the glass nestled in her hooves.

Another few minutes passed to the sound of cloth squeaking against glass, and another crystalline glass was placed into its waiting place upon the shelf. She reached out for another when a faint, but unmistakable sound of murmuring seeped in from under the door seeped into her ear, making it twitch uncomfortably.

Sweet peach froze. The faint murmuring slowly grew until it all but resembled a deep guttural slurring of sound that was only worsened by an errant scratching that seemed to accompany it.

Greeting the noise with the same encouragement a rabbit would greet the shadow of a hungry dragon, the mare leapt back down behind the counter, only to shoot back out to catch two of the clean glasses before they hit the floor.

Her ears perked as the strange murmuring grew and were all but flattened against her head when it twisted into a sharp creek.

Painfully, the creek reached its apex and was followed by a soft thump, leaving sweet peach to stare up at a shadow growing across the wall.

Almost letting out a choked squeak, Sweet shrunk back against the smooth wood of the counter as the shadow’s growth across the wall was followed by a series of sharp creeks rising up from the floor. The air around her almost seemed to grow heavy over her shoulders, pushing her against the counter until the cold bite of the vinyl made her believe something was breathing down her neck.

She flinched again as a strained voice was carried over the counter by a strange accent, and the unwelcome touch of it snaking into her ear nearly made her all but crush the glass she was cradling against her chest.

Another long moment crept by, a moment made even longer by the sickly sound of grinding teeth, but when that moment ended, and she couldn’t bear to let another second creep by, Sweet peach yanked herself away from her sanctuary and tentatively began to poke her head up above the wooden counter….and Sweet Peach blinked as her eyes were met the puzzled gaze of an old stallion.

Sweet peach squeaked nervously as she shrank back behind the counter “Oh… Hello Mr. Salt Lick, I’d get you the usual, but I’m afraid we’re closed at the moment.”

“Ya are?” the stallion asked with a puzzled voice, one that sounded to the mare a bit like the pony was trying to gargle a mouth full of marbles … “But ‘ah thought ‘ya always we're open right now. It is the time aint it?”

When she heard that, Sweet peach couldn’t help but let her gaze drop away from the other pony, and flick nervously towards the doorway where her boss once stood.

“You all right there miss?”

Quickly her eyes flicked back and Sweet bit down on her tongue as she paused to catch herself, “fine… I’m as fine as sand.”

Another glance at the stallion showed he wasn’t convinced and Sweet Peach frowned as she cast another nervous glance over her shoulder. “I reckon I’m ok…” she continued slowly as she glanced around the room with an awkward gaze “I don’t know exactly why, but for some darn strange reason ah just got a sudden feeling like a fly must do when they just saw the newspaper whizz past em.”

To that, the stallion seemed to offer brief nod, though, from the look on his face, Sweet Peach could tell it wasn’t an understanding one, and when he began to click his jaw Sweet decided it was time to end the conversation.

“Sorry” she said with soft finality “but you’ll have to come back later, like I said, the saloon is closed.”

As she said that, Sweet peach couldn’t help but tense her jaw. She knew she was going to get an ear full from her boss, but she still had a lot to do, and for some reason she couldn’t quite place, she felt strangely on edge all of a sudden. She felt bad for turning him away, but she wasn’t in the mood.

A brief look of disappointment flash across the stallion’s features, as well as an expression Sweet Peach couldn’t place- not helped by the fact she only got a glimpse as he looked over to the window. Her own eyes fixed on the stallion for a moment and became a little more expectant when he stared back until his own eyes filled with recognition.

Another moment slipped by and Sweet Peach softly, but firmly flicked her head in the direction of the door, then looked back at the stallion with the same expectant eyes. But, to her annoyance, the stallion just began chewing on his bottom lip

“If it’s all the same, Miss” He said slowly “I’d rather not be outside for the time being.”

Sweet Peach let out a silent, but annoyed huff. If she wasn’t familiar with this particular stallion, he being a regular and all, she probably would have just let the issue slide without a second word…however, this pony was a regular so she was more inclined to press the issue, and honestly she was actually curious to see what new trick the stallion would try this time.

“Why not?” she asked half heartedly, and strangely, instead of the usual guilty expression she’s come to expect, a look of befuddled annoyance spread across the old stallion’s features.

“Nothing I know , Miss…” he said sharply “The sheriff just passed me not two minutes ago. He was just strolling down the street telling every pony in earshot to go back inside for a while. An seein as mah own humble dwelling is at the other end a town I slipped in here.”

Except for a slight nod now and then, sweet peach just stood patiently as the old stallion rattled on, but the second he was finished, she gave one last confirming nod…. and started walking towards the saloon door.

“Umm, miss where’ you goin?” she heard his voice come over her shoulder, and without even stalling a single hoof fall, Sweet began something that, to the old stallion, must have sounded like a pre prepared monologue,

“Mister Saltworthy’s been breath-in down mah neck so much my bonnet’s been keeping his mustache warm… an now you saunter in here with some half grown story about sheriff Shining Star that more than leans on the side of hooey…. We’ll all I can say is ‘thank ya kindly’, because now I found myself an excuse to dodge his expectations while I track down the sheriff to find out the real reason you’re squatting here, while we are closed no less.”

Sweet Peach continued on to the door, but just as she reached out to place a hoof on the wooden frame, she stopped and looked the old stallion in the eye.

“Now, I still say your story stinks something fierce, but It ain’t my doing to throw a pony out on their rear if there’s even a chance something like that is so. But if I find the sheriff, and his memory don’t match that story of yours I swear on my bonnet, you won’t get no salt, no nothing by me for as long as I remember this conversation.”

With a smirk, Sweet Peach turned to continue out of the door, but the sound of Salt Lick’s startled voice made her pause again.

“Now, now, hey! There ain’t nothing out there for you, me or no pony miss, now why don’t we just sit tight and when I can, I’ll chase up the sheriff for ya, just know I ain’t talkin’ nothing but truth when I say he told me and a few other ponies to stay inside, and he’d probably only say the same to ya if you went looking for him.”

“And I want to know why,” Peach shot back as she pushed the door open. “And sorry, but I ain’t gonna find the answer to that unless I speak to him ma’self.”

Sweet paused as her ears caught the sound defeated sigh coming from the other side of the door, and she paused to shout one last word over her shoulder.

“An I took stock on the salt lick when I came in today, so don’t go thinking about padding out your tab while I’m gone, ya hear?”

Sweet Peach felt a smile tug at the side of her mouth as another; deeper sigh came from the other end of the butterfly door. And as she turned around and began walking along the dirt road the mare couldn’t help but let that smile grow as she soaked in the warm, tranquil air waiting for her outside.

‘Well, can’t say ah won’t be happy to prove em wrong… shame for old Salt Lick though, coz if he is lying the old fella’s gona have ta find himself a new name.’ she thought with a little more ‘salt’ then she was expecting. But, as the warm sunshine continued to soak into her fur, the mare couldn’t help but offer a friendly nod to the ponies that passed her by.

That smile didn’t last long, however, because the further down the road she travelled, the more she couldn’t help but notice just how few ponies she’d passed on her way. And while this was a strange thing in and of itself, the thing that really struck her like a train waggon was the fact that none of the few ponies’ she did pass wore their usual, friendly smiles. True, they all acknowledged her greeting- and most even offered a polite word or two in reply. But not matter how wide she smiled, Sweet Peach only found the same solemn frowns stretching across their face like a stubborn weed.

After the fifth pony, Sweet Peach couldn’t help but frown to herself as a wondering thought crossed her mind ‘Pony’s ain’t been this sour since the whole mess with the buffalo…’

That was true, she still remembered how stubborn everyone was acting back then and if everypony was acting the same way things didn’t bode well.

As she walked on, Sweet Peach decided to ask the next pony she saw what was happening, and as luck would have it, no sooner did she open her eyes again she spotted a pony trotting towards her in the opposite direction.

As she drew closer to this pony Sweet made a point to study him. His fur was a dim ashy grey and a blondish mane peered out at her from under the rim of a short trim hat. All in all there wasn’t anything about him that stuck out and drew her eye- except for the fact that he seemed to be wearing both a hat and jacket, which was a little odd seeing as most ponies normally fixed on one or the other. Though, at one point Sweet noticed that she was staring at the ponies cutie mark for longer than could honestly be called ‘polite’- at least that’s what she’d swear she was staring at if anypony asked.

Spurred on by a spark of nervous embarrassment, Sweet flicked her eyes away from the pony and to the wagon that he was pulling along behind him. Again there wasn’t anything too eye catching about it, just a loose gathering of odds and ends gathered on a simple, but sturdy, waggon that made it obvious to her that he was a market pony.

It seemed the pony realised he was being stared at, and Sweet peach offered a guilty smile when she found two deep blue eyes staring back at her.

The smile was returned, but lasted a moment before it turned into the same solemn frown.

Pushing a growing sense of unease out of her mind, Sweet peach offered the stallion another smile, “Sorry to bother ya, Sir” she offered “but I’m looking for the sheriff.”

Yes, Sweet Peach did know where the sheriff’s office was supposed to be, but she figured it’s better to break the ice first.

The pony smiled again and glanced over his shoulder “Just saw him heading over to the south of the town near the train tracks.” He said quickly before his eyes fixed back on her and an eyebrow disappeared under the ridge of his hat “Any reason in particular you are after him? Ifin’ ya don’t mind me’ curiosity”

Sweet Peach felt her own eyebrow twitch towards her bonnet. She’d been expecting to find the sheriff in his office as usual. Perhaps Old-salt would get to enter the saloon another day after all.

Pushing the unease away again, Sweet Peach smiled again, though this time it was a slightly sarcastic one. The pony had spared her some time so she figured it was only right to answer.

Sweet made a show of rolling her eyes and letting out a slight huff. “Thanks ta him, I seem to have gained a squatter, and it’s one I don’t much care ta have at that. I aim to track him down an ask him about it, an give him a piece of my mind if it is the case.”

The stallion offered a nod and a sly smirk “Well I hope you take a breath first miss” he said playfully, but sharply altered his tone when Sweet felt her face had twisted into another frown “not meaning no offence by it, but the sheriff looked to be mighty agitated ‘bout something, so I feel I need to warn ya if you’re fixing ‘ta give him an ear-full.”

Sweet Peach let her face soften, even if her eyes still held a slight edge “Well, thanks for the warning. Ya said he was heading to the south of the town, near the train tracks?”

“Aye.”

Sweet nodded again and her tone sweetened a little as she made a point to tilt her head slightly “Did ya happen ta catch why he was heading that way?”

Putting a hoof to his chin, the pony’s brow furrowed for a moment before his shoulders shrugged loftily “Sorry miss, I only heard him say something about ‘keeping an eye on something’…. Well, that’s all I heard. But from the look of him, he seemed mighty unhappy to hear whatever it was Cormano said to him. If ya hurry, you might catch him before he gets there… Though I just suggest ya tread lightly round him at the moment.”

Sweet Peach offered the pony another smile and nodded sharply “I’ll keep that in mind… and thank ya kindly” she said before turning away with a tip of her bonnet.

Leaving the pony behind, Sweet set off towards the sheriff’s office again, and this time she noticed her pace had unconsciously quickened to a firm trot… which only grew quicker when she once again noticed the distinct lack of ponies to impede her growing pace, and by the time she’d finally reached the end of the town, Sweet Peach had nearly broken into a full on run.

She broke around the final corner and stopped to catch her breath, there was the town’s sheriff sat at atop of a wooden stool at leaning it at its very edge.

At first, Sweet felt a wave of annoyance wash over her as she took in the sight of him. A reed was wedged between his teeth that every so often twitched up in front of his steely gaze that stretched out into the empty horizon. But as Sweet drew closer, she couldn’t help but feel that wave of annoyance roll back out when she caught the nervous look sitting across the old ponies face.

Licking at the salt now lining her lips, Sweet came just up to his side and paused for a moment before she dared to speak “Mornin’ sheriff”

At the sound of her voice, the pony’s eyes twitched over to her before lazily fixing themselves back to where they were before, and Sweet paused for a moment, waiting for a reply, but when none came she let the demeanour that was her namesake drop and donned a frown similar to all the ponies she had encountered in the town.

“Sheriff, “Sweet asked, and found her voice a little sharper than she intended “did yawl dump Salt lick on my lap, today of all days?”

The sheriff’s eyes found her again, and offered only a confused glance. “Can’t say’s I did Miss Peach, and I’d remember doing that too, why you ask?”

Sweet Peach licked her lips again, “Because, Mr Salt lick done found his way into the saloon not long ago; despite the fact were closed. An when I told him ta ‘git’ he started going on about how you were askin' ponies ta get off the street.”

“And yet you are here?” the sheriff pointed out with a jesting glance that last for less than a moment. “Aye, it’s true I asked that of him, though I expected him to go home not be a burden on you miss.”

The conformation made Sweet smile again, “OK, but that does beg the question, why’d you asked him to do that ta start with?”

The old pony opened his mouth to say something, but his words seem to stick inside his throat. Instead, he let it close again and gestured out to the horizon as he let out a gruff whinny…

“That’s why,”

With a curious frown, Sweet’s blue eyes followed the sheriffs, and when they settled on the horizon she spotted something odd out across the plane. Correction a pair of something’s just a small distance away, walking along the train tracks, actually walking along them like a path…

“And what am I looking at, sherif?” Sweet asked, even though the question wasn’t needed.

The sheriff replied with a long defeated sigh “That…is my quiet morning going down a hole.”

Sweet Peach felt her curious frown deepen. Even though she didn’t have a single honest clue what he meant by that, from what she’d seen today it couldn’t have been anything good. But never being one who likes being left in the dark, the mare sat herself down next to the sheriff, making it a point to cross his gaze when she did.

Eyeing the horizon again, the mare shifted uneasily in her seat and brought a hoof up to her bonnet, tilting the edge down so the light lessened on her eyes and the strange incoherent blobs transformed into two strange silhouettes, and while the sun’s position still obscured them, one thing suddenly became clear.

‘Those aren’t ponies’

The two figures, which suddenly looked to be a lot closer than just a moment ago, continued to follow the railroad tracks, and as they did, the obscuring slight lessened somewhat and she recognised the shape at least.

‘Diamond dogs? ‘Sweet wondered absently

That would be real strange if it was indeed the case. Diamond dogs weren’t known to just stroll into town and it would be even less known for just two to stroll in straight out of the blue.

Leaning back slightly, Sweet Peach decided to gauge the sheriff’s expression, but the stern, steely mask he wore offered no clue, so her eyes found their way back to the horizon.

Now the silhouettes were just outside of town, and that proximity allowed her to peer through the obscuring shadows…

When they lifted complexly, the first word that struck the mares mind was… ‘Lanky’, and while there were two of them, her eyes were immediately drawn to the taller of the two.

A thin, almost elongated body sat atoo only two long, spindly legs, and two equally thin forelimbs hung down limply at its sides. And while the right one seemed to hang loosely at its barrel, the left one that was bent slightly as a ‘claw’ ‘- at least that’s the closest comparison she could give- sat somewhere Sweet guessed its waist would be.

Its head was small, in fact its head seemed to be ridiculously small compared to the rest of it, and its eyes… wait did it even have any? She couldn’t really tell from here. All she could see was the long strands of a dark, unkempt black mane snaking down over its slightly angular face in wadded tufts.

Actually, no, on second look it does have eyes- she could tell now because both of them were staring right back at her and as it continued to approach, the lanky creatures’ head continued to twist in her direction, following her as it passed, and the movement caused its ‘mane’ to follow; splitting the matted clumps and she stared through them to find two tiny ‘bead’ like orbs glaring straight through her.

Despite their almost ridiculous size, the creature’s eyes were open wide enough for Sweet to begin to worry that they could pop out of its head… Actually, on second glance, only the right orb seemed to be threatening that while the left seemed to be nothing but a slit in comparison, marred by a large red, roughly textured, patch of flesh which covered almost half of its face.

The following moment made Sweet realise something else, the creature didn’t look like it had much, if any fur at all. Instead, its mal-proportioned body was draped in cloth… actually both of the creatures were covered in clothes, and while the shorter one was only covered between the shoulders and its hind limbs, the taller one was something else….

Sweet never seen anything, pony or otherwise wearing so much - Not even those fancy runway ponies in the Canterlot magazines she’d peered at from time to time.

The thought made Sweet cast a sharper eye towards the clothing; the silky looking material was mostly red, but held many different shades of it that reached down the side in a loose pattern that were separated by long trims of gold and the sight of it bought a single word to Sweet Peach's mind. ‘Fancy’

Yet, despite the immediate impression, just like its mane, the cloth covering its lanky form looked worn and unkempt and seemed to be marred with patches of dirt that chipped and cracked like the desert floor wherever it followed the contours of the creature’s form.

On its hind legs she found more cloth, only darker and with golden line running down the centre rather than its edge; except for the left leg which was missing the gold entirely.

A sudden thought made Sweet’s eyes switch sharply to the other creature. The cloth that covered the taller creatures hind limbs was something absent on the smaller one, instead she found two bony looking limbs that seemed vaguely like its front ‘claws’- How non-ponies ever walked on something other than hooves was something Sweet could never figure out, you know, besides the obvious reason of having no choice in the matter. But, no matter how they did it, Sweet Peach knew they would have to be mighty careful doing it as those two appendages looked downright fragile to her, especially the stubby round tips poking awkwardly out the front.

The larger creature’s head began to shift again; slowly whirling towards her and its eyes met hers once again. Gone was the wide panicked, bead-like, eyes that allowed Sweet peach her moment of inquiry. This time she found only sharp yellow edges in their wake that seemed to cut through into her very mind. The constant piercing gaze seemed to sink into the mare like a knife.

Sweet felt herself suppress a deep shudder as she quickly pulled her eyes away. And after forcefully subduing her own nerves, she noticed the sharp gleam seemed to have dulled and the creature was studying her with an almost panicked fervour.

Once again, its eyes were wide, and filled with shock, to the point where Sweet would almost swear that it was like the thing had never seen a pony before.

‘Well, if that is the case there’s no good in being unfriendly’ Sweet thought, and when she fell back under the creatures scrutinizing gaze she did the first thing that came to her mind… she waved… and to her almost complete surprise the creature actually waved back to her.

Well, It actually recoiled at first, almost if she’d just slapped it across the face, but after a moment’s hesitation, it leaned over and whispered something to its companion, and while she could hear neither its specific words, nor what its companion offered in reply, whatever its smaller companion said, along with a nudge of its own limb, caused the taller creature to look back up and, albeit with a hesitant pace- and after rubbing the spot where it was hit, it began to lift it right limb and waved its ‘claw’ at her in a way that loosely mirrored her own gesture…And when it was finished, the thing just sluggishly lowered its claw back to its side, turned away slowly and began walking into the town.

Letting out a breath she didn’t realise she was holding, Sweet Peach smiled. “Oh would you look at that,” she said while leaning towards the sheriff “Looks like ya got all worked up for nothing. Ah plum don’t have the first clue what that was, but it gave me a friendly wave with that claw at least”

“That it did” the sheriff confirmed with some slight surprise evident in his voice, but the almost unheard tone soon turned gruff again “But that’s not the claw that got me worried now Miss Peach. Didn’t ya see what it had in the other one?” he gave a pause to let her answer but she didn’t “It was a sword miss Sweet. Now I find myself at a loss as to why it would have such a thing, less it was fixing itself for a fight.”

The mare slowly began to nod her head. She couldn’t think of one either in all honesty, but as she pondered the question, something twigged and her eyes set back on the sheriff. “But if it was fixing for a fight then why would it wave to me all friendly like?”

The sheriff smiled, even though the gesture was obscured by his long facial hair “I wouldn’t have called it friendly, but that thought hadn’t eluded me.” He admitted before leaving his seat.
“Whatever its intention, that creature is armed, miss. Even the royal pony guards don’t carry round nothing like that unless they expect trouble, and that fact on its lonesome is reason enough for me to keep an eye on it.”

Sweet Peach let her eyebrow rise towards her bonnet, “couldn’t ya just go over and say hello?”

“No,” was the sheriff’s sharp reply, accompanied by a shake of his head “I’d rather everypony just keep their distance… let them two what’s its go about their business and if fate be willing, they’ll just pass on through town. Most ponies won’t have to be told tah keep their distance anyway, even if they didn’t see the sword. But if there is trouble, I’ll be keeping a sharp eye on em.”

Sweet squared her shoulders and got off her stool, “Ya wouldn’t mind if I tagged along?” She asked in a distant enough tone to warrant the funny look the sheriff shot her way. “Ah don’t mean nothing funny by it. it’s just… thanks ta your caution I can’t get my own work done and I’m gonn’a wind up on mah boss’s bad side any which way. So, I mightn’t as well see what the fuss is about mahself. Besides, he mightn’t be so quick ta yell if you say ah was helping you with something.”

Slowly, the funny look the sheriff was giving her fell away, and a rare crack in his demeanour allowed a silent laugh to pass through before he beckoned for her to follow.

The thought of snaking through back alleys would not be a thought that met Sweets idea of a good time, and as the mare narrowly avoided being buried under a falling tower of garbage, it was probably safe to say that that wasn’t about to change. Frankly she was starting to wonder if being chewed out by her boss would have been a more desirable pain in her tail. Ok, she wasn’t that far yet, but as she peeled a rotten banana skin off her bonnet and forced herself to not lose her breakfast to a smell that she could all but feel on her fur, the mental picture of her angry boss was beginning to seem more and more appealing.

And it looked like her day was only going to get worse from there. Because when she finally pushed herself through the labyrinth of foul smells and poked her head back towards the main road, she found that the creatures weren’t where they were supposed to be.

If they were passing through the Town, this would be the quickest way, yet she found nothing but an empty stretch of dirt gaping at her.

‘Good going Sweet’ she scolded herself ‘ ya lost em… Probably the hardest thing not to notice in the whole darn Town since the buffalo went and learned what ballet was and ya lost em, An… oh…’

It turned out the creatures were in fact hard to lose as the strange, but in this case strangely familiar, shapes passed Sweet’s eyes before she could even finish the thought… not that it helped her disposition at all… That would have only happened if the creatures weren’t heading straight for the market.

A nervous twinkle came to Sweet’s eye as she watched the two creatures draw closer to the market stalls, growing with every step they took. Her eyes, now unable to resist the pull the sheriff’s words had planted, began to drift back towards the taller creature’s waist… or more specifically what hung on it, and the strange grip that held it…

Sweet flinched as the creature’s sharp, piercing eyes met with her own once again, and the grip it held on the sword tightened with a cold edge. But this time the contact lasted only a second before its eyes were pulled away from the mare and the creature continued towards the town.

What followed next struck Sweet peach as strange; the smaller creatures gait stopped dead at the edge of the road and the larger one started passing over each stall, turning its eye over each one as if it was looking for something.

‘It’s just a shame so many ponies decided ta’ have a lunch break’ Sweet thought to herself as she watched the taller creature pass between the stalls with a strange, almost alien, fluidity to its movements.

That fluidity all but fell away when the creature came across an old looking cart, with a sharp lurch, it stopped dead in its tracks, and Sweet couldn’t be certain but it seemed the creature had fallen in love with the junk sat atop it. Ok, junk may be harsh but whatever the creature saw in it was lost on her… even though it looked familiar somehow.

While the creature’s attention was focused solely on the cart, it seemed that a few of ponies had taken the opportunity to get their turn gawking at the town’s new visitors… which was something the creature hadn’t seemed to notice.

‘ah just hope the cart owner appreciates the attention’ At that thought, Sweet Peach perked her head slightly and she began to search for the market pony who owned the stall. And while the first few moments of searching lead her to conclude that the pony was one of the ones that had suddenly gone on break, that conclusion was suddenly dispelled when the mare noticed said pony lurking within the crowd, gawking at the creature along with a small group of other ponies.

Sweet Peach frowned at the expression on the market pony’s face. It didn’t take more than a second to figure that the pony won’t be moving to help them any time soon.

‘Ah guess it will just buy its stuff and go about it’s da…’

Sweet’s thought was suddenly ripped away from her, and she flinched back when the smaller creature let out a sharp- almost bark like sound from its mouth, followed by a strange garble of words.

“Xuco! Xuco, das-ni!” the creature shouted again, and Sweet peach all but felt the air freeze in her lungs when her eyes found what caused it to shout…

She didn’t know how in the world it got there, but when Sweet blinked the shock away and turned her shaken gaze back to the market stall, she found that, sat under the narrow piercing eyes of the taller creature was the wide, pleading gaze of a young, tan coloured filly.

Time itself seemed to stop as a sharp glint of light stabbed at Sweets eye, both of the creatures blunt claws now sat atop its sword which was drawn just enough for the sunlight to catch the cold gleam of metal…

For what must have been the longest second in Sweet’s life, she watched in terrified silence as the creature glared down at a foal, its once nearly comically long limbs seemed as tense as a spring as it gave of the air of a viper the second before it strikes. But then, ever so slowly the glint of light disappeared and the creature’s claw fell away from the sword’s base and returned to rest limply at its side as the other stayed perched atop the wooden scabbard.

For a charged second, the air around Sweet Peach seemed to thaw, and she felt a breath fall out of her that she didn’t know she was holding… and she paused when the sound of more than one similar loose breath caught her ears. The sound made her eyes flick towards the source and she found a group of ponies standing a little away from the cover they were hiding behind. Each one wore a subconscious look of relief that Sweet Peach could never remember seeing before, but more than one also looked ready to lunge forward in a seconds notice towards the filly.

When Sweet’s eyes flicked back she found the creature still staring at the filly, and the filly still looking up at it with the same wide pleading eyes. But unlike the moment before, the creature’s harsh expression had crumbled, leaving a strange look of confusion, and what Sweet swore was discomfort in its wake. It almost seemed like an expression Sweet would have expected it to wear if a rattlesnake found itself two inches from its face. But despite the tense flinch of its demeanour Sweet watched the two with the same creeping - icy feeling of dread clawing at her throat as both the filly and the creature continued to wait for the other to blink first.

The filly was the first to act, but she didn’t blink, rather she turned her eyes to one of the carts then back to the creature, her lower lip quivering as she did, and even though its expression didn’t soften at all, the creatures eyes followed the fillies then it slowly reached out with one of its ‘claws’ and took one of the shiny red apples which Sweet hadn’t even noticed was there and It slowly lowered its claw towards the little pony.

When the apple was in front of the filly’s face, Sweet watched as the little pony as she gave a smile that threatened to split her face in half before she all but snatched the fruit out of the creature’s claw- only to try and shrink into the floor when she glanced around the apple in her mouth and found the eyes of probably every pony in the town staring at her… and with a quick squeak she shot off and galloped behind a building.

The creature, on its part, didn’t give any notice to the ponies staring eyes. Instead, it watched the filly retreat away with what Sweet could almost swear its kind would probably call a smile. It was the faintest, weakest most miserable excuse for a smile she had ever seen, but there it was all the same and the mare couldn’t help but find the gesture infectious as all the nervousness that all but froze her lungs a second ago seemed to melt away- if only to give an example of what a real smile should look like regardless as to whether it saw the gesture or not.

The creature, with that same ghost of a smile still sat atop its lips, looked over to its companion. But when it did, for some reason, the smile fell away and its face twisted back into a frown- and, with a gesture Sweet figured was its version of a shrug, it slowly turned around and began to move away from the stall.

With another loose breath, Sweet Peach let her head lower a little and she cast her eyes out for the sheriff. The stallion was watching the creature walk away with a cold, almost indifferent mask, but that mask seemed to fall away the second Sweet Peach caught sight of him.

For a second Sweet was confused. After what had just happened, or more likely what had not happened, Sweet thought the sheriff would be wearing a look of relief on his face- that or at least not look like the critter had just stolen his breakfast. But that’s was exactly the expression she found hiding behind the stallion’s large bushy facial hair.

Frowning, Sweet turned her heads to match her gaze to where the sheriff was staring, and as soon as she did, the mare was wearing the same expression which marred the stallion’s face. Standing in the middle of the road, blocking the path of the taller creature, was an earth pony. Below the scruffy rim of an old white hat, the light yellow face of a stallion was glaring at the creature, twisted into a frown that seemed to be doing its darndest to outdo the one the creature previously wore. And Sweet Peach would have even admitted that the frown had indeed succeeded; until the creature returned the expression...

In its flat, odd face, Sweet found the same mark of confusion, but this time the strange features seemed to hold little patience.

With a growing panic, she watched the stare down transpire, her mind swimming with a focused but confused question ‘What could it have done ta…?’ then a sudden swell of realisation struck her mind like a stampede.

‘Of course, the apple!’ The realisation brought on a cringe even worse than the one before….

Now, you see… every single settler pony worth their salt got to be that way by adhering to three, unspoken rules- and by ‘adhering’ I mean like the way bark sticks to a tree…

One- you never go far off out of town alone …

Two, a pony who steals from another pony ain’t no pony at all…

And finally… respect the apple family.

With that last one, a long list of justification follows. But the main reason behind it is the simple fact that any earth pony would be hard pressed to find a town in all of Equestria that didn’t have its humble beginnings credited to the Apple family; be it the humble seedling of a town out in the outskirts of nowhere, or the towering form of that seed after it was nurtured into a full city. And that same pony would be even harder pressed to wander into any one of them and not run into at least one of the Apple family members. A member of the Apple family even held the element of honesty, and anyone who messes with an apple in any way would soon learn the harsh truth that follows….

You can never cross just the one of them.

You see, the Apples took pride in being the kind of pony that sticks by close to their family. ‘You mess with one of us and you mess with all of us’ was even something of a family motto. And, there was one thing they all despise above anything else…Theft

To be a thief is to be against everything the Apple’s hold dear, and it was the quickest way to be labeled a pariah in any town the Apple family held influence. Not only that. But having helped start every pony settlement in Equestria means they’ve had their fair share of run-ins with non-ponies, and let’s just say that, just like their namesake, not all apples are sweet. But what all apples are in spades is mighty stubborn; even by the settler pony standards, and the whole mess with the buffalo was testament to that.

Some ponies even assert that that particular mess was the Apple’s doing. They were the ones planting the trees on the buffalo’s land without even a word. Then, when the town became dependent on the trees fruit, they use that as the reason they couldn’t shift them. Some took it even further than that, and say the apple fixed it that way on purpose to justify fighting the buffalo off; that the family had never collectively gotten over the whole ‘no cutie mark, no soul’ way of thinking.

Now, even if all these things weren’t true, there’s still one thing that Sweet Peach did know. That critter just found itself caught stealing something from an Apple… and that was never a good place to find yourself.

Sweet Peach shook her head. ‘For its sake, ah just hope this critter ain’t the stubborn sort…’

As the two harsh pairs of eyes glared into each other, both hoping to stare the other down, Sweet Peach tried to remember which member of the family she was looking at. It couldn’t have been the only other yellow apple stallion in town, Braeburn, on account of him being off on a peace trip with the buffalo and she also couldn’t remember that pony ever entering her place of work. She would have recognised the hat and vest if he had.

Well, she may not have known the pony but she could more than easily see what he was doing right now. He was stood with widened hooves, ears back and nostrils flaring with a huff of condensation giving each exaggerated breath a visual cue- just like most ponies do when they try and look threatening… it was just a shame that the creature didn’t seem at all fazed at the display as it just continued to looks down its, stubby almost non-existent ‘muzzle’ with the same expression of confusion on its face, but as time creeped on, that expression settled into an annoyed frown. But what did seem to faze the creature was a growing crowd of ponies that settled around the scene like a rising tide-many of which happened to be other apple clan members coming to see who it was that dared tangle with one of their own.

“Xuco…” the sudden, and now strongly familiar, sound of the smaller creatures warning tone shook Sweet ,and she looked over to see the smaller creature waving a forelimb as if to get the larger ones attention…

“Xuco, cha nietinia,” the smaller creature spoke in what almost sounded to Sweet Peach like the deadpan tone Sweet used many times when a pony knocked something from the bar table.

The taller creature glanced to its companion then too the pony, and spoke with a voice that sounded annoyed. “cha ni sacu!”

The smaller creature let out a sigh and shook its head.

With a strangely haughty gait, the smaller creature started walking towards the pony blocking the path of its companion, the sound of its steps overshadowed by a soft, almost mocking chuckle passing its lips as it did.

When it was only a few steps away from the pony it slowly moved one of its ‘claws’ into the layers of its clothing, making the stallion’s ear give a sudden twitch at the motion.

Turning slowly the pony faced the smaller creature just as it let out another word to its companion and it removed its claw from the layers of its clothing with a small sack held between the confines of its strange digits. A metallic sounding ‘jingle’ filled Sweet’s ear with every movement, and a golden glint confirmed her suspicion when it held it claw forward and presented a small number of small gold pieces to the pony.

Sweet felt herself smile as the stallion accepted the pieces and let the rectangles shift in the bowl of his hoof, and let out a nervous breath she didn’t know she was holding as silent sigh of relief, the disaster averted…

That was until the creature found the gold peace’s thrown back in its face by the now enraged pony.

With an angry snarl, the pony stormed forward as the creature was still trying to process what happened. But before he even took his third angry step, a sudden, sharp glint of sunlight stabbed him in his eye and stopped him dead.

The pony froze and his eyes drifted down near his throat to find the metal of two swords just inches from the fur on his throat.

The taller creature, who’d been watching the whole thing, seemed to have shed all its fear and confusion from its face and, faster than Sweet could even process, had pulled not one but two swords out of the scabbard on its waist, and now stood over pony with an angry scowl.

The stallion’s eyes flicked down to the glint of metal, then back to the creatures cold eyes. His sudden rush of anger seemed to have been replaced by feeling like a plant at the mercy of a gardener’s shears.

Sweet watched the scene play out with another chill as the pony cast its shocked eyes up at the creature’s face, but this time he found no annoyance or confusion, only cold anger. Anger that seemed almost tangible as it radiated off its burning features like light from a fire, a fire that was now burning only two feet away from his face, scorching through his eyes and forging his own into a blank, glassy stare.

“Xuco!? Ni chai dau un?” the ponies confused stare was shattered by the smaller creatures yell as its eyes turned away.

“Gaiu dali ni hu pau un! Dali sig gu!” the taller creature spat back, its anger seething through into its tone.

As the strange sounds filled Sweet’s ears her mind flashed with possible but futile notions of what the strange sound could mean. But the question wasn’t shared by the other pony. In his mind something else flashed… opportunity, and not even a second after it made itself known, he capitalised on it and scraped a hoof across the ground before hurling it into the distracted creatures face.

His effort was rewarded by a pained yell and clang of metal as one of the swords fell to the ground and the creature began to claw at its eyes with its strange limbs.

Now free from the swords and the creatures piercing eyes, the pony let out a startled yelp and his eyes scanned around him looking for any salvation.

A pitchfork… sitting up against the stall called to him, and while the creature was still impotently clawing at his its own face, he jumped back and quickly seized the wooden handle between his teeth.

The creature staggered backwards blindly as the pony reached for the pitchfork and clutched to it like it was his very life, razing the metal end between him and the staggering creature.

“XUCO!!!”

Sweet wasn’t sure what happened next… she saw the pony raise the pitchfork, she heard the smaller creature yell, then… the very earth seemed to quake under her and with a thunderous crash it retched and shook as noise and dust was kicked up into the air and into her face.

When the world was still again, she stopped resisting the pull of her hooves and they slid from her face and she just laid there on the ground as her mind and ears rang like a bell.

Through the noise, a panicked thought shot through and she desperately swung her head around to the pony… only to find the very earth seemed to have split and a pillar of stone now protruded where the stallion had just been standing.

Her eyes shot back at the two creatures, the smaller was nowhere to be seen and the larger one had crumbled, barely off the ground as it continued to claw at its own face. With one last scowl its face rose and looked through the dust that lined its eyes, and raised itself to it its full height, a shocked expression hanging on its face.

“Hello?!”

The yell of a pony cut through the dust and ripped the thoughts from her head. A shift in the wind gave Sweet a glimpse of the sheriff heading towards her with a group of ponies wading through the wafting soil while they coughed over the handles of farm tools held between their teeth.

The taller creature must have noticed the ponies as it let out a commanding shout and the smaller one raised its forelimbs in a strange manner and then, to Sweet’s shock, brought them down with force and the cloud of dust followed the gesture, parting to reveal the ponies who continued to rush ever closer.

With one last command the creatures turned away and started running and the sheriff and other ponies rushed on to give chase… but not for long.

The last thing Sweet saw of the creatures was obscured by a cloud of dust rising from the pony’s hooves. A shuddering yell followed by strange flash of orange and yellow ripped through the dust and lingered softly, leavening Sweet mesmerised by flames dancing in the air before dying out, leaving only a deep, deathly silence in its wake.

...

chapter 11 part 2

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….

‘What does a blind person see?’

…

That question always did sound stupid to Toph. As far as she was concerned, blind was everyone else’s dumb label for her because she couldn’t see- whatever that meant. Yet, despite her father’s constant efforts to keep his daughter's ‘vulnerability’ a secret, the wealth of her family’s estate always meant the question found its way to her ear- and always with a new voice to carry it.

Sometimes the voice belonged to a new house maid- who’d stumbled across her room and found their curiosity piqued at the sight of a young girl sitting alone without a single wisp of light in there with her. Other times, it was one of the many new babysitters her father all but tied her to in the guise of keeping her out of trouble. Granted, they always came under a different title; tutors, helpers…. He could call them whatever he wanted, but it didn’t matter to Toph- because, to her they were nothing more than wardens. There to keep her in and keep the world out.

Even her first real friends had asked her that question the first time they’d found themselves with nothing to do but soak in the dull crackle of a lonely campfire…Well, actually Sokka asked it- which was something that didn’t really surprise her in hindsight now that she had gotten to know him. But at the time, she couldn’t help but feel an uneasy silence creeping in as the people who she considered her first real chance of having friends waited expectantly for her answer.

Strangely, unlike the many times she had been asked before, when she heard the question this time, a peculiar gnawing feeling inside her almost drove Toph to try and offer an answer- after all, it’s something a friend would do, right? It was just a shame that her patience for that particular question had withered and died long ago, and all Aang, Katara and Sokka’s standing as possible friends had earned them was a polite (if only by her standards) suggestion to change the topic.

Unfortunately, Sokka wasn’t like a maid or ‘babysitter’ working for her father, and so his curiosity wasn’t so easily discarded. But, unlike those maids, Toph didn’t really have to worry about Sokka repeating what she said to her father, and seeing as it was Sokka who asked, a particularly fitting answer came to mind, and filled her voice with a particularly haughty air.

‘Well, what does your bending feel like?’

She’d always found it a little odd how the side of her mouth would always tense up a little on its own accord whenever she found something amusing, or how it would loosen when something perplexed her. And seeing as the others had a word for it ‘smirk’ she couldn’t help but feel an odd spark odd spark of warmth fill her chest whenever she tries to imagine what Sokka’s faces must have felt like in the silence that followed.

It was just a shame Katara had to go and ruin the moment.

Granted, she did wind up learning a little more from Katara’s ensuing rant then she ever did from people who were afraid for their future state of employment, not enough to make it worth having her voice grate at her ears for as long as it did, but just enough to make it less annoying then it could have been without it.

Apparently, other people ‘see’ something called ‘black’ when they close their eyes, and Katara assumed that Toph being blind meant that see must ‘see’ that ‘black’ all of the time.

She’d been really, really adamant about that part…

But to Toph the point was entirely mute, how could she say she sees ‘black’ when she didn’t even know what that was? It was just a shame Katara couldn’t seem to ‘see’ that... her brother could, and accepted the answer with quiet reflection, but for some reason, Katara just couldn’t.

In the end -that meaning another twenty minutes of grinding her teeth In the hopes of tuning out her voice- Toph simply settled for offering the same speech she’d offered Aang when they came to a ‘truce’ and tried to explain to them all how she sees with her feet.

She knew it was a dodge. In fact she often wondered why no one ever questioned how she could make the assertion that she ‘sees with her feet’ if she’d never seen anything to begin with. But the real truth was more poignant to her then some straightforward comparison. The phrase ‘seeing with her feet’ masked its true meaning along with its true nature. It had a deeper meaning to Toph, just like the word ‘seeing’ itself.

She’d often heard the workers exchange a private -at least they thought the hallway outside of her door was private- few words after leaving her room, and in those words she’d often hear how horrible they imagined life must be without sight, and how brave she was to face it like she does.

Sometimes it came with a moment of sympathetic reverence as they listed all the things they had ‘seen’ in their life that she would go without; some grand piece of ‘scenery’ that had taken their breath away, or even simply the faces of their own parents.

That last one always hurt more than she would ever let on, but there is one thing they always miss which probably hurt more…

Being born blind means you’re not only cut off from a portion of the world, but also the words that are born of it. Words that people would use so frivolously are nothing but gibberish to you and exist as nothing but a testament to something you can never really truly morn. How could you if you didn’t even know what it is you’ve never had? All you knew was that you didn’t know.

In many of her most private moments, she’d often thought about what she would give just for one fleeting glimpse at the world, if only to know what it was she was missing so she could tell herself that it wasn’t worth fretting over. And in her weakest moment she’d even offered a deal to the spirits, one of her feet for one working eye… or even just her favourite picking toe if she could only know what the difference was between a ‘red’ thing and a ‘blue’ thing.

She chose the phrase ‘seeing with her feet’ because the word ‘seeing’ meant nothing to her but to say ‘we have something that you don’t’. But when she finally earned it, she finally had something she could do that they couldn’t. Something that they could never understand no matter how much they wanted to…

But really, in the end, that was kind of the problem. No one could understand….

She always thought she was lucky that rumble six came along when it did. The roar of the crowd as they cheered her first victory is something she will always carry with her… it’s definably lighter than the gold she had to bribe the ring owner with to get In the ring to begin with. But she’d heard the roar of approval, and the taste was sweeter than sugar, itself.

Even her nickname made them cheer louder, and for once, she wasn’t ashamed to wear that label.

Then Twinkle Toes came along, with his ‘rubbish’ about ‘magic swamps’ and ‘listening to the earth’.

The though was still weird to her. If someone had ever said she would wind up being the avatar's Earthbending teacher, Toph would have simply walked away while making a mental note to keep anything sharp away from them. And yet there she was, on the back of a flying bison imagining her house getting further and further away… while also rubbing her head and planning how she would get Sokka back for the welt.

Aang even got her to teach him how to see with his feet. She was against the idea at first, but that reservation didn’t service the three days of listening to him blather on, and on, and on, and on so she gave in. After all, she was there because he wanted the best after all and she couldn’t fault that…. at least that’s what she told herself.

She’d even made the lesson as simple as she could for him. Just wear a blindfold for a week and ‘listen to the earth’.

Well, that was the lesson, but after just two days in, the – as Toph put it- jelly boned wimp wussed out. But what annoyed her the most was that he didn’t even have the nerve to quit the training; he’d just always take the blindfold off right away.

The whole point was to teach him you can’t just learn Earthbending you have to live it- like she lives it every day.

She thought the Avatar of all people would get that.

But what really made her angry was Aang had the gall to be surprised when she didn’t talk to him for the rest of the week. He kept trying to snake his way back onto her good side.

Ha, like that would ever work.

Then, Katara got involved, just like Toph figured she had to get involved in everything, and the next thing Toph knew, she was listening to a speech about how she had to work through her problems…

‘Her problems’ she’d scoffed at the time, ‘Seeing’ really must be a great thing if it’s why those dorks never learned to use their ears properly.

She wound up playing along for the sake of a quiet life, but the truth was the ‘problem’ Katara helped fix wasn’t the real problem, just the thing she assumed was wrong and didn’t have the sense to ask otherwise. But that was for the best really, as Toph wouldn’t, couldn’t admit the real problem, because the truth was… It hurt… and she didn’t even want to admit to herself how much it did.

She shared the one thing she had that no one else did. The one thing that she thought made her special, made her the greatest Earthbender- and was the whole reason she was training him in the first place, and she did it with the hopes someone could finally understand… and he couldn’t bare being like her, even for just two days.

Whenever she found a rare quiet moment to simply be alone with her thoughts, the reasons she decided to go with Aang would often find her, swirling around in her head, buzzing until she was forced to swat them down with the same tired justifications. But the real truth was, when she ran away from home, she wasn’t running away from her parents themselves. She was running away from the chance that they were right, and in the end, no matter what she said or did, she was still just some little blind girl, lacking something important- and that she always would be.

Even after years of going behind her parent’s back she’d finally gotten the chance to show them she wasn’t the girl they thought she was. But even after proving it to them, they still didn’t change their minds and she didn’t know if that was them being stubborn or if their really was something they could ‘see’ that she couldn’t.

In the end, she ran away because, no matter the answer, she had to find out for herself…

…

‘Urgh, stupid silence…’ Toph thought as a hiss escaped between her teeth. Her stride waned in anticipation as she kicked at another of the many large stones protruding out from the soil.

The stone shattered with a dull crack and she paused to savour the tiny sensations that followed as the fragments left the empty void over her head and touched her senses again. But the tiny vibrations and faint echoes soon gave way to the numb ache of her tired feet and dull silence that filled her ears like a thick glue.

She was really growing to hate that silence. When she was trapped at home, playing the role of her parent’s helpless little blind girl, she’d often found herself welcoming a quiet moment where she could just listen to the world. The soft sounds of nature often blended together into a sonnet that she grew to enjoy… and it also meant she would often catch the odd bit of conversation that the speaker wouldn’t want her to hear.

But now, as she followed Zuko further and further into who knows where, all she had to listen to was her own thoughts.

Normally that too was fine with her, as she often put it, she prefers intelligent conversation. But ever since last night, and she was wrapped in whatever loose visage of sleep it offered, she’d done all she could block them out with any weak distraction she could muster.

The same thought kept rolling over her tired mind. Every minute, every hour it just kept rolling in and out like the tide, wearing away a little more of her resolve each time and when it returned this final time, the sickly taste of bile followed it and rolled across her tongue.

Just one dumb, blind mistake and she would have drowned if that mistake hadn’t dragged someone along with her.

She still didn’t make sense of what happened. She only figured that Zuko was too angry with her to fill her in… or he really didn’t know. She wasn’t sure which one she hoped was true. Aang was still who knows where, and the stupid comet was today!

The only thing that stopped her from completely flipping out was the hope- and that’s all it was, Aang hadn’t stumbled across that stupid fountain after going for a swim and wound up stuck here as well…

She knew Twinkle Toes had done something like that before…

She ground her teeth. But Zuko was right- despite how rare such a thing was for him. They had to focus on getting back… and just hope that when they did there was somewhere to go back too.

She just had to keep thinking positive.

Even if they didn’t get back in time to help, the others would find Aang, he would stomp the Fire-lord all over the four kingdoms, and then she, Aang and Zuko could spend the next five years apologising for making Katara so worried.

She’d… just have to trust Zuko… she… needed his help…

‘Urrrrgh’

Just thinking that made her grind her teeth…

At least Zuko seemed to know what he was doing, even if she couldn’t help notice a strange feebleness to his voice whenever he spoke…

She knew Zuko blamed her, at least a little bit; she knew she would in his place, and the thought of him blowing up in her face kept her mouth shut, even if it kept her locked in this grating silence.

She ground her teeth harder and seethed… She hated this. It made her feel like the little helpless blind girl her parents always told her she was, and she could all but hear their contemptuous voices repeating it at the back of her mind.

She paused as Zuko came to a stop at the edge of a shallow slope. She felt the urge to break her self-imposed silence, but paused. The dull thrum of Zuko’s heartbeat suddenly began to quicken.

A heartbeat was a curious thing. They would speak to her in their own way, tell her things that their owners didn’t want her to know… like when they were lying.

But Zuko’s had stopped speaking to her… it was shouting in Panic… Something Zuko almost never gave off.

Once again, her own world offered no answer; her senses ended a short way down the incline. So once again… she found her gritting her teeth at the thought of asking for help…. And with one last silent growl, she swallowed her pride and curled her lips back.

“Zuko…” she knew the word left her mouth, but the wind took it before it even reached her own ears.

“Zuko!” This time it reached her ears, and his, the twitch through the soil proved it. But her patience groaned as he still didn’t move.

Not one to like being left out, and with her patience already frayed she stomped over to Zuko and gave his arm a retch back. “Zuko! What’s wrong? Your heart’s about to jump out your head, what do you see!?”

She still didn’t find an answer, just a slight shudder up her leg as the sound of clanging metal filled her ears and she felt the metal of his swords contact the dirt.

She felt her nerves Fray a little more “Come on, Zuko. You’re weirding me out” she murmured in one last time in a rare moment of weakness.

There was still no answer.

That was it, her patience cracked and on a single impulse, she took the sword in her hands and savoured the ache that rang up her arm as she let the wooden scabbard rattle off the back of Zuko’s head.

Her last effort finally earned a reaction, and she heard a sharp snarl as Zuko’s trance came to an end and she felt the swords get ripped from her grasp.

She sucked in a shallow breath, “You OK hothead? You kind of zoned out there for a while.” She asked with a slightly stronger voice.

She heard Zuko suck in a breath of his own, shaky and shallow just like her own, one which instantly drowned out the abhorrent drum of a heart with the chime of warning bells…

“I’m fine” he said. She didn’t need to listen to his heart to tell that he was lying… Zuko was never ‘Fine’; ever.

She was about to call him out on it when Zuko spoke again.

“We’re wasting time,” he said as his voice regained some of its strength “The towns just down there”

She just stayed put and crossed her arms in defiance.

“I’m fine” Zuko muttered half-heartedly and she just stood there; arms still crossed, before slamming a foot down a moment after he didn’t react.

A soft growl touched her ear. “Fine,” Zuko said “I thought I saw something but it’s probably just the sun getting to me.”

She could hear him give one last growl and the strain of something as he messed around with the sword. She guessed he was trying to fix it to his waist, but she didn’t get long to guess as he sharply turned around and started towards the ridge again.

“So…” she said in a quiet but deadpan tone “Your heart nearly goes pop, and you say it’s just the sun. That some stupid fire bender thing, or is it just you?”

“It’s nothing” Zuko murmured.

Toph let out a scoff, far for convinced “You’re a worse liar than Katara... You saw something, and when you want to tell me what that ‘something’ is I’ll be right here.”

“It was just the sun…” Zuko said, a little more forceful this time, and again she didn’t need her Earthbending to know that he was lying, but this time, it was her ears that told her as she picked up one final, almost silent murmur ‘At least I hope it is’

…

Just outside Appaloosa, 9: 47 AM

With a tired breath, Zuko stared blankly at the long wisp of smoke wiping up from behind a slight rise in the ground. Just over half an hour had passed since his eyes first caught sight of it and the almost desperate sense of relief its presence offered him had long since died. No matter how long he followed it, the town it promised always seemed to be just one more mile- just one more hill rise away and this one seemed to be no different.

The muscles in his legs protested every forced step, but he’d long since grown numb to the burning ache at the edge of his limbs. And after half an hour of walking in complete silence, he’d all but fallen into a trance. Walk for a few minutes, notice the silence and shoot a panicked glance behind him to make sure his travel partner was actually still following. Then grumble silently when said girl let out an amused scoff.

The next rise in the landscape drew a little closer, and he took a moment to try and rub the fatigue out of his eyes with the back of his hand. He wasn’t sure if he still welcomed the uneasy silence they’d settled into. He’d all but relished it at first, but the longer it was draped over them the less it felt like a calming blanket, now it felt like he was standing near a coiled viper. The air seemed to radiate with a tense charge, one that grew ever worse the slower Toph chose to walk and the polite amount of personal space shared between them grew ever wider.

Then there was that thing he saw…

Zuko violently shook the thought from his head...and instantly regretted the action as the welt on the back of his head began to sing. Clumsily, he raked his hand through his hair and let his palm settled back over his eyes, hoping to keep the ache from spreading to them.

That was the main reason he let the silence be. Given the tension in the air, he did not want to risk inviting another welt to keep the first one company. Not today, and not until the sun stopped feeling so… wrong.

His hand fell away from his eyes and pushed at the pack on his back, adjusting its weight away from the ache in his shoulder. His hand caught a familiar weight- the book.

Zuko’s mind stopped as a memory flashed through it.

A small rise in the ground… A strange hat sitting above two huge eyes staring right through him… A Shape, launching itself up from the rise… that same shape flying away…

A shot of pain in the back of his head…

He shook his head, again, ignoring the sharp ache the action invited. No, that was foolish. He’d seen enough strange creates on his travels. Someone’s weird pet had probably just gotten loose and he’d spooked it.

But what about the book…’ his mind seemed to taunt him.

Zuko snarled and his hand went back over his eyes. He was growing to hate that stupid book. Yes, something weird had happened, but it was no different than the usual stuff that being around the Avatar seemed to attract. No. He would find the town, get his bearings and-

Zuko jumped back with a sudden flinch as his foot seemed to miss the ground beneath him, and he pulled himself back from the crest of the hill rise. His palm sprung away from his face and a shallow breath immediately chased after it.

Steadying himself, Zuko glowered down at the slight incline which had almost robbed him of his balance… only too look up and lose his breath again.

Nestled within a large expanse of flat land was a loose cluster of wooden buildings that stretched out in two straight lines running parallel to each other, along with a few other buildings loosely scatter behind them. Each one was different and Zuko’s immediately found his eyes drawn to a large red tower sitting off to the side.

Zuko let out a heavy sigh as a sense of euphoria seemed to follow it. If it had been any other day, he probably would have scowled at the peasant-esque buildings, but today, each one may as well have been a palace.

Zuko couldn’t help but let a smile spread across his face as the gnawing sense of unease seemed to lift from his mind… only to twist itself into an errant serpent and the wind hissing passed his ears almost began to take on the sound of its twisted, mocking laughter.

The town seemed all but deserted…

Zuko felt his temper rise. He couldn’t see anyone. Not a single person going about their business…It was almost like the horrible silence had following them from the mountains and descended over each building like a dull shroud before they even reached it, leaving only the glare of the sand and the sound of the wind sharply whistling between the buildings to greet them.

Zuko violently shook the thought from his head as his mantra of ‘it’s just the sun’ passed through his mind. He rubbed tiredly at his scarred eye with the back of his palm to ease its weary ache and he turned to his traveling companion, hoping she could see something -anything he’d missed.

The thought withered the second he caught sight of her milky white eyes, staring impotently at the ground before of her feet.

Zuko let his own gaze fall as a sudden, poignant moment of clarity settled across his mind.

‘Half blind leading the blind’ he grumbled.

With another tired inhale, Zuko let the glare of the sun soak into his skin. Its glow still felt strange. But the hollow, almost itchy feeling it cast across his skin worked to push him forward all the same as the usual empowering glow that filled his breath with warmth.

“Hey Zuko… I’m getting a bad feeling here.”

It was just a shame he didn’t get three steps before a weak call dragged him back, and he turned around to find Toph, standing with a demeanour far from the aura of confidence that usually surrounded her.

To be honest, Zuko found a strange comfort in the fact that the smothering sense of unease didn’t seem to be only lingering over him. But on the other hand… it wasn’t just lingering over him…

Zuko cautiously licked at his dry lips, “You got anything you want to tell me?” he asked, hoping to mimic the same grating tone Toph’s voice had held earlier.

If the girl picked up on it, she didn’t betray that fact. Instead, she just stood there, wordlessly, but when Zuko felt the urge to speak again, she dropped to one knee and silently placed her palm onto the ground.

With a curious air, he watched her stay like that for a few seconds, only allowing her face to scrunch up as any indication of her actions, and just as Zuko felt another urge to speak, Toph spoke.

“I can feel things walking around” she said carefully, a strange… apprehension present in her tone “But they don’t really feel right…”

“What do you mean they don’t feel right?” Zuko asked, and his tired mind stopped his tongue from continuing a second before it was too late “…Are they walking on their hands?”

“No” Toph answered, again seemingly missing, or ignoring Zuko’s biting tone “I think they’re walking on their legs… All four of them…”

The second Zuko heard that, the same memory from before flashed through his mind again. He answered it by gritting his teeth and letting a snarl pass through them.

“Are you sure?” he asked in all seriousness, but his question only found him a finger prodded accusingly into his chest.

“Hey, I don’t question your eyes,” Toph snapped with another poke, this time to Zuko’s forehead “Don’t you question the feet. They see a lot better then you ninnies. Why don’t you just use those eyes of yours and tell me I’m right!”

When he felt the finger jab at his forehead again, Zuko wanted to feel annoyed, but he just couldn’t seem to muster the energy… so muttering weakly under his breath, he admitted. “I can’t…”

“Well then!” Toph’s voice swelled with triumph, only to suddenly falling flat again.

“…What, why?” she asked.

“I mean.” Zuko interrupted- his tone strangely even “I haven’t seen anyone since we got here.”

Toph grew silent and began to idly grate the back of her hand against her chin. With an indifferent sniff she let the hand fall away. “Think it’s an ambush?” she asked almost sarcastically.

Zuko put a hand to the ridge of his nose and squeezed. He didn’t think that was the case, but again, his mouth betrayed him as he spoke before thinking. “Maybe… But we can’t go back. We don’t even have a clue where we are and we won’t last long without food, and…”

“And if it is an ambush, it’s their butts, right?” Toph interrupted, cupping a palm and hitting it with the other fist. The action almost earned a tired smile from Zuko, but he obscured it with a shake of his head.

The two of them set off again, and Zuko couldn’t help but noticed that Toph was walking closer than before. Not that he could do- or really cared to do anything more than just notice it. But as the town drew closer he felt himself holding onto the hilt of his sword, like a child clinging to a stuffed toy, his thumb curled like a viper behind the hand guard.

He could see the strange metal lines they had been following cut through the town, but Zuko had stepped away from them, trying to keep as much distance as he could between the buildings opposite him as possible.

The buildings drew closer, and a familiar feeling crept up his spine, the same one you get when you feel like you’re being watched, and while that feeling under normal circumstances could make some clutch the hilt of their sword tighter, Zuko felt a well of pain rise up through his fingers as the wooden handle seemed to deform slightly.

It was just a good thing the hilt was strong… because… if it wasn’t, what he saw when he brought his eyes up would have cost him his fingers…

Awkwardly squatting on a low wooden stool was the most twisted creature Zuko had ever laid his eyes on. Bulbous stumpy limbs hung clumsily over a sitting stool centred in a lumpy barrel like body that bled into a thick neck. Perched atop was a round swollen head half obscured by a low hanging bonnet like hat that rested just above its eyes…

Its eyes…

Oh, by his father, its eyes!

He swore each were almost the size of his own head, and they fixed him with a vacuous almost glazed stare. But even worse, as he gazed back into those blank dull eyes he could swear, somewhere inside, he saw a familiar spark. The small glint you see when you look into the eyes of a person, a spark that was twisted and stretched over something else. Like a thin veil of familiarity awkwardly strained over something alien like a thin mask…

He wanted to look away; he wanted to just turn his head in disgust. But something inside took hold and forced him to keep his eyes on it, and welded his hand to his sword.

“Zuko, you ok?” the voice came from behind him and Zuko tore his eyes away to give a panicked glance at the source. It was Toph with the closest thing to a concerned look she could hold on her face but it was evident in her tone, despite her steady posture.

“Seriously you almost had another heart attack there, what’s wrong?” Toph barked, and Zuko could only look back at the… thing just sat there, fixing him with the same lingering stare.

He tried to say something but when his eyes where once again locked with the creatures the words froze in his throat, and he only managed to utter a weak almost seething whisper “look!”

Toph snorted “You’re going to have to help me out here.”

Zuko sucked in a deep breath through his teeth to centre himself.

“On the porch,” He whispered through his teeth eyes still bleeding with the creatures. “There’s something…

Suddenly, a flicker of movement caught his eyes as one of its strange bulbous limbs lifted from its side clumsily and… waved at him, its lips peeling back into a smile that almost made his own lips curl in disgust.

“There something what, what’s it doing?” Toph asked quickly sensing there reaction and Zuko twitched before he whispered again.

“It’s… waving…”

Zuko couldn’t pull his eyes away even as Toph seemed to choke on the air in her lungs; the sound turned into a deep mocking scoff “Well then wave back.”

Zuko ground his teeth as he kept staring. It was almost like this girl didn’t hear a word he said…

He didn’t know what it was, the fatigue, his rising anger, or even the dumb absurdity of the situation, but Zuko found his left arm- not the right which was still occupied with trying to merge with the handle of his sword, dumbly rose up and mimicked the creature’s action. And when he looked back at the… whatever it was, the creeping repulsion walling up in his throat seemed ease somewhat- if only because a look of surprise and recognition suddenly sparkled in its eyes as he walked on by.

‘Urgh its eyes’

Zuko pulled his own eyes away one last time, and when he did, he noticed that the creature wasn’t alone. There was another sitting just to the side of it. This one was brown and had a blue vest like those performing animals he’d seen in Ba-Sing-Si. Deciding to get as far away as possible he turned with one last lingering glance and a shuddered thought passed through his head as the twisted creatures passed from sight.

‘Some people keep the weirdest pets…’

Zuko scowled as he kept walking and his mind kept twirling around that one thought. If there are pets their owners couldn’t be too far away… A part of him thought about going to that building where those… things owners must be, but no matter how desperate he was he would rather not meet someone who would keep something like that as a pet. Not when there was a whole town to choose from at least.

“Let’s get a move on” Toph spoke, suddenly cutting Zuko off from his thoughts “No matter how much I want too, even I can’t eat dirt”

Ok, could agree with that and the feeling of his stomach eating itself helped push him forward a little faster. But the town was still far too quiet for his liking. So as the space they entered grew further and further away, Zuko couldn’t help it when his eyes began to dart back and forth, scanning for anything or anyone who could take him by surprise.

Zuko’s eyes picked up on something else familiar; it was another strange sense of foreboding unwelcome he tasted in the air at the time he was traveling alone through the earth kingdom. How dusty that memory felt now… It almost made sense in that moment. They were both wearing fire nation clothes and even if the villagers recognised him, any one from an earth kingdom town would give a fire nation citizen a wide berth.

They were all probably just sitting in their buildings praying he kept walking.

But despite that line of thought bringing with it the obvious question of ‘how on earth they could have ever ended up all the way back in the earth kingdom? Something seemed really wrong here. All the buildings looked to be made of wood, something no one in the earth kingdom would do… ‘Not if they had the money, and not after 100 years of war with the fire nation- that was just asking to waste your week rebuilding it again.

He’d heard of some towns where fire nation soldiers held for ransom with that very threat. But this one felt different. As he passed them, Zuko kept getting fleeting glimpses of something- Pairs of eyes staring at him through the buildings windows, always just at the edge of his peripheral vision and always gone when his gaze shifted to follow their lure.

His little theory made him expect that, but the eyes seemed off but at the same time, as of five minutes ago, all too familiar.

“I’m really starting to doubt this idea…” Zuko muttered under his breath, and heard Toph let out a snort behind him. But, despite his ever more tense nerves, he kept going forward- and just meant not a single one of the buildings he passed went without his scrutiny.

One pass made him do a double take, and when it finally clicked he stopped dead and a hand flicked up for Toph to do the same.

Nestled between two of the building was a mass of bronze in the shape of another weird creature. A huge slab of bronze with four legs rooting up towards a towering, arched back and two very large horns jutted out what looked to be the side of its thick dome like head. At its side was one of the… big eyed ‘creatures’, also made of bronze.

The whole thing seemed to be made to a realistic scale… that did not help Zuko’s fraying nerves.

To the right of the statue something caught Zuko’s agitated attention. One of the creatures was sitting out in the open, a very large sheet of paper in front of it as it kept glancing at him through the corner of its oversized eye. After a second he recognised the Silver Star perched on its mis sized vest.

It seemed that this was the same one sat at the mouth of the town with the other…Zuko felt his stomach lurch as he came to an unwelcome conclusion.

It was following him…

Zuko pressed his thumb against the blade guard and he turned to Toph. “You know I’m really starting to dislike this idea” he said slowly, the words seething through gritted teeth.

Toph seemed apathetic, “Yea, I doubt all your ideas Zuko…” she replied as she pushed on past him and began to walk further into the town with her usual confidence- a confidence Zuko noted other blind people could only dream off. But once again he also noticed her movements marred by that same strange unease, and a frown seeding itself on Zuko’s face again as he set off to follow her.

A couple more buildings passed by and Zuko caught something out of the edge of his vision. Nestled between two of the wooden corners, that same, strange creature was peering at him. He made sure not to react to it, but he felt his thumb almost instinctually flick up at the guard of his sword.

“Toph…” he said quietly “Do you see, feel, whatever- do you know if any people are around here?”

Toph’s face twitched and she ‘frowned’- or her features scrunched together at least in the closest approximation of one, something that didn’t fill Zuko with confidence… and he found even less when she simply answered “No…”

Zuko felt his eye twitch, “No? What do you mean no?” he asked with another pained whisper he has to push through his teeth.

“You asked, and I don’t know.” Toph hissed back. “I can’t feel a single person walking around since we got here, not one. I just keep finding these weird things with four legs that run away whenever we get close.”

And just like that, Zuko felt the wood of his scabbard give a little.

But, despite everything, the trek up the road had almost gained a monotonous quality as building after building drifted by; in spite of it though his eyes had meticulously bounced to each one…

As he passed, Zuko noticed a group of small wooden carts sitting in a small space lying between two of the buildings. They looked like the market carts scattered around the earth kingdom but much smaller, and unlike those however Zuko could easily look over their cloth coverings.

‘Finally’ Zuko sighed. The thought came like a breath of air… ‘Now to just find the people’ His mind paused but he shook it clear “-running the market, get what we need, then get out of here...’ At this point none of those goals could come fast enough for Zuko. And after shooting a glance over to Toph he set off towards the nearest stall.

When he took his seventh step, his eyes caught movement and they swung around and took in a familiar sight. The creature that was sitting on the stool, wearing that small yellow bonnet- The ridge of it moved, and he once again was caught within the gaze of those same smothering eyes….

Zuko had to suppress another shudder as his grip tightened on the sword and a deep, primal feeling repulsion began to squirm behind his own eyes.

Zuko had seen stranger creatures in his travels, creatures that you could look at and find death itself hidden in their eyes. But something about this creature was just... wrong….In its eyes, Zuko didn’t find reason to fear, he found… confusion, some strange hint of wonder, and the same fear that mirrored his own, and in the end that’s what really unnerved him. Unlike fears that where echoes of simple threat, this was something deeper. Something he couldn’t put into words but it was still something primal, something that made him cling to his sword in a way no other creature ever had.

The thought of simply turning on his heel and walking back out into the desert welled back up into the front of his mind. But, again, Zuko tried to push it down. He didn’t have a choice.

They reached the mass of wooden carts and Zuko gave a passing glance back to where he saw the creature, then back to Toph, “Keep watch…” he said without even a hint of irony in his voice.

Not even giving chance to hear her sarcastic response, Zuko began navigating among the mass of carts, idly scanning each one and finding most completely bare, or simply closed up.

One of them was neither; instead, it had a litter of strange objects covering its surface and drooped over the sides by rope, none of which were objects Zuko could put a name too. With a curious eye, Zuko began to scan the table but didn’t really get anything for the effort. Only a moment to ‘admire’ weird, contorted pieces of metal lying in small piles…. Tools, he guessed from the fact that some of them looked vaguely familiar if not… off.

It was almost like they weren’t made for people…

Zuko shook his head again. A straw doll was propped up against the side of the cart. It seemed to be a rough approximation of one of the creatures. It stared at him with a pair of blank, glass like eyes.

Zuko pulled his eyes away and suppressed a shudder.

‘I really need to get out of the sun…’ he thought with a grumble.

That thought was interrupted by the sound of his stomach growling, and his eyes shifted to a cart holding a mound of apples. His stomach growled again.

‘OK. Food first, then shade…’

He took an uneasy step towards the cart, but as his leg swung around the back of his boot snagged on something, and his eye flicked around to jab it loose with his sword. And saw a flicker of colour behind him…

Time stopped, a white flash of panic washed out the world, and forced him to swing around, his hand gripping at his swords.

But when he looked all he found was the building behind him.

“Zuko, Don’t move…” he heard Toph’s voice, and the words broke Zuko’s attention away from the empty space and his eyes darted around to meet the girl and found her facing him with her palms lifted out towards him…

When he followed her hand down what Zuko saw almost made him finish drawing his sword there and then. Right as his feet sat one of the creatures, its eyes staring right into his own.

Just Staring…

A reflexive flick of his thumb had brought the base of steel into daylight. But something stopped his right hand, and the sword from going any further. These eyes were just as suffocating as the other ones and its proportions where even more ridiculous… but, unlike the other ones, this creature's eyes held something different.

In its eyes there was no awe, no fear, just…wanting and as Zuko looked on, that same feeling of repulsion began to squirm and writhe. But it was only its eyes that held that effect on him. The small ribbon around its neck made the creature seem just… odd more than anything else.

Zuko let his sword slid all the way back into its guard, but he kept his hand fixed on it.

He studied the creature for a very long moment; its lower lip was pushed out, and it still held that look of wanting on its face. His original shock -and to be completely honest, repulsion, had dulled to confusion interspersed by a deep sense of discomfort.

As he was studying it the creature’s eyes shifted away from him and seemed to drift to one of the carts behind him. And with a very controlled pace, Zuko slowly moved his gaze around to glance at the cart, and when he did he found one covered in apples. He turned back to the creature who had increased the wanting look, to the point its creepy eyes were all most sparkling, and its lower lip was trembling weakly.

Giving once last glance to the cart, Zuko lifted his hand slowly and scooped one of the apples into his grasp before slowly lowering it down.

The creature squeaked something and took the apple straight out of his hand with its teeth, the action forcing Zuko to suppress a flinch. But despite himself, a smile tugged at Zuko’s lips. The same kind of smile that appears when you hear a rustling in the bushes and feel your teeth curl, only to find your panic dissolve as a rabbit jumps out to greet you- not that he would ever admit such an event ever happened.

Letting his eyes drift back up and pass over to check Toph, Zuko suddenly noticed that some of the other creatures had begun to gather a small distance away. They appeared to be…smiling? Well, that’s what it looked like at least, and Zuko was inclined to take whatever silver lining he could find in this current situation… So, yes, they were smiling.

Zuko shuddered.

He would have been worried about the growing number of creatures, but for some reason he wanted to give Toph a smug grin for some sense of victory he didn’t really understand. But when he looked into her milky white eyes the smirk melted away into another frown. Even if he didn’t know why it was there, being robbed of a sense of victory always soured his mood.

The presence of his little audience seemed to click in Zuko’s mind and, deciding to end this little escapade on a high note, he gave one last glance too the carts and turned away, allowing himself only a single glance back to make sure Toph was following.

‘Forget this’ Zuko thought with a sense of finality ‘I’d rather take my chances in the desert.’

That sense of finality built and Zuko turned back around… and almost jumped again when he found himself looking into the face of one of the creatures, one that was suddenly blocking his path.

Unlike the others, Zuko found no curiosity or fear in this creature’s eyes. All he could see was annoyance, tainted by some lingering twinge of offence all of which being projected straight at him.

There were a lot of words Zuko could put to these creatures, most of which would be a variation of weird, but for someone who had stared the masters in the face intimidating was not a word that jumped into his mind. And when he saw the creature flinch under his own almost reflexive glare that indescribable sense of unease started to pass again, leaving only a growing sense of confusion, and annoyance in its wake.

The annoyance grew even more as Zuko noticed several new pairs of oversized, smothering eyes had gathered, with even more appearing through nearby doorways and windows.

He cast one last glance over to Toph, and found her arms crossed with an expression as blank as slate. The little pot of annoyance inside him bubbled as he flitted between the creature and Toph’s almost impassive expression,

‘Does she even know there’s a problem?’ Zuko seethed ‘And how am I supposed to do anything if that stupid grin is the only expression she has?’

A sudden snort of air from the creature drew his attention back as it started mimicking an action Zuko had only seen from a komodo rhino. Its head was lowered as one of its limbs beat at the ground and as the display drew on Zuko slowly let his other hand drift towards the hilt of his sword, his eyes slowly narrowing.

“Zuko, don’t be an idiot.”

Zuko flinched Toph’s voice filled his ear, but he didn’t take his eyes off the creature, even though it did and cast an annoyed but cautious looking glance at her.

Soon enough Zuko’s eyes followed and he found Toph facing him with her arms coming together and rest across her chest, the same blank look obscured by her low hanging hairline.

“Don’t do something stupid, Zuko…” Toph spoke again with a deadpan tone.

“What do you mean?” Zuko seethed back under his breath “It’s the one who started glaring at me; I don’t even know what it wants.”

“Maybe it’s mad because you gave to the other one something that didn’t belong to you?” Toph inquired with a chastising deadpan…

Zuko’s eye twitched, that sounded so stupid it made sense. “You saw that? “He asked with a quiet voice.

Toph snickered “Nope. But you did it anyway.”

Setting off with a, slow confident gait, Toph moved towards the creature, whose face seemed to switch from angry to curious.

Zuko’s hand tightened on the sword as Toph came to a halt a few feet away from the creature and reached inside her clothing. The creature flinched subtlety, but seemed to relax as Toph held out little brown bag in her palm.

Twisting her hand over, she let some of the contents spill out into her other waiting hand with a soft metal *Tink* and Zuko watched with a baffled expression as the girl just sauntered straight up to the creature and held out her hand, and the coins to it.

The creature’s ear flicked under a hat Zuko suddenly noticed was there, and its limb lifted into the air to meet the hand.

Toph’s grip slackened and several small pieces of gold fell into its- Zuko still wasn’t sure what to call it… ‘Limb?’ and the creature stared at the gold pieces it was just given as Toph turned around, and Zuko was forced to watch as she flashed him that same smug grin.

Zuko’s eye twitched as it took in the scene. He could almost hear the sound of her voice gloating, and the thought made him sigh, ‘They’ll be no living with her after this’

The thought brought Zuko’s fingers to the bridge of his nose, and, because of that action he still doesn’t really know what happened next. All he remembers is a low huff of air, a screech of pain, and the sight of Toph kneeling on the floor with her hands clutched to her face as the creature stomped angrily towards her…That, and the terrified expression on its face as it suddenly found itself staring up at him between the blades of his swords…

Zuko glared down at the creature as Toph got back to her feet, a hand still pressed to her eye.

“Zuko?” Toph’s voice broke his glare, before it turned into a shrill yell “What the heck are you doing?”

The confusion in her voice was contagious and Zuko’s anger was snuffed out and his eyes momentarily flicked away from the creature.

“Saving you” He snapped “what does it look li-”

The last word was snatched away by the rancid taste of soil, and the world around him gave way to a sting of pain as Instinct drove his hands to shed hold of his swords to cover his burning eyes, impotently trying to claw the burning away.

“ZUKO!!!!”

The shriek made Zuko drag his hands from his eyes and over his ears. But as fast as it came, the shriek died as the ground gave way to a sudden shudder. A dull boom followed and Zuko’s hands clasped tighter to his head the second before his balance was ripped from him.

In that second, he found his swords again as they were caught between the ground and his knees. And with a pained snarl, he raked the back of his hand over his eyes, and forced them open… only to find the air around him had become swollen with dust.

A shadow to his side caught Zuko’s still burning eyes, and the air was suddenly striped of the dust and revealed Toph standing in front of where the creature once stood; a pillar of earth in its stead.

Zuko yelled through the dust, shaking the girl out of her stupor this time with an almost frantic tone. “Toph?! What are you doing?”

“Saving you!” the words spat back at him with venom Zuko swore he could almost taste. But just as he was about to spit something back, a sudden call cut through the dust.

“Ello?”

It was strange, almost musical in the way it sounded and more of them soon followed as the owners began to cast silhouettes across the shroud of dust- and with them came the all too familiar glint of metal.

Zuko gripped his swords again and took a steadying breath; his hands began to ache with the waiting fire. It still felt strange. It even hurt but it was still there. He in took another breath and felt the heat burn through his veins and he watched the silhouette’s twist through the shroud.

He waited for the right moment…

“Zuko”

He flinched as a sudden voice touched his ear, the very last voice he ever expected to hear today.

The fire in his hands fell away as Zuko turned to look the owner of the voice in the eye… “…Uncle?”

Sure enough, when he turned his head Zuko saw his uncle glaring at him with a disapproving expression.

Zuko blinked. His uncle stared back at him then began to speak with a tone, Zuko recognised all too well.

“What have I told you, prince Zuko? You’re about to jump head long, at an unknown enemy, while you are tired…. And you do it with a blind partner you barely know anything about…

ARE YOU TRYING TO GET YOURSELF KILLED?”

Zuko gave off the slightest flinch in the face of the blunt, chastising yell and he looked on at his uncle with a bewildered expression.

“These creatures may seem harmless. But appearances can be deceptive. It is better to fight battles you know you can win, and only then do so if avoiding the fight at all is not an option… You will get nothing from this, Prince Zuko…”

Zuko blinked again as his uncle crossed his arms and looked at him with a supportive expression…

And Zuko just stared back…

“What am I still doing here!? Get going!”

Zuko felt his eye twitch, and when they fixed back on the spot his uncle was gone. Another glint of light cut through the dust and his eyes caught more of the shadows etching closer. Zuko shook his head and threw the sword back into their sheath.

“We need to move!” he yelled into the shroud.

At his yell, Toph paused before she raised her hands above her head and brought them down sharply. But instead of the reaction Zuko was expecting, and braced himself for, the cloud of dust split, revealing the confused faces of the approaching creatures. Each one of them was wrapped around some kind of mock farm tool, the wood and blades just as mal-proportioned as they creatures who held them.

With another yell, Zuko set of running down the road a shot a glance back at Toph, only to see a group of the creatures following close behind.

Zuko scowled. The creatures were gaining on them and with only a few hours of sleep the previous night under his belt; he didn’t like their chances of pushing their pace any further. So, with a long, sharp breath, he let out a sharp yell and sent a stream of flame towards them.

The creatures let out a panicked shriek before scattering as the flame rolled over their heads, and with one final yell, Zuko brought down hands with a sudden jolt. A sharp whine filled the air as a wave of flame flowed up from the ground, curling in on itself before twisting into a thick wall of smoke.

Letting out a hiss as a sharp twinge shot down his arm, Zuko ran into the waiting cloud of dust floating behind Toph.

Now all he only had to figure out where they were running to….

…

chapter 11 part 3

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Just outside Appleloosa – present time

Princess Luna was nervous…

Her silver necklace felt unusually heavy on her neck and chaffed cruelly at her fur, her metal shoes felt harsh, only adding kindling to the burning ache in her hooves, and her usually feather-like crown suddenly felt like a lead weight perched upon her head.

She couldn’t help but shift awkwardly against the seat of her royal chariot as the cold winds rushed passed her ears. She’d been perched atop that seat for what was beginning to feel like the wrong side of eternity and the longer she spend there, the more she began to regret every millimeter of polished silver and black obsidian that had been crafted into an eloquent design at her whim. The intricate designs that were once the height of her pride seemed to come alive in the midst of her worry, poking at her with gleeful abandon every time the cold, rigid frame drove her to shift her weight.

Luna scowled. She remembered the day she first showed her older sister her new chariot. Instead of being enamoured by her finer taste, Celestia had fixed her with that same arrogant deadpan stare and made and off hoof remark about it being wise to put considerations beyond ‘mere’ aesthetics.

Luna scoffed, that was funny coming from the pony that represented the sun… and had a strange fascination with polished marble.

But truth was, Luna was starting to regret not heeding her word and made a mental note to rectify it when she next got the chance… without her sister knowing, of course.

Speaking of her sister; Luna heard her words pass over her mind once again, words telling her to be calm, to wait; Words almost pleasant enough to heed. But pleasant words did little to quell the dark red flames that lingered in front of her mind’s eye.

With a tired breath, she tried to cast her weary eyes across the horizon, hoping the delicate scenery of her kingdom’s rolling countryside would soothe her aching mind through soaking in the rolling green hills which almost sang under her sister’s radiant sunlight.

They almost looked like they were burning.

Luna shook her head violently and cast her eyes up to the clouds, glowing in the warmth of the sun.

In all honesty, she preferred moonlight. The soft hues of her moon always bathed everything they touched in gentle silvery glow that almost made the very ground sparkle like the stars themselves. Sunlight, on the other hoof, just made her eyes hurt.

But, in the moment, she couldn’t even dwell on how much the daylight aggravated her eyes, because as she stared blankly at the distant horizon, even the light of her sister’s sun had warped and twisted into the dull red glow of flames, flames which flickered and danced before an apparition she had only ever seen stalking ponies in their darkest nightmares.

She wanted to dismiss… it as just that- a nightmare. But that dark vision hadn’t peeled with the same tone she knew in all mere dreams. What she saw was a memory. And that simple fact unnerved Luna to her very core.

With her sister at her side, and the old pony guard behind them, she had driven the horrors of this world into the very depths of Tartarus, and she almost felt excited for the chance to do so again. But sadly, the longer she had spent feed from her prison, the more Luna began to conclude that the Alicorn who shared her sister’s name shared that name and nothing more. She was nothing like the pony she knew a thousand years ago. And during the first week, she even began to ponder if there was an imposter sat in her place… But no, the Alicorn she called her sister was indeed her sister truly; but she was also a mare that had succumbed to a millennium of tedium and monotony, and the weight of it had worn her down like a stone that found itself caught in the path of the tides.

The ponies that now called themselves her ‘guard’ were even worse. They were nothing but arrant foals in costume. All stallions too, which gave Luna a clue for their true service to her sister… They were nothing but something to ogle while she sat upon her throne, drowning in the morning tide of parchment and quills.

Luna closed her eyes and shook her head; and her crown seemed to sit a little heavier upon it.

She’d hoped that the disaster at the wedding would have shown her sister that her guard were nothing but incompetent fools. But no… the sister she remembered never listened and it seems the last thousand years had done little to alter that trait.

However, unlike then, Luna wasn’t still recovering from her return. And unlike the wedding, Luna knew she could do something this time...

And that was the thought that finally smothered the flames plaguing her mind’s eye, and her true eyes filled with a sudden purpose and turned sharply to her captain.

The purpose faulted slightly when they caught sight of the pony. The mare who sat at her side held the same uncomfortable air one would find on a young foal that had been forced to wear an itchy costume.

Luna scowled again. The mare was nothing like the true wyvern ponies of flesh she remembered. Just like all the others’, this mare lacked the edge that earned the wyvern ponies the position within her guard in the first place.

The Night Guard had been forged under Luna’s orders to push back all that dwelled within darkness, to purge it of all that ponies feared in the hopes that her subjects would finally leave their homes and walk amongst the beauty of her night, instead of huddling around their lanterns, paying for the daylight once more.

But sadly, those ponies were long gone now, and what she was left with was nothing but impotent foals pretending to be something they weren’t….

But Luna did not think of herself as a foal. She had what was at hoof and would have to make the best of it…

Luna turned to the pony at her side, “Sun Dime?” she spoke, and her frown grew deeper as the words left her lips. Even the taste of her commander’s name was a reminder of just how unfit she was to bear the title of Night Guard.

That opinion was only enforced when the mare flinched at the sound of her own name’s call.

Luna licked her lips before she spoke, gauging the mare through the corner of her eye “I trust you have briefed the guards on how to combat the creature?” she asked simply, making a point to use her softer speaking voice. She felt her opinion of the mare dropped even more when she saw a nervous twitch under her armour.

“Umm… actually Princess… Princess Celestia has ordered that Shining armour is to have full command of this operation”

Luna felt a flicker of rage, “What?!” she yelled “Neither Shining Armor nor my sister has any notion on what they are dealing with. I, on the other hoof, do…”

Sun Dime gulped. But as she glared at the mare, she couldn’t help note that, to the mare’s credit, her voice cracked only slightly as she worked to cover her with her best cold glare.

“B-but it is the daylight hours your highness.” Sun Dime began with a tone that sounded almost rehearsed “And so, this operation falls under the jurisdiction of the Day Guard.” Luna felt her cold glare fall away as her captain’s voice grew even stronger “Princess Celestia has ordered captain Shining Armor to take no pre-emptive action. She hopes peaceful communication between the… ‘Visitor’ can be achieved before it can reach any pony settlement. Forceful containment is option B, and only then if there is no other choice.”

Luna blinked and her tongue rolled angrily in her mouth, ‘She’s doing it again.’ She seethed. ‘I am an equal ruler, yet she assumes to treat me like a foal.’

She narrowed her eyes at her guard captain, but this time she felt a pang of satisfaction as the mare gave a flinch under her gaze, “Tell the drivers to bring my chariot closer to my sister’s. We must discuss this at once.”

The mare didn’t even seem to want to argue and responded quickly, “Y-yes princess”

…

Soon enough, Luna’s chariot was locked in parallel flight with that of her sister’s, and as the wheels arrived parallel the princess of the night felt the warmth of satisfaction at the look of surprise that flashed over the face of her sister and her captain.

“Luna?” Celestia asked with a tone that seeped with that same surprise, but almost sounded warning “I thought we agreed for the sake of our guard’s nerves we would keep our chariots separate.”

Luna felt her ear twitch at the tone and she couldn’t help but feel her lips curl back a little as she gave her response, “and I thought we agreed I would not be left out of the loop. So why have you denied me and my guard any involvement in this?”

Her eyes narrowed even more as she bore down on her sister but much to her annoyance, Celestia’s calm expression didn’t change.

“You have been adamant that your guard are unsuitable for their position,” Celestia stated slowly “a less… blunt version of your words are they’re simply not ready.”

Luna’s ear twitched again…Always that same condescending tone…

“Yet your orders were for ‘containment and communication’. Am I missing something? And when did this discussion even happen, When you “dropped into the library just to say hi to your student I assume. Do you not trust my judgement?”

“Of course I do,” Celestia said and Luna could almost swear caught a flicker of hurt in her voice, but she dismissed it, “remember this whole parade was launched because of your words…” But Luna didn’t dismiss the mirth the seemed to seep into her sister’s voice “in fact I seem to remember a lot of them and I remember them being very loud and interrupting my sleep”

Luna scoffed. The joke didn’t do anything but make her more annoyed and her voice took on a cold deadpan tone, “Yet you still do as you will regardless of my word.”

“Not quite” Celestia said curtly, “I do what I do out of experience, I do not wish to touch on a tender subject but remember, sister. I’ve had 1000 years more of it and it has provided me with many harsh lessons. Lessons I just do not wish for you to learn the hard way as I did. In truth, it hurts that you do not trust me.”

Luna met her sisters hurt gaze with a harsh one, “I trust you to stop treating me like a foal, sister” she said curtly, and the glare only hardened as the white mare just smirked back at her.

“That’s always been up to you, Lulu.” Celestia’s eyes softened as she spoke “But it has been a long time since I’ve had to consult another before acting. I too am still adjusting, sister.” She smiled “So, allow me now to share with you one of those lessons.

In my time I have learned nothing in life is free, and sometimes you may look back and find the price you paid is much higher than what you expected.”

Luna reeled back a little as her sister straightened herself and looked down at her from the ridge of her muzzle “We could act swiftly on this matter, and make this day safe…But what of tomorrow? What will the price be if we are wrong and act with haste? I trust you remember our discussion in our chambers?”

“I do” Luna lamented and looked on as Celestia smiled again.

“I love you, sister; please understand that. If I ever seem to leave you from the loop it is nothing against you. I do it not with even a hint of malice or without purpose. It is simply me acting on my experience. We must think of our little ponies before ourselves; that is the price of the crown, and one other lesson I’ve learned.”

Luna’s mind calmed, but not completely. Her sister’s words did take the anger out but only after one point was recognised, one point that lead to a question.

“So, my return also came with a cost to you?” Luna couldn’t help but ask the question, and to her surprise Celestia’s face turned grave.

“Oh yes…” Celestia said with a serious tone, “The war I must fight every evening just to get into the bathroom before bed. Not to mention having to share my best cake chef,” Celestia placed a hoof to her head in an overly dramatic pose, “but even though they are truly horrible prices to pay… I will gladly endure such hardships if it means my beloved sister is with me once again.”

Luna just glared at her older sister as very un-princess like huff of air escaped her muzzle, but soon enough a sly grin pulled at her mouth.

“A thousand years of unabated Cake… I thought it was just my imagination, sister. But that explains why your flank seems to be larger than I remembered it.”

She smiled.

Three…two… one…

Luna nearly clapped her hooves together when her sister’s devious expression ‘popped’ and Celestia replied with a serious tone. “That’s low…”

“No its wide, Tia, look” Luna said and pointed to her sisters flank “I don’t believe the sun isn’t in-fact an oval, but your cutie mark would have me believe otherwise.”

Celestia opened her mouth to say something but was interrupted by the sound of Shining Armour doing his best to cover his mouth his hoof, lest it allow a laugh to escape.

Luna smirked as her sister’s glare was turned from her guard and towards her.

“Ok.” Celestia said with finality “My sister’s humor’ just found its way to the list.”

Luna couldn’t help but shoot her sister a victorious grin “And my sister’s humor is the price I must pay to be back, so we suffer together, Tia.”

Luna kept smiling as her sister narrowed her eyes ever so slightly, and she knew it was a promise this wasn’t over, so of course Luna felt the urge to push that little step further.

“OH look, a distraction!” Shining armor’s voice broke through their sisterly antics and both princesses sight flicked to him.

“Err I mean, we have arrived you’re highness.” Shining Armor corrected, after shrinking under their eyes and the two Alicorns looked over the rim of the chariot and found the town in the distance, growing larger with each second.

With one last flick of her eyes over to Shining Armor, Luna smiled to herself. But as the town grew larger the pleasant feeling gave way to the memory of why they she were here and once again the beauty of the horizon gave way to those same glowing red flames.

...

Even before her chariots wheel touched the ground, a creeping feeling travelled up Celestia’s spine. It was the cold, gnawing feeling that something was... wrong.

Gone was the cheerful buzz that almost seemed to fill the very air of her kingdom. And the only thing that greeted her presence was a strange, almost smothering silence.

While she would never admit it out loud, the truth was Celestia had grown accustomed to an extravagant and overly lavish greeting whenever she left the castle, even if she had often stressed lack of need for such things. But now she was actually seeing what that was like, the lack of welcome felt empty, along with the speech she’d spent the trip working on.

Casting a curious eye towards her captain, the solar princess hoped for some insight, but all she found in Shining Armor’s face was a reflection of her confused expression.

That reflection lasted only a moment before it gave way to the glint training had bestowed and Shining Armor nodded to his fellow guard and the armored ponies spread out towards the buildings and began knocking on their doors.

…

Unlike her sister, Princess Luna was used to such a ‘welcome’- or lack thereof, and when her chariot touched down to yet another instance of silence and stillness she wasn’t surprised. But if she had to be truthful, the lost look on her sister’s face gave her a deep swell of satisfaction.

If it was any other day she would have trotted right up to her sister and started gloating- but today wasn’t any of those days, and a single glance on her sister’s face rooted her hooves to the floor as a single thought branched through both of their minds.

They were too late…

At that moment worry began to boil over and a guard returned with one of the townsponies following suit. Both of whom bowing to her sister…

“My little pony” Celestia said attempting to hold her usual, calm tone “Can you tell me what has happened here?”

“Sure thing, princess” the pony said with pride in his voice- and a much weaker bow then Luna was expecting “there was a tad bit ah trouble this morning, but it wasn’t nothing us settler ponies couldn’t handle.”

“Your town has a sheriff, if I remember correctly. Where is he?” Celestia asked and the stallion gave a curt nod.

“He took some ponies with em to try and run the monsters down.”

Luna didn’t care how nonchalantly it had been said, the second the word had been spoken, she could only think one thing and the thought all but roared triumphantly in her head. Ha, I told her!

She she turned to her sister with a triumphant smile.

“I tol..”

“How long ago was this?” Celestia cut in, seemingly ignoring her younger sister.

“Not too long princess.” The stallion replied and Celestia nodded and turned to the pony besides her.

“Shining Armor, please spread out your guard. Send a pegasus in the direction the sheriff ran and see if he can bring them back. And gather the town’s ponies, but keep them separate. Interview them individually and gather their eye-witness reports. I need to know what happened here...”

“Yes, princess”

…

One very long hour later, a worn down pony guard was trudging towards Shining Armor, his muddied hooves spread in a tired, but confident, gait.

“Corporal,” The Captain greeted him with a nod “the princess is waiting, do you have the report?”

“ight ere ir” the pony said, his words slightly muffled by the scrolls held in his mouth.

With a pink glow the guard felt the scroll lift from his mouth, and he couldn’t help but wonder why they always had to carry that thing in there in the first place. But as he ignored the taste of the parchment rolling across his tongue the guard couldn’t help feel a little pride wash over him as his commander’s eyes looked over his hard work…

Then he saw the look the captain was wearing…

“Funny…” Shining Armor said in a deadpan tone as he moved the scroll from his eyes and held his hoof expectantly, only to find the corporal looking back at him with a confused expression.

After a moment the pony mustered the courage to let a weak cough into his hoof.

“Sorry sir but there is no joke. I did the interviews myself… the stories are a little shaky but most of the ponies here are under the conjecture that a ‘monster’ walked into town, tried to give an apple to a filly, then started burning things with laser eyes…”

The corporal half lidded his eyes expecting a bad reaction, but all his commander offered was a nod…, a very slow, very dangerous nod and the guard could feel sweat move under his helmet.

The pony felt a bead of sweat run down the back of his neck.

“So… you’re saying…you want me…” Shining Armor said in a tone laced with the same dangerous calm “to stand in front of princess Celestia, and say…” he snatched the witness reports away and flipped through one randomly “’it flew right over me and blasted a cart with its laser vision..?

The guard flinched as the captain’s tone grew sharper “Oh and here’s my personal favorite! How could you ponies not know about your own conspiracy… you guard types do it all the time, set some monster loose on some poor unsuspecting town a’ good ponies and jump in and play the hero. Well we just beat ya’ to it this time.”

The Corporal wanted to say something- ‘It’s the private’s fault’ came to mind, but the harsh eyes trying to glare a hole through him stopped any words from reaching past his tong.
Fortunately for the corporal, luck must have been on his side that day because the captain gave a tired sigh and rubbed his helmet’s rim with a hoof.

“Are there any better witnesses?”

The guard reeled, ‘Think fast, think fast’

“Err… one stallion did talk about a mare that was helping the sheriff. She works in the saloon, and this mare didn’t follow him when he chased the… monsters, off…. sir”

The guard heard his captain mutter ‘Probably the one pony not sucking on the stuff’ “Thank you…” Shining Armor said more to the sky then the guard, “Ok, find that mare. The princesses will want to speak with her.”

The guard gave a salute, and let out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding, “Yes sir”

…

Sweet Peach was nervous…

No, scratch that, Sweet beach was a complete, stuttering wreck…

And as she sat in a bare dark room and fidgeted on a rickety wooden chair, one she swore was made to give her as many splinters as possible; Peach couldn’t help but ponder on how well her day had been going not just a few hours ago.

It started out well enough. There she was just minding her own business, trying to keep her boss happy. Then, out of nowhere Ol’ Salt came sauntering in. Then the next thing she knew she was chasing after some weird critters with the sheriff.

And now here she was sat in a dark room, waiting for the princess of all ponies to chew her out…

…

She had just been getting back to cleaning the glasses, just like her boss wanted, when out of the blue one of the royal guards came bursting through the door, demanding for her. She didn’t know why she was wanted, but she made sure she acted like a true peach would…

She broke down and started sobbing…

But, how was she supposed to know they weren’t there because she forgot to take out the trash last week? It was an honest mistake…

She let out a sigh and gripped the seat of her chair with her hooves and let a soothing mantra pass through her head.

‘It’s ok, it’s ok.‘the princess Just wants ta talk with ya, everything will be fine, it’s probably just a mistake and when it’s sorted I can git back ta work…’

…

…on second thought her boss was mighty angry that she left, so she thought she’s actually a mite better off here for the time being.

The door opened suddenly with a loud creak, and the light seeping through the crack robbed Peach of her sight for just a moment. When the world faded back to her she saw a pony had walked through and peaches eyes snapped on it with… curiosity of all things.

‘Ya’ know I never have seen the princess up close ‘afore.’ Peach thought ‘heard she’s a’ mightn’t bigger dan’ normal ponies, the huge wings, long horn…

And the blue coat…

Peach blinked ‘Wait, that aint’ right…’

Peach blinked again, but strangely the obvious trick of her eyes refused to give way to what she expected…

‘But the princess is aposed’ to be white. Why the only blue Alicorn is…’

When the revelation clicked, Sweet Peach started hyperventilating. She’d take her boss at his most angry any day. Worse still the pony in front of her looked like she could sense her fear, and the evil, sinister mare, Nightmare Moon… rolled her eyes?

“Remain calm…please,” the dark princess said with a tired, almost rehearsed tone “We are not here to bring eternal night, eat thine soul, drink thine blood, or steal your socks, or any such nonsense.”

“That’s good” Peach squeaked out between pants, but the princess only rolled her eyes again.

“Your princess is merely here to ask you some questions as to what transpired in thine town today.”

“Err…” was all Peach could say.

The glare returned “The monster, we wish to know of the monster…”

“What mons…” the door interrupted peach again as a royal guard donned with purple armor walked into the room, followed by the Alicorn she was expecting and six other ponies she wasn't.

Her eyes scanned the newcomers as they all shuffled amongst each other in the uncomfortably small room. Strangely, when the pony’s eyes met with hers, they all offered her a warm, friendly smile, and the orange one even tipped her hat in greeting.

The white alicorn caught her eye again as she seemed immune to the awkwardness of the cramped room, and when their eyes met, the Alicorn smiled gently.

A moment later she noticed the princess frowning slightly as her great pink eyes broke from hers and wandered over the other Alicorn, but her gentle expression snapped back an instant later.

“Hello my little pony” Peach heard her voice ; spoken as soft as silk “Please don’t be alarmed, you are not here because you have done anything wrong” the Alicorn eyed the pony in armor “I’d hoped my guard would have explained it to you before asking you to come here.”

“My apologies too, miss” the purple armored guard said and Sweet Peach just smiled gently while she swallowed her heart back into her chest where it belonged.

The sun princess motioned for her attention again before speaking, “As I said, we only wish to know what happened today. We were told you were with the sheriff when a strange… ‘Visitor’ came to the town. Is this true?”

Peach blinked. “Err, yes princess.” She stuttered. The Alicorn nodded and smiled

“Can you tell us what happened?” she asked. Peach nodded.

A moment passed as Sweet peach just looked on dumbly, then the princess coughed politely into her hoof, and Peach felt her mind rush to catch up to her.

“Oh sorry,” she said and tried to gather her thoughts “Well, I was just cleaning up around the Salt block then old pony Salt just jumped in through the door. We were closed at the time, but he kept peeking back outside but kept ducking down and when I went to look myself he stopped me. Said I had no need to be heading outside just now.

Peach felt her fear fall away as she told her story, and her words grew stronger ‘Well, I thought he was just pulling mah’ leg so I told him to git, but he said the sheriff was going round telling ponies to stay indoors, but he said he couldn’t say why.

I went looking for the sheriff, tah give him an earful, but when I got there he said he had asked him to go indoors- just not in the salt block. When I asked him why he just pointed away from the town and that’s when I saw them mahself.”

“Them? As in more than one?” the darker princess butted in. Peach nodded.

“Dats right princess, two non-ponies. Ah never seen much like em neither.

One of em’ was tall, nearly as tall as you princess, and had a longish black mane. It was covered in clothes like those fancy stuck ups wear in Canterlot”

Peach saw the princess raise an eyebrow at that, and squeaked out a quiet reflexive ‘sorry’ before coughing into her hoof again.

“It also had a large bag ‘cross its shoulder and a sword on its waist.” The Alicorns eyebrow rose a little higher, but this time Peach continued unabated “It had this really painful lookin’ scar over its eye. Didn’t look all too friendly at all. The fella, least I think it was a fella, kept looking around like a hawk- had the eyes of one to boot.”

“And they were trying to intimidate every pony?” Celestia asked but Peach shook her head

“No, well not as I could see them trying to anyways, princess. They both seemed to be really annoyed at something’. That there was clear as spring water. But ‘part from that, they looked really down, almost jaded like. Can’t blame em much though, seeing as every pony kept on staring at em and kept their distance. Not that I can much blame them either.”

“Tell us about the other one …” The darker Alicorn demanded suddenly, making Peach flinch again.

“W-Well, it was a tad shorter… and a might scrawnier too, though the fact the other were taller made it look the opposite at first glance. It had clothes on it just like the taller one, but different colors. Its mane seemed to be longer too and it covered its face real good. Fact it kept its head down all the time it was in town… didn’t look round at nothing not even when it passed the new town statue.” Peach said that part with a little hurt in her voice “I mean even the other’un at least gave it a glance… an like e’ should, we worked real hard on it.”

Celestia gave a warm smile, “Yes, we passed it on the way here; I must say your work payed off.” Then she gave the darker alicorn a look Peach couldn’t place.

Peach smiled at the princess and gave a cheerful.“Thank ye kindly”

The darker princess shook her head and stepped forward, “What did they do when they were in town?” she asked, though a little less demanding this time.

Peach flinched under her eyes, rubbing her forehead nervously with a hoof

“J-Just like I said, they did nothin’ but wander round town as every pony stared at em - they looked really lost and nervous ‘bout something but I got the impression they were out looking for something too coz they kept near the market place… And that’s where the trouble started. ”

“Trouble?” both princesses asked at the same time.

“W-Well… the tall one was lookin round some carts for something like I said, then little Sweet Apple started givin them the big eyes, like she does with everypony else.”

The darker princess frowned, “I’m afraid I don’t understand.”

“Oh, w-well the filly always dawdles near a food stand, using her big cute eyes to get ponies to chuck her an apple or summing when they buy for themselves. I dun swear those eyes need a warning label. An’, I guess not even… whatever it was could withstand those eyes of hers because not after two seconds it picked up an apple off the stand and gave it to her.”

Peach saw the solar princess smile, “That was kind…”

Peach shared the smile, for only a moment.

“Yea it was I reckon, shame Sour Apple didn’t see it the same way. He’s shooed her off many times before and the ‘fella’ kinda passed it to her without payin first.”

“Ah” Celestia said simply, and Peach nodded again.

“Yup, old Sour Apple seemed plenty angry at em, and the two critters kept talking between themselves while looking mighty confused.”

“What did they say?” Peach heard more than a tweak of curiosity hidden behind all the normally completely calm voice.

“Don’t rightly know, sorry” She admitted with another nervous shake of her head “Ah never heard much like it before. They seemed to talk just fine between themselves but it all just sounded like gibberish to me.

“What happened next?” the darker princess interrupted again,

“W-well, the shorter one seemed to have a load a sense round it, coz it took out this small bag filled with these.” She said and placed a small rectangle shining gold on the table. It lifted at the edges with slight patterns carved in the corner. “It went and gave a ‘hoof’ full of those to Sour Apple.”

“But that didn’t resolve the issue…” Celestia stated more than asked, and the mare shook her head

“Not by a margin. Strange thing about living on the edge out here is we settler ponies have a lot more non ponies visiting, and a lot aren’t the friendliest sort, they think we ponies are a slow lot so they try and trick us with fake gold. It gotten to the point most settler ponies won’t accept gold if it don’t have the royal seal on it. Magic duplications and all”

“Yes, I remember having to deal with a lot of unhappy ponies in the past when a unicorn first created the duplication spell. That’s why I made the magical seal.” She remembered having to change to whole thing into ‘in the princesses we trust when her sister returned… another headache, but one she was happy to suffer.

Sweet Peach nodded,, oblivious to the thought and continued, “Well, old Sour Apple must have thought the critter was trying to pull a fast one on him like a lot have done before, tryin’ to strong-hoof him.”

“He didn’t do anything foolish I trust?” the sun princess asked with a tone that put Peach on edge and the mare sucked in a lung of air through clenched teeth,

“He… kind’a… threw the gold bits back at the critters face.”

The expression on princesses’ white furred face turned sour. “Not the most ideal action.”

“No, I can’t rightly say it was” Peach agreed “and the other critter didn’t seem to like it much either, coz it went right for those swords of his.”

And?” Peach flinched as the orange earth pony butted in, the mare almost clearing the table in a leap, and Sweet Peach had to swallow her heart yet again.

“W-w-well it just stood there, but it didn’t look all too happy though like I said. But I take it Sour Apple thought the critter was trying to frighten him into taking bad bits, I mean if I had a bit myself for every time he’s complained about a non-pony who tried giving him bad bits I’d have enough to never work again. But he did something mighty rash, and threw a hoof-ful of sand in the critters face when it was talking with the other then reached for his pitchfork, probl’y to scare him into paying rightly.”

Both princesses’ eyes widened

“Next thing I hear is the smaller one shouts something, then there’s this huge crash, and we all darn nearly choked on the dust… when It cleared old sour apple was darn near on the other side of town, as if he had been thrown… and last I saw the two critters was them running out of town with the sheriff chasing after em.”

Peach let the words fall away and watched as the princess absorbed them.

“Is that all?” The white Alicorn asked. Peach nodded

“Thank you, my little pony. Please go about the rest of your day” Celestia spoke and Peach caught a sly smile “And if your employer has any further grievances, ask him to speak with a nearby guard.”

“Thank ye kindly” Peach said with one last bow before leaving the table and she walked towards the door.

…

Princess Luna watched with an empathetic eye as the mare left through the door, followed sharply by the element of honesty but she didn’t pay it much mind. Instead, her attention turned to her sister.

She was stood there with reverence, as usual, but Luna could tell the gears in her sister’s head were turning.

“Pray-tell, where has the Element of Honesty gone?” Luna couldn’t help but ask, if only to break the silence and the Element of Loyalty turned to her.

“The hospital... I think, just before she left, AJ said something about checking on Sour Apple.” The pegasus said with an almost uninterested tone.

Luna let her eye sweep over the mare, without moving her head.

“Err…Princess.” the Pegasus added after wilting under her gaze, “Don’t worry, I can get there in ten seconds flat.”

Luna let her eyes linger on the Pegasus for another moment, but soon turned them back to her sister’s with a thoughtful expression

“It seems we have learned much” Celestia stated simply.

Luna nodded. “Indeed, I shall ready the guard and…”

“And tell them to wait for the moment.” Celestia interrupted “From what we have learned acting now would only further complicate matters. There appears to be a language barrier present and any confrontation with our guard would most likely invite hostility, as the two visitors may assume we are in search for retribution... And that is something we cannot correct while that language barrier remains a problem.”

“Err princess” the element of loyalty said while she floated past Luna’s muzzle “Why not just get Twilight to use that horn of hers?- one translation spell and we’re good.”

“Because” the unicorn in question cut in “I’d have to know the language myself, that’s how translation spells work. And seeing as this species hasn’t been encountered before in all known record, I doubt the language has been written down for me to learn even if I did have the time.”

There was another pause as every pony in the room looked on in thought, and while it happened, Luna couldn’t help but try, and fail, to read her sister’s face. But it didn’t matter because, in her own mind, a plan was formulating, one formed around a spell that she knew like the back of her hoof.

With one last nod towards her sister, Luna walked from the room, a few seconds later she saw the element of loyalty shoot past and down the hall before she let her eyes drift over to the guard.

“Ok- we will be moving out again in about ten minutes” Luna heard Shining Armor command “I need a group of you here to help with town stability and we will be aiding with the pony who was hurt. Also, the princess has asked for a guard to find a filly called ‘Sweet Apple’ and check on a few things… But be friendly, she wants to stress that part.”

The Captain’s eyes flicked to a random stallion in the ranks “Thank you for volunteering. As for the rest of you, the princess has declared this is reactionary only, it is likely these creatures may be hostile but they will most likely assume we are hostile and act as such- and guess what, it is our job to be the first to go and say hello. This is where we earn out bits colts and fillies. Keep your helmets on and heads down and remember, if any pony engages without orders I will have your hind legs on a platter.” The guards saluted as Shining’s gaze turned to the nearest pony.

“Private, I want you to scout up there and try and get a visual. Meet with the chariots when and if you do and direct us down.

All right you know what you have to do, Dismissed.”

…

Zuko had to give those strange creatures one thing- they were nothing if not persistent, and as he leaned up against a large boulder, heaving for lost breath, he couldn’t help but let the events of the past hour swirl through his mind.

When he and Toph had set off running a group of the creatures had given chase, thundering after them both with an abandon that seemed reckless even to him- and when that abandon had continued long after the sight of the town had been left behind any hope Zuko held of them simply turning away had been lost to the same place every other hope he had dared to hold that day had gone.

But it was that moment when Zuko realized something…, those… things weren’t merely trying to chase them away; they were trying to run them down, and the longer this chase went on, the more likely it seemed that they were going to do just that.

And who knows… if it wasn’t for the lead creature tripping over some strange rock- sending himself and the others flat on their faces- they may have done just that...

The sight of their pursuers’ collapsing into a heap had made Zuko pause for just a moment, just long enough to feel the simmering pot of anger bubble within him again… It would have been so easy for him to just turn around and send every ounce of that anger and frustration at them, and some dark space in his head was still whispering for him to do it. Luckily something else in there was louder.

Something that sounded all too familiar….

Zuko still didn’t have any words for that moment. The only time he could place anything like that happening before was in his uncle’s tea shop in Ba-Sing-Se. But that was a product of delirium born of fever…

With a sigh, Zuko let a moment pass without pondering and took the opportunity to scrape at the sweat clinging to his brow. But that moment was fleeting and he found himself pulled right back into his thoughts.

The sun, the strange… ‘Hiccups’ with his Fire-bending, and those… creatures were bad enough, but that…

He put a hand back to his face, letting the weight of it rest over his eyes, almost as if he was hoping that it would help block out the memory.

‘I’m just tired, that’s all.’ He decided, and droned the thought almost numbly as his own mind knew it was weakly trying to convince itself. But it was all his mind could offer as an excuse…well, that or he was finally cracking up…

He shook the latter off. He really didn’t need to add that to his list of problems right now. So, for the moment at least, he settled on the short term out of just needed to find some shade and think.

The moment- and the memory, passed along with the burning in his chest and Zuko took in a deep, calming breath.

Zuko let his hand drift over his eyes, “I think- they gave up.” he croaked, before letting out a sharp cough as he waited for Toph to give some type of acknowledgement. And when he got was silence, for a brief second, a stab of panic hit him and he yanked his eyes up to make sure Toph was actually there.

The panic dissolved when he found her, facing away from him, her arms crossed. But despite her facing away, the sound of sharp ragged breath caught his ears so he waited for her panting to die down- and grew concerned when she still didn’t answer.

Zuko stared for a silent moment, and his better judgment began to groan under its weight.

He signed, “What’s wrong?”

“What’s wrong?” Toph snapped, shot up back to her feet and spun around on a heel “One of them hit me with a Pie… A PIE!” she raked her fingers through her hair and flicked them at Zuko, “And you made us run away!”

Not expecting the outburst, Zuko could only look on dumbly as the congealing pie crust mingled with his sweat before flaking from his brow. But his mind returned to him as Toph’s fingers moved to her hair again and he sucked in a sharp breath

“I wasn’t the one who buried that… whatever it was, under a boulder!” he snapped, and ducked to avoid another glob of airborne pastry.

“I was saving your stupid butt!” Toph spat in return and threw another handful “and I wasn’t the one who was pointing my swords at it the first place!”

Zuko felt his breath seethe “I was trying to help you!” he shot back; making the girl pause for the shortest moment, before she threw up her hands and let out a sharp scoff.

“Well, thanks…”

The air grew quiet again as Toph slumped against the bolder, sinking all the way down until her shoulders were lying flat on the cracked ground, her head propped up against the stone. And with a sting of contention, she let one last gruff sigh and raked her fingers through her fringe.

With a sigh of his own, Zuko followed suit and slumped against the bolder, but a nervous eye kept him sat upright as it flicked erratically back towards the horizon, as if it feared that a simple blink of an eye would be enough time for them to appear where they weren’t.

As his eyes numbed to the scenery, and he could no longer see the oversized irises, or obesely bright colours of quadrupedal phantoms hiding behind every rock and cloud the last hour events threatened to drift through his mind again, only to be pushed aside by a single, more pressing issue.

What was he going to do now?

He really was at a loss for that one, and when he was able to pull a tired eye from the horizon his hand found its way to them and rubbed impotently at the ache pushing ever deeper behind them.

“So… what are we going to do now?”

Zuko’s eyes shot back open, and for just a second he almost thought the voice belonged to someone new, but instead he found Toph sitting with one hand moved from her ear, waiting for his answer.

Zuko sighed again. “I don’t know...” he said simply, letting out a similarly defeated sigh.

“So, you’re just giving up?” Toph asked in a sniping tone and Zuko felt the twinge behind his eyes dig a little deeper.

“I didn’t say that…” he pushed through gritted teeth, his voice taking on a hiss like that of a viper daring someone to take just one step closer.

He just needed some time to think, this whole mess was insane, and he….

Zuko was jolted from of his thoughts as the bag was shoved into his lap, the force of it making his head jar back and meet the rock he was leaning against and the dull throb behind his eyes sparked like a bolt of lightning…

“Well then- come on” Toph’s voice cut through the pain, but only adding to it “get your butt up and get moving!”

The pain spiked again and in its aftermath, and without even realising what was happening, Zuko saw a flash of red and sprung back to his feet, shoving the bag back into the girl’s grasp- almost snatching her balance from her.

“And go where!?” Zuko all but yelled into her face. “You don’t get it! The comet is coming today -and we!” It was here when he realized what was happening, but at this point he didn’t care “-Are stuck who knows where! The only town we even know about is filled with those things and even if we do live long enough to find another one it could just be filled with more of them, or worse!”

With one last futile yell, Zuko let the building anger out with a wave of his hand, and fell back against the bolder as a nearby cactus was burned to a crisp. He slumped down against the stone as the ash fell around his shoulders and littered the dry earth around them, leaving behind faint marks that Zuko stared at with a defeated expression…

That was until a rock bounced painfully off his head…

Zuko eyes shot up again and after he peered through the painful sheen over his vision he once again found Toph stood in front of him with her arms crossed, the same matching snarl squatting on her face.

Her lips curled back and she let out another snort as her head turned to the side “Oh yea, typical…” she spoke slowly “Aang gets the stubborn Zuko, the Zuko who chases him all over the world… and what do I get?”

Unlike before, her tone wasn’t angry, just disappointed and despite the sting of annoyance it brought, Zuko just sat there and watched as the girl gave a deep sigh of her own and let herself slump against the bolder as her hands cupped over the side of her head.

And just like that, Zuko felt his anger abandon him…

Zuko would never claim to be the best at reading people, in-fact he’d probably be the loudest voice to claim the opposite. But in that moment, even he could not miss the sigh Toph let out, or the overhanging tone that it carried…

It wasn’t a tone that carried any emotion he could place. But there was something heavier underlined within, and more importantly, it wasn’t the first time Zuko had heard it…

It was the exact same sigh his uncle had used back in Ba-Sing-Se…

Zuko let out a sigh of his own and just sat there, letting his gaze hang over the dry, dusty cracks in the ground beneath him. He really couldn’t think of anything else to do.

Well… there was that one thing he could do- one thing he could say, but he shook the thought off the second it entered his head. He wasn’t that desperate just yet…

His eyes gave one more reflexive glance up towards the horizon before shifting to everything but the one thing they needed too, but finally, when he couldn’t avoid it anymore they settled on Toph.

She was just sitting there, as still as the stone she was leaning on, her hands were cupped around her head but a gap between the fingers gave Zuko the tiniest glimpse of wet as it trickled between them. He thought he was just seeing things but when a wall of rock shot up between them he was given more of a clue.

With a familiar defeated sigh, Zuko shook his head and rubbed his eyes with his palm, “There is something…” he said with a tone he almost hoped she couldn’t hear. And with his fingers almost crushing the bridge of his nose, Zuko reached for the small animal skin bag at his side. He couldn’t believe he was resorting to this... But out of everything that had already happened today why not make madness complete? So he reached into the bag and pulled out the book and held it out to her.

Another long moment passed as he held up the book, waiting for her response. Instead he just found a dull ache spread up his arm.

He looked up to question why she had no reaction, only to find those milky white eyes staring off into nowhere. “Oh right…. Sorry” he said as he slapped his face with his palm “…. I found these scrolls near that fountain along with this book.”

“And?” came her short and only reply, it was curse but it almost sounded pleading. Even imaginary, that tone coming from Toph made Zuko really uncomfortable.

“And, a lot of the scrolls don’t make any sense but this book, it’s a diary.” He said in a slow monotone.

Toph twitched.

“So… you were up all-night reading some girl’s diary…”

And just like that normal Toph was back, and by the tone of her voice Zuko didn’t know if he was about join in with weak laughter or have to throw up an arm in an attempt to keep his teeth.

“Only because it’s important right now…” he responded, matter of fact. Toph, still seated against the large rock crossed her arms once again and clicked her tongue.

“Ok Zuko- I’ll bite.” She said slowly, warningly.

“Well,” Zuko stalled while choosing his next words very carefully, “it looks like we weren’t the first to find that fountain”

As soon as he said it he saw her twitch. Ok, Zuko thought, he had her attention at least, so his tone shifted a little and gained a little more confidence. “An air bender went in and kept this journal.” He said holding it up… more for his own sake really.

“Did she say why she went in?” Toph asked, Zuko stuttered…

“Err…From what she wrote, she was tricked by some of her temple’s masters.”

“What!?” Toph asked sharply. “Why would they do that?”

“I don’t know” Zuko responded, growing a little defensive “maybe they wanted her out of the way. Look, it doesn’t matter why she went it but she did.” he opened the tome and ideally flicked through its pages. “Most of its too old to read but some parts can be made out.” He stopped on the page he was looking for. “But this…” he said pointing at the smudged picture- again more out of habit and his own benefit “is something she talks about a lot, and it’s what’s so important.”

“Want to share why that is?” Toph deadpanned once again turning away to stare blindly at nothing.

Zuko almost shouted at her to look at the stupid book, but then- as per usual, his brain caught up with the rest of him just before he did something stupid. So he swallowed the insult he was about to yell and rubbed his forehead again.

“She kept drawing the same thing over and over… She wasn’t much of an artist but the same thing was on one of the scrolls… it’s how she got back”

“She got back?” Toph asked with a small pang of hope rising in her voice, it was something that edged Zuko on.

“From what the book said, I just thought she was crazy.” He admitted with a little humour in his tone “She kept writing about weird creatures that-”

Toph interrupted him with a sharp snort.

“You really should sit around the campfire more often Zuko” she said coyly “Aang’s bumped shoulders with some pretty weird stuff….” She interrupted again but this time Zuko couldn’t get annoyed because of the rising hope in her voice. It was almost infectious.

“Yea, well, when we get back we’re going to have one to share.” He said with a smirk- one he couldn’t help wearing.

“I call telling it” she blurted and Zuko just rolled his eyes. Good moment’s aside, he just wanted to get on with this so he took a long breath,

“Well she got back, and that picture shows how she did it. The same one was on one of the scrolls. I was hoping to find something about it in one of the towns, or at least find out where we were or get a name of somewhere we can…. But that probably will be harder now.” He finished with a tired murmur.

“Why?” she asked with genuine confusion.

Zuko flinched, not expecting her to hear him, but quickly recovered, “Could you make out anything those things were saying?” was all Zuko said with a deadpan, and slightly more acidic tone than he intended, but it got the point across because when he said it, Toph stopped dead. Zuko took the silence as an opening to continue,

“Even if we do find a town that has what we need, and we don’t get run out of it by more weird things. I probably won’t be able to read it or ask any of them either.”

“So, just learn to read it then.” she said as if he was an idiot for not thinking of it himself, and Zuko couldn’t help but feel his teeth grind together.

“Sure, I’ll just learn to read and write a whole new language before the comet comes today…” he said, and while he racked his brain on just how he would do that, Toph stretched her arms above her head and twisted around towards the bag and chucked it into Zuko’s arms.

“So that all we got to do? Let’s get going.”

“All I’ve got to do,” Zuko deadpanned as he fixed the bag on his shoulder. He stopped…“but I think we better watch out for more of those things.”

That killed Toph’s pace and she sharply twisted her head slightly so he could almost look down her left ear. “You think they’ll be coming after us?”

Zuko shook his head and rubbed his tongue along the roof of his mouth, “They chased us this far.” He said though a dry cough,

Toph stood still in thought for a moment but gave a dismissive shrug. “Well, it would feel weird if something wasn’t chasing us.”

Despite wanting to say something to the contrary, Zuko kept his mouth shut; he didn’t want to break what little momentary reprieve he’d managed to build. So with the same light tone he just added “Yea, but at least those things can’t fly, ri...”

Zuko flinched, rubbing his arm with a snarl as Toph shook her head.

“OW! What was that for!?”

Toph shook her head again, “It’s bad enough when Sokka begs the universe to deck him” she said with complete seriousness “we don’t need you doing it for him. Not now.”

“What?” Zuko asked, still rubbing his arm “So just because I say ‘oh at least they can’t fly’, they’re just going to grow wings?”

“I’m saying; don’t make it so easy for the universe to screw you over, or I’ll have to do it first.”

Zuko cast a long glare at the girl for a longer moment, then he let himself give silent scoff as he shifted the bag’s strap and made sure his sword was still there, despite everything, he almost felt a little ember of hope glowing in him again.

“So… which way are we going?”

And it sure was nice while it lasted…

With yet another sigh, Zuko’s tired eyes were pulled back to the horizon and he felt the sun glare down on his back. But as he looked on a sudden, distant flash of light pierced his vision and made him pull them away in pain.

He narrowed his good eye and distant blobs hanging in the air began to morph and take shape…and when he did, his eyes, shot open and he near enough dived behind the bolder

“Get down” he hissed, and pulled Toph behind as well.

“Argh! Zuko what is it?” the girl demanded, as she tried to keep her balance

Zuko was too busy to answer; his eyes were peering around the bolder, locked on one of the… creatures. Unlike the ones in the town, this one was stark white and topped with golden armour. But what really caught his eye was the small, flapping pair of wings that held it in the air, defiant of all logic and reason.

Zuko stared dumbly at the universe’s blatant affront to his sanity until the creature’s eyes span around and met his. They moved too fast for him to duck behind the rock. The oversized orbs widened as they met his and a second later, it shot off in the direction of the town. Leaving Zuko’s panicked gaze to linger behind it…

Only to find it flying back towards a large group of them….

“Zuko! Tell me what’s wrong,” Toph snapped, with the same panic in her voice.

With a sense of finality, Zuko did his best to swallow the lump in his throat and speak. But what he said only came out as a whisper…
“I don’t think you hit me hard enough….”

…

...

Chapter 12 part 1

View Online

…

“But I swear, Captain! They were right here!”

Private Golden Shower couldn’t help but shrink under the eyes of his fellow guard, his commander, and both of his princesses. No more than five minutes ago he’d felt so tall, so proud. He’d been sent ahead to scout ahead of the group and had spotted the creatures peering at him from behind a boulder, and on his first past too, and at the time it seemed like such an easy task to just rush back lead the princesses and his fellow guard back to the boulder, and a hero’s congratulations… It’s just a shame the creatures didn’t seem to be feeling very cooperative today, because when he returned to the spot with his princesses and fellow guard fast on his heels all he had to show them was a large boulder and some strange sweet taste that tainted the air and agitated his tongue- well, that and the show he was providing the other guard as they exchanged bit’s on whether or not he would crack under the annoyed glares of the three ponies a guard should never find themselves on the wrong side off.

He didn’t even dare try and meet the eyes of the princesses, which only made the cold unyielding glare of his commanding officer seem all the heavier, and the weight of it didn’t lift from him even when the captain’s gaze was cast around in a slow, sarcastic glance towards the horizon,

“So.” Captain Shining armor said with a slow, condescending tone “They just…flew away, Private?” his tone made the question seem more like a statement as his voice dripped with a dangerous edge that made Golden shower suddenly become aware of a drop of sweat snaking its way down his neck just before it caught on the rim of his helmet with a sharp twinge.

Mustering every ounce of force he could, Golden shower looked the captain in the eye and gave him an answer. “I… don’t know Captain Armor, b-but I SAW the creature right there, behind that rock.”

The captain’s eyes followed to where the private’s hoof was pointing and Golden shower let out a silent sigh of relief as the suffocating glare finally lifted away from him, but the relief only lasted a moment and he steadied himself as Shining armor sucked in a harsh breath.

“Perhaps the private is correct, Captain…” a sudden voice interrupted.

Golden shower sucked in a breath of his own as the briefest flash of anger crossed the Captain’s face, a look that was crushed as soon as he saw who it was that spoke to him.

The private would be lying if he said that his savior wasn’t the last pony he’d expected to defend his assertion, and the shock made sure a moment was lost trying to blink what he thought must have been an obvious illusion from his eye, but the image of Princess Luna defiantly remained there all the same.

The princess was facing away from the both of them, staring at the exact spot he’d pointed to earlier. Golden shower knew he was staring as well, but it was all he could think to do. He just hoped his expression didn’t look as dumb as the captain’s as the alicorn turned to face them both.

“I happen to know that some of these creatures may be… adept diggers” Luna said with a slow and methodical inflation “and it would not surprise me to learn that the hole right there was not present when the private saw the two creatures… is that correct, private?”

With those last words the princess attention had focused solely on him and golden shower felt himself drawing in another nervous breath before he could speak, “N-no princess”

The alicorn gave a smile at his word, one that looked a lot colder and sly then the soft smile Princess Celestia always gave, but despite feeling off, the gesture Golden shower felt a well of relief wash over him. At least until another voice jolted him from it.

“Not to be disrespectful princess,” Shining armor cut in, matching the princesses tone, “-but that hole seems almost completely spherical. I don’t see how it could have been dug by something.”

Golden shower could not help but feel a chill as he forced his body to not flinch when his princess shot shining armor a venomous glare, a glare he swore she attempted to conceal “And that makes you think it to be natural?” she asked with a voice as cold as her stare “I do believe I did used the word adept, captain Armor.”

Golden shower felt another chill as the princess’s gaze once more fell over him, and the stallion had to struggle to hold back another nervous flinch, but after a second he realized the glare wasn’t directed at him but rather the pony standing behind him as the princess continued.

“I would have briefed you and your guard on the creatures if my sister had seen it fit for me to do so. And frankly I am most disappointed to find my sister praise of you seems unfounded.

When you arrived you did not ready any form of detection spell, nor did you make any effort to search for the creatures in any way, instead you simply dismissed your guard’s claims off hoof... If I did not know better captain, I’d assume that you expected our quarry to just throw themselves in front of your muzzle.”

The princess finished her speech with a low shake of her head as Golden shower, and pretty much all the guard worked to lift their jaws off the floor. The captain however looked just like he might have if the Princess had just raised a hoof and slapped it across his face. But If the Alicorn took any joy in their expressions, she didn’t show it; instead she took another breath,

“Fortunately for you, however, their method of escape may help us locate them in a more… expedient fashion- So long as there are no more mistakes to cost us any more valuable time.”

“And when we do find them” Celestia’s voice cut in for the first time, reminding every pony of her presence “I trust you will remember the discussion we had?”

Though she wore her usual smile, golden shower couldn’t help but notice that Celestia’s face held none of its usual warmth.

“I do recall,” Luna replied with a curt nod towards her older sister.

“No, sister” Celestia said again with a firmness seldom heard by most ponies “I need you to promise me; promise me now that you will allow me and my guard to handle this.”

The younger princess’s face shed all its emotion and her head gave a curt nod “You wish this to be on your shoulders alone, so be it.” She said with a dismissive tone, and when the word left the alicorn’s mouth, Golden shower swore he could see the faintest crack spread over the older Alicorns royal vistage.

“We have been over this, Luna.” Celestia began, and Golden shower could swear he could detect the crack seeping into her voice “I do not wish to bear it alone, I merely want to know I can rely on you in this matter, you are a Sovereign of Equestria and I more than respect your input, but you are the first to forget that I know you, sister. Please, can I rely on you in this?”

Luna didn’t answer at first; instead she seemed to be pondering something- but after a moment the thoughtful expression fell away from her face and she turned to look her older sister in the eye,

“As much as I can rely on your experience, sister”

And with that said, the Alicorn turned on her hooves and began to make her way back towards her own guards, leaving Golden shower to dare a glance at his superior.

They both let out a breath.

… …

Once again, Zuko found himself questioning the last hour of his life, and as he blindly stumbled in pursuit of the sightless Earth-bender into yet another pitch black void he couldn’t help but ponder the same thing he’d spent his every quiet moment pondering since the day of his banishment…

There was a time he thought a person’s destiny was set, that a person could only follow a path that was already paved for them at the day of their birth. His uncle had changed that belief, he’d given him hope that a person can choose their own path, but every blind step he took in this void made him question that hope.

If he could choose his own path then how did his choices lead him here, blindly following a path someone else, a blind girl was carving for him? And if he was free to choose then what did it matter in the end if the choices of another could destroy his own efforts so easily?

But even though the question gnawed at Zuko, he knew that he had to keep moving, and that, for now at least, would have to be enough.

Once again there was a crash as a swing of Toph’s arm extended the dark tunnel a few feet further into the void, and as another mouthful of dust tried to catch in his lungs Zuko felt a sharp moment of panic that he had to crush. He almost felt the need to chastise himself for not expecting the stupid creatures to have wings, and with how his luck had been going they were probably just waiting for them to poke their head out of the ground…

Unfortunately for Zuko, a wandering mind was never the best thing to have while walking blindly in the dark, and it served another lesson as he pulled his face out of the dirt with a pained wheeze.

“Watch your step back there” Toph‘s chiding voice called through the blackness, just before another thunderous crack sent more dust into his face,

With a hiss the last of Zuko patience waned and he pushed himself up and shouted in the darkness “How do you even know where you’re going? For all I know we could have been going in circles for the last hour…”

Strangely, Instead of the response he was expecting, Zuko heard Toph give off a soft Chuckle “Because the earth isn’t as empty as your head … I can see everything in the ground, and on it. They don’t call me the greatest earth bender for nothing”

Despite the darkness, Zuko could still see the smug grin on Toph’s face, but the will to fight the point had long passed so Zuko just let some more air pass between his teeth, and with that the silence crept through the tunnel again, leaving only the musty air and rhythm crash of stone giving way to distract Zuko from the other questions buzzing in his head.

The loudest of them was ‘What on earth were those creatures’ and ‘where on earth could they be’. But more so Zuko couldn't help but question again just how he ended up in this dank pit. Sure, the tunnel had been a quick, and much needed getaway, but he couldn’t help but feel uneasy as his sight was smothered by the musky black air, and worse the nagging question of how much air was down here with them kept snuffing the flame instinct lit in his hand. And worse of all he could almost swear the tunnels were getting narrower

“How much longer is this going to take?” he asked when his cracked lips couldn’t hold the question back anymore…But he only found another laugh as a response.

“As long as it takes for you stop being a wimp, Zuko”

Well, at least one of the questions in Zuko’s mind was answered. She was probably making the tunnel smaller to mess with him...another thing he didn’t need right now.

“How am I being a wimp” He shot back hoarsely “I can’t see a thing down here.”

“Yea, that sounds like a real nightmare…”

The way she said that made Zuko pause for just a moment, and for just one single moment he felt an odd pang of clarity, “Yea I guess it would be…” But almost as soon as the thought came to him it was smothered by the musty air and thick dust and was shaken from his mind.

“Can we at least get some air down here?” he asked again with another pained hiss.

“If I didn’t know better I’d say you were scared, Zuko…” the girl teased again with her usual sly tone; one that made Zuko grit his teeth.

Scared wasn’t the right word, but breathing shallow air while blindly stumbling through a blackened tunnel felt all too similar to when he was in the North Pole, and the flash memories of nearly drowning in frigid water wasn’t doing anything to help Zuko’s mood. But still he couldn’t admit any of that so he just bit his tongue and tried to ignore it…

“There’s a space over here, we can stop if you have too” Toph said suddenly with a tone he’d rarely heard her use, - It was almost too subtle to notice, but something about Toph’s disposition had changed as if a candle had been snuffed out. It was enough to let him risk the bait, so after taking a steady breath he just let a simple question pass.

“Is it clear up there?” Zuko asked

“There’s none of them on the ground I can see, but they can fly, so I don’t really know.” Toph replied and Zuko sucked another deep breath through his teeth, the clammy air caught in his throat, but again he ignored it,

‘We can’t risk it…’ Zuko decided

“But we’ll have to go up there soon, the air is running out… but I still say you’re a wimp.” Toph interrupted and Zuko just let out droning huff.

“Why, because I don’t like suffocating?”

“No,” she replied with a deadpan tone, “because you dragged us both into this hole instead of doing what we should have done in the first place.”

Once again the long suffering sigh escaped Zuko’s teeth, almost every moment for the past hour his own thoughts hadn’t been hounding him, and Toph had made her mission to spend every other moment showing him the ‘light’ about how big of a wimp he was for running away, and it looked like his moment of peace had come to an abrupt end.

“We’ve been through this” Zuko said with a tired voice, “We don’t know anything about them except that there are more of them then there are of us, and I’m not getting killed just because one of them hit you with a pie.”

“Look,” the girl replied with a firm but even tone, “I bet even you know we can’t run forever Zuko, and at this rate by the time they do run us down we’ll be too tired to do anything” her tone dropped to a low hiss “just like when your sister tried to hunt down Aang. Back then I said ‘we’ could have taken her and I’m saying we can take them now.”

The conviction in her voice seemed strong, but it didn’t do anything to persuade zuko, it just made sure the palm of his right hand found its ways over his face “You don’t know that…” he said matching her hiss as he rubbed his now chafed, temples “If we fight them they’d just have more reason to chase us”

“They’re already chasing us,” Toph scoffed with a stamp of her foot that sent a rain of dirt from the cave roof, “and I doubt they’ll stop just because we jumped down a hole. I’m not stupid Zuko, and you can’t be so dumb that you don’t realize that we will have to fight back next time or they will just run us down.”

Toph let out a huff of air and Zuko felt a push at his arm with another soft call of ‘wimp’ as she walked ahead, and as Zuko followed he found himself pondering what she had said.

He wasn’t oblivious to her point, she’d made sure enough of that, and even though he’d long ago admitted to himself that running wasn’t something he wanted to do. He was doing it because he thought it was something his uncle would say they should do.

‘Maybe you just didn’t know him as well as you though you did’ Zuko said with a defeated sigh before his voice picked up “ Ok, we fight them, and then what do we do?” he asked as he followed her, “We can’t fight them all either and if we try how do we know they won’t just come at us harder next time?”

With another defeated sigh, Zuko put his hand to his face and talked through his palm, “Were stuck here, and we’re going at this blind…” He paused for a moment, wondering if he’d said the wrong thing “We can’t talk to them, we can’t run for much longer and we can’t fight them all…” His fingers clenched around his temples “and every moment we waste talking about it they could be getting closer.”

His hand fall away and just stared into the black; No matter what he did this was going to end badly… He really, really wished his uncle was here…if only so he could hear Iroh say he’s being an idiot.

“Do you know how much air we have left?” He finally asked, as he shook the thought away and Zuko felt what he thought was Toph shrug.

“Don’t know, but there’s a stream up there…” Toph replied

Zuko paused. That would be two out of three, but there is something else…

“And there’s nothing up there?” he asked.

“Nothing I can see, but they can fly, remember?”

Zuko shot the girl a deadpan look, and the fact he couldn’t see her face only made him his again at the effort wasted on the futile gesture “Can you just make a hole big enough for me to poke my head through?”

As soon as he said that Zuko let out a hiss as a string of light all but cut through his eye, and with another pained his, and feeling of relief, he pushed himself up to the light.

“Urgh…You know I could have just made you something to stand on.” Toph’s voice called out from under him as she adjusted to his weight “you’re really heavy for a wimp… and I love dirt as much as the next girl but you really should think about a bath…”

Despite the volume, Zuko was too enthralled with the hole to pay Toph any mind and as his head broke through it took a moment for his eyes to adjust to the light, but when they did all he found was just more empty ground.

“Well that’s a load of my shoulders” Zuko murmured… before he found himself lying on his back with a thud.

“And that’s a load off mine” Toph said offhandedly and with that three pillars of stone sprung up from the ground, forming a set of makeshift stairs. She gave a quick “After me…” as she set off towards them.

What Zuko found when he reached the sunlight was all but an oasis to his weary eyes. The sound of running water could be heard bubbling from the center of a shallow crater in the ground. Zuko had to fight to keep himself being pulled towards the lure of fresh water. Now that he could see the sun again his eyes his eyes were all but fixed on the horizon as a part of him just knew that the second he let them fall away would be the second the creatures would leap out at him so Zuko just stood at the crater’s edge and scanned the barren expanse with a cold distrustful eye.

When he glanced around for the second time, Zuko almost had to stop himself from falling down the incline. Off in the distance a lone cloud hovered into his sight just floating in an endless see of bright blue.

Zuko blinked. He could have sworn that wasn’t there a second ago…

The presence of the cloud wasn’t what drew the reaction in his admittedly paranoid mind, and on second glance Zuko couldn’t even feel angry with himself for almost falling flat on his back because of a cloud, but still he kept staring, unable to shake the feeling that the cloud just felt… off.

For starters it looked far too fluffy to be a normal desert cloud, and second he could swear it was only floating a hundred feet from the ground. On the other hand, while Zuko didn’t know what else those strange creatures could do he doubted they could make clouds just for the sake of following him. But, the fear of attracting the creatures kept him from simply putting a fireball through the cloud anyway- instead he bit down on his tongue and just stood there glaring at it.

A sudden round of footsteps pulled his eyes away and a tug at his sleeve almost pulled him into the crater, and when his startled eye turned it found an excited looking Toph.

“Zuko! Get your butt down here I think there’s fish in this pond!” She said, punctuating the order with a harsher tug on his sleeve.

Zuko pulled away to glare at the could again, but paused when his stomach gave a groan, reminding him on how hungry he was, and with one last glare he gave up and let himself be pulled into the crater.

…

Atop a lone white cloud a dark form shifted with an air of discomfort as pair of deep blue eyes peered down at the dry earth below and fixed on the two strange creatures walking towards the water’s edge.

This was it; her quarry was right in her sight and Princess Luna could help but feel elation well up inside her as she lay atop the perfect spot to plan her final course of action…

‘I almost cannot believe my sister agreed to my request to move ahead’ She thought ‘it seemed the fear of losing our quarry was greater than my sister’s mistrust.

Luna shifted her perch and flinched slightly as her flank felt the twinge of cold metal on her fur. Her guard was at her side, a condition of the agreement, and just like her the watching ponies couldn't help but shift uncomfortably as sweat ran down the back of their necks and pooled along the rim of their armour. But unlike their ruler, the guards were whispering between themselves, and not at how right their princess must have been, but rather they were sharing whispering words of disappointment as they took in the sight of their quarry.

‘Undisciplined foals’… -Luna scoffed as another deep sense of distaste washed over her unlike them she knew what those creatures down there were capable of; in fact she had spent the whole day worrying about it. But at the same time she had to admit, at least to herself, actually laying her eyes on the creatures confused her.

‘I know what you can do’ she thought to herself as the guard’s whispers passed by her ears again ‘If you had wished it that lowly town would not still be standing… yet you fled when you met its inhabitants…why?

And now that I finally track you down, what do I find? You stand splashing around in the water like a foal….’ A scowl spread across Luna’s face; one that silenced the guards as it did, and her own mental voice grew sharper.

‘There you are almost taunting me to put this too and end… It pains me to even consider this… but my sister may be right- There are just too many unknowns, and that is a problem we are unable to correct’

Then, like a flash of lightning an idea struck, and a hair like smile pulled at Luna’s muzzle,

‘No, that is a problem I can quite easily correct- I merely require the proper…excuse’

Being sure to let the smile fade away, Luna turned her head towards Shining Armor; the captain was also holding the creatures under a scrutinizing eye and a contemplative frown was present on his face, one Luna could tell shared the same hint of disappointment that the other guards held. But she ignored its presence and mustered her best impression of her sister royal tone.

“There they are captain.”

Shining Armor gave a small confirming nod as he slowly broke his gaze and looked towards the princess with a raised eyebrow, “…They… don’t look like much, princess.” He said with a cautious air, and Luna saw her own night captain pass him an agreeing nod,

The lackluster response made Luna scoff, but she made sure to hide it, and as she turned to them both she tried to keep her voice even, “And a tarantula appears cute- until you try and pet it and it bites you, captain.” She scolded, not paying mind to the weird looks the surrounding ponies gave her, “I have seen what these creatures can do and you would do well to heed my warning. They are not to be underestimated.”

Turning her eye, and mind, back to the two beings, Luna let her shoulders shift under the weight of her necklace. She was all but itching to just go down there put her idea into effect, and put an end to this problem. But at the same time she knew Shining armor’s presence would mean him tattling to her sister if she did. So for now at least she would have to settle for waiting,

‘But…’ Luna thought as the hair thin smile returned ‘if they were to attempt to leave, I would have all the excuse I needed…’

…

“Hurry up with the fish will you, I’m starving!”

Zuko felt hiss of smoke pass his teeth as he swam along, as Toph’s shrill voice reached his ear, and he sent another annoyed glance to the shoreline. After the fourth time he’d gone under the water and found nothing he was convinced there wasn’t anything to find, not that Toph would accept that, but that more than suited him and he kept looking anyway because the cool, crystalline waters helped to numb him to the twinge of the sunlight and bite of the sand.

Taking in a quick breath Zuko let himself fall under the water again and as they washed over his head. It even numbed his mind of the worries that weighed on it. But, like most things, the relief couldn’t last forever and after Zuko decided he’d dragged this out long enough he started back towards the river bank- and up the sandy incline where Toph sat… a non-insignificant distance from the water, he couldn’t help but notice.

As he approached, Zuko could only make out Toph’s feet as they hung over the edge of the chair and rested on the ground. The rest of her was obscured under a tent made of stone,

“Let me guess, “Zuko heard her murmur, “you caught a really big, really tasty fish and I won’t have to listen to my stomach anymore?”

Instead of answering Zuko just let himself just fall backwards onto the ground, his clothes giving a soft squish as all the water leaked into the dry cracked earth.

“Well?” Toph repeated and Zuko just let himself mutter,

“I keep telling you there’s no fish in there…”

“And I keep telling you I can hear them, you’re just being Lazy!” Toph shot back in a droning tone, one he noticed was devoid of any real conviction. But despite that, Zuko felt the need to scoff as his eyes fell on the make shift lounge chair the girl had crafted.

Her legs dangled over the side and they hit the rim every so often and a large triangle tent made of stone was perched above her, obscuring the girl from view, but the sound of her sniffing sharply made him question the real reason it was there.

But it seemed Zuko’s question was answered and he looked over as the ‘tent’ sank into the earth and a hand fell away from Toph’s eye and she stood up and softly walked passed him and softly muttered,

“Come on then we better get going...”

Zuko paused for just a moment before following.

…

The longer Sun Beam watched the two… ‘Visitors’ below her, the more her conviction grew that these couldn’t possibly be the creatures that had the princess so worried. For one, they looked nothing like what she or any of the other guards had talked about when they passed on the princess’s description. There were no jagged claws hanging menacingly from cloven limbs. No blade like fangs and no snake headed tails to be found anywhere on the two- Just two small forms, with scraggly limbs hanging lamely over a scrawny barrel.

From the look on shining Armor’s face, Sun Beam could tell the other guard captain was struck with a similar impression. But on the other hoof, one look at that horn on his head made her remember her own little brother, a unicorn like Shining Armour, a cute little bean of pony who forced them all to move house one day when an innocent sneeze caused a rather… bad magical backlash.

The princess herself had said looks can be deceiving when Captain Armor vocalized what all the guards were thinking… also the princess thinks spiders are cute….

Suddenly, the creatures started walking away from the crater and Sun Beam turned to the Alicorn next to her. “Princess, they’re doing something”

The princess’s focus didn’t even twitch at the announcement, her eyes were already fixed on the creatures and she stared at them as if she were a dragon watching over its horde.

Sun Beam though she was ignored until the princess gave a cold “I can see that Captain” in response, then she could have sworn a smirk of all things spread across one side of the princess’s mouth…

‘What could that mean?’ Sun Beam wondered as she shot the other captain another glance, hoping he could give her the answer.

Shining Armor looked back with his own questioning gaze.

…

Luna continued to watch, with a cold and steady eye as the two creatures got up from where they were sat and started walking out of the crater… and straight towards the hole…

This was it, this was it, this was it, she chanted in her head as her eyes flicked around to Shining Armour.

“Captain how good is that shield spell of yours?” she asks with the best neutral sounding tone she could.

The stallion recoiled slightly, and met her eye with a curious look “At full power it’s enough to hold the entire changeling army back princess” he said with a matching neutral tone. Then Luna saw the captain’s expression harden “But I thought we were here to observe them until the other guard arrived… Or the elements if need be.” Luna noticed the stallion muttered that part and she almost couldn’t hold back her smile this time as she saw her way in.

“They’re heading towards the hole, captain” Luna said with a scolding tone, one with a silent scoff behind it-‘If it was my sister asking jump his only response would be ‘how high’ she thought. But Luna let the thought slide and tempered her voice for what she said next; while being sure to choose her words carefully

“If we miss this opportunity then we will have to wait until my sister arrives before pursuing them and may lose them.” she let her tone harden “We have an opportunity to confront this now and we would be fools to let it pass” she made sure to look the stallion in the eye “You have the opportunity to stop this now captain, and we both are left with a choice; take this opportunity or risk your sister having to do it in your stead.”

Luna could almost see the gears turning in the stallion’s head as soon as those last few words left her muzzle, and she knew it would take only a second for him to take the bait.

The captain didn’t disappoint, and with one last glance at the two creatures he put on the same neutral expression “You said you know what these creatures can do?”

“That I did” Luna smiled “And I know what you need to do. I need a shield spell cast around them both, and it needs to be a complete sphere, otherwise they will simply tunnel away under it.”

Shining armour nodded, “That’s easy enough princes. But a casting one that strong through the ground requires a considerable amount of energy, so if you require any spells after it-”

“That’s fine,” Luna interrupted “I only require the one shield spell, and it need only last until I have cast a spell of my own.”

Luna believed she’d said that evenly enough. But despite this conviction she didn’t much care for the following look that spread across the captain’s face…“If you don’t mind me asking, Princess. What spell would that be?”

“A very simple spell” she answered “One that I know very well Captain... One that will show me the truth of this matter”

She took one last glance out at the two creatures, which were now much closer to the hole and rolled her shoulders to feel the satisfying cracks.

“Captain, ready your spell. Make it invisible if you can, and at least until it is discovered, but more so give me as much time as you are able- The rest of you to me!”

…

Something was watching them, Zuko was sure of it…

From the first step he’d taken away from the crater, he knew something felt, off. And even though he tried to dismiss it as the same tired paranoia, by the time the hole was in sight again he could almost feel the weight of something’s eyes resting on his skin.

But even worse than its prescience alone, the strange feeling almost had a sense of familiarity about it... one rooted within a very vivid memory.

The same ‘itch’ had shot over his skin a moment before he held lightning in his hand for the first time- back at the day of the eclipse, and now, just like then, the air around him felt like it vibrated with a dull hum. Zuko wasn’t certain about it at first and then his eyes had wandered over to Toph and found a deep air of discomfort hanging around the earth bender, just like the dull hum surrounding him.

‘It can’t just be in my head…’ he droned as his eyes once again drifted around each, almost mockingly empty horizon, Toph doesn’t just go quiet for no reason’

That was something Zuko had become more than painfully aware of in his short time after joining Aang, he didn’t really know much about the girl Aang had taken as his earth-bending teacher; and frankly he would be the first to admit he didn’t really care too. But one thing he did know was that her blindness mean that she never spoke when she was feeling nervous.

And she hadn’t said a word since the first second the itch had started crawling over his skin….

Zuko shot another uneasy eye towards the girl before he cast it back out to the horizon. But again all it found was the same stretch of blank, dry earth and empty blue sky,

‘Wait…’

His eyes strained to focus on a faint black shape obscuring the wash of sunlight pouring onto them, but after a moment the sting died down and the orbs widened when they adjusted and found that same, lone cloud idly floating against the sea of blue.

Zuko seethed as a hand went to his swords. But after the metal was held in his idle hand, the rush of adrenaline died away all he found was the same, still, puff of white floating in the air.

‘Get a hold of yourself’ Zuko scowled as let the swords fall away and a hand lifted to his eyes in the hope of rubbing the tired ache away, but the ache stubbornly lingered and left him staring at the overly puffy cloud with clenched teeth. If it wasn’t for the risk of the stupid creatures finding him, Zuko wouldn’t be working so hard to fight the urge to just cut the stupid thing in half with a fireball and be done with it; it even looked low enough to try.

Suddenly, Zuko felt the hairs on his neck rise on end and a shudder shot through his bones as a thousand tiny needles seemed to push through his skin. But not a second later, the feeling just died leaving nothing but a phantom tingle and same dull buzz in his ears.

For a second the stillness almost seemed worse than the itch itself and Zuko couldn’t help but cast a panicked eye as far as it would go. And when it fell over Toph and the obvious impulse to say something burned at him.

But, just like the itch, the question died when he actually saw the girl…

The air of discomfort that surrounded the earth bender was gone. Now there wasn’t anything around her but stillness. The sound of her toes digging into the soil being the only thing to dispel the illusion, and despite all but knowing the action was fruitless instinct pulled Zuko by the nose and around to look at her face…

Earlier, Zuko wondered how someone born blind could know how to smile, but now he all but had had to wonder how a look of complete shock could be sitting across her face.

With one eye still flicking to the cloud, Zuko took a step closer and his nerves even pushed him to tempt laying a hand on the girls shoulder. But she didn’t react, not even when he tried to pull her back… he just saw an airless whisper pass her lips…

“Toph?” Zuko hissed as he pushed her again with a palm, but Toph just let out the same words, barely above a whisper,

“It’s… gone…”

“Toph?” he tried again, but the girl just shuddered under his palm and murmured again…

“What? “He dared ask with a whisper of his own “What’s gone?”

She didn’t answer right away, instead the girl just sucked in a shallow breath and then Zuko felt her shudder under his palm, “… I… I can’t see”

The words barely carried the force of a whisper, but that time they were as clear as water, and Zuko could only stand there for a moment, in silent wonder as to how Toph could joke, now of all time as she started shaking.

But just when he took a breath to yell at her, Zuko noticed Toph wasn’t shaking with laughter like he’d first thought she was. Instead the girl was just shaking as she repeated the same airless mantra.

Then the memory of the cloud flashed in Zuko’s mind and he grabbed hold of the girl’s wrist and pulled her after him with a warning scoff. “Come on we don’t have time for this we…”

The next word faltered and Zuko felt his teeth rattle in his mouth like he’d just walked straight into a stone wall. But as he looked up and blinked a tear out of his eye, all he saw was the same distant horizon. He stared for another moment, then without even thinking, Zuko brought a hand out in front of him expecting to find a handful of empty air… But as he pushed his hand forward the ‘empty air’ pushed back.

‘This must be what Toph felt’ Zuko snapped as he pushed against the air again with another snarl. Then what he said clicked and his eyes shot around to find the Earth-bender with her own hand pushing against the ‘empty’ space as well and slid it around for a second before pulling her hand back and knocking on it like a door, scrunching her face into a frown.

“I think it goes all the way underground…” she muttered in a low voice, and Zuko could only offer the words a vacant ‘eh’.

“I said I think it goes all the way underground… “She replied sharply before her tone lost its force again, “For a second I thought….” She stopped and let out a shudder and her voice gained an edge. “What is it?”

Zuko sucked in a breath to answer, but he really didn’t have one, only the impulse that brought up a hand and a stream of flame followed and shot out in front of him. Only for it to twist and ride along the invisible wall spewing heat and smoke back into their faces.

“Argh, stop, you’re not helping!” Toph screeched and coughed through the smoke.

Zuko just grit his teeth and readied another ball of fire, but a pull on his arm stopped him and he turned to face Toph who had her arms crossed over her chest.

“Yea and fire isn’t doing much to help so save it” she said in a deadpan tone and Zuko let his hand fall away.

“Well what do you say we do?” he shot back

Without even a pause, Zuko felt the earthquake beneath his feet, and as he pulled a shaky foot away a slab of earth jutted out from under him and then a cloud of dust filled the air.

“Urgh, thanks for the warning!” he coughed as he twisted his eyes away from the sharp dust and when he opened them again Zuko found Toph clutching her head.

After a second she rose back to her feet with a hiss, “Argh what’s this thing made off?”

“I don’t know” Zuko admitted ideally before he let his tone harden, “but I think it’s safe to say those things have found us…”

“If this is because of them then why haven’t they jumped us yet?” Toph asked in a mirror of his previous thoughts, and just like then, Zuko didn’t answer. Instead his eyes fell back on the ‘empty air’, only this time it wasn’t empty.

This time there was a tiny pinkish ‘crack’ of light just hanging in mid-air, and after a taking a moment to try and blink the sight from his eyes. Zuko took a step forward and pulled a sword loose from its sheath. First he gave it a poke and his eyes scanned around nervously again, but when he found the same stillness he swung it, and the metal shuddered and let off a sharp clang as Zuko felt the bones in his hand sing with the same painful tune.

‘Not the best idea’ he thought with a snarl as Zuko tried to shake the dull ache loose from his hand, and when it dimmed he turned towards Toph.

“They probably think we won’t be able to get through it. But if it is them, then they…”

Zuko almost jumped back as Toph snatched the sword from his hand and swung it with a growl,

Clang!

“Then!”

Clang!

“They’re!”

Clang!

“Cheating!”

Zuko felt a cringe shoot through his bones every time the metal of his sword chimed against the ‘empty air’ and they rang with the same painful memory. Then with a final defending clang and sound of shattering glass, the ‘air’ seemed to split as purple flakes fell to the earth like water droplets, before soaking into the dry earth, and as the final ring died away the air grew thick with a calm, uneasy stillness.

He watched with a numb eye as Toph lowered the sword and dragged her foot around the dry earth. Then, just as a word itched on the end of Zuko’s tongue, the earth bender let out a deep, contented sigh, and held the sword up under his nose.

“Thanks, I needed that….” She said

Zuko flinched away as the blade passed in front of his eye, and much to his wonder the metal didn’t seem to be marred by even a single scratch, and with a dumb nod and uneasy hand, he reached out and took it from the earth bender all the while staring at the smug grin sitting on her face.

Just then, a clap of thunder shattered the silence and a flash of light pulled Zuko’s eye away from Toph.

He watched as the, small, lone cloud churned and writhed, folds snaked out before drawing back on themselves making the mass grow as they did, and mass of cloud churned and grew until it smothered the baking sun, making it shine with a deep red before swallowing the light entirely.

Then, out of the darkened sky a lone black chariot began a steady descent in front of him, the shining black form surrounded by a following mass of the similar winged creatures. But unlike the golden one before each of these were donned in dark blue armor, and stared at him with the same huge but slit eyes like a serpent.

The chariot touched down as the creatures spread out around them both. But just as Zuko felt the urge to reach for a sword another creatures followed and stepped from the large black chariot.

This one was much larger than the others, and stood tall enough to almost meet Zuko’s eye. It hair sparkled and swayed as if pulled by some strange unseen breeze and It fixed him under a cold, scrutinizing glare. Then, with steady purpose, it lifted itself from the carriage as the other creatures parted and began walking towards him, wearing a cold, confident visage that reminded Zuko of his younger sister.

Zuko saw the creature’s expression crack slightly as he met its gaze with a more guarded stance, but it kept walking until it was no more than twenty paces away from him and just stood there, watching them with that same cold, analyzing gaze and he flicked a steady eye to each of the watching creatures before meeting the eye of the tallest one. Two dark blue orbs stared back at him with the same cold scrutiny and a final deep breath raked at Zuko's throat before it hummed under his skin as fire…

…

...

chapter 12 part 2

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One second… that’s all it takes…

...

Just one spark of clarity, one moment’s hesitation and everything that had once seemed so clear, so certain, crumbles before your eyes, leaving nothing but a deep cavernous silence in its wake….

…

And, for Princess Luna, that moment struck the second she stepped hoof before the two creatures she’d spent so much time, so much effort, searching for, and as everything that once seemed so clear to her turned to dust before her eyes, all the Alicorn had left to cling to, was a single, sarcastic thought….

‘Well, I have not yet been attacked… that is a… good sign…’

Indeed it was a “good sign”; in fact, it was the very sign her sister had been praying for. But, instead of offering relief or comfort, that very same ‘good sign’ had done nothing but leave the Alicorn staring blankly at what seemed like an endless sea of lost and confused eyes.

You see, when she had been perched atop her cloud and peered down the creatures as they began their clumsy, desperate escape, the princess could all but hear her next move ring in her royal ears like it was the soft chime of a bell. ‘Simply place yourself between the creatures and their path of escape and then they would- oh so graciously -provide you with all the justification you would need to strike… Then, this matter could be continued when the beings which had caused you so much worry were… properly restrained.’

‘After all,’ the princess had reasoned ‘it would be better to give some half hearted apology, than to do nothing and see that nightmare come into fruition…

But alas, when she left her cloud, felt her hooves kiss the cracked ground below and began her slow, deliberate approach; the two creatures hadn’t seen fit to cooperate…In fact, they hadn’t really done anything as far as she could see…

Instead of attacking like she had predicted, the only… response the creatures had to offer her presence was to stand their ground as she continued to draw ever closer- twisting their strange limbs into even stranger contortions, leaving only silence to ring in her royal ears as her guard, and the creatures themselves, all looked to her to make the next move…

A move she didn’t have…

And so, for one of the longest moments she had ever suffered through, Princess Luna just stood there glaring at the two creatures that not only cause her so much worry, but didn’t even seem to possess the courtesy to see that worry through.

‘It’s almost like you knew.’ she seethed with silent venom, ‘like you knew my sister would judge everything I do here, and so you spite me by doing nothing just to tempt my hoof…’

But, despite her now burning ire and the threatening demeanor that Luna could all but feel against her fur, the Alicorn made no such move to strike. It wasn’t fear of the creatures themselves that stayed her hoof, or even the fear of her sister’s disapproving frown. There was another, underlying reason which had crept around her hooves and held them stronger than any shackle ever dare hope to match….

While she was performing her sacred duty and she peered into that dark, abyss-like dream cloud, what Luna found was something that she could only ever describe as daemons- dark omens of fury twisting the very elements to their whim as they tried to rend each other with each thunderous blow. But now, that very same “omen” stood in front of her, and as the nerves that were once raw with dread began to numb through confusion, she couldn’t help but admit a wave of disappointment had rolled over her, extinguishing their last lingering glow with a sharp, drawn out hiss….

The truth was, now that she actually saw them with her own eyes, Luna found these creatures to be strange rather than outwardly threatening. To their credit they hadn’t withered in her presence like so many had before them, but at the same time to her royal eye their long, almost feeble limbs that branched off comically into even frailer looking digits and tiny eyes that sat rooted in equally tiny heads made the defiant air surrounding them seem like nothing more than an impotent visage.

But still, as the Alicorn continued to soak in the creature’s cold, insolent glare, she had to admit, those tiny, eyes held an edge that some dragons would probably envy, and both of the creatures proje….

Wait…no, on second glance, it seemed only the taller of the two creatures actually possessed a nerve bold enough to meet that eye with its cold, insolent glare. The other creature merely stood like the other while its head was left to hang low, its eyes hidden behind the clumped patches of its lifeless mane.

Luna felt her attention linger on the other creature, the apparent flash of weakness having brought her a new twinge of hope, and the longer she looked, the more it bloomed until she could all but taste the clue she needed on her tongue. The stance it held seemed firm but was also set slightly askew, with its seemingly miniscule load held under a solid but strangely awkward bearing. Its lower limbs were spaced wide apart within its long, loose fitting cloth while it held the other two in front of its shallow face, in a way that, to Luna’s eye at least, seemed less reminiscent of a stance tempered by the heat of conflict and more like that of a puppy begging its owner for a treat.

Yet, despite its strange stance, and the fact it seemed unwilling to meet her eye, it was the creature’s tattered cloth which had cemented this sickly visage in Luna’s mind. The way it’s rusty red cloth wrapped loosely around the creature’s pale, pasty skin unearthed memories of a much loved pet she had once owned, and the cloth she had tenderly wrapped around its furless, mange-filled body.

As she looked on, the earnest memory threatened to make a smile spread across Luna’s muzzle, but just as she felt it begin to tug weakly at its sides, a sudden, sharp flash of light pierce her eye, tearing through the tender memory, replacing it with nothing but a painful, white daze.

In that brief second, an order for her guards to strike tried to push its way past Luna’s teeth, brought on by the thought that the creatures had finally made the bold move she had been waiting for. But instead of letting the command free, Luna felt the painful shroud fall away and her eye fell back over the larger of the two creatures… and the sword it dared to wield in her presence.

The blade flashed again as the creature drew a short, impatient breath and the Alicorn matched its breath with a short hiss of air through her teeth as the glare from her sister’s namesake was caught in the face of the polished metal.

‘Two blades?’ Luna couldn’t help but wonder dismissively to herself as they tried to shield her eye from another sting of light. But the blades themselves held her attention for no more than a second. She’d always considered such weapons to be of little consequence to an Alicorn…

No, it was the creature’s other, empty limb that had ensnared her eye. The limb held an almost delicate air in its tiny digests stretched out towards her, offering its unseen threat as if it was a gift….

Despite its frail air, the sight made Luna’s all but forgotten unease rush back into her mind with the force of a sudden, crashing wave and pulled at her mind with shallow, icy tendrils. Even though part of her knew the gesture was lost to her guard, she also knew all too well that the threat held by this seemingly empty limb was all too real…

The seemingly innocuous threat held within this creatures strange limb was the sole reason she’d weathered the small eternity it had taken to find it, and even if they both appeared so much lesser now when compared with that dream, that in no way meant they were harmless. The memory of that huge stone city falling under an ocean of flames, like a beach falls before the rising tide, made it a hope she couldn’t risk clinging too….

‘This stalemate has gone on long enough;’ Luna decided with cautious finality, ‘and even if I am now lost in this matter. I must take action now or I risk losing the advantage...’

And with that final thought, the Alicorn straightened herself under the creature’s eye… and prepared to speak.

Now, as she did this Luna was well aware that Equis was thought to be a tongue foreign to the ears of these creatures- that was assuming those strange fleshy protrusions jutting from the side of their head had any purpose at all. But at the same time she had always been sure to invest more trust in what her own royal ears told her, rather than in the words of another pony.

So, after drawing a long, calming breath she curled back her lips and let the words come forth, all the while making sure they stayed unmarred by the very same wisps of doubt which fueled them.

“I am Princess Luna, Sovereign of Equestria and Mistress of the Night. You are trespassing upon Equestrian lands. Stand down immediately and state what purpose you have here!”

As the last word passed her lips the princess couldn’t help but feel a small swell of pride rise within her chest. They were a testament to all the time, all the effort she’d spent in front of her chamber mirror, tirelessly working to emulate the pose, gentleness, but also the authority her sister’s words seemed to inspire naturally. And as she savored the small warmth her moment of pride offered the Alicorn didn’t even bother to squash a small ember of hope that, for just a second, made her stand in wait for that answer.

But...that one second soon became two, then three, and when Luna turned her eye towards them in silent demand It seemed that only one of the creatures even saw fit to offer the sum of her efforts any response at all, and that response was the briefest flash of a confused glance, before its face was consumed by the same cold glare.

A shallow sigh passed Luna’s muzzle, carrying with it all the warmth that once filled her chest and her next thought came with a twinge of silent resignation…

‘Very well…’ she thought with a tranquil rise, ‘if you are unable or unwilling to simply give me the answers I seek. Then it will be just as simple enough a matter for me to reach out and take them…’

With one last glance towards Shining Armour, followed by a final, nervous breath, Luna called for her magic and she let out a deep, contented sigh as its calming warmth washed through her horn.

When she let that same warmth reach out into the creature’s mind, the Alicorn could almost swear that, for a just a second, it’s face shed its cold glare to expose a look of complete and utter surprise. But, that second soon faded, along with the rest of the world, into the soft confides of a dull, greyish hue….

Letting her magic reach out further, Luna searched for the thin veil which surrounds every being’s mind. But strangely, as she scoured the empty caverns, that was all she could find… a dull haze of empty grey stretching out endlessly in front of her.

She let out another tired sigh, ‘Insolent speck, where are you?’… ‘Wait what is…?

‘Huzza!’

Casting its form against the grey backdrop, a large swirling mass pulsated between faint shades of grey. It swelled out towards the Alicorn as dots of black seeped into its form, like little droplets of ink falling onto a cotton ball, before the whole mass spooled in on itself and faded back to a faint shade of milky grey.

She watched as the mass seemed to begin fighting with itself, struggling to hold a vague shape which, to her at least, resembled a storm cloud trying vainly to imitate one of the ‘brain’ diagrams she had found within one of the modern ‘biology’ books her sister had forced her to read after her last attempt to aid her subjects…

The less said about that day the better…

No longer holding back her smile, the Alicorn let her magic gently touch against the swirling mass. But, to her shock, nothing at all seemed to happen. As soon as it touched the swirling mass the magic fell away from its surface like water thrown over a glass sphere…

Another swell of indignation rose in her throat, and with a sharp growl the Alicorn reached out again, pushing all her frustration at the swirling mass of nothing that dared shroud the answers she sought.

This time, the ribbon of magic met the skin of the cloud in a single concentrated point and instead of just falling away; it pushed against the veil with all the force of the Alicorn frustration. But instead of falling under the force of her magic, Luna felt her jaw loosen as she watched the mass gave a quick shudder before the veil pushed back.

The action was almost too fast to register, and it wasn’t the fleeting moment of resistance that passed as a pony's mind adjusted to her presence. This was something different. There was a loud snap followed by a sudden violent push against her very presence and the sheer force of it almost tore the weave of magic from her horn.

Luna gave a startled yell as a thunderous bolt of pain shot through her skull. Her magic seemed to shudder through her horn as a strange heat began to grow within its base, building to be near searing as she fought to keep it from ripping itself free of its very core… But then, just as soon as it came, the pain began to numb, dwindling away until there was nothing left but a faint ringing which echoed faintly against the edges of her skull.

For the longest moment Luna just stared… it was really all she could think to do as her numb eyes looked unmoving at the veil’s hypnotic writhes and spasms…Then, before she could even ponder why she did it, Luna let her magic reach out again. The wisp of her power made contact and she drew a sharp pre-emptive hiss through her clenched teeth in silent trepidation for the pain that would surely follow. But instead of pain, or anything she was expecting. The defense seemed to just crumble away and the mass gave only a slight quaking shudder to betray that it was even under her touch….

With the same timid air, Luna pushed through the veil and peered through to the other side. A cold wash rushed through her as she open her mind’s eye. But that cold shudder soon gained an icy edge when she found… nothing. Unlike the minds of her ponies there was no great tapestry of tangled threads sparkling as if to greet her, no rhythmic swirling of soft, dreamlike clouds to draw her in before cradling her like a warm blanket, only a deep colorless void which stretched out endlessly in every direction she cast her mind’s eye.

‘Did the spell fail?’ was her first stuttered thought. If it was, then it would be the first time it had. But even with her mind held under the dulling ring, Luna knew it hadn’t.

She was walking within this creature’s mind, she knew it; every breath, every beat of its heart, and every spark of thought told her so. Yet, even though she could hear every one of them, even though she could feel them buzzing around her, the apparitions stayed just out of her reach, hidden behind the strange, endless mass of… nothing which stretched out boundlessly in every direction she cast her mind’s eye, smothering her in its cold, oppressive embrace.

Grinding her teeth Luna tried to push further into the creature’s mind. The void gave way under her reach but only seemed to close in around her, crushing against her efforts with building force for every ‘inch’ she gained, until Luna found herself floating listlessly amidst the strange, empty mass.

Slowly, surprise faded into gnawing confusion and Luna found herself tugging weakly at the thread of magic that linked her to this… nothing, and for a brief moment she felt a frustrated surge that almost drove her to simply rip the spell free.

Just as she was about to act on that impulse the faintest flicker of movement caught the furthest corner of her attention. The magical thread dropped amidst the endless caverns as it darted across the void’s blank, endless expanse. It had no form or evident purpose, beyond its mere existence, yet it tugged at her mind’s eye for that very reason, like the shadow cast behind an eyelid when a limb move between a closed eye and a very bright light.

The Alicorn watched, with silent curiosity, as the strange apparition began to grow. It danced against the cold empty black as a single speck of color shot up its side like a flame. Faint wafts of red, yellow and orange began fading in and out, pooling together to cast a dim warm glow into the cold void before it was swallowed by the caverns of endless black.

Just as her eye began to numb against the movement, another shadow began to pull at it, and unlike the one before, this shadow didn’t flicker. Instead it moved with a drawn out, fluid motion… turned sharply…and moved straight towards her.

A flash of instinct made Luna pull magic into her horn as the shapeless figure drew towards her, collecting more and more form as it did. But when she tried to release it, the swell of magic only drained into the spell already being cast and the apparition gave only a quick shudder as it continued on, passing her by as if she was nothing but a shadow to it.

Luna watched as the shadow continued on towards its unseen destination and in its wake the faintest of whisper began to tickle her ears. Like a faint hissing, it followed the creature and seemed to resonate against every stretch of black before they found her ear and touched it faintly enough to make her question if she’d ever heard them.

Her ear only swore by one at first, but as it repeated a second time, another followed, as if to answer, then another and another. As they grew, the whispers began to tug at Luna’s gaze, pulling it back and forth until it fell back on the original shadow.

The strange shadow seemed different now. Instead of being nothing but only a formless, incoherent swath of movement, its form now awkwardly mirrored the creature’s strange, lanky frame that seemed twisted into a brash, confident gait. But instead of the sharp but strangely foal-like features of the other two, this figure’s features were completely blank and its movements were rounded and jerky- almost like a puppet set upon loose strings.

One of its limbs began to rise in a slow, deliberate arch until the almost shapeless form hung in front of its face. The action invited a swell of the soft whispers to burst out into the void and brush against Luna’s ears once again.

One more whisper followed the others, and when it did, the void seemed to come alive with rhythmic, flowing movements. The whispers began bleeding together, joining to create an almost deafening noise. Then, the inky blackness of the void seemed to turn to ash before her eyes, slowly peeling away to reveal more of the faint shadows standing and moving just like the first- strange puppets moving to the whim of an untrained master.

The first shadow began to twist and change again, sharpening before Luna’s eyes until it resembled a less…crude caricature of one of these creatures. Its face was set it a smug glare as listless, stone-like, glassy eyes stared off into a distance further than she could see. And when she felt the need to take her eyes away, Luna found many of the blobs had also began to take shape, appearing much like the first shadow had only a moment ago.

Several of them were gathered around a grey square and they sat around the formless table with the first one standing over them. A long thin stick hung in one of its gangly limbs, which it moved with a slow, focused confidence. And as it moved, a small figure was pushed along the recesses of the table and spoke in a low, gravelly voice.

Although she could find no meanings behind them, the words were carried by an oily, almost seething tone which made a claw of unease flitter down Luna’s spine and sank into her shoulders with long, icy talons.

When it finished, and the whisper faded into cold memory, another followed almost immediately. Luna’s eyes moved towards the new sound to find another of the creatures. This one seemed to be much older than the others. A long white beard hung lowly around its crossed lower limbs and it dragged against the ground as it leant forward to speak.

As it spoke Luna, let a silent curse pass her lips- one long forgotten by the ears of ponies…

‘If only I could know what they were saying’ she cursed again as the creatures strange whispers scratched at her ears. But, even though the words held a meaning that was hidden to her, she could swear it soft, yet gravelly voice held a deep root of confusion.

Luna turned to see the standing creature spoke again; its sentence was short and sounded almost deadpan, but soon its tone twisted into an oily hiss that made Luna suppress another shudder as its voice wrapped around those same icy talons digging in her mind, making them sink another inch further into her calm.

She fought to push the shudder aside as another voice touched Luna’s ear. It was much higher than the others and carried with it surprise and anger that left her discomfort all but forgotten.

Yet even though it carried anger, enough to give her pause, at the same time, the voice seemed so much weaker when compared to the others.

‘Almost like a foal’s voice….’

The thought made the Alicorn eyes swing around to the source of the new voice, and the princess found a smirk pulling at her lips as she looked curiously to find what the foals of these strange creatures would look like.

But when her eyes stopped and the image soaked in, she was surprised to find herself staring at the creature whose mind she now occupied. And the more the sight soaked into her eye, the more Luna felt that same growing discomfort build within her…

Something felt wrong, the creature before her was almost exactly the same as the one she stood in front of when she cast her spell. Yet at the same time it wasn’t. The eyes that looked through her lacked the sharp edge that she felt on her fur, and its face war free of the scar which marred the left side of its flesh. But, strangest of all was how much smaller it seemed when compared to the others….

And how it was no shorter than when it stood in front of her…

The thought made the creature’s voice ring through Luna’s memory again. But the faint echo wasn’t what haunted her in that moment; it was something that went unspoken…This was a memory…

Even though it was too fresh, too vivid, to be a memory, it had to be. But that didn’t make sense. The only way that could be true was if it had happened only moments ago… or if it was so often visited it burned itself into the creature’s very mind, the puppets changing a little with each retelling.

Luna's attention came back to the ‘memory’ just as a thick, deathly stillness fell over it. Every pair of stone-like, grey eyes, or mist-like, blank face turned towards the creature, smothering it in a cold, glassy stare.

They stayed there as the seconds ground passed, the creature itself letting its eyes flick between them as if it was searching for validation.

Then, a sharp crack ripped through the silence, and Luna felt a shudder rock through her bones as the once still air seemed to rain down around her.

A raw nerve pulled her now closed eyes over to the source, and when the proud Alicorn found the will to pry them open, the sight she found made her rattled bones seized under the skin- as if she was a mere rabbit caught under the shadow of a starving dragon.

A huge, roaring fire twirled and danced atop a low pyramid of formless stairs. A black silhouette sat within its center, casting its shadow against the vivid, yellow flames, and in that moment, the immortal Alicorn was nothing more than another pair of shocked eyes which stared vacantly as the phantom slowly rose, and began to speak.

Its tone was hollow, almost lifeless, and even though the words held no meaning to her, the looks of shock- and even what looked like glee gave Luna all the information she needed…

Her shocked gaze flicked back to the one who owned this memory and found that the creature merely looked around the room with a questioning eye- though its face was unlined with what Luna assumed was a seed of determination.

The seed of determination seemed to bloom across the creature’s face as its eyes glanced over the standing creature and it spoke one last time, its voice full of prideful confidence….

Then the memory seemed to give way and Luna found the void seeping back into her mind’s eye. The apparition began to fade away, and Luna felt an impotent call rise in her throat as the creatures blurred and slowly began to dissolve, leaving a thin, almost ash-like trail to rise slowly where they once stood.

Once again, the Alicorn found herself staring into an empty void. But, fortunately, she didn’t have to wait more than a moment before new shapes and shadows began to form. She watched as a long narrow podium grew up from beneath her hooves with a silent groan, pushing her up with it as it did.

When the podium ceased growing and stood firm against the dense sea of oily black, a ripple of color slowly began to return to the world around it. At first, it formed small, dim flames which hung from the walls atop shapeless lanterns, but slowly, Luna watched her surroundings grow clearer as the light from the flames spread out, taking the color with them.

The first thing Luna saw were faces- dozens of faces sporadically jerking between the blank, puppet-like masks and the stone-like, grey features, devoid of all expression. Each one seemed to peer through her, inviting a chill to shoot up her spine with every blank, glass-like eye she met.

The chill fell away and she realized the creature’s glassy stares weren’t aimed at her. Instead, their cold, glossy eyes were fixed over the two creatures kneeling at each end of the podium.

They knelt with their backs to her, and to each other, as more whispers passed between the endless mass of faces surrounding them, and Luna felt her eyes drawn to the creature on her right as it stirred and slowly stood with steady determination.

A strange piece of cloth fell from their shoulders as the creatures both turned to glare through her, and when she met that glare, Luna felt yet another a chill run down her spine as a look of pure shock spread across the creature’s face, and, as if someone had just cut its strings, the creature fell to its knees.

The Alicorn was struck with the sudden need to speak out to the creature, but again she soon realized that it was blind to her. But then what made it fa…?

The question withered before she even had a chance to finish as a low growl came from behind.

Slowly she dared to turn her head, the joints feeling like they had fused as the muscle strained to follow her curiosity…But it was a curiosity Luna soon regretted, because when her eyes caught the same sight the creature had Luna almost felt the same weight push her to her own knees.

Slowly walking down the podium, right towards her, was the very creature that had been stood atop the great metal beast. Its eyes were set within a dead, glass-like stare that grew more intense with every step it took.

Again, Luna tried to call her magic to defend herself, but found only a sharp pain shoot through her head as the apparition continued on unabated, flickering lazily as it walked straight through her.

As it continued, the creature spoke as it closed in on the other. Its words carried by a low growling hiss that for just a fleeting second almost sounded like a plea to her ear. But the plea fell away a little more with time the words were repeated, and when the creature on its knees whined something in reply which only seemed to temper the walking creature’s tone.

Its final words were all but spat as it loomed over the cowering being below it, inviting the feet of a thousand insects to rake at Luna’s fur as the larger creature spoke it’s unintelligible words with a final calm, but seething, hiss…

And finally, when the last word was spat out, the creature’s limb began to rise with slow, menacing purpose. Luna felt her eyes widen before she ripped them away. Even though she couldn’t dare see what happened next… the scream that followed meant she didn’t have to….

When she finally let her eyes open again, Luna was greeted by the same black void. Its endless confines now masked a thousand questions, each one buzzing in her ear like an endless swarm, fighting to be the one that buzzed loudest…

But their buzzing soon died as the Alicorn noticed something unexpected, something about the void now felt different. Whereas before it was harsh and rigid, now it felt almost malleable under her touch…

Spurred on by this welcome, if not all but alien sensation, Luna pushed her magic forward, pushing against the void which followed her reach, flowing behind her will like she was dragging a spoon through thick honey.

She reached out again, feeling around blindly for anything her magic could cling too, but the void flowed over her reach each time, leaving nothing but another swell of disappointment. With a growl, Luna let her magic retreat, and she let herself stare blankly at the stretch of nothing in front of her…

‘The mind of this creature is so strange.’ she thought as the memory of the creature kneeling in fear drifted past her own mind’s eye, ‘and so far the only thing it has revealed to me is yet more questions to answer.’

She closed her eyes and allowed herself a moment for the question’s errant buzzing to die away. ‘My effort may prove all for naught anyway. For even if I could hold the memories I seek, they would be nothing but gibberish and…

‘Wait….’

With a quick, sharp breath, The Alicorn pushed her magic out again. But this time, rather than focusing it into a narrow reach; she let it spread out evenly into the void and in all directions, and blindly, her will continued on, brushing against every cavern, bringing with it random images, sights, sounds, and smells, each one sending a flash of color behind her eyelids and all of them just being less than unbearable.

Finally, Luna let a quick shudder rock her as a flood of whispers filled her ear…

‘There!’ She hissed through gritted teeth as she pulled at her magic, narrowing its wide thread into the single point.

The flood of whispers slowly grew louder until Luna felt her teeth begin to rattle in her jaw, each one bringing with it the sharp flash of a random image or emotion….

Letting out a final, silent scream, a flash of heat pierced her eyelids and the Alicorn lost her grip on her magic as it spilled out of her horn with a sharp, ringing crack. The crack lingered dully in her ears as she felt her teeth strain under the force of her jaw locking itself into a painful grimace.

When the ringing finally began to die away, Luna opened her eyes, but instead of finding the creatures standing in front of her, she found only an endless, white… nothing stretching out in front of them.

For a moment she stared dumbly, and then a flash of panic shot through her mind with barbed edges, and the panic only began to twist and writhe, the Alicorn tried to blink the shroud away but found she couldn’t dislodge it.

It was in that second, while she was trapped within that literal blind panic, that Luna found a second spark of clarity- and the cold pang of dread that clawed at her mind soon gained an even icier chill when Luna tried to feel for her magic but found only a pan of exhaustion wash through her, followed by a pain she hadn’t felt since she was a foal, and she tried to pull her namesake across the sky for the first time.

She had no magic… the realization hammered down on her skull like an anvil, and the sharp ring it left dulled her mind to any reason. All it could focus on was the fact that she was now standing in front of the creatures, blind and with no means of defending herself.

A faint shadow passed by Luna’s smothered vision and the movement made her panic dim ever so slightly. She peered through the blinding veil and caught a glimpse of the rim of one of her night guards’ helmets. In her moment of need, it seemed they had sensed something was wrong and moved themselves between her and the creatures.

It took only three more seconds for the white shroud to leave her eye completely, but to Luna, each one felt like a small eternity. But she would never have words to describe the burden that had lifted when the shapes and shadows built up and slowly tempered themselves to reveal the creatures standing before her… Just where she left them…

Both of them still stood in the exact same spot they had when she cast the spell… But, now, the taller of them stood with its jaw locked in the same painful grimace that had only just released its grip on her and it let out a hiss that made her guard twitch nervously.

Luna readied a quick word to calm her guard, but the one she held froze in her throat when the creature swayed slightly where it stood. And the Alicorn stomach seemed to twist as the shorter creature let out a panicked yell as the other creature buckled under its own weight and hit the floor…

But despite what had just happened, something made Luna pause.

As soon as it touched her ear, the sound sent a flood of whispers into Luna’s mind, and she almost leapt with glee as the word formed in her mind…

‘It worked… I did it, the spell worked!’

She wanted to dance, right in front of the creatures, but, almost fortunately, at the same time, something felt strange… Like rush of clarity that quickly numbed into a long, aching strain as a word sat stubbornly on the tip of her tongue. And for Luna, the tip of her tongue was now the uneasy perch of every word the creature knew, each one straining against the other, wanting desperately to be said, but each one still sitting just out of her reach.

But more than anything else, the word brought a swell of emotion in her. Anger was the strongest and strangely shame… but also… recognition…

‘Its name…’ she suddenly realized ‘it was the creature’s name! But… why in Equestria would it carry shame for such a thing?’ Well, that would just have to be one of the first questions she asked wouldn’t it?

Straightening herself once more, Luna began to temper a few more words in her mind, but again, what she was about to say died before they even reached her throat.

The creature had shed its defiant air, now it stood limply with a limb clutched over its middle and the other held up to the side of its head, wrapping it in a grip that seemed just waiting to crush it.

The smaller creature had noticed the other’s distress, and had moved to place itself between Luna and its partner, half kneeling and standing in a way that seemed even more guarded than before.

‘Oh no,’ the Alicorn recoiled, ‘if it believes I have caused the other harm then all this will be for naught!’

The creature stood firm under her pinked eye. It took a long angry breath and slammed its ‘frail’ limb into the earth and Luna felt the air leave her guards lungs as a huge slab of stone followed and hung in the air in front of them.

A similar swell of panic returned, Luna still couldn’t feel her magic and despite the rumor she would not demand her guard to shield her from a threat… she would not ever admit herself as weak by doing so.

Instead she could only look on in panic as the block of stone crashed into the ground making the earth beneath it twist into a shallow wave that flowed forward and stripped her guard of their balance and she threw the whispers against the corners of her mind. Desperately wracking through them as she searched for the right one...

“Wait!”

When it finally made itself known the word all but scraped across Luna’s tongue as she dragged it past her teeth with tortured effort. But as soon as it was uttered it the creature stopped, leaving the mass of stone hanging eerily still in front of her muzzle…

Feeling the moment slipping through her grasp, Luna pulled frantically at the whispers, searching for any that she could use,

“No … Harm…us… No… harm… you…”

Trying to push each word from behind her teeth felt like trying to speak backward on a whim, the language felt so strange, so alien and each one all but scraped across her tongue. But… thanks to the spell, at the same time it held an almost haunting air of familiarity.

For a moment, it just stood there, as still as the air around them, its face twisted into an expression the Alicorn couldn’t place. But then it's hairline lips curled back and it spoke to her in a soft, but very reserved sounding tone.

Once again, the words sounded like little more than a garbled mess. But after a slow second was allowed to drag past, the strange sounds weaved themselves around her ear and revealed their meaning.

‘It wants to know who you are…Ok, you can do this’

“Princess… Moon”

This time, when Luna spoke the words came easier, but only by a fraction. And incidentally she thought it would be best to go with a shorter title and chose as close of an approximation of her name that this strange language would offer her.

As soon as the first word was spoken, Luna saw the creature flinch. It was so slight most would have missed it, but the flinch was there all the same, and the instant she saw it Luna felt the now all but familiar pang of dread shoot through her spine, as she couldn’t help but wonder if the creatures had heard of her…

Or more importantly heard of her fall…

But, what followed surprised the Alicorn, instead of becoming timid, or even moving to strike, the creature straightened itself under her eye and barked something at her in that same hoarse tone.

It took another agonizing moment for Luna to filter through the strange babble. Well, in reality it was a moment she didn’t actually need, because the utterance of one single word made the rest of them shine with meaning.

‘Oh, obviously it wants to know what has been done to the other creature…’

But in truth, the clarity Luna found only served to provide her with a new problem. Namely, how could she explain the situation with her tongue chained by this strange language?

The simple, honest answer was she couldn’t, If she had more time then maybe, but a mere glance at the way the creature held itself told Luna that she was on a time limit. So, she drew a quick breath and spoke the only words she had any real grasp on…

Pointing to the other creature Luna slowly shook her head in a pacifying motion… “No… hurt…"

The Alicorn opened her eyes and settled them back on the creature, waiting for its response.

It stood there for a moment, but soon enough the creatures slowly let out a tired snort as its limbs fell to its side and the Alicorn let out a sigh as the slab of rock fell at her hooves.

‘It probably believes that is all I can say’ Luna mused with her own tired sigh, but at the same time she couldn’t help but feel she was at least making progress. Sure, it was agonizingly slow progress that made her struggle for every inch gained, but it was progress nonetheless, and the sweet taste of it made her next words jump slight to the point.

“You… come… with… us…”

As soon as the words were let slip, the creature’s visage hardened before Luna’s eyes, and the seed of annoyance held on its face soon blossomed into a cold scowl- bringing with it another twinge of panic.

‘Oh no, it must think I am commanding it to yield’

When the realization struck, Luna couldn’t help but draw a nervous hiss through her teeth- Her sister would soon be analyzing everything she does here with a fine tooth comb, just searching for an excuse to berate her.

And worse she had just given the creature the perfect excuse to strike… while she was defenseless…

The thought made the breath freeze in her lungs as the creature give a very short, but firm, reply… then without lowering its guard it slowly began to back away, taking with it whatever credibility she had in her sister's eyes.

“Wait!”

Once again, the strange word passed her tongue before Luna even realized it, but when it did the creature stopped- if for no other reason than to face her with the same cold scowl. But still it hadn’t made a move to strike and that fact alone made Luna feel the dim ember of hope glow a little brighter in her chest. Her eyes soaked in the way it held itself, its disheveled looking appearance…

In that single word she found a ray of hope… it was a long shot, but it was the only one she had.

She raked at the whispers now buzzing inside her head, grabbing hold of one she choked out what Luna prayed would fit her impression, “You… need… help? We… Give…help…”

The creature remained still, and for another long, painful moment Luna worried that she would be shot down again. But that fear lifted as one of its strange limbs found its way across the creature’s middle.

A scowl spread across its face, but unlike the previous scowl it wore this one seemed to betray some unheard question it seemed to be struggling with. Then, finally, its shoulders sagged as a huff of air dislodged its mane and gave Luna a glimpse at its milky glass like eyes. Then it turned its head away as it muttered something just loud enough to be heard.

Luna knew whatever it said was directed at her, a question, but the words it used made ear twitch, was it a euphemism perhaps? Well if it was then her chances of understanding it were less than before she even had the guiding whispers in her ear.

She replied to its word with a simple ‘what?’ And the creature let out another indignant huff of air, before it spoke again and this time the words were clear, but the tone that carried them almost dripped with annoyance, sounding almost oily compared to its usual high pitched voice.

It wanted to know what she wanted from it…

“Questions,” The Alicorn replied in as soft a voice as she could muster, “Just… questions.”

Once again, the air grew still, and Luna felt her fur stand on end as she waited for the creature’s answer. At first, it seemed to muse over her words, staring vacantly at the ground through the tiny gaps of its lifeless, milky white eyes.

‘Well, at least it seemed to be consider-’

Her thought was interrupted as the creature’s limb gave a sharp jolt, leaving the strange appendage to hang in front of it, and giving Luna a glimpse of what she swore was the faintest hairline smirk pulling at the corner of its flat, hairline mouth. Then suddenly, the end of its limb flicked around, and Luna fought a nervous flinch as a deep groove appeared across the earth just in front of her hooves. The Alicorn could only stare with a shocked expression as the creature pointed one of its spindly digits back towards her, then to the line as a commanding tone filled her ear… But just when she thought she couldn’t be any more surprised, the creature slowly turned its back to her and began to walk away.

By the time she was able to pry her shocked eyes away, Luna found Shining Armour pushing his way through the mass of equally shocked guard to stand at her side.

“Princess,” the pony greeted with a quirk nod, which Luna returned after she finally managed to shake her surprise loose, “I take it your plan worked?”

As she heard that, Luna felt her teeth grind again. The sarcastic tone Shining Armour held would normally have at least earned him a scowl, but it seemed luck was on the pony’s side this day because her tiredness meant it only served to sharpen her own tone…

“I have succeeded in dispelling the creature’s hostilities, if that is your meaning, Shining Armour.” She replied, not at all bothering to mask the pride she held.

The captain’s right eyebrow slowly rose towards the rim of his helmet, and his eyes flicked back the creatures just as a Pegasus guard tried to take a step over the line, and found the creature pointing a sword at him from where it sat.

“And the reason the guards are being held off at sword point?”

“-a simple issue of trust” Luna answered sharply “one that will soon be remedied, providing you keep your guard from antagonizing it any further.”

When she finished, Luna gave the captain a curt smile, and quickly turned her head away as his eyebrow found its way back to his helmet.

To her side she heard the captain give a weak cough, “Should I send a guard to find your sister, Princess?”

“No!” Luna barked out before she remembered herself “... Err” she coughed into her hoof, “That won’t be necessary, Captain. I have this matter entirely under my control,” she said quickly, before silently adding ‘and this time my sister will not swoop in and take the credit for my successes…’

Shining gave another nervous cough “Well then, I feel I must apologize, princess,” he said, this time with only hollow sincerity, “because I already sent for a pony to find her as soon as my shield spell was broken… I just thought the action was proper and frankly… I’m still not sure how it broke it in the first place.”

Just like that a wave of anger crashed over her, and Luna snapped her head around to glare at the captain, expecting to find him peering at her with a smug expression… But when her eyes settled on the unicorn, she found him staring nervously at the two creatures.

The sight made her anger seep out of her through gritted teeth, and she formed the last ounce of breath into words, “Well, at least now you understand why I was worried?”

Shining gave a slow nod, not letting the creatures leave his eye, and he spoke without moving, “So what do we do now?”

Luna felt herself smile again, “We simply wait for the other one to awaken” she said with the same pride swelling her voice, “and when it does, I will finally receive my answers, and we can take the situation from there…”

“And if Princess Celestia arrives before that happens?”

At that, Luna turned her head towards the guard and found that his eyes were waiting to meet hers. Then they both turned them back to the creatures…

“A worthy question…” She replied, “We have a fragile situation here, and the sudden… intrusion of my sister would only strip us of what little trust we hold in their eyes.”

She turned and set her gaze back over the pony guard, waiting for him to match it.

“Captain, send out another guard. Tell them to inform my sister of the situation here. And be sure he stresses that I have everything under control and that her presence would be detrimental to that fact.”

The captain gave a hesitant nod and Luna let her eyes drift back over the creatures as the pony took his leave. Slowly, her nerves began to calm and she took the opportunity to scrutinize her success…

‘Well it did not go… exactly as I had planned, but I’d like to see you do better, sister. Now all I need to do is… Urge… what is it doing?’

The Alicorn flicked her now inanimate blue mane from her eye and let the strange sight just soak in. The taller creature was now lying on the earth, its back propped up against a rock as the smaller creature sat next to the other while its face was aimed at the dry earth between them. The two swords were held across its… lower legs, which themselves crossed over each other in a way that made the princesses stomach churn just by looking at them.

As she looked on she stretched her hind legs one at a time, lazily trying to shake away a phantom ache the sight brought to it, and when her eyes was able to overlook the strange way it sat, Luna couldn’t help but notice something else strange about the creature.

Whenever a guard even moved near the line it had drawn in the earth, the creature always reacted to their presence without fail. But when it did it never raised it eyes to meet the pony who disturbed it, Instead it only ever seemed to turn the side of its head in their direction and lay on of its front limbs onto the ground.

‘I wonder if more of its kind shares this bizarre attribute. Or am I just lucky enough to have found a strange one? ‘She wondered idly as the last word bled from her mind and into the cracks below her hooves, making room for a strange sense of elation. ‘Now all I need do is make sure I am prepared for when the other one awakens…’

It was just a shame that the welcome sense of calm didn’t last very long. Because as soon as it began to offer her a moment of needed tranquility the sense of elation was stripped away as Luna found herself staring at the unmistakable sight of her sister’s golden chariot as it hung lowly over the horizon.

‘No…No not again, I won’t let you ruin this, sister!’

Quickly the alicorn turned towards her night guard, about to order them to go out to meet her sister, but at the last moment Luna stopped herself.

‘She got the message all right’ she seethed again ‘But she more likely just chose to ignore it… so when everything goes wrong, she can swoop in and claim the elation of her ponies by ‘salvaging my failed efforts’…’

By the time the chariot touched down, Luna was seething outwardly, to the point where the creature’s reaction went unnoticed to her but she still made out a muffled gasp which escaped its mouth; almost like it didn’t notice their presence until the last second.

The thought was washed away as Luna watched her sister slowly fade into view, slowly stepping hoof off the chariot while wearing that same old smile that never failed to make her feel lesser.

The smile ebbed somewhat when the white Alicorn looked from her and found the creature standing with a blade in each of its two front limbs and Luna let her eyes flick back to her guard.

The pony stood next to her sister with a nervous look gripping his face, one that only grew as her look turned into a glare.

“S-sorry Princess…” The night guard stuttered, “I passed on the message like you asked. But Princess Celestia insisted that you would need her help…”

“Indeed,” the Alicorn confirmed.

Luna looked up with an accusatory eye to meet the older Alicorn, “Well if you had just listened, sister, then you would have realized that was true only because you have arrived…” she said with growing anger. But at the second it was about to boil over, a voice made itself heard.

“Princess,” It interrupted and every pair of eyes broke off to find Shining Armour looking nervously towards the two creatures, “I think it’s waking up.” the captain finished, pointing a hoof to the side.

Luna felt herself smiling again, and she was more than happy to aim it at her sister as turned and began to walk towards the line, “Excellent,” she said with new found cheer “It seems that you will be able to watch me handle this myself after all, sister…”

“Actually,” Celestia interrupted as Luna found a white wing between her and the creatures, “I feel it would be best if you wait here, sister…”

As soon as she heard that, Luna felt her hooves stick to the dry earth as her rising mood seemed to evaporate from her very fur. She stood there for a brief second aimlessly trying to work her jaw then what she wanted to say came out as nothing more than a shocked squeak.

“Excuse me?”

Even though her tone was calm, when Luna heard those words she wanted to scream. Her sister was doing it again, just like Luna knew she would. Pushing her into her shadow just so she could shine in front of all her subjects…

“I merely feel,” Celestia began, “that our… visitors would be better suited in seeing a fresh face.”

Celestia's eyes wandered back to the creatures, but Luna didn't pay it any mind. She could only stare vacantly at that same smile.

“I know that you still wish to help in this matter” Celestia continued slowly “and I have told my student what your guard told me. But that is also why I feel I should be the one who speaks to them now.”

“No!” Luna spat before she could lock her tongue behind her teeth “All it is you want is to take my rightful dues…”

As soon as she let the words slip, Luna saw something that not many ponies can truthfully claim they had seen…. A small crack appeared in Celestia's kindly visage and her voice gained a calm edge as she spoke and a tone that was void of its usual motherly glow,

“No…” Celestia said in a slow, monotone voice that made fur on Luna’s neck curl, “You asked me to trust you when you wanted to travel ahead and I did…”

“But I had to do something, they were about to escape.” Luna interrupted, once again caging her tongue just a second too late.

“Well,”Celestia replied, “then I ask you now Luna, take a much deserved rest and offer your aid to my student in her task.”

Luna still wanted to say no, but she recognized that tone. It was the tone her sister used when she offered no room to argue. So she just let out a defeated sigh and began to walk away with as much dignity as she could salvage.

Luna’s heavy mood almost seemed a little lighter when it met the beaming face of Twilight Sparkle. The mare held a wad of scrolls in her magic and appeared to be doing her best to drive the little dragon at her side to a nervous breakdown with giddy enthusiasm. Luna let herself wear a knowing smile as the young dragon looked to her and mouthed a silent ‘thank you’. The knowing smile then turned into a grateful one when the purple mare noticed her presence and gave Luna a warm greeting followed by a low bow.

She felt her mood lighten a little more when the mare began to gush over the wad of notes, and in the moment Luna even found herself listening to about... half of it.

“…and I mean really, I get to help translate a whole new language!” the mare beamed again, “I mean, imagine all we could learn about them and where they come from. Imagine all we could learn from the ponies there and…”

Luna’s attention faded back out just about there, and just in time to see the mare let out a squeak of all things… But she shook her head and cast an eye back to her sister.

The taller creature was still lying on its back while the smaller stood between it and her sister. And in that moment she couldn't help but feel a small twinge or respect for it. Few could stand in front of her sister like that when she put on her “game face” as she’d called it and most of those “few” were ponies who had been veterans of the day guard.

But there it stood, not at all intimidated, and the dark alicorn couldn't help but let a grin pull at the side of her muzzle as she saw her sister visage crack ever so slightly in surprise as she stood there.

‘Well, it seems you too expected them to wilt in your presence,’ Luna thought smugly, ‘guess you should have listened to me after all.’

“Twilight,” Luna called to the mare still chattering beside her, “I hate to interrupt, but I believe my sister would do well to have that spell working now.” ‘Lest she blame me for that as well’ she added silently.

“Oh right... so how will we do this?” the mare asked.

“I will place an echo of the knowledge into your mind. Like always with such spells, the effects will fade quickly, but it should last just long enough for you to weave the knowledge into the fabric of your own spell. But be ready, Twilight sparkle, the feeling may seem a little… overwhelming at first.”

“Okay, princess… is there anything else?”

Luna thought for a moment, and she bit her lip as she remembers something that may soon prove to be a problem.

“Yes, I fear there is. We may need to think of a different way for the spell to hold. The one I used lasted only a few moments yet it seemed to drain my entire pool of magic in that short time. Any spell we cast might simply wear off before you even open your eyes.”

The mare looked on as the words seeped in. Then Luna watched as her face looked panicked, then full of contemplation, and finally realization and all in the span of a second.

Luna followed Twilight’s eye to her sister’s chariot. Then, after a moment they lit up as a beaming smile almost cut the mare's head in half.

“Could we weave the spell into a gem, princess?”

Luna mused over the unicorn’s words, then she found herself nodded slowly, “We could, but may I ask to what end?”

“Well,” Twilight began “if we can’t use the spell on them directly, then we could weave it into a gem. Then if they wear it, the spell would work passively making whatever they say sound like Equestrian and vice-versa.”

Luna mused on it for another moment, and then she let a smile pull at her lips, “It seems my sister chose well when she endeavored to find a student.”

The mare beamed again, producing that strange squeaking sound again, then the mare bit her lip slightly, “Though It might cause a small delay when they speak, or hear us speaking. But it shouldn’t be much of a problem, at least until we find something better.”

“Indeed, and because of you, we will most likely get the chance.” Luna beamed and turned her eye back to her sister.

The standoff was still in effect. But it seemed Shining Armour was wrong and only the smaller creature was standing against the older Alicorn, and unlike its companion, the smaller creature only held the blade loosely at its sides, and not like a coiled snake when it was in her midst, waiting to strike. Her sister was stood just behind the line the smaller creature had drawn in the dirt, and there she waited, with patient reserve, as the creature almost began to look bored.

That is, until the other creature let out a groan…

…
…

Field trip...

by More Dakka

Part one chapter 1-4

Part two chapter 5-10

chapter 11 part 1

chapter 11 part 2

chapter 11 part 3

Chapter 12 part 1

chapter 12 part 2